Gaara stood, his two teammates beside him and behind him. They stared down another trio standing in the exact same formation. "Do you believe the nerve of these sand village ninja, Shigure? Challenging us head-on."

"They're fools."

Gaara remained silent, yet his eyes conveyed a profound message.

-

"What is he thinking? That guy is too small to confront an opponent of that size," Kiba remarked, pointing at the red-haired sand ninja who was sizing up the significantly taller rain ninja. In stark contrast to Kiba, Akamaru whined anxiously.

-

"Bad luck, kids, you should choose your opponents more wisely," Shigure taunted. "Now you'll di-!"

"I've heard enough," Gaara interrupted calmly. "Make it quick, I don't have time to waste on you"

'We don't even know which scroll these guys have...' Kankuro pondered, turning to Gaara. "Hey, Gaara! Shouldn't we have tailed them to gather information before attacking? If they have the same scroll as us, this fight is pointless-"

"I don't care... They looked at me wrong, I'll kill them."

"This is exactly why I don't want to be trapped in a forest with this guy," Kankuro groaned inwardly.

"Think you can kill us? Give it a try!" Shigure reached behind and drew out five umbrellas, holding two in one hand and three in the other. He flung them into the air where they hovered before he formed a hand sign. "Ninja Art: Senbon Rainstorm!"

The umbrellas began to spin autonomously, launching senbon needles in all directions. "Up, down, left, right, it doesn't matter where you go, I can reach you. There are no blind spots; they target the intended prey!" The senbon moved in formation across the sky, demonstrating his mastery. Gaara remained motionless, arms crossed, as thousands of senbon bombarded him. The man smirked, continuing his needle barrage even as a dust cloud engulfed the area. "Child's play."

Surprise registered on his face when a hard cocoon of some solid substance enveloped Gaara. Every needle was halted by the shell, falling to the ground. Gaara stood, arms still crossed, as the solid sand egg cracked open to reveal him unharmed. "That's not enough," Gaara declared ominously.

"Impossible! Not a single wound. Ridiculous! ... Alright then!" Shigure formed another hand sign. The senbon, aimed at the shell's opening, were halted as rock-hard sand materialized, blocking them effortlessly without Gaara having to move.

"Senbon rainstorm. Let's make it rain blood instead," Gaara declared without emotion.

"Sand Coffin," Gaara announced. Shigure tried to charge at Gaara but stepped onto the sand. The sand ensnared his body like a roller coaster seatbelt, then completely enveloped him. Shigure grunted, trapped in layers of sand, with only his face slightly exposed, just enough to keep him alive.

"I can't move! L-Let me go!" the man shouted wearily, immobilized in a vortex of sand. Gaara stepped forward as umbrellas tumbled from the sky. Catching one, he swung it open and held it aloft protectively.

Gaara's hand rose, and the sandy encasement hoisted Shigure along. Shigure groaned in agony as he was hoisted involuntarily, with only his face, some strands of hair, and part of his ear visible. Gaara slowly raised his hand and shut his eyes.

Then, Gaara clenched his fist. "Sand Burial.

A muffled scream was abruptly cut off, yet its echo lingered. The sand compressed Shigure until he burst, showering blood and pouring down on everyone in proximity. The brutality was so intense that Kiba felt nauseous, Hinata had to avert her gaze, and even Shino displayed shock. The blood found Team Kurenai in their covert spot behind the bushes. Shigure's petrified teammates attempted to shield themselves from the onslaught, expressions of sheer terror on their faces as Shigure's blood drenched them, soaking their clothes and straw hats. Gaara remained unaffected, the blood simply trickling down his umbrella. As the downpour subsided, Gaara slightly lifted his umbrella, revealing just enough of himself to lock eyes with Shigure's teammates.

"There was no pain; I used more force than was necessary," Gaara declared to Shigure's trembling teammates, who were too shocked to speak. "The bloody tears of the corpse blend with the vast, sinking sand, empowering the demon of war," Gaara stated wisely.

