FOREST OF DEATH: 81 HOURS LEFT
Nara Shikamaru's eyes sharpened on the sound ninjas as he dropped from the tree. Minor village's teams tended to either work in tandem or have an individual for each range. From how they'd gone after the suspicious Konoha-nin in the first task, he was certain it was the second one. Mummy was close-range, the one with the happuri was mid-range, and long-hair's attacks should be large range. He formed a Rat Seal.
"Ninja Art: Shadow Possession Jutsu. Complete!"
His mind cataloged everything around him as the mummy froze. Hikari had put one hand on the ground for leverage as she kicked her leg up, smashing the Sound kunoichi's face.
Chouji had expanded, and he was facing the happuri-nin. "Leaf-Style Taijutsu: Human Bullet Tank!" Chouji's expanded body spun. The happuri-nin's air had turned Hikari's weapons against her, but Chouji had both the force of his rotation and his increased weight. His friend could pulverize entire barriers.
"Slicing Sound Wave!"
Shikamaru's eyes widened. The air coming out from the nin's palms was strong enough to halt Chouji. It wasn't enough to push him back, and Ino took the opening. She threw one of her senbon, and it sank into the genin's neck. As long as he remained focused on Chouji, the poison would seep into his bloodstream.
Hikari had the kunoichi on the ground, and was sitting on top of her, one hand holding the sound-nin's bent arm behind her back. Her other hand was at the nape of her neck, neko-te on her middle finger.
Two poisoned, but only one of the down. Neither he nor Chouji would be able to keep the standstill.
"Ino," he called. The mummy-nin was the biggest threat. She startled since she'd started to turn towards Chouji's opponent but recovered fast.
"Ninja Art: Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
As soon as Ino's jutsu hit the mummy, he caught her body and detached his shadow. Chouji jumped in the air, and Shikamaru's shadow caught on the air genin instead of coming back to himself.
"Complete!" he panted.
The nin's eyes widened as Chouji came down upon him, and he remained frozen in place. Shikamaru's lip curled up on one side, even as he waited until the last moment to release the jutsu.
Chouji crashed into the sound-nin, knocking him out. Shikamaru's friend came out of his jutsu dizzy, with a hand over his mouth, but unharmed.
He relaxed. Ino could hold her jutsu on the mummy for a while. It was, after all, designed for infiltration and interrogation.
Chouji took Hikari's place, pinning the poisoned kunoichi against the ground.
His best friend stood up, eyes locking on his before she focused beyond.
"Hikari, are you-?" he started.
"Sakasu-hime," a voice came from behind him.
Shikamaru pivoted. It was Hyuga Neji, the prodigy in the graduating class ahead of them.
"Hyuga-san," Hikari greeted. "Your teammates?"
"Fulfilling their debt to you and yours." He paused. "I'd assist here, but -," he gestured to Ino.
Ino, in the mummy-nin's body, moved reflexively away from the Hyuga. Shikamaru didn't blame her. Any internal damage to the sound nin would also be inflicted on her.
Hikari ignored the byplay, glancing up. "And?"
"They're unconscious, and there seems to be chakra coming off of Uchiha Sasuke."
Without another word, Hikari rushed up the tree to where the rest of Team 7 rested.
"Neji," Shikamaru called, gesturing to Ino. "His arm, please."
The older boy sniffed but obligingly came near. When Ino dispelled her jutsu, he struck the nin. His arm hung useless from the shoulder down.
The mummy took out an Earth scroll and put it in the ground. "Let me and my teammates go, and this is yours."
It was a stupid deal. They could easily force him to give it up. They hadn't even needed Neji to deaden his arm. Ino could have poisoned him. Chouji could have knocked him out. Shikamaru just wanted to ensure he couldn't attack them. Team 10 didn't even need an Earth scroll. Shikamaru still took it. It wasn't important right now.
He focused chakra on his feet and ran up the tree. Hikari had put herself between Neji's teammates and Naruto and Sasuke. He settled next to her and put the Earth scroll on her lap.
The Hyuga was right. There was a purple aura coming off of Sasuke.
Neji, Ino, and Chouji joined them.
Hikari reached into Sasuke's pouch, taking a ribbon out. She laid it so it covered most of his torso. Her chakra flowed through the ribbon easily. Shikamaru narrowed his eyes. He had seen both Asuma and Ino doing chakra infusion. Ino had struggled so much she'd settled with something that carried her essence. He'd thought it would take Hikari longer.
