Looking towards the man slumped against the tree stump, Isami followed Keita towards her supposedly new sensei. At first glance, she really didn't know what to make of him. His sand coloured hair looked like it had just been blown away by a thousand hairdryers set to the max, and his clothes were even torn in a few places. If Isami had found him on the streets wearing nothing but rags, she would most likely start pelting the man with coins.

Despite his not-so-neat appearance, the man didn't seem unsettling in the slightest. She could sense a bit of warmth to this man's chakra, chakra that flowed throughout his body at a calm and steady pace. This man's chakra was bright enough for Isami to take a certain liking to it.

"Yup! My names Takeo, but it'd be cool if you could call me Takeo-senseo. Rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?"

Like rippling water in an undisturbed pond, the colours flowed into Isami's head. The warmth she had felt before came from the ripples of brick red and strong earth brown, while the brightness she had experienced came in drops of childish vibrant oranges. The girl could also see even smaller, deep purple droplets splashed here and there, mixing in with the rest of the warmer colours. Although Takeo's voice came in ripples, Isami thought it sounded a bit more… fuzzy.

The sort-of-nice kind of fuzzy.

"Don't worry about introductions either. I already know who you cool cats are."

Pointing towards Isami and the other two Genin beside her, Takeo snapped his fingers as he presented them with new names. Isami could see the orange beginning to wash over as he continued to speak out.

"Momo, Keito, and Isamo."

Isamo.

Isamo.

Isami had no idea what it was, but that name seemed to really bug her for some reason. Isamo. What sort of nickname was that?

"But senseo, why did you bring us here today?" Takeo said, forming his hand into a sock puppet shape. The pools of bright orange and tangerine in his voice had become so overpowering and prominent it made Isami cringe. Never before had she seen so much orange in a person's voice, let alone a fully grown man. Heck, she was seeing more orange in Takeo's voice than all the kids she had ever met combined. Well, hopefully this orange overload would be just a one time thing.

Hopefully.

"Ahh...great question. The main reason you all were brought here today was so I could put you guys through a little test. Don't worry! It's nothing involving pen or paper now. It's just a little race around the training grounds. Let's go about thirty, maybe fourty laps. Light-work. Just stay around along the path and no cutting corners, alright gals and guy?"

Running.

Fourty laps.

Running.

Sure, Isami wasn't exactly the fittest if people, but if she really did stretch herself, she would be able to manage about two laps, three at the max. But ten times that amount? She would probably be found dead in a river floating towards Amegakure. And the fact that her sensei was possibly going to join them? Was he planning on getting Isami killed or something?

Keita and Momo may be more able than me when it comes to practical exams, but the amount of times we were told to run around might just kill us all. The best I can do for the team as of now is trying to think up of a strategy since I'm at such a huge disadvantage…

In her eyes, the test was probably all about preservation. It wasn't like anyone around here had limited amounts of chakra and stamina, and the Academy teachers had made it clear that a chakra-deprived ninja was a ninja with two feet in the grave already. Going into battle with all their stamina soaked up was pretty much suicide. But, if they were going to run thirty laps around such a wide area without cutting corners, how exactly would they be able to continue running? Heck, how were they even going to survive the whole ordeal?

"I have a plan."

A plan. Keita had a plan. If it was a plan that would reduce the chances of Isami falling victim to this test, then she was all ears.

"Please continue, Keita-san. I'm all ears."

“Hurry up!”

Whatever excitement the girl have been feeling immediately died the moment the man opened his mouth and began to speak. Whether it be simple training or a full-blown mission, she couldn’t afford to let herself be distracted when on the job. And right now, she was on the job. Silently, she cursed her own naivety. She needed to focus. Only focus.

“Alright, losers. My name is Hideo. Your Sensei. Starting now, you all listen to me and only me! My word goes, got it?”

Kiyoko nodded an affirmative. It went without saying, right? He was the jounin assigned to the squad. He was the squad leader. To disobey his orders...regardless of how Kiyoko felt about the bastard, she wouldn’t dream of doing such.

“And don’t even think I’ll be afraid to give you all a good lesson in pain tolerance if one of you steps out of line.”

The girl gave another short nod. She wasn’t exactly worried about that threat. It was well within his right to do so, and Kiyoko wouldn’t protest should it come to that. In fac-

“Who the hell is this?”

The appearance of unexpected guest pushed Kiyoko on edge. Her grip on her bow tighten, and her fingers twitched slightly. But once she spotted the scroll in the young boy’s hands, she calmed. Just a messenger. Of course he was. What else could he have been? Kiyoko answered his bow with her own, but was a bit confused when the boy did not immediately leave after handing over the scroll. That see-

“Hehe...I like you kid. Fashionably-late. Anyways...apparently this is your third squad member. Jiro Nakahara.”

Third...odd. Kiyoko vaguely remembered the name, but the face didn’t seem too familiar.

“Hello, Nakahara!”

Did Miyazaki know the boy? Kiyoko couldn’t say for sure. She simply nodded to the kid, unknowingly mimicking the giant’s earlier response to him. If nothing else, having another pair of hands on the squad could prove to be useful. Still, despite her attempts at pushing away her thoughts, a small bit of doubt wormed its way into her consciousness. She hadn’t the foggiest clue how either of the two worked. She would wager that Miyazaki, due to his size and general actions, was probably something more along the lines of a close-range specialist. But Nakahara...sure, he was smaller than she was, but she had seen a few his size be quite the scrappers back in the Academy. Bit of an enigma, that one, but she’d find out soon enough.

“Now...like I was saying. I want you all to know that I am a very strict leader, so I don’t want any messing around in this group. I personally want you all to be the best so I can brag to other people about how good of a Sensei I am.”

Kiyoko nodded again. What might have been said as a joke, she had taken to heart as an order. She would remain serious in order to bring honor to her sensei. She had planned on that anyway, but now that it was officially stated, she would double up her efforts.

“As first order of businesses, I am going to put you all through a little prerequisite. I’m really pulling this shit out of my ass, but it goes like this. I stand in this circle. You all try and knock me out with any way you see fit. But…you set foot in this circle, and I’ll break every bone in your body...figuratively speaking though. You’d be useless if your bones were all broken now, wouldn’t you? But seriously, I will attack you though. Hard.”

At Hideo-sensei’s behest, Kiyoko backed away from the circle.

“Whoever manages to push me out will get… 21 ryō. Just a little competition to get you all’s fire going. Welp, I guess you guys can start or whatever."

Kiyoko’s eyes narrowed on Hideo as she unscrewed the cap to her quiver. It fell from it’s position, now dangling freely by a black string. She grabbed an arrow by the nock and was just about to pull it free when another voice spoke up.

Nakahara.

He began to ask sensei a number of questions. Sensible questions. Kiyoko briefly considered launching a shot while the boy spoke, but held off. She was curious about the answers as well. Besides, she suspected that sensei would be expecting something along those lines. It would simply be a waste of an arrow and serve to do little more than piss him off. Which wouldn’t be a problem, but if he were to counterattack at this distance…

Hideo-sensei pretty much responded just as she thought he would. Somewhat sarcastically, with a sprinkle of douchebaggery and a small sliver of actual information. But if he was just testing their teamwork, then Kiyoko was glad she hadn’t acted on her first impulse. Work together, eh? Looks like she’d be getting a feel for her comrade’s abilities sooner rather than later.

“So, uh...group huddle, anyone?”

