The room was deathly silent as Chuunin hopefuls gulped in trepidation.

Morino Ibiki fixed his grim stare on each of the Genin. Knowing that his intimidating presence alone was helping to up the emotional battlefield, he smirked, revealing some white pointed teeth. The creepiness of it made some poor Genin nearly wet themselves.

Bored and impossibly annoyed by the constant slight hiccuping coming from his right side, Naruto clucked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, making nervous people jump at the sound.

Ibiki narrowed his eyes at the aforementioned blonde. "Stop that clucking. Otherwise I'll have you removed from the room and disqualified from the exams."

Naruto lazily shifted his eyes over to the scarred man, raised two eyebrows, then stopped clucking.

Ibiki relaxed a bit. Maybe he was getting rusty. It wasn't like the norm for three – not only one but three- individuals to be so utterly comfortable in his test. Still, it looked like he still had his savvy. The blonde listened to him after all.

*Buuuuuuurp*

Ibiki's eyebrows twitched in annoyance. Naruto simply yawned and stretched. Then he patted his stomach good naturedly. "Ah, I think I had too much lunch." Some Genin snickered, Naruto's teammates included.

Feeling the tension in the room starting to drain away, Ibiki roared, "Silence! Now that you have picked out your numbers and are now sitting in your seats, I will now explain the rules. Everyone gets ten points from the start of this exams. If you cheat, that's a minus of two points every time you're caught. For every question you get wrong, that's another minus one point. If you get all ten points taken away, then you're kicked out of the game. If any one of your teammates are kicked out, then the rest of your team is also disqualified. Understand?"

There was a chorus of discontent from the examinees. Ibiki chuckled, then carried on. "The tenth question will be given out ten minutes before the time is up. You get an hour, got that?"

"Wait a minute!" A blonde girl with a Sunagakure headband stood up. "Why is only the tenth question given after almost everything is over?"

"It's the most important question. That's all I will say. Now sit down!" The blonde girl shot the proctor a hateful glare as she reluctantly sat down. The other proctors passed out the exam papers and Ibiki started the clock. "START!"

"L-let's do our best Naruto-kun!" Hinata, red with her effort to speak to Naruto, stammered out.

Naruto paused, then looked to his right. "Huh? Hinata? What're you doing right next to me? Oh yeah, forgot. You got this seat."

"STOP TALKING OR THATS A MINUS TEN POINTS RIGHT THERE!" Irritated, Ibiki yelled wrathfully. From under the desk, Sakura gave Naruto the middle finger, telling him to shut up.

Naruto easily complied, not wanting to jeopardize their exam. He flipped the paper over and gave it a look. Hmm, first question...cryptography? Skip. Second question...skip. Third question...skip. F-fourth question...

From a few seats back, Sasuke wasn't faring so well either. Ha! I don't know the answer to any of these...pretty much screaming at us to cheat, isn't it?

On the other hand, Sakura was having the time of her life. She sped through the codes, decoding them with the finesse of a master cryptanalyst. She flew over the trigonometry questions, dived and somersaulted over the stealth questions, and with pride, copied down every single rules of the Shinobi code she had memorized by heart.

From afar, one Yamanaka Ino was plotting her espionage with an evil grin on her face. She carefully made the handsigns, then stole into Sakura's mind with a flourish. She copied all the answers and came back to her body. Sakura dizzily woke up, not too sure of what happened.

Sasuke carefully looked around for a person who was writing nonstop. If this test was designed to make people cheat, then there must be a few people here that already know the answer! Come on...which one are you? There! He found him. But how to cheat? If only he had his Sharingan.

A pang of regret and anger shot through him, but he shook his head and cleared his mind. It wasn't time to wallow in such things. He sighed then looked up, then blinked in surprise.

There were freakin' mirrors attached to the ceiling, giving him a clear view of everyone's papers in the room. He followed the near translucent wires to the owner. A girl with twin buns on her head. It just happened that he was in the perfect angle to use the mirrors. Interesting.

They do say luck is part of skill. Sasuke copied down his answers, then relaxed, content.

Naruto was in a fix. He didn't know what to do! He couldn't answer any of the questions. What to do what to do-

"Umm, Naruto-kun?" A shy voice wrenched him back to reality. "Would you like to look at my paper?"

Naruto jerked his head twice. He didn't need to copy from her. He was Uzumaki Naruto, bound to be great! He wasn't a cheater! "No thanks Hinata—Waoh!" A sharp kunai shot by his face and imbedded into an unlucky genin's exam paper.

