Konoha: Interrogation Room, Day 2 of the Second Test…

Zabuza Momochi has been threw quite the ride since coming to the Leaf. He'd been imprisoned and interrogated for his knowledge which he was willing to give. He even continued to do so after learning of the end of the civil war back in the Mist.

It may have been a huge shock, but also a weight lifted off his shoulder. His previous dream had been accomplished. Now, he could focus on his current dream. Living a life Haku could be proud of. He just knew Haku would have joined the Leaf if given the chance. After a while, he started to receive good healing bringing him back to full strength.

Now he was waiting in a familiar place. A gray room with a table and two chairs on opposite sides as the man who would decide his fate was to come speak with him. Soon enough, the door opened, and the Third Hokage entered followed by two Anbu.

The Hokage sat down as the Anbu stood to the right and left. "The Demon of the Mist, Zabuza Momochi. I must confess, I was rather surprised when Team Seven managed to bring you here. Even more so when Kakashi vouched for you."

Zabuza nodded. "I thought those Genin were brats, but they're far from it."

"Indeed. A team full of boundless potential that I'm only now beginning to see bear fruit." The Third put his hands on the table and rested his chin on them. "So, I hear you wish to become a Leaf Shinobi.

I have the information already, but I want to hear it from you. Why join the Leaf Village? Why not return to the Mist and resume life there? In other words, what guarantee do we have that you will not abandon the Leaf in favor of the Mist?"

Zabuza said, "My new dream is to live a life Haku can be proud of. He would want me to join the Leaf. I can tell this is where he'd have gone if given the chance. Two, Team Seven impressed me. Made me see that Leaf Shinobi aren't weak. I want to see if this strength rubs off on me."

The Third Hokage smiled. "I'm glad to hear that." He snapped his finger. "If you're going to join the Leaf, there are a few things you'll need."

A couple more Anbu walked in. One carried his Executioner's Blade and the other carried a change of clothes including a flak jacket and Leaf forehead protector.

"Zabuza Momochi, from this moment on you are a Konoha Jonin on probation for 6 months. You will be monitored on every mission by a squad of Anbu. I believe it's a formality at this point, but one that must be done."

Zabuza stood up. "Understood, Lord Hokage."

Forest of Death: Team Guy Genin

Tenten had arrived at the meeting spot first and had been left waiting for her team. "It's been 15 minutes past the time we agreed to meet. Looks like it's time to go find them."

Just as she was about leave, Neji jumped down from a tree seeming unsteady on his feet, a little pale, and sweating. "Seems being lightheaded was only the beginning."

Tenten looked at the prodigy concerned. "Neji, are you okay? What happened to you?"

Neji gripped the spot where the curse mark was placed. It was by no means painful, but there was a slight burning sensation. He figured once that stopped, he'd feel normal.

The Hyuga looked at his female teammate. "I ran into one of the legendary Yonnin, Orochimaru." He unzipped his jacket and showed the Curse Seal. "We fought for a bit and he gave me this before leaving."

Tenten looked at it. "I think I recall seeing something like that on our proctor." She looked at Neji once more before showing her scroll. "I got the Heaven Scroll we needed. If your fine to wait just 5 more minutes, we can see if Lee joins us and head to the tower immediately."

"A good idea." Neji stated.

That's when Lee ran into the clearing with Karin still being carried bridal style. "Worry not my teammates for your handsome devil of the Leaf Village has returned."

They both looked at the girl in his arms.

Tenten noticed the way this Genin blushed and looked at Lee. "Wait, what? Is she… No… She couldn't really like Lee, could she?"

Neji asked, "Lee, why do you have a Kusagakure Genin in your arms."

Lee replied, "I was looking for a team with a Heaven scroll when I found her teammates dead by Senbon. I believe a Rain Shinobi killed them. Anyways, I went looking and found her being attacked by a huge bear. I jumped in and now I'm taking her to the tower."

