After giving some instructions to Uchiha Fuhai, Mo Yu sent him on his way.
Once the Chunin Exams concluded, Mo Yu's "death" would spread.
If all went as planned, the enmity between him and the Uchiha clan would finally come to an end—well, temporarily at least.
There might be some who would lament the fall of a late-blooming genius.
But before long, Mo Yu's name would fade from memory.
Except for his few friends.
"Yile, Zuoyun, Yuko..."
Mo Yu muttered to himself, feeling a pang of sadness.
This farewell, the next time they would meet—who knew when that would be?
Even with the cheat system, he couldn't say he controlled everything.
Time was the most heartless thing of all. By the time he returned, everything would likely have changed.
He slowly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, only determination and resolve remained in his gaze.
"It's time to go."
With a swift motion, Mo Yu jumped onto a tree, leaping between the branches as he pondered the results of his performance during the exams.
His first major achievement was advancing to Jonin. Now, Mo Yu had established a foundation for his survival in the ninja world.
Of course, it was only enough to protect himself. To do as he pleased was still far from reality.
On the surface, becoming a Jonin meant that Mo Yu was now a powerful figure in the ninja world. But as a traveler, Mo Yu knew well that Jonin was nothing more than a stepping stone.
The world was full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, with countless ancient, powerful beings lurking in the shadows.
Not to mention the Five Kages. People like Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara were superior to the Kage level.
And in the future, there would be other beings, such as the Six Paths Sage and the Otsutsuki Kaguya, emerging one by one. Jonin would seem insignificant in comparison.
"Jonin is just the beginning!" Mo Yu said to himself. "To break free from the chessboard, to go from being a pawn to a player, only those at the Kage level have a chance. Otherwise, you'll just be manipulated by the big players in the back."
The second achievement was his Sharingan advancing to the Three Tomoe level.
Becoming a Jonin had always been part of Mo Yu's plans, but the Three Tomoe Sharingan was an unexpected bonus.
In his original estimation, if he didn't use the system, it would take him three to five years to reach the Three Tomoe level. He never expected that the incident with Uchiha Fuhai would allow him to break through ahead of schedule.
And Mo Yu felt that his Sharingan was not ordinary. When he was in the Tsukuyomi space, his Sharingan evolved by absorbing Uchiha Fuhai's ocular and spiritual power.
Mo Yu guessed this might be related to his future ability to activate the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"How many coins will it take to upgrade the Three Tomoe to Mangekyo?" Mo Yu curiously opened the system but quickly shut it with a horrified expression.
"Ten thousand coins, holy crap!"
If converted to real-world currency, that would be a whopping ten million taels!
Even a powerful family like the Uchiha clan would likely struggle to come up with such a large sum of liquid assets on the spot.
Looking at his balance, he had only 550 coins, which made him smile wryly. (The two Uchiha Jonin he had just killed had contributed 200 coins.)
"I'm so poor!"
The third achievement was his acquisition of Uchiha Fuhai as an ally.
Of course, Uchiha Fuhai was not fully loyal, but as long as Mo Yu had something to control him, that was enough.
With Uchiha Fuhai as an informant, Mo Yu could keep tabs on the Uchiha clan and Konoha's movements, even if he left. The higher Uchiha Fuhai's position, the greater the help he could provide.
"This time, with his Mangekyo Sharingan activated, he'll definitely be able to become an elder once he returns to his clan."
...
Whoosh!
Mo Yu landed on a tree, surveying his surroundings.
He made a hand seal with his right hand, and an invisible line connected to the space on his right.
"This should be the place."
This seal was something Uchiha Fuhai had taught him.
Each contestant's barrier scroll had a special mark embedded in it, and through this seal, one could locate a designated contestant.
The person Mo Yu was looking for, of course, was Yuko. He had a gift to give her before leaving.
At first glance, there was no one nearby. Everything seemed normal.
Genjutsu?
A subtle red light flashed in Mo Yu's eyes as he activated his Sharingan.
The scenery in front of him changed, revealing the figure of Mizuki Yuko, who was resting against a tree.
Mo Yu jumped down from the tree and was about to approach her when he suddenly froze.
Looking down, he saw a very fine, almost transparent thread just less than a centimeter away from his right foot. If he hadn't activated his Sharingan, he would have missed it.
This trap had clearly been set by Mizuki Yuko. If anyone touched the thread, she would immediately know.
"Quite clever."
Mo Yu smiled.
But then he realized she was a spy from the Hidden Rain Village. If she didn't have these skills, she would have been exposed long ago.
With a burst of speed, Mo Yu appeared in front of Mizuki Yuko without a sound, as though teleporting.
He removed the small cloth pouch from his waist and placed it next to her.
Inside the pouch were several "ears"—enough to help Mizuki Yuko secure a place in the top three of the exam.
"I can only help you up to here."
Looking at Mizuki Yuko's cute sleeping face, Mo Yu thought to himself.
Just as he was about to leave, an idea crossed his mind. His lips curled into a smile, and he leaned down, gently kissing her cheek.
"This will be your reward."
When Mo Yu saw her eyelids twitch, he knew she was about to wake up. With a flash, he disappeared.
Mizuki Yuko opened her eyes, a bit confused. Seeing that her illusions and traps hadn't been triggered, she breathed a sigh of relief.
She touched her cheek, feeling a bit strange.
"I could've sworn I was kissed by Mo Yu in a dream, but it felt so real…"
As she pondered, she suddenly noticed a cloth bag next to her. Startled, she jumped up and quickly scanned her surroundings. After confirming there was no one nearby, she relaxed a bit.
"Who was that?"
Mizuki Yuko poked the bag with a small stick, and when she saw what was inside, she froze.
"Could it have been him...?"
...
After bidding farewell to Yuko, Mo Yu rushed to the edge of the forest. He looked back, his heart heavy.
"Goodbye, Konoha. Goodbye, my friends."
Turning back, Mo Yu looked ahead, suddenly feeling a bit lost.
Now that he was leaving Konoha, where should he go?
"I can't just wander... I know, there's a good place!"
Mo Yu's eyes brightened.
During the battle with the Rain ninjas, he had read the memory of one of them.
His name was Liu Chuan Cheng, a regular Chunin from the Hidden Rain Village.
He had no family, no friends—he was completely alone. It would be easy to take on his identity and infiltrate the Rain Village.
Mo Yu had already noticed that the rules in the Hidden Rain Village suited him perfectly.
The law of the jungle, where the strong ruled, was a perfect place to harvest points.
If it were before, he might have hesitated, but now that he was a Jonin, he would be a big shot in the Hidden Rain Village and wouldn't have to worry about safety.
After considering it several times, Mo Yu concluded that the Hidden Rain Village was the best destination for him right now.
Firstly, it was an unclaimed land where, as long as one was strong enough, one could rise. Unlike other major ninja villages, where the social hierarchy was rigid and the rise to power was controlled by the big families.
Secondly, the Hidden Rain Village was located at the crossroads of the three great nations, making it convenient for collecting intelligence and understanding the dynamics of the ninja world.
And thirdly...
"It's a good excuse to check on Kaguya and her daughter. I wonder how they're doing."
Thinking of Kaguya Mai, the charming woman, and her adorable little girl, Kaguya Ruri, Mo Yu couldn't help but smile.
"It's decided. I'll head to the Hidden Rain Village."