"Just take the scroll," stammered one of the Mist ninjas, failing to grasp Gaara's words. He retrieved his scroll from his pouch and placed it on the ground.

"Take it! Please! Let us go!"

The two men wept tears of terror, doomed to meet the same end as Shigure. The sand rose from the ground, swirling around them, enveloping them completely, leaving no room to breathe; they were utterly overwhelmed.

"This is bad," Kiba muttered, turning to his team. "We need to leave, now, before he comes for us."

-

Gaara clenched his fist, and blood burst from the sand coffins, just as it had with Shigure. The blood seeped into the earth, not scattering like rain, for they were not in the sky.

Kankuro lifted the scroll from the ground, "We're in luck, it's a Heaven Scroll." Turning to Gaara and the blonde woman, he said, "Alright, let's head to the tower."

"Be quiet," Gaara interrupted. "This isn't sufficient... It's not enough for me." His head snapped to the bushes.

Team Kurenai stood still, petrified. 'Has he sensed us?' Kiba thought anxiously.

"Let's move, Gaara," urged Kankuro.

"Are you scared?" Gaara challenged. "Coward."

"Look, Gaara, I know this test is no problem for you, but it's dangerous for Temari and me," Kankuro explained as he approached Gaara. "One of each scroll is enough; it's all we need to pass." He stood facing Gaara.

"Pathetic beings and their words mean nothing to me," Gaara declared, raising his hand, palm open, towards the bushes.

Kankuro stepped forward, seized Gaara by the collar, and met his gaze. "Alright, that's enough. Sometimes you have to listen to your big brother."

"I don't regard you as a sibling. If you obstruct me, you die," Gaara retorted, pausing for a few seconds before slapping away Kankuro's wrist.

"Wait! Just hold on, Gaara," Temari pleaded. "You don't have to treat us like enemies. Please, do it as a favor for your sister."

Gaara dismissed her plea and opened his palm. Sand swirled around his hand. Team Kurenai watched in terror, trapped with no escape. Temari and Kankuro flinched at a crunching sound. Gaara formed a solid object in his hand.

"...Alright, this time," he conceded, shifting the object to reveal it as the lid of his gourd. Gaara then turned and began to walk away.

--

As Team Kurenai entered the tower at the forest's center, Hinata remarked, "There's no one here."

"We're the first!" Kiba exclaimed with a laugh.

"I sensed someone here earlier," Shino interjected.

More concerned, Hinata asked, "Is Akamaru okay?" while gently stroking the puppy nin-dog nestled in Kiba's coat. "Poor guy's been scared for so long..."

"What did Akamaru say before?" Shino inquired.

Kiba began, "He must've sensed the taller ninja was in trouble because that little pipsqueak was about to kill him—" He stopped abruptly upon hearing a voice.

"Just like I thought, there's no other place to go," echoed a male voice from across the room.

"How much longer will they make us wait? We've already waited half a day," a female voice questioned.

Team Kurenai caught sight of the sand team. The woman and the puppet boy gave a smile that didn't quite reach their eyes, while the red-haired boy watched them closely, his gaze sharp as they walked by.

--

Naruto turned the two doorknobs and entered the tower. "There's nobody here," Naruto observed.

"If qualities of heaven are your desire, acquire wisdom to take your mind higher. If earthly qualities are what you lack, train your body and prepare to attack. When heaven and earth are opened together, the pairless path will become righteous forever." Sakura spoke, her gaze fixed on the wall's inscription. "This... is the hidden path that will lead us away from here today," she concluded.

"Clearly, it's referring to the Heaven and Earth scrolls that we open together. I think the rest is just nonsense added to make it rhyme," Naruto concluded, extracting the scroll from Sasuke and Sakura's pockets.

