A desk at the door of the west administration building has been situated to receive applications from the attending genin. No incomplete nor obviously incorrect applications will be accepted.

The hallway ceilings, floors, and bottom fifth of the walls are paneled with long planks of wood. There are occasional vertical supports along the walls. The remaining four-fifths of the walls are painted white, but are slightly cracked and peeling.

The stairs are located at the ends of the hallways. They lead up to a platform that spreads right and up another wide stairway to the next floor.

Asukai Rin

"Your application seems to be in order. You're early, but don't forget to be in room 301 by 8:30." The ninja handling registrations told Rin after looking at her registration forms. She couldn't wipe the smile off of her face - she'd arrived in Konoha several days ago and used her time to practice for the exam. She even spent a little time studying at her father's insistence - he insisted that it was important the back up her practical talents with some theory. Physical training was still top of her list, though. On the last day before the exam, she rested, to make sure she wouldn't be tired for it.

And so now, she was here, at 7:30 AM, in the registration hall. Her plan was simple - watch the other people coming in for any people who looked tough, and look for friends so that perhaps they could organise plans. Though she didn't know what to expect, surely they'd be able to organise some impromptu alliances. If they could work together, then they'd be able to force other teams out of the exam, and get all the way to the end themselves. Rin had a few friends in other villages, after all - there was no problem with working together to defeat strangers.

Masakatsu Hayaki

"Agh. Agh." The blonde boy huffed as he jogged up to the desk. The shinobi there was eyeing him cautiously, but the application form was slapped none too gracefully onto the desk to be examined. He put his hands on his thighs and took a long, deep, slow breath to try to recover his bearings, almost to the point of wheezing. But, mid-wheeze, he glanced up with a cocked eyebrow, waiting for confirmation. When he received it, he took off at a sprint down the hall.

"Hey, you! Masakatsu-san! No running!!"

Seeming not to hear, Hayaki darted straight towards Rin. The sole of his boot gave a last, dull thud! against the wooden floorboards to launch himself into the air and his momentum propelled him forward so that he could clap his gloved hands over her shoulders with most of his weight behind the motion. His face was closer to hers over her right shoulder, trademark bright blue eyes and golden hair brilliant in the drab hall. He wore a playful smirk, sly at the least.

"Good morning!" Then he pouted, "Why didn't you waaait? You're here so earlyyy. I just happened to see you walking by while I was grabbin' something to eat. I'm not usually up early but the inn keeper woke me up and told me to leave early for my exams." He dipped his head back in weary exasperation. "Ngaaah. I usually wake up when I have to leeeave."

Hyuuga Kimiko

Another who arrived early to the registration was Hyuuga Kimiko. As her steps carried her closer to the desk, she could feel her heart beating hard inside her chest. She was as nervous about this exam as she had ever been about anything in her life, and she had been very nervous about many things before. As soon as she reached the desk, she placed her application form carefully on the desk for the other ninja to examine. While she waited for him to tell her that it was okay, she looked around, to see who else had arrived. Her white eyes moved around and settled on Rin and Hayaki. She didn't recognise them, not that it surprised her as they were probably from another village and she wondered who they were, until she realised that she shouldn't care too much about who they were. Her reason for being there was to make it through the chuunin exam, no matter what, otherwise she wouldn't know how to face her family. Anything beside that goal should be seen as irrelevant, so she told herself.

As soon as she was told it was okay, and where she should be, she bowed slightly and started to walk off towards the other two. Despite what she had told herself, she wanted something to get her mind off of the exam, so that she could try and get over how nervous she was. Talking to someone new, trying to get to know them, might just do the trick. The only problem with that plan was how shy and timid she was. Due to this, she ended up keeping her distance to the other pair of genin, her eyes nailed to the floor. What did it matter if she got to know them now anyway? In the end, they might just end up being her enemies in this exam, and knowing them would only make things harder for her then. Better, then, to keep to yourself. Unlike Rin, she didn't really think about making any allies, as there would probably be many things that the genin themselves would not be able to control.

In her mind, she went over the training she had endured the days before the exam. Her parents had actually been able to be home and her father had helped her train her Byakugan and Jyuuken, though Kim herself didn't know if it'd make much of a differance, she could only hope. On the other hand, it had felt nice for her to be able to spend some time with her father, time during which he focused on her. But those thoughts weren't enough to calm her and she could still feel and hear her heart beating so hard she could barely stand it.

Asukai Rin

As Rin walked over to an out of the way area to watch for new arrivals, a noise behind her made her turn. She saw Hayaki run almost full speed into her and grab her by the shoulder. "Hayaki-kun!" She said in surprise, clearly not expecting him to be here so soon. After all, he was pretty relaxed about everything - she thought Hayaki would be here with one minute to spare.

As he told her of his troubles in the morning, she couldn't help but give him a friendly smile. He was cute when he complained in his typical exaggerated manner. "I'm sorry, but I thought I'd let you sleep in. Anyway, I came here to try and see if we're facing strong enemies, and see if I could work out some alliances with friends beforehand." Rin gave him a wicked grin. "If we do that, then we can make sure that only the people we want make it all the way to the end, and also increase our overall chances." Though she tended to be more emotional than rational, when she used her brain, she could think of some pretty interesting things.

