Konoha: I Have a Gravity Training Room

After everyone went their separate ways, Xia Mu and Tenten returned to the Ninja Tool Shop. The owner had already prepared a meal, apparently an expensive set ordered from a large restaurant, for the two examinees who had worked so hard through the test to enjoy.

Neither of them stood on ceremony. They wolfed down their food while talking about the exam, and the shop owner listened with great interest.

Tenten now knew that her father liked hearing her talk about such things. Perhaps hearing about them reassured him. So she often deliberately brought them up at the dinner table, pulling Xia Mu in to talk as well. She specifically chose the good parts to tell him and rarely mentioned anything dangerous, so as not to make her father worry.

After eating, the two went to wash up. Of course, they bathed separately.

Once they were done, they obediently went to sleep. But they did not dare share a blanket tonight, afraid they would be unable to sleep and affect tomorrow's exam.

The next morning, the examinees gathered at the entrance outside the Forest of Death. The examiner, Anko Mitarashi, began explaining the rules of the second test:

Each team would receive a scroll, either a Heaven Scroll or an Earth Scroll. Then all examinees would enter the Forest of Death and begin fighting to seize scrolls. To pass, a team had to possess both a Heaven Scroll and an Earth Scroll and reach the tower at the center of the forest within five days.

This alone would eliminate at least half the examinees.

It had to be said, the rules were simple and brutal. Those with bad luck or insufficient strength had no chance of passing.

However, Xia Mu quietly kept an eye on the people from Kusagakure. One of them, a figure wearing a conical hat, often swept Xia Mu with an oddly meaningful gaze, giving him the feeling of prey being watched by a venomous snake.

He recalled the original plot. Orochimaru had probably already disguised himself as a Kusagakure ninja and entered as an examinee, intending to inspect and select his future vessel.

Although Xia Mu's appearance had caused some changes to the plot, it had not completely derailed yet, so Orochimaru's infiltration should have remained largely unchanged. Still, to be safe, Xia Mu began observing him in secret.

That ugly female ninja from Kusagakure had terrible eyes. They were like a venomous snake's, just short of flicking out a forked tongue.

If he wasn't Orochimaru, even ghosts wouldn't believe it!

Orochimaru

Though the female Kusagakure ninja hid her gaze beneath her conical hat, Xia Mu was strong enough and perceptive enough that noticing it was only natural.

Moreover, Xia Mu could tell through observation that her main target was still Sasuke Uchiha. It seemed she was still obsessed with the Sharingan. Being defeated by Itachi Uchiha was ultimately a hurdle she could never get over.

But she seemed to be watching more than just Sasuke. Whenever her gaze passed over Xia Mu, traces of greed showed in her eyes as well.

Could she have taken Xia Mu for a backup vessel?

Xia Mu pondered silently, but his gaze quietly locked onto Kabuto Yakushi. It had to be that guy who had leaked Konoha's intelligence to Orochimaru, including Xia Mu's personal information.

Orochimaru was searching for a future vessel. Sasuke was his first choice, but Sasuke might not survive the curse mark trial, so there had to be alternatives. Xia Mu, who had gradually displayed his talent over the past few years, had naturally caught his eye as well. Xia Mu was probably not the only one. There had to be others. Orochimaru had gone through so much effort to attack Konoha for more than just killing his teacher. At the very least, he would take the opportunity to bring some test subjects back from Konoha.

After all, Konoha was truly overflowing with talent, and Orochimaru needed that talent for his experiments.

At that thought, Xia Mu's mood immediately soured.

He understood perfectly well just how dangerous Orochimaru was. Being targeted by a venomous snake like that was no good thing.

And even if Orochimaru did not make a move against him, it would still be dangerous if he targeted Sasuke. Rock Lee would genuinely go save Sakura, which would drag Tenten into it, and perhaps their other friends would be implicated as well.

He could not assume everything would be fine this time just because nothing had happened in the original plot. He could not rely on luck!

If his girlfriend and friends were truly dragged into a fight with Orochimaru, it would be far too dangerous!

So the first thing to do was eliminate the danger!

This time, he would not follow the original plot!

At that moment, Anko had just finished announcing the exam rules when Naruto foolishly imitated the way she spoke, instantly provoking her.

As Orochimaru's former student, Anko was someone who feared neither heaven nor earth. Now that some blond brat was mocking her like this, she did not go easy on him even if he was a Jinchuriki. She immediately threw a kunai, grazing Naruto's cheek.

Then she flashed behind Naruto and even licked the wound on his face with her tongue.

After that little display, Naruto could only tremble.

Just then, Anko suddenly stiffened in shock. She instinctively raised her kunai in defense, only to discover that the female Kusagakure ninja in the conical hat had somehow appeared behind her. Her long tongue was curled around a kunai, which she held out to Anko.

