"Sasuke!" Sakura swallowed and her brows furrowed. "Naruto's certainly different from you, Sasuke. He's a klutz and he gets in the way. But at least he's not a coward! Not even a little bit! Right? Isn't that right?"

Sasuke finally blinked and his eyes refocused and he looked at Sakura. He averted his eyes and clenched his fists, then closed his eyes as a face appeared in his head. "Foolish little brother. If you want to kill me, resent me, hate me, and…" Sasuke gritted his teeth and balled his fists tighter. "continue to live your ugly, pathetic life. Flee. Flee and cling to your life."

Sasuke furrowed his brows and opened his eyes, revealing his Sharingan "No!"

"Hmph." Shiore put a hand on his hip and smirked as Sasuke's eyes changed. "As expected of the Uchiha clan… his blood has begun to stir. I should take my time and confirm his true power."

"Sasuke!" Sakura smiled and her eyes widened slightly at his shift.

Shiore's smirk grew and he laughed loudly. The summoning snake vanished in a cloud of smoke, which blinded Sakura and Sasuke. When it dispersed, Shiore stood on a branch above Sasuke and he glared up at the man.

Sasuke drew a Kunai and bit the blade and held it between his teeth. "I have to live so that I can kill my older brother… that's what I thought. But it's me who was being stupid" He furrowed his brows. "Naruto! Sakura! How can someone who can't put his life on the line at a time like this… ever beat that man?!"

Sasuke ran at Shiore and jumped toward him. Shiore chuckled and held up a one-handed sign and then swiped both arms quickly to the side to create a large burst of wind in all directions. From above, Sasuke threw a volley of Shuriken and Kunai at the man, who dodged them all easily by shifting his body only slight. Sasuke landed on a branch and pushed off from it to get in close and throw a kick.

Shiore blocked each kick with his arms and Sasuke twisted in the air to maneuver behind Shiore to dodge a strike. Shiore rushed at the boy as Sasuke ran at them and they exchanged blows.

"I can see." Sasuke dodged a kick and threw one of his own. Shiore leapt up to avoid it and landed behind the boy. With a smirk, he moved faster and vanished, then ran around Sasuke as if in a blur. His body shifted to a serpentine lower body and he moved around on the branches, slithering and zipping as he watched Sasuke intently. "I can see!"

Shiore lunged at Sasuke and he dodged, forcing Shiore to strike the branch instead. It cracked and shattered from the impact and Sasuke formed a series of hand signs as he fell, then landed on the ground and held up his hand to his lips. He sucked in a breath and exhaled. "I can see you!"

Fire burst from his lips at Shiore, and then he took in a larger breath and opened his mouth wide once more. Flames erupted out and swirled around the man in a large tornado. Shiore held up his arms as he smirked.

The fire dissipated and Shiore burst out of the ground in front of Sasuke and swiped at him. Sasuke jumped back to put distance between them, slowly exhaling as he caught his breath. He held out his out hand and pointed his fingertips at his opponent.

"He's pretty good…" Shiore smirked. "You foretell my movements and your aim is sure. You can see my moves, can't you?"

Anko moved through the forest and stopped to scan the area. "The sun is starting to set… I must find him quickly! Once it becomes completely dark, my disadvantage will increase. But why in the world right now… what's his goal?" She narrowed her eyes. "Well, that's fine… He came to this village. I'll settle this here and now."

Sasuke ran at Shiore, who slammed his hands down onto the branch. A large gust of wind shot towards him and the branch snapped and split, creaking as it slowly fell. Sasuke dodged and landed on another branch, holding on with his Chakra concentrated to his feet. Then, he pushed off and grabbed Shiore, wrapping his arms around the man's torso into a fall.

"I got you!"

Shiore hit a branch far below with his head with a loud snap and the branch cracked from the impact. Shiore's scream stopped suddenly and his body went limp, and Sasuke released him and backed away, watching him carefully. His eyes widened slightly as Shiore's eyes blinked and he trembled. His mouth opened wide and his body shifted to mud and splattered.

"A substitution!" Sasuke quickly looked to the side and dodged a volley of Kunai and jumped down. He pulled a wire between his hands, hooking it onto a thick branch, and then swung with to maneuver around the enormous tree. He landed on another tree and looked around cautiously.

Shiore emerged from a shadow and ran at him and landed a heavy punch to Sasuke's face. Sasuke staggered back as Shiore continue to strike him, punching his gut and bringing his knee hard into his chest. He grabbed the boy's hair and punched him in the fake again, knocking him back several meters where he collapsed.

