Altered Tundra

Project Untamed

_{Nicholas Grey @metanoia and Tyler Jane Morrissey @melissa
Location: Cafeteria → Dorms}
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The dry heat of the plains hit Tyler Jane square in the face as she emerged from the cafeteria, a strange weight being lifted off of her shoulders as she abandoned the questionable situation behind her. The redhead had absolutely no clue what had gotten into Savannah that caused the girl to act with such bravado, but, at least Nicholas had taken the bait to walk with her back to the dorms so she could redeem herself from… whatever that was back there. Tyler turned to him, an unmistakable smug look on her face as she spoke.

“Did you pull an allnighter last night? Or do you often just wear the same thing to avoid the laundry room.” She joked, referencing his previous statement.

Nicholas chuckled, arms casually dangling at his side. “Something like that.” He hadn’t the heart to tell her the exact details about the night he spent with Dwayne or what it exactly entailed. Could he reveal it? Maybe. It’s not like there was anything to say really, but for the time being, Nicholas didn’t feel like admitting that to Tyler Jane, not yet at least. “So, how was your morning? Well--” He let his voice slip into a temporary silence and coughed as he would continue, “--I mean, before what just happened...happened, that is.” Nicholas knew he had to tread carefully when referencing the highly entertaining (for him) display of claw-on-claw actions befitting of two highly spirited girls.

Tyler Jane tried to contain herself, but couldn’t help letting out a stifled laugh at his attempt not to reference what had just occurred. She could care less that Nicholas had picked up on the girls’ not so subtle battle of words, I mean, it was hard not to notice. But, as confident as she was, all she cared about was making sure the boy didn’t lose interest based on her behavior. “My morning was definitely interesting, that’s for sure.” Tyler Jane shook her head, letting another laugh naturally tumble from her lips. Her statement was inclusive of their interaction in the cafeteria and all that occurred before it. “I was up at the crack of dawn as always, so I spent a few hours in the dance studio rehearsing.”

“Oh really?” Nicholas’ interest was piqued. He loved watching her dance. She always moved with an unrivaled grace with no wasted motion. Whenever he was presented with the opportunity, he liked nothing better than to enjoy her routines. Maybe there was a part inside him that felt at peace whenever he managed to catch her in the dance studio. He found she performed her best when it was just the four walls and her. “You’ll have to let me see it before anyone gets the chance to, especially if you were up at the crack of dawn practicing.That alone tells me it must be something truly special.”

“Trust me, it’s nothing too exciting. Just something I put together last week and have been perfecting.” Tyler modestly replied. She wasn’t one to gloat about her skills in the studio, as good of a dancer as she was. There were plenty of other dancers who were better than her, just none of them happened to be on this campus to upstage her. “Unfortunately though, due to an unwelcome visitor in the studio this morning, who mind you I promptly told to leave, someone beat you to it.” The redhead rolled her eyes. “Happens to be a friend of yours.”

He immediately scowled in a very Nicholas Grey way when TJ had mentioned there was another who saw what he wanted to witness first. Her description of the individual did a lot to reveal the identity of this person to him. Nicholas had a lot of friends, but there were only a few people he knew who fit that description. Of those, he knew he just had to deduce who would be up so early and around the arts buildings and only one person came to mind. “So, what did the meathead do this time? He didn’t hurt you, did he?” He took this moment to look TJ up and down and he didn’t detect any visible sign of harm, but then again Leo wasn’t the type to do that unless he really felt like fucking up. “Or was he his usual obnoxious self this morning?” He asked with a curious brow raised at the redhead.

Tyler Jane smirked, slightly enjoying the fact that Nicholas seemed concerned about her. “Oh just the usual, Leo deemed it an ‘open rehearsal’ because I left the door propped and when he decided to invade my personal space I kicked him out. Literally.” Most people on campus knew that the boy had a tendency to stick his nose in situations that didn’t involve him, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to Nicholas that his friend was asking for trouble. The redhead scoffed, “You’d think I’d let him hurt me? Pshh, there’s no way in hell he’d get close enough to lay a hand on me.”

