Venatori
Summary: Kankuro was a few minutes too late, and Kiba died. Now, Shino and Hinata work to ensure that no more traitors get away alive. Divergence from chapter 212.
The Laughing Phoenix does not own Naruto and makes no profit from this work, other than her sense of accomplishment.
WARNING: Massive spoilers in future chapters. Character death. Blood, gore, and questionable use of medical knowledge and techniques. Some OOC-ness.
A Chance at Promotion
I am more than willing to nominate you for the Chuunin Exams.
Hinata and Shino traded cautious glances. Their plans hinged on advancing in rank, true. However, both of them were realistic enough to admit that they had gotten through the last Chuunin Exam on sheer luck, and they could not rely on that happening again. Then there was the matter of their team size – the exam required three-man teams. On the other hand, they really couldn't afford to pass this opportunity up. Things had been tense at home for Hinata, and her frustration was starting to spill over to work. On top of that, Shino, always highly sensitive to his surroundings, was starting to respond to her agitation.
"Sensei," Shino spoke first. "I think that we would be happy to take the exams." Hinata nodded, and he went on. "I presume there is a protocol in place for teams who are-" his voice faltered, but he went on. "short a member?"
Kurenai nodded. "If a jounin-sensei wants to nominate a student to the exams, and their teammates have been promoted or are," she swallowed "otherwise unavailable, then they can be added to another incomplete team for the first two parts."
"How do they choose who gets added to what team?" Hinata wanted to know.
"Usually it's decided at a meeting of the nominating sensei. Those with incomplete teams try to match up their students. The ideal is to match a team with two genin to a team with one. That way a team isn't split up when they take the exams. They-We also try to set up teams of genin who are at least somewhat familiar with each other. It makes things easier that way." Kurenai shrugged. "The nominations for the exams are due in tomorrow, and the meeting should be the day after. You'll have a little over a week to get used to your new teammate."
The pair nodded, thinking it over. After four months, they were fairly used to acting as a two-person team. Slowly, they'd stopped turning around to say something to Kiba only to realize that he wasn't there, or lifting their heads at a dog's bark, thinking for a moment it might be Akamaru. Bringing someone new into the team, even temporarily, would change the fragile new dynamic, but they were reasonably sure they could adapt.
Kurenai met the eyes of her two students, easily picking up on their unease, watching as it was quickly erased by determination. She smiled softly. "I have every faith that you will do well."
The team got down to training, and spent a short hour in sparring hand-to-hand, before taking a short break to catch their breath and work on some advanced genjutsu theory. Neither was easy to trap in genjutsu thanks to their clan traits, and Kurenai knew that neither would master and specialize in genjutsu the way she did, but she also knew a fair number of techniques that would aid in concealment. While there was no way to make yourself invisible, there were plenty of ways to make yourself difficult to see. Thus far she'd been teaching them the two main methods: blending into the surroundings, the most common use, and a slightly more finicky technique generally referred to as 'notice-me-not'. Shino was better at the former, having successfully gotten to the point where he could blend into trees and rocks as part of the landscape, though he still had difficulty maintaining it while on the move. It had not been much of a surprise to Kurenai when Hinata excelled at the latter, even if she had yet to be able to move faster than a walk while maintaining it.
After about a half-hour, recognizing the signs of oncoming headaches, Kurenai called a halt to genjutsu and set them to working on their accuracy. Here, Shino was decidedly better, as Hinata's clan techniques almost never used thrown weapons. After a long discussion with Anko two months back, the pair had added a variety of small weapons, including senbon to their arsenal, and the boy was proving to be almost as good with them as with kunai and shuriken.
Once both had peppered the targets posted on the surrounding trees with their stores of weaponry twice, Kurenai called another brief halt. "Much better you two. Take fifteen minutes to get a drink of water and prepare yourselves. We'll have one last spar before we go collect a mission."
Gathering up the last of their weapons, the two obediently collected their water flasks and sat side-by-side at the base of a tree. Shino drank from his flask while Hinata sorted through her senbon, picking out the badly damaged ones and putting them in a pile to be disposed of later. Kurenai watched them quietly. She had not been exaggerating when she said that they'd do well in the exam. They'd come so far.
"Sensei, is this going to be a multi-village exam?" Shino asked suddenly.
