8 Bell Test-part three (1/2)
[you can skip to chap 12 to avoid re-reading the parts of summoner of the league, it deviates starting from there.]
”At once, Summoner,” Fiora said before she dashed out of the cloud of smoke. Naruto watched her go before he looked down at his hand. It was glowing bright white. Naruto then glanced back. ”Fiora, the Grand Duelist, I got really lucky, I guess.” Naruto thought to himself.
It took years of experience, instinct, and will against life and death situation for Kakashi to…just barely dodge the sword strike from the mysterious woman who blasted from the smoke. Kakashi's visible eye couldn't have widened further as Fiora's blade scratched the bear tip of his mask before Kakashi swirled away. Fiora spun on the dirt before turning back to Kakashi. A kunai couldn't have appeared faster in Kakashi's hands. ”Did Naruto summon her? Who is this woman?” Kakashi thought to himself, but he didn't have time to think it for long before Fiora straightened her sword before placing her left arm behind her back.
”En Garde!” Fiora called before she dashed for Kakashi's position. Kakashi blocked a sword lunge before quickly countering the next as his thoughts flared. ”En what?!” Kakashi thought as he quickly jumped away from another sword strike. Fiora swung her body and her momentum carried over as she swiped at Kakashi's jonin vest. Kakashi backflipped away as Fiora smirked. Kakashi took this time to gasp for breath. What in the Five Villages' names was going on here?!
Sasuke and Sakura widened their eyes as they watched the mysterious woman Naruto had summoned quickly put Kakashi to his best defenses. Sasuke actually shivered. The way her sword gleamed in the sunlight actually made him wish for such a blade. He tightened his grip on a tree branch before looking back at Naruto. Just what was the dobe supposed to be summoning?!
Even Sakura had to admit that the woman she was looking at was skilled. She was making Kakashi dance around like a puppet where he had all, but been fooling around with the three of them…as far as Sakura knew. ”Sakura release!” Sakura jumped upon hearing Naruto's voice. She swallowed the lump in her throat as she swiftly unleashed a flurry of kunai at Kakashi. The jonin swiftly kicked Fiora away for a moment only to see a multitude of sharp knives raining down over him. He watched Naruto point at him.
”Sasuke, your turn!” Naruto commanded. Kakashi gasped as Sasuke dashed out of the trees. Sasuke wasn't sure if this lady was going to be alright, but Naruto seemed to know what he was doing. This was the best that Sasuke could do. ”Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique),” Sasuke shouted as he blasted a fireball at Kakashi's location. Kakashi watched as the kunai wrapped around the flaming fireball. The flames ignited each kunai as they flew at Kakashi's person. Fiora took a glance to Naruto. The two nodded to each other.
Kakashi was ready to move to intercept, but he cursed when he saw Fiora clash into him. ”You have such an unrefined style.” Fiora mocked for a moment. Kakashi glared into her eyes before he swept her legs with his own. Fiora quickly jumped away while Kakashi jumped away from the fireball and flaming kunai. The explosion rocked the earth as Fiora jumped back in front of Naruto.
”So you are the one shaking the foundations of Runeterra. I see, many warriors heard your call. I was the first one to respond. You have a sharp mind, summoner,” Fiora said. ”Runeterra, this confirmed his theory that the seal was summoning those he was familiar with, did this mean he could summon people from other games or maybe even other animes? This has so much potential.” He thought excitedly
”I appreciate your words.” However, that wasn't even enough to faze him. ”However we're going to keep trying,” Naruto said. Fiora agreed before she readied her blade at her summoner's command.
As soon as Kakashi jumped out of the smoke, Fiora dashed for him. ”Sasuke, Sakura, it's our turn! Follow my lead!” Naruto said. The Uchiha and Sakura quickly jumped to the ground. Naruto gave Sasuke the order and Sasuke nodded. Naruto then turned to Sakura. He handed her a kunai. Sakura steadied her breath before Naruto took out a spare kunai and charged at Kakashi.
The clashing of metal could easily have been heard around Training Ground 7 as Kakashi ducked underneath a sword lunge from Fiora. Kakashi blocked her strikes as best he could and dare he say he was tempted to use his other asset to assist him, but these were freakin' genin. How could he ever live it down if he was forced to use that of all things here?! Even Hatake Kakashi had his pride!
Just as Kakashi and Fiora landed on the ground, Kakashi found himself bombarded by Naruto and Sasuke. Sasuke quickly jumped over Naruto's back and into the air. Kakashi effortlessly dodged a strike from Naruto and Sasuke, however he was still having trouble as he was dodging a more experienced sword-wielder at the same time! A variation of trying to fight against slow, predictable moves and fast, nearly unpredictable ones. It was agonizing!
Kakashi blocked a kick from Sasuke and a punch from Naruto. However, he had to swerve his body as Fiora's blade nearly ended his form with a stab to the gut. Kakashi threw Naruto into the air before he kicked Sasuke away from him. His kunai parried Fiora's blade. He quickly attempted to turn it around on her but failed.
Kakashi threw his kunai at Fiora's form, but she easily darted to the side and lunged for Kakashi. She was actually a little surprised to find she had stabbed him. The brief moment of satisfaction on her face had disappeared when Kakashi vanished only leaving a log in his place. Fiora frowned as she watched the log drop. She felt Kakashi's presence behind her. There was only so much the head of the House of Laurent could take!
”Insolent peasant! Prepare to die!” Fiora called out as she chased darted back for Kakashi's location. Kakashi watched her come before he looked overhead. He saw Naruto actually holding a Fuma shuriken. ”You let your guard down sensei! You'd better refine your tactics!” Naruto said as he flung the shuriken at Kakashi. The one-eyed jonin saw both Fiora and the shuriken coming for him. Obviously, Fiora couldn't outrun a shuriken so Kakashi made that his priority.
