In the Blink of an Eye (Sasusaku)

Preliminaries

"Welcome to the Sunagakure Chunin Exam Preliminaries!" The exam proctor's voice echoed throughout the colossal chamber, her arms spreading wide in greeting. "Congratulations to all of you. You have officially passed the second stage of the chunin exams."

Organized rows of genin teams stood before the proctor's podium, each one of them grouped into their own teams. Around ten or twenty jonin positioned themselves at the sides of the massive stone hall, their intense stares giving the distinct impression of meticulously carved statues. Tucking a rose lock behind her ear, Sakura discreetly studied the dimensions of the room, silently counting the number of jonin lining the walls.

In a stroke of luck, Team Seven had managed to make their way back to the village with both scrolls in hand, finishing right before Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji. They had been the second-to-last team to complete the exam, which, to be honest, didn't quite bother any of them as much as they thought it would. After all, they were lucky to even finish the exams.

Once the sun had set and the timer counted down to its last second, the remaining teams had been led back into the village testing center in the darkness, their feet dragging in exhaustion and their stomachs rumbling from the lack of a sustainable meal. However, each and every one of them were shinobi, and they soon overcame their discomfort in the face of their next challenge.

Once inside the center, the teams were led to a hidden room at the back of the building and down an abnormally large set of stairs. As the genin were led further down the steps, a colossal auditorium opened up before them, somewhat similar to the one where Konoha housed its exams. Massive stone bricks supported the arching ceiling while risen pathways lined the sides of the building, serving as stands for spectators. There were a couple shadowed entryways at the ends of the room, which Sakura assumed lead to other hidden hallways, and a sizable wooden podium from which the proctor was currently speaking. The symbol for Sunagakure loomed over the genin from the southern wall, the lines painted with a pitch black ink.

"Only half of you will be able to advance onto the next stage of the exams," the proctor continued, ignoring the series of gasps which erupted around the room. "We have gone through each and everyone of your profiles very carefully and matched you up with an opponent based on your level of skill and abilities."

"Sakura!" Something nudged the pink-haired kunoichi from behind, and she could barely keep her eyes from rolling as she peeked behind her.

"What is it this time, Naruto?" she whispered back, careful to appear as if she was still listening to the proctor.

"Is it just me, or do you expect her face to melt off at any moment?" her blond teammate whispered back, and she didn't have to look back to know what expression he was wearing. "I mean, I can't get the image of that Orocho-mario guy or whatever peeling off the skin of her face. It's so...gross."

A sigh escaped Sakura's lips and she simply shook her head, already accustomed to her teammate's antics. Once again, her attention fell back to the proctor pacing around the podium, who, now that she took a closer look, did seem like her face was going to melt off at any moment. No, no, stop thinking about that, she scolded herself, trying to push the disturbing image out of her mind.

"Each one of you will battle against your opponent using any skills and techniques at your disposal. The battle will end when one of you surrenders or cannot continue. In some cases, I will intervene during the battle if there is foul play or if one of the participants' lives are in danger. If I intervene, all participants must cease battling at once. Any questions?"

The question was answered with silence, and the exam proctor nodded her head sharply. "Well then, we will begin immediately. If you have finished your match, you will not be permitted to leave the building until all matches have been complete. That being said, the first match of the preliminaries will be..." She took a brief pause, reaching her hand into her pocket and pulling out a neatly folded piece of paper.