Snow had fallen all night, blanketing the entire village in a layer of silver white.
People on the streets cleared the snow from the roads with brooms and shovels, while children chased and played with one another. The aroma of home-cooked meals drifted out from some households.
Today, the ninja from the various villages participating in the Chunin Exams arrived. Each group was led by its own jonin and settled into the village guesthouses.
Orochimaru should have been the one to receive them on such an occasion, but he remained holed up in the laboratory and refused to come out, leaving Shin to handle it himself.
Shin knew that, in the eyes of outsiders, a youth like himself would surely seem lacking in stature, so he invited Minato along. With the famed Yellow Flash present, these guests would not feel slighted.
Minato had not wanted to attend such an occasion, but Shin had come to invite him in person. Remembering that Shin had once helped Rin, he could not bring himself to refuse.
Thus, he became Shin's tool for receiving guests.
The jonin leading the Sand Ninja was a young and beautiful woman named Pakura, a kekkei genkai user skilled in Scorch Release who was quite renowned in the ninja world.
When Shin met her, he recalled that this woman seemed to have been sold out by Sunagakure, becoming a sacrifice to politics.
She was still alive for now, but likely not for much longer.
The village was far livelier than usual. Ninja wearing forehead protectors from other nations could already be seen on the streets. In addition, many merchants had arrived—Shin had arranged this long ago and given them a street where they could set up stalls and conduct business.
Konoha had strengthened its police presence and strictly inspected