"Okay, here goes nothing." Naruto gulped, "Yeah." I nodded, pulling back the paper. I unraveled the scroll with Naruto, my eyes widened. Naruto tilted his head, "What? What does this mean?" Naruto asked, Sakura peered over my shoulder, Sasuke sighed. "A man? A person?" I wondered, trying my best to understand. The paper bent up, I jumped back. "A summoning jutsu!" I shouted, throwing the scroll to the ground, "Naruto! Quick! Get rid of the scroll!" I looked over to him, jumping back from the scroll on the ground. "Yek!" Sakura screeched, "Huh?!" Naruto gasped, throwing the scroll to the other side of the room, smoke erupted around the scrolls.

A figure appeared from the smoke. "What? It's you?" Sasuke muttered, Iruka crossed his arms. "Hey. Long time no see, huh?" Iruka-sensei smiled. He stood in the middle of the two scrolls, "Iruka-sensei?" I tilted my head. "Looks like you four have gone through a lot." Iruka nodded, Naruto crossed his arms. "Hey, what's with the surprise entrance? Why are you appearing with a summoning?" Naruto asked, shaking his head side to side. "At the end of the second exam, we Chunin are supposed to welcome the test takers back, and well, it was just luck that I got to be the one given the important task of being the messenger for you guys." Iruka explained, walking closer to us. "A messenger?" Sakura asked, Iruka dug into his pocket, flipping open a small pocket watch. "Made it just in time to." Iruka nodded, closing it in his hand as he turned his head back to us. "And now. Congratulations, you all have passed the second exam." Iruka nodded with a smile. "To celebrate your passing, I would love to treat you all to some ramen, but-" "Ramen?!" Naruto and I screamed at the same time, running over to Iruka. "Seriously? That's so cool!" Naruto shouted, "Yeah! I'm starving, you're a life saver Iruka-sensei!" I smiled, Naruto wrapped his arms around Iruka. "Hey! I'm not done!" Iruka sighed, "So cool!" Naruto chanted, "Let go, Naruto." Iruka shook his head. "Oh yeah!" Naruto jumped, his fists in the air. "Ramen would be awesome! Believe it!" Naruto shouted, "Yeah! Especially after and the bugs and plants we've had to eat for that past few days, so great! I'm going to eat everything!" I shouted, dancing around Iruka. Sakura sighed, crashing down onto the floor. Sasuke sat down, relaxing his legs. "Where do they get all their energy?" Sasuke mumbled, "Yeah!" Naruto jumped, "Ugh, shut up." Sakura complained, Iruka couldn't help but smile.

