Hey there guys! How are you all doing? It's time for another update and this chapter will kick off the Jounin exams. I hope you find it's okay and not boring as I'm still struggling with a block right now, but it's ebbing away. I also want to apologize for the fact that the last chapter was riddled with errors, it made me cringe. Also, made me realize I was really in a huge stage of not knowing what to write hehe.
Anyway, let's get on with it.
Excuse any errors or formatting issues and R&R‼!
Chapter 55: The Jounin Exam: Begin!
xXx
The day before had been so hectic that Hinata didn't know what to do.
There were forms to be filled, visitors to be welcomed, and everything had to be organized for the exam.
A very extravagant feast and celebration was also held, to which Hinata attended. The food was delicious and Hinata and Sasuke had a blast watching the performances.
There had been no room for anything and so no one had the chance to train or have time for themselves other than to pack some food, some clothes and supplies as had been instructed.
The latter Hinata was not sure of, but apparently it was leaked there would be missions to be completed.
Hinata did not remember it being that way for the Chuunin exams but this was a higher rank after all.
All of that had been yesterday though. Today was officially the start of the Jounin exams and there Hinata stood among all the other contestants who had entered in the stadium bright and early in the morning.
Looking to her left, Hinata saw her fiancé, Sasuke. He was approximately four or so columns across from her. He quickly glanced her way and winked to which Hinata smiled weakly.
Hinata was nervous and so scared she would somehow screw up everything that the familiar butterflies felt with being anxious wanted to take over.
Sasuke and Itachi had talked to her about her feelings and assured her what she was feeling was normal and that she would do fine when the time came for her to perform.
Hinata would have to believe them and believe in herself.
Taking a glance at everyone, Hinata saw her friends, all of them doing the same as she was as they sized up everyone else.
It was actually a great surprise to see Naruto was not all over the place, Chouji was not eating his chips, or Sakura and Ino were not chewing on twigs.
They were all serious and focused.
x
All thoughts were quickly dispersed when Tsunade addressed them all from her post. She had come down from her seat next to all the elders, clan leaders, and guests to speak to them.
"Yesterday, I declared the commencement of festivities to welcome the start of the Jounin exams," Tsunade started. "Today all of you will be officially starting the exams."
Tsunade eyed them before speaking again, her voice clear and strong. "All of your credentials and such have been looked over and it is believed we will have at least five new members joining our Jounin after the exams, which we think is a very good number this year."
Hinata discreetly eyed the many people around her. Most of them would not make it and Hinata hoped she or Sasuke were not among that majority.
The blonde woman continued. "Every mission you have ever done and anything shinobi-related have been documented from the moment you became Genin until this date and will be used either against or for you.
"The rules are simple and I shall begin with the most important of all: Do not aim to kill fellow members of this group. This will lead to instant demotion and dishonor indefinitely. In other words, you will no longer be known as a shinobi for the rest of your life."
Hinata's eyes widened at the first rule.
What kind of rule was that? It was dead scary; she had to admit, as she imagined never being able to work as a shinobi until she died. What else was there to pursue? She continued to listen nonetheless.
"If caught cheating, disqualification is absolute," the Hokage pressed on. "There will be no assistance from anyone directly or indirectly involved with the exams and that includes borrowing of weapons, with the exceptions of summoning and animals used for combat.
"You will be monitored at all times and have been briefed on habits, customs and the like. Anything out of the ordinary will be questioned and if obstruction is noted, you will be pulled out of the exam for further interrogation.
"No fraternizing while in the exam will be tolerated. Keep your hands and other body parts to yourselves until you are done here."
There were a few giggles and murmurs at this rule and Hinata blushed. In all honesty though, who was going to have the time for being intimate during an exam?
Tsunade cleared her throat to regain everyone's attention. "Those are the five rules and it would do well for you all to engrave them in your brains. Having said that, the Jounin exams will now begin.
"The first test is the written examination."
x
There was a loud bang and in front of the shinobi appeared desks and chairs, perfectly situated on the pitch.
"Get seated in the exact order you are in," Tsunade told them.
Everyone briskly made their way to the desks and sat.
Not a second had passed before booklets appeared on the desks after they did so.
"Do not touch the booklets until instructed to do so," said Tsunade and then she disappeared with a puff of smoke.
A man was in her place when the smoke cleared and Hinata nearly gasped.
It was Ibiki.
A shiver went through Hinata as the bald man regarded them all.
He pointed at a green-haired girl two rows ahead. "Leave. You touched the booklet before being told to do so. Not following instructions can lead to the death of fellow ninja."
A Jounin appeared and escorted her away as she cursed at Ibiki. The man continued.
"You are shinobi of Konoha so I don't think I have to introduce myself," said Ibiki. "Whether this is the first time or the tenth time you are entering this exam, you know I am a no-nonsense man.
"The five rules the Hokage gave you are standard but I have a few more to add to those in case this is your first time.
