Makoto wasn't releasing any sort of pressure.
Yet standing before him, Orochimaru felt something even more terrifying than facing the so-called god within the organization.
When facing Pain, he still dared to covet those eyes in the depths of his mind. But in front of Higashino Makoto, even the thought of resisting was difficult to muster.
It wasn't cowardice.
It was an indescribable kind of suppression.
Orochimaru found this new discovery extremely interesting and couldn't help running his tongue around his lips.
Instead of answering whether he minded, Makoto asked, "Have you discovered something new again?"
At the mention of that, Orochimaru visibly grew more excited.
"Yes. After so many years of investigation, I discovered a secret."
"All of the ancient ninja clans in the shinobi world today seem to originate from a common bloodline—the legendary wielder of the Rinnegan: the Sage of Six Paths."
"For example?"
"For example, the Uchiha Clan, the nearly extinct Chinoike Clan, the Senju and Uzumaki Clans with only a few members remaining, as well as the Hyūga Clan, the Kaguya Clan, and so on."
Makoto thought: You're not tracing the origins of that old Sage at all—you're tracing the origins of his mother.
"So, since you can't get your hands on the Rinnegan, you're planning to cultivate a body capable of growing one yourself?"
"But doesn't that make it exciting?"
"It certainly does. However, Orochimaru-senpai, have you ever considered why you alone keep discovering secrets nobody else knows?"
"You should know that aside from you, we in Konoha also have archaeological departments researching these things. Other ninja villages and even the ordinary world have similar organizations as well."
"It's almost as if someone deliberately placed those things there, waiting for you to decipher them. Is it possible that there has always been a hand behind the scenes pushing you forward?"
Orochimaru answered indifferently, "Indeed, I've had that feeling as well. It's rather similar to Jiraiya, that fool. Mount Myōboku has always been pushing him to search for the so-called Child of Prophecy."
"But what does it matter?"
"I simply don't care. As long as I can achieve my goals, I'd even thank whatever existence is behind it all."
"Then you'd better be careful. Otherwise, the final result of your research may end up being easily controlled by someone else."
"Thank you for the warning. I'll be careful."
"No need to thank me. What surprises me more is that you're still in that organization. I thought you would've defected."
"Why would I defect? The organization is very free, and it provides everything my research requires. Many of those ancient texts and records were even found by them."
"But you still have to complete missions for them, right? So then, aside from obtaining some Uchiha and Uzumaki cells, what other purpose did you have in coming to Konoha this time?"
Orochimaru sold out the Akatsuki without hesitation.
"Of course. My other objective was to investigate information regarding Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchūriki. The organization's next phase is to capture all the tailed beasts."
"What a dangerous organization. Is your group planning to use the tailed beasts to rule the world?"
Orochimaru smiled faintly.
"Who knows? But it sounds quite interesting. The shinobi world has been too peaceful lately. I'm starting to find it uncomfortable."
"It certainly is interesting."
Interesting enough that the whole thing was basically just a family drama about a dutiful child trying to save his mother while also helping said mother blow away the life's work of her two sons.
It had absolutely nothing to do with ruling the world.
...
The second exam had originally been scheduled to last five days.
During those five days, the examinees needed to gather both the Heaven and Earth Scrolls, prevent others from stealing them, and find a way to reach the central tower within the forest in order to pass.
Throughout the process, the exam tested a wide range of abilities: intelligence gathering, squad combat, protection of important items, concealment of movements, wilderness survival, and more.
The exam period began at noon on the 1st and ended at noon on the 6th.
After finishing the written exam on the 1st, the examinees were immediately dragged into the Forest of Death by the proctor, Mitarashi Anko, without even being given a single meal. Any supplies they needed during the exam would have to be obtained within the forest itself.
Any team that failed to arrive at the central tower before noon on the 6th—or arrived without gathering both the Heaven and Earth Scrolls—would automatically fail.
But the way things developed far exceeded Konoha's expectations.
This Chūnin Exam had gathered participants from nine ninja villages, including all Five Great Ninja Villages, and from the very beginning, the competition was exceptionally fierce. Battles erupted constantly.
Every village grouped together against outsiders. If possible, they would seize as many scrolls as they could. If not, they would at least ensure that one squad from their own village could pass the exam.
As the host village, Konohagakure had the largest number of participants.
And naturally, they became the primary target of every other village.
Because once Konoha's teams successfully grouped together, everyone else would lose their qualification.
So the longer things dragged on, the more disadvantageous it became for the other ninja villages.
