Hello again! Sorry for the almost late update. Almost is the key word here. So I was reading the reviews, and I'm now making changes to the pairings, more about that on the notes at the end of this chappie because ya'll don't deserve to wait any longer. ;)
Disclaimer: You really think I could afford something as good as Naruto?
OwOwO
Sasuke was crouched down, hiding underneath a bush when he heard light footsteps behind him. He immediately jumped up, kunai in hand, to meet the sight of a lavender eyed kunoichi.
"Don't come any closer," He warned. "When does a ninja strike?"
Hinata paused. Oh yeah. "A ninja waits until the time is right, when the enemy sleeps and drops his guard, when his weapons lie forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is when a ninja strikes."
Sasuke nodded and dropped his guard with a sigh. At this moment, Naruto also stumbled into the small clearing they were in.
"Hey, what's up?" Naruto panted. "Are you guys okay?"
"Don't come any closer!" Hinata slowly slid into the Gentle Fist stance. "Say the password!"
"Oh sure, no problem," Naruto said while grinning. "A ninja waits 'til the time is right, when the enemy sleeps and drops his guard, when his weapons lie forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is when a ninja strikes."
Hinata activated her Byakugan and immediately moved forwards to attack when she was stopped by Sasuke.
"He's a fake, Sasuke!" She cried, trying to move around him.
"I know, but we can't be too hasty," He reminded her. He turned to the fake Naruto. "I have to admit, you were quicker than the last one."
"What? But I got the password right!" Naruto objected. "Word for word!"
"That's what's wrong," Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "You really think Naruto could memorize all that and get it word for word? Tch. Not in a million years. You'd have a better chance teaching it to a hamster."
Hinata gave Sasuke a small frown at that, but nodded her head in agreement. "I'll admit, I don't think that Naruto would be able to memorize all of that. Besides…" She tapped the veins next to her eyes. "You definitely do not have his chakra signature."
"All right, party's over!" Sasuke pulled out a kunai. "Show yourself!"
Naruto's face remained shocked for a moment before it settled onto a smug sneer.
"Heh, aren't we the shrewd ones," He mocked, licking his lips.
Hinata's eyes widened. Could it be?
A puff of smoke momentarily shrouded the figure before revealing that Hinata's guess was correct.
"Now tell me," The grass ninja adjusted her hat a bit. "If your friend is so dimwitted, why would you come up with a password he'd never remember?"
"It wasn't meant for Naruto so much as for anybody who might happen to be nearby trying to eavesdrop on us. It was a trap, and you stumbled on it like a moth to a flame."
"I'm impressed." The grass ninja took off her straw hat. "You certainly haven't let down your guard. This will probably be very entertaining."
She flicked out her tongue again.
Hinata shuddered. If creepiness had a humanoid form, this woman would be it. She frowned when she realized something. If Naruto isn't here…Where is he?
OwOwO
Naruto was in pain.
"Owww," he groaned, just to clarify to any listeners just how much pain he was in.
And heave, he thought to himself, setting his body in its upright position. And then he was met with a snake. A giant snake.
"Can't I catch a break?" He complained, pulling himself up.
He analyzed the snake with the little time he had. The skin looked too tough to pierce from the outside, which meant–
"AHHH!" He screamed when the snake curled its tail around him and swallowed him whole.
At least it was doing the job for him.
OwOwO
The woman grinned and charged forward in Hinata's direction. Hinata quickly moved to flip out of the ninja's way when she felt a tugging on her shoulders and her pack was ripped from her back. She watched in stunned horror as the ninja took out one of the scrolls they possessed. Sasuke had the other one, the Heaven scroll, but without its partner they couldn't make it to the tower.
"And now…" The woman wrapped her tongue around their Earth scroll. "Let's begin. You need this scroll, no?"
Hinata gasped. How in the world were they supposed to get it from down her throat?
"And now…" The woman smirked. "It's life or death."
As soon as she swallowed the scroll, Hinata and Sasuke started shaking. Hinata forced her head down to look at her quivering hands.
"You're paralyzed with fear," The ninja spoke monotonously.
