The Second Exam Ends

"Sasuke! Don't do that!" I said weakly from the ground. "Can you help me up first?"

Sasuke paused, then smiled. "Heh, even a genius girl like Sakura ends up on the ground sometimes?"

This guy definitely eavesdropped on our conversation!

But as he smiled, the black cloud patterns on his body slowly faded... and Sasuke recovered from his violent, aggressive mood! That powerful Chakra slowly dissipated as well.

Seeing that Sasuke had stopped provoking him and returned to normal, Neji frowned and left.

"Phew... what happened to me?"

"That's something Orochimaru, the man we fought yesterday, left on you...! Anyway, let me rest first. I'll explain it to you after Naruto wakes up! Sasuke, sorry for the trouble!"

I had only meant to rest for a while, but as soon as I lay down, I fell asleep...!

Meanwhile, in the tower at the center of the Forest of Death...

Anko, who had encountered Orochimaru and made a futile suicidal attack on him, had been rescued by the Anbu and was now reporting to Lord Third.

"...So Orochimaru appeared in the Forest of Death too?" the Third said in a dignified voice, blowing out a puff of smoke.

"That's right. I found signs of a battle by the river. A large area of forest had been destroyed by an unidentified release technique, and there were also traces of large-scale destruction from Fire Style, Wind Release, and Snake Release at the scene. It looked like Orochimaru had been fighting an unidentified ninja team... I followed the traces of Snake Release and sure enough, I ran into Orochimaru... Ugh, damn it!"

"Orochimaru... he's one of the Sannin!" one of the Hokage's guards interjected. "Even the Anbu don't dare touch him! But... I heard he died a long time ago!"

"Did he have a reason for appearing in the Forest of Death?" another guard asked.

Orochimaru's words flashed through Anko's mind: I want... that Uchiha child!

"Maybe..." Anko hesitated.

"Perhaps it was because of Sasuke! Orochimaru... has an unusual interest in the Uchiha's powerful bloodline!" Lord Third said without hesitation. "If I'm not mistaken, the traces of battle should be from that team fighting Orochimaru!"

"Sasuke?" "That team?" Anko and the two Hokage guards asked in some confusion.

"Team Kakashi's three-person squad, the team Sasuke is on! And the so-called unidentified release technique is actually that technique..." Lord Hokage walked to the window and gazed into the distance, toward the far end of the Forest of Death. He seemed to see the traces left by that battle. "That newly emerged S-rank Water Release..."

"Do you mean the Water Blade Technique series of Water Release techniques?"

"A newly emerged S-rank Water Release?" Anko asked, puzzled. "S-rank... no wonder its destructive power was astonishing!"

"That's right, an S-rank Water Release that consumes a lot and has tremendous power, but it's extremely difficult," the other Hokage guard said in admiration. "I never expected a Genin to have mastered it!"

"That's hardly surprising. It would be strange if she couldn't master it..." the Third Hokage said with a faint smile. "After all, the Genin who used that technique-"

"-is also the one who developed it!"

"None of the three members of Team Kakashi are ordinary!"

By a river in the Forest of Death.

A cool breeze blew gently, clear water rushed past, birds and beasts called, and the aroma of food wafted through the air.

"Smells so good!" The aroma woke me, and I sat up, feeling a hollow ache in my stomach. I looked up at the sun. It was already noon; apparently, I had slept the whole morning. Picking up the jacket Sasuke had draped over me, I walked toward the river.

"Sakura! You're awake!" Naruto, bare-chested in the water, waved and shouted to me. "Come help me catch fish! We're having grilled fish for lunch!"

With a splash, two other Narutos emerged from the water holding two big fish. "Haha, we caught two more big ones!"

"Dummy! With a Water Release ninja like me here, do you still need to get in the water to catch fish?" I said with a smile. "Naruto, come out first!"

"Sasuke, watch closely! This is the super Ninjutsu I created!"

Hearing that, Sasuke, who was grilling fish on the bank, looked over with considerable interest.

I quickly formed Hand Seals and shouted:

"Secret Technique: Underwater Fish-Catching Technique!"

Splash! More than a dozen tentacle-like streams of water rose from the river, each grabbing a big fish and flinging it onto the bank!

"Wow! Amazing! You caught more than a dozen at once, way more than before!"

"Are you and Naruto both idiots?! Don't go developing weird Ninjutsu for no reason!" Sasuke had expected a powerful B-rank or even A-rank Ninjutsu, and the huge letdown made him blurt out a loud complaint!

