The sound of the large bell had struck everyone to make up from their sleep. Temari could care less if one of them is lazy or unmotivated to participate in their group activities. She knows how important it is for them to do the basic exercises. Instead, she and Shikamaru were informed by Lady Tsunade to do another option. They were all congregated, facing her.
"Treasure hunting? Seriously, what are we, fifth graders?" Kiba scoffed and shook his head with a displeasing look.
"I guarantee you that this is not the one you have in mind. It's not with those bells that our sensei have taught us back in our survival training," Temari replied.
"Okay, so what's the catch? Please don't tell me we have to climb the trees to get the fruits," Tenten whined, mentally slapping herself.
"Girl, trust me. This is going to be fun," Temari pointed out.
"Like you even know what that means," Kiba snorted stifled laughter until he got stomped on his foot by Tenten's heel. "Argh! Ow!"
"Tsch. Serves you right," Ino smirked half-way at him experiencing the ache.
"Go on. I would like to hear more," Neji encouraged.
"Hmm. I'm sure this ain't a big deal," Choji nodded.
"Alright. Brace yourselves because this is going to blow your mind. Shikamaru, tell'em the details," Temari snapped her fingers to signal him forward.
He cleared his throat and began to speak. "So you are all cautious about this place here, right? Here are the following rules. Number one, you are in a group of four and you will be marking your starting point in these wooden logs. Number two, you will each be given elastic bracelets, which only Temari and I are in charge of. In any case, one of you gets lost."
"Number three. Hehehe," Shikamaru slightly snickered with a jovial grin, much to the others' befuddlement.
"Gah… What's so funny?" Naruto raised an eyebrow morbidly at his demeanor.
Neji and Shino stood there silently as they were waiting for him to continue further with his instructions.
"You can bring only two weapons; the kunais and shurikens inside your pouches. Nothing else. Your Kekkei Genkai is prohibited," Shikamaru stared at them with a humorous glimmer in his eyes.
"What?!" They dropped their jaws in shock.
"No! Why?!" Naruto questioned vehemently. His eyes were bulging out of his sockets.
"It would be too easy for you guys to find the treasure and I know this can be a little challenging for you. But I believe you will all end up on the same route. You are ninjas and there's no reason for you to complain about not being provided with a map. You will go along the way. The food and water is mostly your responsibility to take care of yourself," Shikamaru explained honestly and sighed as his hands were placed inside the pockets of his pants.
Temari was smiling proudly at him and agreed. "He's right, you know."
"Oh and lastly… Be careful out there. You never know what you may encounter. Sakura…" Shikamaru piped in gleefully, wiggling his eyebrows, making her react to him in astonishment.
She rolled her eyes and threw her head back in annoyance.
"Hey, don't put her in the spot. That girl had endured the scariest thing last night," Temari scolded and nudged him on the shoulder.
"I know, I know. I just want to remind her nicely," Shikamaru put up his hands defensively and added in. "But I acknowledge her strength and power after fighting the wolf. Okay, the list of names is written down in this scroll. Once your names are called, you can get your stuff and you can stand between this line before I advise you to go. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!" The girls saluted sharply, making him sweatdrop and flustered. They burst out laughing comically.
"Another note; don't call me that. Just call me by my regular name," Shikamaru said.
Temari nodded and began to check the attendance. "Since we both are the leaders of the treasure hunting game, we will not be joining you guys, unfortunately. Group one is Naruto, Hinata, Ino, and Sai."
"Yes! I can finally be with my girlfriend. Wait, how come we are partnered up with another couple? Is this some sort of double date?" Naruto oddly raised his eyebrows.
"Why? You don't like us?" Sai asked blankly.
"No. I just particularly don't like you," Naruto contorted his face in disgust.
"I certainly couldn't be more thrilled. However, the one thing I'm willing to give you is my friendship offer," Sai said lightly.
"Heh. Why not just stick your paintbrush up to your a- what?" Naruto blinked dumbfoundedly.
"Would you like to be my friend?" Sai asked.
"Umm…" Naruto was lost at words, whereas Ino rolled her eyes in annoyance.
"Jeez. You're deaf," she muttered.
"I'm not. I'm a bit confused, but…" Naruto scratches the back of his head until he becomes astonished when Sai holds his hand out towards him. He grumbled and shook hands as a sign of acceptance.
Ino and Hinata giggled in delight as the four of them sauntered over to get their small belongings.
"Next group is Choji, Kiba, Shino, and Kankuro," Temari said.
"Aye! We get to be the cool team," Kiba boasted with a smug.
"Oh, shut up! You're just a low-headed guy, who is only lucky to be in with the three strongest ninjas," Naruto sniggered jokingly.
"And you're just lucky to have Hinata, who just feels sorry for you and has to put up with your bullshit," Kiba retorted back.
"At least, I have a girlfriend and you only have Akamaru to end up marrying," Naruto added in, grinning.
"Want some of my punch?" Kiba asked sarcastically.
"Not until you meet mine first," Naruto fired back, laughing.
"Enough! Both of you! Do you honestly want to be punished or disqualified?" Temari scolded.
"Sorry," they both looked down apologetically.
