Sawai Mihou wasn't really pleased with the team of Academy Students she had been assigned. They cried, complained and questioned every task that was handed to them by their squad leader. The Sunagakure Genin had yet to provide them with an explanation as to why she had taken them to such an unhealthy place alone, especially when the three of them had yet to graduate, and thus were not ready for the dangers that lied outside the village, so after the group found the main path, the blonde haired girl ordered to stop.

"This is part of your survival test." Mihou began. "We'll be spending the day here, using nothing but our intelligence and the basic tools we brought to survive." Sawai told them, remaining cold and professional in her approach. "Furthermore, we'll be training the techniques taught at the academy in real time. What this means is that a mistake in timing or execution could lead into one of us getting hurt."

"You got to be kidding-!" One of the students complained. "This place is too dangerous for us. There's no way we can survive that long on our own...!"

"You are loud..." Mihou's face turned slightly to the side, her eyes now locked with that of the boy who had yelled. "If you are not careful, you might attract unwanted guests." At this, the boy flinched, intimidated by Sawai's glare. "Do you guys know about the place called Sand Domain?"

"Y-Yes, of course." The only other girl in the group answered. "It's a dangerous area located in the outskirts. West from the village, if I remember correctly." Proud of sharing part of her knowledge, the red haired girl adjusted her glasses. "It's known for its frequent, yet sudden sandstorms and tornadoes."

"So...? What about it?" Asked the boy who had complained earlier, raising his eyebrow. "What does that have to do with us?"

"Nothing." Mihou answered bluntly. "When I was a student like you, I was taken there for the survival test. I had to stay there and survive for a week with my squad." Sawai examined her surroundings, making sure that there were no threats within sight. Then, her eyes diverted back to her team. "You should be grateful to be brought here."

385/1000

"Watch your step. It's not called Scorpion's Lair for nothing." After walking a considerable distance, Mihou gestured the squad to stop. "Okay, I'll go on ahead and see if I can find something to eat or to make a fire. We're going to need that latter." Without waiting for any response, Sawai left the group behind with a light jog. "Stay where you are."

It could be argued that what the Genin was doing was not really smart. The group wasn't prepared to handle the dangers of the lair without supervision. But they had to learn that in this world you had to fight on your own, you could not rely on your superiors forever. The effort required to become a real ninja had to come from inside you. To add, trials like this were what made the Hidden Sand Village different from the others. Sunagakure created battle-conditioned ninja, yes, what mattered to them was not the quantity of the Shinobi they created, but the quality of each of them. This was just another test to ensure the correct development of a team. While Mihou's leadership skills were also being tested, the main goal was to see if the students were ready to become real ninja.

So this was another form of testing them. See what they would do when left alone. Needless to say, she had never intended to go very far. They were her responsibility, after all. It's just that the girl had the gut feeling that if she separated herself from the group...

"Umm... Sempai..."

...Someone would decide to follow her.

"Why did you come?" Mihou asked the third member of her team, a dark skinned green haired boy with a shy demeanor. "If you chose to follow me, you must have a reason for doing so, correct?"

"I... Umm... I want to help you!"

Sawai Mihou sighed. It was just as she had expected.

"Go back to the group." She ordered. "You are not needed here."

"B-But...!"

"I can handle something as simple as this on my own." With a piercing stare, the blonde girl repeated herself, he patience already wearing thin. "Don't you realize? To me, something like you is just a burden." Without showing signs of mercy, Mihou continued to attack the boy with her words. "The group that you left behind is where your help is needed." The genin explained, her expression relaxing a little bit. "What if they were to be attacked now, when I'm not there to protect them?" She questioned the act of the speechless boy. "Look, the three of you aren't the sharpest knives in the box. So you got to stay together if you want to survive. I appreciate your concern for me, but I can handle myself here just fine. Next time, try to think before acting. Realize by yourself who needs help and who doesn't. Am I making myself clear?"

"Y-Yes."

"Good." Content, Mihou nodded. "Then let us head back."