Move, Sasuke thought furiously, pulling a kunai out of his pouch. Move, dammit!
"Don't worry, I'll make it quick." The ninja sauntered forward, her hand producing two kunai.
Hinata stared at her useless hands, trembling and useless. This killer intent…
"Ah, I expected much better fun," The ninja flicked out her hand. "How disappointing."
Sasuke stabbed his leg at the last moment and shoved into Hinata, pushing her out of the way of the kunai.
OwOwO
Naruto struggled in the snake's throat? Stomach? Wherever he was, it was harder to attack than he anticipated.
This is why you let Hinata or Sasuke do the thinking, he berated himself, putting his hands together for Shadow Clone Jutsu.
The snake's stomach bulged for a moment before bursting, leaving a hundred Nartuos behind.
"I was not going to end up as snake dung," Naruto grumbled. "Not in this hell-hole of a forest."
OwOwO
"Sasuke, are you…?" Hinata cut herself off, Byakugan activated. "Move!"
She leaped over and shoved Sasuke out of the way. Sasuke's eyes widened when he realized a snake had reared and attacked the place they were both standing in a few moments before.
Shoot, I was too exhausted to notice the snake! Sasuke hurriedly leaped back when the snake followed him. He whipped out several shuriken, which hit the snake directly. The large reptile reared back, and then fell to the floor, dead.
Hinata joined Sasuke on the tree branch.
'Is it…" She glanced uncertainly at the snake, and then gasped when a figure arose from the fallen reptile.
"I sense your desperation," The ninja spoke in a smooth tone that gave Hinata's shivers. "A prey must always be on guard in the presence of its predator." She flicked out an abnormally long snake tongue, and slithered swiftly in Sasuke's direction.
Fire style: Fireball jutsu! Sasuke thought, Sharingan active, preparing himself for the instant heat to come.
Ah, so his Uchiha blood has come to a boil, the ninja noted.
The ninja easily dodged it, but was now left in the open. Sasuke leapt after her, throwing shuriken with uncanny precision, Sharingan predicting her every movement, before throwing a paper bomb right in front of him.
BOOM.
The ninja panted, swerving out of the way just in time–and then to be attacked by a tan blur.
"Gentle Fist!" Hinata cried, slamming the palms of her hand into the grass ninja.
To her dismay, the ninja had dodged every single one of her strikes.
"Hinata, lead her forwards!" Sasuke commanded.
Hinata nodded, and then forced the ninja in said direction, straight into the wired net that Sasuke had set up. The wired net that was laced with paper bombs. It exploded when the ninja came in contact with the trap. Hinata flipped backwards, panting.
"Did it…" She looked through the smoke uncertainly. "Is he…"
When all the dust cleared, the ninja was left there, trapped in wires. Hinata was about to let out a sigh of relief, when suddenly, the ninja ripped herself out of her bonds. Hinata stifled a scream when she realized that her–no, its skin was peeling off near one eye like a mask.
"I didn't realized that you could
"Who are you, and what do you want?" Sasuke demanded.
"My name is Orochimaru," The ninja hissed.
His neck grew long, freakishly long, and curved its way to Sasuke, biting him on the neck. Hinata gasped, seeing chakra immediately invade into Sasuke's system.
"What did you do to him?" Hinata cried, looking at the newly formed seal on his neck.
"Consider it a parting gift," Orochimaru sneered. "But, really, shouldn't gifts be shared?"
Her eyes widened when Orochimaru turned his eyes onto her.
"Byakugan…" He hummed. "I wonder…" He slithered in Hinata's direction, attempting to do the same thing it did with Sasuke.
"Oh no you don't!"
With several thunks, kunai and shuriken landed right where the snake's head was, and Naruto appeared right in front of Hinata.
"Naruto!" Hinata cried out.
"Hinata, are you okay?" Naruto searched around. "And why is Sasuke on the ground? What's wrong?"
"He–Orochimaru bit his neck." Hinata paused to activate her Byakugan, struggling through lack of chakra. "It's so weird, like his body is being infected by a new chakra…"
Naruto growled. "And let me guess, he was about to do the same thing to you?"
Hinata dug her nails into the palm of her hand. "I-I don't know."
