Test 2 - Kiyoshi And Shouran {1}

[Shouran]

(Unbelievable. . .)


Gazing into the crystal ball, I would see a scroll suspended within the glass. But was it really the parchment I sought, or merely the illusion of my prize? Moving back into the main hallway, a single senbon needle was removed from the item pouch on my left hip. As a fairly skilled shinobi, the sliver of metal would surely be enough to shatter the levitating capsule without causing damage to the prize within. Once the ball shattered, I would send the swarm of bees deterred by the doorways into the room to collect my bounty.

Should a scroll fragment fall into their possession, I would safely tuck the piece into my satchel along with the original. If not, the senbon needle would be returned to my possession and I would continue on my way. With no word from my partner, I would descend the staircase to find out what was wrong. Worthless. . . I thought to myself as I walked past his stationary body. With the added light from the open door, the contents of the picture frame were sure to become clear. Gazing on what was hanging on the wall, I would wait for my eyes to adjust in order to identify the object.

[Chuunin Examiner]

However... This plan would only work if the ball had shattered. But it didn't. Surprisingly, the senbon would be on the other side of the orb, almost as if it had gone right through. The music had started to get louder as the senbon passed through it, but then died down as it was through. Was this just an annoyance or was it something actually useful?

If he would continue downstairs even after this strange phenomenon (excuse me if it's spelt wrong), he would look into the doorway. Not much else could be seen on the painting, but it did seem to have a lot of hair, and the hair was gray, perhaps showing that it was a painting of an old person. How he would proceed from here was up to him.

Continue

[Shouran]

Leaving the empty room behind me, I would walk over to room number one. Cautiously opening the door, I would quickly move out of the way should a trap be activated. Making my way into the room, I would see a strange man floating in the room. Having no idea what to do with this find, I would cautiously call out to the levitating body. "uh. . . Hello? Is anyone here?" Expecting for something strange to happen, a small cloud of bees would float in front of me while another swarm searched behind the tapestries for the piece to the scroll.

[Chuunin Examiner]

As Shouran would step foot into the room, and further in, The man spoke, his voice echoing and sounding.... otherworldly.

"So... You have finally made your way to me, did you? Shouran Kamizuru of the Hidden Grass Village.... Your arrival saddens me... You must leave... Immediately! Dangerous traps and other such things lurk throughout this tower. Some people have gone MAD trying to find the hidden treasures. The examiners do not remove the bodies when someone fails and dies... They simply let them rot and fester... Do you smell their bodies?"

As he said that last bit, the smell of rotted flesh seemed to fill the air. It appeared that the words that this man spoke were true. His eyes remained closed, he remained floating, and the glow continued to exist around him. The bees, on the other hand, would find nothing behind the tapestries besides more walls. There was nothing else to be found in this room.

Continue

[Shouran]

As I stepped into the room, the floating man began to speak. Most of it was utter nonsense in an attempt to scare him. Soon, the smell of rotting flesh filled the room. Though it made me nearly sick to my stomach, i resisted the urge to vomit and spoke to the floating man. "Yea, well. . . if all your going to do is try and scare me and cast pitiful illusions on me, I'm leaving. You sure you don't have any useful information for me?"

Whether he had information or not, I would exit the room and make my way over to door 4. Opening the door with caution, he was prepared to leap out of the way in case of a sprung trap. Behind this door was a long corridor with a second door at the end. "Alright guys, check it out for me." Extending my arm, I directed his honey bees to examine the hallway for traps as another group went to examine the door. Squeezing under the doorway, they would scan the room for the piece of parchment.

[Chuunin Examiner]

[Sorry... But a previous post of mine stated that the door at the end of the corridor in Door 4 was airtight, not allowing your bees to squeeze under the door. Quoted below for you to see]

Door 4 would reveal another long corridor. A door could be seen at the end of the corridor, but as with the previous door, it was airtight. It had no cracks for the bees to investigate further.

