Nozomi found herself at the starting gate that was designated for her. The rules were rather simple: Enter the maze, and find your way to the center. Of course, they sounded simpler than reality might allow for, but the basic gist of it was that in order to pass the first test, you'd have to overcome the obstacles that were put in the way of your path, whatever it may be. Also, with a labyrinth, focus and tracking would be key. Nozomi smiled, already formulating her own way not to get lost on the way through it. Pulling out a kunai knife, Nozomi walked over to one of the sides of the labyrinth, and plunged the blade into it. The wall was quite easy to cut, and so she made her way down the length of the corridor, making marks as she went through periodically, so if she ever needed to turn back, she could see where she'd been already.

Her mind started to wander off a little bit as she went on autopilot, although at the same time, was still remaining fully focused on any signs of danger. Time ceased to mean anything to her as Nozomi went through the path. She thought of herself, and how much she'd improved lately. Her strength had never been higher, her perception was far above that of the average human, and she had perfect, 20-20 vision. She was increasing her reserves of stamina, and could now go an impressive amount of time exerting a huge effort. With her tutor, she'd managed to fight him for pretty much an entire day straight with very small breaks even interrupting them. Even her reaction abilities and her speed were greatly increased. She had gotten much stronger while she was being taught how to not rely on their clan technique, the "Dance of the Misty Petals." In fact, Nozomi hadn't even used that technique in a long time to supplement her taijutsu. The last time she'd even used the clan's techniques was the "Petal Storm of the Mist" to get into that waterfall.

The waterfall.... Nozomi blushed. She'd met a girl there, Kaekio, from Kumogakure. She was another of the genin participating in the exams. Perhaps they'd meet again. Nozomi opened her knapsack and pulled out the Kaekio plushie that was in it, stopping for a couple of second. Smiling at the little doll, she examined it, and blinked a couple of times as she realized it had a lotus hairband. Opening her own palm, Nozomi put a small amount of chakra, almost negligable into it, and formed some chakra petals. They spun around a little and fused together, making a lotus leaf. Smiling once again to herself, Nozomi put it through her hair, now resolved to see herself through the first mission for another reason other than proving herself to her father, clan, and even herself. Now she wanted to impress this girl Kaekio, and she'd do so at any cost. Placing the doll back in her pack, Nozomi marked the wall once more, and then continued on in a renewed effort. This place was dark, scary, and lonely, but if she could barrel through it, she'd be that much closer to the next round. And to the new goal.

WC: 545

Post: 1/4
Scenarios: 0/2

[Rolling for First Scenario]

The member 'Nozomi' has done the following action : Dices roll

'Exam Scenario Dice' :

As Nozomi ran through the labyrinthian forest, she started to grow a little bit wary about the little amount of any danger she'd passed so far. The 1st test couldn't possibly be simply going through the maze and navigating to the center after all. At any rate, some sort of difficult scenario would have to come up eventually, wouldn't it? Well, of course she was correct about that, and it wasn't going to take her long to figure that one out. She'd been going on the correct path up until this point, which was somewhat of a miraculous thing, and she hadn't had to turn around, when she'd found herself at the beginning of the first real challenge. As she finished her last scratch mark, Nozomi noticed the labyrinth open up quite a bit, getting much wider than it had been before. Blinking in surprise, Nozomi stopped moving and approached carefully, wondering what could be up ahead that required so much space.

Nozomi skirted forward a little bit, to see if there were any possible traps at all, but couldn't see anything. All that she could see in her own line of sight were some large rocks that jutted out from the ground, some large shrubs and bushes that also were scattered around, a little stretch of empty grounds, and then a gate of some sort, with two guard towers, one on either end of it. Nozomi was quite surprised to see it. Did that mean that she'd made it to the end of the labyrinth? Why else would there be a gate there. The guards were obviously stationed there to keep on lookout for the participants. Alternatively, it could be a checkpoint marker, something that was simply placed there in order to tell her that she was partway through the maze. In the end, it was an indicator that she'd been going the correct way the entire time. As she stepped forward, Nozomi's thoughts focused on the rocks and shrubs. They were oddly placed, almost as if put there on purpose.

