Treasures of Time
Chapter 7: Exams
Sorry about how long this took, but things have been a bit hectic. Midterm exams are coming so my next might be late. Thanks for reading.
Perspectives: Snow, Saizo, Hazel, and Mika
Snow's Perspective
Eiji and I stood in our office.
"I'm still confused on why you fought so strongly to have the chunin exams here", I said.
"Our village was the original host of the chunin exams. We held it for more than a hundred years, but that changed after the civil war. I gave it to the Leaf, which was a mistake I've always regretted. I thought you would be happy I took away something, so prized by the Hidden Leaf", said Eiji.
I smirked.
"I'll give you that", I said.
"It will take away a great amount of profit from the Leaf", said Eiji.
"Which will keep them under our thumb longer", I said.
Eiji nodded his head.
"You know Snow you can be a bit wicked sometimes", said Eiji.
"I don't know what you're talking about", I said.
"We might not get many foreign genin competing", he said.
"Why?" I asked.
"Our exams were known for being exceptionally difficult. I'm not worried for our genin. They are far more powerful from those of the other hidden villages", said Eiji.
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in", said Eiji.
"They're here", said Kameko.
"Bring them in", said Eiji.
The jonin walked in.
"As all of you know we will be holding the chunin exams in a week. I want to know what groups you would recommend for the exams. If they aren't ready don't feel pressured to enter them. As you all know a genin has to complete eight missions to qualify for the exams. Let's start with the two rookie teams", said Eiji.
Our academy stuck to its tough reputation. Only two groups of the twelve had made it through the intense training. It amazed me how easy other ninja schools were. They didn't even require a basic first aid class. It was like they were intentionally giving their ninjas a disadvantage.
"I, Ren Akiyama recommend my students Saizo, Mika Aozora, and Sterling Yamaguchi", said Ren.
I nodded my head in agreement. I think both my children are ready for the exams.
"I, Toshi Moto recommend my students Hazel, Kuro Koizumi, and Felix Oshiro for the chunin exams", said Toshi.
I caught Kameko nervous look.
"You can't be serous. I've taught each of those students none of them are ready for the hells of the chunin exams", said Kameko.
"Sister, I thought you'd believe in them. Besides they aren't your students anymore. If Ren and Toshi believe their students are ready then you should too", I said.
"She has a point Toshi and Ren. I held back my three wonderful students to fine tune their skills", said Hugo.
I sighed at the over enthusiastic jonin. Hugo was one of Kameko's students. He had to be one of the weirdest men I've encountered. The man wore a dark blue sweat suit made out breathable water resistant fabric. He wore his blonde hair in a mullet style. Hugo might look like a complete fool, but he's one of the most powerful jonin in our village. His level of taijutsu is amazing and he's a master of the cross blocking style the Diamond Village focused on.
The students he loved bragging about were Hana my sister's daughter, Bruce Kogo, and Dawn Oshiro. My niece entered the academy one year early and was placed in a different group from her cousins.
"Or maybe your afraid our students will beat yours", said Toshi.
Hugo laughed.
"That wit of yours is one the reasons you're my biggest rivals, Toshi", he said.
Toshi gave an annoyed sigh.
"This is going to be interesting. We haven't entered rookies in six years", said Eiji.
Saizo's Perspective
It's been two months, since my time in the hospital. Once a week mom would train me in chakra control. It might look like we were only meditating, but I've never done such intense chakra control training in my life. It takes me a full day to recover from it. The training was draining, but it made me feel more in control. It took away the fear of me harming my comrades. This would be so much easier for Hazel. She has a mastery of chakra control I could never understand. I went into the kitchen and saw mom. For some reason she seemed happy, but stressed at the same time.
"Saizo, you're going to make us late again. Our sensei expected us five minutes ago", whined Hazel.
I glared at her.
"You know you're sound more and more like mom every day. You've mastered her nagging perfectly", I said.
I shuttered, when I caught mom's glare.
"Heh, sorry mom", I said.
"Your sister is right. You should go you don't want to miss this meeting", said Mom.
We left for the meeting ground. Hazel giggled.
"What are you laughing about?" I asked.
"Your fan club is here", said Hazel.
I groaned, when I saw a square rock in the middle of the sidewalk. Not this again. I don't have time for this today.
"You three might as well come out", I said.
"Smart and handsome", said three girly voices.
There was a colorful puff of pink smoke. Three young girls appeared.
"I'm Amora and these two pretty girls are Darla and Mina. Together we make the Saizo fan club", she said.
