And the next chapter is done! I was actually anxiously awaiting the start of the exams, coz I felt introducing all the gennin was getting redundant (I actually have Buryaku comment on that in this chapter even :D). As promised in the previous chapter, these exams will be different from the ones you know from the manga, though some aspects remain. Hope I'll manage to make them both original and interesting enough. How many tests will there be? Heh, you'll need to find that out yourselves ;P
Also, following the tradition of NNG, I'd like to announce the first ever Those Who Inherit the Will of Fire Character Popularity Poll! The rules are generally the same as in NNG, but I do realize not all of you read both, so the details are given at the end of the chapter, along with the full, character list.
With that said, lets get to where the "action" is:
Chapter #20: The Exams Begin!
Title Page: a hot, summer day – Naraku in short pants in laying on a chair, flipping a fan at himself in hope to cool off at least a little bit
"Come on, Buryaku, move it" Toramaru rushed his friend as the trio walked down the street, towards bunker #21 – the gathering spot for the first Chuunin Selection Exam. Both the white-eyed boy and Naraku were pretty psyched over the event, but the kunoichi shown her usual... enthusiasm.
"You do realize we still have like an hour before the exam even begins, right?" she asked her teammates, yawning slightly. "If we arrive too early, it will only cause more tension... something we should avoid, considering nearly every foreigner we came across this, passing week was out to get us for some reason..."
"We trained hard with Teigo-sensei" the young Uchiha noted with a shrug, keeping hands in his pockets as he proceeded with a steady pace. "We should manage. Besides, other rookies should be there as well, so I doubt anyone will try something funny at this point."
"Since when have you become the brains of the group?" Toramaru raised an eyebrow, giving his friend a surprised look as the continued on their way. It was early morning so the street of Konoha were still rather empty as the sun just climbed above the horizon. The chilly, early breeze didn't help goosebumps that covered the white-eyed teen's skin, mostly there due to excitement.
After the next, fifteen minutes of march, delayed greatly by Buryaku, the threesome reached their destination, all of them instantly freezing at the sight that hit their eyes. Naraku widen his pupils, while Toramaru's jaw dropped to the ground... even the kunoichi allowed a quiet swallow of saliva as the crowd of people obscured their view entirely.
"Wha... what the heck?" the young Uchiha finally managed to speak up, his mouth remaining opened. "Are all those guys here to take the exam? There must by like a thousand gennin here!" he began panicking, but a familiar voice quickly made him turn left as a trio of leaf-nin walked towards them:
"Exactly 216" Akumo corrected his former classmate, adjusting his glasses as he, Akemi and Akai greeted the bunch, the green-haired girl bowing respectfully, while the redhead giving out a friendly wave. "Seventy two teams to be precious, divided between nine villages in total."
"Well, someone did his homework" Gaki's mocking voice joined the gathering as Lee Rock's students also joined Konoha's youth.
"Not really" Akai assured him with a cheerful smile. "Akemi was just so nervous over the whole thing, that she made us come here in the middle of the night. Out of pure boredom we started counting people who arrived and villages they were from..."
"Which would inquire you saw us arrive and yet didn't came to welcome your comrades?" Gai asked, almost insulted. "This is quite saddening..."
"Let that go already!" Hinako snapped as her eyes became pupiless, while her teeth turned into fangs: "You weren't too eager to say 'hi' to Garou-kun and the others either!" she pointed out, while the taijutsu expert shrunk on the spot:
"But... Gouka-san was with them and..." he began defending himself, while Naraku giggled under his breath: "Yeah, I guess neesan has that effect on people" he thought to himself. Ironically though, Toramaru took note of a very different fact:
"Did she just referred to Garou as... kun?" he wonder if he hadn't heard wrong.
"Wow, you dudes are really loud" another voice proclaimed, this time coming from behind them, Buryaku lazily looked over her shoulder, not very interested in the new arrivals – the voice aside, she would recognize that manner of speaking instantly and, sure enough, there was Shimiru, pointing at the group, with Hitomi and Jun right beside him. "But even more importantly: so many rookies will be taking the exam? That is so wicked!"
