like that?
Footsteps echoed through the air on the stone floor.
Without turning around, she knew who was standing there.
"You are the girl from the second exam, right?"
"Yes, but where from ...?" - "It doesn't matter"
For the past three months, Sayuri has been tutored by a woman who was supposed to be good friends with her mother at the time. She was an Anbus after the Hokagen, but she seemed only eighteen and, despite her age, was as short as Sayuri.
Her name was Ilian ... and she had taught her to distinguish the chakra of others without having to see it and to further develop her skills, which came close to those of the Hyuuga clan.
Sayuri rose and turned to look the girl in the eye.
She noticed that her gaze passed Sayuri uncertainly.
"May I ask you something?"
Sayuri nodded and smiles. "What do you want to know?"
The girl swallowed. "Why did you let me live?
My brother who fought Itachi is still missing. "
The smile faded from Sayuri's face and she looked at her seriously.
"You know, no one deserves to die, no matter how" bad "they are"
She saw the girl's face fill with hope and tears.
Sayuri herself suppressed a wave of doubt and discomfort as she thought of the girl's brother. What did Itachi do to him?
She hadn't said anything when he killed Hakyo, because she had felt it was self-defense.
He'd been so distant lately, didn't let anyone get near him.What would become of it in the future?
"Isn't the third exam starting soon?", The older Sayuri got out of her thoughts.
"Yes ... thank you. See you"
Sayuri disappeared to make his way to the arena.

~ Arena[Konoha-Gakure]~

The gate opened slowly and offered a glimpse into the arena. Although the sun was slightly blinding, Sayuri saw a large, open area with trees on the edge.
The three Genin caught their breath at the same time when she saw the many visitors in the stands above. Their screams reached down and it sounded like a threatening dread of thunder. The audience could look down on them from three sides, observe them and recognize every mistake.
"Now there's no way back," said someone earlier, "the main thing is that you don't have stage fright"
Sayuri had taken this comment earlier as a joke, but now that it was standing here, she knew what he meant.
The joke in the stomach, the dizziness, didn't come from the illness that had afflicted her over the past few months.
The other team that had passed the second exam had come and looked no better than themselves.
They stood in the middle of the arena when the third Hokage got up and the crowd fell silent. His voice echoed throughout the hall as he said loudly but calmly: "I thank you from the bottom of my heart that you have come here today and I wish you a lot of fun during the fighting.
I am pleased that there are so many in the third and final round of the Chunin selection test and I hope that these candidates will make an effort, use their heads and respond to the requests of the princes - and of course the top ninjas too. "
He sat down again and the eyes fell on the Genin again.
Another ninja came to them.
"I'll briefly explain the rules to you:
Everything is allowed. Every jutsu and every fighting technique.
The fight is then stopped if one is incapacitated, dead or gives up. Roger that?"Sayuri and the others swallowed hard before they nodded.
"You already know that the third test is a kind of tournament."
He picked up a small plaque, "These are the divisions. We should start now so we don't keep the princes waiting."
When she read the names of the first fighters, Sayuri caught her breath again. It was Itachi and Shisui.
They'd become best friends in the past few years - more or less. Will the fight go well?
"It'll be all right," Shisui put his hand on her shoulder when he noticed her worried look. He grinned. As always.
“The fight begins now,” said the older ninja, “all but the two
Fighters are now leaving the arena! "
Sayuri glanced back as the gate closed and her two friends slowly disappeared behind it.

