Previously on Survivor: Ninja Edition...
After Konan was voted out, Sakura and Shikamaru discovered that Itachi was holding the real immunity idol all along, and Shikamaru further suspected Itachi of using his crow summons as his spies. On the Tsuki Tribe, Hanabi used her byakugan and social skills to form a strong partnership with Temari. When faced with tribal council, the two kunoichi roped in Gai and hatched a plan to get the Uchiha brothers to turn against Haku by planting a fake idol in his bag for Sasuke to find. Their gamble paid off and despite his Steal-A-Vote advantage, Haku was the sixth person voted out in a devastating blindside. 12 ninja remain; who will be voted out tonight?
Ep 6 Votes:
Voted for Gai - Kisame (1)
Voted for Hanabi - Haku, Haku (2)
Voted for Haku - Temari, Gai, Itachi, Sasuke (4)
Idols/Advantages:
Naruto - Hidden Immunity Idol (Sakura and Kakashi know)
Itachi - Hidden Immunity Idol (everyone knows)
Hanabi - Legacy Advantage (use at 11 or 6; no one knows)
Unknown (former Beauty Tribe member) - Hidden Immunity Idol
Survivor: Ninja Edition - Ep 7
So Much Sexual Tension
Night 16 - Tsuki
"What the hell was that?"
Fully expecting that remark from Kisame after blindsiding Haku earlier that night, Itachi beckoned his Anti-Konoha Alliance - if you could still call them that - to a secluded corner of the beach. Understanding that they needed a moment to sort things out, Hanabi and Gai kept to themselves as they tended to the camp fire.
"Well?" Kisame demanded impatiently.
"Haku had a hidden immunity idol and he didn't tell any of us," Sasuke explained. "He even lied to my face when I asked him."
"Oh yeah?" Kisame snorted. "How'd you know he had it in the first place, then?"
"Hanabi's byakugan," Sasuke supplied. He then relayed most of yesterday's events to him - how Hanabi had also known of Itachi's idol but had kept quiet about it, and how she had approached him to turn the vote on Haku instead.
"Basically, we decided that we could trust Hanabi more than Haku," Temari added once Sasuke had fell silent. "I mean, best to get Haku out first if he wasn't willing to share his idol with us. And besides, Hanabi's been more useful around camp and in the challenges than he has."
"It's not that I -" Kisame scratched his head in frustration. "I just don't get why you didn't tell me the change of plans," he confessed. "I would've happily voted Haku out if I knew."
"I apologize, Kisame," Itachi said quietly, as the three other ninja started at him dumbstruck. It was not an everyday occurrence to hear the intimidating man say sorry.
"It's fine," Kisame mumbled eventually. "Just let me in on the plan next time, no matter what."
Itachi nodded his agreement and held out his hand for his Akatsuki partner to shake. Seeing that everything was back to normal, the group began to meander back to camp and prepare to turn in for the night.
Arriving back by the fire, Itachi accepted the sincere 'thanks' that Hanabi expressed to him before lying down in the shelter. Closing his eyes and pretending to be tired, his thoughts were still racing in his head.
He was no fool; he was well aware that Haku was set up by Hanabi, Temari and, to a smaller extent, Gai. His faithful crow summons had seen to that. However, he had let it happen as he had been noticing Haku and his foolish little brother getting closer and closer. Wanting Sasuke's main allegiance to be with him and fearing that he would go with the ice user further down the track, Itachi had zero qualms about voting Haku out. While the two kunoichi of the tribe pairing up was potentially problematic, he at least now knew that the Beauty Tribe's idol was with one of three people - Ino, Deidara or Kakashi.
Not at all concerned about Hanabi still being in the game - all he had to really do once the merge happened would be to let slip that she could see into their bags and she'd be voted out in a heartbeat, after he made use of her and made her tell him who else had which idols, of course - Itachi let himself drift off to sleep.
Day 17 - Taiyou
"I wonder where we'll have to go today for the reward challenge," Ino wondered absentmindedly as she drank from a freshly picked coconut.
"Dunno," Sakura replied as she mimicked her friend's actions and drank from hers.
