Ren-sama's Note:
Here's the next chapter!! Please enjoy~!! ᶺoᶺ
.
Chapter 23
"I thought you would at least listen to your brother." Sasuke voiced quietly as we all walked towards the Stadium.
I did not answer him. I didn't need to because we both knew it was pointless anyway.
Sasuke's group members were following us from behind. They all looked surprised to see us together earlier but none of them commented since the situation didn't allow it. I could feel them staring at my back but I did not dare look behind me to confirm. It's better for me too since I didn't think I would want to blush right now of all times.
It was kind of embarrassing when they saw us having a little argument earlier. Sasuke kept on insisting that I listen to Nagato and refrain from going to the Stadium. They knew there's no way I would do that and yet they were still adamant on stopping me. I was a Fighter too, for Kami's sake.
I didn't want to be the only one who would get away while I knew that everyone, including Sasuke and aniki, would fight. I'd rather be hurt together with them than escape pain on my own. Sasuke and aniki of all people should know how that would feel. Aside from the deep humiliation, there's also the fact that it would make me feel so helpless and weak.
I walked by Sasuke's left side and Sai on his right. Kimimarou and Yahiko walked in front of us without talking. Their auras seemed tense.
I closed my eyes. I knew I showed some humiliating side of me earlier when I first felt those ominous chakra coming from the Akatsuki. But now that I've become accustomed to the feeling, I found out that it was kind of childish to be overwhelmed and intimidated by just feeling it. The real deal wasn't even in front of me and I acted so out of character. Or maybe I was just shocked... Or maybe, the fact that I could walk with my own two feet now was because Sasuke said those words to me...
"Don't worry. I'll definitely protect you."
I closed my eyes as I remembered the feeling I had then. I thought it would feel humiliating to be told those words. The way Sasuke said them, however, didn't make me feel like he was belittling my abilities. It felt like he was genuinely promising me that he would do it, no matter what happened. And that made the difference...
Now that I thought about, I could feel some glares from behind me. Neji and Karin huh... I couldn't help but scowl. I thought I already knew what must be going on inside the minds of those two. They must be itching to ask what the hell was going on between me and Sasuke.
"So..." Contrary to all belief, however, it was Gaara who opened his mouth. "The two of you are going out?" Everyone actually stopped walking and stared at him in bewilderment. Who would have thought that it was him who'd ask the one-million-dollar question? He seemed to have sensed some disbelieving stares so he added, "...It's just to clarify things before the battle."
Sasuke looked at my stunned face before he looked at his subordinates with his usual cool and bored expression. "Yes, we are. Is there a problem with that?" And the bastard even crossed his arms over his chest as he wore a scowl.
I actually looked at him with wide eyes, barely controlling the urge to gape and face-palm. What the heck was he being so surly for??? He definitely looked like he was daring anyone to try arguing or something like that.
"Y-Y-You're... d-d-dating...?" Karin looked like she was about to faint from too much shock and information overload. "..." And she did.
Neji looked aghast. It seemed he wanted to say something since he opened and closed his mouth several times but he was at a loss for words. Even Sai who seemed to have figured everything out must have been quite surprised since Sasuke voiced it out loud without any reservation. Suigetsu looked like he was on the verge of passing out too. Gaara, the person who asked, merely nodded before he started walking once again.
Jugo simply blinked before he grinned. "So he already accepted huh, Sasuke. Congratulations." And the bastard actually looked smug as he smirked.
"Of course." He voiced out and I actually wanted to smack him on the head.
Somehow, I found everything truly embarrassing.
And when I finally thought everything was over... Oh, wait! There's more! Ugh... Kimimarou and Yahiko who were just some meters away were looking at us with different expressions. Kimimarou's eyes were wide, as if he couldn't believe what he just heard. Yahiko, on the other hand, had the same expression as Neji. It seemed as if he was just given a difficult mathematical question and he had no idea on what to do with it.
"Should we really be wasting time here?" Gaara voiced out. He must have noticed that all of us, except him, were still frozen in our spots.
Everyone actually looked at him with murderous expressions. Wasn't it his fault that we were interrupted in the first place!?! Ugh... Sasuke, your subordinates really were just like you!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The stadium was packed with students as usual. It was almost time for the first break before lunch so there were even those who were eating. However, the one thing that was so different today was the fact that the place was so quiet even though there were probably thousands of people present. It seemed they really did invite only those C Class and above but all the other students were also ushered to the audience seat to watch. After all, how could the Akatsuki ascertain their power if there was no spectator?
And thus, I was seated in the first few rows in front together with Sasuke and the other first-years while Kimimarou and Yahiko went back to where the rest of the third-years were. There were also some second-years among us too since almost all of Sasuke's subordinates were a year above us.
