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Before midnight, at the foot of Mount Taka;
Two chunin sat around a small fire. They were posted here to guard duty and receive any returning genin from the mountain.
"What is the point of us standing here, man? It isn't like any of those genin would be back here now or anytime soon." Said the dark skinned chunin with afro dark hair made into a short ponytail. His attire consists of the Kumo chunin standard dark undershirt and a white vest that hangs from one shoulder.
"This is the tenth time you have complained this shift. Can you stop? The shift is about to end." The other chunin said with irritation. This one is white skinned with short, pale blond hair. His attire is the same as his companion's, but with a standard Katana strapped to his back.
"I am just saying. It seems like a damn waste of time." Said the dark skinned chunin
"And what the hell do you want me to do? I am stuck here like you. If you want to complain, go to the missions office. Or better yet, why not complain to A-sama directly?" The blond chunin said with a slight snap to his voice. He knows that what they are doing is pointless, but missions are missions. They get paid to do it.
The dark skinned chunin became quiet as he could see that he was getting on his fellow chunin's nerves. That and the idea of complaining to the Raikage terrified him.
They sat in complete silence for a bit before two more chunin arrived at their position.
"We are here to relieve you and take your position. Your shift is over." Said a fair-skinned woman with dark brown hair made into a pun. She is wearing the standard Kumo chunin attire.
With her was another male chunin who had a light skin tone and short white or light grey hair, wearing clothing similar to the others.
"Finally, I nearly had a mental breakdown from all his complaining." The pale blond chunin said as he threw his hands in the air while standing up, along with his companion.
"About what?" the newly arriving white haired chunin asked with a raised eyebrow
"It is nothing really. I just don't see the point of being posted here." Said the dark skinned chunin
"Well, it is a job that was assigned to us by the missions office. If you want to complain, go there and do that." Replied the white haired chunin
"That is what I said." Said the pale blond chunin, pointing at himself.
"There is movement up ahead." The only woman said, putting an end to the men's chatting. She didn't participate in their conversation earlier, preferring to look at the mountain.
After their conversation came to a sudden halt, the three men looked at their female companion and then looked at where she was looking.
There, they could make two figures walking towards them from the direction of the mountain.
"Who are they?" asked the dark-haired chunin
"I don't know. But I think they are genin from the exams." Said the white haired chunin, making the other three look at him with disbelief.
"But that is impossible. This mountain is very difficult to conquer. Some of the genin may be arriving at the peak by now, not already here." Said the female chunin
"Maybe there is a Kumo genin team who trained here." Said the pale blond chunin
"That is not possible as the mountain is restricted to all genin and most chunin. Furthermore, I am only seeing two genin and not three." Said the white haired
"Maybe they are giving up after losing their teammate." The dark chunin said
"Possibly." The white haired one replied as the genin became closer.
"Konoha genin?" they all exclaimed as the genin came closer, making their headbands visible.
"Weren't the Konoha genin team consisting of only two genin?" the female chunin asked
"Yeah, Darui-san confirmed that as he was the one escorting them to their entrance to the mountain." Replied the white haired chunin
"So what are they doing here now?" asked the pale blond chunin as the genin team neared them.
"Did you give up, Konoha genin?" asked the dark-skinned chunin with a mocking tone as the Konoha genin team stood before them. The question elicited chuckles and smirks from his chunin companions.
None of them even entertained the idea that the Konoha team had completed the second phase. Mount Taka had the reputation of a treacherous place that couldn't be navigated easily by most chunin, let alone genin. It has a reputation nearing that of the training ground 44 in Konoha, the forest of death. If not more.
"What did you say?" Said the purple-haired female genin with irritation as she stepped forward, but was stopped by her red-haired male teammate.
"Stop, Anko." The boy said before returning his blank gaze toward the chunin and reaching into his utility belt.
With a small puff of smoke, a scroll appeared in his hand before he threw it to the female chunin, as she was the nearest to him.
"This is?" The female chunin exclaimed with shock, looking at the scroll in her hand. The other chunin also looked shocked at the sight of the scroll.
"It is the required scroll from the outpost at the peak of the mountain." Naruto said in a blank tone
"You reached the peak and came back?" The dark-skinned chunin asked with bewilderment, filling his voice.
"Duh, where else can we get the scroll from?" Anko said with a victorious smirk on her face.
For a minute, the chunin were shocked at what had just happened. A team of two genin finished the exam in record time. And what rubs salt in the wound is that the team is from their rival and enemy village of Konoha.
The silence was broken when the female chunin handed the scroll to the pale blond one before saying: "You go inform the Raikage."
