Author's Note: This comment is retained for posterity, as a reminder that yes, your reviews have meaning. The original Chapter 22 was, in my own words, garbage, and the early reviewers agreed. So I rewrote it. If you read this chapter back when it first came out, I suspect you'd agree.

The combined Konohagakure group moved further into the forest once their course of action was chosen, searching carefully until they found a cave large enough for the group to rest within and screened slightly by the surrounding forest. They settled down to wait, and it only took a few comments from Sasuke to get Ino to stop talking.

"It's to stay safe, Ino-san," said Hinata, who had noticed the other girl fuming after being told to shut up by her crush in no uncertain terms. "Neji-oniisan and I are both watching…" She stopped under the sudden pressure of her cousin's attention.

"Don't call me that," he said from where he was sitting, his back to the rest of them, his voice chill. Everyone turned to look at him, and he stood and turned to glare at Hinata, his eyes narrow, his jaw clenched tight. "Not even in jest. I am not your brother. We are not family in any manner, regardless of our shared name and relatives. I would not be so weak." He turned to Ino, and his jaw loosened a little even as his eyes narrowed further. "We must be quiet because this place is safe, but only for a given value of safe. Giving us away by loudly claiming what an excellent pair you are with a real shinobi has so much irony in it, it goes beyond the humorous and into the horrifying. So shut up." He turned and sat again, putting them out of mind and returning his attention to the forest around them.

Rock Lee opened his mouth to chastise Neji for his lack of manners, then shut it. Hinata-san did not look shocked, or even angry. She just looked sad, staring at her family member with eyes that shone with unshed tears. He clenched his fists, the fires of youth burning in his heart, and swore that the next time they fought, he would show the Hyuga the proper way to speak to those below your own strength, with the respect due to a worthy foe.

The rest of the day was spent in uncomfortable silence, with everyone but Sasuke and Ino catching naps to get ready for the night's work ahead. Occasionally, Ino would get up and sit next to Sasuke, and each time, Sasuke would get up and move to the other side of the entrance. Eventually, she gave up and settled down against the cave wall to watch the forest outside, or rather, to face the forest while watching Sasuke.

After some time, she was shaken from her boredom when Sasuke sat down next to her. He sat with his knees raised high, elbows resting on them, and his hands folded before his face. She turned to him, eyes glittering, her mind conjuring a moment of bliss as their lips touched, here in the dangerous Forest of Death, only for that image to be shattered by the cold look he gave her. There was scorn in his gaze, disdain, and just barely visible behind them, she saw a moment of compassion, and that made his words all the more terrible.

He spoke quietly, barely a whisper, conscious of his sleeping allies nearby. He spoke of the dangers of being a shinobi, and how she had no appreciation of them. He spoke of the responsibility she had for her team and allies, who she regularly dismissed or antagonized. He spoke of her inappropriate desire for attention, of her lack of physical strength, of her completely unsuitable manner and bearing for any duty in the service of Konohagakure. And the entire time, his eyes shone with that same mix of haughty disdain and terrible, cruel compassion. I understand your weakness, his mesmerizing eyes said in their own little language. That does not make it forgivable.

It was all the worse because he, and only he, could really claim the right to judge her on that. If Sasuke Uchiha, the pinnacle of shinobi manhood, would judge her unworthy, how could any lesser shinobi say otherwise?

Eventually he fell silent, a deep silence that seemed to permeate the woods around them. The two of them sat together in uncomfortable quiet throughout the rest of the day, Sasuke looking outwards into the woods, and Ino looking inwards, into herself.

When night finally fell, the others gathered and set off into the woods while the two of them chose shifts to rest. Ino did not say a word to the others, but simply made her way to a corner of the cave and laid down on her side. She refused to talk to stupid Sakura, who was getting all manly and strong, or that idiot Naruto they always hung around with, or that jerk Sasuke who would not acknowledge her. None of them deserved her, so she was sure to deny them her presence as much as she could. As she slowly drifted to sleep, she passed the time telling herself that in a few days this would be done, and she'd have nothing to do with them again.