However, she noticed that another person was watching them. It was a girl. With pure white eyes. Wait... isn't that... "Speaking of strong enemies, look at that girl over there." Rin said in a lower voice, nodding in her direction. "If I'm right, she's a Hyuuga. Their clan has a Bloodline Limit that can let them see in a wide range around them, and also see the Chakra points on your body. Then they can use their skills to block your chakra and hurt you with just a touch." She remembered Hyuuga Hiraku very well. Her unfortunate spar with him. Rin had even done some additional research on the clan, just for this day.
____
((What Rin would have said if Hayaki hadn't walked away))

"Hayaki-kun - promise me this. If in the exam, we have to fight her, or any other Hyuuga, I want to fight them on my own. I sparred with this guy called Hyuuga Hiraku, and when he got the upper hand, that bastard hit me while I was down." It was very clear that she didn't like him, and wanted revenge. "I'm hoping to even the score with him while I'm here, but if not, I'll settle for someone from his clan." Rin didn't care if she was overheard - it didn't make any difference. Maybe she'd even be able to tell her where Hiraku was. I've been looking forward to today for a while... I hope I get my chance.

Sasaki Kanzen

"Welcome, Kanzen-kun," he heard, but to his dismay. And when the blonde boy turned sullen, violet eyes to the taller shinobi, he recognized the man as a younger Jounin who had known his father at some point. They weren't exceedingly close, but the other seemed to enjoy pretending that they were. "Good morning, Modegi-san," he replied, trying to be polite even though the tone of his voice didn't come off as anything more than that. Not that he was displeased by his presence at the registration desk, calmly handing over his application for the next step in the rest of his life. He was just bored with the company.

"Make us proud," the older man chuckled without looking over the form before him, instead, sliding it off to the side where another more studious and focused shinobi was performing the actual registration. Everything seemed in order from his momentary glance down anyway.

But all the boy would do was simply nod his head and offer up a soft 'thank you' that could barely be heard by any other even in immediate distance. He turned from the desk to start through the growing crowd in the hall, which... of the early arrivals included two students from Kumo and one more familiar face. But that didn't mean he was going to say hello. If he kept his head turned then it was like the obligation to speak to Kimiko simply went away. It looked innocent enough on the outside, a casual glance that coincidentally turned her out of his sight, rather than avoidance.

He just wasn't in the mood, not that that was out of the ordinary.

Masakatsu Hayaki

Hayaki looked in the direction that Rin was nodding in, turning his head, dropping his hands from her shoulders, to peer cautiously at the white-eyed girl who had entered the hall after handing in her application form. The Hyuuga hardly looked like an enemy that he could have or an enemy at all. He wasn't going to underestimate her since she was here at all, but he couldn't help feeling bad that his companion was talking about her as though she wasn't there. And it wasn't long before it seemed like Rin's voice had evened out in his head.

She only got as far as explaining the bloodline limit before he broke off and approached the girl, pausing in step to greet her with a sincere smile. "Good morning!" he said brightly, raising a hand in an informal little wave. "I hope you're ready for the exam today! It's gonna be a tough one. Good luck to you!" He pat her shoulder reassuring and continued on his way, intent on greeting the other new arrivals even though he had been thrown out of his bed far earlier than usual today, and that these other people might be his opponents in the future.

This time he went for the other blonde kid here. Hayaki stepped in front of the Konoha genin and he realized suddenly that he was quite a bit taller than everyone else but that didn't stop him from making a scene. "Good morning to you, too," he said again though his tone had dropped a bit. "You look suspicious walking like that." Even if he didn't. "Something botherin' you?" He was probably referring to the fact that the other boy hadn't tried to address the Hyuuga even though they were from the same village.

Hyuuga Kimiko

Since Rin hadn't bothered to lower her voice enough not to be heard, Kimiko could hear what she told Hayaki. At first, she just got even more nervous at being reffered to as a 'strong enemy', but she wasn't really surprised. Checking out competition and warning your friends if you saw someone special, it was probably just natural. It was good that she never got to say that last part, as it would have set Kimiko off, even though she was usually a very quiet and timid girl, she could lose her temper very easily, as long as you pushed the right buttons. The easiest way to make her lose her temper would be to disrespect or talk badly about the Hyuuga family, or anyone from the Hyuuga family, and she would have seen that last part about Hayaki as a good enough reason to argue with Rin. Still, the way Rin talked about her made her feel uneasy and almost threatened. This only served to make tense up and make her even more nervous.

When Hayaki then approached her, she expected him to be more like his companion, but when she noticed his smile, her expression changed. Though she was still shy and had a hard time meeting his gaze, at least she could relax a bit more than she did when she heard Rin's words. Unlike his companion, this guy seemed to be kind, someone she could have gotten along with, given the chance. However, he left before she could even get herself to wish him good luck in return. For a brief second her gaze followed him, only to settle on the new object for his attention; Sasaki Kanzen. He was probably the person who would be closest to being a real friend of Kimiko's.

Despite her shy nature, she moved to follow Hayaki to greet Kanzen. Though she noticed that it seemed he wanted to be left alone, she was unaware that he had intentionally turned away from her. She stopped at a short distance from him, enough so that she wouldn't be uncomfortably close to him. She felt a bit sorry for Kanzen, hearing what Hayaki said to him and knowing that he wasn't really the social type, at least from what she knew of him. "Good morning, Sasaki-kun," was all she said, affraid that she might annoy him if he was in a bad mood or that she might in some other way disturb him. As she greeted him, she even gave a slight bow in his direction, without really thinking about it.

