Author's note: I've added a link for a pick of my soundnin OC to my profile to give you an idea of what he's supposed to look like.

I own nothing but my OC's.

Previously:

"So, what do you think?" Another foreign ninja, who had a musical note engraved on his forehead protector, asked his three comrades as they watched from another tree a safe distance away.

"Hmm… That purple-haired girl is pretty cute..." The comrade wearing a specially modified muzzle/gas mask over his mouth said, drooling a little behind it. He just might want to add her to his collection...

"That wasn't what he meant, and you know it." Their bandaged leader deadpanned, sweat-dropping, as they watched the muzzled boy warily out the corner of his eye. What a creep… They hoped his bad habit wouldn't kick in before they had a chance to start the exam. "Anyway…" He said, getting back on point. "Nothing serious, but… that black-haired leaf ninja, and the sand ninja with the gourd… Let's keep an eye on them." He decided.

"?" April said when her body shuddered a little instinctively. She glanced around, and her eyes landed on the tree where the four ninja had been hiding, but they were already gone. "…" April frowned slightly as she furrowed her brow in confusion. She could have sworn she felt something really unpleasant from that direction just a second ago…

Chapter 36: Sakura's Depression

Sakura let out a heavy sigh as she stood on a bridge with her teammates, waiting for Kakashi-sensei to arrive. A vein throbbed on her forehead. As always, he was late.

"Hey!! Hey!! Hey!! How can this be allowed!!?" She suddenly shouted abruptly. "Why does that person ask us to meet and then make us wait!!?"

'I'm pretty sure part of it is because he likes to mess with us…' April thought wryly, sweat-dropping.

"Yeah!! Yeah!! Sakura-chan is right!!!" Naruto joined in, also fed up with waiting.

"What about the feelings of a young girl who overslept and didn't have time to blow dry her hair!!!" She demanded hotly.

'Isn't that your own fault?' April thought, deadpanning.

"Yeah, yeah!!!" Naruto agreed. "I overslept too!!! So I didn't wash my face or brush my teeth!!!"

"…" Both girls stared at him.

"Dude…" April said, wrinkling her nose slightly as she frowned with disapproval. Personal hygiene was important, man.

"That's… nasty…" Sakura agreed, unimpressed and grossed out.

"Hehe…" Naruto laughed a bit sheepishly, realizing too late that maybe he should have just kept that to himself.

'Why does everything have to be so high-tension with them…' Sasuke wondered, annoyed by all the noise they were making.

"Morning, people!!" Kakashi called out from above.

"!!" Sakura and Naruto gasped in surprise as they all glance up to see that he was perched on top of one of the red arches over the end of the bridge. April and Sasuke had gotten used to him appearing out of nowhere enough not to have to freak out every time. At this point, it was sort of expected.

"What kept you this time, Sensei?" April asked.

"I got lost on the path of life." Kakashi replied smile. April smiled wryly and sweat-dropped. Well, yeah… after all, he was the type of teacher who consistently showed up later than his students… He had obviously taken a metaphorical wrong turn somewhere along the way.

"Yeah right!!! Liar!!!" Sakura and Naruto shouted angrily. "Apologize."

"Well, anyway…" Kakashi continued nonchalantly as he came down to join them on their level. "This is sudden, but… I've nominated you guys for the Chūnin Selection Exam."

"!" April and Sasuke said, surprised.

"Huh?" Sakura said, thinking she must have misheard.

"…" For once, Naruto was speechless.

"What did you say!?!" Sakura demanded incredulously the moment it sunk in.

"You think that makes up for…!!" Naruto started to yell.

"Here are your applications." Kakashi cut him off calmly as he held out four very official documents, each of which had one of their names on them.

GLOMP!!

"Yes!!! Kakashi-sensei!!! I love you!!!" Naruto exclaimed as he threw himself at their teacher, super excited.

"Hey, stop! Let go of me…" Kakashi said, a little flustered by the unexpected and overly enthusiastic display of affection, as he used Naruto's momentum to swing him around and set him back down on the ground.

"…" Sakura and Sasuke said as they watched, sweat-dropping. April smiled. Kakashi-sensei had totally just made Naruto's day. He couldn't have had better timing. Although he seemed a little chagrined by the sudden invasion of his personal space…

"Here, take these applications." Kakashi said as he handed out the papers he was holding, quickly getting back to business.