I groaned. The leader of this annoying group was Amora. She has curly red hair and was covered in freckles. Her two sidekicks were Darla and Mina.
"What do you three want?" I asked.
"You promised you would play ninja with us", said Amora.
"Do you have that in writing?" I asked.
Amora pulled a piece a paper out of her pocket.
"Yes I have it writing. I even have your signature", she said.
"Really, Saizo a contract", said Hazel.
"Yes", I said.
"You really are an ass. I don't know what they see in you", said Hazel.
"Take that back you green eyed freak!" yelled the three girls.
They've done it now. I backed away as Hazel took down all three of the girls. When she was finished with them all of them had large bumps on their head.
"It will miracle if any guy wants you as their girlfriend", whined Amora.
Shit, I thought they made her angry before. Now they've got her eyebrow twitching.
"What did you say?!" growled Hazel.
"Run for it!" screamed Amora.
I laughed. Sometimes I think she has a worse temper than me.
"Saizo help!" yelled Amora.
I better go check on them.
"Come Hazel let's make sure those brats don't cause to much trouble. Hopefully, you didn't give one of them a concussion", I said.
When we reached them I was shocked to see three strangers. A boy a few years older than me was holding Amora by the collar of her shirt. His face was hidden by a dark red scarf that only left his eyes exposed and his body was shrouded in black cloth. Something wrapped in bandages was strapped to his back.
"I hate brats like you", he said.
"Karasu put her down", said the girl behind him.
She wore a baggy white cotton shirt and brown pants. Half her body was covered in bandages. Her long sandy hair her hid most of her face from view. But I still saw the blush on her face, when her eyes met mine. Why do girls always do that?
"You shouldn't waste your breath on him, Hinoko", said a boy in the tree.
He had long dark purple hair and violet eyes. I gritted my teeth I didn't even sense him. He was dressed in black. A tooth hung from the corner of his lip.
"Karasu put the child down. You know what sensei will do if we cause trouble here. Beside if you haven't notice we have guests", he said.
"What does that matter?" asked Karasu.
"Well they are Lady Hazel and Lord Saizo. The children of Lady Guardian Minori", he said.
I don't like this one. There's something off about him. Karasu dropped Amora who instantly ran behind me.
"Who are you?" I growled.
He rolled his eyes. The idiot seemed focused on Hazel.
"You know our names the least you can do is tell us yours", said Hazel.
He smiled and appeared only a few inches away from Hazel.
"Well if you're asking beautiful my name is Thorn", he said before he kissed her hand.
Yet another idiot boy who's trying to gain power by courting my sister.
"Thorn, Karasu, Hinoko didn't I tell you not to wander off. I'm sorry if these three caused you any problems", said man dressed in black.
"Who are you?" I asked.
"My name is Kankuro and these are my students", he said.
The four walked off. From the symbol on the headbands they were from the Hidden Sand Village. They must be here for some sort of mission.
Hazel's Perspective
"We should get going now we are we will really be late", I said.
We finally made it to the training field. Both our teammates were already there.
"Hazel, it's unlike you to be late", said Sensei.
"Sorry sensei", I said.
I didn't bother with excuses. Sensei didn't want to hear it. Kuro sent cold glare in my direction. Nothing has changed between the two of us. What happen to guy who gave me my first kiss?
"So why did you call us here?" asked Saizo.
Both Ren and Toshi smiled at us.
"You six have the honor of competing in the chunin exams", said Ren.
"All your hard work has proven you're ready for such a challenge. The whole of the Hidden Diamond will support in this effort. Don't disappoint them", said Toshi.
They handed us the forms.
"Tomorrow you six will register at the academy", said Toshi.
"Good luck", said Ren and Toshi before they vanished in a puff of smoke.
All the boys disappeared. To where or to do what I didn't know. Mika and I were left alone. It felt like we hadn't seen each other for months. We used to spend a lot of time together, since we were the some of the few students in the advanced classes. She looked nervous. I took seat beside her.
"It's been a long time Mika", I said.
"Heh, I guess it has been", she said.
"You're worried", I said.
"Is it that obvious?" asked Mika.
"I known you long enough to read you. You shouldn't be worried with all that training you've done with Ren your improvement is obvious. And you have the added benefit of surprise", I said.
"May why you aren't excited. You love the thrill of a fight", said Mika.
"An exam like this requires teamwork, which is something my squad is lacking in", I said.
Mika laughed.
"You think you have teamwork issues try having your brother and Sterling on your team. Then you can talk to me about teamwork problems", she said.