"Alright. Well, I can see you two are still as hyperactive as ever." Iruka sighed, his hands on his hips. "Oh, I see." Sasuke smirked, "Huh?" Sakura turned her head over to him. "So if we looked at the scrolls in the middle of the exam, what would you have done to us, Iruka-sensei?" Sasuke asked him, Iruka looked down at him on the ground. "Hm?" I looked over at Iruka, he picked the scrolls back up. "As usual, Sasuke. You're as sharp as a tack." Iruka rolled the scrolls back up. "Well, part of this exam was to test how well you can see a difficult mission all the way through. Simply put, you knew that opening the scrolls was against the rules of your mission, and that if you tried to open one..." Iruka rubbed his chin, "What? What would of happened?" I asked him, looking up at Iruka with wide eyes. "If the scroll was opened, we were ordered to knock out whoever opened it. Some ninja found that out the hard way." Iruka explained, rubbing the back of his neck, Naruto gulped. "Ha, it's a good thing you didn't open up yours, huh Naruto?" Sasuke looked over at him, "Gah! I owe ya one, thanks a million Kabuto!" Naruto chuckled nervously, "Few, yeah, you're right. That was seriously close." I sighed, putting my hands in my pockets. Sakura poked her head up, "Oh, yeah, Sensei." Sakura called out, "Yeah?" Iruka looked over at her, she pointed to the large sign. "What does that writting on the wall mean? The parchment the letters are written on is kinda eaten away so it's difficult to read it. We can't understand it." Sakura asked him, "Oh, please. Look, we passed, didn't we? That stuff doesn't matter now!" Naruto grinned, Sakura clenched her fists, "Well, actually, explaining that is another one of my duties." Iruka explained, "What? Seriously?" Naruto tilted his head. "That's right. It's serious business. Give it a good read, it's instructions Lord Hokage recorded are principles that chunin should follow." Iruka turned back to the sign, "They're instructions?" Naruto asked, Iruka put his hands in his pockets. "Yes. Heaven stands for your mind and earth for your body. If qualities of heaven are what you desire, require wisdom to take your mind higher. Get it?" Iruka turned back to us, "Uh..." Naruto itched the top of his head. "Alright, I'll explain. In other words, if your weakness lies in your intellect, Naruto, than you have to make sure that you work hard to learn all the skills you need to prepare for your missions." Iruka-sensei smiled over at him, he was still confused. Sakura started to laugh, "And you, Sakura. If earthly qualities are what you lack, train your body and prepare to attack. So, if your weakness lies in your physical strength, Sakura, then you have to make sure that you work on your physical condition every single day so you improve all the time." Iruka explained with a nod, Sakura rubbed the back of her neck. "When heaven and earth are open together, the perilous path will become righteous forever. Meaning, if your mind and body are working together as one, then even a very dangerous mission can become and easy one." Iruka nodded, "So, what about that spot with the missing letter?" I asked him, my arms crossed. "Well, that mark is meant for you to fill in. Do you remember that mark on the scroll? It's the character for person, a reference to you chunin. You see, these five days of survival were to test your abilities as chunin and to see if you'd be any good at it, and I've got to say, you guys really did magnificently. A chunin is a leader, a guide. It's a chunin's responsibility to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of those serving under them and to know what skills and training those ninja are going to need in order to succeed on a mission." Iruka continued his lecture, "You four did an excellent job on this mission, and I want you to remember these instructions on your next one. Well, that's it. That was everything I was supposed to say to you." Iruka finished with a nod. "Got it!" Naruto said with a smile, "Can we get ramen now?" I asked with a sigh, Iruka's happy expression dropped. "Huh?" I looked up at him.

"One more thing. For the third exam, don't push it too far. Especially you two, Naruto, (Y/N), I'm worried-" "Iruka-sensei, when I got this headband I stopped being a student. So you don't have to worry about me or (Y/N) at all, not anymore!" Naruto said with a grin, Iruka's eyes widened. "Yeah, we're full-fledged ninja now. We may still be hyper, but we're not kids any more! We got through the second chunin exam, and you watch! We're going to get through the third for sure!" I chimed in, throwing my fist up into the air. Iruka's gaze softened, "You guys are right, I'm sorry about that." Iruka said quietly, a small smile on his face.

"Look, I know their strengths and weakness better than any one else does. Whatever the result, I want to be the one who breaks the news to them." Iruka said in a stern tone, Anko rolled her eyes. "Fine, if you're that hung up on it. I'll just leave that team in your hands, jeez." Anko shrugged, "But I would of thought that you would've had a little more confidence in them, ya know." Anko said with a sigh. "Thank you, Anko." Iruka bowed. "Wait," She picked up a piece of paper, scanning her eyes over it. "Those guys are Kakashi's students, aren't they? Listen, if Kakashi's got faith in them, then I wouldn't count them out just yet, Iruka." Anko nodded, looking over at him with a serious look.

It seems to me now, that the one who understand the strengths and weaknesses of these ninja best might very well be you, Kakashi.

"Ah...gnnnn..." Anko gritted her teeth, the tips of her fingers lightly touched her neck, grazing the curse mark. "How is it?" Lord Hokage asked, his hands behind his back. "Does the curse mark still cause you pain?" He asked, worry etched on his features. "No, not really. Thanks to you, it's much better." Anko said with a sigh, "Well, that's good, but we better get back to business." Izumo nodded his head, Kotetsu by his side. "This Orochimaru is one of the legendary Sannin ninja, isn't he? He's supposed to be so incredibly powerful that not even the Anbu black ops could bring em down. I heard that Orochimaru was dead, but I guess that isn't true." Kotetsu sighed, his hands in his pockets. "Why did he come to this village now, any way?" Izumo asked, his expression becoming serious. "That kid..." Anko whispered.

"He's after (Y/N), right? Sasuke as well." Lord Hokage breath a heavy sigh, Anko looked back at him. "Anko! We've confirmed that twenty three ninja have finished the second exam. And as for the third exam, according to the rules, we'll have to hold a round of preliminaries first. The first time in...five years." The staticy voice cut out, the radio's transmission being lost. Lord Hokage held onto the end of his pipe, Anko's eyes widened. "Now, for the time being, we'll continue with the exams, as planned. But I also want to keep an eye on his movements as well, and a close watch on (Y/N). History is repeating it's self." Lord Hokage sighed.
"Yes." Anko agreed.