The Akatsuki were the ones sitting in the usual seats reserved only for the Four Knights. They were all wearing black cloaks with red clouds drawn as a symbol. One of the four people sitting on the special chairs was a creepy-looking masked man who looked so bubbly he was almost out of place. Another person was an even creepier-looking guy with gray hair. I saw him on the photo frames in that room earlier. He had darker skin than the rest of them and wielded a really large and menacing scythe. The more I observed each and every one of them, the creepier they looked. The third person on the seat was a man who looked more like a shark than anything else. He had huge circular eyes like that of a fish and... were those gills I see on his neck?? The fourth person was the palest of them all... or probably the one who looked more like a corpse. I could almost see stitches all over his face and arms. Ugh... this was getting more and more bizarre. It looked to me as if they weren't even human anymore.
The only ones who mostly resembled humans were the blonde Deidara and the redhead Sasori. They were sitting beside one another just a few rows behind their four companions. Since they had more members, the rest were sitting just behind their rows. There were most likely twenty to thirty people wearing those cloaks. However, the six people I mentioned were the only ones we should be wary of. I could feel that the others were also strong but they were still at a level where students like me could handle them. Those six people, however, felt as if they were stronger than even aniki or Kimimarou.
I knew that even if they did coerce us into going here, it's not like they would be able to harm us all at once. This was the Sentouki Tournament and they did say they wanted to join in the 'fun.' They were most likely planning for a real fighting tournament, either one-on-one, by group, or even battle royale. They were already powerful enough to make everyone obey. They would surely try to enjoy themselves as much as they could.
The only thing I was probably glad about in this fight was the fact that none of my newly found friends were included. The highest magatama holders among my friends were Shikamaru and Kiba but they were only D Class, wearing a red magatama. Sakura was a medic while Ino, Chouji, and even Konohamaru wore only yellow magatama, the symbol of E Class. Lee and Haku, both second-years, were probably the only acquaintances I have who were included. Lee was a C Class like me while Haku was part of B Class.
On the other hand, all of Sasuke's subordinates were included in the fight. The only other first-year, Gaara who wore a white magatama, was A Class. Second-years Neji and Jugo also were also A Class while Sai and Suigetsu wore the violet magatama of B Class. Only Karin had the same color of magatama as I did.
Most of the other Knights' subordinates were also included in the upcoming fight. I could see aniki speaking to his subordinates while his eyes remained glaring at the Akatsuki. Kimimarou was simply glaring at them, his lips pursed downwards into an almost audible scowl. The only cheerful Knight, Bee, was mumbling to himself while writing something in a small notebook. He was most likely composing rap lyrics again. I couldn't help but smile at that. No matter what happened, some things would just never change.
"Are you alright?" I was forced back into the present when I heard Sasuke's quiet but clear voice.
I looked at him and nodded. I wanted to ask him if he was okay too but I refrained myself. Simply seeing his cold dark eyes as he gazed upon those Akatsuki bastards was already enough of an answer for me.
The masked Akatsuki suddenly hopped from his seat towards the middle of the stage. And as if in the middle of a performance, he even waved a hand at the audience who simply remained silent.
"Hello, everyone~!!" He voiced as he took out a microphone from within his cloak. I immediately recognized him as the one who made the announcement earlier. If I remembered correctly, he said his name was Tobi. He seemed to be the Akatsuki spokesperson. It seemed I wasn't the only one who noticed it since there were suddenly some murmurs among the audience too. "As you might have already noticed, this is me, Tobi~!!"
He was way too cheerful for our liking and there were already some students who were visibly glaring at him. Tobi, however, didn't act as if he noticed anything.
"He's the one leading all those Akatsuki members who are present right now. He's also the most powerful member among the ones who are here." Sai spoke quietly on Sasuke's other side. "Since the Akatsuki is a crime organization, they must be divided into several groups. And this particular group's leader is definitely Tobi." When we both looked at him for confirmation, the raven simply smiled. "I got it from a reliable source of information."
I couldn't help but look at the person named Tobi again. He didn't look like he was their leader at all. He seemed more like a lackey than anything else. But Sai's information was proven to be true until now so it wouldn't really be that hard to believe. Also, to think that this was not the whole Akatsuki group even though there were already more than thirty members.
"I would like all C Class and above to participate in the Sentouki Tournament that the Akatsuki organized." Tobi continued. "Akatsuki does not care whether you were already ousted in the previous rounds. All of you will still participate in this upcoming game that we have prepared."