That was when it had finally dawned on the girl. This wasn't the end of the maze at all. This was the first challenge that she would have to face. The rocks and shrubs were purposefully placed there in such a way that someone could sneak from cover to cover without being noticed by anyone in the guard towers, which were overlooking the entire expanse below them, which led her to believe that the objective of this test was to see how well the shinobi or kunoichi in this test run could infiltrate enemy lines without being noticed. The more she thought about it, the more Nozomi was sure that that was the reason everything was placed so particularly. Moving from cover to cover was certainly the easy part of this task. Nozomi was naturally small, and she knew very well how to maneuver through the cover stealthily. She'd made it a skill of hers to move unseen, considering her life up until now. Nozomi smiled to herself, knowing that this test was a true challenge that she would be able to overcome. Considering that she was here, Nozomi figured it must be fated that she enter the Chuunin exams. This was exactly the sort of thing that she was suited for. Sure, she was a Himitsu, and her combat skills were above average, but Nozomi's path wasn't strictly combat like the rest of her clan. She was a thinker, an observer, and a strategist. Best of all, she could do so on the fly, which was what really mattered, especially in missions like these, where the unexpected could happen at any moment, and you had to be prepared to solve a problem.

Of course, knowing that you can think up a solution to most situations and then actually thinking up a solution to your current situation were two completely different things. Nozomi had, by now, gotten to the end of the cover, and there was a straight stretch to get to the guard tower. She knew that the entire goal was to sneak by without alerting the guards, as that would undoubtedly lock her from the other side, and she'd have to restart the area. In the real world, you only got one chance, so of course, Nozomi would have to make this on her first try. Otherwise, she was wrong about herself, and wasn't ready to be a Chuunin. After a couple seconds of looking, Nozomi figured out that there were only two ways to possibly traverse this with her set of skills. The first of them was the Hidden Mist Jutsu. Creating such a thick fog cover would allow her to sneak straight into the gates. Of course, there was the disadvantage of not being able to see at all, but if she aimed herself towards the gates, there was no way she could miss. The second would be to use the Transformation academy jutsu. By shrinking herself down to a small size, perhaps a squirell, or other rodent like animal, Nozomi could potentially sneak through, avoiding suspicion. The only difficult thing to do would be figure out which to use. The Transformation Jutsu used less Chakra of course, but left her exposed. She could mix the two, but would drain more of her chakra, and she wasn't sure what else was in store for her. Then of course, the Mist. If someone could see through it, she'd be exposed. As unlikely as that was, it was always a possibility, as well as more chakra taxing.

In the end, Nozomi went for the Hidden Mist Jutsu. It was only a little bit more draining than the transformation jutsu and allowed for complete obscurity. They wouldn't make this missions something more difficult than they'd expect a Chuunin to be able to handle, so of course they wouldn't have a guard that was able to see movement in the mist. Even if they did, it would probably only be one that could see about 5 feet in from of them, and those towers were easily 20 feet tall, which meant that she'd be out of their range. That being settled, Nozomi's hand moved into the sign for the jutsu and she thought to herself "Water Style, Hidden Mist Jutsu." so as to not make noise. Breathing out, she watched the large cloud of mist surround them, and smiled, feeling the moisture in the air and loving it. It was time to go. Breaking from the cover of the rock, Nozomi focused on where she remembered the gate to be. Keeping that image in mind, Nozomi mentally painted a picture, counting her silent strides as she bolted for the gate. As she broke the cover of the mist, Nozomi smiled to herself. There was no gate in front of her, and behind her was only the mist. She'd gotten through undetected.

Nozomi's exhileration was soon to wear off though, as she was quite scared of how dark and lonely this labyrinth was. Without company, and all alone, this place was quite eerie. However, as she walked forward, the back of Nozomi's neck pricked up a bit, as if someone had gently kissed it. For some reason, Nozomi's mind wandered back to the blue haired girl she'd met at the waterfalls once more. "Kaekio... I made it through the first challenge. I'm a little bit closer to the next stage. I will impress you." she whispered. Her resolve once again steeled, Nozomi ran forward, eager to meet whatever challenges lay between her and the exit.

