"Good morning, Yugao," Kakashi said in surprise, when his girlfriend opened the door to her apartment before he could knock.
"Am I late?" he pondered aloud, glancing at the skyline before he stepped inside. The sun was still low; he had made it before their six AM appointment. He observed her anxious features, growing nervous in turn.
"No, I was waiting," she said quickly, closing the door behind him, and invoking an advanced privacy jutsu. He raised his uncovered eyebrow.
"I learned something yesterday," she told him, striding back to her kitchenette, pouring him a cup of coffee, "And the more I think about it, the more it leads me to a certain conclusion."
"Well," he said carefully, taking the mug she offered him, "Why don't you start at the beginning?"
"The beginning?" she took a deep breath, and continued more slowly, "Fine."
"The beginning is that Naruto Uzumaki knows the Tiger & Heron Taijutsu style," she informed him, "In fact, more than 'knows', it was probably his best style. Definitely A-Rank, easily bordering on S-Rank."
Kakashi exhaled at that bit of information, but otherwise kept his cool.
"And what difference does that make?" he asked innocently.
"Setting aside for the moment that it was the Fourth Hokage's primary style, and it basically vanished when he died," she said that pointedly, indicated she would be using it later, "When I asked Naruto where he learned the style, he said he learned it from the scrolls his mother left behind when she designed the technique."
"And?" he asked in a blasé tone.
"And?" she was too familiar with him to rise to his teasing, "And how did Minato Namikaze learn a fighting style created by Yukihana Uzumaki? Why would he make it his primary style? The two of them barely ever crossed paths, at least officially."
"She could have asked him for advice," he suggested evenly, "Or he could have noticed her practicing and asked her to teach him. Minato-sensei was always looking for new techniques to learn, he had hoped to surpass Sarutobi in terms of raw knowledge."
"But that would mean they had to spend a decent amount of time together with no one knowing about it," she countered, "And then there is Lady Tsunade's reaction when I brought back the duplicate of the Syphon. Why would she be worried about his axe appearing, unless there was something she thought might draw him back to the village?"
"Yugao, stop," he said gently, "If I knew anything about what you were suggesting, it would be killing me not to talk to you about it. But not as much as it would kill me to talk to you about it. And it would be safer for you if you forgot this."
He tapped his heart with his right hand as he said the last part, and her eyes widened in recognition. She nodded slowly.
"It's just random speculation anyway," she offered, "I just got to excited over finding out that lost technique was being revived."
"Well, don't get to carried away," he advised, "We've both got a long day ahead of us."
Despite being a few minutes early for a change, Naruto was already waiting outside the Forest of Death when Kakashi arrived.
"Sensei!" Naruto shouted, waving at the elder Shinobi. Kakashi rolled his eyes and shook his head, but walked over to the Chunin.
"Good morning, Naruto," the Copy Ninja said simply.
"Ready?" Naruto asked without greeting or preamble, crossing his fingers for the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu. But Kakashi raised his hand to forestall his eager student.
"Hang on a minute, Naruto," he cautioned, "I haven't asked you to start yet."
"Well, what's the hold up?" the younger man complained.
"I have to go through the introduction first," the Jonin explained, taking a small slip of cardstock out of his vest.
"This a Ninjutsu Qualification Examination for the Jonin Trials," he read for the third time, "To be considered for the rank of Jonin, you must be able to exhibit at least nine C-Rank techniques, six B-Rank techniques, and three A-Rank techniques beyond the standard academy curriculum. In addition, you will also be expected to show mastery of at least two chakra elements. Finally, at the proctor's discretion, you may be called upon to exhibit the E-Rank thru B-Rank skills deemed standard and basic by the Hidden Leaf Village. Your time limit is three hours. Good luck."
Placing the card back, the teacher studied his student, "So, before you start in on the advanced techniques, let's do a quick run through of the basics."
"Kakashi-sensei," Uzumaki complained, "Do we really need to do that?"
"Yes."
