Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Twilight ❯ Training ( Chapter 10 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Haru Mclean Namikaze 
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Comedy / Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 12.19.2009 | Pages: 5 | Words: 7.3K | Visits: 321 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Comedy / Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 12.19.2009 | Pages: 5 | Words: 7.3K | Visits: 321 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter 4 Training
"WAKE UP, DOBE!" hollered Sasuke, punching Naruto squarely in the face.
"WHAT THE HELL!" shouted Naruto, suddenly waking up. "Why did you have to hit me!"
"Dobe, we we're trying to wake you up for 30 minutes now! Now hurry, dress up, we don't wanna be late!" snapped Neji. "What's with the idea of staying up late anyways? You know very well that we have an early meeting for the start of the training courses!"
"Well, so-rry mister punctualÉ" muttered Naruto sarcastically, rolling his eyes and standing up, going to the closet.
"Hey, is the dobe awake already?" came a voice from outside the door. It was recognizably Ino's voice.
"Yeah, the nuthead's finally up!" replied Shikamaru. [- I keep teasing Naruto, don't I? -
"Well, make him hurry, we're gonna be late in 5 minutes! SheeshÉ tell him I wont give him his breakfast if he doesn't hurryÉ" called Ino from outside.
"Hey, Naruto! Ya heard that? If you don't hurry up in there, then no breakfast for you!" called Sasuke, resuming his leaning position beside the wall before he punched Naruto. Suddenly there was the sound of flurry from inside the closet and a split-second later, Naruto came out, fully dressed, with teary eyes.
"Please give me breakfastÉ onegai shimasuÉ" he pleaded miserably. [- Please. -
The other boys fought to keep straight faces, but failed incredibly miserably as they ended up rolling on the floor laughingÑwell, not all of them. Sasuke and Neji were laughing but not rolling on the floor.
"N-naruto, stop that, itÉ its hilarious!" breathed Shikamaru.
Naruto pouted. "Why am I always the one to laugh at?"
á---------á
Another frickin' hell of a day. Another 24 hours of frustration and boredom inside this accursed and damned forest. Another whole day of thinkin' how the hell I will get outta this virtual prison cellÉ damn those ancestors of mine to hell! Why in the world would a perfectly sane person put a curse on his descendant, forever binding her to this sublime world! Shit!
A dark-haired girl threw on red training clothes from her closet, pulled her hair into a stylish ponytail, pulled on training sandals and stomped off out of her room in her late family's ancient mansion, which was located in the middle of an impossibly dense forest, so dense that the mansion was completely concealed from the overhead view, no matter how tall the huge, ancient and eerie house was.
The girl had perfectly silky black hair and mesmerizing deep blue eyes. She was 15 years of age. She was locked inside the forest for 15 years. She was locked inside by some unknown curse, and she has not the knowledge to neutralize the spell. She was beautiful, but full of misery, pain, loneliness and frustration. Her name was Shimatani Fukai.
Fukai stomped out of the house into the bright morning sunlight. But the sunlight wasn't that bright anymore after a few steps forward, since there was the thick foliage blocking out almost all of the sunlight, only letting in enough to sustain the undergrowths and the other lives in the forest. But despite the darkness inside, Fukai wasn't stirred. She was used to this nature. This was her home, her refuge, her solace, her happiness, her frustration, her sadness, her loneliness and most of all, her prison for 15 whole years.
She lived with no friends. Her only friend was her mother, the only person left of their "legendary" clan. Her mother, as told, was left to give birth to her. She was considered as a jewel, but a jewel in prison. Nobody has yet discovered the concealed jewel. Her name meant "deep". Deep, because she was hidden deep within the very heart of an extremely impossible forest surrounded by the curse that forever bound her to it. But then, her mother died when she was 5. By 5 years of age, she knew how to handle herself. She knew how to live alone, due to the extensive traditional training her mother gave her since birth. But still, there were many things she didn't know about the world, that she only learned about by reading the books that were in the huge library in the mansion. She knew the basic things about life and she knew how to fight. Ever since her mother died, she started to learn to fend for herself, not only inside the house, but also in the forest full of wild animals.
She tried very hard to find out what kind of ancient clan curse her ancestors put on her and the forest. She read a wide variety of books about spells, but only three fitted to her condition. The first one was called the Keimusho Curse. [- Prison Curse. - This one could be used to forever bind the prisoner to one place, with no possible escape. She certainly hoped that it was not this one, coz this was the worst one, without any known solution. The second one was called the Shi-Musubu Curse. [- Death-Bind Curse. - This one included the prisoner to be bound to a certain place until he/she kills the marked one. This had a solution, but even though it was very much near impossible. She had to get a Shinsei na Hoseki, but the kind could only be found in a mountain hundreds of miles away from her mountain. [- Holy Jewel. - The last one was the one that fit her position the most. She wouldn't be free of the place until she meets somebody not from her own bloodline. She can wander around the forest, but she can't get out of a one-mile radius of the house. This curse had no name, but it was very powerful. Ever since she found out about this curse, she named it Norou no Tomo. [- The Curse of Friendship.- Why? Coz she needed a friend to get out of the curse.
A friend. Out of her bloodline. It seemed close to impossible, but still, she saw some hope every time there was a bird that flies out of the forest freely and bringing back a companion. One day she dreamed that she would just be like the bird. But she will still have to wait for her savior. And she was starting to get frustrated. Very very frustrated.
á---------á
"Alright, guys, you know what to do now, go to your respective headquarters and start the training," announced Shikamaru, rousing the crowd. He watched them divide into teams and walk out the big door, led by their department heads. He then sighed and gathered up his own subordinates.
"OkayÉ I think the first thing for you guys to do is to answer an IQ and EQ test for meÉ I need to know your limitationsÉ please follow me," announced Shikamaru. He followed after the other teams through the big door. They walked through the dark and damp stonewalls of the cave passage. They went over to the passage way numbered 5. They proceeded over to the cave headquarters, and Shikamaru made them sit down on their separate cubicles with some apparatuses to help them with their tasks.
The cave room was lit by some kind of ball of light accompanied by the sunlight from above them, flowing through the hole of the cave from above them that could be covered if it rains and filtered by the thick foliage outside.
"The test sheets are at your table, so start answeringÉ" Shikamaru said, glancing to his watch. "Énow."
He watched his subordinates pick their pens up and start scratching and scrawling at their paper very quickly. I wonder how smart these nins areÉ but to be qualified as an elite and to be under me, they should really be greatÉ unless Sasuke underestimated meÉ oh wellÉ we'll just seeÉ I wonder how the others are doing right now.
á---------á
Shino walked unperturbed by anything through the cold stonewalls, his footsteps silent and stealthy, letting his subordinates follow him. Behind him they were silent, yet he could feel their questioning auras as they proceeded slowly to their headquarters. They went through the passage numbered 6.
"You guys, remember your passage," he said, shattering the impending eerie silence. "You're not allowed to go to the other teams headquarters unless you're instructed, understood?"
"Hai," came a chorus of voices from behind him.
Good, they're being cooperative. If they don't, then they'll have the consequence gladly given back to them. I don't like being disobeyedÉ they shouldn't get me angryÉ its definitely not good to get me angryÉ
After a couple more minutes of walking they reached their headquarters. Theirs was quite afar from the common room, since the fumes are dangerous if inhaled without protection.
Their headquarters was a wide one, and there were long tables full of apparatuses, shelves full of different kinds of mixtures, solutions, compounds and chemicals to use, and there were closets where they could put on the safety clothes and leave unnecessary things. You cannot get into the main lab without getting through the closet, coz the door opens to the closet itself, and the door leading to the main lab has a detector that detects if you've got a dangerous object not suited for inside. The lab's roof was made of wood that could be opened. It appeared that they were under a great flat plateau plain full of only grass. The wood slides off to reveal the sun and fresh air so that they had ventilation and proper sunlight for experimentation. There were only 8 of them [- not including Shino -, but the lab was enough for 2-dozen scientists to work on without restriction of movement.
