Chunin Exam Arc: Mountain Maze – The Other Side

Dazai took another sip of his steaming tea as he read through the next series of reports. His men were observing the ongoings within Mt. Kiken. They were due to rotate soon. He also had another group of men documenting what happened, and then they would give him the abridged version with only the most relevant information.

Kobayashi approached, notably without the next round of reports. It meant something else was going on, but he wasn't rushing so it couldn't be anything too bad.

"What is it?" Dazai set down the intricate and vibrant painted porcelain mug.

"The first person has reached the victory room."

Dazai froze. One of the test's measurements was accurate speed. He glanced over to the ticking clock. "It hasn't even been three hours."

"Yes Sir." Kobayashi didn't know what else to say.

It was impressive, but it also hit a nerve. The inside of the mountain had been manipulated by them over years, and continued to alter it. It was designed to be confusing. A mix of intuitive and counter intuitive choices. They even took into consideration destruction and jutsu. It was enough that they had to give out sections of the map so there was a higher chance of success. "Do I want to know who?"

In the grand scheme of things it didn't matter, but optics weren't nothing either.

"The Hatake girl."

Dazai groaned. He was glad it was beyond his jurisdiction. They had eyes on their external participants so it was only natural that word would get back to him that someone had been causing civil disruptions around the village. Nothing they could deem as an offense, and plenty thought her mad with her wild tales, but others took her words to heart. The girl appeared to have no filter when talking but there was no guarantee her words were truth. He'd come across his share of manic liars. Nothing came of it, but it had been less than a week and there were already talks amongst the civilians. Restless excitement and curiosity, with a douse of doubt.

It wasn't completely surprising. Hatake was a name known well enough. Konoha's White Fang was certainly on their watchlist in the same capacity Iwa's Iron Hand was undoubtedly on theirs.

"How?"

"Some kind of jutsu helped. We are unsure what it is. At first it reminded us of some of our own techniques. It does more than camouflage so it's not Earth Release: Hiding in Rock. It has some similarities to Earth Release: Underground Projection Fish Technique, but with less limitations. I would think she was taking on the properties of the materials she touches as part of an assimilation technique if she hadn't appeared completely unchanged. Therefore, it's likely some jutsu Orochimaru of the Sannin taught her that we are unaware of. It allowed her to slip through floors easily."

Dazai leaned back in his chair. "That explains partially, but it still doesn't explain finding the specific location so quickly."

"We've noted that she's dragged her fingers along the walls a lot. It's likely it has something to do with that," explained Kobayashi. He answered what he could but was nervous about the reaction. It wasn't great when an experienced Chunin could only offer limited insight on a genin, ready for chunin or not.

Dazai pinched his nose, focusing on the pressure it brought to prevent his thoughts from trailing. "She's the first guaranteed spot for the finals then. Have the team write up her final report, and tell the monitoring team it's time to rotate."

Kobayashi nodded then left.

One down, fifteen to go.

Dazai continued to read through the reports, and by the end of the first day there had been four who reached the victory room: Hatake Yuina of Konoha, Monga of Iwa, Odayaka Otona of Kumo, and Ishii of Iwa.

He listened in as his men were placing bets on who would make it to the final round. A stressful affair as some did it in good fun and others ranged from patriotic to jingoistic who felt it was wrong betting on those from other villages.

Kaji wasn't one of them.

Kaji slapped some money down. "I'm betting of Shark Dude."

"You mean Kisame? From Kiri?"

"I didn't stutter. Shark Dude. I don't know if he'd make a good chunin. He has the skills yes. The strength of one, certainly. Would I trust giving him a solo mission to cut down enemies – absolutely. Would I trust him to lead a team? Uh, that's up in the air. Either way, he'll make it as long as he doesn't take too many wrong turns or get too caught up tearing others down."

"I'll bet on Tazuka then," said Horino, joining the group as he switched from the observation team.

"Boo!" Kaji pointed his thumb downward. "What a bland safe guess."

Horino rolled his eyes. "Like your guess isn't a safe bet. At least I'm supporting our men."

"Our men or your nephew?" Kaji raised his eyebrow but everyone already knew the answer.

"Does it matter?" Sana was unimpressed with the gambling. She wondered if it was a men's thing. Gambling that was. Allegiances aside, she was content to see so many kunoichi in the second round. Perhaps in the future the ratio wouldn't be so skewed as it was. She still had to listen to her grandmother nag her to this day about taking up a career. Her mother was supportive, but only quietly so. Her mother was born and raised as an obedient daughter and would only say so much in defense of her choices against her.

"Are you going to vote on one of ours too? Anyone you personally know?" Kaji leaned in awaiting a response.

Sana thought over the participants she knew. She didn't like betting but she did want to cheer the girls on. "I don't know any of them, but I believe Asa and Enki have a good chance."

Horino nodded to Asa's name. She was a fellow Iwa kunoichi so he approved of that choice. Enki, on the other hand left Horino clueless. "Enki?"

"The Suna girl. The one in nearly all white." From the top of her head to her ankles, Enki was covered in loose white cloth. A piece even covered her face from her nose down. The exception were her footwear and pants that were underneath, mostly hidden.

Kaji tapped on the table as he looked up at the ceiling trying to remember. Nope. "Don't know who that is."

They weren't allowed to drink of the job, but Ojiro brought a bunch of food for everyone to share. He notices the sheet listing names and a pool of money. "We betting?"

Kaji eagerly slurped some noodles. He would never tire of them. Nice and thick just how he liked them. "Yeah, about who we think will make it to the third round."

"I'll bet on that Zabuza kid if only because I want to watch the babies duke it out." Ojiro thought it was a joke at first, but while he opened up to the idea that they actually were skilled, he still thought of them as babies.

Dazai finally stepped in. He let them have their fun long enough. "Need I remind you, you're still on duty?"

The group quieted down.

That's what he thought.