I held my eyes closed tightly and waited for the hit. I never felt it and I looked up and realized there was a force field protecting all of us genin. There was dust in the air so they couldn't see us.
" Well what do you know, blew them all away." Zaku said.
" Not quite." Sasuke said beside him in a minute and hitting him. He slid against the ground and landed in front of his leader.
" Zaku!" The leader yelled. I felt myself getting dizzy, but I stood up anyways. Zaku started coughing.
" What the hell is that surrounding all of the Genin protecting them?" The leader looked at me suspiciously. They stared wide-eyed looking between Sasuke and me. Sasuke started doing hand signs causing Zaku and the leader to get even more scared.
" Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Sasuke yelled putting a hand to his mouth and breathing out fireballs.
" I don't think so. Try this!" Zaku yelled holding his hands up making air come out. The fire wore off and in the flames were shuriken. I felt a presence behind me and jumped away. I realized there was a fourth sound ninja. What the hell?
" Lord Orochimaru wanted me to make sure you was getting his message." A guy with black kind of spiky hair said looking me over.
" Stay away from me!" I spat pulling a kunai out, but stumbling a little bit.
" Is the girl weak from loss of chakra?" He mocked coming closer to me. I flinched back as he put his hand on my cheek. I tried backing away, but I was too dizzy.
" Don't touch me!" I hissed trying to jerk away from him.
" What are you gonna do about?" I growled at him. I tried hitting him with my kunai, but he easily grabbed my wrist making me drop the kunai. I heard a scream of agony and I looked back to see Sasuke had Zaku's arms in his hands breaking them. I closed my eyes tightly and images of all of my friends beaten flashed in my mind. The will to protect my friends coursed through me and I let chakra mode activate. I opened my eyes as the chakra radiated off of me. I barely hit the dude and he went flying through ten trees. I was in front of him in a second picking him up by his shirt. I ran over to the other sound ninja who were about to leave only one of them conscious. I dropped the guy in front of him.
" Make sure you don't leave behind your trash." I said walking over to Sasuke and my team. The leader was the only one left standing and he gave us the scroll and picked up his fallen teammates leaving. I sat down next to Sasuke and Sakura and watched them leave.
" Wait! Who is this Orochimaru anyway? What's he done to Sasuke and why Sasuke?" Sakura yelled.
" I can tell you about Orochimaru and what he's done to Sasuke and what he tried to do to me, but his intentions I have no idea." I said.
" I don't know," The leader said looking back, " all I know is that we were told to target Sasuke and apparently Ayame seeing as our teammate actually left our camp." Orochimaru's face flashed through my mind.
" Hey! You guys okay?" Shikamaru questioned, " Ino you go look after Lee since he's still out." I looked up and seen Neji staring at Sasuke and me. I looked down seeing Shikamaru run to us. I took myself out of chakra mode and sighed.
" Sakura's in danger. I'll protect her. Don't worry Sakura it's okay I'll save you!" Naruto muttered in his sleep and I sweat dropped. He had a goofy grin on his face.
" Who's Orochimaru?" Sakura questioned me. Sasuke trembled in fear holding his hand.
" Just what am I?" He questioned.
" I'll tell you after everyone is okay." I said sighing and standing up.
" AHHHH!!!" Naruto screamed being woke up. A bump formed on his head where Shikamaru and Choji hit him with a stick. Ino helped Lee to his feet, " Everybody hide! Quick, get down! That ninja where could she be hiding?" Naruto got on his stomach and looked around. I shook my head.
" Naruto?" Sakura questioned.
" My, oh so youthful teammate has finally awoke!" I said putting my hands out for a more dramatic point. I think I've been around uncle Gai too long?
" Not you too!" Tenten groaned. Choji started tapping the bump on Naruto's head.
" Hey! That's my first time ever saying that!" I said defending myself.
" You really are one of a kind that's for sure." Shikamaru said looking down at Naruto. Naruto looked up, " and I mean you're the kind that gets on my nerves." Naruto let out a groan. Naruto looked around and then he noticed Sakura's hair. Oh god!