Konoe Yana

Yana was never one to show up early, but her overall curiosity of what Konoha truly looked like got the better of her and sure enough, Yana was inside the giant gates and tossed into the giant village of the leaf. None too soon, she was rushed off to the registration hall by her guardian, and she found herself staring down the hall to the door that would lead her to the exams.

Taking in a large gulp of air, and huffing it back out through her nose, Yana stomped towards the door with much determinations, but her dramatic entrance was halted as she felt a firm hand on her shoulder, "Your application would be nice," said her guardian and passed her the form. Embarrassed now, and beet red, Yana snatched the paper from his hand and ran into the room expecting it to be packed full of genins from all over the globe, but she only saw a handful. She glanced back to her guardian who gave a cheerful thumbs up and a optimistic smile, and she countered it with a large huff of air through her nose.

She quietly made her way over to the desk and placed her application down firmly. She scrunched her nose and chewed her lip, for once being quite nervous for the exams. True enough it hit her like a brick wall all of a sudden, but Yana managed to keep her cool.. sort of, and casually took her place off to the side of the desk. She scanned the room carefully, her yellow eyes vibrant and saucer-like. She noticed the ever noticable Hyuuga eyes, a bit curious about how the girl can see without pupils, then she noticed a hedgehog and her face went pale. "Hedgehog..." Yana thought with a comical sickly expression. Then over to Kanzen which made her go blue. That kid has no manners! Eek.. neither does Yana, but she doesn't care! She's Yana!

Kajiwara Hazuki

Being assigned a task related to the exams, the Konoha-nin spent a lot of time doing her homework. She made sure she took a trip to the country her genin alter-ego came from and read several texts to make sure she knew enough information in case someone asked her about it. She made sure she had some kind of backstory for her alter-ego, just in case. The hard part was acting like the character she made up...she was from Kusagakure; the hitai-ate rested at her hips. Her hair, which was styled so that she had bangs that covered her right eye, was short, light blue, and part of it was tied up in small pigtails at the top of her head. A flower was tucked behind her left ear, and she wore a grassy green outfit. But the best part about her alter-ego was that she was fairly tall for a genin. Five foot five with her shoes on...so maybe she stuck out a little more than she should, but it was kinda fun making up her genin disguise.

She had her application approved, then walked over to the side of the room, near the wall by the stairs and a good distance away from the others. The girl put one hand on her hip, whipped out one of her tessen, and began fanning herself with it as she glanced furtively at the exam hopefuls. Two each from Konoha and Kumo, and one from Kiri. The Konoha-nin were very likely two people she's walked by before, but never actually spoken to. Of the foreigners, she only knew the kunoichi from Kumo.

The jounin in disguise thought about speaking, but decided against it for now. Perhaps someone would talk to her first. And though it was common for shinobi to pretend to be someone else, she still needed to warm up to the idea. She could just observe the genin for a little while longer.

((Edit: for reference, here's a quick sketch of Hazuki's [tentative] genin disguise, though the face is final. Hurr :B))

Kuroshita Ria

Yawning, the young Suna jounin strode into the hall. Her manner was very casual as if entering a fast food stop. Ria waved her pass to the registrators whom gave it a quick glance. She didn't need to show the pass here anyway since wasn't registering.

She found a nice spot next to one of the vertical supports and slumped against it. She yawned again.

Aside from the fact that Ria was not a morning person, she had stayed up filling out border cross permission slip and other mandatory, nonsense paperwork last minute. The sleepiness would wear off once the heavy sugared espresso, that she had drank thirty minutes ago, kicked in. Until then, her attempts to analyze the genin were done with a scowl.

She immediantly recognized the tomboyish Kumo genin and spotted a Hyuuga. The blue-haired genin stood out in her line of sight, and Ria narrowed her eyes to gaze at the familiar face. It took her awhile to comprehend what she saw through her groggy mind, but it processed to allow her gaze to move onward.

Genin were generally younger than her, and energetic with youth. ((lol. YOUTH. Lee.)) She closed her eyes and listened to their anticipated and some nervous voices. She would watch them later when she had more focus.

Inuzuka Karin

Like other Konoh-nin, Karin too had been assigned to the chuunin exams. The blind girl was estatic that they had chosen someone like her to help with the exams. After all, she wasn't exactly... fit ... for things like this. But here she was, checking over her disguise as she handed the ninja her regestraition. She was still from Konoha, that was unchanged. But for once in her life she was tall, over five five. She felt immesly proud of that. Her hair was short and a golden-blonde colour, and her eyes were a warm, honey-brown shade. Best thing about her alter-ego? She could see. It had taken two weeks and a lot of mistakes, but she and Kuromaru had managed to highten her eyesight through a jutsu to the point that she only needed glasses - really thick glasses, but glasses nevertheless. She could only hold the jutsu for a day, then had to rest all night, so she made a mental note to be very careful--she didn't want to blow the mission. The glasses made her look sort of dorky, but hey, at least she was disguised properly. A double-edge katana rested across her back, and she absently toyed with a kunai. She was posing as a weapons mistress, though she could always fall back on some jutsus.

