Internal Test Before the Chunin Exams

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep drag of his pipe, tapping the ash loose with his index finger before stretching his aged body with satisfaction.

"The Chunin Exams are about to begin. This generation of youth hasn't experienced the kind of bloodshed the older generation went through—they might struggle to adapt..." Though Hiruzen hadn't seen much battlefield action himself, he wanted these new generations to taste the cruelty of war.

Before that, an internal test was necessary to weed out the weaker ninja. After all, the Chunin Exams were also a key occasion for allied nations to gauge each other's national strength—the performance couldn't be too embarrassing.

"I'll delegate these matters for now. The trail's gone cold, and security needs tightening... Impure World Reincarnation... I really hope it's not you..." A trace of worry surfaced on Hiruzen's face, lined with age and liver spots. After a moment, he rubbed his temples and drifted into a light sleep.

Tenzo had finally carved out some rare free time. Having learned that the Third Hokage planned an internal test within the village, he needed to bring Zi Xu and the others to get acquainted with their fellow villagers.

"This test is just a village-level exam, a preliminary screening. The actual exam will have participants from all the hidden villages, so don't be nervous. You'll have no problem with the internal test. For now, the main thing is to introduce you to your comrades (fellow village teammates)." Tenzo naturally had confidence in them—or rather, in the clans backing them.

Hatsumi was from the Aburame Clan. Many of that clan's members served in the Anbu and Root. The Anbu answered to Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Root answered to Shimura Danzō, who had grown up in the same clothes as Hiruzen. Naturally, they'd extend some courtesy to the Aburame Clan, who were close to them.

Though Chino was from the Hyuga Clan's Branch Family, in this matter she was first and foremost a Hyuga. Hiruzen might have wanted to gut the Hyuga Clan, but now wasn't the time, so maintaining good relations with them still had to last a while longer.

If the Uzumaki Clan hadn't been wiped out, Zi Xu could have ridden their coattails to enjoy the same treatment as Chino and the others. But now, Zi Xu's own strength was enough.

"So we're just meeting our peers from the same year?" Chino didn't take the internal test seriously either.

Hatsumi, on the other hand, looked thoroughly displeased. She'd been trying to fuse the Green Silk Worm and the Moonlight Worm into a single insect. Judging by her gloomy expression, she'd failed. The thought that she'd only come out to meet classmates filled her with helplessness—she just wanted to stay home and research the fusion method.

Zi Xu showed no reaction, though he figured he'd run into Kai and Rock Lee at some point, and could ask them about the correct way to open the Eight Gates.

Along the way, they clearly noticed more ninja around. These were the parents from ninja clans, taking the chance to network while sending their kids to the test. At times like this, whether they were from ninja clans or civilian families, their behavior was exactly the same.

"Oh, isn't this Shanshan's parent? I heard Shanshan's been doing well on exams lately."

"Ah, not at all, just rumors. Last taijutsu test he only scored 90. Kids just don't work hard—I tell him to put in effort, but he won't. Now, your kid Ibuki—he scored a 92 on the last written test! If only my child were as diligent as yours..."

Similar conversations spread widely among the parents, like an iron law—no place could escape this topic.

With Tenzo clearing the way ahead, Zi Xu and the others easily squeezed into the classroom. Once the door closed, it was like sealing off two separate worlds. The previous noise vanished, leaving only Tenzo's relieved sigh.

Zi Xu carefully scanned the room. The classroom held many people their age, along with some youths clearly older. All were participants in the internal test. The Chunin Exam wasn't a one-shot deal—if you failed once, you just took it again. With enough luck, you'd eventually pass.

It was like the English proficiency exams—whether you could pass or not, you signed up first. Failing was normal; you just considered it a donation. If you got lucky and passed, even better—an unexpected bonus. But the Chunin Exam had no age limit. You could keep taking it as long as you wanted. By the time the instructor knew you well enough, would they really fail you?

In truth, the backbone of the ninja world was the Chunin. Above Chunin were top-tier combatants, used for commander-vs-commander elimination tactics. Below Chunin were just extras, unable to handle dangerous missions.

If you compared a hidden village to an empire, Chunin were like soldiers—an absolutely indispensable force. With enough Chunin, it wasn't impossible to wear down a few Jonin through sheer numbers.

