Tales of Dogman, Bugman, and Sharkgirl 13-16

[GM]
The results come in, and it turns out that you did more or less decently well. People seem to look at Jin funny now, he must have had a technique exactly for this kind of situation.
Risei accusses Kazuma of copying his answers, but that's life. However, you are fairly certaint that a few more people in the room have cheated, in ways you have never figured out.
Afterwards, you are led to the outside of the village, where the tournament grounds have already been built. There is a comfortable waiting room, where you are left staring at a digital screen.
This is the team tournament. Seika's previous statements come to mind, in regards to scoring.
You are rated by the competent Shinobi of the village, by the audience, and then by the actual result.
Of course, though, you will lose most of that if you lose a match - so an individual match is probably not worth that many points, if the amount of points to get here is equal.
The team compositions turn up on the screen, with the teammates quickly finding each other now, trying to get their footing. Some happy, some less so. They seem to look at you jealously.
While you consider how incredibly unlikely it is for you to be matched with each other between sixteen people, Yuu and Risei stare at the screen in confusion. Yuu is in team with someone called 'Shinoraze', while Risei is working with somebody called 'Tasaka'. Who are those people?
The tournament bracket appears, and it can be presumed that everyone is immediatelly less jealous.
You are matched against the Senju, one of the Hokage's own descendants. His partner is also a complete mystery. And that is very bad in this sort of setting.
Mumei, having changed her painted rag mask for a black one with a skull on it at some point, tugs at Chadou. She seems to want to consider strategy.
Perhaps you should too. Your match is second, after Kazuma&Jin vs Senshi&Nene.
Hachi told you about the terrain-altering rule. The battlefield, which you can now see on the screen, is all sand. Unfortunately, they still don't want to let you enter the stalls, but this is apparently being broadcast.
But with each team being able to make a change to the battlefield, you included, it could get pretty wild.
Finally, Ewo enters the room, and speaks. "Teams for the first battle, come with me. Rest can go to the stalls now."
The two teams follow, one more clever, one presumably more tough.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Upon witnessing the reaction - and sudden change thereof - of the other participants, Eiha quirked a brow and made a small flick of her hair, giving the gathered a somewhat disdainful look at the obvious apprehension that filled them. "if they manage to beat us, you'll have to face them too, you know~" She entertained herself a little bit by trying to seed a little bit more fear in the competition before shifting over to her partner "That fight was going to happen eventually, it happening now just means less chances for them to observe us before hand." Sure the reverse was true, but that didn't need to be stated

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji adjusts his sunglasses. "Don't assume we've already lost, foreigner."

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha can't help but smirk. "I said 'if'. Funny to see the quiet one has the most 'fire' of this whole class, though~"

[GM]
Everyone else is pointed to a long corridor, towards the light. A vested Chuunin takes notice of you, when you reach the stalls proper.
"To the lower ones." he tells you. "Higher are for regular folk. Since you can, you know, hide your techniques from everyone if you insist on that."
"I'd say you have a chance." Yuu picks up on your conversation. "You have actual chemistry.*
"In combat I mean. You know what to do to work off each other. I don't even know who the hell -eh?"
In the lower stalls, filled with snacking Shinobi, you can see two kids you don't know. One with an elaborate silver spear, and the other a bit larger, with a maw of sharp teeth. Both boys.
The one with the spear turns back, as if he was waiting for you to come. Eiha knows this one, it is Tasaka, who graduated the academy a few months after her.
He shoots you a smile. "So, you're alive!"
"How's this place treating you?"
Others move past, to take their seats. It's pretty obvious what this is, but Risei and Yuu keep standing behind you. They have business with these guys.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"If you think I'm the same as I was during the Genin exams, I'm going to enjoy making your screech like a little girl~" Eiha countered with a wide grin that showed off her sharp teeth and a determined fiber in her voice, lacking any hesitation. "As for the vacation trip, it's pretty comfy. Got to see the world a bit."

[GM]
"I see, same." he grins. His teeth are pretty regular. "It's been a bit lonely, the last year. That Sahara girl didn't like our place much at all!"
Sahara is alrady seated, having picked the furthest seat from them.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha tilted her head slightly. "That's strange, when she came back before the written exam she looked like she had." She mused with slight surprise, shifting her position to the side slightly and rubbing the back of her head with her off-hand. "Then again, our 'teaching methods' couldn't be more different than theirs, so I'm not that surprised it'd turn out this way. Disappointing though, she gave me the impression of having taken to it, so I was looking forward to hearing about it."

[GM]
Risei takes a few steps around you, taking the opportunity to ask the other, bigger Genin. "Are you Tasaka, or Shinoraze?"
"Latter." He gruffs. "Yuu's a girl's name, so come with me. What do you do?"
Risei follows. This one is clearly a bit smarter than he looks. Yuu seats herself comfortably next to Tasaka, waiting for you to finish. Hopefully, she'll have some time to plan.
"Ehhhh." Tasaka has been considering the question all the while. "I wouldn't say so. She grew, like, pretty paranoid that we were going to kill her in her sleep. Walked around with giant bags under her eyes."
"Honestly it's not surprising she left for this place ahead of time."
In the arena, your very own Sensei can be seen rising stone pillars, while a voice echoes from speakers you cannot see.
"It is a great honor for us to greet our citizens in the very first public exhibition of Chuunin exams!"
"Sixteen young shinobi have gathered here, from all over the world-" that is a lie.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha can't help but shrug. "Shame indeed, that's a huge wasted opportunity." She speaks matter-of-factly before taking a seat, as if such an environment was actually a good thing.

[GM]
The voice goes on to explain the rules of the tournament. For Tasaka, this is the first time hearing it all, but Yuu instead nudges him, explaining her own skillset. How she is defensively oriented with her tonfa, and can probably carry him through whatever he can do, so their strategy will rely on his own path to victory, as long as he has some way of dealing with that.
Tasaka seems to require water on the ground, which she says can be arranged, but when he says he will be sending lightning through it, it's a bit of a problem. They keep discussing their strategy then.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha pays close attention to that. Sure, it could be intox... but she doesn't think the Leaf Genin are -that- cunning.

[GM]
In the arena, a few members of the Uchiha clan, apparently called in for the battlefield building, create two firepits. The voice explains that this is the request of Team Fiery Finish, wheras Team Death From Above has requested the pillars for this match.
That suggests you, as well, should come up with a name. Even though the teams will be shaken up each round.

[Aburame Shinji]
"They've given the teams names...?"

[GM]
Tiem Fiery Finish sounds like something that Kazuma would force on Jin.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Nice distraction."
"Making contestants think about a 'cool name' when they should be spending their time more productively."

[Aburame Shinji]
"Well..."
Shinji adjusts his glasses. "Impressing the crowd is also important."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"True."
"A fancy name is nothing if it can't be backed up with actions though."

[GM]
"...The guys we are up against, Kamiko and Raiko, are real dangerous." Yuu explains nearby. "Kamiko has a hair-based Kekei Genkai. You've never seen anything like it, but you should think of it as a sort of area denial thing."
"...Raiko is a monster in combat. She uses a sword but also does a lot of martial arts. Watch her legs, she's all about kicks."

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji sends some of his bugs to keep an eye on the arena.

[GM]
The arena is separated from the stalls pretty carefully. The bugs can enter, but they have to fly very high up to do so. It seems to be a Fuuinjutsu effect of some sort.

[Aburame Shinji]
"What do you think about..."
"...One Million Blades in the Mist?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I was thinking of something simple like 'The Unseen' but that can work too, I see where you're going with it." She chuckles. "It's more literal than they might think."

[GM]
Keeping an eye on the stalls and the outside is easy enough.
Speaking of which, there seems to be a commotion outside, with a bunch of ninja dealing with a woman.

[Aburame Shinji]
"Then it's decided." Shinji seems to be getting excited.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Looking forward to tacking the biggest fish first eh? I can relate with that."