Karin waltzed into the hall, giving everyone a quick look over, enjoying the fact that she could actually see. It wasn't a big deal to the girl--since it took too much energy from both her and Kuro to do it often--but she'd enjoy it while it lasted. Three from Konoha and Kumo, one from Kiri. Not much of a turn out, she supposed. But who was she to say anything? Instead, she walked over to the Hyuuga, Kimiko. "Hello. I'm Mitsuki. And, you are?" she asked curiously, friendly.

Sorry you had to miss out on this, Kuro. She thought. Her dog had to stay home--her disguise would be ruined if he was here. This should be fun.

Kimura Yuuri

Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!

It was the day of the Chuunin Exam! So, naturally, Yuuri went to sleep around, oh, a few hours after sunset (and wow, sunset was earlier here than in Suna! Or maybe it was the season?) and, also naturally, woke up around 5 in the morning. But he wasn’t the type to sit still, oh no. And he’d gotten to Konoha yesterday, so it wasn’t like he needed to travel. And he already knew where the building was were he’d hand in his form (his lazy Jounin wasn’t bothering to show up- he didn’t seem to care much, especially since Yuuri was the only member of his team actually taking the exam), so that wasn’t a problem either. So what did the energetic Genin do with three hours to kill? You get one guess.

Did you guess ‘explore’? If so, goodie for you. You’re right. Leaving the little inn where he’d stayed the night, Yuuri began meandering the streets of Konohagakure, Ririn over his shoulders and the smaller Kasumi tucked under one arm. And it was interesting, too! There were all kinds of shopkeepers that were just starting to set up, maybe even more than in Suna! They were probably excited about the exam too, so maybe that was why they were up so early? Or maybe they liked being awake at random times, too! But in any case, he was tempted with many things, but settled on a single order of manju (because he needed a delicious breakfast, of course!).

Well, now that the matter of food was settled, and he’d wandered, and he’d people-watched, he- ah! Yuuri’s eyes widened as he saw, for the first time, a clock. “Ririn!” He whined, starting to run, “You didn’t tell me it was already almost 0800 hours!” He huffed internally, prepared to go into full pout mode when he arrived. But, as one might assume, he arrived at the building just a little after 0800- certainly with plenty of time to spare!

So instead of pouting, Yuuri grinned his usual grin as he entered the Registration Hall, casting a quick glance at all the different people already here. Woooow, there were a few Kumo-kin, a Kiri-nin, a few Konoha-nin, and oh! A silver-eyes! She had the same eyes as Hoshi-san! So naturally Yuuri beamed the most brightly at Kimiko, though he didn’t hold anyone’s gaze for long. Instead he pranced (yes, pranced) up to the desk, set down his application, gave it a few (not so) subtle pokes to move it closer to the other side of the desks, and turned back to face the other Genin standing there. “Morning, everyone!” He chirped, figuring that if someone else decided to respond… well so much the better. Otherwise he’d just discuss strategy with Ririn and Kasumi. They were pretty smart, you know. Especially for bears.

Kagayaku Sorako

"If I'm earlier than everyone else, I'll definitely get to greet everyone! And I'll catch up with some people!" Sora declared to the sky, throwing a fist up into the air. She might have drawn a couple wary glances, though not threateningly or angrily, from the nearby early-risers of the villagers of Konohagakure, but she couldn't care one bit today. No, this morning would be unlike any other, when she would finally attend her first chuunin exam. With Kagerou strapped to her back, she was ready. She didn't need any other weapons, she figured - this would be a breeze, right? - but she made sure to stock up on some kunai and shuriken and tags nonetheless.

But when she opened the door to the administration building just after she had seen someone enter, she peered in cautiously, and was absolutely astonished by the number of genin here already. The surprise was on her face, but it started to fade as she sidled along to the desk and produced the application as requested. She scanned the genin crowd while she waited, a bit nervous all of a sudden.

"Heh. Good morning to you, too," she greeted the Suna genin just in front of her. But then when she saw a familiar face, she was just about ready to bolt - further inside.

Given the okay, Sora started forward on her own track, when a tired, slightly annoyed voice sounded behind her.

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>>Aoikazan Kaijin

"This looks, uhh, troublesome." Spoken with an instant of a stall, but the words sounded almost more offensive because of it. There was no particular danger in it, though somehow the boy who stepped through the doors, looking a bit older than the rest of them, seemed more so than what he said. It was as though his voice couldn't portray what experience he appeared to have. And, even if he wasn't experienced, something about the careless but controlled way he carried himself, and the weight of the black and green on him was that much more forboding as opposition.

"Name?" the shinobi at the desk asked.

The genin placed the paper on top of the wood. "Aoikazan Kaijin," he answered idly, looking elsewhere before sticking his gloved hand into his dark, foresty hair, some of it braided. Matching, but paler, eyes studied the haphazard group of kids opposite him, and then eventually came to notice the darker gaze looking at him from under silver hair. "Uhh..."

-----------------------------
>>Kagayaku Sorako

"Uh. Hi." Sora looked at the older, taller - by at least a few inches - kid with a nervous smile, took one fleeting glance at the Kusa hitai-ate hanging from his waist, and then darted off down the hall. "Rin-chan!" she called ahead of her to alert the Kumo-nin. Once closer, she allowed a bit of her anxiety to show a little. "Did you see that weapon on Kaijin-san's back? What the heck is it?"

