Chapter 432: Place Your Bets Safely, Gamble with Peace of Mind
"The best way to get to know each other is to have a spar." — Great Ancestor Uzumaki
The small grove suffered once again, left completely in ruins after several consecutive battles.
However, none of the fights resulted in a clear winner. Every time the battle reached a critical climax, Masahiko would step in to stop them, letting them get a rough gauge of each other's abilities. Truly determining a winner might damage their harmonious relationships...
"Is there anyone else who wants to spar?"
The children exchanged glances, their eyes naturally shifting toward the four who hadn't made a move yet—Kimimaro, Haku, Karin... and Sakura.
"Those three are Jonin from our Land of Whirlpools," Masahiko reminded them, hinting that they shouldn't look for a thrashing. "Sakura?"
Sakura's face warped in misery. Fight who? She couldn't beat any of them... Was she supposed to fight Naruto?
Right at that moment, Haku spoke up softly: "Naruto, I hear your progress has been very rapid?"
Naruto blinked: "Yeah!"
Karin curled her lip: "Still just a weak little brat. Haku, you don't actually want to fight him, do you?"
Haku offered a sweet smile: "Naruto, we've never actually crossed hands before."
"Crossing hands with Big Sister Haku?" Naruto muttered under his breath before quickly puffing out his chest. "Let's do it!"
Masahiko scratched his head, feeling a bit bewildered, but he didn't stop them. In any case, it was impossible for Haku to truly hurt Naruto...
"Demonic Mirror Ice Crystals!"
The corner of Masahiko's mouth twitched. It's just sparring with Naruto, did you really need to go that far?
Shrouded by the ice mirrors, the crowd outside completely lost sight of the two figures within. They could only perk up their ears to listen, but all they heard was...
"Ah! Big Sister Haku! Don't! It's so cold! It tickles! Hahaha..." Naruto's voice drifted out.
Masahiko's expression instantly became highly eccentric. Fortunately, the children around them were all very pure-minded and didn't overthink things...
Only Karin was mature for her age, her face flushing slightly as she mumbled: "What on earth is Haku doing in there?"
A moment later, the ice mirrors shattered and vanished. Haku flashed back to the group with a sweet smile, casting an apologetic look toward Masahiko.
Masahiko waved a hand: "A minor matter."
Looking back at Naruto, the boy was currently splayed out on the ground in tattered clothes, a thoroughly weary look on his face.
Sakura initially wanted to go over and apply some medical ninjutsu on him, but as she drew closer, she knit her brows slightly. She felt as though Naruto looked completely different somehow...
"Pfft! Naruto, your eyebrows..."
Naruto raised a hand to touch his face, and his sense of existential dread deepened. His eyebrows... were completely gone!
"Why, Big Sister Haku..."
To this day, Naruto still had no idea what he had done wrong. With his brain, it was fundamentally impossible for him to remember that he had deeply offended someone two months ago...
"Don't lose heart, Naruto. Shaved eyebrows will always grow back," Masahiko offered a word of comfort, even providing an excellent suggestion: "Why don't you lower your forehead protector a bit? Wearing it on your forehead makes you look silly anyway, so you might as well use it to cover your eyebrows!"
Hearing this, Naruto raised a hand and yanked his forehead protector downward.
"Is there anyone else who wants to spar?"
...
Time flew by, and the days passed like a shuttle. The next morning, at the Ichiraku Ramen shop, Masahiko sat facing Kimimaro's trio as they ate breakfast.
"Great Elder, is there a particular reason you called us here this time?" Karin asked softly.
Masahiko nodded: "Kimimaro has a small mission. You and Haku are just tagging along."
"Lord God, a mission?" Kimimaro looked up.
"No rush, we'll talk about it after the Chunin Exams conclude."
Masahiko was planning to take Naruto and Sasuke to the Final Valley for a duel after the Chunin Exams to see if he could mooch some Witness Points. If it worked, he would then arrange a match between Kimimaro and Gaara...
The Land of Whirlpools' newly promoted S-rank ninja, Kaguya Kimimaro, could likely instantly defeat Gaara, which would serve perfectly for a complete alteration...
Masahiko pondered for a moment, then raised an eyebrow: "Did you notice Hoshino Uchiha from the squad I'm leading yesterday, Haku?"