They were already dressed in the proper outfit for the lab, so they entered and examined their new playground, and Shino opened the wooden roof. "Okay guys, group yourselves into two even teams," announced Shino. The nins followed obediently, dividing into 2 groups of four each. "Now, here's your first mission. We won't beat around the bush anymore. I want the first group to work on a poison that could kill in a matter of a minute, and I want the second group to formulate an antidote with it. Now move, feel free to use the apparatuses. They were put there for you guys to use. I'll leave you be now, I still have some appointments."
Shino turned on his heels and walkedÑmore like stomped out of the lab back into the dark passageways. The 8 nins looked at each other and shrugged.
"Shino-san is always like thatÉ maybe he wants to talk to his 'bee-chan'É" muttered Hanabi, one of the chemists. [- Surely you guys know who Hanabi is? - "Hinata-nee-san always told me he liked to talk to his pets, the magnificent insects."
"You mean Hinata, Tasogare's Hikari-hime¡©-sama, is your sister? Your older sister?" asked Asano Yuuya, a girl from the Wind with violet hair and violet eyes.
"UhmÉ yeahÉ but I think father is still mad at nee-san for running away from home several years agoÉ we never knew they went to TasogareÉ it happened so suddenlyÉ we're still wondering how the four found out about the family's secretsÉ" said Hanabi.
Then Amamiya Dujin, a black haired boy with onyx eyes cut through their conversation. "You two, we need to proceed with the mission, ya knowÉ we don't have all week to find a formula for the poisonÉ"
"A poison that could kill in a minuteÉ howÉ" Kurumi Shinja wondered aloud. [- If in case you don't remember guys, Shinja is Resha's and Ayano's sister. They're the triplets that brought Tsunade to Tasogare, right? Read chapter 1, if you willÉ -
"I think I know a substance that has a very dangerous property that can kill inÉ uhmÉ" said a girl named Kashin Tei from the Lightning Country, picking up a piece of paper and a pen, her very long light brown hair in a single braid swinging slightly and her eyes gleaming with knowledge. She started computing very fast on the small piece of paper. For a couple of minutes, there was nothing more heard except for the silent scratching of the pen on the paper. Then, Tei encircled the final answer on the paper. "There. It can kill in 59.6 seconds. If rounded off, it kills in exactly one minute. In exactly one minute it will neutralize all the activities of the brain and the heart."
"Well then where can we find it?" asked Amamiya Fujin, Dujin's twin brother. They looked exactly alike except for Fujin's longer hair. [- Do I really need to say they look alike? -
"It can be found in this very mountain. Its very rare and it has no name, and its very difficult to get a hand on as well," said Tei.
"I think I know that substance you're saying! The people gave it plenty names, but the most famous is the name 'Osoroshii Konoha'," said a girl named Akita Rika from the Wind. [- Dreadful Leaf. - "It's a circle-shaped leaf that is classified as an undergrowth, meaning its very hard to find. It can cure and it can kill."
"Yes, that's the one. It has strange and unique characteristics that can only be found within it. It reacts greatly with both acidic and alkaline substances, yet the results are opposites. When it is mixed with concentrated acids, it reacts to form a deadly poison. But if its mixed with concentrated alkaline, it reacts to form an antidote against its own poison."
"But waitÉ are we allowed to go out to get the leaves? I mean, if we're not sure, we might break a lawÉ" Hanabi said.
"Maybe we could just approach Shino-san. He did warn us about his 2-meter radius limit, but yet, this is part of the mission and is vital. Surely he'd listen, right?" said Yuuya.
"Yeah, I think that's the best idea. C'mon, lets get going, we shouldn't waste time," said Nari Shiko, a boy from the Lighting Country.
"Since when have you been concerned of time, Shiko?" asked Tei. The two are teammates in their country.
"Shut the hell up, Tei, you're getting to my nerves again," grumbled Shiko, walking off. Tei giggled.
á---------á
Tenten stopped short in front of the door leading to their headquarters and working place. They had gone through passage 1.
"We're here. You are free to use the instruments inside, but you have to do so with permission and proper care. I don't think we'll have any problems with thatÉ" said Tenten, pushing open the door with ease.
They went in silently and carefully. The room was full of tools to use for weapon making. There was an alloy deposit for the metals, and there were welding materials, sharpening materials, designing materials, special tools, and there was also a facility for blowing glass and utilizing crystals and minerals.
"Gather round, please," Tenten called after a few minutes of exploration for the nins. The nins obediently gathered in front of her. "I want you to divide yourself into pairs. Then each pair should work on a new weapon. The weapon should be easily portable, easy to use, strong, has many uses and capacities and can be used at any time, place and condition. Its quite easy, right? That'll be your first mission for now. I must leave you be, I need to get some fresh air. I'm getting suffocated inside this stupid caveÉ"
She left the nins thinking there behind her as she walked off back to the common room. "Oh and if you need sunlight or air, the ceiling is wood and can be slid open! It opens off into a plateau! And the passage on the left wall leads to the Chemists lab and the one on the right goes to the Medics lab!" called Tenten. "Good luck! Your time limit is two weeks!"
"HmmÉ we need to pair up," said Resha. "RightÉ who wants to be my partner?"
"I guess it could be useful to have a partner from the new countryÉ" smirked Temari. "I'm volunteering. I'm starting to hate thisÉ who does she think she is, ordering me around, while I defeated her easily before?" she scowled, walking off with Resha to the other side of the lab.
"Hey, Shinna, let's go, we need to think of a weapon," called Niwa Shoru to his younger sister, Niwa Shinna.
"Right," smiled Shinna. "I think I already have an idea, nii-chan," said Shinna as they walked off silently. "Why don't we make a utility weapon? Like a single rod that can be easily brought to any places, then it can transform into a spear, or a sword, or a dagger/kunai, and it can elongate, it can carry medicine in tubes, poison as wellÉ"
Shinna ranted off as Shoru computed silently on a piece of paper. After a couple of minutes, Shinna stopped. "Hey, are you even listening to me?" she asked, popping a vein.
"Your idea is brilliant, Shinna, I'm already computing for the right calculations for it as well as the prototype sketch," said Shoru. "And since you're better at math, can you continue these?" asked Shoru, handing her a piece of paper laden with complex computations. Shinna scanned through it, then blanched.
"Onii-chan, are you trying to makeÉ" Shinna started.
"Yes I am, so don't go blabbing all about it," Shoru snapped impatiently. "Now, if you'd kindly help me, finish that computation now so we can proceed with molding the alloysÉ"
Shinna popped a vein again as she looked more closely into the paper. "Onii-chan," Shinna stated in a deathly silent voice. "Are you trying to kill all of us! These computations are all wrong! Honestly, have you ever listened to your math lessons!" she screeched suddenly.
"Well, I'm not the math wiz here, so-rryÉ" muttered Shoru, irritated.
"Hey, Keiko!" said a girl named Nishi Yori. "C'mon let's get going, we have work to do."
"Yeah, alright," said a girl named Yoshinari Keiko. The two were childhood friends, but not teammates. "Have you any ideas yet?"
"I think I do, but even though, we need plan B, just in case," said Yori.
"Still the same, are you?" chuckled Keiko.
"You know me, Keiko, I never get contented with one idea only," smiled Yori. "C'mon, let's get started with plan A."
"Of all people, why am I left with you?" grumbled Rori Haru as Nomura Junichi, his childhood rival, pulled him off to the glass blowing facility.
"Don't complain, as if we have any choices, dumbass," Junichi growled.
"Who're you calling the dumbass, bubblebrain?" retorted Haru.
"Hey, you're the one with the IQ capacity that's ankle-height here, you worthless lump of dirt," Junichi shot back, glaring at his rival-partner.
á---------á
Ino walked on happily through the dark chambers of the cave, occasionally chatting with her subordinates. She had no problem so far with introducing her nins to the new facilities they'll use inside the cave. The cave had the same ceiling as the other two, opening to a wide plateau. The door to the left led to the Chemists and Weaponry. This one was connected to passage 2.
