Chūnin Exam

After returning to the village, Team 7's life settled back into calm, occasionally carrying out boring D-rank missions.

Searching for lost pets, clearing clogged river channels...

These tasks weren't even a warm-up for Yo; he usually sent a Wood Clone to handle them.

Even a Wood Clone was overkill—a Shadow Clone would suffice.

Yo spent most of his time deep in the Back Mountain Forest.

Either studying Wood Release.

Or researching Chidori and Rasengan for secondary development.

Time quietly slipped by, and another half month passed in the blink of an eye.

That evening.

Ending a day of training, Yo returned to the village alone.

The setting sun's afterglow draped Konoha in a warm golden edge.

The streets were bustling with people, livelier than usual.

Yo clearly sensed the difference—there were more ninjas from other villages on the streets: Sunagakure, Otogakure, Kusagakure...

Most of these foreign ninjas were young, around the same age as genin.

Yo paused mid-step, instantly understanding in his heart—the Chūnin Exams had arrived!

The Chūnin Exams!

A major stage between the great ninja villages to showcase the new generation's strength, probe, and compete.

Of course, it was also a key path for genin to advance to chūnin.

Yo's mind stirred.

As per tradition, as recently graduated genin, their class was eligible to participate.

"The Chūnin Exams are great!"

A smirk tugged at Yo's lips.

Barring any surprises, during this Chūnin Exam, Orochimaru would execute the Konoha Crush Plan.

The Third Hokage would die in battle!

Not only that.

Due to the Third's death, Uchiha Itachi would return to the village to warn Konoha's higher-ups.

And at this moment, it was undoubtedly a good opportunity to seize Shisui's Mangekyo!

Yo knew that Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyo—one was in Itachi's hands, the other in Danzo's.

If he could obtain these two Mangekyo, he would have a Mangekyo!

Combined with the Sage Body, the Mangekyo could definitely unleash power comparable to the Eternal Mangekyo.

"I can hardly wait!" Yo licked his lips.

The Chūnin Exams indeed began!

After asking Yo, Naruto, and Sasuke for their opinions, Kakashi also signed up his three students.

The written test started quickly.

In the spacious classroom, ninjas from various villages filled the seats.

Yo sat by the window, looking at the unfamiliar faces in the room, especially some "familiar" ninjas.

Without a doubt, the Sunagakure trio was the most striking.

Gaara carried a gourd on his back, exuding a chilling aura.

Beside him were Temari, holding a giant fan, and Kankuro, wrapped in bandages with a puppet never leaving his side.

The two flanked him left and right, centered on Gaara, with arrogant expressions.

On Konoha's side.

Besides the familiar classmates, there were Rock Lee, Neji, and Tenten.

Of course.

There was also the silver-haired youth with round-rimmed glasses, a gentle smile, and a harmless look—Yakushi Kabuto.

This spy was chatting amiably with a few Konoha genin.

Fools like Naruto were easily fooled by Kabuto's few words, each feeling immense pressure.

That guy Kabuto...

He's disguised well. Should I find a chance to kill him?

Then Yo's gaze landed on a figure in the corner.

Her red hair was a little messy, and she wore thick, round glasses—a girl who looked somewhat timid.

This was Karin!

At this point, Karin was still a twelve-year-old girl, far from the brash person she'd become later.

She kept her head down, fingers twisting together nervously, as if she couldn't adapt to this lively environment.

Karin's perception was extremely sharp. She seemed to sense Yo's stare, lifted her head, and looked back.

Their eyes met.

Karin froze for a moment, then looked away like a startled deer.

A clear blush spread across her pale cheeks.

Even the tips of her ears flushed pink, and she buried her head even lower.

Twelve-year-old Karin...

Pretty cute, actually!

Yo withdrew his gaze. Karin was a pure-blooded member of the Uzumaki Clan—Mind's Eye of the Kagura, a healer, top-tier support!

"Just her personality is... well... a bit of a simp."

"If I can recruit her, she'd make a great healer and human radar!"

Just as Yo's thoughts wandered, the classroom door slammed open.

A group of imposing chūnin examiners filed in.

Leading them was a bald man with a fierce scarred face and vicious eyes—Morino Ibiki.

The moment he appeared, an overwhelming pressure instantly silenced the whispers in the room. You could hear a pin drop.

"I am the proctor for the first exam, Morino Ibiki!"

"The written test rules are simple: ten questions..."

The rules were harsh, almost unreasonably so:

No cheating!

Team scoring!

If caught cheating, the entire team is eliminated!

Hearing these rules, the atmosphere in the room dropped to freezing. Many examinees' faces turned pale.

The test papers were handed out.

The questions covered ninjutsu theory, intelligence analysis, code-breaking, and even obscure strategic simulations...

For most combat-oriented genin, the difficulty was far too high.

Yo picked up the paper and skimmed through it quickly. He had no idea how to answer any of it. Some questions he couldn't even understand.

But that didn't matter.

The real purpose of this written exam wasn't to test what you knew.

It was to assess your ability to gather intelligence under extreme restrictions.

In other words, as long as you could cheat, cheat stealthily enough not to get caught, you'd pass easily.

Yo couldn't even be bothered to cheat.

He knew that at the end of this exam, there would be one final bonus question:

It tested whether genin, under immense pressure, had the will to not abandon their mission or forsake their comrades.

As long as you chose not to give up, the earlier written test didn't matter at all.

So...

Yo didn't bother with a single question. He just stared out the window, his mind wandering.

The other examinees, meanwhile, were scratching their heads, sweating cold bullets, or using every method to cheat.

The result was predictable.

Aside from those caught cheating or those who failed the bonus question's test, everyone else passed!

Including slackers like Yo and Naruto, who had turned in blank papers.

Naruto was something else too—couldn't answer a single question, what a goofball!

The second exam: survive the Forest of Death within five days.

The twenty-six genin teams that passed the written test gathered at the iron gate.

Each team received a sealed scroll containing the core objective of this exam:

Collect both the "Scroll of Heaven" and the "Scroll of Earth," and reach the tower at the forest's center within the time limit.

Team 7, which Yo belonged to, received the Scroll of Heaven.

"Excellent!"

Naruto's fighting spirit blazed. "If we can just grab one more Scroll of Heaven, we'll pass!"

Sasuke glanced at Yo beside him and said in a low voice, "Brother, once we're inside the forest, don't make a move!"

He knew his older brother's strength was unfathomable.

If Yo got serious, all the examinees in the Forest of Death combined probably wouldn't be enough to take him on.

In that case, this Forest of Death trial would lose all meaning as a chance for Sasuke to temper himself.

Yo shrugged. "Fine! This time, I'll let you shine."

"But..."

"If you run into real danger you can't handle, don't forget to call for help."

"I don't want to lose my foolish younger brother and become the last surviving Uchiha."

"Hmph!"

Sasuke was long used to Yo's way of speaking—teasing laced with concern. He let out a cold snort and turned his head away.

But inside, he silently vowed to himself: he would not lose, and he certainly wouldn't need to beg that guy for help!