WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 221, "The Chūnin Exams Resume," now streaming on Crunchyroll.
One of Naruto's most sinister locations was the Forest of Death outside of Konoha. Located on the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf, it had an eerie atmosphere similar to Mortal Kombat's Living Forest, with the young shinobi often being warned about how many of their kind perished there over the years. The Forest of Death saw many shinobi die in several wars, especially in sneak attacks against Konoha's elite. The forest also played a major role in Sasuke's story, as the Cursed Seal Orochimaru marked him with began to manifest and started him down a dark path with the snake Sannin. Now, the Forest of Death is back in the Boruto anime, proving once more how sadistic the new Chūnin Exam is.
The Forest of Death has been retooled for Boruto and co.'s rebooted Chūnin Exam, which is, oddly enough, overseen by Shikamaru, Sai and others from Naruto's generation -- a generation that should remember well the horrors of their own exams. But these shinobi seem to be playing dirty, with Seniors like Mirai are pretending to be victims in need of rescue, knocking test-takers out so they fail and imitating students to other examinees in, she did when she shape-shifted into Mitsuki to attack Sarada.
It's a brutal scenario as the proctors also actively encourage shinobi to backstab each other by being vague on the rules, evoking the drama of the original Naruto Chūnin Exams. Boruto himself is even approached by a giant snake when he falls into a river, a nod to when Orochimaru's snake form appeared to tempt Sasuke.
Luckily, Boruto befriends the serpent and it helps him get to his target, but there are plenty of other creatures attacking the students, eliminating them from advancing to the next round. But hearing the proctors making light of it all, noting the medical staff nearby so that, even if the kids lose limbs, they'll be spared the pain of it, is what makes these exams seem particularly cruel. They're downplaying the horror and severity of the trials at hand, which could leave the kids traumatized -- as seen from Naruto's time.
The Chūnin Exams have always been deadly, but with Boruto's year facing cutthroat, sick games and twisted fake-outs, it leads one to wonder whether the older generation learned anything from their time. Thankfully, Boruto and co. are mentally strong this time around, but it once more proves that Konoha is struggling to evolve and genuinely progress by learning from well-documented mistakes of the past.