"You're the one being loud right now" the masked gennin stated, a single drop of sweat running down his face at his companion's behavior. To his great dismal, the comment only seemed to fuel the skateboarder even further: "I'm just excited, Jun-chan! We already know Gitou and others will be here and just now we heard Garou and his team are wondering around the area! That means all rookies will be entering the exam! That is so fresh!"
"Right you are, my youthful comrade!" Gai joined the blond, pointing his finger to the sky, while in the background Hinako only managed to covered her face in embarrassment, her head shaking at the scene. "Driven by our blooming hearts, we shall walk towards the unknown, to face the challenges of this world!" he spoke, which was soon followed by the duo going into a happy dance as they locked themselves in La-la-land.
"Well, those two are in an awfully good mood" Toramaru noted with his arms hanging as watched the spectacle. This was kinda like a romantic comedy – you don't wanna watch, but you just can't help it.
"Yeah, well, I can't imagine anything bringing those idiots down" Hitomi announced annoyed with her arms crossed, her face twisted in disapproval. She quickly regained her cold exterior though, shifting her attention to the blond: "But it doesn't matter... I don't know about Gai, but Shimiru certainly grew stronger over the year... it's not like he has much to fear in the upcoming event..."
"That may not be so, Hitomi-san" Akumo disagreed politely, once more fixing his glasses. "By my estimate there are at least twenty teams you should pay heed to and that is by the air they emit alone. I assume twice as many can be really dangerous for their opponents."
"Sounds to me like you guys are just wimps that came unprepared" Gaki mocked, as usual, while a smirk crept onto his face. "Say what you will, but I have no doubt that Gai would wipe the floor with that pierced dumbass of yours" the next line was directed towards the white-eyed girl, yet the young Hyuuga only narrowed her eyes slightly at the comment.
"Now, now" Akemi stepped between the two, rising her hands in a calming manner: "We're not here to fight each other... well, technically, we are, but not necessary right now" he added with an uncomfortable smile as the duo kept eying each other.
"Why not?" Gaki asked, widening his smirk. "If eventually we're gonna end up as enemies, might as well settle things now and get it over with..."
"Well, at the very least, I can see you haven't changed much" a newcomer stated, making both Naraku and Toramaru smile at the appearance: "Still as big of a jerk as ever..."
"Garou!" the white-eyed boy high-fived the dog teen as Hanomaru barked happily at the sight of the gathering. As usual, Kumo gave no more then an acknowledging nod towards everybody, while Gouka frowned under her nose; an equivalent of 'hi' in her language.
"So, you guys really are taking the exam as well" Naraku stated, at which the dog ninja gave him a wide grin: "Of course; can't afford for you wimps to leave us behind" he teased, which to Buryaku's surprise, wasn't followed by her blond teammate's claim that they'll wipe the floor with them, knock them back to Kiri or anything of that sort.
"Wimps, huh?" Toramaru smirked at the statement. "Guess we'll see about that..."
"Doubtful" Gouka announced instantly, her arms crossed, while her head was slightly lowered. "Just getting recommended for the exam doesn't mean much... best proof of that is that Naraku's here... and those guys" with that, she tilted her head forward, pointing at Shunrai, Choumaru and Gitou, who were slowly walking towards the gathering.
"Looks like we have a complete!" Gai yelled excitedly at the new arrivals, which made the blue-haired girl take a step back, intimidated. Her sick teammate noticed that immediately and whispered, loud enough only for her to hear: "I'd imagine you cough knew Gai-san by now to not let his cough behavior have any effect. We all cough trained hard for this. Don't back down so easily" he encouraged her, shifting his eyes to other rookies: "Yo!"
"It's getting quite crowded" Gaki noticed, sending the chubby gennin a displeased gaze. "Seriously, don't they make some sort of selection to force the weaklings to stay out?"