Spotting Naruto and Shikamaru returning from their short trip to tree mail (the pair had offered to go there and collect their instructions for today), Sakura waved them over. However, her movements faltered as she noticed Shikamaru's furrowed brows and Naruto's particularly excited grin. While those expressions on these particular males were nothing out of the ordinary, Sakura had never seen a tree mail message excite or worry anyone before.
"Oi!" Naruto yelled out to Kakashi and Deidara, "Gather 'round!"
"We've got troublesome news," Shikamaru added in explanation.
"No, it's exciting!" Naruto argued as he threw his hands up in the air.
"Just tell us already, yeah," Deidara grumbled. "Get on with it."
"We're playing 'Capture The Flag' for our next challenge!" Naruto bounced up and down excitedly. "And the losers go to tribal council tomorrow, while the winners get to sit in and watch them vote someone out."
"What?" Ino exclaimed. Those were high stakes.
"Basically," Shikamaru sighed, "It's a reward and immunity challenge in one. And we need to win."
"When do we start?" Kakashi asked.
"In exactly an hour," Shikamaru continued as he pulled out a red flag from his vest pocket. "This is our tribe flag. We need to guard it against the other tribe and retrieve theirs first."
"Here are the exact rules," Naruto piped in, unrolling the scroll from tree mail. Everyone leaned in to read the words on the paper.
Capture The Flag Rules:
1. Seize the opposing tribe's flag and guard yours by any means necessary short of lethal force.
2. Your tribe flag has to be planted out in the open by your camp fire pit.
3. To win, be the first tribe to grab the opposing tribe's flag and pull it out of their fire pit over your head.
4. Please extinguish your camp fires prior to the start of this challenge.
5. Bonus incentive: if you win with all tribe members still conscious, a feast will also be provided for you as you watch the losers' tribal council.
"It's a winner-takes-all challenge," Ino summarized after she had finished reading.
Sakura nodded in agreement. "It also seems like a capture and rescue mission," she said thoughtfully. "But also defending at the same time."
"It's like the chunin exams!" Naruto's eyes were shining with anticipation. "Only that we have two groups of three instead of one group of three!"
"Whatever it is, we need to come up with a plan," Deidara interrupted the jinchuriki's math equation.
"I agree," Kakashi added. "We need to decide who's on offense and defense, as well as keep in communication with each other so we can react to any developments."
"I've got the second part covered," Ino smirked as she tapped the side of her head. Then to her teammate, "You're the strategist, Shika. Got any ideas for the first bit?"
"A few."
Day 17 - Capture The Flag
"Three ninja up ahead," Hanabi whispered as she jumped from tree to tree in the Uzushiogakure jungle.
Gai didn't need to look at her to know she had her byakugan activated. "Who?"
"Naruto, Sakura and Shikamaru," she replied. "At their current trajectory, there will be no confrontation."
Sensing her eyes on him, Itachi knew that she was waiting for his orders. After receiving the instructions for their challenge an hour ago, Itachi had been named the leader of their three-man offense squad. Kisame was in-charge of the defense with Sasuke and Temari back at the Tsuki camp.
"Ambush them," Itachi told the young Hyuuga. "But your main priority is to delay them while Gai-senpai and myself push forward. Rejoin us when you can."
Although she looked unsure of herself, Hanabi nodded resolutely and took off towards the opposing trio. Itachi and Gai continued on their path to Taiyou's camp, picking up their pace significantly now that they didn't have to take Hanabi's stamina into consideration.
As he leapt onto the next tree, Gai couldn't help but press his lips into a thin line. While he agreed with Itachi's decision, that didn't mean he liked it. Hanabi was no match for any of the three ninja that she was heading towards in a one-on-one battle, let alone being outnumbered three to one. However, he also knew that Itachi was well aware that her life would not be in danger - the challenge forbid lethal force and those three particular ninja would never purposely harm a fellow Konoha comrade like Hanabi. At worst, Hanabi would be knocked unconscious. Still, Gai couldn't help but feel protective over the young kunoichi that he had come to know over the past couple of weeks.
Itachi was ruthless and intelligent, Gai decided. He would keep a close eye on him in the game from now on.