"Sasuke, what's wrong with that? Ninjutsu is meant to be used!" Naruto protested, caught in the crossfire. "Besides, my Harem Jutsu is a super Ninjutsu that even beat Lord Hokage-Grandpa Third!"

Wait-

A sudden bad feeling came over me, and a chill rose in my heart-

"Naruto, I haven't seen your Harem Jutsu yet!" The smile on my face must have looked as fake as could be. "Could you use it once and show me?"

"Huh? You're interested in that technique too, Sakura?" Naruto scratched his head with a goofy grin. "All right! Watch this!"

"Wait-" Sasuke's expression suddenly changed. "Don't use it in front of Sakura-"

"-too late, Sasuke Uchiha!"

"Harem Jutsu!" As a cloud of smoke cleared, the hundreds of Shadow Clones Naruto had created turned into hundreds of beautiful women, each different and charming in her own way, with a perfect figure!

Naruto Uzumaki! Your talent is truly astounding! You're even stronger than in the original story—you actually transformed into different beauties at the same time! Not only is every one of them gorgeous and curvaceous, with a distinct air, they're all stark naked, and yet their private parts are hidden by mist. With that kind of half-hidden allure, never mind those two old perverts, the Third and Jiraiya-even an ordinary, normal man would be defeated by your technique! Before I transmigrated, I definitely would have loved it! No-even now, if it weren't for the problem here, I'd really appreciate it!

But as Sakura Haruno, I have a question about this technique of yours-

"Naruto, I have a question for you. Why..." The fake smile slowly vanished from my face. "Does one of the clones here look so much like me?"

"Because that's you!" Naruto actually hadn't realized he was already in deep trouble!

"Idiot!!! Don't say it out loud!!! We're doomed!!!"

My rage overflowed! The veins on my forehead felt ready to burst!

I slammed my fist into the still-smug Naruto, sending him flying into the air!

"Na-ru-to U-zu-ma-ki! Don't run! Get back here!"

"If I don't run, I'll die!"

"...Water Release: Super Water Line Technique!"

"Whoa! Sakura, getting hit by a dangerous technique like that could really kill me!"

"Get over here! I promise I won't beat you to death!"

"I'm not that stupid! Sasuke! Help!"

Sasuke felt countless beads of cold sweat run down his forehead. "Those two... idiots!"

"If you ever dare add my likeness to that technique of yours again, I'll definitely kill you!" After teaching Naruto a lesson, I felt refreshed as I threatened him fiercely.

Beside me, Naruto, who had several large bumps on his head from the beating, muttered weakly, "What the heck! No wonder nobody likes Sakura when she's so fierce and violent!"

Although his voice was faint, I still heard him! The veins on my forehead bulged again, and I forced down my anger. "Nonsense! There are plenty of people who like a beautiful, gentle, powerful girl like me!"

I grabbed a grilled fish and shoved it into Naruto's mouth, cutting off his complaints. "Eat your food! No talking!"

"Mmph-!"

Sasuke watched from the side, smiling without a word!

After eating the grilled fish, we continued along the river.

"Sakura," Sasuke suddenly said, "tell us what happened while we have the chance!"

"All right. Naruto, listen carefully too." I paused to arrange my thoughts. "The one who attacked us yesterday afternoon was Orochimaru. He used to be one of Konoha's Sannin. He defected after he was caught abducting people in the village to research forbidden techniques..."

"The wound he left on your neck," I said, staring at Sasuke, "isn't an ordinary wound... it's a forbidden technique he researched!"

"Hmph!" Sasuke couldn't help covering his neck. "No wonder I feel pain whenever I use the Sharingan..."

"Apparently, Orochimaru researched forbidden techniques to gain immortality... so he developed a forbidden technique that could transfer his soul into someone else's body, keeping himself young forever!"

"So that's... what Orochimaru meant when he said he wanted me? I can't believe there's such an evil Ninjutsu!"

"Don't worry. Even Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, wouldn't dare snatch someone from the village! Besides..." I gazed deeply into Sasuke's black eyes. "The Sharingan's power isn't something Orochimaru can easily stand against!"

"That's right, that's right! And we're here too! As long as we train hard, next time we'll definitely beat that slimy guy flat!" Naruto said, clenching his fist!

"Hmph." Sasuke smiled proudly. "The Sharingan...!"

"As long as we're still in the village, Orochimaru won't make a move on Sasuke anytime soon..."

