Night fell.
Beneath the center of Konoha.
A massive training base had been built here. Most of the missions its ninja carried out were the kind that could never see the light of day.
Like the roots of a great tree, they remained unknown to the world, yet their role was indispensable.
"Lord Danzo, that brat seems to have gotten stronger again!!"
With half his body wrapped in bandages, Danzo sat on an elevated seat in the Root Base, poring over the latest intelligence concerning Konoha.
"What do you mean? How has he gotten stronger again?"
Danzo's face darkened.
Was this guy cheating?
Ever since the three elite chunin he had sent out last time were brutally beaten by Yemu...
Danzo had become much more restrained.
For the time being, he had stopped setting his sights on Yemu.
"According to our scouts' reports from today, that brat Yemu seems capable of combining ninjutsu, and both techniques are highly difficult."
The Root ninja knelt on one knee.
If they had previously estimated Yemu's strength to be comparable to a jonin's...
Then now, his strength was definitely at jonin level.
"A jonin?"
"Wasn't that former prodigy Kakashi also a jonin at this age?"
A thoughtful look flickered in Danzo's eyes.
"Go and properly invite Yemu tomorrow. Courtesy first, force second."
"If he still refuses, deliver this letter to the Land of Lightning."
The Root ninja was puzzled.
The Land of Lightning?
Wasn't that one of their greatest enemies?!
But as a pawn, he was not allowed thoughts of his own.
He only needed to follow Danzo's orders, even if those orders demanded his immediate death.
The fact that the Land of Lightning had not been invited to these Chunin Exams made it clear why they were such bitter enemies.
The Second Hokage's death had been tied to the Land of Lightning, and many children of the great clans had also died at the hands of its ninja.
"All right, that wraps up today's mission."
Kurenai Yuhi looked at the three youngsters before her with a pleased expression.
With their current strength, they were certainly among the best of their age.
But a moment later...
Kurenai Yuhi noticed a large brown bird circling overhead.
She immediately realized that the twice-yearly Chunin Exams were about to begin.
"Is it that time already? Let's break up for today." After leaving them with those words, Kurenai Yuhi headed toward the assembly point.
"Yemu, want to go on a date with me today?"
Qingxue Uchiha wore a long black robe that day, with a black sash around her waist perfectly outlining her slender waist and ample bust.
Her delicate features were flawless, and her black hair was tied in a high ponytail, brimming with youthful energy.
"Yemu, are we training today too?"
Hinata Hyuga skipped over to Yemu, her chest bouncing. A smile graced her pretty face, and she wore her usual blue-and-white long jacket and trousers.
Thanks to Yemu's suggestion, Hinata had not kept her hair short. Instead, it fell to her chest, making her look like a gentle older sister.
When Hinata saw that Yemu was wearing the birthday present she had given him, little pink hearts almost seemed to appear deep within her Byakugan.
"No training today. We need to balance work and rest."
Yemu clearly had no idea just how charming he looked dressed entirely in white.
On Konoha's shopping street.
Yemu had already spotted quite a few ninja whose styles differed from those of the village.
It looked like the Chunin Exams would be taking place sometime soon.
He wondered how much material Zabuza had managed to collect.
"Ow! You little brat!"
"Watch where you're going!"
In the distance, a man carrying a bandage-wrapped bundle held up a snot-nosed child with one hand, irritation written across his face.
"Brats are what I hate most!! Looks like I need to teach you a lesson!"
Kankuro's face was marked with red patterns, and his expression was ugly.
"Watch yourself, or you'll get told off later." Beside Kankuro, Temari, her blond hair tied in buns, glanced around to see whether anyone else was nearby.
Before long...
She noticed a boy in a long white outfit not far away.
Damn, that boy was handsome.
That was Temari's first thought.
It was only human instinct to steal a few extra looks at a handsome guy. There was no helping it.
His eyes, in particular, seemed free of all desire. That cool, restrained sort of handsome guy made Temari's heart flutter a little.
"Kankuro, someone's coming."
Temari warned Kankuro beside her.
"Hmph!"
Kankuro merely snorted again as he watched Naruto charge over, intending to rescue the little brat Konohamaru from his grip.
With nothing more than a tug of his puppet strings, he tripped Naruto and sent him flying.
"Dammit, what was that?!"
Naruto Uzumaki lay sprawled on the ground, raging helplessly.
Konohamaru was his little follower. How could he tolerate someone bullying him?
"Hmph. You Konoha genin are pretty weak, huh?"
Kankuro narrowed his eyes, contempt filling his painted face.
But just then...
