---Training Ground 44: The Forest of Death---
The massive iron gates of Training Ground 44 loomed over the gathered Genin like the jaws of a beast waiting to snap shut. Barbed wire topped the high fences, and ominous signs emblazoned with "DANGER" and "NO ENTRY" were posted at every interval. Beyond the wire, the forest itself seemed to breathe... a dense, tangled mass of ancient trees that blotted out the sun, their roots twisting like gnarled fingers in the gloom.
The air here was different. It was heavy, humid, and smelled of rot and damp earth.
"This place..." Sakura hugged her arms, rubbing the goosebumps rising on her skin. "It really gives me the creeps."
"It's called the 'Forest of Death' for a reason," Anko Mitarashi said with a grin, enjoying the fear radiating from the students. "And soon, you'll find out why."
Naruto, trying to mask his own shivering with bravado, placed his hands on his hips and mimicked Anko's tone. "It's called the Forest of Death! And soon you'll find out why! Do you think you can scare me with that? I'm not afraid!"
"Hn," Sasuke merely grunted, his eyes fixed on the forest, though his posture was stiff. He wasn't scared like the others, but his instincts were screaming that this wasn't a playground.
"You've got a lot of energy," Anko chuckled, pulling a kunai from her sleeve. "I like that."
In a blur of motion, she threw the kunai. It whizzed past Naruto's cheek, slicing a few strands of blonde hair, and embedded itself into the ground behind him. Before Naruto could even react, Anko was behind him, whispering in his ear.
"Kids like you usually die first."
The killing intent she released was thick, palpable. Sakura stifled a scream. Naruto froze.
But the moment didn't last. A long tongue extended from the shadows of the grass, wrapping around the handle of the kunai Anko had just thrown. A Grass Ninja, her face obscured by a wide-brimmed hat, held the weapon out to the proctor.
"I believe this is yours," the Grass Ninja said, her voice raspy and strangely polite. "You shouldn't throw dangerous things around."
"Thanks," Anko took the kunai, her eyes narrowing slightly. "But don't sneak up behind me... unless you want a premature death."
Haku stood a few meters away, leaning against the chain-link fence, his arms crossed over his chest. He was alone, isolated from the three-man squads that clustered together for comfort.
His face was impassive behind his mask, but beneath the surface, his senses... enhanced by the Ashura no Mon seal... were firing on all cylinders. The seal on his back pulsed faintly, a low thrum of heat warning him of threats.
He watched the interaction between Anko and the Grass Ninja.
'That movement...' Haku narrowed his eyes. 'She moved through the long grass without disturbing a single blade. And that killing intent... it wasn't directed at anyone, it just... leaked out.'
He focused his senses on the Grass Ninja. Usually, he could estimate a shinobi's strength by their chakra levels, their muscle tension, their breathing. He had done it with Zabuza, with the Demon Brothers, even with Kakashi.
But with this woman... nothing.
It was like looking into a void. He couldn't feel the bottom of her power. It was murky, cold, and profoundly wrong. It felt less like a human and more like a collection of snakes writhing under a skin suit.
A cold bead of sweat slid down Haku's neck.
'I can't estimate her strength,' Haku realized, his grip tightening on his own arms. 'And Alaric-sensei said that if I encounter a variable I cannot calculate... I should treat it as an S-Rank threat.'
He made a mental note, etching the Grass Ninja's face... what little he could see of it... into his memory.
Avoid at all costs. Do not engage. If forced to engage, flee immediately.
The Rules of the Hunt
"Alright, listen up you maggots!" Anko shouted, drawing everyone's attention back to the front. She held up a stack of papers. "Before we start the second test, I need you to sign these."
"What are they?" Naruto asked.
"Consent forms," Anko grinned maliciously. "People tend to die in this exam. If you don't sign these, I'd be held responsible. And I don't want that paperwork."
She laughed as she began handing them out. "Read them carefully. Then, turn them in at the booth over there. Once you do, you'll receive your scroll."
She held up two scrolls... one white, one black.
"The Heaven Scroll and the Earth Scroll. To pass this exam, your team must possess both scrolls and bring them to the tower in the center of the forest."
"So we have to fight others to get the scroll we need," Sasuke surmised.
"Exactly," Anko nodded. " half the teams have a Heaven Scroll, the other half have Earth. You need to fight, steal, or kill to get the matching pair. And you have five days to do it."
"Five days!?" Choji shouted, looking horrified. "What about food?"
"The forest is full of food," Anko shrugged. "Plants, animals, bugs... and other candidates. Just try not to get eaten yourself."
She then turned her gaze specifically toward Haku, who was standing alone.
"And for our special solo entry," Anko announced, pointing at him. The other genin turned to look. "The rules remain the same. You need a set of Heaven and Earth scrolls. Being alone is your handicap. You don't get special treatment."
Haku nodded once, accepting the terms. It was fair. In the real world, enemies didn't care if you were outnumbered.
Thirty minutes later, the forms were signed, and the scrolls were distributed. Haku had been given a Heaven Scroll. He tucked it securely into a pouch inside his vest, sealing it with a small localized freezing jutsu to ensure it wouldn't fall out during combat.
He stood at Gate 16. The forest beyond was dark, silent, and waiting.
"Alright!" Anko's voice boomed over the loudspeakers set up around the perimeter. "The second phase of the Chunin Selection Exam... BEGINS!"
The locks on the gates clicked open simultaneously.
Haku didn't rush. He didn't scream a battle cry like the team at Gate 12. He simply stepped forward, melting into the shadows of the trees.
As soon as he crossed the threshold, the sunlight vanished, blocked by the immense canopy above. The temperature dropped. The sounds of the outside world... the birds, the wind... were replaced by the scuttling of insects and the distant, echoing screams of the first victims.
Haku moved to a high branch, crouching low. His breath misted slightly in the humid air.
His objective was simple: Find a team with an Earth Scroll. Incapacitate them. Take it. Reach the tower.
But his mind kept drifting back to that Grass Ninja.
'She entered at Gate 15,' Haku calculated, visualizing the map Anko had briefly shown. 'That's adjacent to my position. And Gate 12... that's where the loud blonde boy and the Uchiha are.'
He turned his head, looking in the direction of the Uchiha's team.
'Alaric-sensei seemed interested in the Uchiha. And that dangerous woman... she was staring at him too.'
Haku made a decision. He would hunt for his scroll, yes. But he would also keep a perimeter watch on Team 7. Not to help them... they were competition, after all... but because where the Uchiha went, trouble seemed to follow. And where there was trouble, there was information.
He leaped, a silent grey blur moving through the canopy, leaving no trace behind but a faint chill in the air.
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