Fishing in Troubled Waters

"Heh heh heh~~ So, the old are content with peace now, are they... Teacher Hiruzen!" The Fourth Kazekage said with a cold laugh to the Third Hokage.

"You are...!" The Third Hokage was no longer as calm as before, his eyes wide with surprise as he looked at the Fourth Kazekage before him.

"Heh heh heh~~"

At this moment, in the arena, after Sasuke injured Gaara with Chidori, he jumped back, creating distance between himself and Gaara. He then noticed the disturbance in the spectator stands and the Four Violet Flames Formation.

"What's going on?" Sasuke looked at the giant square Four Violet Flames Formation not far away, completely confused.

"Enough, Gaara." Just as Gaara was about to go berserk, Temari and Kankuro jumped in front of him to stop him.

"I'm going to kill him!" Gaara ignored Temari and Kankuro, his expression ferocious as he walked towards Sasuke.

"There's no point in continuing to fight him. Don't forget our mission!" Kankuro grabbed Gaara.

"Get lost! Or I'll take you down too." Gaara shoved Kankuro away, attempting to attack Sasuke.

At this moment, their Jonin instructor, Baki, appeared before them. "What are you guys waiting for? The operation has already begun!" While Baki was speaking, Konoha's special Jonin, Genma Shiranui, also appeared beside Sasuke, and the two groups formed a standoff.

"Gaara is seriously injured, and his Chakra is too depleted to perform that jutsu," Temari explained to Baki.

"Damn it, Gaara is Sunagakure's trump card. We must make him useful no matter what. You two leave first and find a way to heal Gaara. Once he's recovered, have him activate that jutsu," Baki ordered Temari and Kankuro to take Gaara away, while he stayed behind to cover their retreat. Upon hearing Baki's order, Temari and Kankuro carried Gaara away.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry, but the Chunin Exams end here. You're already Chunin level. As a Konoha ninja, you must contribute to Konoha," Genma Shiranui said to Sasuke beside him while keeping an eye on Baki.

"Defeating Gaara is enough, right? Let's continue our fight," Sasuke said coldly.

"Don't press your advantage. This isn't an exam anymore; it's real combat."

"Hmph! The objective is the same anyway!" Sasuke said and then chased after the direction the three of them had fled.

Meanwhile, inside the Four Violet Flames Formation.

"My, my! I intended to take Sasuke away while Gaara caused chaos, but it seems I can't have my wish," the Fake Fourth Kazekage said with a light laugh to the Third Hokage.

"Is that so! I see, so your objective is Konoha and Sasuke!" the Third Hokage said, looking at the fake Kazekage before him.

"Konoha isn't that important to me. More importantly, if Gaara fully awakens, you'll see something much more interesting. Well! Never mind him. Your foolishness has thrown Konoha into chaos. I've already won."

"Hmph! Nothing is decided until the very end. I should have taught you this, shouldn't I! Orochimaru!"

"Heh heh!!" The fake Kazekage grinned sinisterly, reached out, and tore off a piece of skin from his face, revealing his true form: none other than the Third Hokage's disciple, and Konoha's S-rank rogue ninja, the cold lord Orochimaru.

Orochimaru sneered, "I told you long ago to decide on the Fifth Hokage sooner. Because the Third, that is, you, will die here shortly."

"Actually, I knew this day would come sooner or later, but..." The Third Hokage closed his eyes and spoke to the disciple before him, then suddenly opened them, glaring at Orochimaru: "Don't think you can take my head so easily."

The battle between master and disciple, two Kage-level powerhouses, was about to erupt.

At this moment, Konoha's civilians, under the command of some Chunin, were rushing to the shelters. However, Chen did not follow the civilians to the shelter. He had been looking forward to this day for a long time; how could he hide?

"Hmph hmph! The show is about to begin!" Chen said with a hint of excitement as he looked at the giant snakes rampaging through Konoha Village in the distance.

"Ding! System has issued a war mission. Please select a faction, Host. Defenders: Konoha, Attackers: Sound-Sand Alliance. Mission conditions: Eliminate enemy faction ninjas. Jonin: 5, Chunin: 10, Genin: 20. Mission reward: 50,000 Points. Mission failure penalty: Deduct [REDACTED] Points. Accept?"

"If I fail the mission, points will be deducted? What if I don't have enough points? Will it be host annihilation?" Chen asked with some worry. In the novels he read in his past life, the protagonist's cheat system would threaten the protagonist with annihilation at the slightest provocation. If the Strongman System was like that too, Chen would have to consider carefully whether to accept the mission.

