"My youth is burning!!!"
Some people... I have no idea what they're even saying. All I heard was "My youth is burning!" and then they just charged straight ahead.
The tip of his pen paused over the waiver form. Upon hearing the loud shouts, Yagura turned his head just in time to see a green-clad, bowl-cut shinobi sprint past him.
Might Guy had taken off running, only to realize midway that his teammates hadn't followed. He turned around, running backward as he called out, "Genma! Raidō! Youth!"
"What youth?! We don't get it!"
Shiranui Genma and Raidō Namiashi, their eyes half-lidded in exasperation, picked up the pace to catch up with their overly enthusiastic teammate.
Might Guy flashed them a thumbs-up. "Youth is about sweating and pushing your limits! How about we run 300 laps before the exam?"
"Nope!"
"I refuse."
...
The trio disappeared from sight.
Guy, Genma, and Raidō, huh? Quite a few familiar faces.
Yagura twirled his pen before refocusing on his task. Seeing familiar people was no longer anything surprising.
With a quick, fluid motion, he signed his name on the waiver and handed it over to the proctor at the gate.
Every participant had to sign one.
By doing so, they acknowledged the risks of the Chūnin Exams and agreed that Konohagakure bore no responsibility for their safety.
In other words, if they died, it was on them for being weak. At most, Konoha might collect their remains out of courtesy.
By the time Yagura finished, Ameyuri Ringo and Mukumo had already turned in their forms.
It was 11:39 AM. Now, they just had to wait for the exam to begin at noon.
Ameyuri noticed Yagura seemed intrigued by the strange, green-clad shinobi and decided to start some small talk to pass the time.
"That Konoha ninja just now... pretty interesting. Was that really a ninja?"
To her, shinobi were supposed to be cold, efficient killers—not spouting nonsense about youth and passion.
Yagura picked up on her train of thought and shrugged.
"Maybe he's a Konoha-exclusive ninja."
Youth, passion, and all that.
Aside from Might Guy, there were others—Naruto, Kiba, and Rock Lee.
But hey, this was a shōnen series. Hot-blooded characters actually got screen time.
Right, Lee?
Yagura blinked before turning to Mukumo. "Any luck spotting our target team?"
Their assigned number was No. 9. Their target? No. 55.
Mukumo shook his head. "They're hiding their numbers."
The rules stated that at least one member of each team had to wear their numbered badge on the outermost layer of clothing. But concealing the number itself? That was child's play for shinobi.
It was like a showcase of creativity.
The Aburame Clan covered theirs with insects. The Nara Clan used shadows. Some just wrapped it up with bandages or smeared it with charcoal.
All of these worked well enough to obscure the number. Effectiveness varied, but the effort was clear.
Some participants had completely hidden their number badges, yet the proctors said nothing.
Maybe there was a permitted method of concealment they were using.
While Genin still had gaps in skill and experience, they hadn't slacked on the academy basics.
...
The sun reached its peak.
The exam had begun!
BEEP!!!
A whistle sounded!
The iron gate before them rumbled open, revealing the dark, foreboding entrance of the Forest of Death.
In an instant, the examinees transformed into flickering shadows, dashing into the depths of the forest.
Leaves and twigs cracked under rapid footfalls. The rustling of movement filled the air.
Saa, saa, saa.
After covering some distance beyond the entrance, Mukumo formed a single-hand seal, dispersing mist in all directions to scout for other teams.
Yagura, leading the charge, noticed Mukumo's actions and glanced back.
"Can you find our target?"
Considering how most teams had hidden their numbers...
Then again, if they got into a fight, an opportunity might arise.
Mukumo replied flatly, "I'll try."
"No rush. We have three days. There will be an opening sooner or later."
Ameyuri remained calm. "First, we need to set up a base."
At worst, they'd have to survive here for the full three days.
Food was already handled.
Before entering, all participants had been stripped of everything except their combat gear—no food, no water, not even soldier pills.
But smuggling in soldier pills was child's play for Mukumo.
Clouds camouflaged to match the air had followed them inside. Now, they returned to their natural white, dropping a sealed scroll.
Mukumo opened it, pressed a hand onto the markings, and with a puff of smoke—
"Here."
He tossed a few soldier pills to Yagura, who caught them with ease.
"Mukumo, you really are a walking toolkit."
"Nice work," Ameyuri added, swallowing a pill. Her gaze shifted upward, her tone taking on an eager edge. "We haven't found our main course yet, but we've got an appetizer."
The white-haired scout nodded. "Three of them. Suna shinobi."
Yagura sighed. "Again? Suna, huh."
The Forest of Death wasn't enormous. With over a hundred examinees crammed inside, it was like throwing oil onto a fire.
"Wind Release: Net Gale!"
One of the approaching Suna ninja swung an oversized fan, sending a wide wind-based net surging toward them!
Ameyuri raised a hand to shield her face from the wind, her bangs whipping wildly. She looked up at the three Suna shinobi in the trees and scoffed, unfazed.
"Big range, unavoidable. But slow and weak."
Mukumo analyzed it with a deadpan expression. "Cloud Release: Cloud Severance."
Soft, harmless-looking clouds manifested in midair, lazily drifting up and adhering to the wind net.
Normally, wind would disperse clouds.
But instead, these clouds stuck fast.
The wind weakened.
By the time the attack reached Yagura, it felt like nothing more than a morning breeze.
This technique nullified the chakra in enemy jutsu, dissolving attacks into nothing.
The only downside? It was a bit slow.
Not bad, Mukumo.
"By the way, our number hasn't been exposed, right?"
Yagura glanced down, confirming the coral-covered badge on his chest remained hidden.
Ameyuri swallowed another soldier pill and smirked.
"Doesn't matter. They're probably here for personal grudges."
After all, tensions between villages weren't exactly a secret.
"Oh?" Yagura's lips curved into a smirk as water gathered around his hand.
Ameyuri suddenly reached out and stopped him.
"Hm?" Yagura tilted his head.
"Let me handle this."
Her voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.
She gripped the twin blades on her back.
Lightning crackled along the steel, coiling like serpents.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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