III

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Arc III Chapter 14

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Poisonous creatures lurked among the ancient trees, hidden by shadows. Despite its ominous name, the Forest of Death was a calm place, a peaceful place. Asami enjoyed the scenery and made herself comfortable before the entrance of the tower. They were now waiting for their prey, for competitors stupid enough to challenge her.

The trees shielded her fair skin from the sunlight. Her low resistance to sunlight was a source of constant annoyance ever since her childhood. Her pale skin disliked the sun and punished her with frequent sunburns. Okaa-san even joked that she got moon burns.

Her lips mustered a weak smile. Sweet memories of happier times. She missed those days. She truly missed Okaa-san, but sadly the past was the past.

Asami turned her attention to her two exhausted team mates. They were in a sorry state. They made her feel kind of guilty, but only kind of. Hisaaki and Katsusane were lying sprawled across the ground. They were panting, gasping for air. Her little forced march nearly killed them. A little bit of running already exhausted them, what a disappointment. Their stamina was poor. Their speed average, at best.

Hisaaki scowled on the ground.“What did you ... say again? I am Asami ... I am a weak and helpless girl ... I am shy and innocent ... Why didn’t you tell us that you are faster than the fucking Yellow Flash?” His body collapsed, completely out of breath.

Asami giggled with a hint of schadenfreude. Her heart took pleasure in their misery. “Excellent, it appears that you haven’t lost your sense of humour. That means you are still alive.”

“Shut up!” Hisaaki retorted. “You are not funny at all, you ..., you ..., you merciless slave driver! But seriously, how are you so damn fast? I doubt that even Hatsu sensei stands a chance against you ... No wonder that he Hokage vouched for you ...”

Asami merely smiled. “Indeed, I am more than meets the eye.”

“...” Hisaaki chose to say nothing. “Anyway, how long did we take?”

Asami tilted her head. “Hard to tell, but I guess that our time is good. Ten minutes, at most. Congratulations. To be honest, I didn’t expect you to break the ten-minute mark. Respect.” Her hands applauded. Hisaaki and Katsusane deserved some recognition for their efforts.

“...” Hisaaki merely blinked.

Katsusane, meanwhile, groaned, visibly angry. “I don’t need your congratulation.” He forced himself up and dusted off his clothes. “In fact, these are the chunin exams. Can’t you take them seriously, even for a single moment? First, you try to get us all killed by provoking the entire room. Now, you try to kill is with an inhumane forced march. Do you even care about us, Asami?”

His words gave her pause. Katsusane had ... a point, although he lacked her perspective. “Katsusane, I assure you, I do care about your well being. Trust me, I take the exams seriously, in my own way. They are just not as important to me as they are to you.” 

No bloodshed, no destruction, no morally questionable decisions, no death, no tears, no cries. This world was so calm and peaceful, a world of light, a world not tainted by shadows. Konoha was a beautiful village, a perfect village, maintained and sustained by people like her, by people shrouded in darkness. They were Konoha’s shield, Konoha’s sword, Konoha’s dagger. Konoha didn’t become a major power by virtue of kindness and benevolence. Konoha was a village founded on a mountain of corpses, a mountain taller than many realised.

“...” Katsusane sighed in resignation. “So, what is your plan to get the Earth Scroll? Do you think it will just come to us?”

Asami pointed her index finger at him. “Katsusane, that is exactly the plan. The Earth Scroll will come to us eventually. We just need to be patient and wait. Every team needs to enter the tower to advance to the next round.  We will just wait here for them to show up. They will sooner or later, and then we will take their scroll ...”

Her senses sharpened. Her instincts warned her. Three unknown signatures approached their position. They were about to get visitors ... 

Another ominous chakra signature joined the fray. The signature moved in their direction. It was them, the Suna trio and the jinchuuriki of the One-Tail. It was common knowledge that the fourth Kazekage sealed the One-Tail inside his youngest son. The boy's chakra possessed a aura similar to Naruto's. Now, he was coming for her. How troublesome.

Asami clicked her tongue and unholstered a kunai. “Katsusane, Hisaaki, prepare yourselves, we are getting company. The enemy is close. They are coming.”

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