Ino's POV (Back Corridors of Iron Arena - Land of Iron)
Ino followed Choza as he led her to scarcely furnished or inhabited halls of the back section of the Iron Arena. She assumed these would be used for storage, but Choza told her they would meet in the storage room. Though the man offered little other info. Ino, on the one hand, did not want to miss Naruto's match. But she was confident in the blonde, and Sakura had forgotten to contact her with updates.
Ino must admit to being somewhat unnerved. Choza was a kind and considerate man, known for his jolly disposition and patient nature. Yet now, he seemed snappish and impatient. Despite Choza's large stature, he walked at a brisk pace that she struggled to keep up with. Ino had tried to pry for details, but the man had ignored her.
Eventually, they arrived at a dusty set of double doors. Choza stood before them, scanned the area around them, and, once convinced of the lack of a second party, muttered, "Kai!"
The doors suddenly looked much less dusty. Instead, they appeared wiped down somewhat and even had lost most of the dust—clearly, having been used recently. Choza nodded her in, and Ino walked in awkwardly. The man weaved some signs reactivating the genjutsu to make the door seem undisturbed and closed them.
The room smelled of must and dust; it had been somewhat cleaned. This allowed the group to stand in the room with some level of comfort, and the walls had various tags posted to them. Old tables rested in the room, seemingly forgotten along with the room itself. On one of these tables rested a younger man with dark hair and a scowl that seemed almost similar to one Sasuke would make. Gai, Sakura's sensei, was also seemingly upset in the room.
"Sorry about the oddness of this, Ino; we gotta be careful now," Choza said apologetically. "Things have… well been complicated now. Luckily, we prepared this room for privacy. Those are privacy seals we have around the room."
"You mean have gotten completely fucked up?" Shisui countered angrily.
"Language," Gai warned with a nod toward Ino.
"Now is not the time for this Gai." Shisui countered sharply. "I think we're at the point where some cussing is the least of our concerns."
"Now, now, guys," Choza said with a sigh. "We're all considerably worried about this. No need to argue amongst ourselves." Ino glanced at the room, the tension and silence suffocating her. What had aggravated these more experienced shinobi? Had things somehow gotten worse?
"Is anyone going to tell me what's going on?" Ino asked. "I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume it's not good news…?"
Gai looked to the side, seeming conflicted and unable to speak. Shisui, someone Ino had always heard Sasuke describe as a relaxed man, was tense and seemingly looking for a reason for confrontation. Though he pointed, he kept his glare from them. Clearly, he was struggling to keep his cool.
Choza seemed to have reached the same conclusion as her, for he sighed and answered for the other two. "The Hokage has decided we cannot make a move or investigate this ourselves at the current moment. Worse yet, he has declared the knowledge of such a Village Secret."
"Wait, a village secret? Isn't that a secret that the village protects harshly?" Ino asked in disbelief.
"Violating such is considered a severe crime; it can result in significant fines, imprisonment, or even a death sentence," Shisui said bitterly. "Mikoto, current head of the Uchiha, and Tsume, head of the Inuzuka, did not take this news well. They intended to raise a fuss, were sent home, and are now under supervision. While they were spared the full consequences, it was more of a message. Speak out, and you'll be silenced. Never thought Hiruzen would do such…"
"Worse yet, the problem has grown," Gai added bitterly. "My beloved students Lee and Sakura went to the fair to inform their friends of recent disappearances. Yet no one claims to have seen them there, and they have not returned. We are assuming they are the newest victims. The Anbu have doubled their presence. While their primary objective is to ensure no more occurrences, they are also actively silencing the spread of the information. Henceforth, our meeting here. Even the Samurai seem to have forgotten this room. Though even with Youth opt, ions are limited…"
"So we're supposed to know nothing about our friends disappearing?!" Ino yelled.
"None of us are happy about it…" Choza acknowledged.
"But for better or worse, our leader has deemed this our reaction. It is not all for naught though, I must remind you all… the samurai have assured us they're looking into such." Gai tried to lift the mood, but the silence that followed was damning.