...
"Incoming!" Sakura alerted her temporary teammates as she sensed a c
hakra signature rapidly approaching.
"How many?" Grunted Naruto as he halted his running.
"One," Sakura frowned. That didn't make sense.
"Are there others in hiding?" Shikamaru asked as he dropped to the jungle floor and braced for the impending confrontation.
A figure suddenly burst out of the dense jungle foliage and barreled towards Shikamaru, forcing him to dodge a series of deadly blows. After he had narrowly avoided getting hit, Shikamaru jumped back as Naruto's form blurred in front of him and started attacking the assailant, forcing them to retreat to a safe range.
"Hanabi?" Sakura didn't bother to conceal her surprise.
"Of all people they sent you by yourself?" Tact was never Naruto's strongest suit.
"I'm more than capable on taking all of you on," came Hanabi's arrogant retort as she narrowed her eyes.
Naruto didn't have a chance to respond as Hanabi resumed her assault on him. However, Shikamaru noticed that while Naruto was dodging her attacks, he seemed unwilling to counter and risk hurting her. Sakura was in a similar state - she held herself in a battle stance as she watched warily, but made no move to join in and overpower the younger kunoichi.
The realization hit Shikamaru.
Her job is to stall us! He talk-screamed over his tribe's mental connection. Hanabi is stalling us knowing that we will hesitate to hurt her so that her tribe will win.
As soon as the thought left his head, he saw both Naruto and Sakura straighten up suddenly and team up together against the Hyuuga.
We've got two chakra signatures rapidly approaching our camp, came Kakashi's voice. You three need to hurry and get to Tsuki's beach!
"Sorry, Hanabi-chan," Shikamaru heard Sakura's quiet apology as she broke through the girl's defense and tapped her lightly on the forehead. The effect was immediate and Hanabi crumpled into an unconscious heap on the jungle floor.
"We need to hurry," Shikamaru urged. "The other tribe has just about reached our camp."
"What do we do with her?" Naruto jerked a thumb in Hanabi's direction.
"Leave her," Shikamaru said as he beckoned the pair to start running again. "Leave a couple of clones with her in case she wakes up. But we can't use her as a hostage - everyone knows we can't do real harm to her in the challenge."
As two Naruto clones popped into existence and the trio hit the trees at a brisk pace, Shikamaru registered Ino's voice in his head again.
Itachi and Gai are at our camp, she informed the group. No wonder why they got here so quick!
That leaves us to deal with Kisame, Temari and Sasuke, concluded Sakura. Exchanging a quick look of determination, the three of them pushed extra chakra into their legs to pick up the pace.
...
As soon as he broke through the treeline in the Taiyou camp, Gai made a beeline towards the red flag. Having removed all his weights, he was exceptionally fast and was hoping to put an end to the challenge before there was a chance to even engage in battle.
Warning bells sounded in his head, forcing him to alter his trajectory as the ground he was previously on exploded a split second after. However, there was no reprieve for Gai as the new spot he had escaped to was now exploding as well, and it was a testament to his superhuman speed that he retreated back to the treeline with only a few singes on his green jumpsuit.
If Itachi was more expressive, he would've been fixing his tribe mate with an exasperated stare.
"Deidara is on this tribe," the Uchiha chose to say instead. "We can be certain that this entire beach has been loaded with explosive mines."
Their answer came in a loud cackle above their heads.
"Art is a bang!" Deidara grinned viciously as he soared through the air on his giant clay bird. His hands were already busy molding new creations.
Idly, Itachi silently commended his opponents' tribe strategy. They certainly hadn't made it easy for them - the entire beach was filled with mines while more explosives were bound to be sent raining down on them from the air. If that wasn't enough, Kakashi and Ino were standing between them and the flag, ready to cut them off if they somehow managed to get past Deidara's defenses. Itachi wasn't sure how the ground mines weren't being triggered by Kakashi and Ino (he suspected something to do with chakra-recognition), but that wasn't his concern at the moment.
A blur of white caught Itachi's attention and he moved out of the way instinctively, a gush of wind telling him that Gai had done the same. The white figures turned out to be homing bombs sent by Deidara. They would have to be on the constant move if they didn't want to get injured. The crazed artist was already churning out another wave of bombs to be sent after them.
