[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/m5AP3ML.png[/img]

[COLOR=lightsteelblue][sup][b][img]https://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/naruto/images/5/5b/Amegakure_Symbol.svg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/25?cb=20090830222820[/img]   Amegakure no Sato | S-rank | Leader of Amegakure[/b][/sup][/COLOR][/center][hr][INDENT][sup][COLOR=lightsteelblue][b]TIME:[/b] [i]Present Day - Morning[/i] | [b]LOCATION:[/b] [i]Konohagakure - Exam Stadium Observation Room[/i] | [b]INTERACTION:[/b] Kaito Chosokabe, [@Ganryu]; Nousagi Hyuuga, [@Reflection][/color][/sup][/INDENT]

After the leader of the hidden rain had taken her leave from the group of kage's - which was limited to two kages for now - and politely bowed out in favour of meditation and consideration, she instead made her way through the meandering hallways of the arena, attempting to find a passage to the arena where one of her students was fighting. Kaito Chosokabe. A shinobi she'd watched for some time now, though never really made an attempt to speak to. He was, to her, not interesting enough to offer him help. It was the circle of life after all - the weak were usually trampled in favour of those who were strong. It was the way that the Sage had intended it.

But... even Yogensha had to admit that being a shinobi on its' own was already proof of strength. The weak did not usually make it through the academy that she had formed, which was demanding. Supportive, but demanding. The fact that Kaito had made it this far was testament to his skill. And, of course, paperwork and folders on missions were usually not enough to determine strength. It was time that Yogensha went to see it for herself.

She would appear on the railing overhead where proctors and other spectators were watching the fight, though she herself stood more at the forefront and both the participants would be capable of seeing her. Never the less, her arrival was not as much of a spectacle as, say, the arrival of the Hokage or Tsuchikage would've been. She seemed to blend right in in her fashionable outfit and her godlike composure. 

Just as she arrived, it seemed the two had entered a debate. Fitting. Although this was a test of martial skill and not of philosophy, it seemed that shinobi always found a time mid-battle to yell about their ideas and beliefs. So much for quietly killing your opponent. She smiled at this, finding it much better to discuss and debate than to murder without purpose. In her eyes, these boys were both already miles beyond having won the fight - the two of them were each fighting for their beliefs at this point, and not necessarily because they were told to fight.

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[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/zVH1sVU.png[/img]

[COLOR=black][sup][b][img]https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/naruto/images/d/de/Konohagakure_Symbol.svg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/18?cb=20090830222821[/img]    Konohagakure no Sato | Chunin-going-on-Jonin | Edgelord Supreme[/b][/sup][/COLOR][/center][hr][INDENT][sup][COLOR=black][b]TIME:[/b] [i]Present Day - Morning[/i] | [b]LOCATION:[/b] [i]Konohagakure - Exam Stadium/Fire Challenge Room[/i] | [b]INTERACTION:[/b] [i]Usagi Orihara - [@Project], Tsukiko Umene - [@J8cob], Kamui Uzumaki - [@Spanner], [@Syn][/i][/COLOR][/sup][/INDENT]

[center][hider=music][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rEeEKYbVX8[/youtube][/hider][/center]

After completing the test and - seemingly - figuring out the trick, Sakana was much less relieved than one would expect. Although he had now dispelled the fire from his body and, through doing so, halted the pain, he could still feel the lick of the flames within his body, if you could even call them flames. He looked up at the proctor who was proclaiming some bullshit, then congratulating Sakana and, ironically and in the same breath, threatening Sakana with death. Sakana just stared the guy down before returning to his team. For now, he seemed fine despite having dealt with the fire. [i]“Fuckin' bastard..”[/i] he mumbled, to himself more than anything, before a new scroll of fire suddenly materializing on a belt loop attached to his flak-vest. 

Together with the rest he found himself outside in the forest of death - an ominous name, but a name that was likely just the result of folklore and jonin proctors who liked to excite their students. Kamui added something about being the first team to have made it out, so it was quite evident that he had some sensory ability to his name. Without bothering to ask him, he placed his hand on Sakana's back, and suggested to heal or transfer some chakra. Unceremoniously Sakana nodded. [i]“I'll take both. I can still feel the scorch of that guys' fire inside my body. You should be careful though - you expended a lot of chakra with that clone.”[/i] During the healing and transfer of chakra, and without Sakana's knowledge, a new seal was added to his body - he already had one, so it seemed there was room for one more... coincidentally both had been placed there by the Uzumaki clan. It's just that one was requested, and the other was not...