Naruto's eyes flashed red. "You won't get away with this!" He shouted at the creature.
The thing chuckled. "Ah, Naruto. I see you escaped my little friend."
So the snake was sent by this guy, Naruto thought. Well of course it was, who else? He mentally berated himself.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes on the boy. So this is the nine-tails jinchuriki. To both Hinata and Naruto's surprise, he pulled out a hand and charged forwards, plunging it straight into Naruto's stomach, right where the nine tail's seal was. Hinata moved quickly, placing a well aimed Gentle Fist straight into Orochimaru's chest, sending him flying into the tree, but the damage was done. Orochimaru smirked at their expense, and pulled out the Earth scroll he had stolen from them almost teasingly.
"It was nice seeing your talents all on display," He crooned before disappearing into the tree branch.
Hinata stared at the empty space where Orochimaru was before. This was not good.
OwOwO
Hinata sat there, worriedly looking over her two teammates. At least Naruto was sleeping soundly enough…the other boy, on the other hand, was a different matter altogether. She could practically feel the aura of the other ninja, Orochimaru, hanging over his body, a dark, vile influence, seeping into his soul, his mind… She shuddered and flinched a bit away from him involuntarily, and then mentally berated herself for doing so. He was still her teammate, no matter what. But she was entirely useless in this case. She had looked at his neck, prodding at the seal, trying to block out the invading chakra with her own to no avail. Any changes she had made only caused him to turn over and sleep more restlessly. And Naruto. Orochimaru seemed to have added another seal on top of the one that Naruto had before, and Hinata, was not an expert in fuinjutsu. At first, she had not been as worried about the seal as she had been about other matters, after all, it was better that the nine tail's influence stay locked up, until she realized it messed with Naruto's chakra control.
She sighed and rubbed her eyes. This was an absolute mess. She had overused her Byakugan long before. And she was so tired… No. She had to stay awake and alert. She had to. She of course had set up a trap, but it was a crude and rough one. She just didn't have the time or resources. She still had to stay vigilant. Her ears perked when she heard a small skittering sound, and she grabbed her kunai, ready for any attackers, and…came face to face with a squirrel. Who was about to set off her trap.
"Get away from there," Hinata hissed, throwing a kunai just in front of it.
The squirrel paused, frightened, and then ran.
Hinata sighed in relief. That was a close one.
OwOwO
"Do you think she knew?" Zaku whispered.
"Hmm…" Doku thought about it.
"Is the little girl even capable of such an intelligent thought?" Kin snorted. "I bet she grew up with dolls, not the blood of the real shinobi world."
"I don't think she knew about the squirrel," Doku decided. "But it was definitely something…"
OwOwO
As soon as Hinata could use Byakugan, she stiffened.
"Alright, who's there?" She called, "I can see you."
Dosu narrowed his eyes at that girl. Could she somehow see everything with those eyes? No matter. They had to come out now.
The three Sound ninja made their entrance, and one of them was the same person who had attacked Kabuto in the beginning of the Chunin Exams, much to Hinata's dismay. She immediately stood up on tired and shaky legs, exhausted, but willing to take them on if needed.
Just let them walk a bit closer, she told herself.
"So a lookout, eh?" Dosu spoke, positioning himself in the middle. "That won't be necessary anymore. Wake Sasuke up. We want to battle him."
I would if I could, Hinata thought grimly. But not for the same reasons you have.
"What do you want?" She demanded, hand traveling to her kunai pouch. I think Byakugan will last for another ten minutes. After that… "I know the one called Orochimaru is ordering you from the shadows!"
Dosu's eyes widened. How…
"What's that strange mark on Sasuke's neck?" Hinata kept on firing questions. "And what seal did he put on Naruto?"
"I wonder what idea he had in his mind…" Dosu muttered.
"I can't stay quiet after hearing that," Zaku spoke now, loud and proud. "I will kill this girl. And then, after that, this Sasuke character." He stood up from his place on top of the boulder.
"Wait, Zaku," Dosu ordered.
"Huh? What is it?" Zaku looked down at his "superior".