Gai must have had the same thought as he once again rushed forward, uncaring of triggering the mines in the sand as he was able to move quicker than they exploded. Not possessing the same speed, Itachi was forced to act as his backup.
Seeing that Gai was having some success in avoiding the bombs, Kakashi surged forward to clash with his peer and halt his progress, leaving Ino to stand guard right in front of the tribe flag.
Not wasting time to watch the two jonin trade blows, Itachi focused on taking Deidara down. To his amusement, it seemed like Deidara had learnt his lesson and was studiously avoiding looking at his eyes and Akatsuki ring in an effort to avoid being trapped in any genjutsu. Instead, the blonde Iwa missing nin's strategy seemed to merely consist of pumping out as many clay explosives as quickly as he could.
As he jumped away from yet another wave of homing clay bombs, Itachi realized with dry humor that the Taiyou members weren't fighting to win - they knew that Tsuki possessed physically stronger fighters overall. No, they were fighting to wear himself and Gai out and slow them down, hopefully giving their other tribe mates a chance to seize the flag first.
While Gai was not likely to tire any time soon, Itachi knew that it wouldn't be the same for him. He had to come up with a way to deal with Deidara, or else he would be going back to tribal council again tomorrow.
...
The attacking trio of Taiyou arrived on their opponents' beach only to find it completely obscured in thick mist.
"Stupid Kirigakure no Jutsu," Naruto muttered. Then silently he added via mind link, at least we can keep in contact like this.
Naruto, came Shikamaru's voice. Use a wind jutsu to disperse some of this mist so we can see where the flag is.
Immediately, Naruto made a series of handseals and blew out a gust of wind. While it wasn't enough to get rid of all the mist, it was sufficient for them to get their bearing on the layout of the Tsuki camp.
Springing into action, the Taiyou members lunged towards the flag, only to be halted by the Tsuki members on defense duty.
"You're not taking a step further," came Kisame's voice from somewhere inside the mist.
"Like hell I'm not!" Naruto grinned mischievously and took many steps forward, disappearing into the mist. The sounds of battle began to reach their ears, telling them that Naruto had found the blue shark man.
Remember the plan, Sakura told her male teammates. Naruto takes Kisame, Shika takes Temari, and I'll take on Sasuke.
A huge gust of wind hit them right then, forcing Shikamaru and Sakura to separate unless they wanted to stay and be cut multiple times. Not sparing his tribe mate a glace, Shikamaru charged in the direction that the wind had come from, intent on engaging Temari.
"Sakura."
Fighting the pleasant chill that his voice gave her, Sakura turned around to face her childhood crush. She kept her expression and stance deliberately casual.
"Sasuke-kun", she greeted softly.
"I'm rather insulted that I get you as an opponent."
Coming from anyone else, Sakura would say that it was an obvious attempt to rile her up. However, from Sasuke, it sounded factual, as if he was stating that the sky was blue and that they were playing Survivor.
Sakura's lips dipped into a small frown. "I'm not the same weak girl you once knew," she whispered.
That was all the warning she gave before she vanished into a blur and attacked.
...
"So much sexual tension, eh?" Kisame chuckled as he swung Samehada at his target.
"Why does everyone keep hinting that I'm gay?" Naruto's voice was deeper and rougher due to the Kyuubi cloak that surrounded him, but it was clear that he was whining.
"I meant the other two fights, not ours," Kisame rolled his eyes. Then, with a grin, "are you?"
"NO!" Naruto shouted and aimed a deadly swipe at the shark man.
Unlike their previous life-or-death battles where Kisame would be trying to capture the Kyuubi, there was little killing intent involved this time around from both parties. Their short time together on the Brawn Tribe had forged a bond between them; not as far as friendship, but there was definitely mutual respect for each other's skills.
Thanks to the wind from Temari's fan attacks, most of the mist surrounding the Tsuki beach had dispersed within the first few minutes of battle. Sparing a precious few seconds to glance at the other fights going on, Naruto had to concur with Kisame's statement. Shikamaru and Temari's battle looked more like a weird mating ritual dance involving shadows and wind, while Sasuke and Sakura...
