chsdbacks Chapter 398 Gaara's Provocation
Chapter 398 Gaara's Provocation
Chapter 398 Gaara's Provocation
The forty-eight genin candidates who passed the first written exam stopped in front of a huge iron gate, led by Mitarashi Anko.
It was a five-meter-high, rusted iron gate, with heavy chains wrapped around it, the links of which were as thick as an adult's arm.
A dozen examiners stood in front of the iron gate, flanked by towering walls of barbed wire that stretched to the left and right, seemingly without end.
The wire mesh was covered with dark green vines, and the foundation was covered with moss, indicating that it had been there for many years.
A wooden sign hung on the door, with a prominent warning written in red paint:
Training Ground No. 44, also known as the Forest of Death, is rated A in danger level.
The words "Death Forest" are written in a brighter red, with messy and grotesque handwriting, as if written in blood. Entry is strictly prohibited without permission.
"We've arrived." Mitarashi Anko turned around to face the examinees, a smug smile on her face. "Welcome to the examination hall for the second exam—Training Ground No. 44, also known as the 'Forest of Death'."
As she spoke, she raised her hand and patted the rusty iron gate, making a dull sound.
"As you can see, this is a closed training ground, covering a radius of twenty kilometers, completely surrounded by this wall." Hongdou put her hands on her hips and glanced at every face.
"Your test is also very simple: with a mission scroll, you must reach the high tower in the center of the training ground within 120 hours, or five days."
five days?
The candidates looked at each other in bewilderment.
Choji stopped just as he was about to put a bag of potato chips in his mouth.
He blinked, looking somewhat bewildered, and asked, "Then—what are we going to eat?"
Hongdou grinned, revealing her gleaming white teeth: "Of course, you'll have to find your own food in the exam hall. This forest is rich in resources—wild fruits, mushrooms, streams, and lots of wild animals like wild boars and snakes. Of course—"
She deliberately dragged out her words, and her smile became even more dangerous.
"There are also many highly venomous creatures, such as the rainbow krait, whose venom can paralyze an adult ninja and cause respiratory failure within three minutes. There are also man-eating plants," which disguise themselves as ordinary plants and suddenly close their petals to secrete digestive juices when prey approaches. Oh, and deep in the forest, there are bears and wild boars, several times larger than ordinary ones."
With each creature she mentioned, the examinees' faces paled a little more.
"So if you're not careful," Red Bean shrugged.
"But you'll die inside."
She said the word "will die" casually, but the impact it had was even greater than the written test she had just taken.
Written exams are, after all, just exams conducted in a classroom, while this is a real, deadly battlefield.
Hongdou seemed quite pleased with the candidates' reactions.
She took a thick stack of documents from an examiner, patted them, and made a "slap slap" sound.
"This is the death liability informed consent form." She held up a document, making sure everyone could see the densely packed small print and the signature box at the bottom.
"As the name suggests, injuries and fatalities are permitted in this exam. Once you choose to continue the exam and sign this consent form, all entrance and exit doors will be locked after you enter the exam room, and you will not be allowed to leave midway."
She paused, her smile fading slightly, and her eyes becoming serious.
"If you die, become nourishment for this forest. Konoha will not be responsible for your deaths, and your village will not hold us accountable, because it was your own choice."
Hearing such a formal and cold document as the "Death Liability Notification Consent Form" sent a chill down the spines of most of the genin candidates who had never experienced a real bloody battle.
Some candidates with weaker mental fortitude have begun to waver, their eyes darting around.
Although many of them had faced bandits and wandering samurai, they had few missions involving real life-or-death ninja battles.
This time, however, it really could be death.
Deidara sat on a large rock not far away, chewing something that looked like chewing gum, but was a strange clay yellow color.
He stood beside Sora and Kirara, both of them expressionless.
When he heard Anko say "death is permissible," Deidara's eyes lit up, and an excited smile appeared on his lips.
"That's more interesting, hmm," he said softly, his right hand unconsciously moving his fingers as if he were pinching something.
Hozuki Suigetsu burst out laughing: "Haha! Compared to that tedious written exam, this is more like the Chunin Exams! Battle! Clash! This is what I want!"