"Now, your first mission is to go and search for rare herbal plants that can be used to treat illnesses or wounds. Those medicines must be strong, and they'll be used in actual battle so you'd better get plenty of themÑif you can. After that I want you to prepare those herbal plants into medicines that'll be ready for immediate use. It's pretty easy, but that's natural, since its your first mission. Now go on, there's a ladder there by the wall, you can climb up out to the plateau, or you can jump tooÉ" Ino said. "I'll be waiting for you guys to come back. And remember, this is an individual mission, I don't want anybody of you to have the same plant!"
"Hai," said the nins, jumping off up to the plateau. Ino jumped up after them. She could see their backs while they raced to different directions.
"There's no time limit! Just remember you must be back here by nightfall! Don't get me worried!" Ino called after the receding figures. Several of them waved to show her they understood and some of them looked back at her and nodded.
á---------á
Lee walked off into the cave confidently. After a couple of silent minutes, the end of the tunnel appeared. It was an opening, covered by thick bushes and vines. The opening was obvious from inside, since scarce sunlight penetrated through the extremely thick foliage. They had passed through passage 4.
"You guys, when you go through the vines, please arrange them back so that the cave opening wont be so obvious. We need to be as hidden as possible. For all we know, Orochimaru and Itachi might just well be heading here already," Lee said bossily. He moved forward and parted the thick vines to go through. The nins followed suit.
When they emerged, what appeared in front of them was quite unbelievable. The forest was so incredibly thick and dark and only a couple of rays of sunlight barely penetrated through. They looked back to the cave opening and they were surprised to find it not there.
"Where's the cave opening?" asked Amamiya Ryu, a boy from the Sand.
"Its there, why?" asked Lee, looking back as well.
"WhereÉ" asked Ryu.
"It's just too well hidden," said Lee. He parted the vines again to reveal a long dark passageway. Then he let the vines go. "Don't worry, you'll be able to see it, you wont get lost, just watch out for this," Lee said, pointing to large circle leaf hanging from one of the vines on the center. If seen by an untrained eye, it seemed as if a normal leaf, but if you look more closely, it had a faint Tasogare symbol on it, but the symbol was very small, and it was in the very center.
"C'monÉ" he said, walking off into the deep forest. [- This is the Open Field Dept. -
á---------á
Shuta and Kogure chatted slightly, stopping as they reached the opening of their cave tunnel. The cave opens to a small space enclosed by thick tree trunks that its impossible to see from outside. Shuta pulled on a certain vine and two of the tree trunks opened to a forest pathway like a back-to-back door. They had passed though causeway 7.
"If you cant remember where the door is, just watch out for this leaf," pointed Shuta to a circle leaf attached onto a hanging vine. "It has a small Tasogare crest in the center, and its very faint, so you must examine it very closely. To be more sure, radiate some chakra to the leaf, and if the crest shines, then that's it. You just pull on the vine to open the door again," said Shuta, pulling on the vine with the circle leaf and making the door open again.
"C'mon, Shuta, we have an appointment, ya knowÉ" said Kogure.
"Right," Shuta said. "Follow."
They walked off into the deep forest, guided by the ever-winding path. Scarce sunlight was penetrating through the foliage. There were weird sounds issuing from inside the thick forest and the nins felt as if somebody was following them, trailing them, watching them from afar. But Shuta and Kogure didn't seem to mind anything so they tried to ignore it.
But after sometime of walking endlessly into the deep and suffocating forest, they just decided they cant ignore what they were feeling. It was as if several glaring and scrutinizing eyes were boring into their backs.
"D'you think those two notices it? Something's following us," asked Rikata Rika, a girl from the Sand.
"Maybe they're just too stupid. Let's just tell them, shall we? We can't act without permission anyways," suggested a boy named Akita Taka from the Wind.
"Maybe we shouldÉ" said Rika.
"Hey! You two!" called Taka. "Cant you feel it? We're being followed."
"Don't worry, that's only a curious creature of this magical forest. Just ignore them and don't do anything to them, they wont harm you. And besides, it's amusing to know that the creatures are not frightened of humans. I suppose this must be the first time humans ever walked these landsÉ" said Kogure silently. "Keep on walking, somebody's waiting for us on the other side."
After a couple more minutes of silent walking, they arrived in a wide barren plain. The place looked like a perfect place for training. And just as Kogure had said, there were some people waiting for them. It was the Open Field nins with their leader. They approached the group of nins waiting for them slowly.
"Sorry for the waiting, our way was a long one," grinned Shuta.
"Never mind, we just arrived anyways," said Lee. "Now, shall we begin training?"
"Yeah, no problem. You guys must've already guessed that there's collaboration with practices today so I want you guys to cooperate and collaborate. No arguments are needed here, I hope," said Shuta.
"Now, everybody, I want you to pair up yourselves with the one closest to you," Lee instructed. The nins obediently complied. Some from the OFB paired up with some from the JM. [- That's abbrev for Open Field Battle and Jutsu Masters. I'm getting tired, ya knowÉ -
"Well now that you're through, training beginsÉ" Kogure grinned wickedly, something strange gleaming in his eyes. Shuta cackled lightly.
á---------á
"ErmÉ excuse me, Shino-sanÉ" started Hanabi, calling Shino. She was a well 2 meters away from Shino, so he need not explode.
"What?" asked Shino a bit coldly.
"Shino-san, we've found a substance that we think can be both poison and antidote, but we need permission to go out and get some of themÉ coz they are said to be found in this very mountainÉ but we still need to search wide and hardÉ" said Hanabi.
"Very wellÉ follow meÉ" Shino said, walking off to the big door again and going to the tunnel numbered 8. They were surprised to find themselves in a small Japanese house by a cliff. Ground was beneath, ground was overhead. It was like a bit of the cliff was bitten off and then a small house was built in place.
Shino went over to the door and rapped sharply. After a few seconds of waiting, the door opened to reveal Kiba.
"Whassup, Shino?" asked Kiba.
"We need some of your nins to collaborate. We need assistance for searching for the special substance theyÑ" Shino said, pointing to the Chemist nins. "Ñneed for operations."
"Oh, right timing, I was just thinking about what they should do for their first mission coz I fell asleep last night and I forgot to make plans," said Kiba. Then he ordered Chouji to get the nins. When they got outside, they were instructed to find the said leaf, as described by the Chemists.
"We need to get as many as possible to mass produce the poison and the antidote," finished Tei. The TLD nins nodded in understanding. [- Traps, Larceny and Deception. -
"Very well, if you already understand what you guys need to do, you may as well go off," said Shino coldly. "You must be back by nightfall."
á---------á
Neji led the way along the dark damp causeway number 3. Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura and Hinata decided to go with them. The other nins walked along silently and the only sound heard was the silent dripping of the fresh clean cave water and the silent footsteps of several persons. After a couple of twists and turns, they emerged from the dark. The cave opening wasÑsurprisinglyÑsituated at the highest peak of Hoseki. Two large stone slabs concealed the opening and there was just a small space to slide through to get in. The two stone slabs appeared like it was a part of the large rock that was there permanently and which held the opening of the cave. Amounts of snow also coated the two slabs, so the cave was remarkably well hidden.
"So this is why there were endless stairs," said Amazaki Hayate, a boy from Konoha. He was considered the next coldest person to Neji in Konohagakure.
"Are we gonna train here? A normal nin would die of hypothermia here," said Shuorai Mori in a cold voice, colder than the snow itself.
"Are you a normal nin?" snapped Neji.
"Iie. Of course not," answered Mori, raising a brow. "Just asking."
"Yes, we are gonna train here. And I want you to wear normal clothes, no cloaks or whatever. Follow me," said Neji. It was true, they weren't wearing any protection from the cold and yet there they were, unfazed as if everything was normal and nothing was out of the ordinary.
They arrived at a flat plateau, which was remarkably free of ice and snow, but still it was cold.
"I want each of you to pick one of the 4 leaders of Tasogare," said Neji. "I'll give you five minutes to choose."
