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Post by Uchiha Arata on Nov 29, 2013 21:58:44 GMT -5
Now standing alone Arata faced the next stage of the exams where the grass grew taller then him. The path before him was over shadowed by the grass, yet was still lit by the moon light. Clenching his fists he was ready for anything to happen, especially after what he had already been through. His white jacket stained with both dirt along with blood from his multiple battles for the pendants. Even with all the cuts he had Arata was determined to make it through to the finals, where he could only hope to become a Chunin.
Before stepping into the grass hall he paused to take a deep breath in an attempt to clear his head. Focus would be needed if he was to find the next pendant, so he would not waste thoughts on things that did not matter. With a clear mind Arata began to make his way deeper into the labyrinth ready for anything that could get in his way. Several turns later he found himself coming to a 'T' path split ahead, but before he could choose where to go what looked like green ropes wrapped around his ankles. The trip to the floor was quick, knocking the breath from his lungs momentarily. Thinking fast he pulled the blade at his side from its sheath to cut at the ropes with no success.
"Katon: Hiha [Fire Release: Fire Edge]"
Speaking frantically as he completed a set of hand-seals Arata thought of what it would look like to get taken out so early in the exams. The blade burst into flames that burned through the ropes as if they were nothing. Once he was free he quickly got up to his feet again, moving on without hesitation with his now fiery blade ready to strike.
...Time Pass...
It seemed like hours flew by as he slowly made his way through the maze avoiding traps. After a while he had activated his Sharingan to make seeing traps a lot easier, well allowing him to see clues as to where to go. Sometimes he found himself following foot steps, or other clues that could lead the right way. Finally he came to a clearing where a single flower stood in the middle as if placed for a reason.
Walking up to it Arata peered inside only to see what looked like one of the pendants. Being excited he instantly stuck his hand inside expecting to simply pull out what he needed. This was a rookie mistake as the flower seemed to latch to his free arm, trying to pull him further inside. Alarmed it took him a moment to think of hitting it was the still flaming sword in his other hand. Concentrating a bit of extra chakra into the flames he struck the flower closer to its base.
Fire exploded from his blade destroying the base of the flower making Arata's own momentum send him flying back. Hitting the ground send pain through his back along with the pain still in his arm. Finally pulling the plant off he slowly picked up the odd looking pendant with a sigh of relief. He really had to keep on his toes from now on if he wanted to make through to the end. Calmly he pulled the scroll from his jacket once more and quickly sealed the 9th pendant inside.
Placing the scroll back into its pocket Arata decided to take a moment to catch his breath. Leaning against a nearby wall he began to think of why he was here, what he wanted to gain by becoming a shinobi. All he could think of was how some people treated him based on the past actions of a few members of his clan. It was frustrating how they could be so bad that getting people to trust them again would take for ever.
Slamming a fist against the wall Arata growled in anger toward the previous generations. He found his strength as he pulled his body from the wall to push himself forward. No matter what he had to do Arata wanted most of all to redeem the honor of his clan, bring it back into glory. In the end he wanted to be someone that others looked up to, not someone people feared. Without thinking he chose the first path that came to mind...
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Post by Uchiha Arata on Nov 29, 2013 22:46:43 GMT -5
~The Lime Branch~
...The night wore on well Arata grew tired of this maze of grass, there was a couple moments he thought of torching the place. Though his will to test his own abilities kept him from even attempting the feat, considering this was an exam they probably made it so the grass would not burn. Darkness crept in as the hour grew later making it harder for him to see what lies ahead of him. Each step he took with caution as he was never sure what was going to happen next in this trap heap of a maze.
'These guys really know how to test us...'
Earlier he had almost stepped in a sink hole that would have ended his night early. Moving around that one he paused to pull some arm wrap from his pack to place on his arm. After that he took some wire that attached from his wrist to his blade as a back up plan in case he needed it. Which was a good idea considering the situation that he was in now, with the blade stuck in solid ground the wire attached to his wrist was his life line.