"Anyway, I'll continue on with the last group, which consists of an odd number. Moving onto- Woah, okay. This is a big group but consists of even numbers. We have Neji, Lee, Tenten, Gaara, Sasuke, and Sakura," Temari said astonishingly.
"Yes! Woohoo! I get to be with my best friend, Neji Weji!" The green leaf ninja pumped his fist in the air excitedly and tried to hug him.
The Hyuga simply was crossing his arms, unbothered by his clinginess.
"Jeez, Lee. Don't exclude me too. We're still on the same page," Tenten huffed, placing her hands on her hips.
"Yup! We are indivisible!" Lee hooted.
"Ayee. Sheesh," Tenten facepalmed.
"I want to forfeit," the pink-haired kunoichi blurted out stiffly.
Temari and Shikamaru were puzzled. "What?"
"Why?" Naruto wondered and urged her on. "You can't miss out!"
"No, no, it's okay. I'll just standby and lay low for a-" The pink-haired kunoichi was shaking her head in disapproval with her waving gestures.
"Join us…" Sasuke said.
"Umm…" Sakura became hesitant until she heard someone else speak.
"You don't have to force yourself if you are not comfortable. But if you want to, then that would be great," Gaara said softly.
She looked at him with a frown and paused to think. "Hmm. I guess it wouldn't be so bad after all. It's been quite a while since we haven't gone on an adventure."
"Yay!" Everyone cheered triumphantly and clapped.
"Alrighty. Now that you're on board, you are now proceeding to the starting point," Temari smiled as she watched them shuffle their footsteps and grabbed their pouches from their tents.
Sasuke gripped onto Gaara's shoulder and leaned in close to his ear, saying. "It's best if we just go with the flow, don't you think? You don't want to stress her out even more."
The red-haired Kazekage didn't bother to respond back, except giving him an icy stare that he usually has.
Sasuke scoffed silently and quickly brushed his shoulder past against his.
Gaara stumbled a little as he hovered his gaze on his movements and the rest of their teammates getting ready.
The afternoon sun was emanating hotly and the three groups were heading to the forest after carving out their starting point. The Hyuga cousins had to deactivate their Byakugan, especially Sasuke's Sharingan since they were not allowed to use their visions to find the treasure. If one of them did, they would be off the team. Shikamaru and Temari, on the other hand, were discussing the location of the cave while they were both currently tracking their friends.
"So this is sealed," she observed the map where her finger is pointed on the X.
"Yep. Two teams are halfway there, but they haven't moved for about an hour," Shikamaru sighed dully.
"They're probably resting or bickering nonsense," Temari thought.
"Perhaps," Shikamaru chuckled in amusement.
Somewhere along the woods, they were sauntering in separate paths. From there, they discovered fireflies floating around them.
Team 2
"Vacation? My ass…" Kiba huffed, crunching the leaves and tossing the twigs off to the side.
"We are. Maybe, she just wants us to open a gift," Choji guessed.
"How come it's so far? Why do we have to travel here?" Kiba clenched his teeth in annoyance.
"Complaining will get you nowhere," Shino stated.
"He's right. I mean, this is a fun challenge, so let's suck it up and keep going," Kankuro said coolly.
"Fine, fine," Kiba muttered.
Little did they know, one of the rogue ninjas was watching them from afar. They were using their mind-telekinesis jutsu and observing their every move. As soon as their eyes landed on the other group, they informed the boss eagerly without losing sight of them. Their curiosity had piqued their interest.
"Those little pipsqueaks seem to be going onto an escapade," the first rogue inquisitively as he was clutching the telescopes.
"Eh, what d'you know? They are scouring for something. Possibly, an object or a being," the fourth rogue shrugged.
"I'm guessing food since there's not much here, anyway," the second rogue said.
"Oh, please. You can just go fishing and pluck the fruits from the tree," the third rogue scoffed lazily.
"No thanks. I'm sick of eating seafood," the second rogue stuck his tongue out in disgust.
"Stop with your chatting. Get to work, boys. The clock is ticking, so you better start using your brains. Remember, you need to make sure they do not attain it because what's theirs is mine…" the unknown boss said in a deep, mischievous tone of voice and it soon became echoed laughter.
Several clouds were appearing in the stillness of the night and the groups finally arrived inside the tunnels. A few of the members were worn out after the long walk they had, especially jumping to every branch of the tallest trees. They all lit their own wooden sticks with fire, using the pebbles to see where they are at. Yet, they are in three different paths, which they were not surprised when they followed the arrows displayed on the stone walls.
Team 1
"This place seems to be very old," Naruto said, examining them peculiarly.
"Tell me about it. It does smell like wooden musk here," Ino agreed, sniffing around until she began to sneeze. "Achoo! Excuse me!"
"What is that red glowing light?" Hinata asked as the others drew their attention to where she's pointing at.
"No clue. That could be one of the fireflies," Sai assumed.
"Hmm, maybe," Hinata murmured.
"Are we heading up?" Ino wondered.
"Yeah, but how come there are rocks divided?" Naruto questioned.
"It's most likely a pattern. We have to be careful which one is correct," Sai explained as he and his teammates were peering into them. "If only I had my paintbrush and a parchment, we would've gotten there quickly."
