Ch 10 - The Other Exam
A wind blew gently across the roof of the Kazekage's headquarters and swept a thin layer of sand over Gaara's feet. His chest barely touched the railing from his leaned position as he studied the streets below. Why do I exist? What is my purpose?
To kill, of course!, Shukaku screeched, Don't tell me you're letting that brat get into your head just from one little setback.
Gaara ignored the tanuki and his eyes caught a boy running circles around his parents, who were strolling leisurely with proud smiles on their faces. The little boy held a Suna headband proudly up in the air. In his excitement, he didn't see a rock protruding out from the street and he tripped over it. Quickly, his father leapt into action and caught the boy by the back of his shirt. The son laughed sheepishly as his mother inspected him for any wounds.
The embarrassed grin on the boy's face sent Gaara's mind to the boy at Konoha, who was very clumsy but also had people around him and supported him. Naruto...Uzumaki…
He was so different from Gaara but at the same time, they were so similar. Why do you exist, Naruto?
Naruto's voice rang out in Gaara's head. "I've met people who are very important to me now and I won't allow those people to get hurt!"
Gaara felt a sharp pain in his chest. It was a sensation he hadn't felt in a very long time. A wound of the heart. Nothing has more trouble healing...Isn't that right, Yashamaru?
His head began to pound and the usual feeling of rage and torment rushed over him at the mere thought of his deceased uncle. Gaara leaned his elbows against the railing and buried his head in his hands. Mother! Don't be angry. I didn't forget. You wanted me to be the devil that only fights and loves himself. You wanted me to destroy your hated village, the village that sent you to your own death. The village that didn't care for you at all!
"G-Gaara...S-Stop!"
Gaara's head snapped up and he turned around to see his sand wrapped tightly around his brother, while his sister stood at the entrance to the roof in complete terror.
"Gaara! Please, listen to your sister, okay?" Temari continued to plea, "We weren't trying to sneak up on you!"
"Sister?" Gaara repeated, as if hearing that word for the first time.
Kill him! Kill them all!, Shukaku cackled.
"Please!" Temari shouted again. The grief of losing her father and the anxiety and fear that her younger brother was inflicting on Kankuro was just too much for her to hold in completely. Her voice wavered slightly as she placed herself between Kankuro and Gaara, "Don't hurt him, Gaara. He's our brother!"
Gaara's sand released and Kankuro dropped onto the ground, gasping for breath, as Temari rushed to help him up. "Kankuro! Are you okay?" she asked.
"That's right," Gaara said slowly as his hands clutched the side of his head, "I have a brother...and a sister...and we lost the same mother..."
"And father," Kankuro spat, "Am I the only one around here who actually cares that dad is dead?!"
Suddenly, he felt himself being lifted off of the floor by the collar and staring down in the glaring face of his older sister. "Don't you dare-" she started to thunder and then she stopped herself short. Her eyes welled up with tears and she released her hold. She covered her face with her hands and her tears began to pour out from between her fingers as her palms.
Kankuro fell back onto the mound of sand for the second time. He didn't even bother getting up. Instead he just leaned back on his elbows and stared at his family. Although, to him it felt like he was caught in a genjutsu and he was exposed to a distorted version of his family. Both my parents are dead. My usually robotic sister is crying and my psychotic younger brother has suddenly shown interest in our family tree?!
Kankuro sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "I'm sorry, Temari," he said quietly, "I shouldn't have said that."
Temari...protects Kankuro...and Kankuro cares about Temari, Gaara thought, Is that what siblings do? Do they do that with me?
"Oy...What's taking you three so long?" Baki stepped through the door and raised an eyebrow at the scene in front of him. He chose to ignore it and he fixed his attention on Kankuro, "You two were supposed to bring Gaara in front of the Council. They're all waiting to hear what happened on your end."
"Sorry," Kankuro grumbled as he got this feet, "We ran into some...family trouble"
Temari took a deep breath and began to wipe her face. "I'm…I'm sorry. I just felt a bit overwhelmed...Give us a minute and we'll be down."
"You might need more than a minute," Kankuro said at the state of Temari's slightly moist face and reddened eyes.
"Here," To everyone's surprise, Gaara ripped off a piece of the white cloth draped around him and it floated gently on his sand towards his sister, "You can use that."
They stared at him in silence, unsure of what to do before Temari timidly took the cloth.
"Thank…-" she started to say.
"Make way! Make way! Big shot, coming through!"
Baki groaned at the sound of the boisterous voice that echoed from the streets below. He walked over to the railing and glanced down at the spectacle Tamotsu was making while escorting Hitomi to take her exam. Soon, Temari, Kankuro, and even Gaara were next to him to take a look themselves.
"Must he be so flashy?" Baki scoffed, "She's going to draw a lot of attention as it is."
"What do you mean?" Kankuro asked, "Because of her bloodline?"
Baki shook his head, "You and Temari took the exams as an Academy student so you don't know...about the other exam."
"The other exam?" Temari and Kankuro asked in unison.
