Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Koorigakure Trio ❯ The First Exams ( Chapter 1 )

Person talking out loud”
‘Person thinking’
‘Kyuubi talking’
People talking telepatheticly

Chapter One
The First Exams
The Koorigakure Trio

Three figures stood on the branches of a tree. They were surrounded by a forest, and the full moon left plenty of light for the highly-trained shinobi to see by. They were there for the chuunin exams, which they wouldn’t have bothered entering if their Koorikage hadn’t ordered them to. The three of them were strong and everybody in the village respected them, so who cared about ranks? However, orders were orders, and it might be interesting to kick a few weaklings’ asses.
One was a male. Of average height and slight build, he looked graceful and maybe even fragile, something he most certainly was not. He looked to be about twelve or thirteen years old. He wore a black shirt with a splash of orange in the form of a spiral insignia on his back. His pants were black as well, with many pockets for storing weapons, medical supplies, and poisons. The boy wore an orange belt that had a pair of sais hanging from it. He also wore a half-face mask. (think like Kakashi’s) The male wore the standard kunai and shuriken holder tied onto his right thigh with bandages. The boy had blonde hair and bright, sky-blue eyes. He was known as Kaze Kitsune, the Wind Fox of Koorigakure.
Another was a female, of tall and lanky build. She was about thirteen, maybe fourteen. The girl had long light blue hair that was braided and reached until about midway down her back. She had silver colored eyes that moved quickly and noticed everything. She wore a mesh t-shirt, and a black tank top over that. She wore skin-tight black skater shorts, over which she wore a short white skirt that was split at the sides, allowing for movement. On the front part of the skirt was a six-pointed star, embroidered in light blue, her clan symbol. She had a white belt looped around her hips, and a kama hanging off either side of it. The girl was known as Rai Taka, the Lightning Hawk of Koorigakure.
The last one was a second male, of a stocky but tall build. (Not Chouji stocky, but well muscled) The boy looked to be about thirteen. He had chin-length brown hair that hung around his face and golden eyes. He also wore the typical black shirt and pants with a green hoodie over top of his shirt. The jacket had a red symbol on it, the outline of a pentagon. Poking out from the neck of the jacket were the hilts of a set of twin katana swords. This boy wore the typical kunai and shuriken as well, this time on his left thigh. He was known as Tsuchi Tora, the Earth Tiger of Koorigakure.
Each of them wore the symbol of Koorigakure, the hidden ice village, in the form of a snowflake carved into their hitae-ites. (sp?) The girl wore it around her neck, but both boys wore it around their foreheads, following tradition. Together, these three made up the elite of the ice, genin or not. All three of them had mysterious powers that only they completely understood. There were no secrets between them; they were the best of friends and teammates. They had all made one silent agreement: to kick ass in the upcoming chuunin exam. And that was exactly what they were going to do.
Three days later, outside of what looked like room 301…
The two genin blocking the door released the genjustu, and the room returned to what it really was, the second floor. A certain pink-haired girl was smirking triumphantly at the pair of genin. A trio of shinobi, who no one had noticed before, walked up to the offending genin. “And while you’re at it, release the crappy henge. I can see right through it.” “Hn.” The two genin released the henge that was holding them in the form of genin, replacing them with fully-grown chuunin. “Your group has some talent. However, I don’t think its good enough.” One of them said.
“You will let my team pass.” a soft voice said. The words carried clearly, and were laced with menace and a threatening tone. To top it all off, the one who made the command, the blonde-haired boy, started oozing killing intent. His teammates seemed unaffected; however, everybody else in the room was getting the shakes.
Sasuke was looking at the Koorigakure nin with shock, bordering on fear ‘This isn’t something any normal genin could do…Who are those three?!’ he wondered.
The offending chuunin backed down, and eventually the crowd dispersed, everyone trying to get as far away as possible from that killing intent. As soon as everyone left, Tora said “You didn’t have to be so harsh with them. We aren’t fighting jounins right now.”
“Sorry. Being back here is…difficult for me. It puts my nerves on edge.” Kitsune replied.
“Oh yeah! I forgot. You used to live in Konoha, right?” Taka asked.
“And just how many times have I told you that I don’t like to talk about it?!” Kitsune snapped.
“Sorry! Geez. Lighten up, Kit, or we won’t be able to pass.” Taka said
“I told you to stop calling me that! Or would you like it better if I called you ‘Hatchling’?!” Kitsune growled.