His voice was particularly abrupt, and many candidates looked over.
Temari noticed the long sword wrapped in bandages on Suigetsu's back and said to Gaara in a low voice, "That white-haired guy with sharp teeth—that should be one of the Seven Ninja Swords of Kirigakure, the long sword, Sewing Needle."
Kankuro nodded solemnly: "That shy boy with glasses, Chojuro, the shape of the bag he's carrying—it's very likely a blunt sword called Kabuto. And that red-haired female ninja, I heard her name is Uzumaki Hinoka, she's a member of the Uzumaki clan, her chakra level is definitely extraordinary."
Gaara didn't speak, but slowly opened his eyes. His emerald green pupils swept over the three people from Kirigakure, then over the examinees from other ninja villages, before finally closing them again.
The candidates from other ninja villages were also whispering among themselves.
Just then, Mitarashi Anko spoke again.
She took out two scrolls from her bosom. One was wrapped in white silk with a black character for "heaven" written on it; the other was wrapped in black silk with a white character for "earth" written on it.
"Watch closely, this is your target." Red Bean held up the scroll.
"Each team will be randomly assigned a scroll, either 'Heaven' or 'Earth.' Your mission, besides reaching the central tower within five days, is to capture the other scroll along the way to complete the 'Heaven' and 'Earth' pair, in order to pass the test."
As soon as she finished speaking, the faces of Shikamaru, Kurotsuchi, and other examinees who had originally planned to "avoid battle and pass quickly" all turned ugly.
"This is forcing us to fight—" Shikamaru rubbed his temples, looking like he had a headache.
"And considering the death liability certificate we just saw—meaning that killing is permitted during a struggle for the reel."
He glanced at the menacing ninjas from other villages around him and sighed inwardly, "What a nuisance—"
Choji stopped eating potato chips and whispered, "Shikamaru, then we—"
"We can only take it one step at a time," Shikamaru interrupted him. "Try to avoid strong teams and pick on the weaker ones, but the problem is—"
His gaze swept across the group present.
Those two squads from the Land of Stars don't look like trouble at all.
The squad from Kirigakure has two members of the Ninja Swordsmen; their strength is unknown, but they are certainly not weak.
The three from Kumogakure were physically strong and clearly taijutsu-type ninjas.
Deidara of Iwagakure may seem carefree, but the fact that he can represent Iwagakure in the exams means he's definitely not someone to be trifled with.
And there's also the Hidden Sound Village—
Although I'd never heard of this village, the tall, thin man wearing a straw hat always gave off a chilling feeling.
"There don't seem to be many easy targets." Shikamaru sighed.
After the candidates, including Hongdou, finished understanding the rules, they waved goodbye.
Several examiners immediately began distributing the thick "Death Liability Notification Consent Form".
"Alright, these are the rules." Hongdou pointed to a makeshift platform with a curtain drawn next to her.
"You have fifteen minutes to consider and discuss. After fifteen minutes, the teams that have finished considering should come over there to register, sign the consent form, and draw a scroll. Then the examiner will take you to the corresponding entrance. There are 44 entrances in this training ground, and you will be randomly assigned to one of them."
She glanced at the sky and continued, "The exam officially begins in thirty minutes. Remember, once you enter, the gate will be locked and will not reopen for five days. Quitting midway is impossible unless you die and your body is carried out."
That last sentence was chilling.
The candidates received the consent forms and gathered with their teammates to begin discussing in hushed tones.
"Five days... I wonder if the rations I brought this time will be enough..."
"We also need to guard against attacks from other test takers —"
"The most important thing is to save the reel —"
Hinata listened to the surrounding chatter, and her little hand unconsciously tugged at Menma's clothes again.
She whispered, "Menma-kun—five days' worth of food—we can bring some soldier rations, but what about water—"
Menma gently patted the back of her hand, his tone calm: "There's water in the forest, don't worry, I'm here."
Naruto then chimed in, saying nonchalantly, "That's right! With Menma-nii here, there'll definitely be no problem! It's just a survival challenge! I'm a man destined to be Hokage! How could I possibly be defeated by such a small test!"
