Chapter 54

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"We have one month." He stated. "None of you were injured or suffered any complications in the whittling portion of the exam. So each of you can participate in the spectator portion. I have no doubt Onoki will do whatever he can to sabotage your performance there."

Ryoko snorted. "They already tried. We set a record anyway. Hell I wouldn't be surprised if that jack ass left us higher up the mountain than he had to!"

"Don't think-" The sannin drawled. "- that a single chuunin's little stunt will ultimately be the equivalent of whatever Onoki decides to throw at you. He won't try anything before the examinations that would simply be too suspicious and far too damaging to his reputation. But during the exam...hn...accidents happen all the time here. It wouldn't take much to mask one up even with the eyes of everyone in the village on you. I'd dare say most within Iwa would revel in the knowledge of your injury, or death."

He let the three of them stew in that for a moment.

"You really are bat shit crazy for bringing us here huh?" Ryoko muttered for her team.

Orochi smiled.

A moment later he continues. "As such the three of you will train a single discipline for the next month. Ryoko has already chosen her chakra element and weapon."

The girl moved to open her mouth when she snapped it shut looking at the expensive piece of metal now in her grip. Suppose she did at that.

He turned to the remaining two. "But now that just leaves-"

"Summons!" Kyofu shouted, eyes gleaming before she realized what she'd done she blushed in embarrassment as all eyes turned to her. "I...I would like to learn summoning jutsu please."

The Sannin raised an eyebrow. "The summoning technique is difficult. Chances are you won't be able to master it in time." He drawled.

"Yeah...well...high risk high reward right?" She ventured. "Summons are powerful with a multitude of uses besides you just standing on their heads."

"They drain a lot of chakra." He countered. "With your reserves, at best you'd be able to summon three decent sized serpents before you fell to exhaustion."

"We can beef up my reserves! And even if we fail no one has seen my techniques in action yet. Naruto and Ryoko attacked, I merely came up with the plan."

The sannin raised an eyebrow. Merely, isn't how the role of the strategist should be held. He'd have to have this discussion later.

He stared at the girl, thinking.

Finally after nearly a minute he nodded. "High risk, high reward it is." He determined.

Then, he turned to Naruto. "Now...you..." He drawled.

The blond's hackles started to rise as they always did when the Sannin singled him out.

The serpent cocked his head to the side.

"I've been wondering something...and...it might take some experimenting."

Naruto blanched and the serpent realized that somehow, that had been the wrong thing to say.

"Hell no!" He cried backing up. "You're not slicing me up you-"

"That's called dissection." He interrupted before Naruto started going off on a tirade, of sorts. "We will be practicing your last two elemental affinities."

Naruto's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You're not sticking me in a lab and cutting me up? We're just doing elemental training? That's it?"

"Jeez princess you don't have to be such a bi-" Ryoko stopped.

The two remaining team members looked at the girl finding her wide, disbelieving eyes fixed on a spot off to the side.

They followed her gaze and couldn't help their jaws falling slack.

One of them thought:

Blue

The other:

No...fucking...way...

The Monster of Kiri looked every bit the part, striding across the training grounds towards them. He towered over everything and to Naruto, who was especially small, he felt as though he was looking at a giant version of this childhood nightmare.

If he saw a flash of red clouds...

The only thing that snapped him out of a repeat of what Itachi had witnessed the day he re-met her brother, was the sight of the two children at his side.

The beady eyed shark man grinned passing his eyes over each of them and lingering a little more on the blond that held something more than mere suspicion behind that gaze.

Then he looked to Orochi. "Heh. Guess you weren't too crazy after all if your team busted the record. Beat mine by a whole seventy two minutes."

"Did you want something?" Orochimaru questioned "We have training to get to."

"Proposal." He said with a chuckle. "Mine are the only gennin from Kiri to make it through the first phase. Suna's out completely and you're obviously the only leaves."

"Hmmm." Orochimaru chuckled. "And how many from Iwa and Kumo."

"You didn't mention the lesser villages." Kyofu muttered, only to receive deadpan stares from both men as a response.

Evidently they held the lesser villages to a low standard or something...

"Two from Kumo...four from Iwa." Kisame eventually said.

"Thirty seven teams and only eight made it through?" Orochi nodded.

"Yup." Kisame chuckled. "And Six of them are gunning for you!"

"It would seem it'd be best to keep your distance then." The sannin crossed his arms.

"Not really." He seemed to think for a moment before he turned around snapping his fingers. "Haku. Tell us why?"

The Kiri genin seemed to start for a moment before thinking. "Well..." Was the tentative start. "Once they're done with the Konoha team..."

"That's right." He laughed. "Kumo and Kiri have fought side by side before. They'll do it again now. Once the leaves are gone, you two will be dead center of the new bullseye."

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