"You have a point, but even though Sterling and Saizo fight like hell they work flawlessly together", I said.
"Are you really having that much trouble?" asked Mika.
"It depends on the day. Sometimes it gets so bad that, even Felix gets down which I thought was impossible", I said.
"I thought things would have changed after that kiss, but it seems like he's just as stubborn as you", said Mika.
"This could go on for awhile then", I said.
"Are you considering not entering?" asked Mika.
"I think doing that would only make things worse", I said.
"I guess we are both stuck", said Mika.
"Why are you?" I asked.
"Sterling and Saizo both want to enter to do that they need a three man team", said Mika.
"I'll see you tomorrow then", I said.
In the morning Saizo and I left for the academy. Our teams were waiting for us there. I instantly recognized the genjutsu placed on the second floor. Felix, Mika, and I were the only ones who seemed to notice us. A girl around my age with white hair that hid her eyes stood in front of the door with her partner. Her clothes were ragged and her skin was splotched with dirt. She looked frail. Who would let someone in her shape compete? She looked vaguely familiar. He had silver hair and eyes. The girl seemed to be the boss of the two. They must be strong if they were able to stop this many genin on their own.
"Come drop the genjutsu", I said.
"No", said the girl.
Mika's Perspective
"Please", I said.
"I said no. You'll have to do more than ask nice for me drop my genjutsu", said the girl.
"Come on bitch let us through", said Sterling.
"You should muzzle your teammate. That mouth of his will get in him trouble", she said.
Sterling charged at her. She punched him sending him flying into Saizo. She may look bony and weak, but that girl has one hell of a right hook. At that moment Saizo decided it would be a great time to lose him temper. He shoved Sterling off him and kick out at the girl. She did the same. There was a flash of blue and boy appeared in between the two of them. The weird looking kid blocked Saizo's kick like it was nothing. I've never seen someone do that so easily. That's some chakra he has.
My eye twitched, when I caught a better look at him. He wore a tacky blue sweat suit and blue sandals. His blonde hair was styled in mullet. He's so weird! The odd boy pushed back the two opponents he was separating with ease. Saizo and girl were sent skidding backward.
"Bruce, I thought we were going to keep a low profile", said girl with orange eyes.
It was obvious she was the boss of the group. She was very pretty. Her long black hair was tied in a high ponytail. She wore a white kimono-shirt with loose long sleeves it hugged her tiny waist perfectly. Her pants and sandals were black. She sent a flirtatious smile at Saizo. I felt a slight anger, but ignored it. What chances do I stand against her?
"Sorry Dawn", said Bruce.
Heh, even her name is prettier than mine. Hana appeared by Dawn's side. Her wavy strawberry blonde hair was cut short and framed her face perfectly. Small white flowers were woven into it. Her silver eyes quickly looked me over. She wore a light pink sweater, a white shirt decorated with yellow flowers, blue pants, and black sandals. Her appearance may look all cute and cuddly, but something tells me she's very dangerous.
"We should leave", said Dawn.
Hana nodded her head and followed her teammate.
"Bruce are you coming?" asked Hana.
"I'll catch up in minute", he said.
He walked over to me. I frowned. Why is he coming over here? I backed away. His cheeks were pink with blush.
"Mika please be my girlfriend I'll protect you with my life", said Bruce.
My face went hot and I started feeling light headed. No, I won't faint!
"No thank you, but thanks for the offer. It's really sweet", I said.
"I will win your heart one day Mika!" said Bruce before he went to find his teammates.
I will admit there's nice about the fire in his eyes.
"Hey, Mika have you found your future husband in that weirdo", teased Sterling.
Before I could do anything to him, Saizo punched him sending Sterling crashing into a wall.
"Don't say such idiotic things Sterling. She'll get someone better than weirdo. I would put money down it", said Saizo.
I stared at Saizo in pure disbelief. Did he really just say that?
"What is it? I was only stating the truth. There's no need to look so shocked", said Saizo.
"Hey, where did the white haired bitch go?" asked Sterling as he walked over to us.
The six of us looked around.
"I didn't even see her leave", said Hazel.
"I would have loved to get a chance to spar her. She would be an interesting opponent", said Saizo.
I sighed. Coming from Saizo that's a big compliment.
"Did you see how easily she sent Sterling flying? It looked completely effortless", said Saizo.
Great, now I have even more competition.
"Saizo did she look familiar to you?" asked Hazel.
"Now that mention it she did look familiar", said Saizo.
"We can save the question of the mystery girl for later. We should leave or we are going to be late", I said.
