Sunlight streamed through the gaps between the leaves, forming beams that shone on the fallen leaves and moss on the ground. Even during the daytime, it felt extremely dark. From time to time, strange bird calls or beastly roars echoed through the forest, creating a chilling, spine-tingling sense of terror. This made every examinee moving through the woods tread very cautiously.
"Well, let's set this place as our temporary campsite during our stay in the Forest of Death!" Tōshirō circled around an enormous tree, then nodded in satisfaction. He then scanned the surrounding environment. Hmm, pretty good. The water source is nearby, and there are no obstructions around. The key point is the clear view, making it hard for sneak attacks to happen.
"Tōshirō! Shouldn't we first be looking for the hidden task items?" Uchiha Zhe, who had been following behind without much comment, asked at this time. He was impatient, eager to find the task items and pass the exam successfully. Uchiha Yan, on the other hand, appeared much calmer than the others. She merely glanced around with a slightly disdainful expression.
Tōshirō didn't answer Zhe's question, completely ignoring his presence. Instead, he exerted force with his feet, quickly reaching the middle section of the big tree. He parted some leaves obstructing his view and looked into the tree trunk. "Just as I thought, there's a tree hole here!"
He peeked inside and found that the internal space was quite ample, causing him to smile in satisfaction. "Yan! Don't be upset! Finding such a campsite in the wild is already quite good!" Jumping to the ground and seeing the still dissatisfied Uchiha Yan, Tōshirō had to comfort her. Though trained for almost a year, some habits formed since childhood were hard for her to change. Unlike Zhe and Tōshirō, being boys, they didn't care as much. Anywhere to rest was good enough.
"It'll have to do!" Uchiha Yan wasn't ungrateful; having a shelter in the wild was a blessing. Now with a tree hole, it was already quite fortunate, no need to be picky. "What's your plan for the task items?" she asked out of curiosity as the campsite was settled, wanting to know his thoughts. Both of them tactfully ignored Zhe's earlier question, making him quite displeased.
"Plan?" "None." "Uh…" Even Zhe, who had been noisy all along, was stunned. He didn't expect such an answer from Tōshirō. "So, I say we should go find the task items now, so we can pass sooner~~~" "Shut up!" Before Uchiha Zhe could finish expressing his opinion, he was cut off by Uchiha Yan, still remembering his 'poor performance' at the training ground not long ago, which angered her just thinking about it.
Watching his two teammates repeat their often-performed drama, Tōshirō did not interrupt, ignoring Zhe's plea for help. Instead, he watched their performance with interest. At his mental age, finding himself a girlfriend wasn't something he considered. But watching these two bicker was an enjoyable pastime. "Alright! Zhe, patrol around and set up some warning traps; also, check for any wild game. Yan, tidy up the tree hole and prepare firewood for the campfire."
Having already become the team leader, Tōshirō could assign them tasks. The reason wasn't Yan's benevolence but because after successfully awakening the Sharingan, Tōshirō naturally became the leader among the three of them. This was quite normal within the Uchiha clan. "Campfire?" "Tōshirō! Are you sure?"
Lighting a campfire at night was dangerous, as it would attract examinees within several kilometers, making them face more than just a few enemies. "Searching for task items one by one is too troublesome! We'll rest for the night and draw them all here!" Smiling at his partners, Tōshirō lightly remarked.
Even the fearless Uchiha Zhe was momentarily stunned, unable to utter a word. Uchiha Yan, however, seemed eager to try. "Let's do it!" Without hesitation, upon hearing the suggestion, Uchiha Yan felt that was the right approach. Finding scrolls wasn't as interesting as a fight. She couldn't wait.
"You two~~~" Uchiha Zhe was speechless, not knowing how to retort. Never would he have expected the usually mature and steady Tōshirō to come up with such an unreliable idea, and Yan agreed readily!
This idea stemmed partly because the examiner this time was Namikaze Minato. Additionally, the exam guidelines prohibited crippling or killing opponents. He believed that lighting a campfire would attract not only examinees but also the examiners' attention, making serious injuries unlikely. Hence, he dared to be this bold. Part of the reason was his continued failure to sense natural energy despite years of meditation practice, making him irritable and in need of a release.
"Stop dithering! You're usually not this cautious!" Seeing her childhood friend's hesitation, Uchiha Yan was quite dissatisfied and reprimanded him.