Tenten sighed, "Well, she hasn't attacked you when you were alone, so I guess it's fine."

Karin was shocked to hear her say that. "I wouldn't attack Lee. He saved me."

Lee noticed Neji's condition. "Neji, are you okay?"

Tenten jumped in. "I'll explain along the way. What's important now is that we make it to the tower. Neji needs some form of attention. The only place he'll get it is at the tower." She produced the Heaven scroll. "We have the scrolls we need.

Lee nodded. "Right, let's go."

Forest of Death

Kabuto's teammates, Misumi and Yoroi, were waiting for his return. They both wore Leaf Village headbands, sleeveless, high neck purple cloaks with a white short sleeved shirt underneath, purple pants, and blue sandals. The only difference between the two was that Misumi wore clear glasses while Yoroi wore sunglasses.

"I'm getting tired of waiting for Kabuto to come back." Yoroi stated.

"Maybe we got lucky and he's been killed." Misumi said.

Yoroi replied, "Unlikely. Someone like him is not easy to kill. I just wish he'd have let us go and take down some Genin."

"What if one of those Genin just so happened to stroll into your camp." Kuma stated.

He walked into the camp as his wires, controlled with Chakra, floated behind him.

"You're one of those Mist Shinobi." Yoroi said now on guard.

"I'm also a guy who loves to kill, but not before we fight it out a little. Though I might spare you if you give me your scroll." Kuma stated.

Misumi said, "We aren't the ones holding our team's scroll. Even if we were, we wouldn't give them up."

He ran at Kuma already stretching his body to strangle his opponent.

"Neat trick, but you have to do better than that to challenge me." Kuma said.

His wire raced forward and wrapped around Misumi's body trapping him. Before Misumi could speak, Kuma grabbed the wire and yanked it far to the right causing Misumi to fly into the air. He then crashed Misumi into the ground

He repeated this process multiple times until finally letting go when his opponent was at the apex of the toss sending him into the air. Kuma then drew several kunai and threw them at Misumi hitting him in the chest. His bloody body fell to the ground in a heap.

Misumi slowly rose to his feet. "Yoroi, please… help…"

That was all Misumi could say before Kuma threw a kunai at his head impaling him. The Shinobi's body fell to the ground dead.

Kuma looked at Yoroi who still looked confident after everything he saw. "I noticed you didn't move a muscle to help your teammate. Don't get me wrong, it was great you didn't as it allowed me to have my fun, but I would like to know why?"

"Honestly, we aren't a team. I can't stand either of my 'teammates', so you've done me a favor in killing him." Yoroi stated. "Having said that, I don't feel as though I can thank you when I'm about to kill you."

"You seem sure of yourself." Kuma smiled. "Care to put it to the test?"

Yoroi charged and managed to dodge the wire as it came at him before placing his hand on Kuma. It glowed blue as he began to take in Chakra; however, he quickly realized this was a water clone. The clone smiled as the real Kuma appeared behind him placing a kunai to his neck.

"I was careless in my approach." Yoroi said.

Kuma slit his throat and let him fall to the ground. "You were, but at least you were a fraction of fun to play with."

A Heaven and Earth scroll came flying at Kuma from behind, so he turned before catching them.

Kabuto walked into the clearing clapping. "I must say, I'm quite impressed with that display of yours. As much as I didn't like either of them, they were decent pawns."

Kuma ignored Kabuto's comment. "I did say if they gave me the scroll, I wouldn't kill them, so I suppose I won't kill you."

Kuma began to walk off until Kabuto stopped him. "You know, I have quite the proposition for you. Would you like to hear it?"

"I'm not interested in working for some washed up snake." Kuma stated.

Kabuto pushed his glassed up. "I can assure you that Lord Orochimaru isn't, as you put it, 'washed up'."

"Why don't we compare your master to my leaders. I work for the Akatsuki, and they have Shinobi that put your snake to shame. They could easily kill him if he weren't so busy hiding. The sad thing is, he'll never find a way to beat them."