á---------á
"Company call!" hollered Lee over the nins. "Now that you've chosen the one closest to youÉ what you'll do isÉ"
"Is?"
"IsÉ"
"Is?"
"IsÉ"
"Spit it out already, will ya!" snapped Rori Maru.
"Okay, alright, all fine! Chill, man! You will have to fight each other until either gives up or isn't able to fight anymore. If you manage to kill somebody, get ready to be cast out as a missing nin or to get a serious beating from Yami-sama," said Kogure.
"WHAT!"
"What the hell is this? You make us choose the closest to us then you make us fight?" Inari exclaimed. [- You guys do know InariÉ from the Water CountryÉ doncha? -
"Yup. Now get on with it. You have enough space here, ya knowÉ" said Lee, squinting into the horizon. "This plateau goes on for milesÉ"
á---------á
After five minutes of icy silence between the SSA nins, Neji finally spoke up. "Time over. Gaara, who?"
"Uzumaki."
"Kankurou, who?"
"Uchiha."
"Akashi Kai?"
"Uzumaki."
"Shourai Ren?"
"Haruno."
"Shourai Mori?"
"Hyuuga."
"Amazaki Hayate?"
"Hyuuga."
"Kashin Rai?"
"Uchiha."
"Yuri Aikawa?"
"Uchiha."
"Taira Aira?"
"Haruno."
"Very well then. The one you chose, you will fight. We will test your potentials, as to how much you can do. Don't worry about showing your techniques, we assure you no one else outside will know. The first match, Gaara versus Naruto. Go on, time's yours."
"So we fight again, Uzumaki. This time I'll make sure I'll prove to you that I am strong," hissed Gaara. "Since there is no win, no lose hereÉ so I'll just prove it to youÉ Kyuubi."
"Okay then, prove it to meÉ as you wishÉ" Naruto grinned, crouching down into a fighting stance. Gaara did the same. For a couple of moments, there were no movements made by the two opponents. Then, in a sudden blink of an eye, both were gone, running towards each other in lightning speed. Both punched, both blocked. There was a sonic boom produced by the sudden action.
"This is an impasse situation," muttered Sasuke.
"Can we do anything? No. So we just let them be," murmured Neji.
Naruto watched attentively as Gaara jumped up into the air and opened his gourd. The sand transformed into a sharp pointy shape to pierce through Naruto. The sand hit Naruto squarely, but after a moment, Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke and was replaced by a log. Gaara landed smoothly down on the ground, feeling around for Naruto. Then a hand from underground grabbed his ankle and attempted to break it. But Gaara acted quickly and when the hand tightened one last time to break the ankle, Gaara's body cracked. Sand. It was only sand, nothing more.
Naruto slowly emerged from underground, spinning slowly as he elevated. "You leave me no choice if you keep hiding, Gaara!" Naruto felt around for Gaara and found him hiding underground, like he did. Naruto placed his palm on the ground and performed a strange kind of palm strike. "Fukai Shogeki, Te no Hira Shogeki Ichi!" [- Deep Impact, Palm Impact One. -
The floor shook as a very strong impact radiated through the ground. It was evident that Naruto controlled his force, since the ground didn't crack open and there wasn't an avalanche, though it was pretty close. Gaara emerged from underground, and he had a wound on his left arm. It appeared pretty deep too. "Later we'll treat that, but now, its time for fight!" exclaimed Naruto. Gaara finally released his inner power, his inner monster. Naruto stood confidently, even though he felt his opponent's powerful aura radiate through the place.
á---------á
Hanabi and Tei were scouring through the undergrowths under a rotting tree when they heard a loud impact from atop the mountain.
"What was that?" asked Tei, alarmed.
"I think the SSA are trainingÉ they are really extreme, aren't they?" replied Hanabi.
"Well, do they plan to make an avalanche or do they plan to make the whole mountain go down in ruins? Cant they even pipe down and be careful, even just a bit?" retorted Tei, irritated.
"Whoa, don't get angry with me, I don't have anything to do with it, ya know," said Hanabi.
"Hey, isn't your sister, Hinata, up there with the SSA?" asked Tei, apparently interested.
"UhÉ yeahÉ why you ask?" asked Hanabi, turning a little awkward.
"Oh, don't worry, I wont tell anybody if you want to tell me a secret," smiled Tei. "I am quite trustworthy, I think. Go ahead. We're friends after all. We can be best friends, if you want. You seem to be really lonely, you know."
"Not really, its just thatÉ I was always forbidden to go out and socialize by my family, that's why I don't have much friends. I just persuaded them to let me come here, reallyÉ onee-san is very lucky, thoughÉ she has a future husband, she has friends, she's strong, she has power and moneyÉ she has everything needed in lifeÉ"
"You'll have them too, if you work hard and do whatever they make you do," smiled Tei. "Trust me, I can see the making of a great ninja within you. Not jesting here, mind youÉ I'm telling the truth."
"Thanks for the encouragement, TeiÉ I haven't heard those words in a long time nowÉ I really didn't want to shame onee-san in front of the elders before, it was just she told me to show my best, and it turned out that I was better with fighting than she isÉ soÉ she gotÉ anyways, father didn't have to make her go away, since as you may well know, she went away herself with her friendsÉ I'm envious actuallyÉ"
"You shouldn't be, you can do that tooÉ you have friends too, you have riches, you have power in your family, you're strongÉ you have what she hasÉ you shouldn't be envious of her."
"YeahÉ I guess soÉ"
á---------á
Gaara set into his fighting stance after releasing whatever power he has hidden within. They were about to launch an attack at each other, but Shino and Kiba intercepted, arriving suddenly.
"What?" Neji snapped.
"We need you to help down there," said Shino.
"Why me?" asked Neji.
"Coz you have the Byakugan. C'monÉ this is necessary, leave the work to the four," said Kiba. Neji sighed.
"Fine. You four, you're in charge, finish the fights," said Neji, following the two back down.
"What do we need to find, anyways?" asked Neji as they descended the stairs.
"We need to find a certain plantÉ" explained Kiba, describing the plant and saying everything that needs to be said.
"Okay, whateverÉ" Neji sighed, rolling his eyes.
á---------á
Shimatani Fukai looked up suddenly as she heard a loud impact reverberate through the foliage from the mountaintop. I wonder what's happeningÉ could there be an avalanche?, she wondered silently. She then sat down, sinking into deep thought. Strange things had been happening ever sinceÉ yesterday. The animals were starting to behave strangely, as if there was something new in the forest.
But what could it be? I mean, I'm the only person in here, except if some stupid people dared enter the second most deadly forest after the Forest of Death. I mean, they only said this is the second coz they actually don't know anything about what lies in here, but actually, this is more perilous and lethal than the so-called Forest of Death. But thenÉ what could've made the animals run around like crazy, not in proper behavior? Could there be a new predator of some kind? If its that, I hope it doesn't come near meÉ but thenÉ what could I do? If the predator wants to go hereÉ can I stop it? Of course! I cant. I'm a helpless girl in the middle of the forest, without anybody to talk to, trapped inside a 2-mile radius from my house, and with a crazed predator of some kind roaming around my forest! Kami-sama, help me!
Fukai groaned, rubbing her temples and then setting her palm on the ground and closing her eyes. As soon as she set her palm on the ground several scenes flashed before her inner eye. At first they were very rapid scenes that everything was a blur, but then after a while, everything slowed down, and it played in normal speed like a movie. She saw a long tunnelÉ dark and dampÉ seemingly endless. Somebody was beside her, walking slowly at her pace. She felt pain as she walked. She tried to look up to her companion, but she cant see the face, since the pain was so unbearable that it blurred her vision with tears. Then she felt arms wrap around her. Then everything turned black, and there was a flash of bright light. Then another film started, and she was lying down on a bed, and she was looking up to the stone ceiling. There were voices talking. There were plenty people. She sat up. Then the vision stopped and Fukai's eyes snapped open suddenly.
