"When did you get this?!"
Kushina stared blankly at the number plate in Kin's hand. She'd thought she would be the first to complete the mission.
Yet Uchiha Kin had already secured his target.
The possibility of Kin holding someone else's plate was slim.
Despite his infuriating smirk, he wouldn't lie about something so trivial.
If caught, he'd never hear the end of it from her and Minato.
For the three of them—whose strength far exceeded the exam's standards—this was trivial.
But even Minato was shocked. He hadn't noticed Kin's actions at all.
"I grabbed it the moment we entered the Forest of Death."
Kin tossed the plate, amused as the summoning formula flickered weakly before deactivating in his grip.
"The moment we entered?!"
Kushina and Minato exchanged bewildered glances.
Kin had stayed with them the entire time. When had he made his move?
The truth was simple.
Kin had locked onto his target immediately. Upon entering the forest, he'd swapped the plate with a rock of equal weight using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
While searching for Kushina's target, he'd even spotted the unlucky shinobi—still oblivious to his elimination.
As for the method?
Kin glanced meaningfully at Minato.
Flying Thunder God, of course.
Though he hadn't fully mastered it, teleporting small objects was child's play.
By the time Minato learned the technique, Kin would already be a master.
Historically, Minato only grasped space-time ninjutsu after inventing the Rasengan.
Now, despite developing it earlier (and with greater power), the village wouldn't hand an S-rank jutsu to him so easily.
Kin hadn't witnessed Minato's battle yesterday.
"Then why didn't you say so earlier?!" Kushina glared.
Because of this, she and Minato had sparred—ending only when Minato conceded.
"Because I felt like it." Kin smirked. "Hit me if you dare."
That smug face.
Kushina raised a fist, but Minato pressed it down with a resigned look that screamed:
"Let it go. Together, we'd still lose."
"Damn it!" Kushina gritted her teeth but allowed Minato to stop her.
Uchiha Kin, this bully! Karma will get you!
At fifteen, Kin towered over the thirteen-year-olds. The height difference alone made his taunts feel like picking on children.
Yet he felt zero guilt.
Only amusement.
"Now it's just me left."
Minato ignored Kin's growing smirk and changed the subject.
Honestly.
Without him, Team Seven would've disbanded ages ago.
"Once you're done, we pass the Jonin Assessment!" Kushina cheered, already envisioning her rise to Hokage.
"There's still the written exam," Kin reminded dryly.
That was the real challenge—the true test of comprehensive skills. This survival round was just the entry ticket.
Kushina's enthusiasm deflated. The written exam had always been her weakness.
Minato cleared his throat and pulled a small vial from his pouch.
"Let's finish this first."
He unstopped it, releasing a black insect—a tracking bug sold by the Aburame clan. Once coated with a target's scent powder, it could hunt them relentlessly.
The trio followed the bug.
Anma Sansai hid in the trees, observing her prey.
Dressed in standard Konoha chūnin attire (blue shirt, green flak jacket), her delicate features had earned minor fame among peers.
Her target? A Hyūga expert skilled in the Six Styles, currently battling another shinobi.
Since when do Hyūga train in anything but Gentle Fist?
Yet the Hyūga was losing.
His opponent, an Akimichi, combined Iron Body with the Meat Tank technique, leaving no openings. A final Shave-enhanced charge sent the Hyūga flying.
By the time he hit the ground, he was unconscious.
The Akimichi left without a backward glance.
After a long pause, Sansai approached the fallen Hyūga and claimed her prize.
"Thank goodness it wasn't that Akimichi."
She exhaled in relief. An Iron Body-fortified Meat Tank was a nightmare to counter.
Plate in hand, she retreated swiftly.
With her own number potentially compromised, hiding until the seven-day limit was her safest bet.
Then a tiny insect landed on her shoulder.
Sansai skidded to a halt and crushed it between her fingers.
"Aburame?"
So much for laying low.
Brushing the powder off her shoulder, she noticed three figures encircling her in a triangle formation.
Damn.
A team of enemies.
Her heart sank further when she recognized one of them.
"Lord Kin."
Against Uchiha Kin, escape was impossible.
I'd rather have fought that Akimichi!!
Kin tilted his head.
"You're... Anma Unsai?"
"It's SANSAI!! Lord Kin!! SANSAI!! SAY IT RIGHT!!"
She roared. He'd definitely done this on purpose—she'd corrected him countless times on the Kumo front.
"Got it, Anma Unsai."
Of course.
Sansai sighed at the sky.
Typical.
"I surrender, Lord Kin." She raised her hands.
"Not my fight." Kin pointed at Minato. "This is Namikaze Minato, the genius of the Iwa front. Beat him, and you walk free."
Sansai studied Minato, intrigued.
"Then I'll give it a shot."
This so-called genius who'd overshadowed even Lord Kin...
How much of that reputation was hot air?
"Do your best, Unsai!"
"IT'S SANSAI!!"
...
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(End of Chapter)