"I'll say," Ino agreed and sigh in pique.
Team 2
"Awww, bogus shit…" Kiba groaned in exasperation and ranted on. "Honestly, this has been the most boring day ever besides the other games we did."
"Not going to lie, but I agree with you. Volleyball stood out to me," Kankuro sighed tiredly.
"Welp, I think I prefer this one. It helps my body become more active," Choji chirped.
"Good to know, Cho. You need a badge of honor for achieving a goal. No hunger or cravings," Kiba nodded impressively.
"Hmm," Choji nodded with a pleasant smile.
On the contrary, Kankuro glanced skeptically at Shino and queried in. "How come you haven't said any words?"
"What do you mean?" He asked monotonously.
"You have been so quiet and you don't seem to be fazed out by anything. At least, be open up with your opinions that we'd like to hear," Kankuro said noticeably.
"I only speak when it's necessary, not by foolishness," Shino stated.
Kankuro squinted his eyes and shook his head in bafflement, saying. "Dude, I can only guess you are either an intelligent one or an old soul. Maybe both, but just try to be normal."
"Forcing someone to be normal is just forcing someone to go to follow an extreme diet," Shino said.
"Man, you're a party pooper," Kiba pointed a finger at him with a distasteful look.
"Eh. Let him be…" Kankuro muttered as they were heading deep to the passageway.
Team 3
Twenty-five minutes later after they successfully set their foot on the ground, they stopped by the large round stone. Neji, Tenten, and Lee were pushing it rigidly to unseal the doorway.
Sakura and Sasuke, on the other hand, were standing closely and talking amongst each other.
Gaara noticed them while he was helping their friends and keeping his cold stare at his rival. He was still in doubt of the dark-haired ninja's deal with him. Despite how calm he seems to be, he just couldn't stand seeing his girlfriend being with somebody else. Even if Sakura was recovering from the loss of her memory, he was still in a bleak state.
"It's open…" Tenten breathed out and wiped the sweat off of her forehead.
"You could've asked me to help you guys," Sasuke said.
"It's fine, you and Sakura are busy having a tête-à-tête," Tenten stated, shrugging.
Lee snorted and covered his mouth to stop himself from guffawing.
Sasuke glanced at him and narrowed his eyes, which Lee's mouth formed into a neutral thin line of remaining hushed.
"Sorry," Sakura apologized clumsily, then they decided to head inside the cavern. They were stunned to see some stalactites dripping a couple of water, but most likely, there was a vast majority of space.
"The treasure is in the center of the pillar," Neji said as he inspected it closely.
"Look. It says that it is not to be touched unless one finds the five missing pieces to unlock the chest," Tenten read the words carefully on the scroll and grunted. "Aww! Seriously?! Are they kidding me right now?!"
"We are the first ones to be here," Lee noted.
"Hah! You sure about that?" The first voice hollered.
"Yeah! We were waiting for your slow asses to get here," the second voice snickered.
Team 3 whipped their heads around in bewilderment and saw Team 1 and Team 2 waving their arms at them.
"What?!" How did y'all-?!" Tenten stammered in disbelief.
"Well, Ten. We were able to find a shortcut through the top," Kiba smirked coolly.
"Oh, please. You probably cheated using one of your techniques," Tenten scoffed.
"Did not!" Kiba retorted back.
"Did too!" Tenten argued.
"Shut up! You're making things even complicated!" Ino scolded with a loud shout.
"Right. Anyway, we need five people to unlock the chest. Who would like to volunteer?" Kankuro asked blankly.
"Me!" Choji and Lee threw their hands up eagerly.
"Why not?" Ino said.
"Same," Tenten answered.
"I'll do it," Sakura said.
"Alright! Go for it!" Kankuro nodded with a smirk.
The five of them were about to decipher the codes above the rocks, but they heard cackling near them.
"We got you just right here!" The second rogue said maliciously.
"Huh?!" Sakura questioned in puzzlement.
The bombs had detonated, causing the girls to scream. Suddenly, the cavern was beginning to quake, much to their alarm. The rocks and other boulders were falling on the ground with a huge thud noise.
"Shit! Everybody, evacuate now!" Kankuro yelled sharply with a warning.
"Let's go!" Naruto said as he grabbed Hinata's wrist.
Ino, Tenten, Choji, and Lee hopped down on the ground as they started to make a run out of the tunnel, whereas Sakura went on the other corner, but tripped on the rubbles.
"Argh!" The pink-haired kunoichi cried out in pain where her legs started bleeding.
Gaara heard her voice as he turned around and examined the area.
"Ugh!" She tried to sprint but limped forward.
"Sakura!" The red-haired Kazekage exclaimed and quickly rushed in as he bent his knees to pick her up from the ground.
The pink-haired kunoichi wrapped her arms around his neck tightly.
"You're going to be okay," Gaara said soothingly.
Sakura's eyes glistened at him nervously with a firm nod. As they were about to go out of the cave, they both stumbled off where the solid surface had ruptured underneath their feet. Therefore, they fall into the dark pit...
TO BE CONTINUED...