Kurenai took a moment before she responded to the apparent non-sequitur. Shino never asked questions without a reason. "Why do you ask that?"
The Aburame shifted slightly. "Tsunade-sama has only been Hokage for five months, and the last Chuunin Exam ended up being a cover for an invasion by Oto and Suna." He tilted his head to one side, the Aburame equivalent of an embarrassed shrug. "On the one hand, it would be logical for Tsunade-sama to restrict the exam to the village, to prevent the influx of foreign shinobi that usually accompanies the Chuunin Exams. On the other, a multi-village exam could be used as a show of Konoha's strength, even after the death of Sandaime."
"Right on both counts, Shino." Kurenai said, smiling softly. "However, Tsunade has decided to allow this exam to be multi-village."
Hinata frowned. "I thought the Chuunin Exams rotated between the villages?"
"Usually, they do. However, with Suna and Oto's invasion at the last one, it was declared invalid and Konoha given another chance to host. Technically, your classmate Shikamaru was given a promotion for service in the field."
The pair could not help but smile at the image of the lazy Nara getting a field promotion. It was so very unlike him.
Deciding that they'd had enough rest, Kurenai stood up and dusted herself off. "Right, one last quick spar, and then a mission."
That evening, Kurenai reported to the Hokage's office, along with the rest of the jounin-sensei who had genin. She watched the rest of the sensei out of the corner of her eye as they milled around. As per the norm, Tsunade started with the rawest genin class, those who had only just graduated. To nobody's great surprise, all the sensei declined, the memory of the last exams too raw for any of them to feel comfortably nominating their students.
Asuma turned down the chance to nominate Chouji and Ino, saying he'd feel more comfortable waiting another six months. Kurenai stepped forward, reciting the protocol she'd learned a little over six months previously. "Team Kurenai, Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino. Under the name of Yuuhi Kurenai, I nominate them to take the Chuunin Selection Exam."
A small ripple of mutters swept the room. Kurenai ignored it, focusing on the Hokage. Tsunade eyed the younger woman for a moment, then nodded. "A third teammate will need to be added."
Kurenai nodded once in reply. "They are aware of the rules, Hokage-sama." Tsunade smirked before turning to the next graduating class. Maito Gai quickly nominated his students.
Kurenai listened with half an ear, paying attention to the sensei who nominated only one or two students. Far fewer genin were being nominated this exam, and many of them were from incomplete teams. Once the Hokage had finished taking the names of the nominees, the jounin nominating less than three adjourned to a room next to the office to begin hashing out temporary placements.
After about twenty minutes of arguments and negotiations, Kurenai had a temporary third student. Kawaguchi Akai was a fifteen year old first-generation shinobi whose combat style utilized mid-range attacks, specifically katon, and had something of a genius for ciphers. He'd sat the Chuunin Exams once before, a year previously, only to be knocked out in the prelims while one of his teammates had been promoted. The other had broken her leg on a C-ranked mission three days previously, and wouldn't have healed enough to take part by the time the exams rolled around. His sensei had been brutally frank when describing him to Kurenai.
"He's no good at genjutsu beyond the basics and his close-combat isn't terribly strong either. He's impetuous in the field, has a tendency to rely on ninjutsu too much, and his trap-making skills are nowhere near as good as they should be. On the other hand, he can crack any cipher you give him and loves analysis. He's also deadly with explosives. I've been nudging him towards the cryptology squad, but he wants to make chuunin first." He shrugged. "He should fit in fine with your lot. At least, they probably won't kill each other."
Kurenai nodded. "If you could have him report to training ground 15 tomorrow at 11.00, I'd appreciate it." She was the newer jounin, but since two of the team members were hers, it was technically her squad for the duration of the exam.
"Sure, no problem." He eyed her for a moment, then shrugged again. "If you'll pardon my saying so, Kurenai-san, the kid could do a lot worse than you as a sensei. And I've heard good things about your little pair. They'll do fine."
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
The next morning, Hinata slipped out of the Hyuuga compound early and headed across the village to the Aburame clan's houses. Once there, she hurried to the little lab Shino and his father had set aside for her use, calling a good morning to the Aburame she passed. She wanted to restock her supplies before the exam, knowing full well that she wouldn't get another chance until it was over. By 08.00 Hinata was up to her elbows in various plant matter and happily oblivious to the world around her.
