Is Mei Terumī Coming to Konoha? (Continued)

So boring.

There was still no word on Tsunade. He could only wait until she went gambling in Tanzaku Town.

And that flat-chested brat Sakura Haruno hadn't learned Medical Ninjutsu yet. Even if he found Tsunade, she couldn't learn the strange power of the Yin Seal for now.

That damned Strength of a Hundred Power was giving him a headache!

The Mentor-Disciple System's task was ridiculous, too. Why couldn't it just have Sakura learn summoning? Why insist on something as difficult as the Strength of a Hundred Power?

That snake-handler had been making moves lately. The old dog Third Hokage probably hadn't noticed yet, had he?

"Wr-wrinkles? You're the one with wrinkles." Kurenai Yuhi's smile stiffened. The corner of her mouth twitched as she dug her fair fingers into Cangyue's waist.

Aogetsu Hyuga caught Kurenai Yuhi's hand and threatened her with a wicked grin. "Keep pinching me, and I'll give your chest a good squeeze."

Little Kurenai was something else.

She could actually make a Six Paths powerhouse feel pain. When it came to pinching people, I, Aogetsu Hyuga, declare you the strongest, Kurenai Yuhi!

"Pervert." Kurenai Yuhi hurriedly pulled her hand back and shifted away, putting a little distance between herself and Cangyue.

S-squeeze her chest?

What kind of outrageous thing was that to say?

Asuma Sarutobi had just picked up a piece of grilled meat when he caught Kurenai Yuhi and Cangyue whispering and playfully touching each other out of the corner of his eye. They looked like a flirting couple, and it left him miserable.

Asuma Sarutobi ate his grilled meat in silence. Watching the woman he'd liked for so long flirt with another man felt awful.

Even the premium beef tasted bad!

Kakashi Hatake, wearing his usual dead-eyed expression, patted Asuma Sarutobi on the shoulder. "Give up."

The whole village knew Asuma had been pursuing Kurenai Yuhi since childhood, but she'd always been distant toward him.

On the surface, Kurenai Yuhi seemed to dislike Aogetsu Hyuga, yet she kept finding herself close to Cangyue.

Women were such a hassle.

No matter how many copies of Icha Icha Paradise he read, he couldn't understand how women thought.

Asuma Sarutobi lit a cigarette and took a hard drag. He blew out a pale cloud of smoke, then forced a smile and joined the conversation. "Shikamaru and the others are doing well. It's about time they took the Chunin Ninja Exams."

Asuma Sarutobi looked across at Kurenai Yuhi and asked with a smile, "Kurenai, Team 10 is doing well too. What are your plans?"

"The Chunin Ninja Exams? I'm still on the fence. Team 10 hasn't been Genin for long. It feels... too soon." Kurenai Yuhi frowned slightly and rested her fair fingers against her chin, deep in thought.

She felt Team 10 still had serious problems, especially the timid Hinata Hyuga.

Hinata Hyuga was strong enough to enter this year's Chunin Ninja Exams, but she was timid and worried about hurting her opponents. Put simply, she was too kind.

The Chunin Ninja Exams were fraught with danger now. Gone were the days when sufficient strength alone could earn someone a promotion to Chunin.

The exams now tested the Genin's overall abilities and state of mind. Given Hinata Hyuga's personality, she could easily be badly injured or killed.

So Kurenai planned to train Team 10 more and have them enter the next Chunin Ninja Exams.

Taking the Chunin Exams would be good experience, but she also worried that failing would hit Hinata and the others hard.

Most of all,

Kurenai Yuhi was afraid her students would get hurt.

She was protective of them, after all.

Kurenai Yuhi turned to Cangyue and asked curiously, "Cangyue, are you entering Team 7?"

Aogetsu Hyuga idly chewed on his straw. "Does it matter? Is being a Chunin that important? Genin are the strongest."

Were Chunin so impressive?

Were Jonin so impressive?

Bullshit!

Genin were the real powerhouses!

Wait...

Back in the Land of Waves, he seemed to have promised Team 7 he'd enter whoever finished training first.

But all three members of a squad had to enter the Chunin Exams together.

At the time, Team 7 had thought only one of them could enter, so they'd trained like mad to beat each other.

"Actually, I take that back. Of course they're entering the Chunin Ninja Exams. And my students will win." Aogetsu Hyuga smiled faintly, full of confidence.

He meant it.

Team 7 might still be Genin, but they were already stronger than ordinary Chunin.

Naruto Uzumaki knew the Rasengan.

Sasuke Uchiha knew Chidori.

Sakura Haruno knew Chakra Enhanced Strength.

With abilities like those, the Chunin Exams should be a breeze!

Even setting Sasuke and Sakura aside, Naruto Uzumaki had enormous Chakra reserves. If he mindlessly spammed Shadow Clones and Rasengan, he could wear down an Elite Chunin!

Assuming Naruto actually did that.

Still,

this year's Genin had some real talent. Many were as strong as Chunin: that show-off brat Neji Hyuga, Rock Lee with his Eight Gates, and the adorable Hinata Hyuga.

And there was Gaara from Sunagakure and the others.

Hinata Hyuga might be gentle and timid, but her strength had reached Chunin level. Aogetsu Hyuga often gave her extra lessons whenever he had time.

Watching Hinata Hyuga slowly grow stronger felt like raising a little girl.