"You, minus ten points. Get out." The proctors kicked the unfortunate team out of the room with little mercy.

Half scared to death, Naruto just kept his paper down and staged all his hope on the last final question.

...

Ibiki swept the room with his gaze. It was about time. More than half had thinned out. "Alright, it's time for the tenth question. But before that, I'll tell you all this: If you fail the tenth question, then you will never have the chance to become Chuunin again. If you are not sure of your outcome, give up now."

Anxious rumbles erupted in the room. Sasuke and Sakura rolled their eyes. They were confident.

A few teams gave up. Naruto gave those teams and Ibiki a, "What the fuck?" kind of look. "You messing with us? We rookies went through so much to get here. We went through maniacal teachers and crazy d-ranked turned a-rank missions, melodramatic fights, paintball fighting, and flimsy genjutsu barriers." A few proctors bristled at that. "That's only for rookies. I bet all the other Genin went through worse. You expect us to give up just because of a 'maybe?' You sure don't know anything about us. We're ninja, that's what. And ninja never give up!"

Drat that little annoying kid! He totally took over my exam today! Ibiki cursed Naruto, but silently gave the blonde props for his guts. He saw the look of determination that came to the eyes of everyone remaining, then groaned internally. However, he respected the blonde for being so charismatic, and so brave, albeit a bit foolish. "Do the rest of you feel the same?" No one responded. "In that case...You all pass!"

"Eh?" The shocked cries made him smile a bit. He then moved to the explanations. "The life of a shinobi is harsh. You can't doubt, you can't hesitate, and most of all, you can't give up or jeopardize the lives of your teammates. If you give up, then you condemn the rest of your teammates with you. A Chuunin is a squad leader. If he or she doesn't have the guts and intelligence to pull through in these kinds of situations, then he or she will end up killing their whole team.

"But all you have performed admirably. Part of this test was to test your information gathering skills. Those that did not have the ability to spy accordingly were knocked out of the game. You guys made it through in every aspect, and I commend you all.

"It'll only get harder from now on." Ibiki reached up and pulled his bandana off. "You might be tortured, compromised, captured, killed or threatened, but as loyal shinobi to each of your respective villages, you will all pull through, no matter the consequences."

"That's right!" A spinning black figure crashed into the window and threw kunai in four directions, pinning the huge black banner behind her to the walls. "I am Mitarashi Anko, your second exam proctor and it'll only get harder! Everyone follow me!"

"..." Ibiki sweatdropped, along with everyone else. The strange woman wore very tight revealing clothes with a tan trenchcoat draped all over her frame.

Naruto stared distastefully at her clothes. "Who the hell are you lady? I gotta say, your fashion sense is totally out of whack."

"Whatcha say brat?" Anko's teeth glinted as she prodded the blonde with the tip of her kunai. "Wanna die?"

"..Anko." Ibiki stepped out from behind the dark banner. "You're early. Again."

"Huh? Oh. Ummm...Mhuahahahaha! That's alright! Come on, you genin, follow me!" She jumped out the window.

"Finally!" Naruto crowed. "We're getting some stuff done. Nice speech, but a bit lacking in the melodramatic area. You should work on it." Naruto patted Ibiki sympathetically then jumped out the window after Anko.

Sasuke and Sakura briskly headed after their friend. Sakura waved to the scarred man. "That test was really fun Ibiki-san! Really invigorating. Really easy too! Have a nice day!" She followed Naruto out the window.

Sasuke smiled at Ibiki. "Have a nice day." He jumped out as a horde of other Genin followed after him, leaving Ibiki alone in the room.

Ibiki trembled, then fell to the floor. Kakashi, I will not forgive your brats ruining my day...my tests are NOT fun, NOT invigorating, NOT easy, and I do NOT have a nice day with kids burping all over my class. Grrrr..He stood, then moved to pick up the tests. Impassive, he collected every single one of them, then felt his hand tremble again, too angry and too shocked to do much else other than stare at the blank test in front of him. Uzumaki Naruto...you are the first to pass this test without answering a single question. I will get you to understand this world of fear someday.