" Oh no! Sakura! Sakura, Sakura, Sakura!" Naruto yelled jumping up and running over to her.
" What?" She questioned.
" Something serious happened and I mean something serious happened to your hair!" He said causing me to giggle and roll my eyes.
" Oh... That's all... I just wanted to uh.. change my look." She said smiling at him, " I like it better long, but when I'm out in the wilderness like this and I'm moving around all the time it gets in the way too much." She said.
" You don't plan on telling him what actually happened, do you?" I whispered in her ear and she shook her head no. I let out a sigh as Shikamaru and Choji walked over to us.
" So what's your story? Why are you guys here in the first place? What's going on around here?" Naruto questioned looking up and back at them. They both sighed and groaned.
" Explaining everything to you is gonna be such a pain." Shikamaru said.
" Everyone just showed up to help." Sakura cut in.
" I'll explain everything later." I whispered in his ear knowing that I would definitely be leaving out the me being a Jinchuriki part.
" What?" He questioned confused. Tenten jumped out of the tree and in front of Ino.
" I'll take care of him now, Ino." Tenten said meaning Lee.
" Uhh... Okay." She said. Tenten took him and started shaking him.
" Come on Lee! Get it together! Snap out of it!" I sweat dropped. He let out a groan.
" Tenten is that you?" He questioned, " What are you doing here?" He kind of slurred. I must have not fully healed him oh well.
" I came to help you out what do you think?" She said bending down getting eye level with him seeing as he was on the ground.
" Where are those sound ninja guys?" He questioned looking around.
" Sasuke and Ayame took care of them. Don't worry about it Lee." She said.
" Really?" He questioned looking from Sasuke to me.
" Just what were you thinking rushing in there all by yourself? Look at you, you're a total mess!" She exclaimed.
" I tried healing him, but I haven't had much practice!" I yelled over to them.
" Well, Sakura was in trouble so I had to do something, right?"
" That was pretty darn stupid don't you think?" She questioned.
" Well, I guess I cannot really argue with that." He said holding his knees against his chest. I walked over to them and slung my arm around his shoulders.
" If it wasn't for him holding them off as long as he did we'd be dead. Thanks Lee." I said giving him a smile. Naruto pointed a finger in Lee's face.
" Ah ha! I know you bushy brow!" I got an anime vein on my forehead and hit him up side the head.
" Hey! Knock it off! You better not say anything bad about Lee!" Sakura said punching him in the face. Naruto flew back and I giggled. Idiot! Lee was laughing at Naruto when Sakura turned to him.
" Lee?" Sakura asked.
" Huh?" Lee and Tenten questioned looking up at Sakura.
" Thank you. Because of you I was able to stand up for myself, and I've become a little stronger." She gave him a smile. Lee let out a small little whimper and looked like he was about to cry. Oh god!
" Thank you Sakura, but I guess my efforts alone," He rubbed the tears away, " were not good enough. So Sasuke you are as good as your reputation. Just what you would expect from the Uchiha clan," Lee put his head down, " to chase off those ninja you must be very strong. Not like me I just got beaten to a pulp." Sasuke's eyes widened, " Sakura, the lotus of the leaf village blooms twice."
" Huh?" She questioned. He smiled.
" When we meet again I will have become a stronger ninja. I promise." He said and Sakura gave him a smile.
" Hey Sakura! Come on over here! I wanna fix your hair for you okay?" Ino yelled waving her arm motioning for Sakura. Sakura looked at her suspiciously and then gave a weird smile.
" Yea, I'd like that!" She said to Ino.
Ino started cutting Sakura's hair and she whispered something. Sakura gave her a glare and said something back. I sweat dropped when I heard them start calling each other names. I looked around and Neji and my eyes made contact. I quickly looked away.
* Time skip*
I watched as Naruto and some of his clones jumped in a lake as Sasuke got ready to throw his kunai. When a fish would jump out of the water Sasuke threw his kunai at them so we could cook them and eat them. Naruto came out of the water gasping for air.