Nicholas had known for a while that Leo was, to phrase it respectfully, a bit of an imbecile. He had problems with boundaries. As much as he cherished him and the unique friendship (?) he had with the boy, he also knew that sometimes in order to learn humility, Leo needed a swift kick in the privates to remind him that he wasn’t a god among men. He was just a surprisingly well-built boy. But at the same time, hearing TJ proudly state what she did to him, he couldn’t help but smirk. To stand up to Leo Brooks in such a way proved exactly why she was easily one of the few people at the school who was worthy of his attention (just as he felt worthy of hers as well).

“So does that mean if it were the right person, you wouldn’t mind letting them touch you?” The question lingered for a couple of seconds before he chuckled. “I mean, hypothetically speaking, of course,” he would later half-jokingly correct himself.

Tyler Jane’s cheeks tinged a delicate pink, complementing the many freckles strewn across her face. Nicholas was certainly a smooth talker, and clearly knew exactly what he was doing in order to make her blush. But, regardless, she didn’t miss a beat. “I mean, hypothetically, even if it were the right person, I’m not so sure.” She couldn’t let it be that easy for him, now could she? “After all, trust isn’t just granted.” The redhead explained matter of factly.

She always looked the cutest in those moments he caught her blushing smile, when in those moments, despite holding her own, signs of her vulnerability came through. Nicholas appreciated that. “How right you are. You should never let just anyone get that close to you.” He stopped walking as they reached the door to the dormitory building. He allowed his gaze to linger on her eyes, always finding himself entranced by her beauty. The way he looked at her expressed that as clear as a crystal bowl. He moved a few inches closer to TJ, leaning his shoulder somewhat against the closed door.“Being so close to someone, especially in an intimate way, could sometimes put you at a disadvantage, but if it’s with someone you know won’t hurt you, there’s nothing to fear.” Nicholas flashed his usual smile at her, though this time it was a lot softer than previous times.

The redhead’s breath hitched as Nicholas dared to move closer to her, his choice of words poetic but suggestive at the same time. Tyler Jane could feel her pulse quicken with the intensity with which he looked at her, almost as if he was searching for some kind of answer in her eyes. “Who says I’m afraid?” She asked, dropping the hypotheticals from the equation.

There was a moment even before she spoke where Nicholas saw it: the confirmation that she wasn’t afraid. It was at that very moment he moved closer, his hand touching hers. Only inches separated their chests from touching. To put it another way, they were close enough to where they would be able to hear the other breathe deeply as the heat of the moment went even further with Nicholas bringing his fingers to slowly and sensually trail on her hand, riding up her forearm. This was his move before the magic happened. “Maybe we should put it to a test.” His words oozed out in a breathy tone. Moments felt like they were being slowed down by the immense build up, the slow tension skyrocketing. Nicholas knew she felt it.

As he went forward, suddenly the door to the dormitory opened, causing a gap between them to form. Nicholas, who had been leaning partially against it, fell back and almost collapsed on the ground. A student, someone who he had seen around, apologized and Nicholas caught himself by gripping the side of the door with his hand.

Tyler Jane couldn’t be more certain that they wanted the same thing. Maybe it was because of how close he was, or the way his brow raised after she spoke that caused her to realize what was bound to occur. The redhead let her eyes flicker down to Nicholas’ lips and back to meet his gaze, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up as his fingers grazed the skin on her arm. She was caught up in the moment and his choice words fueled the fire. Nicholas could have said anything to her in that instant and she would have obliged- she was putty in his hands.

But alas, the world had other plans. As the door flew open, the girl jumped slightly, startled by the rude interruption. Tyler Jane snapped out of her daze, dissolving into a gentle laugh as Nicholas recovered from his near fall. Regaining her composure, she smirked at him. “Guess that test will have to wait.”

