Normal speech
Thought
Nine-tails/Other big voices
InnerSakura
A/N:
Disclaimer
I do not own Naruto in any way, shape, or form. This is merely for my, and hopefully everyone else's, enjoyment. Thank you!
Recap:
Once again they were on there way to the tower and in no time they could see it in the distance. They were almost home free. They quietly and cautiously made their way to the tower, but something was wrong…
Something about the forest seemed to be a bit… off. They would soon find out exactly what that was as they continued…
They were sneaking along the forest, concealing themselves behind trees and bushes in hopes of going undetected. Suddenly, Akamaru piped up…
Kiba: This is bad you guys… This entire area reeks of blood…
Ino: …Maybe we should go another way… *turning around*
Everyone had the same thought but noticed that something was amiss. The way that they had come had disappeared and they were now surrounded by different paths. But which one was the right way…?
A/N: Now with this chapter, I wasn't all that sure about posting, but I thought that I had a few good things in it so...
Trapped
Chouji: Uh… wasn't there only one way behind us that we came through…?
Kiba: Yeah… So what's with the extra ways...?
"Confused…?" a female voice asked.
A face began to form in front of the group. Then they knew…
Sasuke: This must be some kind of genjutsu… We've probably been being watched from the moment we got close enough to see the tower.
Kabuto: Looks like we've fallen into a trap. They're probably having us walk around in circles so that when they confront us, we'll be too tired to put up much of a fight…
"No… I don't really have that kind of patience… I'd rather see you choose a path and see what happens to you," she said.
Sakura: Just who are you…?
Sasuke: And what do you have in store for us? Why do you want us to choose a path instead of doing away with us now?
"Good questions… My name is Michi, and what I have in store for you is for me to know and for you to find out," she stated.
Sakura: Why…?
Michi: Isn't it obvious…? I want the scrolls you carry with you… Now choose a path and hope that it leads you to your desired destination…
Shikamaru: And what if we decide to just sit here until your impatience gets the best of you…?
Michi: Well… if you did that, you'd run the risk of missing the deadline or my partners getting you. With my genjutsu in place, you won't even see them coming… Whatever path you choose to take, it doesn't look good for the lot of you…
The group huddled up to come up with some kind of way to get out of this alive…
Ino: So, does anyone have any ideas?
Shino: Kiba, can you or Akamaru lead us out of here?
Kiba: It's no good… There's nothing but the stench of blood in the air. Because of that, we could be caught off-guard by things like paper bombs and whatever other traps that may be set up…
Sasuke turned away from the group and looked around for any clues as to a way out. He couldn't see anything, but maybe his sharingan could…
He activated it but had to quickly shut it off due to the pain he felt. It was so intense that it drove him to his knees screaming in agony…
Sakura+Ino: Sasuke…!! *running over to him*
Ino: What's happening to him?!
Sasuke: Don't worry about me… We have to get out of here… *struggling to his feet*
Kabuto: Is there any chance that any of these paths aren't booby trapped, Michi?
Michi: Why yes there is… I've set many different traps on many different paths leading to the tower… I wanted to make the game fun…
Shikamaru: Game…? Fun…? What's with you…? You can't play games with other peoples' lives just to get your kicks…!
Michi: You may not think it's fun, but I find it entertaining… to watch you squirm in your pants, worrying whether the next decision you make is the right one…! *chuckles*
Chouji: So what do we do…? *asking the group*
Kabuto: We either play her game, wait for her partners… or we locate her and put an end to this at the source… *looks at Naruto*
Sakura: *looks at Naruto* …Naruto can't you sense anything…?
Naruto: …I… I sense something faint…
Sasuke: So that must mean that she's pretty far away…
Naruto: No…… I haven't been able to sense chakra for a while now…
Sakura: You haven't…!? Since when…?!
Naruto: … Since our run-in with…
Sasuke: Since then, huh…? Well when you said that you had sensed many chakra signatures gathering, it must have been then. They've probably already gotten many others before we got here. That's why the smell of blood is in the air…
Naruto: …Even though I'm not sure, the fact that I can sense a chakra signature may mean that she's closer than we think…!... I think... *sheepishly smiling*
Shino: I've been trying to locate her myself…
Ino: You can sense chakra too?
