The gusts of wind howled and roared as they whipped through the base of the towering edifice. Sakura gazed up at the colossal structure for only a moment again, glad to be out of its clutches with all of her friends. There was little time for rest though. A short man with a violet mohawk and small red eyes, appeared, the examiner.
He grinned at the group of applicants and when hearing his voice, they were certain he had been the examiner for this phase.
"Ladies and gentlemen, congratulations on escaping Trick Tower," Lippo said, "Only the Fourth and Final phase remains."
Sakura swallowed softly, the concept of two more phases for her brought on a lot of stirring feelings. She thought that if she made it through the Hunter Exam, then the book would come to an end. Even though she hadn't even touched the middle.
Lippo pointed his thumb back to an island in the far distance, "The Fourth phase will take place over there, on Zevil Island."
He then snapped his fingers and a cart was rolled in front of him, there was a box on the platform with a square hole.
"I will need you to draw lots." Some of the applicants asked what the lots were for and Lippo had a sudden change in his eyes that made them nervous. "Who you will hunt and who will hunt you. In here are twenty-seven numbered cards. In other words, your ID numbers are on the cards."
'OH GOD' Sakura inhaled sharply.
Now she understood what they were going to be doing, this was a nostalgic story she was living through. It was similar during the Second Phase of the chunin exams. Except they had been given scrolls. The 'Heaven' and 'Earth' scrolls and they needed to obtain both to get to their stop-point, which was a tower in the middle of The Forest of Death. The idea was to hunt another team for the scroll you were missing.
This exam was far more vast since they wouldn't know who was going to be hunting them, but the hunter could find out their target based on the number of tags they'd kept clipped on them. Sakura slipped off her tag and tucked it into her bag.
'Should probably keep this hidden,' Sakura glanced around at her friends, it seemed they hadn't figured out what this exam entailed yet. She tapped them and whispered to remove their tags when they asked why she whispered back.
"How do you think they're going to identify targets if this is turning into a hunt?" That convinced, Leorio and Kurapika to remove their tags but Gon and Killua insisted on keeping theirs hooked on their shirts.
Lippo then ordered everyone to draw a card in the order that they had exited the tower. Hisoka was the first to step forward, Sakura chose to move to the side to take close note of everyone's tags when they did this. She narrowed her eyes when she saw Hisoka reach into the box. Being hunted by him put a bad taste in her mouth but she worried more that her friends became his target. As if they weren't already on his radar.
The next person to take their card was applicant #301, and so on. Sakura continued to note everyone as they came across, memorizing distinct features as well as their numbers.
She went back to her friends when Kurapika went forward.
"Hey, he said something about us hunting and being hunted. Does that mean we're going to be fighting each other?" Gon asked
"Probably," Killua said, smirking as he went to draw next.
"Don't worry Gon," Sakura put her hand on the boy's shoulder.
Gon smiled, nodding before going over to draw; he missed the worried expression on Sakura's face.
After Leorio had gone to draw his card, Sakura went forward to do the same. She reached in and got the last card. It was red at the back, but there was a sticker plastered on the front to hide the number.
"Everyone has taken a number," Lippo spoke, "Then remove the seal from your card."
Sakura cautiously removed the sticker, along with everyone else, and looked at her number before scanning her memory to match the face to the number.
"The card indicates your target," Lippo told them.
Everyone almost immediately covered their tags, Sakura put her card into her bag as well.
Lippo then told them that the box had recorded the cards they had drawn so they could dispose of them if they wanted to, although no one looked like they were doing that anytime soon. If used properly, it would be a great advantage when hunting a target.
"The objective is to steal your target's ID tag."
The atmosphere grew tense, and that only got worse when it was clarified that they were allowed to kill each other to get the tags if they chose to.
"Listen carefully. Your target ID tag is worth three points. Your ID is worth three points as well." Lippo held up one finger. "And all the other tags are worth one point. You need six points to pass the Fourth Phase and advance to the final. So on Zevil Island, you must gather enough ID tags to total six points."
