New Mission

Yunju lowered his head, assuming a humble posture.

"But—" He raised his head and looked at Orochimaru. "There's one more thing."

"Speak."

"Neji's Byakugan seems to have a 'Caged Bird' seal." Yunju said. "That seal destroys the Byakugan after his death and also prevents outsiders from taking it. If Lord Orochimaru wants to... obtain the Byakugan, Caged Bird is an issue that must be considered."

Orochimaru's smile did not change, but his gaze grew deeper.

"Caged Bird..." Orochimaru repeated softly. "I know."

He turned around, his back to Yunju.

"The Hyuga clan's Caged Bird seal is the final barrier protecting the Byakugan from being taken by outsiders. The main family's Byakugan does not have Caged Bird, but there are very few members of the main family, and they are protected at every level. The branch family's Byakugan may have Caged Bird, but..."

Orochimaru paused.

"Caged Bird is not absolute. Every seal has a way to break it. It is only a matter of time."

Yunju said nothing.

"However—" Orochimaru turned back and looked at Yunju. "The fact that you took the initiative to tell me this shows that you are indeed carrying out your mission seriously. I am very satisfied, Yunju. No matter where you obtained this intelligence, it is the mark of an excellent ninja."

Yunju relaxed inwardly.

He had gambled correctly.

Orochimaru might have known about Caged Bird long ago. But reporting it voluntarily represented "loyalty" and "usefulness." Orochimaru liked useful people.

"What will you do next, Yunju?" Orochimaru asked.

"I will follow Lord Orochimaru's instructions."

Orochimaru nodded in satisfaction.

"Continue your mission," Orochimaru said. "Enter the central tower and observe the upcoming exams. Pay special attention to Sasuke Uchiha's battles—I want you to record his combat data, his use of the Sharingan, and the effects of the curse mark on him. Record every detail."

"Understood."

"I will contact you again before the third exam," Orochimaru said. "Until then, you are merely a genin from the Sound Hidden Village. Do not draw attention, and do not clash with Neji Hyuga again."

With that, Orochimaru gave a slight nod, signaling that Yunju could take the other two into the tower.

Then, right before Yunju's eyes, Orochimaru turned into a white snake and slowly vanished into the tall grass.

"A summoning? A Transformation Jutsu? Or something else?"

Never mind. He should enter the tower first.

"Hand over your scrolls."

The two scrolls vanished, and a chūnin appeared. "Sound Hidden Village: Dosu, Zaku, Kin. You have passed the second exam. There is still one day until the exam ends. You may rest here, but you are not permitted to leave the central tower. Once all teams have arrived, you will be informed of the next stage."

Yunju nodded and led Zaku and Kin to an empty spot in the corner of the hall.

Zaku had already awakened, but the injuries to his hands left his face pale as cold sweat continuously beaded on his forehead. Kin sat beside him in silence, helping him secure his bandages again.

Yunju sat against the wall and closed his eyes.

But he did not sleep.

He was thinking about something.

—Sound Release.

He was taking the exam under Dosu's identity. Dosu was a Sound Ninja, and his ninjutsu was Sound Burst—using the armor on his arm to unleash high-frequency sound waves at enemies.

But Yunju did not know Sound Release.

During his previous battle with Neji, he had used Water Release, Wind Release, and Lightning Release from beginning to end. Although he had won, anyone who carefully analyzed the battle record would notice a problem: this "Sound Ninja" had never used Sound Release.

Orochimaru had not cared because he knew Yunju's true identity. But what about Konoha? If they noticed that a ninja from the Sound Hidden Village could not use the Sound Hidden Village's ninjutsu, would they become suspicious?

He needed to learn Sound Release.

At least one technique.

Yunju opened his eyes and looked down at the perforated armor on his right arm. This was Dosu's equipment and also the medium for casting Sound Burst. Inside the armor was a precise sound-wave conduction device. By injecting chakra into it, sound could be amplified, compressed, and fired in a directed burst.

He extended a hand and injected a thread of chakra into the armor.

The armor vibrated faintly and let out a soft hum.

Yunju carefully sensed the path of chakra through the armor—it was not as simple as injecting it. He needed to convert the chakra into a specific vibration frequency, then release it through the armor's perforated structure.

This method of conversion... was very similar to how he condensed wind blades with Wind Release.

Wind Release: Wind Blade converted chakra into rapidly flowing air, creating cutting force. Sound Burst converted chakra into high-frequency vibrations, creating a sound-wave attack.

