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The link is also in the synopsis
———
.
The effects of Yoshio's forest 'lesson' could be seen entrenched in the group as they approached the last days of the basic training. Team-5 operated the same as before the forest challenge, but the same couldn't be said for others. The two winning coalitions had members of the four teams, meaning that at least one member in each team had chosen to give up completing the challenge with their teams to win the reward.
"The teams are broken," Takuma commented while watching Ai spar against her opponent. "If we're careful and play our cards right, we can get into the final tournament."
Yoshio's group consisted of five teams of five competing against each other on the weekly rankings leaderboard. No one could claim they knew exactly how the rankings worked as the criteria for grading was absent, and Yoshio only disclosed the rankings at the end of the week. But through some clever observations, the group members had deduced that the sparring record for every week held significant weight in the criteria.
But that didn't mean that sparring was all that mattered.
As it stood now, out of the five teams, three were in the lead with two No.1 rankings in the weekly— Team-5, Kameko's Team-3, and Cho's Team-1.
Team-5 got their second No.1 in Week Six from the forest challenge and were the latest to do so.
Unexpectedly, it was Team-2, a team that hadn't been No.1 before, to ace in Week Seven due to them preventing the abduction of a wealthy civilian merchant's wife and daughter while patrolling their route— a single incident that had rocketed them to win the week. Proving that sparring wasn't the end-all criteria.
Week Eight, however, didn't have any outlier events that could sway the rankings, neither did it have any challenges that had helped Team-5 win their two No.1 rankings.
Looking at the history, the chances didn't look good for Team-5 as they had never won a No.1 ranking based on sparring alone. They could even be considered in the same category as Team-2.
But things were different for Yoshio's group in Week Eight. Teams of strangers had learned to operate as cohesive units in their time together, but the forest challenge had thrown a wrench into the smoothly running teams. The number of mistakes during team exercises made up of a lot of training schedule, were as high as they were in the early weeks when the teams weren't used to each other.
Which presented Team-5 with an interesting situation.
Takuma pumped his fist and cheered as Ai sliced a gash into her opponent's arm. He grinned, "We have been the best team this week by far. Luck has been with us this week. Nenro and Masaaki haven't lost a single fight. Ai is going to win this one. I have been doing decently," even when he was holding back his brand new trump card for the final tournament, "and surprisingly your record isn't in the red."
"Stuff it," Taro grumbled. Taro's record was always more losses than wins. Takuma didn't say it out loud, but it felt great to have a higher win record than Taro— when just last year, Taro would've pounded him into the ground.
"If nothing crazy happens and we keep winning, we can ace this week," Takuma ripped the grass beside him.
"If we keep winning, that is," Taro replied.
In front of them, Ai threw her kunai, which embedded itself into her opponent's thigh, bringing them to their knees. Yoshio called the fight.
Taro continued, "As you said, we have been lucky with our pairings. But there are only so many people. It's only time before we get matched against someone powerful," he glanced at Kameko, the strongest in their group, "that might drag us down."
Takuma had considered that option, but he still thought they had every chance at winning as long as they continued to perform well outside of sparring.
Ai returned from lugging her opponent to the Shady Guy's tent. "Did you see that? I totally tricked him into committing when he shouldn't have," she had a healthy sheen of sweat on her.
"I saw. It was amazing," Nenro smiled as he handed a towel to Ai. He continued and added to the ongoing discussion, "I agree with Takuma. If we keep doing whatever we are and others don't suddenly get back into tune, I think we have a good chance."
Yoshio called for the next pair, and Masaaki stood excitedly as his name was called. He pushed his hand into his back pouch to pull out a knuckleduster around his fingers.
Takuma gazed at the shining metal adorning Masaaki's hand. He didn't use jutsu, but with those things around Masaaki, he didn't need to. Masaaki had broken bones with simple punches. Takuma glanced at Kameko. In his opinion, if Masaaki had an accompanying bukijutsu, he could rival Kameko's kenjutsu.