Nicholas chuckled and gave TJ a smile. “I’m sure there’ll be other chances.” He would boldly proclaim, holding the door open for her since this was their destination, anyway. “Like maybe at the party when we’ll have a lot more privacy.” Nicholas was usually more subtle than he was being right now, but when it was made clear to him that TJ wanted him too, he didn’t feel that he needed to.

The redhead raised an eyebrow at Nicholas as she walked past him and into the lobby of the dorm. The air conditioned room brought her even more so back to reality, the cold sending chills up her spine and goosebumps down her arms. Turning back to look at him, Tyler Jane let the right side of her lips tug up into a smirk. “Oh will there be now?” She sarcastically asked, beginning to wander slowly in the direction of the first floor residences where her room was located.

He proceeded down the hallway by her side but didn’t say anything (at least not yet). Truth be told, Nicholas wasn’t sure he should say anything. The fun was in the mystery of not knowing what might happen, but then again, they were probably past that point now. “The Magic 8-Ball says it is likely,” he joked, laughing at his own comment.

While the two walked down the hall, Tyler Jane shrugged her backpack off her shoulders, fishing in the side pocket for her set of keys. She looked back at Nicholas, chuckling to herself as they approached her door. “If the Magic 8-Ball said it, it must be true then.” She reasoned, stopping short in front of her room. The redhead’s name was written in cursive on a placard affixed to the door, making it somewhat evident that this was her stop. “Well, I better go get ready.” Tyler Jane stated, fidgeting with her lanyard that held her key.

As he watched her door open, the small part of him that didn’t want to wait felt a tug of following her inside and continuing their previous conversation right then and there. But then at the same time, Nicholas was a patient boy. He knew how to play the endgame and something about the party scene made him excited. Oh what fun they were gonna have come Friday. So, he gave her one last smile before turning and taking those first steps down the hall. “Be seeing you, TJ!” He spoke louder so she could hear him as he made his way to his own room, though it was on a higher floor than TJ’s was.

Cancelled - until next time family. Thank you for understanding.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃ Mood — All over the fucking place ▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The time spent on the road had blurred for Ava and it did so for a number of reasons. She was in and out of a couple of power naps that kicked in as soon as she settled into one of the comfortable beds she had claimed on the second floor and even applied her own signature to it. She had remembered going down to the ground level to get something to drink and one of the GearFits had mentioned they just passed some town named Victorville. That was the last time anyone saw anything resembling Ava Esposito until they reached their destination. Dragging herself out of the comfortable bed with overhead air conditioning (which was something she appreciated )to the dry heat of this summer afternoon in Las Vegas, all of Ava's serenity and peace of mind was stripped away from her the moment her face felt the light gust of humidity. At the same moment, when all distractions of comfort had also been stripped of her (and in addition to her being forced to carry her own bag, she remembered why she needed quality alone time and the full head of pink hair was it. If Ava was a lesser person, she might say something about everything that was pissing her off right now. She might even go as far as to make sure the people she was annoyed at heard her, but she didn't want to drudge up issues that were best left in Beverly Hills, Most of those who stepped off the RV were her friends and she was going to suck it up and try and not stir up anything. The only thing she wanted to stir up was something that would make her forget about her troubles. Hurling her bags over her shoulder, Ava and everyone else went into the Bellagio, which holy hell was it a nice hotel. "Jesus fuck!" Ava exclaimed, eyes full of wonder. She lived a life of luxury and privilege but that didn't mean she was immune to getting starstruck. And from the ceiling to the way everything was placed and how shiny it looked, if this was going to be commonplace for where they'll be staying at throughout the summer, AVa could more than deal with Princess Peach and her five feet of mememe. Ava had finished her moments of awe and followed the rest of the gang to the elevator. Truth be told, she was too busy basking in the glory of the lobby that she didn't even hear any of what AJ said. She heard his voice and even nodded, but between her eyes elsewhere and her attention wherever her eyes were focused on, it wasn't until the elevator stopping did she see the looks some of her preferred company give her as others who stepped off on one floor that she didn't want to waste time with. Ava's slow uptake on the scene had finally lit off the lightbulb that was her mind and she gave them all the "are you serious" look, to which she followed up with an annoyed, albeit accepting, expression as she dragged her bags with the others to their room on the 35th floor. She looked back at not only Ivy, who she wasn't sure if she was still mad at her for this morning or not and Reyna, her ride-or-die who had to suffer with AJ. When Ava and the rest figured out their living arrangements and she felt the wind of a rushing Leon, she parked it on one of the couches with one of her legs resting on the armrest and she whipped out her phone, sending Reyna a text. I'm so sorry you have to deal with him boo. u can com crash in my bed if you get tired of him ;) When it went through, she let her head fall naturally against the soft cushion of the couch, letting her mind sink as her head physically did into it, relaxing every muscle in her body in the process. She thought about a lot but the one thing that seemed to recur was her lack of college entry. Truth be told that was the only consistent thing she could think about and especially when she opted to be alone in her thoughts for a few moments. It wasn't that she was all that ashamed. She wasn't so ignorant to think that she wouldn't be accepted to a community college, when all of her friends were going to college and how she hid it, that weighed on her. ”Mojito’s anyone?” Ava perked up immediately as though Sam had said the magic word. "Sammy, my man!" Ava hollered, rushing over to the bar, sitting on the stool next to the one Leon's impulsive ass knocked over. "I'll take two to start with and make sure mine is mostly alcohol. If I even get a whiff of fruity, I'm going to rub my ass all over that couch you just claimed!" She teased (mostly). Sam should know it was best not to test Ava, especially when it was clear as day that her good mood depended on how fast those mojitos were made.

