LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 41: Into the Forest of Death
I made my way to Training Ground 44, also known as the Forest of Death. This was the second phase of the Chunin Exams, and it promised to be grueling, plus if what I remember from the anime was still true then this shit would be dangerous beyond what I was expecting. I double-checked my tools and made sure everything was accounted for.
As I finally arrived at the entrance to the Forest of Death, I couldn't help but look at the dense forest beyond the gate. Other teams were already gathering, each group eyeing the other while some seemed to be eyeing me. Well, to be fair I was going in solo which was odd for this type of exam but I was sure I could handle it, probably....
Miss Anko Mitarashi stood at the entrance "Listen up!" she called out, her voice cutting through the murmurs of the crowd. "This is the Forest of Death, you all will learn why it's called that soon enough."
Thankfully Naruto didn't open his mouth like he did in the anime, he was slightly calmer this time. I glanced around, taking note of the other participants. I would avoid taking the scrolls from the people from my village. As I gazed at the sound Ninja's they would be my first targets, Id just kill them even if we had the same scroll, let's avoid the mistakes that were made in the show.
Anko's gaze swept over the crowd, and she gave me a slight nod of recognition before continuing. "You'll each receive either a Heaven or Earth scroll. Your objective is to obtain the opposite scroll from another team and make it to the tower in the forest's center. You'll have five days to complete this task. If you lose your scroll, you're out."
As Anko began distributing the scrolls, I had to wait until even team 7 got there's and made their way into the forest. Once I was called up I made my way over to her as she made sure that the few remaining teams saw what scroll I was given, like she had with every team.
As Anko handed me the scroll, her gaze lingered for a moment. "Ayumi, I know you're going in alone, but remember, you've got the skills to handle this. Trust your instincts and stay sharp. The Forest of Death is no joke, and from what I've seen from your training you got this."
I nodded, feeling a surge of confidence from her words. "Thank you, Anko-sensei. I won't let you down." I totally had this in the bag.... Hopefully.
With a final nod, I secured the scroll in my pouch and turned towards the forest entrance. The gates creaked open, revealing the dark, dense forest beyond. Taking a deep breath, I stepped inside, ready for whatever lay ahead.
As I stepped through the gates into the Forest of Death, the eerie ambiance immediately enveloped me. The dense canopy above filtered out most of the sunlight, casting long shadows that danced with every movement. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and the distant calls of unknown creatures.
First things first, I needed to establish a vantage point. Without wasting any time, I leaped onto the nearest tree, running up it and climbing swiftly to a sturdy branch high above the ground. From this height, I could survey a broader area and remain hidden from ground-level threats.
Forming the hand seals. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" I whispered, and a dozen clones materialized around me, my chakra reserves had grown much bigger now and I couldn't help but smile. " Alright, it's time to search for our prey's." The clones nodded and dispersed swiftly, each one going in a different direction.
As my clones fanned out, I kept a sharp eye on the forest below as I began to move as well. This allowed me to cover more ground and gather information without exposing myself to unnecessary risks. My clones would act as scouts, and if they encountered any teams, hopefully, they would be able to kill a few of them. As I was Jumping from branch to branch, the branch I had just stepped on exploded, and I was slammed into a tree.
A massive creature burst from the underbrush. It was a giant centipede, its segmented body writhing as Its mandibles clicked menacingly, and I could see the venom dripping from them. It came closer and was about to bite me, as I raised my fingers up its fangs were but inches away from my body as I used a substitute to escape. The log that took my place was destroyed into bits as I appeared a few steps away.
I leaped to another branch just as the centipede crashed into the tree trunk where I had appeared, shaking the branches violently. The creature was relentless, following my movements. I drew a kunai, ready to defend myself.
The centipede lunged at me again, and I narrowly dodged its venomous bite. I had to act fast. Throwing the kunai, I aimed for its eyes, hoping to blind it. The kunai struck, and the centipede screeched in pain, thrashing about wildly.
I formed a series of hand seals. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" I inhaled before exhaling a massive ball of flames, directing it at the centipede. The creature writhed as the flames engulfed it, but it wasn't done yet. It lunged once more, its body charred but its ferocity undiminished.
I had to finish this quickly. As it lunged, I went through another set of hand signs "Wind Style: Gale Fist!" I slammed my fist into its hard head as it was about to bite me. Creating a large hole in its dome. The centipede's body convulsed one last time before collapsing to the ground, lifeless.
Breathing heavily, I wiped the sweat from my brow. The Forest of Death was living up to its name, holy shit, I sighed before hearing more rustling. Nope.
I dashed away from the battle as I didn't want to fight more of those nasty things.