893/1000

After travelling together some more, the team arrived at a very large room. At the end of it, there were three paths, each leading a different direction. It was impossible to tell which, if any, would be the safer to take. Turning around to face them, Mihou decided to leave that decision for later.

"This looks like a good place to train. We'll do some exercises before proceeding further into the lair." Sawai, their leader, announced. "We will start with a simple test." Without delay or hesitation, Mihou performed the necessary handseals and after channeling chakra, two identical copies of herself appeared next to her. "You should have practiced this Jutsu at the Academy. Now tell me... Which of these Mihous is the real one?"

"Hah! That's easy!" Claimed the loudest of the three. "The one without a shadow, obviously!"

"Correct." Mihou nodded with her eyes closed, as a small grin was drawn on her face. "Now close your eyes and then tell me which one is not an illusion."

"T-There's no way I can do that! I am not a sensor ninja!" The boy protested. "Why do I even have to do that anyways? It's stupid."

"No. No, it's not. It's realistic" Picking a single kunai out of the bag, Mihou pointed it straight at him. "In a real battle you don't have time to look at someone else's shadow. Looking at the wrong place can instantly lead you to your death."

"Guh! Damn it!" The kid performed some handseals. "Bunshin no Jutsu!" Instead of two, the boy created five intangible fakes. With quick steps, they surrounded the genin in no time. "Why don't YOU tell me who's the real me?"

Without saying a word and with her eyes still closed, Mihou raised her arm and pointed her index finger towards one of them. Turns out, it was the real one.

"W-What?!"

"A friendly advice. Don't rely too much on one of your senses. You have five, make use of them." Mihou told them. "Normal Bunshins don't disturb the environment and their steps make no sound. When you closed on me to surround me, you basically told me where you were."

"Kuh!"

"Anyways, that's enough for now." Taking the path to the far left, Sawai gestured for them to follow her. "Let's go."

"W-Wait. How did you know which path to pick...?" Asked the only other girl in the group. "Can you teach us how to tell them apart?"

"No, not in one session at least. It's something you learn from experience." The blonde girl explained without stopping her march. "I was raised by a group of bandits..."

"Then you..."

"Yeah. We used to spend a lot of time here."

1362/1000

"I can't... Go on... Anymore..."

In a domino-like effect, the three students collapsed on the sand. They'd had to deal with scorpions, wall climbing, scavenging, replacement exercises and several other activities that were not strange to them, but that they had never practiced to this extent.

"Stand up. We're not far from the exit."

There was no response.

Granted, Mihou was aware that they had not lost consciousness, they were just tired. However, they had already had their time to rest, and Sawai didn't want them to grow up to be lazy ninjas so...

"I knew I was right about you. Like I thought, your families are nothing but a bunch of crap. A failure to the village, a piece of shit, that's what I think."

"What did you say-?!" Without even realizing it himself, the boy was already back on his two feet. "Damn you!"

He fell to the ground with a thud. Mihou had easily seen through his attack, and had countered accordingly. She had held back so as not to injure him, but there was nothing she could or wanted to do about the pain.

"If you had enough energy to attack me like that, surely you can walk a few more miles." The leader said, her words cold but truthful. "If you want to prove that I'm wrong about you, then don't raise your weapons at me... Get back to the entrance of this place and pass the test instead. Only then will I accept you as real comrades."

Silently, the three of them rose to their feet.

1632/1000

"Was it really okay, taking them to the Scorpion's Lair?" The Chunin teacher asked Mihou, as he scratched the back of his head in concern. "Just getting them to know the entrance and its surroundings would have been fine. Look at them, they are exhausted."

The three students had fallen asleep on their seats.

"If I might have a say on the matter... I think it was worth it, Sensei." Diverting her gaze towards the sleeping kids, Mihou smiled, truly happy. "These children have decided to sacrifice their normal lives to become Ninjas and protect the village. I won't lie: when the mission started, I thought of their skills as subpar. But now, after everything that has happened... I believe they are ready." Once more, Mihou turned to face the teacher. "They'll all make great Sunagakure Shinobi."

"That's good to hear, Sawai." The man patted the girl on the shoulder. "Come on, let's go get your ryo."

1794/1000