Kiyoko glanced back at the voice. Miyazaki. A group huddle, huh? A bit silly for her tastes, but...he was on the right track. Still, it wouldn’t do to group up too close to the jounin. She didn’t put it past him to launch some sort of attack with them grouped up, so she’d like to have some room to evade if required. Not to mention the fact that any sort of planning would be completely pointless if he could overhear them. They might as well just put together a presentation and walk him through step by step exactly how they planned to leave him broken and bleeding by the side of the forest.

“Alright. But not here.” Kiyoko responded, looking directly at the snowy-haired giant. She nodded towards the path they took into the clearing. The further away from Hideo-sensei, the better. She started towards it, not quite waiting on Miyazaki’s response, but she suddenly stopped to look back at Nakahara. What was it that sensei had said last? ...pip-squeak.

Fuck.

She hoped against hope that the kid’s height wasn’t a sore spot. The last thing they needed was for the little guy to end up an unconscious sack of meat before they had even begun. She brought up her bow and pulled free an arrow. While she did nock it, she hadn’t yet drew back. She was just being prepared. Preparation, the key to success.

If the kid did lose his cool, she’d at least try a shot. Maybe they’d get lucky and the older man would be way too into beating the shit out of Nakahara to dodge.

What?

A girl can dream, can’t she?

Takeo would patiently wait as the Genin planned among themselves. This made Takeo feel confident in his squad's value of teamwork. Takeo knew the task he gave to the genin was very near difficult and even impossible for some, but he had faith his squad would not easily give up on the challenge. The sound of fluttering would interrupt the Jounin's pondering of the group as a bird would descend onto his shoulder. He would take small paper which was rolled around the leg of the bird to which the bird would fly way after. Scanning over the note, he would call Momo over before stuffing the paper into his pocket. From the remaining squads perspective, their senseo would have a small conversation with the girl followed by him patting her on the back as she left the training ground. The man would turn back to the group, smiling warmly as usual.

Jiro was not particularly pleased with the quip about his height. He was tall for his age; it wasn’t his fault he had been put on a team with older genin. He did not let it faze him, however. He’d been called much worse in his lifetime, and he was a ninja-in-training. Ninja do not usually have the luxury of pride, and Jiro had worked hard to remove it from himself.

He was much less pleased with the implication that he would not be of use to his team, and despite all the mental preparation he had put himself through, he almost objected then and there. Fortunately, his wits were not so frayed after his morning’s exertion that he let his instincts get the better of him. He contented himself with a brief, moderate scowl.

He was relieved to hear the call for ‘group huddle’ by Miyazaki. Jiro had been afraid his hypothetical team would be heavy on bravado and low on teamwork. Jiro was never one for bravado, in his opinion. It just didn’t suit him. He was about to recommend they go far away, where the teacher could not hear them or read their lips, when his recommendation was left stillborn in his throat as Mizuhima put voice to his recommendations. Jiro was starting to think he couldn’t have asked for a better team.

His two companions began their exodus, but Jiro dawdled for a moment. He didn’t think questions would get him any further. His teacher was being understandably tight-lipped regarding the exercise. Jiro had learned, however, that a refusal to answer questions was not a refusal to give out information, willingly or otherwise. That lesson had been reinforced a few times this morning, and Jiro would not soon forget it.

His test was simple. He found a stone on the ground, one the size of a small apple, and felt its balance. He wanted to spend the time and write an impromptu explosive seal on the front, but with each second, his teammates drifted further away. Doing so would be bad experimental practice, anyways. Test for one variable at a time, the modify hypotheses. Jiro tossed the rock from his right hand to his left, and threw it with some force at his new teacher’s smug-looking face.

*thud*

Jiro watched the rock fly directly into the nose of his teacher, obviously causing a meager amount of discomfort, before watching it drop back to the dirt. Jiro was not sure what to make of that, honestly, but he was sure there was a lesson in there somewhere. A lesson, and perhaps a little revenge for the comments about his height.

He’d never found a writer claiming ninja could not be petty, in all his years of scholarship.

Jiro joined his teammates far enough from his teacher to feel at least moderately comfortable. For all Jiro knew, the jonin had a whole host of sensory techniques trained on his new students at this very moment, and the hundred meters the trio had walked were pointless. For all Jiro knew, he was under a genjutsu right now and he was actually drowning in a river. Jiro tried to dispel any genjutsu. None being evidently dispelled, or even disrupted, he began to speak. He spoke in his normal cadence, though in a more hushed tone than usual. Caution was a habit, Jiro knew, and he would not let it slip for a moment, especially not in the presence of a jonin. Then again, he really could never know when a jonin was near him, not at his level of ability.

Jiro stopped himself before his paranoia ran away from him, and began to speak after his hairline pause.

“Hello, Ms. Mizushima, Mr. Miyazaki. I look forward to being a part of your team.” Introductions couldn’t hurt, and it never hurt to be polite. “I am Jiro Nakahara. I am 13 years old, but I will do my best to not fall behind the two of you. I enjoy reading and bird-watching.” That was probably sufficient for introductions, Jiro figured. “My areas of focus are long range attacks with Magnet Release ninjutsu, and sensory techniques. My weaknesses are in physical strength and melee combat. I hope we can work together and succeed here. I also have some knowledge of fuuinjutsu, though I am still a novice” He patted the scroll-bandoleer he wore across his chest and around his back. “I would be very satisfied if we could show our new teacher that we are all capable students.”

Jiro was tempted, so very tempted, to start pitching ideas. He felt like he could guess Mizushima’s abilities, and he knew enough of Miyazaki from rumor and mutual friend chains that he had already come up with a few. He scolded himself internally for his impatience. One should never start trying to solve a puzzle, if one can help it, but Jiro could justify skipping that step, in the interest of not keeping his obviously-impatient teacher. Jiro scolded himself for nearly committing a grave social faux-pas. He remained silent, not showing any of his disappointment in himself as he waited for his teammates to speak. While he waited, he wondered which of his creations to use first, picturing each in turn. A smile played at the corner of his mouth, just for a moment. He was even more excited than he had forseen.

Rima’s eyebrows rose to his hairline, not having time to react towards the swiftness that Kiyoko had drawn her bow before his suggestion left his mouth. ’She’s incredibly quick but I’m grateful she didn’t shoot at sensei right then and there.’ Sure, he was better at improvising than coming up with a well thought out strategy but he hardly knew anything about his teammates and didn’t want to chance any mishaps that could have been avoided, especially if they were to work together.

“Alright. But not here.” It seemed Kiyoko was the first to respond and to his surprise, she seemed to agree with his suggestion. With how quick the sterner teen was to notch her arrow, he wasn’t entirely certain if she was open to be cooperative beyond the minimum. Despite the pleasant revelation, he was quick to agree all the happier to see that Jiro was also more inclined to talk things out first despite his halted expression due to Kiyoko being quicker to the punch.

He relaxed a little, reassured by their first affirmations of cooperation as a team, though trying to keep awareness of their sensei whom most likely was observing their reactions thus far. The dark skinned teen made to follow, pausing shortly in realization Jiro wasn’t immediately behind them. Gaze questioning he turned around in time only to watch a rock fly through the air, face turning incredulous at the boldness of Jiro’s actions and mouth falling open as it hit its target.

’Oh my kami, he hit sensei. He hit sensei with a rock! In the face! IN. THE. FACE!’ The white haired teen couldn’t help but choke, freezing the laugh that tried bubbling up from his throat. A hand flew up to cover his mouth, eyes wide in an equal expression of amusement and horror as he turned back to Kiyoko as if to affirm that he did not just imagine this moment! ’What could this mean!?’

