"Mm..."
A luxurious futon lay in the corner of the Japanese-style room.
Uchiha Shuri pulled the blanket embroidered with her clan crest over her belly. She made a troubled sound and shivered slightly.
The chill of early morning seemed to have left her hands and feet, sticking out from under the covers, cold.
She furrowed her brow with her eyes closed, curling her long limbs like a baby and huddling into a ball beneath the covers.
"Big brother, my dumplings...?"
Juri's muttering was swallowed by the blanket and faded away.
For a while afterward, she drifted in and out of light sleep.
"Ahh—"
A weak, drawn-out groan emerged, a gravelly low note that didn't sound like it belonged to a woman her age.
"—Achoo!!"
All of a sudden.
Juri kicked off the blanket and jerked upright, then began shaking her head wildly.
Her black hair, mussed and sticking up from her restless sleep, whipped about without restraint.
"So hot."
After all that commotion and exposure to the air, she seemed to have successfully let out some heat.
There was no trace of her earlier displeasure in the mumble.
It was hot, but there was nothing she could do about it, so she'd just say it—that was all.
"Mm-hmm."
The feeling of her bangs sticking to her forehead with sweat was unbearable.
She roughly wiped the sweat off her forehead with her pajama sleeve, then brushed her prized black hair back, baring her forehead to the air.
She fanned her forehead with her hand, then turned her head and fanned the back of her pale neck.
"...?"
Just then, as Juri began to wake up, she felt a breeze behind her that was far stronger than the one from her hand.
It was undoubtedly coming from an electric fan.
She did remember leaving it on when she went to sleep, so the breeze made sense—but Juri tilted her head.
If I left the fan on, why am I sweating so much...?
Juri seemed not to remember being trapped beneath the blanket just moments ago.
Could tonight be an unusually hot night, the kind we haven't had in years?
The strap of her nightshirt slipped off her shoulder, revealing its rounded curve.
She didn't seem to care. With her sleepy eyes half open, she slowly climbed out from under the covers.
Perhaps because she had tossed and turned in her sleep, one side of her shorts had slipped down over her hip.
But Juri didn't care.
To be honest, her earlier back-and-forth with herself didn't matter at all.
So Juri made up some excuse and casually convinced herself.
Any kind of self-reassurance would do, as long as it eased the clammy discomfort of her sweat-damp skin.
"Ahh—"
She claimed the spot in front of the electric fan and opened her mouth toward its rapidly spinning blades, making a sound.
The blades chopped up her voice, sending its peculiar vibrations back to Juri's ears.
What a thoroughly unpleasant way to wake up, she complained inwardly, continuing her "ahh" exercise in front of the fan for a while.
After some time, when she had fully woken up, even Juri couldn't help blushing to herself and thinking, What am I doing at my age...?
"Let's eat."
After sitting down and saying her customary greeting, Juri scooped cold rice into her mouth with the pickled vegetables kept on the dining table.
"Mm... still cold."
It seemed she hadn't heated the rice long enough after defrosting it. It had been frozen in a food container for three days.
Juri pouted in displeasure.
Wouldn't it be better to go to her usual diner for breakfast after all?
But she felt bad about wasting the rice.
Sitting in front of the cold rice, Juri folded her arms and tilted her head as she pondered.
She seemed genuinely troubled. She frowned and even let out a little grunt.
Juri's older brother, Kagami, had been away on a mission for the past few days and hadn't returned yet.
The cold rice in front of Juri was something Kagami had prepared for her before leaving on his mission.
But even if he'd prepared a generous amount, the food Kagami had made ahead of time could only have been enough for two meals at most.
The reason there was still some left was—
Damn it. I shouldn't have eaten out.
On the first night—after learning that Kagami would be away from home on a mission, Juri had felt a complicated mix of liberation and a little loneliness. She'd left the house early in the morning and, on her way to train, stopped by Ina's place.
That night, she'd gone straight out to eat.
Perhaps in reaction to Kagami's preference for plain food, she'd eaten her fill and then some.
When she got home and found leftover rice, she couldn't bring herself to throw it out, so she froze it.
But she'd still forced herself to eat the side dishes, which had probably been sitting out all day...
On the second day—she'd eaten too much and upset her stomach, so she hadn't been able to eat at all.
On the third day—she'd recovered.
Just as she was about to eat the frozen rice, Ina called her out.
Ina said it was "for good luck" and treated her to a natto set meal for breakfast, then a large bowl of pork cutlet rice for lunch.
Juri had planned to eat sausage curry for dinner, but remembering the previous day's nightmare, she'd declined.