Among his peers, Zi Xu noticed a few who caught his attention. One had bright blond hair and sky-blue eyes, with whisker-like marks on his cheeks like cat scratches. Beside him stood a cocky-looking teen with his hands in his pockets, somewhat like the Chino he'd first met. Seeing him, Zi Xu inexplicably wanted to punch him. As for the pink-haired female in that trio of three, he didn't pay her any mind.

The reason Zi Xu noticed the blond was that in his perception, the chakra around that guy radiated an ominous aura—even Natural Energy didn't want to get close.

"Tch." The cocky teen noticed Zi Xu observing him, clicked his tongue, and turned away. The pink-haired female seemed infatuated with him, chattering at his side. The blond joined the argument, but Zi Xu had no interest.

Chino was staring fixedly at a certain team, her emotional fluctuations so intense that Hatsumi tapped her from behind to make her rein it in.

Zi Xu could guess who Chino had spotted. The only thing that could stir her this much was someone from the Hyuga Main Family. Sure enough, following her gaze, he saw a girl with the same snow-white pupils, shyly lowering her head.

Strangely, that girl's team also included a strange figure wrapped in a pale green coat and wearing sunglasses. Zi Xu sensed an aura similar to Hatsumi's from that man. After asking, he found out the man was also from the Aburame Clan.

"Yo! Zi Xu! Long time no see—you're here!" A familiar voice came from the corner. He didn't even need to guess who it was with that youthful tone—either Rock Lee or Kai, but judging by the voice, it was Rock Lee.

Rock Lee was also in a three-man team, though his team included a Hyuga boy.

"Chino?"

"Neji?"

The two already knew each other. Zi Xu tactfully moved aside with Rock Lee, leaving Neji and the others.

After Rock Lee's introductions, Zi Xu had a general understanding of these people. But one thing struck him as odd.

"Hmm... How is it that out of all these squads, Rock Lee's team is the only purely civilian one?" That wasn't to say there were no other civilian-born ninja present—just that among the teams Rock Lee had highlighted, his was the most commoner.

Zi Xu wondered if Rock Lee's team had offended the higher-ups, but thinking about Kai's teaching style, he figured the team assignment made sense.

"That blond kid is Naruto Uzumaki? From my clan? Why's he a blond? That cocky one is from the Uchiha Clan—Sasuke Uchiha? That figures. Hmm... hmm?" Zi Xu suddenly froze, like a robot triggered by some keyword.

His state was like a college student who'd gradually gone to seed, stumbling upon their middle school graduation photo—the one standing in the center C-position, who they clearly remembered but couldn't quite name.

"Naruto... Birdman... Seems like the protagonist, but I remember it being a different name? Sasuke? Tch... None of my business. Even if he's the protagonist, so what? If he doesn't get in my way, we'll keep to ourselves. If he does... then we'll clash." Zi Xu didn't care what status the other party had. After this period of settling in, he was no longer as fearful as he'd been at the start.

Still, he had some interest in Sasuke Uchiha. There had to be a reason he survived the night of the clan massacre.

But even if the other was the protagonist, Zi Xu had the guts to trade blows. He didn't believe his current physique would lose to some so-called protagonist—that was his confidence. Besides, if they weren't hostile, fine. If they were hostile...

Zi Xu's eyes grew unreadable. Either don't make enemies, or if you do, root them out completely—and pour gasoline over the roots while you're at it.

"Right, the Eight Gates..."

Creak~

A familiar figure pushed open the classroom door once more. The figure was robust, his back still ramrod straight, just like three years ago.

"Hello everyone. No time for nonsense—draw lots for matches. You'll be graded on performance. Let's begin." The newcomer was Takeshi Goda. Without wasting words, he had everyone step forward to draw.

When Zi Xu stepped up to draw, he exchanged a glance with Takeshi Goda. The other's eyes seemed to say, "Come on, let me see how much you've improved."

The draw results came out. Their team had drawn an unknown group whose names he couldn't be bothered to remember. In Chinese, they'd be something like Ouyang Goudan, Shangguan Cuihua, Zhuge Tiezhu. Since it was a practical combat match, Zi Xu didn't even need to lift a finger before Chino and the others took care of the opponents.