Shino: No, but my bugs are good at locating people, especially if there's chakra being used. The only problem is that they still haven't returned…
Just then they heard an explosion come from down one of the paths…
Kiba: …That might have been the reason why…
Shino: If they found her, she must have surrounded herself with traps so that we couldn't get close to her if we tried…
Sasuke: Time's running out and we have no way of ensuring that we make it to the tower in time… It would be dumb if we made hasty choices and just ran down any path…
Naruto-Hinata: Well… Um… *at the same time*
Everyone looked at them, curious to what they had to say…
Realizing that they had both chimed in at the same time, both tried to give the other a chance to say their piece…
Sakura: WELL ONE OF YOU SAY SOMETHING…!!
Seeing that Hinata had lost the courage to speak her mind, Naruto decided to go ahead and say his idea first…
Naruto: Well… I could use my Shadow Clones to investigate ahead…
Sakura: That's actually not a bad idea Naruto…! They can clear the way and then we'll know which way to go…
Shino: That is a good idea, but I would like to hear Hinata's idea…
Hinata: Huh…?! What?!... I… I don't think that it's as good as Naruto's idea…
Naruto: We'll be the judges of that… If it's good or better, then it's better that you tell us instead of letting it go unsaid…
Hinata wasn't expecting anyone to stick up for her ways of thinking, but with what Naruto just said, she began to feel a little more confident in herself…
Hinata: …Well… I could give it a try… *pulling off her bow*
Naruto: Give what a try…?
Hinata: With my H.A.L.O., I can find someone by their heat signature… plus it shouldn't be affected by the genjutsu… *readying her bow*
Shino reached into her quiver (container for arrows) and handed her an arrow. She took it and activated her H.A.L.O. With it, she searched for any heat signatures in the area and found someone standing on a tree branch. With her H.A.L.O. guiding her, Hinata fired her arrow. Shino quickly released his bugs and they followed after the arrow…
Sakura+Ino: AAAAHH!! WHERE DID THOSE BUGS COME FROM?!!
Hinata's arrow flew far and true and found its mark in Michi's arm. It took her by complete surprise, but that wasn't the least of the surprises. Not far behind the arrow was a swarm of bugs that engulfed her.
The genjutsu began to slowly fade and the group realized that it had worked.
Sasuke: I'm not even going to ask... Let's just get out of here and to the tower before we run into others.
They were about to head down one of the paths but stopped when they heard another explosion in the distance…
Ino: …Um… There's still three ways we could go if we wanted to make it to the tower… What if we choose the wrong one?
Naruto: Leave it to me…!! "MULTI SHADOW CLONE JUTSU"!!
Naruto had created many clones, all identical to the original including something on thier tails. The many Narutos started running down the paths before the group.
Sakura: Naruto... what's that on you and your clones' tails?
Naruto: What this...? *moving his tail*
There was something around it and Sakura was curious to know what and why...
Naruto: I tore the sleeves off of one of my old jackets and placed them over my tail. I did this to...
In the distance, they could hear explosions down every path, except for one. Before Naruto could finish what he was saying, they quickly headed down that path and hoped that they could still make it in time.
Naruto was out front when suddenly everyone behind him noticed that something was barreling right for him. It wasn't until the last second that Naruto noticed this himself. A giant log was careening right for him, but he didn't have enough time to jump back…
The log closed in on him… and at the last second he was yanked back by Kabuto…
Naruto: Thanks Kabuto… I owe you one…
Kabuto: Don't mention it… but how do we get through this one…?
Before them lay an alley of swinging pendulums (logs on rope). They had to act quickly, so Hinata readied her bow and fired off another, cutting the rope in one shot and clearing this obstacle.
Wary of other possible traps ahead, Naruto created more clones to scout out ahead. Once again a string of explosions occurred. The group just had to do the best they could…
To avoid possible bombs buried in the ground, the group took to the trees. As they made their way to the tower, Shino suddenly called the group to a halt. Unfortunately, he hadn't done it quick enough to keep Naruto from going a little further.