"Maybe I should just kill you since you work for them." Kabuto stated.

"It would be fun trying to kill Orochimaru's lap dog, but I think it's in our best interest to avoid a fight right now. It would get messy and most likely attract the wrong kind of attention." Kuma stated.

"You may be right about that. Very well, I'll let you go, but I'd watch your back if I were you." Kabuto stated.

Kuma walked away. "Same to you."

Kabuto walked over to his 'teammates'. "Lord Orochimaru isn't going to be pleased by this, but at least these thorns have been removed."

Team Kenjo

Kuma walked into the camp and threw both scrolls to Kenjo.

Kanja noticed the blood. "Kuma…"

Kuma smirked and leaned against a tree. "I killed two of them, and you don't have the right to speak since killing was allowed."

"It may be allowed, but we were sent here to change the image of the Mist." Kenjo stated. "We were told not to reinforce it."

"I got results, didn't I?" Kuma shrugged. "Are you going to continue to lecture me or are we moving on?" He could tell by their postures that he was in for lectures. "Waste of my time."

Team 8

Team 8 had both their scrolls and were making their way to the tower.

Kiba was ecstatic. "I know we'll be the ones to survive, right Akamaru?" Akamaru barked. "We were lucky that team caught in our traps had an Earth Scroll. Now, we'll be the first to reach the tower."

Shino said, "Don't get overconfident. That's a dangerous mistake to make. No matter how small a bug is, it still has to guard itself at all times."

"Listen to Shino, Kiba." Sakura stated. "There are a lot of people with strong Chakra in this exam. We'd be fools to underestimate anyone. Even Ino may surprise us."

Kiba was about to reply until him and Akamaru picked up a scent forcing them, and their team, to stop. "Hold on guys." Kiba pointed. "Sakura, I need you to get a read on the signatures a kilometer ahead."

Sakura closed her eyes and let her Chakra Sense do its thing. "6 signatures, but only one large one. Like Naruto in that it's a demonic feeling Chakra."

Sakura had felt everyone's Chakra back in the first exam.

"In that case, we're going around." Shino ordered.

"Come on Shino, I say we check it out." Kiba smiled. "If we can get more scrolls off other teams, our own chance of passing would increase."

Shino said, "That would be the case, but we must employ logic. What's needed is the Earth and Heaven scroll. Risking them in a confrontation with a large amount of Chakra is too risky."

"I agree with Shino." Sakura stated. "That's two to one in favor of skirting around the Chakra."

Kiba picked up Akamaru. "Akamaru's with me."

He barked.

"Akamaru is cute Kiba, but we already agreed early on that you two count for one." Sakura stated.

"Fine, let's go around." Kiba sighed. "Sometimes you two just aren't any fun."

Team 8 gave the confrontation between the Sand and Rain Genin a wide berth.eaven H

Tower: Team Guy, Next Night…

Team Guy had spoken to some Chunin that appeared from their scrolls and informed them of all that had happened. Neji's run in with Orochimaru, his acquiring of the Curse Seal, and Karin Uzumaki being with them.

As a result, they were told to wait in the room. Chunin brought them food at times and medical Shinobi looked over Neji determining he should be healthy. With everything being the way it was, the team and Karin weren't really talking.

Karin did glance at Lee often with a blush. Finally, the door behind them opened as the Hokage, Four Anbu, Guy, and Kakashi entered. By this point, Neji had removed his jacket meaning they could see the Curse Seal as clear as day.

Guy ran up to Neji clearly concerned. "Neji…" He looked at the curse mark in disbelief. "…you really did run into Orochimaru."

"I believe his aim was to give me this seal; otherwise, destiny would decree I die." Neji stated.

The Third Hokage looked at the Shinobi. "Neji Hyuga go with Kakashi Hatake. He can seal your Curse Mark." He looked at Tenten and Lee. "You two will go with Guy to your resting quarters." He looked at Karin. "Karin Uzumaki, You and I are going to have a chat in private."

