Outside the Forest of Death.
Twenty-one participating teams were scattered sparsely outside the main gate, quietly awaiting the second head proctor, Mitarashi Anko, to issue the start command for the exam.
"Seventh Entrance," Izuno Akigiku said in a low voice, returning from the lot drawing.
Naruto withdrew his gaze and nodded slightly. The rules for the second exam were quite reasonable—there were no rules. The mission was singular: collect one Heaven Scroll and one Earth Scroll. The proctors had just given them a Heaven Scroll, meaning that as long as they could snatch an Earth Scroll from another team and reach the central tower, this part of the exam would be considered passed.
Izuno Akigiku and Kaminarimon Etsureki also felt a wave of relief. They had genuinely feared the second exam might be as bizarre as the first. Although, from a practical standpoint, the difficulty of the second exam would undoubtedly far exceed the first, they had confidence in themselves, and even more confidence in Naruto.
"Examinees for the Seventh Entrance, follow me!" a proctor called out.
The three of them quickly followed.
Upon reaching the Seventh Entrance, the trio turned their gaze towards the Amegakure examinees at the Eighth Entrance on the other side. The current straight-line distance between them was only about a hundred meters. This meant that, with a bit of speed and luck, they could advance directly. At this thought, Izuno Akigiku and Kaminarimon Etsureki couldn't help but grin.
"That disgusting expression, do they think they've got us all figured out? How interesting, truly interesting…" The Amegakure ninjas weren't blind to such obvious expressions. They exchanged glances. Coincidentally, they were thinking the exact same thing.
Their eyes met, and all six of them understood each other's intentions.
Time ticked by, second by second.
Clank!
"You may enter," the proctor said, pushing open the entrance gate.
Swish, swish, swish!
Both teams' desire for a real-life encounter was incredibly strong!
The hundred-meter distance vanished in an instant. The leading Amegakure ninja looked at the youthful faces opposite him and smirked cruelly; this wasn't his first Chunin Exam. He had his own standards for judging whether opponents were seasoned veterans or not.
"Three rookies fresh out of the Ninja Academy! Our chance has come!"
Hearing this, his companions all broke into smiles. After participating in so many Chunin Exams, had their luck finally turned?
When the distance between the two teams was merely a few meters…
Shhh-shhh-shhh!
Kunai with exploding tags tied to their ends became the opening gifts exchanged between the two sides. The violent explosions startled the nearby birds into flight.
Within the settling dust, one figure suddenly accelerated.
Drawing his sword from its sheath, Naruto's gaze sharpened, locking onto a red dot. Amidst the smoke, his form moved like a phantom; the three Amegakure ninjas couldn't track his movements at all.
Puchi!
The familiar sensation of a blade piercing flesh told him: first enemy—eliminated!
"Damn it!" The faces of the two remaining Amegakure ninjas changed drastically. They frantically hurled ninja tools from their pouches.
Clang, clang, clang!
Naruto held his long sword horizontally before him, deflecting with light flicks, sending all the shuriken careening away. Suddenly, he leaped high, his body like a striking hawk, his long sword raised high, locking onto one Amegakure ninja and cleaving down viciously.
Puchi!
[Perching Eagle Slash!]
"Lightning Release: Static Charge!" "Feline Pelt Technique!"
Izuno Akigiku and Kaminarimon Etsureki hadn't been idle either. Under their combined assault, the last Amegakure ninja perished on the spot.
"Our luck is good—an Earth Scroll!" After a quick search, Izuno Akigiku excitedly held up the scroll in her hand.
"Let's go. Target: the Central Tower!" Naruto nodded slightly.
The Forest of Death had borne its name even before it was converted into a Chunin Exam site, and not because of the examinees within. Birds of prey, venomous insects, a harsh living environment… Death for the examinees didn't necessarily come from opposing ninjas.
A few minutes later, at the site of the battle, three ninjas wearing Kusagakure headbands cautiously approached.
