Sarutobi Hiruzen stepped forward, looking down at the gathered genin below.
"Today marks the final stage of the Chunin Exams!" he announced, his voice echoing through the arena.
"This round will be real combat! A head-to-head battle!"
He paused, sweeping his gaze across the competitors. His eyes lingered on Yuki Seisui and his team for a few seconds before continuing, "The matchups will be decided by random draw."
"Two genin will be selected for each match. The winner will advance and be promoted to Chunin!"
"The exam… begins now!"
This year's Chunin Exam rules were different from Naruto's generation, no "judging by performance." Victory alone decides promotion.
After speaking, Hiruzen gave Mitokado Homura a subtle nod.
Homura immediately understood. He gestured, and two Chunin carried a large electronic screen up to the stage.
Ah yes, the bizarre technology tree of the ninja world.
They had electronic displays, yet ordinary citizens still lived agricultural lives.
Truly… abstract.
"Here we go!"
Wow, my first time watching ninjas fight live!"
"Same here! They didn't have this before!"
"I wonder who's stronger compared to the ones I've seen before."
Excited chatter filled the viewing stands, anticipation, awe, even fear. But none of it stopped the matches from beginning.
Yuki Seisui tilted his head up toward the display, then said lazily to Minato without turning around,
"Wonder who you two will get. But if either of you run into Ai, you'll just have to watch me become Chunin."
He had originally thought the exam judged overall performance. Turns out, it was all about winning.
Which meant… the results would be simple and brutal.
Strong or not, if you faced someone even stronger, you were out.
As Seisui thought that, the names on the electronic screen began to spin, then stopped.
"Uchiha Haru vs. Mikami Ruri!"
Seeing her name pop up first, Uchiha Haru froze for a moment before silently jumping into the arena.
Her opponent, also a girl, looked about fourteen or fifteen, clearly older than Haru.
Once both had taken their positions, Sakumo Hatake appeared between them.
"Begin."
With that single word, he vanished.
"Tch, just my luck to run into her first!" Ruri gritted her teeth. Of course she remembered Uchiha Haru, or more precisely, she remembered the day Yuki Seisui blocked the academy gates with her standing right beside him. Everyone did.
"I'll definitely become a Chunin!" she muttered, hurling three shuriken straight at Haru.
But Haru didn't move. She just frowned slightly and stood there.
"Huh?" Ruri's eyes widened, then she burst into laughter.
"Ha! So it's all an act, hiding behind others' fame!"
She grinned wildly and began forming hand seals. "Die!"
She never got the chance to finish.
In one smooth motion, Haru drew her blade, a fiery arc slashed through the air, blazing straight toward Ruri.
The flame blade was fast, too fast. Ruri hadn't even released her jutsu before it reached her.
As the fiery edge closed in, her pupils shrank. Time seemed to slow.
Am I… really going to die here?
But before the attack struck, Sakumo reappeared, slicing through the flame with one swift motion.
"Match over," he said coolly. "Uchiha Haru, victory."
"Thank you." Haru bowed slightly, then turned and calmly walked back to Seisui's side.
The stands erupted.
"That's a ninja for you!"
"As expected of the Uchiha Clan!"
"Unbelievable strength!"
Cheers exploded across the audience.
In the VIP seats, Uchiha Setsuna's wrinkled old face bloomed into a proud smile.
But then his gaze landed on Seisui, who was currently patting Haru's head.
Setsuna's expression froze… then darkened.
"Hmph!" he snorted, his face turning stormy in an instant.
Beside him, Uchiha Hahaku glanced over suspiciously. Is this old man seriously… a granddaughter-con?
"Damn that brat!" Setsuna muttered under his breath.
He had been the one who'd encouraged Haru to follow her heart and love boldly. But seeing it in person? His heart couldn't take it.
His precious little cabbage… was being stolen by a pig.
Meanwhile, the other matches continued, though Seisui and Minato's names hadn't come up yet.
Watching the battles below, Seisui couldn't help yawning.
These genin were… genuinely genin.