He didn't quite get what she was doing. The soft blue glow of the ribbon looked diminutive among the sheer quantity of dark chakra coming off of the Uchiha.
"Sasuke-kun," Hikari coaxed while putting her free hand on Sasuke's arm. "Wake up, please,"
"Shikamaru, his chakra - it feels... different. Wrong." Ino whispered behind Shikamaru. She sounded scared.
"Hikari," he said urgently as he reached for her shoulder. "Get away from - "
Uchiha Sasuke kept his eyes away from his parents' bodies as he stumbled to the shoji. The doors refused to open. He planted his heel in and kicked with the other leg. The paper remained unbroken.
"If only you were stronger..." the figure in front of his parents called out.
He tightened his hands into fists. Urgency clawed away at him. He fumbled around the blurry room avoiding the puddle of blood. He needed to get out. Hikari was alone. The dobe was unconscious. If Orochimaru came back for them... He looked around the room but couldn't find another way out.
He had to go. His team was in the forest.
He hesitated.
Why was he in the compound? They'd been in the exams.
"Kai!"
His surroundings didn't waver.
Orochimaru's laughter echoed through the room. "If only you had more power..."
He was right.
He had been weak.
Too weak to save his family.
Too helpless against Haku.
Too slow against the genin in green.
Too scared against Orochimaru.
Too powerless.
Not this time.
Not again.
He grabbed the power Orochimaru offered.
It rolled on his skin. It hurt. He accepted it.
It sunk into him. It was his.
It burned. It was him.
Was it? Because there was something else, threaded through the overpowering chakra. Bright flames, heated pride, the will to protect. That was... him?
He hesitated. That wasn't him, was it?
Something brushed against him. Mischief hidden beneath politeness. Thought-out words. Delighted laughter as he fell into water. Focused eyes as they moved together. It felt like... Hikari. His teammate.
He clawed his way to consciousness.
He was laying on his back next to the dobe. Hikari was kneeling on his other side.
His Sharingan activated as he took her in. Her shirt had cuts running up her arms. Blood trickled down a shallow slash below her jaw, painting the side of her neck red. Rage tore through him. She was hurt. She was hurt and surrounded. To her left was the genin who'd challenged him, a kunoichi, and a Hyuga. To her right was Team 10. Shikamaru had one hand on Hikari's shoulder, avoiding the wounds. He was trying to pull her to him.
In the next instant, he stood between Hikari and the unknown team. Using his own body, he crowded Hikari closer to the Nara.
"Who hurt you, Hikari?" He eyed the three Konoha genin. Who was he going to rip apart first? He sized them up as his chakra heated inside his chest. They would burn for what they'd done.
"Not them," her reply was quick. "I called them here. The ones who attacked me are gone. I have their scroll."
He hesitated. Hikari didn't believe they were a threat. She'd called them.
The excruciating pain coming from his shoulder made itself known as his wrath ebbed. The power was threatening to leave him.
He gritted his teeth and took one step forward. The taijutsu master had attacked him. He could have targeted Hikari. He wouldn't trust them just because of their hitaiate. Not after Hikari had pointed out her suspicions on grey-haired genin.
The kunoichi in pink held up her hands. "I understand that this must be confusing. We are here to repay the favor you gave us," De-escalation, a part of his mind whispered. The other knew that, but it still listened. "My name is Tenten. This is Lee and Neji. Neji finished disabling the last threat before you... woke up."
"We did not harm Sakasu-hime," the Hyuga added.
He turned his Sharingan on the third one.
"Yosh! You are Most Enthusiastic about protecting your Beloved Comrades. I applaud you! That is what Youth is all about!"
His big round eyes started filling up with tears. Sasuke's lip curled in disgust.
He let the seductive power slide away and had to lock his knees against the pain.
From behind, Hikari pushed her shoulder to his, offering him support. "Let's talk."
By the time Naruto showed signs of life, Nara Shikamaru's mind had gone over Hikari's concise recounting several times. It didn't make him feel less harassed. Team 7 had been targeted by a missing nin and a team who, to Shikamaru's ears, sounded like an assassination squad. Hikari had handed the Earth scroll to Neji. She'd talked over Lee's protest of their youth and convinced them make camp together for the following two nights. Tenten had agreed for all of them: the scroll in return for them returning each night. They'd left. Shikamaru had a feeling they were going to be scouting.
