Gintama Is All About Snark, Isn't It?

The jonin used Earth Release to level the exam grounds and continued the matches. Compared to the battle between Duke and Might Duy, the following one-on-one duels were utterly uneventful, without the slightest ripple. Many genin had their mindsets thrown off balance, ending their battles hastily and failing to display their proper strength at all.

Kurenai, the only member of Shixiao Squad to advance to the second round, had turned misfortune into fortune. Facing an opponent who was far below their usual level, she used a beautiful Illusion Technique to toy with them in the palm of her hand and claimed an opening victory. Might Guy, greatly encouraged, was brimming with fighting spirit. Unfortunately, facing Kakashi, he was cleanly knocked down in just a few moves. Though unwilling to accept it, he could only concede defeat.

With that, the proctor announced the end of the Chunin Exam. The chunin slots would be selected from the thirty genin who had passed the second round. In other words, both Asuma and Duke had been eliminated. Chunin had nothing to do with them now.

Two days later, Zixiao told the three of them the results of this Chunin Exam. Of all the Konoha genin who had participated, only two had passed: Hatake Kakashi and Might Duy. Kurenai had not been selected. All three members of Shixiao Squad had entered the Chunin Exam, and all three had been wiped out.

"What? I can understand Kakashi becoming a chunin, but why did Might Guy's father get promoted too? Wasn't he not on the list of thirty genin?" Asuma asked curiously. Duke was surprised as well. Might Duy was missing from the list of eternal genin. History did not seem to have gone this way.

"Kakashi had an outstanding completion rate for genin missions. Even without this Chunin Exam, he would have automatically advanced to chunin." Zixiao stroked his chin, glanced at Duke, and continued, "As for Might Duy... that was an order personally issued by the Hokage. Might Duy had been a genin for many years, and his mission completion rate was quite good. Given the strength he had shown, becoming a chunin was only natural. There's nothing surprising about it."

"So Kurenai was eliminated for the same reason?" Asuma could not accept it. Shixiao Squad's mission success rate was one hundred percent... their number of missions was just a bit low, only a fraction of Kakashi's and Duy's.

"That's right." Zixiao looked at Kurenai and comforted her. "It's a pity. We've completed too few missions, but you'll be fine next year."

"It's all right, Teacher Zixiao. I accept the arrangement." Kurenai was not dejected. Apparently, her father Shinku had already explained the matter to her.

"Then what was the point of that list of thirty? What was the meaning of this Chunin Exam?" Duke asked with a frown. They had established so many rigorous rules, only to disregard them completely. The result was far too childish. Could the Chunin Exam really just be for diplomacy, a gathering for everyone to test their strength against one another?

"The Chunin Exam had a perfect outcome. Our Konoha received very high praise." Zixiao offered only that one remark, leaving the other three to ponder the rest for themselves.

"So it really was for diplomacy. Dirty politics," Duke muttered.

Zixiao slapped Duke on the head and gave it a rub. "As for you, you used only taijutsu. I read the battle record too. Your taijutsu is far inferior to Might Duy's. Refusing to use ninjutsu was far too reckless."

"Teacher Zixiao wouldn't let me use Ice Release. What else could I do?" Duke shrugged helplessly.

"I only told you not to use Ice Release. I never told you not to use other ninjutsu. Where were your Water Release and Wind Release?"

"So I know Water Release and Wind Release too? How come I didn't know that? Teacher Zixiao never taught me." Duke shot a contemptuous look at a certain irresponsible teacher. Hearing him say that, Asuma and Kurenai joined in, both demanding to learn new ninjutsu.

"All right, all right, I'm afraid of you three." Zixiao hurriedly waved his hands. "From now on, I'll teach you the Wind Release and Illusion Techniques your teacher specializes in. Does anyone like using swords? Your teacher here is pretty good with a blade too!"

"Swordsmanship?" Duke shook his head. He did know some from Soul Society, but he had figured it all out on his own, so there was no need to mention it.

Asuma and Kurenai shook their heads as well. Neither was a ninja who liked swords. Kurenai preferred kunai, while Asuma was interested in short blade tools.

That night, Duke felt a pull in his heart and entered the Unknown Space. It was still gray and hazy, still entirely unknown. When had this space come into being? Why did it exist? Duke could not make sense of any of its mysteries. The only thing he knew was that his Golden Finger after transmigrating was closely tied to this space. He had lived again because of it, and he had continued growing stronger because of it. With every additional version of himself, another path appeared in this space, and at the end of each path lay a new world.

The moment Duke appeared, four unfamiliar faces turned to look at him. Every newcomer had always appeared in pairs, and Duke had thought that was a rule of the Unknown Space. He had not expected four worlds to appear at once this time, and he was overjoyed. That meant his strength could improve once more—and by a huge margin.

The five of them shared an inexplicable sense of familiarity. Hokage Duke quickly blended in with the other four, dispelling their individual wariness in no time. After Navy Duke, Bleach Intern Duke, Articuno Duke, and the successfully evolved Garurumon Duke arrived, everyone merged their memories. Then they sat on the ground in a circle and began chatting.

"I never expected something like this to happen. When I first transmigrated and found myself in ancient times, I nearly broke down. No internet, no WiFi, transportation mostly depended on walking, public safety mostly depended on dogs, communication mostly depended on shouting, entertainment mostly depended on hands. It took me a long time to adapt to that world." Duke from the Wuxia World poured out his bitterness. He had been born in a small mountain village at the foot of Mount Hua. Ancient villages were poor and barren, with nothing at all. The first few years after he transmigrated had been miserable beyond words. His greatest pleasure had been walking the yellow dog at the village entrance.