"It's so obvious," Dosu scoffed, walking forwards with awkward legs, pulling at the covering Hinata had hastily pulled over to cover up her trap. "This area doesn't even grow grass like this."
Hinata gritted her teeth. Just a little closer…
"There's now point in having a trap that you're not going to hide well," Dosu flicked away the covering that was meant to mimic grass. "Now, we kill her."
The three all leapt in Hinata's direction.
Now! She brought her kunai up and sliced the wire next to her.
Kunai attached with paper bombs flew at the three ninja, much to their surprise. Dosu quickly raised an arm and deflected them all, sending explosions all over the clearing.
"Someone like you needs to try harder," He said. "Or else…"
Hinata's eyes narrowed, and she slid into the Gentle Fist stance. She'd have to fight. When the three got within range, she did the obvious thing and targeted the closest person, which happened to be Dosu. She charged at him, palms flaring with chakra, dodging underneath his punch when–
She gasped, stumbling a little, vision woozy. Dosu used sound as an attacking factor, which could affect the inner ear. It was better to stay away from him, but she also didn't know the abilities of the two other ninja. No, she had to take the gamble. If Dosu could reduce Kabuto to that state, an older and experienced ninja, then she didn't stand a chance, not in this state. Her eyes flicked to his companions. Who would she go for first? They solved that issue for her.
"C'mon, little girl," Kin sneered. "Fight faster." She flicked several needles in her direction.
"Protective Eight Trigrams 64 Palms!" Hinata cried, arms and hands moving at lightning fast speed. The needles were deflected, scattered into the forest. She raced forwards, swiping at the girl, who dodged to her best ability. Hinata managed to land a few hits on her shoulder and chest, and then leapt back, panting.
The hits that Hinata managed to land were soft and held barely any strength. Kin brushed it off as inexperience.
"You'll need to do much better than that–" Kin stopped, frozen. Her shoulder and everywhere down that arm felt oddly painful and numb at the same time, along with the spots Hinata had tapped on her chest. When she tried moving that arm, she found she was unable to.
"Why you…" She growled, charging forwards with a punch, only to have the other arm treated the same way.
"Now, you are unable to move or wield chakra in your arms," Hinata panted. One down.
"I'll kill you for this!" Zaku shouted, palms opened.
A blast hit Hinata, sending her flying. She landed, wind knocked out of her. Gasping for air, she struggled to stand up, hand clutching her head. Her eyes ached, and her Byakugan deactivated. No more Gentle Fist, unless she wanted to try guessing the right points to hit. No, that was too risky. She could use an elemental jutsu, but she didn't have enough chakra. She was stuck with straight up taijutsu.
Zaku was fast, catching up to her and swinging punch after punch. Hinata desperately tried to keep up, dodging and blocking to the best of her ability, but Zaku was physically stronger than her, and he was forcing her to back up. Hinata slowed down, and Zaku was ruthless. He punched her face, at her stomach, Hinata just desperately trying to stay up. Hinata clutched her now bleeding nose and purpled eye and swung a sloppy kick at Zaku who easily dodged. He punched her once again in the stomach, sending her flying to the ground.
"Ghh…" She groaned, sitting up, just in time to see Zaku come forwards, palms opened. That could only mean he was preparing for a sound attack. At this range… She closed her eyes.
Nothing.
She opened them carefully, squinting at the now frozen Sound ninja.
"Need a little help?" Shikamaru said, grinning. "It's a drag, but you seemed to be in a mess there."
"Tch, how much can a fatso do for you anyways?" Zaku scoffed, eyeing Choji.
Choji's eye twitched. "I'm just big boned!" He yelled. Hinata could see the fire in his eyes.
Shikamaru forced Zaku backwards, releasing the Shadow Possession Jutsu, and the three jumped in front of Hinata.
"Now," Ino spoke. "Formation Ino–"
"-Shika–"
"-Cho!"
"Alright!" Choji got ready. "Expansion Jutsu!" His body grew in size with a pop. "Human boulder!" He rolled in Zaku's direction.
Zaku pulled out his palms, keeping Choji's body at bay with sound, before Choji came upwards and came at him at a new angle. Dosu saw this and attempted running in that direction to help his friend.