Karin looked at him before looking at the ground and finally to Lee who noticed she looked rather scared.

Lee decided to reassure her with a smile and a thumbs up. "Do not worry Karin. The Third Hokage is one of the nicest people in the whole village. He will not hurt you."

That wasn't what she was afraid of. She was afraid of returning to her 'Sensei'. After all, she was a failure. She was meant to keep her team healthy, yet they died. No doubt Kusagakure wouldn't be happy with her.

For what it was worth, she did draw some strength from those words and managed a smile. "Thank you, Lee." She stood and walked over to the Third. "Maybe I'll get to see you again someday."

"Maybe so." Lee bowed. "I also wish to apologize for being unable to save your team."

Karin nervously chuckled. "I know you couldn't have done anything for them." The Third started to walk off, so she followed. "Don't beat yourself up over it, okay?"

Lee nodded. "I shall try."

She was gone and Kakashi now walked up to Guy and Neji. "Alright, let's go Neji. If you want the chance to continue in these exams, that Curse Seal needs attention."

Neji stood and Guy looked at his rival. "Kakashi…"

Kakashi looked him in the eyes. "Not to worry Guy. I know what I'm doing. Your student will collapse after I'm done, but he'll just need rest."

Guy nodded before he looked at his remaining Genin with a smile. "Before you take him, I'd just like to say that I'm proud of you three. Lee, you saved a Shinobi when they needed it, Tenten, you helped fellow Leaf Genin, and Neji you fought off Orochimaru. I'm so proud."

Lee smiled. "Thank you, Guy Sensei!"

Tenten looked at Kakashi. "He's going to be alright, right?"

"As I said, he'll be fine." Kakashi started to walk off. "Come along Hyuga."

Neji followed.

With the Third and Karin

Karin now stood across from the Third who sat on a couch and offered her a kindly smile. "It's been quite some time since I've seen a full blooded Uzumaki." He nodded. "I have heard rumors of others being out there, but I never believed them until now."

Karin looked at the ground. "Sir, can we just get to the part where you hand be back to my Sensei."

Sarutobi looked at her. "That depends on you Ms. Uzumaki." Karin looked at him surprised. "The Uzumaki Clan and Konoha had a strong relationship with one another. Unfortunately, we failed to be there for them in their time of need. As a result, we owe them a great debt.

If your wish to return to the Hidden Grass Village, we will hand you over where you belong as these are the Chunin Exams; however, you would be most welcome to remain in Konoha. Maybe the Uzumaki Clan could come back. We do have a half-Uzumaki who considers this home."

Karin blinked at him in shock as tears came to her eyes and she fell to her knees. "I want to stay." She kept talking. "It's awful in the Grass Village. My mother died saving their people all because people can bite us and heal. They killed her, and I was put to work…"

The Third had gotten up and patted her head. "It's quite alright. I gave you my word you could stay if you chose, and I will hold to that. With your team disbanded, I can get your Sensei to leave as no other Grass Team remains."

Karin looked at him gratefully as she rubbed her eyes. "Thank you. Thank you."

"For now, would you be fine with staying here at the tower? The Second Exam will soon end. With the teams streaming in, we may have the need for a preliminary Exam, so you'd be welcome to watch with the other Genin." The Third offered.

Karin nodded as she continued to try and staunch the tears. "I'd be fine with that."

The Third nodded before looking at his Anbu. "Take her to one of the empty rooms. For now, I want one of you to guard her."

With Kakashi and Neji

The pair were in a stone, dark room illuminated by candles. A series of kanji was written on the ground as Neji, now with only his pants on, sat on the ground. Kakashi stood behind him putting the finishing touches to the seal.

"This should be over quickly." Kakashi stated. "You ready?"

Neji simply said. "Just do it."

Kakashi wove a long series of hand signs. "Curse Sealing."