At this moment he wasn’t sure, could the man be trying to prove a point? Could this have just completely assured their doom at the hands of a jounin? The thought gave a fluttering in the pit of the teen’s stomach and made Rima pick up the pace to further his distance from the man hoping it would lessen the chances of him being part of any possible collateral damage. ’What if he was mad? Would we be safe? The whole point of this exercise was to knock him out of the circle but did that restrict him from leaving it?’

Upon reaching a reasonable distance with his partners, far enough away to make them feel comfortable the man couldn’t directly eavesdrop but still have a full visual in case their sensei did feel the need to counter the shorter male’s initial attack, he turned part of his attention towards Jiro as he let out a burst of chakra’Did he think we were under a genjutsu? I never even thought of it as a possibility...’ before he proceeded to speak. Hello, Ms. Mizushima, Mr. Miyazaki. I look forward to being a part of your team.”

Immediately Rima protested against the necessity of addressing him formal titles, ”Please, just call me Rima.”

“I am Jiro Nakahara. I am 13 years old, but I will do my best to not fall behind the two of you. I enjoy reading and bird-watching. My areas of focus are long range attacks with Magnet Release ninjutsu, and sensory techniques. My weaknesses are in physical strength and melee combat. I hope we can work together and succeed here. I also have some knowledge of fuuinjutsu, though I am still a novice.” A pause followed, as Rima observed Jiro fiddling with a scroll on the his back. “I would be very satisfied if we could show our new teacher that we are all capable students.”

The towering teen would take a suspicious glance back at their sensei, unsure if the blonde would allow them the time to properly make any plans let alone any thorough introductions but it would be nice to know their specialties or points of focus. He state his own in a slight rush, if Kiyoko didn’t say anything first.

“I’m pretty strong for my age, I guess but I need to work on my katas better.” The next part as he didn’t share with many people, due to many disbelieving someone with his size would have any interest beyond anything physical, “Beyond that my focuses are medical jutsu and Lightning techniques, I’ve worked on my chakra control to help with that. My weaknesses...definitely tactics and genjutsu.”

Not to say he was absolutely hopeless when it came to any sort of strategy but anything long term tended to be a challenge for him to keep focused on. Quick plans with room to improvise were better for him to act out. He would wait for an absolute confirmation of everyone’s skills before he’d make a suggestion, either focusing on hopefully ambushing their sensei or if the subject of the rock throwing was brought up he’d sheepishly admit to a technique of his that was similar but in much larger volume.

Kyu! Kyu! Stirred awake by the soft calls right in front of him Kohaku opened his eyes and smiled blissfully at the clouds drifting lazily in the sky. "What's with the wake up call? I got the day off...and what a nice day for a nap outdoors~" That's right, no more studying, no more extra training to guarantee he'd pass, and since he hadn't been assigned a squad he had the day to relax and take in the fresh air. Kohaku stretched, breathing in the fresh air from atop the main house's roof in the Tsukarei estate. Clack! The unsuspecting genin was startled by the sudden landing of a large six-tailed fox right behind his head. "Whoa!" As he jumped Kohaku nearly tumbled off the roof. "Not cool Hibiki...well you're here so that means..." Kohaku flinched as Nori, the head of the Tsukrei clan, appeared with the slightest of noise. "Dad's not too far behind. Do you always have to show up like that?" He asked his father with a slight smirk.

"Just trying to keep you alert. I'm sure Ran was looking out for you~" Kohaku couldn't see it under his mask but he was sure his father had a wry smile. "Whoops, so that's why you woke me up...sorry about that~" He said looking down at his three-clawed necklace and rubbing the back of his head. The claws flashed with a slight magenta hue momentarily. "I don't suppose you're here for an afternoon nap too? I didn't think you ever got days off~" Kohaku asked leaning back on his arms. He felt a slight nudge under his hand but wrote it off. Hibiki sauntered up next to Nori his tails swaying majestically. "Turns out neither do you. You have your squad assignment. Your new sensei and teammates should have already rendezvoused at the designated training grounds." Kohaku sighed as he ran and through his hair. "So much for a relaxing afternoon. That's just how it goes I guess~" He leaned a more of his wait on his arm. Another nudge. Kyu! Nori stole a glance at his son's necklace. Three claws, one of the reasons why the elders are wary about his son's ascent to head of the clan. "You should hurry along, Haku. Your shinobi path has begun." Hibiki lept off ahead of the current Tsukarei head. Nori watched his trusted companion. "Yeah. I guess I should be going." Kohaku started to push himself up. Nudge. "Huh?"

Kyu! Nori began to leave. "You want to prove it to them, right? This is where it starts. Train hard, trust your sensei and your teammates...most of all grow strong together with Ran." Suddenly, the roof tile Kohaku's hand rested on gave way and slipped sending the young genin falling off the roof with a thud. "And listen to her once in a while~" With that last bit of advice Kohaku's father vanished as quickly as he appeared. "Owowow..." His necklace flashed for a second. "No need to rub it in..."

---

Despite the obvious need to be a little extra punctual Kohaku ended taking more of a leisurely stroll on his way to the training grounds. His necklace glowed. "Okay okay, I'll pick up the pace~" Kohaku took off through the tree branches. It only took couple of minutes for him to make it to the training grounds. He could hear voices already. "Sorry I'm late. I got a little sidetracked on the way~" Kohaku greeted as he stepped out of the woods with his hands in his pockets and a relaxed smile on his face.

@Vongola_Hasayo



"Sorry I'm late. I got a little sidetracked on the way~"

Takeo would take his attention off the Genin sqaud to focus on the new comer. "Right. You're Kohaku Tsukarei. I'm Takeo-Senseo." He would say approaching the boy. The note the senseo was given stated the boy would be arriving late due to a mix up. "Glad you could join us. We were just about ready to start our test. The group will fill you in." The jounin would direct the boy to the group and walk back to the center of the training ground field ready to start the race. "Whenever you guys are ready!" he would shout from a distance waving. Hm...I wonder what they're planning over there. I thought this test was pretty easy.

Kiyoko’s eyes widened for just a moment, but quickly returned to their natural size. That kid...Nakahara stopped to scoop up a hefty-looking rock. Then he launched it at sensei. The archer drew the bow back, silently cursing the boy. But what happened next caught her completely off guard. The rock...struck sensei. A clean hit on the nose. Did the little guy throw it that hard that not even a Jounin-level shinobi could dodge it? She considered this for a moment, but shook it off. The toss didn’t strike her as all that impressive. Nothing out of the ordinary. And sensei...he didn’t even attempt to dodge it. Why?

Kiyoko relaxed her bow, dropping the arrow from its nock. When Miyazaki turned and showed her the look of horror on his face, she nodded. That just happened.

It was possible that he was caught unaware. Unlikely, but not completely out of the realm of possibility. If he was, though...how? Poor depth perception, perhaps? If so, then he might not have many long-distance attacks. If the three could stand a safe distance away, then surely they would pelt him until he submitted. But...but that didn’t seem likely. That would have been a glaring weakness. To expose that so easily...no. No, that didn’t sit well with her.

There were a few other possibilities that quickly came to mind, but Kiyoko thought she could narrow it down quite a bit. She eventually settled on that either having been a ploy, to either intimidate the three of them or to goad little Nakahara into further attacks. Or...or it could have been an ego play. Sensei might have been insulted by the small rock throw. He might have wanted to stand his ground to show that it would take more than that to budge him. Judging by the tone the man had had with them and a few of the things he said...she felt like that was closer to the truth.

