Three teams stood out above the rest: Kaguya's, Rasa's, and Ringo Ameyuri's.
None of their teammates were merely Genin in strength. They were far stronger than the other teams.
When the other Genin encountered them, all they felt was utter despair.
So whenever they ran into one of those teams, they usually gave up.
They could sense that their opponents were on an entirely different level. Staying would only mean humiliating themselves.
Not far from the Forest of Death, Uchiha Yin and Hiruzen Sarutobi leisurely drank sake and played chess.
"Yin, are you confident about this year's Chunin Ninja Exams?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, looking somewhat worried.
"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" Uchiha Yin said with a smile.
"Sunagakure and Kirigakure have gone too far. They actually sent people with Jonin-level strength to this Chunin Exam."
Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed to think Uchiha Yin didn't know about the situation in Sunagakure and Kirigakure, so he explained.
"Oh? Is that so?" Uchiha Yin asked, sounding rather unconcerned.
A Ninja's strength was generally hard to gauge unless they revealed it themselves.
Of course, being examined with the Byakugan or detected by a specialized sensory Ninja was another matter.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had evidently had someone observe the teams from Kirigakure and Sunagakure. He knew that some of them appeared to possess Jonin-level Chakra.
Chakra alone did not determine a person's strength, but someone with Jonin-level Chakra who had been sent to take the Chunin Exam was clearly no pushover.
If Konoha failed to take first place in this Chunin Exam, its reputation as the Shinobi World's foremost village would ring hollow.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was clearly worried that Konan and the others might not be a match for the teams from Sunagakure and Kirigakure.
As Signal Smoke rose again and again and one Konoha Genin