Probing

The Sand shinobi trio turned to leave when Sasuke suddenly called them back.

"Wait a minute, you guys aren't Konoha ninjas, are you? Showing up in Konoha at this time, you must be candidates for the Chunin Ninja Exams!" He had already learned about the Chunin Ninja Exams from Sakura, and thought they would be as boring as the school's graduation exams, but he didn't expect to meet such interesting people.

The Chunin Ninja Exams seem to be getting interesting!

"That's right, we are Genin Sunagakure." Temari answered Sasuke's question, holding up an identification document to show Sasuke. "This is our pass. You're participating in this exam too?"

"Yeah, we'll be taking the exam too..." Sasuke's lips curled into a slight smile. "Hey, what's your name, you guy with the gourd on your back!"

"I am Gaara of the Sandstorm..." Gaara and gave Sasuke a deep look. "I'm also very interested in you. What's your name?"

Sasuke chuckled softly. "My name is Sasuke!"

Gaara nodded slightly, then turned and left.

"Hey, wait! Why didn't you ask my name?! I'm stronger than Sasuke! Really! Hey! Turn around!"

"Me too, me too!" That was Naruto's voice.

"... I'm not interested in women or idiots!" Gaara paused, then turned away without looking back.

Sakura and Naruto instantly turned to ashes, exchanging speechless glances. "..."

"Why does Sasuke always steal the spotlight from me, even though I'm so amazing..." Naruto muttered to himself, feeling disheartened.

"Sakura, what's the Chunin Ninja Exams all about?" Sasuke asked Sakura as he turned back after Gaara left.

Sakura lightly touched her lips with her index finger, thought for a moment, and then said, "To put it simply, it's an exam that's roughly divided into team battles and individual duels. Those who perform well can be promoted to Chunin! Besides the Genin of Konoha, other ninja villages will also send people to participate in the exam. Every year, there are many strong people taking the exam! And it's said that there will be many spectators, including Kazekage from various countries, as well as the Hokage and Hokage, so the competition is very formal!"

"One-on-one battles?" Naruto interjected curiously, "Will teammates also face each other?"

"Yes, that's right!" Sakura nodded with a smile, "And the individual competition will use an elimination format!"

Sasuke's eyes lit up. "So, if we keep winning, we'll definitely run into you and Naruto, right, Sakura!"

Sakura nodded.

"Now I'll finally see just how strong you are..." Sasuke stared intently at Sakura and Naruto, and slowly said, "Sakura, Naruto! I've wanted to have a serious fight with you two for a long time! Don't you dare lose before you meet me!"

Naruto was stunned. This was the first time he had seen Sasuke express such a serious desire to fight him! Sasuke, have you begun to acknowledge me...? Naruto felt a warmth in his heart!

"Hmph, don't worry, I won't lose until I meet you and Sakura!" he said with a confident smile!

Sakura chuckled.

"You guys are really arrogant! You don't even know what kind of strong opponents you'll encounter, yet you're already confident of victory! But, I... I've always wanted to see Sasuke's Sharingan and Naruto's hidden power!"

"This Chunin Ninja Exams is getting more and more interesting!" Sasuke couldn't help but get excited at the thought of competing against so many strong opponents!

"By the way, Sasuke, are you really not coming to the dinner party?"

"I'm going home now! Goodbye!"

A few days later, in the morning, at the teaching building where the first exam was held.

"Although I only graduated not long ago, it feels like it's been years since I've been back. I miss it so much! But... we seem to be a bit late. There's no one outside. They must have already gone into their classrooms!" Walking through the lobby on the first floor, Sakura was somewhat surprised to find that there wasn't a single person in sight.

"Wait, there's another person!" Sasuke keenly sensed the presence of a powerful source of Chakra. Looking up, he saw a man with thick eyebrows and a watermelon-shaped haircut standing on the second floor, looking down at them!

Sakura looked up and immediately recognized the distinctively dressed ninja as Lee!

She had heard of him back in the Ninja Academy. He was a year ahead of them, and Lee, who was born unable to use Ninjutsu, was the biggest loser in the Ninja Academy. But Sakura, who had read the manga, knew that Lee, who had mastered the Eight Gates Released Formation, was far stronger than the so-called geniuses Neji and Sasuke! Just by sensing the massive, vibrant Chakra hidden beneath Lee's ridiculous appearance, Sakura knew that he was no ordinary person.