Kakashi noted the arch of the shuriken and danced out of the way. From a genin, the speed of a shuriken wasn't worth much. ”Sasuke! Sakura! Fiora-san! Now!” Naruto called out. Kakashi blinked and turned back. He noticed the Fuma shuriken poof out revealing Uchiha Sasuke with a kunai in his hands. The Uchiha flung a kunai with a fire tag at him. He also finally noticed Sakura fire a kunai with a lightning tag at his person. On his immediate right, Kakashi was sure he saw Fiora's blade glow in a piercing light.
”Seinōha( Bladework),” Fiora called out as she swung at Kakashi. Kakashi jumped out of the way of Fiora's lunge, but even with his normal eye, he was certain, deathly certain, that he saw a series of afterimages following Fiora's next action. She pointed her blade for Kakashi and finally, Kakashi realized…Uzumaki Naruto was a dangerously individual. The kunai Sasuke and Sakura had thrown collided with Fiora's blade having it flare in fire and lighting. Kakashi had just enough time to notice Naruto land on the ground. From his place, Kakashi realized from dodging the Fuma shuriken, he wasn't in a position to follow up! He felt a bead of sweat drop down his face as Fiora lunged her blade.
”Fiora stop!” Naruto called out. Fiora instantly stopped her blade merely inches from Kakashi's chest. Sasuke and Sakura gawked as Fiora had stopped her assault. Kakashi opened his eye when he noticed that the pain didn't come.
”Naruto, we had him! Why did we stop?!” Sakura asked. However, everyone could hear it. A sound that Sasuke and Sakura instantly dreaded. It was the sound of the alarm clock going off. An entire hour had passed. Kakashi watched as the fire and lightning combo that illuminated Fiora's blade, slowly vanish into nothingness. Fiora gave Kakashi a hard look before she withdrew her blade and sheathed it. Fiora gave Naruto a look.
”Despite having the winning edge in the fight. He actually stopped the battle merely because the alarm clock signaled them to stop. An interesting boy.” Fiora thought to herself before she removed herself from the center of the field. Kakashi blinked before Naruto brought Sasuke and Sakura together. With sighs, they all walked to the three posts. Kakashi watched jaw-slacked as the three waited for their punishment.
”Are…are these guys serious?!” Kakashi thought to himself before he stopped the ringing alarm clock. He turned back to his students. He sent a look to Fiora who was leaning against a tree, resting from the somewhat intense excitement. Kakashi gave a small glare to his students before appearing in front of them.
”I'm willing to hold all questions about her…later.” Kakashi said looking at Fiora for a moment. Sasuke and Sakura looked at Naruto for that one, but Naruto remained steadfast. He had predicted this outcome. Kakashi looked back at his students.
”You fought together…knowing that one of you would fail. Why?” Kakashi asked with a narrowed eye. Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto were silent for a moment before Sakura shakingly raised her hand to answer.
”W-Well, you're a jonin and we're just fresh out-of-the-academy genin. We already knew we couldn't beat you in a one-vs-one fight. So fighting you as three, technically four, increased our chances of getting the bells,” Sakura said. Kakashi was actually impressed with that answer. It was true obviously. On their own, none of them had any hope of actually defeating someone of Kakashi's caliber, not to toot his own horn.
”We also realized that there was a chance of all of us failing if we stayed as we were. We would possibly all fail of none of us could get the bells. So while we were unable to achieve our objective we were able to realize that at least we attempted it rather than continued with the old tactic,” Sasuke followed on. Kakashi nodded before finally coming to the main headache, the one Uzumaki Naruto.
”Lastly we realized what you wanted us to know. To be bold to our commanding officer, you lied about the bells. Or I surmised that you lied about their importance. You told us that there was a 66 percent chance of failing this test. You then told us only nine genin actually pass this exam. You said if one of us is unable to get a bell then they would be sent back to the academy. That was a hole in your previous statement. If that was the case then you could have told us only six or eight genin pass this test if this is given to more than one team. Given that, I surmised that there had to have been a way for all three of us to pass otherwise there would have been no meaning in the academy pairing us in threes. No shinobi cell in Konoha's structure has had less than three genin and one jonin. Your little test was merely a tactic of divide and conquer. You expected us to fight amongst each other over the desire to pursue our individual goals. Combined with the fact that you didn't want us to eat to make our minds a lot more easier to manipulate. You wanted to see that in the direst of dire situations for a teammate where one loses…that he/she will still work with their teammates to complete an objective…even if it means their downfall. You wanted us, despite every reason telling us not to, to use teamwork to conquer you,” Naruto said finally taking a short breath.
Fiora glared at Naruto. That reasoning. There was no way a 12-yr old boy could have made reasoning like that and explained it like he was teaching an entire class of children. He literally nearly silenced Sakura, Sasuke, and his teacher in that one move. Fiora could not hold back the measures of curiosity weighing on her mind. ”Just who are you, summoner?” Fiora thought to herself.
Meanwhile, much to Fiora's thoughts, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi were indeed stunned by Naruto's analysis. ”This is the dead last of the Academy?” Kakashi thought before he looked through Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. He then closed his visible eye.
”You were all unable to get the bells. Are you ready for your punishment?” Kakashi asked. Sasuke scowled but nodded. Sakura hung her head down. Naruto closed his eyes but nodded as well. Kakashi glared at the three before taking a breath.
”Good. Because you all…pass,” Kakashi said with an eye smile. The scowl on Sasuke's face left as he blinked. Sakura jerked her head up in surprise. Naruto didn't move. He had figured as much. Sakura took a step toward Kakashi.