"Sasuke!" Sakura's eyes widened as she caught up and looked down at him from a higher branch.

Shiore slowly walked forward toward the boy and stopped in front of him. "Hmph! You are too easy. The Uchiha name is crying." His eyes narrowed. "That's alright. I'll just take my time and play with you before I kill you… like a worm."

Sasuke opened his eyes slowly and the three tiny bombs he'd stuck on Shiore's clothes sparked and went off, knocking Shiore off-balance and he fell to his knees. Sasuke quickly got up and leapt into the air and threw Shuriken at the man. Shiore's eyes widened at the wires attached to the Shuriken and Sasuke smirked and tugged on the wires to direct the Shuriken's path. They looped around the tree and Shiore turned to look at them.

"This is the Sharingan Triple Windmill Attack!" The wires tensed and trapped Shiore against the trunk.

Sasuke formed a series of hand signs and furrowed his brows as he held a wire between his teeth. "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!" Flames erupted from his mouth at Shiore, burning through his body and the tree as his screams echoed through the forest.

"He did it!" Sakura smiled as she watched Sasuke's attack until the fire slowly died away. Sasuke slouched forward, his breathing ragged as he tried to catch his breath, and Sakura ran over to him. "Sasuke! You did it!"

His body trembled slightly as he gasped for air and Sakura frowned and reached out to touch his shoulder.

"Are you okay? Hang on."

Shiore stepped forward and snapped the wires, smirking as he looked up and hit his fist against his palm. Their bodies tensed and Sakura fell as Sasuke shot a glare at the man.

"Paralysis?" Sasuke muttered and struggled to move as he was frozen in place. "This is a different technique than the one that Natsumi used before… and on a much different level."

"I didn't expect that you'd be able to use the Sharingan this much at your age." Shiore chuckled and put his hands on his hips, with the flesh of his face partially melted off to reveal a pale white face beneath. "You truly are a member of the Uchiha clan. I do want you, after all."

Sasuke let out a scream as he tried to move and his fingers twitched slightly.

"You're definitely his brother." Shiore met his eyes and he chuckled again as Sasuke's eyes widened. "Your eyes hide more ability than Itachi."

"Who the hell are you?" Sasuke gritted his teeth and glared at Shiore.

Shiore held up their scroll with a smirk. "My name is Orochimaru… If you think that you want to meet me again, desperately climb to the top of this test." The scroll burst into green flames. "Defeat the three Sound Village Ninja under my control."

"The scroll!" Sakura's eyes widened and she furrowed her brows. "You're not making sense at all! We don't want to see your face ever again, got it?!"

"Oh, that won't do." Shiore closed his eyes briefly as he laughed under his breath. He brought his hands together to form a hand sign and his neck extended and shot upward, moving through the air to open his mouth wide. His canines lengthened into sharp fangs and he bit down on the side of Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke grunted in pain, his body stiffening as his eyes widened and his vision blurred. His breath caught in his throat as a gurgling choke and a line of saliva ran from the sides of his lips as Orochimaru clamped down harder before releasing the boy and his neck returned to its normal length and his head fixed itself on his body.

"Sasuke!" Sakura trembled and paled at Sasuke's expression.

Sasuke's heart pounded and three dark tomoe appeared on his skin beside the bite. He screamed and reached up to cover the bite as it throbbed and the burning sensation coursed through his body. He fell to his knees, gurgling and groaning in pain, gasping for air.

"Sasuke!" Sakura's lip quivered and then she looked at the man and glared. "What did you do to Sasuke?"

Orochimaru smirked and held up a finger to his lips. "I gave him a parting gift. Sasuke absolutely would come looking for me… looking for power. I enjoyed seeing your various strengths and techniques." He slowly began to sink into the branch and vanish before their eyes as he spoke. "We will meet again soon, Sasuke."

"Sasuke!" Sakura moved to his side and reached out to touch his shoulder, then drew her hand back. "Hold on, Sasuke. C'mon! We need to get somewhere safer!" She tried to support his weight so that he could sit upright and he gritted his teeth as he followed her lead. "Sasuke…"

He screamed again, unable to move any more and she held onto his hand, and he squeezed it until her fingers whitened.

