"The Mist Village is breaking tradition, and all Five Great Shinobi Villages are participating for the first time ever?"
Chiba heard Tsunade's words, and his heart tightened. Instinctive wariness prickled at his nerves.
This Chunin Exam… was it part of the original plot? Or a mutation caused by him, a little butterfly flapping its wings? Or… was it aimed directly at him?
Could it be Ōnoki, wanting Iwa-nin to kill me?
Could it be Madara Uchiha, using the Mist's hand to finish me off?
Could it be… huh. I don't think I've pissed off the Raikage or Kazekage.
After a mental storm, Chiba felt he might be overthinking it. Him participating in the Chunin Exams? No ordinary person could have predicted that.
Unaware of Chiba's paranoia, Tsunade raised another finger. "Third, because of the prolonged wars and the reasons I've mentioned, many who should have been promoted to Chunin long ago never got the chance. On paper, they're still Genin."
"In other words," she continued, "this exam is a mixed bag. All sorts of monsters are swimming in these waters. During the tests, you could run into someone with the skills of a Jōnin and it wouldn't be strange."
Chiba finally understood. This was just cutthroat competition—a fucking race to the bottom!
People already had Chunin, even Jōnin-level strength, but their villages withheld the title, insisting they were just "Genin." All to win some face in this stupid exam…
You're smurfing, I'm smurfing, and the bronze tier just turned into a Kage-level lobby.
Chiba shook his head internally. Tsunade was right. For various reasons, this Chunin Exam was going to be a spectacle.
No restrictions. Casualties allowed. The exam grounds wouldn't be a testing site—they'd be a battlefield where ninja from the great villages slaughtered each other.
The scarier part? Your opponents' lower limit was Chunin. Their upper limit? Didn't exist.
So why… do I feel excited?
Chiba stared at his own hands, confused. Where did this thrill come from? He was a peace-loving medical-nin!
"Chiba, I've told you everything. The decision is yours now." Tsunade paused. "…Chiba? Chiba?"
Chiba fell silent, and Tsunade thought he was hesitating, perhaps feeling pressured by her plans.
She stood, hooked a finger under his chin, and forced him to meet her gaze. Her eyes were serious. "Don't feel any pressure, Chiba. This exam is dangerous. One slip, and you're dead. Even if you choose not to go, I'll support you."
What she didn't say was that if Chiba backed out, her medical reform project would likely die before it was born. She'd poured her heart into it, and abandoning it now was a waste. But compared to Chiba? None of that mattered.
Chiba's face was on fire.
Can anyone relate?
Tsunade's hand cradled his chin. Their faces were inches apart. He could feel her breath on his skin, smell the faint, clean scent on her. And worse—she was leaning over him. His gaze dipped just slightly, and a devastating visual impact slammed into him.
"…How could I back out, Tsunade-nee?" Chiba said, forcing his eyes away with the sheer willpower of a lifetime singleton. "All your hard work would be for nothing."
The saying was true: the greater the storm, the more valuable the fish. The odds of finding a critically injured genius were much higher on a battlefield than in a hospital. And he had a few cards up his sleeve now. A little skirmish? Surviving shouldn't be a problem.
He really wanted in on this.
"Mmm~ Thank you for supporting me, Chiba!" Tsunade had no idea of his ulterior motives. To her, he was doing this for her.
Her eyes instantly glistened. Overwhelmed, she pulled him into a crushing hug.
"Mmph! Mmph! Tsunade-nee… can't… breathe!" Chiba struggled violently in her embrace, his voice muffled.
"What? Want to hug a little longer? Okay, sis will indulge you." She completely ignored his plea, her arms locked like steel vices.
First, you were sitting on my head, now you're force-hugging me… Let go already! Chiba thought with utter indignation.
…
The next day, at Chiba's place.
"Chiba, heard you're taking the Chunin Exam? Listen to your bro, the water's too deep here, you should—Holy shit!"
Nawaki had just vaulted onto Chiba's windowsill. The moment he saw what Chiba was doing, he stumbled and fell right off the window frame.
"The exam's a month away! You're already studying?!" Nawaki scrambled up from the floor, astonished.
"How provincial." Chiba held his book, shooting Nawaki a sidelong glance. So shortsighted.
Back in his homeland, people studied for exams one, three, even five years in advance. You little islanders were just weak.
"Chiba, just stay a Genin, man. Your bro won't look down on you," Nawaki said. His eyes held a flicker of worry, but his tone was deliberately casual.
"Piss off. Don't interrupt my studies!" Chiba shot back lazily, his eyes never leaving the page.
The first exam was written. Brutally hard for most. Chiba planned to wing it with some light review.
After a while, Nawaki piped up again. "Hey, it seems pretty lively outside lately. Way more people."
"Yeah. Konoha's hosting. They have to prepare," Chiba answered absently.
He seemed to be reading, but his mind was on the exam.
Beyond Shadow Dance, the Chakra Scalpel, and his various elemental jutsu, he had three trump cards.
The First Gate of the Eight Gates. The Dance of the Shikigami. And his still-unrefined Lava Release.
Use those only if forced. If it comes to it, I'll reveal the Eight Gates first. Lava Release and the Dance of the Shikigami were too unique, too valuable for survival. He wouldn't expose them in some exam.
This month, I'll train the taijutsu for the First Gate with Might Duy. And I'll have to bother Old Man Kosuke to teach me a couple more Water Style jutsu.
Hmm. If there's time, I can swing by the hospital for some lucky draws. Chiba planned privately.
…
A month passed in a blink.
Amidst immense anticipation, this Chunin Exam—the first since Tobirama Senju created it to have all Five Great Shinobi Villages participate simultaneously—began on schedule.
"Good luck, Konoha brothers! Ace the test!"
"Yeah, show those outsiders what we're made of! Don't let them beat us!"
Amidst the cheers of the crowd, a slightly nervous Chiba walked into the written exam hall. It felt eerily like walking into the national college entrance exams again.
"Holy fucking shit, Konoha elders! Have some shame!"
Once inside, after a quick scan of the examinees, Chiba couldn't help but curse out loud.
Who did he see?
This generation's Ino-Shika-Chō—Inoichi Yamanaka, Chōza Akimichi, and Shikaku Nara!
The trio had already made names for themselves in the Second Great Shinobi War. Working together, they could match an elite Jōnin squad.
And who else?
The old man who carried an iron pot everywhere—Kosuke Maruboshi!
The old man looked miserable, utterly reluctant. Clearly forced here by Konoha's higher-ups.
Seriously? The guy who fought dozens of Iwa-nin solo… and you call him a Genin?
Since when were Konoha's Genin this fucking insane?!
Okay, those guys were absurd, but Chiba could just about stomach it.
What he couldn't tolerate was the flash of unmistakable blond in the crowd, and the fiery, vivid red standing right beside it.
If he were an elder from any other village, Chiba would be pointing fingers and screaming at Konoha's leadership right now.
Are you out of your damn minds?
It's a military exercise, and you motherfuckers brought out the nukes?
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