Naruto felt his stomach drop slightly as he noticed his original team's battle. While Sakura was strong, Sasuke was still obviously stronger. However, Sakura didn't look at all injured and the answer to that became clear when Naruto began to notice openings that Sasuke could have taken to attack, but chose not to. Instead, his rival was lingering a second too long each time he clashed with Sakura, his eyes lit up with - with what, exactly? It almost looked like pride and... affection? Sakura, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to the looks she was receiving - she was leaving herself open on purpose, and getting frustrated when it became clear that Sasuke was holding back.
A shift in the air snapped Naruto back to his own fight with Kisame, and he narrowly avoided having his arm shaved off by Samehada. He would sort out his feelings about his suspicions after the challenge. For now, he had to make sure his tribe won.
...
Itachi held back a sigh as he dodged yet another homing bomb from Deidara, who was still airborne. Gai was still engaged in battle with Kakashi, shouting out proverbs to do with youth and eternal rivalry.
He was wasting time and he knew it - in a real battle, the Tsuki Tribe would romp Taiyou, no questions asked. However, with lethal force being prohibited (for good reasons), Itachi knew that he wasn't going to go all Mangekyo Sharingan! for this challenge. After all, while tsukiyomi didn't actually kill someone, it would still maim them for life and he was pretty certain that amaterasu would also burn up the flag he was supposed to retrieve. And susanoo...
Itachi would've stilled if it wasn't for the fresh wave of explosives that were being dropped on him overhead. He could technically go 'fuck it' and susanoo his way into the heart of the camp and win the challenge for his tribe all in under five seconds. It would be painful and strain his eyes, but doing so would guarantee victory.
However, Itachi was hardly one to just go 'fuck it'.
If he won this challenge for his tribe, judging from the six on Taiyou, Deidara would be the prime candidate for elimination. While he and the explosives expert were never on good terms, Deidara was still a number that he could definitely pull in and use once the merge happened. After all, from what Sasuke had told him, Deidara was only successful in aligning himself with Ino, and with only twelve left in the game, the merge had to be coming soon.
On the other hand, if he took his time to play explosive tag in this challenge long enough, the other tribe could win and send his to tribal council. Where his alliance was in control. While Hanabi and Temari might've buddied up, he knew Temari was smart enough to know not to leave a majority alliance that had an immunity idol only to make it a risky three-on-three tie vote. Getting rid of either Gai or Hanabi would give him an edge in the merge in terms of numbers.
As he was always one to play the long game, Itachi readied himself to just keep on dodging explosives - he vaguely registered Deidara's frustrated yell of "Take me seriously, you damn Uchiha!" - and hoped that Kakashi could keep Gai at bay long enough to send him back to tribal council.
...
"You're not fighting me properly," Sakura frowned as she and Sasuke met in a clash of kunai.
Unsurprisingly, her former teammate didn't offer her a reply as he executed a series of taijutsu strikes that forced her onto the defensive.
As she leaned to her left to avoid the punch coming towards her, Sakura couldn't help but widen her eyes as she spotted Shikamaru knocking Temari unconscious in the distance and making a beeline towards the yellow flag.
Realizing her mistake as Sasuke narrowed his eyes in response and began to maneuver himself to look behind him, Sakura rushed him in a panic, hoping that it would read as desperation instead.
"Do you think I'm weak?!" Sakura cried as she all but flung herself towards Sasuke in a very Naruto-like manner.
She wasn't surprised or disappointed when Sasuke easily caught her fist and flipped her onto her back. After all, her goal was to distract Sasuke just long enough for Shikamaru to grab the flag, and that charge was full of openings.
Sakura was about to sit up and aim another swipe when Sasuke joined her on the sand, pinning her down in a standard hold with his body weight. Glaring daggers at the raven-haired man - did he really think that she could be held down with such an elementary pin? - Sakura jerked her hips and applied strength to her limbs as she prepared to break out of the hold she was stuck in.
What she wasn't prepared for, however, was for her actions to cause Sasuke's eyes to darken with desire as he flicked his gaze down to her lips.