'Oh boy,'
Now it wouldn't just be one person they had to look out for. It was everyone who might try to steal your ID tag just to make up the points if it turns out to be too hard to find their target.
..
..
Tensions were already high when everyone got on the boat. The woman acting as their guide, Khara had failed to notice the atmosphere at first when she introduced herself and congratulated them on passing the Third Phase. Everyone was sitting around but attempted to keep their distance while being discrete so as not to give their targets any idea of who would be hunting them while trying to look out for anyone who might be giving them recognizing expressions. The shifting between hunter and prey was a difficult weight to balance.
'This is going be a long two hours.' Sakura thought, standing up she walked to where Gon and Killua were sitting quietly staring at the sky with blank faces. It seemed that even they were affected by this challenge.
"Wow, you guys sure are quiet," Sakura sat down in front of them.
"Yo," Killua greeted. "So which number did you draw?"
Sakura shrugged, "What about you?"
"Secret," Killua replied
Gon nodded in agreement, "Yeah."
There was a pause of silence before the three broke out into a grin and started laughing together.
"Don't worry, neither of you are my target," Killua assured them.
"Same here," Sakura said, holding out a peace sign.
"You two aren't my target either," Gon said, although there was something about his expression that worried Sakura.
Killua rested his hand under his chin, glancing between the two. "Show each other our tags numbers at the same time?"
"Sure," Sakura took out her slot card, holding it up so the back was facing the two.
On a count, they held out their cards so that they were able to see the numbers in their small circle. Sakura sucked in a breath and Killua gasped when they saw the number Gon had gotten.
"Forty-four….that's…" Killua didn't even have to finish that sentence.
Sakura pulled her face and patted Gon's head, "Oh Gon,"
"You've got some really bad luck," Killua stated.
"Yeah." Sakura squeezed Gon's shoulder, "Is it wrong for me to say I'm going to miss you?"
Gon laughed before looking at his friend's cards, "Who's #199 and #80?"
"I don't know, I thought maybe you guys did."
Sakura flipped her card back and put it in her bag, "Oh, I know who that is."
Killua's eyes widened, "You do?"
Sakura nodded, "When the examiner was explaining that we would be drawing someone's ID tag, I figured to memorize everyone's ID tags ahead of time, along with the individual's appearance. Your target is one of the three Amori brothers. You know those three guys who always work together? It's the biggest guy wearing the yellow top."
"Alright," Killua made a fist and pulled back, elbowing the air in triumph, "So you already figured out what we would be doing huh?"
Sakura winked, "Let's just say I have enough experience to understand how this phase works,"
Then she turned to Gon, he was trembling but there was a smile on his face.
"Are you happy or scared Gon?" Killua asked.
Gon looked back at his card, his eyebrows knitting together. "Well…both I guess."
The thrill of having the opportunity to face an opponent that was stronger than you, and the fear that accompanied it. That was a trait only true fighters possessed. Humans did not enjoy order, they were prone to chaos and disorder, even if they would not admit it. They had a certain consciousness that made them seek out excitement. Each had its forms of this.
'He must be getting a kick out of this,' Sakura thought. She hadn't seen Gon lose his composure once, so it must have been a rare occurrence for something to break him from that routine. And he enjoyed it.
"You're not going to be able to face Hisoka in a fair fight you know." Sakura pointed out. Gon didn't take offense.
"Yeah, I know," Gon admitted. "But if I only have to steal his ID tag then I have a real shot."
Sakura paused in thought, "Do you want some help?"
Gon looked up at her immediately, smiling brightly. "No thanks, I want to do this on my own."
Sakura inhaled softly, again there was that look in his eyes that gave her such a familiar sense. She couldn't argue with him. "Alright,"
..
..
The boat finally docked at Zevil Island, near a forest, the board was set for them to walk across but not before their guide explained the rules for the Fourth Phase. They were supposed to disembark in the order they had cleared the Third Phase and they would have to wait for a two-minute interval before the next person could leave.
"You will stay on this island for one week," Khara said to the applicants in front of her. "During that time, you must amass your six points of your ID tags and return here. The first person may start!"