Taka just laughed. She could tell that her comment had loosened him up, and that he was just playing. “Come on Kit, or we’re going to be late!” Kitsune just muttered under his breath, mentioning something about Taka just asking for her tongue to be cut off. Tora grinned at that, and Taka mock-glared at Kitsune. After they finally managed to stop bickering, they walked into the exam room, and sat down in some empty seats.
They noticed a group of leaf shinobi making a huge fuss, not noticing that everyone was glaring at them.
“Idiots” Tora muttered.
“Yeah. They’re going to get themselves killed.” Taka agreed.
“I hope not. They all look like rookies, and they should get a second chance.” Kitsune said. “But I have to agree, unless they’re stronger then they look, they are going to die.”
Suddenly a few sound ninja ganged up on a silver-haired leaf shinobi. “See?” Taka said. “They’ve already made themselves enemies of the hidden sound, and by default, Orochimaru.”
All of the Koorigakure nins held their faces in disgusted expressions. All three had met with the snake sannin on more them one occasion, and none of them had been pleasant experiences. Suddenly, there was a puff of smoke along with a shout of “Quiet down you worthless bastards!”
Taka smirked. “Sounds like the proctors have arrived.”
She was right. When the smoke cleared, a whole bunch of adult chuunins appeared. The one standing at the front introduced himself. “I am Morino Ibiki, the examiner for the Chuunin Selection Exam’s first test.” The sadistic expression on his face made most of the genins start to sweat, but it made the Kaze Kitsune jumped for joy in his head. He knew a proctor like this could make an interesting exam. Ibiki raised a finger and pointed to the trio of Hidden Sound nin. “Hidden Sound guys, stop doing as you please before the exam.”
“I apologize…This is our first time…we got carried away…” the cyclops wrapped in bandages said.
“Bah…Here’s a good opportunity to say this…There will be no fighting without the permission of the examiner. Even if permission is granted, killing your opponent will not be tolerated. Those pigs that disobey me will be failed immediately. Do I make myself clear?” Ibiki stated clearly.
“Heh, this exam is sounding easy.” The black-haired male sound nin said.
A few chuunins smirked at the comment, but none offered up their own opinion.
“We will now start the first test. Instead of your current seating arrangements…you will pick one of these tabs and sit in the seat assigned to you. We will then hand out the exams.” Ibiki said.
At this, a few people started panicking. A paper test was NOT what most people had expected. Kaze Kitsune was feeling pretty down himself. He may have been a good fighter, but he was low on book smarts. But Kaze was sure his trademark stubbornness would find a way to wiggle through. If it didn’t… well, then he was sort of stuck. Kitsune sighed. He might as well get it over with.
Ibiki had started talking again. “Do not turn your tests over. Listen closely to what I am about to say. There are many important rules in this first test. I’ll write it on the board while I explain, but no questions are allowed, so listen carefully. The first rule: you guys all start off with ten points. The test is made up of 10 questions and each is worth one point, but…This test uses a subtraction system. Basically, if you answer all of the questions correctly, you keep your ten points. But say if you miss three questions…you lose three points and have seven. The second rule…this is a team test. Whether you pass or fail depends on the combined score of your teammates. So, each team will compete to see how many points they can get from a total of 30. The third rule is that during the exam, anyone caught by the testing officers doing sneaky activities, namely cheating…will have two points subtracted for every offence. So there will be some who will lose all their points during the exam and be asked to leave.”
At the mention of these rules, even the most experienced veterans were sweating buckets at the stress they were being put under. Tora felt bad for the rookies, who had never done this before. Technically, that included him, but his team didn’t count. They had been on A-rank missions, so surely they could handle this exam, however hard it may be.
“Realize that the pathetic ones that get caught cheating will be destroying themselves. As shinobis trying to achieve the level chuunin, be proud ninjas. And the final rule…those that lose all their initial points during the test or don’t answer any of the questions correctly…will be failed along with their teammates. The exam will last one hour…BEGIN!!”