"Oh no you don't," Shikamaru muttered, "Shadow Possession Jutsu!"
My body… Dosu thought, now frozen. I can't move.
Ino targeted Kin. "Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
Kin's eyes went blank, before narrowing.
Ino flexed her arms in Kin's body. Why were they so numb? She managed to lift a kunai to her own neck with some effort.
"Alright, it's over," She called. "If you move, this "Kin" girl is dead!"
Zaku started chuckling.
Ino narrowed her eyes. Why are they laughing?
Zaku shot his sound straight at her, and Choji, realizing this, came in with a human boulder. It was too late, however, and Kin was sent flying straight into a tree with a scream. Shikamaru hurriedly checked Ino's body, seeing a little line of blood come out of her mouth, marring her otherwise unharmed face.
Choji stood up from the dust. "I'm dizzy," He spoke while swaying, hand clutching his mouth.
"You underestimated us," Zaku spoke, smirking.
"Our goal is not to get a dumb scroll or to get through this exam," Dosu explained tonelessly.
Choji and Shikamaru gasped.
"Oh?" Dosu looked down to see Shikamaru's shadow relinquishing the hold it had on him.
Shikamaru grinded his teeth. Out of chakra…
"Seeing from the blood on the girl's face, if we kill Kin, the girl dies as well," Dosu noted.
"You'd kill your own teammate?" Shikamaru asked incredulously.
"If we have to, yes," Zaku said coldly, pointing a palm at Kin who was on the ground.
Shikamaru looked at the situation before sighing. "Looks like it's over."
"Damn it," Choji complained.
"Close, you almost had us," Zaku said.
Hinata forced herself back up again, activating her Byakugan even though her eyes screamed in protest. It was then when she caught sight of a strange chakra, and then tracing it back, it led to…Sasuke.
OwOwO
It was because I wasn't strong enough that everyone died.
Images of his brother infront of his fallen parents entered his mind, the blood staining the floor imprinting itself into his thoughts. He saw himself standing in front of him. Small. Vulnerable. Weak.
His younger self glanced at him, smirking. Sasuke gasped.
If only you had the power.
His younger self lifted a hand and tore off the side of his face, revealing a snake eye.
Sasuke woke up.
OwOwO
"Sasuke?" Hinata called uncertainly when he started getting up. This chakra was still making her uneasy. "Are you okay?"
It was only when he fully stood up did she feel the intenseness of this new Sasuke.
"Who caused you this pain?" He asked coldly. "Who did it, Hinata?"
Hinata said nothing, only staring at the markings spreading over his body with a frozen expression.
I must keep on obtaining power, Sasuke thought, even if I have to have the devil take over my body.
I can't believe he woke up, Dosu thought.
Sasuke smirked and glanced at Zaku, who nervously sweated.
Ino cursed in Kin's body, putting her hands up to return to her body. "Cancel!"
Kin dropped to the floor, unconscious.
Sasuke approached Zaku, the black marks spreading across his face, who hurriedly fired his palms off in his direction. The immense power of the blast had everybody bracing themselves against the force. Sasuke, however, seemed unaffected.
Fire style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu! He thought, holding a hand up to his mouth.
Several plumes of fire shot their way towards Zaku.
Don't get so cocky! He thought, raising his hands up. I'll just erase it!
Zaku froze, it was like a flash, but a dark blur had suddenly came up to him and–
Sasuke stood, one foot on Zaku's back, his arms grabbing onto the Sound nin's, holding them upwards.
"You seem to be pretty fond of your arms," Sasuke hissed into his ear. "So why don't I break them?"
"S-Stop it," Zaku half-whimpered, looking up at the ruthless boy.
Sasuke grinned and applied pressure, pressing down on the foot on Zaku's back and pulling on his arms, hard.
And all he saw was red.
OwOwO
Hinata looked in horror as Sasuke broke both of Zaku's arms, and then turned to Dosu with that bloodthirsty look in his eyes.
"That leaves just you," He spoke, still smirking in glee.
