16. The Assessment

Introducing oneself and stating one's dream had always been one of Konoha's traditions.

"My name is Uzumaki Kushina. I like salty ramen the most, and I hate bitter food and tomatoes. My dream for the future is..."

Kushina raised her head slightly and said seriously, "I want to become Konoha's first female Hokage."

Orochimaru glanced at her when he heard that, then nodded slightly to signal the next person.

Bei Xingye glanced timidly at Ye Zi, who was looking away. After a pause, he said softly, "My name is Bei Xingye. I like rainy days the most, and I hate sweet things. My dream for the future is to become an upright, dependable man."

Looking at Bei Xingye's weakness from the inside out, Orochimaru frowned slightly and turned toward Ye Zi. Sensing his gaze, Ye Zi slowly turned his head and faced forward.

"My name is Ye Zi. My hobby is eating, and there's nothing in particular that I hate."

Ye Zi lowered his eyelids and said indifferently, "My dream is to find a way back."

The three of them were all stunned when they heard Ye Zi's dream. A way back?

Kushina asked in confusion, "How is that a dream?"

Bei Xingye was also baffled.

Ye Zi glanced at Kushina but did not explain.

Orochimaru looked deeply at Ye Zi. His expression remained calm, and he did not pursue the matter. Instead, he took three small silver Bells from his pocket and said, "Find a way to take the Bells from me. Any method is allowed. Anyone who fails to take a Bell before sunset will return to the Ninja Academy and repeat their training. If you don't want to go back, then give it your all and take the Bells."

Hearing Orochimaru say this, Ye Zi and the other two were all stunned. They had thought graduating from the Ninja Academy meant they could become Genin, but they had never expected to still have to pass an assessment with their team leader.

Orochimaru had never mentioned this to him. No matter what, he absolutely could not return to the Ninja Academy. That would only waste another three years.

The expressions in all three of their eyes changed. Watching those changes, Orochimaru gave a cold smile. After retreating some distance, he said calmly, "The deadline is sunset. The assessment begins now."

As the final note fell, the three of them immediately vanished from the spot at top speed and hid in the locations they had chosen beforehand.

One of the Ninja Academy's key lessons was being able to quickly find a hiding spot, allowing one to cooperate with visual-obscuring techniques like the Substitution Technique and serve various other purposes.

After the three vanished, Orochimaru's gaze remained fixed straight ahead. He looked as if he had failed to catch their movements, but in truth, the moment Ye Zi and the others moved, he had already determined their hiding places. Their techniques and speed were still far too immature.

Ye Zi hid in a low, dense patch of grass some distance away, gripping a Kunai tightly as he looked toward Orochimaru, keeping his gaze aimed as much as possible at Orochimaru's lower body.

Watching his legs could reveal his movements, while avoiding Orochimaru's eyes could reduce the chance of being discovered.

"How can I take the Bell?" Ye Zi watched Orochimaru while thinking of a plan.

The spots chosen by Bei Xingye and Kushina were both in trees. Observing from above could also reduce the chance of being discovered.

Kushina was also thinking about how to take the Bell from Orochimaru, while Bei Xingye was considering how to secretly contact Ye Zi and Kushina. In his view, joining forces was the best way to take the Bell.

Just as the three were deep in thought, Orochimaru made an unexpected move. His lowered arm slowly rose, and Ye Zi could not help following the Bell pinched in Orochimaru's hand with his gaze.

Then...

They saw Orochimaru tilt his head back expressionlessly, open his mouth, and raise his arm to toss the Bell inside. With a gulp, they watched his throat convulse as a foreign object slid down, confirming that he had truly swallowed the Bell.

"Damn it!"

Watching this, Ye Zi could not help cursing under his breath, exposing his position in the process. With no choice, he stood up and jumped out.

Bei Xingye stared stupidly at Orochimaru's throat. His thoughts were like a tightly stretched rope that had snapped without hesitation, and he felt completely unwell.

Kushina glanced at Ye Zi, who had jumped out, then looked at Orochimaru, who had performed such a shocking act without changing expression. She covered her forehead, her face full of speechlessness.

How were they supposed to take the Bell after he had swallowed it? Did they have to kill him first and cut open his stomach?

Ye Zi, who had jumped out, stared at Orochimaru strangely. After spending three years together, this was the first time he had discovered that Orochimaru had such a crazy side.

Facing Ye Zi's strange gaze, Orochimaru remained completely unperturbed. In his hoarse voice, he said indifferently, "Restrain me, cut open my stomach, or even kill me if you have to. There is only one thing you need to consider: taking the Bell. You don't need to worry about anything else!"

The content conveyed by that calm voice was an utterly cold reality.

This was only an assessment. Why did they have to go to such extremes?

Bei Xingye and Kushina did not understand, and Ye Zi did not understand either. But since Orochimaru had already said this, Ye Zi would not hesitate in the slightest.

Besides, he did not believe he had the ability to kill Orochimaru. The only thing he could do was try every possible method with all his strength. At the very least, he would not give up, nor could he give up.

Ye Zi raised his Kunai and charged straight at Orochimaru.

"Head-on?" Orochimaru silently watched Ye Zi approach and drew a Kunai.

Ye Zi's free hand quickly pinched several Shuriken from his equipment pouch. Using both hands, he flung the Kunai and Shuriken at Orochimaru.

The Shuriken spun rapidly through the air, tracing three different arcs as they flew toward the same direction, while the Kunai shot straight ahead.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

Orochimaru swung his Kunai, precisely knocking away the three Shuriken and one Kunai without wasting a single unnecessary movement.

Taking advantage of the instant Orochimaru's attention was drawn to the Shuriken, Ye Zi had already completed his hand seals. When he was just over a meter from Orochimaru, his entire body suddenly exploded into a cloud of white mist that dispersed in an instant.

Whoosh!

As the white mist scattered, a mass of black sand suddenly appeared and flew toward Orochimaru in all directions. At the same time, Ye Zi crouched not far behind Orochimaru, holding a Kunai and staring fixedly at him.

"Sand!? That should be..." Orochimaru leaped straight into the air to avoid the mass of sand. Watching Ye Zi, he immediately threw the Kunai at Orochimaru in midair. Orochimaru did not even look back as he caught the Kunai flying from behind with his bare hand, then landed safely.

After landing, Orochimaru switched the Kunai to his other hand and opened his palm to examine it. There was a tiny cut on his index finger, with several beads of blood seeping out.

"There's no doubt that was the Substitution Technique. Normally, the substitute should be an animal or plant. To actually use sand—the purpose wasn't even to evade an attack. If I had been caught off guard and gotten sand in my eyes, it would have been quite troublesome."

Orochimaru silently looked at Ye Zi's disappointed face, feeling rather speechless. He truly did not know how to evaluate Ye Zi's use of the Substitution Technique. If he had to describe it... it was simply shameless.

Being able to use the Substitution Technique this way also reflected how limited Ye Zi's arsenal of ninjutsu was. The Ninja Academy really did only teach a few basic techniques, and none of them possessed any offensive power.