[GM]
"You are in luck!" the voice booms from the reproductor. "Neither team wishes to put up the screen!"
"Additionally, the battlefield is pretty easy to see now. If anything, Team Fiery Finish might be at a slight disadvantage, a shinobi needs terrai to hide within!"
The gates open. Both pairs lay low, but it's pretty easy to see from up where you are sitting.
Jin instantly hides behind one of the pillars, while Kazuma walks straight through the middle, acting seemingly as bait.
Senshi hides as well, biting his finger. Nene separates from him, running through the pillars. Not directly like Kazuma, she zig-zags, but is very impressively fast.
A pair of dropbears starts climbing the pillars, and Jin is apparently done with whatever he was doing, trying to catch up with Kazuma. The shuriken-adept is, finally, ambushed.
"Gotcha!" He shouts. When Nene finally attacks him, bouncing off a pillar, he instead performs a jutsu.
A spinning cross of fire rises from the ground. It misses Nene, but after she emerges apparently unscathed, she stumbles, and falls on the ground, motionless.
Kazuma also stumbles, but stands still, while Jin moves in to knock Nene out properly.
He is met with one of the dropbears, followed by Senshi.
Though the kunai is stopped by a bear's claw, kazuma performs a few seals, throwing an endless salvo of shuriken towards the pack of fighters.
Jin and Senshi leap off, while the summoned bear tries to take the shurikens for Nene. It withstands the salvo, but not the final, spinning, fiery one. Kazuma must have put together a jutsu in between the throws, somehow.
It hits hard. Seeing his partner probably finished - because pain should have ended the Genjutsu - Senshi releases himself from it, just as Kazuma does.
One of the summoned bears seems to have gotten lost along the way, though, and now sleeps deeply under the pillars.
With another summon, Senshi puts more meat between himself and Nene, and picks her up. That seems to be his plan to save his face here.
This bear is much stronger. Kazuma and Jin both ignore it as they chase the fleeing summoner, but he quickly catches up, slapping Kazuma.
Senshi, finally, reaches the entrance to the arena he just came through minutes ago. He dodges a low-effot fireball from Jin, who presumably was saving his chakra, and rises his arms, shouting something.
"...Aaand it's over!" the announcer speaks again, the trio of fighters ceasing hostilities.
"Team Death from Above has announced they are conceding! However, it is clear that Senshi Okuma tried to make a statement here. That is, he would have gotten away!"
"Even though they lost the fight, and won't be moving up in the tournament, Senshi was able to back up and save his partner in this situation. For a short while, a summoner can act as two or three shinobi at once!"
"...The audience is advised to note their score for the teams down now, lest they forget. The next competitors, please get ready!"

[Aburame Shinji]
"It's our cue."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Yup. This arena is going to need a makeover."

[GM]
You are picked up by Ai Senju, ever smiling. he probalby doesn't mean it in a bad way, but it feels weird.
"What changes do you want to make to the battlefield?" he asks.
"Mind that the opposing team will also add something!"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I would say 'a little bit of forestry wouldn't hurt', but somehow I feel like that just might already be on the menu." Eiha muses in a friendly manner.

[GM]
"That will be very easy to do. I understand you want actual underbush, though."
"That's a bit tricky, but we'll try!"
"Trees by themselves are easier."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Yeah, the announcer knew what he was talking about earlier when he was talking about vegetation, plus this will be a better representation of the average battlefield."

[GM]
"Alright." he leads you to the gate, and slips inside.

[GM]
In a flash, he returns.
"You should know though, that there will be some trees and grass eventually, after this battle."
"Do you want an underbush?"

[Aburame Shinji]
"Something to hide in would be perfect. Before the battle starts."

[GM]
"Alright. A grove it is."
For better or worse, once you enter the arena, you can't see the other entrance at all.
Just as you guessed, there is now a channel of knee-deep water. Through it, you have a certain line of sight, but otherwise, all is shrubs.
The two firepits put here for no particular reason by Kazuma still blaze, and the pillars are still up there. Just like them the channel is a bit uneven - a clear sign of hurried elemental imrovisation.

[GM]
The spy games begin, as you listen to the sounds of the forest, hoping for a broken branch, or movement.
You locate the two easily enough. Chadou seems to be getting ready for a Jutsu, while Mumei is venturing into the woods.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha remains patient, partially to allow her partner time to set-up, and because her careful observation of the battlefield lets her figure out that if one charges in recklessly, they can get blindsided by Water jutsu from behind. She will have to be cautious, and something's being prepared from this range already? Troublesome...

[Sakurai Eiha]
She finds herself with no other choice, however. With the foe looking - ironically - hesitant to advance upon them, they have no choice but to do so themselves. Eiha moves in swiftly, readying her blade in case the masked one attempts to go for her partner.

[GM]
As you approach the duo to attack, the Jutsu is finished. Its area of effect is massive, taking easily the entire middle part of the arena.
Through the roots, as you dodge, Mumei leaves the released bugs behind and charges you, flashing a pair of nekote claws in her hands.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha leaps backward above the bedlam and lands gracefully upon the water of the channels. As she had expected the foe to try to go straight for Shinji - Aburames being known for being a bit more frail - she sees the charge coming a mile away. Without a moment of hesitation, she moves up before him and surprises the masked foe with an upward slash of her tanto, drawing blood through the armor.

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji, capitalizing on the break in the enemy's teamwork, swoops in immediately after Eiha, bugs erupting from his sleeves and collar.
"That was a mistake."

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha nods, the smirk on her face shifting to a sadistic grin. "Definitely~" She patiently awaits for the impatient one to become overwhelmed by the bugs to create an openng. As the bugs attack, Eiha - perhaps shockingly to the observers - sheathes her tanto, but keeping her hand on the hilt. With her second hand and second hand alone, she begins to make a few quick seals.
[Boar] [Snake] [Boar] [Horse]
When she next draws her tanto, it is not to slice, and a torrent of water is instead expelled from the scabbard, impacting on the masked shinobi with tremendous force, sending them back into the trees and breaking many branches and smaller trunks from the sheer force.

[GM]
Chadou abandons whatever Jutsu he was going for, and runs after the girl. "WOAH!"
"I CONCEDE!"
"Medical Shinobi, right now!" he shouts toward the gate he came through, and the response is immediate.
"You could have held back a little!" he shouts at Eiha over the woods of his making.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I was!" She defends herself in a somewhat perplexed manner and lowers her stance, not appearing intent on taking any further hostile actions. Seems like even she didn't expect this much effect.

[GM]
"...And After a fiery finish, we have a cold shower!" oddly, the announcer is less loud here than on the outside. There must also be a sound barrier of some sort.
"Much like in the first match, the scion of Senju is showing solidarity for his partner. He's sure to do well in the next challenges, after all!"
"However, what this match truly showed us was the value of bonds. In the next round, it won't be so easy for these two!"
"Between Team Million Blades in the Mist and team Snow Country Wood, we have a victor! Please note down your judgements, dear viewers, and onto the next match!"
Did he just mangle your team name? That should be corrected.

。。。

You are met with approving glances in the seats. Kazuma, victorious, notes something.
"That was pretty cool, how you used a sword for those seals. I'm taking notes."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I was a bit concerned when our initial plan didn't work out." She answers without actually revealing what that plan was. "But when they split up it gave us a golden opportunity." She stretches her arms slightly before shifting her gaze over. Was that Genin fine? She wasn't moving at all after hitting the ground... "Kenjutsu and Water style are both specialties of Mist, so I figured, why not combine both?" She then explains a bit more usefully, seeing no reason to try to be sneaky when they've -seen- the technique anyway.

[GM]
Your Mist comrades seem to have liked the show also, though you only exchanged a few blows.
"You’ll have to forgive Mumei." Seika explains, rising for her match. She does not seem ready for this.
"She’s impulsive around him. Used to be jealous of his talents, you know?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"She wanted to try to impress him, then. I see."

[GM]
The next match is between Team Forest Beauty and Team Strong and Smart. It could be argued that these are less inventive.
Mumei has been taken out of the field just as you left it, so you no longer see her. Medical nin need to be especially stealthy, apparently.
The battlefield is altered again, but this time, nobody enters the field. Even though Sahara uses Water and her opponent is from the Mist, the water is being drained from the channel.
The teams enter, and Sahara immediatelly realizes she done goofed.
They start sneaking, but her water resources are gone. On the other side of the field, Risei similarly hides, while the shark-like huge Genin seems to eat medicine of some sort.
Someone taps Eiha on the shoulder, having come up from above.
A female voice. "This is a bad time to ask since you need to focus, but someobody is outside wanting to see you.*

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Huh?" She quirks her brow with a surprised expression, having no idea who could that be. Nonetheless she stands up. "Sure?" Was Hachi going to scold her for not holding back enough or something?