"OK," the blonde youth's shoulders dropped as he sighed loudly, "So what do you want me to do?"
"Let's make it a little interesting," Kakashi suggested by way of consolation, "To start, create a single Shadow Clone. Then one of you transform into Iruka, and the other into Anko. Have 'Iruka' attack 'Anko' with a Shadow Shuriken jutsu, and have 'Anko' use Substitution to escape, and counter with a Phantom Kunai jutsu. After you finish that set, we'll go from there."
Naruto nodded as he complied. Even as he split in two, the copies took on the forms of his Staff-Blade teachers. They hopped apart, and 'Iruka' threw what appeared to be a single ninja star at 'Anko'. But two blades struck the log that appeared where 'Anko' had been, the second having been hidden in the path of the first. As 'Anko' reappeared six feet to the right of her original position, she tossed a single kunai at he opponent. But the weapon struck 'Iruka' in the face, and exploded in a puff of smoke, not having enough substance to even break his skin. After the smoke faded, both fighters sketched a bow, and 'Iruka' disappeared while 'Anko' resumed the shape of Naruto.
"Very good," the proctor admitted to his student, "next..."
After nearly thirty minutes of different scenarios, Kakashi Hatake finally seemed satisfied with Naruto's grasp of the basics.
"All right, I think that will do it," the Jonin said evenly.
"Finally," Naruto panted slightly, "You ready for my real stuff, sensei?"
"Go ahead," the Jonin was nonchalant.
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto exclaimed, splitting into seventeen copies. The duplicates surrounded Hatake, splitting into groups of between two and four nartuos. The original, still alone and in front of Kakashi, raised both hands, palms up and his fingers slightly curled.
"Rasengan," the Chunin proclaimed, forming one of the spheres in each of his hands. The others took that as a signal.
"Odama Rasengan," the two Naruto clones behind Kakashi created a six-foot diameter orb between them.
"Fuuton: Rasengan"
"Raiton: Rasengan."
The two sets of three clones on either side of the original worked in unison, creating the two elemental variations of the Fourth Hokage's technique. And after a second of additional shaping, the final two groups, each comprised of four clones, finished the ultimate forms of the spherical technique.
"Fuuton: Rasenshuriken!" the clone holding the disc declared loudly, despite the small cuts on his arm.
"Odama Raiton Rasengan!" the four clones supporting the five-foot electrified purple sphere announced.
After their teacher had finished glancing around, the clones all vanished and the original Uzumaki cleared his throat for the Jonin's attention. He dropped his left hand, and stared intently at his right. Kakashi raised an eyebrow in curiosity. A single, two-inch diameter Rasengan formed above Naruto's pointer finger, and four more perfect globes followed in succession, middle, ring, pinky, and finally thumb. He darted towards in chunk of stone lying on the ground and stabbed his hand into the rock. Once his fingers drilled past its surface, the core of the chunk of granite exploded, covering Naruto in dust and dirt.
"Five Points Rasengan," the blonde stated proudly, brushing himself off.
"So, did you and Hinata plan this in advance?" the proctor asked carefully.
"Huh?" Naruto frowned in confusion, "No, why?"
"She also started off with using Shadow Clones to perform the Rasengan and its variants," the Jonin explained.
"Really?" Naruto smirked, "Great minds I guess. So how did Hinata do?"
"I can't really tell you that," Kakashi frowned at the Chunin.
"Come on, tell me something," he pleaded, "It's not like it's gonna help me. Like how many food pills did she take? She bought a whole bag 'cause she was worried her chakra would run out."
"Three," he admitted after a second, "two during the test, and one afterwards. I was surprised by how much she was able to do before recharging. At this point, I'd say she probably has more chakra than I do."
"Good for you, Hinata," Naruto said under his breath, then added at his normal volume, "But given how hard Gramma Tsunade pushed us, it's not much of a surprise."