Haku paused: "That girl?"
Masahiko smirked: "Not bad, you can tell she's a girl at a single glance?"
Haku smiled sweetly and didn't reply.
Karin, however, was quite surprised: "Is that a girl? No wonder she looked a bit awkward to me..."
"You're a girl yourself, so how could she not be? She's much cuter than you!"
Karin remained completely unfazed. After all these years, she had long since developed an immunity to Masahiko's 'personal attacks'.
"Kimimaro-kun, after we finish eating, let's go stroll around Konoha Village together! It's been so long since we last came!"
Kimimaro looked up toward Masahiko.
Seeing Karin's pleading gaze, Masahiko let out a chuckle and shook his head: "Go ahead, you two. Haku will have to come with me in a bit to act as an assistant instructor."
Karin was ecstatic in her mind: Beautifully done!
...
Time slipped away, and the month of May in Konoha Year 60 drew to a close. Three days later, on June 1st—Children's Day—the Chunin Exams were set to officially begin.
Ninjas from the Hidden Sand, Hidden Grass, Hidden Waterfall... and even the Hidden Sound Village had arrived one after another.
"To think the Hidden Sound Village is actually participating. I certainly didn't invite Orochimaru to perform. Given Konoha's current lineup, he shouldn't dare to cause trouble either... Is it purely a standard exam?" Masahiko didn't even believe his own words.
However, his focus was very quickly pulled toward another matter. A type of item called 'Ninja Info Cards' was circulating through the streets of Konoha. The source was a small stall located in Konoha's bustling commercial district, and the stall owner was none other than Kabuto Yakushi!
"Selling brief data on the Chunin Exam candidates, all proceeds will be entirely donated to the Konoha Orphanage..." Masahiko muttered aloud with great interest.
That troublemaker Kushina had previously snatched 300 million Ryo in bank notes from Masahiko to donate to the Konoha Orphanage. Now, branches of this orphanage had opened across the entire Land of Fire.
No matter how much money one had, there would come a day when it ran out. Kabuto was clearly out here trying to generate some income... and by the looks of it, business was quite booming.
"Kabuto, where exactly did you scrounge up all this data?" Masahiko asked with a beaming smile.
"Ah, Senior! Are you looking to donate money again?" Kabuto looked quite welcoming upon seeing Masahiko...
Masahiko's face darkened: "Right now, your orphanage is far wealthier than I am. How about donating some to me?"
Kabuto pushed up his glasses: "You jest, Senior. Many children have graduated from the orphanage, and some have entered the Ninja Academy, becoming classmates with these exam candidates. Thus, gathering data is fairly manageable. The data on foreign villages is rather crude, however... would it be convenient for you to help me supplement it?"
Masahiko didn't take the bait. Instead, he raised an eyebrow: "Is there any data on me?"
Kabuto paused: "I only dare to sell data on the participating children here. As for others... though, I do happen to have your data here."
Kabuto pulled a card from his vest and handed it to Masahiko. Masahiko rubbed it slightly with his thumb, and the text revealed itself, containing only a few short lines: Masahiko Uzumaki, Great Elder of the Land of Whirlpools, Age 100+, Strength Unknown, The Strongest Man in the World...
Masahiko fell silent for a moment. Having received such praise, he should be happy, but he felt a bit awkward instead.
The new era doesn't have a ship capable of carrying this old man?
After a brief contemplation, Masahiko handed the card back: "Go ahead and sell it. Thanks to your reminder, I just remembered a business venture I can start!"
Kabuto: ???
Half an hour later.
Directly across from Kabuto, another stall was set up: Chunin Exam Results Betting!
Winner: Tenten 1 to 1.1, Toneri Otsutsuki 1 to 1.2, Gaara 1 to 1.3...
Runner-up: ...
Masahiko looked at the utterly dumbfounded Kabuto, then at the curious pedestrians gathering around, and shouted with a face full of grins: "Come one, come all! The Great Ancestor is hosting the bank! Place your bets safely, gamble with peace of mind!"
Internally, however, he was muttering: Orochimaru, you better actually show up and stir up some unexpected chaos, so this dealer can sweep the board completely clean...
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