Once it was only Team 10 and Team 7, Hikari had told them the missing nin who attacked them had been Orochimaru. Chouji's face had turned green, Ino had sat down, and Shikamaru's own head had spun. A missing nin had infiltrated the village. One of the Sannin was after a Konoha genin. He'd corrupted part of their chakra and left them fighting off a fever. It explained Sasuke's conviction that there was a threat to be removed upon gaining consciousness.
Ino had been the first to recover. She'd held Sasuke's eyes as she told him exactly what she had sensed from his... outburst. Her voice had been steady as she explained that she did not sense the dark chakra anymore. Sasuke had nodded, and Shikamaru thought he'd looked relieved.
Hikari had held a whispered conversation with Sasuke before offering them a deal. In exchange for a Heaven scroll, the six of them would finish the Second Task together. Chouji had agreed, not bothering to check with him or Ino. He didn't have to. There was safety in numbers. Team 7, even one member down and battered, was trained for combat. They weren't, but they had complementary skills. Pairing combat with Ino's scouting, Chouji's backup strength, and his tactics and shadow jutsu would ensure they could match another squad if they had to. Sticking towgether was smart and practical, and not something he expected Sasuke to agree to. Was it was meeting Orochimaru, Naruto remaining unconscious, Hikari's wounds, or him being in pain? He shook of that train of thought. Maybe Sasuke had realized the power of synergies and teamwork.
Ino had still been eyeing Hikari's torn sleeves. Shikamaru had been swept away with gratefulness for his mother forethought when he'd taken a good look at them. Hikari's mesh undershirt had taken most of the damage, and Ino had already tended to her neck.
When Naruto started to groan, Chouji approached him.
"He's waking up," Hikari whispered.
Shikamaru cocked his head. She sounded flabbergasted. Why? Even in the Academy, Naruto took plenty of hits and recovered.
"Why wouldn't he?" Ino asked.
"He hit the tree. Full body, including head and spine. And then he was unconscious for almost a day."
Shikamaru sucked in a breath. A blow to the head followed by prolonged unconsciousness almost always resulted in brain damage. It didn't have to be as obvious as a fractured skull. It didn't have to be fatal straight away. The brain could be bruised or bleeding, and the blood would put pressure on the brain. Hikari hadn't thought Naruto would ever wake.
"Chouji, check if Naruto recognizes you, and if he knows where he is or remembers what happened," he ordered quietly.
Chouji nodded, a frown pulling his face tight. He put a hand on Naruto's shoulder and shook it.
"Wake up!"
Naruto sat up, glancing around wildly. They had moved down to the clearing instead of the treetops, so he could take everything at a glance.
"Get down everyone!" He took his own advice, squashing himself to the ground. "That grass ninja! Where did she hide?"
Hikari turned her face away from her teammate.
Naruto realized his team wasn't the only one in the clearing. "Hey! What are you doing here?"
Shikamaru stuffed his hands in his pockets. Naruto was fine. "Explaining everything to you would be too troublesome."
Naruto glared at him and then looked down at himself. "My jacket! Where's my jacket?"
Hikari sighed. "I took it. It was destroyed in an explosion."
"Why?"
"You and Sasuke-kun were unconscious. We were attacked. I set up a trap. It didn't work out," her sentences were clipped. "Team 10 came to help."
"We don't need their help!"
Hikari scoffed. "Like you didn't need help going against Orochimaru?"
"Orochimaru? The grass kunoichi with the snakes?"
"Orochimaru is one of the most dangerous ninjas in the Five Countries," Hikari informed him coldly. "Like Sasuke-kun said, you didn't understand the situation. We did. We told you to run. You didn't."
Chouji recoiled from her tone. The rest of them kept quiet. Shikamaru had rarely seen Hikari angry. He had never seen her furious.
"I'm going to be Hokage! I'm not going to run away!"
Hikari's jaw clenched. "May I ask you some questions, Naruto-kun?"
"Sure," Naruto rolled his eyes at Shikamaru's best friend's formality. "Ask anything."
"What does a Hokage do every day?"
"I... ah... they keep everyone safe?"
"By doing what, Naruto-kun?"
"They're the strongest, dattebayo! They can take on anyone!"
Hikari hummed in disinterest. "We haven't been at war for more than a decade, Naruto-kun. What does the Hokage do every day?"
Naruto floundered for an answer.