"You wanna see how weak I am?" Choumaru shoot back, visibly annoyed.
"What is wrong with all, these people?" Buryaku wondered, letting out a sigh. "Can't we go a day without a fight anymore? How troublesome" she added as Akemi attempted to defuse the tension, with only mild success.
"That's quite a lively group right there, eh Nekkei-san?" the Grass kunoichi in a yellow kimono asked cheerfully, elbowing her teammate slightly, but the boy merely gave her a weak gaze, not very interested in the Leaf gathering. Kouba on the other hand proven to be quite intrigued by the rookies, in particular a green-haired girl that was now, with the assist of a blue-haired one, holding some chubby boy's arms as the latter attempted to ram head-first into a muscular-looking teen.
"Aren't they those weaklings from the other day?" Kitou asked with a stoic face as her two comrades also shifted their attention towards the commotion. Sayoku quickly lost interest though as he returned to feeding his hawk, while the third member of the squad gave a slight nod: "Seems that way... but then, I don't bother with faces of unimportant people..."
"Seems our message didn't stick" Erikku frowned at the noise, while his teammates paid little heed to his words, Orafu being entirely occupied with devouring his chicken leg, while Balegu continued to polish his robotic arm.
"I cannot believe that Leaf guy is still acting though" Moroha announced, crossing her arms at the sight of Gaki provoking his fellow, Konoha gennin. Kousotsu remained still at the statement, but Toukai did show a bit of interest as his eyes settled on both the bully and his bowl-cut companion: "They may not know how to behave, but having them here could prove fun" he thought to himself with a smirk.
"Why does rookies feel the need to be so loud?" the kimono-wearing, Ame kunoichi complained, her face showing dismal. "This is really annoying! When is this, stinking exam gonna start?" she asked, getting little reaction from her teammates.
Her wish was granted quickly however as a moment later a large puff of smoke erupted on top of the bunker located near the wall on the north side of the field. As soon as the cloud cleared, the gathered gennin noticed a man with long, black hair and completely white eyes standing before them, his attire consisting on a gray top with wide sleeves.
Aitou let out a grunt at the sight, making Fukaru give him a worried look, yet the blond boy decided to say nothing. Meanwhile Garou, although taken by surprise to see another Byakugan, was more interested in the figure standing beside the Hyuuga – an eighteen year old girl with long, black hair, tied with a red ribbon: "Isn't that Hinako-chan's sister?" he asked, turning to look at Naraku, who merely shrugged. "Oh, come on, you can't recall a babe?"
"Note that Naraku never actually saw her" Toramaru reminded the dog ninja, sweat dropping at the perverted side of his friend coming to surface yet again. Besides, the blond was much more interested in his uncle being there... similarly to Shimiru, who elbowed his teammate lightly at the sight: "So, think we're gonna get preferential treatment with your dad being the proctor and all?" he asked, flipping his eyebrow widly.
"Wouldn't count on it" Hitomi replied simply without taking her eyes off her parent.
"Settle down everyone!" Neji said in an ordering tone, making all the gennin comply instantly. Once silence spread through the field, the jounin spoke again, carefully observing the gathering: "My name is Hyuuga Neji and I was chosen as the examiner for the first test of this year's Chuunin Selection Exam. To avoid wasting time, I'll get right to the rules of the exam. Listen carefully!" he proclaimed as the girl jumped down from the bunker, picking out a small box.
"Before the test can officially start, I need each squad to select a representative who'll walk over to Emisu here" at this he pointed to the teenager girl. "And draw a lot with a number. That will be the number of your team for the duration of this exam!"
Immediately Garou dashed forward with his tongue out, only to choke as Gouka grabbed his collar annoyed and pushed him to the ground, stepping forward herself, taking the position of the team leader. Without delay Gaki and Hitomi followed her example, while Shunrai and Choumaru gazed at Gitou hopefully, making the boy let out a sigh before coughing and move towards the older Nekko as well.