She finally surfaced at 10.30 when Shino knocked on the doorframe. "Ah, Shino-kun! Good morning!"
"Good morning." The Aburame stayed by the door, wary of getting in his teammate's way. "Kurenai-sensei asked us to meet her at training ground 15 at 11.00. She wants us to train with our temporary teammate as much as we can before the exams."
"Oh, right. I'll be done in just a moment." Swiftly the girl tidied up her bench, turning off the heat and labeling the last of her flasks. "I've made extras of just about everything, so we shouldn't run out during the test. I'll have to come back to finish some of them up later, but that's the ones that need to sit overnight anyway. Those," she waved a hand at the large jars sitting on a shelf by the door, "are medical ointments. Your family's welcome to as much as they like."
Shino eyed the shelf laden with a half-dozen full jars, each the size of his head. "You spoil my clan, Hinata."
Hinata flushed. "N-not really. Your father was kind enough to let me use the space and the equipment, it's only fair that I do something to pay you back."
"The gesture is appreciated, but unnecessary," Shibi appeared in the doorway behind his son. Hinata squeaked. "It is a pleasure to have you here, Hinata-san."
Red-faced, Hinata marshaled herself and bowed. "I-I must i-insist, Aburame-san. Your a-assistance has been i-invaluable a-and…"
Smiling behind his collar, Shibi stepped in. "As you wish, Hinata-san. I will confess, my family has developed a preference for your work. You are a credit to your teacher."
Hinata flushed redder, and bowed again.
On the walk to the training grounds, Shino amused himself by watching his teammate try to master herself. He'd figured out shortly after they started working with Anko that Hinata's response to praise or compliments was fairly extreme, and knowing the inner workings of the clans as he did it was not hard to figure out the cause. While he disliked Hiashi for the obvious lack of positive reinforcement Hinata dealt with at home, he couldn't help fighting the urge to snicker at the way she went red-faced so easily.
They arrived at the training ground with a couple of minutes to spare. Kurenai was already waiting for them, and they bade her a quiet 'good morning' before they settled in to wait in silence.
At 11.00 on the dot, a figure came running down the path and stumbled to a halt in front of them. "Aaah, sorry I'm late! I was visiting Kaede-chan in the hospital and lost track of time." Straightening up, he smiled. "I'm Kawaguchi Akai, and I think I'm your teammate for the Chuunin Exams."
Kurenai couldn't help smiling back. "That is correct, Akai-san. My name is Yuuhi Kurenai, and these are my students." She turned to the pair, who were observing the older genin with interest. "Akai-san will be joining you two for the exams. We'll be spending the week training, to give you a chance to learn each other's abilities well enough to function as a unit. Let's begin with introductions. Name, strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and goals, I think. I'll begin. My name is Yuuhi Kurenai, my strength is genjutsu, my weakest skill is close-quarters combat. I like spending time with my friends, and dislike perverts. My goal is to help my students achieve their goals."
Turning, she nodded at Shino, who obediently took up the thread. "I am Aburame Shino. My greatest strength is my bond with my colony, and I am weakest in ninjutsu. I like spending time outdoors, and I abhor traitors." His voice became harsher at the end of the sentence. "My goal is to become one of Konoha's Elite."
Hinata smoothly picked up the conversation, looking over Akai's shoulder so she wouldn't stutter. "My name is Hyuuga Hinata. My greatest strength is my Byakugan, and I am also weakest in ninjutsu. I like to make medicines and poisons, and dislike those who look down on others and abandon their comrades. Like Shino, my goal is to become one of the elite." She gave an internal sigh as she finished. Her stuttering was getting better, she just had to concentrate, usually on something else. The fact that the Hyuuga eyes made it hard for people to tell when she was looking at them helped.
The three of them looked at Akai, who grinned nervously and rubbed his arm. "Ah, I'm Kawaguchi Akai. My greatest strength…probably my skills with explosives. As for weakness, definitely genjutsu. I like puzzles and dislike escort missions. Goals…well, my sensei says I'd do well in cryptology, and it does sound interesting, but I'm really still undecided." He shrugged apologetically. "Not really interesting."