She was sweating heavily, and she was panting, gasping for breath. What the hell happened! She looked up at the thick foliage. A ray of sunlight penetrated through and hit her sweaty face. SoÉ tiredÉ She plopped down on the grass, and fell asleepÉ
"WAKE UP, DOBE!" hollered Sasuke, punching Naruto squarely in the face.
"WHAT THE HELL!" shouted Naruto, suddenly waking up. "Why did you have to hit me!"
"Dobe, we we're trying to wake you up for 30 minutes now! Now hurry, dress up, we don't wanna be late!" snapped Neji. "What's with the idea of staying up late anyways? You know very well that we have an early meeting for the start of the training courses!"
"Well, so-rry mister punctualÉ" muttered Naruto sarcastically, rolling his eyes and standing up, going to the closet.
"Hey, is the dobe awake already?" came a voice from outside the door. It was recognizably Ino's voice.
"Yeah, the nuthead's finally up!" replied Shikamaru. [- I keep teasing Naruto, don't I? -
"Well, make him hurry, we're gonna be late in 5 minutes! SheeshÉ tell him I wont give him his breakfast if he doesn't hurryÉ" called Ino from outside.
"Hey, Naruto! Ya heard that? If you don't hurry up in there, then no breakfast for you!" called Sasuke, resuming his leaning position beside the wall before he punched Naruto. Suddenly there was the sound of flurry from inside the closet and a split-second later, Naruto came out, fully dressed, with teary eyes.
"Please give me breakfastÉ onegai shimasuÉ" he pleaded miserably. [- Please. -
The other boys fought to keep straight faces, but failed incredibly miserably as they ended up rolling on the floor laughingÑwell, not all of them. Sasuke and Neji were laughing but not rolling on the floor.
"N-naruto, stop that, itÉ its hilarious!" breathed Shikamaru.
Naruto pouted. "Why am I always the one to laugh at?"
á---------á
Another frickin' hell of a day. Another 24 hours of frustration and boredom inside this accursed and damned forest. Another whole day of thinkin' how the hell I will get outta this virtual prison cellÉ damn those ancestors of mine to hell! Why in the world would a perfectly sane person put a curse on his descendant, forever binding her to this sublime world! Shit!
A dark-haired girl threw on red training clothes from her closet, pulled her hair into a stylish ponytail, pulled on training sandals and stomped off out of her room in her late family's ancient mansion, which was located in the middle of an impossibly dense forest, so dense that the mansion was completely concealed from the overhead view, no matter how tall the huge, ancient and eerie house was.
The girl had perfectly silky black hair and mesmerizing deep blue eyes. She was 15 years of age. She was locked inside the forest for 15 years. She was locked inside by some unknown curse, and she has not the knowledge to neutralize the spell. She was beautiful, but full of misery, pain, loneliness and frustration. Her name was Shimatani Fukai.
Fukai stomped out of the house into the bright morning sunlight. But the sunlight wasn't that bright anymore after a few steps forward, since there was the thick foliage blocking out almost all of the sunlight, only letting in enough to sustain the undergrowths and the other lives in the forest. But despite the darkness inside, Fukai wasn't stirred. She was used to this nature. This was her home, her refuge, her solace, her happiness, her frustration, her sadness, her loneliness and most of all, her prison for 15 whole years.
She lived with no friends. Her only friend was her mother, the only person left of their "legendary" clan. Her mother, as told, was left to give birth to her. She was considered as a jewel, but a jewel in prison. Nobody has yet discovered the concealed jewel. Her name meant "deep". Deep, because she was hidden deep within the very heart of an extremely impossible forest surrounded by the curse that forever bound her to it. But then, her mother died when she was 5. By 5 years of age, she knew how to handle herself. She knew how to live alone, due to the extensive traditional training her mother gave her since birth. But still, there were many things she didn't know about the world, that she only learned about by reading the books that were in the huge library in the mansion. She knew the basic things about life and she knew how to fight. Ever since her mother died, she started to learn to fend for herself, not only inside the house, but also in the forest full of wild animals.
She tried very hard to find out what kind of ancient clan curse her ancestors put on her and the forest. She read a wide variety of books about spells, but only three fitted to her condition. The first one was called the Keimusho Curse. [- Prison Curse. - This one could be used to forever bind the prisoner to one place, with no possible escape. She certainly hoped that it was not this one, coz this was the worst one, without any known solution. The second one was called the Shi-Musubu Curse. [- Death-Bind Curse. - This one included the prisoner to be bound to a certain place until he/she kills the marked one. This had a solution, but even though it was very much near impossible. She had to get a Shinsei na Hoseki, but the kind could only be found in a mountain hundreds of miles away from her mountain. [- Holy Jewel. - The last one was the one that fit her position the most. She wouldn't be free of the place until she meets somebody not from her own bloodline. She can wander around the forest, but she can't get out of a one-mile radius of the house. This curse had no name, but it was very powerful. Ever since she found out about this curse, she named it Norou no Tomo. [- The Curse of Friendship.- Why? Coz she needed a friend to get out of the curse.
A friend. Out of her bloodline. It seemed close to impossible, but still, she saw some hope every time there was a bird that flies out of the forest freely and bringing back a companion. One day she dreamed that she would just be like the bird. But she will still have to wait for her savior. And she was starting to get frustrated. Very very frustrated.
á---------á
"Alright, guys, you know what to do now, go to your respective headquarters and start the training," announced Shikamaru, rousing the crowd. He watched them divide into teams and walk out the big door, led by their department heads. He then sighed and gathered up his own subordinates.
"OkayÉ I think the first thing for you guys to do is to answer an IQ and EQ test for meÉ I need to know your limitationsÉ please follow me," announced Shikamaru. He followed after the other teams through the big door. They walked through the dark and damp stonewalls of the cave passage. They went over to the passage way numbered 5. They proceeded over to the cave headquarters, and Shikamaru made them sit down on their separate cubicles with some apparatuses to help them with their tasks.
The cave room was lit by some kind of ball of light accompanied by the sunlight from above them, flowing through the hole of the cave from above them that could be covered if it rains and filtered by the thick foliage outside.
"The test sheets are at your table, so start answeringÉ" Shikamaru said, glancing to his watch. "Énow."
He watched his subordinates pick their pens up and start scratching and scrawling at their paper very quickly. I wonder how smart these nins areÉ but to be qualified as an elite and to be under me, they should really be greatÉ unless Sasuke underestimated meÉ oh wellÉ we'll just seeÉ I wonder how the others are doing right now.
á---------á
Shino walked unperturbed by anything through the cold stonewalls, his footsteps silent and stealthy, letting his subordinates follow him. Behind him they were silent, yet he could feel their questioning auras as they proceeded slowly to their headquarters. They went through the passage numbered 6.
"You guys, remember your passage," he said, shattering the impending eerie silence. "You're not allowed to go to the other teams headquarters unless you're instructed, understood?"
"Hai," came a chorus of voices from behind him.
Good, they're being cooperative. If they don't, then they'll have the consequence gladly given back to them. I don't like being disobeyedÉ they shouldn't get me angryÉ its definitely not good to get me angryÉ
After a couple more minutes of walking they reached their headquarters. Theirs was quite afar from the common room, since the fumes are dangerous if inhaled without protection.
Their headquarters was a wide one, and there were long tables full of apparatuses, shelves full of different kinds of mixtures, solutions, compounds and chemicals to use, and there were closets where they could put on the safety clothes and leave unnecessary things. You cannot get into the main lab without getting through the closet, coz the door opens to the closet itself, and the door leading to the main lab has a detector that detects if you've got a dangerous object not suited for inside. The lab's roof was made of wood that could be opened. It appeared that they were under a great flat plateau plain full of only grass. The wood slides off to reveal the sun and fresh air so that they had ventilation and proper sunlight for experimentation. There were only 8 of them [- not including Shino -, but the lab was enough for 2-dozen scientists to work on without restriction of movement.
