Team 7's Heaven Scroll was in Naruto's possession, since his Shadow Clones could easily confuse pursuers. They were waiting in front of gate number twelve, when Jubei joined up with Haruka again, moments before the test officially started. Naruto immediately made a loud, happy noise and sprinted into the forest. Haruka and Sasuke followed him with a little less enthusiasm, and then stopped him after about half a kilometer.
"Hey, idiot lets talk strategy," the Uchiha called. Naruto shot back with an insult of his own, but Haruka stepped between them before a brawl could break out. Jubei chose that moment to transform back into himself and the two of them shared their information with the boys.
"Woah!" Naruto exclaimed. "So we basically know where all the scrolls are! That is so awesome Haruka-chan!" Jubei huffed in indignation for not getting any recognition, so Haruka took a moment to praise his quick thinking before she explained that it wasn't quite as straight forward. They knew which teams had which scrolls, but they didn't know where the teams were or which member was keeping the scroll safe. The latter was something Jubei would have seen, but Team 7 had only given Naruto their scroll after reaching their gate and it was likely at least some of the other teams would have switched as well. Naruto nodded along very earnestly, and then flinched when a scream echoed through the forest.
"Kiba's team," Haruka informed him. "They're west of here. No idea what they did, the other team is still alive, but just barely. They went down all at once so I'm guessing outright ambush or trap. In any case Team 8 now has both scrolls."
"So lets get one," Sasuke said to Naruto's indignation.
"No way! We're not attacking another Konoha team!"
"You realize that means we can't go after half of the teams right?" Haruka raised an eyebrow at him. "Not to mention that of the other half not all have the scroll we need and we are going nowhere near Panda Eyes. That only leaves us with six possible targets."
While she explained how slim the chances were of actually getting the scroll they needed without fighting a Konoha team Haruka also very slowly signed a code in Sasuke's direction, making sure to keep her back to the chakra signatures she felt in the trees. She had to repeat it two more times before both of her teammates gave a subtle nod. Sasuke had understood her on the first try, but Naruto still needed more practice. It would do for now though. The blond created two dozen Shadow Clones the second Sasuke gave the signal, and then all of them sprinted into the trees, surrounding their would be ambushers.
The maneuver looked incredibly chaotic, but was actually something they had practiced a lot. Some of the clones would transform into Harukas and Sasukes, distracting their opponents, while the originals got into position. Then all of them would throw kunai, or chakra laced senbon in Haruka's case, at their enemies, effectively creating a kill zone. At first glance the whole thing was identical to the tactic they'd used against Kakashi during the bell test. Only in this version they didn't get in each others way, and they made sure to throw the projectiles not just from different sides, but also different angles. It wasn't perfect because someone could still dodge underground or use the Replacement Technique to get out, but in this case the Ame shinobi were too surprised to react in time.
Blood sprayed everywhere, and Naruto looked horrified when it hit his face. Sasuke didn't seem nearly as concerned by what had happened, but his Sharingan was still spinning madly and his muscles were tense.
"It's over," Haruka told her teammates. She didn't remember the first time she'd actively tried to kill someone or felt another person's blood cool on her skin. Had it been this hard for her too? She didn't dwell on it, instead pulling a kunai across the throats of their downed opponents.
"What are you doing?" Naruto suddenly shouted. His voice a mixture of shock, disbelief and disgust.
"They'll bleed out regardless," she sighed in response. "This is kinder." The blond stuttered out something about saving them, fixing them up and calling for help. Haruka ignored him, instead taking the other team's Heaven Scroll. They didn't need it, but it would mean one less team could pass this test.
Naruto's protests had turned into an incoherent mess by the time Sasuke interrupted him with a punch to the face. It wasn't hard, but more than enough to get the blond to shut his mouth.
"What the fuck did you think would happen if that attack succeeded? We've been practicing for weeks to make sure that there was no way to dodge without the use of jutsu," the Uchiha snarled at him. "Didn't you learn your lesson in Wave? In real fights people will die and this time there is no nukenin to make sure you can keep your hands clean!"
She hadn't known Sasuke was this bitter Naruto had managed not to kill anyone during that mission. It would certainly explain why they had suddenly become distant again afterwards. Naruto could be quite naive at times, especially when it came to the profession of shinobi. He'd probably never even thought about the fact that most, if not all, of the people he interacted with on a daily basis had blood on their hands.
Haruka had thrown herself into Kakashi's arms to cry after the worst was over back in Wave. It might not have been the killing that had bothered her, but she'd still needed someone who understood her and would protect her while she fell apart and put herself back together. Sasuke hadn't had that though, and he didn't have anyone waiting for him in Konoha either.
"You should have said something," Haruka told him, and then pulled him into a hug. He went completely stiff at first, but then relaxed after a few seconds. Sasuke didn't hug her back, and he pushed her away soon enough, but he did seem more relaxed, calmer. Naruto didn't say word when they moved on, but he too understood what their teammates problem was. The fact that he wasn't the only one who thought killing was hard seemed to relax him as well, but there was a lingering sadness in his eyes whenever he glanced in Haruka's direction.