Hunting Grounds

Zen awoke in what he assumed to be the early part of the morning, though it was impossible for him to really tell considering the sky was covered in storm clouds. It had been raining non-stop since the day before, only now it was more than a drizzle of rain.  It was now a downpour, he had been lucky in the fact that he had found some shelter on high ground the night before. Looking at the forest floor around him and seeing flooding in a majority of the area. Zen would look through his gear that he had left with him, he had used more arrows than he would have liked again the pair that had ambushed him and Emiki and to top it all off he was down his partner. The girl went and got herself hurt to the point she withdrew herself and now he was left alone with no relic, he kicked himself for not just leaving the girl after she had gotten captured at least then he would of still had his relic. If he had not tried to be a hero and saved Emiki he could have gotten away with the relic and been long gone before they had know, but that's what he got for thinking about someone else instead of just worrying about himself like he should have. He had been trying to track the pair but now with the forest all but flooded it would be impossible for him to find them, his only hope now was to somehow find two relics and get into the next part of the competition then he would get his revenge on the pair. Once he was ready he headed out, looking for any sign of another person or persons he could sense with his chakra sense.

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-1 cp for sensing Technique (250m range)
49/50

Quarashibanzai marched through the muddy forrest. The young man was wearing a pair of lime green shades and his pink hair was messy and moppy. The lad was shivering although he tried not to show it. The injuries he had sustained from earlier were slowing him down but they paled in comparison to the emotional injury he had suffered earlier. His own partner, Yoshitsune, had stripped him of his relic and his possessions. The young man gave an exasperated cry and punched a few trees in impotence as he marched around the area looking for easy prey. He doubted that he'd find anyone worth jumping but he wasn't going to give up so easily. Little did he know, he had just entered the sensory range of another down on his luck genin.

A smile would form on the boy's face when the chakra signature entered his range, instantly he would change his direction toward the source. The boy did not question why there was a lone signature out in this area where everyone was paired together, he only had one thing on his mind and that was too find two relics and move to the next part of the exams. It would only take him a few seconds to reach the source of the chakra signature, even moving slowly to avoid drawing attention and keeping himself out of sight to maintain the element of surprise. High in the tree top Zen would look down upon his prey as he readied his bow by notching an arrow, the pink haired boy was trudging through the mud. It looked as though this boy was having some trouble of his own, Zen would wonder why he chose to walk through the mud rather than the trees.

Zen would loose his arrow aiming it so that it would land in the mud directly in front of the boy right where the he was about to step before quickly notching another arrow as he called down to the boy, "Just stop right there. Put your relics on the ground, then turn yourself around and leave. Do that and there will be no trouble."

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-1 sensory

Thunk!

An arrow fell right in front of Q. He looked at it and traced its path to the source. He saw a young kid with a bow telling him to leave his relic and leave or there'd be no trouble. The cocky pseduo intellectual grinned and half-heartedly made a few seals. He wasn't really in the mood to fight but with the way Zen had called him out he pretty much had no choice but to gear up for some action. He didn't feel like lying about his success though, he was much too tired for that and given that this archer appeared to be alone maybe it might lead to something more interesting than a fight.

I don't have any relics dickhead. My partner stole mine and paired up with someone else....how about you hand over your relics before things get ugly....that is unless your partner ALSO stabbed you in the back and took yours too

Zens resolve would waver slightly at the other boys words, he thought his day had gone bad, but to be betrayed by your own teammate was as low as you could get. Zen knew it was entirely possible that the boy was lying to him, but there was something in his words that seemed to ring with truth.

"My partner didn't betray me she was just an idiot, ended up knocking herself out and causing the loss of our relic. Now I'm trying to find my own way to pass this exam, though it would seem as though I picked the wrong prey." Zen would lower his bow as he spoke, though kept the arrow notched in case he ended up needing it and his eye kept close watch for any trickery from the boy. Zen would blame Emiki for the loss of their piece, as in his eyes it was the girl's fault. Had Emiki not stupidly ran herself into a tree, and had actually tried to even remotely help him deal with the pair Zen felt confident in the fact that they would have beaten them and had both relics in their possession. Instead he faced them alone, risked his life to try and save her and got nothing to show for it other than the bruise on his chest. Of course the boy wouldn't feel the need to share all this with the boy, however he did feel as though he could use the other boys help. Though he doubt it would be as easy as asking the boy to team up, considering he had just been betrayed by his previous partner. Though he might be able to appeal to the other boys intellectual side, Zen just hoped that this boy was smarter than Emiki and this wouldn't all be a waste of time. "If what you say is true then there would be nothing for either of us to gain from fighting each other, but perhaps there is a way we could help each other."

Provided the other boy heard Zen out and did not attack him, Zen would lower his bow and drop down a few branches to get closer to the boy, but stayed far enough back that he could get away if he needed to before he continued. "I'm a sensor that's how I found you. I'm sure that I can find others once I get within range of them, we can work together defeat whoever it is and get their relics. Then the two of us can completely this survival exam, move on to the next stage, and then go our separate ways. What do you say?" Zen would continue to keep his eyes closely on the male to insure that the boy did not attempt to attack while he was talking, even at this close range Zen felt that he could get a shot off if it came to it.

Q laughed when Zen dissed his partner for being an idiot. Apparently, he was also going solo as his partner had been knocked unconscious. Quarashibanzai doubted the kid was lying. After all, he himself was injured and it made little sense for Zen to spin such a weird yarn when he could just fight Q and loot him. It appeared as though they had both been screwed over by their partners. Zen was screwed out of sheer incompetence and Q was screwed out of malice.  The brash pink-head replied.

"Nah, you picked the wrong predator" he retorted.

He wasn't Zen's prey, Zen was HIS prey. The man removed his lime green shades and wiped them as Zen proposed his idea. He was correct in that they had nothing to gain from fighting each other. Q was already injured and in pain, if he wasted precious energy fighting a man without a relic he'd be a bigger knob than Zenaku Uchiha.  The archer was also a sensor which would prove quite useful. They didn't have much time left and aimlessly wandering the Forrest looking for prey was bound to be a foolhardy errand. Also, everyone would be teamed up except for him which meant that forming an alliance was the most logical thing to do. The idea was smart but required trust, a currency that he had come to believe was counterfeit when it came to the exams.

I don't have to trust this rando. I just need to make him think he can trust me.

Q smirked.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one with a frontal lobe in this exam. Deal. Name's Quarashibanzai" He slipped his shades back on and walked over to the archer.

Things were starting to turn for Zen, the pink haired boy would agree to working together. Introducing himself and walking forward, Zen returned his bow to his holster before dropping to the ground and extending his hand to the boy. "The name's Zen,"

A sudden alarm blares off in the distance before an announcement came stating the end of the exams, "Son of a...." Was all Zen would say before looking to Q, "looks like they beat us to the gates."

{Exit}

"Mothafucka!" Q shouted as the alarms blared signaling the end of the second round. He had failed. There was no way on Earth they were going to pass him now. He had gotten all this way just to fail in the second portion. He started cursing erratically before stomping off in the direction of the gates. "Fuck em!" he shouted as he made his way out of the jungle.

Exit