I let out a low whistle as I stared at the massive forest behind this 'Anko' person. "This is the Forest of Death, huh? Pretty cool." I grinned.

The boys next to me began to sweat a little at my words but something caught my attention. "Huh? Naruto?" I mumbled in confusion as he ran back and forth.

A square rock chased him around. That's a terrible disguise.

Naruto had stopped and pointed at the terrible disguise saying something. Three kids threw off the rock and did a pose of sorts. "The hell?" Kazuki murmured. I was torn.

On one hand, these are Academy students, they shouldn't be goofing off. On the other hand, they're so funny!

Leaf Ninja are really something else.

A smile cracked my face. "Yume, ignore them or you'll lose brain cells." Shou said, turning back to Anko. I pouted at him. "Eh? But it looks fun." He just shook his head.

What a party pooper.

After the chatter died down, everyone returned their attention back to Anko. "Before we begin this test I have something to hand out to you all."

She reached into her coat and pulled out a stack of paper. Oh, that kinda looks like-

"It's just a standard consent form. Before the test, all of you are going to have to read over this form and then sign it."

"What for?" Naruto's voice carried across us. Anko smirked. "Some of you may not come back from this test. And I have to get your consent to that risk. Otherwise it'll be my responsibility." She laughed.

People murmured amongst themselves, calling her crazy. Which I full heartedly agree on. "Now I'll explain what you'll be doing on this test. Here, pass these out." She handed the forms to the closest person, Naruto.

I waited patiently for the forms, listening to her in the meantime.

"The first thing you'll need to know is this will test every one of your survival skills. I'll give you all a description of the terrain on the practice field." Anko pulled out a scroll and let it fall, showing a diagram of the forest.

Hm. Seems simple enough. And I have faith in our survival skills, so this'll be a piece of cake.

"The 44th battle training zone. There are rivers, and a forest inside. In the center is a locked tower located ten kilometers from each gate. It's in this confined area that you'll undergo the survival test. The test consists of an anything goes battle to get your hands on these scrolls."

Two scrolls rolled down her sleeves, one white that reads 'Heaven' and one black that reads 'Earth'.

Anything goes battle, huh? Now this is sounding like a real exam!

She put them up so everyone can see. "Altogether, thirty teams will be taking part in this test. So half of those teams will be going after the heaven scroll, and the other half will be trying to get the earth scroll. I'll hand over one kind of scroll to each team and that's what you'll be vying for."

"That means, at the very best, half of us will fail. More if not every team is able to get both the scrolls." The pink haired Leaf Genin spoke.

Anko shrugged. "No one ever said it'll be easy. Oh, and one more thing. The test has a time limit. You must finish it within five days."

Five days huh? Cool. "Five days out there!" A blonde shouted. "What are we supposed to do about food?!" A chubby boy shouted, horror on their faces.

"Just look around. The forest is full of things to eat. There's plenty to feed all of you." Kazuki scoffed a bit. "Yeah, but there's also going to be plenty of poisonous plants. Not to mention whatever kind of wild beasts you got in there." He turned and eyed the chubby kid.

"I give him an hour." He shrugged. Shou rolled his eyes. "Thirty minutes more like it."

Well, they got a point. This is actually very practical. If this were a mission we'd have to face the same thing. Finding our own shelter, food, and source of water. Not to mention our ability to fend off any beasts and poisonous insects.

Nature isn't forgiving. And if you can't handle this, you really shouldn't be a ninja.

They once dropped us off in a canyon area outside the village. We were out there for a week.

It wasn't a forested terrain so we had to find food underground or even in little cave pockets in the bottom of the mountains. Not to mention we got attacked by giant scorpions.

Shou, Miku, Taichi, and Sen had ventured off in a little party to the nearest forested area in order to bring better food. It was our first actual lesson.

Something like this is what I'd expect for a Chunin Exam.

With the way this is set up, it's really putting us to the test. Can we survive against nature and each other?

We'll have less time to sleep and recover, especially during this time of year when the days are longer and the nights are shorter.

It won't be easy. And that's what makes this awesome!

"This test also measures endurance behind enemy lines. This is designed to be a grueling test. And I'm sure some of you won't be up to the challenge."

But I am. We are. We're gonna pass this test no matter what!

The tired boy from the Leaf raised his hand lazily in the air. "So um, let's say mid exam. Can we quit?" I nearly fell.

What? But-but I thought he-I'm sure I sensed his potential!