Sakana turned around to face his team after the hokage had explained the details of the test, and looked directly in the eyes of Tsukiko who was sneaking up on Kamui. It was funny - he had known it from the start, since she was quite obviously an individualistic person, but somehow he had not expected her to act so soon. It was quite evident that Kamui was not the fighting sort - at least so far - so Sakana reacted instinctively and pulled out his double corded knives. With a flash of steel he was just in time to prevent her from slashing at the boy, and apparently he had been just in time to prevent her from slicing off the scroll as well - her blade touching the strap it was up on, but not hard enough to slice it through. Sakana could see, however, how the threads of the strap had been cut ever so slightly, giving an indicator as to just how proficient this woman was with her weaponry. He could not prevent her from leaping away into the trees, however, but according to Sakana, there was no need to.

It was funny. In a matter of milliseconds after the explanation of the test, the team had already fallen apart except for Sakana. At that point Sakana didn't know yet, but even the boy that was one year his senior and had healed him had tried to double-cross Sakana by placing a seal on him. Tsukiko, as expected, had tried to obtain a scroll for herself right away by double-crossing Kamui. And Usagi - wait, Usagi.

Sakana's eyes were laid upon Usagi directly after he realized he'd forgotten about her and, again instinctively, pulled Kamui by the collar of his flak vest and with a swing of the arm threw him to the side, away from the blasts of wind. His mind raced just like it had when he was being tormented by the chakra-absorbing fire, and he realized quickly that there was not enough time to perform an earth shelter jutsu. So, his academy instincts took over from his shinobi instincts and he performed some handseals. 

The wind blasts cut into his body, drawing blood rather easily and severely slicing up his arm and legs, even cutting open the flak vest he wore. He kneeled down and leaned on his hands to keep himself from falling over, before a thud drew the attention of the three shinobi in his former team. The scroll had been cut from his vest and was now rolling on the floor, rolling itself towards Usagi and allowing her to pick it up.

Except, when she would move to pick it up, both Sakana and the scroll would disappear in a poof of smoke, leaving a wooden log in it's place, and a thick branch where the scroll had been. [i]Kawarimi no jutsu.[/i] Simple, effective, but it wouldn't work more than once or twice.

In a similar poof of smoke, Sakana appeared in the trees, standing directly in Tsukiko's path of escape, yet still keeping Usagi and Kamui in his sight. The cursed seal was still on his back, but as far as Sakana knew, Kamui had only tried to help him - he didn't know or could not know that Kamui had double crossed him.

[i]“Tsk.”[/i] He inhaled air sharply through his teeth, expressing his dislike for the situation. He held up a tiger seal in preparation to unleash a jutsu, but after a second of this Mexican standoff-style situation, lowered his hand. [i]“It was expected I suppose. Tsukiko, wild child, brought into the village at a young age. It's hard to [b]forget[/b] that. It seems even you haven't forgotten it. I remember it too, despite how young I was then.”[/i] His eyes would bore into hers like a piercing dagger, with a similar level of lethality in them. If looks could kill - indeed, she'd be dead. It seemed however that Sakana was unwilling to act on that just yet.

[i]“You're a hunter aren't you? Let me ask you.. which is more effective - the pack of wolves, or the lonesome bear that eats berries to survive the winter?”[/i] It was clear he was not [i]really[/i] referring to wolves and bears, but more so a pack of shinobi or the lonesome shinobi that would have to gather scraps just to survive. It was also clear that the pack of wolves were all four of them working together and the lonesome shinobi would be her if she decided to run off on her own. Whether or not he'd convince her or not would be irrelevant soon.

He reached back with his hand and with a single pull ripped the leather cord loose and pulled off his scroll. He held it up for all of them to see. [i]“If you need assurance of success, you can have it. Stay with us and hunt with us. It'll be easier to hunt together, and target the weaker teams with four people. Perhaps you don't [b]need[/b] us - and we don't [b]need[/b] you. But it'd be far more efficient to work together. We'd expend less energy and less work working together.”[/i] 

He glanced at Usagi and Kamui then, not entirely sure about their allegiance either. [i]“What do you think the other teams will do? Will they turn on each other? We're the rag-tag team of people that got left out of the other groups. They [b]expect[/b] us to turn on each other. All of them are in a team together because they knew each other before this. We can surprise them by working together. We don't have to like each other. We just have to get four more scrolls together. That is one team worth of scrolls we need to take. Consider it carefully. Do you really want to fight four shinobi all at once on your own just to get a chance at success? Or do you want to have the insurance of three other shinobi at your back?”[/i]

Without a second thought Sakana threw the scroll over to Tsukiko, with a casual underhanded throw. She could catch it easily and effortlessly if she had listened and stayed. It seemed he was risking his entire exam, but perhaps he would be right.