Konoha Traditional Art

"What is a Hokage?"

Answer: No matter what a Hokage is! The Hyuga Clan is the Strongest!

"What do you think the Will of Fire is like?"

Answer: No matter what kind of will it is! The Hyuga Clan is the Strongest!

"How do you view your comrades?"

Answer: The Hyuga Clan is the Strongest!

"What would you do if you encountered a mission you couldn't complete?"

Answer: The Hyuga Clan is the Strongest!

The entire paper was filled with "The Hyuga Clan is the Strongest."

This kid had done it on purpose, hadn't he?

If he remembered correctly, this child was the son of that old Monster, Hyuga Tenno.

Between every stroke, in the force that seemed to pierce through the paper, rage filled every word.

The Main Family and the Branch Family, huh?

Such a cruel tradition did not even spare one's own daughter.

And with how clever this child usually was, he did not seem like someone who would say something so arrogant.

So he was screwing over his father?

Another troublesome one.

Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed, as a father.

But there was nothing he could do.

His power was not enough.

He could not change anything.

Next, the Third Hokage looked over the other children's test papers, which were filled with plain, unadorned language.

When he came across a paper written with particularly polished words, the Third Hokage frowned in displeasure.

Those were not thoughts a child should have. The faintly ingratiating language was pretty, but useless.

He could not see the child's true feelings.

And the intent was obvious.

The Third Hokage looked at the name.

Hiruko.

After making a note of it, he moved on to the other papers.

One of them made the Third Hokage smile.

The words were foolish and innocent, filled with beautiful things. The handwriting was ugly, but the page was packed densely with writing, crowded together. It was unsightly, but earnest.

The child had thought about it very seriously.

A foolishly adorable child.

Jiraiya?

He was a good child. As Hokage, it was his duty to ensure that children like him could grow up happily.

The Third Hokage smoked as he looked at another paper. It was likewise filled with sincerity. The handwriting was graceful and beautiful, and the composition neat and concise—comfortably pleasant in every way.

The handwriting alone was enough to make him regard it highly.

Unlike Jiraiya's, with its careless corrections that made the paper far too ugly.

And its content was even better. Though equally innocent, it had depth. The language was kind and modest, superior to Jiraiya's by more than one level.

The Third Hokage looked at its owner's name.

Uchiha Chiri.

An Uchiha...

"What a pity." The Third Hokage sighed. "Between the clan and the village, which side would you choose?"

Looking at the mountain of test papers before him, the Third Hokage sighed.

He had to finish reading them all today.

It should be about time, shouldn't it?

As he thought this, the Third Hokage took out a crystal ball.

The afternoon was for physical testing, with the entire grade taking the test together.

The field was exceptionally lively, almost like a sports meet.

The areas were divided by class.

They carried out basic physical fitness tests such as sprints, long-distance running, high jump, and long jump.

Each person was tested three times, with their best result recorded.

Though there were many people, the tests proceeded quickly.

Mimi achieved her usual results.

They were at the level of the first tier.

The examination continued lively, while Chiri remained at her usual middling level.

That girl was far too careless. Since she had no family who wanted to see her results, she could not be bothered to perform.

Nor was she like Jiraiya, who loved showing off to gain attention.

Thus, she had no motivation to perform.

Mimi, on the other hand, performed to gain a certain amount of attention and obtain resources. By now, she was basically riding a tiger and could not slack off too obviously even if she wanted to.

Though Mimi could be willful too, the three old men did not have many years left to live. Letting them be happy was not a bad thing.

Therefore, she could not abandon her genius persona.

Then what was that girl performing for?

Hinata Hitomi.

"What are you looking at?" Chiri leaned close to Mimi and asked.

"I'm watching a little bird take flight," Mimi said.

"Hm?" Chiri followed Mimi's gaze and asked, "Is there anything different about Hitomi today?"

Chiri did not notice anything strange.

"The scent is different," Mimi said. "It smells like confidence."

