It looked like nothing had happened...
It seemed I was just nervous because the plan was drawing near.
Watching the crowds flow past, listening to the bustling cries of vendors nearby, Hada Ichiba basked in the warm sunlight as he walked, lost in thought.
But...
Did I really need to be nervous? My plan might look important and difficult, but its key did not lie in the plan itself. Or rather, the difficulty of this plan was not the plan itself, but the surrounding circumstances when it was carried out.
After all, these were the International Chunin Exams. The Shinobi World was already beginning to stir. If there were too many forces in Konoha looking to cause trouble, if the undercurrents ran too deep, then my plan would most likely fall through.
For now, though, the situation did not seem all that complicated.
Everything in Konoha was normal.
All I had to do next was quietly wait for the right moment.
Wait until...
The third test began!
By then, Orochimaru and his potential allies should clear a path for me.
I really had been acting out of character.
There was no need to worry anymore! Yet as he walked, Hada Ichiba internally mocked his current state of mind.
After He Yin left the inn laughing and chatting with an unfamiliar ninja, Hada Ichiba also departed. Now that the preliminaries had ended and the formal alliance agreement had been signed, they had decided yesterday to take today off.
No! More accurately, everyone was free to do as they pleased for the next month.
They could sleep as late as they wanted.
They could play however they wanted.
As long as they did nothing that would damage Kusagakure's alliance with Konoha.
Sure enough, the elite Genin of Kusagakure, who normally maintained strict