Hisoka was the first to step off the boat and onto the island, Sakura and everyone else watched as he vanished into the woods. Gon's target was the first to disembark which would only make him that much harder to track since he would have ample time to hide and observe his target if he knew who it was.
She watched as Kurapika, Killua, Gon, and Leorio walked across the plank and vanished onto the island. Without a doubt, they were going to be hunting for their targets now.
'I should probably do the same,'
"Two minutes have passed, you may go."
"Alright," Sakura reached up, pulling on the fabric of her headband to tighten it around her head.
As soon as Sakura got off the platform, she crouched slightly down, chakra coating the soles of her feet before she shot off into the trees at blinking speeds. The wind pushed her hair back from her face, tickling her skin. Her eyes darted around quickly.
'There's only one way we're all going to make it through this phase…..' She continued to remain vigilant, but if anyone was attempting to follow her, she doubted that they would be able to keep up at full speed.
Leaping through the treetops, Sakura was unconcerned about being spotted. Right now she wasn't acting as the prey.
She was the hunter.
..
..
Sakura sighed mid-jump before landing on another branch, ducking under another so that she wouldn't get smacked in the face with leaves. She came to an abrupt halt after three more leaps in the air; looking down below. She saw two individuals making their way through the forest, but couldn't see their faces.
She smirked, before vanishing from the place she stood before.
There were two males, one was a lanky man with messy brownish hair and the other was a dark-haired male with tanned skin. Upon closer inspection, Sakura knew who they were; not just from observing all the applicants from the Third Phase, but also because they were the ones she had encountered on the airship. The ones she stopped Killua from slaughtering. Applicants #390 and #391.
"Hey," Sakura jumped onto the ground in front of them, hands on her hips. The two men stopped, staring at her.
"Who are you?"
While the appearance of another applicant should've made them more cautious and get into a defensive position, Sakura's presence did nothing of the sort. As it seemed, being outnumbered, she was the one who would be losing her tag.
Looking around her one more time to make sure she wouldn't be in for any surprise attacks, Sakura proceeded with her plan. She wanted to get this over with quickly.
Sakura snickered softly, folding her arms. "What you don't know? Oh wait, I guess you guys wouldn't since you were unconscious when I stepped in front of you."
"What?" #391 narrowed his eyes at her.
Pointing to herself, without blinking, a mocking grin on her face, Sakura spoke. "Who do you think knocked you out that night on the airship?"
#390 glared at her, "That was you?"
"This little girl?"
Sakura held out her hands and raised her shoulders, watching them shake in anger. "That's right. This little girl knocked you unconscious. Now if you don't mind, I could use your badges."
Both men smirked, strengthening their stances. "Yeah right."
"Don't think you can catch us off guard again!"
With that the two sped towards her, Sakura held her casual stance, as they neared her she remained unflinching. Then at the last moment, when they both reached for her, Sakura grabbed their wrists in a tight grip, the pain that shot through their bodies caused them to drop to their knees in front of her but Sakura still held on tight.
"I'm in a bit of a hurry, so sorry about this."
Extending her arms out, and quickly drawing them back in, Sakura caused the two males' heads to smash together, effectively knocking them out. She released their wrists and crouched down, searching their clothing until she found their tags. Both of which were tucked in their back pockets.
'That's two points-now I just need two more badges.' Sakura smiled, dusting off her clothing.
Going to a tree, Sakura brought out her kunai knife and slammed it into the trunk. Standing completely still. This was a tracking method she had learned about. She didn't have the sensory abilities that could compare to her friends back home, and she didn't have some of their long range of vision either, and as far as sensing presence went, she was adequate, but still not in the same degree. So she had to find other methods of tracking.
By slamming her kunai into the tree, she could feel the vibrations of anyone nearby. Doing this meant she would be able to find her next target.
'No one,' Sakura sighed, looking back at the two on the ground. 'Guess they're a little slower than the others.'
"Oh well, I've got a week." Sakura shrugged before vanishing from the ground and leaping through the trees.
..
..
..