'We can do this,' he thought.
———
.
It seemed the luck was true with Team-5, as it was already Thursday, and things had gone as Takuma had expected. They had kept a favorable win rate, and the other teams struggled with their synergies.
But not all things were up and up.
'She looks pissed,' Takuma thought as he looked at Cho in front of him. The girl's charred brown twintails looked particularly evil right now, matched by her eyes that were viciously staring at him. She still held a grudge against Team-5 for winning the tree-walking challenge before Team-1.
Takuma and Cho stared at each other as Yoshio walked away. There was no official starting point. Technically, they could attack the moment Yoshio called their names.
Takuma usually didn't make the first move, preferring to react and counter. But today, he made the first move. He pulled away from Cho, but at the same time, he threw three shurikens at her.
Cho's problem, Takuma thought, was that she tried to get through fights without taking a single hit. It made her too defensive, which gave him the opportunity to press him.
The moment the shuriken left his hand, Takuma canceled his backward motion and charged toward Cho. In the small window, as she dodged the shuriken, Takuma laid a low kick into her shin. Cho cried as she was forced to kneel. Takuma pressed ahead aggressively, but Cho grabbed his arm and threw him over her as she rolled.
Takuma skidded on his landing and immediately ran back towards her. Cho, with shame and anger on her face, pounced into attacking. Takuma should have backed down, let Cho's aggression break on a wall of defense, but in the heat of the moment, he opted to match aggression with aggression.
They crossed blades, broke apart, and swung almost like drunks, each missing twice until Cho clapped Takuma on the side of the head with the hilt of her kunai. Takuma wavered, and Cho hit him again, hard. He dropped to a knee, and Cho brought her kunai down, going for a 'killing blow.' Takuma got his kunai up in time to block, then rolled away before lurching to his feet.
Cho tried to give him no space, but she wasn't aggressive enough, and Takuma successfully traded blows to get into a position to defend himself. He decided to immediately gamble his newfound breathing space and went in for an elbow drill into Cho's shoulder, and then, as she hopped back in pain, he cracked her in the neck. Cho made a strange high-pitched sound as she went down.
Takuma dipped into his pouches, and senbon were the first weapons he found, so he threw them. Cho, despite clutching her throat, rolled away and the thin senbon embedded into the yellow ground.
Takuma clicked his tongue and moved towards Cho, but as he whipped his head, a wave of dizziness struck from when he was hit in the head. He gritted his teeth and hid his stumble within a step and looked toward Cho with a glare that shouted punishment— but his eyes widened when he saw the two hands facing him making a bird hand seal. Still lying on the ground, Cho raised her head to face him and smiled viciously through the grimace.
Air rapidly distilled around her accompanied by the sound of flowing gales before a burst of winds assaulted Takuma with the force of a truck. He felt his body flatten against what felt like a solid wall of wind. All of the air was knocked out of him, and when he hit the ground, did he find a rushed breath return to him. His world turned into a poorly drawn water painting dripping in water as colors swam in his vision.
Cho unsteadily got up to her foot and ran towards Takuma, who had been tossed several feet away by the wind blast from Fuuton: Boufuu Kyouzuu no Jutsu (Wind Release: Gale Surge.) As she arrived near Takuma, he suddenly swung a kick and swept her legs, and the already unsteady Cho sacked to the ground.
Takuma couldn't hear anything but a sharp ringing as he pulled himself up. His vision was trying to make him puke his guts out. He straddled Cho and smashed her in the head, and luckily it hit despite his swarming vision.
It would've been fine if Takuma had grabbed Cho's head and pounded it against the ground. But in the state of nausea and anger, he made the hand seals of Raiton: Shokku(Lightning Release: Shock) that he had practiced so much he could do it in his sleep— it just wasn't his fault the jutsu didn't work well for him. He pressed his hand against Cho's chest as the arcs of lightning snaked around his hand, and then— Zap! Cho's body spasmed as if she was having a stroke. While the jutsu couldn't travel far or cause the amount of damage it was supposed to— at point-blank range, it was as effective as a heavy-duty taser.