"Tch..." Sasuke voiced just beside me. "They think they can just march in here and ruin everything. Those f*cking bastards..." Sasuke's language was crude but I still couldn't help but agree with his words.
Tobi cleared his throat once when the murmurs were getting louder before he continued again. "Now, I want everyone to form a group of eight and come here on the stage to pass a paper containing their group and members' names. Those of you who will not be able to form a group of eight within the next 5 minutes will be grouped with whoever is available so please do not hesitate to group up." He ended his statements with a small chuckle just as the huge screens above the stage displayed the time remaining for everyone to form a group.
For a short moment, nobody was able to grasp the situation immediately and everyone was simply still staring at Tobi who was already looking at his wristwatch. But then some students started murmuring about it and then all of a sudden the students were trying to recruit strong members into their group.
Sasuke subtly intertwined our hands together without looking at me. I was surprised enough to look at him and his cool expression still looking at the stage, as if he didn't know what just happened. I hid a blush before I looked in front as well.
I really didn't know what he was thinking at all. I knew that we're dating now and all... but whether he had feelings for me or not was still very unclear. And yet, and yet, just doing something as simple as holding my hand was enough to make me fall for him once more. I closed my eyes as I basked in the warmth of his palm.
I really, really hoped that everything would turn out alright in the end... because I didn't want Sasuke and aniki, and the rest of my friends for that matter, to get hurt.
When I opened my eyes again, Sasuke was already looking behind his shoulder – at his other subordinates – without letting go of my hand. He was about to give some commands but then he blinked and counted us all. Including me, his group already consisted of eight people, namely: Sasuke himself, Sai, Jugo, Karin, Neji, Gaara, and Suigetsu. "I guess there's no need to find more people."
Karin, however, seemed to have some objections. "S-Sasuke-sama, are you sure we should... um... include him?" He then pointed at me as if I would only drag their team down. I couldn't help but glare at her. Gah, this woman sure was annoying.
I was about to say something in order to at least salvage my pride when I felt Sasuke's grip on my hand get tighter before he arched an eyebrow at her. "What's the problem? He's a C Class Fighter just like you." At that, she wasn't able to say anything else anymore. She looked like she was sulking because her ultimate crush scolded her but I didn't feel bad for her. Yeah, I already knew full well I was evil.
Neji, on the other hand, didn't let it go at that. "Namikaze doesn't have that much experience, Sasuke. He might only drag the team down." He actually said it bluntly when even Karin was trying to find the right words to voice it out. This annoying bastard... He's making Karin look like an angel in comparison. He even glared at me before he continued. "I know he's your lover, Sasuke. But he's just not in the same league–"
"If you have any problem with it, join another group." Sasuke's voice was so cold as it cut off the rest of Neji's annoying sentence that even I was unable to say anything. His glare was also deadlier than normal so I didn't dare speak anymore. Really, Sasuke must really have multiple personality disorder, if I may say so myself. It seemed this time the demon king Sasuke was the one controlling his body. Even Neji and the others were unable to retort.
Of course, Sai was not normal so he didn't care about the situation at all. "Don't bully Naru-chan. The Black Knight will definitely get angry." He wasn't the type to fear Sasuke so he didn't care what happened next as long as he could say whatever nonsense was on his mind. He grinned at us before he glanced at our clasped hands and I couldn't help but blush a bit. Really, he was on Sasuke's other side but he was as sharp as ever, this annoying fake-smile freak.
"Hmph!" Karin huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. Neji only glared at the ground but didn't say anything either.
Sasuke didn't even recognize Sai's words. "...Anyone else who has anything to say?" When no one voiced anything, the raven looked in front again.
"Shall we write our names on a piece of paper now?" Suigetsu asked, looking at everyone for confirmation.
Before anyone could answer back, the students' murmurs turned louder so we were all distracted. Everyone was looking at the stadium balcony behind the Akatsuki's chair and I couldn't help but follow their gaze. My eyes widened in both relief and confusion when Orochimaru, the school chairman, appeared on the balcony. He sat in one of the chairs together with the other Noble students. Behind him stood his personal assistant Anko. The two of them didn't look like they were harmed, but they didn't look very happy either. I was still looking at him when Jugo stood up from behind our row and started walking towards the stage together with other students who were also holding a piece of paper.
They all gave their papers to Tobi who even thanked them for cooperating.
It took a few more minutes before everyone was able to submit their papers and settle down. Tobi used this time to allow Orochimaru to give some sort of speech to the students to 'calm' us down even a little bit before the game starts.