The remainder of the day was a slow one for hunting. Sakura couldn't find anyone but she was planning on resuming her search in the morning. While it would be more convenient to attack someone in their sleep, she thought it better not to overexert herself. They were meant to stay on the island for a week, which left them enough days to find people to get tags or have their own stolen. Sakura wanted to avoid being the latter. This wasn't entirely new for her. On missions she would have to camp out, she knew how to survive in almost any condition. And she had learned from her previous mistakes what to do and not to do.
By the time the last ray of light had set, Sakura was already finished with her campsite. She settled herself under the canopy of a large tree, made a fire, and found some fruit that she would be able to eat, as well as refilled her canteen with water and set up some traps in case she was spotted.
While she hadn't been expecting to be transported into a story set in another world; she was glad that she had been preparing for a mission at the time.
Sakura yawned, shutting her eyes tightly to blink away the extra moisture in her eyes. 'I hope the others are doing alright,'
While she had already checked the book for any changes, all Sakura knew by far was that Leorio had no idea who his target was (but the number was yet to be revealed), Kurapika hadn't encountered anyone, Killua was scouting the island now aware of who he had to hunt and Gon….After witnessing someone else having their tag tactfully stolen, incited an idea on how he was going to get Hisoka's tag without engaging in battle with him.
He was going to practice using his fishing hook to somehow grab the tag from a distance so that he could run away before Hisoka had a chance to counter. This would give Gon one chance and the only one to get the tag. But by far, he had no direct encounters with anyone.
Starring at the cover of the book, Sakura smiled, 'It feels like I'm cheating a little.'
This world was beginning to feel more real to her than a story ever could.
..
..
..
With two days soon to be in passing and still no sign of any applicants, Sakura decided to pick up her pace and extend her hours from today. She wanted to stay in the denser parts of the forest since that would be the best place to hide out and ambush. Sakura was aiming to find her numbered target, she already knew who it was, but the only issue was finding them. The same went for the rest of her friends. She wouldn't know where they were and the island was a lot bigger than she anticipated.
When half the day was through, Sakura decided to take her first break; she knew from previous experiences that when on a hunt or being hunted, staying in one area for too long was dangerous, regardless of how well you could conceal yourself. Sitting in a tree, she snacked on the fruit she had picked. It felt safer to remain in the trees than on the ground. Higher ground was usually considered the advantage point.
'Mmm, I need to figure out where my targets hiding….' Holding the apple she was eating in her mouth, Sakura went to reach into her bag but she paused when she heard a rustling in the trees and then a familiar and an unfamiliar voice during a very peculiar situation.
Jumping through the trees, Sakura concealed herself as well as her presence when she came across Gittarackur, applicant #301. He was the one to come in second after Hisoka during the Third Phase.
Landing a tree, in the thicket, Sakura remained, barely breathing. He was also a rookie, but not one she would want to get close to. His appearance of a thin face stuck with pins was intimidating enough to make her step back, but her instincts gave gnawing at her mind to just keep her distance. And what she heard only confirmed her instincts.
"Hisoka, have you taken your target tag yet?" He asked into a transmitter. Just like the one Hisoka had used back during the first phase. It hit Sakura then.
'This must be the 'friend' Hisoka told us about.'
"No, not yet"
"You don't even know who your target is do you?" Gittarackur asked, rolling a pin between the fingers of his free hand.
"No," Hisoka replied
"Want me to tell you?"
Sakura found that she was more interested in hearing about who Hisoka's target was than Hisoka was because he didn't want to know.
"No, it doesn't matter. I'll just hunt three others."
Hisoka preferred the opportunity to fight and hunt more than one applicant instead of following the primary rules of the phase.
'He must enjoy the thrill,'
Something then caught her eyes in the distance, from where she stood on the high ground, she had a better view of everything. And a little ways from where Gittarackur was standing she could see another finger in the bushes well out of sight. Another applicant crouched down on the ground, holding a sniper. It was aimed directly at Gittarackur.
'Guess he must be her target.' Sakura thought, swallowing softly before it clicked when she recognized the girl as her target. Sakura looked back at Gittarackur, as he ended his conversation with Hisoka and put the communicator away.