Cho raised her quaking hand towards Takuma's face, but it fell back to the ground halfway up.
Takuma removed his smoking palm and didn't care anymore. He got off Cho and collapsed on the ground beside her. He looked to his side and saw that she was curled up and jittering. Face hot and heart drumming, but victorious, Takuma put his hands up, and he didn't care if it would make him feel miserable, but he yelled.
He had won.
———
.
Takuma hadn't felt worse in his entire life. One would think that a day would be enough to recover from a fight with minor cuts, but Cho's wind release jutsu had left a deep stinging pain in his body. It was so bad that he loathed the idea of standing.
"Will you stop groaning?" Ai shot him a glare.
Takuma groaned as he stretched his back and felt the pain in his bones. "I can't... I can't do it today. If he makes me fight today, I'll throw hard. Fuck the final tournament. I don't need the C-rank jutsu, I'll figure it out," he whined. He had skipped his early morning training because of the pain.
Takuma ignored Ai and continued to groan and did it louder when she hit. He only stopped when Yoshio arrived, and they had to file into the grid. He met eyes with Cho and glared at her when she had the gall to glare at him when she was the one who had made his life miserable!
"The final tournament is going to be held tomorrow and the day after that," were the first words that came out of Yoshio's mouth.
For a moment, Takuma forgot about the pain.
"I'm going to announce the weekly ranking for this week early," Yoshio continued. "The team with the highest number of wins will participate in the final tournament as my representatives. One of you guys better win. I don't appreciate getting embarrassed in front of my co-workers."
Takuma felt more restless than ever. Why couldn't he just get to the point?!
"... No.1 for this week's ranking is... Team-5," Yoshio turned to Team-5. "That makes you a three-time No.1— which means you're going to the final tournament."
Takuma blinked as he stared at Yoshio's face.
It felt so... anticlimactic.
"I disagree!"
Takuma turned towards the sword-wielding girl who had spoken up.
Now, that felt more climactic.
.
———
Chat with me and the rest of the community on our DISCORD server.
The link is in the synopsis!
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to Patreón @
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The link is also in the synopsis
———
.
Author's Note:
CHAPTER 50!
Let's fucking go!!!
.
———
.
"I disagree!"
Takuma didn't have the time to rejoice or even completely take in the announcement. He turned his head toward Kameko, who had dared to raise an objection. While it did surprise him that the objection came, it coming from Kameko didn't surprise him one bit.
The group didn't make a single peep. Even Ai, who Takuma was expecting to break into a celebratory dance, stood unmoving. Everyone waited for their instructor... to react.
The hulking Yoshio arrived in front of Kameko with silent steps. The difference in stature couldn't be more pronounced as they faced each other. One looking down, the other frowning up.
"Insubordination will cost you among shinobi, Taketori," said Yoshio, his thick voice heavier than usual. Takuma hid a wince— Yoshio's use of the family name was sparse, but everyone knew why and when he chose it, and that's what made it more impactful. Yoshio continued, "This is my group. I'm your instructor. My word is the divine law. You don't get to disagree with my decisions, genin."
The taciturn Kameko seemingly found her voice as he talked back at Yoshio. "I'm by far the strongest in this group. I deserve to be in the final tournament. I can understand why Ando and Seno were chosen— but I can't see any merit in Oishi participating in the tournament... sir."
Ando Masaaki and Seno Nenro wrinkled their brows but schooled their expressions for the most part. Oishi Taro, though, pulled a fed-up face with no attempt to hide the emotion he was feeling.
"You speak less, so I didn't notice it. You don't use the word, sir, enough in your vocabulary."
Takuma stood on the opposite end of the grid to Kameko, but he could very clearly feel a pressure seeping out of Yoshio that made his already looming frame look more menacing than ever. Takuma felt as if the atmosphere was bearing down on him, compressing his chest and shoulders. It wasn't just him; everyone else in the group looked a varying level of very uncomfortable.