We went into one of the large lecture halls. I was surprised to see the large amount of genin from all over, even the smaller villages like the Land of Greens and the Hidden Star sent genin. The Hidden Leaf was brave enough to send several genin groups. They'll be lucky if any them come out of this with their lives. Their village made the mistake of threatening the Hidden Diamond.
Saizo seemed focused on a guy with purple hair from the Sand Village. I wonder what the poor guy did to get on his bad side. Knowing Saizo it could be something as simple as looking at him the wrong way.
There was large cloud smoke. A powerful gust of wind dispersed smoke. When it cleared a large group of Hidden Diamond chunin appeared. At the front of the group stood the most intimidating men I've ever seen. The lower half of his face was cover by a white mask that was carved to look like a jaw. One of his eyes was glass the other was the same orange color as Felix's eyes. His hair was long and black.
"Who is that?" I asked.
"Dad", whispered Felix.
That man is Felix's dad? How is that even possible?
"My name is Shinsetsu Oshiro. I will be the proctor of the first exam. And from this moment on your worst nightmare", he said.
The man's voice sent a shiver down my back. His name mean kindness. I don't think I've heard more unfitting name for a person.
"I'll give you this warning once there will be no fighting during this part of the exam. If you're foolish enough to do that you won't only disqualified from exam, but you'll be on my bad side. Now I'll give you forty seconds to find your assigned seats", said Shinsetsu.
There was clatter of seats as people rushed to their assigned chairs. I placed next to the sand ninja with the purple hair. Everyone was too busy talking. The sound of fingernails scratching against the chalkboard quieted the group.
"Eyes front. There are a few rules you need to be aware of and I won't answer any questions. So pay attention. Rule one the written exam is based on a point reduction system. All of you start off with a perfect score of ten points. One point will be taken off for every wrong answer. Rule two a team will pass or fail based on the total score of their squad", said Shinsetsu.
I flinched. We're doomed Sterling strength is written exams to put it lightly.
"Rule number three the sentinels you see are here to watch for any signs of cheating. For every incident they spot two points will be deducted your score. Be warned their eyes sharp and they have a low tolerance for ignorance. If you are caught five times you will be dismissed. Anyone foolish enough to be caught by the sentinels doesn't deserve to be here. This test will weed out the weakling and show the exceptional degenerates in this room", said Shinsetsu.
Saizo should be fine and so should I. If we both get a perfect score that will make up for the mistakes Sterling will undoubtedly make.
"One more thing if any candidate scores a zero then the entire team fails", said Shinsetsu.
Even from a far I could tell Saizo was twitching with anger. If we don't pass this thing he might just kill Sterling. Please let him get one question right.
"The final question won't be given out until there's fifteen minutes left in the exam. You'll have one hour total. Begin", said Shinsetsu.
These questions were advanced even advanced for me. There's not a chance in hell Sterling is going to pass. The first question was decoding. Each question was more difficult than the one before it. I looked over at Sterling. He seemed perfectly calm. He even dared to give a smug smile. Sterling was always this way during tests. Somehow he always managed to get a perfect score.
I smiled when I figured out the reason for his confidence. This is the perfect test for him. It meant to get us to cheat. That explains these extremely advanced questions. Sterling is a master cheater he's never been caught. The only reason I know about is he bragged about it to Saizo and I. Looks like I don't have to worry about him after all. It looked like Saizo figured it out too. But someone as smart as him doesn't even have to cheat. I hope Hazel's group has figured it out. As time went by more students were kicked out.
"Listen up kiddies here's the tenth question, but before I give you the question. There are some more rules you need to be made aware of-
The sound of the door squeaking open cut him off. Everyone in the room focused in on him. He was shrouded in black cloth and a red scarf hid his face. The boy took a seat before he could gain anymore unwanted attention from Shinsetsu.
"These rules are unique to question ten. Listen carefully I won't be repeating myself. And try not to let them frighten you", said Shinsetsu.
I could sworn he was just pausing to give himself a dramatic effect. It worked he seemed more frightening than before. I sighed hopefully these new rules won't effect my team.
"Well then, rule number one each of you free not to be given the final question", said Shinsetsu.
"Then what's the fucking point?" asked Sterling.
"If you chose not to take the final question regardless to your answers to other nine you'll get a zero. Which not only your fail but your team as well", said Shinsetsu.
There has to be more to it than that. He's holding back. The room went silent when he glared at us with that piercing orange eye.
"If you accept the question, but answer it incorrectly you'll not only fail. You'll be barred from taking the exam ever again", said Shinsetsu.
