"Yes!"
The examiner bowed sharply and withdrew at once, urgency written across his face.
The Hokage's office fell silent again.
Sarutobi exhaled slowly, the smoke from his pipe curling upward as his thoughts churned.
Orochimaru choosing this moment—during the Chūnin Exams, with multiple villages present... was no coincidence.
This was provocation.
"Hayate," Sarutobi said at last.
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
"I want you to remain close to the exam grounds," the Third Hokage instructed calmly. "Do not act rashly. Your task is observation... nothing more."
Hayate hesitated for a fraction of a second, then nodded.
"…Understood."
Sarutobi watched him carefully.
"And one more thing," he added. "Do not approach Yugao again."
Hayate stiffened.
"Hokage-sama—"
"She has made her stance clear," Sarutobi interrupted gently, but firmly. "If you truly care about her, then respect that."
"…Yes."
Hayate bowed deeply and turned to leave, his steps noticeably heavier than when he had entered.
The door closed.
Sarutobi remained seated, eyes half-lidded.
"Orochimaru… Snow Hidden Village… and Yugao," he murmured. "So many threads converging at once."
He knocked the ash from his pipe.
For reasons he couldn't quite explain, a sense of foreboding lingered.
This gives me a bad feeling…
--
At the same time, in the Land of Snow.
Obito Uchiha's room was in complete disarray, clothes scattered everywhere as if a storm had passed through.
"You took a long vacation… just like that?" Obito asked, raising an eyebrow as he held Pakura against his chest.
Pakura rested her head comfortably against him, adjusting herself slightly before answering in a lazy tone.
"Mm. I talked it over with Konan. She agreed, and Pain didn't object either… so it was actually pretty simple."
Obito smiled faintly at that.
He didn't know the exact reason, but even without his interference, Pakura and Konan seemed to get along unusually well ever since Pakura joined the Akatsuki. Maybe it was because they were the only women there—plenty of common ground.
"Hm… I see," Obito said thoughtfully, then his smile deepened. "In that case, I'll have to make up for everything you owe me… and a few things I owe you as well. You don't mind, do you?"
As he spoke, his hand moved, activating his grip as he roughly seized her hips, molding them without restraint.
"Oh?" Pakura replied, a charming smile playing on her lips. "Are you confident enough for that?"
"Heh. As a man, I obviously have to accept—and prove myself."
"Hmph. As if I don't already know you well enough—ahh~"
—
Inside the Forest of Death, Kiba lay sprawled on the ground, panting like a wild dog. The earth around him was torn up, evidence of the brutal struggle that had just ended.
"…I can't believe it," he muttered. "Did we really… win?"
It was rare—almost unnatural to hear doubt in Kiba's voice. The usually loud, confident Kiba actually sounded uncertain this time.
"…"
Beside him, Shino lay still. Cracks ran through the lenses of his black glasses, yet despite the damage and his own injuries—they somehow remained intact.
"Looks like it," Shino replied, his tone measured but unsure. "If not for the fact that he's lying over there and hasn't moved… I'd be even less convinced."
"But something still feels off," he added after a moment.
The final moments of the fight replayed in his mind.
He was certain their attack shouldn't have landed. By all logic, both of them should have died.
And yet… it hit.
Why didn't he dodge? Shino wondered. Was he low on chakra? No… it didn't look like it.
Then was it a side effect of that strange jutsu he used?
Before he could fully connect the dots, Kiba's grumbling dragged him out of his thoughts.
"Damn it, Airi…" Kiba growled through clenched teeth. "Because of that stupid love-brained moment, we almost got ourselves killed. Look at us now—we can't even move."
"It can't be helped," Shino said after a brief silence. "As shinobi, we're bound to face situations like this—where nothing is fair to begin with. Unforeseen circumstances are part of the job."
For a fleeting instant, when death had been close enough to touch, even Shino had considered blaming Airi.
But the thought didn't last.
He had always understood this truth: being a shinobi wasn't a game. Death could come at any moment.
Blaming one's comrades instead of thinking about how to survive the situation itself—that was simply asking to die.
"This should be taken as a lesson," Shino concluded calmly.
"…"
Kiba didn't respond.
Not because he disagreed but because he knew Shino was right.
He had been irritated. And maybe, deep down, he did mean what he said about Airi.
But now that Shino had spoken so plainly, admitting it would only make him look petty.
"Hmph."
Kiba snorted and suddenly wore a smug expression, completely missing the odd look Shino gave him—
The look one might give to someone who clearly needed help.
I wonder how they're doing, Shino thought at last, pushing aside the uncharitable thoughts he'd just had about Kiba. The battle over there seemed to have reached its climax as well.
—
Just as Shino had anticipated, the battle on the other side had also reached its final stage.
Shikamaru crouched behind a fallen tree, his breathing steady despite the dull ache spreading through his limbs.
His shadow stretched thin across the broken ground, barely visible beneath the flickering chakra scars carved into the earth.
