Facing a Jinchūriki

It was time.

There was no elaborate opening ceremony. Hiruzen Sarutobi said a few words, then announced the start of the final round of the Chunin Ninja Exams.

A host of distinguished figures sat in the central stands.

Among them were Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, and Sunagakure's representative, Ebizo, who had one foot in the grave yet still called Grandma Chiyo "big sis."

There was also A, the son of Kumogakure's current Raikage and one half of the new generation's A–B duo.

Senior officials from various other shinobi villages, large and small, were also present.

The matchups for the final sixteen would be decided by a draw on-site, with fairness, impartiality, and transparency as the guiding principles.

The candidates stepped forward to draw lots one after another. Once the results were in, they were projected onto a screen.

Well.

Although the shinobi world was still in an age of cold steel, its technology was fairly advanced thanks to chakra.

Refrigerators, electric lights—it had them all. You could even watch movies in the world of Naruto!

When the draw results appeared, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression shifted slightly.

One of the matchups on the bracket read: True Kazan vs. Yugito Nii.

"To think they'd face each other in the first round!"

The two prodigies most likely to distinguish themselves in these Chunin Ninja Exams had been matched against each other right at the start.

But that was fine.

The purpose of these exams wasn't to promote Kazan to chunin, but to have him demonstrate Konoha's strength.

"Is something wrong, Hokage?"

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire asked from beside him, hiding half his face behind a fan.

"No. I'm sure these exams won't disappoint you."

"Let's hope so."

He had come to Konoha in person because Hiruzen Sarutobi had said he had important matters to discuss.

Hiruzen had yet to bring them up, but the daimyo had his own sources of intelligence and could guess the gist.

It was simply a request for the Land of Fire to fund Konoha's military buildup.

That would cost a fortune, and the daimyo was naturally reluctant.

With the finest land in the Land of Fire already under his control, the daimyo had no need for Konoha to expand the nation's borders. Protecting what they already had was more than enough.

Of course, he still had to provide funding where it was due.

The relationship between Konoha and the Land of Fire wasn't simply one of superior and subordinate.

Konoha was more like the Land of Fire's autonomous military.

Kazan had thought this arrangement made little sense a long time ago.

Why would shinobi villages with such extraordinary powers willingly serve as pawns for the Five Great Nations when they could easily take their place?

He hadn't understood until later, when he watched an anime called The Kouga Ninja Scrolls.

At the root of it all, ninja were blindly loyal!

The exams soon began.

The first match pitted a Sand Shinobi against a Cloud Shinobi.

The two sides had disliked each other since the exams began. Now that they faced off, sparks flew.

Neither held back. Lethal ninjutsu flew at each other's faces, and the battle was ferocious.

Up in the stands, A and Ebizo were trading verbal blows as well.

"Looks like the Sand Shinobi have run out of talent if even trash like that can enter the Chunin Ninja Exams."

A's words dripped with mockery.

The Chunin Ninja Exams weren't open to just anyone. A candidate needed their jonin team leader's approval that they were capable enough.

"By the way, I heard that Kazekage of yours—the one you call the strongest in history—has gone missing. Is that true?"

He was aggressive and overbearing, and that single remark made Ebizo's gaze sharpen.

Even now, the Sand Shinobi's investigation had yielded no answers.

To keep the village from descending into chaos, his retired older sister had been forced to return and take charge.

"You're well informed, Raikage's son. Could Kumogakure have something to do with this?" Ebizo stopped trying to conceal it.

Their Kazekage had been missing for too long to keep it a secret.

With his sister now temporarily in power, the entire shinobi world knew something had happened to their Kage.

"If I had the chance, I certainly wouldn't mind seeing just how powerful this supposedly strongest Kazekage in history is." A was forceful, but he wasn't stupid.

Kumogakure feared no shinobi village, Konoha included.

But that didn't mean they could pin this mess on him without cause.

"That had better be the case. Otherwise, we won't forgive Kumogakure."

"What can someone with one foot in the grave possibly do to me?"

Despite his words, A didn't press the matter further, lest he truly provoke the Sand Shinobi into doing something reckless.

As they spoke, the first match ended. The ninja from Kumogakure had the last laugh and advanced to the quarterfinals.

"Well done!"

The moment it ended, A turned into Big B of Hung Hing, slamming the table with a deafening shout as though afraid Ebizo might not hear him.

The old man ignored him. His expression, at least, remained calm, as though the loser hadn't been a ninja from his own village.

Hmph. What an old turtle.

A hated people like that most. They could quietly scheme you to death before you even realized it.

Having gotten no satisfaction, he sat down and continued watching.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took it all in, quietly smoking his pipe as he waited.

One match.

Two matches.

Three matches.

The matches went quickly. The spectators rarely had a chance to watch ninja fight.

Otherwise, Kazan's earlier street brawl wouldn't have drawn such a determined crowd.

They shouted their approval and cheered like spectators in a Roman arena.

Then.

It was Kazan and Yugito Nii's turn.

"Next match: True Kazan of Konoha versus Yugito Nii of Kumogakure!"

This was it!

At that moment, many of the Konoha ninja held their breath and focused.

Quite a few had already learned that Kumogakure had sent its Two-Tails Jinchūriki to these exams.

And Kazan was the ninja Hiruzen Sarutobi had personally selected to participate.

This match was bound to be extraordinary.

Hearing his name, Kazan strode into the center of the Training Ground.

In an instant, cheers erupted from the stands.

"Here he comes! Kazan!"

"Go get 'em, little demon king!"

"You little brat, Kazan! Win this, and I'll treat you to barbecue tonight!"

"..."

The villagers were brimming with enthusiasm.

"So young?"

Looking at Kazan, A could see that he was several years younger than even their village's Yugito Nii.

To reach the final round of the Chunin Ninja Exams at that age, he had to be one of Konoha's prodigies.

But against Yugito Nii, his good luck ended here.

A folded his arms, utterly unshaken.

How could our mighty Kumogakure's jinchūriki possibly lose to a Konoha genin?

There was no way!

By then, Yugito Nii had also walked up to Kazan.

She differed from the person he remembered, being much younger. She had less of that mature, commanding air and more youthful innocence.

Her expression was cool and haughty, like a little queen, and her tone brooked no argument.

"What's your name?" she asked Kazan.

This was an opponent Matatabi had acknowledged, someone whose name was worth remembering.

Kazan merely rolled his neck and loosened up, giving her no respect at all.

"Are you deaf or blind? Even if you couldn't hear it, couldn't you read it?"

This guy had none of the bearing of a prodigy!

Even Yugito Nii's composure wasn't enough to keep her from getting angry.

A flush rose on her cool, beautiful face—one born of anger.