Tsunade Returned to the Village

When Anko saw that her very first opponent was Itachi, she felt utterly dejected. Her eager expression instantly turned into one of complete despair.

She had originally hoped to show off in the third stage of the exam and let Yusuke see how capable she was, but now she had no chance at all.

Sure enough, not long after the two began fighting, Anko was defeated by Itachi, leaving her deeply frustrated at having been unable to show what she could do. Itachi had even gone easy on his senior, putting on an act and dragging out the fight for a while. Otherwise, it would have ended even sooner.

Watching Anko leave the arena with her head hanging, Yusuke could only sigh inwardly at her terrible luck.

In this Chunin Ninja Exam, Yusuke had not seen anyone particularly outstanding apart from the Konoha ninja. Itachi was young, but he was already the strongest of them all.

Yusuke did not think there was anything underhanded about Itachi and Anko facing each other in the first round. Sunagakure, one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, would not stoop to such tactics during a Chunin Ninja Exam.

Besides, the exam results were not determined solely by wins and losses when deciding whether a Genin was fit to become a Chunin. Their overall performance also had to be taken into account.

Take Shikamaru in the original Konoha Chunin Ninja Exams, for example. Although he lost his match against Temari, he was the only Genin among the Konoha 12 to be promoted to Chunin.

In the matches that followed, several of Konoha's Genin performed exceptionally well. Itachi, who was barely seven years old, became the center of attention for everyone at the exam.

Itachi had outstanding combat instincts and could easily spot his opponents' weaknesses during a fight.

His ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu were all excellent, allowing him to target his opponents with effective attacks. Defeating them while expending as little energy as possible also went a long way toward making up for his limited Chakra reserves.

The Fourth Kazekage watched silently as Itachi defeated his last opponent and claimed the final victory. Without thinking, he turned to look at the young Yusuke, who was sitting not far away, and couldn't help sighing inwardly.

"As expected of Konoha—they really are brimming with talent. We're both among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, but Sunagakure is nowhere near Konoha's level."

Yusuke's keen spiritual perception immediately caught Rasa's gaze. He turned, and their eyes met. Out of courtesy, the two nodded to each other in greeting.

But Yusuke saw wariness and worry in Rasa's eyes. The performances of Konoha's Genin in the arena had clearly shaken him.

"Perhaps it's time to make a decision!" Rasa thought of the One-Tail Jinchuriki plan proposed by the elder Chiyo.

Under Chiyo's plan, the One-Tail Jinchuriki would be Rasa's newborn son, who had been born prematurely. Rasa had been unwilling to make that decision, but Konoha's outstanding performance at the Chunin Ninja Exam had filled him with an overwhelming sense of crisis.

Although the Land of Fire was allied with the Land of Wind, politics had no permanent friends—only permanent interests. If Sunagakure lacked the strength to stand as Konoha's equal, the Land of Wind could only become a vassal of the Land of Fire.

In Rasa's eyes, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind was terribly short-sighted. He had been reducing Sunagakure's funding year after year, practically digging the village's grave. If Rasa hadn't been able to use Magnet Release to obtain Gold Dust and sell it for money, supplementing the village's budget, Sunagakure would have had no choice but to keep shrinking until it became a second-rate shinobi village.

"Gaara, forgive me. This is the fate of a shinobi!" Burdened by Sunagakure's internal and external crises, Rasa finally resolved to sacrifice his own son, Gaara, and carry out the One-Tail Jinchuriki plan!

Elsewhere, Hayama was also amazed by Itachi's performance. He believed that with the talent Itachi had shown, it wouldn't be long before he became a shinobi every bit as outstanding as Yusuke. He also envied Yusuke for having a student like Itachi.

After the Chunin Ninja Exam ended, Konoha's delegation didn't linger in Sunagakure. Yusuke and Hayama took the six Genin straight back to Konoha and handed the Third Hokage the sealed letter containing Sunagakure's evaluations and promotion recommendations for them.

Taking Sunagakure's promotion recommendations into account, the Third Hokage ultimately decided to promote all six Genin to Chunin.

Among the six Genin, Anko had not had much chance to distinguish herself, so Sunagakure's promotion recommendation had not given her a particularly high evaluation.

However, her team leaders, Yusuke and Hayama, believed that her strength, endurance, and determination not to hold back her teammates during missions all met the standards for a Chunin. The Third Hokage agreed and promoted her as well.

The six Genin were delighted to learn that they had all been promoted. They agreed to meet that evening and celebrate together. Taking part in Sunagakure's Chunin Ninja Exam had also helped them build a good friendship. Anko and Kurama Naki, in particular, had become close friends who could talk about anything.

After leaving the Hokage Office, Yusuke returned home and found that Izumi and Kabuto were both out. His mother, Uchiha Hazuki, told him they were training at the training ground.

He was pleased to hear that they had kept up their training even while he was away.

When Yusuke arrived at the training ground he shared with his students, he saw Izumi and Kabuto practicing against each other in the distance.

After diligently training in Uchiha Style Kenjutsu, Izumi had now surpassed Kabuto somewhat in taijutsu.

Kabuto, however, had a overwhelming advantage in ninjutsu. His seemingly endless array of techniques kept Izumi on the defensive. In the end, Kabuto came out on top, using an Earth Release technique to trap Izumi after she had run out of stamina.