Having learned her lesson from the first day, she skipped dinner.
She hadn't gotten around to eating the cold rice.
And now, today—the fateful day.
Frankly, she didn't want to eat it, but if not today, then when?
"Fire Release: Small Flame."
Pfft. A small flame spouted from Juri's mouth, lighting up the cold rice.
"Mm, warmed up."
The cold rice, roasted with Fire Release, had turned into fried rice.
But that was only on the surface; the fire hadn't penetrated inside.
So Juri repeated the process, picking up the rice with her chopsticks and roasting it with fire before putting it in her mouth as she worked her way through the meal.
"—Thanks for the meal."
After finishing, Juri put her hands together in her customary gesture and carried her dishes to the kitchen.
Juri hated cooking and was generally lazy, but she was always diligent about washing the dishes and cleaning.
According to her, it was because she hated bad smells.
She tossed the dishes into the sink, which was full of water, and poured in a little dish soap.
Watching the dish soap spread through the water gave Juri a strange sense of happiness. Satisfied, she headed for the washroom.
She wanted to wash away the sweat, of course, but it was also part of being a proper woman.
"All right, looking perfect again today."
Some time later, Juri emerged from the washroom transformed into a radiant woman.
She had traded her casual clothes for a crisp, formal outfit in the blink of an eye.
By the way, she often ended up matching Ina's taste because she either bought the same clothes Ina wore or Ina recommended something and she bought the same thing.
Only Sakumo had noticed.
Diejian admired how well their tastes matched.
Ina simply thought, Wow, are we really that compatible?
As for Kagami, he was overjoyed that "that" Juri was starting to pay attention to fashion.
Sakumo alone had been troubled. Is this... because they're both women, so it's safe? No, is it the beginning of a friendship...? No, but... could this be... a lesbian thing...?
That was completely beside the point.
In any case, Juri had tidied her messy bedhead, and her hair now gleamed.
Eyeshadow accentuated her narrow eyes, and her long lashes had been delicately emphasized.
Her lips were painted bright red, and her cheeks had a perfect flush, warm enough to lend them a healthy glow.
Her legs, exposed beneath her shorts, had a healthy firmness and sheen on one side, while the other was wrapped in layer upon layer of bandages, concealing her skin.
A Ninja Tool Pouch was strapped over the bandages on her thigh.
It was used to store weapons and Summoning Scrolls.
In the old days, I would've had to hide weapons all over my body.
The Summoning Technique sure was convenient.
"Hmph..."
Juri gave a snort as if to say, "I'm very pleased," then tossed her long hair with exaggerated flair.
Her hair was as smooth as silk, slipping through her fingers with such softness that each strand seemed ready to cling to her skin.
"Oh, the dishes... I have to wash them."
Juri suddenly remembered she'd forgotten to wash the dishes and hurried to the kitchen.
Sadly,
she herself didn't realize that she'd developed a habit of talking to herself.
Once she was ready, Juri spread out her belongings in the entryway and checked them.
The small bag beside her was decorated with a tasteful charm. Its plastic tag, containing a faded flower petal, was one of Juri's treasures.
She laid out the ninja tools she planned to put in her bag.
A wooden tube containing ninja food such as Military Ration Pills, a small first-aid kit holding items like needles and thread, a copy of her ninja registration card, and, most importantly, her "admission ticket."
Today was the day of the first round of the Chunin Selection Exam!!
"Just thinking about it... Ugh, I can't help getting nervous. Can I pass...? No, I can pass. I'm definitely going to make it!"
Juri clenched her fist and scolded her own weakness.
"But... if that guy's the Examiner... will I really be okay?"
In an instant, the force drained from her words.
Juri glanced at the several framed photographs on the shoe cabinet.
They held a group photo of Team Six.
Juri glared resentfully at one of the men in the picture.
That man was the Examiner for this Chunin Selection Exam, the infamous Senju Diejian.
"You demon. Just how long are you going to keep getting in my way?"
The photo Juri was glaring at was the first group picture Team Six had taken.
Before she knew it, her thoughts had drifted back to the past.
Three children stood side by side, with an adult behind them.
Diejian stood between Sakumo and Juri, who had turned their faces away from each other at opposite ends of the photo. His smile looked stiff.
At first glance, the three children seemed to get along poorly, but the matching bumps on their heads made the picture amusing.
Kagami, standing behind them, wore a gentle, wry smile. Perhaps he'd been struck by the difficult road ahead for the Genin he was about to take responsibility for—though Juri wasn't sure of the exact reason.