"You seemed familiar with the current Hokage. He holds the position you're passionate about. Surely, you've asked him."
"Jiji... does a lot of paperwork?"
"So, according to you, paperwork differentiates a Kage from other shinobi. Interesting," her raised eyebrow indicated otherwise, but she moved on. "What is Konoha?"
"It's Fire's ninja village," Naruto's shoulders relaxed when he was able to answer.
"If you take out all of the civilians in it, would it still be Konoha, then?"
"No!"
"Alright. Why was Konoha founded, Naruto-kun? Do the founders' dreams stand true today? Should they?"
Silence answered her. Shikamaru closed his eyes as Naruto fidgeted.
"So, you don't know," she paused to let that sink in. "What do you think Konoha should look like in ten years?"
"I... haven't thought about it?"
"Perhaps a decade is a long time," Hikari allowed graciously. Shikamaru's teeth clenched. He wanted this farce to be over. "What's the first thing you would change, and why shouldn't you change it?"
"What? What do you mean why shouldn't I change it?"
"What does Konoha stand to lose with the change?"
"I...," Naruto trailed off.
"So, you don't know. You want to lead, but you don't know towards what direction or how. Why should anyone follow you?"
No one moved in the clearing. For a fanciful moment, Shikamaru was sure no one dared to breathe.
She waved a hand in a graceful curve, as if to say, 'Let us move on'. Shikamaru gritted his teeth at the casual ease in which she was doing this, tearing his friend down little by little.
"Why are we here?"
"What do you mean why are we here? We're here to pass the exams!"
"We are," Hikari agreed. Naruto reeled back, wary. It was the only smart thing he'd done. "Did our success rely on us fighting to the death for another extra scroll?"
"But! You were the one who wanted more than two scrolls!"
Hikari laugh spread through the clearing like tinkling bells. Naruto recoiled. "You never listen. I said I wanted more than two scrolls to trade the extra ones. Our lives in exchange for a piece of parchment we didn't need. Was that not a good enough deal to you, Naruto-kun?"
Naruto didn't answer. His hands alternated between fists and wide open.
"Orochimaru wasn't after the scroll. Perhaps giving it up wouldn't have helped us. Perhaps running from the second we saw him wouldn't have made a difference. But at least we could have tried." She pinned Naruto with her gaze. "But you didn't listen."
Naruto's hands settled into fists. Shikamaru didn't know if he'd cry or try to punch Hikari. Both were unacceptable.
He faced everyone. "We're sticking together, and none of us have eaten. Hikari and I will prepare the site."
Ino stood up and tugged Sasuke with her. Chouji took Naruto. "Got it!"
Uchiha Sasuke brushed off the Yamanaka's hands. She let him.
"I'll get some wood and handle the fire," he stated. His mastery over fire jutsu was a thin excuse. Any competent genin could build a campfire, but the Yamanaka did not point it out.
"Alright. I'll catch up with Chouji and Naruto."
He turned back to the clearing. He wanted to know what, exactly, was going to be said and done. Shikamaru was the leader of Team 10. From what Hikari had said, they had been the turning point in her fight against the Sound team. Hikari trusted the Nara.
Sasuke thought he could respect teaming up with them. The trio wasn't suited for combat. It was an alright deal - the Yamanaka's sensing for a scroll they didn't need.
Fine. It'd be fine to leave her alone with the Nara. Normally. But nothing was normal about this. Nothing was normal about this exam. Hikari was tired. For all his laziness, the Nara was a clan heir, and he'd spent most of his time in the Academy with Naruto and Chouji. Hikari had just smacked down the dobe with questions of all things. He could be a threat.
Sasuke didn't bother gathering anything as he made his way back.
Nara Shikamaru opened his mouth. "That was cruel, Hikari," came out.
She turned to face him. "Was it? Naruto-kun is not my responsibility. He's my teammate. You want me to be cruel, Shika?"
He swallowed. He didn't. He'd spoken without thinking. He was just too out of sorts. Nothing made sense. Why were Orochimaru and a minor village interested in Sasuke? If they were affiliated, why had one granted him power with a seal he didn't recognize, only for the other to try to kill him? What about the grey-haired Konoha genin? How did he fit in? Things were developing too fast, and he couldn't see the full pattern.