A shame, really. She wished she could have caught a glimpse of his dodging. If she could just get a gauge on his speed and reaction time...maybe…

It looked as if she’d have to wait on that. Not being lured in by any more attacks, Nakahara joined their regrouping. After what looked like an attempt to dispel any possible genjutsu, the boy went on to introduce himself. He was a long-range attacker and a sensor ninja. While Kiyoko didn’t quite know what Magnet Release ninjutsu entailed, she could wager a guess or two. He also knew a bit of fuuinjutsu. If nothing else, that long-range ninjutsu might very well come in handy here. And his other skills...well, Kiyoko had to admit that she could see the benefit of having him on the squad. Young or not, he sounded like he would have his uses...but if that stone throw had been a product of rage, he might lead to trouble.

Miyazaki, or Rima has he apparently preferred, took the stage next. To be honest, she wasn’t expecting this impromptu show-and-tell session, but if it got the job done…

He confirmed her suspicions of his strength. While it may be useful down the line, especially in covering for Nakahara’s weakness in that area, she didn’t have much faith in his being able to engage a much stronger opponent with that. It would just be asking for pain and leave them a man down. Not helpful. She had almost written him off as currently useless when he continued. Medical jutsu and Lightning techniques, eh? That...changed things. Medical jutsu would be invaluable down the line...and lightning techniques? If he had any range with that, then that changed their position. A lot. Being able to strike at a distance from three different angles...even a Jounin may find it a bit troublesome. At least if they were confined to such a small area as the circle.

…

Oh.

It was her turn, then?

Kiyoko turned her gaze from Miy-err, Rima to Nakahara and back again. So...what did she bring to the table? Knowing one’s abilities and limitations are essential for a ninja. She remained silent for just a moment before beginning.

“Mizushima...Kiyoko. I’m afraid that my genjutsu ability is also quite terrible, and I don’t have much in the way of ninjutsu aside from a water based technique but…” she paused, turning her head so as to keep an eye on their sensei before continuing, “I do specialize in Kyūjutsu. If you wish, I should be able to make a shot from here...” Kiyoko shook her head. “...but somehow, I don’t think that Hideo-sensei will just stand still for one of my arrows like he did with the rock, so if either of you have any plans you might want to try, I would be willing to give it a try.”

The girl shifted her attention back to her partners. She had to admit, she wasn’t exactly thrilled with the thought of being FORCED to rely on others to do her job, but she wasn’t foolish enough to attempt to take on Hideo alone. Even she could put aside her pride so long as it was for the good of the mission.

And she was sincere about what she had said. If either of them came up with a decent plan, she would execute it to the best of her ability. Right now they were all in the same boat. It was in all of their best interests to succeed. It was her own test of sorts, towards the two of them. She would lend them all of the trust and confidence she was capable of, at least for just this moment. Just to see if they were competent enough to warrant it. If so, then she’d gladly work with them. If not, well, she was still toying with the idea of shooting them both in the legs and tossing their bodies into the ring with Hideo.

Operation Meatshield would be her trump card, just in case...

The Jounin would watch as two of genin walked away from him. He would look down for a moment as he noticed the youngest boy still stood in front of him. The boy would grab a rock to which Hideo would question. He's not seriously gonna use that...It's not really much of threat, y'know? To his surprise the boy would chuck the rock at his face. The rock would bounce off the ridge of the Jounin's nose and land back on the ground in a light patter. He had all the time to dodge the incoming projectile but that would have been a waste of energy in Hideo's opinion. Although the throw was unexpected, compared to the other attacks he's gotten a full fore of, it was equal to a piece of plastic hitting him. His reaction to the hit would be openly neutral. He would stare upon the boy as he started towards his group, anger slowly boiling inside of him. So we're throwing rocks now, huh? Heh. Alright.

The Jounin would wait in his circle bored as the squad talked among themselves from afar. He would not be able to hear what they were saying but he would assume they were planning a strategy for their test against him. I should probably plan myself too The jounin would in that moment start focusing part of his chakra into his stomach. He would make sure his jutsus would be significantly less powerful before planning to use them. If the group planed on using range as an aadvantage, the Jounin would not allow them a moment of rest as he would overwhelm them in a barrage of attacks to keep them guessing. If they chose to try and get close he would attempt to use his Taijutsu to quickly knock them out before they can get close enough to move him. A mixed strategy could prove difficult though. He would have to focus on both skills almost at the same time using Nijustu and Taijutsu instinctively. In any other case he can easily do so, but against a group of genin its overall too much work for Hideo's lazy nature.

"Can we finish this test sometime today?" Hideo would shout mockingly. "I get that you all are idiots but come on!" The man would get in a more readied fight stance as he'd drag his left foot back slightly facing the squad from an angle. The jounin would still have chakra presently in his stomach as he also readied his fire release jutsu if necessary. Essentially the longer the Sensei waited the more expectant he would become, almost over analyzing anything that he might see as an advantage to the genin.

"Please continue, Keita-san. I'm all ears."

Keita would smile at the other girl, grateful for her support, and nodded. “Thank you, Isami-chan.” At least Isami didn’t seem opposed to hearing him out. That gave him courage to offer his thoughts.

Before he could he heard Takeo-sensei call Momo over to where he was still by the stump. The girl had been strangely quiet throughout since their arrival on the training grounds and he had wondered if she was worried about the test. Takeo had given them their space so that they could come up with a plan but his voice rang clear and the other girl went to him at his request. He watched them exchange words and then became perplexed upon the other girl’s departure, blinking at her back as she got farther away. Where was she going? Had there been a mix-up?

That would dent his plans a bit, seeing as he was hoping that Momo would use her weapon skills for part of it to work but he supposed that he could just find another way around this unforeseen event. He took a look over the trees once more, noting the width between the hill and the forest, the rocks jutting out from the steep incline, the height of each tree and wondering if his ninja wire would be enough. He fingered his pouch, thoughtfully.

“Okay,” he said, faintly then would turn back to his leftover teammate. He briefly wondered if the spot would be filled. It would be strange having only two in their squad as usually genin teams consisted of three. “So here’s the plan--”

"Sorry I'm late. I got a little sidetracked on the way~"

Once more interrupted but by the arrival of another male. This one a genin and an overly dressed one for that matter. The arrival of this boy confused Keita until he realized that he was their last team member. Well, that was saddening. He had been wondering what Rima would say upon him getting two girls on his team. The again, just as well since the boy had a tendency to embarrass him. Keita would look the other up and down as he approached, nothing obvious but a quick appraisal of his outfit and the genin’s relaxed state. He wondered if he would be so relaxed once he realized the test that they were to complete. He himself still dreaded the outcome of their results but his semblance of a plan helped to alleviate some of the stress.

“Hello,” he would greet the boy and then would quickly explain the requirements for the test, assuming their sensei would want them to. “I’m not sure if we are to complete all 40 laps,” he would say once he finished. “But sensei seems serious about it, so we can only do our best. I have a plan, though, and it might work. But... that’s just hoping. I’m not sure if he will attack us or if there are traps in the forest or even on the hills. I do, however, have a plan for avoiding the lake altogether. Er...” He stopped and wondered if he should introduce himself to his teammates and in turn learn from them? Might be a good idea.

Momo’s was easily enough known because he had seen her enough times during academy training how well she worked with weapons. But Isami was quiet and this kid he knew practically nothing about. In the end, he decided to introduce himself. Holding out his hand to the other male, he would say, “My name’s Ryuukaze Keita, by the way. I specialize in ninjutsu, but I also know a bit of taijutsu and have been trained to use weapons as well.” He would wait for the introductions of the other two before indicating the trees ahead as per Takeo-sensei’s instructions. “My plan’s to cut one of the trees down in order to cross the lake. If we don’t, then it’d be more than hard to get up that hill while we’re wet, not to mention uncomfortable. ...or we could blow up the base of the tree near the ground to make it simpler,” he would then say in thought, just having come up with it. He had explosive tags in his pack, so maybe...

