Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, its plot or characters. I own any OC, my plot, and anything else you don't recognize unless otherwise stated.
SNicole25: Yep. I never said if Rin knows about the invasion so that's still in the air on whether she knows or not. It's probably gunna be not… idk yet. It's subject to change.
Sorry this took forever.
If I told you what I was,
Would you turn your back on me?
And if I seem dangerous,
Would you be scared?
-Monster – Imagine Dragons
Rin waited outside on a tree swing for the first exam to be over. After about another half hour of waiting, people started leaving the building. She saw red hair and ran over.
"Did you guys pass?" Rin asked as she walked next to the three.
"Yep." Kankurō said. "And you doubted us."
"I doubted you. There's a difference." Rin said. Kankurō frowned. "I knew you two could do it." Rin said to Temari and Gaara. Temari smiled at her. Rin cupped her hands around her mouth and went up on her toes pretending to whisper something to Gaara. He leaned his head down slightly and blinked when he felt her kiss by his cheek. Rin pulled back and smiled at him before looking at Temari. "When's the next part?" she asked.
"It's tomorrow. Baki'll tell us where to go in the morning." Temari said.
"Great!" Rin said.
"You can't help with the next exam." Baki said to Rin as the four walked up to him.
"I have no idea what you could possibly be talking about." Rin said looking away. Kankurō face palmed.
"You'll be waiting with me until they complete it." Baki said.
"Okay." Rin whined but smiled at Gaara. "I'm sure I won't be waiting long."
The next morning all the candidates who'd passed the first part of the exam met outside of a fenced off area with huge trees. On the fence gate was a sign that said 'restricted area' as well as many chains and locks keeping it closed. There was even a paper seal.
"Wow nice place, what is it?" Naruto asked.
"This is the location for the second phase of the exam." Anko, the second exam proctor, said. "It's the 44th battle training zone. But we call it… the forest of death."
"Forest of…death?" Naruto asked.
"This whole place just creeps me out." Sakura said.
"It should, they call it the forest of death, and soon enough you're gunna find out why." Anko said. Naruto made a face and mocked Anko.
"They call it the forest of death, and soon enough you're gunna find out why." He said in a high voice. "Do your worst you're not gunna scare me away! I can handle anything!"
"So, looks like we've got ourselves a tough guy."Anko said closing her eyes in a smile. She suddenly threw a kunai at him. It gave him a cut on his cheek as it sailed past his ear. She appeared behind him "You tough enough to handle this? You're not afraid are you?" She put her hand on his face. "Tough guys like you usually leave their blood all over this forest." She took out another kunai as a ninja with an extremely long tongue held out the kunai she'd thrown before with said tongue.
"I was just returning your knife."
"Why thank you grass ninja." Anko said. "You know, I really only recommend you stand his close behind me if you wish to reach a premature end." Anko took the kunai back and the ninja's tongue slithered back into their mouth. Rin moved closer to Gaara with a grimace.
"My pardon. With the sight of blood and your blade slicing through my hair, I'm afraid that I just became a little excited. I meant you no harm." The ninja said.
"Likewise." Anko said as the extremely creepy ninja walked away. Naruto looked around Anko, holding a hand to his cheek, and started sticking his tongue out to see if he could do it too. "Seems like everyone here today is quick tempered. There must be something in the air. This is gunna be fun." She walked to the gate. "Now before we begin this test I've something to hand out to you all." She turned around and took something from inside her jacket. "It's just a standard consent form." She said holding up a stack of papers. "Before the test all of you are going to have to read over this form and then sign it."
"What for?" Naruto asked.
"Some of you may not come back from this test and I have to get your consent to that risk. Otherwise it would be my responsibility." She laughed. Everyone muttered amongst themselves. "Now, I'll explain what you'll be doing on this test. Here pass these out." She held out the papers to Naruto who took one and passed the stack to the guy next to him. "The first thing you need to know is that this test will test every one of your survival skills." Anko held open a scroll with a map. "First I'll give you all a description of the terrain on the practice field. The 44th battle training zone has 44 locked entrance gates; there are rivers and a forest inside. In the center is a locked tower located 10 kilometers from each gate. It's in this confined area that you'll undergo the survival test." She rerolled the scroll. "The test consists of…" She put the scroll away in her jacket. "An anything goes battle to get your hands on these scrolls." She held up a white scroll and a black scroll.
"Both of them." Sasuke asked.
