The canopy of the forest pressed down on Arthur as he navigated the dense undergrowth.
He soon emerged into a clearing until suddenly, a figure emerged within his sensing range. He couldn't help but wonder what this person was doing all the way out here. To understand, he allowed the person to come toward his direction.
"Arthur?" William said, appearing through the leaves.
"Will… What are you doing out here?"
"Actually," William said, scratching the back of his head, "this isn't exactly me. I'm just a clone."
Arthur's eyes narrowed. The Shadow Clone technique truly was indistinguishable from the original caster. He had his Crimson Gaze activated a moment ago, yet he still hadn't been able to tell the difference.
"You're not just tryna fool me, are you?" Arthur probed.
"Nope," William, or rather, the clone of him, confirmed. "I figured sending a few hundred or so of me to scout the forest was a good idea." Arthur paused at the number. "Ya know, to help out."
"Smart strategy," Arthur said, feigning enthusiasm. "Did you guys find anything interesting?"
"Sure did! I sent a couple over to help Karin. I think Jada and Alice came across Kabuto's team to expose him. And here's the biggest surprise: Jasper hunted down Dosu's team by himself."
Arthur was by no means surprised. The other players were hunting down the opposition to rid the narrative of any plot twists—exactly like they said they would. The only thing surprising was that just one player was needed to take down an entire team.
"They won't be bothering anyone anymore," William's clone finished.
"Sounds helpful," Arthur replied without any real conviction.
"Speaking of, Alex, Marge, and I have already found my cousin. We're setting up camp near the center of the forest and waiting for Orochimaru to make his move. But…"
"But what?" Arthur asked.
"It's already been hours since the exams started, and if I recall correctly, Orochimaru attacked on the first day. We're all wondering why he hasn't shown up yet."
'So Orochimaru did heed my warning after all…'
"You want me to lead you to everyone?" offered William's clone.
Arthur shook his head and politely said, "No. My team and I got separated, so—"
The clone gasped, unwilling to let Arthur give an excuse. "No way! I'll help you find them!" The clone then performed a hand sign. "Shadow clone jutsu!" Ten more of him appeared on the scene.
Arthur was impressed, because just making one clone took a lot of chakra. Yet here was a clone making more clones of himself.
"When and where was the last time you saw them?" a clone asked. Arthur was honestly not looking for anyone in particular at the moment. Rather, he didn't like the idea of someone like William tagging along with him. By sheer fortune, all nine of the clones suddenly poofed from existence. "What happened?"
"Looks like you've exhausted too much of your chakra…"
"Oh crap! You're right! Guess it's just you and me now, huh? Haha."
"Will, you don't have to try so hard; I can find them myself and meet up with you guys at the center. Go ahead and poof this clone, too, so that the others know that I'm okay."
The clone didn't buy it at first, wishing to stick together. But when Arthur showed him that he had already secured two of the scrolls, the clone was impressed.
"Wow! Okay…" Then it gave a thoughtful gesture. "But be careful out there. And if you need anything, just send a smoke signal. I'm sure one of my clones will find it."
"I understand…"
Arthur watched the clone dissipate into a puff of smoke. He stood there for a moment to truly consider what he had just learned.
Team Dosu wasn't anything like Team 10. They were arguably stronger due to their equipment, which could produce high-level sound techniques. Yet Jasper took them down on his own, apparently.
Arthur was interested to know how.
In the story, Team Dosu fought Sakura, Rock Lee, and Team 10 together. Without Sasuke activating the curse mark, the main cast could have suffered casual losses.
Next was Karin, a composite character who Arthur had forgotten all about. Originally a ninja from the Grass Village, she belonged to the Uzumaki clan.
Due to this lineage, her mother was forced to heal the village's wounded while being under constant surveillance. This eventually led to her death from chakra exhaustion, leaving a young Karin with the same demanding duty.
Her story took a drastic turn during a war, which destroyed her village and almost led to her capture since she was an Uzumaki. Orochimaru, seeking forbidden techniques at the time, intervened and offered her protection since he recognized her healing abilities.
As such, she joined his ranks, assisted in experiments, and eventually became the warden of his Southern Hideout three years from then. Afterward, she would team up with Sasuke, who had already defected, developing a strong, unhealthy crush on him.
Last Arthur recalled, she was supposed to be saved by Sasuke in the forest, not William.
Had Arthur remembered her, he would have surely targeted her after Orochimaru. But he forgot, on account of her not even being spotted taking the written exams. Orochimaru was too much on his mind.
Nonetheless, the players' actions wouldn't at all complicate his overall mission here. He had already confirmed that Orochimaru wasn't captured. All he needed to do now was remain anonymous until the preliminaries.
With clarity on the situation, he plunged deeper into the forest.
If anyone were to meet up with him and ask about his missing teammates, the answer was easy: they were attacked and lost their lives. Arthur, the weak support player, was unable to help.
'High-speed jutsu…'
Adrenaline pumping, he tore through the foliage with enhanced speed. Along with his Crimson Gaze, it allowed him to traverse the terrain for hours without many surprises.
He saw some of William's clones and the route they were taking. So he simply traversed a different part of the forest, evading them entirely. Apart from them, he didn't encounter anyone else.