“Only thing we’ll need to worry about is where it falls, so we’ll have to control the trajectory of its descent so we don’t get squashed. Unless either one of you have a better idea?” He would add politely, not wanting to take up the spotlight in case either one of the two had something better in mind.

"I am pleased to meet both of you. I look forward to working with such capable seniors." Politeness cost nothing, and sometimes earned the world. It wasn't that he was being disingenuous: Jiro was sure that both of his new teammates were good ninja, likely his superiors in terms of skill and experience. However, knowing something and vocalizing it are two very different things, and that difference has meant the difference between life and death for innumerable figures in Jiro's lighter reading.

Upon hearing the exhortation of Hideo (Jiro noticed that he never heard the man's last name; perhaps he missed it), Jiro grimaced ever so slightly. "I suspect the longer we plan, the worse our new teacher will make our 'prerequisite'. I recommend we skip ahead to the plan itself."

Jiro fell silent for a moment as he concentrated on scheming. A short time later, he made to speak. "I recommend we attack as one, independently coordinating as best we can. I do not feel qualified to recommend a specific course of action for either of you, having only just met you both. However, genin are very unlikely to be able to fight a successful battle of attrition against a jonin on the offensive: a quick, strong burst of attack would play to our numbers as well as our chakra reserves.”

Jiro ruminated for a moment longer, wondering if he should stop. He would hate to seem pushy, to alienate his teammates within an hour of meeting them. That, however, was not the thinking of a good ninja, in Jiro’s mind; he would need to be ready to risk reputation for success in the field, so he should train for it before it was necessary.

“In addition, we have much less experience than our teacher, and as such less tricks to discover. He will get a feel for our capabilities much faster than we would his, and he is likely better at exploiting them than we are. I do not know how much research Hideo has done on us, but he will not know everything we are capable of. We should attack to maximize the utility of this ignorance if we want the best chance of passing the ‘prerequisite’.”

Jiro took a breath, aware he was running on; time was wasting and he was determined to hear feedback from Mr. Miyazaki and Ms. Mizushima. “This course of action would almost certainly leave us with an insignificant chance of success should it fail, but if our absolute best all at once is insufficient to win, I do not think we would have a chance no matter what we did.”

Jiro finally fell silent, looking slightly apologetically to his comrades for taking up so much of their slowly-wasting time.

Grateful at Kiyoko’s confirming nod, the two boys were quick to get introductions out of the way but a pause followed before the female of their team shared her skills. “Mizushima...Kiyoko. I’m afraid that my genjutsu ability is also quite terrible, and I don’t have much in the way of ninjutsu aside from a water based technique but…” She paused as if considering, “I do specialize in Kyūjutsu. If you wish, I should be able to make a shot from here but somehow, I don’t think that Hideo-sensei will just stand still for one of my arrows like he did with the rock, so if either of you have any plans you might want to try, I would be willing to give it a try.”

Rima already suspected her skill in archery due to her quick draws and quiver, water jutsu could be an advantage but their field looked pretty dry to offer a water source at their current location and was remotely surprised that she was terrible at genjutsu as well. Still, skills aside the towering teen was impressed that she’s so cooperative but unwilling to look a gift horse in the mouth. There was probably an ulterior reason for that but it didn’t matter to him, at least for the moment.

Despite Jiro being the youngest, he was the first to speak amongst their ‘huddle’. Rima wasn’t averse to offer his own plans but what he learned of their personalities currently, he knew the other two would be able to create a better strategy or long term plan than he, himself, would. Agrees with his teammate’s suspicions to keep an eye on their sensei and the impression that he wouldn’t stand around while they discussed for long.

"I recommend we attack as one, independently coordinating as best we can. I do not feel qualified to recommend a specific course of action for either of you, having only just met you both. However, genin are very unlikely to be able to fight a successful battle of attrition against a jonin on the offensive: a quick, strong burst of attack would play to our numbers as well as our chakra reserves.” The darker skinned male didn’t have to worry about running out of chakra as long as he remained careful. Practicing chakra control had gave him the advantage of wasting little with his techniques but as to whether he would last however long this test would end up taking was another story.

“In addition, we have much less experience than our teacher, and as such less tricks to discover. He will get a feel for our capabilities much faster than we would his, and he is likely better at exploiting them than we are. I do not know how much research Hideo has done on us, but he will not know everything we are capable of. We should attack to maximize the utility of this ignorance if we want the best chance of passing the ‘prerequisite’.”

Jiro had a point but it was possible the group was getting close to overthinking things and should take this one step at a time. “Even if that is the case it doesn’t really matter, does it? Yes, our sensei has more experienced and can assess us better but let’s just focus on testing the circle for now.” Already, he could feel his focus slipping at the detailed assessment and the rigid tone it was given in. ‘Do either of these guys know how to lighten up?’

As if on cue, their sensei piped up at them. "Can we finish this test sometime today? I get that you all are idiots but come on!" Rima barely acknowledged the mocking of their current teacher, being one of five children had made him somewhat immune to most teasing provocation. However this showed they didn’t have much time left to dally before the blonde would probably retaliate in some way and honestly Rima was grateful for it as he was starting to get antsy. The teen needed to waste some energy and the seriousness of both his comrades was starting to get at him.

“Let’s go with your plan and improvise as needed. Beyond plain weapons, I only have one ranged technique...which um, is just a much bigger version of what you did earlier.” The imagery of the rock hitting their sensei’s face replayed in his mind and Rima twitched, face contorting slightly in a moment’s resistance before a smile broke across his face. “And if necessary, I could risk getting into the circle--I’m not sure how serious Hideo-sensei is on his promise but with the lightning technique I do know, I can run a current across my body that would at least give him a literal shock if he were to grab at me.”

He wasn’t sure what else he could suggest, he had no real hope of actually doing any sort of damage towards the man but if they were to get at least one of his feet out of the circle, that would be some form of a success right? And well, if sensei did grab him he hopefully did only minimal damage. ‘Was it a risk worth taking? He wouldn’t legitimately and severely hurt us, would he?’ They were newly graduated genin after all--this was supposed to be an assessment and while he could repair surface wounds or stop the bleeding for anything moderate, he couldn’t heal broken bones or vital organs just yet.

"Thank you, Isami-chan," Keita replied, looking down at the much smaller girl. Although she had kept a neutral expression for the past few minutes, her eyes widened at the mention of 'Isami-chan'. She brought her sleeve up to cover her reddening face, attempting to hide her embarrassment. To think Keita would reply in such a… casual manner made Isami blush a little.

After her little stress session, Isami's head jerked up in surprise. Momo, who had kept quiet for a majority of the introduction, had suddenly made her way out of the training grounds, her sensei's eyes following her. Isami glanced up at the girl in confusion as Takeo gazed back at her and Keita. Strange… A mistake in the team formations perhaps?

As soon as the brunette left however, a certain, uneasy feeling swept over Isami. This feeling wasn't necessarily a negative one, but it was similar to that of an upsidedown rollercoaster stomach churn. Whoever this new person was, their chakra signature was not written in Isami's imaginary notebook. Even with her above average sensory skills, she couldn't really perceive what type of person she was expecting from this distance.

