Chapter 202 Joint Chunin Exams
After being left standing there by the Raikage, Takagi Seiwan's face twitched slightly. But his greatest strength was his flexibility; despite being humiliated by A, Takagi Seiwan simply chuckled to himself, withdrew his hand, and followed.
While the leaders of many ninja villages who had come to participate in the Joint Chunin Exams gathered together, the Konoha genin were also preparing for the exams.
Inside the Hatake residence, Naruto, who already knew that only one of his three brothers could become a Chunin, felt unusually anxious. He increased his training intensity daily and also consulted his older brother, who lived at home, for the secrets of the Chunin Exams.
Deidara didn't have any good advice for Naruto. After all, Onoki didn't want Naruto to embarrass himself outside the village. The Chunin Exams he took to become a Chunin weren't like the Joint Chunin Exams this time; he just threw in a bunch of random attacks and made it to the end, securing his Chunin spot. So, he really couldn't offer Naruto any reliable advice.
"How about you bring some of the explosives I developed?" Deidara said, wiping his mouth after finishing his ramen soup.
"That doesn't seem like it'll work," Naruto said, unusually smart this time. "The Tsuchikage is in the village. If I use the explosives you give me, wouldn't I expose you?"
"You're right. Well, then I can only offer you my moral support," Deidara patted his little brother on the shoulder. "Go for it! Believe in yourself!"
"Okay! Let's surpass Sasuke, starting with becoming a Chunin before him!" Naruto slammed his fist on his palm, full of confidence.
Uchiha clan compound, Fugaku residence.
After finishing his training, Sasuke returned home, greeted his mother Mikoto who was still busy in the kitchen, and then went alone to the room where Itachi Uchiha's portrait was displayed. After offering three incense sticks for Itachi, Sasuke gazed at his brother's photo for a while, then slowly said, "Brother, in a few days I'll become a Chunin. Although I can't compare to how quickly you became a Jonin at my age, I'm on the right path now. You're in the Pure Land, watching me write my story."
After leaving the room with Itachi's portrait, Sasuke saw Fu leaning against the wall in the hallway.
"The Chunin Exams are coming up soon, haven't you done any special training?" Fu asked with a smile.
"With my strength, getting that Chunin spot is a piece of cake," Sasuke said.
"Is that so?" Fu said, "Since you're so confident, I won't tell you the information about your teammates that Chongming told me."
"What did your teammates tell you?" Sasuke frowned slightly.
"Call me 'sister' and I'll tell you!" Fu said with a grin.
"Fine, don't tell me then." Sasuke shrugged. The information Fu mentioned about his teammate was nothing more than information about Naruto and Kurama. He also knew that tailed beasts could communicate with each other remotely.
"You're really not cute!" Fu said irritably.
However, although Fu didn't achieve her goal of getting Sasuke to call her 'sister,' she still shared the information Chongming had given him with Sasuke.
"Fine, for Aunt Mikoto's sake, I'll tell you. Your teammate and his tailed beast companion have reached a certain consensus, so he can use Kurama's power to a certain extent."
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"So what? Our clan's Sharingan naturally has a natural advantage against the power of the Tailed Beasts," Sasuke said. "Besides, my genjutsu was personally taught by Shisui, and with my teacher…" Sasuke
stopped mid-sentence, realizing he might have said something wrong, and quickly shut his mouth.
"You were just trying to impress the Hokage with his genjutsu, weren't you? I've caught you red-handed," Fu chuckled.
"No, no, don't talk nonsense!" Sasuke immediately denied it three times in a row. Naruto had gotten beaten up a lot for this, and he didn't want to follow in Naruto's footsteps.
"Alright, I'm not teasing you anymore. While the Sharingan can counter Jinchuriki, your three-tomoe Sharingan can only handle imperfect Jinchuriki at best. Unless it's a Mangekyou Sharingan, its effectiveness against Jinchuriki is negligible if your Tailed Beast allies are willing to help," Fu reminded him. "So, you'd better prepare to go head-to-head with him."
Sasuke took a deep breath, a headache forming. A direct confrontation with Naruto was manageable; their taijutsu and ninjutsu skills were roughly equal. He had a slight advantage in shurikenjutsu and genjutsu, but now that genjutsu was ineffective, and Naruto had an extra advantage, defeating him seemed impossible without some strategy.
...
Hyuga Clan Territory.
After achieving their Hokage dream, the Uchiha clan abandoned their tradition of holding frequent clan meetings. Instead, the Hyuga clan's main branch elders have been holding these meetings for years, and the content has remained unchanged: the selection of the main and branch family heirs. With Neji already a foregone conclusion as the young clan head, the elders' intentions are clear: to put Hinata and Hanabi in the Caged Bird Seal.
Every so often, Hiashi and Neji, uncle and nephew, are questioned by these elders. The old men are still determined to put Hinata and Hanabi in the Caged Bird Seal, especially as the Chunin Exams approach. After all, if someone from the main branch escapes being placed in the Caged Bird Seal, the branch family members will become unsettled, hindering their management.
"Neji, now that you've become a Chunin, it's time to put your sisters in the Caged Bird Seal."
Inside the Hyuga clan's shrine, Neji knelt beside Hiashi Hyuga, the head of the clan, the two uncles remaining silent.
"That's right, their talents aren't outstanding. The Caged Bird Seal is a form of protection for them."
"Do you think I don't know whether the Caged Bird Seal is protection or confinement?" Neji raised his head, a cold smile on his face.
"Neji, this is a clan tradition. The Hyuga clan has been doing this for many years." An elder said impatiently. If Neji didn't have the status of being the Hokage's disciple, these people probably wouldn't have listened to him properly. But there was no way around it. After the last purge of the main branches, these remaining members clearly understood that in this village, although the ninja clans had a certain degree of autonomy, on some key issues, the Hokage still had the final say.
