Team Not Dead's departure from Konoha was reminiscent of a funeral march. Where brash, excited genin usually stood, here there were three children uncomfortably and completely aware of their own mortality. One of them flipped off the Hokage Tower and no one bothered to argue.
Kurenai mothered. Anko looked grim. Kano stood proud to Naoe but her anger and fear were poorly veiled. Aburame Shinju hugged her daughter tight. Shima's father was late back from a mission and wasn't there. Sakura showed up 20 min late side by side with Kakashi and neither said a word. It was difficult for the adults to be proud of the kids when this scene reminded them so much of the last war. It was hard for the kids to be excited when they knew their lives were being thrown away because leaders of their village considered them inconvenient.
"Ranka!" Anko yelled when she saw him approaching the group. "The hell are you doing here?"
Shima grabbed her teammates. "He's the one who hugged Anko at the patrol base" she whispered. Naoe flinched at the reminder that Anko has feelings.
"I thought you said that was a dream!" Sakura hissed.
Ranka explained that he had been assigned as the official diplomat to Kiri for the duration of the Chunin Exams. Naturally, this was met with suspicion.
"Haven't you tortured Kiri nin before?" Naoe snarked (the man does work in TI).
"Are you just following Anko through whatever hell she throws herself into? Like a masochist?" Sakura questioned. Anko perked up at that.
"Oh? Why do you think that Sakura?"
Sakura took a step back. Thankfully, Shima had her back.
"He has already thrown himself into many types of hell to be near you. Your mere presence, TI, patrol duty, and now Kiri!? There seems to be a pattern."
Anko nodded sagely, "I do seem to have that effect on people. My charm, my sexy allure-"
"You're homicidal tendencies" Naoe interrupted.
"-have trapped many young men and women in this past."
The current young man in question simply stared at the ground to avoid eye contact and didn't even try to defend himself. Anko cackled. And with that, Team Not Dead set out for Kiri, leaving Ranka to follow at a distance in a cloud of depression.
It soon became apparent that Ranka hadn't grasped Team Not Dead's hatred of the situation. In fact, he was trying to make small talk.
"So! Um, how are you guys feeling about your first Chunin Exams? Nervous?" He started.
The team exchanged a Look. Even Anko knew that was a stupid question. However, Ranka was unaffected by the silence.
"What? Nothing? No boasting that you're gonna crush the competition? Where's your confidence?"
"Oh we're confident all right" Naoe muttered.
"Yeah?" Ranka brightened.
"Confident we're gonna die." Shima and Sakura cut him off in deadpan unison.
Ranka stopped talking.
They reached the Land of Noodles by mid afternoon and the coast closest to the Land of Water (the end of the peninsula) by one in the morning. They stayed the night in a hotel (with watches of course). They had a boat to catch in the morning. Their trip had been completely uneventful, there weren't even bandits. The Chunin Exams were going to be their first real combat experience.
- - -Takeshi- - -
Meanwhile, in his cell, Tsukoru Takeshi was going insane. The isolation and sensory deprivation had left him alone with his demons. Sometimes it was so bad he wanted to hurt himself, sometimes he did. His depression, mixed with his developing pneumonia and alcohol withdrawal left him gaunt and frail, with coughs that shook his whole body.
Then the door opened. No fanfare, no light, just a shift in the air and the feeling of a human presence. Takeshi almost cried in relief. He listened as quiet, measured footsteps approached his prone form. He tensed, waiting. Then the person spoke. Their quiet voice barely a whisper filling the room and drenching his soul with fear.
"My my Takeshi chaaan, you've disappointed me." Orochimaru hissed, looking down on his old subordinate.