Not far away, Sasuke, who was being flanked by Ino and Sakura, heard Naruto's words, his lips twitched, and he muttered, "That idiot—"
"I said, you two are annoying!" He broke free from the two girls' "encirclement" and walked to the side.
Ino and Sakura exchanged a glance and snorted at each other.
"Forty-eight examinees, sixteen teams." Sasuke frowned, beginning to analyze the situation. His Sharingan quietly activated, scanning each team present.
"Each person has one reel, with eight reels for the top and eight for the bottom. You need to collect a pair to pass—meaning at least eight groups will be eliminated."
He paused, then lowered his voice even further: "But considering the unexpected events that may occur along the way, such as poisonous insects, wild beasts, and traps—in the end, only five groups, or even fewer, of the candidates may be able to pass."
His gaze finally settled on Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro from the Land of Stars.
"In other words—" Sasuke's eyes sharpened.
"I'll probably run into him."
For some reason, Sasuke felt a strange sense of unease.
Besides exuding a dangerous aura, the red-haired boy also gave Sasuke an unsettling feeling.
Menma walked back to Naruto and Hinata with three consent forms in his hand.
He handed two copies to the two men and kept one for himself.
"Sign it." Menma glanced at the instructions and regulations above.
Naruto took the consent form, didn't even look at the terms, flipped to the last page, picked up a pen, and was about to sign it.
"Wait," Menma said, pressing down on his hand. "Aren't you going to read the contents?"
Naruto grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth: "What's so interesting! We have to sign anyway! I trust Menma-nii and Hinata! The three of us will definitely get it approved together!"
As he spoke, he forcefully wrote his name in the signature column: Naruto Uzumaki.
The handwriting was crooked and twisted, but very forceful, almost piercing the paper.
Hinata carefully read through the terms and conditions.
Her face flushed slightly. When her gaze fell on the line "The person who died shall bear the responsibility," she took a deep breath, picked up the pen, and signed her name, Hinata Hyuga, in her delicate handwriting.
Then she raised her head, looking shyly at Menma, her white eyes sparkling with determination: "Menma---Menma-kun---Let's go together."
"Hmm." Menma looked at the two of them, smiled, and signed his consent form.
Just as he was putting away the consent form, he suddenly felt a gaze fall on him.
That gaze was cold and viscous, like a snake's tongue licking the skin.
He turned his head to look.
The three candidates from the Sound Village gathered under a tree not far away.
The leader was a tall, thin man wearing a straw hat and the gray combat uniform of the Sound Ninja. He was looking at Menma with great interest, his long tongue sticking out of his mouth as he licked his lips.
Menma recognized the other party's true identity at a glance.
That chilling aura, those snake-like eyes, and that greedy gaze—who else could it be but Orochimaru?
Menma returned his smile, a gentle, ordinary smile, like a polite one.
Orochimaru smiled too.
His mouth parted into a grin, revealing his gleaming white teeth.
He didn't speak, but nodded to Ma across the table, his interest growing stronger.
"Menma-san, what are you looking at?" Naruto came over and followed Menma's gaze.
"Oh, from the Sound Village—that guy in the straw hat looks really strange."
"It's nothing." Menma looked away and stacked the three signed consent forms together.
"Let's go register, finish the exam as soon as possible—and get some rest." Mianma said meaningfully.
The three of them walked toward the registration desk.
In a nearby Sound Village squad, Kabuto Yakushi turned his gaze away from Menma and adjusted his glasses.
Meanwhile, Sasuke was still thinking.
His gaze remained fixed on Gaara, trying to deduce something from the other's expression and movements.
Suddenly, Gaara pulled something out of his breast pocket. It was a small pendant with a silver chain and a green crystal in the shape of a four-leaf clover, gleaming softly.
Gaara placed the pendant to his lips and kissed it gently.
The movement was very light and quick.
But Sasuke saw what the pendant looked like.
In that instant, Sasuke was struck dumb, frozen in place.
That pendant —
He was all too familiar.
That was his mother's favorite pendant, a green crystal in the shape of a four-leaf clover, symbolizing luck and protection.
In Sasuke's childhood memories, his mother often wore it, and he still remembers the gentle smile on her face when she touched the pendant.