"Hehehe!" Naruto laughed, grinning as he held onto his.

"However, this is just a nomination. It's up to each of you whether or not you decide to take the exam." Kakashi explained calmly. He wanted it to be their choice. "Those who wish to take it should sign those papers and go to the school to turn them in at room 301 tomorrow by 3:00pm tomorrow. That is all." He concluded, disappearing in a puff.

'But… I still have questions…' April thought, disappointed that he had just popped off like that. After making them wait for so long, he could've at least stuck around a little longer… Maybe he wasn't allowed to talk about it? She let out a sigh. If that was the case, then hunting him down would just be a waste of time and energy. 'Oh well, guess I'll just have to figure it out for myself…'

"Hihihi!! Chūnin exam!!! Chūnin exam!!!" Naruto laughed, grinning excitedly as the four of them left together. 'There's going to be a lot of strong guys in this thing. Like him!!' He thought as an image of that Kankurō guy's face popped into his head. 'And him…!!' He thought, giving Sasuke the evil eye.

"!" Sasuke furrowed his brow, wondering what his problem was.

'Naruto…' April thought wryly. She could pretty much guess what he was thinking.

'Ok!!! I won't lose to him!!!' Naruto thought determinedly. 'If I win this, I'll be Hokage in no time.' He could see it now, that old geezer would finally acknowledge his strength and retire to let him have the title! "Hihihi!" Naruto laughed excitedly.

"…" Sasuke looked down and smirked to himself as he began to tremble with excitement. 'I might be able to fight him…' He thought, looking forward to the possibility being able to face a strong opponent like Gaara.

'They're both so excited…' April thought with a small smile as she glanced at the boys. 'Can't say I blame them. I've been training nonstop ever since we returned from the Land of Waves to try to build up more stamina, but… I guess I'm still a little nervous…' After all, there were bound to be more guys like Gaara and Kankurō participating. She let out a quiet sigh as she glanced down at the application in her hand. She furrowed her brow and smiled ruefully at herself, chagrined at her own indecisiveness. 'What am I hesitating for?' She chided herself. 'Sensei probably knows this already, better than any of us… and yet, he nominated all of us to participate… I'm sure he wouldn't have done that if he didn't think we were ready. This paper is proof of his faith in us. This exam is his way of pushing us out of the nest. I don't know if I'll be able to fly yet, but I'll never know if I don't try! Alright, I'll take the leap, and grow my wings on the way down!!' April decided determinedly with a new, steady glow of resolve in her eyes. "Hey, guys! Let's meet up early so we can have lunch together." She suggested. "I'll make everyone one of a special stamina bento for everyone, so we'll have plenty of energy to win this thing!!"

"Yeah!!!" Naruto cheered.

"Hmph. Sounds good." Sasuke agreed with a smirk. When it came to taste and energy, her cooking always delivered. Eating her bento beforehand would definitely give them an advantage over an average meal.

"…" Sakura was silent a she trailed behind the others. 'I… don't want to…' She thought, feeling troubled. 'I can't even keep up with my own teammates… and now the Chūnin Exam…'

—∞—

The next day…

Despite how she was feeling, Sakura showed up on time to meet with her teammates.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!!!" Naruto greeted her enthusiastically. "You're kinda late…" He realized with a small frown. That wasn't like her.

"Yeah… Sorry…" She apologized a bit weakly with a forced smile.

"…" April and Sasuke said as they watched the exchange.

'Sakura… She seems weird today…' Sasuke thought.

'Is it nerves…?' April wondered, furrowing her brow slightly with concern. "Are you all right, Sakura-chan?" She asked. "You look kind of pale…"

"Ah, yeah… I'll be fine… Don't worry." Sakura answered with another forced smile.

"… I see." April said with a frown. She didn't want to talk about it, but something was definitely bother her… "Well, here." April handed her a bento. "Eat up." She said with a smile.

"Thanks, but I'm not really that…" Sakura started to say when April closed the gap between them and pressed the bento into her hands.