It was a shame, really. Isami was actually looking forward to work with Momo, despite their… differences personality wise. At least she wouldn't have been the only long distance fighter in the squad. Even though their ways of fighting were vastly different, they were similar in a way. But, now that she was no longer with her, going over what she knew about Momo was the least of her worries. Isami had to focused on her current objective:

Trying not to die while completing a whole forty lap run.

"Okay, so here’s the plan--”

Before he could finish, a voice clashed with Keita's, interrupting his last few words.

And there it was.

"Sorry I'm late. I got a little sidetracked on the way~"

It was an odd combination of colours. Like Takeo's, this person's voice resounded in Isami's head like rippling water, except these ripples seemed much softer and calm. Pale yellow seemed to be the more dominant colour in this sound, with hints of orange and deep purple dotted here and there. She could even see dusty pink splodges hanging around too. Although the image wasn't visually spectacular, Isami had already taken a liking to this person's voice. She didn't know it well, but the sight of pastel yellow brought joy to her eyes.

After the sudden interruption, Isami took this moment to remember exactly who this person was. Glancing up, she could vaguely remember what this boy's name was. Kohaku, was it? If Isami had been that shocked to see the colours in this Genin's voice, then it was clear she hasn't spoken to him in a while. Or, they probably just haven't spoken to each other at all on any occasion. She couldn't really recall seeing anyone with dark red hair and eyes so orange they resembled street lamps in her time in the Academy. It wasn't rare to have people switch classes every year, so maybe she was never placed in the same class as him.

“My plan’s to cut one of the trees down in order to cross the lake. If we don’t, then it’d be more than hard to get up that hill while we’re wet, not to mention uncomfortable. ...or we could blow up the base of the tree near the ground to make it simpler. Only thing we’ll need to worry about is where it falls, so we’ll have to control the trajectory of its descent so we don’t get squashed. Unless either one of you have a better idea?”

"That's not a bad plan at all," Isami replied, looking back towards Keita. "I happen to have a small trick – well, more like a jutsu – up my sleeve to control said trajectory of the tree's descent. However…"

That wasn't the biggest problem on their hands. If they could get across the lake safely then that was all fine and dandy. The biggest worry here was how they were going to complete forty laps with their sensei tagging behind them. Being able to cross the lake without putting their clothes at risk was just something to make their lives easier. Even if they didn't chop the tree down and decided to wade through the water themselves, it was most likely they would end up with the same result: exhausted and lungs with a similar texture to shrivelled up mushrooms.

"It's not just that we should be stressing about. We should be worrying about how we're going to get through this entire course alive rather than pondering on how to chop a tree to be able to cross a lake. We have to think of the bigger picture here. Could there be traps? Land mines? Hidden holes perhaps? And on top of all that we have to figure out how we're able to complete this test without depleting so much of our stamina."

This whole strategy making situation was much more difficult than she had thought. She couldn't think straight at all, and her head was in complete shambles. Who knows? Maybe Keita or this new Kohaku guy had a plan in mind?

This morning was going downhill fast.

The jounin would start to approach the group hoping not to interrupt their conversation. The man would glance up at that sun then back down at the forest realizing how much time they have spent so far. "We're burning daylight. We should probably get ready to start soon." The man would say stepping back away from the group almost as if he was counting his steps. The man hoped the test would not take too long as he was quite hungry. He was more than confident his genin squad would be able to easily meet the requirements of the test. He still felt their over-planning may have been a sign of their worries. Maybe forty is unreasonable. "I've been doing some thinking also...I think eighty is a better number for the test. Forget forty." He would smile at the group knowing how much they would appreciate the rule change. I'm so cool. The man would take a moment to let the new rule sink into the squad members then raise his arm up. "Don't worry, guys. The test will be over before you know it. I'm even gonna give you guys a head start."

"Alright-o. Get set.....GO!" The jounin would shout as he flung his hand downward. A few moments would pass as the Jounin waited quietly staring blankly into the distance. "I should probably get going now." The patient man would stop waiting and begin to focus minimal amounts of chakra into the ground as he made the following hand seals Tiger → Hare → Boar → Dog. "Earth Style: Mud wall!" He would say making the final hand seal. After the succession, a cracked, jagged wall would start to rise up from the earth, its height slightly greater than the forest's various trees. He did his best to put little chakra into the wall to purposely make it weaker than average and allowing its balance to be off. The jounin would ready himself before forcefully giving the rock wall a powerful punch which would start to make the wall topple over. In descent it would do collateral damage as to send a few trees knocking over in a domino effect. "Whoops. I just wanted to clear the way a little."

The jounin would then dash into the forest as he caught up to the destruction of trees following along its path.

The jounin patience dispersed finally as his boredom reached its peak. "Okay, okay! I'm sure you girl's are done gossiping." He would shout to the squad with a less mocking tone. The irritated man wold in a quick succession start to make the following hand seals Rat → Tiger → Dog → Ox → Rabbit → Tiger. "Fire release:Phoenix Sage Jutsu!" He would shout as he started to send multiple fireballs in several directions from his mouth. With his control, he made sure to make the fireballs primarily miss the squad members and try to hit close to their vicinity as a scare tactic. Hideo, as tough as he seems, did not directly want to seriously hurt any of the genin during the test. He did however still want to challenge them as much as possible and see how they react to such. After the attack he would wait partially defensive to see if the squad would retaliate. This shouldn't be hard...

Jiro heard shout immediately. Before he heard that familiar hiss-roar of burning chakra, or felt the heat play at his back, he silently thanked his new teacher for having the courtesy to vocalize his technique. With the extra half-second of warning, Jiro could turn and see the arcing balls of fire and kick his mind into combat gear. He could feel the moments stretch, and felt his heart and breath speed alongside his perception.

The arcing flames were not accurately sighted, but Jiro had read that the Phoenix Sage jutsu could be directed mid-flight with startling rapidity. He needed to get clear and out of the open. As he kicked off the ground, diagonally away from his attacking teacher and towards the lilting boughs of the forest, he could hear his rules echoing in his mind.

Distance is your friend
Cover and concealment are your friends, if you know the difference

The trees promised all three, and he raced towards them as fast as his legs, and what chakra he could manage, could carry him.

If you are not shooting: communicate, prepare and run

Jiro couldn't do the first at the moment. Even if he could shout over the flames and impart some small wisdom, his teacher would hear it and process it better than his teammates. He was already doing the latter, and so there was only one thing to do. By the time he was halfway to the treeline along his risky straight-line path, he had removed a scroll from his bandoleer, channeling a drop of chakra into the first of many seals upon it, a sack of jingling pieces of metal falling into his hand. With his free hand, he affixed his earplugs, the world immediately becoming muffled and distant-sounding.

Always have a plan
Always have a backup plan, because the first will not work
The faster the fight is over, the less shot you will get

Jiro cringed as he scrambled up one of the trees a handful of meters into the foliage. He had the barest idea of a first plan, and nothing to fall back on. Hideo would not be impressed. He knew roughly where his teacher was, and where he was in relation to the man. Jiro needed to end the fight before his teacher wore them down. Within a few seconds of entering the trees Jiro had moved around the circular clearing by approximately 60 degrees, and decided he had waited long enough. Jiro dropped to the ground and moved carefully, making as little noise as possible and staying as close to life-saving cover as he could. Four meters forward he caught sight of his teacher, where he suspected the man was remaining. He made extra-sure that none of his teammates were close enough to be endangered by an attack.

