Chapter 30
Sasuke watched as Naruto worked on a scroll. He resisted the urge to use his Sharingan to follow his hands. He was writing so fast and without making a mistake. The only reason he didn't was because he still thought sealing jutsu were a waste of his time.
Naruto finished his work and rolled up the scroll. He added a bit of his chakra to it before writing the symbol 'heaven' on it. Afterwards, he tossed the scroll to Sasuke. Taking the real scroll, Naruto placed it on the ground and placed his hand near it. Some symbols appeared and formed an array. Seconds later, the scroll vanished. Naruto stood up and sigh.
"Well, it's done." He said.
"And you're sure that out scroll is safe?" Sakura asked.
"Yeah it's safe." Sakura looked at him with a little disbelief. "Look, my apartment is probably the most secure place in the Leaf. Hell, even the ANBU is scared to come in like usual. I had to do it since that crazy woman burst into my place looking to kill me. Trust me, no one is going to get our scroll." Naruto assured.
"Alright, let's get to finding some shelter, some water and some food." Sakura said.
"Why are we wasting our time?" Sasuke asked. He ignored the annoyed sigh from Naruto. "We should just find a team and take their scroll. Looking for food and Shelter will only slow us down."
"Again, can you track or hunt? Did you see where the other competitors went? Can the Sharingan see farther than us?" Naruto asked sarcastically. Sasuke did not look happy. "Since you haven't answered any of my questions, I'm going to take that as a no. Now is not the time to be stupid. We need to think about our acts before we actually act."
"Naruto is right. If we go into this stage recklessly, we can be in a lot of trouble. I think we need to take a page out of the academics' book. We need to find shelter, hunt for food and collect some water. That should be and is out plan." Sakura said, adding on from Naruto's explanation.
"That might be your plan but it isn't mine." Sasuke stated. His other two teammates looked confused. "You two can waste your time with those lessons but I'm going to get another scroll, my way. I didn't need you two before and I don't need you now." With that, Sasuke vanished, leaving two stunned and, somewhat, angry teammates.
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Shikamaru sat in a meditate pose. While it did not look like it, he was concentrating. Secretly, he was cursing his mother for this jutsu. This had to be payback for all the barriers he trapped her in. This barrier was especially hard due to the fact that it was a B-rank barrier, meaning a good amount of chakra, meaning a lot of work. He still learned it be could not hold it for long periods, 2 to 3 minutes at most.
After that time, Shikamaru released the barrier and took a deep breath. He looked at his teammates, who were waiting.
"So?" asked Ino.
"Nothing enter the Probe Barrier. There are no teams near us." Shikamaru said tiredly.
"Well, we can take a break then. I have some jerky you can eat." Choji said, pulling out the jerky. Shikamaru took it and bit into it. It was really good, meaning Choji made it. However, he noticed that he was surprisingly getting his chakra back.
"Oh, I marinated it with ginseng. It's an herb that gives you energy in body and spirit." Choji answered. He turned to Ino to offer some but she refused. Ino would then look at Shikamaru.
"So our plan is to wait and see, huh?" Ino asked with a tone. Shikamaru just sighed at it.
"I don't know why I have to explain to you so many times and I'm not going to explain it now. I really don't have the energy to deal with your attitude. Let's just go and get something to eat." Shikamaru said and walked off. Ino bristled at his dismissal, which Choji saw.
"Ino maybe you should just listen to Shikamaru. The both of you are starting to disrupt the team." Choji said.
"It is not my fault! He has had an attitude with me since,"
"My promotion ceremony." Choji said, cutting her off. Ino looked at him with some surprise. "I'm not that clueless."
"Well he needs to get over it. I've apologized to you and you have accepted it. You didn't have a problem." Ino said. Choji paused at that and looked at her. He then remembered his talk with Asuma. The man told him that he would need to keep the team together throughout the exam. He also told him that he should not keep his feelings bottled up. He was talking about his sadness and annoyance at Ino. His father also told him the same thing. He said that he did not need to be mean but he had to make his point. Taking a deep breath, Choji looked at her.
"Actually, I only accepted because I'm not one to be angry or hold grudges. I didn't really let it go and it still does bother me." He said.
"Choji," Ino whispered, clearly stunned.
"It might have been a waste of time for you but it was important to me. I just wanted all my friends there, including you. When you blew it off, I was hurt. I thought that you didn't see us as friends. While I can move past it, it does still sting. I just wanted you to know my true feelings about the matter. If it helps us in the long run to pass this test, then so be it. We need to be on the same level Ino, so you two would just have to talk." Choji said.
He turned and walked away, feeling a little better. Ino stood there, still stunned. She couldn't believe that Choji felt that way. She suddenly started to feel something close to shame. Shikamaru, who was hiding, couldn't help but be proud of his friend. He left shortly to follow Choji.
XXX
Kiba, Shino and Hinata were sitting around. They each were trying to calm their fears after what they just witnessed. It happened just a few minutes ago. In the beginning, they came across a team of Waterfall ninja that were trapped in a net, a 'heaven' scroll laying on the ground. They took the scroll and walked away. While getting the scroll was easy, Kiba felt restless and wanted to explore more. Shino was against it and Hinata agreed. However, he convinced them, mostly annoying the two until they gave in. Kiba assured them that everything would be fine. Boy, was he wrong.
They ran into two teams about fight. One of the team was that Sand team Naruto mentioned. They faced off against an older Rain team. The leader tossed two umbrellas in the air. Doing a hand seals, dozens of senbon shot out toward the red head. They waited to see if the attack worked only to see that it did not work. Not one needle got through and the team was surprised because the boy wielded sand. That's when he attacked with that same sand. He quickly encased him in a cocoon. He then violently crushed him to death. It was the most gruesome scene they had ever seen.