Moreover, there were two people standing upstairs!

Sakura silently corrected Sasuke's technique in her mind. She felt a familiar sense of being watched from the left, just like Hinata's Byakugan. It was probably Neji Hyuga hiding behind a pillar, observing them!

Li jumped down from the building and stood in front of Sasuke.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time! You must be Sasuke Uchiha!" Lee said to Sasuke, adopting the starting stance of Strong Fist.

"So what if I am?" Sasuke sneered.

"My name is Rock Lee! I originally wanted to spar with you, to see just how strong the so-called Uchiha Clan really is! I didn't expect you to arrive so late, there's no time for a duel, the registration deadline is almost here. But that's alright, there will be other opportunities in the upcoming exams, and I will prove it to you and everyone else--"

Lee suddenly vanished from sight! His speed was no less than Sasuke's Body Flicker Technique, no, even surpassed it! Moreover, the fluctuation of his Chakra was very subtle, and Sakura actually lost track of Lee in a short period of time!

"--I am the strongest Genin in Konoha!"

The sound came from behind Sasuke, and Lee's figure had already appeared behind Sakura and the others! Such speed!

Sakura and the other two turned around and looked at him in surprise.

"Oh, by the way, that cute lady..." Li suddenly changed her serious expression and looked shyly at Ying, "Can we go out together? I like girls like you!"

"Huh?" Sakura and the other two were all stunned.

Sasuke, realizing what was happening, stared coldly at Lee: "Are you humiliating us?!"

"No, I'm serious!"

Dating a man? Forget it... Just thinking about it gives Sakura a headache.

She laughed awkwardly, "Haha, thank you for your kind offer... I'm sorry, I'm not thinking about dating right now!"

Just then, a voice rescued Sakura from her embarrassment.

"Li, aren't you ready yet? Stop dawdling and hurry up!" A handsome young man with long black hair appeared on the second floor. It was Neji who had called Li away; he probably couldn't stand Li's confession anymore.

After Li and Neji left, the three remained silent for a moment.

"Hmph—" Sasuke forced a smile, "These two are not to be trifled with! That watermelon-headed Lee is incredibly fast! And that guy with the Byakugan behind him, I feel he's even stronger than Lee! Both of them are monsters! But... as long as I use my Sharingan, I can definitely defeat them!"

"I don't think so!" Naruto said with a rare serious expression. "The Byakugan wasn't good, but did you notice Lee's hand?"

"That's right, the bandages on his hands are medical bandages only those who have undergone extremely rigorous training use. That guy with the thick eyebrows is incredibly hardworking! His strength is unfathomable!" Sakura continued, picking up where Naruto. "I recognize them. The one with the bandages is Lee; he doesn't seem to know any Ninjutsu, but his Taijutsu is amazing. The one with the Byakugan is Hinata, Neji; he's also Taijutsu- style ninja, and he was recognized as a prodigy in the previous Ninja Academy!"

"That's all... Meeting so many strong opponents, this so-called Chunin Ninja Exams is getting more and more interesting!" Sasuke's expression changed from somber to a confident smile!

"Naruto, Sakura! Let's go!"

Meanwhile, on the second floor, Neji and Lee were heading towards the exam room.

"So, Li... how strong are they?"

"Without the Uchiha's secret techniques, Sasuke n't keep up with my speed! And that short ninja can't keep up either, so he must be a little weaker than Sasuke..."

"Don't be careless, Lee! The power of the Sharingan is no joke! As for that other short boy—" Neji stopped, turned around, and said seriously to Lee, "The amount of Chakra in his body, conservatively speaking, is more than ten times that of you and me! Lee, you've misjudged him...!"

"However, the most terrifying one is that girl, her Sakura Haruno! When you moved behind her, her Chakra reacted immediately; she's the only one of the three who could keep up with you! Lee, you might not have noticed, but back in the Ninja Academy, there were rumors that she independently developed an S-rank Ninjutsu..." Neji said solemnly, "Don't be fooled by her cute appearance, Lee!"

Neji did say one thing: when he was hiding behind a pillar and using his Byakugan Sakura and the others, Sakura immediately noticed him. Her sensory abilities are truly terrifying!

Of the three, she's probably the strongest!

"... This year's freshmen are truly remarkable!"

Neji felt himself starting to get excited!