"This was said before but I will not tolerate cheating here. There will be no talking, no eye contact. No distracting others by fidgeting, loud coughing, sneezing, breaking of wind, and anything else obnoxious.
Hinata ignored the urge to snigger.
"No going to the bathroom, no refreshments or breaks, and no asking of questions. When the exam is finished, anyone who refuses to release their paper or anyone who has not completed every question will automatically fail.
"Anyone with a score under ninety-nine percent will fail. You will be starting with one hundred percent but do not be fooled into not writing anything as it will ensure you will be disappointed."
The scarred male looked everyone in the eye, searching for weakness with a calm but stern expression. Hinata held fast as the male stared at her. She was determined to pass this and she wasn't going to fail before she got the chance to try.
Ibiki pointed at a male next to Hinata and she thought she would faint.
"You!" he said. "Get up. Leave."
For a moment, Hinata thought the man had meant her but the redhead next to her got to him and he stood, fists tight.
"Why? This is my second time doing this!" he yelled.
"And you have done the same this as last year," Ibiki coolly. "You came without being mentally prepared."
Hinata did not have a clue what that was supposed to mean but the redhead was immediately carried away by two Jounin.
Several others were asked to leave in this fashion and Hinata hoped and prayed she would not be one of them. Around three more were asked to leave before Ibiki addressed them again.
"Now that we have sifted out those not eligible to take this test we shall begin," he said. "The test will last for six hours so be sure to watch the clock."
The man snapped his fingers and on the scoreboard appeared a digital timer.
Sasuke was sure his heart had stopped at that last bit Ibiki had said and knew others were of the same opinion. He could not see Hinata from where he was but he was sure, Hinata might have been close to fainting.
It was proven when Naruto jumped to his feet and pointed an accusing finger at Ibiki.
Sasuke rolled his eyes at his best friend. He should have known the blond would have done something like this and hoped his friend would not be kicked out for it.
"Are you crazy?" Naruto yelled. "Six fricking hours?"
Ibiki showed no sign of irritation other than the ticking of his eyebrow. "Hai, I will not repeat myself. Sit or leave."
In Sasuke's opinion, Naruto was very lucky he was not thrown out of the exam and shook his head as he glanced Naruto's way.
Naruto grumbled quite loudly a string of swear words before he sat down, huffing.
Ibiki watched the blond for a moment, making sure he would remain quite before he continued.
"You may begin."
Everyone snatched up his or her booklet, including Sasuke. There was a seal there and Sasuke bit his thumb and pressed it to the seal to open it.
"You two!"
Sasuke heard a few people jump at Ibiki's voice.
"You," he said pointing at someone somewhere behind him. "And you can leave for not realizing to break the seal at this level."
The woman broke into tears as she and a boy were escorted away.
Sasuke put his head down and got to it; there was no room for mistakes, even in this first test.
On the first page, Sasuke was surprised to see there was documentation of his very first assignment and that he had been completed.
1. How could this mission have been completed faster and with more accuracy? Give a full report and illustration where applicable.
Immediately, Sasuke knew the answer as at the time, he had been focused on himself and no one else in the team. His motives were sloppy and execution of jutsu could have been better.
Peeping around, he saw many confused faces and smirked as he flipped through the other papers he had.
There was no way anyone would be able to cheat in this test. Everything here consisted of missions, projects, and assignments of the individual and unless the job was done as a team, there was no way of copying someone's work.
In other words, it would take an idiot out of this world to try to cheat on this.
x
Sasuke had to say he was very impressed with this strategy. The layout and thought that went into the test was genius.
He was floored at how the examiners who worked on the test managed to cook up something like this and actually had snippets of reports he had done for the jobs in accurate detail.
The questions went from something as simple as how he would have been able to express the sentence better to correcting a grammatical error and even something as different as formulating a mission or advice of his own for a fellow ninja using his experience.
It was brilliant, but Sasuke had to admit it was an absolute killer on his hand. He knew after this he would not want to see another writing utensil or a piece of paper for a while to come.
Writing for four and a half hours so far was not easy on him at all and taking a glimpse around the pitch, Sasuke saw everyone was in the same state of mind.
People were cracking their knuckles as softly as possible, rubbing their eyes under glasses, stretching, and just anything not too bold but enough to ease the pain.
Some others were sent away after they couldn't write anymore, fell asleep, tried cheating or something of the like.
Three of the people Sasuke knew were Kiba who had his hand cramp so badly he was unable to continue and Ino who could not hold her bladder anymore and had to go to the bathroom, less she embarrass herself. TenTen had followed less than an hour later, her hand also cramped.
There was no room to feel sorry for any of them at the time, as it took focus not to get lost among those others who had also failed so far.
Yes, Sasuke's hand was tired and felt as though it would drop off.
Yes, his fingers were cramped and ached when he gripped his pen or pencil too tightly.