"How can you smell that?" Chiri sniffed, but aside from the smell of youthful sweat, she could not smell anything else.

"The insects smelled it. Pheromones are chemical substances secreted by the human body that serve a communication function," Mimi said. "Though ordinary people generally cannot detect them."

"Can I smell these pheromones?" Chiri asked. "Then we'd have a secret means of communication."

"Not for now," Mimi said. "But you can receive them and have your behavior unconsciously controlled by pheromones."

"For example, whether happiness or fear, both are controlled by pheromones and can spread."

"Pheromones can control emotions?" Chiri asked.

"Yes," Mimi said. "Not only emotions—your five senses and behavior can all be controlled by pheromones. Human behavior and social interaction influence one another, and pheromones are an important factor in that."

"What a dangerous ability," Chiri said. "Isn't that just genjutsu? You wouldn't be able to notice it at all!"

Mimi glanced at Chiri.

What a sharp one.

"You can understand it that way," Mimi said.

Her Butterfly Dance: Phantom was performed through pheromones.

This was the true nature of Kiyanchū genjutsu.

The pheromones permeating the air contained Chakra so weak it could be ignored, and they took effect slowly, but they excelled in concealment.

Even if they could not weave large, complex genjutsu, they were more than enough to interfere with the five senses.

They were sufficient to construct some simple genjutsu effects.

And simple did not mean nonlethal.

"However, it is not impossible to detect. A person's subjective awareness is enough to notice that something is wrong."

"In short, that girl is a little dangerous right now," Mimi said. "She's giving off a dangerous aura all over."

"Who? Hitomi?" Chiri asked.

Mimi nodded.

Chiri looked at Hinata Hitomi, deep in thought.

Hinata Hitomi handled the test events far more easily than before, and her results had improved by a great deal. On paper, her numbers surpassed what Mimi had displayed.

She looked as though she still had strength to spare.

After taking a closer look, Chiri noticed quite a few details.

"She has gotten much stronger. Hitomi really hid it well before."

Chiri meant during their usual classes.

The examination continued, and more and more people gradually gathered.

Some students' parents had come to watch the excitement.

However, the atmosphere gradually became strange.

Some unrelated people had come as well.

But it was related.

Most of them were ninja, occupying the high ground to watch.

Senju, Uchiha, Hyuga, Kurama, Ino-Shika-Cho, Aburame, Inuzuka, Sarutobi, Shimura.

Not a single one was absent—they had all come in secret.

Everyone wanted to see what kind of person could become the Third Hokage's disciple.

And whether the Senju Clan's Princess could shoulder Konoha's future.

Everyone's attention converged here.

The exam proceeded in an orderly fashion.

After the Shuriken Technique assessment came the highly anticipated one-on-one battles.

Everyone perked up.

The examinees took the field in pairs.

As contestants won or lost one after another, the spectators' expressions changed accordingly. Even companions could not help mocking and teasing each other a little.

Until the main event took the stage.

"Princess Tsunade!"

"Versus..."

"Aburame Insect Princess!"

As the announcement fell, a faint stir ran through the crowd.

Mimi narrowed her eyes and looked at Tsunade, whose face was filled with delighted surprise.

The exam had been manipulated.

A traditional Konoha specialty.

The three old men at home could not have been uninvolved either.

"Contestants, take the field!"

Tsunade and Mimi stepped out from the crowd, facing each other across the arena.

"Do you understand the rules?"

There were no real rules. One side had to surrender or be unable to continue.

The two nodded.

"Form the Opposition Seal."

They raised their hands and formed the seal in unison.

"Betting my life on this, I'll make you cry today! You bug girl! Be prepared!"

Tsunade spat out her threat.

"Laughable. Not entirely laughable, though, Big Forehead," Mimi replied coldly, just as she had when they first met.

Tsunade's face twisted with anger.

Yet her hands still obediently formed the Opposition Seal.

Because Mimi had already finished hers.

"Begin!"