Why————
Why did it end up in that guy's hands?
Are they the same style? Or ———
Sasuke's breathing became heavy, the crimson light of his Sharingan flashed, and the black tomoe slowly rotated.
He stared intently at Gaara, at the pendant, his mind a complete mess.
The Night of the Clan Massacre — Itachi Uchiha, who slaughtered his entire clan — Shisui Uchiha, who suddenly appeared a few days ago —
Land of Stars — Gaara —
These clues spun in my mind like fragments, but I couldn't piece them together to form a complete picture.
"Sasuke?" A voice pulled him back to reality.
Sasuke snapped back to reality and saw Sai holding his arm, wearing that unchanging smile on his face, but with a look of confusion in his eyes.
"What's wrong?" Sai asked. "You don't look well."
Another teammate, Shigaraki Tanuki, also looked over and gestured to Menma and Naruto who were walking towards the registration desk, saying, "It's almost time, we should go register."
Sasuke took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.
He closed his Sharingan, but his eyes still showed shock and confusion.
"It's nothing." His voice was a little hoarse.
"Let's go."
The three of them also headed towards the registration desk.
But Sasuke's gaze remained fixed on Gaara's back.
He secretly vowed to himself: once he entered the examination hall, he would definitely find this guy and find out the origin of that pendant.
A queue had already formed in front of the registration desk.
Mitarashi Anko sat behind the table, with a stack of consent forms, a lottery box, and a map in front of her.
She was lazily sitting with her legs crossed, a senbon stick dangling from her mouth, watching the examinees step forward one by one.
Menma, Naruto, and Hinata are in the first group.
Hongdou looked at the three people's consent forms, confirmed that the signatures were correct, and then pointed to the lottery box: "Reach your hand in and take out a scroll."
Mianma reached in and touched a scroll wrapped in silk cloth.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a black "Earth" scroll.
Red Bean wrote it down on the registration form.
"Class 7, the roll of life. The entrance is—number 22." She said, pointing to a location on the map.
"Walk east along the wall for about 300 meters, and you'll find an iron gate marked 22. The examiner will take you there."
Menma nodded, put away the scroll, and left the registration area with Naruto and Hinata.
Next, the other teams drew their scrolls and were led to their respective entrances by the examiners.
Fifteen minutes passed quickly.
All teams have completed registration and the lottery.
Forty-eight candidates were scattered at various entrances to the Death Forest, waiting for the signal to begin the exam.
Menma, Naruto, and Hinata stood in front of iron gate number 22.
This is a smaller iron gate, similar to the main gate, and it is also wrapped with chains.
The examiner who brought them was a taciturn middle-aged ninja who simply stood aside without saying a word.
"I'm so nervous! What kind of enemy will I encounter?!" Naruto nervously moved his hands and feet, glancing at the iron gate and then at the depths of the forest.
Hinata gripped her ninja tool pouch tightly, observing her surroundings with her Byakugan.
Mianma leaned against the wall, closing his eyes to rest, but in reality, his "Kagura Mind's Eye" had already been silently activated, enveloping the entire examination room.
Time passed by, second by second.
The forest was so quiet, so very quiet, that even the birdsong had disappeared.
It was as if all living things knew that something terrible was about to happen.
finally-
A sharp signal whistle shattered the silence of the forest.
Immediately afterwards, all the iron gates at the entrances made a "click" sound as they unlocked.
The chains slipped, and the iron gate slowly opened inward.
The door revealed a deep, dark forest that seemed capable of swallowing everything.
Mitarashi Anko's voice echoed through the forest via loudspeakers at each entrance: "Chunin Selection Exams, Round 2, 99..."
"Survival Challenge, Begin Now!"
"Good luck, kids. I hope to see you alive in five days."
The words fell.
Menma opened his eyes and said to Naruto and Hinata beside him, "Let's go."
After saying that, he was the first to rush into the Death Forest.
"Yay! Go for it!" Naruto took a deep breath, clenched his fist, and quickly followed.
Hinata jogged to catch up.
The iron gate slowly closed behind them.
The chains were rewound and locked.
The exam has officially begun.