Book Two: Nozomi's Purpose- Chunin Exams: The Scars of a Vow!
The morning dawned too early for me. Karin and I were on look out for the rest of the night, beings that we were the only ones that escaped injury the night before. The others insisted we get some sleep before we left and started moving again but we refused.
We hurried through the trees without showing any sign of exhaustion.
"Have any of you noticed that we haven't gotten any closer to the tower?" Ginjiro asked.
We all stopped.
"Yeah, I've noticed." Dosu said.
"So have I." "Me too." "What's up with that?"
"Do you think it's a Genjutsu?" Karin asked.
"Probably." Shikamaya said.
"If so than we walked right into a trap." Zaku said.
"We should have been more careful." I clenched my fists. "Be right back." A wood dome surrounded me. I left just a small hole for light, I Blanked Out. Mist Ninja!
I sprang out of the dome, barely giving it time to retreat into the ground. "Mist Ninja!" At that moment they started coming out of the trees. Like melding in reverse.
Everyone in the Alliance stood back to back in a large circle. Kin pulled out some of her senbon while everyone else pulled out a kunai. They were all the same person, clones.
"Be careful, guys." Karin said. We all nodded.
We hacked, bit and slashed through probably fifty clones but they just kept coming and melding.
"This isn't good." Kin said.
"We aren't getting anywhere." Xia said her teeth grinding.
"What a drag." Shikamaya said.
The clones kept saying 'Scroll please.' My wood and trees kept them away from Zaku and Kin. Karin and I were getting tired quickly. I had used a large amount of my chakra healing everyone. Even Sumi was tired. "This stinks." I coughed.
"It's all an illusion." Dosu said.
"A Genjutsu." Oda said. "We have to break it somehow."
"But our wounds are real." Xia said.
"I know this is too freaky." Dosu said.
"We have to find the original." Shikamaya said. "Karin!"
"Right!" Karin closed her eyes. They flung open. "There!" Karin pointed into the trees.
The clones eyes widened. "Get em." I said.
We split up into our groups. Kin, Karin, Sumi and I; Zaku, Shikamaya and Oda; and Ginjiro, Xia and Dosu. We attacked with full force. We left them laying unconscious.
"Let someone else deal with these creeps." Xia said twirling her copper hair.
We took off. I didn't have the chakra to bind them. We ran and jumped through the trees toward the Tower. We got there without any further problems.
"Well this is it..." Kin said.
"Our alliance ends here..." Oda said.
"No it doesn't. Remember our vows." Karin said.
I pulled out a kunaiand cut a crescent moon deep into my left hand. I healed it, but it left a scar. I held out a kunai to the others. Shikamaya took it next and did the same. The kunai went around the circle, everyone cutting a crescent moon deep into the back of their left hand, I healed them as I went. Sumi even had me cut one into her left front paw. Kin was the last to do so. When I held out my hand for the kunai.
"Do you mind if I keep it." Kin asked. "To protect those who need protecting."
I nodded. I turned my hand over to show the crescent shaped scar. "For our willingness to take pain for those we love."
We all put our hands in the circle. "For our faith to came together as one." Karin said.
"No matter what!" we all chorused.
We held our scarred hands in the circle until someone else came along.
"What are you guys doing?" a male voice asked.
We all turned and broke the circle of hands. It was Kankuro, Temari, and Gaara.
"So you guys got your Scroll. Man this third round is going to be a- ."
"Drag!" The alliance finished for her. We all laughed, well everyone but the Sand Shinobi. They just walked into a door.
After they went in we still stood there. "Come on we came in the forest together..." Oda said.
"We finish together." Dosu finished.
We walked up to the door. Ginjiro opened the door and broke the seal tag. We stepped into the room together some of us supporting others.
"Look at that." Shikamaya pointed to the writing on the far wall.
"If 'Heaven' does not exist then enrich your knowledge, and prepare for the chance." Oda read. "If 'Earth' does not exist, run the fields in search of an advantage. Open the series of 'Heaven' and 'Earth', and the perilous way shall be redressed..." Oda paused. "This is namely the secret of 'the one who guides'..."
"What?" "I have no idea what that means." "What the heck?"
"I see..." I coughed.
"What do you mean 'I see'?" Ginjiro asked.
I laughed. "The 'Heaven' refers to the human mind." I turned to my friends. "If your mind is your weakness, like my cousin, Naruto. Work on it. Be prepared for missions by gaining knowledge. And 'Earth' refers to the human body. If you lack stamina and strength then you must continue to train hard."
"You understood that?" Dosu asked.
"Yes..." Sumi said. "Don't you remember what she told Ibiki? She's always thought like this."
I smiled at mine friends. Realization dawned on them. "Oh and we're also supposed to open the Scrolls now."
"Shikamaya will you do the honors?" Zaku said gesturing with his good hand.
"I'd be delighted." Shikamaya made her sign, there were three puffs of smoke and all six Scrolls appeared.