Things grew silent, but there was a tension in the air that suddenly dropped all its weight on her and Sakura nearly lost her balance before Gittarackur turned his head, ever so shaky, the creaking cog-like noise sent a shiver down Sakura's spine when he set his eyes on the sniper girl.
'Oh crap!'
Sakura barely had a second to move before Gittarackur threw the pin he had been holding, heading straight for #80. Fortunately, a second was enough, because all he saw was a pink and red blur, and the person who had been targeting him vanished from where they previously stood, leaving the gun behind.
'Gittarackur' stared at the space where the sniper had been only a moment ago. He could hear the rustling of the trees as the two moved further and further away and turned his head in the direction he saw them going.
'I didn't sense that one.'
..
..
..
Sakura winced as she felt the thin strand of metal embedded in her skin, but didn't stop running after she caught the other female applicant and managed to keep her from getting hit by Gittarackur's attack. Instead, she continued leaping through the trees as fast as she could with chakra coating her feet to keep her firmly attached to the tree branches. Then she felt the woman she had thrown over her shoulder in a rush to escape.
"Hey let me go! Who are you!?"
Sakura shoved her shoulder upwards to knock the woman in her stomach and cease her struggles, "Cut that out or I'm going to drop you!"
When Sakura realized that they weren't being chased, she continued for another ten minutes through the forest until she was certain that they were safe and finally released the women.
Siper, who was commonly known as #80, hadn't expected her target to see her when she was hunting, nor did she expect Sakura's sudden appearance just in time to save her from the needle that had been coming straight toward her.
The second Sakura had landed on the ground, Siper jumped away, giving her a hard glare through her shades. She watched the Sakura pull the needle out of her arm before covering her hand over it.
Sakura hissed softly as she healed herself, "Dammit, that's deep-least it's not poisoned,"
"What the hell do you want?"
Sakura frowned, removing her hand after she healed her wound and tapped her chin, "Gee, I don't know how about a thank you for saving your life from that pin-head?!"
"I didn't need any saving," Siper hissed back, cautiously glancing around. If it came down to a face-to-face battle, she didn't know how well she would fare against this girl, considering her agility, but it's not like her sniper was the only gun she had on hand. There was one tucked away under her thick jacket.
"Oh yeah," Sakura rolled her eyes, "I'm sure you were just warming up and that pin heading straight for your eye was just a warning. But hey, I don't care. I'll take your badge as a thank you."
"So I am your target."
Sakura tipped her head to the side and held out her hand expectedly, "That's established."
Siper glowered back, reaching into her jacket. "You know, I should thank you…..here's my hand!"
Just as Siper pulled the trigger, Sakura had already ducked down avoiding a fatal wound from the bullet. Siper didn't even take the gun out of her jacket but shot through the fabric.
"Should've guessed," Sakura muttered, drawing out a kunai knife, just as Siper drew her gun and began shooting at her.
Sakura ran to the left as the shots were fired in her direction, she evaded a total of five before taking her turn to throw her kunai at Siper. The blade hit Siper's gun, causing her to drop her weapon, and giving Sakura an opening.
"Sorry for this!"
The kunoichi feigned a dropkick, before spinning on her heel to come up behind Siper and delivering a sharp knock to the back of her skull, causing her to lose consciousness.
She landed softly on the forest ground, face down. Sakura searched her and easily found her tag hidden in the inner pocket of her jacket. After putting the #80 tag away, Sakura sat the red-headed woman up against a tree.
"That was easier than I expected, must not be good with close combat." Sakura smiled slightly, turning around to make her way through the forest on foot. "No tags means you won't be a target anymore. Better luck next year."
..
..
..
While Sakura had found herself comparing Hunter's Exam to the Chuunin exam more often, this phase had her noticing one drastic change that made it particularly challenging to cope with. That she was utterly alone during this phase.
She had always been with her friends during these types of trials, and it had lightened the weight of the tasks given. Although thinking back on her first Chuunin exam, Sakura felt that she hadn't been of much help to her teammates. She didn't have more than what she had been taught at the Academy, and that wasn't substantial when it came to being a real ninja. Her inexperience had been costly and not only for her.