All close-combat, shuriken, kunai, almost no ninjutsu.
Still, in a way, that made them more disciplined than he was.
Even when he'd beaten up Minato before, he hadn't thrown a single jutsu.
While Seisui was half-asleep with boredom, the audience was the complete opposite, roaring with excitement.
Especially whenever two teenage girls fought, their clothes getting torn mid-battle, revealing glimpses of skin.
And with ninja physiques being what they were, well, enough said.
"Totally worth the price of admission!"
"Right? I'm coming again next time!"
"Same here!"
"Then I'll see you next time too!"
The noisy conversation made Seisui tilt his head, exhaling lazily.
"When's it gonna be my turn?"
As if on cue, the display changed.
"Namikaze Minato vs. Pakura!"
"Minato, you're up!" Uchiha Haru called out, snapping Minato from his deep thoughts.
He adjusted his forehead protector, double-checked his ninja tools, and leapt into the arena.
Pakura was already waiting. Seeing Minato land, she frowned.
"This time, I won't lose to you!"
She still hadn't forgotten being crushed by Minato and Haru during the Forest of Death.
Minato smiled. He reached into his pouch and pulled out two three-pronged kunai, gripping them in reverse.
When Sakumo appeared between them again, his eyes briefly fell on the weapons, and then on Pakura.
There was pity in his gaze.
Still, pity or not, duty came first.
"Begin."
He vanished again.
Minato moved instantly, two wind blades slashing forward before his kunai flew through the air.
He formed seals in a blur.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A violent gust roared from his mouth, sweeping toward Pakura.
Then, Minato disappeared.
In the blink of an eye, he reappeared beside his thrown kunai, slashing at Pakura with precision.
The entire sequence was so fast that even the spectators barely followed.
"Holy, ! That's a genin from Konoha?!"
"So strong!"
"No wonder they call Konoha the greatest of the Five Villages!"
A wave of voices filled the arena, praising Konoha.
Behind Hiruzen, Danzo smiled faintly, satisfied.
But the other Kage looked anything but amused.
"Well, well," the Third Kazekage said with a cold grin. "Quite the show, Lord Third."
Onoki snorted. "Indeed. No wonder you became Hokage so suddenly, what a politician."
Even the Raikage chimed in, though he clearly had no idea what was going on. "Konoha's really good at putting on a display, huh!"
Hiruzen wanted to curse.
He knew exactly who was behind this, Danzo.
He liked the man's cunning, but not his sloppiness.
Couldn't he have used a few normal civilians to start the applause?
Placing chakra-rich ninja in the crowd was like shining a flashlight among fireflies, blindingly obvious!
Damn it, Danzo!
While Hiruzen tried to save face, Danzo folded his arms smugly.
"About time the old man took the blame for once."
Inwardly, he sneered. Go on, explain yourself, Hiruzen. Either they fight you now and I take the seat, or you owe me later. Win-win.
His gaze shifted back to the arena.
"What a talent… on par with Yuki Seisui himself," he murmured, shaking his head.
A pity Minato refused to join Root. Otherwise, with him and Seisui under his command, Danzo would already have a future Hokage lineup ready.
A fine dream, if only it weren't just that.
Meanwhile, in the ring, Pakura rolled aside to dodge the oncoming wind blades, then clapped her hands together.
Four balls of flame burst into existence, orbiting her body.
She sent one hurling toward Minato.
He threw a kunai straight through it, and just as the fireball neared him, he vanished again, reappearing beside the spinning blade.
The Flying Raijin Jutsu, though clearly unrefined.
Right now, Minato could only teleport once per mark, and his movements were easy to track.
Perfect for dodging, not attacking.
"When did he learn Flying Raijin?" Seisui asked in shock.
"Probably just a few days ago," Haru replied. "You can tell he's still clumsy with it, too many openings."
Seisui watched closely, thinking back to his own training.
He'd had the scroll for almost half a year now…
"Guess it's about time I learned it too," he muttered.
Then smirked.
"Minato's really talented… just a little worse than me."
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