This is the route I planned~

The expected explosion did not occur. To the blonde youth's astonishment, Uzumaki Kuming, who had been pinned to the ground by the clay bomb, slowly sat up with his body wreathed in lightning.

"Plop!" The clay bomb on Kuming fell off him like useless, soft mud.

"What is going on?"

"What did you do, you brat?"

The blonde youth's voice turned sharp. What a ninja fears most is the unknown, and everything happening with Uzumaki Kuming right now was completely unknown to him.

"Clay bombs are Earth-style ninjutsu. I used my Lightning-style chakra to infiltrate your bomb and neutralize its effect."

"As a ninja, you should know that Lightning-style chakra counters Earth-style!"

"I just wanted to pass the ninja academy exam properly. Why did you have to come and get in my way?"

Kuming stood up. Chakra markings had already appeared on his face, with golden streaks extending from his forehead across his entire body. When chakra is released to its limit, it begins to manifest physically, and the chakra spreading across his body began to reinforce his physique.

At this moment, the look in Kuming's eyes as he stared at the blonde youth was filled with malice.

No one would be in a good mood after having the fruits of several years of hard work destroyed, let alone being threatened with death.

Pain radiated from the wounds on his back and arms. The intense agony made Kuming even more irritable, and as his mood shifted, the chakra swirling around him began to fluctuate violently.

If Kuming could only mobilize the chakra equivalent of one Kakashi before releasing the Yin Seal, then after releasing it, he could likely mobilize the equivalent of fifty.

The massive amount of chakra formed a wide-reaching vortex, and a tremendous sense of pressure bore down on the blonde youth.

"To have mastered nature transformation at such a young age? How is this possible?"

"If this is true, then I absolutely cannot allow someone like you to exist in Konoha."

"I will snuff you out right here!"

The blonde youth's gaze hardened, his eyes filled with killing intent. The powerful aura released by Kuming's chakra did not shake his resolve; instead, it completely ignited his murderous heart. If he had been toying with Kuming before, he was truly serious now.

"Kill me?"

Uzumaki Kuming raised an eyebrow, his figure vanishing from the spot. The next moment, a whip kick slammed toward the back of the blonde youth's head.

Kuming had a clear understanding of his own taijutsu. Although his body had been reinforced by chakra, that reinforcement was limited; the essence of taijutsu remained physical function. Even though Naruto had far more chakra than Kakashi as a child, his taijutsu and that of the Kakashi from that time were on completely different levels.

The strength of one's taijutsu is not determined solely by the amount of chakra one possesses.

Therefore, Kuming did not think that just because he had no restrictions on his chakra usage, he could easily crush his opponent. His physical age and development already dictated the upper limit of his taijutsu.

However, powerful chakra could still amplify Kuming's monstrous strength. To ensure a lethal blow, Kuming chose to strike the back of the head, the most vulnerable point.

The brainstem is located at the back of the head; damage to it directly affects breathing and heart function. This weak point does not require immense force to be fatal, which is why modern boxing rules prohibit strikes to the back of the head.

Uzumaki Kuming could already exert the strength of an adult man using his monstrous strength, and with this chakra amplification, he was confident he could render his opponent unable to resist by striking the back of their head.

Kuming, wreathed in chakra, appeared instantly behind the blonde youth. The rapid strike caught the opponent off guard. The opponent had not expected Kuming, who had just stood back up, to move with such speed.

"Bang!" The blonde youth, unable to dodge in time, barely managed to shield the back of his head with his hands. With a soft thud, he was sent flying forward, crashing into the ground. However, as he blocked Kuming's attack, he dropped several tiny clay bombs from his sleeves.

Even while being attacked, the blonde youth seized every opportunity to counter.

"Drink!"

"BOOM!!"

As the blonde youth sprawled on the ground, a violent explosion erupted behind him. Quickly scrambling to his feet, the blonde youth stood on guard, watching the rising smoke. He knew that the brat wouldn't die so easily.

"..."

"Hm?"

After waiting for a long time, the smoke gradually dissipated, but Kuming's figure was no longer there.

"I'm out of here!"

In the jungle, Kuming darted through the brush. He kept his sensory field active, not daring to turn it off for even a second. Since his chakra was fully released, he didn't need to conserve it anymore.

Although he had fully released the Yin Seal, Kuming realized the moment his sneak attack failed that he was no match for his opponent. Most of the techniques he had mastered were not suited for combat, and his taijutsu was not as strong as his opponent's. Since the surprise attack hadn't worked, a head-on confrontation would only be suicide.

Therefore, Kuming played along, using the explosion from his opponent's counterattack to quickly flee the scene.

"I'm still young, I have plenty of time for revenge. I'll lay low for now, and one day I'll scatter your ashes to the wind."

Kuming was not heading toward Konoha. Since the enemy dared to intercept him there, the road back to the village was likely full of ambushes. Instead, he headed directly toward the exam destination. The most dangerous place is the safest; as the exam destination, that area had to still be under Konoha's control.

After all, the Third Hokage, that master of brainwashing, would never miss such a perfect opportunity to boost his own reputation through the exam.

However, after running for a while, Uzumaki Kuming stopped in a clearing. The sight before him stung his heart deeply.

The clearing was filled with charred corpses. From the remains, it was clear that these victims were young children. In the distance, there were a few more intact bodies; they appeared to be the chunin from Konoha sent to protect the children.

Kuming had seen a few of them from afar when he left the village.

"Lord Earth, is it? I've marked this grudge."

"Don't think that just because you didn't say it, I don't know where you're from!"

"I will kill you!"

Suppressing the urge to vomit, Uzumaki Kuming clenched his fists, his body trembling slightly. After a long while, Kuming closed his eyes and quickly dove back into the forest.

"Whoosh!"

Not long after Uzumaki Kuming had departed, a blond youth appeared at the scene. His white clothes were covered in dust, and there were even traces of blood on his face, though the blood was not his own.

Behind him were three Anbu members wearing masks, swords strapped to their backs.

"Damn it, we're a step too late! They've all been slaughtered, even the Chunin assigned to protect the children is dead."

The Anbu quickly examined the corpses to see if anyone had survived, while Minato Namikaze's heart tightened as he scanned the scene with a rapid gaze.

Kuming, please, you must be alright.

Minato did not find Kuming's figure among the bodies on the ground, and he couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief. However, his heart remained heavy; since he hadn't actually seen Uzumaki Kuming, he dared not let his guard down.

Minato, who had been trailing Kuming to provide secret protection, had been ambushed by powerful ninja. After a fierce battle, Minato had killed his attackers, and immediately after, he had run into the support unit from Konoha. Afterward, the group began searching for the children who had left the village.

"Move out, continue the search!" After the Anbu finished checking the corpses and confirmed there were no survivors, they quickly left a chakra marker. With a wave of his hand, Minato set off once more to continue the search.