THE PATH OF LIFE || U. SASUKE

CHAPTER 23

"Why?" Naruto asked in confusion, his left hand still on his cheek.

"We want all the details covered before the first death occurs. Sign before you can go in, so we can't be held liable. You wouldn't want me to get in trouble, would you?" Anko laughed, blush coating on her cheeks in excitement.

Everyone deadpanned.

"First, I'll explain what the second exam entails. Then you can sign these forms" She made a gesture "And then each team will check in at the booth behind me" 

Y/N peered her gaze behind the proctor to see a small hut with three jonin shinobi's seated.

"Got that? Now about your exam. To put it simply, you will attempt the ultimate survival"

'Survival eh? Another pain in the neck exam' Shikamaru thought standing beside Y/N.

"Let's start with the topography of the training ground. I'll explain the rest later."

"Training ground #44 is bordered by a circular perimeter, interrupted at regular intervals by 44 locked gates. There are forests, rivers and in the center is a tower about ten kilometers from those gates. Within the confines of this carefully delineated area, you're going to undergo survival test. During the course of this test, you may use any ninja arts or weapons you have at your disposal"

Sasuke frowned, a piece of information missing.

Anko held up a scroll in front of her face "It's a kind of fight to death version of 'capture the flag' or in this case 'capture the scroll'"

"Scroll?" A genin probed.

"Exactly!" Anko replied "There's a scroll of heaven and a scroll of earth and your objective is to acquire both the scrolls"

"There are 79 of you here, that's 26 teams" The proctor explained "13 teams will start out with a heaven's scroll and the other 13 will start with an earth scroll. But you'll need both scrolls to pass"

"So your objective is to hold onto your scroll, get your hands on one of the other kind and then bring them both to the tower at the center"

"In other words, at least half of us, the 13 teams whose scrolls are stolen will fail" Sakura nervously stated, her agitated face looking between Y/N and Sasuke who stood there indifferent.

"You bet! You have 120 hours. Exactly 5 days" Anko said in a laid back manner.

"Five days" Ino exclaimed lightly.

"What are we supposed to do for food?" Choji yelled worriedly as Shikamaru held his collar to stop him from face planting the ground.

"That's your problem. The forest's are full of nature's bounty. Of course there are also full of man eating animals, deadly insects and poisonous plants. There's no way as many as 13 teams will pass this. as the time shortens, the trials will come harder and faster, with less recovery time for mistakes, accidents or injuries. You'll be surrounded by enemies at all times, so you'll have to sleep with one eye open. So in addition to those who die in attempts to defend or capture a scroll, some of you are bound to succumb to exhaustion, exposure, starvation and dehydration"

Naruto and Sakura gulped, pausing their breaths.

"Now let's talk about the rules and what offenses you can be disqualified for"

'She is not finished'  Y/N frowned, wondering when she will end her speech.

"Obviously, First, the teams that fail to reach the tower in time. Second, those who lose a teammate or those who have a teammate killed And under no circumstances can you leave the forest before the time is up. No recess. No time outs"