" Well? Is that it? Come on I only got four now go do it again!" Sasuke said.
" What?" Naruto sort of growled.
" I could eat four fish myself." Sasuke replied.
" Well if you think it's so easy why don't you get wet while I stand on the shore!" Naruto exclaimed and I let out a sigh.
" Sasuke!" Sakura yelled back from the fire pit, " The fire's ready to light I could use one of your fireballs." That sounds so weird. Sasuke let out a sigh.
" I gotta do everything around here." He muttered walking off. I stuck my tongue out at him while his back was turned.
" You do huh? Then what have I been doing?" Naruto yelled.
We all huddled around the fire as our fish cooked.
" Its already been four days since the second exam began." Sasuke said.
" That's right." Sakura said poking the fire with a stick.
" We're sure not going to break any records and we only have twenty-four hours left." Sasuke said staring down at the fire.
" I wonder how many teams have already got their scrolls and finished." She said. Our fish finished cooking and I grabbed the one Naruto was going to grab just to make him mad.
" Lets face it. There may not be anymore heaven scrolls left." Sakura said gloomily staring at the fire.
" Well that's a cheerful thought." Sasuke said sarcastically.
" Maybe so, but it's true. Look, you said it yourself Sasuke. This is the fourth day we've been out here. That means we've already used up eighty percent of the time we've got to complete the exam. Only thirteen teams can pass because there are only thirteen pairs of heaven and earth scrolls, and you've got twenty-six teams, seventy-nine candidates out looking for them." She said and I let out a sigh.
" Huh?" Naruto questioned.
" And if those odds weren't bad enough things have gotten even worse!" Sakura exclaimed.
" What do you mean?" I questioned.
" Don't forget, that creep Orochimaru burnt the heaven scroll we had." She said and I nodded along with Sasuke.
" Yea I remember." Sasuke said.
" The number of complete pairs of scrolls that could be found was reduced by one right there. Not to mention ones that have been found and secured by teams since then." I stared at our earth scroll and let out a sigh.
" Maybe we gave ourselves too much time to rest and recover from our last fight. I don't know. What I do know is we've got to get serious now, and make up for lost time. The next enemy we face could be our last chance," Sasuke stood up, " I'm gonna get water." He walked away and I jumped into a tree and plopped down pulling out a book. I started reading as Naruto and Sakura started talking. I looked down a few minutes later to see they were about to open the scroll. I jumped down the tree and was about to stop them when a hand stopped Naruto. I looked up and seen Kabuto.
" I wouldn't do that if I were you." He said and I watched him warily. I seen Sasuke running up.
" I can't believe you guys!" Sasuke exclaimed when Kabuto explained what happened.
" If I hadn't come along when I did..." Kabuto said.
" Hey! I was about to stop them when you showed up!" I exclaimed.
" Sorry Sasuke." Sakura said her head held down in shame.
" There have been others who have broke the rules and have tried to peek in the scrolls. I've seen what happens to them. They're protected by a powerful hypnosis jutsu, a kind of booby trap for anyone unwise enough to try to read them. It'll knock you senseless, and by the time you wake up the exam is over." Kabuto said.
" Kabuto, right? We met at the registration. What are you doing wondering around all by yourself?" Sasuke questioned. No the question should be what are you doing stalking us you big creep, I said to myself.
" Don't worry, I'm not after your earth scroll." Kabuto reassured.
" I guess not. I suppose if you were you would've just swiped it from Naruto when you had the chance. So you're looking for a heaven scroll too huh?"
" Not really," He said reaching into his pouch pulling out both scrolls, " you see I already have them both." Sasuke gasped and his eyes slightly widened. " I had a run of luck," He put them back in his pouch, " I was just on my way to the tower to wait for my teammates to show up. So if you'll excuse me." Kabuto started to take off.
" You're a creep." I scoffed.
" Hold it!" Sasuke said. Kabuto stopped and looked back at us, " I'll fight you for it."
" You'll fight me for it?" He asked amused.
" But Sasuke.." Sakura said.
" Hold on a second is this a joke or what?" Naruto asked angrily.