[So all I will respond to is what the man would say after that.]

The man finally opened his eyes and looked upon Shouran. He then spoke in the same voice as before.

"So... You wish to continue after all? Very well.... If there is little I can say to stop you, then I will not stop you. I do not try to do what cannot be accomplished. There is one more thing that I will say... Heed the directions of the examiner.... That which was said before the door had closed."

Throughout what he had said, he was slowly lowering to the ground, his legs stretching out, and him standing the correct way. The moment he said closed, he landed on the ground. As soon as that happened, the tapestries burst into flames and fire swirled throughout the room. A single flame touched him and he disappeared as a burst of flames shot out from the back wall directly toward the door that Shouran had come from, and that which he was standing near.

Continue.

[Shouran]

After the strange man burst into flame, a torrent of fire shot towards me. Quickly sidestepping into a pile of charred tapestry, I watched as the dangerous gout of fire passed through the doorway. Letting out a sigh of relief, I heeded the words of the strange man. With a puzzled look on my face, I would walk to the spot where he once floated and examined the floor below my feet. "Could it really be that obvious?" I thought to myself as a kunai I had removed from my bag ran along the floorboards, looking to pry a loose panel free. Whether I managed to find something beneath the floor would determine my next course of action.

Should a piece of the scroll below the floor, the slip of paper would be placed in my pack along with the full half of the puzzle I would then take my partners equipment from his stationary body. His tools were much more useful to me if i could actually use them. Ascending the stairs, I would return to the room housing the crystal ball and investigate. Heeding the words of the man once again, I would look to the floorboards of the room below the crystal ball for another piece to the puzzle.

If i was not lucky enough to find a scroll, I would leave the room disappointed and make my way down the hallway behind door 4. Unsure of what could lie behind the door, an exploding tag would be placed on its hinge. Exiting into the main part of the tower, the paper would be detonated, leaving me out of range of any danger that lay behind it.

[Chuunin Examiner]

[Sorry, but you cannot take the items of Kiyoshi, regardless of how stationary he is.]

His actions with the floorboards in Room 1 on the first floor would reveal a prize. The prize that he wanted. A scroll piece lay in the floorboards of the room alongside a rolled up note. The note would say the following.

Well done... You figured it out... Though that isn't all that word was used for. Keep it in mind.

When he would go to the room with the crystal ball, however, the floor wouldn't be wooden. It would be stone, making no floor boards. One scroll piece now lay in Shouran and Kiyoshi's possession. Four more remained.

Continue.

[Shouran]

[Would you rather me kill him and then take it? I was going to give it back . . .]

Looking into the crystal ball floating above me, I wondered why my senbon passed through it. Reaching up, my hand would gingery touch the orb to test its form. Was it solid? Would it give me some sort of clue as to where I could find the second orb? Only time would tell. The melancholy droning of the music became louder as my hand contacted the sphere, that much was certain, but what would that reveal about this mysterious floor? I could only hope it would bring me closer to a piece of the scroll, and it was a safe bet it would. After all, there was a scroll piece within the floating globe.

[Sorry for the short post. . . didn't have a lot to say without the crystal ball info.]

[Chuunin Examiner]

[Just saying you can't take them with him being alive. Bachiatari couldn't take Weeze's items since his permission hadn't been given, so you cannot take his items regardless of what you were going to do with them]

As his hand touched the crystal orb, it appeared to be solid. The reasoning for his weapon having passed through it wasn't known, but his hand was able to touch a solid surface. As his hand was on it, the music got louder, much more then when his weapon passed through it. A handprint of some sort appeared on the other side of the orb as if beckoning for his other hand to be placed on it. Would Shouran do so? And if he did, would it lead to the scroll piece or to some random trap?

Continue.

