Greetings! :D
So the second Chunin exam is set to begin! For those of you who don't remember the basis of the second exam, I'm sorry. Go to naruto . wikia to refresh yourself.
Promises Not Made are Promises Never Kept
Chapter Nine: The Second Exam (Lingers)
It was the morning after, and the Chunin-hopefuls were gathered around the large walled forest that would be the mother of the second exam. Naruto was part of the lingering, scattered crowds, nervously waiting and barely able to hide it.
"Naruto!"
Soon enough, Sai and Sakura appeared beside him, and together as a team they waited for Anko to appear.
As they stood there, Naruto lingered deep in thought, his lips slightly pursed.
What was that yesterday? He asked himself, feeling his knees tingle for some reason as he remembered the hot spring. Why… did he do that? And why… his eyes narrowed. Why didn't I freak out as badly as I thought I would?
"Naruto!"
Hearing the voice, he raised his head. Waving sheepishly at him, Sasuke walked over, a baby blue scarf wrapped around his neck and his hair pulled up in a tight, high ponytail. Naruto's heart jumped a hurdle and took a dive all at once.
"Oh… hey Sasuke," he greeted nervously, returning the smile. "How're you doing? How'd you sleep?"
"Eh, I've had better nights," Sasuke admitted with a shrug. "Anyway…" he looked at Naruto with pursed lips. "I'm really sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean for that to happen, and I feel really bad about it. Maybe we could… try again later on today? I mean, if you're okay with it?"
Naruto could only blink at him and smile.
"I'd… really like that," he replied honestly. "That would actually be pretty awesome."
The entire aura of anxiousness that plagued Sasuke immediately melted away, and he laughed in relief, clapping his hands.
"Wonderful!" He cooed. "That's so exciting!" As he spoke, the little bird that had sat upon Haku's shoulder the day before fluttered through the air around his head, pleasantly chirping. Smiling brightly, Sasuke looked up at the bird and reached up to poke at it playfully. "Okay Moira, you got it. I'll head over." Turning back to Naruto, he smiled brightly. "Well, looking forward to it!" Waving at team seven, he turned and began to walk away, the little bird cheerfully spiraling around him. "Good luck today guys!"
Looking considerably happier than before, Sasuke trotted off to his teammates. Feeling satisfied and straightly like he was floating, Naruto watched him go with a smile on his face.
"Yeah," he breathed. "You too."
With that, the Chunin exams began. Naruto's team was given an Earth scroll, while Sasuke's team was given a Heaven scroll.
"Five days in this forest…" Inaré breathed, looking around as they were released into the zone. Other teams raced away deep into the massive trees (team seven included), but Sasuke's took their time venturing in, absorbing the surrounding foliage and drinking in the almost-sinister ambiance of the training grounds. "This is going to be a pain."
"Nothing we haven't done before," Haku breathed softly, the sentence oozing confidence worthy of being spoken. Moira, his bird, settled onto his shoulder, looking around with his big black eyes. Inaré's companion, Kaoru, lingered near her side, sniffing the air in distrust, while Dagina wandered around the clearing in careful curiosity, constantly addressing the scents in the air as her massive bulk shifted and rolled beneath her thick fur.
"Well said, Haku," Sasuke stated simply, adjusting the scarf around his neck. "I suggest we get the other scroll as quickly as possible. Then make a camp and then chill for the next four days. I have a book that I've been meaning to finish."
"Who do you think we should go for?" Inaré asked him.
"I don't feel like putting forth too much effort," Sasuke replied as Haku smiled faintly and nodded a little as he listened, his eyes closed. "Some bullshit team. Keep it easy. We'll have to save our energy for the third round. And that means not giving away all our secrets in one go."
"So it's true then?" Inaré quipped in interest. "The last round of the exams is a tournament?"
"From what Z has told me, yeah," Sasuke answered. "Shouldn't be too hard."
"Not at all, with you on our side," she teased, bumping hips playfully with him. It was then Sasuke's eyes went to Haku, who had been silent the entire time. Raising a hand he set it on Inaré's arm to still her for a moment.
"Haku?" He asked quietly, moving to be nearer to him. "What is it?"
Haku's lips pursed uncomfortably for a moment before he opened his eyes and looked at Sasuke worriedly.
"Are you going to lose control again?" He asked quietly, lifting a hand to touch Sasuke's face softly. "Last night… that was very sudden. Strangely sudden. Usually there's some sort of warning. Some sort of time to prepare. But last night… Is something like that going to happen again?"
Sasuke's lips pressed themselves into a thin line, and he looked away from Haku, unable to take the other male's intense stare. Immediately, his hand reached up to tug on his scarf uncomfortably.
"Last night…" he breathed softly in thought. Then, suddenly, he closed his eyes and shook his head. "Last night was a fluke. It's not going to happen again."
I can control it. I have no choice.
Haku surveyed him for a moment before he nodded, apparently satisfied.
"Okay," he replied. "Because neither I nor Inaré have the power Za… Z has to control it. We can, but it will be harder. So please…" Sasuke turned away from Haku, to the forest. "Don't let a repeat of last night happen again. At least not while we're in here."