Apparently, neither Akemi nor Akai were too eager to stand out, so Akumo took the role of captain for their team, while Toramaru was urged by Buryaku to fill the spot in their cell. As the young gennin walked forward, the white-eyed boy gazed to his left, noticing a familiar, sand-nin with a gourd giving him a blank look.
"What?" the blond demanded, narrowing his eyes, but Shikyo gave no answer, in stead reaching into the box held by Emisu. Within few minutes, all the teams got their number, with a certain, cloud-nin being overly enthusiastic over his pick:
"Check it out, guys!" Fukaru yelled, racing to his teammates. "We got number 1!"
"Now that everyone got their number, I'll explain the details of the test" Neji announced, making the attention shift back to him. "The first exam is basically a team battle; each squad will be pitted against another for the right to proceed forward. Those that will prove worthy, will be able to advance to the second test. The numbers you just drafted decide your opponents – the first match will take place between teams 1 and 2... the second will host teams 3 and 4 and so on..." he began slowly, making sure all gennin heard him.
"Basically, if you're unlucky to get a strong opponent here, you're out of the game at the very start" Madoka rubbed her chin thoughtfully as the rules sinked in.
"There are 72 teams in total, which will make up exactly 36 matches" the proctor went on, ignoring displeased comments from some of the participants. "The fights will take place within the bunker I'm standing on. Those who'll earn the right to proceed, will be given instructions after their battle is over. Note that only the two, participating teams are allowed to enter the bunker. Failing to comply will get you immediately disqualified."
"I see" the female teammate of Shikyo and Kobura nodded to herself worried. "That way, there's no telling what sort of techniques those that advance use... even if you win, you still know nothing of your opponents, aside that they're strong enough to emerge victorious from their bout..."
"When the buzzer rings in the field, it means the match is over and the next pair of teams are to enter the bunker" Neji announced calmly with a stoic face. "The test is finished only after the match of the last, two teams is resolved. I suggest that whether you fight now or last, you use that time wisely..."
"That doesn't seem very fair" Fuugo noted, making the white-eyed jounin shift his gaze at him. "If the second tests starts immediately after this, then teams fighting last can be exhausted after their fight and thus perform worse then they normally would. This gives those that fight early more edge in the upcoming exam..."
"This selection is also part of the exam" Neji assured him, not surprised to hear such an objection. "Aside from team battle, this also tests your tactics and attention to details; you don't know what the next challenge will be, thus you must take heed in any sort of info that may come in handy. Note that most teams have already hidden their number, making it impossible to tell who they fight, until they actually walk into the bunker..."
"Right" Monuke thought to himself, quickly scanning the area. "If you remember the order the teams walk into the bunker, you can easily determine which of them should be the most tired after their fight... by remembering who they fought and how they are after the match, you may still learn something about their strength or abilities... also, those that fight early will know squat about the match-up of later participants; they'll only know the victor... in actuality, they'll have the less info that could prove useful later on... dependable on how you play, you can turn either number into an advantage..."
"Now, I'd like teams 1 and 2 to follow us into the bunker" the examiner announced calmly, jumping down. "The rest of you wait for the buzzer to let the next, two teams enter" he finished with Emisu walking bellow ground. Fukaru, Juryoku and Aitou stepped forward as well, while a team from Suna joined the trio, indicating they'll be their enemies.
"I know those guys" the sand-nin with a headgear, Fuugo's teammate, realized, quickly looking the Suna team up and down; the cell was made of a muscular giant, twice the human size, with a metal plate covering his mouth, while shirtless top allowed everyone to marvel his build. "It's Kobu and his 'happy helpers'... wasn't he the second best student of our year, after Hakachi?"
The other, two gennin consisted of a tall but skinny boy, carrying eight, wooden umbrellas on his back horizontally and a girl in a white robe, which also hid most of her mouth. At their sight, the headgear wearing rain-nin tipped his hat over his eyes in annoyance: "Is that tall whimp mocking Ame?" he wondered.
