Sena walked into our flat to take me on my daily walk and immediately noticed Shisui sitting on a chair, looking tired and a bit tense. She paused and asked, "What is going on here?" Kaen replied first, shrugging slightly, "I am not sure. I asked, but sensei refused to answer." That only made Sena more curious, so she turned to Shisui and asked, "What happened, sensei?" Shisui seemed distracted, his attention clearly elsewhere, so I answered instead, "We were visited by the son of the Kazekage."
Shisui raised his hand and looked at me, his eyes widening slightly. "Did you not sense the hatred and rage coming from him? How can a child have such bloodlust and negative emotion and still be sane?" I nodded, narrowing my eyes. "Yeah, that actually makes sense." Both Shisui and Sena asked at the same time, "How?" I frowned, confused by their reaction, before answering, "Well, he is the jinchuriki of the One-Tail after all, and his seal is weak and leaking, so it makes sense for him to feel like that."
Shisui's eyes widened in disbelief, his mouth slightly open. Sena's gaze sharpened instantly, while Kaen shouted, "One-Tail? Like the tailed beasts?" I nodded again, now even more confused, and asked Shisui, "You did not know he was the One-Tail jinchuriki?" Shisui pressed his palms against his eyes and exhaled slowly. "That makes so much sense. I was on edge for a good reason. My instinct was right after all, and I am not going crazy." Sena, meanwhile, looked like her thoughts were racing, her pupils narrowing and expanding almost imperceptibly.
Kaen spoke. "He did not seem dangerous to me. He was a polite and shy kid." I nodded in agreement. "I think so too. All the negative feeling comes from the angry sealed One-Tail, but sensei, I thought you already knew that." Shisui shook his head, irritation creeping into his voice. "Only the Hokage and the elders know this information. Unless you are assigned to handle a mission within Suna, I doubt you would be told, out of fear of complications. Still, given that I am here, they should have informed me even if I am not on a mission." He sighed, clearly annoyed now, before looking straight at me. "Noa, how did you know he was the jinchuriki?"
I scratched my head and answered, "I met him by chance a while ago and sensed a very powerful seal on him. That got me interested, so I coated my eyes with chakra and looked at the seal." Shisui moved so fast it was almost like teleportation, gripping my shoulder tightly. "Is that seal inside your room the jinchuriki seal?" I nodded.
Shisui stumbled back and dropped heavily into a chair, almost missing it. "You want us to get killed, don't you?" I asked, genuinely puzzled. "No, but why would you say that?" Shisui lowered his voice. "Come with me. You too, Sena. Kaen, stay alert." I nodded as Sena followed me into my room behind Shisui.
Once we were inside, Shisui formed a hand signal. Although I was puzzled at first, I pulled a sealing scroll from a regular storage seal, rolled it on the ground, and injected chakra into it, locking us inside and preventing any sound from escaping. Shisui spoke quietly. "If the Hidden Sand discovers that you are working on their jinchuriki seal, they might consider it an act of war. Jinchuriki are tactical weapons. You should not interact with them, or even approach them."
I answered angrily, genuinely offended by the warning. "That kid is miserable. Everyone treats him badly, and his life is awful. I would never refuse him if he wants to talk." Shisui sighed quietly. "I understand your sentiment. However, jinchuriki are how villages and kage maintain their power, and powerful people despise it when someone even interacts with their pillars of power without permission." Seeing that I was still unconvinced, he continued, his voice heavier. "Do not help that kid. As cruel as it sounds, the Hidden Sand being occupied with their unstable jinchuriki keeps them from becoming aggressive again. Otherwise, a war could start, and thousands would die. In the meantime, never leave this seal structure on the wall if we are not here."
I nodded and slammed my hands onto the rolled scroll, deactivating the barrier as we all left the room.
