Konoha Crush Plan Initiated

After the Third Hokage announced the dissolution, the genin also dispersed.

With Kakashi's help, Sasuke temporarily suppressed the Curse Mark. Although Kakashi managed to suppress it for the time being, it could flare up again at any moment, as Kakashi wasn't particularly skilled in sealing jutsu. Kakashi had originally planned for Sasuke to stay in the hospital for a few more days until he recovered before allowing him to be discharged for training, but Sasuke didn't follow his instructions. After Kakashi left, he secretly checked himself out of the hospital and went home.

"I wonder how the Chunin Exams are going?" Chen thought idly in his room. Not long after, Sasuke also returned home. Although he really wanted to know about the Chunin Exams, Chen didn't dare to ask Sasuke. Like usual, after finishing dinner, they both returned to their rooms to sleep.

That night, Chen was suddenly woken up by a pained groan from Sasuke in the next room. Chen got up from the tatami.

"What's going on? Is something wrong with Sasuke? I should go check!" Chen thought with some confusion, then walked from his room towards Sasuke's.

"Haa~~ Sasuke, what are you doing? You're making so much noise I can't sleep," Chen pushed open Sasuke's door, yawned, and asked Sasuke. But upon seeing the situation in Sasuke's room, he was startled. Sasuke was currently kneeling on the floor in his pajamas, clutching the left side of his neck with both hands. He looked to be in extreme pain but was trying his best to endure it, his body trembling slightly.

"Sasuke, what's wrong?" Seeing Sasuke like this, Chen asked with concern.

"Shut up! Why did you come here?" Sasuke heard Chen's voice, looked up, and yelled at him. His face was contorted in a grimace from enduring the pain. Chen didn't pay attention to what Sasuke was saying and ran to Sasuke's side, intending to help him up.

"Idiot, get lost! Don't touch me!" Sasuke dodged Chen's outstretched hand, which was meant to help him up, and yelled at Chen. "Didn't you hear me? I told you to stay away from me!" Sasuke suddenly reached out, grabbed Chen by the collar beneath his neck, threw him out of the room, and then shut the door.

"What was that just now… the Curse Mark of Heaven…" Chen said thoughtfully, having been thrown out of the room. When Sasuke grabbed him earlier, Chen had noticed the Curse Mark on Sasuke's neck.

"Sasuke was branded with the Curse Mark by Orochimaru. Was it today? That means the preliminary rounds of the Chunin Selection have already ended today, and the real selection will follow. In the original story, the official selection took place a month after the preliminaries ended. During that time, Sasuke trained with Kakashi and learned Kakashi's Chidori. Naruto also met one of the Sannin, Jiraiya, around that time and trained with him, even signing a contract with the toads of Mount Myōboku and mastering the Summoning Technique.

"I remember the Konoha Crush Plan and the Chunin Selection were on the same day. Is there still a month left? I can't wait, hmph~~"

The next day, before Chen woke up, Sasuke had already left. He was probably going to find Kakashi. He would likely be training with Kakashi for the next month!

A month later, the Chunin Selection was held as scheduled. Konoha was bustling with activity, with representatives from various villages attending, and even the Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure was present in person. Not only that, but the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and many officials had also come to watch. Of the genin who passed the preliminaries, only Sasuke Uchiha of Konoha and Dosu Kinuta of the Sound Village were absent. The remaining participants had arrived on the scene, and the entire audience was cheering.

"Has Sasuke Uchiha still not been found?" the Third Hokage asked Namiashi Raidō, his guard, who was beside him.

"The Anbu have already sent several teams to search, but they still haven't found him. He might have fallen into Orochimaru's hands. If that's the case, he won't be found," Namiashi Raidō replied.

"I understand," the Third Hokage said, narrowing his eyes.

At this moment, the Fourth Kazekage approached with his guards.

"Oh! What a rare sight! A rare sight! Fourth Kazekage! Please, have a seat." The Third Hokage greeted the Fourth Kazekage with an enthusiastic demeanor. After the Fourth Kazekage was seated, he said, "I hope your journey here was not too arduous."

"Not at all. Fortunately, the venue is in Konoha. Although you are not too old, Lord Hokage, traveling such a distance would surely be taxing. I think you should decide on the Fifth Hokage soon," the Fourth Kazekage taunted the Third Hokage. Although the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind were allies now, the relationship between their respective villages was not very friendly!

"Ha! Ha! Ha!" The Third Hokage let out a hearty laugh upon hearing the Kazekage's taunt and said, "Don't treat me like an old man! I think I can still serve for another five years. Alright, we can begin now."

Seeing that the time was about right, the Third Hokage stood up, walked to the front of the stage, and addressed the audience: "Distinguished guests, I sincerely thank you all for coming to watch the Chunin Selection Tournament hosted by Konoha. Now, the eight contestants who passed the preliminaries will proceed to the official selection matches. Please enjoy the competition."