"Um," Hinata hesitated, then forged ahead. "If it is what interests you, then what does our opinion matter?" When everyone stared at her, she retreated into herself, bowing her head so that her hair fell across her face.
Seeing his teammate fall prey to her lack of self-confidence, Shino hurried to speak. "Hinata is correct, Akai-san. If it interests you, then nobody has the right to say you are wrong."
Akai stared at them for a moment, before chuckling self-consciously. "Guess so."
Smiling softly, Kurenai stepped forward. "Right. It's a pleasure to be working with you, Akai-san. Let's start with some one-on-one sparring before lunch, and then we'll move into technique comparisons and strategy."
The spars were informative, for a number of reasons. Akai seemed to understand that letting either Shino or Hinata get in close would be a bad idea, so he used katon jutsu and the judicious application of exploding tags to keep them at a distance. Hinata was faster than he was, and she ended up being able to get inside his guard with a pair of senbon. Shino ended up taking him to a draw when a lucky katon singed him, distracting him long enough for Akai to draw a kunai. As she watched, Kurenai made mental lists of skills to work on: Both Shino and Hinata had grown used to sparring against other close-combat specialists; she was going to have to put them up against distance fighters more often. As for Akai, he needed to get better at defending up close, as the one time Shino managed to engage him close-range he'd taken quite the beating from the younger boy before managing to extricate himself with a combination of a point-blank katon technique and substitution.
The group adjourned to the bank of a nearby pond for lunch, eating largely in silence. Once most of the food had been consumed, Shino turned to their older teammate. "Akai-san, I hope I don't sound rude, but why are you taking this alone? Have your teammates already been promoted?"
Akai gave an apologetic shrug. "Osamu has, the crazy idiot. He's a workaholic, absolutely obsessed with infiltration and disguise. Kaede-chan was going to take the test with me, but she broke her leg a couple of days ago and the medics won't have it healed in time." He surveyed them curiously. "What about you two? I asked sensei and he said it was none of his business to tell me."
The pair stilled for a moment, and Akai was half afraid he'd crossed some all-important invisible line. "Inuzuka Kiba was killed in action four months ago." Shino said softly.
Akai stared at the pair with his mouth hanging open. "I – oh Kami-sama, I had no idea…"
Shino gave a whole-body shudder, then stood up suddenly and walked away, pulling kunai out of his pouch. When he'd reached the center of the training ground, he started to methodically sink them into targets.
"You'll have to pardon Shino," Hinata's quiet voice nearly made Akai jump out of his skin. He'd not sensed her coming up behind him. "Neither of us was available when the mission was called." She gave him a weak little smile. "It's been difficult."
"I'll bet," Akai muttered, watching her walk over to join her teammate.
The rest of training went relatively smoothly. After a couple of hours comparing techniques, the group settled down to evaluate strategies. Kurenai would pose problems, describing mission parameters, objectives, and restrictions, before letting them hash out a solution. The two younger genin were pleasantly surprised by Akai's grasp of strategy, even if he did have a tendency to suggest actions without thinking them through sometimes.
When the group broke for the evening, it was feeling cautiously optimistic about the exams. Shino waved Hinata off, then took off across the training grounds, headed for the Memorial Stone. He waited quietly at the edge of the clearing for a purple-haired kunoichi to finish making an offering, only stepping into the open after she left. He approached the Stone and crouched down next to it, tracing his fingers in the air over Kiba's name.
Hi, Kiba, he thought. He'd never understood the urge older shinobi had to speak to their dead, but in the past few months he'd started making occasional visits to the memorial. Unlike some, he never spoke aloud, but the Aburame had long ago turned talking with miniscule gestures into an art form, and whole conversations could be carried on without actually speaking.
We're taking the Chuunin Exams next week. Hokage-sama had to assign us a temporary teammate. You'd probably find him interesting – he uses primarily katon and is pretty good with explosions. Shino paused, rocking back on his heels. Hinata and I should come out of it with promotions, unless by some great cosmic joke we get invaded by Kiri or Iwa. Shino paused again, imagining Kiba laughing at that. Despite his loud, brash nature the Inuzuka boy had appreciated the art of irony.
