To Repay Debts, Become Hokage!

Kushina Uzumaki's face was radiant with a joyful smile as she darted back and forth across the Senju Compound.

This place, once sparsely populated and usually silent and somber, had become lively and bustling.

Red-haired members of the Uzumaki clan could be seen everywhere.

Kushina Uzumaki spotted some familiar faces among them and immediately leaped over to greet them with a smile.

"Uncle Naritsugu, Aunt Minami..."

"Oh my, isn't this Kushina? It really has been a long time."

The uncles and aunts she knew were just as warm and gentle as they had been before she left the Land of Whirlpools.

A single familiar greeting transported Kushina Uzumaki back to the past.

As they chatted, tears welled up in the corners of Kushina Uzumaki's eyes, and she wailed as she threw herself into the arms of her aunt and uncle.

"I missed you all so much, ya know!"

"Slow down, slow down. It's been a few years, and you've grown up quite a bit—and gotten a lot heavier, too."

Aunt Minami stumbled back a step, stroking Kushina's head with a kind smile.

Uchiha Chonhua stood behind them, watching this heartwarming scene with a smile on his face.

"It really has been a long time since this place was this lively."

Tsunade watched the bustling scene before her, lost in thought, as if recalling her childhood.

Back then, the Senju Compound was still full of clansmen; every day was vibrant, and everyone wore a smile.

That lasted until her grand-grandfather passed away, the First Shinobi World War broke out, and the members of the Senju Clan went to the battlefield—and never returned.

Tsunade felt a wave of melancholy, her mood darkening.

"Did you return from the northern front for our Chunin Exams, Tsunade-sensei?"

Hearing Uchiha Chonhua's voice, Tsunade snapped back to reality. She brushed off her low spirits and nodded, saying, "The northern front has been in a stalemate. Both sides are just trading blows without any major conflicts, so there isn't much need for me there."

"So I came back. After all, the Chunin Exams require a recommendation and guarantee from a jonin instructor."

"Thank you for your hard work, Sensei."

Tsunade waved her hand dismissively. "What hard work? The Chunin Exams are just around the corner. Are the three of you prepared?"

"Of course!"

Uchiha Chonhua smiled confidently. The title of Chunin was something he was determined to obtain!

Tsunade patted Uchiha Chonhua on the shoulder and said, "Good, that's the spirit! Whether you win or not depends on you!"

Hm?

Uchiha Chonhua squinted at Tsunade. "Win? Win what? Tsunade-sensei, did you place a bet?"

Tsunade nodded with a smile, not hiding it in the slightest. "It's a sure win, so naturally, I had to place a few bets. Hehehe, no one can be unlucky enough to lose all the time. I'm finally going to win for once, hahaha!"

Tsunade stood with her hands on her hips, laughing heroically.

Uchiha Chonhua's expression, however, stiffened.

Tsunade's philosophy of gambling was that losing meant nothing, but winning meant trouble.

Was he supposed to win or lose? Logically, given the strength of Team Tsunade, passing the Chunin Exams was a sure thing.

But wouldn't that mean Tsunade would win her bet—and thus, trouble would follow?

Or could it be that something would go wrong during the Chunin Exams, and they wouldn't pass? He didn't want that; he didn't want to have to retake the exam!

A moment ago, Tsunade was the one feeling melancholy; now, it was Uchiha Chonhua's turn.

July 1st was the day the Chunin Exams began every year.

Uchiha Chonhua sat in a corner of the classroom, observing the other genin, but he didn't spot anyone he knew.

Namikaze Minato was still staying at Mount Myoboku, and the likes of Shikaku Nara had no intention of participating in the Chunin Exams immediately after graduation.

Team Tsunade was an outlier; they had sufficient strength and the desire to participate in the Chunin Exams as early as possible.

As their instructor, Tsunade was also willing to provide the recommendation.

"They're all strangers... no, wait, there's one I recognize."

Uchiha Chonhua spotted a familiar face: a young man in a vibrant green bodysuit with a scruffy, unshaven face.

If his face were a bit more weathered, he would look even more familiar.

It was the father of the future Might Guy, the genin Might Duy.

At this moment, he was sitting restlessly, trembling, his hands pressed together in prayer with his eyes closed.

Uchiha Chonhua noted this and thought to himself: surely Might Duy didn't fail the written portion of the Chunin Exams every single time, did he?

"Begin the exam!"

At the proctor's command, the students in the exam hall began to answer the questions.

This written exam was identical to the one the Konoha 12 faced during their first Chunin Exams, both testing a ninja's ability to gather intelligence.

However, there were some differences; for instance, there was no psychological torture from Ibiki Morino. There were correct answers on the paper, but there were also incorrect ones, as well as a mix of both.

The chief examiner had explicitly stated that this written exam could only be passed if every member of a squad answered correctly.

In other words, one could not focus solely on their own answers; they had to pay attention to their teammates' answers as well.

If one person got it wrong, the entire team was out!

In truth, this was even more brutal than the one the Konoha 12 faced. In that exam, the choice was what mattered; here, the accuracy of the answers was paramount.

