The next day, Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto met up and headed to the site of the second stage of the Chūnin Exams.
Sakura was extremely nervous—she was even biting her fingernails!
"Hey, Forehead," Naruto called out.
She turned toward him with a frown.
"Drop the attitude already, it's annoying!" Naruto didn't hesitate to slap her on the back.
Sakura reached for her back in pain… or tried to, at least. She didn't quite make it.
"Why did you hit me?!" she demanded indignantly.
Off to the side, Sasuke smirked in amusement.
"To snap you out of it," Naruto replied casually, hands already tucked into his pockets as he walked on.
Still annoyed, Sakura moved to walk beside Sasuke, scowling.
Unbeknownst to her, a note stuck to her back read "Kick me," with a big arrow pointing at her butt.
Noticing it, Sasuke had to cover her mouth to stifle a laugh.
For a moment… she actually wondered whether she should kick her or not!
What Sasuke didn't know… was that she had an identical note on her own back.
In front of them stood the Forest of Death, also known as Training Ground Forty-Four.
It was a circular forest, extremely dense, with a diameter of 314 square kilometers.
Around it stood a tall metal fence with forty-four gates spaced evenly around the perimeter, all facing the tower at the center of the forest.
Of course, any ninja could jump over it easily; the fence existed only to prevent civilians from accidentally wandering in… and meeting a gruesome death.
After all, it wasn't called the Forest of Death for nothing.
It was a deadly place, teeming with oversized, poisonous, or otherwise dangerous flora and fauna.
Shifting his attention from the forest, Naruto caught sight of a head of bright red hair.
He spotted Karin surrounded by Kusagakure ninjas and considered approaching her, but in the end, decided against it.
He'd keep an eye on her during the second test and help her if she was in danger.
One thing was certain…
Karin wasn't going back to Kusagakure after the Chūnin Exams.
And he wouldn't let her return to Orochimaru either.
Standing in front of all the Genin participating in the second test, Anko began to speak.
"This is where the second test will be held: Training Ground Forty-Four, the Forest of Death."
"You'll soon find out why it's called the Forest of Death."
She was trying to scare them.
Naruto just snorted in amusement and turned to Sakura, who had clearly been affected by the attempt.
"Don't worry, Sakura. It's just a regular forest, with a few weird plants and animals."
Anko glanced sideways at him; she'd clearly heard that.
"Oh? You seem pretty confident…"
She pulled a kunai from her sleeve and hurled it at him.
Naruto didn't flinch or move. He just looked at her with a slight smile.
The kunai grazed his cheek, passing dangerously close and embedding itself in the ground.
Anko smiled and vanished, reappearing behind Naruto in an instant.
She had used the Body Flicker Technique.
From behind, Anko grabbed Naruto's face and stared into his eyes.
"Cocky kids like you are the first to die, bleeding the kind of blood I love to see…" she whispered, eyeing the thin cut on his cheek.
But then her eyes widened in surprise.
"What blood?" Naruto asked, brushing a hand over his cheek.
His healing factor was ridiculous—the cut had closed before it could even bleed.
And, of course, Naruto had let her land the hit in the first place.
Anko couldn't hurt him even if she tried to attack while he was taking a dump.
"Tch. You're no fun," she clicked her tongue and turned to retrieve her kunai.
But Naruto's voice stopped her.
"Looking for this? I already picked it up for you…"
Anko frowned and took it from him begrudgingly. She hadn't even seen him move.
That's when she realized… the kid she had just tried to provoke wasn't as simple as he looked.
Back at the front of the crowd, Naruto glanced at a Genin from Otogakure.
"Looks like Orochimaru's already made his move…" he thought.
He'd have to stay sharp during the second test. There was no room for mistakes.
"Seriously though, what's with the examiner? I could see her boobs bounce when she appeared behind me…"
He turned to Sasuke and Sakura and asked.
"Y-You…" Sakura blushed, unable to find words.
Sasuke blushed too, though she hid it perfectly.
"You're an idiot," was all she said.
Naruto recalled the feeling of Anko's chest pressed against his back and quickly shook his head, trying to erase the memory.
Several meters away, Hinata stared at him, pouting.
Naruto shrugged and refocused on Anko.
He'd make it up to Hinata later.
"Before we begin the second test, I need to hand these out," Anko said, pulling a stack of papers from her jacket.
Naruto remembered them—Consent Forms.
To participate in the second test, ninjas had to sign a form releasing the examiners from all responsibility in the event of their death.
Anko also showed them a map of the Forest of Death.
"The second test is a free-for-all. Half the teams will get a Scroll of Heaven, the other half, a Scroll of Earth."
"Each team must fight to obtain the other scroll. The goal is to reach the tower at the center of the forest with both scrolls."
"W-We really have to kill each other…?" Sakura asked with a trembling voice.
"Stay out of the fighting. Sasuke and I will handle it. You're a medical ninja, remember? You don't need to be on the front lines."
He wanted to reassure her, seeing how nervous she was.
Unlike the original Sakura, this one hadn't witnessed Naruto and Sasuke nearly dying during the Land of Waves mission.
She hadn't built up that same tolerance to death yet.
But Naruto was sure she would, soon enough.
As a medic ninja, it was important that she did.
"You have 120 hours to complete this test. Five full days."
"What about food?!" he shouted, horrified.
Naruto burst out laughing.
Anko rolled her eyes.
"The forest is full of food. Be self-sufficient, chubby."
Chōji scowled and glared at her.
"You're full of fat too!" Naruto yelled, pointing at Anko's chest.
She blushed furiously and glared at him.
"Where the hell do you think you're pointing, brat?!"
Beside him, Sakura couldn't help herself and smacked him on the head.
Naruto took the hit without complaint.
He admitted it… he deserved that one.
But he just couldn't resist the urge.
Besides, it had pissed him off when Anko called Chōji chubby.
From a distance, Chōji gave him a thumbs-up in thanks.
Naruto returned the gesture.
"Lastly, a bit of advice… Don't die."
"What a crappy piece of advice."
Anko shot him a deadly glare.
Naruto just laughed at her reaction.