Aside from Hinata, the others dispersed, returning to their respective paths to continue the Chūnin Exams.
"You've been marked by Orochimaru's cursed seal," Naruto said, sensing the faint and unusual chakra emanating from Sasuke's shoulder.
Three black tomoe quietly rested on Sasuke's shoulder.
Sasuke nodded. "Yeah."
"There's more than just Orochimaru's chakra mixed into it. There's another power—something that changes with my emotional state and tries to take over my body. It does enhance my physical abilities to an extent, but the cost is overburdening my body. Compared to the Sharingan, it's not very practical. After I awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, the seal's power was suppressed. It's not an issue at the moment."
Sakura watched Naruto and Sasuke converse with each other like no one else was present, jealousy flashing in her eyes.
"I understand every word they're saying… yet I still have no idea what they're talking about. Ugh, I'm so jealous I could scream!"
Sakura was definitely a top student, but cursed seals were outside her area of expertise. After all, she was a scholar, not omniscient.
Naruto shook his head. "It's not that simple. This cursed seal contains a fragment of Orochimaru's will. You need to be careful not to fall into his trap. That guy's after your body."
"What?! That freak wants Sasuke's body?!" Sakura's voice spiked several octaves higher. That, she understood perfectly.
So that long-tongued pervert is the real rival in love?
This is too much… Now I've got to worry about both girls and guys?
"Evil Sealing Method," Naruto muttered as he pressed a finger to Sasuke's shoulder. A series of black, tadpole-like sealing characters spiraled from Naruto's fingertip, encircling the cursed seal before disappearing from view.
"This is just a temporary fix. After we finish the second exam, I'll help you get rid of it completely."
Though the seal seemed gone, it was only suppressed. The cursed seal contained a portion of Orochimaru's consciousness—it would resurface the moment it found an opening.
"Let's go find the remaining scrolls."
For those with real strength, the Forest of Death—the second stage of the Chūnin Exams—was no more dangerous than an ordinary garden.
Poisonous bugs and wild beasts were no threat to a true chūnin-level ninja.
"I heard someone already made it to the tower with both scrolls." In the central tower of the Forest of Death, several chūnin observed the surveillance monitors.
"It's Sunagakure."
One of them pointed at Gaara on the screen. "Look at that kid carrying the gourd."
"Four hours… That kind of speed? Even most chūnin wouldn't be able to move that fast."
"Hey, look closely—he doesn't have a single scratch on him. His clothes aren't even dirty."
"Since when did Suna have such a monster?"
"He just broke the record for fastest clearance of the Forest of Death. Do our Konoha genin even stand a chance this time?"
"There's still one team," an ANBU member said, raising a finger. "A team even faster."
Big events like the Joint Chūnin Exams always had ANBU monitoring behind the scenes.
"Who?"
"You didn't notice?" the ANBU ninja replied. "Kakashi's Team 7—they arrived at the tower even earlier."
"Nani?!"
The examiners frantically searched through the recordings, scanning frame by frame until they found footage of Naruto's team from two hours ago.
"When did that happen?"
To reach the tower so early, right under the noses of the proctors—these kids were terrifyingly strong.
"That's the team with him and the last of the Uchiha, right?"
"Can't believe only 10 teams made it through."
Out of 40 three-man teams—120 genin—only 10 teams successfully collected both Heaven and Earth scrolls. A 75% elimination rate.
Atop the tower, the Third Hokage stepped onto the platform. Konoha's jōnin flanked him on one side, with the jōnin from other villages on the opposite.
Among them stood Orochimaru, masquerading as the leader of Otogakure.
There's Maki, Naruto noted, glancing at the Suna jōnin standing beside Orochimaru.
Poor Fourth Kazekage. The most reliable subordinate in his entire village is just his kids' teacher.
Maki might not stand out among Konoha jōnin, but in Sunagakure, he was one of the few competent ones.
Yukigakure was represented by Rouga Nadare, but unfortunately, all of its genin had been wiped out.
Ironically, smaller villages like Amegakure and Takigakure each had a team make it to the third round.