'I won't do that to anyone here.' She thought grunting softly as she jumped to the next tree. She was scouting for sights of any more applicants. With her speed and stamina granted using chakra, she could last long enough to scope the island for applicants.
'I just need one more.'
A few hours in passing, and Sakura was yet to see anyone. She kept to the high ground in the forest, hidden amongst the trees. She hadn't realized why there was this constant edge since coming onto the island, the feeling that she was being observed, whether or not it was a result of her paranoia, Sakura's guard was constantly standing.
..
..
..
"DAMN YOU, I'LL MAKE YOU PAY."
'That sounds like Leorio.'
Sakura jumped up onto the highest point of the trees, able to overlook the rest of the area, to her right, in a clearer part of the forest she saw Leorio, and another man, he had messy brown hair and thick eyebrows; there was also a monkey on his shoulder and he was holding Leorio's briefcase. He was Sommy #118, as she recalled. Leorio ran towards him but Sommy jumped into the trees.
"That's what you get for letting your guard down!" Sommy called before jumping onto the next branch, with Leorio chasing after him and his pet.
"WAIT A MINUTE YOU BASTARD!"
Looking back and forth for a second, Sakura sighed before taking off in the direction Sommy was heading.
'Seriously Leorio,'
..
..
Sommy leaped through the trees with his monkey, Leorio was beginning to fade in the distance from the speed he was able to move through the trees. Which was equivalent to a real monkey.
While Leorio had stopped to rest and placed his briefcase down on the ground, Sommy appeared in front of Leorio to get his attention while his monkey climbed down and grabbed his briefcase, where Sommy was certain Leorio's tag was.
'What an idiot.' He thought.
Sommy grinned, glancing back at him, although his triumph was short-lived after he heard a whizzing noise coming from his right, barely turned his head before a force was pushing him back and he couldn't move his arms or legs as he found himself pinned to a tree with knives holding him to the bark.
"W-What the-
He heard a soft sigh, and a flash of pink before Sakura appeared in front of him. She was standing with a kunai knife at the throat of his monkey. "Honestly, I'm surrounded by idiots…"
Sakura grinned then, "So, what's it going to be? Give me all the tags you have or resist and I get a stuffed monkey as a bonus?"
..
..
..
Sakura tossed the tags she had gotten from Sommy in the air after they were handed to her, she restrained Sommy and his monkey with some wires and left them tied to a trunk before she took off in the direction she had seen Leorio running. He hadn't been able to keep up with Sommy when he was in the trees. But she knew he wouldn't be too far behind.
'Now just to get this back to Leorio,'
..
..
'Where is that bastard!?'
Leorio was only a minute behind, he was checking the trees having lost sight of Sommy, furious and unwilling to restrain himself. When he heard a rustling in the trees, he threw his knife at it, assuming it was Sommy when he heard a light shriek.
"SON OF A-
Leorio stepped back when he saw Sakura drop from the trees, and heading straight towards him fell right on top of Leorio's back, holding a knife in her arm. She hadn't expected Leorio to throw it at her before she was able to call him and accidentally slipped from the narrow branch. At least he broke her fall.
"S-S-Sakura…." Leorio croaked, silently hoping his spine didn't snap from the impact.
Growling, Sakura pulled the knife out of her arm and threw it on the ground, before punching Leorio's head. "MORON!"
After healing herself, Sakura finally decided to get off of Leorio and handed him back his briefcase with his badge. She sat across from Leorio on the forest ground, glaring lightly with her cheeks puffed as he rubbed the bump on his head, wincing every time he touched it.
"Honestly, not the greeting I was expecting. Especially after getting your badge back from that guy."
Leorio's head hung low, "I'm sorry okay; I didn't know it was you!"
Sakura sighed, "It's alright. I shouldn't have assumed you wouldn't attack me,"
"It was an accident! I thought you were that guy who stole my badge!" Leorio said flaying his arms around in the air. After Sakura's previous display of strength, he wanted to keep away from her bad side.
