Peering

Before Yichen could investigate again, Hu said, "The exam is over."

Yichen peeked out from behind the big tree and saw that, sure enough, the students had all left the classrooms that had been used as examination rooms.

Yichen saw Ogura Saki and the other two inside. The three of them were gathered together, discussing something, as they walked out with the flow of people.

The next exam was about to begin, so Yichen didn't pay attention to that. Instead, he said to Hu, "Senior Hu, let's go to the second exam room first."

Hu nodded and left with Yichen. Also leaving were the four Anbu Squad protecting Byakugan.

Upon arriving at the second wilderness survival test site, Yichen dismissed the Anbu and stayed with Hu.

After the two found a pile of rocks to hide themselves, Yichen told Hu about the sensation they had just experienced.

Hu was somewhat surprised and said, "Advisor Yichen, you can sense Chakra Threads from that great distance? Can you sense the flow of Chakra within a ninja's body?"

"In the Byakugan's vision, Chakra Threads are far more subtle than the Chakra flow within a ninja's body. Chakra flow doesn't require Byakugan's conscious attention, but Chakra Threads do require careful searching."

Yichen could sense Chakra Threads through a large tree, so theoretically he should also be able to sense Chakra fluctuations within a ninja's body.

Yichen was taken aback; having just discovered his new ability, he hadn't considered this possibility. Then, Yichen subconsciously looked at Hu.

Hu understood what he meant and nodded.

Yichen closed his eyes again, shutting out his Five Senses, and began to examine the swans around him.

It didn't go smoothly at first. Although Mind's Eye focuses on Mental Energy, it can also sense living beings. Hu's Chakra was surrounded by his physical body, making it difficult for Yichen to sense him.

But Yichen quickly came up with a solution. He ignored the physical body and instead allowed his Mind's Eye perception to push through the layers of barriers and enter the swan's body.

After an unknown amount of time, Yichen actually detected the flow of chakra inside Hu's body.

However, by this time Yichen's senses were already very weak, and he had not obtained any information.

Feeling that this approach was ineffective, Yichen stopped using his Mind's Eye perception.

After Awakening Eyes and catching his breath, Yichen thought for a moment and then said to Hu, "Senior Hu, direct sensing won't work. Could you activate your Byakugan so I can examine Byakugan first?"

Hu nodded, then formed Hand Seals and activated his Byakugan.

Yichen closed his eyes again, focusing his Mind's Eye's Eye perception on Hu's Byakugan. After a short while, Yichen detached himself from other senses and followed the Byakugan into the flow of Chakra in and around Hu's left eye.

Yichen frowned. Although his Mind's Eye could sense the flow of Chakra, he had only been sensing Chakra at a very small level and had no opportunity to observe it as a whole.

In other words, trying to understand someone else's Chakra flow direction and path in this way is utter nonsense. Helpless, Yichen had to abandon this impractical method.

"It won't work. Although we can sense the Chakra flowing, we can't detect the specific direction of the flow at all," Yichen said to Hu.

Hu nodded, unsurprised. If it were that easy, the Byakugan Sharingan wouldn't be so legendary.

Kekkei Genkai, especially top-tier Kekkei Genkai like the Byakugan, cannot be compared to any S-rank Ninjutsu.

Yichen put aside these unrealistic ideas and refocused his attention on the Lightning Release candidates in the Chunin Ninja Exams.

"The exam should be starting soon, right?" Yichen asked Hu. He had been so absorbed in his perception with his Mind's Eye that he wasn't sure how much time had passed.

Hu nodded and said, "It has already begun."

"In that direction, a Cloud Ninja squad and Iwa ninja squad are about to encounter each other. Did you arrange that?" Hu said, pointing in certain directions.

Yichen glanced at it and said, "That's right, let's go."

By the time Yichen arrived, the two sides had already clashed.

Because of Yichen's arrangement, this Iwa ninja team was not particularly strong, and they were not even very enthusiastic about participating in the Joint Chunin Exams. It was Yichen who arranged for them to compete against the Cloud ninja in the form of a mission.

Yichen and Hu chose a suitable distance and hid themselves. Then, Yichen using Mind's Eye and Hu used his Byakugan, and the two began gathering intelligence.

Because Yichen's mission for the Iwa ninja Cloud ninja to use Lightning Release as much as possible, the Iwa ninja maintained a defensive posture, trying to lure the Cloud ninja into using Lightning Release to attack.

The Cloud ninja fell for the trap and quickly used Lightning Release. Unfortunately for them, this Lightning Release technique was already in the collection of Iwa ninja's Ninjutsu; it was a Ninjutsu that transformed Lightning Release Chakra into a spear.

Yichen and Hu investigated and exchanged information, comparing and verifying the information they had obtained with each other's.

Although neither of them had learned this Ninjutsu, after some analysis, they both felt they had grasped some of its intricacies.

Later, the Cloud ninja used it twice more, allowing Yichen and Hu to observe and analyze it carefully twice.

After three rounds, Yichen and Hu felt that their analysis of this Ninjutsu had met their expectations, and that this Cloud ninja only used this one move over and over again. So the two changed positions and went to the other Cloud ninja.

And so, Yichen and Hu searched everywhere for Cloud ninja examinees to learn their skills. Since the Byakugan was a powerful tracking tool, Yichen and his companion had a smooth journey.