Confusion clouded her mind and the chakra she was moulding into her arms dissipated. She stared up at Sasuke, transfixed, as he stared right back at her, their faces mere inches apart.
A loud bang echoed throughout the beach, ending the moment between the pair before it really began. Sitting up to see what had happened - she hadn't even noticed when Sasuke released her - Sakura smiled triumphantly as the figure of Shikamaru holding the Tsuki flag high over his head came into view. A closer look revealed that the source of the sound came from a reverse-summon calling Jiraiya to the beach. It must've been activated once Shikamaru touched the flag.
Giving a yelp of joy, Sakura rushed towards her tribe mate to celebrate as Naruto did the same, the episode between her and Sasuke completely forgotten for the moment.
"Taiyou wins immunity, sending Tsuki to tribal council!" Jiraiya declared, grinning at the celebrating trio. "Taiyou will also enjoy a feast while they listen in as all their members are still conscious!"
Adopting a more serious tone for the next sentence, the Sannin continued, "As the sun is already beginning to set, tribal council will be held tomorrow night. Taiyou, enjoy your time off. Tsuki, you will have until then to decide who goes home."
Day 18 - Tsuki
Temari sat up in the shelter, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she gave a loud yawn. A quick glance around her revealed that barring Kisame, she was the last tribe member to wake up for today.
Releasing a silent snort as Kisame grunted something unintelligible and rolled over in his sleep, Temari couldn't help but envy him. After all, while he and most likely the Uchiha brothers slept soundly last night, she could safely say that the other half of the tribe did not. She definitely felt as if she hadn't slept at all.
When they had arrived back at camp last night after losing the challenge, Itachi had gathered his Anti-Konoha Alliance. It was quickly agreed that they would keep things simple and vote either Hanabi or Gai out - there was no danger of them having any idols as they were scrambling too desperately last time to save Hanabi. As for making the choice of who went home between the two, Sasuke had just shrugged and said they'd decide tomorrow after getting some rest.
The arrogance in that statement had irked Temari to no end. Truth be told, she would very much rather side with Hanabi and Gai, but what good would that do? If she jumped ship, that would only result in a tie vote and the threat of Itachi's immunity idol also weighed in her mind.
It was definitely the better move to stick with the current majority alliance, Temari decided, even if she didn't particularly like who she was working with. While she had been on good terms with Kisame since Day 1, it was more of a partnership of convenience than a solid trust relationship. They both had other people they were much closer to in the game. At the same time, Itachi still scared her shitless sometimes, and while she had initially thought Sasuke to be handsome when they had first met at the Konoha chunin exams, his prickly attitude had deterred her from communicating with him unless necessary.
She was startled out of her thoughts when the older Uchiha appeared seemingly out of nowhere and delivered a swift (but harmless) kick to Kisame.
"Go away, Uchiha," Kisame mumbled, curling away from his Akatsuki partner.
"It's time to wake up, Kisame," Itachi's tone held no room for arguments, but his eyes held an amused glint. "We need to decide who we'll vote out tonight."
Grudgingly, the massive shark nin hauled himself up to a sitting position just as Sasuke joined the group in the shelter.
"I think we should eliminate Hanabi," Sasuke jerked a thumb toward the sea where Gai and the girl in question were wading in the water.
"Makes sense, I guess," Kisame said, more alert than he was seconds ago. "Gai is all brawn and no brains. Hanabi, on the other hand, is a lot more dangerous to keep around 'cuz you never know what schemes she might be planning."
"And Gai is a lot better in challenges," Sasuke added.
"But that's precisely why we should vote Gai instead," Temari found herself blurting out.
Nervous when all three of the notorious missing-nin looked at her questioningly, Temari forced herself to appear detached and logical. Yes, she was trying to save Hanabi over Gai for her own personal game, but they definitely didn't need to know that.
"The merge will be coming soon," she explained. "That's precisely when you don't want someone like Gai around anymore. With his freaky endurance, speed, strength and mindset, he could very well go on an immunity winning streak."