Back then, Duke had believed there could be no more tragic transmigration than that. Then Mount Hua Sect came down the mountain to recruit disciples, and he was chosen. Only then did he learn that there was no greatest tragedy, only greater tragedy. His master was actually the famous Gentleman Sword, Yue Buqun. He was practically being set up to be played to death.

As the saying went, good things came in pairs, but disasters never came alone. When a person was unlucky, even drinking cold water could get stuck between their teeth. After entering the martial world, he learned several excruciating bits of news. For example, Beggar Sect Chief Qiao Feng had been exposed by the paparazzi as a Khitan. Left with no choice, he resigned in Apricot Forest and returned home to herd sheep, while the position of chief passed to Nine-Sack Elder Hong Qigong. For example, the great hero Guo Jing had gathered heroes at Xiangyang to resist the Mongols, and insightful people from across the land had responded one after another. And for example, his master Yue Buqun had recently been discussing with his wife the reasons for the Eight Great Sects to besiege Bright Summit. Unfortunately, he lacked the strength to match his ambitions and gave up this chance to make a name for himself in the martial world.

Compared with those shocking major events, there were also some less important minor ones. For instance, the great hero Miao... cough, cough, Miao Renfeng had formed a grudge with the Red Flower Society. Chief Leader Chen Jinnan of the Heaven and Earth Society stepped in to support them, and after several matches, both sides shook hands, made peace, and joined forces for a grand undertaking. For instance, the Sun Moon Divine Cult had fought the Divine Dragon Cult. The leaders of both sides dueled, Dongfang Bubai claimed first blood and instantly killed Hong Antong, leaving the Divine Dragon Cult utterly defeated. And for instance, Ren Woxing, the former leader of the Sun Moon Divine Cult, had returned to the martial world, gathered his old followers, and attacked Blackwood Cliff, only to be beaten into high paraplegia halfway there by an idiot named Gouzazhong...

In short, this Wuxia World was extremely chaotic. It frightened Duke into running up Cliff of Contemplation overnight, where he tricked Feng Qingyang, the Old Master, into teaching him the Dugu Nine Swords. On the very first night after mastering it, he arrived in the Unknown Space.

"That gave me a scare. Thankfully, my Golden Finger had arrived instead of me transmigrating again. Otherwise, before I could even begin my life as a great hero, I would have died before achieving anything." The future great hero Duke sighed in relief. Having learned the Dugu Nine Swords, his hard days had finally come to an end.

"You're still pretty lucky. There are clues to follow in a chaotic Wuxia World. At least I've read every one of Jin Yong's novels. I'm the truly miserable one. Samurai Deeper Kyo... I've only heard of it. I don't know the plot at all!" Demon Eye Duke, who had a pair of blood-red eyes, was deeply depressed. If the Unseen Divine Wind Style Killing Sword had not been so famous, he would not even know where he was. How was a transmigrator supposed to cope without knowing the plot?

"..." Executioner Duke from the Rurouni Kenshin World remained silent, a smile always on his lips. Tired of slaughter, he greatly enjoyed the warm and harmonious atmosphere. After transmigrating, every Duke's personality changed according to his experiences. Even after receiving new memories, that remained true.

"Aren't you joining them? Four swordsmen gathered together should have plenty to talk about," Hokage Duke said to Dead Fish Eye Duke, who was lying beside him. This fellow came from the Gintama World.

"Give me a break! Gintama World isn't at war anymore. I've nearly forgotten what a sword even looks like. Speaking of swordsmen, wouldn't the me from Soul Society be more suitable for the four-swordsmen group? After merging memories, you should know that I'm good at clubbing and Pachinko. Pachinko Balls are my real specialty." Dead Fish Eye Duke yawned, looking like a lazy, useless middle-aged man.

"No, I've only just begun studying swordsmanship. Compared to all of you, I'm not worth mentioning." Bleach Intern Duke humbly stated that he had only just entered the field of swordsmanship.

"That's Soul Society. Even a sanitary pad or a sheet of toilet paper is made of Reishi, so stop being modest. You're making me feel ashamed. Compared to you all, the only thing I can show off is snark." Dead Fish Eye Duke complained.

"You're the one who's truly modest! No one who can come to this space is ordinary. The fact that you came to this Unknown Space during peacetime is enough to prove that you're even stronger than you were during wartime." Bleach Intern Duke spoke pointedly. Their memories had already merged, so there was no point in keeping up the act. "War sharpened the sword in your hand, while peace helped you find its sheath. When that sword is drawn again one day, it will surely sweep aside all before it..."

"You're a true swordsman!" Executioner Duke suddenly interjected, then fell silent again.

"So you still discovered that I can use Bankai. As expected of me—there's no hiding anything from yourselves." Dead Fish Eye Duke from the Gintama World said smugly.

The Dukes from the Wuxia Grand Fusion World, Rurouni Kenshin World, Samurai Deeper Kyo World, Gintama World, and Soul Society—five Dukes who dealt with swords—had found kindred spirits, and their topics of conversation were inexhaustible. Tonight was an exchange between swordsmen. Hokage Duke and Navy Duke could barely follow along as listeners, while Articuno Duke and Garurumon Duke were the truly tragic ones. Even if they listened, it was useless. Birds and beasts were destined to be unable to wield swords; they had no hands to hold them.