Afterward, Genma Shiranui, acting as the proctor, explained the rules to each contestant and then announced the match pairings. The original list of nine participants had been changed to eight; Dosu Kinuta of the Sound Village had been removed from the list. The previous day, Dosu Kinuta of the Sound Village, in his arrogance, had tried to eliminate Gaara privately to get a chance to face Sasuke Uchiha in the tournament. However, as expected, he was instantly killed by Gaara, and thus he was removed from the match list.

"Listen up. Although the arenas are different, they are the same as in the preliminaries. There are no rules until one party is dead or surrenders. However, when I deem the outcome decided, I will stop the match. You are not allowed to resist. Do you all understand!" Genma Shiranui said, a senbon held between his lips, addressing the seven contestants standing before him. "Now, let the first round begin."

The match began, and Naruto was the first to enter the arena. His opponent was Neji Hyuga, known as the "genius." During the fight, Naruto was hit by Neji's attack, which sealed his chakra points, rendering him unable to use any chakra. However, due to advice from Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, before the match, he released the Nine-Tails' chakra and defeated Neji, earning cheers from the entire audience.

Next was Gaara versus Sasuke Uchiha. However, since Sasuke was nowhere to be found, the Third Hokage decided to postpone Gaara and Sasuke's match until the very end, allowing the other contestants to compete first. The next match was originally between Shino Aburame of Konoha and Kankuro of Sunagakure. However, Kankuro forfeited to conserve his strength for the upcoming Konoha Crush Plan, and Shino Aburame advanced directly.

After Shino Aburame advanced, it was the match between Temari of Sunagakure and Shikamaru of Konoha. Initially, Shikamaru appeared as an unmotivated slacker who always complained about trouble, but during the match, he displayed his brilliant strategist's mind. His intelligence was further showcased in his match against Temari. At first, he seemed to be trying one tactic after another in vain, struggling to catch her amidst Temari's barrage of attacks. In reality, he was maneuvering her to a specific position, where he could use his Shadow Technique to capture her from behind through a hole created by Naruto's earlier attacks.

Just when everyone thought Shikamaru was about to win, he abruptly announced his surrender and explained his reasons—although he had devised over a hundred different strategies, he had overused his Shadow Technique, depleting his chakra. Secondly, he didn't want to hurt a woman. Of course, his aversion to trouble was the primary reason.

Despite Shikamaru's surrender, his brilliant strategic awareness captivated everyone, including the Hokage. Therefore, he was the only genin promoted after the Chunin Exams.

Finally, all the contestants had completed their matches, leaving only the duel between Gaara and Sasuke Uchiha. For some unknown reason, Sasuke Uchiha had not appeared. Just as Genma Shiranui was about to declare Sasuke Uchiha's forfeiture, Kakashi arrived with Sasuke in an extremely flashy manner.

After a bit of posturing, Gaara and Sasuke engaged in a fierce battle. Despite being late for the official match, the results of Sasuke's hard training during this period quickly became apparent. His high-speed movements left Gaara struggling to keep up, forcing him to encase himself entirely in sand. Seizing this opportunity, Sasuke used Chidori for the first time, piercing Gaara's absolute defense and injuring him.

Just as Gaara was about to lose control, Kabuto Yakushi, disguised as an Anbu, activated the genjutsu "Mesmerizing Sleep Technique." White feathers began to drift down from the sky. Everyone in the audience, except for Kakashi, Might Guy, and Sakura, who remained conscious, fell under the genjutsu and lost consciousness. Then, one of the Fourth Kazekage's guards suddenly threw a signal flare.

The Konoha Crush Plan had begun.

Upon receiving the signal flare, the hidden Sound and Sand ninja sprang into action. The Third Hokage was then held hostage by the Fourth Kazekage on a rooftop. Four Sound ninja activated the barrier "Four Violet Flames Formation," trapping the Third Hokage and the Fourth Kazekage inside. Several Anbu attempted to break through the barrier forcefully but were burned to death.

"I didn't expect Sunagakure to betray Konoha," the Third Hokage said calmly, ignoring the kunai pressed against his neck.

"Treaties are merely a smokescreen to make your opponent complacent. This boring game of matches is over. From now on, history will be rewritten," the Fourth Kazekage said with a cold laugh.

"Are you trying to start a war?" the Third Hokage asked the Kazekage. "I believe we should avoid conflict and resolve this through peace talks. It's not too late, Lord Kazekage."

"Hehehe… As expected, the old have grown fond of peace… Teacher Hiruzen!" the Fourth Kazekage said with a cold laugh to the Third Hokage.

"Orochimaru!"