"And speaking of that," Naruto took one of the small brown pills from his pack, and swallowed it, "I could still go a while longer, but better safe than sorry, considering what happens sometimes when I run out of chakra..."
Kakashi nodded sagely, having no desire to encounter the Kyubi without Yamato or Hinata around.
"Well, that first display was three A-Rank techniques, and five S-Rank techniques," the examiner said evenly, "And two different elements. A fairly strong start, can you continue at that pace?"
"Just you watch me, sensei," Naruto roared, re-energized by the food pill, "How about another S-Rank technique?"
The Jonin waved his hand in supplication, and Naruto took out a kunai. The younger man quickly and deeply slashed both of his palms, allowing his blood to spill messily over the earth. Once he had enough fluid, he stopped consciously holding back his healing powers, and as the wounds on his hands closed, he began to sign.
"Ninja Art: Blood Clone Jutsu!" he incanted, and the red liquid quickly changed into four copies of the teen.
"Wanna see how tough they are, sensei?" Naruto asked, with two of clone cracking their knuckles. But Kakashi just shook his head.
"You already had the Taijutsu test," the Copy Ninja said blandly.
"Come on, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto complained, "how can you evaluate my jutsu if you don't see how strong my clones are?"
"Fine, hold still," the elder shinobi capitulated. Without waiting for any acknowledgement, Hatake darted forward, burying his fist in one Blood Clone's stomach. The copy folded in pain, and the Jonin sprang to the right, his foot colliding with a second duplicate's face. A large bruise appeared, but it just as quickly faded. And the first clone had recovered by the time the Copy Ninja had returned to his starting position.
"That should suffice," Kakashi said evenly, "I accept that the Blood Clone Jutsu is an S-Rank technique. And I should warn you, I intend to recommend to the Hokage that this jutsu should be sealed."
Naruto looked upset, but nodded anyway. He released the jutsu, and the blood fell back to the ground.
"So, that leaves you with nine C-Rank or better techniques to show," the examiner prompted, "What do you intend to show next?"
"How about cementing my Air and Lightning mastery, and then showing my Earth jutsus?" the Chunin suggested.
"Go ahead."
Naruto extended both his hands, and lightning began to crawl over them, eventually focusing in his fingertips.
"Ranshinsho," he informed his teacher. Kakashi nodded.
"And my last medium rank lightning technique," Naruto signed as he explained, "Raiton: Spark Darts."
Ten tiny points of electricity formed on the fingers of Naruto's right hand, and then shout out in a wide spread pattern, before striking the metal fence surrounding the forest.
"And then for Air chakra, I have," his hands flashed, and he intoned, "Fuuton: Cyclone Spikes Jutsu."
The seven cones of wind burrowed into the ground, and Naruto was already preparing his next technique. He displayed Bird, Dragon, Bird, Rabbit, and Bird.
"And its big brother," the teen announced, "Fuuton: Tornado Lance Jutsu."
A large funnel of wind formed around his hand, and Naruto threw it overhand. The projectile accelerated as it flew, drilling an eighteen-inch diameter hole in the rock the young man targeted.
"And I guess it's not elemental, and it's only C-Rank, but I'm still proud of my," the young man bit his finger, and spread his blood across his fingers before slamming it into the ground, announcing, "Summoning Jutsu."
Naruto was carried into the air as the Gamakichi appeared underneath him.
"Hey, Naruto," the toad swiveled his left eye back to look at the human, "What's up? You getting your butt kicked again?"
"Hey, 'Kichi," the blonde returned the greeting, "Nah, I'm just showing off my Ninjutsu for the Jonin Trials."
"Eh, promotion time, huh," Naruto bobbed up and down as the amphibian nodded his head, "Well, good luck buddy."
"Thanks," the human grinned at his ally, "Dismiss!"
"Ok, that's 3 Cs, a B, and one A," Kakashi noted, "That leaves four C-Rank or better to qualify. What else do you want to show?"