"So, from the start, only half the teams will make it through?" Shunrai asked a bit worried as she shrunk in her spot. Seeing his friend losing her confidence, Toramaru acted immediately, wrapping his arm around her, making the girl blush and, unintentionally, making the situation worse: "Don't worry over it! I'm sure that any opponent you'll land against you guys can handle... as long as we're not it" he teased with a smile.
His eyes quickly widen though as a loud buzz was heard, while the doors leading to the bunker opened. Naraku allowed a single drop of sweat to run down his face at the realization: "Don't tell me... the first match is over already" he begged as the next pair of teams headed for the entrance. "Who... who won?"
"There's no way to tell until you actually clear this test" Jun responded with a shrug, but then glanced at Hitomi: "For most of us anyway..." he added. Chatter began anew between the rookies, broken once the fourth match was finished, inviting Akai, Akemi and Akumo to step into the bunker with a buzz. Time flew and soon half of the squads were already gone from the field, annoying Toramaru to no end.
"This isn't fair!" he finally snapped. "Why the hell did I draw such a high number? I'll die of boredom before our turn comes!" he proclaimed over dramatically, making Shunrai giggle. His rant was cut short though as a familiar team joined the Leaf rookies, now consisting of just two cells.
"Should've used your Byakugan to get a lower one then" stated a boy with fringe, who the blond assumed was a teammate of the recently met duo, who too walked towards them.
"That would be cheating" the son of the Hokage replied sternly, eying the teen.
"Not really" the older gennin countered with a shrug. "Note that the proctor said nothing about ninjutsu not being allowed; all you had to do was draw a number – rules how you should do that were never specified, implying anything was allowed... I assume that's even more true with the idea of such selection being part of the exam as well..."
"And you are?" Buryaku asked, with a slightly bored tone, as she looked at the teen in a sleepy manner. In a flash Monuke stepped forward with an apologizing smile, resting his palms on the boy's shoulders: "Sorry, my bad... this is Shimura Kouhai, the teammate of myself and Madoka that I mentioned at our, last meeting. Kouhai, these are Nara Buryaku, Uchiha Naraku and Uzumaki Toramaru" the pale teen made the introductions, only then shifting to the other squad: "And I'm pretty sure we didn't had the pleasure of getting acquainted..."
"Shunrai, Akimichi Choumaru and Hisakata cough Gitou" the sick gennin fixed the problem quickly with an expression that said he was about to fall face-first into the ground. "We're actually classmates of cough Buryaku and others from the Academy..."
"Nice to meet you then" Monuke bowed towards the boy, while Madoka winked flirtatiously. "I fear this may be a brief meeting; I noticed we're left with mostly strong teams, which may cause us problems to proceed to the next exam" he stated with a laugh, scratching the back of his head.
"And yet you're surprisingly upbeat over that" Naraku noted, dropping his arms.
"There's nothing I can do to change that, so there's no point in worrying over it anyway" the pale-skinned boy explained simply. "Although I sure would hate to actually land against those guys" at this he pointed to his right, making the rookie leaf-nins gaze in that direction, spotting a team of sand-nins, led by an all-too-familiar boy with a gourd.
"No point in worrying over them" Toramaru responded, making sure the Suna gennin heard him. "Those three are wimps" he proclaimed, making Shikyo narrowed his eyes, while Kobura frowned. Perhaps he'd jump the white-eyed boy, but the buzzer sounded again, forcing him to follow his squad into the bunker for their battle.
"So, what number do you have?" Monuke asked, breaking the silence, while the blond picked out a small sheet of paper with '61' written on it. To that the teen smirked playfully, confusing his younger comrade: "That was close then, since we got 63..."
"Monuke-kun, you should give out information to the enemy" Madoka joked with a smile, making both Toramaru and Naraku blush, which in turn made Buryaku roll her eyes. Eventually the buzzer rang again and their turn came.
