Chunin Exam 3

A million bits of starlight painted pictures across the midnight blue expanse of night sky without a single cloud to mar their perfection. The air was crisp, and the tips of my fingers were numb. It was a beautiful night in Omoichidou, but I should have been in bed. The third part of the Chunin exams started tomorrow, and I needed to get some rest. I laid in bed for over an hour, but sleep eluded me. I'd spent the entire day engaged in training, but the physical exhaustion still wasn't enough to force my mind into silence.  I couldn't stop thinking.


The exams had gone better than I'd expected up to this point. Benkei, Tamiko, and I had pulled together and pulled through, and I couldn't have asked more from my teammates. We'd gotten through the written exam, and managed to deliver our top secret scroll to the shrine despite interference in the form of Gosai Byakko.


Things would be different tomorrow. My match for the third part of the exam was against Tamiko, and I just didn't know how to feel about the match-up. I knew a lot about the way she fought because we trained and worked together so often, but that advantage worked both ways. My goal in our match would revolve around using random tactics and moves that differed from my usual arsenal. I would have to think carefully about every attack and try not to rush into things. My opponent was formidable and would definitely gain an upper hand if I let my concentration falter for even a second.


In addition to my regular training schedule, I'd doubled up on my genjutsu practice, hoping it might lend me a bit of help if things got too tough. My confusion jutsu had improved considerably, and I got a little thrill from the fact that I could distort reality and fake out my opponent. It may not be the strongest genjutsu, but in a pinch it could do wonders.


A rustling sound in the trees behind the house startled me. I hopped to my feet and tip-toed across the cold shingles to take a peek. Two pairs of bright eyes gleamed from the bushes as though they were catching and reflecting the moonlight. I wanted to get a closer look, to determine what type of animals had come to pay me a visit. Maybe it would be an omen of my luck in the upcoming test.


I took another step closer to the edge of the roof and leaned over, peering into the darkness. The back door of the house opened suddenly, and Yoichi's big mouth shattered the quiet, startling me to the point that I nearly lost my balance and fell off the roof. Two foxes bolted out of the bushes, swift as the wind, and disappeared into the shadows.


"I'll take that as good sign," I told myself before dropping silently to the ground.


Yoichi must have been fetching something out back for father, so I walked inside and locked the door behind me with a grin.