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***
"Huff, huff!"
A series of ragged, rapid breathing echoed through the forest.
Shikaku, Baki, and the others were moving at a speed exceeding the maximum speed of some of the competitors.
Even though they were barely keeping up, their chakra couldn't be controlled to maintain a steady state.
Only five of them were still able to maintain their composure and keep up with the jonin ahead.
The Konoha and Sunagakure jonin looked behind them.
"Hehe,"
Shikaku and Shinku exchanged a faint smile, while the remaining Konoha and Sunagakure jonin were all stunned.
Because, of the five who could barely keep up, four were Konoha ninjas!
"Those two little guys, not bad at all."
Choza's gaze fell on the two smaller of the five: Itachi and Izumi.
Although Izumi was from the Uchiha clan and had awakened the Sharingan, her forte since the ninja academy had been taijutsu.
Therefore, before graduating from the ninja academy, Itachi had been designing a training plan tailored to her.
Itachi's expression was impassive.
Such speed was nothing to him.
Besides the two of them, the remaining two Konoha ninjas were a man and a woman, and the sole Sand ninja was a teenager.
"As expected of an Uchiha clan member."
The Sand genin behind Itachi and the other four noticed the round fan-shaped family crests on the clothes of the former and Izumi.
The other Konoha genin finally understood why the Fourth Hokage had chosen two rookie teams, barely six months out of the ninja academy, to participate in the joint Chunin Exams.
Baki glanced at the situation behind him, his eyes slightly lowered, a look of obvious displeasure evident in his eyes.
The Land of Wind, where the Hidden Sand Village is located, is largely covered by desert, making it somewhat weaker than the other four ninja nations.
Therefore, from a long time ago, the Sand Village's policy of ninja training has been to pursue quality, focusing on cultivating a small number of elite ninja.
The three groups of nine they brought from the Sand Village this time were the elite genin of the Sand Village over the past two years.
But judging by the current situation, their village's genin were completely outmatched by Konoha's.
While this kind of speed contest couldn't be used to judge a ninja's strength, it was still a loss of face.
Baki glanced at the young Sand ninja among the five behind him and gave him a look.
The boy nodded, clearly still within his tolerance.
Swish!
Then, Maki turned and exchanged glances with the several Sand ninja jonin beside him, suddenly increasing his speed again.
Inoichi frowned slightly as he watched Maki and the others rush out.
"Even though it's a contest, this is a bit excessive."
"Just think of it as training. It won't do any harm to these little guys."
Choza narrowed his eyes and smiled at Inoichi.
"Don't forget how we trained in the past. If they can't even sustain this level, it only means their training isn't enough."
"Yes,"
Shikaku replied, looking at Itachi behind him and smiling.
He knew Itachi's strength well, so since Baki of the Sand Village wanted to challenge him to such a meaningless contest, Konoha naturally wouldn't easily show weakness.
Immediately, Shikaku and the other Konoha jonin suddenly accelerated, putting some distance between them and the genin behind them.
"Why are they so fast again?"
The genin following behind couldn't help but grimly say this.
Swish!
At this moment, the Sand ninja boy beside Itachi suddenly picked up speed again, sprinting forward and catching up with Baki, Shikaku, and the others.
"It seems that guy is quite skilled in taijutsu."
Watching the Sand ninja boy's retreating figure, the two Konoha genin beside Itachi and Izumi shuddered slightly.
They didn't want to lose face as Konoha ninjas, but their speed was already nearing its limit.
Swish!
As they hesitated, Itachi and Izumi exchanged a glance, both increasing their speed even further.
"Let's fight!"
The two boys and girls, wearing Konoha forehead protectors, gritted their teeth, forced themselves to increase their speed, and caught up.
The other Konoha genin and Sand genin were already struggling to keep pace, and now that the front of the group was moving even faster, they struggled to keep up, but the line stretched ever further in the forest.
Behind Shikaku, Baki, and the others, only the Sand shinobi boy, Itachi, and Izumi remained, still following closely.
Maintaining this pace, the Sand shinobi boy began to tire.
Swish!
Shikaku then instructed the two Konoha jonin beside him to move to the end of the group to prevent anyone from falling behind.
Seeing that his village's only remaining genin had collapsed, Baki turned to Itachi and Izumi.
Izumi frowned slightly, looking somewhat exhausted, but her breathing and gait were steady.
Baki's eyes fell on Itachi, a look of slight surprise on his face.
Itachi's current state was not much different from that of the Sand shinobi and Konoha jonin around Baki.
Itachi was composed, showing no signs of exhaustion at all.
"Is he Itachi Uchiha?"
The Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure had been gathering intelligence on Itachi, and this information had reached not only the Konoha high-ranking officials but also the Hidden Sand Village.
Therefore, even before the Chunin Exams began, Itachi had become the focus of attention.
However, the Hidden Sand Village still needed to verify the authenticity of the information.
After meeting him today, Baki was certain that none of the elite genin of their Sand Village could match Itachi.
Therefore, he was even more surprised to see a young woman from the Uchiha clan beside Itachi.
In terms of speed and endurance alone, even an average chunin skilled in taijutsu wouldn't necessarily outperform Izumi.
Geniuses like Itachi and Izumi haven't appeared in the Sand ninja ranks in recent years.
However, this doesn't mean the Sand Village is devoid of talent.
About a decade ago, a brilliant talent emerged among the Sand ninja.
However, gradually, Baki and the others slowed down, while some of the genin behind them were practically exhausted.
After gathering everyone together, they began to rest.
However, their breakneck pace was highly effective.
In just a few hours, they had already covered a third of the distance.
After a short rest, they continued on their journey.