[GM]
It is Niten Kyouko sensei.
"A Jounin from Mist, Chisai, is asking for you."
"We have specific rules against letting her not only inside Konoha, but anywhere near. You’ll have to go meet her yourself."
"There’ll be a break after the fourth match, by the way, so maybe then."

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha shifts her attention over to Shinji. "I'll trust on your eyes in the meanwhile, hopefully this won't be too long." She states before shifting back to Niten. "Alright."

[GM]
Come to think of it, she just saw you beat her student down there. He conceded, of course, so it's not so bad.
Chisai is a relatively famous person in the Mist, known as one of the world's best sensors. It stands to reason that nobody wants her anywhere near anything.

[Aburame Shinji]
"Go ahead."

[GM]
You'll miss some of this, but then, you will also need to prepare again once the bracket is reshuffled. You can probably hear the information later.
。。。
Outside of the stadium stands a commotion of various Chuunin and Uchiha, as if they are trying to form a living wall against the Jounin. She stands with her arms folded, and a sour expression.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Well that looks ominous."

[GM]
"Hello!" she waves at you happily.
Normally, Chisai is followed by Futoppara, a blind giant with a greatsword. She acts as his eyes, and they are the perfect team. Now he is nowhere to be seen.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha walks closer in a casual manner, nodding in acknowledgment and skirting around the cordon of Uchihas. She does quirk a brow at the odd absence, though.

[GM]
This might mean that she came in a hurry, or something.
"Alright. Let me be alone with the girl." she commands, while the nearest Uchiha complains.
"Isn’t she in the exams? What if she runs or somehting?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Why would I possibly want to run away? I already won my match, either way."

[GM]
"That would be stupid." Chisai tells him. "Besides, we have two more in there. And good on you, Eiha!"

[Sakurai Eiha]
She seems disdainful of the very notion of trying to run, for whatever reason that might have been.

[GM]
"Well, walk away from here, then." he tells her. "We aren’t going to leave."
She shrugs, motioning for you to follow her into the woods, for some privacy.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha shrugs as well and complies.

[GM]
"Alright." she exhales. "I have some bad news. But first, how’s your mission?"
You should be far enough, now.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Well enough, I'd think." She remains vague, in case any of the nearby Uchihas is being a bit overzealous.

[GM]
"...That’s good to hear." the sensor scans the woods, making sure you are not being followed.
"So, a week ago, Kame departed from our village, with two Genin."
"There are now four Genin from Mist in the tournament, you included. Did I get that right?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"There are only 3 registered in the official teams, so you're missing one somewhere."
"Unless you count the transferee"

[GM]
"I do." she makes a grim expression. "Did she come back?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"The Sahara girl? Yeah, she's there."

[GM]
"I figured so."
"That is awfully strange, because she is still in the Mist. She wanted to take our Chuunin Exams since Kame told her you are taking the ones here."
"I left a day and some ago, and she was there. I doubt she can travel faster than me."

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha furrows her brow. "That's interesting. Something was rubbing me wrong, but I figured it was just me. Now though? I'm not sure anymore."

[GM]
"There is another issue with that." she rubs the twin buns on her head. "It's impossible for an impostor to infiltrate this particular village."
"Do you know the Yamanaka Clan?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I have yeah, and that might fit in with what I've noticed earlier."

[GM]
"Well, the Yamanaka Clan keeps a big web over all of Hidden Leaf. They remember every Chakra Signature that enters it and leaves it, and note it down as friend of foe."
"Unless she is just here on the stadium, and never actually entered the village."
She took the written test with you, so she did.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Well see, I noticed something that could be relevant."

[GM]
"Go on." she nods.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"When I first saw her at the beginning of these exams, she carried herself with confidence and look like someone who had come back stronger. I didn't talk to her, but that's how I perceived her. Today though, when I saw her again at the start of the exam, it felt like a totally different person than my first impression from the other day. People told me she had gone paranoid and scared and everything. It didn't make sense to me.
Unless the two were different people, somehow."

[GM]
"Mhm." she considers it.
"Either way, you are going to have to deal with this alone. With our few Genin, maybe."
"With the people in Konoha that you can trust."
"Because if something bad happens because of our oversight, then it will make us look really, really bad."
What a Konoha thing to say.

[Sakurai Eiha]
And if it was on purpose, it'll be bad for everyone.









[GM]
Meanwhile, the matches progress in the arena.
The next one features the nerdy girl and Sahara, against the nerdy boy and the shark man who came from Mist.
To Sahara's presumbale surprise, water is drained from the arena once she arrives, while the pillars are also removed. She must have counted on it being there.
Risei hands something to his partner, while he bulks up, and sprints towards the center, with the boy in tow.
When in range he considers appropriate, which is roughly the middle of the arena, Shinoraze throws off his cloak, revealing a burly, scaled body underneath. He dodges an incoming water jutsu, curling up into a ball.
Some vieweres closer in stand up in surprise. This seems awfully similar to a technique practiced in Konoha, by a certain clan. Is the Mist taunting you?
The ball spins around the arena flanking the pair, while Risei charges them holding a kunai.
Leaving Seika for later, the ball goes first for Sahara, hitting through another blast of water - there must have been some left, or you simply did not see her use a scroll.
It bounces against the wall, narrowly missing Seika, and goes for Sahara again. Instead, though, the ball unfurls in front of her, and places a fuuinjutsu tag on her leg, too slow in her dodge.
This must be a surprise for Risei, who approaches her, activating the tag. Energy crackles around, her paralyzing her, and the sharkman adds a few blow, and follows her with another.
Risei and Seika then proceed to have a kunai duel, but it does not beat the opening. Eventually, Sahara is knocked down, and Seika is forced to concede the match once she sees Shinoraze approach.
The announcer booms again. "Though civilians may not have seen this, there was a lot going on behind the scenes!"
"The masters of ninjutsu warfare want to say that despite the result, the litlte girl with the kunai did a lot of work in this match. The most dangerous techniques are those that cannot be seen!"
What he means by that is a mystery. It certianly did not seem like much to you.
There is a brief pause then, as Sahara is being recovered.

。。。

"What do you think?" Chisai asks Eiha, outside the arena.
"Came across anything that could explain this? Sahara acting odd?"
"Because I think there is exactly one way to resolve it without causing an uproar."

[Sakurai Eiha]
The raven-haired girl shook her head, arms crossed. "No, I didn't have any opportunity to get close to her at all since she returned, all I know is how she's acted with two entirely different personalities for some reason... Do tell, though?"

[GM]
"I will stay outside. Bring her to me."
"She likely will not come. If it’s a set-up, she will try to flee at some point or the other."
This seems to be an order, now. Not knowing the results of the last match, Eiha is sent back to the stands.

。。。

The next match sees all the water return, alongside some tall boulders amid the trees. It is becoming a rather complicated battlefield.
The tonfa girl and the spear man seem to have a plan similar to yours. Raiko and Kamiko, though, are at a great advantage. They know one of their opponents very well, and each other.
Both parties seem content to have Yuu and Raiko clash in the middle, while Tasaku and Kamiko prepare whatever they need to prepare. Raiko is using martial arts against the tonfa, keeping her sword sheathed.
They trade a few blows, Raiko getting smacked quite a bit.
Suddenly, a braid of white hair comes from inside the water ditch, striking Yuu, and catching one of her hands. This gives Raiko the opportunity to trip the girl, following up with a Iai slash from her Chokuto, and a swift kick. The result is similar to the overkill Eiha inflicted upon Mumei.
At the same time, the water sparkles with energy. Tasaku is releasing lightning into the water,  and it's leading back to Kamiko.
...But it's not enough. She manages to raise the entire, rather impressive mass of the hair from the ditch, and it strikes at Tasaku again, over the length of the whole arena.
If it was just the hair, he would probably be fine, but with Raiko charging at him, sword unsheathed, he is forced to concede the match.
"...That was pretty clever, on both sides! I hope that tonfa-using girl will get proper medical attention!"
"You have also witnessed a technique which has been forgotten for two decades! As the tournament progresses, the Kame clan will try to affirm its place in the village, showing its new daughter as a proof of concept!"
"We will now let the participants rest a little, while updating the bracket."
"There will now be all new teams, and Shinobi who fought alongside each other can now find themselves on opposite sides!"
"Despite all of our village’s efforts to the contrary, such is the world of ninja."
The new bracket appears on the screen, and Shinji can see that something is wrong with it.
It's not that he is on team with Raiko, who has just shown herself to be very strong, it's that he is against Jin and Eiha.
But then, it was a toss-up, wasn't it?
Tasaku can be seen going after Raiko in the stands, while people go to buy snacks and visit the bathrooms en-masse.
"Where’d you learn that style?" he asks her, looking at her very suspiciously. "I've seen images of it, but you actually perform it. A shinobi isn’t supposed to have seen a manual."
She laughs with a ringing voice. "Ha! Stay salty. Konoha has many secrets."