WC: 1266
Post: 2/4
Scenario: 1/2

Tech Used:

Spoiler:

Chakra: 140/150

[Rolling for Second Scenario]

The member 'Nozomi' has done the following action : Dices roll

'Exam Scenario Dice' :

Nozomi's spirits were unusually high as she walked away from the misty area, eager to put the challenge behind her and continue on through the exams. It really hadn't taken her very long to figure out what she had to do, and she knew that had she focused solely on Taijutsu as most of her clan did, well it wouldn't have worked out quite as well as it had. As great a clan they were combat-wise, Nozomi knew that their reliance on combat abilities tended to cause them to shirk their other skills. Granted, tactically speaking, they had to be adept as well, but Nozomi was on a whole different level of thought process, due to her own Taijutsu deficiencies compared to the others. In order to have survived as long as she had in this clan, Nozomi focused on her other skills. It was a great thing that she had, instead of focusing solely upon matching her clan members in skill. She looked up to the sky, and as she was alone, let down some of her barriers. Looking up to the sky, she glared defiantly, as if her father was looking down, even though he was still alive, and probably off somewhere not caring. "Screw your ideals. I don't need the clan's teaching. I can get through this on my own, and I don't need you!" she cried out. Aware that she was now talking to herself, Nozomi blushed for no reason and ran on ahead, eager to get through the maze and advance.

As Nozomi came to a fork in the paths, she froze. She wasn't exactly quite sure which path to take, as this side path seemed to be much smaller than most of the other paths she'd come across to this point. For the most part, it seemed that each path she crossed were about the same width across as the rest. This side path was much smaller, in fact, and was honestly barely large enough for a regular sized person to fit through. To Nozomi, there was a big difference in size, and she'd easily fit through it, but at the same time, this was different. What should she do? Follow the same path she'd been on, or change it up? UP until now, she'd been on a somewhat main path, and it had led her through the first challenge. Chances are, the change might signify a second challenge. Alternatively, it was a trap, and Nozomi would be walking to her doom. So the choice she had to make was a difficult one. She stood there for a few seconds before making up her mind as to which path to choose. On the one hand, the normal path had kept her going so far, and sticking with the familiar was generally a safe bet, as you knew what to expect. But on the other hand, the life of a Shinobi or Kunoichi was about adapting to change no matter the situation. So perhaps this too, was a metaphor about change and adaptation. Nozomi thought it over slightly, and then chose the narrow path, perhaps over thinking it just a bit.

After a while, Nozomi's footsteps started to sound strange to her. Usually upon stepping, she heard just the step, but as she walked, it appeared to her that her steps were rebounding off of the walls a little bit. And it closed in even more, as if there was something behind her, blocking space in the passage. Turning around quickly, Nozomi leapt backwards. There was nothing there. And by nothing there, she literally meant nothing. Before, there had been a pathway. Now, it appeared she was in a dead end. Which was almost impossible. Nozomi had been walking in a straight path down the narrow path. As she stared at it, the path seemed to move forward, pushing her back some more. Turning around, Nozomi bolted down the pathway, beating herself up over coming down this way. In her mind, she was convinced that she'd fallen into a trap, and taht she should have just continued on down the original path, instead of taking the small one. And then, in front of her, Nozomi noticed that there was now a wall rushing towards her as well. Turning around, Nozomi was trapped, with the pathway seemingly to close itself in on itself. "No.... no..." she cried, convinced that this was the end of her. Then the path stopped closing in on itself, and Nozomi noticed that there was one singular outlet. Breathing a sigh of relief, Nozomi stepped forward, but a barrier stopped her from advancing. Gritting her teeth, Nozomi looked around, noting a notice.