Grinning mockingly, Sakura stuck out her tongue, "Don't worry, I've been injured a lot worse…"
"Oh yeah," Leorio pointed to her arm, "I accidentally threw the knife into you, but your wounds are gone."
While Sakura had partially revealed her strengths to the group; there was still a lot that they were not aware of and Sakura didn't want to throw everything at them at once. "That's just another skill of mine, on top of the super-strength."
Being reminded of her strength told Leorio that this was not an ordinary girl and to expect a few surprises like this.
"So; how's this phase treating you?"
Leorio's demeanor immediately changed, "Like crap! I haven't seen anyone until today and I have no idea who my target is. I mean who the hell is number 246?!"
Sakura looked up and then turned back to Leorio, "Oh, I know who that is,"
"Huh!?" Leorio gaped.
Folding her arms, Sakura nodded. "Yeah, I memorized everyone's tags from the last phase including #246-it's a girl. I don't know her name but I do know what she looks like. She has blue hair, is petite, and wears this large yellow hat."
Leorio snapped his fingers, "Yeah, now I know what you-you're talking about! Thanks, Sakura,"
"Sure, but the problem comes with finding her now. Any ideas?"
Leorio rubbed the back of his head. He had been searching for his target for two days straight, and he hadn't come across anyone until today, what's more until Sakura told him he didn't know who it was. He was just hoping luck would be on his side. In terms of keeping his badge from being stolen, he was fortunate Sakura appeared when she did, otherwise, he would be a total of six points down instead of three.
"So Sakura, did you find your target yet?"
"I did, I have the six points I need right now."
Leorio slumped forward again, "You're amazing huh? Already got your targets badge?"
Walking over to Leorio Sakura leaned down and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Want to team up? These types of tests are best done in groups to ensure a higher rate of success."
Leorio grinned, "Sure!"
A new but familiar voice then entered into the conversation, "I agree with that,"
Sakura and Leorio stood up on high alert, directing their attention to the area where the voice had come from. A silhouette appeared from the thicket of trees until finally gave shape to a familiar figure that was Kurapika.
Leorio greeted him openly. "Hey, Kurapika! What luck running into you here; for a second I thought it was an enemy."
"You shouldn't be so careless Leorio," Kurapika warned, though with the slightest hint of a smile. The two had already revealed that they weren't each other's targets and that had released the tension.
Sakura tipped her head, "Hey; Kurapika,"
Kurapika turned, nodding to Sakura in greeting.
"So Kurapika, did you find your target yet?" Leorio asked brashly.
Sakura remained stoic, watching Kurapika. The Kurta closed his eyes and nodded. "I have but for a while, I believed this target to be…..unattainable"
"What are you talking about?" Leorio frowned, "What do you mean by unattainable? You can't fight your target?"
"Well….yes and no," Kurapika said slowly, turning to Sakura. "I was thinking how to go about this phase and overcome it, but I finally decided that this is the 'best' method to go about the situation."
Leorio felt a change in the air instantly, looking between the two supposed friends who were now glaring at each other as they had before and he had to take a step back to try and escape the suffocating atmosphere to no avail.
"I've decided that I am going to face my target directly and demand a fair battle for the tag,"
Sakura inhaled softly, folding her arms, her voice unchanging. "I see,"
"Oi, what's happening now?" Leorio asked, glancing back and forth between the two. "Why are the two of you looking at each other like that?"
Kurapika closed his eyes, "Because…..
"I'm his target," Sakura stated.
That's all folks!
If you want to check the update schedule before I post my stories, you can go to my tumblr page and I'll be listing the next 3 upcoming updates for that month.
But here's the rest of the schedule for March:
15 MARCH FOR MEMBERS:
-Kunoichi amongst Heroes chapter 42 & 43
-Kunoichi amongst pirates chapter 10 &11
-Crossroads of Fate chapter 9
30 MARCH PUBLIC UPDATE
-Kunoichi amongst Pirates chapter 10
-Crossroads of Fate chapter 9