Those that could immediately placed their pencil to the paper and started scribbling, while most of the people just looked at the test and tried to figure out just how they were supposed to answer these questions. Meanwhile, Rai Taka was trying to figure out the test. ‘Okay, there’s obviously some sort of trick… Most genin wouldn’t be able to answer these questions. And why are they making it so that it encourages cheating? There are so many examiners…And that odd comment …the pathetic ones that get caught cheating will be destroyi- Hey! That’s it! The pathetic ones that get CAUGHT cheating! This isn’t a test of our smarts! It’s a test of how well we can gather information! Now to tell the other two…’ Taka smirked and flipped her right hand over so that the inside of her wrist was facing up. On her arms were two tattoos the size of her thumbnail, one of an orange spiral and the other of a red pentagon. These tattoos allowed her to communicate with her teammates mentally, and were perfect for the situation at hand. Taka placed her middle finger and her forefinger on one of the tattoos and forced chakra into her fingers so that they glowed blue. All she had to do now was think of a phrase and her teammates would hear it.
Oi! Guys, the point of the exam isn’t to see how smart you are, it’s to see how well you can cheat! Rai Taka said.
Are you sure? I mean, I guess it’s possible, but… Tora said.
Tora, since when have I ever been wrong?
Good point.
Well, If we are supposed to cheat, can’t you use the Taka Seito* and then tell us the answers? Kitsune suggested.
Sounds good to me. I’ll give you guys the information as soon as possible. Taka said. And with that, she broke the connection by lifting her fingers off of her arm.
Rai Taka concentrated her chakra to her eyes, and when she opened them, they had cat-like slits. All of her senses had been increased by tenfold, but she toned all the others out except for her sight. The Kitsune Seito gave her eyes some of the abilities of the Byakugan, but she couldn’t see the chakra system. But it served her present purpose perfectly, and soon she had all the answers and gave them to her teammates as well.
Then, Ibiki once again stood up to the desk at the front of the room. “For the tenth question…These are the rules of desperation. First, for this tenth question, you must decide if you will take it or not. If you choose not to, your points will be reduced to zero and you will automatically fail, along with your two teammates. And now, the other rule. If you choose to take it...but answer incorrectly, you will lose the right to take the chuunin selection exams ever again.” Here Ibiki stopped, and got a sadistic smile that Kitsune was actually starting to hate. And to everyone’s annoyance, he started to chuckle. ‘I can’t believe he actually enjoys doing this...’ Kitsune thought. “You guys were unlucky. This year it’s my rules. But I am giving you a way out. Those that aren’t confident can choose not to take it…and try again next year. Now let’s begin the tenth question. Those who wish not to take it, raise your hand. Once your number is confirmed, leave.”
At this moment, everybody taking the test except for one lone kunoichi was in full-panic mode. These rules were insane, and both choices were bad. This Kunoichi just happened to be Rai Taka. Once again, she placed her fingers to the tattoos on her wrist to talk to her teammates.
Guys! He’s lying! There’s some sort of trick to it. I think he’s trying to test our determination. Taka said to her teammates.
Let me guess. The Taka Seito strikes again? Tora said
Yes. The Seito allows me to tell if people are lying like a sixth sense. Taka replied.
Hmm. That’s interesting. I’ll have to figure out a way to get everyone else determined too… Kitsune said thoughtfully. And with that he flickered out of his teammate’s minds.
And so their little conference ended.
“Just because you are a genin doesn’t mean you are weak. You could be as strong as an ANBU and still be a genin. Just because you haven’t taken the exams doesn’t mean you’re weak. I know that for a fact. My team could have been chuunin long ago; we just never bothered to take the exams. We’ve been on A-rank missions for kami’s sake. The only reason I’m here is because the Koorikage ordered us to. Being a genin isn’t all that bad, we just had to get strong enough so the Koorikage would let us on A and B-ranked missions. I, for one, don’t really care whether I pass the exam or not.” he said.
Everybody in the room realized the truth of the Kyuubi vessels words. The genin’s spines straightened, and the looks of uncertainty were replaced with determination.
‘What a kid…’ Ibiki thought. ‘With a few sentences he was able to turn everyone’s uncertainty into determination…impressive.’ The interrogation expert looked down and smirked, then looked up again. “Well then…To all those remaining…You pass!”
There were outraged shouts, and questions all around. Ibiki calmed down the examinees before continuing. Before he could explain the point of the test however, the blonde ice shinobi raised his hand. Ibiki, curious, motioned for him to speak.
“Can my team explain the meaning of the test? We have an example we wish to present.” The blonde asked, mouth tightening into a thin line. The head proctor nodded his assent, curious as to what the Koorigakure nins had to share. “Go ahead.”