Dosu shivered. He had seen what had happened to his friend. This boy…
Hinata looked at Sasuke. This was new…and unpleasant. More than that. It frightened her. And the Sasuke she knew wouldn't purposely try to hurt or scare his friends–he was more than that. As Sasuke walked forwards, she staggered up slowly, and then stumbled along faster, gaining momentum. She had to stop him, block off the seal, whatever she could do to get the old Sasuke back. When she got to him, she came around and then smacked her palm into his neck, injecting her chakra into the seal.
"Please stop," She whispered, watching the black markings fade back into the mark. "Please."
Sasuke stared at her, unseeing and frozen. She gently took her hand away and moved it to his back, rubbing in small circles.
"Are you okay?" She asked.
Sasuke didn't speak.
"You're strong," Dosu spoke suddenly.
Hinata and Sasuke's heads both jerked up, and then Hinata gasped when Dosu offered them a scroll. An Earth scroll. Just what they needed to pass the Forest of Death.
"Let's make a deal," Dosu set the scroll on the forest floor. "You let us be for now." He picked up Zaku and Kin. "In exchange, I will promise this… We will not run or hide. Next time, we will stay and fight." He turned to leave.
"Wait!" Hinata shouted. "Who's Orochimaru? And what did he do to Sasuke and Naruto?"
"We were just ordered to kill Sasuke," Dosu said. "I don't know about this Naruto character."
He left.
You told us to kill him, yet you left him that mark anyways, he pondered on his way out.
OwOwO
Hinata walked her way to Naruto, coming to check if he was okay.
"Eh, I'll protect you…" He muttered before turning over.
Hinata smiled. Naruto could be so funny sometimes.
"What was I…" Sasuke stared at his shaking hand.
Hinata's smile disappeared, and was replaced by a concerned frown.
"Are you okay?" She asked, worried.
"..." Sasuke stared down at his hand. "Just what am I?"
"AHHH!"
They both jolted and looked back at Naruto's scream.
"Naruto!" Hinata immediately rushed to his side, and then sighed with relief when she found out that Choji and Shikamaru had just conked him on the head, and he had woken up startled.
Ah, the grass ninja, Naruto looked around, rubbing the bump on his head.
"Everybody hide!" He yelled, collapsing to the ground.
Ino looked up from where she was standing up with a frown, the little dribble of blood on her face following her mouth.
"You really are one of a kind," Shikamaru said snarkily. "That's for sure. And, I mean, you're the kind that gets on my nerves."
"Hinata!" Naruto cheered when he saw his teammate. "You tell them that I'm not annoying, wait, what's wrong?"
She glanced at Sasuke who was walking towards the group. "I…I'm just worried about you two."
"Wait, what's going on?" Naruto looked around. "And, actually, where did that Grass ninja go?"
"Explaining everything to you is going to be a pain," Shikamaru complained, as he along with Ino and Choji walked forwards to join the group.
Hinata looked over and saw the scroll that Dosu had left behind. "It's perfect," She said, walking over to pick it up after checking it with her Byakugan. "We can head to the tower now."
Naruto grinned. "All right! We totally crushed this!"
Hinata laughed. Maybe not the best choice of words, but they were going to pass.
OwOwO
"There are people up ahead, Kiba," Shino warned. "Three."
"Alright, then!" He stuck his arms up. "Let's go get their scrolls as well!"
"You idiot," Sakura scoffed. "We already have both a Heaven and an Earth scroll. What more do we need?"
"Sakura is correct," Shino said softly. "That's because–"
"If we get more scrolls, there will be less to go around," Kiba argued back, completely ignoring the other boy much to his dismay. "And that means other teams will be cut out of the competition. We don't even have to take their scrolls–let's just check it out!"
Sakura thought for a bit. "That actually kind of sounds smart. Let's go then."
"Are any of you actually going to listen to what I have to say?" Shino muttered.
"Huh? What was that, Shino?" Kiba leaned in and cupped his ear. "Say what?"
Shino brooded even further. "Nevermind."
And so, they continued on their way.
OwOwO
Kiba was trying to stop Akamaru from shaking.
"I've never seen him this bad," Kiba let Akamaru enter his jacket. "Akamaru can smell out the level of power a ninja is, and from his reaction, those ninja up ahead are big trouble."