She hadn't gotten a good look at it, but it looked like a bundle of double-edged swords of some kind, except that instead of being one blade each, they branched off sideways in addition to the main blade.

Asukai Rin

Rin was about to tell Hayaki something important about the Hyuuga clan - regarding her relationship with them - when he abruptly walked off to say hello to her. To the girl she just warned him about. She was dumbstruck. Did he... did he just walk off while I was talking to him!?! Rin asked herself, unable to believe her eyes. He then proceeded over to the boy from Konoha, who came in a little after she did. He did! He completely brushed me off!

As people started to flood in to the registration hall from all parts of the world, she recognised one of them. It was that weird girl she ran into. Oh damn... she better not be judging everything here... If she recalled, her name was Ria. Rin had hoped to never meet again. The girl looked away as if she didn't recognise her, and looked back at Hayaki, who was now in a group with the boy and the Hyuuga girl. Traitor.

She was about to march over there and give him a piece of her mind, when someone called out her name. Rin turned to face the familiar voice, and her anger vanished. "Sora-chan!" The young kunoichi had actually been hoping to meet her here. They'd gotten along last time they were together, and she was sure they'd do so now.

"Whose back?" She asked, confused, as she looked towards to front of the room. The girl sounded a little worried and surprised. It didn't take her long to spy the person with strange weapons. He was the only one who Sora could have been talking about. Indeed, they looked very brutal... how would someone fight against such a strange weapon?

"What the hell is that?" The girl murmured in wonder, having never seen such a weapon before. It looks like the sort of thing the bad guy in a manga might use. "If we have to fight him, we'll fight him together. That thing looks like it could cut me in half, and then some..."

Hyuuga Kimiko

Kimiko, who was used to people just ignoring her, was surprised when the girl with the thick glasses came up to her. That was also when her attention turned from Kanzen, out towards the room, and she noticed that this girl, Mitsuki, wasn't the only one who seemed to take notice of her, as she saw Yuuri beam at her. She did her best to return the smile, but being unused to this much attention, she only managed a half-hearted smile, looking more nervous now than ever. After this, her attention returned to the girl before her. "Uhm, hi, I-I'm Hyuuga Kimiko, nice to meet you," with this, she once again bowed her head. This time, her bow was a tad deeper, not because she respected this girl more than Kanzen, but more because she didn't know her, plus she was still nervous.

She took a deep breath and tried to relax a bit, which actually worked better than she had expected it to. The girl in front of her seemed friendly, and the smile that boy had given her didn't seem hostile at all either, so why was she so nervous anyway? Get a grip, you're a shinobi! How will you make it through the exam if you almost freak out just from meeting the other participants? This wasn't the first time she had asked herself that question, but this time it had more of an effect than previous times and she decided to try and keep the conversation going, and if that didn't work, perhaps she really would go greet someone new. Yes, she would be able to do this!

"Uhm... is it you're first time taking the exam?" She hadn't really known what to say, so she just asked the first thing that came to mind. After all, this was Kimiko's first time, so if there was anyone who'd be more experienced, and willing to tell her something, why not ask? If she knew at least a little bit what to expect, perhaps she wouldn't be so nervous. Well, maybe she'd be even more nervous, but at least she'd be given the chance to prepare, mentally if nothing else.

Tatsuya Akira

I can't believe I'm stuck on the outside, looking in. Honestly, the things I do in the name of being a sensei. Akira cursed at herself for a lot of reasons at the moment, but more especially for doing something so stupid. Knocking out a pair of jounin, stealing their uniforms, and climbing up a tree just to find an open window in hopes of seeing how the kid was doing had to be the most idiotic and suicidal thing Akira had ever done in her entire life. Well, aside from the whole becoming a nukenin thing, but sneaking back here to do this might have been even more mental than even Akira was typically capable of. It was all for the sake of one purpose though and that purpose just happened to be participating in the exams soon.

She couldn't remember being more nervous, even at her own chuunin exams, and they had not been that long ago. Was this really what being a sensei did to a person, the whole idea made her shudder. Ruaka might of been right, maybe she was going soft... Nah! Her gaze search the stream of young participant from her perch near the open window seal. Her sunglasses were still on, it was to bright out without them, but the lower half of her face was covered with a cloth mask. Akira's clothes were different and even her long black hair had been let down from it's tie, the long bangs still hung in her face, but they we're altered with a jutsu to make them appear black.

After searching for a few minutes, a head of black spikey hair came into view and a grin spread across Akira's face of child-like enthusiasm. "Rin-chan,... Rin-chan," Akira attempted to call over in a whisper, but there was either to much noise or Rin couldn't hear her. She wasn't sure which, but she had get the kid's attention somehow and then it hit her. Or perhaps more accurately, it was about to hit Rin as Akira plucked a couple acorns off the tree and tossed one of them through the open window and directly at Rin's head. It wasn't a hard throw, if one could throw kunai an acorn was really very easy to hit someone with. There was enough force behind it to give a sharp sting, certainly enough to call attention and with any luck get Rin to avert her gaze from the genin around her.