Sasuke Uchiha used the Body Flicker Technique to appear behind Kankuro and viciously kicked at his head.
Bam!!
After the brutal beating Yemu had given him a few days earlier, Sasuke had already been simmering with all kinds of emotions.
Now someone had walked straight into his line of fire, and Sasuke naturally could not hold back.
"Oh? There's a tough little brat here too."
Kankuro raised his arm to block. Feeling it go numb, he looked intrigued.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Sasuke Uchiha leaped into the air and opened with fire release.
His fight with Yemu had taught Sasuke one thing: when fists could do the talking, there was no need to waste words.
"Shit, why so aggressive?"
Kankuro's eyes trembled.
He stopped putting on an act and instantly tore away the bandages, revealing the crow puppet within.
With three arms and four legs, it was a monstrous puppet through and through, without the slightest trace of beauty.
"What are you doing?! Are you trying to start a fight?"
Seeing Sasuke's face brimming with fighting spirit, Temari could not help calling out a warning.
Just as Uchiha Sasuke gripped a kunai and prepared to attack again...
A swirl of yellow sand suddenly formed a hand behind him and slapped him away.
"Stop. Both of you, quit fighting!!"
The flat voice carried a hint of coldness as it echoed in their ears.
Everyone turned toward the voice and saw a boy with short red hair and the character for "love" on his forehead standing behind Temari.
"Gaara, what are you doing here?" Temari's eyes trembled.
Gaara's expression was indifferent. "I've been here the whole time."
"Kankuro, put that child down."
"Now isn't the time to start a conflict."
Gaara did not want their plan exposed ahead of time because of this clash.
"Brat! Watch where you're going next time, or I'll send you straight to hell!!"
Kankuro hissed viciously into Konohamaru's ear.
The young Konohamaru's eyes instantly filled with tears.
"Naruto... Big Brother Naruto, are you useless or something?"
Konohamaru looked miserable after watching the puppeteer trip Naruto Uzumaki and send him flying with a single move.
He felt thoroughly humiliated.
"Damn you, Konohamaru! What are you saying?!"
Realizing he had lost face in front of Sakura Haruno, Naruto Uzumaki was so angry that his face twisted.
All Sasuke ever did was show off!!
Just then...
Yemu slowly walked over with the two girls.
A quick glance at the situation was enough for him to understand what had happened.
"Foreign ninja acting this arrogantly inside Konoha?"
Yemu's gaze was calm.
Sure enough, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, only grew worse with age. These days, it seemed any ninja dared to bully Konoha.
"Yemu!!"
Sasuke Uchiha held the spot where the sneak attack had struck him. The moment he saw Yemu arrive, his confidence returned.
"Yemu, get them! These guys are bullying people from Konoha." Naruto Uzumaki's eyes lit up.
He immediately cheered up.
He knew how strong Yemu was-stronger than Sasuke Uchiha.
"Not interested."
With both hands in his pockets, Yemu looked utterly unconcerned. "Your business, your problem. Leave me out of it. I don't like cleaning up other people's messes."
Yemu had no intention of getting in the way of Uchiha Sasuke's showing off.
To him, this sort of squabble between children was far too trivial.
Qingxue Uchiha also cast a few glances at Temari.
Why the hell did this woman keep staring at Yemu? Keep it up, and I'll gouge your eyes out!!
"Ahem..."
Temari seemed to sense Qingxue's threatening gaze. Embarrassed, she was forced to look away.
"Tch. What's with the act? Brats who do nothing but run their mouths are the most annoying."
As Yemu passed, Kankuro slowly wrapped the puppet beside him in bandages.
But barely had Kankuro finished speaking when he noticed that the woman in black had not followed the man in white. Instead, she had stopped beside him.
"What do you want?"
Kankuro glanced at Qingxue Uchiha.
He was secretly struck by her beauty. This woman was gorgeous.
It was just that her icy gaze made him a little uncomfortable.
"What did you just say?"
"If you don't apologize today, don't expect to stay on your feet!!"
Qingxue Uchiha's eyes shone blood-red, perhaps stimulated by her intense anger.
Her previously one-tomoe eyes actually evolved into two-tomoe at that very moment.
*???*
Not far away, Sasuke sensed the change in Qingxue's aura and stared in bewilderment. What was going on?
How had this crazy woman suddenly awakened two-tomoe?
I'm the Uchiha Clan's last remaining representative, and I only have one-tomoe!
You're making me look bad.
Sasuke Uchiha looked indifferent, but inwardly, he was astonished.
Since he had yet to fight Haku in a life-or-death battle, both his eyes were still in their one-tomoe state.
Qingxue
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