Chunin Exam

Genma saw Tsunade again on the third day after returning to the village.

Huixiang was there too. The moment she saw Genma, she tensed up instinctively.

"Why are you scared of a little brat?"

"From now on, make him call you Big Sister!"

Tsunade, who had just lost all her money, was brimming with confidence.

Shizune covered her mouth and snickered from the side. She already knew Huixiang had been secretly lured back from Kusagakure by Genma.

Huixiang was embarrassed, but then greeted him. "Hello, Lord Genma."

Someone was actually calling Genma Lord Genma. Tsk, tsk. It felt pretty good!

Genma felt quite pleased. He glanced at Tsunade, who was pouting, and smiled as he replied, "Hello. Let me introduce myself again. I'm Kazekaze Genma. Just call me Genma, Big Sister Huixiang."

"Of course, Lord Genma sounds pretty good too."

Tsunade pursed her lips in mockery.

Huixiang blushed a little, then nodded. "Yes."

She was still a little afraid of the little brat in front of her, even though he didn't seem as cold and ruthless as before.

Genma looked at Tsunade. "Lady Tsunade, did you go to Tanzaku Town?"

She'd gone to pick someone up, then disappeared for several days.

Anyone who didn't know better would think she was Tony hauling cargo.

Tsunade's expression turned a little unnatural for an instant at his question, but she quickly put on an impatient look. "Stop pestering me. What do you want? If it's nothing, I still have to teach Huixiang and Shizune Medical Ninjutsu!"

Genma's mouth twitched. "I'd like some materials related to Sealing Techniques."

Tsunade tilted her head. "Shizune, take him to get them."

All she wanted now was to send the brat away quickly, before he could question her further.

"Yes, Lady Tsunade."

Shizune immediately smiled and led Genma away.

Watching them leave, Huixiang asked with a puzzled look, "Lady Tsunade, you seem... a little afraid of him?"

Tsunade came across as carefree and even rather domineering, but after spending a few days with her, Huixiang wasn't afraid of her. That was why she dared ask.

Tsunade's voice immediately rose several notches. "He's just a little Genin!"

"I just don't want to listen to him ramble."

"Other than being lucky and talented, he's good for nothing."

Huixiang was baffled. Was that supposed to be praise?

But he'd managed to bring her safely out of Kusagakure with just a clone. Even at his young age, he was an incredibly capable ninja.

After picking up the materials, Genma didn't linger at Tsunade's place. He headed straight home to study Sealing Techniques.

He'd finally figured it out. He only needed to focus on the most basic training and use cheats for everything else.

No matter how hard he worked, he couldn't compete with changing the Setting Value.

So Genma decided he should devote more of his energy to figuring out how to obtain Setting Values.

If he had cheats and still trained that hard, wouldn't that make having cheats pointless?

The three-day break passed quickly.

Outside the Hokage Building, the team gathered, and the three of them received application forms from Hatake Sakumo.

"Chunin Exam applications?"

Yamashiro Aoba asked in confusion, "Sensei, we only graduated a little over two months ago. Are we allowed to take it?"

Hatake Sakumo smiled. "I'll vouch for you."

"And it's all right even if you don't pass."

"This is also a chance for you to compete against other ninjas from the village."

Yamashiro Aoba pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose. "Genma, you're confident, right?"

Genma shook his head. "Not necessarily."

"There are three rounds in the exam. If we run into a particularly strong opponent, we might not get promoted."

Shizune was surprised. "Other than Kakashi, is there anyone in your class who's stronger than you?"

Hatake Sakumo said, "It's not just your classmates. There are also older ninjas, as well as those who haven't passed the exam before."

"The village holds a Chunin Ninja Exam every July, so even Genma can't afford to be careless."

Only then did Shizune understand.

Hatake Sakumo pointed at the forms in their hands. "Go home and fill these out. I'll submit them."

"We won't be going on missions between now and the exam. Instead, we'll have special training to prepare."

"Let's go. We'll start today."

The Chunin Exam arrived right on schedule.

It reminded Genma that, because of him, Kakashi had already lost his records for graduating from the Ninja Academy the fastest and becoming a Chunin at the youngest age.

Only the record for becoming the youngest Jonin in Konoha's history remained.

Lord Kakashi's prestige was going to take a hit in the future.

The team went to the training ground.

Hatake Sakumo said, "Let's start with one-on-one matches."

"Aoba, Genma, you two go first."

Genma and Yamashiro Aoba nodded and walked to the center of the training ground, where they faced each other.

Hatake Sakumo and Shizune stood at the edge of the training ground, with woods surrounding them.

"Genma, I know I'm no match for you, but I'll still give it everything I've got. I hope you do the same. I want to see just how big the gap between us really is," Yamashiro Aoba said seriously.

Seeing how earnest he was, Genma nodded. "Understood. I'll give it my all."

Hatake Sakumo raised his hand, then brought it down. "Begin!"

As soon as he spoke, Genma and Yamashiro Aoba shot toward each other almost simultaneously, like arrows loosed from a bow.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Their fists and feet collided with dull, heavy thumps.

After only a brief exchange, Yamashiro Aoba's movements began to falter. Genma was far stronger than he was, and even when he tried to redirect the force, he could barely withstand it. He had no choice but to change his strategy.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ground erupted into one crater after another, dirt flying everywhere. Yamashiro Aoba retreated repeatedly to dodge, when Genma suddenly appeared at his side.

"So fast!"

Yamashiro Aoba caught sight of Genma out of the corner of his eye and immediately raised an arm to shield his head, taking Genma's roundhouse kick head-on.

Bam!

The terrifying force drove Yamashiro Aoba's arm into his head, sending him and his sunglasses flying.

He rolled across the ground several times before finally dissipating the force. Then he pushed himself up with both hands, flipped to his feet, and opened his mouth to launch a Great Fireball Technique.

The flames scorched the ground black.

Genma charged straight at the fireball. Just as he was about to collide with it, his figure vanished and reappeared several times in quick succession.

"That Substitution Technique—"

Yamashiro Aoba was startled. He was just about to watch for where Genma would appear, when he realized he could no longer move.

"It's a genjutsu! Damn it, I can't break it. I can't move at all!"

Yamashiro Aoba's mind was perfectly clear, but he couldn't even blink. Forget forming Hand Seals; he couldn't even bite his tongue to break the genjutsu.

It was as if he were wrapped tightly in a spider web.

He knew Genma was skilled in genjutsu, but this was his first time experiencing it. He hadn't expected it to be so powerful.

Yamashiro Aoba struggled as Genma appeared at his side, a Kunai resting against his neck.

"Genma wins!" Hatake Sakumo announced.

Genma immediately put away the Kunai and raised one hand, releasing the genjutsu.

"Looks like I can't make you use your full strength at all," Yamashiro Aoba said with a hint of helplessness.

Hatake Sakumo offered his assessment. "Aoba, since you knew some of Genma's abilities, you shouldn't have engaged him in Taijutsu."

"Even if you know you're bound to lose, if you have no choice but to fight on the battlefield, the best strategy is to keep the powerful enemy occupied. You can buy time for your companions, or give yourself time to wait for reinforcements."

"Training matches are the same as real combat."

Yamashiro Aoba immediately nodded solemnly. "Yes, Sensei. I understand!"

Hatake Sakumo looked at Genma. "On the battlefield, you need to defeat your enemies as quickly as possible and at the lowest cost."

"That clearly wasn't the best approach just now."

Genma nodded.

Hatake Sakumo continued, "But the gap between your strength and Aoba's is too great. During this special training, you'll be their sparring partner."

"I'll be your opponent."