They were already dressed in the proper outfit for the lab, so they entered and examined their new playground, and Shino opened the wooden roof. "Okay guys, group yourselves into two even teams," announced Shino. The nins followed obediently, dividing into 2 groups of four each. "Now, here's your first mission. We won't beat around the bush anymore. I want the first group to work on a poison that could kill in a matter of a minute, and I want the second group to formulate an antidote with it. Now move, feel free to use the apparatuses. They were put there for you guys to use. I'll leave you be now, I still have some appointments."
Shino turned on his heels and walkedÑmore like stomped out of the lab back into the dark passageways. The 8 nins looked at each other and shrugged.
"Shino-san is always like thatÉ maybe he wants to talk to his 'bee-chan'É" muttered Hanabi, one of the chemists. [- Surely you guys know who Hanabi is? - "Hinata-nee-san always told me he liked to talk to his pets, the magnificent insects."
"You mean Hinata, Tasogare's Hikari-hime¡©-sama, is your sister? Your older sister?" asked Asano Yuuya, a girl from the Wind with violet hair and violet eyes.
"UhmÉ yeahÉ but I think father is still mad at nee-san for running away from home several years agoÉ we never knew they went to TasogareÉ it happened so suddenlyÉ we're still wondering how the four found out about the family's secretsÉ" said Hanabi.
Then Amamiya Dujin, a black haired boy with onyx eyes cut through their conversation. "You two, we need to proceed with the mission, ya knowÉ we don't have all week to find a formula for the poisonÉ"
"A poison that could kill in a minuteÉ howÉ" Kurumi Shinja wondered aloud. [- If in case you don't remember guys, Shinja is Resha's and Ayano's sister. They're the triplets that brought Tsunade to Tasogare, right? Read chapter 1, if you willÉ -
"I think I know a substance that has a very dangerous property that can kill inÉ uhmÉ" said a girl named Kashin Tei from the Lightning Country, picking up a piece of paper and a pen, her very long light brown hair in a single braid swinging slightly and her eyes gleaming with knowledge. She started computing very fast on the small piece of paper. For a couple of minutes, there was nothing more heard except for the silent scratching of the pen on the paper. Then, Tei encircled the final answer on the paper. "There. It can kill in 59.6 seconds. If rounded off, it kills in exactly one minute. In exactly one minute it will neutralize all the activities of the brain and the heart."
"Well then where can we find it?" asked Amamiya Fujin, Dujin's twin brother. They looked exactly alike except for Fujin's longer hair. [- Do I really need to say they look alike? -
"It can be found in this very mountain. Its very rare and it has no name, and its very difficult to get a hand on as well," said Tei.
"I think I know that substance you're saying! The people gave it plenty names, but the most famous is the name 'Osoroshii Konoha'," said a girl named Akita Rika from the Wind. [- Dreadful Leaf. - "It's a circle-shaped leaf that is classified as an undergrowth, meaning its very hard to find. It can cure and it can kill."
"Yes, that's the one. It has strange and unique characteristics that can only be found within it. It reacts greatly with both acidic and alkaline substances, yet the results are opposites. When it is mixed with concentrated acids, it reacts to form a deadly poison. But if its mixed with concentrated alkaline, it reacts to form an antidote against its own poison."
"But waitÉ are we allowed to go out to get the leaves? I mean, if we're not sure, we might break a lawÉ" Hanabi said.
"Maybe we could just approach Shino-san. He did warn us about his 2-meter radius limit, but yet, this is part of the mission and is vital. Surely he'd listen, right?" said Yuuya.
"Yeah, I think that's the best idea. C'mon, lets get going, we shouldn't waste time," said Nari Shiko, a boy from the Lighting Country.
"Since when have you been concerned of time, Shiko?" asked Tei. The two are teammates in their country.
"Shut the hell up, Tei, you're getting to my nerves again," grumbled Shiko, walking off. Tei giggled.
á---------á
Tenten stopped short in front of the door leading to their headquarters and working place. They had gone through passage 1.
"We're here. You are free to use the instruments inside, but you have to do so with permission and proper care. I don't think we'll have any problems with thatÉ" said Tenten, pushing open the door with ease.
They went in silently and carefully. The room was full of tools to use for weapon making. There was an alloy deposit for the metals, and there were welding materials, sharpening materials, designing materials, special tools, and there was also a facility for blowing glass and utilizing crystals and minerals.
"Gather round, please," Tenten called after a few minutes of exploration for the nins. The nins obediently gathered in front of her. "I want you to divide yourself into pairs. Then each pair should work on a new weapon. The weapon should be easily portable, easy to use, strong, has many uses and capacities and can be used at any time, place and condition. Its quite easy, right? That'll be your first mission for now. I must leave you be, I need to get some fresh air. I'm getting suffocated inside this stupid caveÉ"
She left the nins thinking there behind her as she walked off back to the common room. "Oh and if you need sunlight or air, the ceiling is wood and can be slid open! It opens off into a plateau! And the passage on the left wall leads to the Chemists lab and the one on the right goes to the Medics lab!" called Tenten. "Good luck! Your time limit is two weeks!"
"HmmÉ we need to pair up," said Resha. "RightÉ who wants to be my partner?"
"I guess it could be useful to have a partner from the new countryÉ" smirked Temari. "I'm volunteering. I'm starting to hate thisÉ who does she think she is, ordering me around, while I defeated her easily before?" she scowled, walking off with Resha to the other side of the lab.
"Hey, Shinna, let's go, we need to think of a weapon," called Niwa Shoru to his younger sister, Niwa Shinna.
"Right," smiled Shinna. "I think I already have an idea, nii-chan," said Shinna as they walked off silently. "Why don't we make a utility weapon? Like a single rod that can be easily brought to any places, then it can transform into a spear, or a sword, or a dagger/kunai, and it can elongate, it can carry medicine in tubes, poison as wellÉ"
Shinna ranted off as Shoru computed silently on a piece of paper. After a couple of minutes, Shinna stopped. "Hey, are you even listening to me?" she asked, popping a vein.
"Your idea is brilliant, Shinna, I'm already computing for the right calculations for it as well as the prototype sketch," said Shoru. "And since you're better at math, can you continue these?" asked Shoru, handing her a piece of paper laden with complex computations. Shinna scanned through it, then blanched.
"Onii-chan, are you trying to makeÉ" Shinna started.
"Yes I am, so don't go blabbing all about it," Shoru snapped impatiently. "Now, if you'd kindly help me, finish that computation now so we can proceed with molding the alloysÉ"
Shinna popped a vein again as she looked more closely into the paper. "Onii-chan," Shinna stated in a deathly silent voice. "Are you trying to kill all of us! These computations are all wrong! Honestly, have you ever listened to your math lessons!" she screeched suddenly.
"Well, I'm not the math wiz here, so-rryÉ" muttered Shoru, irritated.
"Hey, Keiko!" said a girl named Nishi Yori. "C'mon let's get going, we have work to do."
"Yeah, alright," said a girl named Yoshinari Keiko. The two were childhood friends, but not teammates. "Have you any ideas yet?"
"I think I do, but even though, we need plan B, just in case," said Yori.
"Still the same, are you?" chuckled Keiko.
"You know me, Keiko, I never get contented with one idea only," smiled Yori. "C'mon, let's get started with plan A."
"Of all people, why am I left with you?" grumbled Rori Haru as Nomura Junichi, his childhood rival, pulled him off to the glass blowing facility.
"Don't complain, as if we have any choices, dumbass," Junichi growled.
"Who're you calling the dumbass, bubblebrain?" retorted Haru.
"Hey, you're the one with the IQ capacity that's ankle-height here, you worthless lump of dirt," Junichi shot back, glaring at his rival-partner.
á---------á
Ino walked on happily through the dark chambers of the cave, occasionally chatting with her subordinates. She had no problem so far with introducing her nins to the new facilities they'll use inside the cave. The cave had the same ceiling as the other two, opening to a wide plateau. The door to the left led to the Chemists and Weaponry. This one was connected to passage 2.
