Eight-Tails Jinchuriki

"Too bad."

"No matter how jealous you are, I can... See you at the Chunin Ninja Exams."

Uchiha Ryūha's voice was calm, and he even seemed a little bored.

To him, the Chunin Ninja Exams were just a formality. The Third Shinobi World War was where he would shine.

"Good." The Cloud Ninja youth sneered. "I'm Shimoka. Tell me your name."

"Uchiha Ryūha."

The arrival of the Kumogakure delegation made the atmosphere on Konoha's streets visibly tense and uneasy.

The Sunagakure team had arrived two days earlier and was staying at an inn in the western part of the village.

Most of them were quiet and taciturn, worn from their journey, carrying the dry, murderous air peculiar to the desert.

Their leader was a young Jonin named Baki, sharp-eyed and discreet.

Aside from necessary formal visits, he rarely appeared in public.

But Kumogakure was different.

These shinobi from the Land of Lightning seemed born without the faintest idea of what "keeping a low profile" meant.

They were staying at the finest inn in the eastern part of the village and strutted through the streets every day, drawing a crowd wherever they went.

They were tall and muscular, with dark skin and wild, unrestrained manners.

And their eyes, which sized up everything in Konoha without the slightest attempt at concealment, seemed to be judging the value of their prey.

Especially the young man called "Lord Blue B."

As the second Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, he behaved with a certain lawlessness.

Of course, that was directly related to his becoming a Jinchuriki. Blue B had once excelled in every regard.

His follower Shimoka was even more aggressive and overbearing.

The Konoha shinobi, especially the hot-blooded young Genin,

felt a burning anger as they watched these outsiders swagger around on their home turf.

But what came next was even more infuriating.

Three days later, registration for the Chunin Ninja Exams closed.

Team Seven had qualified without a doubt—Matsumoto Ryūichi had delivered their recommendation forms to the review office at nearly the earliest possible moment.

On top of that, Uchiha Ryūha's current "reputation" in the village meant the reviewing Jonin barely asked a question before stamping their approval.

Haruno Kazuya and Fujiwara Itsuki's hands trembled as they received their admission cards stamped with a red seal.

The Chunin Ninja Exams!

For civilian shinobi like them, this was a chance to leap over the dragon's gate.

If they passed, they could be promoted to Chunin, gain access to higher-ranking missions, earn better pay, and receive more training resources.

They might even... change their family's fate.

"R-Ryūha..." Haruno Kazuya was so excited he could barely speak.

"Can we really take part? I-I heard the death rate for the exams in previous years was thirty percent..."

"What's there to be afraid of?" Fujiwara Itsuki stood up straight, though his voice sounded a little shaky too.

"With Lord Ryūha here, we'll be fine!"

Matsumoto Ryūichi had placed all his hopes in Ryūha. For the past few days, he had practically been treating Uchiha Ryūha like an honored guest.

Uchiha Ryūha wasn't particularly concerned with any of that.

He was more interested in the outsiders in the village.

The afternoon after registering, he wandered alone through Konoha's shopping district.

His Reiatsu detection spread silently, like an invisible radar, scanning every presence on the street.

The Chakra of most Sunagakure shinobi was cold and dry, like the wind on a desert night.

The Chakra of Kumogakure shinobi was more violent and scorching, carrying the distinctive feel of lightning.

The Chakra of Konoha's own shinobi varied widely, but was generally more "peaceful"—at least on the surface.

As he passed a dango shop, Uchiha Ryūha paused.

He "saw" a very unusual Chakra signature.

Dark, pure, and filled with immense malice.

The power within it was incredibly dense, even surpassing Hatake Sakumo's.

The owner of that Chakra was a boy with white-and-green hair and a gentle expression.

"So he's the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. Looks like the Tailed Beast hasn't affected him yet."

"He must be one of the members of the famed 'AB Duo' in the future."

Uchiha Ryūha looked away and continued on his way.

Jinchuriki... They really were on a different level from ordinary shinobi.

Even as a boy, the pure malice that came from the Tailed Beast was enough to make an ordinary Jonin's heart pound.

But for now, that had nothing to do with him.