Naruto: What are we stopping for? *still in the air*
Shino: The trees ahead… some of the branches have been sawed halfway through…
It just so happens that Naruto had just landed on one of these sawed branches. It gave way as it couldn't hold his weight. Everyone watched in horror as Naruto and the branch plummeted to the earth. Before any could react, the ground had opened up and they fell into a pit of spikes…
Sakura: NARUTO!!!
Blood and guts had splattered all over the pit. The group couldn't believe what had happened…
"Aw man… Perfectly good fish, ruined…"
They looked over to the tree, and there was Naruto hanging by his tail. Instead of him being splattered in the pit of spikes it turned out to be his backpack full of leftover fish…
He made his way down the tree in hopes of salvaging something for later. The group was relieved, but they didn't have time to enjoy it…
A net rocketed at them, forcing them down from the trees. Two more nets were dropped on each opening, sealing them in. As there was a huge pit of spikes below them, the group held on to the net for dear life…
"Hehehe… So how do you like my little trap," a guy said as he appeared.
Shikamaru: Oh man… another one… What a drag…
"Nice to meet you… I'm Katashi… Why don't you give me your scrolls and… I'll make your deaths quick and as painless as I can," he said.
Naruto: AS IF…!! LIKE WE'D GIVE IN TO SOMEONE THAT'S TRYING TO GET WHAT THEY WANT BY ACTING LIKE A COWARD!! LET ME OUT OF HERE AND I'LL FIGHT YOU FOR THE SCROLLS!!
Katashi: Not gonna happen… "ROPES OF STEEL JUTSU"!!
Sakura: What did you just do?
Katashi: With my jutsu, there's no way that you can cut yourselves out of my little trap. The only thing you can do… is die… *evil grin*
Kiba: That's just great…! *sarcasm* …So how do we get out of this one?
Katashi leaped onto one of the branches that his net was cast over…
Katashi: Eventually this branch is gonna give and I'll release my jutsu. Once that happens, you'll all fall to your deaths… *jumping down*
The branch began to crack and slightly slump. The group had to come up with something fast…
Naruto: "Shadow Clone Jutsu"!! *making 10 clones*
The Narutos climbed down to the ground and began cutting away at the sticks that made the spikes…
Sakura: What are you up to, Naruto?
Naruto: Isn't it obvious…? I'm cutting these sticks so that everyone won't fall on them…
Katashi: I-If you do that, then I just won't undo my jutsu and you'll be trapped in there until I drag your corpses out…
Naruto: I'm not finished yet… There's another part of my plan… *pulling up some sticks and digging*
Kiba: Oh, I see…! Leave it to me and Akamaru, Naruto!
Akamaru transformed into a clone of Kiba and the two got to work…
Kiba: Let's go Akamaru…! "FANG OVER FANG"!!
To the disbelief of their captor, the two began drilling through the ground. In order to stop them, he began hurling kunai, but his attempts were blocked by the hardened net. As the group began to go underground, Katashi realized that the best thing to do would be to pin them. He was about to hurl some kunai at the tree branch so that the net would crush them, but…
Kiba: Oh no you don't…! *bursting from the ground*
This caught Katashi's attention long enough for just about everyone to get themselves clear of the trap. Katashi prepared to attack Kiba, but…
Shino: Instead of him, you should pay more attention to what's at your feet…
From out of nowhere a swarm of insects attacked and began to cover Katashi. He screamed as the relentless bugs covered every inch of him and drained his chakra…
Once again they found themselves racing to the tower… and once again they found themselves confronted by yet another enemy…
They knew that they were likely to fall victim to another trap, but it wasn't as obvious as the others. There was someone about, taunting them to continue forward and try their luck. They'd gotten past the first two, but could they do the same here…
Ansa: Come… I dare you… *a female voice said from an unknown position*
Sasuke: She must be hiding somewhere waiting to ambush us…
Shino: By the looks of the area… there have been numerous explosions here. She must have explosives stashed all over…
Ino: Can you sense anyone near Naruto?
Naruto: Only a little… It doesn't seem to be getting any better… What about you Hinata…? Can you see anyone with your gizmo…?