---

Topic of the Day/Week/Whatever

"What's the best RP you've ever been in?"

@HaleyTheRandom

Truth be told, I have a lot and some for different reasons. I have a roleplay I love because of the character depth, a few because it's in a setting I really enjoy. But, if I really think about it, there was one roleplay that was a tad short-lived but it's one that always stays true to my heart. It wasn't on this site (although a lot of the characters spawning from this rp have evolved into characters I use today).

It was a Bleach RP and I remember it being one of my favorites for a lot of reasons but I think it was honestly because one of my favorite characters I've ever created made their first appearance in that roleplay.

And side note: it was the first rp I got to flex my villainous muscles and see how much I could get away with in terms of writing sexual on a public forum that didn't necessarily allow that sort of thing.

World Beyond the Lexicon

<Snipped quote by Matsuri>

Oh just a quick note: the arena that they're using is magically enhanced to minimize the damage to the surrounding environment so that's why Nyx told them to go all out.

@Blu

Ey that's perfect. Now if Caelum dies, at least we know he would have gone out fighting his best fight!

World Beyond the Lexicon

>Caelum vs Alberta

This will either be the biggest surprise of the lineup by being evenly matched or Caelum is gonna get creamed so bad you might as well call him Butter Tempesta.

World Beyond the Lexicon

Sorry if I've been absent lately. My sleeping schedule has been very effed up and been trying to fix it and it's been messing a lot of things I wanted to do.

Anyway, threw up a last minute Caelum post!

World Beyond the Lexicon

---

Location — Avalice Academy Plaza
@Blu

---

Like all good things in this world, Caelum's conversation with Ines the Silver came to an end in a few different ways. The commotion with Ty and one of the other Miracle Seven diverted any and all attention over to wherever it was that they were only for someone to say that Ty had one. Caelum didn't know what he won or even what sort of game they were playing. The only thing he knew to be a fact was Ines looked annoyed and he mirrored her reaction (for his own reasons, of course).

"This is your professor speaking. The afternoon class session starts in fifteen minutes. So get your asses back to the lecture hall, now."