Akira remembered that being probably the worst part of the exams, seeing all the likely opponents and those would were not only older, not to mention far stronger in appearance. It appeared she'd come at just the right time and there wasn't a moment to lose if she wanted to talk to Rin before the exams began. Quickly waving her arms above her, hoping to attract the kid's attention, Akira was doing her hardest without making any more racket than she had to. If anyone from Konoha recognized her, she was good as dead, but what Akira had to tell her would be well worth it in the long run... Even if it probably meant Akira herself was probably going to have to run like hell once they found those two men tied butt naked to a tree.

Sasaki Kanzen

What? Kanzen's frown only deepened when he saw the way the other seemed to be approaching him. <>Him of all people. What the hell is so interesting about me anyway? It wasn't uncommon, even less than one might have thought, that the unsociable genin was greeted or rather... dragged into conversation by others of his age. And he didn't think it was because they felt the need to include him in their lives. It was like they all had this unspoken need to ruin what little peace he could gather from the world around him. His eyes, scowl, turned toward the other boy, but he didn't say a word. Not for a few seconds anyway. "Good morning," he echoed, though without the polite tone that had been straining for the man at the desk. Sarcasm had taken its place.

"I look suspicious, huh?" he muttered under his breath as he turned away. "As if an idiot like you would know if someone suspicious actually walked in here. Hell, he wouldn't even have to be using genjutsu." Yes, something is bothering me... he's got a big mouth and a hitae-ate from Kumo. It wasn't that he was afraid the other might overhear. He just didn't care to raise his voice any louder. He might have continued, too, but another voice interrupted his thoughts. "Good morning, Kimiko-chan." This time he was borderline sincere, a rare sight to behold. "I'm glad to see that you're taking the exam, as well."

Of course, he noticed Yana as well, but wouldn't dare attract her attention. That was just a headache in the making. And in no time at all, someone else had come to greet Kimiko and Kanzen fell silent. It wasn't his place to interrupt.

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[nataga ban'yuu] : : sunagakure

The twelve year old boy was one of the latter few to arrive. Or latter-middle, anyway. As usual, he had become too distracted by the sights and sounds of another village to concern himself with arriving any earlier. Suna, his home, was much different than the lands before him - the sounds and smells and people and animals. Roads going to places he didn't know, and things he had never seen before. Beneath the tacky, large, white-rimmed sunglasses on the top of his head, his dark eyes scanned the waiting crowds. His own forehead protector, replaced by the accessory on his head, wrapped around his neck in a dramatic fashion, partly obscuring the criss-cross white belts over his chest.

He didn't go up to meet anyone once he had arrived, but he didn't seem angry or unwilling. It was simply that he didn't know where to begin or who he was going to go to first. Anyone he saw from his own village took priority of course, and then anyone that he could recognize from only a single glance in town. "There are sooo many people here already~" he said to no one in particular, shyly sliding his own application into the waiting hands of the attendants.

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ooc: Sorry, internet issues. Also... I couldn't resist entering this kid. Wish I had more muse to make Ban a site character.

Kagayaku Sorako

"He said his name's Aoikazan Kaijin," Sora told Rin, nodding in the boy's direction. She had already been thoroughly intimidated by his height against hers, and the fact that, although he didn't appear particularly unfriendly, he looked like he held the potential to be. And his voice hadn't settled very well in her ears, as though he was more confident than his hesitant speech was. "He's from Kusagakure. I've never met anyone from there. I guess there's bound to be crazier things out there than we know..."

She glanced back at him again. The first time, he had met her gaze as though she had done something to draw his attention, but this time, he was, to her relief, looking off somewhere around the ceiling. She took the opportunity to mimic the weapon with her hands. "It's almost like carrying a bunch of kunai! I wonder if they can be thrown? Like this!" She drew back her arm, ran a couple steps to Rin's side, and launched the invisible spear. She nearly jumped into the other genin's side in the process.

"Ow!"

Rubbing her temple dizzily, Sora straightened up and looked for whatever had hit her. She blinked at the acorn on the floor, and then looked for the source of the throw - obviously she wasn't as inadequate a shinobi as she sometimes passed herself off to be. Her emerald eyes went right for the figure outside the window in surprise, especially at the arms. She got the feeling there had been a mistake somewhere along those lines.

"Hey, Rin-chan, I think that lady might want to talk to you." Sora pointed at the apparently-open window.

-----------------------------
>>Aoikazan Kaijin

"Uh." Kaijin frowned just a little, and then brushed past Kimura, only the glint of light flying across the edges of the weapon strapped to his back any greeting to the other genin who had just walked in behind him. He did not approve of being stuck with potential enemies on either side. So he went on his merry little way, his pale eyes sending him into the distance even as they passed sightlessly over everyone around him while he walked, his boots heavy on the wood. It really, honestly made no sense why a ninja would bother with such heavy gear.

But, despite his seeming disinterest in the others, he apparently caught clear sight of a certain shinobi disguised as one of his own, though how apparent this was until the last second really was up to a viewer's discretion. He showed no sign of recognition, nor was there any variation in his step or behaviour, until he was directly in front of her with his side towards her. Then he paused, and turned towards her. And stuck his hand in his hair again.

"I don't, uhh... remember you," Kai told her in the same tired, slightly annoyed tone as earlier when he had arrived, but his glance upwards seemed almost too wayward to be very suspicious. He was talking down - well, hardly, considering he was looking up - to her, but his manner made it almost the opposite. "Are you sure that's your, uh... hitai-ate?"