The Third Hokage began his speech, once again presenting his philosophy that the Chūnin Exams were a microcosm of war between ninja villages.
Naruto scoffed at that notion.
The so-called "microcosm of war" was nonsense. This whole thing was just Konoha flaunting its power. Of the Five Great Nations, only Suna—forced into an alliance—was participating. Iwagakure, Kirigakure, and Kumogakure? They didn't even bother.
Still, the Third wasn't entirely wrong. The Chūnin Exams were a showcase of strength. Strong nations got more mission contracts; weaker ones received fewer.
And Konoha had been steadily stealing mission shares.
Sunagakure hadn't had a genin make it to the finals in years. The Wind Daimyō was already considering cutting Suna's funding entirely and assigning all missions to Konoha instead.
If things had continued like that, Rasa wouldn't have had any choice but to agree to Orochimaru's plan.
Sunagakure was on the verge of becoming a second-rate village.
As for the smaller villages, the gap between them and the great villages was nearly impossible to bridge. Any outstanding genin that showed promise usually ended up assassinated before long.
What serious ninja village would send their geniuses to participate in Konoha's "Joint Chūnin Exams"?
Only Konoha would do that.
"Ahem… Lord Hokage, please excuse me." A sickly-looking ninja with deep dark circles under his eyes stepped forward.
Konoha Special Jōnin — Stealth Release Ninja — Hayate Gekkō.
The man named "Hayate" who didn't live to see Naruto: Shippuden.
His signature technique, Dance of the Crescent Moon, was the very same that Sasuke and Naruto frequently used as their opening move.
The Third Hokage gave him a nod.
Hayate turned to face the genin who had passed the Forest of Death. "I will be the proctor for the preliminary rounds of the third exam."
Ten teams—30 genin—was too many for the final tournament.
The third stage was meant to be a public spectacle, with nobles and daimyō from various countries in attendance. It showcased each village's strength and also boosted the economy.
But those VIPs had no patience for lengthy matches. They only needed a few to watch.
So fewer than half the participants would move on.
A show for the nobles, essentially.
Or rather, the nobles were watching ninja fight like they were watching monkeys perform tricks.
But this time, the monkey show would be different—far more interesting.
"If anyone is feeling unwell or wishes to withdraw after hearing the rules, raise your hand now," Hayate said, coughing through his rehearsed speech.
He'd done this many times before. Normally, any genin who made it this far would never give up.
But to his surprise, someone actually chose to forfeit.
"I," a voice called out. Kabuto slowly raised his hand. "Forfeit."
Hayate looked down at his roster. "Yakushi Kabuto. This is your eighth time taking the Chūnin Exams after failing the last seven. Are you sure you want to forfeit now?"
"Yes. I'm already badly injured." Kabuto pointed to his wounds and the blood-soaked bandages around his body. "I'm in no condition to fight. Rather than get eliminated in battle, I'd prefer to recover and prepare for the next exam."
"A wise decision." Hayate nodded, accepting Kabuto's explanation. Then he turned back to the others. "Anyone else wish to forfeit? The preliminaries are individual battles. Think carefully."
"I forfeit as well," said another.
"And me."
A total of three—an entire team—chose to withdraw.
It was Karin's temporary team.
"Karin, Shin, Sai—you three are sure?" Hayate frowned slightly.
What was going on? Normally, genin who reached this stage fought to the bitter end. Why were so many forfeiting?
Anko, the proctor of the second stage, frowned as she checked Karin's team data. "Lord Hokage, there seems to be some missing information on these three."
"No need to worry. I'm aware of their situation," the Third said lightly, waving it off.
Sending people to the exam just to withdraw mid-way… Danzo, what are you up to now?
Lately, the Third had found it harder and harder to read his old friend's intentions.
Kabuto gave a polite wave to the Konoha genin as he left. Moments later, Karin's team followed him.
Near the forest's edge, Karin and her teammates intercepted Kabuto.
"Kabuto-senpai, please wait."
"There's someone who wishes to see you."
"Karin-chan," Kabuto replied with his usual smile, "as you can see, I'm injured and need to get to the medical tent."