" You are idiots! He has a scroll we need unless you want to fail." I said.
" Are you serious?" Kabuto questioned.
" Perfectly. Sorry, but I don't have time to play nice." Sasuke said. Naruto pointed at Sasuke.
" Back off Sasuke! In case you've forgotten, this guy saved our butts!" Naruto exclaimed.
" Naruto's got a point, we don't want to be ungrateful or anything." Sakura said.
" He saved you because the creep was stalking us. I doubt that he did that for us." I said.
" It can't be helped, it's either him or us. Out here it's all about surviving and winning nothing else matters!" Sasuke exclaimed and for once I was agreeing with the duck butt. Kabuto smirked.
" You're lying..." Kabuto said with a hand on his hip.
" Why would I be lying?" I questioned.
" Not you..."
" He is?" Naruto questioned.
" Come on admit it. For all your tough talk your heart really isn't in it. If it was true, if winning was the only thing that mattered to you," Kabuto narrowed his eyes, but still smirked, " Why openly challenge me to a fight? Why announce it and put me on my guard? Why not jump me when my back is turned after all that's what a ninja would do."
" Why show us you have two scrolls?" I countered.
" So you wouldn't think I was after yours."
" I'm gonna smack you!" I exclaimed walking towards him. Me being clumsy, I tripped over a log and tumbled into Kabuto. We tumbled to the ground our faces too close for my comfort. I got off of him quickly and backed away. He stood up.
" Here, I'll show you the path you should follow, but lets go. That cooking fire is going to lure every single beast in the forest. Not only animals, but the competition too." I knew exactly what he was talking about. Someone was watching us the whole time. I acted as if I didn't know anything because something about him seems off.
We all started jumping from tree to tree.
" Think there are other candidates out here?" Sasuke questioned. I zoned out of their conversation and started thinking about why Kabuto would help us and how he knew exactly where we were at.
" Something about him isn't right..." Katsumi said in my subconscious.
" Do you think he works with Orochimaru?" I questioned.
" Just be on guard."
" Whoever they are we'll take care of them!" Naruto yelled pulling me out of my thoughts, " Wouldn't want this to be too easy that wouldn't be any fun. Okay so we grab someone else's scroll and keep those losers from grabbing ours, and bingo we pass the second exam!"
" That's two third of the problem." Kabuto said.
" Well, at least we're getting closer. What else?" Sakura asked. I zoned out again being bored by the conversation.
It was beginning to be dark and we stopped when we spotted the tower. I zoned back in when I felt someone following us. Naruto threw a kunai back. It landed in a huge centipede.
" Heh... False alarm it's just a centipede." Naruto said.
" Hey Naruto... Do us a favor and keep it down to a dull roar okay?" Kabuto questioned.
" You motherfucking idiots! You don't get it do you? We're being followed and I'm pretty sure they're gonna fool us using a genjutsu or something!" I shouted frustration clear in my voice.
" What are you talking about?" Sakura questioned. Kabuto watched me.
" Never mind forget it!" I exclaimed. We continued into the forest stopping every now and then to see how close we are. When we reached a certain area, three corpses were lying in the trees.
" A trap!" Sakura exclaimed horrified.
" Yea, and it only gets worse here on in." Kabuto said and started walking. I looked for more traps, but Naruto being the idiot he is didn't watch where he was going and set off a trap. Kabuto covered him taking the hit except he did a substitution jutsu.
" Kabuto!" Naruto yelled and realized it was a substitution.
" Well, that was close." Kabuto said standing in a tree.
" A substitution jutsu!" Naruto exclaimed finally realizing it.
" Like I told you, it only gets worse from here on in." He said pushing up his glasses. We kept going through the forest until Sakura fell to the ground on her knees.
" For crying out loud how far have we walked?" She asked trying to catch her breath, " That tower's not getting any closer."
" Now that you mention it, I was thinking that too. It's weird." Naruto said. Idiots! They can't tell it's a genjutsu.