"Perhaps," Shisui acknowledged. "Can they perform the search to the level we would, though? Half of them don't even use ninjutsu. They'll be doing it the old-fashioned way. I get they have rules, but we're losing soldiers, and they have no experience in tracking shinobi. Surely, we should insist on involvement."
"Exactly!" Ino agreed indignantly. "We can't sit idly by while our own are in danger merely because the Iron are hesitant." How could the Hokage allow this? Ino had always been told Hiruzen was a fatherly and kind man who valued his people. Why do this?
"I hate to agree with Gai, but there isn't much to do now," Choza exclaimed hesitantly. "If I could tell Shikaku, perhaps we could think of a solution. But until we're home, I have no way of doing such."
"Ya, anyway, this was nice, and I really enjoyed talking about how useless we are," Shisui said sarcastically. "I'm out here. My student has a match coming up." There was a poof of air as he faded out of the room.
"I should go as well; clan heads like myself are expected to be present for matches," Choza said awkwardly as he marched out of the room. "I will, of course, offer information learned and keep in touch. Please do the same."
Gai walked by as well, offering some words to Ino.
"Try to distract yourself for now. Youth will ensure our allies are safe."
Neji's POV (Audience Section of Iron Arena - Land of Iron)
Neji could admit to his heart racing as he watched his cousin battle. When he was first inspired to tutor her, it had been out of greed and pity. Neji had figured he would slowly whip the lackluster woman into shape. Subtly influencing her to be empathetic with the side branch. A time-consuming and uninteresting venture. He had been proven wrong shortly into the arrangement. Hinata had proven capable and adaptive, given her teacher was stern but patient. Worse yet, they had proven wise and considerate. Genuinely recognizing the Side Branch as equal to the Main House. Hinata was indeed the future of the Hyuga.
Yet now he watched as the woman he suspected would catch up to him one day raced around Gaara, unleashing a string of her best taijutsu from all angles. The speed and skill required to do such would make Neji struggle. Trying to use speed and constant switching of angles to bypass his sand. Despite her efforts, Gaara quickly defended himself without even moving. Hinata's forms were flawless and unpredictable; she frequently changed levels and used gentle fists to ensure even a single blow landed would be devastating. 'Can Gaara be beaten… it's like he's on a completely different level…'
"Impressive; it may seem she is simply charging in, but she is testing just how good his defenses are. I wonder if she'll use that technique?" Sai commentated plainly.
"Sheesh, she hasn't started in earnest, and she's that good?" Tenten remarked. "No wonder you lost to her."
"Indeed." Sai agreed easily. Missing Tenten rolled her eyes at him, missing her attempted teasing. Their conversation was amusing, but it did not settle Neji's nerves.
"Gaara is holding back, playing with her; she must try something soon. Before he can take her seriously." Neji added. The other two glanced at the other, then back at Neji.
"Isn't family supposed to support each other regardless of circumstance?" Sai asked.
"I merely wish for her to be efficient to ensure her safety." Neji countered.
"She's not some damsel in distress." Tenten snapped back. "Perhaps she'll surprise you." Sai was earnestly confused, and Tenten, the spirited woman, had always felt the need to contest his doubt.
"His concern seems warranted." Sai chimed in. "Jinchuriki is a threat regardless of their own skill level. With incredible chakra reserves, inhuman durability, and an assortment of unique abilities depending on the beast, they shouldn't even be involved in these exams. I imagine Danzo would have a heart attack."
"That would also contain people like Naruto." Neji pointed out with a glare.
"I think he meant more psychotic ones like the redhead down there." Tenten mediated. Neji pulled back his anger a bit.
"Was what I said ill-put?" Sai asked genuinely.
"More like ill-considered," Tenten amended. "Besides, we all know you're worried, Neji, but there's no way Hinata will get killed. Kakashi is down there after all."
"I hope so," Neji said grimly. "Otherwise, I'll kill Gaara myself…"
He may have doubted Hinata before, but she had proven herself to be an heir he should support. Now, it seemed that the same wonderful woman was facing a monster. Neji was still determining if even he could best. But Neji was confident he would refrain from sitting idly by and allowing the future of the Hyuga to be tainted. And if it did, he would ensure the cost was significant…