"This barrier can be broken with some effort, but will cost you for doing so. Alternatively, answer this riddle, and you may pass through." she read, frowning. Without even reading the riddle, Nozomi was almost ready to prepare to strike down the barrier, but then she thought about it. She didn't know what it meant by 'cost'. Perhaps that would result in elimination from the exams themselves, for resorting to brute force. As a riddle, this test was obviously designed to test the mind, so she stuck it out, looking to the riddle, seeing what it was asking. "I am great and powerful, my roar knows no equal, yet a simple stone thrown at me can bend my path. What am I?" she spoke out loud, talking herself through it. Even with her quick mind, Nozomi was stumped for some time. She sat down, staring at the words, thinking. As she thought, her mind wandered back to the other day, with the girl and the waterfall. She wondered if Kaekio had already finished yet, or if she'd been washed out of the exams. She doubted it, Kaekio seemed really talented. Nozomi blushed, remembering the other day, having kissed the girl, and embarrassed herself by running into the waterfall, like she had the barrier. Although Kaekio had been there to see the former. As Nozomi thought about the barrier, her mind went back to solving the riddle. Or, attempted to.

Nozomi's illness symptoms flared up again, and she felt her lungs flooding with blood again. Gagging slightly, Nozomi forcefully coughed out the blood, watching it splatter on the barrier. As she recovered, Nozomi's mind snapped into gear. Blood still dripping down her mouth and her neck, as well as her clothing, she managed to gasp out a response. "Wat...waterfall." she called out. The answer was a waterfall. They were in Takigakure, the Village Hidden by a Waterfall. Nozomi and Kaekio had met at a waterfall. The blood trailed down the barrier like a waterfall. The answer had been so simple, and yet Nozomi hadn't noticed it until piecing it all together. It seemed to be the correct response, as the barrier disappeared, and Nozomi rushed forward before it could change its mind, still coughing out blood.

WC: 1156
Post: 3/4
Scenario: 2/2

Chakra: 140/150

Nozomi stumbled around, blood dripping down the front of her shirt, still dripping out of her mouth and onto her neck slightly. She wasn't injured, and it was actually a common thing that happened to her. She'd suffered from the mysterious symptoms since she was born. It inhibited her ability to be healed, or perhaps her inhibited ability to be healed was what stopped the symptom from being healed in and of itself. It was an interesting situation, but Nozomi had gone her entire life, and was actually quite used to it. Not to say it was enjoyable, it just didn't annoy her quite as much as it used to. Although, if anyone who didn't know her saw such a thing, chances are, it would freak them out, and they'd think she was dying. Of course, there were times she could hide it on her own, simply holding back on coughing as long as possible, but when your lungs fill up with blood, it is possible to drown and die.

Nozomi's own mind focused back on the blue haired genin girl Kaekio. She shouldn't care about her, she was her opponent after all. Well, not opponent, perhaps, but she was competition, and she should focus more upon the exams. Then again, if it hadn't been for the girl, she might have been forced to break the barrier, which held untold consequences. Nozomi blushed, recalling the events that had taken place behind the waterfall. If anybody had seen her then, it would have been... shattering to her self esteem. It was bad enough that the girl herself had witnessed Nozomi's reactions. Although, truth be told, Nozomi had loved the attention that Kaekio had given her, regardless of what reason she had done them for. The closeness of another human being, the feeling of Kaekio holding her, the gentle rubbing on her lower back, and the brief kiss that had been elicited from Nozomi. Nozomi couldn't help but going beet red from remembering that moment.

Soon though, her mind was brought onto other things. Up ahead, it seemed that Nozomi had finally traversed through to the end of the Labyrinth. She was nearing the center of the labyrinth, the end game of the first part of the Chuunin exams. The fountain. Nozomi drank down some of the water in her water bottle, , to wash out the blood from her mouth, and then made her way to the fountain and opened the water bottle, filling it up with water from the fountain, packing it back into her bag. She never knew when she needed water. Of course, as a Suiton user, she could make water, but at the same time, perhaps she didn't want to waste a large amount of chakra to make water. Looking down at her shirt, Nozomi noticed that it was almost completely bloody, realizing she'd coughed out a lot more blood than she usually did. That was never a good sign. Well, coughing up blood wasn't a good sign anyhow. Nozomi sank to the ground and sighed to herself. The first challenge was over, at least for her.

WC: 519

Scenario: 2/2
Posts: 4/4

Chakra: 140/150

OOC: Thread Closed.

TWC: 3486