Notably, among the teams here for assessment, Zi Xu didn't see Nohara's team—the one that had included Uchiha Gen, who died on the night of the clan massacre. Back then, Hatsumi had been heartbroken when Nohara killed her bugs.

But after that night, Zi Xu hadn't paid attention to Nohara's team, so only now did he notice their disappearance.

Takeshi Goda watched as they swiftly finished their match. Most team battles were one-sided—the higher-ups had deliberately arranged it that way. They couldn't have strong teams fighting each other while weak teams lucked their way through.

After the battles ended, Takeshi Goda read out the names of the promoted teams from the score sheet in his hand. As expected, Zi Xu's team was among them. He felt a bit regretful that his own son Nobita hadn't passed the test, but he quickly adjusted his mindset.

"Those who passed the test will be eligible to participate in the Chunin Exam. The Chunin Exam isn't just about combat—there's also a written test." Although the little ones present all had their own teachers now, Takeshi Goda couldn't help but mention it, a habit from his profession.

After that, their group of promoted teams was shooed out, leaving only the teachers behind to discuss something.

"All the ninja villages will come for the Chunin Exam... This is an opportunity, but the Caged Bird Curse Seal is still a problem..." Zi Xu felt that this Chunin Exam was a great chance. If he could stir up some major incident during this period, he might be able to take advantage of it...

Zi Xu was thinking about how to cause trouble during the Chunin Exam, but time-wise, he couldn't master Armament Haki yet, let alone the advanced stage of Flowing Sakura.

"Hm? Why are those two fighting?" Hearing the sound of fists and feet colliding ahead, a group of students had surrounded Rock Lee and Sasuke, who were now locked in a brawl.

"What's going on?" Zi Xu patted a few students who were watching the show, asked about the whole story, and his expression turned rather interesting.

"Want to test how far his Taijutsu has come? That line sounds familiar." He guessed that this was how Rock Lee constantly trained himself by fighting strong opponents.

"He's getting beaten badly. How is Sasuke's Taijutsu so weak? Can't even react to that?" Zi Xu found it strange. How was the last surviving member of the Uchiha Clan so feeble? His reflexes and physique weren't up to par. So why was he so arrogant?

Originally, Zi Xu wanted to just sit there and watch the excitement, but then he thought—would Rock Lee beating up the last Uchiha like this cause any problems? The higher-ups had wiped out the Uchiha Clan before, but they blamed it on their own failure to protect them.

Now that the last Uchiha was right here, the Konoha higher-ups probably wouldn't sit by and let him be in danger—unless Konoha wanted to slap its own face.

Having figured this out, Zi Xu pushed through the crowd. Although he hadn't known Rock Lee long, the guy was to his liking, and he didn't want Rock Lee to be targeted because of this. He himself had the strength to handle Konoha's targeting alone, but Rock Lee didn't.

Rock Lee hadn't even removed his weights. His figure flashed behind Sasuke in an instant, and the bandages on his hands slowly unraveled, as if trying to wrap around the latter. As a fellow Taijutsu practitioner, Zi Xu saw exactly what Rock Lee was about to do.

He rushed out of the crowd, one hand shoving Sasuke—who was about to be wrapped in Rock Lee's bandages—out of the way, while the other hand grabbed Rock Lee, who had already leaped into the air, and pulled him down.

A huge cloud of dust erupted from beneath their feet. The thrown Sasuke was helped up by the Pink-Haired Girl, but he just stared fixedly at the cloud of dust.

As the dust cleared, Zi Xu and Rock Lee stood side by side. The latter's bandages had come loose, and he picked up the weights scattered on the ground—the dust earlier had been kicked up by those weights.

"...Tch..." Sasuke's pupils contracted sharply. The title of genius he'd always worn suddenly felt like a joke. Those two could suppress him with pure Taijutsu alone, leaving him unable to fight back. With this, what right did he have to take revenge on that man?

Zi Xu also felt that Sasuke was unexpectedly weak. He couldn't help but doubt his own memory again—Is this really the protagonist? I must have remembered wrong. How does it feel like he can't even beat Hatsumi? Black Zetsu is definitely the real protagonist. This guy's too pathetic...

"You two... the Chunin Exam..." Sasuke's teeth clenched tightly together. He had to surpass these two in front of him. If he couldn't even beat them, then he might as well forget about revenge and just pack it in and die.