MTLNOVEL Chapter 45
Before the first rays of sunlight touched the sky, all participants in the second phase of the Chunin Exam had already gathered in front of the Forest of Death — as had all the Jounin responsible for overseeing the exam.
The groups talked among themselves, some more tense than others, but apparently all were prepared. Ninjas from various smaller villages were also gathered there, eager to show that they were as powerful as the ninjas of Konoha.
As soon as the sun rose, a jounin — one I had never seen before — stepped forward to deliver the information for this second phase.
"Good morning! Now that the sun has risen, we will begin the second phase of the chunin exam. My name is Shinku Yuuhi, and I will be primarily responsible for this phase."
Some people whispered.
The ninja in question seemed older than his fellow jounin, but his eyes were extremely similar to those of another kunoichi who was there — Kurenai.
I didn't know what the relationship between the two was, but I could imagine that he was her father, since she looked at him with pride.
"You must be wondering what you're going to do here, right? Well, we're going to test your survival skills without a sensei around... Each team will receive a scroll with a specific seal — a sky seal or an earth seal — and you must have both seals to advance to the third phase."
Now, more murmurs began to circulate among the ninjas.
"That means we'll need to get the scroll from another team to pass... Now I understand," Renji commented to Sora and me.
I nodded.
"In addition, you must not open the scrolls — under any circumstances — and you must take both to the tower in the center of the forest to complete the challenge. Simple, isn't it? To avoid unnecessary losses, the jounin behind me will be patrolling the area and rescuing those who are no longer able to continue the exam..."
'That's different...'
"There are several entrances to the forest. Feel free to choose the one you prefer. As soon as the gates open, the second phase will begin. Good luck, and be careful of the creatures inside." Shinku smiled and dismissed all the senseis and ninjas.
As people began to run toward other entrances, I stayed with my team.
"Riku, are we staying here? Isn't it dangerous?" Sora asked, a little tense.
"Wasting energy running to other gates isn't worth it, trust me," I said calmly.
Other teams also remained there, waiting for the gate to open — most of them older and more experienced, or novice ninjas eager to show off their skills.
Renji and Sora stood by my side, adjusting their equipment to avoid problems. The scrolls we received were earth scrolls, but I didn't have enough time to react and see which of our enemies had sky scrolls — so we were at a disadvantage.
"As soon as the gate opens, follow me, okay?" I told them.
"Cool," Sora said.
"Let's go..." Renji added.
A few seconds after we spoke, we heard the sound of the gates opening, and a signal flashed in the sky, indicating the start of the exam.
In a rush, ninja after ninja ran into the forest, spreading out in search of opponents or preparing traps to hinder and disqualify other groups. We didn't fall behind — Sora and Renji followed me, jumping through the trees toward the center of the forest, unconcerned with any problems at first.
"Guys, let's get a little closer to the center of the forest before we look for our seal. Sooner or later, they'll have to come to where we are, and then it'll be easier to achieve our goal."
"Good thinking," Renji commented as we ran through the trees.
"Did any of you see the seal on any of the opponents?" I asked.
"Some grass ninjas... as soon as they handed over the scrolls, most of them quickly hid them, but they left them exposed for a few seconds," Sora said.
"Perfect. If we come across them, let me know."
She nodded.
It didn't take long before we heard screams and the sounds of fighting echoing through the forest. Some teams had surely already been disqualified from the tournament.
"Riku, watch out!" Renji called.
As we were running through the trees, I almost crashed into a giant spider web blocking our path.
'That was close...' I thought.
"Thanks, Renji," I said, stopping and steadying myself on a log. Looking up, I saw a giant spider asleep.
But as soon as I noticed it, I saw its abdomen move, as if it were about to wake up from the vibration of the log in contact with the web it had set as a trap.
"Watch out, it's going to attack!" I shouted, already leaping to the next branch.
At that moment, the creature released a jet of thick, sticky web that almost trapped Sora. She sliced through the threads with her kunai, dropping to a lower branch and dodging the attack aimed at her.
Renji activated his Sharingan, wary of the creature's strength. He dodged another shot and counterattacked with a shuriken that pierced its right eye, forcing it to retreat and thrash about furiously.
'Damn, this is going to attract attention.'
Seizing the moment, I focused chakra into my hands to form a wooden gauntlet, then advanced along the tree trunk toward the spider's head, striking it hard and sending it crashing to the ground with a thud that echoed through the forest.
It didn't move again.
"Well, that was quick," Renji said, putting away his weapons.
"Too quick... we shouldn't have made so much noise," I replied, scanning the area.
As if on cue, three figures emerged among the trees — ninjas wearing grass headbands.
I turned to Sora, who nodded to confirm my suspicions — they were the ninjas with the Sky scroll.
"You have something we want," said what seemed to be their leader, wearing a smug smile.
"Funny, we were thinking the same thing," I replied, ready for the imminent fight.
"We'll finish you off quickly. We want to break the Chunin Exam completion record," another ninja said.
I smirked, unable to believe what I'd just heard.
"Come on."
....
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