That day, I decided to eat an extra-large meal in preparation for the tournament semifinals. After a long, deep sleep, I woke up feeling refreshed and ready. We walked toward the arena together with Yura, who was enthusiastically praising Shisui's abilities as a sensei, proudly pointing out that all of his students had made it this far. Shisui tried his best to escape her powerful grip, but failed completely.
By the time we reached the arena, the sounds of thousands of excited spectators filled the air. The stands were already packed, everyone waiting for what was guaranteed to be incredible matches. No one who made it to this level was weak by any means, which meant the fights ahead would be intense.
The announcer's voice boomed across the arena. "Welcome to the semifinals of the Chunin Exams." The audience erupted into cheers, anticipation thick in the air.
"Today, we have three matches for you. Six of the strongest genin the hidden villages have to offer will compete for a place in the finals and a guaranteed chance at chunin promotion."
The crowd stirred even more as he continued. "For our first match, we have Atsuro of the Hidden Sand versus Kaen of the Hidden Leaf." Cheers erupted immediately as people shouted support for their village's genin. Kaen tensed for a brief moment before standing up and stretching, his expression settling into calm focus.
"The second match will be Fuyumi of Yugakure versus Sena of the Hidden Leaf." The arena roared, the sound rising with sharp anticipation.
The announcer barely waited for it to settle before continuing, "And the final match will be Noa of the Hidden Leaf versus Raika of the Hidden Cloud." The betting area turned chaotic as people fought to finish their wagers before the first match began in thirty minutes.
When the time came, Kaen walked steadily toward the center of the arena. Opposite him, the puppet user moved just as slowly. His dark hair had grown longer, hiding his eyes beneath it, and his posture seemed almost withdrawn, as if he were ready to blend into the environment the moment he stopped moving.
The proctor appeared beside them, and the spectators gradually fell silent, their full attention fixed on the arena. "Ready," he said, then lowered his hand sharply. "Fight." He flickered away instantly.
Kaen wasted no time, throwing several kunai forward as Atsuro dropped a smoke bomb at his feet. The smell was pungent, burning the eyes, forcing Kaen to retreat slightly while weaving through hand seals. A massive ball of fire erupted into existence, crashing into the smoke and dispersing it with sheer pressure before slamming into a nearby cover. Atsuro was nowhere to be seen.
Kaen's Sharingan was already active as he scanned his surroundings, yet he found nothing. His head snapped slightly to the side a heartbeat before he moved, rolling away as multiple poisoned needles struck the spot where he had been standing moments earlier. From the way his jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed, it was clear he couldn't hear the puppets when they attacked from a distance, nor sense any hostility guiding their movements. Whatever Atsuro was doing, waiting in place was clearly not an option for him.
He flickered forward, checking behind several covers in rapid succession. I could see the strain hit his legs as chakra burned fast, a gamble to find the puppet user and end the match quickly. It failed. He stopped, scanning his surroundings and shifting his weight as he decided on his next move, when a puppet limb wielding a short sword suddenly flew past his face. Kaen twisted hard to avoid it, nearly losing his balance as the blade missed him by a hair, close enough that the match could have ended in that instant.
Kaen cursed and began weaving hand seals, preparing a wide-range fire jutsu. At the same time, the severed limb twisted unnaturally in midair and shot toward his exposed back while his focus was on the seals. At the last moment, he ducked beneath the slash, a sharp grin cutting across his face as he said, "I see your threads. And I can hear those slashes."
He drew in a sharp breath, then exhaled hard. "Fire Release: Scorch Fan."
An arc of fire burst outward, spreading across a wide area. It wasn't especially powerful, but it was enough to burn through the chakra threads controlling the limb. The flames kept moving, washing over cover and curling around it instead of stopping short. It wasn't meant to overwhelm. It was meant to flush him out.
Atsuro leapt from behind cover as his puppet finally came into view. Two of their hands twisted into fans and moved with incredible speed, dispersing the remaining flames before they could reach him.
Atsuro's expression did not change in the slightest. Kaen, however, was grinning now, excitement clear on his face as the real fight finally began.