I finally updated! I hope that now that I have no school, and that I'm not sick anymore, I'll be able to update more often. I can't wait to see where this story goes XD I'm having a lot of fun writing it.

I hope you guys enjoy it as much!


Chapter 28: I'll End Up Betraying Them

"I'm getting a bit nervous…"

"Me too, Yukari."

Today is the day of the first Chunin exam. Yukari's team, Gaara's team. and mine decided to all head to the location together. We didn't run into Mari's team, which I'm really not complaining about.

"It shouldn't be too hard."

Temari's always so calm about things. I can't help but admire her. The three of us are walking ahead while the guys are following close behind. It's been so long since I felt so happy, surrounded by all of my friends. I glance behind me and find Yuto making conversation with Gaara. Gaara's doesn't seem like he's too uncomfortable. I smile at the scene. Seeing Gaara make new friends without my help makes me both really happy and a bit lonely. I know I shouldn't think like that, though, so I shrug off the feeling.

"This should be it."

Temari points at a building in front of us.

"That's their Academy? It's so much bigger than the one we have in Suna."

I exclaim, a bit too loudly. Some people passing by give us strange looks, but I still can't contain my admiration. Yukari giggles and Temari sighs. We then all head inside the building.

As soon as we go up the stairs to the third floor, Yukari stops us.

"Everyone wait… Something feels off."

We all look at her with puzzled looks. No one other than her seems to notice anything. Even I have no clue what she's talking about. Some contestants pass by us, while others decide to wait and see what Yukari's going on about.

"Genjutsu. Someone is trying to trick us."

"Genjutsu?"

Maru asks, probably a bit skeptical of what Yukari's saying. Ikki comes up next to Yukari.

"If… Yukari says that… it is Genjutsu… then it is."

Yukari smiles and blushes a bit. I'll have to talk to her about that. I'm sure something is going on with her and Ikki.

"Alright, I'll need to release the genjutsu."

Yukari, regaining her focus, puts her hands together to focus her chakra.

"Release!"

She then touches each one of us to also release us from the jutsu. The sign that said third floor then changes to second floor.

"So it was Genjutsu!"

Maru seems surprised. I am too. Yukari's gotten much stronger than before. It seems like she's gotten much more affinity towards Genjutsu. I'm sure she'll only keep getting better and better.

"You shouldn't underestimate my teammate."

Yuto teases Maru. Ikki, Yukari, and Yuto seem to get along well. I wish the same could be said about my team. Maru and Koji always disagree about something. They're still better than being on the same team as Mari.

We reach the third floor where the first exam is supposed to be held. We're one of the first people there. Most of them are probably stuck in the Genjutsu. At the entrance of the classroom where our test is held, a Konoha shinobi is standing there, checking the exam passes that all examinees should have. For the moment, we enter the empty classroom.

A few people then start coming in. They all try to sit as far apart from other contestants, until we're just too many in the room for that to happen. Finally, a few Konoha shinobi come in. I look around me. Everyone looks so tense and unfriendly. Everyone except the younger Konoha ninja at the front.

"I'm getting a bit nervous…"

I whisper to Gaara, who's sitting next to me. I notice that Naruto, Sasuke, and the pink-haired girl are also there. Then, against everyone's expectations, Naruto point at all of us and grins widely.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto! I won't lose to you bastards! You got that?!"

…That guy's got guts. I can't help but smile at his blatant honesty. He's interesting. I glance at Gaara and notice that he's also got a small smile.

"You're smiling, Gaara."

I say in a teasing voice. Gaara's smile disappears and he looks at me with wide eyes.

"No, I'm not!"

"You can't fool me."

After some playful bickering, I sense a sudden movement from a nearby contestant. It's the contestants that have headbands with a music note on them. In swift and fast motions, they attack a man from Konoha who's wearing glasses and has silver hair. What's going on here?

I get up, ready to go there and do something about what's happening, but Gaara holds my arm and pulls me back.

"But…"

"Kiu, don't get involved."

I reluctantly sit back down. One of the attackers swings his arm at the Konoha ninja, but he dodges it. But then, his glasses crack and he vomits, while blood comes out of his ears. He clearly dodged the attack, though!

"That attack… It clearly missed."

I whisper to Gaara.

"There must be some sort of trick."

Gaara whispers back.

"Kabuto!"

Naruto screams at his fallen comrade. Him and the pink-haired girl go to help him out.

"Quiet down you worthless bastards!"

An explosion of white smoke simultaneously occurs at the same time as the strong male voice resonates.

Right after the white smoke dissipates, a very tall man with a strong build appears with a bunch of other Konoha shinobi. He's wearing a bandana and has two massive scars across his face. They all seem to be either Chunin or Jounin.

"Thanks for waiting. I am Ibiki Morino, the examiner for the Chunin selection exam's first test."

He then points at the commotion, that was happening across the room from where he is.

"Otogakure guys, stop doing as you please before the you want to fail already?"

He's got a lot of authority. There's a certain aura of discipline around him that makes me not want to defy him or get in his way.

"I apologize… This is our first time. We got carried away."

The Otogakure shinobi that unexpectedly hit Kabuto says, a bit insincerely.

"Hmph. Here's a good opportunity to say this… There will be no fighting without the permission of the examiner. Even if permission is granted, killing your opponent will not be tolerated. The idiots who disobey me will automatically fail. Do I make myself clear?"

I gulp. He definitely got his point through… in a very menacing way. He then continues on with his explanation.

"We will now start the first test in the Chunin exam. Instead of your current seating arrangement…"

He takes out a numbered tab.

"You will pick one of these tabs and sit in the seat assigned to you. We will then hand out the exams."

Oh… We're not keeping our current places. Which means that I'll probably not be sitting next to Gaara. And the first test is written? That's interesting. It shouldn't be too hard for me. I got up to the front when it's my turn and pick a number.

When I get to my seat, I notice that none of my friends are sitting close to me. This makes me a bit nervous. Gaara is also in the same situation. He's sitting next to the windows. My spot is right in the middle of the class, at the left edge of the bench.

"Ah! You're the girl from before!"

I turn my head towards the person who said that. It's Naruto. He's pretty loud. Isn't he the least bit anxious about this? No wait, he looked really nervous about it right before seeing me. He probably can just focus on one thing at a time.

"Yeah! I'm glad you remember me. My name is Kiu, by the way."

He seems friendly enough. I feel like I can open up to him right away. He then sits right next to me. I guess that's the seat that was assigned to him. As I thought, he's really nervous. As soon as he sits down, he starts shaking. Written tests must not really be his forte. A girl with completely white eyes then shyly comes and sits on the other side of Naruto. Her demeanour kind of reminds me of Yukari when she's around people that she doesn't really know.

"Hinata! You're sitting here?"

"O-Oh… Naruto! Y-Yes… I…"

Naruto didn't seem to notice her right away. Probably his nervousness is getting the better of him. She keeps stuttering. She's really painfully shy. It makes me want to take care of her. Why did we have to attack this village? If we didn't have to, I bet I could've gotten to know these people. Now I feel guilty if I get too close, since I'll have to betray them in the end.


What did you guys think of this chapter? I haven't had too many reviews on my latest chapters... Is it that it's not that interesting anymore? XD Tell me what you think in the reviews!

Thank you 3 See you in the next chapter!