Since the proctor had announced the result, the two examinees, Chiba and his opponent, were free to leave the arena and return to the spectator stands to watch the remaining matches.
My performance just now should be enough to pass, right? Chiba thought to himself.
Although the third exam was an elimination tournament, victory wasn't the sole criterion for passing. It was judged based on the examinee's overall performance during the fight.
"Hey. Regardless… thank you. For what you said earlier."
As Chiba walked alone towards the stands, Rasa spoke quietly to his retreating back.
"Yeah, sure. No problem."
Chiba waved a hand over his shoulder without looking back, not bothering to engage further, and was the first to leave the floor of the arena.
That dog Rasa was probably staying to cheer for Karura… Damn it. Chiba felt a pang of pure, undiluted jealousy for everyone who had a significant other.
And for those who had several? He wanted to be—no, he wanted to kill them!
"Chiba! Why didn't you kill him?! Why did you betray me?!"
However, just as Chiba entered the passage leading to the stands, before he'd even started climbing the stairs, a furious little gremlin stormed up to him, his face a mask of rage.
"Uh…"
Despite never having had a girlfriend, Chiba was suddenly struck with the visceral feeling of being caught cheating.
"I didn't! I haven't! Of course I did it all for you, Sasori!"
While he might have been clueless with women, dealing with kids? That was like second nature to him. He could talk his way out of anything.
Sasori: "???"
He stared coldly at Chiba. "Do you think I'm a child? Give me a reasonable explanation. Or else…"
"I really did it for you, Sasori!" Chiba declared with dramatic anguish. "Why else would I save some foreign-village bastard who tried to kill me?!"
"You said you wanted to turn Rasa into a puppet with your own hands. I remembered that! If I killed him here, right in front of the Third Kazekage, how could you ever make him your puppet? I left him for you, for the future! I was so worried he might die now and ruin the quality of your future work that I even forced myself to heal him a little, despite how much I hated it!"
Chiba's fabricated excuse was surprisingly logical. Sasori's expression softened noticeably.
It was true. Other than that, Chiba really had no reason to save Rasa.
"Hmph. That wasn't your concern. You should have killed him."
Sasori snorted, not bothering to lower his voice. "As for that annoying Third Kazekage… I'll turn him into a puppet eventually, too. The Sand Village doesn't need someone that awesome around."
"Ah, I see," Chiba scratched his head, feeling a strange sense of witnessing history.
Come to think of it, he was the one who taught Sasori the word 'awesome'. The kid must think pretty highly of him.
After patiently humoring Sasori for a few more moments, the little redhead finally left satisfied, even promising to gift Chiba two 'beautiful' puppets next time they met.
I wonder if our definitions of 'beautiful' are the same… Also, I'd prefer the kind with silicone parts…
Chiba had just breathed a sigh of relief when, after taking only two steps, he ran straight into Yuuhi Sekkō at a stairwell corner.
"Chiba! Your fight just now was incredible!"
Sekkō saw him and rushed over with a starry-eyed expression, immediately latching onto his arm and pressing herself against him. The soft, persistent pressure made his head spin.
"So annoying!" Chiba grumbled internally.
Before, he'd been annoyed by the lack of pretty girls paying him attention. Now, with Mitokado Tsuki and Yuuhi Sekkō constantly harassing him, he was more annoyed! These two clearly had agendas. He just wanted to keep his distance.
In the future, I need to find a girl who's straightforward like Lady Tsunade!
Well, her temper couldn't be as explosive as Lady Tsunade's. Someone gentle like Nawaki would be perfect… Huh?!
Chiba jolted.
What was wrong with him lately? Why did he keep using Lady Tsunade and Nawaki as benchmarks when thinking about relationships?
"Chiba, are you free tonight?" Sekkō asked, her cheeks flushed. "I was hoping you could come to my place… to check my wound. And maybe help apply some medicine."
No wonder she's being so clingy. Just wants to freeload my labor.
Chiba curled his lip in displeasure and pulled his arm free from her grasp. "Just go to the hospital. It won't cost much. Was it really necessary to come find me specifically for that?"
With that, he turned and continued up the stairs, leaving a dumbfounded Yuuhi Sekkō behind.
…
To avoid further trouble, Chiba cast a Transformation Jutsu on himself before finally taking the seat next to Nawaki and Tsunade.