Baki nodded, "Ah. It's an exam that is open to the public. Some tribes are very secretive about their skills and the jutsus they pass down. The children in those tribes with the most potential are usually kept out of the Academy and taught in private...Since the Council and the village doesn't have enough time or resources to host two different evaluation committees, the Academy is tasked with hosting the exams for both sets of shinobi-hopefuls. Of course, this creates somewhat of a competition between the private tutors and the Academy administration. The Academy doesn't want to be known for churning out sub-par students, after all."
"So the exams are different?" Kankuro guessed.
"Yes. The exam for the Academy students are much easier," Baki explained, "It's under the pretense that the Academy administrator have a better understanding of the skills and abilities of their own students but in actuality-"
"It's so that the graduation rate for the Academy is higher than the ones that get taught privately, adding an incentive for parents to enroll their children through the school instead," Temari concluded.
"But then being that the other exam is difficult, it also became somewhat of a presentation for the tribal leaders. They attend it to eye the power of the other tribes as well as see the potential within their own."
"Like their own Chunin Exam," Kankuro whistled.
Baki nodded. "And a lot of people will be upset if Hitomi passes."
"How so?"
They all turned to look at Gaara, who didn't budge at all from his original spot and kept his eyes fixated on the street below. "How so?" he asked again.
Baki was caught off guard by Gaara's sudden interest but he didn't let it show on his face. "From the Academy's standpoint," he said, "They would be acknowledging someone they had deemed unfit a long time ago. It would also cause some parents to demand admission for their children, who the Academy has rejected in the past. From the Hatsu tribe's end, it means that Hitomi will become the next leader. Even without her kekkei tota, the fact that the First's blood runs in her veins is enough to put her in that seat once she becomes a full fledged shinobi. Whoever else was hoping to take that title will have to give up on that dream."
"But wouldn't her own tribe be happy that another one of theirs has passed the exam?" Temari asked.
"She wasn't trained by one of their own. Tamotsu's from another tribe. If anything, they'd take offense to it," Baki said, "Her passing will not reflect well on both the Academy and her own tribe."
"Hitomi Saboten," Gaara said contemplatively, which made his siblings nervous.
It was never good when Gaara knew someone's name. If they were important enough for him to remember, it meant they were important enough for him to kill. He leapt onto the railing and jumped over before they could stop him.
"Gaara-," Temari shouted as she started to follow him but was grabbed back by Baki.
"Oy, you two. Go back to the Council and report what happened with Gaara at Konoha. I'll follow Gaara," Barki ordered.
"But-" Kankuro started to say but Baki shot them a stern look.
"Go! That's an order," he said and then his expression softened slightly, "They'll want to talk about funeral arrangements for Kazekage-sama after the meeting. You two should be there for that."
Temari and Kankuro shared a look and then they conceded. "Fine," Kankuro said as he stuffed his hands into his pocket and made his way toward the door, "Just be careful. Gaara has been acting weirder than normal."
"Why?" Baki asked.
"Don't ask me," Kankuro huffed, "Ask that Naruto kid."
On the streets below, Hitomi tightened her grip on Tamotsu's arm. "Tamotsu," she said softly as she felt more and more people appear on the streets to see what he was yelling about, "Your shouting is having an opposite effect. It's drawing more attention rather than clearing the streets."
"I know," Tamotsu chuckled as he pointed proudly at Hitomi and gave a thumbs up sign to the crowd, "But don't you want all of them to know that you're becoming a shinobi? These are all the people who thought you couldn't do it!"
"They'll know soon enough…" Hitomi said.
"Get out of the way!" Tamotsu shouted as he hoisted Hitomi onto his shoulder for additional effect, "Can't you see we're about to make history?! Make way for Hitomi-sama!"
"Tamotsu!" This time, Hitomi's protests were much more forceful, "You know that title does not belong to me."
"It's only a matter of time," Tamotsu said as the Academy came into view, "You and I both know you're going to blow through this exam."
"You never know," Hitomi stated.
The Academy was located right at the edge of village. The large stone walls that surrounded Suna acted not only as an added protection to the school but also partially as the training grounds. The first three levels of the southwest corner were used explicitly by the school.
"Don't tell me...She's taking the exams?!" People began to mutter as Hitomi got closer and closer to the school building, "I thought they kicked her out!"
"Doesn't matter," someone scoffed, "It's not like she's going to get past the written exam. How will she even see the questions?"
"Do you think the Council is that desperate for shinobis since we lost so many from the invasion?"
When they got to the entrance of the Academy, there was a rather large mob of people that followed them. Tamotsu pretended to ignore their mutterings, but inside he was bursting with anticipation to be able to throw all their assumptions back in their faces. He had been waiting to do so for several years.
Hitomi paused right in front of the doorway. Then she took a deep breath before kneeling down to the floor. She pulled back a sleeve of her kimono with one hand while placing the other hand on the sand. Her forehead creased as she concentrated her chakra into her palm. "Glass Release: Guidance."