Sakura glanced back at the three Sand ninja, the tall blond girl who carried a huge fan, a boy who had something taped to his back, and, lastly, another boy with blood red hair and weird eye liner. They were facing off against much older genin.
"What's he thinking?" Kiba said, focusing his attention back on the upcoming match. "That guy's way too little to be taking on them."
"Now, you're all going to die," One of the Hidden Rain ninja spoke with a sneer, one of his eyes closed from a battle scar.
"Let's make this quick," The red head spoke coldly. "I don't want to waste time with this guy."
The Rain ninja narrowed his eyes.
The boy who had something strapped onto his back was simply looking upwards, as if bored.
"Hey, Gaara," He called. "Why don't we just move on?"
"They looked at me the wrong way," He replied, staring down at the opposing ninja. "So they're going to die."
Sakura's eyes widened. This killer intent…
The other ninja just brushed it off, and unleashed the sticks attached to his back, revealing that they were umbrellas. He threw them into the air, and they spun around, releasing needles as they did.
"Rain of needles!" He yelled, directing the needles towards Gaara. There's no way to dodge this, He thought smugly.
But when the dust cleared, all that was left was the creepy red-head, encased in sand. The needles had been blocked by the matter, and the grains of sand that were dislodged from the impact falling around him.
"I have a better idea," He hissed. "Let's make it rain blood instead."
The ninja gritted his teeth. The dome of sand that had protected the wretched child was sinking away, along with the needles that stuck onto it like it was a pin cushion.
"Gaara's sand is almost like an attachment to himself," Kankuro said. "But it almost has a mind of itself."
Gaara held out a hand. "Sand coffin."
The sand chased after the fleeing ninja, wrapping itself around his leg and traveling upwards, confining him into a large lump of sand. The other ninja watching, except for the other two Sand ninja, were shocked.
Gaara reached up and caught one of the umbrellas falling from the sky. "Now all I have to do is cover your big mouth, and then you'd be dead." He took the umbrella and opened it with a flick of his wrist. "But that would be too easy, too boring."
He put an arm out slowly, lifting the man up in his sand cocoon. He closed his eyes slowly before snapping them open. "Sand burial." He clenched his fist shut.
The man let out a terrible scream before splitting into pieces, bloody bits flying everywhere. His teammates let out a surprised yelp in fear when their teammate's remains scattered onto them. Gaara held up the umbrella to keep himself clean.
"There wasn't any pain," He spoke calmly. "I crushed him with more force than necessary." He looked up from behind his umbrella. "The corpse's bitter, crimson tears flow and mingle with the endless sand, filling the chaos within me–and making me stronger."
The other ninja let out a gasp. "Just take the scroll," he said, taking out their scroll and dropping it on the floor. "Please spare us!"
Gaara paid no attention to their words, instead, he pulled his hands up to wrap them both in sand just as he did with the other man. And then they were killed the same way.
Ruthlessly and without feeling.
Kiba immediately turned around. "We gotta get out of here, before he finds out," He told his teammates.
"You tell us that now? Sakura grumbled, but she, too, prepared to leave.
"Alright, now let's head to the tower," Kankuro spoke, triumphantly tossing the Heaven scroll up and down.
"It's still not enough for me," Gaara whispered, the crazed look in his eyes not yet extinguished. Team 8 froze in their tracks when they felt the coldness of someone's gaze on them. "Or are you scared?"
"One set of scrolls is enough for me," Kankuro said. "It's good enough. That's all we need to pass!"
"Losers can't tell me what to do," Gaara spoke coldly.
Kankuro narrowed his eyes and grabbed Gaara by the sash on his shirt. "Sometimes you have to listen to what your brother says!" He spoke loudly.
"It's too bad I don't think of you as a brother." Gaara's eyes were still impassive. "And if you get in my way, I'll kill you."
Kankuro gritted his teeth, before removing his hand when Gaara's came up to slap him away.
"Hey, Gaara," Temari raised her hands up, as if to console him. "You don't have to treat us like we're the enemy." She clasped her hands together, as if praying. "Look, do it as a favor for your sister, please."