We've both improved. Hinata's gotten more confident, even if she still blushes whenever anyone compliments her. She knows how to make more poisons than half my cousins and she's still going to her lab every day, even though her father's been making disapproving noises about all the time she spends away from the Hyuuga compound. Anko-senpai says that at this rate she won't have any more poisons to teach her within a year and a half. Shino paused again, trying to decide what else to tell his missing teammate. I've finally mastered that notice-me-not genjutsu Kurenai-sensei taught us, and I've picked up a pair of doton jutsu. My accuracy has improved too.
Actually, speaking of sensei, my bugs have been picking up traces of Sarutobi Asuma-sensei on her clothes when she comes to training. You'd probably have noticed before me, you always did have a really good sense of smell.
Shino sat quietly for a while, slipping into a light meditation. It was oddly peaceful near the memorial. When he finally surfaced, it was to see the sun several degrees lower than he'd anticipated. Pushing himself to his feet, he bowed briefly to the Stone before taking to the trees again, making his way back toward the residential areas of the village. He'd be back to talk to Kiba later, right now he had to get home before dinner, on pain of parental displeasure.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
Two days before the start of exams, Kurenai, Shino, Hinata, and Akai were walking through Konoha in search of lunch. After a successful practice, in which they'd finally managed to anticipate each other's actions like teams who'd been together for years, Kurenai had offered to get them lunch to celebrate. As Hinata and Shino quietly debated between zenzai and winter melon soup, they were hailed by a distant cousin of Hinata's, a member of the main branch.
"Hinata-sama, a moment of your time?"
Hinata turned warily. "Yes, Akira-san?"
"Hinata-sama, word has reached the clan that you intend to participate in the upcoming Chuunin Exams."
Hinata straightened her shoulders. "That is correct, Akira-san."
The man nodded. "I see. With all due respect, Hinata-sama, are you sure this is wise? After your performance in the last exam-"
Hinata interrupted him. "Akira-san, how does how I-I performed in the last exam predict m-my performance in this one?"
Akira looked startled, although he controlled himself quickly. Hinata never interrupted anyone, that was a behavior people expected from Hanabi. "Of course. My apologies, Hinata-sama." He bowed. "I see you are busy, so I will bother you no longer."
Hinata bowed her head. "Have a good day, Akira-san."
As the group moved away, Kurenai moved up to place a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "I started making inquiries about apartments…" she said, trying to distract her student.
Akai dropped back a couple of paces to speak with Shino. "What did that Hyuuga mean, 'after her performance in the last exam'?"
Shino, who'd been listening with half an ear to the discussion of apartment layouts and leases going on ahead of him, turned a piercing look on Akai. "In the last exam, a preliminary round was held for the third part of the test. The proctors needed to lower the number of competitors so the daimyos wouldn't get bored with a long tournament. Hinata was unlucky enough to go up against her cousin, Hyuuga Neji."
Akai furrowed his brows. He'd picked up some understanding of the kind of person Hinata was after a week, so he was pretty sure he knew what happened. "What, did she throw the fight?"
Shino shook his head. "Hyuuga Neji is a year older than Hinata, and preternaturally skilled at the Hyuuga combat techniques. And" his expression darkened, "While Hinata was reluctant to injure someone she thinks of as an older brother, Neji-san had no such compunctions."
Akai winced. That did not sound pretty. "He beat her up?"
"He tried to kill her."
Akai gaped. "The hell?" While he was from a civilian family, he'd figured that shinobi clans behaved much like their civilian counterparts. Apparently he was wrong.
"Shino-kun, stop that," Hinata said softly. She'd picked up the last half of the conversation. "Neji-niisan's been behaving much better lately, and you know it. Besides," a little smile curled up the corner of her mouth. "Should I face Neji-niisan again, I will not be using jyuuken."
Shino bowed his head in acknowledgement of the rebuke, but smirked behind his coat collar. He almost hoped that the cousins would be pitted against each other again, if only so that he could see the look on Neji's face when his tiny cousin drugged him stupid.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
The morning of the exam dawned bright and clear. In the Hyuuga compound, Hinata awoke early to properly prepare herself for the day. Along with her usual pouch of kunai and shuriken she strapped on a pouch of senbon and slid vials into small pockets on the sides. She slipped some more vials into small pockets set into her coat and wrapped a roll of wire around her arm, where it could act as a modified bracer until she needed it. Grabbing a couple of sticks of incense, she slipped out of her room and went in search of breakfast.