The trio headed for the bunker, glancing to their right, where their opponents marched. The squad was one neither of them saw before, each of its members sporting a hitae-ate with a symbol of three, horizontal, wavy lines decorating it, which only the lazy girl recognized: "Swamp-nins" she concluded, looking the three up and down.
The one out front was a girl with medium-length, red hair, clipped in a spiky ponytail up and hazel eyes. Her attire was made of a brown robe that was hung on her left shoulder, leaving much of her right side uncovered and dark blue pants. A pair of golden bracelets on her wrist and a headband around the neck finished up the look, but the most eye-catching feature was a long, wooden pipe attached to her back, almost as long as the female herself.
The one walking behind her was a boy around seventeen years of age, like his comrades. From what Buryaku could tell, he was the most disturbing of the trio, having spiky, brown hair that stick out in all directions, despite bandages wrapped around the upper part of his face. The bandages basically covered his right eye, but were ripped above the left, allowing the kunoichi to note his pupils were strangely black... the weirdness wasn't as much attributed to the color, but more to the fact the left eye contained two such pupils within, out of which one was in the center, while the other kept moving around. The teen had a twisted smile on his face, showing his teeth were actually fangs, while his clothes were made of worn-out, brown, sleeveless top and baggy, gray pants. There were no weapon hostels on him, but his fingernails resembled claws more then the ones humans had. Finally, his hitae-ate, was tied around his right arm.
The last of the group was slightly older then the other two and had black skin, darkest Buryaku saw up til now. This in itself wasn't as strange as the face the boy had his face pained white, making the tattoo resemble a skull. His medium-length, black hair were made into dreads, while white eyes seemed empty, but not the Hyuuga-type. His dark-blue robes were slightly loose, leaving arms uncovered, while in stead of typical, shinobi sandals, the swamp-nin had strange shoes with the tips bended back. A thing of note was also a pair of small drums tied to his front, three, triangular earrings in his left ear, a round one in his right eyebrow and a bone piercing his nose horizontally. His forehead protector was tied to the belt holding the drums.
As the two teams neared the entrance, the middle swamp-nin froze and shifted his double-pupil eye towards Toramaru, instantly creeping the blond out. With a sniff of his nose, the mysterious, bandaged boy widen his smile as a growl escaped his throat, a drop of saliva running down his chin.
"What the hell is this guy?" Naraku wondered as his body got taken over by an involuntary shiver. Never the less, he continued onwards and the moment he entered the bunker, doors shut, trapping them all in darkness...
-the exams begin!-
Yeah, I know, the exam didn't practically start yet, but this was a quick intro to what awaits. Rest assured this, first exam ain't the only change prepared for the event. So, think Toramaru and his friends will proceed beyond this, first test? Well, you'll need to read to find that out!