[Shouran]

Gathering my courage, I looked around the room to see if the cost was clear, possibly looking to find out where a trap could lie. Not finding anything of interest my hand would cautiously make contact atop the hand print that had appeared in an attempt to find a piece of the scroll. Praying with all my might that I wouldnt have to deal with a trap, my eyes cautiously scanned the room for something I would need to react to. The droning of the music added to the creepy ambiance of the room, causing my hair to stand on end with anticipation. Could I really be lucky enough to find a piece of the scroll in the first room?

[Chuunin Examiner]

As his other hand was placed on the music, the music had increased in volume... drastically. Nothing else could be heard other then the loud music regardless of any jutsu they might have. Just then, the crystal orb would seem to split slightly in the middle. A beam of light would shoot up to the ceiling and start forming the scroll piece that was shown in the orb. If he removed his hands at anytime, the light would disappear and the orb would seal once more.

As soon as the scroll piece was complete, though still lit up, the crystal orb would shatter in Shouran's hands, the glass shard cutting them up greatly unless blocked in some way. The scroll piece slowly floated down from the ceiling. It appeared luck was on Shouran's side... The second scroll piece was found as well, at the expense of a bit of pain. But he was now closer to completing this part of the exam. 3 pieces remained. Now what was Shouran's plan of action?

Continue.

[Shouran]

As my hand lightly touched against the side of the orb, a small crack severed the top, allowing a shower of light to spray into the air, slowly creating a piece of paper. A smile curled across my face as the piece of parchment wafted slowly to the ground. However, once my prize had manifested itself, the orb began to crack and eventually shattered. Luckily, I only had kept a light grip on the sphere for fear of triggering a trap.

Reaching up, my hand would gingery touch the orb to test its form.

However, a few small slivers of glass would would pierce my skin, causing me to wince with pain. Carefully removing the shards of glass from my hand, I swiped the scroll from the air and placed it into my pocket. With a sigh of relief, I made my way out of the room and up the spiral staircase to the third floor. My adrenalin was beginning to pump. I actually had a shot at moving on to the second round. With a quick signal to my bees, I directed them to search the doors just as they had in the other floors. Awaiting them to relay their information to me, I nursed the minuscule injuries and wonder when my Partner would begin to do something useful.

[Chuunin Examiner]

It seemed Shouran's luck was continuing. As he left the room and went to the third floor, all but one door allowed for the bees to fly into. (Door 3)

Door 1: Inside the door was a pitch black room. The bees couldn't even make anything out inside the room due to the darkness of the room.

Door 2: Beyond the door was a long corridor. On the right hand side of the wall was glass which appeared to have a chest behind it. At the end of the corridor was another door, which the bees could get through. When they would look inside, it would be a room filled with mirrors, almost like a mirror maze. The scroll piece COULD be here, but it would be hard for the bees to find it without getting lost.

Door 4: This led to a well lit room. Inside were 4 pictures. The pictures were of 4 different people, all old and in their late 70s. There was also one large mirror in there, but no scroll piece could be seen.

Door 5: This was a dimly lit corridor. 2 metal doors were at the end which said "Entry Not Permitted". The doors did not have any cracks in them for the bees to fly in.

Continue.

[Shouran]

With my bees returning and divulging the information of their scouting mission, I decided that door number two was my best bet to search for the scroll. Carefully opening the door, I would be prepared to jump out of the way should a trap be sprung. Light footfalls would carry me to the end of the corridor where my insects directions guided me to turn and look right. Behind the glass was a treasure chest which hopefully contained the piece of the scroll he sought.

Removing a kunai from my pack, The metal tip tapped the glass to determine its composition. Was it some sort of trick mirror? A simple window? Or an illusion of some kind? All were possible solutions in this mysterious tower. After ascertaining its origin, a thought crossed my mind. Perhaps attempting to break the glass was the shortest solution. However, I could risk blowing up the chest behind it if he were not careful. I was almost certain that the mirror maze lead to this room in some way, but it could be a very clever trap.