"Hey, hey, hey! Are you kidding me?!! We rushed over as soon as we heard the noise…" Looking at the Amegakure corpses on the ground, one Kusagakure ninja's face paled dramatically.
"Is there anyone else nearby?" The thought of fishing in troubled waters instantly vanished. The most important task now was how to survive an encounter with such monstrously strong opponents.
A red-haired female Kusagakure ninja closed her eyes to sense for a moment, then shook her head slightly.
"Go! Let's get out of here immediately!" The Kusagakure team leader let out a small sigh of relief. Such a large commotion would undoubtedly attract more than just their team.
15:57 in the afternoon, Central Tower of the Forest of Death.
Naruto's team of three pushed open the door and entered, looking at the empty hall with satisfied nods.
"If there is no Heaven…" Izuno Akigiku looked at the calligraphy hanging in the center of the hall and read it out softly.
Naruto, however, directed his gaze to the signature at the end of the script—Sandaime.
[The Old Man's writing…]
"It's missing some key content," Kaminarimon Etsureki said, rubbing his chin.
"Let's open the Heaven and Earth scrolls and see," Naruto said after scanning the calligraphy.
"Actually, on the way here, I thought more than once about opening them to see what was inside," Etsureki said with a sheepish grin.
"Ninja regulations: one must not casually peek at confidential items!" Izuno Akigiku slapped his arm good-naturedly.
"That's why I didn't dare open them, right?" Etsureki muttered under his breath, then unrolled the two scrolls.
"'Person'?" Looking at the large character for "人" written on the scrolls, Etsureki quickly tossed them away. "Exam props with a summoning jutsu written on them? Are you kidding us?"
Poof!
A cloud of white smoke erupted.
As the smoke slowly dissipated, revealing a figure, Naruto's expression froze for a moment.
"Iruka-sensei?" Izuno Akigiku exclaimed in surprise. Although they weren't in the same class as Naruto, Iruka had also taught their classes. Among all the teachers, Iruka's teaching ability and temperament were top-notch. Though he wasn't their homeroom teacher, he was deeply etched in their memories.
"Long time no see." Iruka looked at the three of them, his face full of gratification. In just a short six months, they had already caught up to him. "Honestly, I'm quite gratified."
"Well, look who taught us!" Izuno Akigiku said with a mischievous grin.
"Hahaha…" Hearing this, Iruka couldn't help but laugh. The three genin also exchanged smiles.
"Children, congratulations on passing the second exam," Iruka said to the three after composing himself. "I suppose I'm your receptionist and guide now. As someone who has been through this, I will explain to you the meaning of being a Chunin."
"The Third Hokage's calligraphy above outlines the spirit and qualities a Chunin needs to possess…"
A few minutes later, Iruka slowly finished his explanation. He looked at them with expectant eyes and encouraged them, "I hope you will continue to strive forward and redouble your efforts!"
"Yes, sir!" the three chorused.
Watching their figures disappear around the corner, Iruka touched his own face and murmured, "They've grown up, and I've gotten older…"
Clack! Turning to look at the Sand trio strolling in, Iruka resumed his familiar role.
Central Tower Monitoring Room.
The head proctor, Mitarashi Anko, rubbed her faintly aching neck and said to the two ANBU operatives, "It's been confirmed to be Orochimaru himself."
"You…" An ANBU operative wearing a white mask with red markings was just about to speak when another proctor suddenly burst through the door.
"What is it?" Mitarashi Anko frowned slightly.
Being stared at by three jonin, two of whom were from the Assassination and Tactical Special Operations unit, the proctor couldn't help but swallow hard.
"My deepest apologies, but please, you absolutely must watch this videotape!" The proctor quickly inserted the tape in his hand into the machine. "Please note the time here!"
"15:57… less than 90 minutes after the exam started?!" Mitarashi Anko's expression changed drastically. Among previous examinees, the fastest record was four hours. Were this year's candidates trying to defy the heavens?
The three figures on the screen… were Naruto's team.