Konoha #1 (Teigo Kinuta): Buryaku Nara, Naraku Uchiha, Toramaru Uzumaki
Konoha #2 (Lee Rock): Hinako Nekko (the redhead girl with a black cat, Kuroki), Gaki Nayamasu (the muscular boy), Gai Rock (the boy with a bowl-like haircut)
Konoha #3 (Shikamaru Nara): Shunrai (the girl with a crush on Toramaru), Choumaru Akimichi (the chubby boy), Gitou Hisakata (the coughing boy)
Konoha #4 (Hinata Uzumaki): Gouka Uchiha (Naraku's twin sister), Kumo Aburame (the boy in green overcoat), Garou Inuzuka (the boy with the dog, Hanomaru)
Konoha #5 (Hasaki Kinzoku): Hitomi Hyuuga (white-eyed girl), Jun Hatake (the masked teen), Shimiru Abunage (the blond with piercings and a skateboard)
Konoha #6 (Hiyoko Shinku): Akemi Nekata (green-haired girl), Akai Kagami (the redhead), Akumo Megane (the boy with glasses)
Konoha (?): Madoka Garasu (the girl with gems), Kouhai Shimura (Danzou's cousin), Monuke (the pale-skinned boy)
Suna #1 (?): ? (girl with metal protectors), Kobura (the boy in black), Sabaku no Shikyo (the boy with the gourd)
Suna #2 (Kankuro):? (the girl with the gourd), ? (the boy with a headgear and scrolls), Fuugo (the masked pipsqueak)
Kumo (?): Juryoku Kakeme (the blue-haired girl), Fukaru Makaze (the blond boy), Aitou Mekakushi (the blind-folded boy)
Ame (?): ? (the kimono wearing girl), Shunsai Irezumi (?), ? (the boy with a headgear)
Kane (?): Moroha Gengetsu (the girl with a crescent-moon blade), Toukai Kurogane (the violet-haired boy), Kousotsu (the armored boy)
Kusa (?): ? (girl in a yellow kimono), Kouba Ibara (the boy in worn-out clothes), Nekkei Utsuru (the sick boy)
Taki (?): Kitou (the girl with a praying stick), ? (the boy with a large scroll), Sayoku (the boy with bandaged mouth)
Yuki (?): Orafu Futotta (the fat guy with the shield), Erikku Hakabakashi (the redhead), Balegu Seiretsu (the swordsman)
CHARACTER POPULARITY CONTEST DETAILS: for those who actually decided to check out (and, hopefully, take part) the announced poll, the rules are generally the same as with NNG – you can vote for ANY character that appeared in the story so far (partly the reason why the poll starts now – no, new characters will be introduced until its closure), which includes characters known from the original manga, although I do ask that if you do wish to vote for Naruto and corps, base your vote on this story alone since, as you may have noticed, some of these characters have been modified a bit.
The voting is also slightly different then ones made in Shounen Jump (the magazine "Naruto" is published in); considering there is quite a few characters (over 80) for you to choose from and realizing it may be hard to limit yourself to just one, you're therefore allowed to give your vote to 5 characters overall. Naturally, you don't need to use all the slots – if you wish to vote for just one character, you can; if it's three – you're allowed to cast a vote that way as well. It's up to you.
There is an extra trick to that – in order to avoid too many shared slots (lets face it - "Those..." don't have as big circulation as Shounen Jump, so I don't expect that many votes... although the first, two NNG polls actually had quite a bit of voters :)), I'd like you to place your votes in the form of a list from 1 to 5. The number under which you place a character will decide the number of 'voting points' that character will get; the one you placed first will get '5', the second one will get '4', third – '3' etc. These, 'small points' will determine which character takes precedence should the number of votes for them both be the same. For example:
Voter #1:
1. Toramaru Uzumaki
2. Kinuta Teigo
3. that girl with gems from Monuke's team
4. Naraku Uchiha
5. Toukai
Voter #2:
1. Naraku Uchiha
2. Gai Rock
3. Toramaru Uzumaki
4. Hanomaru
Now, in the example above Voter #1 mixed Teigo's first and last name (which isn't important; as long as the description is decisive, I should be able to determine who you mean even without giving a name), forgot Toukai's clanname and didn't use Madoka's name at all, while Voter #2 even gave his vote for Hanomaru, Garou's canine companion, which is also allowed. Furthermore, the second voter also didn't use his fifth slot, which still makes the vote valid. The most important thing however is that they both voted for Toramaru and Naraku.
Normally, this constitutes they both get two votes and, as such, are tied for first place in the poll. However, taking "voting points" into the account, Toramaru got 8 (5 + 3), while Naraku received 7 (2 + 5), which means in the final standings Toramaru would be listed higher then the young Uchiha.
Another thing is that to keep it fair and "public", only votes in reviews will be counted; to that end anyone who'll send a vote via PM must be ready that the vote won't be counted. ANYONE can vote, even if you hadn't review up til now, but only one vote is allowed per used. Also note that in order to allow everyone who wish to take part in the voting, I extend the time in which the votes should be cast – the result of the poll will be given in chapter 25, so as long as you'll cast your vote before the chapter is published, you can rest assured your input will be counted in the final standings.