Naruto handed the heaven scroll to Sakura, as Sasuke was exhausted and his reaction speed had diminished. Sakura's hands trembled as she reached for the seal. They unrolled the scroll to reveal small scribbles encircling a central seal.

The seal swelled and began to emit smoke. Naruto quickly tossed his scroll aside and grabbed Sakura's, discarding it as well. Sakura's eyes sought an explanation. "Summoning Jutsu," Naruto whispered.

The scrolls, lying one on top of the other, erupted in a massive cloud of smoke. As the smoke cleared, a figure emerged, and as it dissipated further, Iruka Umino appeared, arms folded, standing atop the unfurled scrolls.

"Hey," Iruka looked up with a straight face. "Long time no see." He smirked.

"Iruka-Sensei?" Sakura inquired.

"You seem to have had quite the ordeal during this test," Iruka observed.

"Why were you tied to a summoning contract?" Naruto questioned.

"As chunin, our role at the end of the second exam is to greet the returning test-takers. It was mere coincidence that I was here. Well done, you've passed the second exam," Iruka announced.

"What would have happened if we looked at the scrolls in the forest, Iruka-Sensei?" Sasuke asked, seated on the ground.

Iruka thought to himself, 'As sharp as ever.' He picked up one of the scrolls and explained, "This exam also aimed to assess your ability to complete a challenging mission. In essence, you were aware that opening the scrolls contravened your mission's rules. Had you attempted to open one..."

Sakura interjected, "What then?"

"We had orders to incapacitate anyone who opened a scroll. Unfortunately, some ninjas learned that the hard way."

--

The passing genin were grouped together, facing the Hokage who stood with the jonin-senseis behind him and the proctors at his side. Adorned in his official Hokage robes, he watched over the genin attentively.

"First of all, congratulations on completing the second exam," Anko announced loudly. 'Out of the 78 ninjas who took the exam, I'm surprised that even 21 passed.' She thought.

The room fell silent, anticipation hanging in the air for her next words.

"I'm starving..." Choji moaned.

"It's such a hassle with so many left, what a drag," Shikamaru grumbled.

"Sasuke's team made it too!" Ino exclaimed.

"They had better passed, considering the lengths we went to keep them alive," Shikamaru remarked.

"Your squad didn't do half bad, Kakashi," Gai observed. "Must have been a stroke of luck. But they won't get far with my team in the mix. The next test is all about skill, and we're leagues ahead. Growing up means learning about disappointment, doesn't it, Kakashi?"

Kakashi gave him a slow, indifferent glance. "Sorry, did you say something?"

Gai released a scream of agony, grasping his head as Kakashi watched on with a calm demeanor. Gai turned, his fist tight with resolve. "Fine, Kakashi! You've won this time, but your cool composure is maddening. I refuse to let you outdo me!" Gai vowed silently to himself.

Tenten thought to herself, 'So that's Gai-Sensei's old rival? Judging by looks alone, Gai-Sensei might not stand a chance.'

Meanwhile, Lee was convinced in his mind, 'Gai-Sensei is the epitome of cool. He's so awesome, it's like he radiates coolness! You watch, Gai-Sensei! Someday I'll make you proud of me! I'm never gonna lose again!'

"Alright now pay attention, Lord Hokage is going to explain the third exam!" informed Anko. "And you better listen carefully... MAGGOTS!" Anko turned to the Hokage. "They're all yours."

The Hokage advanced, hands clasped behind him and a pipe resting in his lips. "Before I delve into the details of the third exam, there's something crucial about the test itself that you must grasp. This exam serves a greater purpose beyond its face value. The true might of a nation isn't reflected in its military size, but in the caliber of its shinobi—like those from the Leaf, Sand, Waterfall, and Grass Villages. By showcasing our shinobi's prowess, we dissuade other nations from considering aggression. These exams are more than mere tests; they're a demonstration of each nation's formidable strength."

"A representation of each nation's strength?"

"Yes. The Chunin Exams are, in essence, a replacement for war itself."