One used air to cut people. The other used sound to shake them apart.

At their core, both transformed chakra into waves.

An idea stirred in Yunju's mind.

If he understood this principle, perhaps he would not need to rely entirely on the armor to produce sound waves. But time was limited. For now, it would be enough to learn how to use the armor to cast the technique.

He closed his eyes and simulated the chakra conversion process in his mind.

A day later.

Yunju opened his eyes. The armor on his right arm was slightly hot.

"Sound Burst."

He injected chakra into the armor, and the small holes across it emitted sharp humming sounds at the same time. The sound was not loud, but its frequency was extremely high. Kin and Zaku both frowned and covered their ears.

Yunju immediately stopped the technique.

"C-Captain?" Zaku's voice trembled slightly. "What are you doing?"

"Practicing," Yunju answered briefly.

He did not continue. There were too many people in the examination area, making it unsuitable for further research.

But that brief attempt confirmed one thing—Sound Release and Wind Release truly had something in common. If he could combine Wind Release's chakra conversion method with Sound Release, perhaps he could create a stronger combined ninjutsu.

Unfortunately, there was no time to try.

"All examinees, attention."

The Konoha chūnin from earlier walked into the hall, his voice loud and clear. "The second exam is over. All teams that passed, follow me."

The examinees were led to the edge of the arena and arranged in a line.

Yunju swept his gaze over their numbers.

There were more than he had expected.

Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura—Team 7. Sasuke's neck was wrapped in bandages that concealed the curse mark, but his complexion still did not look good.

Kiba, Shino, Hinata—Team 8. Hinata stood at the back of the team with her head lowered, her fingers twisting together.

Shikamaru, Ino, Choji—Team 10. Shikamaru had both hands in his pockets, wearing an expression that plainly said, What a pain.

Rock Lee, Neji, Tenten—Team Guy. Neji's Byakugan swept across the crowd and paused on Yunju for a moment before casually shifting away. Yunju noticed that Neji did not look at him a second time—good.

Gaara, Kankuro, Temari—the Sand Village trio. Gaara stood with his arms folded and his eyes closed, as though he were dozing.

Then there was his side—Dosu (Yunju), Zaku, and Kin.

There were also three others he did not recognize—a silver-haired young man with glasses, Kabuto Yakushi; a young man with bandages wrapped around his face, Yoroi Akado; and a young man wearing round sunglasses and a gray robe, Misumi Tsurugi. Yunju noticed that Kabuto Yakushi and Yoroi Akado both wore Konoha forehead protectors, but neither carried themselves like ordinary genin.

Gekko Hayate stepped forward and addressed everyone.

"First, congratulations on passing the second exam."

His gaze swept over every examinee present.

"However—there are too many participants in the third exam. We need to hold preliminary matches to reduce the number to a suitable range."

A stir ran through the crowd.

"The rules for the preliminaries are simple," the Third Hokage continued. "Random matchups, one-on-one battles. Winners advance to the third exam. Losers are eliminated."

"Now—the preliminaries will begin. First, we will determine the order."

"Please wait."

A voice interrupted the jōnin.

Kabuto Yakushi raised his hand and adjusted his glasses.

"I withdraw."

The crowd erupted in an uproar.

Naruto turned to look at Kabuto, his face full of confusion. "Kabuto-senpai? Why?"

Kabuto smiled, his expression gentle and harmless. "My injuries have not healed yet, so I am not fit to fight. Besides..."

He glanced at Yoroi Akado and Misumi Tsurugi beside him.

"I have already collected enough data."

With that, Kabuto turned and left the arena.

Yunju watched Kabuto's retreating back, his left eye narrowing slightly.

This person... was not simple.

Not because he had withdrawn, but because of how composed he was when he did it—as if he were carrying out something he had planned all along.

After Kabuto withdrew, Yoroi Akado and Misumi Tsurugi exchanged a glance but said nothing. Both remained in the arena.

"Kabuto Yakushi withdraws." The jōnin expressionlessly crossed a name off the list. "Twenty remain. The preliminaries will continue."

Yunju quickly did the math in his head.

Twenty people, one-on-one—ten battles.

He was one of them.

He did not know who his opponent would be, but he knew one thing—no matter who it was, he could not lose.

Not for Orochimaru.

But for himself.

Only by entering the third exam could he gain more time to observe, more time to plan, and more time to find an opportunity to leave Orochimaru.

The large screen in the arena began drawing lots.

"The first match—"

Everyone's eyes focused on the screen.