Chapter 21
Marr agreed to Lord Baragon's statement only slightly, he reasoned with his Jikangan anything was possible he had no need for skill if people were moving so slow that he could read all of their movements. Oddly enough it was on this very point that he would be wrong. Lord Baragon rose and so did Karasu, Marr took a while longer but he eventually rose as well, he had been lost in his thoughts.
Lord Baragon himself thanked them and then showed them out. Once Marr and Karasu began walking back to Karasu's house (for Marr could not afford to shadow travel twice in one day) she began congratulating him and basically fawning all over the fact that he was to be not only a Jonin but a Jonin Assassin as well. Marr however stayed silent for he was worried, he felt unsafe leaving Karasu alone for as long, as he was sure the missions he would be embarking on would take. Also the assassin training sounded like it was time consuming as well, which meant more time away from Karasu, meaning more opportunities for her to be hurt. He would think on the problem he told himself. As he thought this he realized he had been silent for a while, and that she had also been silent for a while. He turned to her and asked, "what do the trials both chunin and jonin entail?"
Karasu looked at him and replied "well as you know in our village, you can only advance by militaristic success so of course, the chunin system is the same, to become a chunin you have to show the instructors that you are indeed, ready to advance usually by taking the multiple tests, that you did. We are then led to the training grounds above the village in a small-forested area. Then you are given a number, that you are required to keep on your person at all times in the following hours. You are to seek the numbers match. So if I got the number 1 I would look for the other person that had a 1. Once you find that person you are to either kill them or be killed by them, the victor of the battle takes the other number and returns to the proctor.
If you do this you pass, I did not pass the preliminary tests I mentioned earlier last year so I did not take the trials." Marr was shocked he had known it was harsh, but he did not know that you had to kill someone. He had seen a few issues with the system though so he brought these up "wait then if that's true then wouldn't you want to fail the preliminary tests so you could have another year of practice and make sure you won the battle? Also how is it possible that you could survive in a fight against a chunin because it sounds like a random drawing right?" Karasu shook her head and replied "if you fail the preliminary test you are evaluated by sensory type ninja and if you are found to have more skill or chakra than is suspected of your current rank, the sensory team is ordered to kill you on the spot.
It was scary when they did it to me they locked me in a room and four jonin evaluated me I was so afraid that I would have more chakra than was expected. Luckily they found that I had the expected levels of chakra and skill, hence I am here today. Also it is not a random drawing genin only go up against genin and chunin only go up against chunin. Except in rare cases like your Marr." Marr considered this but found another issue "how does the village maintain its strength with so many potential ninja dead?" Karasu looked him with an questioning look on her face, than said "well other villages that do it differently, field ninja that have never killed or experienced real battle or real fear, hence one shadow village, chunin is roughly equivalent to three or four outer village chunin.
At least that is what my instructor said in one of his lectures." Marr could see that, one who had experienced killing and life and death situations would be much more prepared for those situations than someone who had not. Karasu added, "we also are older when we start Ninjutsu School so while, other villages are fielding inexperienced untrained children to do their missions we are fielding highly skilled, killers to do our missions." She stopped with a sigh. Marr thought, "that is why I never see any genin outside the village it is because the village only has chunin or higher level ninja do the missions outside the village, so the potential chunin don't die prematurely." Marr was worried for Karasu what if she died in the trials?
He had not realized they were so harsh and unforgiving. Karasu looked at him and saw his worried face; she reached for his arm and drew herself close to his side. Then said, "don't worry with what you have taught me, I will be fine." She was right Marr had taught her quite a bit she had improved tremendously under his tutelage. His worry receded a little but it did not go away completely. They reached her house and he smelled the familiar smells of pine and hickory wood burning, and something cooking, and his worry completely left him. The next day was the day of the trials Saturday. Both he and Karasu arose early as they had been instructed and went to the school building. When they arrived they sat in the same seats they had last Saturday.
Marr was ready he had faced death before he was not worried in the least, the atmosphere around the room were quite different, he could smell the fear, for all the students here might well be dead in a couple of hours. Karasu was also worried but was trying to hide it, but this close Marr could hear her heartbeat and it was beating too fast to be comfortable he thought. He thought that her parent's farewell had not helped the situation either. Her mother had acted as if she was being sent to die. He assumed his parents would have acted the same way. The proctor who happened to be the teacher Marr had fought last week entered and said "Marr please come to the front." Marr looked at Karasu and said "you will be fine remember all that I taught you, also" here he paused and formed four seals the last one being unfamiliar to Karasu and said "shadow style, shadow guardian."
There was a dark inky looking liquid that fell from his downward facing palms and blobbed on the table and slowly took the form of a black bird. Marr said "Agramon told me about this he seems to like you, it is a raven, if you need my help during the trials or ever again and I am not with you, simply look at the raven, hold up your arm to him and say my name. I will be there as fast as I can to help you," he paused and looked away quickly form her, when he looked back she saw sadness and despair on his face, he continued and said, "please don't die Karasu." He then turned towards the proctor, and began walking toward him. While the raven flew silently around the room always keeping an eye on Karasu, when Marr reached the front of the room where the proctor was standing.
The proctor said "it is now seven in the morning, the chunin trials begin at eight. You will report to the training grounds at ten for the jonin trials, until then you are dismissed, is that understood?" Marr nodded, then walked towards the exit, before he walked out he looked at Karasu and mouthed good luck, then smiled a half smile and left.