Hinata used her H.A.L.O., but…
Hinata: …I don't see anything…
Shikamaru: I don't suppose that we can just run through without anything bad happening…
With that said, everyone looked to Naruto. Once again he made some clones and used them as decoys. They ran through the field… but nothing happened. Instead someone in the group received a kunai to the back. Kabuto went down quickly as the kunai found its place under his left shoulder blade. Shino noticed that a patch on the ground had closed sometime after this and investigated…
Shino: This… is a trapdoor… that leads to an underground tunnel. It must be connected to others all over this area…
Ansa: (chuckles)… You're right… but there's no way you'll find me. These tunnels are too intricate to be navigated by the likes of you… You won't find me… but I'll find you everytime… (chuckles)
Shino immediately sent his bugs down the tunnel in hopes that they could help with this little game of hide and seek. Before they knew it, they were being blindsided once again. This time it was Kiba who got a kunai in the arm.
Naruto: I've had it… It's time to put an end to all this… Ok guys… find any hole you can and down ya go!
The clones did just this and…
Ansa: Hey…! What are you doing down here…? What are you…? Hey… Stay away…!
After a moment of silence, the ground began to shake. Out of one of the trapdoors came the culprit they were searching for. As soon as she saw the Leaf shinobi, she bolted for a safe place to hide herself. The Leaf shinobi quickly gave chase.
Naruto wasn't going to let the others get their hands on her before he did however. He had worked to hard to let his moment in the sun go to someone else that did very little…
Ansa was making her way through the forest trying to shake her pursuers. While looking back, she ran into something… Something in orange with mad blue eyes. As she shuffled back away from Naruto, she soon found herself surrounded. In order to avoid a harsh punishment, she offered to give the group all the scrolls that she and her partners had collected. The Leaf shinobi accepted but didn't leave without giving her some kind of punishment. They left her in a hole, bound and gagged awaiting whatever or whoever may happen upon her.
After an entire evening of avoiding traps and getting out of those that ensnared them, they finally arrived at the tower entrance and there waiting for them was Kabuto's teammates. They parted ways with the Rookie 9, leaving them to their goodbyes for now.
Kiba and Hinata were helping Naruto make his way to the tower while Sakura and Ino helped Sasuke. Kiba and Hinata released Naruto so that there team could get to their door. Naruto thanked them for the assistance and Hinata seemed like there was something wrong…
Naruto: Thanks for the assist guys, but I can take it from here…
Hinata: A-Are you sure Naruto…?
Naruto: Oh yeah… I'm fine… but are you ok Hinata…?
Hinata: Wha-What do you mean?
Naruto: Well… you're all red…
Hinata: N-N-N-No… I-I'm fine…
Naruto: …Ok… well take care of yourself… and good luck on the next part of the exam…
Hinata: Oh… thank you… Good luck to you too… *smiling*
Hinata's face cleared up a bit but she was still pretty red. Though she was still worried a little about Naruto's condition, she believed in him and that he would be able to continue with the exam. He had walked over to his team so that they could enter the tower. The only problem was that the rest of his team wasn't quite on the same page…
Sakura: Let go of him Ino, you pig!! *pulling Sasuke*
Ino: Back off "billboard brow", I just want to give him a hug goodbye and a kiss for good luck… *tugging*
Sakura: A kiss from you means nothing but bad luck… Just let go…
Ino: Why don't you just give up on him? You probably don't want anything to do with guys anyway, just like the rest of your clan…
The Sasuke tug-of-war finally came to an end as everyone helped pry Ino from him. She was then dragged away by her team as the sun began to rise. Team 8 finally left for their door soon after, leaving Team 7 to theirs…
Kabuto and his team made it to their door and were met by a shadowy figure…
"How was the harvest," the person from the shadows asked.
Kabuto: It was above expectations… I've written down all of his data from the second test and even the other one as well. Is this what you want… Orochimaru?
Orochimaru: (chuckles)… I want to know your opinion… as our spy…
Kabuto: That's unnecessary since everything will be decided by you.
Orochimaru: (sinister chuckle)… I like that intelligence of yours… Good work…
In a puff of smoke… he vanished…
They finally reach their destination...
What more could this exam throw at them...?
Next chapter: Fight for the right...!