Sakura short a curious glance at Sasuke, who rolled his eyes and mimed wiping a tear from his face dramatically. She sighed at that and shook her head quietly. It was probably for the best that someone like Ino would not be on the assault team.

Naruto raised his hand, silently signaling the rest of the Konoha team. He pulled out a pad of paper and quickly wrote down what his clone had passed on to him, then handed it off to Shikamaru, who was working as the leader of the group. He, Choji, and Shino then nodded to the rest and took off in another direction. They had discussed it earlier, and with the entire group seeking out only one target for the night, Shikamaru had suggested that Naruto lead Shino around the forest, marking the other teams with the bugs from his internal hive, permitting him to track their prey without Naruto having to stay up all day spamming clones. Naruto, his eyes slightly heavy, had been quite happy with the idea of doing some light recon and then getting some sleep.

He hated to send Choji away, but it was the optimal choice.

Shikamaru glanced at the note and nodded to himself, then waved the others close. "We have a single team, five hundred meters ahead. Three males, white suits, Amegakure headbands, rebreathers. All three are awake and aware." He thought for a moment, then nodded to himself. "Here's the plan..."

Oboro looked up from the small fire his team had lit when the orange clad boy stepped into the fire light. "Ohhh," he said, his voice muffled by his rebreather, "It seems we have a guest." Mubi and Kagari, his teammates, stood up and drew kunai, but Oboro waved them off while he stood as well. "Let's hear what the little boy has to say, before we decide to kill him." He bowed to the orange boy and waited.

"I want to give you a chance to yield," said the orange boy.

Oboro shared a look with his team, then started to chuckle. "It's three on one, little boy, or do you have some friends coming to the party?" His eyes glinted in the firelight, and his hand casually drifted to his belt pouch.

In the dark shadows of the nearby undergrowth, Shikamaru crouched and started watching the plan unfold. Step one: The Leader prepares to attack.

The boy's two teammates dashed out of the woods behind them, both henged to look like him. They ran oddly, scrabbling on all fours like animals, moving deceptively fast. Even as Mubi and Kagari spun and threw their blades, the two were on them. The orange team lunged, low to the ground, lower than most opponents would get, leaving their backs exposed. They slapped at Mubi and Kagari's legs, setting them off balance even as the two of them drew new weapons.

Step two: The second and third become unbalanced, the leader distracted.

Oboro turned and raised his own hand, a pair of kunai ready to fly, when he felt a presence approaching from the original's direction. He continued his turn into a spin, arm still raised, then froze in place. He saw a green blur lurch from behind the first contact, which suddenly resolved into a field of green covering his vision, the green fabric of a cloth covered knee just before it struck him in the face with enough force to break his nose. He fell back, his mind and body barely functional as he clung to awareness.

Step three: Leader down, Second and Third distracted.

Mubi and Kagari saw their leader drop from the corner of their eyes and jumped back slightly, preparing to throw their blades at the strange green clad boy who had just put down Oboro and was now standing calmly, one arm back behind his waist, his other hand raised in a defensive pose. And what was he wearing? He had some ridiculous pair of fake glasses with a big plastic nose and mustache attached. Why would they wear something like that in a fight?

They never even saw the other two orange blurs approaching from the sides.

The two orange boys struck at the same time, a series of delicate taps, on the arms, the legs, the chest. Their arms moving in a blur, almost in sync with one another. Shikamaru grinned in the darkness. Those delicate taps were Juken strikes, direct blows to the opponent's chakra systems, each blow followed through by a slight output of the striker's own chakra to close off that pathway. There was no blocking that sort of move, and neither of the remaining foes had enough time to figure that out before they dropped.

The forest paused for a section, silent save for the snap and pop of the fire. After that moment, seeing all three opponents down, the original boy stomped his foot and dropped the henge, revealing an angry looking Tenten. "I didn't get to do anything," she said morosely, gesturing to her still untouched scroll.