Inaré said nothing, looking on with her lips pursed in worry. She knew what they were talking about, oh Gods how could she not? But she didn't have anything more to add. She knew everything Haku had said had been correct.
As much as she hated to admit it.
Sasuke didn't answer, sighing as he closed his eyes.
"Five days…" he breathed inaudibly as Dagina walked over to him and pressed her flank against him (she was just about half his height) and rumbled loudly. Looking down at her, he smiled and reached down to run his fingers through her fur. Nodding to himself, he looked back up at the forest again. "Yes. You're right. I can do it."
I have to.
Little did he know of the golden yellow eyes almost greedily eying him from the shadows.
"Ah ha, YES!" Sasuke celebrated as they successfully finished nestling in beneath the massive net of roots belonging to one of the great trees. It was almost like the tree was suspended in the air, and the group had found shelter right beneath like. Like a little lion cub snuggling into his mother's warm underbelly. "This is perfect!"
"Haha, if only we had more than five days in this place – we could even have plumbing!" Inaré joked as she emerged from beneath the tree, wiping her hands on her pants. "I dig it a lot. The location can't be seen from the air at all, and it's next to impossible to be seen from the ground. As long as there isn't a fire burning during the night, we're next to invisible while we're in there!"
"Plus it will be exceptionally warm," Haku cooed, smiling from where he sat on an exposed root. "The way the tree is situated, all of the hot air will be trapped underneath right where we'll be staying. It will be lovely."
"And the girls will know instantly if there's anyone trying to sneak up on us," Sasuke added, addressing Dagina and Kaoru, who both looked up from where one lounged and the other prowled the clearing, keeping an eye, ear, and nostril out for intruders. The two mammals had long figured out a routine where one would rest and the other would work. "We're gonna be camping in style for the next four days."
"I suggest we secure food," Haku suggested suddenly, standing up with his hands still slipped comfortably in the opposite arm's wide sleeves. "After that, we can rest for the night and then hunt down our second scroll tomorrow. There is much fighting going on right now. We'll wait for the other teams to get a little tired out before hunting for the second piece to the test."
"Sounds like a plan," Inaré agreed with a smile. "Sounds pretty bitch, but waiting until the other teams are exhausted before attacking is probably the smartest course of action. Plus it'll mean the task will be easier for us."
Sasuke stretched his arms upwards to the sky, feeling his back pop pleasantly.
"Mmmm, feels just like a vacation," he cooed, grinning. Lowering his arms, he looked to his teammates. "So who's grabbing the grub? I'm down."
"We should go," Haku replied before looking to the lone female. "Inaré, if you don't mind, stay at the camp and keep it safe. Keep Kaoru and Moira with you. Dagina can come with us and help us hunt. If it gets dark before we return, she'll be much more useful to us than Moira. And if anything happens while we're gone, Moira can signal me and we can come back to help."
Inaré, resisting the urge to pout, saw the sense in what he said and nodded.
"All right," she replied. "But next time I'm totally going!"
Sasuke nodded in agreement and smiled.
"Okay, sounds like a plan!" He grinned. "Let's get going then, Haku! Let's go grab something delicious!"
With that, the two boys raced off.
"It's good that you wanted to come along," Sasuke told Haku as they moved quietly through the forest, carefully eying Dagina's movements from the tree branches as she hunted. "You're better at identifying edible herbs than Inaré is. We gotta have a well-balanced meal, right?" He grinned at the other male, nuzzling him the littlest bit. "You're so dazzling when you take charge like that."
"Oh dearheart, stop teasing," Haku breathed back with a smile, blushing as he pushed Sasuke away with dainty fingers. "Besides…" he raised his hand, tangling his fingers in Sasuke's hair as he drew closer, breathing softly upon Sasuke's skin. "I am not nearly as dazzling as you."
A shiver lightly teased the other male's pores, making goosebumps rise modestly.
"Ah, Haku…" Sasuke breathed, pressing his cheek against the other's as he sighed. "Mmm, what happened to getting food?"
"I'm sure Dagina will alert you to when she sees something," Haku breathed, his hand drifting across Sasuke's chest. "Besides, with all the fighting happening today, all of the animals are going to be hidden away. We'll have to simply collect plants until the night completely settles in. Then we can hunt those that come out at night; those that haven't been affected by the violence of the day."
Sasuke sighed in pleasure as Haku lightly kissed his jaw bone, those soft, tiny hands fluttering upon his belly and back without even drifting beneath the shirt. They settled onto a large tree branch, Dagina keeping a look out below them.
"Mmm… you don't want to involve Inaré?" Sasuke asked teasingly with a grin. Haku partially opened his eyes, seemed to think about it, but immediately dismissed it.
"I saw you first," he breathed in reply, nuzzling Sasuke's hair and making the other male laugh.
"Ah, this is true…" he breathed, catching one of Haku's hands and lifting it up to kiss the knuckles. "Very much true."
Turning his head, Sasuke snatched Haku's lips in a kiss, and they lingered there as Dagina remained ever vigilant below.
End Chapter Nine: The Second Exam (Lingers)
I hope you enjoyed it. I totally did. :D
We'll probably get a little bit of team seven in the next chapter.
Thank you so much for reading!
So much love!
DDB