"Well, I'm working on an upgraded version of the Summoning Jutsu," Naruto pondered, "But it's not ready yet... Oh right, I haven't shown my Earth techniques yet. Shadow Clone Jutsu."
The clone was moving away as he appeared, a sour expression on his face.
"Why do I have to be the victim?" the duplicate groused, knowing Naruto's plan.
"Because if I get hurt, we don't get promoted," the original Uzumaki explained angrily.
"Yeah, sure," the copy told him, still annoyed.
"Doton: Stone Claws Jutsu," Naruto said after completing the seals for the technique. Six earthen hands erupted from the ground, grabbing the facsimile and holding him still.
"And thanks to Hinata, I finally mastered the upgraded version. Ne, Mi, Hitsuji, Ne, I; Doton: Stone Jacket Jutsu."
The dirt erupted upwards, slamming the duplicate like a giant, granite, bear trap. Despite the initial appearance, the maneuver had no impact and the clone was unharmed. But as the extra material crumbled away, the clone Naruto was encased from his chin to his toes in a thick layer of rock. The original kept his hands together, still sending out chakra, and the duplicate's attempt to break free failed. After holding the jutsu for thirty seconds, Naruto halted his flow of chakra, and the trap began to fall to pieces. And the real Chunin was already signing his next technique.
"And my first offensive earth chakra technique; Doton: Stone Spears Jutsu!"
The ground exploded again, but this time the mineral emerged as large, sharp spikes. The points surrounded the partially immobilized copy, but none actually struck him. Once the jutsu was over the clone bowed with a relieved look, and then vanished.
"A third element, and one more C-Rank and two B-Rank moves," Kakashi nodded, letting his pride show through despite his intentions, "And good control on the attack technique. That leaves you with just one more Jutsu to go. What will it be?"
"Hmm," Naruto thought about it, then suddenly his face lit up.
"Oh man, I can't believe I almost forgot that one!" he yelled. He took off his weapon pouch, and opened the zipper. He retrieved four shurikens and four kunai, and then handed the container to Kakashi.
"Will you hold on to this, sensei?" he asked, than dropped his money pouch on top, "And Gama too?"
Kakashi nodded, curious and confused. The teen moved a few paces away, and set the weapons on the ground. He then opened another of his pockets, and took out five food pills. He split himself in five with the Shadow Clone technique, and then handed each clone one of the energy tablets. After downing the restoratives, the five Narutos surrounded the ninja tools, and plopped down, cross-legged.
"Tori, Inu, Saru, U, Tori, Tora, Ushi, Ne, Inu, Mi, Tatsu, Uma, Hitsuji, Uma, Saru," the five blondes incanted and signed in unison. As they continued to chant, a crimson and ebony sphere formed in the air between them, slightly above their heads. The energy vortex sucked in the weapons under it, and also tugged at the zippers on their jackets. Ignoring the show, the five copies kept their focus, and continued the incredibly long jutsu.
Unseen under his mask, Kakashi's jaw dropped. Even though he had seen the fruits of the technique before, part of him always doubted that the knucklehead actually knew it, more or less could perform it. He slid up his Leaf shield, unleashing his Sharingan eye. The Dojutsu failed to pierce the crafting globe, so he watched the versions his student. Despite his skepticism, he had no choice but to admit it. This was the Weapon Forge Jutsu, the infamous, nearly unworkable S-Rank crafting technique. Even at this distance, he could feel the orb pulling at the metals he carried. He watched in awe as Naruto continued to craft the jutsu without any indication of uncertainty.
After twenty-five minutes, Naruto ending his chanting, clapping his hands together and shouting, "Hitsuji."
The sphere faded away, and the newly crafted weapon dropped to the dirt. Naruto picked it up and handed to his teacher. It was a chakram, fourteen inches in diameter, and stylized to look like a six-pointed shuriken. Inside the hollow ring was a bar grip, wrapped with the cotton from the hilts of the kunai Naruto has used.
