Tears of the Forgotten (Various!Naruto X OP!Reader)

Chapter 19: The Chūnin Exam Stage 2: The Forest of Death

        The cries of the birds within the forest were loud. The sound brought shivers down the spines of the Genin present before the fenced-off training ground. One bird landed on the thick branch of a nearby tree, only to get eaten by a large snake.

        Naruto peered into the darkness in contemplation, his brows furrowed in concentration.

        "There's something kind of creepy about this place," Sakura commented.

        Anko chuckled at their expressions. "This place is called the Forest of Death; you'll soon realize why."

        Naruto huffed and jutted out his rear, placing his fists in either side of his hip. He then began to shake his behind. "'The Forest of Death; you'll soon realize why,'" he mocked. "That kind of threat won't work on me one bit! I'm not scared!"

        "Sou?" Anko asked with a close-eyed grin. "You've got a lot of energy."

        Suddenly, a kunai shot out of her sleeve and toward Naruto. However, you stepped in its path, deflecting it away with your own kunai knife. It landed behind you with a thud.

        The proctor smirked before she appeared behind the two of you. Immediately, you pivoted on your heel, the tip of the kunai pointing at Anko's throat. She merely gave you a smile, undaunted.

        "A kid like you dies at the very beginning," she spoke as she addressed the blonde boy behind you, "dappled with the red blood I like." She reached around to caress Naruto's cheek, but you slapped her arm away before she could touch him. Anko, in turn, sent you a Cheshire-like grin. "You're lucky to have someone like her protecting you...!"

        Abruptly, she whirled around, another kunai emerging from her sleeve. A long tongue draped over her shoulder, the previous kunai wrapped around the tip. A black-haired woman loomed over Anko, the tongue belonging to her.

        "I'm returning your... kunai knife..." the woman explained.

        "Thank you for taking the trouble..." Anko replied smiling.

        The two females stared at each other with pleasant expressions while their eyes told of the murder of the other. The tension around them was thick with bloodlust.

        "But... don't stand behind me, thirsty for blood," she continued. "If you don't want a quick death..."

        Anko quickly snatched the weapon away, and the woman retracted her long tongue.

        "Well, it's my nature to act up at the sight of red blood," the unknown female revealed, her eyes trailing over to Anko's neck.

        You followed her gaze to find the tip of your kunai had pierced the Jounin's skin and drawn blood. You hadn't noticed it earlier due to how calm she was.

        "And my precious hair was cut, so I got excited... I'm sorry..." The woman turned around and walked back to her team.

        Naruto stared after her in wonder before sticking out his tongue as far as he could, trying to mimic the lady's tongue.

        "Evidently, we've got a lot of hot-blooded kids this time," Anko mused with a cruel smirk. "This will be fun."

        She proceeded to casually remove the knife from her neck and walk to the front.

        "Well, before we start the second exam, I have to pass this out to you!" The proctor reached into her jacket and pulled out a stack of papers. "It's a consent form; before you can take part in the test, you have to sign this."