The Koorigakure Trio stood up from their seats and moved to the front of the room. Ibiki made room for them, stepping aside. Kitsune stepped up and started speaking. “In the world of shinobi, there will be times that you must put the mission before your life. If one of these missions is assigned to you, do you refuse it? No! If you cannot accept this, then you are not fit to be chuunin. Below courageous, there is nothing.” The blonde said harshly.
“In this world, information is worth more than gold, and, sometimes, the lives of your precious people.” Kitsune closed his eyes in pain. Ibiki looked at the trio curiously. He knew there was a story behind that, and he didn’t have to wait long for it.
“It was a joint mission with Team 3, three years ago. It was B-rank, an escort through the Sound territory. We met a squad of the sound there, and they tried to bring us back to Otogakure, sure that we were sent to spy on them.
Unfortunately, Orochimaru was among this group. We lost the battle, if not by much. I actually took Kusanagi through the stomach during that fight.” The blonde said, reminiscing, as he pulled up his shirt to reveal a 5-inch long scar that sliced through his navel. All of the chuunin looked at the three genin with renewed interest. Anyone who could survive a fight with the Snake Sannin was worth at least some respect. He dropped the shirt and continued the story.
“Our teams were captured and carted to Otogakure. Once there, the Otokage took a special…interest in us. For two months we were subjected to his tender mercies, which are just a haze of pain and torture in my memories. Taka, Tora, show them.”
The blue haired kunoichi and the brown haired shinobi turned around and lifted up their shirts, to reveal their lower backs. They were crisscrossed with whip marks, burn marks, and other scars. The genin and chuunin of the room were horrified that someone of that age had gone through such obvious torture, while Ibiki’s eyes saddened, as he knew there was more than this.
Before Kaze Kitsune could continue, a certain pink-haired kunoichi interrupted him. “How come you don’t have any scars? Were you really tortured?” she asked.
Tora stepped forward angrily. “Of course he was! He almost died!” he said, eyes blazing.
“Tora!” Taka hissed. “Calm down!”
The doton used huffed angrily, but did as the kunoichi asked.
Kitsune turned again to the examinees. “One month into it, our sensei was skinned alive before our very eyes.”
Ibiki couldn’t help himself as his eyes widened and he gasped in shock ‘Skinned alive?! That’s horrible!’The tokubetsu jounin might be sadistic, but he would never put a child through what these three had obviously been through. Killing their sensei in front of them? That was just plain evil!
Around the room similar reactions were happening. None of the chuunin had an experience capable of comparison to that of the ice shinobi, hell, most of the current jounin didn’t have that kind of experience.
“Shizuka-sensei had been distracting our captors from us. If we had shared the torture equally, all three of us probably would have died. I put myself forward and stayed the focus of our captors until we were rescued by an Anbu squad. Team 3 had all been killed as well. Taka, Tora, and I were the only survivors.”
All of the genin were shocked. Did shinobi really go through this daily? If so, some of them were seriously considering quitting being shinobi. Some of the chuunin were shell shocked. This team must be extremely emotionally strong to be able to deal with this.
“That kind of thing doesn’t happen very often. We were just very, very, unlucky. That kind of seems to define our life…” the blonde said, trailing off.
For a few awkward minutes there was a heavy, uncomfortable silence until it was shattered by a purple haired woman crashing through the window. “Alright brats! This is no time to be…smiling?..” the tokubetsu jounin trailed off as she saw that everyone was looking slightly frightened, and not a single one was smiling, not even the proctors.
“Ibiki! What the hell did you do to the genin?! They won’t even be any fun to play with any more!”
The Morino sighed. “It wasn’t me. It was a story that these three here told.” He said, motioning to the Koorigakure Trio.
Anko raised an eyebrow as she surveyed the aforementioned genin. She nodded in approval as she noticed the glint in their eye that marked them as ones who had been through the trials of shinobi. “Alright brats, meet me at training ground 44 in 20 minutes!”
*Fuuko-chan*
Taka Seito: (Hawk Pupil) Rai Taka’s special ability, it is unique to her and NOT a bloodline ability, similar to the first’s mokuton.
Pairings Please! I’m floundering in the dark for the plot as well, so a nudge in the right direction would be awesome. Should Naruto be revealed during the preliminaries or later?
Reviews pretty please!
Kitsune: Puppy Dog Eyes no Jutsu!
Taka: Well, excuse Kit here, but my message is the same, if more polite.
Tora: Yeah! Read and Review! The two Rs!