The first day of the survival test quickly drew to a close.
Technically speaking, the test began at 2:30 in the afternoon. With the dense canopy of towering trees blocking out much of the sunlight, the day effectively ended by around 5 p.m.
In the three or so hours that followed, four out of the 26 teams were eliminated. Three teams fell prey to attacks from the forest's wildlife, such as giant blood-sucking leeches. Only one team was eliminated after encountering and being defeated by another team in combat.
Among the 22 remaining teams, two distinct strategies began to emerge.
One group, led by Gaara's team from Suna, adopted an aggressive style. Rather than hunting for teams with scrolls in the forest like chasing mice, they headed straight for the tower at the center of the forest. There, they planned to ambush teams already in possession of scrolls as they approached the tower.
Not all aggressive teams adopted this method, however. For instance, Kiba's team, brimming with confidence under Kiba's leadership, also advanced directly toward the tower, aiming to lay traps for scroll-bearing teams.
The other group, led by Shikamaru, chose a more cautious approach. Their strategy was to progress steadily toward the tower over the five days, watching for opportunities to exploit weaknesses in other teams and seizing scrolls when the chance arose.
Shikamaru identified Naruto's team as the ideal target, reasoning that they were the weakest overall in terms of combat ability in this exam.
Of course, Sasuke was well aware that Naruto's team would attract attention and chose a similarly cautious approach. Their plan was to move forward stealthily, avoiding detection whenever possible.
Despite their strategy to avoid direct confrontations, Naruto's team encountered trouble from a group of ninjas wearing oxygen masks and bearing forehead protectors with four vertical slashes. These impostors tried to approach Sasuke and Sakura disguised as Naruto. However, Sasuke saw through their deception, forcing them to retreat without engaging further.
After these minor skirmishes, the remaining teams adapted to the environment of the Forest of Death. By this point, it was unlikely that anyone would be eliminated due to the wildlife.
As night fell, the exhaustion from the day's activities began to take its toll. Teams sat down to replenish their energy, munching on their rations.
Though this was a survival test, there were no restrictions on the amount of food participants could bring initially, as long as it didn't hinder their movements in the forest. Most teams carried enough food for two or three days at most, as bringing supplies for all five days would interfere with carrying other essential gear.
The remaining food would have to be procured through hunting within the forest.
On the first day, to avoid exposing their location by starting a fire to cook, most participants instinctively chose to eat their pre-packed rations. However, a few clever individuals proposed a different strategy.
In one corner of the forest, Chōji was just about to take out his carefully selected portable rations when Shikamaru stopped him.
"Shikamaru, what are you doing?"
When it came to food, Chōji was particularly sensitive. His eyes, squeezed into slits by his plump cheeks, glinted with a threatening light.
"Don't eat your rations today. We'll cook instead," Shikamaru replied.
"Why? Won't starting a fire give away our position?" Ino asked, frowning.
Shikamaru's eyes sparkled with intelligence, and a confident smile played on his lips as he explained, "I've calculated it. The rations we brought will last at most two days, but the survival test spans five days. That's not even considering Chōji's higher food consumption due to his jutsu."
"That means we'll need to cook for at least three days, and cooking comes with the risk of being discovered."
"This exam's arena is a circular area with a radius of 10 kilometers, and all participating teams were randomly assigned to one of the 44 entry points around the perimeter."
"Since our goal is the tower at the center, the further into the test we go, the closer we'll be to other teams with the same destination. The closer we are, the higher the risk of being discovered when cooking. So, we should do the opposite—cook during the first three days."
"By doing this, we can save our rations for later stages when proximity to other teams makes cooking riskier. We can also take advantage of other teams cooking later by ambushing them while they're distracted."
"Plus, when we arrived at our entry point this afternoon, I observed that only one other team entered near us. They've already moved ahead and are unlikely to double back."
"So, it's safe for us to cook now."
Shikamaru's explanation earned him a look of approval from Ino, who enthusiastically patted his shoulder.
"Wow, Shikamaru! For someone who's always complaining about how 'troublesome' things are, you're pretty smart when it counts!"
Shikamaru rolled his eyes, muttering inwardly, I'm always smart, thank you very much.
Late that night, after a hearty meal, Shikamaru's team remained in their resting spot.
Because they had made little progress on the first day, other teams had already put some distance between them. Confident in their safety, Shikamaru's team even lit a small fire.
The three of them sat leisurely around the fire, looking more like children on a camping trip than participants in a high-stakes survival test.
"At this rate, what if by the time we reach the tower, everyone already has both heaven and earth scrolls? Won't we fail the exam?" Ino asked, concerned.
Shikamaru smiled slightly and shook his head. "That's impossible. Heaven and earth scrolls form 13 matching pairs. If we're holding onto our scroll and haven't handed it in, then there's bound to be at least one other team that hasn't submitted theirs either. We'll definitely have a scroll to take."
At that moment, Chōji, lying on the ground and staring at the sky, spoke lazily, "But during the day, I heard some seniors from other teams say that every year, there are always participants who get eliminated by the animals here."
"If animals eliminate a team, what happens to their scrolls?"
Chōji's comment instantly left the usually sharp-witted Shikamaru speechless.
Right! If a team gets taken out by the forest's animals, wouldn't their scroll be permanently lost from the exam?
Just as Shikamaru realized this flaw in his logic, a piercing scream echoed through the forest.
The howl was extremely unusual, its high-pitched, piercing sound echoing incessantly through the dense Forest of Death. Everyone lurking within the forest could hear it with eerie clarity.