"I'm not too worried about that," Kisame said after some thought. "As long as I'm around, I don't think Gai could hog all the challenge wins post-merge."
"Don't forget there's also Naruto." It looked like it took all of Sasuke's effort to admit that.
"But Gai is just gonna be an obvious number for the other tribe," Temari insisted. "The first chance he gets, he'll hop over to the other tribe. He won't work with us, whereas Hanabi will."
"What makes you so sure?" Sasuke asked.
"She's already worked with us on the previous vote, while Gai just followed her lead," Temari said in an even tone. "She also doesn't have anyone on the other tribe that she's close to, so she'll stick with us for sure if we save her this time. Gai, on the other hand, is practically guaranteed to run right into Kakashi's alliance and you know it."
"That's kinda true, actually," Kisame admitted. "But I'm still not a hundred percent sure about Hanabi not backstabbing us down the line."
The three of them looked towards Itachi for his input, as he had been silent for the whole conversation. While none of them had explicitly said it before, Itachi was definitely the leader of their alliance.
"We will hear what they have to say," Itachi's voice was firm but not unkind. "We will take the information they give us into account and then make our choice."
...
Gai looked up from where he was squatting by the fire as he felt Hanabi approach. Giving her a friendly smile, he patted the sand to his left in an invitation to sit.
"How was it?" Gai asked as he added an extra log into the fire.
"It went as well as I could hope for," Hanabi sighed as she plopped down next to him.
The pair sat in silence for the next few minutes as they stared at the flickering flames, each lost in their thoughts. They both knew that it was either of them on the chopping block for tonight - it was pointless for Temari to do anything against her alliance, and it was impossible to sway the other three to do otherwise. Therefore, they had jumped at the chance when Itachi had approached them individually to let them make their case. Gai had gone first, and Hanabi had just returned from hers.
Suddenly, Gai extended his hand towards Hanabi.
"Whatever decision they make tonight, it has been wonderful playing with you," Gai smiled at the young Hyuuga. "My wish is for both of us to keep our flames of youth burning, regardless of the outcome."
Searching his face for signs of deception and finding none, Hanabi grasped his hand with her own and gave a firm shake.
"You're a good man, Gai-san," Hanabi told him sincerely. "You might be the only person in this entire game who hasn't told a lie or wished harm on others."
Seeing that her words had caused the spandex-clad man to start tearing up, Hanabi quickly released his hand and attempted to put some distance between them, but it was no good.
"HANABI-CHAN!" Gai cried tears of happiness as he summoned his unintentional genjutsu of rainbow youth and happiness.
Not quick enough to dodge him, Hanabi found herself trapped in a big bear hug. While she would've normally juken-ed anyone who tried to touch her like that into oblivion, Hanabi supposed she could make an exception this one time. Forcing a small smile onto her face, she patted the older ninja's back awkwardly and waited for him to calm down.
After a good minute of sniffling, Gai finally let go and stood up to his feet, pulling her along with him. It was time to head to tribal council.
Night 18 - Tribal Council
The six from Taiyou were already seated and busy devouring their provided feast as the Tsuki members walked into the tribal council hut.
"Welcome to tribal council, everyone," Jiraiya grinned as he noticed the Tsuki tribe do their utmost best to keep the pining looks off their faces as the other tribe happily munched on their food.
"Let's get right into it," the toad sage rubbed his hands together. "Tsuki, you were here in tribal not too long ago, and if I recall correctly, there seemed to be a majority alliance?"
At their nods, Jiraiya continued. "Is it right to assume that the alliance is sticking together? Kisame?"
"That's right," the shark man supplied. "It's a tight group, so I feel pretty darn safe tonight."
"Oh?" That caught Jiraiya's interest. "Who else besides Kisame feels safe tonight?"
There was a moment of hesitation before the Uchiha brothers raised their hands simultaneously. Seeing their actions, Temari quickly raised her hand as well, wanting to give them the impression that she trusted them fully.
"I see," Jiraiya nodded in acknowledgement. "Gai and Hanabi - I noticed your hands didn't go up. Does this mean that the two of you are the minority that are in danger for tonight?"