After an entire afternoon and one full night of fighting and competition, the second exam ended ahead of schedule—four and a half days earlier than originally planned.
In the end, nine teams successfully passed and earned the qualifications to enter the third round.
Konoha alone accounted for more than half of them: Team 3 from the previous year, along with this year's Teams 7, 8, 9, and 10.
All of Konoha's Rookie Fifteen made it through, which was entirely within Makoto's expectations.
If they still couldn't suppress their peers after training under him for so many years, then he wouldn't be blamed for smashing their heads in himself.
All of Konoha's remaining teams had been eliminated.
It could only be said that people truly couldn't be compared equally. The fact that the Rookie teams had managed to stand out in the original timeline already proved they possessed ninja talent far beyond ordinary people.
The remaining four squads were:
Sunagakure's Gaara squad. Though the panda-eyed boy had a violent temper, his strength was unquestionable. Temari and Kankurō were also among the few outstanding representatives that rundown village of Sunagakure could still produce.
Kumogakure's Omoi squad. Their Lightning Release nin-taijutsu ranked among the very best even within Kumogakure.
Kirigakure's Haku squad. There was no need to question the little pretty boy's strength. Hōzuki Suigetsu had mastered his clan's secret techniques, while the remaining member was named Chōjūrō—the future Sixth Mizukage.
The final team belonged to Takigakure's Fū squad. The young girl was a Jinchūriki, so her strength was naturally not a problem, and she excelled at concealment. As for Kegon and Yōrō, they were less teammates and more bodyguards.
No Iwagakure.
No Iwagakure.
No Iwagakure.
Important things had to be said three times.
They had been completely wiped out.
Ōnoki was probably crying himself unconscious in the bathroom. Nobody knew whether the old man would become so furious after hearing the news that he'd directly cancel his plans to come to Konoha.
...
Because this Chūnin Exam was primarily intended to directly showcase strength, the original third-stage team battles had been changed into individual matches.
But that created another problem: there were too many participants. That would severely drag out the duration of the third exam.
If this were merely an internal Konoha Chūnin selection, it wouldn't matter. But this time, the other four Kage might all come to spectate, and it was impossible to keep them lingering around the arena for too long.
So after discussions with the leaders accompanying the other ninja villages, they decided to cut the number of participants in half first.
Inside the central tower, the chief examiner for the third stage appeared ahead of schedule.
Gekkō Hayate lightly drifted down from the upper platform, displaying exceptionally refined control over Wind Release chakra.
"Cough, cough!"
He was no longer the kidney-deficient man from his childhood. The cough was merely to attract everyone's attention.
"Everyone, congratulations on passing the second selection round and entering the third stage. I am the examiner for this stage, Gekkō Hayate."
"This third exam will use one-on-one battles. However, since a few too many people passed the second exam, we now need to hold preliminary individual matches. Before that, does anyone wish to withdraw?"
No one withdrew.
As for Kabuto? He hadn't participated in the Chūnin Exam at all. The Dream Fulfillment Master now worked during the day at Konoha Hospital and the research institute, then returned to the orphanage after work to help Mama Nonō take care of the children.
The twenty-seven people standing below looked at one another.
Now, there were no squads here anymore.
Everyone was each other's opponent.
Kiba raised his hand and asked, "Hayate-senpai, there are twenty-seven people right now. What happens to the last person?"
"The person without an opponent advances automatically."
"Eh? Isn't that a bit unfair?"
Hayate smiled.
"No, it's perfectly fair. Luck is also a kind of strength."
"That works too?"
The genin began whispering among themselves. Quite a few hoped they would become the lucky one to advance directly, though people like Sasuke and Gaara were the complete opposite.
One enjoyed the thrill of battle.
The other enjoyed the thrill of killing.
Seeing that nobody else had questions, Hayate explained the rules of the preliminary matches before continuing: "Then next, your opponents will be decided by the electronic screen behind me."
"Those whose names are selected will remain here. Everyone else may return to the spectator stands around the arena."
Hearing this, everyone held their breath and stared fixedly at the constantly flashing names on the screen above.
Those full of confidence wished they could be the very first to fight.
Those who had heavily exhausted their chakra during the earlier scroll battles instead hoped to fight as late as possible so they could recover more time.
Suddenly, the screen stopped.
The names displayed were:
Uchiha Sasuke VS Kegon.
Sasuke looked somewhat disappointed.
Because this was not the opponent he wanted.
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