"It's not anywhere near as good as Kitsune or Ginmaki," the younger man admitted, "I didn't have the extra metals for a stronger alloy, and there isn't exactly the time in the exam to attach all kinds of special jutsu to it."
The Jonin examined the weapon, impressed. The blade was sharp, and the balance was perfect. Even without any special enhancements or exotic material, it was an extremely well crafted tool.
"Naruto, may I keep this?" Kakashi asked, levering the chakram over his palms.
"Of course," Naruto was noticeably pleased by the request.
"Well, that does it," the teacher told his student, "You have more than met the requirements of the Ninjutsu pillar. Well done, Naruto."
"Wait," Naruto objected, "I've got like an hour left, right? I thought of some other techniques I want to show you."
"It's closer to forty five minutes," the Copy Ninja countered, but the he shrugged dismissively, despite his true feelings, "But I guess if you insist, it would go against the spirit of the test for me to stop when you want to continue and you have time left."
"Great," Naruto grinned broadly, "I've just finished this combination of the Body Flicker and Shadow Clone Jutsus. I'm not sure were it ranks, but I think it's pretty cool..."
"Hello Hinata," the Hokage's assistant said cheerfully as the younger woman entered the training room.
"Hello, Shizune," the younger woman bowed to her tester.
"How are you doing?" the polite medic asked, "Did your Ninjutsu test go alright?"
"Yes, it went fine," Hinata nodded, "Though I was quite tired afterwards. Spending all of my chakra and repeatedly recovering most of it with food pills was an unpleasant experience."
"There is a reason most ninja do not rely strictly on Ninjutsu in battle," Shizune agreed.
"And how was your first experience as a Jonin examiner?" Hinata prompted in turn.
"It went pretty well," the healer answered evasively, "Though one of my exhibitors tried to give me a hard time."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Hinata said sadly. Shizune smiled kindly at her.
"It's not your fault," Shizune said, mildly amused.
"No, I guess not," Hinata returned the smile, "I still do that some times."
"You're a good person Hinata," the proctor told her, "I'm happy you and Naruto found each other."
"Thank you, Shizune-neesan," the teen mimicked her boyfriend's form of address fondly.
"Are you ready to start?" Shizune asked. Hinata nodded eagerly.
"Good," the examiner affirmed, "Well, then, I am supposed to explain the test to you. I'm sure you already know this, but it's required for those certain individuals, who I won't name."
She winked at Hinata, and the younger woman giggled.
"So there are two parts to the Genjutsu exam," Shizune explained, "The first part will test your ability to defeat offensive Genjutsu. I will use three techniques against you each for D, C and B levels. To qualify you must defeat all three D-Rank illusions, two C-Rank illusions, and at least one B-Rank attack. After that, if we both agree, you can try for some bonus points by going against more or stronger techniques. Of course, I won't be telling you which techniques I am using, and I may mix in some Ninjutsu to try to fool you. We wouldn't want it to be too easy, after all."
She paused to take a breath, and then continued her exposition, "For the second part you must exhibit your own Genjutsu, but they may be either offensive or support techniques. Though offensive skills are ranked higher, it is also preferred that you have at least two support techniques prepared."
"I do have one question," Hinata added when Shizune ended her explanation, "Are there any special limitations on breaking the Genjutsu in the first part?"
"Well, as with all of these tests, attacking your proctor without authorization is not allowed," the elder Kunoichi answered with a sour look, "But pretty much anything else is fair game."
"Good," Hinata nodded. Then the veins in her forehead popped out, and her eyes turned metallic silver as she proclaimed, "Suigin Byakugan."
"I am ready to go," the candidate informed her tester.
"Good," Shizune said after a worried pause, "Let's begin."
The medic stared into the younger women's eyes with trepidation.
"Ok," Shizune raised her hand in submission, "I don't know any more attack Genjutsu, and I'm running out of chakra."
"I'm so sorry," Hinata jogged over to help the other woman. She offered the medic a food pill, and helped her over to the only chair in the room.