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha allowed herself a slightly playful tone. "Well, I -was- the only one who answered when Senju asked that question before the class." She half-jested. "Besides, I'm pretty curious to hear how things were for her when she went to my village, and I never had the chance to talk to her." *She added a bit more normally."

[GM]
"Hmm." he seems to understand. "These two others seem pretty fine to me, so you can probably ask them."
"As in, they are not here to set explosives down between the fights, or something, probably."
"Water explosives."
A dark-haired woman appears from the door, presumably Dabune. "Yes?"
"The girl from Mist, Sahara."
"You treated her just now, right? Said she disappeared. They're looking for her." the elder medical kunoichi tells her.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"That would be pretty counter-productive.." She noted in a deadpan manner before glancing up at the new arrival.

[GM]
"Oh, I am awfully sorry!" *Dabune says. "I think she walked out, but..."
"The window was closed!"
She leads you two rooms over, to two nice and clean beds. One has Yuu on it, apparently unconscious, while the other is clearly missing a person.
"I was literally here!" she points to the corridor outside. "Nobody snuck by me that way since I served as a Genin, and the window was closed.”
"Besides, we would see her if she left the normal way." the chief doctor adds.
"We’ve sent someone to tell the people up above already, but who knows how that went, you are the first to come asking."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Sounds to me like either she used some sort of Juutsu to get out in an unconventional way... or someone -else- got her out like that. Willing or not."

[GM]
"I don’t like the sound of that at all." the doctor tells you.
"The possible exits to this room would be... The window, if she could close it after herself. Man, it's so nice they even added the glass and wooden lock.*
The walls and floor and ceiling are one big piece of wood, so no turning them up and down.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Me neither, but if you're telling me there's no way she should have been able to get out without you noticing, then we gotta face the fact that she -should- still be here, unless something happened."

[GM]
"There’s also the faucet." Dabune points out.
"Well if you can escape this room that way, be my guest."
Jin goes through the room, taking a very careful look at everything. around the bed.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha's eyes narrow. There is a Keikkei Genkai she knows of who could have done exactly that... but for Sahara to be capable of it? That should be impossible...

[GM]
He also approaches the faucet in the end.
"...Did you use it to get water?"
"There are drops."
Dabune thinks about it. "I guess, to clean this girl’s cut."
He shrugs. "Well, I guess you won’t be meeting her, Eiha."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"You're willing to just dismiss this, like that?" She seems skeptical. "I thought comradeship was supposed to be the most important thing in the Leaf."

[GM]
"You actually think she left through the faucet?" he seems confused.
"Another way is mokuton."
"...Or just being invisible, I guess."
"I’d definitely notice someone passing by the reception." the chief doctor insists.
"I’m a sensor."

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha lets out a reluctant sigh. "There -is- a Jutsuu that would make that possible. It's not one she should be able to use, though. Either way, this just makes it all even more shady."

[GM]
"I really hoped we could have exams without some grand conspiracy." Jin complains.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"A sensor who didn't see anyone coming in or out. The logical answer being Jutsus that shouldn't be here..."
Eiha gave Jin a grin. "See it that way, if we can manage to unravel a conspiracy before it boils over, that'll show us to be a lot more capable than just a mere arena battle, won't it?~"

[GM]
"I did not finish treating her." Dabune says. "She should have at least a rib broken still."
"Unless she can treat herself." her boss suggests. "That’s not so uncommon."
"But it's her Chuunin exams..." the nurse says, still not catching on.
"...Maybe." Jin admits, leaving the two alone. With what you did, they should cause enough of a ruckus to the Jounin without your help.
"Though I am not sure if I want to exhaust myself on that errand."
"But it is the way of Uchiha, so I will help you." he says finally.
"Now what?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
The raven-haired girl quirked an eyebrow, initially skeptical of the boy and his reluctance, which did not make a good impression. Still, he agreed to help without the need for further coercing, so maybe he was just one of those types who complained, but get things done regardless. "Now we try to find if there's a lead of some sort outside. If she can't heal herself, then we might be able to find blood sooner than later, failing that, anything that would tie to the window, the plumbing, or the building itself.."

[GM]
As you leave, you notice the chief doctor has the Hyuuga clan crest on the back of her coat. Perhaps she is someone important to keep in mind.
Jin stops in his tracks, coming back to her. "Excuse me, one more thing."
"Would you be able to see where the plumbing goes?"
She puffs. "Sure. I know it takes in rainwater from the top of the arena, and cleans it, but who knows about the bottom?"
The doctor performs a few handseals, scanning the floor.
"...There is a tank pretty deep under us, but I don’t think you could get out."
"The whole thing leaves outside the pallisade, on the opposite side of Konoha. Probably leads into that small pond nearby."
"Well, I don't know what it is to you, but good luck, kids."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"That's pretty far away." She clicks her tongue with displeasure. "There's no helping it though, she could have been abducted."

[GM]
"The tank is, two stories down by stairs, go to the left, and then third door on the right."
"If that’s where you are going."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"There's someone I need to have a word with, we should be able to meet her on the way outside. If this is an abduction, then we have to go for the exit route as quickly as possible to cut it off."

[GM]
"Alright." Jin nods, following you.

。。。

Chisai is still standing outside impatiently. She is more happy to see you, less happy to see Jin.
"Ha."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Things got complicated."

[GM]
"You should not trust what cute girls tell you, young man." she tells Jin. "What if I grabbed you and ran?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"....What?"

[GM]
He does not seem to understand, but the Uchiha among the guards chuckle.
"Just a bit of friendly advice." Chisai tells you. "While we can be friends."
"How did things get complicated?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha rolls her eyes. "Well that's not ominous at all." She moves closer and lowers her voice to avoid eavesdropping. "Disappeared without a trace. A Byakugan user confirmed she didn't walk out, and no one else walked in."

[GM]
"Damn." she seems stunned. "Now I am really glad I bothered to come here."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"We were on our way out to check the water piping system, it should lead somewhere near."

[GM]
"Ooooooh." she understands immediately.
"Well, keep in mind that this is a maverick if so."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I have no idea how -that- could have been involved, but it's not impossible."

[GM]
"I asked the Mizukage, you know, and he said this is definitely not on the menu."
Jin is smart enough to stay behind, not commenting. Without all the guards, she could actually grab him and run.
The arena is not so big, if you go around it fast as Shinobi do. Soon enough, you find a pipe sticking out of the wood.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha makes a token effort to examine the scene, though she's aware that if there's something to find, the Dedicated Sensor will likely find it much faster than she could.

[GM]
"Aww!" she excalims, investigating the puddle under the pipe. The water leaves the moss, going somewhere down into the woods.
"They did not leave behind chakra, but there’s a big footstomp in the puddle here."
"I hate to say it, but we are probably dealing with a Hozuki as you thought."
She pulls out a small book, which you recognize as the records of missing-nin, which even Jounin sometimes have to counter-reference.
"There are two big names here."
"Hozuki Andaro, the missing family head from ten years ago. Who knows what happened to him."
"I don't know if he has any reason to be here, but he's pretty legendary. We are in deep shit if it's him, but it’s also not our fault if it's him."
"Hozuki Pako, a girl who went rogue two years ago as a kid, and was later seen in Cloud. Don’t know much about her." she reads into it.
"...She lost to a Genin from Konoha in the exams and had a fit?"
"And that’s why she left? Imagine being that salty."
"It does not say who the Genin was, but I am sure you could find out if you ask Konoha who they sent to us two years ago. I did not see that tourney."
"Come to think of it, it’s probably beacuse she's been spared. We don't do that, but a visitor from Konoha would."
"Maybe she’s there to finish the job."
She tears the page out, handing it to you.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Saltier than the ocean waters, no kidding, and that sounds like a valid motive yeah." She takes the page.