I gulped. What if I can't answer it? Saizo has the brains for and Sterling is a master at cheating. What do I have? I'm not as smart Saizo nor do I have any mastery of cheating. If I get this wrong they won't forgive me. Those two have been looking for a chance to move forward, but me I'm fine staying where I am. I looked over at Saizo. He smiled at me and Sterling did the same. I think that's their way of telling me they believe in me. They must really believe in me if they are willing to agree with each other.
"If you don't want to answer you are free to go and try again next year", said Shinsetsu.
He kept his gaze focused on us. It sent a chill down my back. That eye of his was so cold. Kids started raising their hands.
"This decision will change your life. Now this is your last chance to quit", said Shinsetsu.
No, I'm not going to quit! He stared at use with glare for another five minute another two groups left. 78
"For those of you remaining there's only thing I have to. Congratulations you've passed the first part of the chunin exams", said Shinsetsu.
What the hell was that? What was the tenth question?
"What do you mean we pass? What the tenth question?" asked Hazel.
Shinsetsu started laughing. It sounded exactly like Felix's except for it being deeper.
"There never was one. Your decision to stay was the answer to the tenth question", said Shinsetsu.
His voice was different from before it was warm and all hints of that blood chilling tone from before were gone.
"So those other nine question were just a fucking waste of time then", growled Sterling.
"No, they weren't a waste of time. They were meant to test your skills to gather information under the most adverse of situations", said Shinsetsu.
"That explains it", said Saizo.
Cool, as always. I shook my head. I sound like one fan girls in his club.
"My objective wasn't only to test you as individuals but as group also. And on how well you function as a team. That's why the test was scored on a team basis. I wanted to see how you dealt with the pressure of knowing your every action or lack of it could effect your teammates. I assume all of you noticed the extreme difficulty of each question. They were far above the knowledge of an average genin. The test encouraged cheating almost demanded it. I had chunin disguise themselves as peers so you'd have someone to cheat off of", said Shinsetsu.
There was squeaking of chair as those chunin revealed themselves.
"Those who were caught it failed. It is better not to cheat than to cheat clumsily", said Shinsetsu.
One of his hands went to the ribbon that kept his mask in place. My eyes went wide when he removed it. He had Glasgow smile. The deep jagged scars traveled all the way to his ears. There were two thin metal plates on either side of his face that seemed to be keeping his jaw connected to the rest of his head. He smiled, which made it worse. All of his teeth were metal. Something told me that wasn't a fashion statement or an intentional dental procedure. His teeth must have been ripped out.
"Information can be the most valuable weapon in battle. How well you gather it can determine whether a mission is a failure or a success. They'll be a time when you have to risk your life to get it", said Shinsetsu.
His appearance thoroughly proved his willingness to risk his life.
"Of course you must always consider the source of your information. No information is better than disinformation, which can lead to the death of your comrades. Always bear this in mind or else the blood of your friend will be on your hands", said Shinsetsu.
He put back on his mask and gave a heavy sigh.
"A chunin must be willing to risk there on seemingly suicidal missions, but they don't fear and back down. They don't have time to fear only to focus at the task at hand and their comrades. Cowards who put themselves before the lives of their comrades are unworthy of the title chunin. You've passed this part of the test. If you are lucky you might get the honor of being accepted a chunin", said Shinsetsu.
I looked around. It seemed that twenty-six teams made it through, even those lowlife Leaf ninja. There was a loud crash. The room filled with smoke. Sparks of different colors shot through the air. When it cleared, Saizo's insane aunt Mari stood in front of Shinsetsu. She wore black short shorts, three-inch high black sandals, a black flack jack, and red crop with mesh shirt underneath it.
"Hello everyone I'm Mari the proctor for the second part of the exam!" she screamed.
How can this woman be related to Saizo?
"Mari, you're early again", said Shinsetsu.
"What did I make you angry Smiley? Do you want to punish me and do very naughty things to me?" asked Mari.
The man twitched.
"As bothersome as ever. What your wife say if told you what you just said?" asked Shinsetsu.
"She knows how much I like to tease", said Mari.
"There are children here Mari", he said.
She made a rude sound and focused her attention on us.
"There sure are a lot of them Shinsetsu. Maybe in your old age you've gone soft", said Mari.
Something about the way she said that it sound extremely dirty.
"Follow me pests", said Mari.
Most of the group was too stunned from her perverted display to move.
"I promise she is actually the proctor of the second part of the exam. Now go", said Shinsetsu.