"That was amazing, Hinata," the proctor gushed slightly, "You took every illusion I threw at you without hesitation, and you saw through every one of my other tricks. How do you do it?""
"Umm," Hinata looked embarrassed, 'My Suigin Byakugan destroys any visual Genjutsu used against me."
"Any visual Genjutsu?" Shizune was amazed.
"So far," Hinata admitted, her eyes returning to normal, "It is possible there are S-Rank techniques that could overcome my Kekkei Genkai. But up 'til now, any Genjutsu that is wholly or mostly based on sight feels like it shatters when it hits me. And even those illusions that are only partially based on sight, I can see right through the visual part."
"So that's why the Superior Interrupt technique didn't work," Shizune noted.
"Yes, I heard the door open and Lady Tsunade's voice, but I could see that there was nothing there," Hinata expounded, "Also, because I don't' have to worry about seeing illusions, I can focus on my other senses when detecting them."
"That is an impressive technique," the medic complimented the heiress. Then she stretched as she stood, the supplement having restored some of her energy during their conversation.
"Shall we move on to the second part?" the proctor asked, "We only have half of our time left, and you need to show me ten Genjutsu techniques."
"Yes," Hinata suddenly looked nervous, "But how can I show my offensive techniques without a target?"
"You use them on me," Shizune said brightly.
"Oh. But I thought I wasn't supposed to attack you," Naruto's beloved frowned in uncertainty.
"No, you aren't allowed to physically attack me or use Ninjutsu on me during the Genjutsu test," Shizune clarified, "Some people try to do that to get around their... deficiencies. But you have to use your illusions on me, otherwise how would I know you're not just faking the hand signs."
"Right, of course," Hinata looked down, feeling naïve again.
"What do you want to show first?" the healer plowed ahead, not wanting the younger woman to get off track.
"Oh," the teen Kunoichi suddenly jerked her head back up, "Well, I guess I'll start with my C-Rank distraction techniques?"
"Sounds good to me," Shizune said reassuringly. But inside she was worried.
"Inu, Uma, Ne," Hinata said, and then whispered the final incantation under her breath. Shizune looked on expectantly, but she did not see anything change, nor did she hear anything. She turned back at Hinata who was straining for the technique.
"Hinata, I don't think..." Shizune paused in her gentle admonishment, when she caught a whiff of smoke. Hinata's hands suddenly came apart, and she met her proctor's gaze worriedly.
"Do you smell something?" the Hyuga scion asked, her nose flaring slightly. Tsunade's apprentice nodded, and returned her attention to the door. Wisps of smoke curled under the door.
"Uh oh," the examiner said, "I wonder if Inoichi's Ninjutsu test got out of hand. We better go."
But Hinata didn't move. As Shizune reached for the door handle, she froze, feeling sheepish.
"Release," Shizune broke the spell and then added, "Well done, Hinata."
"C-Rank distraction technique, Smoke Alarm Jutsu," Hinata offered simply.
"C-Rank? A Genjutsu that subtle with both visual and olfactory components would normally be considered a B-Rank."
"But Kurenai-sensei said it was only a C level skill," Hinata protested nervously.
"Kurenai is an expert, but she also holds Genjutsu to a higher standard because of that," Shizune sighed, "Well, I guess I'll trust her judgment and mark it as C-Rank. So that leaves you with four, three, and two, by skill level. Please continue."
Hinata quickly launched into her next set of hand signs, concluding by saying loudly, "Ninja Art: Starburst Jutsu."
Dozens of bright lights began flashing before Shizune's eyes, and she quickly broke the technique. She instinctively expected some minor flash burns to her eyes from the dazzling explosions, and found her instantly clear vision disconcerting. She started to compliment the girl, but Hinata was already moving on to her next technique.
"Fuuton: Tornado Howling," Hinata announced. Shizune heard the wind roar past her, and could have sworn she felt it tug at her kimono. The Jonin squeezed her hands together, and exclaimed, "Release!"