The pale blond chunin looked at the scroll before nodding blankly and leaving. He was still processing the shock.
The female chunin then turned back to the genin team and said: "Before we let you go, there are some questions we need to ask."
"Depending on the questions, we may answer or not." Naruto said
"It is nothing difficult. Firstly, did you meet other teams along your way up and down the mountain?" The female chunin asked
"Weren't we allowed to do anything in this phase of the exam as long as we followed the set rules. Then why are you asking about our encounters with other genin teams?" Anko asked with a voice full of suspicion.
"I am not asking for specifics. I am getting the basic information to see who is expected to return and how many we need to expect to find alive up the mountain when we look for them after the end of the exam." The Chunin Kunoichi explained
"We faced two teams and encountered another two." Naruto said blankly after a moment of silence.
After facing the Genin team from Kumo, Naruto and Anko found a remnant of a fought battle on the edge of a chasm halfway down the mountain. There, they found four dead genin bodies. Two held the headband of Suna, and the other two had headbands of Kiri.
Naruto and Anko didn't find the deceased team's last two teammates, but they are fairly certain the two fell into the chasm. A piece of the edge appeared to have recently slid into the depths below, with fighting trails extending and ending at the new edge.
"Secondly and lastly, are any of these teams or their members still alive?" the Kunoichi asked, but received no answer. The silence made the answer obvious.
"Be sure to be at the academy after this phase comes to an end." She said to Naruto and Anko
The kunoichi then looked at the dark skinned chunin and said: "You escort them with you on your way back to the village. We are going to start our shift now."
The Chunin nodded before making his way toward Kumo with Naruto and Anko following behind him.
"You are lucky they didn't ask about details." Naruto whispered to Anko, making a sheepish expression appear on her face.
If the chunin did, how could they tell them that one of their genin became snake food?
An hour later, Naruto's room in the inn;
Naruto entered his room, ready to go to bed. He had just taken a quick shower, and right now, he is wearing his sleeping clothes, with a towel on his slightly wet hair dangling in front of his shoulders.
After he and Anko returned to the inn, they gave Kakashi and Guy a quick rundown on what happened on the Mountain.
Guy flashed them a sparkling grin with a thumbs up as he praised their youthfulness. Kakashi, on the other hand, simply said "good job" and that he would send a report to the Sandaime Hokage. He also mentioned that they should expect the Sandaime to arrive in Kumo a few days before the third and final phase of the exams.
After that, they went to their rooms as it was getting late.
Before Naruto went to bed, he sat on the ground in front of his room's small table. He unsealed a message scroll, ink, and a writing brush then started writing:
Hey mum, Naruto here,
How are you and Mito doing? I hope you two are fine and well.
I apologize for not writing to you in the last couple of days, as I was busy going through the first two phases of the chunin exams.
They went well with no surprises, and I was able to finish them with relative ease.
All the training I did and the ones you helped me with paid off very well.
Hatake-san said that we should expect Saru-sensei to be here before the start of the last phase, so I assume that you will be here with him.
I look forward to seeing and telling you all the details of what happened with me since leaving Konoha.
A lot has happened, and it won't be easy saying all of it in a scroll.
With love,
Naruto Senju
After Naruto finished writing, he put down his brush before going over the letter one more time.
After checking the letter, he rolled the scroll before sealing it shut and putting it aside.
He then bit his left thumb, drawing a little blood before smearing it into his right palm and starting a sequence of hand seals.
'Kuchiyose no Jutsu (summoning jutsu)'
A small puff of smoke appeared, and out of it came a cat-sized Katsuyu.
"Hello, Naruto-kun. What can I do for you?" Katsuya greeted
"Hey, Katsuyu. Can you give this scroll to my mum, please?" Naruto asked in a polite tone.
"Of course, Naruto-kun. Just press it into my body." Katsuyu said
Naruto picked up the scroll before pressing it into Katsuyu's soft and slimy body, making it disappear inside her.
"See you later, Naruto-kun." Katsuyu said before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
After she left, Naruto sealed back his writing equipment before lying in bed and falling asleep.
Tomorrow, he will figure out what to do until the second phase ends and the third phase starts.
End the Chapter.
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**Important** Please vote. Go to the chapter named 'vote relocation'. It will take you to my Patreon page and Poll links. Please find the two polls posted there, read them, and vote on what you prefer. All your opinions matter to me.
'100 power stones if you want an additional chapter with next week's release.'
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.
I would appreciate feedback, comments, and power stones from you guys. I would like to read all of your comments, I would like to know if I am doing well and if you enjoy what I write.
Thank you all for your support.
2107 words
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