"Of course not. In the middle of a battle you can't say 'sorry I quit'. Well I guess you could but it's probably gonna get you killed. There's also some ways you can get disqualified. The first is simple. If all three members of a team can't make it to the tower with both scrolls after five days. Number two. If a team loses a member or if a member becomes incapacitated and cannot continue. But most important, none of you, absolutely none of you, must look at the contents of the scrolls until you reach the tower."

She placed a hand on her hip. "There are times when a ninja will be asked to carry secret documents. The scroll rule is to test your integrity."

I heard a snort. "Guess Princess will fail." I turned and shot Takeshi a glare. His group stood near a group of Rain and Leaf Genin.

Then I smiled sweetly. "Are you the pot, or the kettle?" This angered him as much as me.

How dare he call me out on my integrity?!

Our glares clashed and the tension formed like a wall. The teams around us watched in anxious anticipation, waiting to see if we'll break out in a fight.

"Okay we're done. Each team take your consent form and exchange them over there for your scrolls. After that each team pick a gate and you'll be led inside. Oh and I have one more word of advice. Just don't die!"

Psh. I'm not gonna die here in a stupid test. No, when I go it'll be in battle like every Naruse before me.

Dying in battle is the greatest honor, and honestly, dying in an exam will shame my Clan and my village.

I quickly signed the forms, not bothering to read it over. "They're putting curtains up, I can't see inside. We won't know which teams will have what scroll." Shou scowled.

I laughed and patted his back. "It's fine.This'll be a walk in the park." I assured him, my voice chipper. "But that also means we won't know who'll carry the scroll." Kazuki inputted.

I just shrugged. "We'll just take them all out. Simple." Both of them sighed but smirked in the end.

The boys signed and we're the first to head over and turn them in. We walked through the groups, confidence oozing off of us.

It made some teams falter. But it also made some teams turn their targets to us. Either way, it worked out in our favor. It weakened their resolve and drew potential scrolls to us.

The curtain closed behind us and we handed in our forms. A Leaf Shinobi then held up an earth scroll. Kazuki, Shou, and I looked between us. "So? Who should carry it? Princess? Ow!" Shou rubbed the spot on his head where I struck.

"Well, I'd like to carry it, but they also might expect it." They've heard a 'Princess' remark somewhere during our time here. And if we ran into anyone from the Cloud they'd know I'd have it.

I'm kind of team leader, but that's not my fault. The boys just tend to follow me.

Next one they'd expect is Shou since he's more composed.

So . . . "Kazuki." Shou smiled lightly, "Just what I was thinking." We turned to our teammate who blinked in confusion. "Me?"

"Yeah. What better person then the Joker." Shou smirked. Kazuki's temple throbbed as he looked at us in annoyance.

Grumbling under his breath, he took the scroll and shoved it in his pouch. "Your gate is number seventeen."

Excitement bubbled within me and I practically skipped towards our gate. This is going to be fun!

I stared at the gate as it opened. This is it. I'll show the Raikage that this was a great idea! I am ready to travel outside the Land of Lightning. And I'll prove it to him, the Clan, and everyone else!

~

"So, how should we do this?" I asked, leaning against a tree, spinning a kunai around my index finger.

Four giant, dead, centipedes lay around us, our weapons lodged into them.

"Well the best idea would be to head to the tower and set a trap for everyone else since that's our final destination, but we won't be the only ones who thought of it." Kazuki mulled, hand to his chin with his thinking face on.

"We shouldn't rush, that's what everyone will instinctively do. Try and get the scrolls as soon as they can. I say we lie in wait, scout the area, learn the forest, that way we can use it to our advantage." Shou stated.

Kazuki nodded, snapping his fingers. "That's a great idea. But we should split up. Three of us will attract a lot of attention compared to one."

I stopped twirling my kunai and gripped it harshly before I threw it upwards, making it strike a centipede that was attempting to sneak up on me.

"Alright. We should regroup back here in five hours." They nodded in agreement. I'll do a quick and easy scout. Easy peasy.

"Don't forget what Ren-Sensei said, Yume." Kazuki warned. I rolled my eyes, turning my back to him. "Yeah, yeah." He reminded me again yesterday after the first test, then again this morning.

Apparently he warned the two of them as well. What a busybody. Without anything left to say we took off.

I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty excited! I mean c'mon. Survival of the fittest? Free for all? A test of strength, endurance, and witt! How can I not be so hyped up?!

Especially since it's with all these new people. I don't battle ninjas from outside my village often. And I'm interested in their battle styles.

I like fighting, sparring. It's fun and I always learn something new.