[GM]
"Either way is good because we can pin it on either a famous rogue, or Cloud respectively." she seems content. "It should be fine to inform Konoha now, but they still won’t let me in."
"Mind that they might use the same way to re-enter."
"Mind that she may have placed something inside and does not need to come back."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Either way it'd be a good thing to have eyes there. I assume you'll be following that lead?"

[GM]
"I can stay here if you don't trust the Uchiha, but they'll come for me here eventually." she shrugs.
"There aren’t any more tracks, whoever did this just forgot they left something under the water."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Investigating. Evidence suggests one of the candidates was impersonated by a rogue ninja."
By contrast to the Jonin's open display of emotion, Eiha remains calm.

[GM]
"Ah."
"That is a serious accussation, Eiha." she calms down a little. "Come with me."
"Is that about Sahara disappearing from her room?"
She already knows, apparently.
"You are not really doing me any favors, but I guess at this point it needs to be brough up higher."
"Come with me."
Instead of below, she takes you up above.
Ah, that seat is reserved for-
A pair of vested men stop you as you nearly enter the light again, at the very top of the stalls.
"Halt. Restricted."
"Bring me whoever is in charge of everything up here." she says firmly.
"That would be Hokage-sama. Obviously, we will not bring him."
"No, I mean, in charge of security. The people below already know this, but one of the Genin disappeared from her room."
"Now Eiha’s saying she is being impersonated by someone."
They look to each other, unsure of what to do. One leaves, while the other stands in your way.
"Please wait."
Saki turns to you, to dispel the tension a bit. "They are just doing their jobs."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I'm aware. If we're lucky, the impersonator isn't someone too dangerous. At first I wasn't sure if the impersonator was here, or the other one, so I had to assume the real one could have been in danger."

[GM]
"Hm. Ai would be in charge of security down below, and he already told me."
"But he did not bring it up here, so it probably did not seem serious to him."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Told what?"

[GM]
"It's not so strange to disappear for a bit. We also let you sneak through here. There are dark rooms all around the place so you have somewhere to discuss strategy - ah." A tall, dark figure appears behind the guard.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Besides the disappearance itself, all the information she brought should have been new intel, so the possibility of it already being known somehow was disturbing.

[GM]
"You are telling her a little much." Orochimaru berates her.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha tenses slightly. This is not the Senju she had expected.

[GM]
"The whole game revolves around cheating, but suggesting that they do that is just the poorest form."
"Now, what is the issue here?"
Saki nudges you, apparently not comfortable explaining it herself.

[Sakurai Eiha]
The raven-haired girl straightened up, knowing better than to dance around the subject with a man who had an aura even more dark than her own. "I'll be straight to the point. After my match I was informed that at the same time someone -here- was claiming to be the Genin Sahara, she was also present back in the Village Hidden in the Mist. One of them had to be fake, but we had no idea which, why, or who was behind any of it. I was ordered to investigate that matter."

[GM]
If he is surprised by this, the snake eyes show nothing.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"The short version is that we believe the one participating in the exams here was a fake impersonated by one of our rogue ninjas. The evidence for that is the method of escape, which used a secret technique the real Genin couldn't have replicated in any way."

[GM]
Orochimaru blinks.
"I wonder if you considered a certain issue with this."
"But perhaps it's not obvious to you. We prevented you from learning too much about Konoha, after all.''
"The chakra signatures of everyone entering and leaving Konoha are tracked. Sahara’s chakra signature is her own."
"We made sure of this. Someone could be replicating it."
"It is about as likely as simple Bunshin confusing all the Hyuuga, Uchiha, and Sensors in here."
"Not to say that your theory does not hold water, but some rather advanced technique must be at play in the first place."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"The only other alternatives I can think of would be that she somehow ended up having an innate affinity for the technique I mentioned - which is just about as unlikely - or that she really was abducted as I first considered - which your Barrier you just explained should probably have picked up on."

[GM]
"Does the woman outside have an idea about which particular rogue it may be?" Orochimaru finally glances towards the arena, no longer pressuring you.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha gives a terse nod. "There are two possibilities. One is a low-level shinobi with a reasonable personal motive to want to interfere with Konoha's Chuunin exams, but she would probably not be able to fool your Barrier. The other is a high-level shinobi who lacks a clear motive, but could have access to very advanced techniques." The takes out the pages she was given

[GM]
He takes it, giving it a brief look. "Rogues are awfully convenient, are they not?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I take it you don't believe it's either of them?" She somehow manages to withstand the clear antagonistic undertones in that retort and stand firm.

[GM]
He does not answer that. "The exams are temporarily suspended, while we investigate this. You may go, and enjoy the additional time you have been given."
"It is possible that we change the order  of challenges because of this, but do not worry over losing out on the exams."

[Sakurai Eiha]
While Eiha is aware that the man in front of him is dangerous, she also believes that displaying fear would be a bigger sin than speaking up, as long as she remains careful not to be disrespectful while doing so. She gives a small nod. "I understand."

[GM]
Orochimaru returns to his seat, keeping the page, and  gives out a few orders. Chuunin run into all directions, spreading the message. He then goes on to talk to Tobirama.
"...There you go." the second guard returns to his station.
"Intense, right?"
They seem less stuck-up than before.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha lets out a small sigh of relief. The man's pressure asides, she also feels the stress from her mission, and from the very precarious situation she is put in, between two villages, neither of which trust one another very well, and with secrets on each sides. Knowing how much to say or not say alone was a challenge, and she was just a Genin.

[GM]
"Make sure to come up with what you want done with the arena." Saki reminsd you.
"You should probably return to the stands. Tell the other Genin, maybe."
"More fire would be nice." Jin says.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Fire and water... Now if only we could do something with both..." She muses, aware of the existence of advanced elements, but also aware that they were rather rare and used only either in combination attacks, or by secret technique users.

[GM]
"Hmm." he seems to have the same idea.
"There is already both, we just need to keep it in if we need something of the sort."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"That's good." She doesn't mention her scrolls just yet, still wary she could be listened in on.

[GM]
。。。

In the meantime, Shinji and Raiko are informed that the exams are suspended, after ten minutes of waiting, and Hachi shooting them glances of knowing absolutely nothing about the situation. They are sent back to the stalls, and Raiko is now veritably angry after having practiced her kenjutsu for fifteen minutes before the match.
In there, Eiha and Jin explain the situation.
Though much more competent people are surely looking, it's not like you are being held here.
Even as Genin, maybe you could help.








[GM]
Whatever proceedings are going on thanks to Eiha's intervention seem to really drag. Before long, Mumei and Yuu are join you. The Genin are together again, winners and losers, with the exception of Sahara.
One thing that is easily noticeable from where you are is that the Tobirama Senju seems to have withdrawn from his seat. Many of the shinobi who were sitting down and watching have been visited by the guards in the meantime, and left their place.
This must be what having adults leave in the middle of a stage play you practiced for is like, except that it's a battle.
Speaking of adults, many of your companions have their parents in the audience, and some used the time to review their progress. Eiha only has the other two Genin of Mist to impress here, but a good part of the Aburame clan is watching - even if Shinji's parent situation is less happy than what some of the other Genin enjoy.
Raiko's father visited your group, he was a hearty fat man as confident in his daughter as she is in herself. Kamiko visited an older woman sharing her silver hair, though she cannot possibly be her mother because of age.
After what seems like an eternity, the announcer speaks.
"We apologize for postponing the tournament, for security reasons."
"Due to some technical issues, Hokage-sama will not be attending the remaining three fights. We hope that the audience understands."
"With that said, the next match will begin in fifteen minutes! Please finish whatever business you may have been doing in the meantime."
That is the official announcement. You can see Ewo-sensei approach from the distance, waving to get your attention. He is presumably hoping to announce something unofficial.
"About time." Kamiko twirls her hair. "Stage fright is one thing, but I almost fell asleep!"
"You guys just get it sorted fast." she tells the four of you, since her match is afterward.
"It's probably going to take the longest, though." Jin mumbles to that. "People that already won once wiill put in more effort, not less."