" It would seem we've been spotted. Somebody is playing games with us. Look!" Kabuto pointed at the centipede we killed, " Ring a bell?"
" They put us under a genjutsu. I figured it out a while back." I said rolling my eyes.
" Why didn't you tell us?" Sasuke asked getting mad.
" You little emo duck butt! I thought you all were smart enough to have figured it out!" I exclaimed pointing at him.
" They were waiting for us to get worn down," Kabuto said and ninja started appearing. Well it was all the same ninja except they were clones. From the looks of them they were illusions.
" Well Naruto you wanted a fight." Sasuke said. Naruto smirked.
" Five against fifty, I like those odds." I nodded my head in agreement.
" Who are they?" Sakura asked looking around.
" Clones from the look of it and a whole lot of them." Kabuto answered. One of the clones let out a creepy laugh.
" Like cornered rats." The clone said and I smirked.
" So you know that you're cornered?" I asked.
" You're the cornered one." He said and I let out a giggle.
" Whatever helps you sleep at night."
" Oh yea! Cornered rats are we?" Naruto asked punching the clone.
" That's showing them, way to go!" Sakura exclaimed. Naruto's arm passed right through the clone and it was like black slime was all over his arm from the clone. Naruto hit the ground. A head popped up from the whole made in the clone and it had a two sided kunai. Sasuke activated his sharingan.
" Naruto, watch out!" Sasuke and I yelled as the shadow clone turned around to hit Naruto with the kunai. Sasuke threw shuriken at the clone's arm taking it off. The two sided kunai was flung at Sasuke, and the mark on his neck turned red.
" Down!" Kabuto exclaimed. He tackled Sasuke to the ground as I knocked the kunai away with my own kunai. Sasuke stared up from the ground in shock. He looked as if he couldn't move. They all started talking, and it was becoming confusing. Naruto was about to strike again.
" It's no use! Save it!" Sasuke shouted, " You'll only be fighting illusions. It's genjutsu alright."
" Illusions? But how? That gash on Kabuto's arm is real enough." Sakura asked.
" That's true," Kabuto said grasping his arm, " but still Sasuke's right. It could be the real enemy is in hiding. Somewhere in the woods nearby launching real attacks." I zoned out until I heard Naruto.
" Lets go find these clowns and take care of them!" He exclaimed.
" Hold on Naruto, they'd like nothing more than for us to go searching through forest blindly. While they sit back and take us out. One by one. We'd be making their job easy for them. All we can do is hold our ground and fend off their attacks." Kabuto said. They started throwing kunai at us and we dodged. They started breathing heavily.
" Okay, that's it!" I said. I did the hand sign along with Naruto,
" No it's pointless." Kabuto argued.
" Multi-shadow clone jutsu!" We said in unison. Thousands of us appeared. Our shadow clones attacked all of the illusions. Naruto and I made shadow clones and transformed them into Sasuke, Sakura, and Kabuto so they wouldn't have to waste chakra. They hid in the bushes and I got into a tree. More illusions appeared. The fighting went on until it was morning and my chakra was going out. The only thing keeping me going is Katsumi. I watched as the transformed clones of mine and Naruto's fell to the ground. It's going according to plan. I smirked from my place in the tree. The illusions started to fade away. Behind the illusions were yellowed suit guys with gas masks on.
" I know you! You're the ones that cut me!" The one from the first day said, " That really messed me up ya know. Oh well, now I can finally pay you back, with interest." He said holding up a kunai. The clones smirked.
" Well well, now who's the cornered rat?" Sasuke asked from his hiding place. The guys looked around wide-eyed. Sakura giggled.
" It worked like a charm Naruto and Ayame." Sakura said.
" What? It can't be!" One of the guys exclaimed.
" Confused, sorry, but it was the only way to get you guys to come out of hiding." Naruto and I said in unison undoing our clones.
" How? Don't tell me those little brats... It's not possible!" One guy said.
" The shadow clones was only the first part of it. Our real trick was coming up with clones for the rest of our squad." Naruto said as I jumped out of the tree.
