Chapter 87 – Ino’s Plan
*Ino’s POV, entrance for the Forest of Death, before the start of 2nd Exam*
‘Be careful of Gaara to the north or east and try to steer further west, you might find team Guy around there.’
‘Understood…’
Sorry, Yami but I have my own plan to work on.
This sucks…
Stuck as usual with the pair of mutts and the lazy bum for up to five days in this dark, yucky forest full of dirt, mud and disgusting creatures.
I look at my teammates, Shikamaru and Kiba.
‘What a drag… just wanna get this over with and go back for a nap…’
‘Start already! Can’t wait to get in there and show them who’s the boss.’’
‘Bao bao! *excited*’
I don’t even know why I even bother reading their thoughts, not only are they always simpleminded, they usually just voice them out loud regardless of anyone else caring.
“Start already!”
“What a drag…”
Yeah… like that.
This has been my life ever since my first time with the love of my life.
At first, I was a bit overwhelmed, but I naturally came to learn how to tune out the voices I didn’t want from my head. It's still hard to tune in to multiple people at the same time as I filter others out so for the most part I stick to listening to none, one or everyone around me.
Ahhh~~ I miss Yami.
Barely got to spend a few days with him the past couple of months.My father and Shikamaru’s sent us on this weird cooperation training expedition, leaving our Team Asuma to live on our own in the woods for a couple of months, wanting us to learn to work together to survive and train when we had free time.
Such idiots…
What cooperation bullshit, it’s all about having each person do what they do best. Kiba took care of gathering food, while me and Shikamaru gathered wood and other supplies.I took care of the meals only because it meant improving my housewife skills for when I move into Yami’s mansion.
Those ungrateful guys couldn’t even be thankful and nearly vomited half of my meals for the first week but I insisted on gracing them with my cooking skills.They probably just have screwed taste buds, probably from too much dog food in Kiba's case but I'll have to ask one of the other girls to try out my cooking before offering it to Yami just to be sure.
Why must fate always tear us apart, starting with getting saddled with this team even today our entrances to the forest of death are on almost opposite ends, apart by like 15km.
I wish we could just spend the entire time talking with telepathy…
"hehehe~~"
That was my gift to him, but I don’t want to bother him, especially since he’s on the most dangerous mission.
Oops, seems my giggle escaped while thinking of Yami again, and now they’re looking at me.
‘This crazy woman… even for a woman she’s crazier than your normal kind.’ (Shikamaru)
‘That was so cute, why does this dumb bitch have to act so sexy or cute at random times. Too bad her head is filled with nothing but thoughts on that manwhore Yami… What the fuck does he even have on me? I’m stronger than him now, all he has is a pretty face.’(Kiba)
Fucking stupid mutt!!!
No matter how many times I try to explain Yami’s awesomeness it just can’t fit into his flea-infested head.
This is why I made my own plan for this Exam.
To end Team Asuma and free myself from this shackle keeping me from my beloved Yami.
“So which way do you think we should go?” (Shikamaru)
“Let’s just go in and sniff out the closest team.” (Kiba)
“Hmm~~ We should go east, there is a river according to the image we were shown, should be a good spot to find water, set a camp or look for other teams.”
“You just want a place to take a bath don’t you Ino?” (Kiba)
“Mah~ she has a valid idea, it doesn’t really make a difference in the end, we just need to rely on proper scouting to pick which fights we want.”(Shikamaru)
—
Relying on Kiba and Akamaru’s sniffing we head southeast for a bit before going full east looking for the river.
We’re slowed down multiple times by bug swarms and other nasty creatures.
I could feel their simple minds from far away but made no effort to avoid them or give any suggestion to change our course.
After three hours of running around, I declare plan I-1 failed. Gaara probably rushed ahead too fast for us to find him by now.
It was a bad plan anyway, not only could Akamaru react to the danger a tailed beast posses having Kiba or Shikamaru killed by Gaara would have repercussions when it came to having Naruto try to convince Gaara to turn over a new leaf.
Easy to talk with a moral high ground, but try doing the same to the person that killed your friend… actually he did just that with Pain didn’t he? Maybe it was not that bad of a plan besides the part where my own life was also in danger.
We reach the riverbed close to sunset, halfway to the tower on the first day and set our camp for the night.
Guess it's come down to plans plans I-2 and I-3.
I take the first night shift. Once I make sure they are all fast asleep I take out a special concoction I had prepared beforehand.
A special kind of sake made from some special herbs, harmful to a dog's senses.
It's amazing what people think about when you ask them about their weaknesses.Even when they aren't willing to speak them aloud, they can't help but make the exercise in their heads thinking their thoughts are safe.
I approach Akamaru and let a few drops fall close to where his snout is facing, careful not to wake him up by dropping liquid directly over him.
I do the same for Kiba's snout.
Their faces scrunch at the smell but they don’t wake up, this is also because I put a little sleeping aid into our supper.
By the time we have to trade shifts the alcohol in the sake will have evaporated, leaving no evidence behind but their sense of smell will be hampered for at least a couple of days.
After a few more hours have passed I struggle to wake Shikamaru up for his shift.
Now for the next part of the plan.
I take my beauty rest and using my astral projection I scout our route ahead.