In less than a day, he emerged from the forest to see the towering walls of the building where the preliminaries would be held. He scanned the complex and verified that there were already two teams assembled.
Team 8—Kiba, Hinata, and Shino—huddled together. Further down, Team Baki—Gaara, Kankurō, and Temari—stood apart.
Nothing about them seemed to have changed, indicating the other players hadn't influenced Gaara yet.
It was fortunate that Arthur arrived early. What he understood was how the preliminaries would go: a round of randomly selected, one-on-one matches since there were too many that qualified. A referee would supervise these matches while spectators were highly encouraged to observe.
If he understood correctly, Orochimaru was supposed to invade during the final exams that wouldn't take place for at least one month. These things were less likely to happen now.
Regardless of all these facts, Arthur was currently focused on what was in front of him. Entering through the doors, he found himself in the hallways.
Like he was told to do, he unfurled the white and black scrolls. As expected, a puff of smoke erupted from each scroll, solidifying into a single figure: a woman with sharp features. Arthur didn't recognize this character. If anything, she was likely the pre-assigned Jōnin for his team to qualify.
"You guys made it already?" she wondered.
"As you can see, sensei, I'm the only one here."
The woman glanced at him wearily. "Where are your teammates then?"
"We were separated during an unexpected attack, so I left in case the other teams would get our scrolls."
The Jōnin grunted unhappily. "They better show up soon. The next round starts in four days. And if they're not here, you won't be able to advance."
She left no room for argument. So Arthur feigned disappointment. "I hope they make it then."
His acting skills had never crumbled under scrutiny. He wasn't at all a pathological liar, but he did know how to hide the truth by choosing his words carefully.
The Jōnin, seemingly appeased by his concern, added, "They wouldn't dare miss such an important event." She then gestured to a secluded room on the arena's perimeter. "Go wait inside there. There's food and a bathroom, so try not to cause any trouble until the round's over."
"Thank you, sensei. I won't disappoint you."
Arthur didn't even bother asking her name, not finding it all that important. Instead, he moved to the designated room and relaxed for the remainder of the stay.
Finding a makeshift futon, he unrolled it and decided to rest.
He thought about her proclamation: how he wouldn't advance if his other teammates didn't show. He knew this was really just to keep him on his toes.
Because even if they didn't show, his main objective had already been met: ensuring Orochimaru's safety. Whatever happened next would mainly revolve around the other players.
The next four days went by quickly.
Hardly did Arthur leave his room. Interactions with the teams already present were kept to zero. So much so that they didn't even know he was here. Training sadly wasn't an option throughout this period of waiting since there were cameras in place.
The third day was spent thinking over what would transpire next. Since Team Baki (and likely Team Kabuto, too) was ostracized, the entire format of the matches was going to be in disarray.
So Arthur did his best to simply think about just who would be fighting whom.
On the fourth and final day, when all other teams arrived without Arthur's awareness, he heard a voice on the intercom: "All participants, please report to the main hall for the official announcement."
The next phase was about to begin, and with it, the first major deviation from the established narrative.
So Arthur rose from his perch. Following the flow of the crowd, he joined a single-file line that snaked its way toward the front. Now at the main room, he caught glimpses of familiar faces.
Team 7, with an unusually serious-looking Sasuke sporting three distinct black commas etched onto his pale neck, stood huddled together.
'So Orochimaru managed to give him the curse mark after all,' Arthur thought.
He couldn't tell when or how, but what mattered was that it was given.
Further down the line, a group of six caught his eye. They were Team 6 (Alex, Jasper, and Alice) and Team 9 (William, Jada, and Margaret). Their faces were a mask of conflicting emotions—sadness, confusion, and something akin to anger.
Arthur remained calm as they looked at him with unspoken questions. Perhaps it was his lack of teammates that was piquing their interests.
His main hope was that no one made any connections or suspected his involvement in past affairs. Apart from that, he was quite intrigued to see those who had qualified.
Breaking his gaze from them, he focused his attention on the massive structure: a raised platform whose surface was polished to a mirror sheen. A second level, accessed by staircases, ringed the platform. It served as a vantage point for spectators, just like he remembered it to.
In front of the arena were several Jōnin overlooking the crowd, standing with Hiruzen.
"Now the Hokage will explain the third test!" Anko yelled. "Listen up and take his words to heart!"
Exactly like the players remembered, Hiruzen announced the philosophies and true nature of the exams. There were murmurs and outbursts from various characters, none of which Arthur paid mind to.
Finally, the proctor stepped forward. This ninja's name was Hayate Gekkō, a young Jōnin with a sickly appearance.
Despite having short brown hair and dark eyes, Hayate's most noticeable features were the dark circles and constant cough that made him seem perpetually unwell. He also wore the standard ninja outfit with a flak jacket and a forehead protector used as a bandana.
If Arthur recalled correctly, Hayate died at the hands of Baki after overhearing him having a conversation with Kabuto about invading the Leaf. Afterwards, he would be revived during the Fourth War.
"We still have too many applicants," Hayate announced. "Under the traditional rules of the exam, we have to have a preliminary test…" He coughed before continuing. "To reduce the number of applicants who'll proceed to the third exam."
Because of this rule, those without a team could still participate since the preliminaries involved individual fights. All eyes settled on the only two this rule pertained to: Arthur Bennett and Chōji Akimichi.