"Eat." April said firmly, using a tone that left no room for argument, as she smiled at the younger girl, refusing to take 'no' for an answer. "You need your strength."

"A-Alright…" Sakura agreed a bit awkwardly, sweat-dropping. Why was this girl always so intense when it came to food?

"By the way... Where exactly am I supposed to sign this thing?" Naruto asked as he held up his application, causing them all to sweat-drop. You mean, he still hadn't done that yet…?

"Can't you read?" Sakura asked, chagrined.

–∞–

Once they had finished their bentos, the four of them headed over to ninja academy together to turn in their applications.

'Huh? Why is the hall so crowded… Isn't this only the second floor? The stairs just stopped like we had reached the top, but I only counted two flights… It must be genjutsu, but why?' April wondered, furrowing her brow slightly, as she walked with her teammates.

WHAM!

"Hah! You plan to take the Chūnin Exam with that!?" She heard someone scoff. "You should quit now." A kid with wild hair and tape on his face told the odd-looking boy in the green jumpsuit that he had just beaten. "You're just a brat."

"Yeah, yeah." His partner agreed with a smirk.

"Please… Let us through…" A girl wearing her hair in two buns and a pink chinese-style shirt said timidly as she tried to take a step forward. They were blocking the doors of classroom 301.

"Ugh!" She grunted in pain a she was punched back.

"!!" The boy in the green jumpsuit gasped.

"Horrible…" One of the other genin watching commented.

'Maybe, but… those two don't really look like they're trying that hard to get in.' April thought as she watched. At a glance, they looked like they were taking a lot of damage, but they had controlled their falls too well for two people who supposed to be that weak. They were probably trying to keep their truth strength hidden until the exam started… Not a bad idea. She'd also rather keep a low profile until they knew more about their opponents. But April knew that was going to be easier said than done with two showoffs on her team.

"What did you say?" The kid with wild hair asked the commentator, narrowing his eyes dangerously. "Listen, this is our kindness. The Chūnin Exam isn't easy… Even we have failed it three times straight."

"There are those who take this exam and end up quitting as shinobi, those who die during the exam… We've seen it all." His partner added.

"!!" Sakura gasped, startled. No way… People have actually died taking this exam?

'So, it is that kind of test...' April thought seriously with a frown. She had thought that might be the case. This was an exam for ninjas, after all.

"And chūnins often become captains of military teams." The boy with wild hair continued. "The failure of a mission, the death of a comrade… That is all the captain's responsibility. Yet kids like you think you can pass? We're just thinning out those that will fail anyway. What's wrong with that?"

'Well, that's a sound argument… but what gives you the right to play judge and jury?' April thought with a frown.

"I agree, but…" Sasuke said as he stepped forward, prompting the rest of his team to follow his lead. "You will let me pass through… And also, undo this field you created using genjutsu." He ordered cockily. "I'm going to the third floor."

"What's that guy talking about?" Someone muttered in the background.

"I don't know…" Another said.

"Oh?" The boy with wild hair said, a little surprised.

"So you noticed…" His partner said with a smirk.

Sasuke smirked back. Please, who did they think they were dealing with here?

"Sakura, you must have noticed first, right?" He said, surprising her.

"Eh…?" Sakura said, glancing at him.

"Your analytical ability and genjutsu know-how… is the most improved on our team." Sasuke stated.

'Sasuke-kun…' Sakura thought, blushing. She looked down shyly with a smile on her face. 'Thank you…' She let out a small laugh. "Of course, I noticed a while ago." She stated confidently as she raised her head. "Because this is the second floor."

'Oh? Not bad…' April thought with a small smile, glad to see that Sakura had finally perked up. 'That Sasuke can be actually pretty nice, when he wants to.'

"Yep!" Naruto agreed as he and April smiled in approval. Their surroundings warped for a moment as the genjutsu was released. Now everyone could see that the room number was really 201.

"Hmm… Not bad…" The boy with wild hair said. "But all you did was… see through it!!!" He shouted, swinging his foot at Sasuke to deliver a powerful kick.

"!!" Sasuke said, immediately moving to counter with a strong kick of his own.