"Your kunai..." Her voice was hoarse enough to make one's hair stand on end.

"Don't stand behind me so casually. Are you looking to die?" Anko's expression darkened. She had the feeling that this person was dangerous.

"Your kunai cut my hair."

The female Kusagakure ninja returned the kunai to Anko, her gaze still laden with meaning. Just as she was about to step back, her expression suddenly changed. A flash of blade light wrapped in lightning came hurtling toward her. She quickly tilted her head aside, but the blade was too fast, and her face was still cut open. Scarlet blood immediately streamed down her cheek.

Covering her face, she leaped backward and stared at the person who had attacked her in surprise.

The commotion drew the attention of all the examinees. They all turned to look, curiosity filling their faces, before their expressions shifted to shock.

Because a Konoha examinee had attacked a Kusagakure ninja!

"What is Konoha trying to do? Why did you suddenly attack an examinee from another village? That's not part of the exam rules, is it?!" The female Kusagakure ninja's other two companions immediately spoke up.

The examinees from the other villages also revealed suspicious looks, as if condemning Konoha's actions.

Even Tenten and the others were startled, because they realized the one who had acted was Xia Mu!

However, Tenten and Shino trusted Xia Mu the most. Though neither knew the reason yet, they immediately stood at Xia Mu's side, watching the Kusagakure examinees with guarded expressions.

Anko immediately demanded sternly, "What are you doing? Why did you attack and injure someone? Aren't you afraid of being disqualified from the exam?!"

But Xia Mu ignored Anko and pointed his short sword at the female Kusagakure ninja. "You really managed to dodge that, Orochimaru!"

What?! O-O-Orochimaru?!

Everyone who knew Orochimaru was shocked and instinctively took a step back. The other examiners hurriedly surrounded the female Kusagakure ninja as well, staring at her vigilantly.

Anko's pupils contracted, and she instinctively clutched her shoulder.

Though her curse mark was not hurting at the moment, hearing Orochimaru's name still made her feel pain that seemed to seep into her bones.

This person was Orochimaru? Really? He had been so close to her just now? But why had her curse mark not reacted? Or had this examinee named Xia Mu mistaken her for someone else?

The female Kusagakure ninja revealed an ugly smile and denied it in a hoarse voice. "What are you talking about? I don't understand."

Xia Mu paid no attention to her excuses and began advancing step by step. "That face of yours is fake, isn't it? Why don't we peel it off and take a look? You killed the original Kusagakure ninja and used her face as a disguise, but you're covered in the scent of snakes. You can't fool anyone!"

This was Xia Mu's plan!

For the safety of his girlfriend and friends, he could not let Orochimaru take part in the exam!

Since that was the case, he might as well expose him directly. This was Konoha's home ground, and there were so many Konoha ninja here. Even if they could not kill Orochimaru, they could at least drive him away.

That way, the second test would not be so dangerous.

He hurriedly warned, "Tenten, Shino, this guy is an S-rank Rogue Ninja. He's extremely dangerous, so be careful! Tatsuya, Megumi, move back!"

As he spoke, he continued closing in.

Seeing this, the female Kusagakure ninja immediately knew this attempt had failed, yet she could not help laughing.

She wiped a hand across her face, and her original face instantly changed into one pale and bloodless. Her slit pupils were as cold as a serpent's.

"Hehehe, I didn't expect to be discovered. Konoha truly has no shortage of talent."

"Orochimaru! It really is you!"

Anko cried out, but in the next second she clutched her shoulder and dropped to one knee in pain. The curse mark had clearly flared up.

Tatsuya Yamashiro and Megumi Kato instinctively supported Anko. Megumi hurriedly checked her over, but she looked completely at a loss, unable to determine the source of the pain.

Naruto was still utterly confused. "What the heck is going on, dattebayo?!"

All he had done was foolishly imitate the examiner. Why had things suddenly escalated like this?

Sasuke took out a kunai and readied himself, snapping, "Idiot! That Kusagakure ninja is an enemy!"

Several Konoha examiners had Orochimaru surrounded, and someone hurried off to report to the Hokage.

But Orochimaru was not flustered in the slightest. Instead, he calmly stared at Xia Mu and even licked his own face with his long tongue, making everyone present break out in goosebumps.

"Your name is Xia Mu, isn't it? Your swordsmanship seems a little familiar. Is it the White Fang Sword Style? How nostalgic."

A Battle with Orochimaru

Konoha's White Fang was still known to some people even now.

Especially these examiners. When they had been students, Konoha's White Fang had been shaking the Shinobi World with his reputation. There was no way they had not heard of him.

They had not expected Xia Mu to know the White Fang Sword Style!

For a moment, the examiners all looked at Xia Mu in surprise, their eyes carrying a hint of expectation.

