If the Hidden Sand Village could shine brilliantly during the Chūnin Exams, many clients would likely choose to post missions there, improving their struggling economy.
Yet prosperity often hides danger.
Dependence on outside support could cause Sunagakure to gradually lose clarity about its own situation.
Relying on external aid would always remain reliance on external aid.
If one day those clients stopped coming, the Sand Village would fall right back into its original hardship.
Only by strengthening its own foundation and improving overall strength could it truly escape dependence on others' goodwill.
At last, the day of the Chūnin Exams arrived.
After the first written test concluded, all participating genin successfully advanced to the second round.
Naturally, the second round took place in the Forest of Death, just like in the original format—
the Heaven and Earth Scrolls.
The moment the examinees stepped into the Forest of Death, the scent of blood already lingered in the air.
The forest was equipped with numerous surveillance cameras.
The Five Kage and their guards observed the entire event from the monitoring room inside the central tower.
Once inside, the Konoha teams moved rapidly deeper into the forest, constantly searching for fellow Konoha ninja to regroup with.
Team Eight—Hinata, Kiba, and Shino—quickly rendezvoused with Team Ten, consisting of Shikamaru, Chōji, and Ino.
Meanwhile, Team Three—Neji, Rock Lee, and Tenten—had already seized the Earth Scroll they needed from another squad and were heading swiftly toward the central tower.
Along the way, Neji used the Byakugan to scan the surroundings.
Several times, he detected ambushes in advance.
Thanks to their flawless teamwork, the trio avoided unnecessary battles and conserved their strength.
Midway through their journey, Team Three encountered Team One—
the squad of Karin, Jūgo, and Kimimaro.
The moment the two teams made contact, Neji's expression suddenly changed.
"Southwest direction—six ninja!
They're from Kumogakure!"
As his warning rang out, several shuriken shot toward them at extreme speed from the southwest, slicing through the air with sharp whistles.
Kimimaro snorted coldly.
His bones instantly hardened as he extended both hands, ten fingers aimed forward, preparing to use Ten-Finger Piercing Bullets.
But Neji leapt high into the air, spinning rapidly.
"Rotation!"
The incoming shuriken were deflected in all directions.
The instant Neji landed, the six Cloud ninja had already closed the distance.
Their leader grinned viciously and swung his blade toward Kimimaro's neck, the strike swift and lethal.
"Watch out!" Tenten shouted, quickly pulling a scroll from her waist.
But another Cloud ninja had already rushed toward her side, forming hand seals.
Forced to retreat a step, Tenten pressed her hand onto the scroll.
With a burst of smoke, hundreds of kunai and shuriken erupted outward in a storm.
The Cloud ninja's pupils shrank in shock.
He never expected a mere genin to possess such a valuable sealing scroll.
He immediately altered his hand signs.
Lightning gathered before him, forming a shield that barely blocked the sudden barrage.
At the same time—another Cloud ninja's blade struck Kimimaro's neck.
Clang.
A crisp sound rang out.
Neji and Lee turned in surprise.
Kimimaro's head had not fallen.
Instead, the attacker stared in horror.
"How is that possible?!"
His sword was lodged in Kimimaro's neck bone—
unable to cut any deeper.
Kimimaro calmly extended his fingers.
Ten bone spikes burst through flesh and shot forward, piercing straight through the man's chest.
Blood sprayed outward.
The Cloud ninja's eyes widened as he stared down at the ten holes in his torso.
He collapsed, lifeless.
The remaining Cloud ninja trembled.
Though they were not quite at chūnin level, they were still stronger than ordinary genin.
Yet in a single exchange—
their comrade had been killed effortlessly.
Neji's gaze sharpened instantly.
He locked onto another Cloud ninja nearby.
Dropping into a low stance, he thrust forward.
The opponent reacted quickly, forming hand seals.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
A bolt of lightning shot toward Neji.
He twisted sideways to evade it and shouted:
"Gentle Fist — Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms!"
The Cloud ninja drew a short blade and rushed into close combat.
But he had forgotten one thing—
no one specialized in close combat more than the Hyūga clan.
Neji struck the man's wrist with a precise palm.
The Cloud ninja felt his entire arm go numb.
His weapon slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground.
"Two palms…
Four palms…
Eight palms…
Sixteen palms…
Thirty-two palms…
Sixty-four palms!"
With the final strike to the abdomen, the Cloud ninja spat blood and was blasted backward, slamming into a tree.
He died instantly.
Lee's figure shot forward like an arrow.
His speed left afterimages across the ground.
Leaping into the air, he swung his leg with crushing force toward a fourth Cloud ninja.
The opponent's half-formed hand seal was interrupted.
His body flew like a kite with a cut string, crashing heavily into the earth.
Lee landed without pause.
Planting his hands on the ground, he spun and kicked the man again as he tried to rise.
Lee's eyes were fierce.
He raised his leg high, gathering all his strength into a single strike.
"Leaf Gale!"
With a thunderous shout, the ground cracked.
The Cloud ninja's head smashed into a rock—
and he died on the spot.
"Tenten, get back!"
Just as Tenten was still locked in combat, Karin suddenly shouted.
Tenten immediately rolled to the side.
Karin leapt into the air, took a deep breath—
and released a cloud of pink poisonous mist from her mouth.
The toxic fog spread instantly across the battlefield.
Its sickly sweet stench was nauseating.
The moment the Cloud ninja inhaled the poison, their faces twisted in agony.
Their pupils dilated.
Their limbs convulsed—
and they collapsed.
Tenten's eyes widened.
She had never expected Karin to specialize in poison.
After all, the two of them barely knew each other.
When she saw the toxic mist drifting toward her, she panicked and ran, terrified of being caught in it.
Meanwhile, Jūgo acted with brutal simplicity.
His body shot forward like a cannonball.
He slammed headfirst into the last two Cloud ninja.
One man's chest collapsed instantly, his organs shattered.
Before the other could react, Jūgo spun and delivered a crushing elbow strike to his neck.
Crack.
The bone snapped audibly.
Their faces flushed red, then turned gray.
Both lost all signs of life.
The air grew thick with the heavy smell of blood.
The battle had ended swiftly—
and mercilessly.
"Whew… thank you," Tenten said softly after the poison dispersed, wiping sweat from her forehead.
Karin waved her hand dismissively.
Her face looked slightly tired, but a faint smile appeared on her lips.
"It's nothing. We're all comrades."
She glanced at the scattered weapons littering the ground and added quietly:
"Though… your family must be really rich."
Tenten scratched her head awkwardly and gave an embarrassed laugh.
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