He casually moved closer to the trio as he spoke.
Just two steps away from them, Karin spoke again. "If you're planning to attack me with chakra scalpels, Kabuto-senpai, at least suppress your killing intent first."
"Oh? You noticed?" Kabuto chuckled, still smiling. His killing intent didn't diminish. "In that case…"
In an instant, he appeared at her side, chakra scalpel in hand.
Clang! A blade intercepted him—Sai's tanto.
Several shadowy, ink-black creatures surrounded Kabuto from behind.
"Kabuto-senpai. This is Danzo-sama will."
"If you insist on attacking, we'll assume you're acting against his orders."
"Oh dear, the new Root recruits these days are something else." Kabuto adjusted his glasses, a strange glint flashing across the lens.
Kabuto adjusted his glasses, a strange glint flashing across the lens under the sunlight.
---
Back in the tower, Hayate Gekkō began explaining the rules of the preliminary matches.
"The format will be one-on-one duels. No restrictions on technique, tactics, or tools. The match ends when one participant either dies or admits defeat."
"For the sake of your lives… I'd suggest you surrender early."
His tone was almost indifferent—just another routine exam.
This wasn't some friendly sparring match. It was more akin to the Tenkaichi Budōkai, but with ninja—where lethal force was not only allowed, but expected. If your opponent refused to surrender, killing them would still be considered a victory.
A large screen descended into view, drawing the attention of the genin below.
"Participants whose names appear on the screen—prepare to fight."
"First Match: Haruno Sakura vs Kin Tsuchi."
"I'm not like you soft-hearted Konoha brats," Kin sneered as she stepped into the arena. "That long hair of yours… it's even prettier than mine. Let me help you shave it off."
She glared at Sakura, her tone dripping with malice.
Otogakure was never a village of compassion. There, the strong ruled, and the weak were discarded. Among the sound genin, Kin was among the elite.
She looked down on Konoha's "greenhouse-raised" genin with absolute disdain.
Unfortunately, she had no idea…
This world respects only one thing: talent.
Sakura stepped forward. In a single motion, she closed the distance between them. Before Kin could react, Sakura drove her fist into her opponent's gut.
BOOM.
The sound of impact echoed through the chamber, making the watching genin flinch.
Kin collapsed without even knowing what hit her.
"Talk too much. SHUT UP."
Even if Sakura wasn't on the same level as Naruto or Sasuke, she wasn't someone a nobody could look down on.
"Second Match—"
The rest of the fights were underwhelming. With the exception of Gaara, most participants were weaklings at the genin level.
One unlucky Taki-nin faced Gaara and was instantly obliterated by a single move: Sand Coffin.
Gaara then turned and gave Naruto a bloodthirsty smile—as if to say, You're next.
Looks like their "friendly warning" before the exams had only fueled Gaara's madness.
'Kurama, looks like Shukaku doesn't think much of you.'
'So annoying. Just shut up,' Kurama grumbled, turning his back on Naruto mentally.
He'd been dragged into a fight with Son Gokū the night before and was still sore. He had no interest in bantering.
Soon, the list of those moving on to the final stage was confirmed: 13 participants.
Team 7 had all advanced. Neji and Lee both made it. Gaara's team advanced in full. Hinata, Shikamaru, Shino, Dosu, and a single Amegakure genin filled out the rest.
With the participants locked in, the Third Hokage presided over a "fair" draw to determine the final matchups.
As Naruto stepped up to draw his lot, he glanced at the drawing box and smirked.
Random? Yeah, right.
No matter what you drew, the result was already predetermined.
Matchups were as follows:
First Match: Naruto vs Neji
Second Match: Sasuke vs Gaara
Third Match: Rock Lee vs Shino
Fourth Match: Hinata vs Temari
The first three fights were clearly intended as crowd-pleasers—chosen to maximize drama and spectacle. The farther down the list, the less attention the matches received. Villages like Otogakure and Amegakure were shoved to the end.
Because this wasn't just a tournament—it was a show.
A monkey show, for the elites to watch from their high seats.
But this monkey show?
Was going to be something else entirely.
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