Time ticked by, minute by minute. A bunch of candidates got booted for half-assed cheating.
In the final ten minutes, Morino Ibiki dropped his infamous Question 10.
Naruto shouted his nindo speech, nailed the "right" answer, and squeaked through the first exam.
Then—CRASH!
A figure smashed through the window. Two kunai thunked into the walls on either side.
A giant red-and-white banner unfurled for all to see.
Mitarashi Anko!
"You brats aren't here to party!"
"I'm your second-exam proctor—Mitarashi Anko!"
"Follow me—now! Next field, let's go!"
The purple-haired woman pumped her fist, full of energy, introducing herself to the stunned crowd.
"This proctor might actually vibe with Naruto!"
Sakura stood with the others and followed Anko's lead.
A swarm of genin blitzed to the Forest of Death's perimeter.
Anko landed gracefully outside the iron fence and laid out the rules:
- Five days.
- Collect Heaven and Earth scrolls.
- Reach the central tower.
Once briefing was done, she started assigning entry gates.
Naruto snatched a Heaven Scroll from the staff, thrust it overhead, and yelled:
"Sakura-chan! Look, it's—!"
"Idiot! You trying to paint a target on our backs for every scroll-hunter?!"
Sasuke punched the words out of him, snatched the scroll, and tucked it away.
"It's fine. Whether he yells or not, I already showed too much in the written exam. We're getting targeted anyway."
"So… scared? Wanna quit?"
Sakura stepped past the staff, ripped open the gate to the forest, and tilted her head at the boys.
"No way! I'm gonna be Hokage—I'm not losing to these losers!"
Naruto flipped his messy hair, instantly hyped.
"Foreign elites? They can't stop my mission!"
Sasuke shoved hands in pockets and gave a cool hmph.
The trio stepped into the Forest of Death together.
Less than a day in—headed straight for the tower—an alliance of enemies had already formed around them.
"Tch, Sakura!"
Sasuke clicked his tongue, pulling a kunai from his pouch.
"Huh? What's up?"
Naruto strolled ahead, hands behind his head, totally clueless.
"STOP, NARUTO!"
Sakura's shout froze him in place.
Next second—dozens of kunai and shuriken exploded through the ground in front of him.
"W-WAAAH!"
Naruto's eyes spun into circles. He fell flat on his butt.
High in the towering trees, the forest was packed with genin here to ambush them.
"Hahaha, now that's a welcome party."
Sakura stood in the crosshairs of every hostile glare and smirked.
"Come on, everyone! There's tons of us—are we really scared of one girl?!"
One loudmouth tried to rally the crowd.
…Nobody moved.
These were hand-picked elites from their villages. They could read the room.
The loudmouth was just hoping someone else would be the cannon fodder. When no idiots charged, he quietly hid his presence.
"Haruno Sakura, you're too strong. Hand over the scroll and drop out—we'll let you go!"
Another voice stirred the pot from the crowd. The standoff dragged on; his words started working. The mob got restless.
"Oh? So you do wanna fight?"
Sakura crossed her arms and stepped forward.
The tree-perched genin flinched like startled birds, weapons raised in defense.
"That's it?"
Her voice boomed with mockery, echoing through the woods.
"Don't get cocky! We outnumber you—you can't kill us all! Your teammates are done!"
The embarrassed ninjas barked empty threats.
"Tch, you guys are pathetic…"
Sakura inhaled deep. Chakra flared like fire.
Dark lightning crackled in the blaze, roaring through the void.
Many who tried to flee locked eyes with her—froze for a split second—and couldn't move.
"Wanna fight me? Bring some guts. This coward act won't beat me—don't make me laugh!"
She unleashed chakra mixed with her powers.
Frost exploded outward—spreading, corroding, devouring everything.
Her ninja sandals crushed ice with each step.
Enemy after enemy turned to ice statues.
The entire forest became a frozen tundra.
"S-Sakura-chan…"
A trembling voice behind her.
She turned—Naruto and Sasuke were hugging each other, shaking, faces covered in frost.
"Whoops—sorry, sorry~"
Scratching her head, Sakura jogged over and thawed them out.
---
High in a tree outside the frozen zone, three Kumogakure elites watched.
"Dude, that jutsu's gotta be S-rank, right? How do you even fight a monster like that?!"
Omoy, dark-skinned, unwrapped a fresh lollipop and popped it in.
"We don't fight her. This is a survival mission—grab a scroll, hit the tower, done."
Samui, the leader, set the tone. Karui nodded—avoid the pink demon.
---
Above the forest, on a floating sand platform:
"Gaara, calm down! Now's not the time to fight her!"
Kankuro sweated bullets. Temari's face was pale.
But they grabbed Gaara's hands and begged.
"..."
Gaara panted, drool dripping from his teeth.
He wasn't bloodlusted.
The moment the world froze, he felt the monster inside him flinch in fear.
Even chakra constructs… can be scared?
"Hmph. Let's go."
He gave Sakura one last deep look, then floated away with his siblings on sand.
---
Under the frozen ground:
Kurotsuchi, using sensing jutsu to spy topside, rubbed her arms and huffed white breath.
"That monster chick… she's targeting us!!
She snatched a thick coat from her senior, Akatsuchi, teeth chattering.
"No way—our Earth Style was perfect, right?!"
Akatsuchi scratched his head with one hand while maintaining the jutsu.
"No. With her level? Our hiding never fooled her."
Kurotsuchi glared murder at the surface, trying to kill Sakura with eye-daggers.
Is the ninja world even fair anymore?
Sure, the Five Great Nations send genin who are way above genin level for exposure and mission shares.
But that pink-haired freak?
- Taijutsu: perfect
- Ninjutsu: perfect
- Skill: perfect
Even among jōnin, she'd be a hexagon stat monster.
Konoha throws that into a genin free-for-all?
Shameless.
"Konoha's always been shady—that's how they hog the Land of Fire!"
Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi formed seals, burning Earth chakra to slowly dig through the permafrost.
Damn Konoha. Damn Haruno Sakura.
Once I'm out, I'm reporting you to every client for bomb-fishing!