"!!" They both gasped as blur of green suddenly shot between them. The boy in the green jumpsuit was holding legs. In an instant, he had stopped their blows with his bare hands. April let out a low whistle of appreciation. Thanks to him, she hadn't had to make a move. This guy was good, like a young Bruce Lee. She kind of wanted to fight him now…

'He's fast… He was able to see both kicks and slide himself in between…' Sakura thought as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face, astonished. 'He's completely different from the person who was getting knocked around earlier…' The boy in the green jumpsuit exhaled and let go of their legs.

'Catching my kick with his hand… What's this chakra in his arms…?' Sasuke wondered warily as he lowered his leg and took up a more stable stance. 'No, wait… Come to think of it, I've seen this before…' He realized, glancing back at April. He had never sparred with her directly, but he had seen her use a similar move during one of their missions. He made a mental note to ask her about it later.

"Hey." A boy with long brown hair and extremely pale eyes said as he and the girl wearing her hair in buns approached the boy in the green jumpsuit. "What happened to the plan? You're the one who said we shouldn't draw attention to ourselves." He reminded his teammate.

"Well…" The boy in the green jumpsuit said, blushing as he glanced back at Sakura.

'Oh, looks like someone has a crush…' April thought as her lips curled up in an amused smile, while the girl on his team shook her head and sighed. The boy in the green jumpsuit clenched his fist, making a very determined face, as he steeled his nerves.

'Huh? Their injuries have disappeared…' Sasuke noticed.

'They must have been fakes to make them look weaker than they really were.' April thought as they watched him stride over purposely to talk to Sakura.

"Hi…" He greeted her a bit shyly.

"!" Sakura said, frowning slightly. What did he want?

"My name is Rock Lee." He introduced himself politely. "You are Sakura-san, right?" He asked, blushing. It was a pretty name for a pretty girl. "Let's go out together!!!" Rock Lee proposed, winking as he gave her a thumbs up and a sparkling winning smile. "I'll protect you till I die!!" The look on Sakura's face was priceless.

"No… Way…" Sakura refused bluntly, blue with shock.

"Eh?" Rock Lee said, also turning blue with shock.

"You're lame." She told him, delivering the finishing blow.

"Hehe!" Naruto laughed as Lee hung his head in disappointment, looking completely dejected.

'Poor guy… Better luck next time.' April thought with a wry smile. He seemed like a good guy, but he wasn't really her type either. She already had Kakashi-sensei… sort of.

"Hey, you…" The boy with pale eyes said, addressing Sasuke. "What's your name?"

'Damn it!!! Not Sasuke again!!!' Naruto thought angrily, clenching his fists as his eyes burned with fury.

"When you want to learn someone's name, you should give yours first." Sasuke said coolly, despite the bead of sweat forming on the side of his face. April didn't blame him for being so wary. There was something kind of oppressive about this guy's chakra…

"You're a rookie, right?" The boy with pale eyes continued, unfazed. "How old are you?"

"I don't have to answer you." Sasuke retorted defiantly as he turned away to join his teammates. The boy with pale eyes furrowed his brow. 'Man… there's a bunch of… monsters here…' He thought with a smirk, furrowing his brow.

'Hehe… He's cute…' The girl with the buns thought as she watched him walk away.

"What about me?" Naruto said disappointedly with a sigh as he leaned against the wall. April smiled wryly and gave him a sympathetic pat on the back.

"Come on, let's go. We still have to turn in out applications." She reminded him.

"Right!" Sakura agreed cheerfully, revived. "Naruto, Sasuke-kun!! Let's go!!"

"Hehe… So those are Kakashi and Guy's precious pupils…" The boy with wild hair's partner said as they watched from inside the room they had ducked into after their defeat. "I guess they pass this first unofficial first test…"

"Yeah…" The boy with wild hair agreed as they released their transformation jutsu and returned to their original forms. "This is exam is going to be fun…"

"For us examiners too…" His partner agreed. Sakura hummed cheerfully as she held hands with April, and they two of them pulled the boys along as they continued down the hall.

"Hey, don't pull me!" Sasuke said, chagrined. Naruto was too busy pouting to object.

"Come on, Lee, what are you doing?" The girl with the buns asked, wondering why he wasn't following her and the boy with pale eyes.

"You guys go ahead." Lee told his teammates. "There is something I would like to test."