Therefore, they didn't dare to push Neji too far.
"Hehe, let me tell you the truth. Hinata is getting very close to my teammate, Naruto Uzumaki, the orphan of the Fourth Hokage
and the head of the Uzumaki clan. My uncle and I both agree to this marriage. I don't think I need to say more about what that means," Neji said. Although he was usually very unhappy that his younger sister was getting so close to that blond guy, at this moment, Neji felt that the blond guy's identity was actually quite useful as a shield.
Although Neji said those words, he didn't mention Naruto's most important identity as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. However, these old fogies seemed to understand his meaning. What were they trying to do by putting the Caged Bird Seal on the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's future partner? Were they trying to emulate Danzo's actions?
These old fogies decisively kept quiet about Hinata, but then one of them turned their gaze to Hyuga Hiashi. Hyuga Hiashi merely snorted coldly, a flash of killing intent crossing his eyes. What, he couldn't handle his eldest daughter, so he targeted his youngest? Did they really think Hyuga Hiashi had no temper? Although the great purge within the Hyuga clan was ordered by Uchiha Touko, he was the one who carried it out.
"Heh, Neji, good luck on your exam." After the group of elders chickened out, they could only laugh and end this farcical clan meeting.
"Neji, during the Chunin Exams, if possible, protect your sister." After the clan elders dispersed, Hiashi Hyuga sighed and then said to Neji.
"I will," Neji nodded. "However, Uncle, you should also trust Hinata more. After all, Hinata's Byakugan purity might even surpass mine."
...
Konoha, Training Ground 5. Rock
Lee, Karin, and Sakura Haruno entered the training ground led by Might Guy.
The three of them had formed a temporary team for this Chunin Exam.
They were all quite familiar with each other, so Rock Lee didn't do anything embarrassing like confessing his feelings during the exams as he usually does. Mainly, Sakura wasn't as meticulously groomed as she was in the original timeline. Faint dark circles lingered around her eyes, and her pink hair looked messy. The only thing she stubbornly insisted on was having bangs to cover her hairline.
Having received Tsunade's meticulous training since childhood, she had already mastered the basics of superhuman strength, and her Yin Seal had begun accumulating years ahead of schedule. Her current combat power far surpassed that of her timeline at this stage. However, this time, she no longer needed to chase after anyone.
"My name is Rock Lee. I specialize in taijutsu, and my dream is to become a great ninja solely through taijutsu," Rock Lee, dressed in a green bodysuit, said energetically.
Since the experience of the Three Pure Ones Training Corps, where an entire group of people in green bodysuits ran laps around the village, Konoha Village was much more accepting of the unusual attire of Might Guy and his apprentice.
"Everyone knows each other, so let's skip the self-introductions. I specialize in taijutsu and medical ninjutsu, yawn," Sakura said after yawning.
"Yeah, I specialize in sealing techniques, as you all know," Karin chimed in.
"If the three of us team up for the Chunin Exams, we should have no problem making it to the final round. Reaching the top four would be a success, right? That's the only task Tsunade gave me," Sakura said.
"You can even aim for the top four? As for me, I'd probably be pretty much in the top eight. I'm not yet proficient with my Adamantine Sealing Technique, and Isobu isn't really keen on communicating with me. I don't think I have a chance against him head-on. If I run into Sasuke and that idiot clan leader of mine earlier, even the top eight is uncertain
," Karin said. "Girls, if you think you'll lose before it even starts, that's not youth at all!" At that moment, Might Guy descended from the sky, standing in front of the three, grinning and giving a thumbs-up. "You all have immense potential. I believe you'll shine brightly in this Chunin Exams!"
"That's right! I'll definitely strive for the championship! Guy-sensei!" Lee suddenly became excited.
"This is youth! Lee!" Might Guy also suddenly became teary-eyed.
"Kai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
Karin and Sakura stared at the master and apprentice with black lines on their faces, beginning to doubt whether teaming up with them was the right thing to do.
...
Nara clan territory, the clan head's house, late at night, Nara Shikaku and Nara Shikamaru set up a chessboard. After a few moves, Shikaku looked at the chessboard situation, which was gradually falling into a disadvantageous position, and shook his head. His son was even more intelligent than him. He was only 12 years old, and he was already almost outmatched by him on the chessboard.
"What are your goals for this Chunin Exam?" Shikaku asked after making a move.
"No, Ino, Choji, and I have discussed it. We don't plan to get a ranking in this Chunin Exam. After entering the third round, we will all forfeit. Kakashi-sensei also agreed to this." Shikamaru said unhurriedly.
"The reason? Don't tell me it's because you're too lazy to play. If that's the reason, even if I don't do anything to you, your mother won't let you off the hook, and she'll teach me a lesson too." Nara Shikaku said.
"It's not time for the Ino-Shika-Cho trio to officially return to the ninja world's view yet," Shikamaru said. "According to intelligence from other forces in the ninja world, our Ino-Shika-Cho clan has been out of favor in Konoha for quite some time now. After all, you, Dad, were secretly working as an advisor to the Hokage."
Shikaku looked at his son, gesturing for him to continue: "In the past, during the Third Hokage's era, other villages were extremely cautious when dealing with Konoha because of the Nara clan. Now, our apparent loss of power is seen by other forces as Konoha crippling itself. This is a rare opportunity, a chance to sabotage our opponents in the future. So, it's just a Chunin Exam; it's not worth our three clans fully revealing our strength."
"Heh, as long as you know it. The future belongs to you young people. We old folks won't worry about these things."
...
Soon, the day of the first Chunin Exam arrived.
Because all the participants were skilled, Uchiha Touko didn't resort to any tricks that made Konoha seem petty. The first exam began directly.
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(End of this chapter)