Episode 21: Encountering the Sand Siblings, Team 7 learns that the three are ninja who have come from the Hidden Sand Village to participate in the Chunin Exams to be promoted to Chunin-level ninja. Elsewhere, meeting with Hiruzen on the matter, Kakashi, the Third Hokage's son Asuma Sarutobi, and Kurenai Yuhi all nominate their students for the Chunin Exams to Iruka's disbelief. Iruka challenges their decision as he believes Naruto and the others are not ready for the exam, but Kakashi explains to Iruka that they are no longer his students. The next morning, Kakashi gives Team 7 the application forms for the Chunin Exams with Sasuke and Naruto more than willing, while Sakura is uncertain. Later, each member of Team 7 is attacked by a mysterious ninja that they defeated in a one-on-one fight. The figure is revealed to be Iruka, who reports to Kakashi of approving his choice. Later, while making their way to site of the Chunin Exam, Team 7 meets Rock Lee and his teammates Neji Hyuga and Tenten. Though they leave to make their way to where the exams are, Team 7 is followed by Lee who intends to issue a challenge to Sasuke.
Episode 22: Following Team 7, and revealed to have a crush on Sakura, Lee challenges Sasuke to a battle. Feeling neglected in his teammates' shadows, Naruto's attempt to fight Lee himself only ended with him being quickly knocked out. Now interested to face an opponent calling himself the strongest Genin, Sasuke accepts his challenge but finds himself powerless against an opponent who uses taijutsu. Lee was about to finish the fight with his Dancing Leaf Shadow attack when a large turtle named Ningame appears. Soon after, as Naruto thinks Ningame is his mentor, Lee's actual mentor Might Guy appears on top of Ningame with Team 7 a bit taken back by Guy's tough love and motivational speech for Lee. Upon noticing them, Guy reveals himself to be a rival of Kakashi's before taking his leave after giving Lee a punishment task to complete. Before leaving, Lee confesses that he is not actually the strongest Genin, who is in fact someone else on his team, and that he only fought Sasuke to train himself. After Naruto pressures Sasuke over this turn of events, Team 7 reaches the room where the Exams are to take place.
Episode 23: Before entering the Chunin Exam hall, Team 7 are greeted by Kakashi, who informs them that all three of them had been required to consent to taking the exams before they would have been allowed in, and wished them luck. Once inside, Team 7 meet up with their classmates: Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi of Asuma's Team 10 and Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuga, and Kiba Inuzuka of Kurenai's Team 8. The Rookie Nine have a spirited discussion before they meet an exam veteran named Kabuto Yakushi who informs them about each of the villages represented while also giving Sasuke information on Gaara and Lee. Though Kabuto intimidated the other Rookie Nine members by telling them that there were only elite Genin among the individuals taking the exams, Naruto loudly proclaims that he will beat every ninja in the room, to his friends' annoyance of being targeted by association. At that time, Kabuto is attacked by Team Dosu from the Hidden Sound Village for his earlier remark about their village. Although it appears that Kabuto dodged the attack, his glasses suddenly break and he becomes nauseated. Before the confrontation escalates any further, the examiner Ibiki Morino and his team enter to commence the Chunin Exams.
Episode 24: As everyone takes their seats, Ibiki explains that the first phase of the exam will be a written test where the teams with higher points continue to the next phase. Ibiki's assistants line the sides of the room to observe the Genin to ensure they do not cheat, with teams removed from the room if any member is caught cheating five times. With the exception of Naruto and Sakura, Sasuke and everyone else realise that the real test is to subtly cheat using their unique skills. While Sakura is able to answer the questions, Naruto is the opposite as he feels he must place all his faith in the final question, which will be given fifteen minutes before the test's end.
Episode 25: Forty-five minutes into the written portion of the Chūnin Exams, Ibiki announces that it is time for the tenth and final question. But he ominously states that while their team would fail the exam if they do not take it, failure to answer it correctly would result in the participant being barred from any future Chunin Exams. Fretting over the unpredicted turn of events, Naruto refuses to give in to fear with his outburst putting the minds of those remaining at ease. Seeing that no one else would be leaving, Ibiki reveals that the first nine questions were to test their skills in intelligence gathering while the final question was to test their resolve. Passing Ibiki's test, the proctor was amused to find that Naruto passed without answering any of the questions, while the remaining Genin meet their next examiner Anko Mitarashi the next day at the site of the second phase of the exam: the Forest of Death.
