Just as Team 14 dashed into the forest, they were instantly pursued by some teams.
Kotetsu and Izumo were calm; despite the situation, they didn't show any fear nor excitement.
Still, facing so many teams simultaneously can be troublesome. The enemy could use it to wear them down, so they chose to distance themselves first, then pick them up one by one.
After vanishing far into the forest, they made their presence untraceable, leading the pursuers to fail in disarray. Once they were alone, they deliberately slowed their pace down and started making a plan.
Meanwhile…
"Where did they go?" asked a genin, his brow raised.
"They suddenly disappeared," responded another.
"They are hiding somewhere, trying to escape us."
The name of the one who spoke was Kinue. He was part of the Yugakure team who had teamed up with a Kusa team in search of Kotetsu and Izumo. The captain of the team was a teenager called Bari.
The one named Bari came out before the rest and did a hand sign. After a few seconds, he seemed to pick up the direction the team took, then pointed toward it.
"This way. Follow my lead."
"Wait, we have not talked about who will have the scroll," asked Tema, the leader of the Kusa team. She was a young girl around 14.
"Does it matter? If this goes mostly as planned, we will use the same tactic on another team afterward and pass the exam without any fuss."
Richi—the other female lady on the Yugakure team—wasn't that convinced. For some reason, she felt some dread, as if something very bad was about to happen.
After more running around, they finally got closer to Team 14.
They then took formation, appearing before them.
Since they had already been prepared, Izumo and Kotetsu didn't hide.
"There you are," said Bari, his voice laced with arrogance.
"Like I thought, some managed to follow us," signed Kotetsu, frowning. "One of them must be a sensor ninja."
One team appeared before them, while another was behind.
"It looks like they are working together," Izumo realized.
"Hahaha, look, they have fallen into our trap," said Kinoe, a shinobi from Yugakure.
Knowing their own inferiority toward the other major villages, they decided to work together to increase their chance of victory.
"Hand over the scroll you have."
"Nah, we need that to pass the exam. We need to break out of their encirclement."
"Let's leave."
"You two, don't think we will let you get away right after you fell into our trap."
As soon as he said that, Kinoe and the last member of Bari's team hurried toward them.
Seeing this, Kotetsu grinned, then threw a smoke bomb..
Once inside the smoke screen, Bari's teamates noticed that Izumo and Kotetsu were never planning to leave. They become allert but it was too late.
They just made it sound like they were leaving to force the enemy to come inside the smoke they created.
When the smoke finally lifted, Bari, who was waiting to see the two Konoha ninja incapacitated, found a shocking scene.
His two friends who had rushed inside the smoke screen were now lying down.
"Damn it, you Konoha ninja," said Bari, irritated.
While running to intercept them on his turn.
But that was when Kotetsu suddenly raised his hand.
"We give up."
"Huh? For real?"
"What?"
"You heard us right. Even if we want to face you, beating you won't yield anything positive with another team backing you up. We aren't at a clear advantage."
"We will let go of your teammates if you spare our lives."
"Hm, OK?" Bari said without hesitating, but internally he sneered. The moment he got his teammates back and the scroll, he would make their lives miserable.
As expected, they were never a threat.
And they were only using his teammates as bargaining chips.
"Hand over your scroll," he said again.
"Don't try anything stupid. You don't stand a chance against us."
Bari said, an arrogant man with a cocky smile.
"Wait, it's just an exam, no need to be so hostile."
"Remember, promise us you won't harm us."
"Hahaha, kid, you shouldn't have participated in the exam if you are this weak. But fine, since we are generous today, we will let you go."
Kotetsu sighed while pretending to be fearful. Izumo also played along.
"What a moron. Even if he gave the scroll away, they might have said they could leave, but actually letting them go was another matter," thought Tema, the leader of the Kusa team.
With a sigh.
"Well, have it," said Kotetsu. He made an irritated sound, making the scene look more believable so the enemy could drop their guard.
The moment the man got the scroll, he smiled.
"Good, I didn't expect you to hand it over so easily." He then smirked wickedly before deciding to take a better look at the scroll.
That was when his senses suddenly became alert.
But then his expression shifted.
The scroll wasn't right; there was an explosive tag attached to it.
Ka-boom.
He was instantly sent flying.
The teen known as Bari barely managed to escape, but lost an entire arm and was hurt badly.
Now his expression was pure rage, but there was nothing else he could do. His entire team had been disabled by the enemy's maneuver, and now even he had been fooled.
The other team captain, Tema, seeing the sudden attack, made signs to her teammates to attack.
Seeing how things were developing, they were no longer hesitant. Wasn't this supposed to be an easy victory? After all, they had to work together with another team, yet they never expected the ones they chose as their target to be so decisive.
They didn't even get to take advantage of their numbers. Though they showed up together, they never considered these two a threat and had dropped their vigilance, combined with how cowardly they were acting.
Now they could only regret this decision.
They realized the seriousness of the situation.
Quickly, they had to end it.
Their gazes hardened with urgency.
They launched several barrages of kunai at them.
The savage barrage instantly tore apart the trees.
But instead of finding torn corpses, all Tema found was that the two boys before her were missing.
"Where did they go?" her teammates asked in panic.
Their faces were covered in sweat. The tension in the air was palpable.
That was when something came flying at them.
"Behind you," two voices said almost simultaneously. Then, with a chop to their necks, Tema's two teammates who had just attacked were out cold.
"Hm? What?" Seeing her teammates so easily taken down, she jumped back.
"What kind of sick joke is this?"
From the six members coming to confront them, only her was left standing.
"Wait," she tried to say in an attempt to negotiate, but two kunai tied her up to a tree. Her body was in great pain.
When the mission started, she had seen how many participants were looking down on this team, so she thought they would be easy to pick on.
Now she deeply regretted her judgment. She messed up, and now her team would barely survive this exam—that is, if no one didn't finish them off too.
Then her mind went blank.
It was at that moment that Bari, the only remaining shinobi among the Yugakure ninja, glared at Kotetsu and Izumo with hate.
"Damn it!" he screamed. "Don't think I will let you go easily. At least I will drag you with me to the grave."
"Swarm Petal Technique—A rank."
He suddenly said.
Bari flashed through hand signs at fast speed before lightning current cracked around his arm, completely surrounding him. Then a spear of light started to take shape.
Once fully formed, it shot toward Kotetsu and Izumo.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Everything in the vicinity was burned. The ground shook from the impact.
"What the hell?"
Who would have thought that Bari had something like this in his arsenal?
Even Shintoki's clone, keeping an eye on his teammates, was surprised, but still not alarmed.
Despite the strength of the attack, the time it took to charge it was in itself a flaw.
As soon as that was said, we found Kotetsu and Izumo appearing atop another branch, unharmed, with only a few specks of dust on their clothes.
"Shit, that was a clone," said Kotetsu. "Permutation is really a lifesaver."
They were indeed lucky. It seemed like their plan to take out that guy's team first was the right choice.
Not that they would fail to win, but things would have been more troublesome if they had not acted first.
Looking at the damage caused by the attack, it was truly scary.
If that had hit cleanly, no one would have been left undamaged.
If not for the guy's arrogance, he would have definitely made it to the end of the Chunin Exam, had he not foolishly acted against them.
Well, and that was something. Well done.
They were lucky they got the Heavenly Scroll and another Earth Scroll.
Now they could leave the forest whenever they wanted.