Some time has passed.
For some reason, since the beginning of spring, not only around Konoha, but also in many other parts of the Land of Fire, there have been incidents of bears attacking human settlements, and the whole country seems to be suffering from a bear plague.
These beasts are not only cunning and vengeful by nature, but more troublesome is that in this world where chakra exists, some bears have become abnormally large, with thick skin and incredible strength.
A few individuals even possess chakra, making them difficult for ordinary soldiers and hunters to deal with.
Local governments were overwhelmed by these beasts, and the Konoha Military Police Forces were exhausted but achieved little, so they had no choice but to submit urgent requests for help to Konoha.
In a short time, the mission posting area was flooded with requests to hunt or drive away giant bears. Hunting missions were generally C-Rank, while a few particularly dangerous missions involving bears that possessed chakra were enormous in size and could even be used as summoning beasts; these reached B-Rank.
In addition to their regular missions, the ninjas of Konoha frequently traveled through the mountains and forests.
On this day, Shinichi and Kosuke Maruboshi accepted another such request.
After leaving the village, the two quickly made their way along the forest path.
During the journey, Kosuke Maruboshi seemed to suddenly remember something and broke the silence: "Regarding the Chunin exams you asked me about last time, I inquired about it these past two days and heard some rumors."
Generally speaking, during peacetime, there are two main ways for a Genin to be promoted to Chunin: One is to accumulate enough mission experience and merits, and then be recommended by a Jonin under their direct guidance and participate in an internal review; the other is to participate in the Chunin selection exam jointly organized by the ninja villages or organized by themselves.
Shinichi didn't know what the third Hokage was thinking when he graduated, but he wasn't assigned a dedicated Jonin mentor. He was only assigned Kosuke Maruboshi as a teammate, even though this Eternal Genin was far superior to ordinary Jonin in terms of strength and experience and was essentially playing the role of mentor.
This arrangement may have deep considerations by the third Hokage, but it also means that the first path of advancement is basically closed to Shinichi.
Therefore, he had inquired about the Chunin exams from Kosuke Maruboshi long before.
"The Chunin exams will indeed be held this year."
Kosuke Maruboshi continued. "However, the organizer is not Konoha, but our ally, the Village Hidden in the Sand."
Village Hidden in the Sand?
Upon hearing this, Shinichi paused slightly.
He knew perfectly well that in the original future, the trigger for the Third Shinobi World War was that the Village Hidden in the Sand would use the disappearance of the third Kazekage as an excuse to launch a surprise attack on Konoha, and then the flames of war would spread like wildfire throughout the entire Shinobi World.
This so-called ally has never been a peaceful neighbor.
Throughout the various Shinobi World Wars, perhaps out of covetousness for the Land of Fire's fertile lands, the Village Hidden in the Sand almost always listed Konoha as its primary target.
They're practically the Italy of the Shinobi World!
No!
They're not even as good as Italy!
Although Italy, as an ally, hesitated at the beginning of the war and performed poorly after joining the battle, it ultimately only switched sides when the situation was unfavorable.
The Village Hidden in the Sand, on the other hand, was used to backstabbing from the very beginning.
However, since the Land of Wind is covered with sand and has barren land, it has little practical value for Konoha to occupy. In addition, with multiple forces surrounding it in each major battle, even if Konoha defeats the Village Hidden in the Sand, it often only forces them to sign a superficial alliance, which is in reality nothing more than a ceasefire agreement.
They then had to turn to deal with pressure from other ninja villages. This repeated historical cycle of tension kept the relationship between the two countries in a fragile and distorted state of alliance.
Therefore, he hesitated to go to the Village Hidden in the Sand to participate in the Chunin exams, which meant voluntarily stepping into a place that might be the first to ignite war in the future and that had the least faith in Konoha.
"What, don't you want to go to the Village Hidden in the Sand?"
Kosuke Maruboshi glanced at him, as if sensing his hesitation, and smiled.
He roughly understood the third Hokage's considerations: The speed of this child's rank advancement was not the primary concern; in the future, he would most likely still be placed in a team of peers to cultivate bonds.
In his own words, he's more like a transitional mentor who helps seedlings take firm root.
However, since Shinichi had asked, he couldn't make a decision on his own, so he consulted the third Hokage and learned that the Village Hidden in the Sand had invited Konoha to participate in this year's Chunin exams.
"Senior, who is the leader of the team this time?"
Instead of answering directly whether to go or not, Shinichi asked a crucial question.
"I've inquired; it's Jiraiya, one of the legendary Sannin."
Jiraiya?
Hearing this name did indeed bring Shinichi a lot of peace of mind.
Although Jiraiya often traveled around, whenever he returned to Konoha, the third Hokage would often entrust him with some important or special tasks.
With this highly skilled and experienced Sannin, renowned throughout the Shinobi World, leading the team, the safety level and ability to cope with unforeseen circumstances are naturally greatly enhanced.
"With this person leading the team, I can certainly feel much more at ease."
Shinichi nodded.
Kosuke Maruboshi looked at him and said in a calm tone, "If you decide to go, I can accompany you as your teammate this time."
"Senior?"
Shinichi looked at him with some surprise: "You don't plan to continue being a Genin?"
"I'm just taking the exam as a teammate. It doesn't mean I have to compete for that Chunin title. This old body of mine can still accompany you to the Village Hidden in the Sand."
Kosuke Maruboshi smiled, his expression indifferent.
Shinichi understood immediately that this was his senior protecting him in his own way. He nodded solemnly and said, "Thank you, senior. With you here, I feel much more at ease."
"You don't need to worry too much."
Kosuke Maruboshi looked into the distance, his voice steady: "Although the Village Hidden in the Sand has always been fickle and has committed many acts of betrayal, the start of a war is never a spur-of-the-moment decision."
"Before a major war, there are often many signs that can be observed, such as an abnormal increase in military spending, the secret stockpiling of strategic materials, the large-scale production and acquisition of equipment, the sudden expansion of the number of ninjas, and even subtle changes in the frequency and scale of border patrols. It is not easy to completely hide these movements from the eyes and ears of other countries."
Upon hearing this, Shinichi suddenly understood, and many scattered clues were instantly connected.
Why is it that, in his memory, most of the students in their class were arranged to graduate early at the age of nine?
It is likely that by this time next year, the Shinobi World War will not have broken out yet, but various signs will have already quietly gathered like dark clouds, allowing the Konoha Council to keenly sense the brewing storm of a new war.
Therefore, the higher-ups acted decisively and initiated the graduation process ahead of schedule, with a clear objective: Let these children become familiar with the ninja mission process as early as possible and accumulate basic experience. Once the war really breaks out, most of the core forces will rush to the front line, and the manpower to maintain the operation of the village and handle various basic tasks within the territory will be in short supply.
At that time, this group of Genin, who have already been trained, will be able to quickly fill the vacancies and become an effective force supporting the village's rear.
Furthermore, if the war situation continues to deteriorate and manpower becomes scarce, these Genin who graduated early and are no longer considered pure recruits will be deployed to the edge of the battlefield or to second-line defense even more quickly.
"However, participating in the Chunin exams usually requires a team of three, and also a team leader whose class is at least Special Jonin."
Kosuke Maruboshi reminded. "I'll count as one teammate, and you'll have to figure out the other teammate and team leader yourself."
Teammates... team leader...
After thinking for a moment, two names came to mind.
If those two are willing to participate, then he can finally rest assured about this trip to the Village Hidden in the Sand.