The Chairman didn't say much but he did apologize for the current situation. He said that the Akatsuki was allowed to participate in the Sentouki Tournament this year to prevent them from attacking the students indiscriminately anymore. It seemed he was the one who proposed that very idea to Tobi when the latter visited his office, resulting in the earlier announcement through our magatama. Orochimaru was also the one who appointed the Fighter level who would participate in the games. Akatsuki wanted all students to participate but Orochimaru stood his ground and said that he would only allow C Class students and above to join in the game. He even hinted that all would definitely turn out fine and all we had to do was play with the Akatsuki for now. That was the hardest part of all.
"Now that we've all settled down, we shall start the Akatsuki Sentouki Tournament that everyone has been waiting for!!" Tobi voiced through his microphone. "I can't help but be very excited to see the strength of the Fighters this year! And for that, I've prepared a really simple game for everyone to enjoy – the game of Tag!"
"Tag?" I voiced quietly just as other students had baffled expressions as well. It was a much simpler game than we thought.
"Don't celebrate just yet." Sasuke voiced beside me. "Even a game of janken can be very deadly if they were the ones organizing it." Right. I nodded in assent at that.
"This game of tag, however, is a little different from the conventional tag game!" Tobi continued his explanation. "Two teams will play the game together, each with their own 'It'. The purpose of the team is actually to capture the enemy's It while protecting their own. The game will only end if the It was either captured or unable to continue the game. This is easy, right?" I couldn't see Tobi's expression from underneath his mask but I was so sure he had a huge grin displayed on his face. "And here's the good part, you can all use any means necessary in order to capture the It. Pretty entertaining, right?"
I wanted to comment on that last part but I realized that the games concocted by the Chairman were actually no different from theirs. It was indeed a simple game but I knew for a fact that the students involved would definitely resort to violence and fighting in order to win. I would not be so hypocritical here in thinking that the Akatsuki was about to force us into harming other students. Even without the Akatsuki's intervention, the games in the Sentouki Tournament would still end up being bloody and gruesome anyway. So I would not say the Akatsuki were the bad guys and we, the students, were the victims. Perhaps, there actually was no victim here. This game was no different from the previous games we've had so far and I knew that nobody here would object to the fighting part either.
So... the only problem would probably be... the Akatsuki themselves.
If they were to participate in this game and meet a much weaker group, it would definitely be total annihilation.
"The team will be the one to decide on who their It will be and what kind of strategy they want to have. As long they can capture the enemy's It, any method is actually okay!" Tobi voiced with so much enthusiasm.
I was still nervous about everything. And I may be naïve in thinking this, but I thought it would probably be okay for everyone as long they would not be pitted against Akatsuki.
"By the way, dear students!" Tobi's voice sounded like he was about to announce something important so everyone tried to listen very well. "In order to make everyone participate with more enthusiasm, I want to announce that we will grant one wish for all those who will win the final round!"
"Did he just say 'wish'?" I heard the students questioning about it amongst themselves.
"Wealth, fame, power, among other things... the Akatsuki can grant them all." Tobi voiced with much confidence. "If you can win, that is."
"Can they really grant those things?" I asked with much skepticism.
"They most likely can." Sai answered even before Sasuke could open his mouth. I hid a grin when Sasuke glared at Sai because of that. Sai, however, simply let out a fake smile and continued. "Akatsuki is a criminal organization that specializes in all sorts of crimes. They will definitely be able to grant wealth, power, or fame to anyone who desires it."
"However, granting that wish will definitely come at a heavy price." Sasuke voiced afterwards. "By granting someone wealth, they will make sure to take that same wealth from another person. Not to mention that the one whose wish was granted will definitely be indebted to them. It's something as simple as that."
"...Any questions so far?" Tobi asked with a gentle voice, implying he wouldn't get angry in case anyone was to question anything. However, no one raised their question or opinion so he simply shrugged and with all his might shouted, "LET THE AKATSUKI GAME BEGIN!!!" He ended his declaration with an evil laugh and I would have sweat-dropped if it weren't for the seriousness of the situation.
And I already said this earlier, but I would still say it now.
I was naïve.
The Akatsuki wasn't the only threat.
Many students knew just how powerful the Akatsuki was and they knew that whatever wish they had could be easily granted if they were to win the game. I knew just how vicious and troublesome the students of Konoha Gakuen were. But even I was frozen in my seat the moment the game started. The words 'bloody' and 'gruesome' were severe understatements to what I was witnessing firsthand.
I could barely feel Sasuke's cold trembling hand intertwined with mine.
Aniki, I thought I was seeing hell for the first time.
.
.tbc.
.
Ren-sama's Note:
Yup, this is it for now~! Thank you for understanding my slow updates, everyone!! Please leave some review!! ᶺoᶺ