Go Home (Naruto FanFic)

XIII - Strike Two! (Part 1)

"Dude, they can't be serious."

Kaeru looked up from his book. Shisui was closing the door, still staring at the letter in his hand with his jaw agape. Behind him, Anko was wearing a wide grin, her eyes also locked on the white envelope before she quickly snatched the said object from the Uchiha and ran across the room, jumping onto the couch and leaned her back on Kaeru's body as she waved the letter in front of his face.

"I told you, we're gonna pass!" she half-yelled with over-excitement.

Shisui scowled. "We don't even know what it says," he stated, reaching for the envelope, but Kaeru had pulled it out off Anko's grasp and ripped it open without a second thought. He ignored Anko's surprised exclamation and Shisui's "Be careful- Nevermind."

The Hatake stayed silent, reading through the letter while he kept it out of Anko's sight. She whined for a while, though she fell quiet when she realized Kaeru had gone through the whole text for at least twice now. "You're making me nervous, just tell me what the Raikage says!"

Shisui took the paper from Kaeru. The Hatake didn't even struggle, seemingly in shock after what he had read. "...We passed," the ravenette muttered, "We're going to the next round!"

"I FUCKING TOLD YOU SO!"

"Anko-chan, you're hurting my ears..."

"Sorry, not sorry. So, what else?" Anko asked, "Surely that long-ass letter isn't just saying two words over and over, right?"

The Uchiha hummed. "We can do whatever we want tomorrow, second round's in two days. Each team will be transported out of the village, near the borders, and we will have to find a way back inside, whatever it takes. We're not allowed to bring anything but weapons. That means, nothing like clothes, sleeping bags, even food or water. Just what we need for self-defense. Each team will be given an item to protect, and we have to rob at least two other teams."

"What item? Like a scroll or something."

"No," he shook his head, "It can be anything. A scroll, a piece of paper, a necklace, a statue, it differs for each team, so we also have to guess what it is."

"Well, damn. That's hard. Any other rules?"

"... We have five days. It starts at noon, the day after tomorrow, and it ends at midnight. There are no breaks, no timeout, no medical assistance, no kind of help or whatsoever, unless you give up."

Anko visibly winced, "Okay, that totally killed the mood." She turned to look at her silverette friend. "Kaeru, you've been quiet. You okay?"

The said boy gulped, shaking his head. "I think... I'm getting scared..."

Shisui frowned. That's... unexpected. Totally unlike the Hatake, but well, he's still human, right?

Surprisingly, Anko gave him a shrug. "It's totally normal, don't worry. We're gonna be fine, I'm sure of it. I told you we're gonna pass and we did. So now, I'm saying that we'll be alright. Just believe me, okay?"

Somehow, Shisui found it reassuring, too.

They spent their free time preparing everything they need. Under Kaeru's tutelage, Anko and Shisui learned how to do many things without chakra. Starting a fire, purifying water, even building shelters. Anko called it 'inefficient' but Shisui agrees with the Hatake's logic: chakra is easier to track, harder to regain; better not waste it.

On the exam day, just as day finished breakfast in their room, there were loud, impatient knocks on their door. Anko almost yelled at their guests, who turned out to be the proctor of the exam.