"No, they're just bad with our team," Daigan replied. "In their eyes, we're probably just a bunch of clowns who rely on cheap tricks, not worth taking seriously. Only people like Uchiha Sasuke or Hyuga Neji can earn their respect..."
"But they're weak, and not very smart either!" Yome retorted indignantly, turning to make a face at Inuzuka Kiba.
***
Daigan patted Yome's fluffy pigtails, stopping the girl's further provocations.
"One's own strength, especially in combat, is the most convincing argument. Everything else, you can listen to, but you have to think it over for yourself..."
"Daigan, that's not what that chunin proctor said just now. They're both Konoha ninja, inheritors of the Will of Fire. How can their thinking be so different?" Chi asked, confused.
"Those principles for the Chunin Exam are just one perspective. They're not wrong, but many ninja, especially the talented and powerful geniuses, value combat strength above all else. Do you think Konoha occupies the most fertile Land of Fire because their ideals won everyone's hearts? Don't be naive..."
"So that chunin proctor... was he lying to us Sand Ninja?" Yome asked in surprise.
Daigan gave a faint smile. "We're genin. Those principles are fine for us, but only up to the rank of chunin. Remember what I told you before about the ninja way? To keep walking this path, you have to find your own way, or you'll struggle in the future without direction..."
"That all feels so far away," Chi said with a soft sigh. "For Yome and me, just finding a stable team where we're not looked down on is hard enough."
"You both should have improved a lot after this Chunin Exam. No matter what, it wasn't a wasted trip." Even if they were eliminated in the third test's preliminaries, seeing what true geniuses were like would be a good experience.
"You being so polite is making us uneasy. We prefer you the way you usually are. A bit talkative, a bit annoying..."
"The last part was unnecessary!"
As they were talking, Kankuro and Temari walked over. Gaara, however, remained motionless, as if he hadn't seen his fellow Sunagakure ninja. He sat on a bench with his arms crossed and eyes closed, lost in thought.
"You're finally here! I was starting to think you'd been eliminated..." Kankuro said, looking relieved. Standing next to Gaara with Temari, the sheer killing intent was enough to make one break out in a cold sweat. Even in the height of July, it was bone-chilling. After more than two days with Gaara, they were reaching their limit. Seeing a familiar face before nightfall was a welcome chance to talk and ease the tension.
Chi and Temari began whispering to each other, with Yome listening quietly beside them.
"What's wrong? Is Gaara unstable?" Daigan glanced at Temari, intending to greet her, but Kankuro pulled him aside, talking nonstop.
"He killed a few Rain Ninja yesterday. I think it made him lose some control..." Kankuro replied, a lingering fear in his voice. "I don't even dare to talk to him right now."
"If you're this scared now, how are you going to last another three days?"
"That's why you're here! Having one more person around makes it a bit less nerve-wracking."
Daigan gave Kankuro a disdainful look. "Are you trying to drag me into this? Forget the fact that I'm not your brother-in-law yet—even if I were, using me as a shield is just shameless."
"You call me 'little brother-in-law' so smoothly when you don't need anything, but the moment I ask for a small favor, you change your tune?" Kankuro grumbled under his breath. "I'm not asking you to provoke Gaara, just to share some of the pressure..."
"You call this a small favor? Right now, I'm just a stranger to Gaara. If I were actually his brother-in-law, maybe he'd go a little easier on me. But parading in front of him now is just asking for death." Daigan swatted away Kankuro's outstretched hand. "If you really can't take it, come find me for a chat. I can give you a breather, but that's all I can do."
Daigan had no intention of getting close to Gaara until Uzumaki Naruto defeated him and made him see reason. Who knew if he'd be the next one to get casually crushed? Daigan understood the principle of not standing under a collapsing wall.
"Besides, son of the Fourth Kazekage, unlike you, who had Gaara clearing the path and didn't even break a sweat, my team had to fight tooth and nail to get here. We're exhausted. Shouldn't you let me rest first?"
"As if I don't know you," Kankuro scoffed. "As long as you don't run into one of the two or three really strong teams, who could possibly give you trouble? If you wanted to, you could have been here last night. Did you stir up some trouble you couldn't handle and had to run here?"
"Nothing of the sort! I just had a friendly exchange with some interesting people. You think too poorly of me."
As they chatted, there was another commotion from the entrance.
"Someone else is here? It's a busy night."
Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari had arrived before dark yesterday and had waited until nearly dawn the next day before Team 8 finally straggled in as the second qualifying team. The entire day had been silent, the atmosphere suffocatingly tense.
Before long, three familiar figures walked in: Lady Saya, her sister Sana, and Shira, who were only participating in the exam because of Daigan's influence.
"Another Sand team, and it's Saya's group," Kankuro said, his expression complicated.
"All children of privilege. It seems you and Temari don't get along with Saya."
"It's not just Saya and Sana. Our family doesn't get along with the children of most faction leaders." There were reasons of factional strife, as well as disagreements over the One-Tailed Shukaku and the choice of its jinchuriki. Gaara's frequent loss of control had made many of Sunagakure's higher-ups question Rasa's stubbornness, which naturally affected the relationships of the next generation of Sand Ninja. If not for the support of Chiyo and Ebizo, Rasa's position as Kazekage might not be so secure.
"Hey, I don't think Saya's anger is directed at me," Kankuro whispered as a warning.
"She's a lady. She needs to vent every day. Don't worry, you get used to it..."
The words had barely left his mouth when a scroll came flying at his face. Daigan, with his quick reflexes, snatched it out of the air.
Lady Saya, radiating pure fury, stormed up to him. "This fake scroll... you made this, didn't you?"
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