from Academy to Anbu by theriku260

chapter 27

Konoha chunin exam rooms, first round, Sakura and Sai's team…

Sakura blinked at the blinding light, resisting a groan from grogginess. However, the vague recollection of being drugged sprung the genin into action, reaching for scalpel and kunai as she crouched, before cursing as she realized all her weapons were taken. Sharp eyes darted around to take in their surroundings- a classroom, the very one she used to hide out in to read fantasy novels- before Sakura's eyes rested on what made her blood run cold.

Sai, her teammate and almost friend, was bound and hung from the ceiling, a strange purple seal on his forehead. Despite the situation he stared calmly back at her, always the stoic shinobi.

'Shoot! The Reaper poison seal. But why would Sai have one?" Sakura wondered, before a grunt drew her focus to behind.

An Iwa genin was glaring back at her from the same position, the purple seal angrily glaring as well.

"Get me down from here, Konoha scum, before I kill like my parents killed your kind in the last war!" The enemy male barked, struggling against what Sakura recognized as chakra ropes- expensive binding that kept a target's chakra at civilian levels of usefulness.

In other words, useless.

Just then a paper floated down lazily with a tiny needle taped on, it's message able to turn the feisty former fangirl sheet white.

This needle has enough antidote for one person. You have until the Reaper poison seal disappears- then they die.

Choose. Allow the enemy to die by poison or let your teammate die. Try to leave without choosing and all of you will be forbidden from ever becoming chunin.

With the message in an angry red, prompting her to choose, Sakura did the only thing she could do.

"Oh yeah? This petty attempt at a loyalty test won't stop me, CHA!" The up and coming medical prodigy screamed at the ceiling angrily, fist shaking with wrath.

Meanwhile, with Naruto…

Naruto, sitting in an observation room amongst other ANBU, sweat-dropped at his former classmate's response to what would technically be an ANBU absolute loyalty evaluation.

Of course in ANBU, they actually wanted the enemy to be killed- no mercy to other villages and all that, not just left at the mercy of a fake seal. The masked blonde shuddered at the memory of Dragon happily recounting his own absolute loyalty test. This particular one, however, was taken down after his father was killed, as failing to save a teammate- even if it was just a fake poison- was deemed too traumatic when they really just needed bodies on the ground in the wake of Kurama's wrath.

Not my fault you humans can't survive a little pat from my tail. Kurama scoffed. Naruto bristled at his partner.

'Shut it, fuzz butt. In what universe could ANTONE survive a tail of pure malice slapping them miles away? Or a Bijudama at point blank?'

…Good point. Now quiet sapling; The great Kurama is trying to Photosynthesize.

'N-nani?!' Naruto thought incredulously. He was tempted to check himself for genjutsu until Kurama gave a mental head pat through the seal.

Shh…

"Mouse, quit spacing out; it's prime entertainment!" Hikaru whispered next to him, looking at the screen of the genin rooms giddily from behind the mask.

"Ooh, next up is the Uchiha team; this ought to be good." A random ANBU added from another place in the room.

Sasuke Uchiha's room…