The schedule for the finals was posted.
It was just one sheet of paper, nailed to the noticeboard outside the Konoha Military Police Force, with the date at the very top and the location at the very bottom.
Everyone passing slowed down, took a look, then moved on.
A child stood on tiptoe to reach for the paper, only to be hauled back by the collar by an adult.
Fresh paste held down the corners. The wind could not lift them.
That morning, orders also reached each unit.
The orders contained only one line: under the wartime charter, the entire village would first run through a drill at the Venue.
The Special Unit was assigned the attacking role.
Kiyoshi's name stood on the first line, followed by two words: team leader.
He read the orders twice, folded them, and tucked them beneath the last page of his notebook.
With the notebook open to the end, he mentally counted through everything he had accumulated over the past month.
His craft, the case files, that unnamed footwork, that sensory card-each was accounted for.
He still had not managed to get a name for it.
Over at the Training Ground, Neji's Human Body Diagram had been unfolded to its final corner, and the remaining blanks had all been filled with ink.
The Puppet Problem lay weighed down beside the diagram.
Two new solutions sat beside the problem. Both were still only hypotheses; the day of the finals would put them to the test.
Hinata and Choji were sparring head-on, closing in to seize the wrist joint, one clean hold after another.
Izumi sat at the edge of the field, copying into a notebook.
The Transcription Notebook was open to its last page, all ten lines filled with names.
The final entry, Gaara, had