A day later, Shikaku and the others felt the air growing increasingly humid.
Finally, after passing through a forest, the endless ocean loomed before them.
...
A faint mist rose from the endless horizon, making the sky seem slightly gloomy.
"Splash!"
The sea surface rose and fell gently.
When the undulations gradually subsided, a large ship slowly approached from the surface.
On the deck of the ship,
Izumi emerged from the cabin, raised her arms, and stretched her waist.
She gazed at the sea that still seemed to have no end and murmured, "It's been three days."
"At the speed of this ship, it will take about four more days to enter the Land of Water."
Itachi's voice came from behind.
Izumi nodded.
Although she was not seasick, the feeling of being confined to a small cabin was not pleasant.
Itachi walked slowly forward to the front of the deck, the bow of the ship.
He stared straight ahead, his eyes reflecting the dark waters shrouded in mist.
Earlier, Itachi and Minato had deduced that the masked man's true purpose in manipulating the Kirigakure giant to conduct the Chūnin Exams was to eliminate Itachi.
The enemy's only chance to strike was when Itachi was on board the ship to Kirigakure, or on the way back to the Konoha after the Chūnin Exams.
However, three days passed without incident.
This was within their expectations.
After all, the Joint Chūnin Exams were a first for the ninja world and a major event.
Furthermore, the ship was occupied not only by Hidden Leaf ninja, but also by members of the Sand Village.
An attack before the exams even began would force them to be abandoned.
The person orchestrating the attack would then become the focus of the entire ninja world.
Having previously served in the Akatsuki, Itachi didn't understand the true nature of the masked man's plan, but he knew that he didn't want to attract too much attention from the Five Great Ninja Nations for a long time to come.
"I wonder what the other villages' competitors for the Chūnin Exams are like," Izumi said with a hint of anticipation.
After spending several days together, they had a rough idea of the Sand ninja participants.
The Sand ninja boy who had lasted the entire speed contest that day was named Komon.
Like Itachi and Izumi, Komon was only ten years old this year, though slightly younger.
He graduated from the Sunagakure Ninja Academy a year ago.
While his talent was comparable to Izumi's, he lacked any special bloodline, and his jÅnin mentor was no match for Itachi.
Komon wasn't arrogant and was quite approachable.
"You're here?"
A young man's voice, still slightly childish, rang from behind Itachi and Izumi.
They turned to see the boy with short, gray-brown hair and a slightly dark complexion.
Komon wore a serene smile, but a hint of bitterness lingered in his eyes as he looked at Itachi and Izumi.
The Sunagakure higher-ups had previously held him in high regard, but judging by the speed contest that day, Komon knew he was no match for them.
However, he maintained a relatively calm demeanor, and personally, he didn't have a strong desire to win.
However, the Chūnin Exams tested more than just ninja prowess.
Itachi, Izumi, and Komon all had other members of the same team.
Only by working together could they successfully pass the exam.
Of course, this was just Shinobu Komon's own opinion.
"It seems these kids get along pretty well."
Shikaku and Baki were also together on the upper deck of the ship.
Shikaku looked down at Itachi and the other two and smiled faintly.
The Konohagakure and Sunagakure were allies, after all.
While they were rivals, they were also friends.
Baki nodded perfunctorily, his entire mental state seeming tense.
Shikaku knew it was simply the atmosphere of the Sand Village, so he didn't take it too seriously.
Four more days passed.
The ship carrying the Konoha and Suna ninja finally entered the Land of Water.
Upon entering the Land of Water, the fog on the sea grew thicker.
Itachi and his crew docked at a small island in the Land of Water to restock their supplies.
After docking, the ninja from both Konoha and Suna, who had been aboard for a week, wanted to disembark for a short rest.
However, they were rejected by the Kirigakure ninja guarding the shore.
These Kirigakure ninja didn't engage in much conversation with Shikaku and the others, simply informing them that no foreigners, especially ninja, were allowed on this small island, which served as a transit point for supplies.
Upon learning of this rule, Shikaku, Baki, and the other Konohagakure and Sunagakure ninja's expressions changed slightly.
After all, this was Kirigakure's request to other major powers for a joint Chūnin Exam.
Although they hadn't yet reached Kirigakure, these rules were a bit too strict.
But this was, after all, a foreign custom.
To avoid any trouble, Shikaku and the others remained silent, waiting for supplies to be restocked before setting off again.
A few hours later, another large ship approached from the distant sea.
Both the Hidden Leaf and Hidden Sand ninja teams had sensory ninja.
These sensory ninja detected numerous chakra fluctuations aboard the ship and immediately notified Shikaku and the others.
As the ship approached, Shikaku and the others, standing atop their ship, could clearly discern the clothing and appearance of the people aboard, identifying their identities.
Due to their geographical location, the average height in the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind was roughly 170 cm.
The men on the other ship were exceptionally tall and muscular, with dark skin, well-developed muscles, and many boasting thick lips.
The forehead protectors they wore were emblazoned with a cloud pattern.
Shikaku, Baki, and the others had already identified the occupants of that ship simply by their appearance.
They were, of course, those dispatched by the Cloud Village of the Land of Lightning to participate in the joint Chūnin Exams.
As they studied the Cloud ninja, the Cloud ninja on the other ship also glanced their way.
As they stared at each other, many of the boys from the Leaf Village and the Sand Village focused their attention on a young woman among the Cloud ninja.
Unlike her companions, this female ninja had a very fair complexion, with neatly styled short, medium-length hair a dazzling bright yellow.
Her looks weren't what caught the boys' attention.
The real reason was the Kumo ninja's incredibly hot figure.
....
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