"This is Training Grounds 44, otherwise known as the Forest of Death." Anko cackled at the expressions on the Genin. "I will now be passing out scrolls marked Heaven and Earth. You guys get one scroll per team, and you have to fight teams to get the other counterpart. You have five days inside the Forest of Death. If you get your scrolls within the time limit, come to the tower in the center of the forest. As you can see, this test is designed to put you against each other, to test your survival skills. Good luck kids!"

"Is this one of your ideas? Because it's just as out of whack." Naruto crossed his arms.

Pissed, Anko threw a kunai to nick the brats little cheek, and wrinkled her nose when Naruto casually plucked the knife out of the air. "Better try harder." He threw the kunai to his feet, daring her with his eyes to bend down and pick it up.

Anko glared at Naruto, internally debating whether or not condescend and pretty much bow to the blonde while picking her kunai up, or just leave it there. Or pound the little kid to the ground.

But before anything, a long tongue snaked out and pulled her kunai free from the grass. "Here." A raspy voice called from behind. "I got your kunai, Miss Proctor."

"Why thank you." She took the kunai from the strange kusa ninja with the long tongue, a little grossed out but otherwise happy that she didn't have to pick it up. "Anyways, let's get back to the exam."

"But what about our food supply?" Chouji cried, holding his last bag of potato chips. "I don't wanna starve!"

"Idiot, there's plenty of food in the forest. You just have to watch out for the giant insects." Anko brushed off, a bit irritated.

Chouji and Ino looked appalled. "I-insects? Extra large bugs? Kyaah! No!" Ino shrilly ran into Shikamaru's arms. "Shikamaru, I don't want to go in there!"

"It's too troublesome. Let's quit."

"We can't quit lazy-butt! Come on!" Ino shook her fist at her teammates.

Shikamaru sighed. "Women are so troublesome. They want one thing but then want another, then get all bitchy because they can't get both."

"I agree!" Sasuke reached out and put a hand on Shikamaru's shoulder. "You and I really match with the brainwaves. I like you."

"You better not be talking about me!" Sakura yelled, a bit irked. "You should always say good things about your teammate. Especially to other friends."

Sasuke motioned a meaningful eyebrow toward Sakura. "See what I mean?"

"Totally. How troublesome."

"You little brats, send a representative to get in line and get a scroll!" Anko pointed to the erected tent around the stand.

A few minutes later, Sasuke and his teammates gathered around in a circle far away from the other teams. "Alright," Sasuke said breathlessly. He discreetly pulled out a Heavens scroll from his pouch. Leaning in close, he said, "I suppose we're going after the teams with an Earth scroll then."

"An Earth scroll? Something like this?" Sakura pulled out an Earth scroll.

Naruto and Sasuke gawked. And stared. "Where in nine hells did you get that?" Naruto blurted out. "I can't believe you!"

Sakura smiled a devious smile. "Well, let's just say they should have put up a barrier, with proper seals, than a flimsy tent."

Sasuke gave her a thumbs up. "You are the most violent, enigmatic, arrogant yet the most amazing, cool, quintessential person in the entire universe. I love you."

Sakura blushed prettily. "I don't think the word, 'quintessential' fits in this context, but I get your gist."

"Wow, this is great!" Naruto ran up and hugged her. "I'll sum it up. You're awesome Sakura. So I guess this changes our plans then?"

"Should we head straight for the tower?" Sakura asked. "Or, should we stay behind and thin the crowd out some? I thought they might find out that they're short on scrolls, so I made a duplicate complete with some of your concealment seal tags, Naruto, but they can still find out."

"Hmm, should we kill some time?" Naruto turned to Sasuke, stroking his imaginary beard. "I'd rather prefer to go straight to the end. It's cleaner and faster, and I bet they keep record of things like that, so if we busted every single record there, it'd be amazing!"

"I really like the idea of wiping some competition out, but Naruto's right. We don't really know who we're facing anyway, so I say we conserve energy and prepare for the final exam. Instead of fighting, we can gather some information instead?"

"Good idea. Gathering info on the teams we come across, right?" Sakura nodded. "Okay, that's great. Now, do we keep these scrolls together or separate?"

"Separate." Naruto took the Heaven scroll from Sasuke and slapped three concealment seals on it. It faded to a blank plain scroll, and any vestiges of chakra was effectively suppressed and undetectable. Carefully, Naruto pulled out his brush and a bottle of his custom made ink, and drew a small but complicated storage seal on his skin, right on his bicep. "I'll seal this to my own body. I think Sakura should take the other one."