Although howls like these are often associated with victims, those who heard this particular wail couldn't help but feel an immediate, unsettling dread. It was as though the howl itself was the very source of fear.
"What is that sound?!"
Ino immediately stood up from beside the campfire, her wide, terrified eyes darting nervously around the surrounding forest.
The unrelenting howl seemed to come from all directions, making it impossible, even for a ninja's sharp ears, to pinpoint its origin. At that moment, it felt as though the entire Forest of Death was permeated by the presence of the howling entity.
"I don't know, but we definitely can't stay here. Let's find somewhere to hide, quickly!"
As he spoke, Shikamaru hurriedly covered the campfire with a prepared mound of dirt, and the three of them leapt into the nearby bushes to take cover.
---
In another part of the forest, Naruto's team was also hearing the sound.
The horrifying, mournful wail enveloped Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, filling their ears. Even Naruto, who was usually fearless, felt a wave of unease caused by the unknown terror.
"What… What is this sound? It's terrifying…"
At first, it sounded like a horrifying wail, but as the howling continued, one could discern a faint, music-like quality within it. However, this "music" was the saddest dirge imaginable, capable of stirring inexplicable, deep-seated unease within anyone who heard it.
The performers of this mournful dirge seemed to be some sorrowful "artists" or "musicians" hidden in the forest, though it was clear that no human could produce such a sound.
The inhuman howls transmitted fear and unease among the three of them. Under the oppressive backdrop of the sound, everything around them seemed darker and more ominous.
Even Sasuke, the most composed of the trio, gritted his teeth and swiftly drew a kunai from his pouch, his eyes scanning the dark forest vigilantly.
Farther away in the Forest of Death, Kiba's team and Neji's team were in similar predicaments. Standing back-to-back with their teammates, they raised their weapons, ready to face an attack from the unseen howlers lurking in the dense shadows.
The rookies all came to a chilling conclusion: this was not the sound of victims, but of predators.
The prolonged howls couldn't possibly be human in origin. Before entering the Forest of Death, none of the rookies had heard of any creatures making such sounds. The only warning they'd received from examiner Anko was about the forest's unimaginably wild beasts.
In just one afternoon, they had already encountered such so-called "unimaginable beasts"—oversized animals of all kinds. Yet Anko hadn't mentioned anything about these terrifying howls that emerged at night.
What kind of creature could produce such a sound? Like the rest of the rookies experiencing the Forest of Death for the first time, even Kabuto's team couldn't suppress their fear of the eerie howls.
In fact, Kabuto, with his wealth of experience, felt even more uneasy about the situation.
In his previous seven Chunin Exams, he was certain he had never heard such howls in the Forest of Death before.
What was this sound? What kind of entity could produce such a sound?
For the first time, the normally composed and self-assured Kabuto, who prided himself on knowing every detail about the Chunin Exams, had fear and anxiety written across his face.
With a slightly trembling hand, Kabuto adjusted his glasses, forcing a stiff smile that seemed to serve more as self-reassurance than anything else.
"What do we do, Kabuto?"
"Yeah, what now?"
Misumi and Yoroi, who were teamed up with Kabuto, managed to maintain slightly calmer expressions, thanks in part to the bandanas concealing their middle-aged faces beneath.
"For now… let's just observe the situation."
Faced with the unknown, nearly every group lurking in the Forest of Death opted for caution.
Even Gaara's team, known for their overwhelming strength on paper, and Kabuto's team, adopted the same strategy.
The haunting wails echoing through the forest never ceased, not even for a moment. This abnormal sound kept everyone on edge, their nerves taut as they vigilantly scanned the oppressive darkness around them.
Finally, someone cracked under the mental strain and rushed toward the source of the sound.
"Kagari!"
"Where are you going?!"
A trio from Ame was also lurking in the forest.
Earlier in the day, this group—dressed in strange gray-white uniforms and wearing oxygen masks—had ambushed Naruto's team.
Now, they were resting in another corner of the Forest of Death.
The three of them, named Kagari, Mubi, and Oboro, used a combination jutsu that appeared to be genjutsu but was actually a trio-coordinated attack technique.
At this moment, it was Kagari who had lost control and was recklessly charging into the dark forest.
Mubi and Oboro had no choice but to intervene, as losing a teammate would make passing the Chunin Exams impossible. Failure would mean disappointing "Angel-sama," something they could not afford.
Chasing after Kagari's frenzied footsteps, the trio plunged deeper into the darker recesses of the forest.
Suddenly, his movement came to an abrupt halt, causing Mubi and Oboro to stop as well.
"Kagari, come back!"
Mubi called out from behind, cautiously approaching Kagari, who was frozen in place, overwhelmed by fear and unease.
As Mubi drew closer, his single eye—visible through his eyepiece—finally discerned the grotesque form that had stopped Kagari in her tracks.
It was an enormous, amorphous mass of primordial ooze, vaguely humanoid.
The creature lacked a face, bearing instead a bizarre conical head whose tip nearly grazed the treetops.
What was most unsettling was that the mournful wails that filled the forest were emanating from this faceless, fluid-like monstrosity.
Even more terrifying, the creature possessed appendages resembling tentacles—or grotesquely elongated "hands."
And there weren't just two "hands." It had several.
Its structure was human-like yet entirely inhuman, its body a flowing mass of primordial terror.
No one could decipher the creature's intent or the nature of its thoughts. Nor could anyone understand why it emitted those relentless, unsettling howls in the shadowy corners of the Forest of Death.
But one thing was certain: these entities were not intruders in the forest; they were its residents, born of its darkness.
And so, they were called... Haunter of the Dark.