The photo had been taken after they'd attacked the Hokage's residence to avoid being held back a year and had been scolded by the Hokage at the time, Senju Tobirama.
At the suggestion of her older brother Kagami, who had officially become their "Teacher," they'd gathered around the frame, though none of them had been particularly willing.
Back then, the three of them hadn't gotten along.
But we actually attacked the Hokage's residence...
Juri was a young woman who'd lived long enough to know better.
Thinking back on it now, she realized what an outrageous thing they'd done, and broke into a cold sweat.
The fact that she could see it that way meant she'd grown.
If Kagami knew, he'd surely be moved to tears by his little sister's growth and overjoyed.
Juri wouldn't tell him, and didn't intend to. Whether it was pride or embarrassment, she still had her vanity.
"If I remember right, the Second took this photo."
At the time, perhaps the Hokage happened to have nothing urgent to do, or perhaps he wanted to reward his students for becoming Genin. In any case, the Second, Tobirama, had volunteered to take the picture.
The person most surprised by the offer had been Diejian himself. Faced with this uncharacteristic suggestion from his "Teacher," Tobirama, Diejian had worn a stiff smile.
Remembering that, Juri's mouth curled slightly.
She wasn't mocking him.
Her smile was innocent; it just looked that way to other people.
"Heh, we were an absolute mess."
Then Juri turned her gaze to the group photo of Team Six, covered head to toe in mud.
Team Six's first mission had been to level the land near the Valley of the End.
Juri understood now that it couldn't have been a more suitable first mission.
It had given them practice with the basics, like walking on water and climbing walls, while also letting them watch the techniques of their direct superior, Kagami, up close and familiarize themselves with nature transformation.
Their boyhood and girlhood had passed without realizing any of this. Every day, they complained because they hated doing nothing but hauling dirt.
Though Juri was immersed in her memories, she had been the only one who complained.
Diejian and Sakumo had said they were tired, but they had never said they wanted to give up the work itself.
On the contrary, they had recognized the value of the mission and practiced their basic skills during breaks in the work.
That was why, if not for the gift of the Sharingan Kekkei Genkai, Juri would have been judged a step or two behind Hatake Sakumo—not to mention Diejian, who had been in the midst of all kinds of dangerous situations back then.
In any case, all sorts of things had happened.
This photograph had been taken by her older brother, Kagami, with a Shadow Clone.
The three of them, covered in mud, still stood somewhat far apart.
"Next time, I really want to go with everyone."
A year ago, Juri and Sakumo had happened upon a chance to visit the old worksite, but circumstances had been unusual, and they hadn't been able to sightsee.
Juri felt a faint warmth in her chest and thought that next time, she'd take her time admiring those two statues with everyone.
"Hmm..."
Looking at the photograph beside it, Juri's face flushed slightly.
It showed herself with bloodshot, swollen eyes—or rather, with her Sharingan showing, cheeks puffed out and lips pursed in a sulk.
In the photo, she was turning her head away with all her might to avoid the camera. Diejian had tried to stop her and had an arm around her shoulders. Her unhappy expression remained, but her cheeks were faintly flushed.
The photo had been taken when Diejian and Sakumo were promoted to Chunin, while Juri had failed the Chunin Ninja Exams.
Soon after that, Hatake Sakumo had quickly risen to Jonin and begun making a name for himself as "Konoha's White Fang."
"Diejian..."
Another name came to mind: a teammate.
Several years had passed since her first Chunin Ninja Exams.
Among her peers, she was the only one still a Genin, accomplishing nothing: "Uchiha" Juri.
She understood what that meant.
She knew that her older brother, Kagami, and Hatake Sakumo, her "best friend," had been suppressing the rumors and shutting up the people who spoke ill of her.
Juri herself had also used her Sharingan to shut up people who badmouthed her.
In truth, Juri knew that although people respected her for awakening the Sharingan and being born into the prestigious Uchiha Clan, some shinobi also looked down on her as a straggler who was still a Genin.
But Senju Diejian must have been the same once.
Until just a year ago.
"Diejian, why did you..."
Juri hated to admit it, but in the eyes of the world, the "other two" members of Team Six had been nothing but "extras" to the White Fang.
One was a direct descendant of the Senju, and the other an Uchiha with the Sharingan. People had indeed once held high hopes for them, but they had also looked at them with disappointment, thinking, "So that's all they amount to."
Juri's pride had been wounded, but she had also felt considerable relief at the thought that "she wasn't the only one."
What's more, her pride in having "saved her fellow straggler Diejian" during the Chunin Ninja Exams had become an identity that protected her sense of self.
