𝐅𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐤𝐨 𝐇𝐲𝐮𝐠𝐚 | ᶠᵃᵗᵉ

4 | ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇʟʟ ᴛᴇsᴛ

-𝙁𝙖𝙩𝙚
chapter 4

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𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐤𝐨 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐨 hid themselves under the bushes nearby, Akemi immediately rushed towards Kushina sensei. He barely waited for the test to begin before impulsively taking action. Not the most ideal strategy for a shinobi, but he was only a genin, after all. Swiftly charging towards her, he formed the hand signs for a particularly familiar jutsu. Fumiko had never tried the jutsu herself, but she instinctively recognized the hand signs.

Fire Style, Fireball Jutsu.

Releasing the jutsu, as he exhaled a large, concentrated burst of flames from his lungs, Akemi launched his attack.

"What a fool," Taishiro murmured.

Taishiro was right, Fumiko thought. What kind of idiot carelessly steps into battle... without any sort of plan?

Kushina didn't have to make any sort of effort to avoid the attack. She dodged it with ease, and a grin emerged on her face. "Is that all you got?"

Akemi scoffed in frustration. He grabbed a handful of shuriken from his toolkit, launching them towards her. Kushina held out a kunai in a defensive position; her arm raised slightly above her body to shield herself, and used it to deflect the airborne shuriken. She then launched her kunai at Akemi, where it pierced through the thin, protective layer of clothing, puncturing the layer of bare skin, where it had hit him.

Except it didn't hit him. Where Akemi was standing just a second ago, a log had appeared in his place.

It was, without a doubt, substitution.

The real Akemi had snuck up right behind his sensei. He jumped at her, with his body positioned for an attack. He reached his hand out and clenched his fists, ready to throw a punch. But before he could get the chance, Kushina grabbed his arm, shifting her body weight, and propelled him forwards. He collided into a tree, where, swiftly and suddenly, a rope managed to ensnare his leg and force him upwards while he lay dangling from the tree upside down. He had fallen into a trap.

"I appreciate your enthusiasm," Kushina noted, "but a ninja must never carelessly enter into battle like that— you still have a lot to learn."

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It had been hours since the bell test started, and without any food, nor any water. In fact, she hadn't eaten anything since yesterday, as they were all advised not to. They had only up until noon to complete the bell test, and yet they had already wasted more than half of that time.

Fumiko watched from a distance. Chakra flowed towards her eyes, activating her dojutsu:

Byakugan.

She the. glared into the morning sky— the endless blue abyss, the array of light gray clouds, the vivid sunlight illuminating the sky while slowly rising across the horizon. It was truly a magnificent scene. But as she was struck with a sudden realization, she was quickly awoken out of her trance. The position of the sun signified her time growing hastily closer to midday; which meant that her time was running out. Her focus was redirected towards the forest terrain as she calculated her next move.

But then, she noticed something.

Her gaze was instantly drawn to the ropes dangling from the tree. Specifically, it was the tree that Akemi had previously been caught in during the beginning of the test. The ropes had been slashed, and judging by the way the ropes had been cut, it was done by a kunai.