"Sasuke, come on…" Her voice cracked and her eyes watered. His screaming faded and his eyes closed as he fell unconscious and his head fell into her lap. "S-Sasuke…" Tears streaked down her face and she held him close as she yelled. "…Naruto! Sasuke… Sasuke's…! Naruto!"

A group of crows were disturbed by her shouts and loudly cawed and flew by. Sakura jumped and pulled Sasuke closer as she sniffed and looked upward at the sky.

"…What? What should I do?"

Orochimaru emerged from a tree and straightened and he glanced upward at the moon overhead before slipping back into the tree once again. Anko ran through the forest, gritting her teeth as she clenched her fists tightly.

"I can feel it!" She jumped down from a high branch and landed far below, continuing to race towards the dark sensation. "He's close by."

She stopped on a branch and narrowed her eyes at the man's face that remained on the exterior of the tree's trunk. His eye cracked open slightly as she approached and he smirked.

"It's been a while… Anko."

"You're ranked S class, an extremely dangerous person on the most wanted list. That's why I'll kill you here and now even if it costs me my life." She opened her hand and held Senbon between her fingers. "That is my duty as your former subordinate who learned everything from you. Isn't that right, Orochimaru?!"

"No, you can't."

As she drew her hand back to throw the Senbo, he opened his mouth wide and his tongue shot out, stretching strike where she stood. She leapt up out of the way and stood on the side of the tree and furrowed her brows. The tongue followed her and wrapped tightly around her wrist. She dropped the Senbon and tugged against it, only to be pulled down. She landed on her feet and channeled the Chakra to her arm.

"Striking Shadow Snake!"

Four snakes slithered from her sleeve and extended toward Orochimaru to strike the tree that concealed his body and latched onto his limbs.

"I won't let you escape!" She tugged back and pulled him out of the tree and threw him hard against another. The snakes retracted into her sleeve and she pinned him to the tree, sinking a Kunai knife into their hands and into the tree. She smirked faintly and met his eyes. "I've got you... Orochimaru, I'm gonna borrow your left hand."

She laced her right hand with his left and manipulated it to form a hand sign. His eyes widened slightly and looked down at their hands.

"This hand sign…"

"Right… You and I are going to die here." She laughed and narrowed her eyes, then drew in a breath, holding it in as she closed her eyes and channeled her Chakra. "Ninja Art: Twin Snakes Sacrifice-"

Orochimaru's laugh cut her off and echoed around them.

"You intend to commit suicide?"

Anko's eyes widened and she shuddered, his voice suddenly behind her. She looked over her shoulder at his wide smirk as he reached up to grab the melted face and tore it off to reveal his own.

"Substitution." He chuckled and the clouds shifted to uncover the moon and illuminate the area. Anko trembled and looked at the copy she had cornered. It reverted to mud and splattered and his laughing grew louder. "As you are a Special Jonin of the village, you can't be using that forbidden Jutsu I taught you."

He stepped toward her and she gritted her teeth and met his eyes, still pinned to the tree with her own Kunai. She reached up to pull the Kunai free and bit her as blood dripped from the wound and she threw the knife at him. He caught it between his fingers and narrowed his eyes.

"I told you it wouldn't work." He formed a one-hand seal and her body paralyzed. He tossed the Kunai aside and approached her as she glared at him.

"W-Why… have you come now?"

"It's our reunion after so long and you're awfully cold."

"Don't tell me… you came to assassinate Lord Hokage?"

"No, no…" He chucked and held up a hand. "I don't have enough subordinates for that yet… I've heard of the excellent ones of this village and thought I'd put dibs on them."

Anko grunted and bent forward as she trembled and her hand slowly rose to cover the mark on the back of her neck as pain radiated from it. She collapsed her knees in front of him and he watched her expression contort in pain.

"A little while ago, I gave that same Curse Mark as a present." Orochimaru knelt in front of Anko and she gritted her teeth and met his eyes. "There's a kid that I want."

"You're so selfish as always." Anko glared. "That kid will die."

"Certainly… the odds are one in ten that he'll die, but he may survive just as you did."

"That kid… you really like him, huh?" She narrowed her eyes and smirked slightly.

Orochimaru chuckled and reached out to stroke her cheek. "Are you jealous? Hey… Are you still holding a grudge that I used you and threw you away?"

Anko clenched her jaw and he smirked.

