I caught her effortlessly, wrapping an arm around her waist.
"Got you," I said.
She looked up at me, her eyes shining. "Naruto-kun... you were amazing. That speech..."
"It was nothing," I said. "Just the truth."
"Hey, lovebirds!" Kiba shouted from the doorway. "Get a room! We have a survival exam to get to!"
We walked out of the Academy. The sun was high in the sky.
"System," I thought as we walked. ("I have 4,250 points. The Forest of Death is dangerous. Orochimaru is there. I need to be ready.")
"The 'Forest of Death' offers unique environmental hazards," the System noted. "Mud, giant snakes, rivers, sticky sap. The Rito Effect potential is extreme."
("I know. But I need power.")
"Would you like to purchase 'Uzumaki Vitality Unseal: Level 1'?" the System offered. "Cost: 3,000 Points. This will significantly increase your stamina, healing factor, and physical durability. It is essential for surviving encounters with S-Class threats."
("Healing factor? Yes. If Orochimaru stabs me, I need to not die.")
"Purchase confirmed. Remaining Balance: 1,250 Points."
I felt a surge of warmth in my gut. My fatigue from the stress of the exam vanished. My skin felt tougher. I felt like I could run for days.
We arrived at the massive fenced-in area known as Training Ground 44. The Forest of Death. Huge trees loomed over the fences, casting long, ominous shadows. A sign warned: DANGER.
Anko was waiting at the gate, handing out consent forms.
"Sign these," she said cheerfully. "It says that if you die, it is not my fault."
I signed mine without hesitation.
As I handed the form back, Anko looked at me. She leaned in close, sniffing the air.
"You smell like danger, kid," Anko whispered. "I like it."
"Warning," the System chimed. "New Target Detected: Anko Mitarashi. Status: Single. Personality: Sadistic/Playful. Rito Effect Probability: High."
("Oh great,") I thought. ("The snake lady is a target too? This forest is going to be a nightmare.")
"Naruto!" Sakura called out. "Come on! We need to strategize!"
I joined my team. Sasuke looked serious.
"Listen," Sasuke said. "The goal is to get a Heaven Scroll and an Earth Scroll. We have the Heaven Scroll. We need to find a team with an Earth Scroll, take it, and get to the tower in the center. We stay together. No splitting up."
"Right," I nodded.
"And Naruto," Sasuke added, looking at me intensely. "Keep your... condition... under control. If you start tying up enemies with golden chains or tripping over girls, I will leave you behind."
"It is not a condition, it is a tactic!" I argued.
Just then, a Grass Ninja walked past us. He had long black hair and a very long tongue that flicked out to taste the air. He—or rather, she—stared at Sasuke with a predatory hunger.
Orochimaru.
My blood ran cold. The Vitality Unseal pulsed in my gut.
("He is here,") I thought.
"System," I commanded. ("Keep a lock on that Grass Ninja. If he comes within ten meters, warn me instantly.")
"Warning set," the System replied. "Note: High-Level Threat. If a Netorare Situation occurs with this target, the results may be... biologically confusing."
("Let's just avoid that entirely, please.")
The gates rattled.
"Gate 12... Open!" Anko shouted.
The locks clicked. The gates swung open, revealing the dark, twisted forest inside.
"Let's go!" I shouted, sprinting into the shadows.
The Second Exam had begun. And this time, I wasn't just fighting for a scroll. I was fighting to keep my girlfriend from accidentally seducing a Snake Sannin.
The Forest of Death lived up to its name. The canopy was so thick it blocked out most of the sunlight, bathing everything in an eerie, green twilight. Giant roots twisted out of the ground like skeletal fingers, and the air buzzed with the sound of insects that were far too large to be natural.
Team Seven moved in formation. Sasuke Uchiha took point, his eyes scanning for traps. Sakura Haruno stayed in the middle, clutching a kunai. I brought up the rear, my senses heightened by the "Uzumaki Vitality Unseal" I had purchased.
("This place is a nightmare,") I thought, stepping over a centipede the size of a cat. ("But it is also a playground for the System. Slippery moss, mud pits, giant vines... the environmental hazards are everywhere.")
"Stay sharp," Sasuke whispered, halting. "Something is watching us."
"I feel it too," I said, my voice serious. "But it does not feel like a contestant. It feels... older."
"Maybe it is a ghost!" Sakura shrieked quietly.
"Worse," I muttered. "A proctor."
Suddenly, a gust of wind tore through the trees. Leaves swirled violently. From the darkness above, a barrage of kunai rained down on us.
"Scatter!" Sasuke commanded.
We leaped in three different directions. The kunai embedded themselves in the ground where we had been standing.
A figure landed on a thick branch above us. It was Anko Mitarashi, the proctor. She was grinning like a maniac, eating a stick of dango.
"Not bad, maggots!" Anko chewed loudly. "You have decent reflexes. But reflexes alone won't keep you alive in here."
"Anko-sensei?" Sakura looked confused. "Are proctors allowed to attack students?"
"I am just doing a random spot check!" Anko laughed, hopping down. "I saw you guys looking confident at the gate, specifically you, whiskers." She pointed a dumpling stick at me. "I wanted to see if that confidence was real or just hot air."
"Warning," the System chimed in my head. "Target: Anko Mitarashi is in close proximity. Environment: High Mud Density. Rito Effect Probability: Ninety percent."
("Ninety percent? That is basically a guarantee. I need to be careful.")
"We are busy, Anko-sensei," Sasuke said coldly. "We need to find an Earth Scroll. We don't have time for games."
"Oh, scary Uchiha," Anko teased. She turned her attention to me. "But this one... he smells interesting. Like fox and... something else."
.....
...