"First of all, congratulations on finishing the second exam!" Anko's voice echoed around the arena, it was cold, a shiver ran down my spine as I looked around the crowd. Anko crossed her arms, there were eighty ninja that took the exam, frankly, I'm surprised the even twenty three passed. Less than half did make it, but I thought that the number would at least be in the single digits. Hm, with the two (L/N)'s here, history really is repeating it's self. Anko smirked, crossing her arms.

"I'm really hungry..." Choji sighed, he stood next to me, holding onto his scarf tightly. "What a drag, there's so many left." Shikamaru put his hands in his pockets. "I'll say, hey Choji, maybe I've got somethin here for you." I whispered to him, digging into my pocket, I pulled out a partially melted cough drop. "Awesome!" Choji grinned, taking it out of my hand, he popped it into his mouth. "What a pain." Shikamaru looked down at the ground. "Ah, Sasuke and his team has passed too." Ino clasped her hands together, looking over at Sasuke from afar. "Well, of course they did. With (Y/N) on the team, " Shikamaru looked over at me, I puffed out my cheeks. "Whatever..." I mumbled.

"I see your team didn't do too bad, Kakashi. They must of gotten real lucky." Guy cleared his throat, his hands on his hips. "Of course, with my team still around, your team is doomed to failure. After all, what matters on the next test is ability, and we've got you far outclassed. Well, I guess a part of growing up is learning to deal with heartbreak, huh, Kakashi?" Guy smiled smugly, "Huh? Did you say something?" Kakashi asked, his hands on his pockets. "GAH!" Guy screamed, clenching his fists. Alright Kakashi, you win this round! But next time you're not going to be able to act so cool! There's no way I'm going to let you get the best of me! Guy gritted his teeth.

So that's Guy-sensei's old rival, huh? Based on looks alone, I'd say that Guy-sensei would loose. Tenten thought with a smile. Guy-sensei is the coolest teacher ever! I mean, he is so cool, he practically glows with cool he is that cool! You watch Guy-sensei, some day I will make you proud of me! Lee shot a fist up into the air, a serious expression cross his face. I never want to see tears on dear (Y/N) ever again. That is why I am never going to loose again, Guy-sensei! Never again! Lee clenched his fists tightly.

As expected, all the best are here. Neji looked around the crowd, Sasuke stood next to him, his gaze was uneasy. Sasuke's head was turned, staring at my back, I was joking around with Choji. Sasuke Uchiha, you will loose. Neji balled his hands into fists.

"Gnnnn!" Zaku growled angrily, both of his arm tightly bound up in bandages. I will get you for what you've done to me, Sasuke! Zaku gritted his teeth, Dosu in front of him.

Kabuto's eyes wandered around the room, Orochimaru shooting a glance at him from the corner. Kabuto gave a sight nod.

I can't believe it. Only seven teams out of the twenty six are left. Temari looked around the room, "Hm?" She looked over at Gaara, his eyes were pinned to someone from behind, his arms crossed.

"Huh?" Kurenai's eyes widened. Akamaru is acting strange. She thought, her arms crossed. Kiba gritted his teeth, Akamaru whimpered. Those sand village ninja. Kiba looked back at them, Mikio met his stare, Akamaru quivered. (Y/N) passed too, thank goodness. Hinata thought with a smile, clasping her hands together.

"Hey, look, all of the leaf village rookies are here too." Sakura whispered, I turned my head over to her, "Wow, everyone's here! Even old man Hokage, Iruka-sensei, and even bush brow. Looks like no one got left out this time." Naruto turned his head over to us, "I don't have a very good feeling about this." Sasuke whispered to us, "Hm. Yeah." I agreed, a small twinge in my neck.

It's hard to believe that there are so many left after the second test. And so many of them are rookies, so that's why they fought so hard to recommend them. Lord Hokage thought, rubbing his chin. "Alright, now, pay attention! Lord Hokage is going to explain the third exam to you. Listen up maggots!" Anko shouted, I turned my head back to the front of the room.