She held her hands spread, off the side of her body. They all opened and started smoking. She thrust her hands forward and sent the Scrolls flying to the far side of the room. The Scrolls smoked as they lay on the floor. Then there were huge bursts of smoke from the Scrolls.
When the smoke cleared three people stood on them, Anko, Ibiki and some guy I've never seen before.
"You kids really took the anything goes rule to heart didn't you?" Anko asked her hand on her hip.
I can imagine how this looked to them. Three different Squads, from three different Villages. It must look weird.
"Just as expected from Miss Senju." Ibiki said. "Do something out of the ordinary."
I laughed but was cut off by a cough.
"It looks like you kids got pretty beat up." The third person said.
"Well..." Kin said wincing as she shifted her weight. "When you participate in five battles you would get kinda beat up."
"We would be in even worse shape if it weren't for Nozomi." Karin said. I blushed.
"Five battles?" Anko asked.
"Three for the Scrolls," Ginjiro said.
"One when someone was trying to get our Scrolls," Xia said.
"And..." Karin clutched her shoulder.
The Shinobi looked at us. Anko looked at Karin's shoulder intensely.
"And we were attacked by Orochimaru." I said offhandedly.
"WHAT!" they all yelled.
"We. Were. Attacked. By. Orochimaru." Kin said annoyed, clutching her stomach wound.
"What happened?" Anko asked grinding her teeth.
"We were just minding our own business, Karin, Kin and I were on watch, then the next thing we know somebody thinks it's funny to throw a kunai at us!" I said. "Now at first we thought it was someone just trying to get our Scroll. It turned out to be that creepy Grass Kunoichi." I coughed. "Now at first we were all like 'great this creep'. But everyone but Karin, Kin and I were knocked out." I said rolling my eyes. "Then Karin and Kin get knocked out too." Why are you lying? Saves them the embarrassment.
"Then Orochimaru makes some comments on how I look, act and battle like my Grandmother. We fought. He made a comment about my flat chest. I punch a hole in the ground. We fought again. Kin wakes up and throws herself in front of a blade that he makes come out of his mouth. Which is really-" I coughed. "Creepy. Then he throws her into the freezing river. I pull her out." I coughed. "Then I tell him if he's smart he'll run. He ran. End of story. Bye bye." I said dismissively.
The Shinobi in front of us looked shocked.
"You kids..." Ibiki said slowly. "Get attacked by a powerful, rogue, slightly insane Shinobi that is one of the Sanin and you kids stand here like it's no big deal?"
"Yeah." "Pretty much." "Yep." "That about sums it up."
"Unbelievable." The third Shinobi said.
"What? Nozomi kicked his butt." Xia said. I blushed. Although I'm not sure if it was from embarrassment or fever.
"This whole test was such a drag." Shikamaya said.
"You didn't find it challenging?" Anko asked surprised.
"Oh it was hard, but we go through it." Zaku said.
"Not uninjured, but hey no one in our alliance died." Oda said.
"We should probably get to explaining the writing on the wall." The third shinobi said.
"No need." Karin said.
"Miss Senju figured it out, I take it?" Ibiki said.
I took a bow. "These kids are really something." Sumi said.
"Well it looks like we don't have any further business here." Anko said. "Oh and congratulations on passing the exam." They all disappeared in puffs of smoke. I saw respect in Ibiki's eyes before he disappeared, Anko looked like something was really bothering her, the other Shinobi looked troubled as well. But Anko...
"Nozomi." Ginjiro said.
I nodded and whipped out my compact.
Anko sat on a couch clutching her shoulder, Lord Hokage stood in front of her. Anko filled him in on what we had told her and the other two proctors.
"So Orochimaru is here..." Lord Hokage said.
"Yes and I think he put a Curse Mark on a Grass Kunoichi. From what the kids were saying he was going for the Sound Kunoichi but the Grass Kunoichi threw herself in front of the Sound Kunoichi." Anko said.
"I see..." Lord Hokage said. "I wish to have a word with these Genin."
"I'd wait a few days. They looked beat." Anko said. "And besides Lady Tsunade's probably going to beat you to it."
"I wouldn't doubt that. Tsunade's..." Lord Hokage shook his head. "He's probably after Sasuke isn't he?"
"Yes..." Anko said. "I wouldn't doubt he's got his eye on Nozomi too now..." Anko looked up. "Have you noticed the golden wolf that goes everywhere with her?"
"The one with eleven tails? Yes I've noticed her. She could be a Tailed Beast."
"But there are only nine." Anko said.
"The Tailed Beasts have always been mysterious to us."
"Minako died the night Minato died... Do you think?" Anko asked.
"I don't know... But it seems the Senju Clan might have some secrets..." Lord Hokage said. He turned around and walked toward the door.
"Lord Hokage?" Anko asked.
"I need a word with Tsunade and Nozomi." He exited the room.