As expected the noise and the pull vanished. Shizune looked at Hinata with slightly more respect, but also a touch of confusion.
"I've never heard of an elemental Genjutsu before," the proctor admitted.
"It isn't," Hinata shook her head, "And I can't use Wind chakra. It is just part of the name, to sell the illusion."
"Smart," Shizune nodded with a wry grin.
"So that is three C-Rank techniques, right?" Hinata prompted.
"Sure," Shizune said dubiously, "Did Kurenai teach you all of those?"
"Yes," the younger woman confirmed.
"Did she teach you all of your Genjutsu?" the examiner queried evenly.
"Most of them. But Kakashi-sensei has taught me a few jutsu, and I learned one from Yugao-sensei when we were at the beach."
"Oh, what technique did Yugao teach you?"
"The Echo of Whispers Jutsu," Hinata replied.
"The A-Rank support technique?' Shizune asked her to confirm. Hinata nodded.
"Will you show it to me?" the healer's curiosity leaked into her voice. Hinata bobbed her head again, and rapidly formed the eleven hand seals. Shizune walked to the other side of the room, and hid her mouth behind her arms, while carefully watching Hinata's eyes.
"Why would you need this jutsu?" Hinata said in a monotone, "With your Byakugan, you should be able to read lips further than this technique works."
"That's true," the teen continued in her normal, soft voice, "but there are ways to block my Byakugan, and also things my ears might understand that my eyes cannot."
Shizune lowered her arms with a sigh of amazement, "Still, a skill the lets you hear what people say, even if they don't vocalize, just from the movement of their lips... Maybe when this is all done, you could teach it to me? It would come in really handy for keeping Lady Tsunade on task."
"I think Yugao-sensei might be a better choice," Hinata looked away.
"If you can teach Naruto, you can teach anybody," the older sister informed her.
"That might be true," Hinata agreed with a small grin.
'Yup,' Shizune thought, 'That's the magic word.'
"So that's one A and 3 C-Rank Genjutsu," the tester resumed her mission, "Leaving two C, three B, and one A to go. What do you have?"
"Well, there are those," the younger Kunoichi considered, "But after the last time, I'm almost afraid to use them. Or there is my other enhancement jutsu, the smell one I worked on with Kurenai-sensei and Kiba. But how can I prove that one works?"
"Oh, I have incense sticks for that," Shizune told her, "Do you want mild, ultra mild, or Inuzuka mild?"
"I don't know, what is the difference?" Hinata pursed her lips.
"Mild is for normal strength Genjutsu and normal noses," the medic explained, "The ultra mild are for people with special noses, like a certain knucklehead, or for really powerful smell enhancing Genjutsu abilities. And Inuzuka mild to test the Inuzuka clan, since most of them can smell mild and in some cases even ultra mild without a boost."
"Probably the mild then," the younger woman said tentatively. Then she activated her Scent Vacuum Genjutsu. Shizune lit the first stick, and had it not been for the label, she would not have known what the smell was supposed to be.
"Jasmine," Hinata said when Shizune waved the stick in between them, but not too close to the Chunin.
"Good, and next is?"
"Cinnamon," Hinata inhaled deeply.
"Right, and last?"
"Chocolate."
"Right again," Shizune extinguished the scented sticks, 'That's one more C-Rank. Do you have any B-Ranks?"
"Yes, but I would rather finish the lower level powers first," Hinata insisted carefully.
"OK, what's your last C-Rank?"
"Well, umm," Hinata blushed, "It's an offensive technique, but it doesn't seem particularly combat worthy..."
She signed slowly, and then almost whispered, "Ninja Arts: Shiatsu Fingers."
Shizune's eyes widened as she felt multiple non-existent hands start massaging her back. The healer let out a groan of pleasure as the suggestion of comfort caused her muscles to relax for real. She shuddered slightly and tried to explain.
"This isn't... oh right there... it's not a combat technique. It's a skill for infiltration and seduction. For ex.... example, you could use the Genjutsu to pretend to give a feudal lord a massage, while you really search his rooooooom."