Kajiwara Hazuki

More genin piled into the hall, as well as a jounin friend. But still she made no move to walk up to anyone and greet them. Someone greeted the whole room, but the girl was still silent. Anyway, she'd have to yell across the hall if she wanted her response to be heard. She could have just left to go to the exam room, and she might have, if not for a boy approaching her. So the supposed genin stayed put as the Kusa-nin walked her way.

She heard the slight annoyance in his voice and stopped fanning herself. "I-is that a problem?" Replied the blue-haired girl, tilting her head to the side. Her tone was not irritated, but instead her words were spoken a bit more brightly, after her slight stutter of her first words. She tried to inhale confidence before speaking again. "Of course this is my hitai-ate. Just because we're both from Kusa doesn't mean we have to know each other..." The girl snapped her fan shut. "It's Kanashii Chirasu." She bowed politely.

Because he was right in front of her, the jounin in disguise side-stepped before pressing a foot against the wall. "How about you?" As she asked, Hazuki -- or as the genin would know her, Chirasu -- began to climb up the wall backwards, concentrating the chakra in her feet. Not every genin had good chakra control; maybe they'd see her as a tougher opponent, despite her outer appearance. She walked high enough so that she was at least a metre above all the heads in the room. "I'm just bored...I wish the exam would start already."

Kagayaku Sorako

>>Aoikazan Kaijin

He let her speak, maybe about to shrug, maybe about to continue with another retort, but instead he merely stood his ground as casually as anyone could expect. He was one of those people with an astounding memory - except that he was the one who doubted it sometimes, but was able to recall even the minute details of any of his surroundings or the people he met. However, he passed it off as nothing - what she had said was very true, and it seemed as though the same went for those of other villages.

His head was already craned back slightly by his upward watch, and his eyes barely moved to accommodate the girl in his gaze. It was almost as though she had moved so that they could better make eye contact, seeing as how he was unwilling to look down much, or even levelly. But, nevertheless, regardless of her new position, he returned her bow, but not too deeply, though deeper than simply casual or hasty. When he straightened up, his focus did, too. Again.

"Aoikazan Kaijin," the green-haired genin introduced himself, and added a nod to his string of actions. "I'm, uh... in no rush. I, uhh... have the year off for, uh, anything I want." Kai paused, and then went on a little more slowly, his gaze flitted sideways this time. "I would be in, uh... better standing... if I was a chuunin, instead of a, uhh... genin." Followed by a longer pause.

Then he sneezed.

"Uhh... excuse me..."

He glanced a little more reservedly at Chirasu. The tone of his voice was only tinged with the slightest bit of discomfort. "The change in weather is bad... I think I'm... uhh... allergic to Konoha..."

Asukai Rin

"Kaijin, huh?" Rin said to herself. Sounds like kaiju... And it wouldn't be too far off. With those blades, and his size, he was almost like a monster. If she were to face him in battle, she was actually unsure of her chances. It felt to her like it would end badly. But there's always a chance if I fight using my mind, right? If I can out-think him, then that'd make it easier to out-fight him. Balance the physical and the mental, and you will achieve victory.

Sora chose that moment to break the tension in the air by mimicking the boy and how he might use the weapon. Rin looked back at Kaijin, then at Sora. "Hehe, maybe... wish I could see them in action before having to fight him." She commented with a smile, as her friend pretended to throw them like a javelin. The girl stepped aside a little to give her room for her little performance, giggling at the antics of the kunoichi from Iwa.

However, she stopped laughing when she cried out a little in pain. "Sora-chan? Are you alright?" Rin asked, worried that she might have pulled a muscle or something. However, she was rubbing her head, so that couldn't be it. Sora then said something strange. "A lady wants to talk to me?" Rin looked out the window, and saw a strangely familiar woman waving wildly to her. It couldn't be...

"Akira-sensei??!?" Rin said out loud, surprised at her fortune. Her 'real' teacher hadn't bothered to come with them, but here was a surprise appearance from the woman who had taught her much more than that vain lady ever had. "Sora-chan, I'll be back in a second! Don't go anywhere!" She told her friend as she rushed out the door to see her sensei.

It didn't take her long to reach the tree the woman was in. "Akira-sensei, it's so good to see you! What are you doing here?" Rin said to her, certainly pleased to see the ninja again. She couldn't keep the smile off of her face. After all, Akira had just shown her who is really looking out for you. Definitely not Misamai... She thought with a note of vindictive triumph. The woman in the tree was her real sensei.

Tatsuya Akira

Akira flinched lightly as Rin moved just a bit to the left and her acorn collided with the wrong genin. She hoped that didn't leave a mark, but it seemed to do it's job and that other genin quickly informed Rin of her presence. Unfortunately, the girl's excitement nearly caused Akira to fall out of the tree as she shouted out her name. For the love of heaven, Akira prayed no one inside knew who the heck 'Akira-sensei' was or she was not going to be in even bigger trouble. The nukenin quickly made a mental note to teach that kid the art of subtly one of these days or finally explain the fact that she was a nukenin, either way, Akira didn't have to wait long.