"Host, please rest assured, the problem you are worried about will not occur. The Strongman System exists because of the Host, and the Host has supreme command. If the Host dies, the system will also disappear, so the system does not have the power to annihilate the Host. If the Host cannot complete the mission, the system will deduct an equivalent amount of Points. If the Host's accumulated Points are insufficient for the deduction, the system will default the Host's Points to a negative state, and the Host will be unable to make any exchanges. Any Points obtained afterward will be used to prioritize filling the Host's negative balance."

"Is that so! Then there's no problem. Accept the mission!" Chen felt relieved upon hearing the system's explanation.

"Please select a faction, Host. Defenders: Konoha, Attackers: Sound-Sand Alliance."

"Hmm, I'll choose Konoha!" Chen thought for a moment, not hesitating much. After all, Konoha was his hometown.

"Ding! Host has chosen the Konoha faction. Hidden mission triggered: Eliminate enemy faction leader 'Orochimaru'. Mission reward: 100,000 Points, one System lottery! Mission failure penalty: None. Please join the battlefield and execute the mission."

"What the heck, this is a rip-off! You want me to kill Uncle Snake? System, you're trying to kill me! Fortunately, there's no penalty for failure. Anyway, I'll ignore this mission." Chen was startled by the subsequent mission the system gave him.

"Never mind that. System, first exchange an Anbu outfit for me."

"Anbu Outfit: Item Level: E, Item Type: Prop, Points Required: 100, Exchange?"

"Exchange!"

After Chen put on the Anbu outfit, he activated the Body Flicker Technique and left his home, rushing towards the chaos outside.

Meanwhile, Kakashi and Might Guy had sent Sakura, Naruto, and Shikamaru away, telling them to catch up with Sasuke and deal with Gaara together. As for themselves, they were surrounded by a group of Sunagakure ninjas.

"Kakashi! Let's have our XXXth match! Burn! My youth! Hyaaa!" Might Guy shouted excitedly to Kakashi beside him, then charged towards the enemies ahead.

"Honestly!" Kakashi also charged forward! The two instantly engaged the Sound Ninjas.

Kakashi and Might Guy were worthy elite Jonin. Like wolves entering a flock of sheep, none of the Sand Ninjas could withstand even a single blow.

"Too... too strong! We, we're all going to be killed!" The remaining few Sand Ninjas were terrified and wanted to turn and flee. Suddenly, a cold glint flashed, and a short figure appeared behind them. The person was dressed in a Konoha Anbu outfit, and was in the motion of slowly sheathing the sword in his hand into its scabbard.

"Wh-what happened?" The Sunagakure ninjas hadn't figured out the situation yet. Immediately after, without exception, blood mist spurted from the necks of those Sand Ninjas!

"Ding! Host has eliminated five Chunin. Reward: 5,000 Points."

"So fast! Before those Sand Ninjas could react, they were all instantly throat-slashed." Might Guy thought in shock as he looked at the Anbu before him.

Kakashi looked at the short figure before him and thought, "Anbu?"

"Sorry! I snatched your prey!" At this moment, the short Anbu member spoke! Judging by his voice, he didn't sound old! This person was Chen, who had just arrived. (There's no need to talk about not daring to kill for the first time or needing to adapt here. Killing is a necessity in the world of Hokage, so I won't waste time on useless chatter.)

"You... you're Anbu?" Might Guy said in surprise after hearing the short person's voice, "You should still be a child! And you've already joined Anbu."

"Well! Don't look so surprised! Didn't Kakashi-senpai join Anbu at my age too? I've heard about Kakashi-senpai's deeds. Although senpai's information is classified, senpai's reputation is just too great. We in Anbu often mention senpai privately. I've always admired senpai immensely. Compared to Kakashi-senpai, I'm nothing!" Chen said calmly to Kakashi and Might Guy.

"Alright, we don't have time to waste. Let's cut the small talk. I'm leaving!" Chen said, not waiting for Kakashi and Might Guy's reaction. He immediately activated the Body Flicker Technique and disappeared before the two of them.

"Kakashi..." Might Guy started to say something to Kakashi.

"Mhm! He's right. Ninjas can't underestimate opponents just because they're young, or they'll pay the price. Alright, since this is settled, let's go somewhere else!"

"That's right! Our match isn't over yet, and I've already taken down X enemies, Kakashi!"

"Oh! X!" Kakashi simply replied.

"Ah! As expected of my lifelong rival, Kakashi! However, I won't admit defeat."

On the other side, Chen arrived at the top of a building and looked down at the chaos below Konoha. The giant snake in the distance let out roars, wreaking havoc, yet the Konoha ninjas couldn't harm it in the slightest.

"Erha, I've found you some good opponents. Be grateful!" he said, jumping off the building. In mid-air, he bit his thumb and quickly formed hand seals.

"Summoning Technique!"