As he paced back and forth, Sora could hear the faint, yet distinct sound of the thin strip of metal of the headband, as the rain increased in volume, making the world as Sora saw it fuzzy. instinctively he rubbed his eyes, then felt ridiculous, remembering it wasn't actually his eyes, and hoping Yasu didn't notice.
Ok, He sighed,
Think, Sora. Use that brain of yours. this is another puzzle, solve it. Silencing his mind, Sora's vision when completely black, as he cut off his senses to the outside world and reflected inward at a blinding speed, sitting on the ground, allowing nature to flow all around him. He may be from a family with diluted Nara blood running through his veins, but his mental capacity was unmatched by most, and so he pondered on the events thus far.
One Second.
Mikasa Sensei tied the headbands onto Mikio, who took off before we could get a good look at him. He took off, and we waited... he didn't get very far for us having waited...
Two Seconds.
Unless he waited... but it was tag, why would he wait. it must've been a trick somehow...Ok, next was the... The Old Man! Sora recalled the squishing sound under his step as mud, thinking nothing of it, but...
Maybe it was mud from paws jumping in puddles... Sensei said he wasn't a normal dog... does the dog know transformation jutsu?!
Three Seconds.
If we operate under the assumption that he could use jutsus, since he could also talk and move at ninja speeds, then he could've been the old man in disguise... which means we have a fake! it's either a clone or a genjutsu! Sora realized then that The old man ran into them immediately upon giving chase to Mikio, and that he never saw which directed the man came from.
[[
Song Starts Here]]
Sora jumped to his feet,
"Hibiki, it's a trick, nothing is true, the man was a lie! Explain it to Yasu and follow me!" Sora wasn't sure if the thing Yasu held was a clone that could relay information or not, so he kept things coded and brief, in a way that Hibiki would understand. from their, he knew Hibiki could relay the information to Yasu discreetly. Just in case it was a genjutsu, and not a clone, Sora attempted a cancel of jutsu's around him as he retraced his steps back to where he saw the old man originally (
Cancel(M)).
I'm willing to bet he's still there... crafty canine, that one. Yelling back to Yasu, hoping he was following close enough to hear, Sora shouted,
"Hibiki, Yasu, I need a cage with no walls, and for you to tag without existing." Sora was putting a lot of faith in Hibiki being able to pass the information onto Yasu correctly, and for Yasu to listen to him.
Please understand the plan, guys...
Reaching the end of the alleyway, Sora veered up, back to the rooftops overlooking the awning that Sensei was sitting under; where Sora was originally perched before the exams started. Quickly, he cast a cloning jutsu, forming a copy of himself of small zephyrs and gusts, to head towards Sensei and Mikio (
Elemental Clone).
I was right, then. Sora thought, hiding on the rooftops. Sora looked over at Sensei and the small dog.
Might as well test this out now... Quickly casting his genjutsu, lowering their awareness, and making it difficult for them to perceive the upcoming attempt at the dog (
Deaf), Sora watched as the clone darted silently through the rain, striking a pose midair (
BL: Furuuken Stance - Fighting Style-R2), and slapped both hands on either side of Mikio's head, aiming directly for his ears (
Deafen - Sound Ninjutsu-R3), landing hard and sliding along the wet stone ground.
Sora reached into his Kimono as he hid, feeling what he was certain was his headband, should he pass the exam, and remembered Mikasa's words at the beginning.
"You have one hour to retrieve our excited friend. Failure you to do so will result in a future retesting."
it was never about the headbands... "Yasu, now!" Sora jumped from the rooftops, launching his surprise attack, redoubling his vision to most accurately pinpoint the hound in question (
Eagle Vision (M)), and firing a shot at the ground near Mikio, attempting to startle him into the air, away from the ground he stood on (
Sudden Shot (M))
It's up to you now, Yasu. Catch him for real this time.
[MFT]
WC:749