Then again, I'm a ninja. I'm supposed to like these things. I'd find it bothersome if it weren't for the fact that I do enjoy it.

As I hopped from tree to tree, I made sure to observe my surroundings.

There's not a lot of forests back home, but they sure are beautiful. Even this one, despite its eerie atmosphere. Almost makes me wish I had an affinity for Earth, but that'd be ridiculous considering my affinity is Lightning.

Of course I'm working on my Fire affinity. It should come naturally considering the close relations with Lightning, but something just feels off. It's not quite right.

Ah.

I stopped and jumped back, avoiding shuriken. Well, well. I glanced off to the side, spotting a group of ninja.

From their headbands, I see they're from the Village Hidden in Frost.

Interesting. I didn't realize they took part in other countries' Chunin Exams.

My village isn't the only one who prefers to keep to themselves. And they're journey should be considerably longer than others.

"Well, well, well. Looks like we have a young Cloud Ninja. Where's the rest of your team?"

The leader asked. I tilted my head, studying them. They're older than me and quite tall. It's not strange to have different ages of people but most want to pass as young as possible.

Although I wanted to take the test earlier myself, A is a bit of a nuisance.

They probably targeted me because I am younger and because I'm by myself. They thought I was an easy target.

A smirk stretched across my face as I took in the scene. Three enemies. Two men, one woman. Based on the double axes stabbed to one of the men's back he's probably more in tune with hand to hand.

The woman isn't even carrying a sword, just a pouch so I don't see her as a close combat fighter. Maybe a Genjutsu or Ninjutsu specialist but I don't think she has the kind of powerhouse.

The leader had a simple sword on his back but based on his stature he's probably well versed in all areas.

This is going to be fun!

I unsheathed my tanto, twirling it in my hands before clenching it tightly and going into my fighting stance.

"Oh, y'know. Just around." I answered playfully though I became acutely aware of their every movement, their every breath.

My body buzzed with excitement and the mere thought of the battle about to happen. Adrenaline began to run through me and it took everything in me not to start the fight itself.

B always talked about how it was a little concerning how excited I am to fight. It's why the Naruse Clan has it's negative onion about me.

I don't understand it myself, but it is what it is. I like to fight. It's exciting.

Besides, I'm strong. If you're strong you should fight. This is especially true if it's to protect those that aren't. It's natural, right?

Ope. I moved my head to avoid a flying senbon the girl sent my way.

As if that was the cue, the other two rushed me. The bigger guy with the axes jumped high and pulled out the large weapons in either hand before bringing them down on me with much strength.

Too bad for him my speed is on another level and I flickered away, out of reach and the blades cut through the ground where I was just standing.

The other one was in front of me, pulling out a traditional looking katana and moving towards me.

I easily blocked it with my senbon and my eye twitched at the intense power.

I see. I read about this. In the Land of Iron I hear they still practice ways like Samurai.

One of the specialties of the shinobi they take from it is encasing their weapons with chakra.

I guess that's why the ground the axe guy had cut was neat and clean.

It's different. These weapons are stronger and sharper than anything I've known. But that's alright. I always wanted to fight Frost Shinobi because they do take lessons from the Samurai! And I've always wanted to fight a Samurai!

I flickered behind him startling him and delivered a swift kick to his back.

As he began to fly forward, he turned to lash at me but I flickered away and to the axe guy.

I moved my tanto towards his throat, causing him to stumble to avoid it. Using his off balance I dropped to a crouch and swiped my leg under his feet, making him crash down like a large tree.

More senbon headed my way and I jumped left to avoid it. The girl was throwing a large amount, but there was something off about them. Are they also covered in chakra?

Whoops!

I ducked, avoiding the swing of the man's sword and quickly turned to face him, swinging my own weapon towards him. However the axe man was up and behind me, forcing me to flicker away or be cut in half by those large weapons.

He's slower because of the sheer size of those weapons but he's still rather quick despite it.

It's easy enough to avoid by itself but if I stay occupied with the others then that's where it becomes challenging.

More senbon flew my way but hit the ground by my feet. Ice expanded and trapped my feet in it. Uh-oh. That's not good.

The axe guy was in front of me and swung one of his axes from above. I grit my teeth and blocked it with my tanto but the force caused a strain on my wrist and I worried for my blade. He swung the other axe from a lower swing.

Ah shit. In the blink of an eye I brought a kunai from my pouch and struggled to block it. My arms wobbled as I struggled in keeping it there.

With both arms occupied and my legs trapped the sword man appeared behind me. "You're finished!" He roared. I sensed the sword.