[Aburame Shinji]
"I end fights with certainty, not speed."

[GM]
"You heard him." he sighs.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Don't be so eager to lose, let others have their fun."

[GM]
Yuu giggles at that, for some reason.
Ewo arrives. "So, you heard it."
"We have reasons to worry this is an attempt to assassinate someone, or abduct someone from a famous clan, who is out of the village."
"So, only commoners and shinobi who can actually defend themselves properly are staying. That is the gist of it."
"For example, Chadou's little brother has to go back to Konoha. Mist is famous for its love of abductions." he gives an eye to the natives among you "No offense."
[Aburame Shinji]
"Then why are we sending people there...?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"None taken~"

[GM]
"We would not send an Aburame." Ewo shrugs. "Both you and Sahara were people who the village thought could learn something on the other side."
"But from whom the other side would not be able to learn much."
Shinoraze, the big shark-boy seems to take slight offense to that. "Then I shouldn't be here, being a Hoshigaki."
The Jounin seems  impressed to hear that name. "I didn't know you were a real clan anymore. Maybe you are here to help your name."
"Konoha probably has some samples of you guys." Tasaku says, annoyed. He really seems to know an awful lot about lots of things for a Genin.
"Probably." Ewo agrees. "Now, get your teams ready, alright? Break's over."
Shinoraze seems even more angry now, but does not vocalize it.

。。。

[GM]
You discuss the strategy with your partner for the last time, and the arena opens. To Eiha's dismay, water has been drained from the channels.
Not much can be seen, aside of Raiko obviously hulking through the branches.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Fortunately for her, Eiha had prepared for such a situation, having expected the precious resources not to be available from the start, so she came equipped. The wait seems to have done poorly for her readiness, though she still moves in quickly under the cover of the underbush, approaching the now drained channels. Without breaking concealment, she takes out a scroll from her vest and unfurls it inside, water suddenly being unleashed without being seen.

[GM]
Jin follows close behind, ready to spring the trap. To the audience's surprise, Shinji seems to have chosen a method of all-out attack, however.
While Eiha is swarmed by the kikaichu, Raiko comes from the side with a flying kick, hitting Jin.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha grit her teeth, understanding the foul play that was happening. She restrains herself from screaming her anger, hoping the other foe is not already alert of her presence. She draws her tanto with her right hand and makes quick seals with the left as said foe approaches. Timing her jutsuu just right, a whipe of water forms around the blade of her tanto and lashes in a circle around her as she spins, staggering the other Genin and slicing through the bugs. Immediately, she then jumps into the nearby water, partially to drown the bug planted on her and partially to obscure her position anew.

[GM]
Jin is left standing alone against Raiko, who is recovering from the blow she had taken. Eiha and Shinji would both be hard to see for the audience.
Then heat crawls at the edge of your vision, as the giant pot of fire and brimstone spills, rolling towards you. Did he set this up ahead of time?
"You've underestimated me!" Jin shouts, gathering courage. "Just because I don't have some crap in my eyes!"
Even as Eiha is underwater, cinders fall into the channel, burning hot. What kind of a Jutsu did Jin use up there?

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha was already aware of Jin's intention to use a fire-based Genjutsu, yet despite her training in counter-genjutsu and her foreknowledge of the attack, she can't seem to dispell it. This is worrisome... but she has other things to worry about, namely her partner being suddenly surrounded on all sides.
Surging from the water in a now familiar stance, right hand on her sheathed tanto'S hilt, left hand forming the seal of the Dog, she suddenly appears on Raiko's flank, unleashing the same blast of water from her scabbard as before to try to create an opening for Jin. To her -mixed- surprise, her foe still appears more than willing to defend herself, how strong. She attempts a follow up strike, which slips through a quick attempt at a counter, but she fails to secure a good hit, and the fire in her foe's eyes is still lit. "Hah, you're not bad." She allows herself in the middle of the fight.

[GM]
Raiko staggers to her feet, using the sheathed sword as a crutch.
The avalanche of fire comes from behind her back. "I'm not!"
She stumbles and seemingly trips, but it's a feint. In a spin, she unsheathes the sword, and drives it into Jin's side.
Impossibly, Jin fumbles his way into the one Shinji in the group of clones that's real, dropping both into the ditch.
Then, all the fire disappears from the battlefield, and it is the lush forest it was before. The cup of fire still stands.
Of course.
You spot Hachi running through the ditch like lightning, trying not to interrupt the battle. He snatches the badly bleeding Uchiha boy, and disappears right into the opposing gate.

[Sakurai Eiha]
In previous matches, contestants had essentially always surrendered after their partners were knocked out. As she sees Jin knocked cold, Eiha curses under her breath, but does not relent, she moves in even more savagely and finishes the job, avenging the Uchiha with a swift blade strike. As the first foe crumbles down, it's up to her to end it, one on one, teammates against one another left standing. She grins. "Well, how nostalgic!" She exclaims with a raised blade and a manic grin.

[GM]
Raiko seems like she could push herself to fight on, but with this many cuts and bruises, she just hunkers down, personality or not.

[Sakurai Eiha]
With her blood hot and the drive to win, Eiha makes a quick sidestep and quickly charges over the water, only for her blade to fall empty on a flock of bugs. She curses once more quietly and another application of Snake Dog Snake Dog with her off-hand later, the bugs are no more. Her quarry escaped and she is using up her chakra, though....

[GM]
As the battle moves closer to Eiha's entry gate, which is a bit more of an open grass field, you can notice some people in the audience standing up in excitement. Your sensei, currently treating Jin's cut behind the gate next to the Hyuuga woman you saw earlier, is trying the hardest to not watch.

[Aburame Shinji]
The arena clears of both contestants and grows eerily quiet. After a pause, Shinji seems to determine something, and decides to speak up, giving away his position. "How about a draw?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Kch, now if I finished you now it would be bad form." Eiha responds with slight frustration, but apparently a bit of a sporting spirit as well. "Fine, this would get boring for the viewers anyway, given we're both stealth adept."

[GM]
The word seems to spread quickly, there must be ears here somewhere, listening to what is actually being said. Both gates slide up, and Niten-sensei walks in from Shinji's slowly. She seems to be talking to someone on a radio.
The anouncer's voice booms. "It seems that the genin have decided to call this match a draw. We don't really have a precedent as to what it means for the bracket, since this is our first time trying these sorts of team battles."
"Nevertheless, you have witnessed the two young souls which trained together, finally clash. What an impressive match!"
Niten walks through Chadou's plants, finally finding Raiko, and nudging her slumped form with a foot. Giving her support, she comes to Eiha's entrance, where you are.
"You've got it, now come out. We don't know how to score it, though."
While bleeding all over the teacher, Raiko asks a question. "Did we... win, sensei?"
"You won in my heart." the kunoichi assures her.
"Just because I didn't want to murder that noodly kid... goddammit." they continue to the gate. "If that was a real fight, I'd be dead."
Raiko seems to be much more trusting of her teacher than anyone else. As for you, it seems it's time for you to leave.
Jin's form was already carried into the infirmary, but your own sensei doesn't seem to be leaving the gate. He seems to have some words for you.

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji hops off the tree he was hiding on and heads towards the gate.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha is somewhat dissatisfied with this turn of event, but supposed it can't be helped. At least she was successful in NOT killing anyone, so she'll take that as a win in her books. She quirks a brow at the Tall Man's inquisitive look, however.

[GM]
"I should remind you that this was a team battle, not 'take out the other two and put on a show' battle." he tells you. "It was a nice watch, though. How are your reserves?"
"In case either of you is going to the finals, I'll need to get them a soldier pill."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"To be fair, I tried to save my partner, but I wasn't fast enough to get rid of the Taijutsu user. He told me his Genjutsu would 'deal with her', so I thought he had her handled, but then she just kept moving as if nothing happened." Eiha somewhat complains

[GM]
"You should have noticed how scared she was of HIM." Hachi points out. "And the other way around."
"Maybe it had to end this way, they were too eager to get rid of one another."

