Ryoma's speech at the opening ceremony was recorded by media outlets and quickly spread across major websites, news broadcasts, and magazines, sparking widespread discussion. Naturally, the media understood who truly stood at the pinnacle of the shinobi world. As a result, every report spared no effort in portraying Ryoma in a positive light.
However, Ryoma himself paid little attention to any of this.
At the top floor of Konoha Hospital, he quietly accompanied Kushina and Mikoto.
Both women lay comfortably as Ryoma placed his hands gently over their abdomens. Pure natural energy flowed steadily into their bodies. After a long period of senjutsu nourishment, the usual discomforts of pregnancy never appeared. Instead, their physical condition and mental state continued to improve day by day.
At this moment, the two women were watching a live broadcast of the Chūnin Exams on the large screen in the room. Subtle worry could be seen between their brows.
"Husband… do you think Kakashi will pass?"
Kushina held Ryoma's hand, her voice tinged with concern. "I heard the number of participants this year is more than double the previous exams."
"It'll be fine," Ryoma said with a gentle smile. "Trust in their strength."
The Chūnin Exams had already been underway for six days. Kakashi and the others had entered the Forest of Death several days earlier.
Meanwhile, ten of Ryoma's Wood Clones stood scattered across the examination grounds, silently observing the various test areas below.
Forest of Death
Deep within the dense forest, Kakashi's team—Kakashi, Obito, and Rin—stood balanced atop the thick trunk of a towering tree.
Snap.
A faint sound echoed through the forest.
"Quiet," Kakashi said instantly, raising his right hand.
A squad of Kirigakure shinobi leapt swiftly through the trees, rapidly approaching their position.
The moment the lead Kiri shinobi entered Kakashi's range, his eyes sharpened.
"Now!"
With a burst of movement, Kakashi shot out from the branches. His hand sliced through the air, striking cleanly at the enemy's neck.
Thud!
The Kiri shinobi collapsed instantly, unconscious.
Kakashi landed lightly on the trunk of a nearby tree, knees bent, and without hesitation flung four kunai toward the remaining enemies.
"Watch out!"
The four Kirigakure shinobi dodged in quick succession.
Before they could regroup, Obito appeared behind them.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
His chest expanded as scorching flames erupted forward.
Two shinobi who were too close were engulfed immediately, screaming as they fell from the trees.
The remaining two narrowly avoided the flames and landed on opposite trunks.
"Damn it—it's Kakashi's team!"
The squad leader's face paled. "Retreat!"
But the moment they moved—
Rin appeared silently between them.
Thump! Thump!
Two precise strikes landed beneath their jaws, and both shinobi crumpled unconscious before they even realized what had happened.
From afar, Ryoma observed everything through his Wood Clone.
"Not bad," he murmured.
Kakashi, Obito, and Rin had long since reached jōnin-level strength. Years of rigorous training under Ryoma—followed by exposure to senjutsu—had tempered them far beyond their peers. Though they still lacked experience, they could already contend with elite jōnin in short engagements.
In the original timeline, Kakashi became a jōnin at twelve, yet still suffered from clear limitations in combat maturity.
Now, at the same age, he surpassed his former self in every aspect.
Even though the candidates participating in this Chūnin Exam were all talented, they remained far too weak compared to Ryoma's three disciples.
"Still…" Ryoma thought calmly, his gaze shifting elsewhere,
"there are a few interesting children among them."
His vision settled on a distant corner of the forest.
There, a beautiful brown-haired, blue-eyed girl was quietly approaching a team of Iwagakure shinobi.
The leader of the Iwagakure shinobi stared solemnly at the seemingly harmless girl standing before him.
He already knew her identity even before the Chūnin Exams began.
The prodigy of Kirigakure—beautiful, deadly, and infamous.
Rumor had it that she possessed both Boil Release and Lava Release, rare kekkei genkai formed through the fusion of water and fire chakra. On top of that, her Water Style ninjutsu was said to be exceptionally powerful.
At first, he had doubted those rumors.
She looked delicate—almost fragile. And they had strength in numbers. Surely a single woman couldn't stand against an entire squad.
But reality proved otherwise.
More than a dozen shinobi already lay defeated at her feet.
Only now did he truly understand what the word genius meant.
"Why won't you surrender?" the Iwa shinobi shouted, his voice tense. "Do you really want to die here?"
Facing the desperate expression of the Iwagakure leader, Terumi Mei raised her hands calmly and formed seals with practiced ease. Her cherry-colored lips parted slightly as she took a deep breath.
A pale mist flowed silently from her mouth.
At first, it blended seamlessly with the surrounding air, spreading outward without a sound.
"Boil Release: Skilled Mist Jutsu."
The white mist surged forward.
A confident smile appeared at the corner of Terumi's lips.
Boil Release was a technique that fused water and fire chakra, producing a highly corrosive acidic mist. By adjusting her chakra output, she could freely control its potency.
Sssss—
As the mist swept across the forest, the air itself seemed to decay. Wherever it passed, vegetation withered instantly, leaves curling and turning black before collapsing into dust.
The overwhelming aura of destruction made the remaining Iwagakure shinobi tremble.
Without hesitation, they raised their hands.
"We surrender!"
One by one, they dropped their weapons.
Soon after, Terumi calmly collected their scrolls and supplies. As the defeated shinobi fled in panic, a single thought echoed in their minds—
What kind of monster did we run into…?
From a distance, Ryoma's Wood Clone observed quietly.
Just as he was about to withdraw and shift his focus elsewhere, a sharp voice suddenly rang out.
"Who's there?"
"I've been watching that direction for a while now."
Terumi's gaze locked onto the shadows where the clone stood.
Ryoma raised an eyebrow behind the mask.
"She detected me?"
He hadn't intentionally concealed his presence, but his concealment techniques were far from crude. Even most jōnin wouldn't have noticed him so easily.
Interesting.
"She's stronger than I expected."
After a brief pause, Ryoma chuckled softly.
"Well then… let's have a little fun."
A white mask slipped onto his face as he stepped down from the massive tree trunk, landing lightly in front of Terumi.
The girl frowned as she looked at the black-clad figure standing before her.
"Who are you?" she asked coldly.
Ryoma tilted his head slightly.
"Would you believe me if I said I was just passing through?"
He had merely come to observe—but clearly, that excuse wouldn't satisfy her.
Terumi's guard rose instantly.
It had been over a year since their last encounter.
And in that time—
She had grown far stronger.
(End of Chapter)
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