With a new set of directions, I would send my bees back into the reflecting labyrinth. "Dont fly around the maze. The easiest way through a hall of mirrors is to keep your eyes on the floor. Crawl along the paths within the maze and I'll watch from here to see if any of you make it to the treasure chest." He had learned this trick to deal with a maze of mirrors at a carnival when he became lost within a particularly large maze of glass. After running into himself in the wall what seemed like hundreds of times, he found the path much easier to follow if he watched the ground. That way, he could tell which was a mirror and which was an actual corridor.

Waiting for my bees to appear near the chest, I hoped that they would be successful in their endeavor. Then all I needed to do was disarm the chest and exit with my prize.

[Chuunin Examiner]

Tapping the glass with his knife would reveal that it was glass, or at least that it appeared to be glass and felt like it as well.

The bees' travels throughout the mirror maze led them to a door of some sort. Going through the door, they would see a metal box with a handprint in it. There would be no way for them to see what was in the box, but it was not what was seen by Shouran and his bees earlier. Attempting to go through the maze would lead them only between those two doors. There was no other door to go through while in that maze.

Continue.

[Shouran]

Even though my bees didnt find their way into the room with the chest, they returned with a most interesting discovery. Through the maze was a door and behind that door was a box with a hand print on it. Curious as to their discovery, I would follow their path through the maze keeping my eyes glued to the floor until I made my way to the door. Reassured by my insects no traps lay behind the barrier, I opened the door and found myself looking at a strange box. An ever inviting hand print sat atop this small black box, similar yet different to the crystal ball. Remembering what happened on my last encounter with a hand print, my shirt was removed and wrapped around my hand. This would hopefully cushion any damage I could receive or give me a chance to pull my hand free while his shirt suffered the blow.

Holding my breath, my hand would slowly press onto the box in the place of the hand print, waiting for something to happen. Would my risk pay off? Or would some trap attempt to devour my limb? At even the slightest change to the box that denoted danger, my arm would bring my hand away from the box to avoid danger. However, I had a sneaking suspicion that this small box had something to do with the chest behind the glass panel.

[Chuunin Examiner]

As his hand was placed into the box, the box started to glow slightly. During this time, his hand seemed to be stuck in the handprint, unable to be moved or pulled out. The box, which had originally seemed to be a part of the floor, had now separated from the floor and was floating slightly, Shouran's hand still stuck on the box. The box seemed to split in two slightly and as it did, it stopped glowing and fell to the ground, Shouran's hand now free. The top fell off when it fell and inside was not a scroll piece, but it was a small picture. This picture was of an old man, who, if the bees paid close attention to the pictures beyond Door 4, would look like one of them. What could this mean? Nothing else appeared to be in the box at the moment.

Continue.

[Shouran]

My heart beat with panic as the box floated into the air. I was unable to free my arm from its grasp. . . now all i could do way pray for it not to be a trap. Much to my relief, a picture of a man who looked suspiciously similar to the one on floor 1. Taking a moment to contemplate this new discovery, I would make my way out of the maze and back to the main corridor. Remembering what was in the other rooms, I thought back to my bees scouting mission of this floor. Door 4 contained portraits of four older people. This photo was certainly of an old person. Perhaps there was a connection?

With the same caution as ever, door 4 was opened to allow me entrance. Looking at the portraits on the walls, I scanned the pictures to see if the matched the photograph I had just found. If a match was successfully located, I would approach the picture and attempt to remove it from the wall. With my natural medical ninjutsu talent, a quick evasion of a trap would be possible, even if it needed to be supplemented by a Shunshin.

However, If the match was not found I would have to search elsewhere on the floor.

[Chuunin Examiner]

The match would be found, but behind it was simply another picture frame. It was smaller then the rest, but it was empty. The picture frame was big enough to fit the picture in it, but before he could put it in, a strange cackle could be heard echoing throughout the room. Nothing would appear to be there, but it came for a bit and then was gone, leaving the room with nothing but silence.

Continue.