[Aburame Shinji]
"Two people would have proceeded in the bracket regardless of the result."

[GM]
"That is the thing,"

[Aburame Shinji]
"And right now, only two people are in the shape to proceed."

[GM]
"It's possible that's what they will decide." Hachi agrees. "But it would totally be cheating from the side of the two of you. You know that.*
"Especially since I know you took it really seriously."
"Is that going to satisfy you if it happens?"

[Aburame Shinji]
"We gave it our best, and I don't think either of us was disappointed."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"To be fair, I was seriously trying to take him down." She thumbs over to Shinji "ending like this wasn't my plan at all, but he seems to have endless reserves of substitutions, and I didn't have any opportunity to corner him with a jutsu."
"I even considered using -that- Jutsu and being extra careful not to hit anywhere close to center, but that would have required shaking him off and then managing to ambush him. Which is kind of what I was trying to do at the end."

[Aburame Shinji]
"The battle could have reached an end but only at the expense of our points with the crowd."

[GM]
He rolls his eyes, not to belittle you, but to point up above with his arms folded. "They are going to want to give it to one team, so your teammates don't feel robbed of their effort, but then they will argue about who was going to win. The Aburame clan would probably have enough of a push, but they're not going to use it for a stupid reason like the exams."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"It would have been down to luck in the end, more than skill. I still have a few more tricks too."

[GM]
"Most likely they will come up with some sort of dumb free-for-all. Well, we should clear this place now, the teams are coming."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Sounds about right. Though that'll just postpone the problem." Eiha muses
"If it's a free for all and the other two finalists get knocked out and it goes down to a 1v1 between the two of us - which I think it will since we're both good at stealth and the other Genins are hot-headed - then we'll get in the same situation again."

[GM]
On the way out, you run into Shinoraze and Kazuma, who are about to fight Kamiko and Risei.
They both throw you thumbs up, or rather, give Eiha thumbs up.
"Great show both of you." Kazuma cheers you on, not to forget Shinji. "Though it's hard to learn anything from watching Shinji fight!"
"You might as well be swinging at air, it seems."

[Aburame Shinji]
"That's how a ninja should fight."

[Sakurai Eiha]
The foreigner quirks a brow at the specificity of the gesture, but gives a grin nonetheless. "You best give us a good one too." She responds with enthusiasm, blood still running hot from the fight - a bit of an irony given her earlier comment. "He was elusive that's for sure, but he has a point."
Eiha can't help but grin a little wider as she adds as an afterthought. "I'll till chalk it as a win given I managed to make it two rounds without actually killing anyone." The morbid comment referring back of course to the Mist Genin exams...

[GM]
Shinoraze has been grim since he arrived, but now seems cheerful, even more so by the comment. "When we win, we'd better get matched up together." *he tells Eiha, pointing with his big, fat, scaly finger. "United Mist front!"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Scary, scary.~" She muses with a chuckle, sharp teeth showing in her grin.

[GM]
"What what the whole shebang with that girl I slammed in the last fight, anyway? I know I got really lucky with landing that tag. She got no business being Genin."
It's a little late to say something like that. Kazuma notices what he's saying. "They say she might have been a traitor in disguise."
"So if anything, you belly slammed a Jonin. Be proud of yourself, man."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"We have a few suspects, but I have no idea where the Konoha security is in their investigation yet."

[GM]
"Right." Kazuma nods. "Anyway, did you spend a lot of Chakra on that?"
" 'cause like I told you, Kamiko has some sort of a special twist on her Kekkei Genkai that lets her drain people through the hair."
"Maybe shouldn't have said that in case I end up matched with her." he winks.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha perks up as she thinks it over, remaining quiet for a few seconds. "Hm... about half, I'd gander. I've got about enough of getting chakra bited out of me for one day though."
She does not seem to believe saying this will handicap her in any way

[GM]
"Yeah. There are three more whole disciplines after this." Kazuma says. "How'd you do on the written, sharkman?"
"Pretty bad." sharkman shrugs "There was supposed to be a gimmick you could rake points in in your version, but we missed out on it, since there were just two of us. So it was just what I know."
"And that's how to swim and smash, basically." he laughs.

[GM]
。。。
As could be somewhat expected, the next fight is almost as flashy as yours.
After all, with Risei not being that useful in a fight, and Kamiko's Kekkei Genkai being rather overpowering, both sides are forced to do their very best.
It starts with Shinoraze attempting to Shunshin over the entire arena, to get at Kamiko before she can develop her cradle of hair, followed closely by Kazuma throwing myriads of shuriken.
Though the ball leaves some shallow cuts on the duo, you see what audience does not - that while fending off the scaly ball of death, Kamiko's braid of hair has placed some of Risei's tags on the fat boy.
Risei quickly activates them, putting the offense on the back foot: but while Shinoraze is tangled and paralyzed, Kazuma creates a pair of clones, and covers the other side of the battlefield with elemental Jutsu.
After the smoke clears, the audience can see the entire ground already covered by Kamiko's hair, even as Kazuma methodically burns it down, jumping from pillar to pillar. Dodging the braids attempting to tangle him from below, he uses his thinly split chakra with great care.
Kamiko eventually catches one of the clones, but it only explodes to burn more of the floor. However, she still has the shark-man tied up.
Kazuma attacks her with a Huuma Shuriken burning bright, which has several chuunin and jounin grasp: A Genin is not supposed to be able to do that!
Even as he severs the connection, though, it's obvious that it's too late - Kamiko has already sapped Shinoraze good.
The pair exchanges some remarks, after which Kazuma promptly picks up Risei's charred body, holding a kunai to the Fuuinjutsu-user's throat. Who knew he was capable of such a move?
Risei squirms, but to Kamiko's anger, releases the seal. Shinoraze immediatelly uncurls, and gets on his feet, but it's clear that he had enough of it.
After some more arguing, the spirit of which you can imagine, Kamiko makes a rude gesture towards Kazuma. She is a bit charred, but still standing there unwounded, and clearly unwilling to take a loss. Her hair snatches Risei as Kazuma leaves him, and tosses him towards the gate from which she barely moved.
The pair paces a bit away from the shark, trying to still make it work, but once Kamiko blocks perhaps hundred shuriken being her way, herself incredibly tired, they give it up, similar to what you did.
At least it's clear that both sides put in a honest effort, as they go their separate ways. Their chakra situation also seems worse than yours. It does not escape your attention that Kazuma's munitions remain in the arena, however. Perhaps you could pick them up later?
。。。
The brackets are shuffled, and the result that everyone had sort of expected appears. The finals consist of two of you, versus Raiko and Kazuma.
Jin is still being treated, but Raiko curses loudly from her seat.
"Damn, you really want to go there in that shape?" Tasaku whistles at her. "Medical nin can’t heal thick heads, you know."
"I’ve been robbed!" she shouts, as vital in spirit as when she entered the arena. "Where am I supposed to get points now, the obstacle course?"
" ’least you won something." Yuu tells her friendly rival. "That said, this is kind of exciting."
"That’s the one that everyone is waiting for. Big explosions, Kekkei Gekai. Stealth and taijutsu are kind of boring to watch."
"And I do Taijutsu!"
The match is in an hour. Until then, it might be a good idea to eat and drink.
Either way, you should prepare. This time, the way you're used to.
。。。
(You both gain 2 Nindo for this session in particular, as your respective trainings crossed paths!)






[GM]
。。。
The final battle awaits you. From what you could gather, those two together could be quite dangerous.
At the same time, they should be about as exhausted as you are. If they have anything extraordinary, they would have already used it. Therefore, the big danger here are the spiffy things they did not need to use against others, but which could be handy against you.
Ninjutsu theory dictates that Eiha should do well against Kazuma, Kazuma should do well against Shinji, and the rest is a crapshoot. No doubt, they are considering this, too.
You've had enough time to take a breather, get your mostly shallow wounds treated, and if you've taken any pills to go on, to get them working.
One question that is perhaps not obvious remains: How will you alter the arena?

To your surprise, what awaits you on your side of the door is the Hyuuga woman from before. It seems that they expect the combat to become pretty bloody in the finals, and want to be able to step in.
"Well?" she asks impatiently. "The fight is scheduled in ten minutes. What do you want them to do?"