And Diejian, who had once been like that, had gained a reputation in the past year unlike anything he'd had before.
Beginning with the Kumogakure Retreat Battle, where he had taken the head of Kakuzu, the vicious Takigakure rogue shinobi who was rumored to be dead, Diejian had slain several rogue shinobi over the past year and demonstrated his strength to other nations.
The nickname that described his sudden rise was "Rising Dragon."
Once a willful young master of the Senju, he had now inherited the legacy of the Second, a source of pride for Konohagakure, and earned a reputation to match the White Fang.
The "Rising Dragon" and the "White Fang."
Compared to the two of them, who had become Konoha's twin emblems, Juri felt bitter as she faced her own smallness.
"Grr..."
Unforgivable.
—That had been Juri's feelings long ago.
She'd been left behind.
A traitor. Juri had been the only one hurt.
Lonely.
—That must have been Juri's honest feelings not long ago.
Everyone was gradually growing into adults, while she was still a child. No matter how she looked at it, she didn't fit in.
I don't want to lose.
—That was Juri's honest feeling now.
A year ago, the White Fang had shown the meaning of friendship by staking his life on it.
Yamanaka Ina had endured for a long time, waiting for Juri's affection to awaken.
Then Diejian—
In any case, Juri couldn't let down Sakumo, Ina, or Diejian after they had each shown how they felt.
At the same time, she was angry.
Juri was the kind of woman who always struck back when someone did something to her.
If a man walking by trampled the ice cream she'd just bought, she'd get him back by stomping his balls flat.
(Though she'd been stopped.)
If someone told her she was useless and should step down, she'd throw the exact same insult right back at them.
That was the kind of woman she was.
—Being pushed around without fighting back isn't my style!!
"I'm heading out!"
Fired up, Juri briskly packed her things and slung a small bag around her waist.
She would surpass the person she'd always been.
She would become a Chunin and grow stronger, Juri declared to herself.
With her back to the empty house, she called out loudly, full of spirit.
Juri left home in high spirits, but stopped in front of a restaurant on her way to the exam site.
She was there to meet up with the others taking the Chunin Ninja Exams.
Since Diejian and Sakumo were Jonin, Juri had no companions to take the exam with.
At this point, asking Diejian or Sakumo for help would hurt her pride. Just as Juri was clutching her head and agonizing over it alone, a glimmer of hope had appeared.
—I've heard about your situation.
The Third Hokage's proposal, which began that way, had held no disadvantages for Juri. She'd gladly accepted it.
In other words, the Third Hokage had instructed her to "meet her teammates here."
"How reassuring—!!"
"Hey, there are other customers here. Keep it down, Juri. You can't cause trouble for them, right?"
"Sorry..."
She had enthusiastically swept aside the shop's curtain, only to be reminded by the Shopkeeper, who had happened to be sweeping near the entrance.
Juri immediately wilted and lowered her shoulders. A knowing smile appeared on the Shopkeeper's face.
"Wait, that voice—Juri... Could you possibly be Miss Uchiha Juri?"
A blonde girl had poked her head out from inside the shop.
Her eyes were sharp and confident, her eyebrows neat, and her features refined.
She was a lovely girl who looked nothing like her older brother.
But her refined face was now filled with astonishment, and her large eyes blinked in confusion.
"Oh, Tsunade-chan! It's me, Juri!!"
That was just Juri's own perspective.
"Tsunade. It's me."
That was probably the impression Tsunade had gotten.
So, what did Tsunade think when she heard Juri speak?
"No way..."
—That was her honest reaction.
Grrk—Tsunade whipped around, and her neck made a nasty cracking sound.
With a pathetic little groan, she shot a resentful look at Orochimaru, who was sitting nearby.
Orochimaru's mouth hung open in a foolish expression, and the tea he'd apparently been drinking trickled out of it.
It seemed that Orochimaru, like Tsunade, had been felled by the shocking truth.
Tsunade glanced at him, then turned back to Juri.
"E-Eh..."
Tsunade let out a feeble sound.
Her eyes were unfocused—or so it seemed.
The impassive expression of the woman whose exquisite features had earned her the whispered nickname "Ice Beauty" truly had an intimidating aura that sent a chill down the viewer's spine.
"Ah, um..."
As Juri strode toward her, a near-scream escaped Tsunade's lips.
Tsunade sucked in a sharp breath.
Before she knew it, Juri's fingertips, as delicate as early-blooming lilies... were reaching toward her.
Juri gazed down at the frightened Tsunade and crooked the corner of her mouth.
—She's trying to seduce me!?