Only Hits Count
Accuracy is Relative, calm is better than practiced: Fear the 'Pucker Factor'
If your stance is good, you're not moving fast enough

Jiro plucked one of the bullets from his pouch and began channeling chakra for a brief moment before changing his mind. He had no desire to inflict a potentially deadly wound on his teacher, as unlikely as it seemed, or waste the element of surprise, not when moving the man out of the circle was the real objective. Jiro dropped the bullet back into his pack, reclaiming the chakra he had been preparing and instead, with practiced ease, plucked a shuriken with one of his less powerful explosive tags tied to it, and threw it with all the accuracy he could manage at the jonin's feet, using his chakra to prime the short time fuse on the slip of paper.

Anything worth shooting is worth shooting twice. Chakra is cheap – life is expensive.

Two more shuriken followed, each with their own tag affixed to the metal. Jiro immediately began to retreat, not willing to risk the third degree burns he was trying so hard to not think about just to see the explosions. He dashed deeper into the woods, continuing his path around the ring of trees as fast as he could.

"It's not just that we should be stressing about. We should be worrying about how we're going to get through this entire course alive rather than pondering on how to chop a tree to be able to cross a lake. We have to think of the bigger picture here. Could there be traps? Land mines? Hidden holes perhaps? And on top of all that we have to figure out how we're able to complete this test without depleting so much of our stamina."

--

“It’s not simply a matter of cutting down a tree, Isami-chan, but rather that it would help make the course a bit easier for us. I know it’s practically impossible to do forty laps in one afternoon. Especially with a field of this magnitude. That’s more a jounin’s specialty than ours.” Of which was the case for their sensei. He agreed with the girl, but he was not just focusing on the matter of comfortability but more of making sure that they did not over-exert themselves by doing unnecessary things. Getting wet so that they carried around extra weight and chancing the risk of getting a cold or worse, a flu, was at least two of the things that could be avoided.

Another question he had in mind was: were they expected to do them all in one afternoon or were they to be completed over the course of their training? The man was not so clear on when they should be. Surely the man couldn’t expect them to have so much stamina. “Sensei’s a bit insane, I have to say, but I see what you’re saying. I am obsessing over the water a bit, heh.” For reasons he was unwilling to share. Scratching his cheek with a finger sheepishly, he would grin, knowing that the girl was just offering her own observations and not purposely calling him out for having a one-track mind. “And don’t worry so much, I’m sure there’s something we could do!”

That’s when the deep male voice would break them all from their circle. "We're burning daylight. We should probably get ready to start soon."

Adrenaline rushed through the raven’s veins at the man’s words. They weren’t ready, his mind screamed in protest but their sensei was right. Daylight was wasting, they couldn’t stand around dallying all day.

Keita couldn’t stop the kernel of dread in his stomach as he watched as the man backed away. Why was he doing that? "I've been doing some thinking also...I think eighty is a better number for the test. Forget forty."

For the second time that afternoon in under one hour, his mouth would drop open in shock. His heart didn’t quite stop at hearing the words, but it was something close. Had he heard right? Did the man say 80? If he had had any doubts that the man was crazy before, he was more than convinced now. This was ridiculous. Genin shouldn’t be expected to complete so much in one afternoon, never mind that some of them might not have the constitution it would take to complete all 80!

Protests died horrible deaths on his lips as they were quickly shoo’ed to be on their way. Feeling lifeless, he would grumble on his breath but he had no choice. Genin were supposed to do as their sensei said, absolute obedience, something taught relentlessly at the academy.

Don’t get him wrong, Keita has went through arduous training in order to prove he was worthy of being head of the clan. Having no choice in the matter, his father had always trained him to within his limits. But even he had known when things got right into the ridiculous and if not, his mother was always there to remind her husband that he was not a machine.

But guess what?

She wasn’t there anymore.

There was no longer going to be anyone to hold his hand or to offer him anything to drink when he was tired. So though he found the course utterly extreme, he did what was told. He ran, a little reluctantly but glad that at least they had been given a headstar--

Wait. A head start for what? Takeo-sensei couldn’t be planning on joining them... could he? he got his answer when a great shadow covered the area in front of him. His look of shock would turn to one of horror as he looked behind him to see a wall the size of a monolith rising above them. He had already reached the trees by the time the tower reached its zenith but knew that if he didn’t move out of the way soon, he would be a part of the forest floor. He threw himself to the side as it came crashing down, throwing others trees down in a domino effect that might have possibly reached the lake. Even as he was slightly spooked he was confused at the turn of events. Had sensei just made it easier for them?

Not wanting to dwell on the issue, Keita would take the cleared path, sensing their sensei behind them and wondering what the man could possibly be up to. Was this a race? Well, one thing’s for sure. If they were lucky, they wouldn’t have to abuse the trees to make it across the lake.

Hopefully, they could get him to do something about that hill as well.

As her squadmates continued their discussion, sensei called out to them not once, but twice. The first was just a half-baked insult. The second however...well, he sounded much less thrilled with how long they were taking. Something about it drew Kiyoko’s attention, something for she was immediately grateful. The Jounin’s hands flew together making shape after shape, after which he called out the name of his technique. The girl didn’t quite make out what he had said exactly, but she felt like it more or less translated to ‘move your asses or burn’, what with the barrage of fire that he had deemed fit to hurl in their direction.

Kiyoko didn’t waste a second. She immediately moved to dodge out of the way, but hesitated slightly. The fire wasn’t dead-on and if she were to have continued on her path...well, that’d be a helluva tan coming her way. Instead, the girl corrected herself and looped outwards, giving the fire a wide berth, or at least where she thought it would land. As luck would have it, she ended up driving the opposite way of Nakahara who had also skirted by unharmed. The boy ended up heading into the forested area on the perimeter of the field.

Hmm…

He had claimed to be a long range specialist...perhaps he could do something from the treeline. Perhaps not. Kiyoko didn’t quite plan on finding out. If she could go ahead and end the test, all the better, no?

She continued on her path, not quite heading into the woods, but keeping it as an option. As she ran in her orbit around the Jounin, Kiyoko pulled up her bow and nocked the arrow. Then, coming to a quick stop, she drew a bead on Hideo and drew back her shot, pulling the string back and releasing. The arrow flew straight towards Hideo, but Kiyoko didn’t have much faith that it would hit. As such, she didn’t waste any time watching, instead quickly returning to her run, trying to get another shot on her sensei.

She hadn’t gotten far when the girl came to a stop again, pulling up her bow once more and drawing back an arrow. But rather than aiming straight as she had before, Kiyoko aimed high, looking to set up a beautiful rainbow of pain. The girl launched one arrow, then another. She hadn’t even seen if her first shot had struck home, nor had tried to pinpoint where the jounin was in the circle.

It didn’t matter. Maybe if she was going for a kill, she’d be a bit more careful on the shots, but the goal for now was just forcing him out of the circle, no? If she could at least get the man somewhat worried about where her next shot was going to land, then maybe, JUST maybe, he’d be distracted enough for someone else’s attack to land.

Or maybe he’d be an idiot, stand still, and take an arrow. That’d be nifty.

But there was no time for fantasy. Kiyoko continued her path, resisting the temptation to shoot again. She couldn’t afford to let herself fall into a pattern. Keep him guessing and they might have a shot. Besides...while she did have quite a few more arrows, about twenty more give or take, she’d go through that quickly if she kept making blind shots. Instead, she kept an eye open, looking for an opportunity to shoot following one of the others’ attacks.

Hideo would fall, one way or another. Of that, she was certain. She had to be.

