..Chapter Fifteen..

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"We're really going to be pitted against our friends?"

Rei looked over at Kei from her standing position in the forest. The girl seemed a bit upset. She wasn't surprised. Kei was just like that. She had a good heart, but, if it came right down to it she would do what was needed to pass this part of the exam. They all would. Rei looked about. It was dark in here. Even during the daylight you could hardly tell the sun was out. It was much like a marsh or swamp in many respects.

She sighed.

They'd already been here about four days and still only had one scroll. A heaven scroll. What were they going to do if they couldn't get another one? They hadn't even come across any other ninja yet. How was that possible? Had everyone left already? No, that wasn't logical. They had one scroll. Which, meant there was at least one other team with a scroll somewhere in the forest.

"We need to formulate some type of plan." Ryu was saying from his his sitting position on a large tree root.

"I know... but, how can we when we don't even know where everyone is?" Kei sighed, looking ready to pout.

This really shouldn't be that hard, Rei was thinking. It shouldn't be. Their team was solid. They passed the Genin exam with flying colors. They passed the bell test in very short time and even figured out the secret with easy selflessness. And then the written exam for the first part of the Chuunin hadn't been easy... but Kei had worked it out and gotten them this far. Surely they couldn't fail here. Her parents wouldn't be furious, but, she didn't want to disappoint them either. Her mother, Temari could be terribly annoying sometimes. Especially when Rei lost at something she wanted badly. The woman meant well. But, now and then she made her want to crawl into a perpetual hole of doom. All that mothering was bad on her brain. How did her father do it?

Feh, thinking like was getting her no where.

"I could start searching the woods," Ryu was saying.

Rei blinked. "How? Not that I'm against separating... I just think were better together."

He shook his head. "I know. I'm not going anywhere." He suddenly bit it thumb, stood up, preformed some quick but unreadable hand signs and then placed the flat of his hand onto the soft earth. A puff of smoke suddenly appeared and slowly began to clear. As it did, in front of him would be a large lizard of some sort.

Kei blinked. "A dragon?"

The thing looked over at her with beady black eyes. It was low to the ground and had a long tail. It looked to be at least six feet long in full length. It bore and eye patch over one eye and was a deep shade of green and black.

The thing seemed to 'hn' and then speak. "No, girl. I'm a animal nin. A kimono dragon. If you must call me something, I am Gregor. Smallest of the Kimono Beast Clan." He looked up at Ryu and then surprised them all by lifting up on his two back legs. "What have you called me for, boy?"

Ryu chuckled. "Sorry, guys. He has an attitude now and then."

The creature grunted.

He was going on, kneeling down a bit to meet the animals eye level. "I need you to scan the area for a bit. Come back if you find anyone and let us know. Ok, Gregor?"

He nodded and moved to leave with amazing speed and quick quip, "I hope you know you woke me up. I expect a bite to eat later, boy." And then he was gone into the brush.

Rei seemed to smirk as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You can summon animal nin already? Maybe you're not as useless as I first thought."

Kei grinned. "He was cool. Should we wait here?"

Ryu was about to nod when something pricked at his senses. He looked over at the two women. Their eyes told him they noted it as well. He gazed about the clearing slowly, as if not to set off any idea that he knew they were being watched. How many of them were there? One? Two? He'd find out. Without saying it, he called on Byakugan and scanned the forest around them.

And then he saw them, three figures crouched just beyond the brush. So, another team was observing them? And how long had they been doing so? He looked over at the other two women, trying, with his eyes to ask them if it was ok to call them out. However it happened, both seemed to catch on and nodded. He gazed back to where they were at.

"Whoever you are, show yourselves."

The people in the brush seemed to debate this a moment. After a few seconds they began to walk out.

The first two were women. Ryu found this odd as most teams, aside from theirs was compromised of two males and one female. There's had two women likes theirs? He blinked.

One of them was dressed in tight black pants that seemed to hug her every curve and ride low on her hips. About her calves were ice blue leg warmers. A series of bandages or wraps went about her forearms and only left her fingers visible. She had two ice blue bands about her upper arms. Both were bare and a long vest of cool blue and black hung to her knees. It was Asian in style and split up the sides, front and back to her hips. Her hair was as cool a shade of blue as her vest; her eyes black and piercing.

She smirked at him. "Byakugan user, eh?"

The second seemed more withdrawn and shy. She had short blond hair and garnet depths. Her clothing seemed too plain in comparison to the other. A gray tank top and blue faded jeans with rips at the knees. Her breasts were large, but not overly so. She had a piece of some type of herb hanging from her mouth, looking to be chewing on it. Slung over her shoulder in a pouch of some sort looked... to be harp? It wasn't pretty or anything. If anything it looked a little beat up from too many fights.