During their clash with this freak, Shikamaru had gathered a significant amount of useful data... enough to construct a counterattack.
— Curse-mark–type forbidden technique
— Chakra output temporarily elevated beyond genin parameters
— Stability deteriorating under sustained use
Direct engagement was inefficient.
Probability of fatality exceeds acceptable threshold, Shikamaru concluded.
Ahead of them, the Sound ninja straightened slowly.
Then he laughed.
"You're done."
Phase One.
"Now," Shikamaru muttered.
Ino's eyes snapped open.
Mind Transfer Jutsu—!
The Sound ninja felt it an instant too late.
His movements stuttered—just a fraction of a second but that was enough.
"Choji!" Shikamaru called, not missing a single beat.
They couldn't afford a mistake.
Choji roared, forcing his battered body forward.
Human Boulder—!
The massive spinning charge tore through the clearing, flattening trees and pulverizing the ground. The Sound ninja broke free of Ino's jutsu at the last moment, leaping backward—
—but not without cost.
Blood sprayed from his mouth as he skidded to a halt.
"Damn you—!" he snarled, vanishing in a blur and reappearing directly in front of Choji. "You think tricks like that—"
Choji barely managed to raise his arms before being blasted aside, crashing through the brush with a pained grunt. Ino cried out as the shockwave sent her sliding across the dirt.
"—would work?!" the Sound ninja finished with a wicked grin as he landed stylishly.
Shikamaru didn't care about his disrespect.
Phase Two.
Shadows surged.
Shikamaru's Shadow Possession snapped forward like a living thing, crawling across shattered roots and scorched earth.
"Got you," Shikamaru said quietly.
Contact achieved.
Duration: 1.3 seconds.
The Sound ninja froze—
Then smiled.
Crack.
The curse mark flared violently, releasing a localized chakra burst that shattered the shadow bind—at the cost of further destabilizing his body.
"Too slow," the Sound ninja hissed. "Your combos are predictable—!"
He lunged forward, blade raised—
—and passed straight through the space where Shikamaru had been.
"You've been annoying me the most, kid," he snarled. "Go to hell!"
As expected, Shikamaru thought calmly as he watched the Sound ninja rush forward without caution, movements erratic, chakra leaking wildly. Forcefully breaking through accelerated the instability. He's drunk on power.
Then the timing should be… it should be enough for Airi.
The Sound ninja—Nakamura—finally realized something was wrong.
A chill ran down his spine.
But it was already too late to do anything.
His body itself stiffened.
Blood bloomed across his chest.
"…What—?"
One kunai pierced clean through his throat.
Another pinned his spine.
A third buried itself deep into his skull.
His body collapsed lifelessly, the curse markings flickering wildly before fading into nothing.
Even in death, he never understood how he had been struck from such an impossible angle.
Nor how the kunai had pierced him at all—his curse mark should have reinforced his body beyond that level.
So how… could they have hit him?
And how could they have killed him?
There was no answer.
His eyes closed.
Nearby, Airi knelt on one knee, breathing heavily, her hands clasped together and glowing faint blue.
The kunai had been controlled—and empowered—by her special jutsu.
Telekinesis.
Shikamaru exhaled slowly, finally allowing himself to breathe.
"Good execution," he said simply.
Ino stared at the body, stunned. Choji let out a shaky laugh, even as blood continued to soak into his clothes.
"T-That was… scary."
Airi swallowed, then nodded once.
Shikamaru turned, his voice tired but steady.
"Ino. Airi. Help Choji. He took the worst of it."
Choji, who had been forcing a laugh, finally fell silent. Shikamaru was right—he was in bad shape.
"Y-Yes!" Ino and Airi hurried over, helping him sit up and applying first aid. Even without medical ninjutsu, stopping the bleeding was enough for now.
"…Umm," Choji said suddenly, his stomach growling. "Do you happen to have any snacks, Airi?"
Ino stared at him like some idiot.
"Oh come on, Choji," she said, utterly speechless. "Even now you're thinking about food?"
If he weren't so badly injured, she would've smacked him.
"…Snacks?" Airi repeated weakly.
Choji nodded earnestly, despite the blood staining his sleeve.
"Yeah. I think I used up a lot of energy."
Airi's shoulders slumped. She let out a small, helpless sigh and rubbed her forehead.
"I—I don't carry snacks."
Ino snorted despite herself.
Choji looked genuinely crestfallen.
"Oh…"
Airi stared at him for a moment, clearly torn, then let out another quiet sigh.
"…But," she added quickly, flustered by the look on his face, "I might have something that you can have…"
Choji's eyes lit up like she'd just saved his life.
"Really?!"
"…You're unbelievable," she muttered, fumbling through her pouch anyway.
A few steps back, Shikamaru watched the scene, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
She did well, he thought, his eyes lingering on Airi for a moment longer than necessary.
Troublesome… but reliable.
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