"Unlike you, that kid will excel. For one thing… he inherited the Uchiha's Sharingan. He has beautiful features and is a vessel that can become my heir. If that kid lives, it will make things interesting." He stood and licked his lips. "So, be sure not to cancel this test." He turned and began to walk away as he continued to speak. "Three people from my village are also under your care. Make me enjoy it. And if something happens to deprive me of my fun, consider it the end of the Leaf."

He disappeared in a burst of violet flame and Anko was left alone, wide-eyed as her body still trembled.

Tenten, Lee, and Neji rested at the base of a tree near a river. Tenten drank from her bamboo canister as Lee adjusted the bandages wrapped around his hands.

"We've secured food and water after spending half a day and now most teams have halted activity." Neji sat on a stone, holding a Kunai between two fingers as he swung it back and forth slowly. "As we planned, this is the time that we attack. We'll split up and go scouting. However, whether we find other teams or not, we'll return to this place. Got it?"

Neji stood and flipped the Kunai, then caught it before throwing it down into the ground beside his feet.

"Okay." Tenten nodded.

"Roger!" Rock Lee raised his hand in a salute and stood.

"Alright. Scatter." Neji raised his arm and the three jumped in separate directions.

Sasuke's face twisted in pain as he slept and a bead of sweat rolled down his face. Sakura frowned and touched his forehead for a moment and then rested her hand on her lap.

"His breathing is gradually becoming regular… but he still has a terrible fever." Her eyes rested on Naruto, who lay unconscious beside Sasuke. She sighed and clutched the bottom of her dress. "I have to protect them both."

Anko sat on a rock and wrapped a bandage around her hand and rested her hands on her knees once she had finished. Her eyes rested on the ground and she pressed her lips together to form a line.

"I have to tell Lord Hokage about this right away."

She stood and started to walk slowly across the field before stopping and narrowing her eyes at the bushes in front of her. A large tiger watched her from the shadows, narrowing its eyes and emitting a low growl from its throat. It approached her with its fangs beared and Anko gritted her teeth.

"Damn. At a time like this!" She turned to see another tiger approaching from behind, and the pair slowly circled her as a third approached. She stepped back until she was pinned against a rock formation and the largest of the animals stood before her, blocking the moonlight with its oversized form.

Anko reached for a Kunai but stopped, wincing and grunting in pain as her mark throbbed. She covered it with her hand as the pain coursed through her. The tiger roared and reared his head back for a bite but was knocked down with a groan. The other tigers hissed and growled angrily as they were frozen in place.

"This is the Paralysis Jutsu."

"So you're here, Anko."

She turned to see two ANBU agents standing on top of a tree nearby. They jumped down, one crouching on the rock beside her, while the other stood nearby. She looked between them and furrowed her brows.

"You're pretty late for ANBU Black Ops."

"Well, don't say that." The bird-masked man shrugged slightly.

Anko grabbed at her mark again, doubling over as the pain surged once more and she fell to the ground, gasping for air.

"Hey, are you alright?" The bird-masked man knelt in front of her and his eyes widened slightly as he looked to her neck. "Huh? T-This is…! The curse mark is appearing… Don't tell me…?!"

The taller man frowned and stepped closer. "Is it Orochimaru?"

"What, really?" The bird-masked man clenched his fists. "Now that it's come to this, we'll take you to Lord Hokage."

"No, take me to the tower." Anko grimaced and sat up, still trembling.

"What are you saying?" The cat-masked man looked down at her. "The moment Orochimaru comes to this village, a strict alert is issued. It's more urgent than continuing the Exam."

"I know…" She clenched her jaw and looked down for a moment. "I'll tell the whole story later, so please call for Lord Hokage."

The masked men looked between each other and the bird-masked agent turned back to her.

"Actually, there is something that Lord Hokage also wanted to speak to you about..."

Sakura sat upright at Sasuke's side, slouched over slightly as she slept. The three Sound Genin gazed down from atop a tree at the raised roots where Team Seven rested and Dosu laughed under his breath.

"I found you." He glanced toward Kin, who put her hand on her hip. "As Orochimaru ordered, we'll wait for daybreak to do it. Sasuke Uchiha is our target, not the others."

"If they get in our way, it's okay to kill the other two, right?" Zaku crossed his arms.

"Of course." Dosu replied and turned his attention back to Team Seven.

The birds began to chirp as the sun rose. Sakura's eyes fluttered opened slowly as the light shone through the roots above. She blinked and looked up at the light as it grew brighter and the morning mist dissipated, then she sighed lightly and looked over at Sasuke and Naruto, who were still asleep.

"We made it through the night…"