"Now, your first mission is to go and search for rare herbal plants that can be used to treat illnesses or wounds. Those medicines must be strong, and they'll be used in actual battle so you'd better get plenty of themÑif you can. After that I want you to prepare those herbal plants into medicines that'll be ready for immediate use. It's pretty easy, but that's natural, since its your first mission. Now go on, there's a ladder there by the wall, you can climb up out to the plateau, or you can jump tooÉ" Ino said. "I'll be waiting for you guys to come back. And remember, this is an individual mission, I don't want anybody of you to have the same plant!"
"Hai," said the nins, jumping off up to the plateau. Ino jumped up after them. She could see their backs while they raced to different directions.
"There's no time limit! Just remember you must be back here by nightfall! Don't get me worried!" Ino called after the receding figures. Several of them waved to show her they understood and some of them looked back at her and nodded.
á---------á
Lee walked off into the cave confidently. After a couple of silent minutes, the end of the tunnel appeared. It was an opening, covered by thick bushes and vines. The opening was obvious from inside, since scarce sunlight penetrated through the extremely thick foliage. They had passed through passage 4.
"You guys, when you go through the vines, please arrange them back so that the cave opening wont be so obvious. We need to be as hidden as possible. For all we know, Orochimaru and Itachi might just well be heading here already," Lee said bossily. He moved forward and parted the thick vines to go through. The nins followed suit.
When they emerged, what appeared in front of them was quite unbelievable. The forest was so incredibly thick and dark and only a couple of rays of sunlight barely penetrated through. They looked back to the cave opening and they were surprised to find it not there.
"Where's the cave opening?" asked Amamiya Ryu, a boy from the Sand.
"Its there, why?" asked Lee, looking back as well.
"WhereÉ" asked Ryu.
"It's just too well hidden," said Lee. He parted the vines again to reveal a long dark passageway. Then he let the vines go. "Don't worry, you'll be able to see it, you wont get lost, just watch out for this," Lee said, pointing to large circle leaf hanging from one of the vines on the center. If seen by an untrained eye, it seemed as if a normal leaf, but if you look more closely, it had a faint Tasogare symbol on it, but the symbol was very small, and it was in the very center.
"C'monÉ" he said, walking off into the deep forest. [- This is the Open Field Dept. -
á---------á
Shuta and Kogure chatted slightly, stopping as they reached the opening of their cave tunnel. The cave opens to a small space enclosed by thick tree trunks that its impossible to see from outside. Shuta pulled on a certain vine and two of the tree trunks opened to a forest pathway like a back-to-back door. They had passed though causeway 7.
"If you cant remember where the door is, just watch out for this leaf," pointed Shuta to a circle leaf attached onto a hanging vine. "It has a small Tasogare crest in the center, and its very faint, so you must examine it very closely. To be more sure, radiate some chakra to the leaf, and if the crest shines, then that's it. You just pull on the vine to open the door again," said Shuta, pulling on the vine with the circle leaf and making the door open again.
"C'mon, Shuta, we have an appointment, ya knowÉ" said Kogure.
"Right," Shuta said. "Follow."
They walked off into the deep forest, guided by the ever-winding path. Scarce sunlight was penetrating through the foliage. There were weird sounds issuing from inside the thick forest and the nins felt as if somebody was following them, trailing them, watching them from afar. But Shuta and Kogure didn't seem to mind anything so they tried to ignore it.
But after sometime of walking endlessly into the deep and suffocating forest, they just decided they cant ignore what they were feeling. It was as if several glaring and scrutinizing eyes were boring into their backs.
"D'you think those two notices it? Something's following us," asked Rikata Rika, a girl from the Sand.
"Maybe they're just too stupid. Let's just tell them, shall we? We can't act without permission anyways," suggested a boy named Akita Taka from the Wind.
"Maybe we shouldÉ" said Rika.
"Hey! You two!" called Taka. "Cant you feel it? We're being followed."
"Don't worry, that's only a curious creature of this magical forest. Just ignore them and don't do anything to them, they wont harm you. And besides, it's amusing to know that the creatures are not frightened of humans. I suppose this must be the first time humans ever walked these landsÉ" said Kogure silently. "Keep on walking, somebody's waiting for us on the other side."
After a couple more minutes of silent walking, they arrived in a wide barren plain. The place looked like a perfect place for training. And just as Kogure had said, there were some people waiting for them. It was the Open Field nins with their leader. They approached the group of nins waiting for them slowly.
"Sorry for the waiting, our way was a long one," grinned Shuta.
"Never mind, we just arrived anyways," said Lee. "Now, shall we begin training?"
"Yeah, no problem. You guys must've already guessed that there's collaboration with practices today so I want you guys to cooperate and collaborate. No arguments are needed here, I hope," said Shuta.
"Now, everybody, I want you to pair up yourselves with the one closest to you," Lee instructed. The nins obediently complied. Some from the OFB paired up with some from the JM. [- That's abbrev for Open Field Battle and Jutsu Masters. I'm getting tired, ya knowÉ -
"Well now that you're through, training beginsÉ" Kogure grinned wickedly, something strange gleaming in his eyes. Shuta cackled lightly.
á---------á
"ErmÉ excuse me, Shino-sanÉ" started Hanabi, calling Shino. She was a well 2 meters away from Shino, so he need not explode.
"What?" asked Shino a bit coldly.
"Shino-san, we've found a substance that we think can be both poison and antidote, but we need permission to go out and get some of themÉ coz they are said to be found in this very mountainÉ but we still need to search wide and hardÉ" said Hanabi.
"Very wellÉ follow meÉ" Shino said, walking off to the big door again and going to the tunnel numbered 8. They were surprised to find themselves in a small Japanese house by a cliff. Ground was beneath, ground was overhead. It was like a bit of the cliff was bitten off and then a small house was built in place.
Shino went over to the door and rapped sharply. After a few seconds of waiting, the door opened to reveal Kiba.
"Whassup, Shino?" asked Kiba.
"We need some of your nins to collaborate. We need assistance for searching for the special substance theyÑ" Shino said, pointing to the Chemist nins. "Ñneed for operations."
"Oh, right timing, I was just thinking about what they should do for their first mission coz I fell asleep last night and I forgot to make plans," said Kiba. Then he ordered Chouji to get the nins. When they got outside, they were instructed to find the said leaf, as described by the Chemists.
"We need to get as many as possible to mass produce the poison and the antidote," finished Tei. The TLD nins nodded in understanding. [- Traps, Larceny and Deception. -
"Very well, if you already understand what you guys need to do, you may as well go off," said Shino coldly. "You must be back by nightfall."
á---------á
Neji led the way along the dark damp causeway number 3. Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura and Hinata decided to go with them. The other nins walked along silently and the only sound heard was the silent dripping of the fresh clean cave water and the silent footsteps of several persons. After a couple of twists and turns, they emerged from the dark. The cave opening wasÑsurprisinglyÑsituated at the highest peak of Hoseki. Two large stone slabs concealed the opening and there was just a small space to slide through to get in. The two stone slabs appeared like it was a part of the large rock that was there permanently and which held the opening of the cave. Amounts of snow also coated the two slabs, so the cave was remarkably well hidden.
"So this is why there were endless stairs," said Amazaki Hayate, a boy from Konoha. He was considered the next coldest person to Neji in Konohagakure.
"Are we gonna train here? A normal nin would die of hypothermia here," said Shuorai Mori in a cold voice, colder than the snow itself.
"Are you a normal nin?" snapped Neji.
"Iie. Of course not," answered Mori, raising a brow. "Just asking."
"Yes, we are gonna train here. And I want you to wear normal clothes, no cloaks or whatever. Follow me," said Neji. It was true, they weren't wearing any protection from the cold and yet there they were, unfazed as if everything was normal and nothing was out of the ordinary.
They arrived at a flat plateau, which was remarkably free of ice and snow, but still it was cold.
"I want each of you to pick one of the 4 leaders of Tasogare," said Neji. "I'll give you five minutes to choose."
á---------á
"Company call!" hollered Lee over the nins. "Now that you've chosen the one closest to youÉ what you'll do isÉ"
"Is?"