His teammates had quickly surrendered after witnessing that. However, it did not save them from the same fate. What really got to team Kurenai was that he did it with such ease and without remorse. That's when the saw that he was not satisfied and wanted to kill more. The team was very scared but were saved when he agreed with his siblings to make their way to the tower. Once the team was sure that they were gone, team Kurenai left the scene.
They sat in silence, trying to come to grips with what they saw. It would be a few moments before Kiba spoke.
"I'm sorry guys." He said with a sorrowful voice. Hinata and Shino turned their attention to him. "If I wasn't so cocky and looking for a fight, we wouldn't have seen that. We wouldn't have been in such danger. I nearly got us killed and I'm very sorry." Kiba bowed his head to his teammates. Both could hear the genuine shame that he felt for what he did. That's when Hinata spoke.
"I-I don't blame you Kiba-kun." She said. Kiba popped his head up.
"You don't?"
"Yes, you did make a d-decision that we should look for m-more scrolls but we did not disagree. A-Also, you did not know about e-either of those teams. We s-should be happy we're alive." Hinata explained.
"Hinata is right. Do not take responsibility of this. However, for the future, think with your head, not your ego. You're not Sasuke." Shino added. Hinata giggled at the joke while Kiba looked at Shino with surprise. He then scoffed at Shino with a smirk. They decided to rest for a little while longer before heading to the tower
XXX
Sasuke clashed with the Rain ninja, Oboro, in mid-air. He then had to dodge a kunai coming from behind. He had his Sharingan on so he was able to counter his opponent's punch, kicking him in the chest. They landed away from each other. The other Rain ninja appeared and looked ready to cut Sasuke down. Sasuke turned to counter only to see through the genjutsu. It was a good thing as he was able to dodge another kunai. However, he was starting to get tired. He had been fighting Oboro for five minutes before his teammate came and it was starting to wear down his stamina.
He turned to Oboro who was chuckling at him.
"Despite having those special eyes, you can't seem to keep up with our attack. I guess you should have stuck with your teammates, Uchiha." Oboro mocked. Sasuke growled at his mocking. That's when they heard an explosion. The two were surprised by the different colored smoke. Oboro's teammate came out of the smoke, covered in different colors. He was trying to get the paint off him. That's when a blond blur shot out of hiding and proceeded to bombard the dazed shinobi.
The two were still watching in surprise, which almost cost Oboro. He spun in time, attempting to stab the person coming up behind them. His missed as they ducked under the strike. They then blocked his counter and stabbed a senbon into his left arm. It went limp, stunning him. He swung his kunai but they blocked his arm, disarmed him and jabbed another senbon into his other arm, rending it useless. With no way to defend himself, he was at the mercy of the oncoming fist that crashed into his face.
Sasuke looked on in surprise as Sakura rubbed his fist. He then looked on to see that Naruto had finished off the other Rain ninja. Naruto stood up and walked away from him. He bumped in him and continued on to Sakura who was checking the guy she just knocked out.
"So?" Naruto asked.
"He doesn't have it either. It must be with the third one." Sakura said. Naruto turned to look at Sasuke.
"So, are we going to get a thank you or are you going to sulk?" Naruto asked. Sasuke just growled at him but said nothing. That's when he noticed that Sakura was giving him a look. He didn't like it and gave her a look too.
"What?" Sasuke demanded.
"I'm just wondering how much longer you are going to act like a child." Sakura answered. Naruto snorted while Sasuke was glaring daggers at her.
"Excuse me?!" Sasuke snarled.
"If you want to prove your superiority, then do it in the next stage. Right now, we are in a forest surrounded by enemies and animals that will kill us. We need to be on the same page or we will not make it through this stage. Since you want to act like a spoiled child, then I and Naruto will treat you like one." Sakura stated.
"How dare you speak to me like that?!" Sasuke roared.
"Because you're not acting like a ninja or maturely!" Sakura shouted at him. "You're acting like one of those kids who throws a tantrum when he doesn't get his way! Captain Kakashi might cater to you and there is still a part of me that still likes you but I refuse to die here because of your damn ego! So choose! You can team up with us and pass or go it alone and fail!"
"You would fail on purpose just to spite me? Have you forgotten about your new friend right next to you?" Sasuke sneered.
"Oh, I agree with her." Naruto said, stunning Sasuke. "I would love nothing more than to be a chunin but I'm not going to risk my life to satisfy your ego. You forget, you need me more than I need you to pass. I have no problem waiting another six months. By then, I'll be with a better sensei and without you. So, what's it going to be golden boy?"
Sasuke was enraged. He couldn't believe the balls of these two. He wanted to tell the two of them off so bad but he knew that Naruto had a point. Without him getting the scroll, he would not pass the test. He squashed his rage and pride for the moment. He gave the two a harsh glare.
"Fine. From here on, we are teammates. After we pass this stage, I'm leaving this team. I refuse to put up with either of you after this insult. Are we clear?" he stated. Sakura did not look too hurt by this and Naruto didn't care. The two nodded and were prepared to leave.
"Well now," a voice said. The three looked around when they heard the voice and were prepared to fight. That's when a teen landed in the middle of them, forcing them to face him. The teen had on a straw hat, a grey garb, black polo and black pants. He also wore a purple rope as a belt. The team got into their fighting stance and faced him. "Defeating you all will be simpler than I thought." With that, he unleashed his killing intent. All three were scared and frozen stiff. They were gasping for air. He then did a seal and the whole area went white.
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Authors' Notes – Sorry for the lack of updates. Been a busy life. Anyway, here's the new chapter. The next chapter would focus on team Kakashi's survival. Enjoy the new chapter.