Was it chakra? It had to be chakra, Takuma thought as he glanced at Yoshio from the corner of his eye. He was scared that the feeling would enhance if Yoshio turned his attention to him.
"Did you not understand when I said that the team on the top would represent me in the final tournament? I'm feeling frustrated right now. How can someone not understand words as simple as that?" Yoshio's words drummed in their ears.
"I'm strong—"
"I don't give a rat's ass if you're stronger, genin. It's my choice, and I will make it any way I want to!" said Yoshio, thundering. Takuma held back a flinch even though he was steps away from them.
Yoshio raised his hand and pointed in the distance toward Shady Guy's medical tent. "I can break his bones a hundred different ways, and he would fail to stop me ninety-nine times if given a chance. I could give him the key to my home for assassination when I'm at my most vulnerable— and I'll still survive even if he jumped me in my bed while I sleep." Shady Guy, noticing they were looking at him, looked up from his book and gave them a wave. "And yet, because he practices the rare iryojutsu(medical jutsu), he's considered more valuable than me in most situations. Strength is not everything, get that through your head."
Takuma stared at the Shady Guy. Princess Tsunade, one of the Three Legendary Sannin, the to-be Fifth Hokage, had pushed for any mission team to have an Iryo-nin, a healer, on the squad. The practice was accepted as having an Iryo-nin shot up the team's survival rate to the moon. It was a great enough difference that every single shinobi village adopted the practice. She was lauded for her contribution to the shinobi organization.
And yet, most teams didn't have an Iryo-nin on them. Iryojutsu was a complex field of ninjutsu and required time and effort from a qualified shinobi to be effective. Most shinobi didn't even have the prerequisite of fine chakra control to step into the field. As such, there just weren't enough Iryo-nin to go around, which made them a sought-after commodity.
It was no wonder Shady Guy could spend a good part of the day idling under a tent doing seemingly nothing important. He could do it because he had the leeway to do so.
Takuma had to give it to Kameko for her persistence because she didn't back down. "But it's a combat tournament. I am more valuable," she said.
The pressure bearing down on the group disappeared with Yoshio's sigh. He spoke, "You're very... very lucky that I don't want to get into annoying trouble with your clan," Kameko's eyes sharpened. "Let me put this straight. It's a fighting tournament of genin who haven't even completed a single mission, not seen the real threat of a blade thirsty for their life— none of you are real shinobi. To me, it's a fun little bet with my co-workers, so," his volume suddenly shot up, "I don't care if you're more valuable! It might be a big thing for you, but for me, it's about the same as cockfighting! Get it straight in your head if you think that you somehow hold some importance in my eyes, because you don't!"
Takuma felt offended. He graduated from the academy, he wore the forehead protector of the Leaf, no one couldn't deny he was a shinobi. Did he express his displeasure? No. He wasn't very very lucky like Kameko, and there wasn't anything holding Yoshio from skinning him alive.
Somehow, he no longer felt the joy of getting to the final tournament. Yoshio didn't care if he was sending the strongest within his group— it was, as the man had put it, a fun bet with his co-workers. For Takuma, however, obtaining a C-rank jutsu was a key mark even in his life.
He felt small.
The difference between someone like him and Yoshio was too great... and Yoshio was only a chunin. Takuma couldn't even imagine what he would look like in the eyes of a jonin. What was he worth in the eyes of the top brass— was he just a dispensable pawn? He didn't think he wanted to know that answer.
The thought alone made his stomach sink.
———
.
"Cheers!"
Celebrating the win did bring Takuma's feeling of joy back.
He took a sip of his honey banana shake and looked around the restaurant. Taro didn't eat out much, so he didn't have a recommendation; the trio was from outside, so they had no idea either. The responsibility fell on Takuma, who was equally as clueless— but he ended up recommending the same restaurant that Maruboshi had taken him to. And here they were. He did tell them it was a little on the expensive side, but they didn't seem to mind.