"But never mind that for now. How are we going to collect the scrolls? Come to think of it, our luck has been terrible. We'd just beaten three Rain Ninja when Orochimaru attacked us before we could collect their scroll. Then this morning I beat three Sound Ninja and took their scroll, but I didn't expect theirs to be [Earth], the same as ours!"

"In that case, can't we just find a team with a [] scroll, beat them, and take it?"

"It's not that simple, Naruto..." Sasuke said in a low voice. "Because of the mark Orochimaru left on me, I can't use my Sharingan now, and I've only recovered a little Chakra... As for Sakura, judging by how you were moving when you were fooling around with Naruto, you're pretty badly hurt too, aren't you? Even if it was just a joke, that Water Release of yours was too weak. That's not like you!"

"That's right," I said helplessly. "I only have about a third of my usual Chakra left, and I don't have enough stamina for a major fight! Worse, I'm injured in a lot of places, and I'm only keeping myself going with Water Release! In other words, Naruto, you're the only one of us three still at full fighting strength!"

Sasuke and I looked at Naruto at the same time!

"Is that so?" Faced with my trusting gaze, Naruto broke into a radiant smile. "Then leave it to me!"

"You two are always stealing the spotlight! That won't do! This time, it's your turn to watch my back!"

"Open your eyes wide and watch! I, Naruto Uzumaki, am strong too!"

"I'm definitely taking a [] scroll!"

"In that case, let's head straight for the tower!" Sasuke changed direction and faced the tower at the center of the forest. "The closer we get to the tower, the more likely we are to run into enemies!"

"Naruto... we're counting on you for everything!"

The afternoon of the fourth day after entering the Forest of Death.

"Aah!" Naruto screamed as a Sand shinobi's puppet knocked him to the ground!

The masked Sand shinobi stepped forward and planted his foot hard on Naruto's head, looking at us standing opposite him. "Aren't you Konoha people supposed to be the most united? How can you stand there doing nothing while your comrade gets beaten? Hahaha! Have you been scared stiff already, brats?"

"Idiot, take a good look under your foot!" Sasuke smiled contemptuously.

"Naruto, show him what you can do!" I shouted.

Poof! The Naruto beneath the Sand shinobi's foot turned into a cloud of smoke!

"What?!" the three Sand shinobi exclaimed in surprise!

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

Three Narutos used the Ninjutsu from the side at the same time! The gale swept the three Sand shinobi into the air and slammed them hard against the trees!

"You really overestimated yourselves!" I walked over and looked down at the Sand shinobi, who had been knocked senseless. "Now, hand over your [] scroll!"

"Y-yes, we'll give it to you right now. Please don't kill us!"

After getting the [] scroll, we went straight toward the tower without stopping. Along the way, we encountered only one enemy ambush using Genjutsu. After I taught them a lesson with a Water Gun Technique, we met no other enemies and made it safely into the tower.

Beneath Lord Third's written reflections on being a Chunin, we opened the [] and [Earth] scrolls-

"Hi!"

As the smoke cleared, a familiar Chunin appeared before us-

"Congratulations on passing the second exam, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura!"

"Iruka-sensei!"

"...Those are the Third Hokage's reflections on being a Chunin. You must always keep them in mind!" Iruka explained to Naruto and Sasuke. "You've successfully passed the second exam, but..."

"In the third exam that comes next, make sure you don't push yourselves beyond your limits, especially you, Naruto..."

"Iruka-sensei," Naruto said, pointing his thumb at his Forehead Protector, "don't worry! You gave me this Forehead Protector yourself!"

"Although I still have all kinds of shortcomings!" Naruto's voice was full of determination and confidence. "Although I still like making a lot of noise, I'm not a child anymore!"

"Now, I'm a ninja!"

"That's right! Iruka-sensei," I said with a smile, "Naruto and the rest of us are all qualified ninja now! Please don't worry!"

"Is that so, Naruto, Sakura..."

A gratified smile appeared on Iruka-sensei's face!

"Then do your best!"

After resting in the tower for a while, on the afternoon of the fifth day.

"First... congratulations on successfully passing the second exam!" said the sickly-looking Gekko Hayate to us, the examinees who had passed. "Second, before the third exam, all examinees must... first take part in a preliminary round to determine whether you're qualified to enter the third exam!"

"...Those are the rules for the preliminaries!"

As Gekko Hayate finished his explanation, a screen slowly opened-

"Now, the names of the two opponents in the first match!"

"Sasuke Uchiha vs. Yoroi Akado!"

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