Shikamaru stepped out, shaking his head. "That was the plan, Tenten. You only had to defend yourself, and only if one of the others failed. What wasn't in the plan was Lee standing in the open. You were supposed to hide after you took down the leader, Lee."

"I am not Rock Lee," said the green clad genin loudly. "They would never recognize me through this disguise, bought for me by my own Guy-sensei years ago! Now I am Rokku Lee, mysterious ninja!" He paid no mind to the stares he was getting from the rest of the group when he reached up to adjust the fake nose. His mind was too busy admiring his new disguise. I knew someday I would use them, Guy-sensei!

In his mind, he could almost hear his teacher's response. Truly, it is the gift of the springtime of youth, to retain such a thing for years until it is needed! Only the most strong and passionate youth could show such patience!

Guy-sensei!

Lee!

Tenten sighed at she watched Lee think, his eyes sparkling. She knew that look. Any moment now, Lee would be imagining a sunset. "Hey," she said, leaning towards Shikamaru with a big grin on her face, "You said you wanted a distraction. I think we can check that part off."

Shikamaru sighed. "I'll turn down any promotion I get offered. This is too troublesome."

As they went through the fallen shinobi's goods, Neji looked over at Hinata. "I admit, I was surprised to see you keeping up with my strikes, Hinata. You are not as weak as I thought you were."

"Thank you Neji-o... Neji-san." Hinata blushed quietly at her slip, but she remained focused on their surroundings, using the three hundred and sixty degree vision of her eyes to scan for additional foes. Neji grunted to himself and gave her another point in his head for being suitably focused for a shinobi.

"We are not family, or friends, or even real allies," he said coldly. "But know this, I at least will not underestimate you now."

Hinata turned her head and nodded to Neji, even as her eyes kept moving. Unbeknown by him, he had just given her the highest compliment she had ever received from a family member since her mother died, and even if he was cold about it, she would not forget.

Sasuke woke with a start, his eyes darting around. The cave was silent, the fire reduced to mere embers. Outside, he could see only vague shapes of the forest in the meager moonlight that filtered through the trees. He sat up, uncertain why he was awake and unable to sense Ino, who should have been on guard.

"Hello, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke was already moving to one side, rolling in the dirt, just inches ahead of the kunai that hit where he had lay. As he completed his roll, his arm swept out, throwing his own kunai at the darkness in the back of the cave, following the trajectory of the attack he had dodged. His eyes turned red, and he watched as the blade flashed out and stopped in mid air, hovering as if caught in a shadow.

Then the shadow moved, and Sasuke realized it had indeed been caught.

"Hardly a kind way to greet a friend, Sasuke-kun. One might say you were unhappy at my arrival." The strange man with the feminine voice he had been watching during the introduction to the forest stepped out of the deeper darkness of the cave, casually twirling the kunai he had caught. "It's possible you don't even want the gift I brought for you."

Sasuke tucked into a forward roll as the man tossed his kunai back at him, the weapon whistling through the air with the force of the throw. He dipped his hand into his right pocket and leaped forward, engaging the stranger in melee. This turned out to be a grievous error. The man was strong and fast, dodging Sasuke's blows with an air of indifference.

Let's see how indifferent you feel now, thought Sasuke. He jumped high and spun his body, hanging upside down for a moment when the man blocked his kick, and in that moment, his hand shot out, a cloud of glittering dirt flying into the man's face. Sasuke smirked to himself, but that smirk faded when the man grabbed his still extended arm and threw him into the wall at the rear of the cave. Sasuke hit hard enough that his back creaked dangerously, and he barely managed to control his fall to the dirt.

The man tisked, walking forward slightly as Sasuke pulled himself up. "An excellent throw, Sasuke-kun. But your toys will not be enough to stop me." He raised his hand, a tiny flame glowing on his palm, and in that flickering light, Sasuke could see that the man's eyes were unchanged and undamaged. I know I hit him, I saw his eyes open. There must be a trick to it, some sort of shield or something. He casually tossed another handful at the man from his right pocket, and again, he made no effort to dodge or block it.