Lord Hokage took a step closer to the crowd, clearing his throat. "First, before I tell you what the third exam entails, I want to explain something about the test its self. Listen closely now, it's something that all of you need to understand. I'm going to tell you the true purpose of these exams." Lord Hokage explained, his hands behind his back. True purpose? Sakura wondered. "Why do you suppose our country holds this exam in conjunction with our allies?" He asked the crown, Naruto shrugged. "To raise friendship between allied nations, to be sure, but it is important that you understand it's true meaning. The exams are, so to speak..." Lord Hokage paused. So to speak? I tilted my head to the side. "They are to represent the battle between allied nations." Lord Hokage nodded, holding his pipe in place. "What's that supposed to mean?" I wondered, peering over Kiba's shoulder.

"Now, if we look at our history, all the countries we are currently allied with were once neighboring nations that continuously fought each other for power. In order to avoid destroying each others military strength meaninglessly, those nations picked champions to do battle of behalf of their countries, in a neutrally selected location. That is how the chunin selections exams originally began." Lord Hokage explained, slowly breathing a puff of smoke out, his pipe in his hand. "Well, that's great, but why do we have to go through these exams, then? I mean, it's not like we're doing this to collect chunin to go fight." Naruto asked, Lord Hokage shook his head.

"Well, actually. There is no question that part of the point of these exams is to select shinobi worthy of becoming chunin, but that's just not the whole story. These exams also allow for a place where a shinobi can carry the pride of their nation on their backs and fight against other ninja for their very lives." Lord Hokage said in a dark tone. "Pride of their nation?" Sakura whispered, "Many leaders and their people of prominence from various countries are invited to attend this exam as guests and also, possibly, to seek shinobi to work for them. This exam could determine the course of your ninja work from here on out. And more importantly, those guests will watch your battles, and take note of the strengths of each ninja and their nation has developed. If there is a gap in power between the countries, the strong nations are inundated with job requests for their ninja. And conversely, the countries that are deemed weak decline. Therefor, the stronger our nation is, the better our position when it comes to negotiating with neighboring countries, so it is important to show how much military strength our village has." Lord Hokage explained to the crowd, I crossed my arms, unable to shake the feeling of being watched.

"Okay, but even so! Why is is necessary for us to risk our lives?" Kiba shouted out, his outburst causing a few hushed mumbles to erupt in the crowd. Iruka sighed. "The countries strength is the villages strength. The villages strength is the shinobi's strength. And the true strength of the shinobi is only achieved when they are pushed to their limits, such as in a life or death battle. This exam is a place for each nation to show the strength of their shinobi and, hence, the strength of the nation it's self. It's because this is a exam where your lives are on the line that it has meaning. And it is for this very reason that for the strength of the nation, that for the strength of the nation, for you and your foreigners take this exam. It is truly a dream worth striving for." Lord Hokage held his pipe tightly in his hand, the crowd was stirred. "But then...why did you use the word 'friendship' before?" Tenten asked, a confused look crossed her face.

"But you've only remembered half of what I said. You also must have the wrong idea of the exams meaning. This is a custom of which balances are preserved by fighting and dying. In the world of this shinobi, that is friendship. The third exam is a fight for life, the pride of your village and your own dreams at stake." Lord Hokage's words silenced the crowd.

"Ha, well, he sure convinced me." Naruto said with his arms crossed, I turned my head over to him with a small smile. There, the thought rang loud in my ears. My eye scanned through the crowd, eyes staring at me intensely. Gaara's head was completely turned, I was caught off guard by his piercing stare. I gave him a small wave, wondering what it was all about, he turned his head back to the front of the room.

"Any test is fine, just tell me what the details of the exam are already, I can handle anything you throw at me." Gaara breathed out, his arms crossed. "Very well." Lord Hokage said with a nod, "Now, listen closely. I'm going to be telling you all exactly what you will be doing on the third exam-" Lord Hokage began, a loud cough stopped him. "Lord Hokage, before you do, please allow me, Hayate Gekko, proctor of the third exam, to speak first." Hayate asked in a soft tone, his throat scratchy as he bowed his head. "Sure." Lord Hokage shrugged, taking a step back.

"It's nice to meet you all." Hayate coughed, covering his mouth with his hand. "There's something that I would like all of you," He turned to us, his speech interrupted by another coughing fit. "T-To do before the third exam." He cleared his throat, "Are you okay?" I asked him, looking over Kiba's shoulder. "F-Fine." He waved, continuing to cough heavily.