"Good work. It looks like neither of you has slacked off." Yusuke walked over and freed Izumi from Kabuto's Earth Release technique.

"Brother!"

"Sensei!"

Izumi and Kabuto saw Yusuke and beamed.

Yusuke took the Kusanagi Sword, Kikyo Senraku Sakura, out of his Storage Scroll. The finely crafted long sword immediately caught their attention. Izumi, who was now passionate about swordsmanship, was especially captivated by it.

He handed the sword to Izumi and smiled. "Izumi, this is a gift for you. I know you won't let this sword down!"

Izumi accepted the sword solemnly and immediately examined it closely. Kikyo Senraku Sakura had been specially crafted for a female swordswoman, and Izumi couldn't bear to put it down.

Holding Kikyo Senraku Sakura, Izumi was both happy and moved. Although she was still young, she could tell that the sword was extremely valuable. Her brother must have put a great deal of thought into choosing it just for her.

Yusuke had already made plans for the future of his three students.

In Yusuke's view, as long as Itachi continued to grow steadily, he would become a shinobi of Kage Level or even surpass that level. And Yusuke's expectations for him went beyond that.

Kabuto was somewhat less gifted overall than Itachi, but he had the talent to learn Senjutsu!

During this trip to Sunagakure, Yusuke had obtained information about Ryūchi Cave from Orochimaru.

In the original story, Kabuto had successfully learned the Senjutsu of Ryūchi Cave, something even Orochimaru had failed to master. Kabuto's use of Senjutsu had been the best in the entire Naruto series.

In Yusuke's eyes, a Kabuto who knew Senjutsu and one who didn't were practically two different people!

However, the waters of Ryūchi Cave ran far too deep, and learning Senjutsu came with considerable risks. Yusuke would have to wait until he was confident he could manage those risks before putting his plan into action.

As for his younger sister and student, Izumi, her talent wasn't quite on the same level as the other two, but it was still quite good. She had shown considerable talent in swordsmanship, and with the Sharingan's powerful ability to track movement, she was sure to become one of the best swordswomen in the Ninja World.

Once the time was right, Yusuke planned to give all three of his students a Cursed Seal to make up for some of their natural shortcomings. Of course, those shortcomings only mattered in comparison to the overpowered characters in Naruto.

Yusuke had only developed the Yin-Yang Cursed Seal, which could seal Yin Release Chakra. He had also resolved to develop the Reverse Yin-Yang Cursed Seal, which would seal Yang Release Chakra. He already had a few candidates in mind for the materials needed to make it.

Itachi excelled at genjutsu, so Yusuke planned to give him the Yin-Yang Cursed Seal, using Yin Release Chakra to strengthen his spiritual power. As for Kabuto and Izumi, he planned to give them the Reverse Yin-Yang Cursed Seal, using Yang Release Chakra to strengthen their vitality.

With these kids' talent, it shouldn't be long before they can truly become an asset to me! Yusuke thought expectantly.

Not long after the Chunin Ninja Exam in Sunagakure ended, Tsunade, who had been traveling abroad, received word that the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, had been gravely injured and was unconscious. She returned to the village for a time.

Tsunade had a rather willful personality and usually did whatever she wanted. But she cared a great deal about Minato, who was her junior. So even though she didn't want to return to the village, she had come back to see if she could help him recover.

Inside Minato's hospital room at Konoha Hospital,

the Third Hokage, Tsunade, and Kakashi stood by Minato's bedside, discussing his condition.

"I didn't realize Minato's injuries were this severe. An ordinary person would have died long ago." Tsunade examined Minato and spoke with a grave expression.

"Then is there a way to wake Sensei up?" Kakashi asked urgently.

Tsunade nodded. "There is a way, but..."

She shook her head helplessly. "It would be a long-term process. I don't know exactly how long it would take, and I can't stay in Konoha for that long."

"Minato's physical injuries were very serious, but after recovering for so long, his body has actually healed completely."

"But the damage he suffered back then far exceeded what an ordinary human body could endure. His mind—or rather, his brain—has judged his body to be dead, which is why he still hasn't woken up."

"What we need to do now is use gentle medical Chakra to stimulate Minato's brain over an extended period, rousing its activity so he can regain consciousness."

After hearing Tsunade's explanation, the Third Hokage and Kakashi both understood what she was implying.

Stimulating the brain with medical Chakra required extremely precise Chakra control. The slightest mistake could lead to disastrous consequences, so Tsunade was currently the only one capable of performing the treatment.

And it was obvious that Tsunade didn't want to stay in Konoha for long. Coming back to examine Minato's condition had already been a major concession on her part.

"Tsunade, both Minato and Konoha need someone like you..." The Third Hokage furrowed his brow and tried to persuade Tsunade to stay in Konoha. But before he could finish, she firmly refused.

"Teacher Sarutobi, I'm sorry, but I have no intention of staying in the village right now. Even if you forced me to stay, I wouldn't be able to bring myself to treat Minato day after day. If I let my focus slip, it could cause irreparable harm to him." Tsunade waved a hand.

"Is there really no chance at all that anyone besides you could perform this treatment on Sensei?" Kakashi asked unwillingly.

At his words, Tsunade thought for a moment, then slowly replied, "Now that you mention it, there might be a chance after all."