Hikari let out a dull laugh. It was nothing like the beautiful and fake sound that had spread around the clearing. This was angry, hurt. Betrayed, a part of him whispered. "Cruel would have been to ask him if he wanted to rule over a ghost town, since his actions could have gotten us all killed." Shikamaru flinched at the reminder. "If he can't lead a team, how can he lead Konoha? Cruel would have to tell him that the next time he charges against one of the Sannin and gets knocked out, I'll think twice before I carry him to safety."
No, Shikamaru thought, indignation clawing up his throat. You're his teammate, and you value that, why are you acting like this? He's my friend, and he's made mistakes. Why can't you see that?
"He is trying, Hikari!"
"And the rest of us aren't, Shika?" She breathed hard. "He's trying now, but did he try at the Academy? I don't think he even knew what chakra was when we graduated. If you ask me, Iruka-sensei did us a disservice by chasing after him. Why leave a class to go after one student who doesn't want to learn? Learning is a privilege. One Naruto-kun chose to squander."
Shikamaru stiffened. Naruto and he had skipped together most of the time.
"These are the consequences. But no one is asking me. Fine. Just tell me - does he want to be Hokage, Shika, or does he want recognition?"
Shikamaru didn't know, and it angered him. He was angry at Naruto and himself, for not being able to answer Hikari's questions. He was angry at her, for asking them. He was angry at knowing he was being unfair.
"Cruel would have been to tell him my truths. Instead, I asked for his. It's not my fault they were unsatisfactory," she pinned him with her gaze. "He says he's going to be Hokage and asks us to believe him. Until his actions match his words, I'll only hear the lie in believe." She pivoted away from him.
His hands clenched into fists. He hated when Hikari turned her back on an argument. He opened his mouth and blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "What of Sasuke, then? You've got a problem about Naruto's goal, but I've never heard you say anything about Sasuke's."
"What is there to say, Shika?" She asked over her shoulder.
This wasn't what he wanted to talk about, but it kept Hikari here. "It's not hard to guess, is it? Revenge."
"What's your point?"
He scoffed. How could Hikari, who loved life, justify devoting your life to killing someone? How could she defend a goal that would benefit only one, when her own was to protect?
Hikari's jaw clenched at the sound and she faced him again. "You presume much. Even if you're right, is it unfounded, Shika? Isn't justice based on reparation and ensuring the offence won't be repeated? Nothing can compensate all that was stolen from him. I do not know how to steer the conversation towards justice. Do you?"
Shikamaru drew back. No one could ever bring back the Uchiha. Sasuke's clan had been wiped out by their clan heir. By someone they were supposed to be able to trust. He understood his goal. He did. But Uchiha Itachi hadn't established himself as a direct threat to Konoha. The village didn't hunt inactive S-rank missing nin. They didn't have the resources to go after Uchiha Itachi or Orochimaru.
Sasuke was Konoha's last Uchiha. Going alone was suicide. Konoha couldn't afford to lose his bloodline. But even if they sent out teams against Uchiha Itachi, their odds weren't good. They'd lose many skilled and loyal jonin.
He understood Sasuke's goal. He also understood how much would have to be sacrificed for a move that didn't ensure success.
"You said I was cruel."
Shikamaru closed his eyes for a moment. Hikari had taken his silence for censure, an emphasis on his earlier judgement.
"I am who I am, Shika. That has always been true. Perhaps you just haven't been looking. Perhaps..." she paused to recollect her thoughts.
Shikamaru waited, shame crawling up his throat. His best friend was tired and afraid. Instead of helping, he'd blurted out accusations. The least he could do was listen.
"We seek to hide from our own reflections. Is that what this is about? That you see our similarities with Sasuke-kun?"
You're nothing like him.
She must have seen something on his face. "If Chouji was killed, can you tell me you wouldn't end the one responsible?"
He thought of the almost blinding panic that overtook him when Ino recognized Hikari's call for help. He remembered getting to the clearing and seeing Hikari on her knees. He could still feel Ino's hand on his shoulder, the only thing stopping him from charging in to remove the threat. No, he couldn't say differently. He was never under any illusions about himself. But Hikari was better than him.
He opened his mouth, this time to apologize, explain, do better.
A branch snapped, catching their attention. They both turned, sliding into battle-readiness. Shikamaru eased his stance but didn't relax when he saw Ino, Chouji, and Naruto. Chouji was frozen, one leg paused over the broken twig. Ino's face was stricken and Naruto's downtrodden. Sasuke stood apart from them, his arms folded over his chest. Shikamaru cursed himself.
How much did they hear?