"Oh..." She seemed to whine, "Jade-chan. I'm hungry.."

The girl named Jade seemed to grin. "Neh... Akira... I told you we couldn't bring anything with us. If it weren't for that high metabolism of yours you'd weigh a ton. I'm sure it must be your own perseverance of youth with keeps you so lovely." To someone else her words might seem cruel, but they were genuine and kind. Perhaps a little too exuberant.

"We'll get food later," mumbled a boy. He was the last one to exit the brush. His hair was a mess of shoulder-length dirty blond. His eyes were a dull orange. And his skin... was a tan. His clothing looked almost Arabian. Large brown puffy pants made of what looked like gauze. He wore an elaborate green sash about his waist and no shirt. And... what struck Ryu the most? Really? Were the two beasts next to him. They looked like hyenas... although they weren't... were they? Both seemed to be made of sand. Everytime they took a step with their master they seemed to shake some off and then gain it back.

"Who are you?" Kei asked. They all wore headbands of Konoha... but something else was there too. Like the sign of Sand mixed somehow with the sign of Leaf.

Jade grinned widely and bowed too elaborately. When she stood back up she balled a fist and held it up as if to punch the air upward; but, did not. "I'm Jade Lee, resident of Konoha and a member of the special Genin task force. My companions are Akira and Sunako. Akira is from Leaf like myself and Sunako from Sand."

Rei blinked. "Special... task force?"

The boy sighed. "You're confusing them, Jade." He looked over at them. "We're a test group of Genin. The first this year. Jade and Akira from Leaf and I from Sand. Hokage-sama and Kazekage-sama ordered it since we began in the Academy. For several years now we've been jumping back forth between the two."

Ryu still seemed confused. "But... why?"

Akira finished off her herb. "To push the idea past the other Kages during the exam." She shrugged. "If our test group works it could mean more like us. Then again, who knows?"

Just then Gregor came back, leaping from the woods and placed himself directly in front of Ryu. "Boy."

He looked down. "Did you find anything out?"

He nodded. "There's a team from Rock that have both scrolls. They appear to be sleeping. I can only guess it's because they're so far from the center of the forest where the main building is."

Ryu grinned. "Yes! Now we can get that Earth scroll."

All three members of the other team seemed to narrow their eyes.

Sunako spoke first. "You have a Heaven scroll?"

Kei narrowed her eyes on the boy. "You have Earth?"

Jade grinned. "I suppose we have to fight, neh? We can't let you leave without that scroll."

Rei smirked, crossing her arms over her chest. "We could. Fight that is. Or..."

"Or?" Akira edged.

"Or," Rei went on, "we could work together and get those two scrolls from the other team. Then we could all move on to the next part of the test."

Sunako seemed to ponder this. "Why should we? You're right here. There somewhere else."

Kei frowned, not sure how much she was beginning to like the formerly nice seeming 'test' group. "This test is one big show to prevent wars and increase profit in each village. If we work together and make it to the finals it's one less group from Rock that might get more requests for ninja. Which means more for Suna and Konoha."

Jade sighed. "She brings up a valid point, however trivial."

"True," murmured Akira.

Sunako smirked. "I guess we're working together then."

ooo

All six members of the make shift team eyed the group of sleeping Rock ninja. Gregor sniffed the air and nodded in a direction. "The scrolls are in that bag." He pointed next to one of the sleeping men.

"How do we want to handle this?... Kei?" Rei looked at her.

Kei blinked. She looked around her. Why were they all staring at her? "Me?"

Rei nodded. "This was my idea, but you were the one to solidify it. And anyway, you much better at tactics than I am. I'm not sure about the others."

Sunako shrugged. "None of us are bad at it, but it's not too much of strong point for either of us. Jade is the brawn of our group. Akira.. well... she has her own skills. And myself?" He smirked and glanced at Kei almost flirtatiously. "I'm just an all out brawler."

Ryu nodded. "We'll leave this to you Kei. What are we gonna do?"

She sighed. It seemed somehow she's gone from the goofy kid to the lead planner. She wasn't discounting her own intelligence... but... what if her plan didn't work?

"Never doubt your abilities... Kei." Her father's face was smiling in her mind.

"Ryu, check to see if they're clones." She ordered determinedly.

He nodded. "Right." He looked at the group. "Byakugan!" His voice was whispered harshly. He scanned the three. "No, they're not clones. And, if I'm seeing this correctly... their chakra levels are low." Byakugan faded. "They must have fought hard for those scrolls."

She nodded. Good, that meant this wouldn't be too hard. "Rei, use your wood ninjutsu to trap them. Even if they do wake up, I don't want them surprising us."