He then pressed a palm over the Curse Seal. Neji screamed out in pain as the kanji written on him and the ground started moving around the Curse Seal creating a seal around it. Once it was done, Neji was left panting.

Kakashi said, "There. Now if that Curse Mark starts acting up, that seal should keep it in check, but this sealing is only as strong as you are. Its strength comes from your will. If that will weaken, then the Curse Seal will be unleashed."

Neji then fell into unconsciousness, so Kakashi picked him up intent on taking him to Guy.

Inside the Tower: 5th Day…

Daichi had recovered soon enough and was filled in on what his team did. Afterwards, they'd made it to the tower with plenty of time to rest and heal. All the Genin that got both scrolls have now entered the main room of the tower.

"So, 7 teams made it past this round." Sasuke commented.

"Among them, are Teams 8, 10, Guy. Kanja, Gaara, the Sound, and us." Daichi added.

"It doesn't matter whose made it because I'm going to kick all their butts." Naruto declared.

"I wonder what more awaits us in these exams?" Hinata questioned.

"Don't be cocky Naruto." Daichi stated. "Keep in mind that these teams made it as far as we have.

Sasuke said. "Good, we wouldn't want it to be easy to become Chunin."

The 22 remaining Genin all stood in lines, with their teams, before the proctors, their Sensei's, and The Hokage.

"First of all, congratulations on finishing the second exam." Anko spoke into a microphone. "I'm surprised 22 passed. I knew that less than half would make it, but I really thought the number would be in the single digits."

Guy turned to Kakashi. "I see your team didn't do too bad Kakashi. Of course, with my team still around, your team is doomed to failure. After all, what matters on the next test is ability, and we've got you far outclassed.'

"Huh, did you say something?" Kakashi calmly asked

Guy gripped his head and screamed in frustration before turning around. "Alright Kakashi, you win this round. Boy that drives me nuts when you act so cool. There's no way I'm going to let you get the best of me."

Lee thought, "Guy Sensei is just the coolest teacher ever. I mean he's so cool that he practically glows with cool." He then looked at Daichi. "Just you watch Guy Sensei. I will beat my eternal rival and make you proud."

Neji was looking around as well. "As expected, all of the best are here." He set his sights on Team Seven. "The weak made it as well. If I go up against any of them, especially Hinata, I'll have to show them the true meaning of their destiny."

Temari thought, "I can't believe it. Only 7 teams out of 26 are left."

The Hokage looked at the gathered students "It's hard to believe that there are this many left after the 2nd test and many of them are rookies." He looked at the Sensei of the three Rookie Leaf teams. "So, this is why they fought hard to recommend them."

"Alright, pay attention. The Third Hokage is going to explain the 3rd exam, so you better listen carefully maggots." Anko turned to the Hokage. "Lord Hokage, they're all yours."

The Hokage nodded, walked forward, and cleared his throat. "Before I tell you what the third exam entails, I want to explain its true purpose. Listen closely, for it's something all of you need to understand." The Genin perked up. " Why do you think our country holds these exams?

It's to raise the ability levels of our Shinobi and increase friendship between the allied nations, to be sure, but it's important that you understand its true meaning. The exams are, so to speak, representations of the battles between allied nations."

Tenten asked, "And what's that supposed to mean?"

The Hokage continued. "If we look at our history, all the countries we're currently allied with, were once neighboring nations that continuously fought with each other for power. To avoid destroying each other's military strength, those nations picked champions to do battle on behalf of their countries at a mutually selected location. This is how the Chunin Selection Exams began."

Naruto said, "That's great, but why do we have to go through these exams then? I mean it's not like we're picking Chunin to fight."

The Hokage replied, "Actually, there is no question that part of these exams is to select Shinobi worthy of becoming Chunin. That is not the whole story. These exams also allow for a place where Shinobi can carry the pride of their nation on their backs. Where they can fight against other ninja for their very lives."

"The pride of their nation?" Sakura questioned.