With that written, the last order of business is to give you the full character list, so that you know who to cast your votes on (if you forgotten a character's name or a feature that distinguish him/her). Hope the lists will help you choose your favorites... but please notet hat characters such as Shino, Gaara or even Kankuro are not listed, as they haven't appeared in the story yet:
Konoha:
Buryaku Nara, Naraku Uchiha, Toramaru Uzumaki, Teigo Kinuta;
Gaki Nayamasu, Hinako Nekko, Gai Rock, Lee Rock, Kuroki (Hinako's black cat);
Choumaru Akimichi, Gitou Hisakata, Shunrai, Shikamaru Nara;
Kumo Aburame, Garou Inuzuka, Gouka Uchiha, Hinata Uzumaki, Hanomaru (Garou's dog);
Shimiru Abunage, Jun Hatake, Hitomi Hyuuga, Hasaki Kinzoku (jounin with two katana);
Akai Kagami, Akumo Megane, Akemi Nekata, Hiyoko Shinku (the jounin with a feather in the necklace);
Madoka Garasu (the girl with gems), Kouhai Shimura (the boy with a fringe), Monuke (the pale teen);
Naruto Uzumaki, Iruka Uzumaki (a chuunin, Toramaru's older brother), Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, Neji Hyuuga, Tenten Rock, Ibuki Rock (Gai's younger sister), Ino Akimichi, Chouji Akimichi, Emisu Nekko (Hinako's older sister), Temari Nara (former sand-nin, Buryaku's mother), Kumiko (Academy instructor), Iruka Umino, Root agent (the man who spoke with Kouhai in chapter #19);
Suna:
Sabaku no Shikyo (the boy with the gourd), Kobura (the boy in black), Tetsu (their female companion);
Sabaku no Hakachi (the girl with the gourd); Bunraku (the boy with headgear and scrolls), Fuugo (the masked pipsqueak);
Hire (the masked girl in a robe), Kobu (the muscular boy), Sabe (skinny boy with umbrellas);
Kumo:
Juryoku Kakeme (the blue-haired girl), Fukaru Makaze (the blond), Aitou Mekakushi (the blind-folded boy);
Ame:
Muchi Fukazeru (the kimono-wearing girl), Shunsai Irezumi (?), Henpuku Kiganai (boy with a headgear);
Kane:
Moroha Gengetsu (the girl with a crescent-moon blade), Toukai Kurogane (the violet-haired boy), Kousotsu (the armored boy);
Kusa:
Kouba Ibara (the boy in worn-out clothes), Hana Makiba (girl in a yellow kimono), Nekkei Utsuru (the sick boy), Kusa jounin (instructor to the other three);
Taki:
Kitou (girl with a praying stick), Noroi (the boy with a scroll), Sayoku (the boy with a hawk), Takamu (Sayoku's hawk);
Yuki:
Orafu Futotta (the chubby one with the shield), Erikku Hakabakashi (the redhead), Balegu Seiretsu (the swordsman);
Sawa:
Kawaridane (the boy with double pupil in his left eye), Shuri (the girl with a pipe), Taiko (the black-skinned gennin with drums);
Iwa:
Ganjou Ishino (the stone-nin met by Toramaru and his team on a mission);
Oto:
Orochimaru, Kabuto Yakushi, Hebiru Otoku (a spy, posed as Academy instructor), Hakkotsu Kaguya (Kimimaro's clone), Yobiko Chitagana (the wielder of the huge choppers), Himei Abumi (the boy with holes in his hands), the mysterious boy with purple hair;
Other:
Aiko (the sales girl from Stone Country);
This concludes and list and this chapter as well :0 If you have any questions concerning the poll, feel free to ask, I'll be glad to explain it further. And this that – until next time!