Rei nodded and preformed the seals. After a moment the oaken pieces started coming from the ground and curled around the bodies. "Done."

"Ok," she looked over at the other members. "Sunako. I'm not sure what you can do... But, are you a sand user?"

He smirked charismatically. "You pegged it, love. What do you need?"

She blushed, but smiled. "Do you think you can get the scrolls? I'd rather not have any of us leave this position. Just in case."

Ryu seemed to frown, but, let it go.

Sunako winked and nodded. "Sure thing." He looked over at one of his beasts. "Tasha, take care of it." The creature nodded and seemed to turn into a pile of sand. It slithered past them and headed towards the group of three; towards the bag. But, something happened. All of sudden the bodies turned to rubble;a pile of rocks. And then something was pulling the bag upward by an invisible thread.

Kei gasped.

Rei grumbled. "I should have known this wouldn't have been this easy."

Suddenly six kunai came flying at them.

Ryu growled. "Move it people. They know our location. How they managed to make that rock look like it had real chakra systems I have no clue."

All of them were leaping out of the brush and out into the clearing. As soon as this happened the three Rock ninja appeared on the other side of the mess of ruble.

One of them chuckled. "For a mess of kids you're reflexes aren't to bad."

"Idiots," muttered Rei.

"Oi... it was a trap," Ryu growled. His eyes could now clearly see the bodies before him were not nearly as worn out as the ones before had been. "You have both scrolls, why set a trap?"

The same one chuckled again. "The less competition we have in the final round the better." He licked his lips. "Did you enjoy our rock clones?" He snickered. "We infused them to make it look like they were us... weak and easy prey."

Rei looked ready to kill. "If you think we're that easy to off think again."

Kei nodded, pointing at the group, her eyes shadowed with deadly intent. "We'll be taking the scrolls now."

All three of them laughed. "Take them? You were caught in our trap." More laughing.

"Enough," Sunako said. He moved his hands in an elaborate fashion. "Tasha, Ishtar!" The same that been on the ground moved behind the three men and slowly, yes, slowly reformed back into the hyena. From behind the six Genin the other lept over and in front of the group.

Kei smirked. And for a brief moment, had her true father been there, he might have seen a little of himself in her eyes. "One more time. The scrolls please?"

And then the fight broke out between the three Rock ninja and six Genin group. shirikin were thrown. Clones were made. Kunai were sent back and forth. Sunako's beasts attacked for all their worth. Jade used a combination of wind jutsu and taijutsu to take down one of them with the help of Kai and her shadow clones. Rasengan was called forth and created a cloud of ruble. Rei trapped one of them with her wood techniques but he managed to escape with the aid of his friend. Ryu went head to head with a series of weapons he molded from the metal in his bag.

And when it seemed the battle was coming to a stalemate a sound was heard. Kei looked over and watched at Akira used her harp. It was lovely and heated. Suddenly Kei felt as though her chakra took a major boost and didn't question it. But she was gasping again as from all areas from the forest neon blue butterflies... no... Moonflies began to come. They surrounded Akira and then... wings. Ragged butterfly wings form on her back as he continued to play.

Everyone but the Rock ninja felt the boost. It gave them the advantage and they went for it. Moments Rei had one of them pinned down with wood ninjutsu. Sunako had them trapped with sand and completely knocked out. And yet another was tossed to the side by Jade.

She clapped her hands free of dust. "Well, that wasn't so hard." She grinned and gave a thumbs up. "All in the power of youth."

Sunako rolled his eyes.

Rei looked down at the one still awake and trapped by her wood. She reached down and took the two scrolls from the bag. "Thank you."

"Bitch," he spat.

Her eyes narrowed and then she hit him, effectively knocking the final one out. "I don't even let my baby brother call me that. Asshole. Have some respect." She grunted and turned, tossing a heaven scroll to Sunako. "There you go."

He grabbed it and looked it over as if to make sure it was the real deal. He looked over at Kei. "Nice working with you." And then they were turning to leave.

Kei stepped forward. "Wait!"

Akira looked back, brow arched.

"We should go together. I mean.." Her lips seemed to pout as she tried for an answer. "Just in case someone tries to get them from us."

Sunako smirked. "Very well. But, you have to keep up with us." He looked up. "We only have a day to make it there. I'm not stopping for anything. Alright?"

Kei nodded.

Rei glanced over at Ryu. "Ready for more?"

He chuckled. "We've come this far. Hell yeah."

Kei smiled. "One more test, right?"

"Yup," Ryu patted her on the head.

"Hey! We're leaving!" Jade called.

All three of them blinked and set on after the group with Gregor in tow behind not too far away.