The Hokage continued, "Many leaders and people of prominence are invited to attend this exam as guest and to seek Shinobi to work for them. This exam could determine the course of your ninja work from here on out.

More importantly, those rulers will watch your battles and take note of the strength each nation is developing. If there is a gap in power between the countries, the strong nations are given job request for their ninja while the request to countries considered weak are declined.

Essentially, the stronger your nation, the better the position they'll be in when it comes to negotiating with neighboring countries. That is what it's important to show how much military strength your village has."

Kiba asked, "Why is it necessary for us to risk our lives?"

The Hokage replied, "The country's strength is the village's strength. The village's strength is the Shinobi's strength. The true strength of the Shinobi is only achieved when it's pushed to its limit. This exam is a chance for each nation to display its Shinobi and hence the strength of the nation itself. It's because this is an exam where your life is on the line that this exam has meaning."

Daichi asked, "Why did you use the term friendship before?"

The Hokage replied, "You've only heard half of what I've said. You mustn't have the wrong idea of the exam's meaning. This is a custom in which balance is preserved by fighting and dying. In the world of the Shinobi, that is friendship. The third exam is a fight for life with the pride of your village and your dreams at stake."

Naruto smiled. "Well, he sure convinced me."

Daichi smiled as well. "I get that this is a serious test. That our very lives will be put on the line, yet I just can't help feeling excited."

"Any test is fine." Gaara stated. "I can handle anything you throw at me."

At that moment, a Shinobi with short brown hair, and dark-colored eyes appeared kneeling before the Hokage. He wore the standard Konoha shinobi outfit complete with a forehead protector that he wore as a bandanna, flak jacket, and regular shinobi sandals.

"Lord Hokage, before you go any further allow me, Hayate Gekko, to speak as the third proctor of the exams." Hayate stated.

The Hokage said, "So, be it."

Hayate stood up. "It's nice to meet you all." He coughed and turned to face the Genin. "Unfortunately, to many of you have passed the 2nd exams. We must have a Preliminary Exam before moving on to the real one."

"Preliminary! Just what do mean by that?!" Shikamaru exclaimed.

Sakura said, "Excuse me Sensei, but I don't really see the point. What's this preliminary all about? Why can't we just move onto the third exam?"

Hayate replied, "You see, the 1st and 2nd exams may have been too easy. The fact is we never expected so many of you to still be here. According to the rules of the Chunin Exam, a preliminary round can be held at any stage to reduce the number of candidates remaining."

Sakura asked, "Is that fair?"

"It's just at this stage, we have to speed things up a bit. As Lord Hokage said, a lot of important guest will be watching. We can't afford to waste their time. They've come only to see the best, so if any of you feel as though you are not in top physical condition, now's the time to bow out. The preliminaries will start immediately." Hayate explained.

Kiba shouted, "You mean right now!?"

Ino said, "We just finished surviving the last exam. Don't we get a break?"

Shikamaru said, "Man what a drag."

Naruto thought, "So they pulled a fast one. It doesn't matter because I'm still going to win this."

Sasuke thought, "Does he really think anyone's going to leave?"

"Alright then, we'll now begin the preliminary round. This round will consist of one-on-one combat at full battle intensity. This is not an exercise. There are 22 of you remaining. Which means there will be 11 matches.

The surviving candidates from these 11 matches will advance to the third exam. As for the rules, there are none. You will fight until one dies, concedes the match, or is unable to physically continue.

Naturally, those who are losing should concede defeat as to avoid a fatal outcome. Also, as proctor, I am given a certain leeway in judging the matches. I might occasionally intervene to stop a fatal outcome. Now let us see what fate has in store for you."

Anko spoke into her microphone. "Open the panel."

A panel in the back of the room opened to reveal a screen.

Hayate said, "The names of the opponents are chosen at random. Before each match, the names will appear on the screen behind me. There's nothing left for me to say, so we will begin. The names of the first two opponents shall appear in a moment."