" While our doubles did all of the fighting and took the beating, we were safe and sound waiting for you to show yourselves. What do you think guys? I think our little plan worked." Sasuke taunted as Naruto and me were breathing heavily. Naruto fell on one knee, " Naruto, Ayame, take a break! You've used up too much of your chakra. Don't worry I've got them." Sasuke said. I giggled and was in front of one in a second knocking him into a tree as Naruto punched one knocking him into the other one. Our teammates stared wide-eyed at the fallen people.
" Hell no! Not after all of the work we've done! There's no way we'll let you guys stand back and have all of the fun!" I exclaimed. They stared at us with disbelief in their expressions.
" These kids shouldn't even be able to move let alone this!" One of them exclaimed staring at us with scared and astonished expressions.
" Naruto? Ayame?" Sakura questioned. Kabuto looked like he was just as surprised as they were.
" Hah, not bad but that doesn't mean it's over," they all did a hand sign, " we're still feeling lucky! And besides, times running out for all of us. Ninja Art Fog Blade Jutsu!"
" Shadow clones?" Naruto asked.
" No, those are real clones." Sasuke said, " Don't waste your strength bone head, let them make the first move!"
" If these are clones then the real ones are in there with them." Naruto pointed out. I was a step ahead of him.
" Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" I yelled doing the hand sign. One hundred clones of me appeared and started hitting every clone they seen. Naruto joined in without using clones.
" Naruto, Ayame stop!" Kabuto yelled as we kept punching through them. I seen Sasuke fall onto the ground in pain. I lost focus and since I, myself was low on chakra, all of my clones disappeared. Naruto looked back too.
" You should never give your enemy an opening!" Two yelled. One was in front of me and the other was in front of Naruto. Kabuto pushed Naruto away. I used my teleportation jutsu and was beside Sasuke in less than a second. Kabuto was hit on the leg after saving Naruto.
" Now you're going to get it!" Naruto exclaimed angrily.
" Forget it Naruto! You can swing at those guys all day, you're just wasting your time on them. The real ones aren't there." Sasuke said. Ignoring Katsumi's pleas for me to use her chakra I looked around. I fell on my knee and seen one lunge at Naruto, but three came out of the ground behind him. Using the last bit of my strength I was up and ready. They slashed Kabuto and surrounded him. Naruto and I were at each end of the three and kicked them at their heads bringing them together causing them to hit each others heads. All of the clones disappeared.
" Thank you Naruto and Ayame," Kabuto said rubbing his neck. I looked down at Kabuto suspiciously wondering why his eyes sort of turned red, " you saved my neck." I fell down and everything sort of blurred around me. I willing took some of Katsumi's chakra so I could still walk. Naruto went through each guy until he found their scroll.
" Hey guys! They have a heaven scroll!" Naruto exclaimed holding it up. Sasuke watched Kabuto with unease.
' You think somethings up with him don't you?' I asked using my telepathy jutsu I've been working on. I seen Sasuke jump and then look at me.
' Yea and how the hell are you in my head?' He questioned back.
' I have my ways.' I answered with an evil smirk and he just shook his head. Finally we reached the tower. A couple of guys walked out from the bushes.
" There you are Kabuto! You're late." One of them said that had sunglasses on. I zoned out as everyone started talking. Since the incident with Orochimaru, I haven't talked much.
" Especially you two," Kabuto pointed at Naruto and me as I zoned back in. We entered the doors to the tower, read something and then opened the two scrolls we had crossing one over the other on the ground.
Third Person's P.O.V.
" A good harvest?" Orochimaru asked Kabuto as he walked in.
" Yes, even better than expected. I learned a lot about them during the second exam, and I recorded all of the data on this. You want it?" Kabuto asked holding up a card.
" Of course. So tell me, what did you think?" Orochimaru asked taking the card.
" Your curiosity is truly insatiable lord Orochimaru."
" As a sand village spy, you see things others don't. What did you think of Ayame?" Orochimaru questioned.
" She is very good, but she didn't show anything of a Jinchuriki." He answered.
" Good work." Orochimaru said disappearing.