"IsÉ"
"Is?"
"IsÉ"
"Spit it out already, will ya!" snapped Rori Maru.
"Okay, alright, all fine! Chill, man! You will have to fight each other until either gives up or isn't able to fight anymore. If you manage to kill somebody, get ready to be cast out as a missing nin or to get a serious beating from Yami-sama," said Kogure.
"WHAT!"
"What the hell is this? You make us choose the closest to us then you make us fight?" Inari exclaimed. [- You guys do know InariÉ from the Water CountryÉ doncha? -
"Yup. Now get on with it. You have enough space here, ya knowÉ" said Lee, squinting into the horizon. "This plateau goes on for milesÉ"
á---------á
After five minutes of icy silence between the SSA nins, Neji finally spoke up. "Time over. Gaara, who?"
"Uzumaki."
"Kankurou, who?"
"Uchiha."
"Akashi Kai?"
"Uzumaki."
"Shourai Ren?"
"Haruno."
"Shourai Mori?"
"Hyuuga."
"Amazaki Hayate?"
"Hyuuga."
"Kashin Rai?"
"Uchiha."
"Yuri Aikawa?"
"Uchiha."
"Taira Aira?"
"Haruno."
"Very well then. The one you chose, you will fight. We will test your potentials, as to how much you can do. Don't worry about showing your techniques, we assure you no one else outside will know. The first match, Gaara versus Naruto. Go on, time's yours."
"So we fight again, Uzumaki. This time I'll make sure I'll prove to you that I am strong," hissed Gaara. "Since there is no win, no lose hereÉ so I'll just prove it to youÉ Kyuubi."
"Okay then, prove it to meÉ as you wishÉ" Naruto grinned, crouching down into a fighting stance. Gaara did the same. For a couple of moments, there were no movements made by the two opponents. Then, in a sudden blink of an eye, both were gone, running towards each other in lightning speed. Both punched, both blocked. There was a sonic boom produced by the sudden action.
"This is an impasse situation," muttered Sasuke.
"Can we do anything? No. So we just let them be," murmured Neji.
Naruto watched attentively as Gaara jumped up into the air and opened his gourd. The sand transformed into a sharp pointy shape to pierce through Naruto. The sand hit Naruto squarely, but after a moment, Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke and was replaced by a log. Gaara landed smoothly down on the ground, feeling around for Naruto. Then a hand from underground grabbed his ankle and attempted to break it. But Gaara acted quickly and when the hand tightened one last time to break the ankle, Gaara's body cracked. Sand. It was only sand, nothing more.
Naruto slowly emerged from underground, spinning slowly as he elevated. "You leave me no choice if you keep hiding, Gaara!" Naruto felt around for Gaara and found him hiding underground, like he did. Naruto placed his palm on the ground and performed a strange kind of palm strike. "Fukai Shogeki, Te no Hira Shogeki Ichi!" [- Deep Impact, Palm Impact One. -
The floor shook as a very strong impact radiated through the ground. It was evident that Naruto controlled his force, since the ground didn't crack open and there wasn't an avalanche, though it was pretty close. Gaara emerged from underground, and he had a wound on his left arm. It appeared pretty deep too. "Later we'll treat that, but now, its time for fight!" exclaimed Naruto. Gaara finally released his inner power, his inner monster. Naruto stood confidently, even though he felt his opponent's powerful aura radiate through the place.
á---------á
Hanabi and Tei were scouring through the undergrowths under a rotting tree when they heard a loud impact from atop the mountain.
"What was that?" asked Tei, alarmed.
"I think the SSA are trainingÉ they are really extreme, aren't they?" replied Hanabi.
"Well, do they plan to make an avalanche or do they plan to make the whole mountain go down in ruins? Cant they even pipe down and be careful, even just a bit?" retorted Tei, irritated.
"Whoa, don't get angry with me, I don't have anything to do with it, ya know," said Hanabi.
"Hey, isn't your sister, Hinata, up there with the SSA?" asked Tei, apparently interested.
"UhÉ yeahÉ why you ask?" asked Hanabi, turning a little awkward.
"Oh, don't worry, I wont tell anybody if you want to tell me a secret," smiled Tei. "I am quite trustworthy, I think. Go ahead. We're friends after all. We can be best friends, if you want. You seem to be really lonely, you know."
"Not really, its just thatÉ I was always forbidden to go out and socialize by my family, that's why I don't have much friends. I just persuaded them to let me come here, reallyÉ onee-san is very lucky, thoughÉ she has a future husband, she has friends, she's strong, she has power and moneyÉ she has everything needed in lifeÉ"
"You'll have them too, if you work hard and do whatever they make you do," smiled Tei. "Trust me, I can see the making of a great ninja within you. Not jesting here, mind youÉ I'm telling the truth."
"Thanks for the encouragement, TeiÉ I haven't heard those words in a long time nowÉ I really didn't want to shame onee-san in front of the elders before, it was just she told me to show my best, and it turned out that I was better with fighting than she isÉ soÉ she gotÉ anyways, father didn't have to make her go away, since as you may well know, she went away herself with her friendsÉ I'm envious actuallyÉ"
"You shouldn't be, you can do that tooÉ you have friends too, you have riches, you have power in your family, you're strongÉ you have what she hasÉ you shouldn't be envious of her."
"YeahÉ I guess soÉ"
á---------á
Gaara set into his fighting stance after releasing whatever power he has hidden within. They were about to launch an attack at each other, but Shino and Kiba intercepted, arriving suddenly.
"What?" Neji snapped.
"We need you to help down there," said Shino.
"Why me?" asked Neji.
"Coz you have the Byakugan. C'monÉ this is necessary, leave the work to the four," said Kiba. Neji sighed.
"Fine. You four, you're in charge, finish the fights," said Neji, following the two back down.
"What do we need to find, anyways?" asked Neji as they descended the stairs.
"We need to find a certain plantÉ" explained Kiba, describing the plant and saying everything that needs to be said.
"Okay, whateverÉ" Neji sighed, rolling his eyes.
á---------á
Shimatani Fukai looked up suddenly as she heard a loud impact reverberate through the foliage from the mountaintop. I wonder what's happeningÉ could there be an avalanche?, she wondered silently. She then sat down, sinking into deep thought. Strange things had been happening ever sinceÉ yesterday. The animals were starting to behave strangely, as if there was something new in the forest.
But what could it be? I mean, I'm the only person in here, except if some stupid people dared enter the second most deadly forest after the Forest of Death. I mean, they only said this is the second coz they actually don't know anything about what lies in here, but actually, this is more perilous and lethal than the so-called Forest of Death. But thenÉ what could've made the animals run around like crazy, not in proper behavior? Could there be a new predator of some kind? If its that, I hope it doesn't come near meÉ but thenÉ what could I do? If the predator wants to go hereÉ can I stop it? Of course! I cant. I'm a helpless girl in the middle of the forest, without anybody to talk to, trapped inside a 2-mile radius from my house, and with a crazed predator of some kind roaming around my forest! Kami-sama, help me!
Fukai groaned, rubbing her temples and then setting her palm on the ground and closing her eyes. As soon as she set her palm on the ground several scenes flashed before her inner eye. At first they were very rapid scenes that everything was a blur, but then after a while, everything slowed down, and it played in normal speed like a movie. She saw a long tunnelÉ dark and dampÉ seemingly endless. Somebody was beside her, walking slowly at her pace. She felt pain as she walked. She tried to look up to her companion, but she cant see the face, since the pain was so unbearable that it blurred her vision with tears. Then she felt arms wrap around her. Then everything turned black, and there was a flash of bright light. Then another film started, and she was lying down on a bed, and she was looking up to the stone ceiling. There were voices talking. There were plenty people. She sat up. Then the vision stopped and Fukai's eyes snapped open suddenly.
She was sweating heavily, and she was panting, gasping for breath. What the hell happened! She looked up at the thick foliage. A ray of sunlight penetrated through and hit her sweaty face. SoÉ tiredÉ She plopped down on the grass, and fell asleepÉ