Dangerous Bond

Part 24

Apprehension. The field littered with genin either trying to hide their uneasiness or boasting eagerness.

Team 7 arrived at the tense scene early in the morning being slightly late as their sensei forced some last minute training into their schedules.

Glancing around, Naruto found Konohamaru and his friends speaking to some ninja he wasn't accustomed to. It looked like he was doing an interview as the kid took down notes whilst keeping up conversation.

Naruto smiled at the boy, the Hokage's grandson had proclaimed himself the Jinchuuriki's rival before Naruto had graduated and to this day was still challenging the blonde to ridiculous tests.

"So, think the beasts in the forest missed us?" Naruto questioned out loud, glancing at Konohamaru and the familiar area around him.

Sakura hummed in response, taking note of the creatures lurking in the shadows. It felt a little like home being back here.

"Hn" Sasuke muttered his famous Uchiha response while glaring at any genin getting too close.

The proctor for the second exam, Anko Mitarashi, arrived on the scene with unpleasant tension following in her wake as most genin scurried away from her and were practically hugging each other.

The strange woman began explaining the details of the exam.

"Okay Kiddies, Welcome to the second part of the Chuunin Exams! The survival test. You've got five days to reach the center of the forest where a tower awaits. If you think this sounds easy, let me crush your hopes right now" She paused, taking in the tense atmosphere with a delighted smile "Each team will receive one scroll with either heaven or earth written on it. You'll need both scrolls to pass through to the next stage. Should you have less than three members when arriving at the tower, you will be disqualified. If you open either of the scrolls before you reach the tower, you will be disqualified. Other than those two rules, its free play people!"

Most genin gulped at the news and Anko gave them a moment to talk amongst themselves.

Naruto turned to his teammates "Only five days?" He asked with hopeful eyes.

Sasuke smirked "You obviously haven't thought about the competition, To. It won't be easy. That Gaara seems to be more excited than the proctor, which could cause to be a problem"

"So we avoid him, he'll definitely make it through so there's no need to fight him now, besides if we all make it through to the third stage, we'll no doubt have a chance to fight him" Sakura quietly said amongst the boys.

Naruto gave a nod of his head while glancing at the red-headed boy who seemed dazed. His eyes seemed bored but Naruto could tell he was becoming impatient.

"There's something about him...I can't place the feeling but I think he might have something sealed in him like me" Naruto mumbled hesitantly, crossing his arms.

Sasuke and Sakura abruptly looked at their teammate with worry. They knew the power Naruto had with the nine tails sealed in him and if another jinjuuriki was here, it could mean serious danger for Konoha.

"I wonder if the Hokage knows..." Sakura trailed off.

Naruto furrowed his brows at the thought of the Hokage, he doubted the old man would know about this though. "We'll need to be sure and tell him" The blonde mumbled.