It pained him as the wire was trying to cut through his wrap with his own weight working against him. What pained him more was actually using it to pull his way up out of the quick-sand in order to reach his blade. Once he got his hands on that he was able to free himself from yet another trap. Though this left him laying on the ground holding his now slightly bleeding wrist, it was a good thing that he had put the wrap on first.
A few minutes later he was back on his feet making his way zig-zagging down the path ways. Several dead-ends making him change his path would throw off his direction as he had to be sure not to accidentally head down the same path. Dodging all the traps made him jumpy with every movement in the corner of his eyes making him ready to defend. His stomach growled as he came around another corner, bringing him to stop for a bite to eat from his rations.
Taking a moment after eating Arata tried to clear his mind once again by closing his eyes to the world. Sitting cross-legged he focused his mind to the task at hand, well not letting himself get too relaxed. Taking a deep breath he arose ready to continue through the maze, nothing could stop him from reaching his goals.
Sometimes it seemed that every time he took a path it would lead to a dead end. Until he turned around a corner to see a dead end, only it was different then the rest. Darkness filled the area with small slits of light coming from the others side, though he had to take a second glance when he saw a sparkle in the middle. Moving slightly closer he confirmed that it was a pendant with branches growing from it. This time he exercised cause as he scanned the area for any signs of a trap surrounding the gem.
Not seeing anything Arata reached for the pendant, thought the moment he touched it he heard something. It was a rustle that sounded as if it was all around him, suddenly all the roots around the pendant began attacking him. Some whipped at him well others merely restrained him, the only thing they all had in common was that they did not want him touching that pendant.
"Gahh... stupid plants!!"
He yelled at the plants as if they would listen to him and just let him go along his way. Activating his Sharingan he looked all around to see if there was anything useful around him. That's when he noticed several points around him were the chakra seemed to build up. Realizing his hands were bound he let go of his blade to pull his hands together to perform some hand-seals. Figuring that if he hit those points with fire it might kill off the rest of the roots he did the first jutsu that came to mind.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique"
Upon speaking Arata spat out several ball of fire that randomly swirled around burning some of the roots. Concentrating he controlled each ball of fire at a time, forcing it to hit the chakra points. As he hit those points the roots began dying off, releasing him to grab the pendant before it fell. Stepping to the other side of the mass of dead roots he went ahead and sealed that pendant into his scroll as well.
Picking up his sword Arata wiped some sweat from his fore-head while he walked down the newly revealed path. He was happy to finally move on to the last pendant...
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Post by Uchiha Arata on Nov 30, 2013 2:44:38 GMT -5
The night had reached its darkest hour so Arata had re-lit his sword so he could see. Heat radiated from the fiery sword as its glow brought more light to the area around him. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his map to see if he was going the right way, having given up on his idea of finding his way with out using it. According to the map he should be close now, so he began to walk cautiously down the hall. Suddenly he began to hear some sort of scurrying ahead of him as he came to an opening he paused to scan the area for traps. Moving his sword around the area revealed webs stretching across the pathway, seeing this instantly made Arata feel extremely uneasy.
Out of no where a web shot past him covering his only exit with webbing, now things would get interesting. There was movement all around him, almost like shadows creatures shot in then out of his light. It was not hard for him to piece together what the creatures were so he stood ready for combat. Activating his Sharingan to allow him to see their movements easier so he can time their attacks. Watching them closely he could see there was about 4 large spiders circling him, waiting for their opening.
Webs starting flying at him as Arata dodged what he could then blocked others with his sword. Each web he hit burst into flames creating bits of light revealing more of the den. Hearing something above him Arata jumped back in the nick of time to see a spider dive bomb where he stood. Without hesitation he swung his sword slicing the spiders belly wide open sending it shrieking across the den as it burned. This did not seem to bother the other 3 as one leaped unto his back, barely avoiding its teeth he stabbed his sword over his shoulder. Catching the fiery sword in its eye the spider backed off screeching in agony well the other two had disappeared.
Not letting himself be fooled Arata stood at the ready as he slowly moved forward. A noise beside him made him look over to see what it was, only to catch movement in the corner of his eye. In one quick motion based on pure reaction Arata threw his sword toward a spider leaping at him. There was no noise other then a thud as the spider hit the ground with the blade sticking from its forehead.