One of my clones sent back a memory of a team moving cautiously through the underbrush. They looked tense, their eyes darting around nervously. From their headbands, I recognized them as shinobi from the Hidden Rain Village. It seemed that as my clone was getting ready to attack something had hit it from behind dispersing it. hahaha that was almost me a few moments ago I thought as I was sweating. If I remembered they had the Earth scroll. Whatever had killed my clone got lucky but just in case I went through some more hand signs and summoned Kurokane.
"Already calling for my help" She hissed as she shrunk and coaled herself around my neck. "it's better to be over-prepared than caught off guard again."
"Once this is over you will have to come to the Ryūchi Cave and meet Great White Snake Sage." Oh crap, well that was to be expected but I wouldn't lie it scared me. Her blank eyes looked at me as if waiting for my response. " Alright but only after the exams."
She flicked her tongue out but didn't reply as I moved toward where the last known location of the rain ninjas were. My other clones dispersed and with that sent me information about various teams. Some were more skilled, killing my clones as soon as they got close. Like Gaara that had crushed my clone in sand. Others, like the Rain team, seemed less coordinated and more vulnerable.
I created more clones as I was dashing from branch to branch, as I moved closer to where the Rain team was. It was crucial to strike swiftly and decisively. I planned to isolate one member from the rest and kill them to take their place. and have my clones attack to distract the remaining two, before stabbing them in the back.
I had found them they seemed to be sitting near a campfire which was a bit odd but if they wanted to make this easy for me so be it, I wouldn't complain. With my clones in position, I descended from my perch, moving silently through the trees. The Rain shinobi were still unaware of my presence as I approached. I signaled my clones to rush in, As I rushed in aim to strike one of them.
I skidded to a halt, my heart racing as I realized the Rain shinobi were already dead. Blood pooled around their bodies, their necks slit.
This was a trap.
My clones were being destroyed rapidly, and I barely had time to react before a barrage of kunai flew at me from the shadows. I dodged, As one dug into my shoulder, while I rolled to the side and threw a kunai in the direction of the attack.
A ping sound rang out with a small flash as three figures emerged from the darkness, the fucking Hidden Sound ninjas. Guess I'd have to take care of them first now.
They moved and surrounded me quickly. I summoned more clones to provide backup. The one with the gauntlet used some kind of sound attack that caused my clones to vanish.
One of the Sound ninjas, Zaku, smirked. "You fell right into our trap. You're not getting out of here alive. I don't know why he wanted us to come after you, but I wouldn't mind killing some leaf ninja"
I gritted my teeth, forming a plan. "Wind Style: Gale Palm!" I shouted As I poured more of my chakra into my attack. As I shot out what appeared to be an airpalm, directing a powerful gust of wind at Zaku, forcing him to stumble back. This gave me a brief window to create more distance and reassess my position.
The other two, Kin and Dosu, moved to flank me. As I moved back using flicker step. Dosu's arm weapon emitted a high-pitched sound that caused my ears to bleed. Kin threw senbon needles aiming to pin me down.
Again I used flicker step to move out of the way but still a few managed to hit me. In my thighs, Gritting my teeth I took a deep breath and shouted. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" I aimed at Kin, forcing her to dodge. This gave me a momentary advantage to focus on Dosu.
"Kurokane, now!" I hissed. The snake uncoiled from my neck and used her Genjutsu abilities. Her eyes glowed, and Dosu froze, trapped in an illusion. He screamed, thrashing to shake off the invisible attackers. Using this I flickered forward and used Earth Scraper. Breaking his leg as his bone pierced out of his clothes. Followed by Mountain Breaker as I slammed my fist into his chest caving it in.
Zaku recovered and charged at me again, his air wave attack ready. I quickly performed another set of hand signs. "Water Style: Water Bullets!" I countered his attack with a barrage of water bullets, disrupting his technique and sending him reeling.
Kin took advantage of my divided attention, closing in with her needles. I barely managed to deflect them with a kunai, but more pierced my arm, causing me to grit my teeth.
With Dosu dead and Zaku temporarily down, I focused on Kin. I needed to end this quickly. Channeling chakra to my feet, I dashed forward with flicker step. Using removal caused my veins to turn purple up towards my neck. Now I could use it up to 60 percent. I delivered a swift kick to her midsection, sending her crashing into a tree branch, right through her chest.
Zaku, now furious, roared and unleashed another airwave. causing my nose and eyes to bleed along with my ears as I flicker stepped behind him. Before he could react, I used Buddha Killer. As my elbow slammed into his chin his head snapped back as I heard a loud snap.
Breathing heavily, I surveyed the area. The Sound ninjas were killed, but I couldn't afford to stay here. I retrieved their Earth scroll from Kin's pouch along with a second Heaven scroll, adding it to my own. Licking my lips as I moved closer and bit each one after the other, draining what chakra their body still had.
[ hello I'm was on vacation two weeks ago and sadly last week Elden ring dlc took my soul and I'm still not done with it yet plus new expansion for ff14 sorry I didn't post lol. but I hope you like it.]