"You can stop now," Shizune almost panted, but she looked disappointed when the illusion ended.
"Do you mind if I recover my energy?" Hinata asked, "Using the Suigin Byakugan for nearly an hour is quite draining."
"Yes, of course," Shizune was only half paying attention. The younger Kunoichi took out a food pill, and hastily swallowed it.
"OK," the proctor regained her composure and grinned at the Jonin candidate, "Let's see those last four techniques.
"Ninja Art: Huamai Jutsu," Hinata complied. Instantly the young woman was gone, replaced by her paramour.
"I'm gonna pass this test no matter what, Shizune-neesan," 'Naruto' proclaimed loudly, giving her a thumbs up, "Believe it!"
Then she returned to being Hinata, who lowered her arm awkwardly.
"Huamai is a well established move that covers all five senses," Shizune said, "Even Kurenai couldn't say that it's not B-Rank."
"No, she said it was B level," Hinata agreed.
"Ok, then two B and one A left."
"Right, well, I guess I'll have to use those," the Hyuga heiress said uncertainly, "Mi, Ne, Mi, Tori, U."
Around Shizune, the floor seemed to melt. The sticky lump of former stone clutched at the Hokage's aid, pulling her down. She put her hands together, and defeated the illusion. Shizune was surprised to find she was on her knees.
"And then I have Tears of Insanity," as the Chunin completed the jutsu, the Jonin began to hear sobbing.
'Why did you let me die, Shizune?'
'I thought you were a healer.'
'Too weak.'
The medic recognized all the voices taunting her, the cries of all the people she had failed to save. She wanted to grab her ears and block them out, even knowing it use just a fantasy. She managed to put her hands back together, and choked out "Release."
"I'm sorry, Shizune," Hinata said sadly.
"No, that's part of the test," Shizune took a deep breath, "I went through worse yesterday. Though I wouldn't object to another round of your Shiatsu Fingers after I see your last two techniques."
Without announcing her intent; Hinata launched into her last B-Rank skill. After crafting the jutsu, the pale beauty began to change. She sprouted red and black leathery wings, even as he began to grow in size. Her face distended, with large tusks thrusting upwards out of her lower jaw. Her outer layer of clothing burned away as her skin became mottled and scorched. At the end of the transformation, her arms split below the elbow, giving her four sets of fists and forearms. Barely recognizable in her demonic form, Hinata exhaled hard, sending and odious cloud of sulfur at her examiner.
"Release," Shizune said, breaking the hold of the younger woman. Hinata immediately reverted to normal.
"That was an interesting image," Shizune shuddered.
"What did it look like?" Hinata wondered, then explained, "The Waking Terror Genjutsu looks different for each person viewing it."
"You turned into a four-armed, winged oni," the healer said, "It was pretty frightening."
"My other A-Rank technique is supposed to be used against a group, so it might not appear as impressive," Hinata said mournfully.
"That's alright," the proctor said.
Hinata showed Dragon, Bird, Ram, Monkey, Bird, and Boar, before stating, "Masking Storm Jutsu."
Clouds formed above Shizune's head, and began to dump a cold rain on her. The rain was already obscuring her vision, when the bolt of lightning turned everything white. The liquid hitting her skin started to chill her, and the patter of rain and whistle of the wind blocked her ears. The ozone and clean smell of the rain filled her nose. She shivered reflexively, and decided she had seen, heard, smelled, and felt enough. She tried to release the Genjutsu, but Hinata's technique resisted. The Jonin pushed a little harder, and the illusion finally broke away.
"Do you have anything more?" Shizune asked.
"No," she shook her head regretfully, "Kakashi-sensei had to teach me the Absorbing Earth and Masking Storm powers so I would have enough techniques to cover the test. Everything else I know is D-Rank."
"Well, then, I guess we are done here. Hinata, it's been a pleasure."
"Thank you, Shizune-neesan."