Second Stage ~ Sasuke Ninja Warrior

Those with enough skill to complete the First Stage then take on an even more grueling set of obstacles in the Second Stage. 285 competitors have ever reached the Second Stage. Like the First Stage, the obstacles alter throughout the competitions, but all hold to the same principle: if the competitor makes a single mistake they fall into the water below. The obstacles determine the time limit, and it is usually between 50 seconds and 100 seconds, the only exception being SASUKE 28 where the time limit was 135 seconds. The Second Stage is known traditionally as a speed stage, with a more fast paced theme and generally a shorter time limit than the First Stage, the only exceptions being the 7th-10th competitions, and the 28th.

Unlike the First Stage, which has always required the competitors to hit a buzzer at the end of the course to stop the clock and pass the course, the Second Stage did not have a buzzer at its end until the 8th Competition. Before then, the competitors simply walked through an open gate to stop the clock. From the 8th Competition onward, the buzzer opens the gate. If the competitor busts open the gate without hitting the button, they are disqualified (as shown by Paul Hamm in SASUKE 14). In addition, the course judges can hold the gates closed if a competitor committed a foul earlier in the Second Stage that would result in their disqualification, such as using the Chain Reaction gloves on the Spider Walk as Mr. "SASUKE" Yamada Katsumi had done in SASUKE 12.

On average, 10 to 15 competitors attempt the Second Stage on each competition. A record 37 competitors attempted the Second Stage during SASUKE 4. Also during SASUKE 4, a record 11 competitors cleared the Second Stage. During SASUKE 5, however, only three men made it to the Second Stage due to new, tougher obstacles in the First Stage. In SASUKE 19, neither of the two qualified competitors cleared the circuit (a fall and a timeout on the Salmon Ladder), marking the earliest end of a SASUKE competition. Interestingly, the rate of clears in the Second Stage is nearly 50%, in comparison to the First Stage's clearance record of just 10%.