Suddenly he heard the voice of his professor in his head. For a minute, Caelum had thought he was just hearing things, that maybe his excitement and possible dehydration from the dream that came true of meeting Ines and having a decent conversation (in which he didn't make a complete fool of himself) had resulted in him hearing voices that weren't really there. It wasn't until he looked around beyond Ines and Weyrose that he saw some of his classmates reacting in the same way he did, prompting him to stand up. "I am so sorry!" Caelum bowed to both Ines and Weyrose. "I have to get back to the lecture hall. But.." He stopped himself, trying to find the right words to use, looking at Ines. His eyes, which were shoddy and grey like a neutral cloud now lit up with an electric blue tint in the background of green. "If you're ever around here in the near future and you have the time, I would love to have that sparring match with you!" He said with a grin before heading into the direction of the lecture hall.

Avatar | The New Cycle

I really want to join this but my RP slate is full as it is. So I will root from the sidelines and lurk this like it's nobody's business.

Okay seriously, good luck with this fantastic roleplay!

Palm Beach Royals: Senior Year

As Stella watched Archer slide in a few comments here and there, she mostly kept her eyes elsewhere, occasionally glancing towards the dancefloor. She saw Kavi and Chrissie's outrageous moves that immediately forced her to divert her gaze elsewhere. It was then she saw Marisol and that Ryland Aspen walked over to the DJ booth and seemingly talking to the man in charge of forging the dance's soundtrack. She shrugged as she danced in place, minimally rocking her hips back and forth. Pillowtalk was such a banger and even if she didn't have anyone to dance with to it, she didn't mind grooving to it as Santiago and April caught up.

Truth be told, Stella wanted to find Carter, but for humble reasons, she had convinced herself staying by Santiago's side was the right thing to do, especially since April and Archer had just excused themselves to the dancefloor. Looking at them, she smiled and she had to think that Santiago was happy as well. She didn't want to assume that she knew what he felt, but it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out Santiago. Once she got to know him a little better, his tells were as obvious as Chrissie's dress was atrocious to look at. She knew he was happy that April was enjoying herself. Stella knew that her happiness meant the world to Santiago and something about how much he loved her made the brunette giggle for some reason.

"Oh, sorry," she said, giggling still. She tried to end her giggling fit and went back into silence. She looked away from her date and around the ballroom, once more searching for Carter. To her delight and butterfly-flapping, nerve-filled stomach, there he was, looking as delicious as he was sweet. Every inch of her body that could stay standing trembled and shook with such a pulse-pounding, intense feeling that for some reason she waved at him as he talked to Nicole. "CARTER OVER HERE!" Before she could stop herself, her voice screeched out at ear-deafening levels. If he wasn't able to see her before, now she was sure he could. "Oh my god, Santiago what did I just do..." She looked at her date, seeking an answer -- and possibly advice -- about the heart-sinking mistake she just made.

Or maybe it wasn't.

Ugh, she didn't know. All she knew was that Carter was walking towards them and every step felt like she was that much closer to her grave.

Sentaku

_{A @metanoia, @Fabricant451, and @Hey Im Jordan Collaboration}

---

Now that they were in the forest, they were almost at the point where they could have fun. And, luckily, he’d found his lucky charm before they’d left the house that morning. In fact, with the way his luck had been so far today, he was almost certain they’d run into a squad composed completely of beautiful, foreign women from other villages! There was a chance he could even meet a beauty from the mysterious land of Rain… Looking over his shoulder at his group, Kai wiped the dripping blood from his nose with the back of his hand, and sniffed.

“Let’s work hard to find some gorgeous babes here, guys. This is my chance to make a good impression.” Kai said, sniffing again before looking out at the forest in front of them. Here in the forest, he was in his element — all he needed now was some cute girls to show off to, and he’d be right at home. Squad 4 was already considered one of, if not the strongest Konoha squad by many people, and this was their first real chance to prove it. Blowing a door off its hinges hardly counted! That was baby stuff, he could do that in his sleep.

“Just think! Right now, there could be a damsel already in distress in the Forest of Death, waiting for Kai the magnificent to swoop in and save her. It’s up to us to find them!” Kai was far from the team captain of Squad 4, but here in the forest, it seemed like he was far and away the most passionate about their current mission.

