Geniuses of the Villages
Clearly, the various villages had conducted thorough investigations into the participants from other villages for this Chunin Ninja Exams, especially the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Among them, Yemo's achievements had shocked many of the village's Genin.
Hearing the murmurs from the crowd, the ninjas from the Kumogakure Village didn't look too happy. Yemo's reputation had been built on the backs of their Kumogakure.
"Damn it, is this the guy who killed Daruka? What genius? I bet he must have used some kind of sneak attack or something to kill Lord Daruka," a Genin in the Kumo Ninja group finally couldn't help but mutter under his breath after hearing the conversation around him.
Daruka's death was a huge embarrassment for Kumogakure, even more so than their defeat to Konoha in the border conflict. Although Kumogakure was strong, they were still inferior to Konoha, and their loss to Konoha was expected by all the other villages.
However, Kumogakure Jonin, although a Special Jōnin, whose strength far surpassed that of Chunin and who had survived countless life-or-death situations, was actually defeated by a six- or seven-year-old Genin. This made many villages laugh their heads off.
Rumors circulated that the Kumogakure Jonin were all empty titles, and some villages even used Kumogakure Jonin to represent combat strength, with the weakest Jonin being at the Kumogakure Jonin level, which was extremely ironic.
"If you're so capable, then say something bigger!" a female Kumo Ninja Genin shouted. Upon seeing her, the genin who had spoken Genin lowered her head, not daring to refute.
This female Genin long, straight, beige hair tied into a long braid that reached her waist. She had big, open eyes and an expression full of arrogance, as if a little queen was standing in front of her.
She was the strongest genin in the Kumogakure Genin team this time— Yugito Nii, and also the Kumogakure's representative for this exam. Naturally, that Genin didn't dare to refute her.
Seeing the Genin lower his head, the Yugito Nii snorted coldly and shouted, "So what if you've lost face? Kumogakure aren't the kind of cowards who refuse to admit the truth. What we need to do is defeat that Yemo in the exam, under the eyes of many ninja villages, and regain our face, not just mutter curses here."
Upon hearing this, the several Genin lowered their heads in shame under the gazes of the Yugito Nii, and the genin who had just spoken lowered Genin head even further.
Beside the Yugito Nii, a female Genin with a cold expression looked at Yemo and muttered to herself, "The genius of Konoha has a great reputation. He was even able to kill Daruka. I wonder what his strength is really like. I hope we can meet in the exam."
The scene shifts, and facing the gazes of onlookers, Yemo seems oblivious, arms crossed, leaning against the wall, listening to Shikaku's report on the participation of genin from various villages Genin the competition.
"The reason this is the first time so many villages are jointly hosting this event is that the Genin sent by these villages are all top-tier individuals. However, we don't need to pay too much attention to those smaller villages; our target is the participants from the other four major ninja villages."
Shikaku's information was given to him by his father at the behest of the Third Hokage. As the saying goes, "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated." Information is a key factor in victory. Not only Konoha did this, but the ninjas from all the other villages also obtained information about the participants from other villages. The only difference was how detailed the information was.
Hyuga Hiashi and the others listened intently to the information Shikaku provided, not missing a single word, as it concerned their final Chunin Ninja Exams results. Even Yemo, who was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, listened attentively.
"Let me tell you about Kirigakure first." Upon hearing "Kirigakure," Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga's expressions changed slightly, as they had met Kirigakure before.
"The Kirigakure has sent three ninja teams this time. The strongest among them is a Genin named Hozuki Mangetsu. He is very strong and a famous genius. His reputation in the Kirigakure is the same as that of Yemo." After saying this, Shikaku looked up at Yemo, only to see that Yemo was still resting with his eyes closed, unmoved.
Everyone was shocked. Yemo was the village's most recognized genius since its founding. He killed Special Jōnin from Kumogakure at the age of six. Even the First Hokage, the God of Shinobi, couldn't do such a thing. Hozuki Mangetsu's reputation in the village was comparable to Yemo's, so he was truly a terrifying opponent.
Hozuki Mangetsu is a name Yemo is familiar with. He is the most talented young ninja from Kirigakure in Hokage. The two had a brief exchange a few days ago, and Hozuki Mangetsu is very strong. He will be one of Ye Mo's biggest rivals in the Ninja Exams.
Shikaku continued, "Besides Hozuki Mangetsu, there's another female ninja in Kirigakure that we should be wary of. Her name is Mei Terumi, and I've heard she has two Kekkei Genkai."
"Two kinds? Really?" Hizashi said incredulously. The others didn't speak, but their expressions were no different from Hizashi's. A ninja with one Kekkei Genkai was already far superior to an ordinary ninja. They had never heard of two Kekkei Genkai before.
Yemo, who had kept his eyes closed, suddenly opened them halfway through Shikaku's story, his face filled with shock. Of course, he was not shocked by the two Kekkei Genkai, but by Mei Terumi, the future Fifth Hokage Kirigakure, who was now also participating in the Chunin Ninja Exams.
Yemo quickly recalled the Kirigakure group he had encountered that time, and immediately knew who they were. Besides Hozuki Mangetsu, there was a female ninja beside him who gave Yemo a strange feeling; she must be Mei Terumi.
After a brief moment of shock, Yemo closed his eyes again, feeling a surge of emotion. He never imagined that one day he would participate in the Chunin Ninja Exams with the future Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi.
After introducing Kirigakure, Shikaku began to introduce Kumogakure, "The ninjas Kumogakure has sent this time should not be underestimated. However, three stand out the most: Yugimon, Samui, and Troy. Although there are two women, don't underestimate them. Samui is an intelligent combat ninja, and Troy is also a bloodline limit user, though the type is still unknown. The one to pay the most attention to is Yugimon; she is a Jinchuriki of a Tailed Beast."
Shikaku was utterly shocked when he learned this, and sure enough, the others were also shocked when they heard it. Jinchūriki is not a good thing; almost anyone who becomes Jinchūriki will be discriminated against by the entire village and suffer great misfortune. No one will care if something serious happens to them. This is because people generally believe that Jinchūriki are monsters, and if Jinchūriki loses control of their emotions, they will transform into Tailed Beast, plunging the village into crisis once again.
"The Kumogakure Cloud Village actually Jinchūriki to participate in the battle. Don't they know that Jinchūriki are very likely to lose control and unleash monsters like Tailed Beast? How could the village agree to this?" an Uchiha Genin.
Jinchūriki are discriminated against by the village. Fortunately, my older sister's identity is kept secret and only a few high-ranking members know about it. Yemo thought to himself with relief that there was no way to change the discrimination against Jinchūriki, which was already deeply ingrained in the villagers' hearts and even the Lord Third could not change it.
Among the many villages that possess Tailed Beast, only Kumogakure is an exception. In Kumogakure, both the Eight-Tails and the Two-Tails become good friends with their Jinchūriki, gaining the recognition of the Tailed Beast, understanding each other, and becoming one with one another.
Shikaku explained, "I heard from my father that it seems those Yugito Nii have gained the approval of the Tailed Beast and become Perfect Jinchuriki. The Third Raikage personally assured the Lord Hokage that there would be no problems, Lord Hokage allowed them to participate."
Shikaku's explanation made everyone understand, but it only made their expressions worse. Jinchūriki could gain the approval of Tailed Beast meant that he could use the power of the Tailed Beast. Tailed Beast possessed earth-shattering power; a single unleashed Tailed Beast could destroy a small ninja village.