Chapter 92: Chapter 92! Start of the chunin finals.
Soon the days passed and the time for the final trial of the chunin exam had arrived. Kimimaro, Koyuki and Haku had all waited patiently with Kaga in the leaf village until the information had been ready.
Unfortunately, not much had been said as the only thing they had to go off was the scroll they received was by hawk. The scroll was small and simply contained the time and location of the exam and nothing else.
The location itself was in the land of fire, a few miles away from the village split over a mountains terrain with woods and a river that passed through, giving lots of different environments to suit every individual's needs.
All of the finalists had arrived at the designated spot with their squad leaders in toe. However, only the finalists and one jonin instructor were allowed to attend the final exam, meaning that Koyuki and the other losers had to remain in the leaf village, something she and the rest of them were not happy about at all.
Haku could see that both the Hokage and Fuyōna were present at the exams, along with a large number of jonin instructors who would most likely have something to do with the exam.
Once everyone had arrived and settled down, the Hokage took centre stage and addressed everyone as he stood on a large rock so everyone could see him.
"Welcome all finalists of the chunin exams. I understand that you may be wondering why you are here in such a remote location." He said, letting his voice echo for a moment as it gripped everyone's attention.
"After talks with the Mizukage here, and other advisors of the village, we have decided to change the final test of the exam. Unfortunately due to the high number of finalists this year, the usual one on one battle has been, well, altered." He said, again pausing a moment as he let his words sink in.
"The final exam will be one to not only test your battle prowess, but your teamwork and leadership skills," Fuyōna said as he took a step forwards, getting a nod from the Hokage as he continued to speak, taking over.
Fuyōna took centre stage as he too stood on the rock beside the Hokage.
"In this exam, you will each be paired into a squad consisting of three members. However, your teammates will be chosen at random, meaning you could be paired with anyone standing here right now." Fuyōna said, getting a surprised reaction from all of the genin.
"Now listen closely as I explain what this exam will entail." Fuyōna then said, shutting up the genin that were still complaining about working with others.
"Each squad will be given a flag to protect, keeping that flag in a secure location or base as you will. The goal is simple. Capture the other squads' flags within the time limit. The squad with the most flags at the end will be the winner." Fuyōna explained.
Everyone was shocked, to say the least, not only would they be working with shinobi from other villages, but the final exam they had been expecting had been completely changed around.
"Now the rules for this exam are simple," Fuyōna said, getting everyone's attention again.
"Each squad has one flag. Your flag must remain at your base unless being retrieved or captured by an enemy. You may also only carry one flag per person, meaning one member of the squad cannot hold two flags at the same time and must put one down if that happens." He said.
"And of course the final rule," Fuyōna said, pausing for effect to let the tension build.
"Anything goes." He said, letting his words sink in.
All of the genin remained silent, each of them having already prepared themselves for something like that, being keen to show what they were made of.
"Alright then, if no one had any questions we shall begin by selecting the members for each squad." The Hokage said, taking over from Fuyōna now that he was finished explaining the exam and rules.
With that said the Hokage turned around and walked off of the rock with Fuyōna by his side.
"I must say lord Mizukage, I was surprised when you suggested changing the final exam. Still, I have to say I am looking forward to watching how this little idea of yours plays out." He said with a small smile on his face.
Fuyōna had come up with the idea last minute, deciding that something like this would be better suited for a larger number of students.
"Yes lord Hokage, doing it this way will certainly give us a much clearer idea of who is ready to become a chunin, testing every aspect of their ability in a real mission crisis," Fuyōna said, getting a nod from Sarutobi.
"Certainly." He said in response as he turned to face the head instructor who would be watching over the exam.
"Ah Fugaku," Hiruzen said as he looked the man up and down.
Fuyōna turned as he heard the name, knowing who he was from both reputation and his memory.
Fugaku Uchiha. Also known as wicked eye Fugaku. He had earned himself the nickname during the last war and was a foe to be reckoned with. He was also the father of Itachi and Sasuke Uchiha, something that also spoke volumes of how strong he would be.
Fuyōna was thankful he had never come across him on the battlefield during his early days, knowing if he had, he might not be here now.
"Lord Hokage," Fugaku said as he greeted the Hokage.
"Allow me to introduce our head of the leaf police force and head of the Uchiha clan," Hiruzen said as he turned to Fuyōna."
"Pleasure to meet you," Fuyōna said as he looked Fugaku in the eyes, giving him a friendly smile.
Fugaku returned his greeting, giving him a nod as he too knew of Fuyōna's reputation during the war.
"Pleasure to meet you, Lord Mizukage." He said, acting civil.
"Fugaku here will be overlooking the final exam, making sure to keep an eye on everyone and keep an accurate score." The Hokage said.
Fugaku didn't seem very interested in these duties, but he was here and he seemed willing to do as he was asked.
"So what is it that the head of the leaf police force does exactly?" Fuyōna asked, deciding to make small talk with him, getting a surprised look from him before he answered.
"As the leaf police force, we instil safety and respect throughout the village, making sure those who break the rules are dealt with accordingly." He said as he crossed his arms, suspicious as to why he would want to know such a thing.
"It sounds like a very important duty, a great honour indeed worthy of a clan such as the Uchiha," Fuyōna said.
Fugaku raised an eyebrow at his response, not sure what he was getting at.
"Yes, in fact it was the second Hokage himself who gave the Uchiha such a great responsibility," Hiruzen said as he puffed on his pipe, remembering his former teacher.