“Kai!” Ren snapped his head at Kai with almost as much quickness as he did when he swung his blades, eyes glaring at his squadmate. “We aren’t here so you can get lucky. Keep your eyes on the prize.” The coldness in his eyes refocused on the mesh of trees in front of him. “Once we have secured our passage into the next round, then we can pursue personal missions.” Maybe, to Kai, that meant finding a voluptuous kunoichi to serenade or fondle, but for Ren, that meant getting his hands on a certain Senju.

That they had made it to the forest wasn’t a miracle, they’d had time to prepare for it and they weren’t exactly slouches in the department of genin ability; what had been a miracle was that they made it with someone like Kai having his mind on anything other than the task at hand. Mai knew better than anyone how...singular minded her brother could be and how incorrigible he was besides; if anyone was to jeopardize their opportunity it would be him. “Don’t tell him to keep his eye on the prize; his prize is some stupid fantasy like that.” Mai was already coming close to sighing like a disappointed parent and they’d been in the forest all of a minute. “We’ re not here to save anyone, we’re here to get what we need and get to the end. The quicker the better. We find some squad stuck in the nerves and fear of the situation, we take them out, we let nothing stop us from getting through, agreed?”

“What, like rush ourselves through the thing? Why would we do that? It’s a beautiful forest, we can take it slow. This is a great place for me to serenade someone!” Kai was protesting rather quickly, but he knew he was going to be overwhelmed. There was no way he could stop and smell the roses if they had to get in, and get out fast. Kai had to think of something, and fast. Knowing that his sister would push hard for the stealthy approach, Kai figured now was his chance to try a last ditch effort style play. With only one option, Kai figured he had to go for the pride. “Y’know, Jiren, if we took our time and got two sets of scrolls, I bet it’d really solidify us as the top squad vs Squad 1.” Maybe it was Kai’s lucky day.

It bothered him beyond his own comprehension just how sound Kai’s logic was. To Ren, Kai had always been something of a moron who followed nothing more but what fell beneath his waist and who was often emboldened by Shion-Sensei’s attitude, which was always a questionable, enabling dynamic. But right now, as he weighed what he knew right in what Mai had said and what would get him to the end goal he personally wanted to pursue, which aligned with Kai’s suggestion. On one hand, he knew Mai’s route was more efficient and wouldn’t complicate them in any regard, but the longer he sat with the unresolved feelings dwelling in his heart, it froze everything else out, making the choice all too clear for him.

Cocking a smirk, Ren cracked his knuckles. “Sometimes, Kai, there’s a method to your madness,” Ren said chuckling. Not once did he ever see himself uttering those words out loud.

“No, no there isn’t a method, and I expected better from you, Ren, than to get swept up in his nonsense.” What was it about these two and their pointless pursuit of excess and pointless risk taking? It was an arrogance thing, for sure, why they couldn’t just be satisfied at being the first team to succeed which was a feat in itself was beyond her. Being a ninja wasn’t about showing off or chasing pointless squabbles under the guise of pride or whatever, but that seemed to be all the boys of the squad cared about, much to Mai’s eternal chagrin. They might call it being overly strict or unfun or any number of negative terms, but to Mai it was more like having to wrangle two rowdy children who never learned their lesson. She was far too young to be a mother but she clearly couldn’t even rely on sensei given her brother’s ‘lucky charm’ so if that’s what she would have to act like then so be it.

“If you idiots - because that’s what you’re acting like - want to keep being idiots and risking everything because you’re godsdamned idiots then be idiots AFTER we advance. You do know this is an exam, right? Which means they’re probably watching us and no chuunin ever became a chuunin by taking selfish, pointless risks! Think with your brain having head for a change, Kai.” Mai was frustrated and her team would have to deal with it.

“You don’t know what comes after this, why would you bother risking everything on some pointless endeavour? It doesn’t make you or us better by wasting time and seeking out unnecessary conflict. What you’re doing is going against orders for no good reason. If you two idiots ruin my chance at this, not only will I never forgive you, but I’ll ensure the both of you will never have the ability to infect the world with little versions of you. If you catch my meaning.” Of all the times Mai wished she had an apple or something to crush in her hands, this was certainly one.