Ryūha turned the corner and headed toward the training grounds.

Before he got close, he heard a commotion from that direction, full of angry shouts and arrogant laughter.

He kept walking until he reached the edge of the training grounds, then leaned against a tree and quietly watched what was happening.

Three Konoha Genin lay in the center of the training grounds.

Judging by their Forehead Protectors, they seemed to be newly graduated rookies from this year, about the same age as Ryūha.

Their faces were bruised and swollen. One clutched his arm, blood running from his forehead. He was clearly badly hurt.

Standing before them was a Kumogakure shinobi nearly two meters tall, with dark skin and bulging muscles.

He looked to be in his early twenties. His short hair stood up like steel needles, a necklace of fangs hung around his neck, and his bare upper body was covered in scars.

He stood with his arms crossed, chin raised slightly, his eyes full of undisguised contempt and mockery.

A crowd of Konoha shinobi had already gathered around them. Every face was angry, but they seemed wary of something and didn't step forward.

"Is this all the new generation of Konoha has to offer?"

The Kumogakure shinobi planted a foot on the head of one of the fallen Genin and ground it down hard. His voice rang out, loud and arrogant:

"You're not even fit to warm me up! I heard Konoha was the 'strongest shinobi village.'

What a joke! In Kumogakure, trash like you wouldn't even qualify as Genin!"

The Genin beneath his foot struggled in humiliation, but couldn't move at all. All he could do was let out a pained groan.

"Yotsuki Kagura! You've gone too far!" A Konoha Chunin couldn't hold back and stepped forward.

"This is just a sparring match. Why did you have to hurt them so badly?!"

"A sparring match?" The Kumogakure youth named Yotsuki Kagura scoffed. "I haven't even tried, and they've already fallen. You call that a sparring match?

It's a one-sided beating!"

He looked around at the angry Konoha shinobi, his grin growing even more brazen:

"What's wrong? Don't like it? Then come on up! Let's see if Konoha has anyone who can fight besides these useless fools!"

He paused, then suddenly raised his voice, full of provocation:

"Where's the Uchiha Clan? I heard you were Konoha's strongest clan!

The Sharingan is supposed to be powerful, right? Why won't any of you show your faces? Are you all a bunch of cowards?!"

At those words, several young members of the Uchiha Clan in the crowd instantly saw red.

"You're asking for it!"

One Uchiha Genin couldn't hold back and started to charge forward, but a clan member beside him grabbed him and held him back.

"Don't be rash! He's with the Kumogakure delegation. If we fight, it'll cause a diplomatic incident!"

"So we're just supposed to let him insult the Uchiha Clan?!"

"The clan head ordered us not to fight among ourselves! We'll settle everything at the Chunin Ninja Exams!"

Several young Uchiha clenched their fists until their knuckles creaked, but could only force themselves to hold back.

Yotsuki Kagura watched them and laughed even more brazenly.

He pressed down with his foot, and the Genin beneath him let out a pained scream.

"Useless trash! You don't even dare to stand up for yourselves, yet you talk about protecting the village?

Konoha... is nothing special!"

His words fell.

The training grounds fell completely silent.

Only Yotsuki Kagura's arrogant laughter and the injured Genin's painful groans could be heard.

Every Konoha shinobi felt a deep humiliation.

Being insulted like this on their own doorstep, yet not daring to fight back because of "diplomacy"...

That frustration hurt worse than taking a beating.

Just then—

"Oh?"

A calm voice, tinged with a hint of confusion, came from the edge of the training grounds.

It wasn't loud, yet everyone heard it clearly.

All eyes instantly turned toward the source.

The black-haired boy leaning against a tree pushed up his glasses. His gaze behind the lenses remained calm as he watched Yotsuki Kagura.

"You're Yotsuki Kagura, from Kumogakure, right?"

Ryūha slowly straightened up, his hands in his pockets, looking as relaxed as if he were out for a stroll.

"You just said the Uchiha Clan were all cowards?"

He walked toward the center of the training grounds, one step at a time.

His footsteps were light, making no sound.

Yet each step seemed to follow a certain rhythm, causing the air around them to tremble faintly.