His eyes were blurred when he looked up from the paper and he had to pee.
Hunger was also becoming very prominent in his mind.
However, there was nothing Sasuke could do because all of the questions had to be answered before Ibiki summoned the papers from under their noses.
He could not afford to fail at the first hurdle to becoming Jounin. He had a family to support and, hopefully soon, mouths to feed.
There was no way he would be able to emotionally support Hinata either if he was always on missions as he had been before this exam.
He needed to be with her and still be able to make good money and Jounin-level missions would be just the way to do that.
Sasuke worked diligently with new determination, Hinata in his mind, and hoped his fiancée was doing okay.
Itachi watched from the shadows, disguised as local Jounin with Deidara.
He beamed inside with pride at the thought that both Hinata and Sasuke had made it through the test successfully so far.
Itachi could only hope they put thought into what they had written on that exam and they would truly pass. After all, who knew them better than themselves?
There was no way he could help either of them as the questions were for the individual alone and so all he could do is hope.
It was a strange feeling, what he had.
Itachi felt more than just an older brother or a best friend and found it amazing the way they could sway his way of thinking, making him care so much.
Looking at the large clock, Itachi saw there was around twenty minutes left.
Many had finished already, looking arrogant about finishing so early but Itachi knew better. Acting that way did not mean a definite pass and only the examiner could decide that. Over confidence could lead to overlooking something important, ending in failing.
Sasuke was seen putting his pen down and stretching his fingers as he finished, catching Itachi's attention.
"The little cuss is done, yeah," Deidara whispered.
Itachi placed a finger to the blond's mouth to silence him as the slightest sign of them sneaking around the area would cause trouble. Instead, he just nodded and continued to watch.
Shortly after, Hinata had completed the test as well and Itachi felt himself smile as she looked over what she had done. Hinata was never one to think she was not capable of making mistakes.
It came as no surprise when the folders disappeared. They were taken from many as they were writing or rereading their work; no one was sent away for trying to keep the papers.
"The test is officially over. Please stand," said Ibiki, who made an appearance just after the folders were taken away. The desks went the way of the booklets, leaving the area bare.
"You may all leave."
Itachi watched as everyone exited the stadium quietly before erupting into loud chatter.
Deidara was just as enthusiastic about talking again and immediately did just that, talking his ear off.
"Back in Iwa the exams are totally different, yeah," the blond started and proceeded to tell Itachi everything that differed to his native village as they followed Sasuke and Hinata.
Itachi barely paid attention to Deidara but kept his eyes on the couple as they tailed them.
It was definitely seen how happy the two were about completing the first part of the exam as they walked through the village.
Sasuke and Hinata stopped to talk to their friends and seemed disappointed at the fact that not all of them had made it to the end.
The Akatsuki members watched as the couple stopped for ice cream and just enjoyed the rest of the afternoon until Itachi decided it was time to leave them alone later in the evening.
x
While making their way back to the inn, Itachi got some dango and Deidara had sweet bean paste.
They had finished eating their snacks by the time they got back to the inn.
Having a shower from the long day, Itachi waited until Deidara was finished and they both left to go out to get something to eat for dinner.
It was a way of celebrating Hinata and Sasuke making it so far and Itachi did not really feel like cooking anything to eat.
Disguised as businessmen this time, Itachi and Deidara went to a restaurant not far away and had a great meal.
By the time they got home, Itachi could say he was tired.
Getting into bed, Itachi thought about the fact that Sasuke did not seem any different, neither did he seem to notice anything.
Maybe he would have to wait and see how Sasuke would do throughout the exam to know for sure if what he had done had worked or not.
Deidara sidled up next to him and yawned, bringing him from his thoughts.
"How do you think they did today?" Deidara asked. "Both seemed really focused, yeah?"
"I think they both passed," Itachi answered truthfully. "Both have the knowledge and experience to get the full one hundred percent."
"Hmm, that would be amazing," Deidara said sleepily. "A really good start to this whole thing."
Itachi could not agree more and made to tell his blond partner just that when he realized Deidara was already sleeping.
Itachi followed soon after, actually excited to see what the next day would bring.
That is the end of this chapter, guys. I hope you like what is happening so far as this is the beginning of the 'action'. I had a lot of fun writing this; it was quite refreshing to try something new. Also, I hope you guys have noticed I am definitely trying to get back on the weekly updates. Not the weekend ones I used to do but it's within the week anyway.
In addition, you can follow me on Twitter now .I post what's going on with me every day and reply to who I'm following. I will start giving updates on how my writing is coming along, throw questions to you on your opinions, and you can ask me questions as well. My Twitter account is currently RisaPooh13 but it was llfairyll. That's two lowercase Ls fairy two Ls hehe. If you don't see RisaPooh13, try llfairyll.
If you have not read Hinata the Vamp, A Happy Ending or Following the Sun, please do.
Until next update…
Ja ne!
Please review, I love it when you do‼