In the end, Yichen and his group observed quite a few Lightning Release Ninjutsu. Although most of them were duplicates or techniques already used by Iwa ninja, there were three C-rank Lightning Release Iwagakure had not included in their records.

After the two analyzed the situation, Yichen believed that given a few more days, they would be able to successfully restore the three C-rank Lightning Release.

Finally, Yichen and his companion went to the vicinity of the finish line, where Yichen's disciple would intercept Yanagihara seeded player from the Cloud ninja clan.

When Yichen and his companion rushed over, the fight had already begun. Although Yanagihara was quite strong, his two teammates were not, and were easily suppressed by Ogura Saki and Matsutani Shinya.

Meanwhile, Yanagihara himself was searching for Takuya's weakness.

Since Yichen had not yet appeared, Ogura Saki and the other two held back in their fight.

Suddenly, Takuya, who was fighting Yanagihara, heard several familiar animal cries. Takuya knew that Yichen had arrived and was gesturing for him to make a move.

Therefore, Takuya abandoned his previous tactic of simply dodging and instead launched a full-speed attack on Yanagihara.

Takuya accelerated, Yanagihara immediately felt the pressure. Just as Yichen had predicted, Yanagihara, who was at a disadvantage, quickly used that Lightning Release Ninjutsu.

This time, Takuya came prepared, aiming to keep Yanagihara in use of his Lightning Release as long as possible. Therefore, unlike Matsutani Shinya, he did not suffer a quick defeat, but instead suppressed him by using many Lightning Release techniques.

This proved very beneficial for Yichen and Hu, who were observing from the sidelines. Through their previous coordinated efforts, the two had gained experience in how to efficiently steal Ninjutsu.

Yichen sensed the changes in Yanagihara's spirit and body, while Hu sensed the flow of Yanagihara's Chakra. The two had a clear division of labor, observing and exchanging guesses at the same time.

Both of them were Ninjutsu -type ninjas and knew how to use Lightning Release, so the progress was very smooth. By the time Takuya and his team had decided the winner, Yichen's team had already mastered the Ninjutsu.

Surprisingly, although Yanagihara followed the path of using Nintaijutsu Lightning Release to enhance Taijutsu, he also knew Ninjutsu. During the battle, he even used C-rank Lightning Release Ninjutsu that neither of the two, Yichen, knew.

Although they only used each technique once, Yichen and Hu felt that they had learned them fairly smoothly because these two Ninjutsu were not very difficult.

The battle between Takuya and Yanagihara ended in Takuya's defeat. Although Yanagihara's Lightning Release did not reach the level of Lightning Release Stimulation Method, as a Taijutsu Ninja, he was not as fast as Takuya, but he was still able to fight back.

The addition of Nintaijutsu and Lightning Release enhanced Yanagihara's tactical options, ultimately allowing him to Takuya Yanagihara.

Although Yanagihara defeated Takuya in a one-on-one match, Yanagihara's team still failed in the second round of the test, which was a group activity involving three people.

Because Takumi was rescued by Matsutani Shinya and Ogura Saki after Takuya defeat, Yanagihara's two companions lost their mobility and were disqualified from the competition by the examiners.

Yichen was quite disappointed about this; he wanted to see if Yanagihara would surprise him with any other performances during the individual competition.

The second round ended quickly. Unlike Konoha, Iwa ninja didn't arrange any preliminary rounds; instead, they allowed all the candidates who passed the second round to advance and prepare for the third round of exams a month later.

After the first two rounds of elimination matches, two teams from the Cloud ninja clan successfully advanced, but unfortunately, seeded player Yanagihara was targeted by Yichen's disciples and eliminated early.

The Sunagakure had an easier time than the Cloud ninja, with four teams advancing to the final round. Other villages like the Land of Rain and the Land of Rivers each had one team that made it to the next round.

As for the Kusa Ninja and Takigakure, they were all eliminated.

There was actually some behind-the-scenes manipulation by the examiners. Ōnoki was willing to give Hanzo and Nagato some face, but didn't need to care about the Kusa Ninja and Takigakure.

Finally, it was the Iwa ninja Iwa ninja, with six teams advancing to the third round.

A total of 14 teams, comprising 42 candidates, will participate in the final battle.

This was Yichen's suggestion: to have as many battles as possible, to build a large venue, and to sell tickets. Shinobi from Iwagakure and civilians would receive discounts, as would civilians from the Land of Earth.

The competition is divided into three days. On the first day, there are 21 matches, eliminating half of the participants. On the second day, there are 10 matches, eliminating 10 participants. On the last day, 11 participants are left to compete in three or four rounds to determine the final winner.

During this month, the Iwa ninja will be allocated a small Training Ground for the other ninja villages to train in, allowing those who qualify for the final round of the competition to train.

The eliminated ninjas would return to their villages early under the guidance of the examiners. This included the many failed candidates from the Sunagakure.

The Sunagakure sent a larger number of people this time. Although four teams advanced to the finals, many more were eliminated. The Joint Chunin Exams were no longer relevant to these losers; they needed to return to their village as soon as possible to carry out their mission.

The large Sunagakure returning to their village immediately caught the attention of Cloud ninja Storm Release ninja from the Tanimoto Naoto Ninja.