"It has always impressed me how so many clans can work together in such a way without fighting," Fuyōna said, this time getting a surprised look from both the Hokage and Fugaku.
Fuyōna knew he had to be very careful with his words, not letting too much slip that either would become suspicious that he knew something of the Uchiha's potential to rebel.
"When I was growing up in the land of water and became a shinobi. The various clan of my land were always at war with one another, never being able to see eye to eye. In fact, they caused so much bloodshed that the very people they were supposed to protect began to hate them, turning on them and killing as many as they could in the last civil war. In fact, my own clan was nearly wiped out for this very reason." Fuyōna said, knowing he had cleared any suspicion they might have held a moment ago.
"It was a dream of mine for a long time to be able to unite my homeland and stop the fighting between us all. However, it would seem that you had achieved that very feat long ago." He said as he smiled, tilting the tip of his hat down a little.
Both Fugaku and Hiruzen remained quiet as his words sank in, reminding them both of the peace the hidden leaf had endured for many years.
"That dream is now a reality." Fuyōna then said as he looked up with a defining expression on his face.
"And I will never let anything change that again."
"Yes... Well, shall we get this exam started?" Fugkau said after a moment, unsure of what else to say.
Fuyōna and the Hokage both agreed.
"Of course, I believe I have waffled on for long enough." He said as he rubbed the back of his head.
With that Fugaku walked off leaving the Hokage and Fuyōna alone, bidding them goodbye for the time being.
"The land of water has always been filled with bloodshed and war. Only the strongest ruled the lands, dating back to the first Mizukage himself who was only able to bring the clans together due to his power." Hiruzen suddenly said as he placed his pipe back into his mouth.
"The fact that you have managed to achieve the same with not only your strength but your love for your village speaks more words to me than you need to say." He said as he turned to look Fuyōna in the eye.
"That's why I know I can place my trust in you Lord Mizukage." He said with a smile.
Fuyōna nodded as he returned his smile.
"Something that we agree on, Lord Hokage," Fuyōna said.
Meanwhile, Fugaku had made his way over to the genin who were currently standing in their own squads with their sensei's keeping an eye on them.
"Alright you lot, listen up!" He shouted, getting their attention in an instant.
"Your names will be drawn at random to decide what squad you are placed into. Now I don't want any complaint about where you end up, as I simply don't care. Anyone who complains will be removed from the exam at once. Do I make myself clear?" He said, not getting so much as a whimper from the genin as they knew he meant business.
"Good," Fugaku said as he turned to the chunin who would be assisting him in running the exam.
"Alright, lets see who will be placed with who," Fugaku said, giving the go-ahead for the chunin to draw the first three names.
Everyone remained silent as they waited to see who's names would be drawn for the first squad.
One of the chunin placed his hand into the large tub that contained the names of all the genin, and slowly pulled out three names before he read them out loud.
"Alright, the first squad will be. Hattori of the mist, Gogi of the rain and Botan of the waterfall." He said.
Everyone was shocked at the first three names read out, already having pitted three strong members together.
"Alright first squad come with me." one of the chunin said before he led them away from the others.
"Ok, next squad will be." The chunin said as he drew another three names.
"Haku of mist, Tomo of the grass and Seno of the leaf." He said.
Kimimaro turned to Haku, and Haku turned to him, each of them knowing that they might have to fight one another in this exam.
"I'm looking forward to facing you Haku."
"Me too brother," Haku said before the two of them bumped fists and Haku walked off.
"Oh no! Does that mean I have to go against you Iseto?" Seno said with a worried look on her face.
"Don't worry Seno, if we come face to face, I'll go easy on you," Iseto said as he flashed her a smile, making her blush.
"What about me Iseto!" Horime, the other girl on his squad said.
"Of course you too Horime, I could never hurt either of you." He said as he placed a hand on each of their shoulders causing them to go weak in the knees.
"That's enough you three, get moving." Their instructor said, interrupting them from their embarrassing moment and snapping them back to the situation.
With that, the second squad followed another chunin and the remaining genin waited to see who would be next.
"Alright, the third squad will be. Kimimaro of the mist, Iseto Uchiha of the leaf and Yuri of the mist." He said.
"Oh man, I really have to work with these blood mist scum," Iseto muttered under his breath.
He was quick to shut up though as he got a serious look from Fugaku, knowing that his clan leader was watching him, also expecting good things.
"Good look Kimimaro," Kaga said as he gave his student a nod, having done the same for Haku.
With that the three of them went off and everyone waited for the next squad to be called.
"The fourth squad will be. Chika of the mist, Muse of the rain and Horime of the leaf." He said before the three of them slowly made their way towards the chunin instructor that was waiting for them.
"Fith squad will be. Rokuro of the mist, Ohada of the rain and Sakasugi of the leaf." He said, leaving the last three standing as they looked at who they would be working with.
"And that leaves the last squad consisting of Ebinaka of the rain, Takajima of the leaf and Adagai of the leaf." He said as he announced the final squad.
"Alright good, make sure you get all the squads in position before you let me know," Fugaku said to the chunin he was leading.
"Yes sir." They said before they vanished to check on all positions leaving only the jonin instructors and Fugaku.
"All that is left is to set the traps around the battleground." Fugaku then said as he spoke through his earpiece.
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Alright, that's the end of this chapter! I hoped you enjoyed it, big things are to come.
As always have a great day and thank you for reading.
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