Gaara raised his hand towards the bushes where Kiba, Sakura, and Shino were hiding. Sand swirled around his hand. The three squeezed their eyes closed. And then there was a small "pop" when the cork of his gourd flew over back onto its rightful place. Kiba, Sakura, Shino, Kankuro, and Temari all breathed out a sigh of relief.
That was a close one, Shino thought, wiping the sweat off his brow. Too close.
OwOwO
"Sorry, to bother you," A ninja panted as they entered the room where Anko Mitarashi resided.
"Huh? What do you want?" She glared at the poor man. "We're talking about something important."
"I'm sorry, but you'll want to see this," He explained.
Anko raised an eyebrow and followed him to the record room.
OwOwO
"Those ninja finished in only an hour and 37 minutes after the test started," He explained, his face glowing from the light of the tape. "They completely destroyed the record. Nothing like this has happened before. They beat the record by four hours."
"What's more," Anko continued the man's words. "Look at them."
"Huh, what?" He looked at Anko confused. "What do you mean, there's nothing on them."
"That's exactly what I mean." She narrowed her eyes at the three genin. "Not a single scratch on their skin, not a single speck of dirt on their clothes. Between all the dangerous animals, rough terrain, and other ninja, how did they avoid even a single scratch?"
"Not even a chunin could do so," The man whispered in awe.
"He must have some special ability," An Anbu soldier noted.
Anko just looked at the tape, looking at the red-head who had glared at the camera. "Hmmm."
OwOwO
The three were panting when they had finally made it to the tower.
"That was harder than I'd like to admit," Sasuke said, stretching out his limbs.
"Yeah," Hinata hummed in agreement.
"But now what?" Naruto asked.
Hinata looked around. "There's some writing over here."
"Ooh nice!" Naruto said, staring at it. "Now what does it mean?"
"If qualities of heaven are your desire," Hinata quoted. "Acquire wisdom to take your mind higher. If earthly qualities are what you lack, train your body and prepare for attack. When heaven and earth are opened together, the peerless path will become righteous forever." She turned to Naruto and Sasuke. "I'm guessing we should open up the Heaven and Earth scrolls–together."
Sasuke looked at Naruto who was holding the other scroll. Naruto nodded, and they both slowly opened the scrolls at the same time to reveal a seal with the kanji "hito" or "person" on it. The seals started to smoke. Hinata let out a gasp.
"Throw it away, Naruto," Sasuke yelled, already throwing his own.
The boy hurriedly tossed the scroll on the ground along with Sasuke's, and they watched the smoke rise up. When it all cleared, the figure left standing was–
"Iruka-sensei?" Hinata inquired. "I-Is that you?"
"Hey," He said with a small smile on his face. "Long time no see, huh? Congratulations, you passed the exam!"
Team 7 all gasped. They really did it. They passed.
They passed.
OwOwO
So...how was it? Do you like it? Do you absolutely hate it? (Aww, thank you. I knew it, nobody can hate this! Just kidding. XD) Now, onto the pairings. From reading the reviews, I kinda see a reason to write a Naruhina now because it is a fairly good ship. It's solid, can't really go wrong with it. I frankly just wanted to write Sasuhina because I was genuinely curious on how they'd interact, not off of chemistry in between them because frankly there is none. They have not interacted at all (so far), and when they do, it'll be in war time. But I do see a reason to write Naruhina now, which is not to say I will change the story for the readers because this is still my story. Which means we're back on square one where I'm cluelessly meandering through possible ships. And making the readers friend-zone each other so much all my readers want to claw my heart out of my body, but please don't do that XD. However, I'll tell you now, Sasusaku is one ship I'll try to avoid. It's toxic, and since Sasuke leaving the village is basically his character and Naruto's goal, something that is VERY hard to change, I think it'll be more toxic now that Sakura is not on his team. And Darkdoom III, thank you so much for the Ino suggestion. I also wanted to clear up with you that when I wrote "predictable" I never meant it in a bad way. Just that I wanted to mix it up a little. And now, to close off another ridiculously long author's note, REVIEW!