While Shisui and Itachi fought, Sayuri mostly looked away. It was already a bad thought to know that they were fighting against each other.
They didn't give each other anything. And that showed that Shisui had the right to be recognized by Itachi because he had improved a lot.
Even so, it was confusing that Itachi had the upper hand over the fight the whole time and won in the end.
Even Sayuri didn't need long to defeat her opponent and move on to one round.
The other two have knocked each other out. beaten and therefore nobody had to fight twice to get into the final.
Once again the crowd fell silent as the two finalists took their seats.
"Don't think that just because we're friends - I'll show compassion," Itachi said.
"Then don't expect me to show consideration for you either.", Sayuri replied.
It was strange. At first she couldn't utter a word near Itachis, she felt uncomfortable and comfortable at the same time, then she was very worried about him because he had to fight his best friend now ... now she didn't feel anything."Are you ready? Can we start?" Asked the older ninja.
"Yes," said the Genins almost simultaneously without taking their eyes off each other.
"Well then we can go!"
With these words the two jumped to the opposite side of the arena, only to be loud again after a few seconds
to race towards each other.
Sayuri felt for the wall with quick breaths. Itachi is gone, she thought, before cold hands grabbed her neck and tried to pull her into the wall.
It was a kagebushin that Itachi had reached for, and when Sayuri reached for her kunai and tried to stab his hands, it too disappeared in a small cloud.
Genjutsus were useless with them, as both owned the Sharingan.
Sayuri was able to duck in time to avoid Itachi's ryuuka-no-jutsu.
With quick steps she stood behind him, had gathered chakra in her hand in order to touch his heart with the Chakra-no-Mesu and to finish him off in the same way as the Sunakunoichi. But he disappeared.
So she decided to collect chakra in the soles and "walk" up the wall like this. Halfway up it made a half-turn and covered the arena with a huge flame.
Itachi reappeared behind her, but Sayuri grabbed a kunai and stabbed him. He traded his body for a log, only to reappear behind her afterwards.
Before he could practice a katon jutsu, Sayuri exchanged himself for a log and it fell to the ground with him.

~ Grandstand ~

Sasuke didn't understand why Itachi and Sayuri were fighting all the time. They were such good friends.
Worried, he followed the action. The occasional bursts of fire, the blows. He heard the crowd cheering them both in amusement, amazed when something unexpected happened.
"Don't worry, they don't hate each other.", His mother tried to calm him down.
"But why are they fighting then?""It's part of your exam. Don't worry, everything will be okay tomorrow."
Sayuri wanted to do something to me tomorrow, Sasuke remembered. Nothing should happen to her.
"It's strange that Sayuri can hold out for so long.", His father said lost in thought.
"She has improved like Shisui", his mother replied proudly, "She is just as stubborn as her mother".
"But if they keep attacking each other like this, their chances of becoming chunin will decrease."
When he said that, there was silence in the arena for a short time, then something about their fighting style had changed, but Sasuke couldn't say what.

~ Arena ~

The sky was on fire, in the east it was already sinking into darkness when Sayuri and Itachi faced each other. They grow heavily for air.
None had gained the upper hand in the course of the fight and it was not over yet.
They took a deep breath and collided again when Sayuri was suddenly black. Eyes went black.
~ Hospital[Konoha-Gakure]~

Itachis woke up with a biting headache. When he tried to open his eyes, he looked into Sayuris. She was lying next to him and also seemed to have just woken up.
Where are we? In the hospital?
"Congratulations both of you!", The voice of her Senseis boomed in his ears and he winced, "You knocked each other out!"
"Who won?" It sounded like a Biebsen what Itachi produced. The only thing he could think of was who had won.
"None," Shisui replied, "you fell unconscious at the same time."
Eyes wide open, the two studied each other before a wave of headaches hit them.
"But you fought well. The princes were impressed with you. They demand that you become chunin."
Itachi stopped listening. He kept looking at Sayuri. The deepest hatred seized him.

~ Office of the Hokage[Konoha-Gakure]~

"I can congratulate you," said the Hokage solemnly, "The princes were so enthusiastic about you that they insisted on declaring you to be Chunins."Sayuri gave Itachi a smile that he didn't return.
They were called to the Hokagen after they were allowed to leave the hospital.
"You two are the only ones who have made this ascent and it is your age. You must not disappoint me and your village!"
"We won't!", Sayuri replied resolutely, but Itachi was silent.
What was going on in his head?

~ Park[Konoha-Gakure]~

The sun had already given over to the moon and darkness ruled the night.
The birds and most of the people had already gone to sleep.
Sayuri ... Itachi thought. Since the third exam, Hakyo's words kept running through his mind.
The final ... they were equally strong. Why? Why wasn't he better than her? What did he have to do?
The questions consumed him, they tormented him. He couldn't think clearly anymore.
He drew his kunai and pricked a tree with it. Over and over again.
"Why?" He shouted.