I am a Dancer (Naruto fanfiction)

17: External Precautions

"Kakashi Sensei, I need to complete my exam," I said privately to him after Zabuza was killed. Conveniently enough, a ninja hunter came by and took him off our hands. "May I leave?"

"Go ahead. Good luck, Hirano. The village is right up ahead, and you should reach there no more than an hour."

"Thanks!" I waved and went on my way, while Kakashi Sensei went back to his team. I have a mission to complete!

Ah, this is a good time to refresh the requirements of my mission!

    -First, I need to give some scrolls to Ibiki-san's team here in the Land of Waves.

    -Second, I need to travel with Team Seven to get there and back.

    -Third, I need to be tested once more by Ibiki-san's team there in the Land of Waves.

    -Four, after my test, I need to bring more documents to Ibiki-san.

"I can do this," I encouraged myself. An hour later, just like Kakashi Sensei said, I reached a village. However, unlike Konoha, it seemed...poor. Old fish in the market produced a rotten smell, the shrunken vegetables collected flies, and the meat buns beneath the steamers looked strangely down-right disgusting.

I felt awkward, my training clothes being in semi-fine condition compared to everyone else. Glances were headed toward my way, and everyone could tell I wasn't from the Land of Waves. Calls of food from sellers reached my ears, each one louder than the next, all begging for me to buy their produce.

I hurried on, moving as swiftly as I could, eventually finding Ibiki-san's team. "Are you Kuni Hirano?" A lady asked, stepping right up to bat.

"Yes, I am."

"Super. We've been waiting for you. I'm Anko, and I'm going to be testing you." She said in a no-nonsense voice. She seemed nice, though..... "Right this way."

Six hours later, I sat with Anko inside a tent. We had relocated in the forest instead of staying in the village's inns. This way, I could focus on quieter surroundings rather than village noise.

"Okay, Hirano, how tired on you?"

"Really tired," I sighed.

"Great! We're only going to do one test today. Sounds good?"

"Sure, Anko-san. What do I need to do first?"

Suddenly, Anko wasn't so friendly anymore. "You are not allowed to sleep starting right...now!"

I blinked in shock. "Not sleep? No sleeping whatsoever?!"

"Whatsoever," Anko repeated. "You're going to stay up all night without sleeping. I hope you like it! If you fall asleep, you will repeat another year at the Academy."

"Watch me," I snarled, my competitive streak showing. "Any additional rules?"

"You have to stay in your tent. Also, this test will be over two hours after the sun comes up. Hope you enjoy~!"

"Easy peasy, lemon squeezy," I said, showing some attitude. Anko beamed and left me inside.

"I'm beginning to regret this," I said outloud. "Well, I guess I could talk to myself for awhile."

So I did. I talked about how I should make my own routine, music, and choreography. I talked about the cons and pros, giving myself new ideas. I got up and continued to talk randomly about all the difficulties I'm having, unlike...my rival...still can't remember her name. I stretched for about an hour before practicing some pirouettes. At least I still know my dance vocabulary.

One thing I learned that night was pirouetting is hard on bumpy ground. Especially when there's a bunch of whatnot poking at your bare feet. The floor of the tent didn't help much to keep the moment long against my bare feet.

I stayed in my tent, alternating between talking, stretching, dancing, jogging in place, and splashing chilly water on my face to stay awake. Every hour, Anko would pop her head in to check on me.

"Tired yet, Kid?"

"NO!"

"Want to take a nap?"

"I'm GOOD!"

"Here's some chocolate~" she sang, handing me a small bar of chocolate. "This has plenty of bitter cocoa." I lit up and took the chocolate.

"Oh, thanks," I said, taking a bite of the bitter chocolate. Almost instantly, my body's energy dropped even more.

"You're almost there! You have another three hours left," Anko praised. "I just gave you some sleeping medicine. It was in the chocolate."

"What?" I yawned, my eyes sore from staying awake all night.

Anko tsked at me. "You shouldn't have eaten it. Didn't Ibiki teach you about accepting food from others?"

"Curse this," I growled, flinging the chocolate away from me. "Stretch!" I began practicing my stretching for the hundredth time of the night. I arched my spine as far as it would go and grabbed my leg to kick my head. I grabbed a small ball from my bag and began practicing my flexibility and my ability to pass the ball all over my body without dropping it.

Anko watched me practice, arms crossed and a smirk on her face. I sighed, my energy dropping even more than ever. I still kept going. I wasn't going to fail this test! My movements slowed down, and the sleeping medicine made it worse. I threw more water on my face. Good thing it's fairly cold.

Two excruciating hours crawled by. I dropped to the ground, my control on the ball already lost. My hands were shaking and my legs never felt so sore in my life!

"Great work, Kid! Take a break. We'll do the second test in a while," Anko praised, reaching out her hand to pat my back.

"Did...I pass?" I panted, my eyes closing. Anko didn't say anything.

Probably because I had already passed out.