In the Forest of Death.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Amid a rush of wind, three figures landed one after another beneath a large tree.
"Here will do!"
Yakumo pointed at the ground and surveyed the area.
Shion's excited face was tinged with nervousness. "Yakumo, is this where we're setting up our battlefield?"
Yakumo shook her head. "No. This is just my battlefield!"
Shion was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
"You've all seen that the other villages sent people to take part in this combat test." After a pause, Yakumo continued slowly, "They're all geniuses from other villages. They're taking part in the test just to gauge the true extent of my Wood Release, so I'm their target!"
Shion protested anxiously, "So what? We're teammates!"
Kimimaro, who had been silent until now, suddenly said, "You think we'll hold you back?"
Yakumo silently nodded.
Shion looked troubled. "Yakumo, you..."
Kimimaro stood up. "Then let's split up!"
"Be careful!" Yakumo said.
"Yeah."
With that, Kimimaro vanished from the spot in a flash.
Shion stamped her foot and left angrily, too.
After Shion had gone, Yakumo let out a sigh of relief and felt much more at ease.
She wasn't actually worried that Shion would hold her back. She was afraid Shion might get hurt when the fighting started.
After all, quite a few people were targeting her this time.
Of course, she wasn't afraid. If anything, she was eager to give it a try.
With a leap, she landed in the canopy of the tree behind her and gazed into the distance. She murmured, "Shinji... Let's settle our rivalry once and for all this time!"
Elsewhere.
The group, hurrying along, stopped at Neji's signal.
"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked quickly.
Neji, his Byakugan activated, gazed into the distance with a grave expression. "Our movements