The genin emerged from the corner, appearing beneath the tree with a big smile. "Rin-chan! Sorry about your friend, acorns don't fly nearly as straight as kunai it seems." She admitted with a sheepish grin and a faint laugh. "I had to get you attention though since they won't let any spectators into the Registration Hall this close to the start of the exams." Akira explained, shifting around in her seat so that she could see Rin better. How Akira kept her legs crossed beneath her while balancing on a limb was clearly a mark of experience, since most would have fallen off without use some form of chakra control. "Plus, it didn't seem right not see you before seeing as I'm your sensei." She added as she reached into the top of her shirt, thankfully even with the change of costume, the shirt was still low enough to let her hid valuable things in it.

After digging around for a sec, Akira seemed to find what she was looking for and removed silver charm. "I wanted to wish you luck in the exams and pass on one final lesson." As soon as she'd said it, she tossed the charm down to Rin. It was simple in design, a silver medallion beautifully crafted baring the kanji for 'spirit' on one side and the dragon coiled around the other. "The day I took the exams, my own sensei gave me that and now I want you to have it." She explained seriously. "During these exams, it's going to be easy to get discouraged due to the number of opponents, some of whom are not only older, stronger, and maybe even smarter than you, but that's not the point."

A soft smile appeared on Akira's face as her gaze fell on Rin seriously. "You've already made me proud as any sensei could be in making it this far, but I won't be with you during the exams. That's why I had to let you know that as long as you never give up and have faith in yourself, kid, your going to do great. I've got no doubt in my mind about that. You've got the heart of a dragon kid, don't let anyone ever make you believe otherwise, understand?" She explained with a warm smile. Oh, those words echoed back through history and Akira's mind as if it were yesterday, how different things had changed in such a small time. Now, she was looking down at her own student giving her the same speech, her own sensei had given his student and like the one before her, Akira had every confidence in Rin's abilities, no matter what the outcome.

Asukai Rin

Rin giggled a bit at Akira's explanation for the acorn. "Don't worry, she's fine - and yeah, I doubt they'd let you in, since you aren't my 'official' teacher." She made it clear what she thought of official things. The girl gave a short laugh of satisfaction as her teacher confirmed just who she was to her - her sensei. Rin also liked how she said that it was essentially her duty to come here because of who she was to her.

The kunoichi looked at Akira strangely as she put her hand down her shirt, but her smile soon returned at seeing a gift and learning that she had some final advice to offer her. She caught it and looked at it with admiration as Akira told her the story behind it. There was definitely a lot of significance behind it. I will treasure this medallion always. Rin thought as she looked back at her, talking about the upcoming exam.

Her speech to Rin was very inspiring - she was indeed worried about this Kaijin person, and the Hyuuga girl, but her sensei had faith in her. She'd come here today to watch out for her. Akira was proud of her student. I can do this. "Don't worry, Akira-sensei. I will never give up. I won't let others get me down. Even if they're older, stronger, and smarter than me, I'll still fight them, and beat them with sheer willpower and guts!" There was a new fire in her eyes as she clutched the medallion close to her heart. The heart of a dragon.

Tatsuya Akira

Akira smiled lightly, glad to see there was no harm done, but didn't know how much time that she had left so wanted to make this quick. This was Rin's fight now and Akira, despite her concern for the kid, was not officially her sensei as Rin had said. Technically speaking, she wasn't even officially allowed, but that hadn't stopped Akira before and it wasn't about to stop her now. She'd stopped answering to the village along time ago and she'd be danged if they kept her from watching this little spectacle all because that ridiculous title. Now it was time for the kid to show what she'd learn over the past months, to test her metal and prove what she was made of, of her own will and drive against opponents unlike any Rin had probably ever faced before.

Even if it was only a pep talk and perhaps a small parting gift, Akira saw fit to do so. Not that she seemed to have much reason to worry though, as Rin caught the amulet, seeming to understand the true significance of the gift, or at least part of it. Akira watched with a growing smile as a new fire appeared behind the kid's ice blue eyes and a sensation she had not expected welled up in her chest. If she didn't know better, the nukenin would have sworn it was pride, but that didn't make much sense for a cold-blooded killer like herself. She pushed the thought aside as she rose to a standing position, still smiling confidently. "That's the spirit, kid." Akira said as she readjusted the collar of the shirt.

"Now get in there. I'll be keeping an eye on you from the stands and I'll see you after the exams." Akira said reassuringly as she turned. "Good luck, Rin-chan." She added as her figure flickered off the tree branch and disappeared from Rin's sight. With any luck, her work was done and she could make her way to the stadium without any problems. After hitting the roof and landing gently on the ground on the opposite side of the building, Akira started off with a cool smile, but stopped the second someone shouted.

"HEY! There she is!"

Her gaze whipped around to see two jounin in nothing more than perhaps their boxer shorts. "Ah, crud." She mumbled to herself, forgetting about the clothes and the two men she'd left stranded. Somehow they must ahve got themselves free from the tree and were clearly back for their garmets. With a nervous laugh, Akira whipped around and took off in a break neck run. I sure hope Rin appreciates this. She thought to herself, throwing up a smokescreen as the two men caught up and attempted to pounce on their intended target, only to end up with noting but their lost garments and the fading trail of smoke where a person should have been. After pulling another vanishing act, most wouldn't have pushed their luck, but most were not this nukenin. Akira watched from the roof for a moment flashing a cool smirk, chuckling lightly as she turned around and started towards the stadium, the red scarf fluttering precariously in the breeze. Time to watch the show.