Uchiha Chonhua did not start answering immediately, choosing instead to read through every question on the paper.

There was a certain level of difficulty; many of the topics had never been covered at the Ninja Academy and were only found in extracurricular books. He could already see many people looking distressed, clutching their heads in agony.

Uchiha Chonhua's lips curled into a confident smile.

Simple. These questions are child's play to me!

He had no need to cheat to gather the correct answers; he himself was the correct answer.

Without further ado, he picked up his pen and began to write with a flurry of motion.

Hizashi Hyuga's eyes lit up. Chonhua had finally started answering, so he immediately activated his Byakugan, peering straight through Uchiha Chonhua's body to see the answers on the scroll.

Hizashi Hyuga buried his head and began to copy; he trusted Uchiha Chonhua more than he trusted himself, so those had to be the correct answers.

Mikoto Uchiha was feeling rather troubled. Gathering intelligence wasn't difficult, but she had no way of proving whether the others were answering correctly or not.

I know this question, he got it right. Huh? The next one is wrong, he wrote it incorrectly.

Mikoto Uchiha looked toward another person.

Completely wrong... next.

Right, right, right, that's the answer. Hmm... this one feels right, this one feels wrong...

There had to be a test paper out there with all the correct answers, but she couldn't determine if the person was right or wrong because she didn't understand the question herself and couldn't judge it.

What should she do? Should she just guess? What if she got it wrong...

"Caw."

"Hm?"

Mikoto Uchiha froze. She looked down and saw a pitch-black crow standing on her leg.

The crow tilted its head and looked at her.

Mikoto Uchiha's body stiffened, her beautiful eyes glazing over and losing their focus. Her body began to move on its own, gripping the pen and starting to answer the questions.

Uchiha Chonhua withdrew his gaze. Now, Mikoto wouldn't have any problems either.

The written exam was a breeze!

Snap.

Uchiha Chonhua wrote the final stroke, set his pen down, and began to observe the others with a sense of leisure.

He was particularly interested in Might Duy, whose current performance was simply too amusing.

Might Duy was in a bad way; he was drenched in sweat, and his body was trembling uncontrollably.

It's over, it's all over! It really is just as I feared!

What is all this written here?! It's like reading a heavenly script. He gripped his pen, trembling, not even knowing where to start.

Why did there have to be a written exam?! Might Duy's face was a mask of despair.

This time... it's over again.

Eita, Heiji, I, Might Duy, have failed you!

He knew he could cheat, but the problem was... he didn't even know how to cheat.

Could he crane his neck to look at someone else's paper? That would be far too obvious.

Might Duy covered his face; he had already... burned out.

Chapter 46: Welcome to Exam Room 23!

A pitch-black crow stood on a tree branch, blinking its eyes as if curiously peering through the glass into the classroom.

Uchiha Chonhua connected his mind with the crow and checked the progress of Might Duy's teammates.

Their ability to gather intelligence was decent; they had all managed to identify the examiners who were hiding among the candidates to leak answers.

However...

Uchiha Chonhua shook his head. It was a pity that while they had found the people, they had found the wrong answers.

"Time is up, pens down!"

At the chief examiner's command, all the candidates stopped writing and watched as the proctors collected the papers.

Some candidates were calm and collected, while others looked as if they were mourning the dead.

A loud thud echoed through the room.

Uchiha Chonhua looked toward the sound to see Might Duy face-planted onto his desk.

"My youth... ends here."

The proctor remained expressionless. "I must ask individual examinees to refrain from making noise and maintain silence."

"Ah, yes!"

Might Duy jolted upright, casting an embarrassed glance at the proctor.

Not much time passed before the grading of all the examinees' papers was completed.

The proctor gathered the perfect papers and walked up to the podium, the examinees' gazes following his every step.

When they saw the proctor group three papers together, some examinees watched those sheets with nervous trepidation, praying in their hearts that their names were among them!

Conversely, when they saw the proctor pull out a single paper or a pair, the examinees' hearts hammered against their ribs, praying that they were not among them.

Some examinees knew their teammates' abilities; they had confidence in themselves but not in their partners. Seeing this, some hung their heads in defeat, while others glared angrily at their teammates.

What a spectacle of human nature.

"I will now announce the names of those who have passed the first exam. Those who have passed may depart immediately for the next testing site."

"Hattori Taro, Koizumi Shohei, Kazenaga."

The three named individuals stood up excitedly, exchanging glances; the tension and anxiety they had felt moments ago were now replaced by grins they could no longer suppress.

The other examinees watched them with envy.

The proctor continued the announcement; those who were called felt joy and relief, while those who were not felt their anxiety mounting.

Why hasn't it been me yet? Is my name even on there? Such thoughts echoed incessantly in their minds.

"Uchiha Chonhua, Mikoto Uchiha, Hizashi Hyuga!"

Upon hearing his name, Uchiha Chonhua stood up, his expression calm and unruffled. After meeting up with his teammates, he set off toward the next testing site.