"Okay." Sakura slid up her shirt. "Put it on my stomach. I'll protect it best there."

"Ooh, this is nerve-wracking," Naruto said, staring at Sakura's toned stomach. "Can you do it yourself? It's kind of weird to gawk at a girl's belly."

After much scuffle, the scroll was stored safely.

"Oh brats?" Anko called. "Get ready. A team per entrance! On my whistle, three, two, one!"

Scrambling, Team Badass set off like a bullet into the dark, ominous forest.

"What are we going to do?" Chouji nervously asked his teammates. "We know we're not going to match nearly any of the teams. There's no guarantee we'll come across someone weak, either. We're doomed! I don't wanna die!"

"Shut up Chouji! We're not gonna die! We just have to do our best." Ino pumped her fist in the air, trying to bring up the mood. "Come on Shikamaru! We can do this!"

"How?"

"I say we catch someone alone, and see if they have the scroll!"

...

"Crap. Crap crap." Shikamaru slapped his forehead. Hiding behind the bushes, the trio stared at the long haired figure a few meters ahead of them. "This was the best choice we could find?"

"I-I don't think we can take him on, even with all three of us," Chouji was scared. He wanted potato chips, and he wanted to get out of this mess.

"Why are you following me? Get out of that bush." An indifferent voice made them jolt. Neji peered into the thick foliage, waiting for the annoying rookies to reveal themselves.

Stumbling, Team Ten jumped out of the bush. "Oh my! If it isn't Neji-sama!" Ino batted her eyelashes. She undid her hair. "I wonder, if his Neji-sama has some time for some poor old me?"

"You are as seductive as a stinky mule," Neji told her. "Go train some more before you think about ambushing me." He walked off.

Ino fumed after the Hyuuga. "How dare he! I'll get him for this!"

Shikamaru scratched his head. "How troublesome. They always say a woman's wrath is the most frightful thing."

"Yahoo!" Kiba howled as he and his team soared through the trees. "I bet we're the first to get to the tower! Our ploy with the jumping leaches was brilliant. Right Shino?"

"...Yes."

"Aw man, you're too quiet." Kiba grumbled. Then Akamaru caught something. "Hm? What's this smell? It reeks of fresh blood! Hinata, can you look what's up two o'clock, about a kilometer or so?"

Hinata did so, and gasped at the sight she saw, feeling a little faint. "There's a team just up ahead...absolutely massacring at least ten others!"

At this, Shino and Kiba looked uneasy. "Should we check it out?" Kiba asked, unsure.

Shino nodded. "I think that would be wise. But we should take care not to draw any attention to ourselves."

They stealthily approached the sickening smell of blood, until they were safe behind a bush, watching a horrifying scene where a red haired boy from Suna literally crushed three Ame Genin without batting an eyelash.

"Fuck," Kiba swore. "Akamaru's whimpering. We better get out of here!"

"Gaara!" The black clothed, painted Genin protested. "Stop! We don't need to kill anymore! It's unnecessary and frankly, a waste of our time."

"Gaara, please! L-listen to your sister, okay? We're your siblings, right?" The Suna kunoichi tried to reason with the redhead.

But Gaara didn't seem to listen. He continued to squeeze chakra to his fist, glaring a promise of death to the bush in front of the leaf ninja. Team Eight subconsciously gulped in fear. Was this their end?

"Gaara!"

"I got it." Gaara's cool voice broke them out of their shaking. Gaara was now calmly corking his gourd. Then, the three foreigners left, leaving the leaf ninja alone behind the bushes.

Kiba clutched a whining Akamaru to his chest, too scared to speak. The killer intent he had felt was unimaginable. He nearly wet himself at the prospect of him being crushed like an ant like those poor Ame Genin.

Shino was quiet, and tugged on his teammates' sleeves. "Let us go. There is no point in remaining here. We should now stick close and stay out of that team's way."

Yeah. They were going to be wary now. Because that redhead was dangerous. More dangerous than anything any of them had come across. If they had thought this Chuunin exam was going to be a breeze, then they were just proven wrong. This Gaara was a surefire threat.

Anko was enjoying the last batch of her famous 'Konoha Leaf Dango', aka 99 sticks of dango, exactly enough sticks to fill her stomach nicely and to make a neat leaf pattern on a tree.

"Proctor Mitarashi!" An urgent voice snapped her out of her reverie.

"What is it?" The special Jounin looked down from the little house-tent they set up. "What do