Juri hadn't crooked her mouth to look down on Tsunade. It was just her own way of smiling, but it would have been cruel to expect Tsunade to understand that.
Still, it was extremely rude of Tsunade to imagine she was being seduced.
Like brother, like sister, perhaps.
In that sense, the Uchiha Siblings were actually the more normal ones.
"Please treat me like that perverted, clever toad. I look forward to working with you for a while."
"Y-Yes, I look forward to working with you too!! I look forward to working with you!!!"
Tsunade's thoughts had come to a complete stop for a moment, thrown by Juri's words and behavior, which were nothing like she'd imagined.
But the instant she understood what Juri meant, Tsunade nodded rapidly.
To avoid displeasing her, she grabbed Juri's outstretched hand at lightning speed.
Tsunade finally got through it, and inwardly wiped the sweat from her brow.
Tsunade had a strong-willed nature, and she acted boldly toward most people older than her.
Even her teacher, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was no exception.
The only people Tsunade didn't treat that way were her older brother, Diejian, and perhaps Yamanaka Ina.
But that was because they were like sisters; it could hardly be called an attitude of respect toward a "senior."
And the one person Tsunade would approach with a degree of deference was none other than Uchiha Juri herself.
Uchiha Juri—the monster who had once fought on equal terms with her older brother, Senju Diejian, now feared in other nations as the "Rising Dragon"...
Tiger Biting the Dragon.
She was a fearsome heroine who could even "make" the audacious Jiraiya cry.
That was how Tsunade saw her.
In reality, Juri didn't have the overwhelming combat strength to match the current Senju Diejian, who was called the Rising Dragon.
But Tsunade had witnessed that past "battle that was really just a lovers' spat," and the idea that "Diejian and Juri were equally strong" had become fixed in her mind.
Their abilities might only bloom in the future, but for Tsunade, who was still a Genin, it was difficult to tell apart the rankings of higher-level shinobi.
Ants couldn't tell the difference between a cat and a tiger.
So the stronger Diejian became and the higher his reputation rose, the more Tsunade's impression of "Uchiha Juri" rose in proportion to his.
To Tsunade, Diejian was her beloved older brother, and she wasn't afraid of him in the least. But she couldn't feel that way about Juri.
In other words, Tsunade's impression of Juri was exactly the same as the impression the village children had of "Senju Diejian."
"...Tsunade, think about it. She's much more dependable than Jiraiya, isn't she?"
"T-That's true. Comparing her to that perverted, clever guy might be a little rude, but she's really reassuring."
Tsunade and Orochimaru's feelings had taken a few turns, but in any case, Orochimaru's words had included a welcome.
After he said that, Tsunade nodded at Orochimaru. Though her smile was a little stiff, it appeared on her cheeks.
—At that moment, an electric current shot through Juri.
(Th-This is...!?!?)
The welcoming atmosphere from Tsunade and the others filled Juri with a strange excitement.
It was a feeling she'd never experienced when facing Sakumo or Diejian.
Gulp. Juri swallowed.
Her heart pounded so loudly it was almost unbearable, and her body gradually grew warm.
Juri quietly adjusted her breathing so no one would notice, drew her chin in slightly, and fixed her gaze.
"The Chunin Ninja Exams are brutal. You won't pass if you treat them like a game."
Juri spoke with a resolute expression, giving it everything she had—even her Three-Tomoe Sharingan had appeared.
"...So this is the legendary Sharingan!?!?"
Orochimaru's impression of Juri was almost identical to Tsunade's.
An equal to Senju Diejian, who had once toyed with them as he pleased—he'd misunderstood. What kind of exam could even Juri not pass easily...?
This time, Orochimaru and Tsunade swallowed hard.
"Even with the Sharingan, this trial will be difficult... That's the Chunin Ninja Exams. Take them seriously."
"Y-Yes!"
Tsunade and Orochimaru answered with great spirit, as though they were about to face a battlefield of carnage.
(Heh, heh-heh, hehehehe... What was this feeling? Why was I so excited...)
Whether Juri would realize that no one had ever respected her until now remained to be seen.
Still, she understood one thing.
If I burst out laughing, it'll all be over.
It was a kind of instinctive intuition.
Juri hid the urge to revel in the moment deep inside, her face turning to ice as she perfectly concealed her feelings.
Thus, the restless excitement within Juri never reached Tsunade or Orochimaru.
Juri finished saying what she wanted to say and walked away, satisfied.
Her slender figure grew smaller in the distance, yet seemed impossibly huge in the eyes of the boy and girl.
Tsunade and Orochimaru exchanged glances and nodded solemnly before following her.
Before you continue