Despite her efforts to get out of the compound early, both Neji and her father were eating already. Surrendering to the inevitable, Hinata sat down quietly and began eating as quickly as she could without seeming rude. After a few minutes, Hiashi put down his chopsticks and turned to her.
"Hinata, I understand that you are participating in the Chuunin Exams today."
Hinata kept her gaze on the table. "Yes Father."
"Hmm." Hiashi regarded his firstborn for a moment longer, then returned to his meal. "I trust you will not disgrace the clan," was all he said.
"No, Father." Hinata murmured.
Minutes later, she excused herself and hurried outside. Once she was past the Hyuuga gates, she gave a breath of relief before taking off in the direction of the cemetery. Once there, she quickly found the section reserved for the Inuzuka clan. A minute later she was standing in front of Kiba's grave.
Gently brushing off the dust collecting on the stone, Hinata lit the two incense sticks and placed them in front of the grave. As the scented smoke rose, she pulled up a couple of encroaching weeds and disposed of the leaf litter that had collected against the base. That done, she sat back on her heels and stared off into space for a moment.
"Shino-kun's probably already told you, Kiba-kun," she said suddenly, "but the Chuunin Exams are today. I-I'm a little bit nervous. Shino-kun and Anko-senpai and Kurenai-sensei think we'll pass, but," Hinata bowed her head, "I still worry."
"I know you'd tell me to relax, that we'd do fine, but it's hard sometimes. Father told me at breakfast that he 'trusts I will not disgrace the clan'. I know it's what I expected, but I still wish he'd said 'do your best' or even 'good luck'." Sighing, Hinata regarded the silent stone carefully, keen eyes picking out the dirt building in the corners of Kiba and Akamaru's names. "I saw Hana-san yesterday. She told me that your mother's doing a little better, and that Shino and I should come over for dinner once the exam's over. She said she wanted an excuse to make a huge dinner, but I think she's trying to distract Tsume-san. I said we'd go, of course, and offered to help cook, but she told me that if I tried she'd have the Haimaru triplets sit on me."
Hinata sat quietly for a few minutes more, enjoying the quiet and the feel of the sun. About fifteen minutes later, she rose, dusting off her knees. "I need to go, Kiba-kun. I'll be back after the second part of the exams, if I can."
Leaving the cemetery as quietly as she entered it, Hinata hurried across the village. She needed to stop by her little lab in the Aburame neighborhood and pick up a few things before she went to the Academy.
Like his teammate, Shino had gotten up early as well. He'd had a light breakfast with his family before collecting his gear for the day and taking off for the training grounds and the Memorial Stone. Landing in the clearing, Shino made his way to the tree line near the stone before settling down to meditate. About forty-five minutes later, he shook himself into awareness and stood, stretching his muscles briefly. Facing the Stone, he bowed. Wish us luck, Kiba.
Making his way back into town, Shino fell into the easy rhythm of planning strategy within strategy, trying to cover as many contingencies as he could think of. He'd gotten up through 'facing another Gaara' by the time he reached the Academy, with a little twenty minutes to spare before the test.
Hinata arrived moments after he did, and passed him a number of vials, quietly whispering the names of their contents as she did so. She smelled oddly of incense, but he didn't need to ask her how she'd spent her early morning. While he went to the Memorial Stone to talk to Kiba, Hinata always went to his grave.
A couple of minutes later, Akai appeared as the clock outside the Academy chimed the quarter hour, muttering something about irritating teammates who really were terrible patients. Together, the three moved towards the doors, and the first exam.
A/N: It's true that not a lot happened in this one, but no worries, the exam is coming up next time! The chapter was getting long and this seemed like a good place to stop.
As last time, I hope to have the next chapter out next week, but my college can be fairly capricious in scheduling exams and major papers, and I often don't know what a week's going to be like more than a couple of days in advance. While it's early days yet for major assignments, that doesn't mean it can't happen.
Thanks to all the lovely reviewers and their wonderful reviews. It's always very exciting to open my e-mail and see [FF Review Alert] in the subject line of a new message. Another thank you to everyone who's put this story (or me) on their Favorites or Alerts.
As usual, thanks to Pyrozia, beloved pest of a younger sibling and beta.
Next Chapter: Making the Grade.
