Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and it was soon time for the Chūnin Exam to officially begin.
The first stage was a written knowledge test, which assessed the basic competence of a Shinobi. It was a purely straightforward exam without any trick questions or special rules, which resulted in a relatively high number of candidates passing.
The examiner for the second stage soon appeared and led the crowd to an endless expanse of dry, vast sand.
The head examiner announced: "This place is called the Demon Desert."
"What? The Demon Desert!"
"The second stage is in such a dangerous place!"
A commotion broke out among many of the Suna candidates, who had clearly heard of the Demon Desert's terror. Their reactions made the candidates from other villages uneasy.
"Silence!" the head examiner roared, then continued: "Each team will be assigned either a Heaven Scroll or an Earth Scroll. Only by defeating an opponent in the desert, collecting both the Heaven and Earth Scrolls, and passing through the desert within five days will you officially pass the second stage."
"But I must warn you: the Demon Desert is home to numerous giant Sand Scorpions and even terrifying demonic creatures that have survived from ancient times. A single mistake, and even a Jōnin could be reduced to bleached bones in the Demon Desert."
"I am giving you one final chance to withdraw from the examination now. In five minutes, those who have not chosen to quit will be sent into the Demon Desert from various directions. Only two outcomes await you: crossing the desert, or death."
Many broke out in a cold sweat. A Ninja from the Hidden Waterfall Village (Takigakure) couldn't help but question, "You're sending a group of Genin to take an exam in a place where even a Jōnin might die? This is reckless!"
The chief examiner replied coldly: "You are welcome to withdraw."
Hearing the chilling response, some immediately buckled under the immense pressure and chose to quit.
"I, I'm not taking the exam. I want to withdraw!"
"This exam is too terrifying. We can't possibly pass."
It wasn't just the smaller villages; many Ninja from even the Three Great Nations, who lacked confidence in their own strength, also chose to forfeit.
The originally crowded gathering quickly shrank by almost half.
"The five minutes are up. More people stayed than I anticipated," the chief examiner nodded slightly. "There are a total of 36 teams remaining. This means a maximum of 18 teams will pass the second stage. Still too many. I hope the Demon Desert can help me screen out a few more teams."
Hearing his malice-filled statement, many candidates glared at him.
The chief examiner paid them no mind. After distributing the scrolls, all the candidates were arranged to enter the desert through different entrances.
---
Ten hours later, the second-stage examiner, who had been quite calm earlier, rushed frantically into the Kazekage's office building.
Rasa appeared and received him: "The Kazekage is still using his Magnet Release to collect gold dust and is currently unavailable to see you. Tell me your news first."
"Yes, Lord Rasa." The examiner didn't think much of it. Since Rasa learned Magnet Release from the Third Kazekage, he had already been regarded as the future Fourth Kazekage.
"Just now, a group of Rogue Ninjas broke through our blockade and intruded into the Demon Desert!"
"What did you say? Rogue Ninjas?" Rasa's expression changed drastically.
"Judging by their clean and decisive movements, they are highly likely to be assassins dispatched by some covert organization, or perhaps killers taking on bounties from the black market."
Rasa frowned deeply. This was completely unexpected.
The examiner spoke in a rush: "This is most likely a conspiracy by the Hidden Cloud or Hidden Mist. If all the candidates are killed in the Demon Desert, Konoha and Iwa might use this as an excuse to start a war, and even the smaller surrounding nations might join the campaign against us."
While he wanted to eliminate a few teams, if all the teams were eliminated, his own 'elimination' wouldn't be far off.
"This is certainly a problem, but don't worry. The Demon Desert's terrain is complex and the environment is harsh; those assassins won't find their targets quickly," Rasa quickly made a decision. "I will immediately gather the village's Jōnin to form a rescue team. You go and notify the leaders of the other villages and ask if they are willing to join the rescue effort."
"Ah? Should we tell them about this?" the examiner hesitated.
"Now is not the time to shirk responsibility. At the very least, they need to know that Suna is also a victim and is actively making efforts," Rasa's voice was firm. "Go. I will take responsibility for whatever happens."
"Understood."
---
Meanwhile, under the night sky, Setsuna and his two teammates were enjoying the delicious meat of a giant Sand Scorpion.
In front of them, a massive Sand Scorpion, easily over thirty meters long, was being roasted, giving off an enticing aroma.
"The Suna teachers were right. These Sand Scorpions are far too dangerous. One wrong move and you gain a few pounds," Shizune said with a troubled expression, yet she couldn't put down the scorpion BBQ in her hand.
"Especially the seasoning of rock salt and cactus juice—it raises the scorpion's flavor to a new level!" Guy exclaimed in appreciation.
Setsuna was also quite surprised. Even Leader Slime rarely gave such positive feedback on the quality of this scorpion meat.
"While it's not a top-tier ingredient, every world truly has its unique features," Leader Slime offered, enjoying the delicious meal. "This village called 'Suna' still holds some value. Once you conquer this planet, have them specialize in breeding these Sand Scorpions."
Setsuna mentally replied: "Breeding Sand Scorpions is a small thing. The crucial thing is to mobilize the entire population for 'planting trees' (forestation)."
Leader Slime, unaware of the Divine Tree (Shinju), was puzzled: "Planting trees? You have a hobby like that?"
Setsuna was about to explain when a cry for help suddenly reached them from afar.
"Help!"
"I quit the exam! Please, someone save us!"
Setsuna looked into the distance and saw clouds of sand and massive commotion.
Focusing his gaze, he clearly saw five or six giant Sand Scorpions chasing a group of examination teams. It seemed the scorpions were chasing different Ninja squads and had accidentally converged, turning the scene into a massive chase.
Judging by their headbands, the teams belonged to Konoha, Iwa, Suna, Hidden Rain, and Hidden Star.
Setsuna couldn't help but laugh: "Looks like we have Ninja from every village here."
Seeing the swarm of Sand Scorpions heading in their direction, Guy's eyes lit up: "Big Brother Setsuna, leave these scorpions to me!"
"Go on, be careful." Setsuna nodded slightly. Under his guidance, Guy was also training in the 'Ki' system. Although he hadn't fully mastered it yet, his strength was definitely far superior to his original timeline counterpart.
"It's Mizuki and Ebisu! I'll go back them up!" Shizune was eager as well. After training Taijutsu with Tsunade, she had also absorbed some of her sense of violence.