"Yes." She showed the symbols on each. "You'll be fighting to get both a heavens scroll and an earth scroll. All together 25 teams will be taking part in this test. So half of those teams will be going after the heavens scroll and the other half will be trying to get the earth scroll. I'll hand over one kind of scroll to each team and that's what you'll be vying for."
"Okay, so how do we pass the test?" Sasuke asked.
"Your entire squad must bring both a heaven and earth scroll to the tower."
"That means at the very best half of us will fail." Sakura said. "More if not every team is able to get both the scrolls."
"No one ever said it would be easy." Anko said. "Oh and one more thing, the test has a time limit. You must finish it within five days.
"Five days out there?!" Ino asked.
"What are we supposed to do for food?!" Chouji asked.
"Just look around." Anko said. "The forest is full of things to eat, there's plenty to feed all of you."
"Yeah but," Kabuto glanced at Chouji. "That's not all the forest has plenty of; there are man-eating beasts and poisonous plants in there."
"Oh maaan." Chouji whined.
"Quiet down," Ino said. "This is why they call it survival you know."
"That means with these circumstances there's no way half the teams will pass the test." Neji said.
"With the days getting longer, the nights are getting shorter so we will have less time to sleep and less time to recover." Lee said before smiling. "It is a challenge indeed!"
"Completely surrounded by enemies there won't be time to rest we'll have to keep a constant watch." Sasuke said.
"Right." Anko said. "This test also measures endurance behind enemy lines. This is designed to be a grueling test and I'm sure some of you won't be up to the challenge."
"So um," Shikamaru raised his hand. "Let's say mid-exam can we quit?"
"Of course not. In the middle of a battle you can't say 'sorry I quit'." She smiled. "Well I guess you could but it's probably gunna get ya killed."
"Oh just great." Shikamaru said. "This is gunna be a drag."
"There are also some ways you can get disqualified. The first is simple." Anko held up a finger. "If all three members of a team can't make it to the tower with both scrolls after five days. Number two:" She held up a second finger. "If a team loses a member or if a member becomes incapacitated and cannot continue. But most important, none of you absolutely none of you may look at the contests of the scrolls until you've reached the tower."
"W-What if it just happens to flap open and you read it?" Naruto asked.
"Let me put it to you this way young man: You. Don't. Want. To. Know." Naruto made a face and whined. "There will be times when a ninja will be asked to carry secret documents the scroll rule is to test your integrity. Okay we're done. Each team take your contest forms and exchange them over there," Anko pointed to a small booth with three ninja. "For your scrolls. After that, each team pick a gate and you'll be let inside." Anko sighed. "Oh and I have one more word of advice: Just don't die!"
…
Everyone separated to read and sign the forms. The ninjas by the booth pulled a curtain closed around it. That way each team didn't know which team had which scroll or who was carrying it and where.
"Alright everyone, we're gunna start handing out scrolls!" One of the ninja at the booth called out before he went behind the curtain. Everyone stood and team by team went in. When the sand sibs got their scroll Rin ran up to them.
"I'm gunna walk with you to your gate." Rin said. Baki cleared his throat. "I'm just gunna walk with them." she whined with a pout.
"Trust me; Gaara won't let her come with us." Temari said. Baki sighed.
"Fine." he said. Rin jumped up and down before walking with the trio.
"Listen up, all the teams have received their scrolls so everybody go to your gate and wait there!" Anko called. "When the gates open the test is on!"
…
The trio and Rin stood in front of their gate. Rin gave Gaara a quick peck on the cheek.
"Good luck." She said. Gaara nodded silently. Rin walked up to Kankurō. "Don't die." Kankurō looked offended. Rin moved to Tamari. "Don't let Kankurō die." Kankurō rolled his eyes.
"Shut up." Kankurō muttered before avoiding the glare Gaara sent him.
"I'll see you guys later." Rin said with a smile before walking over to Baki. The two transported away.
"Alright heads up you maggots the second part of the test has begun!" Anko shouted. The gates opened and the three ran in.
Gaara, Temari and Kankurō stopped in a clearing with three other ninja.
"Do you believe the nerve of these sand village ninja, Shibure? Challenging us head on?" One of the ninja asked.
"Yeah, they're a bunch of fools." The other said.
"Too bad, kids." Shibure said. "You should've picked your opponents better. Now you're all gunna die!"
"I've heard enough out of you." Gaara said. "Let's make this quick; I don't wanna waste time on this guy." Shibure's eyes widened.