“I don’t care if you have issues with another team, settle it somewhere else. We get there first, we’re still the team to beat. Kai, unless you have anything wise to say, shut up. And Ren, don’t listen to my idiot brother lest you become an even bigger idiot yourself. Now let’s go, no distractions. I want to pass.”

“We’re gonna pass anyway! We’re the strongest team,” Kai protested, dragging his hand along one of the trees. The fact they were as powerful as they were was part of the reason he wasn’t bothering with ‘stealth.’ What kind of shinobi was stealthy anyway? Stealth didn’t earn you style points with any voluptuous, bodacious babes. In fact, it’d do the opposite! If he was silent and sneaky all the time, then the Hokage — or worse, Shion-sensei — was going to take all of his credit! Being a shinobi was about being cool and flashy — silence stuff was for the ANBU black ops, not the cannon fodder.

“I’m thinking ahead of the game, sis. If we eliminate more than one team here, then there’s less people we’ll be competing with in the next part!” Maybe that logic could convince her. The more people they beat up the more chances he had to save stunning kunoichi from foreign villages. Kai had to keep his eye on the prize, which wasn’t really a Chunin jacket, but more importantly about becoming popular. If everyone knew his name, then it’d be way easier to get a date. The jacket was just an accessory to help with the goal. “C’mon, Mai, we’ve never had a real chance to test the limits of our abilities! This is it. We can make Shion-sensei proud.”

“Relax, Mal! Like Kai said, we’ll pass this exam, but!” Ren gripped the handles of his two swords with a clear feeling of anxiety, a feeling of impatience, but most importantly, Ren was excited. He normally didn’t have this thirst, but combined with his team and the singular goal of fighting that Senju from Squad 1 again was fueling his will of fire more than anything else could. “That doesn’t mean we can’t have our fun along the way!” He shot Kai a grin, taking his position next to the boy.

“If you think this will make sensei proud then you don’t actually listen to sensei at all.” Mai wasn’t willing to just accept this without putting her foot down, she wasn’t going to simply go with what her brother and Ren wanted - and if they thought this was some kind of majority rules thing then they would be sorely mistaken. “Think for one second. You’re suggesting we get four scrolls when we just need two and we have no way of knowing which team has which scroll. Your plan is to mess around, fail to impress anyone other than yourself, and act like the superior team by picking fights? You don’t have a plan, Kai, and neither do you Ren. But I do. Now here’s the thing. I have our scroll. Mai held up their scroll of earth and promptly deposited it back in her satchel. “So you two can go off on your pointless, stupid, time-wasting endeavour, but I won’t be going with you if you do. If you’re so confident in yourselves, then while I get the one scroll we need, you idiots can waste your time and get two and we’ll see who gets to the end first.”

“If I were you, Ren, I wouldn’t go with Kai. He’s just as likely to be lured into a trap because a girl is pretending to cry than he is to become a great ninja.”

Ren laughed, choosing not to say anything in response to what Mai just said. Instead, as he readied himself for the final takeoff, he glanced at his team. With a deep breath, he glanced at the two. “With us around, there’s no way that’s going to happen.” Ren was convinced that he and Mai could guide Kai away from obvious traps. And if not, well then they’ll have to pick up his slack.

“It’s not a race sis, geeze. I don’t know why it’s such a big deal to want to have some action. But fine, whatever… We’ll do it your way, okay? We’ll just rush through the thing with minimal cool moments.” Kai huffed, pushing his hair out of his eyes. Didn’t she understand the problem with something like that? He wasn’t going to have a chance to run into any shinobi girls at this rate… “I’m just as strong as you are, sis, we’re like the strongest Konoha team and we’re gonna have to slink around the forest like a bunch of… a bunch of cowards. If we run into more than one team, we’re fighting them! Maybe we’ll just end up with two sets of scrolls through luck...” After all, Kai did have his lucky charm.

And so, with a grumbling Kai, Squad 4’s plan was set in stone.