Episode 26: The episode is an anime-exclusive episode for Konohamaru and his classmates' news report starring the Chunin-in-training. Before the second exam can begin, Konohamaru and his friends pull the members of Team 7 aside for interviews, where they retell the story up until this point. They discuss the Hokages, the rogue ninja etc.
Episode 27: Anko briefs the candidates on their goal for the second portion of the exam. Each team is given one of two scrolls: a Heaven Scroll or an Earth Scroll. Once in the Forest, they must take the other scroll from an opposing team, and reach the tower in the centre of the forest with both to continue. After receiving their scroll, each team enters the Forest of Death simultaneously.
Episode 28: A few minutes after entering the Forest of Death, Naruto leaves the team to relieve himself, but he is knocked out by a Genin from the Hidden Rain Village who mimics his appearance to infiltrate Team 7. Luckily, seeing through the disguise, Sasuke drives away the attacking Rain Genin. While he and his team mates go over a password to identify themselves in such a situation, Naruto is separated from the others by a powerful gust of wind before being swallowed by a giant snake. In the meantime, Sasuke and Sakura are disabled by a Grass ninja named Shiore. Before they even fight, Sasuke and Sakura have visions of their own deaths upon looking into Shiore's eyes, paralysing them with fear. Regaining his composure, Sasuke flees with Sakura as Shiore pursues. Luckily, having managed to kill the snake, Naruto arrives in time to save them both.
Episode 29: Despite Naruto's timely appearance, Sasuke offers Shiore the scroll in exchange for their lives. Sasuke then throws the scroll to Shiore but Naruto intercepts it. Naruto punches Sasuke during his attempt to convince Naruto to give the scroll up, causing Naruto to accuse Sasuke of being an impostor as the Sasuke he knew would never be so weak and cowardly. Shiore summons a giant snake and engages Naruto, who uses the Nine-Tails chakra to fight. Eventually, upon learning that his opponent is the host of the Nine-Tails, Shiore seals Naruto's ability to access the monster's power. As Naruto's unconscious body is saved by Sakura pinning it to a tree with a kunai in mid-air, Sasuke manages to muster the courage from Naruto's words to fight. Meanwhile, Anko learns of three faceless corpses found near the exams, one of them revealed to be Shiore, and recognizes the technique used to remove their faces.
Episode 30: After a protracted battle with the mysterious ninja posing as Shiore, Sasuke traps Shiore and uses the Dragon Flame technique to incinerate his attacker. However, Shiore is still alive with his face partially melted off, revealing part of Shiore's true face. After extending his neck to inflict Sasuke with an unidentified mark, the ninja introduces himself as Orochimaru. Burning the scroll he possessed, Orochimaru leaves while promising that Sasuke will look for him in the future. Anko eventually finds Orochimaru, revealed to be her former teacher, and unsuccessfully tries to kill him while learning that his target was Sasuke, and that any interference in the Chunin Exams to remove the youth from the proceedings would end terribly for the Hidden Leaf Village.
Episode 31: After the ordeal with Orochimaru, Sakura managed to move her team mates under a tree to tend to their wounds overnight. During this time, Sakura is unaware that her team are being watched by Team Dosu, and wards off a squirrel that they had placed a paper bomb onto, without knowing that it had been made into an explosive device. Soon after, the Sound Genin make their presence known as they reveal their intent to kill Sasuke while dealing with the numerous traps that Sakura had prepared to defend her teammates. Luckily, having been guided by the squirrel after saving it, Lee arrives to protect Sakura. As the battle ensued, Lee uses the Primary Lotus on Dosu but the impact is cushioned by Zaku Abumi and Lee is knocked out.
Episode 32: With her teammates and Lee all unconscious, Sakura is forced to fight on her own before one of the Sound Genin, Kin Tsuchi, grabs the girl by her hair and proceeds to insult her for her perceived vanity. This causes Sakura to remember her past with her own rival, Ino, and she is reminded of the reasons for growing her hair so long. She then decides to focus on being a strong ninja rather than just attractive, cutting her hair to free herself from Kin's grasp before attacking Zaku. Moved by Sakura's determination, Ino and the rest of Team 10 come to her aid.