Back then, Konoha's White Fang had overshadowed even the Three Sannin. If Xia Mu had the strength to suppress Orochimaru, perhaps he could stall until the Hokage's reinforcements arrived.

But when they saw Xia Mu's age, they felt that was impossible.

Xia Mu was simply too young!

Xia Mu could not be bothered with Orochimaru's words. Strands of lightning flickered across his body and blade, and in the next instant, he shot toward Orochimaru like a bolt of lightning, his short sword stabbing straight at him.

Orochimaru immediately drew a kunai to meet it, but the next second, a sharp clang rang out and his kunai snapped in two, the cut perfectly smooth.

His neck was slashed as well, and his head nearly flew off.

Had he... killed him?

Was one of the legendary Three Sannin really that weak? Or was Xia Mu simply too strong?

Yet Xia Mu remained on guard before the fallen corpse, not daring to lower his guard in the slightest. Sure enough, in the next second, a pair of hands tore open the corpse's mouth from within, and a wet, slick Orochimaru crawled out through that gaping mouth.

Hiss!!! He wasn't dead!

Everyone was utterly shocked. Some of the girls were so frightened that they vomited on the spot.

The visual impact of that scene was too intense. Ordinary people simply could not handle it.

"Hehehe, it seems I underestimated you. To have trained the White Fang Sword Style to this extent... I can't afford not to get serious."

Orochimaru smiled sinisterly and suddenly opened his mouth wide, putting on a display of a man spitting out a snake and a snake spitting out a sword. Then the Kusanagi Sword landed in his hand as he waited for Xia Mu to attack.

Xia Mu did not hesitate. He flashed over with Lightning Body Flicker, his short sword trailing lightning as it swung, his speed as fast as lightning.

Yet even at such speed, Orochimaru handled him with ease. For a time, only the clash of blades and the hiss of lightning could be heard from the field. The ground was constantly being torn apart, and the air twisted violently, but it was difficult to catch sight of either figure.

They were simply too fast. Anyone without sufficient strength could not see them at all!

Sasuke clenched the kunai in his hand, his eyes filled with unwillingness.

He had trained bitterly under Kakashi for a month. Both his swordsmanship and Chidori had improved considerably, and he had thought he had at least closed some of the gap with Xia Mu. But he had been far too naive.

Xia Mu had not stood still. He was improving too, perhaps even faster than Sasuke.

The current Xia Mu could already exchange sword blows with one of the legendary Three Sannin, while Sasuke could not even keep his eyes on the figures fighting before him. The gap was simply too enormous.

He found that hard to accept.

"S-So amazing!" The others could not help swallowing nervously, fear rising in their hearts.

They had not expected an examinee to be hiding such terrifying strength among them. Just thinking about encountering someone this powerful in the Forest of Death made their scalps tingle.

The key point was that Orochimaru, disguised as a Kusagakure ninja, was one of the Three Sannin. It was only natural for him to be powerful.

But what was with this brat named Xia Mu?

He was clearly still so young, yet he could already fight Orochimaru on even terms. They had heard he had learned some White Fang Sword Style. It was the first time they had realized Konoha's genin could be so terrifying.

Konoha truly was worthy of its reputation. Even its genin were this absurdly strong. How were others supposed to live?

Then, with a sudden bang, Xia Mu's short sword was cut in half by the Kusanagi Sword. It seemed Orochimaru was still stronger than Xia Mu, and the Kusanagi Sword had given him an advantage as well.

Xia Mu hurriedly retreated, but Orochimaru pursued him, clearly intending to capture Xia Mu.

But after only a few steps, Orochimaru suddenly leaped backward. Three scale-like sword tips shot forward like extending serpents and stabbed into the ground, instantly punching three holes through it. If Orochimaru had not dodged, those three holes would have been in him instead.

Following the direction of the sword tips, he saw a girl with twin buns holding a sword that seemed to be pieced together from scales.

The scale sword had three blades that appeared able to extend, retract, and twist freely. It was no less formidable than the Kusanagi Sword.

Thanks to the girl's cover, Xia Mu successfully withdrew.

"Xia Mu, are you okay?!"

Tenten's face was filled with worry. In her hand was one of Takumi Village's four-piece set, the Dragon's Eye Retractable Sword. Chakra could be fed into this sword to freely control its extension and retraction, and it could even transform into three dragon heads to attack. It consumed little Chakra and could be called a convenient offensive ninja tool.

Even before graduating, Tenten had secretly posted a bounty at the Bounty Exchange.

Someone had then brought back Takumi Village's four-piece set. She seriously suspected it had been Kakuzu, because the bounty amount had been quite high.

This was also one of Tenten's trump cards. She normally would not use it, but at a critical moment, it could absolutely give her the strength of a jonin. At the very least, it could restrain Orochimaru for a while.