"Hey, Gaara." Kankurō said. "Doesn't it make more sense to follow these punks and gather information first? I-I mean if they have the same type of scroll as us we're just fighting an unnecessary battle."
"I don't care." Gaara said. "They looked at me the wrong way. So they're gunna die."
"If you think you can kill us," Shibure took six umbrellas off his back. "then try it!" He threw the umbrellas into the air before putting his hands together. "And now, ninja art: Senbon rain storm!" The umbrellas started spinning and shooting out needles. "Up, down, left , right, no matter where you go I can get you. There's no blind spot in this jutsu and it's deadly accurate!" Gaara didn't move an inch as te needles rained down. Dirt kicked up as they hit but as the dust cleared it was revealed that Gaara's sand had shielded him. From the opening in the sand he glared at the ninja.
"Is that all you can do?" he asked.
"It can't be! Not one wound. Impossible." He put his hands together again. "Alright!" The senbon shot down at the opening but sand came up to block them.
"A senbon rainstorm, huh?" Gaara asked. "I have an idea; let's make it rain blood instead."
"He's created a wall of sand." Shibure said.
"That's right," Kankurō said. "It's a defense and nothing can get through it. He carries around all that sand in the gourd that he has on his back and when he's attacked he uses the power of his chakra to harden the sand. It's a jutsu that only Gaara can do." Kankurō said as the sand wall fell slowly. "And somehow it happens automatically, independent of his will, so any attacks against him are doomed to fail."
"Yeah? Well we'll see!" Shibure shouted.
"Just face it; you guys can't hope to defeat Gaara." Kankurō said.
"Give me a break!" Shibure said before running at them. Gaara extended his arms to his sides before bringing his hands together in a triangle. Temari and Kankurō smirked
"Sand coffin!" Gaara said extending his hand. The sand wrapped around Shibure's leg and soon engulfed him, only his face was uncovered.
"I can't move!" The umbrellas Shibure had thrown earlier hit the ground, the points sinking into the dirt, around the sand sibs. "Let- let me go!" Gaara took a few steps forward and grabbed one of the umbrellas.
"All I have to do it cover your big mouth and you'll be dead." He opened the umbrella and held it over his head. "But that would be too easy, too boring." He extended his arm and the sand started to rise. Shibure grunted and tried to get free as he went higher and higher. Gaara closed his hand. "Sand burial!" Shibure screamed as his body was crushed by the sand, his blood rained down on his team mates and Gaara's umbrella. When it stopped Gaara looked up. "There wasn't any pain. I crushed him with more force than necessary so it was over quickly."
"Just take the scroll." One of the ninja said taking from his pocket and putting it on the ground before backing up. "Go on, here."
"Yes, take it!" The other said. "Please spare us!" Gaara threw the umbrella to the side and extended his hands. Sand completely engulfed the two before he closed his fists.
"We got lucky, it's a heaven scroll." Kankurō said picking up the scroll. "Alright, now let's head to the tower."
"Just shut up." Gaara growled.
"Huh?" Kankurō blinked. "Come on, Gaara, let's go."
"What? Are you scared? Coward." Gaara said. Kankurō started walking over.
"Look, Gaara, I know this test is no problem for you, but it's dangerous for Temari and me. One set of scrolls is good enough. It's all we need to pass."
"Losers can't tell me what to do." Gaara said holding out his arm. Kankurō grabbed Gaara by the strap that held his gourd.
"Alright that's enough; sometimes you have to listen to what your big brother says!"
"It's too bad I don't think of you as my big brother at all. If you get in my way, I'll kill you." Gaara knocked Kankurō's hand off him and held out his arm again.
"Wait, just hold on, Gaara." Temari said with her hands up. "You don't' have to treat us like we're the enemy. Look, do it as a favor for your sister, please." Gaara extended his arm to face Kankuro then swung his arm out to the side again. Sand started to swirl. "Gaara!" He closed his fist and was holding the cork to his gourd.
"Alright, this time." Gaara said before putting the cork back in the gourd. He started to walk away but stopped and turned his head to the side. "If either of you breathe a word of this to Rin," Gaara growled. "I'll kill you both… slowly." The two older siblings audibly gulped but nodded. Gaara started walking again and the two let out relived sighs.
I didn't reread this for errors so if there are any big mistakes please tell me ^_^ I've already started working on chapter 20 Let me know what you think.