He dipped his hand into his left pocket, and threw another handful at the man. The man sighed as the dust splashed on his face, running down his body. "If that's all you have, Sasuke-kun, than my time here is waste..." He stopped, his jaw closing, his throat bulging and straining. His face took on a grin of pained amusement, and after a moment, he managed to push out a few words. "Contact... Poison..."

Sasuke gave the man a satisfied smirk, shaking his left hand slightly. Even with all of his training and effort to build up an immunity, the paralytic poison in the left pocket was enough to numb his hand completely. Someone like this stranger would be frozen, immobile, for hours, assuming the poison did not overcome them and paralyze their heart of lungs to make them immobile in a more permanent sense. He raised his hand and carefully, slowly made the signs for his plasma lance, his mind already accepting that this was the time and place, his first kill, and a part of him was revolted, while another part rejoiced that his first would not be his brother. "Want to give me your name, before I slay you? Otherwise, I think you're about to become just another dead genin."

The man smiled, and Sasuke felt a sting on his ankle. He glanced down and saw the serpent coiled at his feet, its fangs still in his leg. By the time his eyes flashed back up, he saw the man moving again, calmly, gracefully. "My name is Orochimaru, Sasuke-kun. And I know much about poison." He reached out and tapped Sasuke on the chest, softly knocking the boy over, the snake's venom doing its work already.

"I have a use for you, Sasuke-kun, a wonderful use. And that use is also a gift."

Sasuke grunted, his jaw clenching, and managed a single word. "Ino," he said.

The man laughed. "She was showing such an immense interest in the moon blossoming flowers she found outside that she could not bring herself to leave them. I let my own team go play with her. She is unharmed... for now. We'll see how she is when they are done."

Sasuke raged against his own body, trying desperately to move. He struggled for Ino. He struggled for his own safety. He struggled for his revenge. But the poison held him in its immutable grasp, holding him in the dirt like a child. Eventually, the man leaned down and pulled Sasuke up, into a slouched sitting position.

"You've made quite an impression, Sasuke-kun. I have been watching you for years, and even under the kind and gentle guidance of Kakashi-san, you still manage to keep your killing edge. I wonder why? Could it be so that you'd have it when the time comes to kill your brother?" Sasuke's eyes twitched slightly, and Orochimaru smiled. "I know all about the purge, Sasuke-kun. I can only imagine how that makes you feel. How badly you want revenge." He leaned in a whispered in the boy's ear. "I can help you get that revenge. All you need to is accept my gift, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke managed to twitch his eyes and shoot a baleful glare at the man. "You wonder why I would give you this gift? It's simple, Sasuke-kun. Unlike your brother, I want you to live. I see potential in you, Sasuke-kun. And to maximize your potential..." He opened his mouth, revealing the fangs of a serpent, and his face suddenly lunged, his neck extending in a vivid and unreal manner. He bit Sasuke hard on the shoulder, and the boy's veins filled with molten fire.

The man chuckled as Sasuke's vision started to fade, and the last thing he heard was the man's mocking laughter. "Struggle, Uchiha, struggle and live, as only I want you to."

Author's Notes: As you can see, Neji is not all fluffy and huggy, Far from it. He may have taken the wrong lesson away from Kakashi's efforts.

A reader mentioned "poison vs venom." I cheerfully point out, that error was not made here. Orochimaru explains he knows about poison, which is why he is not deeply affected by it. The snake's injection, however, is properly referred to as venom. Two different subjects.

Kyle37: If you're tired of Chunin Exam recycle, then stay tuned. The preliminaries is where it's going to take off running, quietly flipping canon the bird as it goes. I always found the exam to be painful to revisit as well, so I aim to make it stand out, if not for your sake, than for mine.