"Okay, okay! I'm sure you girl's are done gossiping." That voice was a lot sharper than their first warning and it had Rima turning in an instant, relieved to having drop the chatter for something potentially less mundane but he swallowed those expectations down, seeing their sensei do hand seals in quick succession. "Fire release: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!" Eyes widened and Rima flinched back as both of his squadmates scattered ’Holy...balls of fire!? Our sensei is a living flamethrower!’

The towering teen probably shouldn’t have been as surprised as he was, being that their country was known as the Land of Fire but ending up face first with balls of flame was another story entirely! Only then did the boy realize he was legitimately alone as he quickly backpedaled into the forest--the further he was away the wider the arms of flame deviated from his path and decided to not use his weapons just yet as with Hideo’s first attack, he had full visual of his location.

‘Now would have been a great time to have a plan!’ As far as Rima knew, their plan was majorly undecided. Having only gotten to know the skills his current comrades were willing to share before they were forced to break apart. He could only hope no denials being thrown from either of the two’s back could be taken as acceptance for his previous suggestion to go with Jiro’s plan and pray for the best, he was mostly worried on how he could support the two in the meantime. Other than the standard set of kunai and shuriken and he had only one ranged attack, ’I’ll have to remedy this later, if I remember it because I don’t think either of them would appreciate me rushing in now....’

He notices Kiyoko is the first to shoot, arrow whizzing straight and true, Rima decided to make a feint in her direction not paying the arrow any forethought before throwing a handful of shuriken of his own from his cover before carefully running back the other way. ‘They split in separate directions, meaning Jiro is somewhere the opposite way and as much as I would like to help either of my teammates Kiyoko has the air of someone who can handle herself pretty well...plus I still have the impression that she’d shoot me for offering.’

As much as he would have liked to stay in the practical center between his teammates, it would be foolish even for him to stick around where their “enemy” in this case last saw him and thus positioned himself closer Jiro in case he could use support--if anything went wrong on Kiyoko’s end he could only hope that he or the younger genin could react in a timely manner and if not immediately, the white haired teen had some medical jutsu to help with any minor injuries received.

Pausing where he assumed the halfway point would be between him and the smallest of their squad, he barely noticed the bow if Kiyoko’s weapon of choice as she made to notch yet another arrow and came to a split decision. This may bite him in the ass later but if they were to ‘ambush’ their sensei in any way they would need more than base weapons and he didn’t have any techniques nearly as fancy or unique as his partners seemed to have. ‘Although interesting, I don’t want to feel unhelpful. I will just have to try my best! Closing his eyes to help his focus he attempted to direct his chakra to his hands.

No seals were needed with this technique which he uncreatively called ‘Land Reflection’, thankfully, as this was more of a bastardized control technique he used as a stepping stone towards Chakra Strength Enhancement, something he wanted to eventually master but first… ‘Baby steps.’ A dull blue glow engulfed his fingers and Rima pressed them into the ground in a scooping position, then carefully spread his chakra through the dirt to a generous size--his natural strength totally came in handy for this--as he forcefully lifted the slab of earth that came with it hardened by chakra into a crude circular plate of rock with thankfully only a muted tearing of grass to indicate what he might be doing.

Carefully picking the piece up he angled himself to a wider placement in the trees. He only had time to register Kiyoko shooting upwards ‘At the sky!?’ and the volley of shuriken where he assumed Jiro skulking about just before he threw his own attack in the mix. Adjusting his hold on the object, he pivoted on his foot to rotate his body in a swift circular motion before tossing it with as much force as he could towards their sensei.Rima then retreated back to the cover of the trees, depending on how their sensei would act in this current barrage he would try and adjust accordingly while trying to locate one of his teammates for a follow up.

As the fireballs each dispersed, they impacted the grounded areas of the training grounds leaving a scorched mark on the already dead grass. Hideo watched as the squad split up and headed deep into the forest surrounding him. Good. Good. These losers know how to hide. As snide as his thought was, he was satisfied by the squad's choice of range and would commend them for it to himself. Hideo lessened much of his combat guard and focused mainly on his surroundings. If his assumptions were correct, the various squad members would be circling around the forest in haste for a good vantage point and would at a moment's notice unleash their attacks. The strategy is one Hideo would do if ever put in the situation. The man would look down adjusting his foot placement inside the dirt circle. All they gotta do is get me outta this circle... The man would grin cockily before sliding his hand discreetly into his pouch.

He would hear out of the forest a Shuriken flying towards him. Basic attack. Instinctively, he would throw a single kunai which would impact the projectile, stopping its movement. To the jounin's surprise, shortly after the deflected attack the shuriken would react with a small explosion followed by two more appearing from the forest. Hideo would manage to send out two more Kunai, this time with even more haste, stopping the other two shuriken from traveling any further. Inevitably they would explode aswell. Hideo could not deny that whoever started the attack caught him by surprise. If Hideo had been any more lazy and had let the shuriken travel its course could have potentially forced him to move out of his designated area. "Crafty." he would utter to himself. "I guess I should loosen up a bit."

Before the Jounin knew, he would hear a fast woosh past his ear followed by a thunk to the ground. He would quickly turn to the direction of the noise to see an arrow struck into the ground. Fuck! I forgot about that arrow girl! The stunned Jounin did not know if it was luck or if the girl had missed purposely, either way, the shot was closer than Hideo would have liked it to be. He would turn his attention to the opposite areas of the forest the arrow landed, scanning the trees carefully.

The alert man would assume the girl would still be in the general area. To his expectation, he would see an arrow launch from the forest, but unlike the last shot, this one flew upward in a arch towards the jounin. The shot was unorthodox and could be possibly effective against someone less cautious. The jounin would quickly slide his foot back, keeping in mind the boundaries of the circle, as the arrow landed directly where his foot previously was. Soon after another arrow would follow to which Hideo would react by lowering himself for balance and side stepping away from where it would drive into. "I gotta watch out for those arrows too, huh?" He would chuckle as he rose up from his lowered position. "Maybe I'm at a disadvanta-" Hideo would stop talking as he deflected another barrage of shuriken that flew towards him. This time they didn't explode fortunately. The jounin would expect as much from a group of genin. Though being low level ninjas, they each bring a skill in which the academy sees as ninja quality.

Their strategy so far has had Hideo on his toes for the most part. Nothing too fancy, but nothing that should be ignored. Almost instantly after the arrow attack, he would notice a huge rock flying towards him. The jounin like last time knew he wouldn't be able to take the piece of earth head-on. Like before in a quick succession he would input various hand seals before launching his Great Fireball Jutsu from his mouth. He still however used lesser amounts of chakra, making the jutsu slightly smaller than the average great fireball. The fireball would meet with the flying rock and disperse as they both impacted into each other. Hideo did not like using his jutsu against avoidable objects like those, but given his circumstances, it was the safest option. In the midst of it all, he would still manage to wear a cocky grin as he cocked his head to the side jokingly as if he were trying to peak into the forest.

The three are utilizing their range well. I didn't expect them to be doing this good so early. The jounin wouldn't retaliate to the genin, yet. The man instead would dig around his pouch pulling out a single smoke bomb. This is my only one. heh. And to think I thought wouldn't use it. He would then throw the bomb down to his feet engulfing him in a mist of smoke. The man would then quickly put in the hand seals for his Cloning Technique, A basic academy jutsu the newly graduated genin were probably familiar with. The jutsu was mediocre for Hideo's taste but it was something easy he assumed would trick the less experienced ninjas. The smoke cloud would disperse to reveal two other lazily looking Hideo's standing presently in the circle. The three would stand backs to each other looking off into the distance with a sly grin. "This'll get 'em hard." Hideo would snicker devilishly.