[Aburame Shinji]
"Leave the arena as it is."

[GM]
She nods, slipping through the door.
Soon enough, the announcer's voice echoes from upstairs, even if very muffled. The gate opens, letting you in.
The game begins. With a fortunate angle through the branches, Shinji spots Kamiko crouching down, and doing something weird with her hair you haven't really seen before.

Kamiko manages to fend off the first assault of bugs, clearly a bit disturbed. Though she clearly meant to be bait, this is not how the other party imagined it.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Unlike the previous matches, this final round of the tournament was clearly more akin to what a battle between Shinobi should be like. With both sides rather adequate at stealth and skirting one another like vultures, waiting for the other to make a mistake first. As the insects harassed the foe, Eiha kept herself mostly scanning for the unaccounted for foe, wary of moving in too close due to both that wild elements an the obvious threat that had been witnessed before. Finally though, she managed to catch sight of not one, but two shuriken users, seemingly attempting to flank around. She made a quick and subtle signal for Shin before readying herself. The time was soon.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Unfortunately for her, the target she was preparing to eliminate falls down from exhaustion and attrition under the relentless assault of the bugs. Realizing that she might go this entire match without doing anything noteworthy, she decides to move on to attack the revealed ninjutsu user, even if waiting would have been more prudent. To her surprise, he manages to do quite well for himself.

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji's kikaichu would time and time again reveal their presence to Kamiko only to be fended off and retreat back into the shadows. But each one of those onslaughts was merely a diversion: each time, minute amounts of bugs would detach from the main swarms and hide themselves within the girl's clothing, feasting on her chakra in secret.

[Sakurai Eiha]
By a further stroke of misfortune, Eiha's opponent was able to react not only more quickly, but with an insane barrage. More fortunately though, the snapshot aiming of the attack allowed her to weave between almost a dozen shurikens. Once the onlaught as over, her left hand formed into a seal and her right moved with her Tanto. "Alright, time to die." She spoke with irritation as most of the arena became filled with an obscuring, thick mist within but seconds.

[GM]
A shadow of the Hyuuga woman swoops through the barrier, picking up Kamiko, and leaving again. It even separates her from the cradle of hair.
The audience missed the rest. At the end, all they heard was Kazuma shouting.
"I give! I'm out of everything!"
"Let me at least correct my shuriken, will you? I threw like a hundred today."
With that he wheezes and nearly collapses amidst the mist, surrounded by bugs.

The mist takes a while to disperse, while you hear the gates open. There is some commotion outside, and the announcer seems to be taking their time.
Come to think of it, you won. You won the tournament!

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji calls off his bugs, hiding them underneath his jacket.

[GM]
There does not seem to be much fanfare, and the stands are oddly enough, almost deserted. A bit away, Kazuma, crouched over, is collecting his tools.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha sheathes her tanto, but there is no happiness on her face. She does not feel like she's deserved this victory, and she feels like she was robbed of her targets twice right before she could take them out.

[Aburame Shinji]
"It's quiet..."

[GM]
Indeed it is. The gates are open, and you can see the Hyuuga woman take care of Kamiko a bit past one.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Maybe something happened while we were busy here."

[GM]
Before, someone came to pick you up, but it does not seem you interest anyone right now. The Hyuuga woman herself seems to consider it weird, and peeks around the. corner inside the building, before going back to treating Kamiko.

[Aburame Shinji]
Shinji orders some of his kikaichu to scout out the arena.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"May have something to do with that impostor from before."

[Aburame Shinji]
"No use standing around here."

[GM]
The inside has nothing you don't see, but the building is rapidly emptying of people, the bugs say.
Kazuma stands up, coughing and dusting himself off.
"Kind of ironic doing us in this way after what Kamiko did to Shin, eh?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"I'm still surprised we ended up teamed up at all, let alone twice."
"More importantly, I doubt things are this quet because people were bored with the final."

[Aburame Shinji]
"The irony isn't lost on me, but getting hung up on it would be immature."
"Yes, the arena appears to be getting evacuated."

[GM]
"Well, it was a good fight. Learned more this way." he says. "Shit, really?"
"Uhh..."

[Aburame Shinji]
"Let's figure out what's going on."

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Odd that there's an evacuation but they didn't bother to stop the match."

[GM]
"Would be distasteful." Kazuma wagers, now looking around the stalls in confusion, too.

[Aburame Shinji]
"The other foreigners are still here..."

[GM]
Some footsteps echo from the gate you entered through.
Indeed, Tasaku and Shinoraze, Eiha's countrymen, appear behind the corner. They seem quite relaxed.
"Yo. Eiha." Tasaku waves. "Sensei sent us to pick you up. Didn’t even know she was here."
"They took us out of it in the middle, how did it end.?"

[Sakurai Eiha]
"We just finished, was kinda anti-climatic though." She complains mildly, but remains calm in appearance. "What's going on outside?"

[GM]
Shinoraze grins. "Seems Konoha is in trouble."
"Chisai says something happened to Tobirama. Take it with a grain of sea salt." he grins further, causing the other boy to become annoyed.
"You’re making it sound like we did it. That’s the impression we're trying to NOT make."
"Either way, we came to pick you up while we’re still free to walk around the place."
Kazuma replies to him seriously. "The exams aren’t over yet. She can't just leg it like this."
It would probably sound more impressive from someone not covered in bug bites.

[Aburame Shinji]
"We need to find someone who knows what's going on."

[GM]
That would be the Jounin. The Hyuuga is the closest, but she seems as lost as you are.
Holding Kamiko like a princess, she approaches your group step by step. If there is a decision to be made here, someone should make it, before the situation is cut apart.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Well well, things just got needlesly complicated. I doubt they intend to continue until this is sorted out though."

[GM]
"Come with me slowly. No need to rush." The Hyuuga woman adresses everyone with the surprisingly firm voice of a doctor.
"On the honor of a Leaf's Jounin, I promise you you will be able to return to Mist, but this girl can't go yet."
She must have pretty good ears. Maybe she can read lips through Byakugan, or something.
Kazuma shrugs, following her out.
The two don't seem convinced, making plaintive gestures towards Eiha, but they don't go against her word.

[Sakurai Eiha]
Eiha eyes the others for reaction. She is neither afraid nor particularly trustful of that word, though her situation is clearly difficult. Seeing the others seemed fine with going along with it, she shrugged as well.

[GM]
"This better not bite us in the ass." Shinoraze hisses at you, as you walk through the corridors. He seems concerned about his heritage falling to Konoha.
A few Chuunin are left in the stands, practically throwing out people who are still sitting. Some complain their tickets are reserved for the whole day, and have to have the situation explained to one. The doctor approaches one, asking them what is going on.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Afraid?" She inquires rhetorically. " I'm supposed to be here to help foster good relations between our villages. It wouldn't really do to run like cowards at the first sign of trouble."

[GM]
"But that doesn’t go for us though." he remains bitter.
[Aburame Shinji]
"I'd definitely feel paranoid if the situation was reversed."

[GM]
。。。
"The Hokage has fallen ill." one of the Chuunin explains, once you're all closer. "They’re Senju, this is not normal. We have to consider it an assassination attempt."

[Aburame Shinji]
"Speaking of paranoid..."

[GM]
"He's coughing up black sludge, they say." another adds.

[Sakurai Eiha]
"Guess it was suspect #1 after all."

[GM]
For you kids, well...
"The exams will probably continue in a few days, they’ll probably shorten them." the doctor says, leading you outside. "It’s up to you if you want to finish."
"But the worst part of it is that, until further notice, the village will be run by the next person in charge."
"That would be Orochimaru-sama right now. This is going to be very interesting times."
You see Chisai wave at you outside, reiterating the offer, still surrounded by guards. The other woman, Tsubame Hyuuga, hurries to join the cordon of doctors attending the Hokage after letting the now very grumpy Kamiko stand.
The doctor's last words to you are especially poignant, though.
"Exams or not, high score or low, you're pretty much adults now."
"Everything from now on is going to be a chore."
"So it's only fair that you'd get to decide what to do with yourself."
。。。
(You gain +5 Renown for exemplary performance in Chuunin exams, and +20XP!)
(Next time, we'd better have a third character, and may timeskip by a larger or shorter period of time)