Chapter 129: The First Joint Chunin Exams are Coming (Part 2)
Land of Earth, Hidden Stone Village
On a rocky training ground, Onoki was holding a stick. "Concentrate," he said. "Don't mess up the ratio of the three chakra natures. Otherwise, it will just become... a chaotic mess of chakra."
Kitsuchi looked annoyed, but he closed his eyes and focused on the chakra within him. He formed a bridge with his hands, trying to create the Dust Release he had never succeeded in using.
But his hands started to cramp, and nothing came out.
Onoki was so angry he started whacking the stick on the ground.
Kitsuchi was helpless. A few months ago, for some reason, his father had suddenly become very interested in training the village's young ninja. He had been spending a lot of time with them, even neglecting his duties as Tsuchikage. And he, his own son, was not exempt. He was being forced to learn the Dust Release he had given up on years ago. He was more interested in large-scale ninjutsu.
Seeing that one of his subordinates had come to report, Onoki had his son continue to practice and opened the letter from Hanzo.
He quickly read it and sneered. "A little village like the Rain wants to hold a Joint Chunin Exam? How ridiculous."
In the battle of Mount Tenmoku, Hanzo had practically stepped on the Stone's head to become the Amekage. And of the so-called "Four Heroes," it was Hanzo who had inflicted the most casualties.
Onoki had no intention of playing along. But then he thought, if all the other villages participated, wouldn't the Stone look weak if they didn't? They had already lost the war rather badly. If they didn't make a showing, it would be hard to justify. An opportunity for the great villages to directly display their strength was rare in peacetime.
He thought of the recent performance of the village's young ninja and felt a little more confident. After much hesitation, he decided to participate.
At the very least, it would be a good opportunity to gather intelligence on the other villages.
Kitsuchi, who had been slacking off, peeked at the letter. "A Joint Chunin Exam?" he said, intrigued. "Can I participate?"
Onoki hit him on the head with the stick. "Participate in what? You're almost nineteen! Do you want the whole ninja world to think that the son of the Tsuchikage is still a Genin at nineteen?! Get back to practicing!"
Kitsuchi was already at the Jonin level. He had just thought the exam sounded interesting. He hadn't expected to get hit with a stick.
Land of Wind, Hidden Sand Village
In an underground space, a cool and aloof-looking young woman was training. After a series of rapid taijutsu moves, she threw a small fireball at an imaginary enemy, which exploded with a surprising amount of force, kicking up a cloud of dust.
A gloomy-looking young ninja entered the space. "Pakura," he said, "the Third Kazekage wants to see you."
"I know," she said without turning her head, and then left the training ground.
The ninja who had delivered the message sneered at her arrogance.
Pakura went to the Kazekage's office. The Third Kazekage put down his pen. "Pakura," he said, "how has your training been?"
"Everything is going well," she said with a nod. "The development of my Scorch Release is on track."
"You are one of the few geniuses in the village," he said. "I saw that you had applied for a promotion to Chunin. I've put that on hold for now."
"Why, Lord Kazekage?" she said urgently. "I already have the skills of a Chunin."
"Be patient," he said, waving his hand. "Look at this first."
She took the document he handed her. "A Joint Chunin Exam?" she said, surprised. "I've never heard of such a thing."
"A very bold idea," he said with a nod. "The village has decided to participate. The Daimyo has been... displeased with our recent performance. We need to find an opportunity to show our strength. I hope you can bring honor to the village."
She nodded. She was not afraid of a challenge. If the village needed her, she would do her best.
"Elder Chiyo will be leading the team," he continued. "The exam is a team-based event. Your current teammates can no longer keep up with you. The village will be assigning you new ones."
"Do I know them?" she asked.
"You probably don't," he said after a moment of thought. "One is a boy named Yashamaru. He just graduated from the Academy, but he's very talented. The other is Elder Chiyo's grandson. He's even younger, but he's a genius puppet master. You'll need to train together before you leave. You're the oldest of the three, so you'll be the captain."
She nodded. She didn't really care who her teammates were, as long as they didn't hold her back. But she knew that since the village was trying to make a showing, they wouldn't assign her weaklings.
"If only I could have put you and Rasa on the same team," the Kazekage said with a sigh. "You are the two most talented of your generation. But Rasa is a bit too old for this."
Pakura thought of the gloomy young ninja who had delivered the message to her. She felt a shiver run down her spine. Though the village often compared the two of them, she had always disliked him.
As the letters were sent out, the "Joint Chunin Exam," the brainchild of the first Amekage, Hanzo of the Salamander, was confirmed. He had only expected two or three villages to participate, but through a series of fortunate events, all six had agreed.
Some were participating to show off their strength, some to strengthen their ties, and some just to gather intelligence. But no matter what their reasons, they all wanted to make a good showing. The various villages began to prepare their teams.
As this was the first Joint Chunin Exam, many of the villages were more focused on making a statement than on the exam itself. This resulted in a very wide age range among the participants.
With all five of the great villages participating, Hanzo was under a great deal of pressure. He was determined to make the first exam a success. All the preparations were made to the highest standards. He would not let the host village be shamed. He even expanded a part of the village and built a special exam facility for the event.
And since all five of the great villages had promised to attend, he decided to also invite some of the smaller villages, some of whom had also accepted.