There was a collective gasp around them, even from the two jonins, as Hitomi stood up, pulling a glass staff from the ground. The staff was smooth and translucent with a perfect orb resting at the top. She tapped the bottom of the staff to the ground, using it as a walking stick.
Hitomi did not hesitate to walk straight into the examination room. She didn't react to the immediate silence that fell over the room filled with kids and their private tutors. She stood front and center of the room with her head slightly bowed, her hand gripping her sleek staff, and a polite smile on her lips while Tamotsu handed the examiner her registration papers.
The examiner was a man in his early twentie but to Hitomi, he was an earth-based chakra user with a control at a level of a Chunin. His eyes darted between Hitomi and Tamotsu. His mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for air.
"That's right," Tamotsu grinned, "She's taking the test."
His words was the spark that ignited the room because suddenly, everyone was laughing. A member of the Hoki tribe smirked at a fellow tutor of the Hatsu tribe.
"The Hatsus didn't have enough people qualified to send to this exam so you guys brought her?"
The Hatsu tutor turned up his nose. "Hmph. Well, she is not one of my pupils so she can't possibly be here to represent our tribe. Besides…"
He placed his hand on the shoulder of a boy, who was seated at the front row. The boy had long brown bangs that framed around his sharp chin. It somehow seemed to draw attention to his narrowed eyes and the disdain on his lips. To Hitomi, he was an earth and wind user with not much control over his own chakra. The tutor looked at his pupil proudly. "Sajin was hand picked to represent the Hatsu tribe, in hopes that one day he will grow to become the leader. Hand picked by Katsuo-sama himself, by the way."
Sajin snorted in response. "Yes. The only Saboten worthy of that honorific."
"So far…"
The laughter died down a little as Sajin glared at Hitomi. "What did you say?"
"The honorific 'sama' in the Hatsu tribe is only reserved for the recognized shinobis in the First Kazekage's family," Hitomi said calmly, "So yes. My father is only one who can be called 'sama' so far...but when I pass this exam, I can take up that name too."
"You mean if," Sajin shot back.
"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't sure of my abilities," Hitomi replied.
"Like your ability to see?!" Sajin snorted, which earned another round of laughter through the room.
The door of the examination room opened and the Headmaster stepped in. He was an old shinobi with more wrinkles on his face than grey hairs on his head, which he hid with the standard Suna turban. His smile was oily and his eyes were practically closed by his baggy eyelids and heavy eyebrows.
"Well, this is surprising. Usually this room is filled with nervous silence before an exam. I must say everyone is in good spirits today," he chuckled.
"Headmaster!" the examiner gasped as he rushed over to hand him Hitomi's paperwork, "She...They...That is-"
The Headmaster took the papers but didn't look at them. Instead, he raised his eyebrows to see Hitomi a bit clearer. His smile never faltered and neither did hers. "Ah, so I see you've returned, Hitomi Saboten."
"Yes, Headmaster," she said politely, "And I'm ready to take the exams."
"Like I've told you and your late mother, god rest her soul, there is no point in you taking the exams as the first part is a written one," he chuckled, "And...well, how do you plan on taking it? I won't allow you to have another person write down the answers for you."
There was subdued giggles and snickering around the room but Hitomi and Tamotsu paid them no mind.
"I was actually hoping to take it orally. You could ask me the questions yourself. I can be separated from the other test takers but their tutors are welcome to watch me as witness," Hitomi said.
"Y-You can't do that!" the tutors and pupils alike all blustered, "That would be favoritism and-"
The Headmaster held up his hand to silence the room, "As thoughtful as your suggestion is, I-"
Hitomi nodded to Tamotsu, who dug into his sweatpants and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He handed it to the Headmaster with a flourish. "Ya might wanna take a look at this before ya make a decision," he said with a wink and a grin.
The Headmaster skeptically unfolded the paper and immediately bursted into a cold sweat upon reading it's contents. He crumpled in his fist and hurriedly stuffed it into his sleeves before anyone else can see. His jovial face was now a face of anger and annoyance. "Fine. I will let you take the test orally."
"BUT," he barked, raising his voice to cut out the protests from the other test takers, "I will do it here, in front of everyone. To make it so that we don't give them any of the answers, these question will be completely new and thought of by me. It will be rapid fire so you will only have three seconds to answer each question. If you get even one question wrong, you will leave and never return again."
"That's unreasonable!" Tamotsu growled incredulously, "Even the others just have to get 75% right to pass."
"If you don't like it," the Headmaster replied, "Then you can leave."
"Are ya kidding?" Tamotsu yelled, "You're not the one in position to-"
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Tamotsu stopped mid sentence as Hitomi walked towards the Headmaster with her staff in one hand and her other one outstretched in front of her. "Deal," she said softly, "I agree to your terms of the oral exams."
"But Hito," Tamotsu hissed, "We don't know how many questions, what kind of questions-"
"Happy to business with you, dear," the Headmaster quickly cut in and shook the little girl's hand.