Channeling my strength I managed to push the axes away from me and forced him back. I quickly maneuvered and used my kunai to block the blade and sheathed my tanto so I could have one free hand.

I did some one handed hand signs. "Lightning Style: Pulse!" Electricity sparked in my hand. I slammed my palm into his chest, intensifying the electricity making him shout in pain.

I used more strength to my feet and ripped myself from the ice and flickered away.

The sword man grunted as he fell to his knees, bearing with the continuous pulse of electricity that is still circulating him.

Not wasting a second, I flickered behind the girl, startling her. I grabbed the back of her neck and shoved her into the ground, nailing her clothes down with several kunai.

I flickered away to the big guy who was charging my way and sound in the air and lashed my leg out, connecting with his neck in an odd way.

He gasped as his airway was temporarily stunned and crouched. He grabbed his throat and began to cough.

Sword man was by me in an instant and I caught his blade mid swing. The chakra cut into my hand but I held steady.

With quick and precise movement my knee moved up and struck him in the solar plexus. He gasped and his hold on the sword lessened.

I used that moment to snatch the blade from him completely and jumped up. I threw the sword more up so I could weave hand signs.

Once I did I caught the weapon and changed my hold before throwing it down like a spear. Small lightning danced on the

blade but once it lodged into the ground it expanded and lightning came alive within a ten meter radius and sparked continues. The three ninja shouted, caught in that radius and I landed on the handle of the sword, watching my sparks continue their onslaught.

All three of the ninja's eyes rolled into the back of their heads as it was a non stop electrocution.

This specific jutsu doesn't have a name since I made it a few years back.

I made the blade a conductor and gave it its own electrical pulse. Once it's in the ground anybody within ten meters that is touching the ground is faced with the harsh electrocution.

Depending on the amount I instill in the blade the time varies. After another moment the lightning died down and the two men crumpled.

I glanced back at the girl and winced. She was still stuck to the ground by the kunai. I thought she'd get out of it a bit but it seems not.

The two men collapsed and all three were smoking, some of their clothing ripped.

"Maybe that was too much. Oh well." I shrugged and hopped off the hilt, heading towards the sword guy.

Let's see what scroll you have. Huh? "Awe man. An earth scroll? That sucks." I pouted.

I knew it wouldn't be that simple but still. What a bummer. Oh well, I'll keep it anyway. I shoved the scroll in my pouch and stood.

The men twitched a bit and moved. I better leave before they get their bearings together. The girl is definitely knocked out but the guys are just stunned for the most part.

They'll get up soon but I'll be long gone before they do. "Later!" I jumped into the trees and continued on my way.

~

I didn't run across any other teams. Well, I could have but one fight was enough. The goal is to get a lay of the land, not to get scrolls.

So I did just that.

Although it's different from back home, it's not like we don't have forests at all.

I'm not a fan of the large bugs and I ran across an extremely large snake, but I know that was a summoning so I just avoided it.

I made it back to the meeting point to see the boys have already returned. "Welcome back. Did you run into any trouble?" Shou asked.

I landed in front of them and threw my hands behind my head. "Not really. Just some Frost ninja. Sadly they didn't have the right scroll." I sighed loudly.

Man that was a real bummer. My teammates scanned me for injuries but I didn't have any.

Just a little pain in my wrist but nothing serious. "I saw some Leaf Ninja, but they were hiding in the bushes the entire time. It was the ones from that BBQ place." Kazuki told us.

Oh, those guys. Ah! The lazy kid!

He seemed interesting during the writing test, but that comment he made about quitting halfway kind of put a damper on things.

Shou scoffed. "Of course they were. Anyway we should probably set up camp. I saw a place that's perfect. We'll set up some traps. Three of us and one scroll." He sighed.

I blinked, a smile on my face. "No, we have two scrolls." I told him.

The two blinked at me before getting in my face. "What?! I thought they didn't have the right scroll?!" Shou shouted.

I blinked again, pulling out the scroll. "They didn't, but I still took it."

Kazuki gripped his hair as he stared at me as if I were crazy. "Why?! They're going to be so salty and come back for it!"

Ah. Are they? I chuckled nervously, scratching my cheek. "Oh, well, I'm sure they'll just look for new people. They shouldn't be that petty."

They'll have to work twice as hard to make up for it, so they wouldn't search specifically for me.

Right?

Kazuki sighed, rubbing his forehead as Shou did that thing where he pretended to strangle me from afar.

I laughed loudly, putting it in my pouch. "C'mon, let's set up camp and do some hunting. I'm starving!"