It was his first time eating out after Maruboshi had taken him out on convocation day and the second time overall since he had found himself in the world. The first time around, the celebration had turned from happy to sad real quick when he heard of his assignment to Genin Corps. Takuma looked at his team, and he had to say... Genin Corps wasn't that bad.
"Yoshio sure dug into Kameko," said Masaaki. "I felt bad for her."
"I didn't," Ai said as she flipped through the menu.
Nenro asked, "Did you all feel the pressure coming from Yoshio when he was talking to her?"
Takuma nodded. "It was really heavy. It felt like I had a weighted vest on me. Some kind of chakra manipulation, for sure," he looked at Taro.
"Why are you looking at me? I don't know," Taro said with a half-confused half-frustrated face. "Why do you guys, you in particular," he pointed at Takuma, "think I know the answer to everything? I don't know!"
Takuma did think Taro would know.
"Maybe he was exerting his chakra outwards," said Nenro with an inquisitive look on his face.
Takuma shook his head. "It has to be more than that. I exert chakra outwards when I walk up a wall, but it doesn't happen then. And if he is exerting his chakra outwards— is he pushing it out of all the tenketsu all at once? Isn't that like really difficult? Also, how does it flow out so evenly," he didn't remember seeing anything like that when he read the manga.
"Order first," Ai pushed the menu into Nenro's face as he tried to reply, "then you can talk all you want." She looked at Takuma and then pointed at the menu on the table.
The food was great. Last time around, he was stressed about the Genin Corps, so the experience didn't stick.
"How are you feeling about the tournament tomorrow?" Masaaki asked with a broad grin on his face. "I'm feeling excited. Who would we get to fight against? Hey, do you know?" he addressed the last part to Taro.
"Again, why are you asking me? I was with you the entire time," replied Taro, sighing.
The ninety-seven genins in their batch were divided into four groups. Three groups of twenty-five and one with twenty-two people. The groups trained in the same zone were allocated to the basic genin training, but they didn't share the same training field.
Takuma didn't know about the others in his group, but he didn't meet the genin from other groups other than sometime in passing. If they met eyes, he would nod to them, but other than that, he didn't have much interaction outside his group.
"Twenty people," he said. "Four groups, five people each. If it's single elimination... it'll be four or five rounds, depending on if we get a first-round bye."
"Or we could get eliminated in the first round."
Everyone looked at Taro, who shrugged. Takuma could see Taro tapping out in the first round if the fight got tough. Takuma... didn't want to see that happen. Taro was an easier opponent to fight than most other people. If Taro went far and somehow met him in battle, it would be easier for him to win a fight.
"I won't go easy on anyone if you fight me," Masaaki announced with his arms crossed.
"Neither would I," said Nenro.
"Try me," Ai smiled.
They naturally looked at Takuma, so he thought for a moment before saying, "I'm going to do whatever it takes to get that C-rank jutsu, even if it means beating all of you and whoever fights me into a bloody pulp."
He had a faint smile on his face, but he was serious in what he said. He had invested too much to convert the chance of obtaining the C-rank jutsu. For the next two days, Team-5 would no longer be a team. Every man for themselves, no holds barred.
"Ah," uttered Ai before looking sullen. When Nenro asked, she answered. "Team-5 is over, isn't it... The teams were only supposed to hold until the end of basic training."
'Ah,' Takuma had forgotten about that for a moment.
For Genin Corps, missions were assigned by the Leaf Genin Resource Command— everything from mission objectives to the teammates was pre-described for them.
Today indeed, was the last day for Team-5.
There was a silence between the group for a moment. For the last two months, they had fought each other, they had laughed with each other, they had eaten together, they had trained together. They had spent a majority portion of the waking day with each other.
It was a short time, but they had become a team…
"Doesn't matter. We will still be a team, even if it's not official, and we will still be friends," Nenro raised his glass of water and said, "To Team-5."
" "To Team-5." "
.
———
Chat with me and the rest of the community on our DISCORD server.
The link is in the synopsis!
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