It was wonderful.

"Cangyue, Team 7 is entering too? Excellent!" Might Guy raised a thumb, his gleaming teeth flashing as he grinned. "The students will pour out their sweat and strive together to become Chunin. That's youth!"

Aogetsu Hyuga gave him a perfunctory nod. "Yeah, sure."

Might Guy planted a hand on his hip, wiped the sweat from his brow, and said brightly, "Oh! Seeing how hard the students work reminds me of when we ran beneath the setting sun. We were burning with youth back then!"

"You were burning through your brain cells," Aogetsu Hyuga said flatly.

He needed to set the record straight!

He had never gone running with Might Guy. The bowl-cut fool had made the whole memory up.

Aogetsu Hyuga stopped paying attention to Might Guy. He turned to Kurenai Yuhi with a faint smile. "Little Kurenai, get me some meat. I want the biggest piece."

He was doing it on purpose.

He wanted to annoy Asuma.

"Okay," Kurenai Yuhi answered without thinking. That single word made everyone pause.

Because that "okay"

had sounded so sweet.

So obedient.

So caring.

Everyone stared at Kurenai Yuhi. Was this gentle, compliant woman really the bold and capable Kurenai Yuhi they knew?

Absurd!

Utterly absurd!

"You were just complaining about the grilled meat..." Feeling everyone's surprised gazes on her, Kurenai Yuhi came to her senses and blushed. She picked up the biggest piece of meat from the grill and put it on Cangyue's plate.

She'd answered without thinking.

How embarrassing.

This was all Cangyue's fault!

"You..."

Kurenai Yuhi noticed that Aogetsu Hyuga wasn't eating. He was watching something with an amused smile. She frowned and followed his gaze to Asuma, who was smoking gloomily.

Realization dawned on Kurenai Yuhi. No wonder Cangyue had asked her to serve him meat. He was deliberately trying to upset Asuma Sarutobi.

"Childish." Kurenai Yuhi rolled her eyes at Cangyue, though the corner of her mouth lifted. She gave Aogetsu Hyuga another piece of meat.

It was childish, but she was in a good mood today. She could indulge Cangyue just this once.

"Cangyue, my student will win." Might Guy looked at him with fierce conviction. "I hear Team 7 has completed Tree-Climbing Training, but that alone won't be enough."

"Rock Lee... works harder than anyone. He's a genius at hard work, and that hard work will never betray him."

Might Guy declared firmly, "In these Chunin Ninja Exams, he'll show everyone his Ninja Way!"

Rock Lee was the hardest-working person he'd ever met. No matter how many times he fell, he never gave up.

Wind or rain, even when his whole body was covered in injuries, he gritted his teeth and kept training, chasing a dream that seemed impossibly far away!

That had moved Might Guy deeply.

Proving to everyone that hard work could surpass genius—that was the Ninja Way Rock Lee believed in!

Aogetsu Hyuga raised his head and looked calmly at Might Guy. "Is that so? I'll look forward to it."

Hard work surpassing genius?

It certainly could.

Hard work could surpass genius, but it couldn't surpass someone with cheats.

Cheating was the real path to victory!

Aogetsu Hyuga had awakened the Tenseigan at eight years old, gaining a power most Ninja could never reach no matter how long they trained.

And evolving the Sharingan into a Mangekyo was another instant power-up that outstripped the painstaking efforts of countless people.

Ironic, wasn't it?

But that was reality.

I, Aogetsu Hyuga, love having cheats!

Come to think of it,

Aogetsu Hyuga wondered

why these people still thought Team 7 had only just finished Tree-Climbing Training.

Oh.

Right. It had only been a little over ten days.

Which meant no one in the village knew Team 7 had already learned Chidori, Rasengan, and Chakra Enhanced Strength.

They could stun everyone at the Chunin Exams.

Then everyone would marvel at how amazing Teacher Cangyue was, how outstanding he was—the finest teacher around, capable of teaching three Genin such powerful techniques.

He'd even taught Naruto, the dead-last kid, the Rasengan, a technique that represented the pinnacle of Shape Transformation.

"Heh..." Aogetsu Hyuga's lips curled. Work hard, my little helpers, and make your teacher look spectacular.

Just thinking about it felt great!

Kakashi Hatake, reading Icha Icha Paradise with his usual dead-eyed look, said lazily, "I heard Sunagakure won't be the only village entering this year's Chunin Ninja Exams. Kirigakure is sending Genin too, and the Mizukage may come to Konoha in person."

His connections in ANBU were solid, so he heard plenty of rumors.

The Jonin instructors around the table chatted among themselves.

"Kirigakure is entering too? We signed a ceasefire treaty, but Kirigakure and Konoha are still enemies, aren't they?" Asuma Sarutobi took a drag on his cigarette and glanced at Aogetsu Hyuga. "Especially where the Hyuga Clan is concerned."

The Five Great Nations had signed a ceasefire treaty, but grudges between villages remained. The hatred between the Hyuga Clan and Kirigakure ran especially deep!

After all, a Kirigakure Ninja had stolen the Hyuga Clan's most precious Kekkei Genkai.

Kakashi Hatake said, "Lord Hokage has already agreed. He probably wants to use this opportunity to ease the tension between the two villages."

"That Crazy Bitch..." Aogetsu Hyuga frowned.