As nine o'clock neared, Anko rolled up her sleeve, checked her watch, and shouted, "Teams with scrolls, pick a gate! You all move out together in thirty minutes!"
One by one, the scroll-bearing teams left, walking along the fence until they reached an empty entrance.
Mamoru tucked the Heaven scroll away and strolled beside Hinata and Shino, their footsteps echoing in the hush.
A rust-eaten iron gate appeared, marked with a battered plate reading '16', secured by thick chains and locks.
While they waited, Mamoru squatted, idly plucking weeds. "Once inside, don't rush. Just head for the tower."
"Mm." Hinata nodded.
"Understood." Shino adjusted his glasses.
Thirty minutes passed.
The proctor unfastened the locks, chains clattered down, and the gate creaked open.
"What'll we have for lunch?" Mamoru sauntered into the forest, hands behind his head, as relaxed as if on a picnic.
Shino pushed up his glasses. "I recommend venison, with wild blueberries for dessert, and river—"
"I... made a bento..." Hinata murmured, fingers twining together.
"A bento?" Mamoru glanced at the small pack on her back.
"It's an outdoor stage, so I prepared some food." Hinata said shyly.
"Rice on top of everything else, perfect." Mamoru beamed.
"Then wild fruit will suffice for sides." Shino revised.
"Mm." Hinata nodded.
The guard by the gate stared after them, bewildered, were these three really here for an exam?
—
The Forest of Death was gloomy and damp. Moss blanketed the greenish trunks, nameless insects crawled between the bark, and, now and then, a viper flicked its tongue from an overhanging branch.
Cicadas droned in Mamoru's ears, broken now and then by a sharp bird-call.
On a carpet of moss and weeds, a fallen log snapped beneath a boot with a brittle crack.
In the hush of the forest, that crack rang out like a stone hurled into still water.
"Cheerful place." Mamoru muttered, kicking a pebble out of his path.
The deeper they went, the heavier his mood became. Only a lunatic could enjoy this gloom.
They had been inside half an hour and, by his reckoning, some team ought to show up soon.
The three of them followed a deer-track of soft, damp earth walled by thickets. Overhead, interlaced branches almost blotted out the sky, only a few stubborn rays of light slipped through.
The Forest of Death was a natural arena for ninja, perfect for hiding and ideal for lethal traps.
While Mamoru's thoughts drifted, something tugged at his senses and he snapped back to alertness.
"Mamoru-kun, someone's coming." Hinata whispered, her Byakugan active as she stepped closer.
"Keep walking and pretend we haven't noticed." He answered calmly, a faint smile touching his lips.
His dark irises turned a mystic blue, and through the Six Eyes, the world around him lay bare.
Far ahead, on the branch of a single tree, three youths in black bodysuits watched in secret.
A brown-haired boy crouched on the branch. Beside him was a black-haired youth with face paint. The third member was wrapped in a hood save for his face, hung upside-down.
"Nothing special, he still hasn't spotted us." The brown-haired boy scoffed, twirling a Kunai.
"Don't get cocky, we don't know what that kid can do." The black-haired youth with face paint warned, eyes fixed on the trio below.
"Yeah, yeah, I hear you." The brown-haired boy replied, waving a dismissive hand.
The black-haired youth sighed.
"Better careful than sorry. We don't want to capsize in a ditch." The hooded youth added, voice cautious.
The moment the words left his mouth, a boy's voice murmured at his ear and a warm hand settled on his shoulder.
"Actually, the boat's already sunk."
The boy who had been several paces below vanished. When they blinked, Mamoru was right beside them.
Mamoru hung upside-down, fingers resting casually on the hooded boy's shoulder, smile innocent, his blue eyes ice-cold.
"When?!"
"How?!"
The brown-haired boy and the black-haired boy sprang aside, leaving their teammate stranded.
The hooded boy wanted to flee, but his body refused to obey. The slender hand on his shoulder clamped like iron. Struggle as he might, he could not break free.
Worse, when those blue eyes met his, an invisible weight crushed him and instinct told him resistance was useless. Cold sweat formed on his forehead and his breath came in short gasps.
"So, do you hand over the scroll politely, or do I make you hand it over the hard way?" There was playful amusement in Mamoru's tone.
He was still on the branch when he spoke. Before the echo faded, the hooded boy felt the world whirl into a blur of colour. When his vision cleared, his feet were on the soft forest floor. It had happened too fast to follow.
He stood slack-jawed, mind reeling. One instant he'd been looking down from a branch, the next he was meat on a chopping block.
His teammates gaped, no sound escaping their open mouths.
"Made up your mind?"
The low voice at his ear was clear as a devil's whisper.
The hooded boy gulped, feeling cold sweat soak his shirt as he realised how vast the gap between them truly was. He had not underestimated Mamoru, yet only now did he grasp how helpless he was.
No wonder Mamoru had acted so strangely. He had been baiting arrogant teams like theirs all along.
"Agh—"
Agony flared in his shoulder, jerking him from his thoughts. He remembered his life was in Mamoru's grasp.
"I'll gi... give it! Don't!" He blurted, voice shaking.
The crushing force vanished like a receding tide. Trembling, he reached for the pouch at his back.
"Don't give it to him!"
A furious shout rang from above.
The brown-haired boy, Ryota, and the black-haired boy dropped to the ground, eyes locked on Mamoru.
The black-haired boy snapped, glaring at Ryota. "What are you saying? Kansuke's still hostage!"
Ryota retorted, cheeks flushed, "Who says they'll release him once they have the scroll? Can you guarantee it?"
The black-haired boy hesitated, doubt flickering across his face.
Mamoru remarked to the hooded Kansuke with a grin, "Looks like your friend's running on fumes. The scroll's on you, you're in my hand. He's acting like some hot-headed shōnen hero. Wrong stage for that."
"Who're you calling brain-dead?!" Ryota roared, jabbing a finger at Mamoru.
"Shut up!" Kansuke hissed through clenched teeth, frantic and furious.
You bastard, I'm the one caught, not you! You're useless and still yapping, trying to get me killed?
Seeing the quarrel break out among them, Mamoru found it faintly amusing and was happy to watch coldly, yet he still had business to finish. He reached out, grabbed the ninja-tool pouch at Kansuke's waist, and yanked, the strap snapped clean.
Under Ryota's glare hot enough to scorch, Mamoru opened the pouch as if no one were there, pulled out the Earth scroll, and tossed the pouch back at Kansuke like trash.
"Deal done. You cooperated, so I'll spare you." Mamoru casually stuffed the Earth scroll into a pocket, tone as flat as small talk.