"Chiba, what shady stuff did you do? Why the disguise?" Nawaki spotted him instantly, grinning as he teased.
"Don't ask. Ran into some troublesome people just walking up the stairs," Chiba replied gloomily.
"The famous fear the spotlight, the fat pig fears the scale. You, my friend, embody both."
"Get lost! You're the pig!"
As Chiba and Nawaki bickered, a man in Uchiha clan robes approached. He spoke to Chiba with notable respect. "Lord Chiba. Our young clan head would like a word."
In the past, the man would never have been so polite to an outsider kid. But now? Strength commanded respect anywhere.
"How did you recognize Chiba… Oh. Right. Sharingan," Nawaki muttered.
"Uchiha Fugaku? What does he want with Chiba?" Tsunade, who had been sitting nearby, turned a scrutinizing gaze on the Uchiha clansman.
"I know! I know!" Nawaki chirped up before either Chiba or the man could answer, a smug look on his face. "Fugaku-senpai wants to introduce Chiba to a pretty Uchiha girl! Chiba told me before!"
CRACK!
A sharp sound of rending metal echoed. Tsunade had just crushed the thick, arm-width iron railing in front of her.
Gulp.
Nawaki swallowed hard, looking at Tsunade's stormy expression. What had he said wrong this time?
"Lady Tsunade, we'll be right back. Don't want to keep Fugaku-nii waiting."
"Yeah! Right! Exactly!"
Chiba hastily stood up and fled the scene with the Uchiha clansman.
"Big sis! I, I… YAMEROOOOOO—!!!"
Nawaki's agonized scream echoed through the stands as Tsunade cracked her knuckles and advanced on him with an utterly blank face.
…
At the Uchiha clan's seating section.
The moment Chiba laid eyes on Uchiha Mikoto, he decided right then and there: Fugaku was a bro for life.
She was stunning. Only thirteen or fourteen, yet already so elegantly poised. The anime never truly captured that kind of serene, cool beauty she radiated.
"Come, come, Chiba, my friend! Let me introduce you. This is the Uchiha Mikoto you've been thinking about."
Fugaku ushered Chiba to sit beside Mikoto, using humor to break the ice between two people who hadn't met in years.
"Ah, Fugaku-nii, come on, you make it sound like…" Chiba was at a loss, a helpless look on his face. Bro, calm down. This is your future wife!
"That's right, Fugaku-nii. We were just classmates," Mikoto said with her usual gentle composure, though a keen observer might have noticed the faintest hint of red at the tips of her ears.
"Haha, my mistake," Fugaku laughed. "I'm just cramping your style here. I've got some things to attend to anyway. You two catch up properly. After the exams, let's have a meal together to celebrate Chiba's success."
Having played the perfect wingman, Fugaku's job was done. Time to disappear.
"Fugaku-nii, you…!"
Watching Fugaku walk away, Chiba felt mentally drained. He'd just finished a big fight. All he wanted was to rest! Why was everyone forcing him to socialize?!
But… if the company was Mikoto, then sitting here for a while… well, that wasn't so bad.
"Long time no see, Mikoto. If Fugaku-nii hadn't introduced us, I might not have recognized you. We've all grown up, but… your face looks even slimmer than it did back in school."
Chiba knew nothing about fancy pick-up lines. He just knew that starting with a compliment, cliché or not, was never wrong.
"Oh, really?" Mikoto instinctively touched her cheek, and the conversation flowed naturally from there.
As they talked, Mikoto found herself growing somewhat fond of Chiba. She hadn't expected this boy she barely remembered to be so unexpectedly witty and charming.
A boy who was handsome, powerful, and good with words? It was hard not to feel a spark of interest.
Chiba was enjoying the conversation too.
What he failed to notice was a young Uchiha man sitting not far behind them. His eyes were fixed on Chiba's back, a look that promised a death by a thousand cuts.
"Hmm?"
A sudden, prickling sense of danger made Chiba turn around.
His gaze met a pair of crimson Sharingan eyes.
Six inky black tomoe spun violently.
His mind went blank.
No… bad… I…
His thoughts slowed to a crawl, but in his fading consciousness, one clear realization surfaced.
I'm under a genjutsu!
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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