Episode 33: Team 10 battles Team Dosu, each using their unique techniques to battle. However, though Ino uses her Mind Transfer technique on Kin, the Sound Genin regain the advantage before Sasuke suddenly awakens. Empowered by Orochimaru's curse mark, Sasuke becomes a cruel and sadistic monster as he easily defeats Zaku while breaking his arms. Terrified by Sasuke's extremely cruel brutality, Sakura stops him before he can inflict fatal injuries on either of the remaining Sound Genin. Deciding that they stand no chance, Dosu leaves their scroll behind so that he and his team can retreat without further harm.
Episode 34: As Team 7, Team 10, and Team Guy recover, Team 8 witnesses Gaara mercilessly kill a team of Rain Genin. Although Gaara prepares to turn his attention to Team 8, his siblings persuade him to leave them alone. Gaara's team beats the previous record for getting to the tower by a gigantic margin, and none of them are even remotely injured.
Episode 35: Naruto awakens and, upon realising that they need another scroll to pass, decides to forge a new one, but has to open their existing scroll to do so, an action banned by the rules of the exam. However, before he could do so, Kabuto, separated from his team, stops him, stating that those who did would be rendered unconscious until the end of the exam. He then accompanies Team 7 to the tower in the center of the forest. Along the way, the group encounters a genjutsu set by the Rain Genin group whose teammate Sasuke had defeated previously. By the time they realise that they are not getting any closer to the center of the forest, they are attacked by a number of clones.
Episode 36: The team realizes they are in another genjutsu. In order to draw out the assailants, Naruto Uzumaki disguises several of his shadow clones as his teammates and fights the enemy clones all night. When the Rain Genin believe that Team 7 exhausted from combat, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno and Kabuto corner them. After a brief struggle, Naruto knocks out the enemies and takes their scroll, at which point they head to the tower and meet with Kabuto's team. Unknown to Team 7, Kabuto submits all of the data he gathered on them to Orochimaru.
Episode 37: Team 7 opens its scrolls inside the tower, summoning Iruka to inform them that they made it in time. He observes their growth, then allows them to enter the main room, where they meet with the other passing teams: Team 10, Team 8, Team Guy, the Sand Siblings, Kabuto's team, and Team Dosu. Hiruzen briefly speaks about what the exams are all about before entrusting Hayate Gekko to oversee the matches.
Episode 38: Hayate reveals that an unusually large number of Genin got through the second stage of the exam. A series of one-on-one preliminary matches will be held to reduce the number of people meaning that there will be a tournament for the next exam eliminating the loser and promoting the victor. Kabuto drops out immediately upon the notice, blaming his withdrawal on an injury sustained from an earlier part of the test. The preliminary matches are randomized with a machine and the dials end at Sasuke Uchiha versus Yoroi Akado. Before Sasuke heads into battle, Sakura tries to stop him saying that he will lose and get hurt severely if he doesn't use any chakra because it will surely awaken the cursed seal's power.
Episode 39: Sasuke fights Yoroi, but is handicapped by his inability to use chakra due to the danger of activating the cursed seal. Yoroi's ability to absorb chakra gives him an advantage. Sasuke, in the heat of battle, remembers Lee's attack on him and uses it to create his own variant of the taijutsu move: Lion's Barrage. After using the barrage, he manages to suppress his cursed seal and wins the exam match. Kakashi Hatake takes him to an isolated location to hinder the cursed seal, only to be confronted by Orochimaru as he finishes. Back at the tower, Shino Aburame and Zaku Abumi begin the next match.
Episode 40: Kakashi threatens to kill Orochimaru, a threat that Orochimaru takes lightly. Despite this, Orochimaru leaves, with Kakashi terrified at his foolishness. Meanwhile, Shino and Zaku Abumi continue their match, with Shino ultimately winning his match through the use of his destruction bugs, leaving Kankuro and Misumi Tsurugi to fight next.
Rating: 9/10(Average)
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