Come On! Life Is About Embracing Challenges

"Katsuki, what do we do now? Even if it's just that big guy's shadow clone, he's still a Chunin. It won't be easy for us to defeat him."

Otoha frowned, a little annoyed. This special training had come out of nowhere, with no preparation at all. And spending a week in this cursed forest felt like it would drive him to the brink of death!

"And to you kids, don't worry about things at home. Your teachers at the Ninja Academy will handle everything," the big guy bellowed again, addressing their worries. After all, they had all been brought here so suddenly, without any chance to inform their families.

Of course, for someone like Katsuki or Minato, such worries were a luxury they didn't have.

"More than defeating the teacher's shadow clone, the hardest part will be finding it. This forest is so vast. If we can't even find him..." Minato shook his head. He didn't need to finish his sentence; everyone understood what he meant.

Naturally, the students divided themselves into six small groups based on their original classes, gathering together to discuss the training.

The big guy didn't rush them, standing aside with an air of calm, watching the students chatter as they devised strategies.

Rookies!

Absolute rookies!

Pricking up his ears, the big guy caught the snippets of conversation drifting on the wind and curled his lip in disdain.

"You can stand down. I'll handle things here."

A chilling aura suddenly struck from behind, and a hoarse voice coiled around his neck like a snake. The big guy's legs went weak, and as he turned, he saw a pair of dull yellow snake-like eyes, making him feel like he was about to wet himself!

Damn it, where did this big shot come from? What does he want with a mere Chunin like me?

"This is an order from the Hokage. Three of us will be taking over your job," Tsunade said, slapping a document into the big guy's hand.

It was a thin piece of paper, an order hastily written by Hiruzen. The big guy scanned it quickly. Even though these three were disciples of the Hokage, he gritted his teeth and confirmed the document's authenticity before respectfully returning it to Tsunade and stepping aside.

"He's a good guy, quite responsible," Jiraiya commented, watching the big guy's retreating figure.

Meanwhile, the students had seen the big guy leave. While Orochimaru and the others had appeared without notice, they had stood there for a long time without concealing their presence, naturally drawing attention.

A few gasps arose as some recognized Orochimaru and the others.

Although Orochimaru and Jiraiya hadn't yet earned the title of Sannin, they were already Jonin. As disciples of the Hokage, their fame was considerable. Tsunade, in particular, as the granddaughter of the First Hokage and the Princess of Konoha, was widely known.

Not to mention that most of the students here came from ninja clans, their knowledge far exceeding that of commoners.

"Auntie Tsunade," Kushina exclaimed in surprise, her mouth agape.

Katsuki's heart skipped a beat. Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Tsunade, the white-haired man was undoubtedly Jiraiya, and the black-haired man in the kimono was surely Orochimaru.

He truly didn't want to encounter this world's number one research fanatic. Even though Orochimaru was currently a well-meaning youth passionately fighting for Konoha, the thought of his future obsession with human experimentation and his twisted pursuit of immortality sent shivers down his spine.

After all, the Uzumaki Clan was famous for its longevity, making them prime material for researching immortality! Orochimaru himself had spent considerable effort later on to find Karin, an orphan of the Uzumaki Clan.

The students stared at Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya with a mixture of confusion and excitement.

"We will be taking over your training," Tsunade announced loudly, stepping forward. "You likely know who we are. We will be your teachers for this week, and the training will still take place in Training Ground 44. The method remains the same: find our shadow clones and defeat them."

As soon as she finished speaking, a wave of groans erupted. A single Chunin's shadow clone was already difficult to handle; now, facing three Jonin's shadow clones? It was hopeless, they might as well go home and sleep.

Uchiha Otoha also looked despairing. This is a joke, a complete joke. What am I supposed to do? He had some confidence against a Chunin, but Jonin? He could only scoff.

"Idiot, is your brain only the size of a walnut?" Otome kicked the back of her brother's leg. If Katsuki hadn't reached out to steady him, he would have surely fallen.

"What are you doing?" Otoha glared at his sister, exasperated.

Uchiha Otome pouted irritably. Her brother was so stupid. "The teacher didn't say we'd fail if we couldn't defeat their clones. Can't you use your brain and think? They're Jonin. Even a water clone with only a tenth of their power isn't something we can defeat."

Minato and Katsuki looked on calmly, clearly having already figured this out. Even the usually boisterous Kushina glanced at them with the look one gives a fool...

A certain brother began squatting in a corner, hugging his knees and drawing circles on the ground. This is unbearable!

After the initial uproar, the students quickly calmed down. Katsuki and the others weren't the only intelligent ones; everyone had grasped the intention behind this training and assessment.

However, this also increased the pressure. With no clear assessment criteria, how could they pass? This question instantly troubled most of them.

"There are twenty-one of you. You can work together or split up, as you please. You may begin entering now. Our shadow clones have already entered the forest, and we don't know their exact locations... Do you have any questions? That one... Hyuga Tenzan?" Tsunade asked, looking at the boy with the Byakugan who had raised his hand. She flipped through her roster, finding the Hyuga surname. After all, there was only one pair of Byakugan present.

"A week's time. Even you, Your Excellency, cannot maintain a shadow clone for that long, can you?" the Byakugan boy asked sternly, his expression serious.

"A very good question. This is also part of the test. After a shadow clone runs out of chakra and disappears, we will create new clones to enter the training ground. This means that even if you are lucky enough to defeat one, new 'enemies' will appear. The fighting will not stop until the week is over," Tsunade said, nodding approvingly at the Byakugan boy and clarifying for everyone.

"Any other questions? If not, here's your..." Tsunade paused, pulling out a watch from her pocket. "Alright, you have ten minutes to enter the training ground. You can go through the main gate here, or you can walk further along the fence. This training ground has forty-four gates in total."