Then behind him the other spider made his leap as Arata had already figured based on what he had been seeing.
Pulling the sword back into his hand he spun around just in time to block its pincers from biting into him. Its legs began to wrap around him well webbing was forming at Arata's feet, this was not a situation he liked being in. So before he could get caught up in the webbing he released more chakra into the blade making it explode outward killing the spider well hitting his face with after burn. Closing his eyes in pain Arata only heard the spiders body drop to the ground, putting his hand to his face he opened his eyes.
With out his sword aflame the little light provided by the burning spiders faded. Before they were fully out Arata turned toward the once blocked area to see a glimmering green pendant off in the distance. For a second a smile came to his face as he saw the last pendant he needed to complete this stage. The second was over fast when a shadow appeared blocking the path, it was so big it made the spiders he fight look like babies. That's when it hit him as to what this next creature was and why it would have reason to want to kill him.
"Of course..."
He said the only words that came to mind as the last bit of fire ran out leaving the area dim. Considering the lack of light Arata barely saw has a shot of webbing straight toward him. With the amount of time he had the only thing he could do was raise his arms so they would not get caught up in the webbing. When it him the sticky webbing coated most of his body leaving just his head and arms out.
Slowly the spider began to pull him in Arata could see its fangs dripping with venom. It was fully ready to wrap him up to gorge in his blood, though Arata would not let that happen. First thing that came to mind was using the fire ball jutsu so he began to take a deep breath. His breath was cut short by the webbing that confined his body would not allow it. Running out of ideas his mind ran through thoughts like they were tissue paper when he realized how simple it was. Now he was close enough to see its eyes glittering in the shadows making him move through hand-seals faster then ever.
"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique"
As the words came from his mouth fire ripped down the web toward the spider. This was his favorite technique yet somehow he had not thought of it before like an idiot he was afraid. Fire began to burn the spider alive along with almost burning him alive as the webbing on him caught fire. He began to pat the fire out as the web burned off so that his clothes would not catch fire. Stepping away he brushed himself off before sheathing his sword and removing the wire. Pushing through what remained of the webbing he stepped into a small room with a green emerald in the middle as a prize.
Grabbing the pendant Arata laughed loudly at the fact that it was so simple to take it now. Calming down he pulled out his map once more so he could seal the emerald with the rest, finally he would unlock the rest of the map... his mission was almost complete.
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Post by Uchiha Arata on Nov 30, 2013 4:31:20 GMT -5
Relief washed over Arata as he left the grass labyrinth to see the open night sky again. Taking in the fresh air for a moment before taking off to go where the map told him to go. Now that he was out of the dreaded grass the grounds were more open, yet just as grassy as everywhere else. He enjoyed the scenery as he walked closer to his destination with each step aching from various injuries from the previous engagements. It would be poor luck on his part if he ran into another enemy, knowing he would not be at his best.
Following the map he had been on a dirt path that should be taking him to where the final pendant is. By now it had been a while since he got out into the open, he could only hope he would make it in time to complete the exam. Probably was not a good idea to stop at the ramen shop earlier as wasting time was often a bad habit of his. At that moment he noticed a slight change in the environment seeing more rocks and dirt then grass. He jumped a little when a dog like creature popped out looking like he was a part of the forest more then he was dog. Arata just stood there looking the dog in its eyes just waiting to see what it was going to do.
"Be at ease my friend. My name is Kusatogi, it is good to see you made it this far, as for the rest you will need this"
Kusatogi offered up the seal he was looking for as if he wanted Arata to just take it. After that it stepped closer to touch Arata with its nose making a warm sensation flow into his body. Arata could feel the pain easing away as his wounds healed like nothing happened. He felt like a brand new shinobi as he hastily bowed to Kusatogi in thanks before he picked up the last pendant.
"Thank you"
With that he sealed the final pendant into his scroll, revealing the next destination. Hopefully there he will finally be able to do some real shinobi stuff, and have some fun. Staring at his map Arata walked away...
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