"Yes," Hanabi said slowly, unwilling to give too much information with the Taiyou members listening in. However, she supposed it couldn't be helped. "It was made clear as soon as we lost the challenge that it was going to be Gai or myself going home."
Seeing Gai nod in agreement, Jiraiya continued, "So what did the two of you do about it? Were there any other plans made or conversations to be had?"
"Look, we could've tried to flip two of them onto our side," Hanabi admitted, "but take a look at these four and tell me honestly if you think that would ever work."
At everyone's silence, Gai chuckled and added, "but we did get the chance to make our case of why we should stay."
"Meaning that it's a question of why the tribe should keep you instead of Hanabi, or vice versa," Jiraiya clarified.
"Exactly," Gai replied. "And while it pains the both of us to do this, we will have to be writing each other's name down tonight."
"Since this is the case, I'll give each of you a final chance to sway the tribe into letting you stay," Jiraiya decided. "Let's have ladies first. Hanabi - why should the tribe keep you in this game after tonight?"
"I have proven that I can be a useful and trustworthy ally," Hanabi stated, locking eyes with Sasuke. Then towards Temari and Kisame, "I have taken the proper time to get to know you as people, and feel like we can work together well from here on out. My hope is to leave this tribal tonight together with you and be a more united tribe."
"Well said," Jiraiya smiled. "What about you, Gai? State your final case."
"With me, what you see is what you get," Gai's response earned him a few chuckles. "I play this game honestly and fairly with nothing to hide, and my youthful energy has only been an asset to this tribe. I believe that keeping someone like me is the best option for both the tribe and your individual long term goals."
"Wonderful," Jiraiya inclined his head towards Gai. "With that, let's get to the vote."
...
"If anybody has a hidden immunity idol and would like to play it, now would be the time to do so," Jiraiya announced as he clutched the voting urn tightly in his hands.
Glancing around the hut, the toad sage waited patiently for any indication that someone was going stand up and address him. When nothing of the sort happened, he nodded and opened the lid of the voting urn.
"Once the votes have been read, the person with the highest number of votes will be asked to leave the tribal council area immediately," he declared, unfolding the first slip of paper. "First vote: Gai."
Reaching back into the urn, he pulled out the next parchment. "Hanabi."
The two ninja in question locked gazes with each other, both of them giving the other a small, reassuring smile. Whatever happened tonight, they had tried their hardest and would continue with no regrets.
"Third vote: Gai."
Closing his eyes in acceptance, Gai nodded to himself and steeled his nerves against what was to come.
"Next vote: Gai," Jiraiya read. "That's one for Hanabi, and three votes for Gai."
Dipping his hand back into the urn, Jiraiya unfolded another piece of parchment and paused dramatically.
"Seventh person voted out of Survivor: Ninja Edition - Gai; that's four votes, so it's enough," Jiraiya declared somberly. No one was particularly glad to see Konoha's Green Beast get voted out - he was well liked by everyone.
Grabbing his torch and placing it before Jiraiya, Gai heard the famous "the tribe has spoken" line uttered and watched his torch get snuffed.
Turning back to all the remaining players in the game, Gai held his thumb up in his signature 'nice guy' pose. He chortled in good nature and beamed at the entire room.
"May your flames of youth remain ever so bright!" Gai told them, his booming voice echoing throughout the hut. Then, setting his sights on the exit path, and to the amusement of many, he ran off screaming, "YOUUUUTH!"
"The guy sure knows how to make an exit," Jiraiya winked. "Taiyou, I hope this session has been informative for you. Tsuki, only time will tell if you walk out of here a stronger tribe as a result of tonight's vote. Get some rest all of you, and good night."
Author's Note:
Thank you all for reading! Yes in case you were wondering - there have been some SasuSaku moments throughout this series. While I'm not a personal fan of the pairing and this isn't a romance story (I actually like ItaSaku and KakaSaku), I want to stay true to the relationships formed in canon and see how the characters develop from there when put into Survivor. This wasn't the most flashy episode, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. And yes, it really pained me to have to cull Gai from the game! But alas, there will be plenty more painful eliminations in the future - it's Survivor, after all. Also, reviews, favs and follows are always much appreciated ;)