Kabuto really didn't have much information on Kyoshin.
Hidden within the crowd, he adjusted his glasses, a cold gleam reflecting off the lenses.
Kyoshin was about to make his move.
Now they'd finally get to see his actual strength.
One of Orochimaru's orders to Kabuto had been to gather any information related to Kyoshin.
Unfortunately, Iwagakure's secrecy surrounding him was absurdly strict. This guy called Kintsuchi actually had the sa confidentiality level as the Tsuchikage himself. Completely ridiculous.
anwhile, the three genin from Kusagakure mixed in with the crowd also sensed that sothing was wrong.
But just as they were about to say sothing, examiner Anko appeared and stopped the commotion.
"The second Chunin Exam."
"Location: the Forest of Death."
"Rule One: sign the waiver."
"Rule Two: each team will receive one scroll. There are two types of scrolls, 'Heaven' and 'Earth.' Gather both types and bring them to the central tower to pass."
After explaining the rules, Anko revealed a sinister grin.
"In other words, at most only half of you will pass~"
The waivers were quickly distributed to every genin.
Quite a few people paled at the words stating that death would be their own responsibility.
But others signed their nas without hesitation, excitent visible in their eyes.
Once the waivers were signed, it was ti to receive the scrolls.
Anko stood at the entrance holding two stacks of scrolls.
Teams of three genin stepped forward one by one to randomly receive a scroll.
When Kyoshin's group stepped forward, everyone looked over.
It wasn't just because of the earlier incident and the promised clash with Kusagakure that made things entertaining. It was also because this team had four people.
That was obviously unfair compared to the other teams, so everyone wanted to see how it would be handled.
Deidara, Kurotsuchi, and Karin stood together and accepted a scroll from Anko.
Then Kyoshin stepped forward alone and took another scroll from her.
Seeing this, the genin all looked away.
'So that's how it is.'
'They were actually two separate teams from the start.'
'That "Anbu" and "jonin instructor" is simply acting alone.'
Judging from team size alone, Kyoshin clearly seed to be at a disadvantage.
But now even fewer people dared provoke him.
The guy was taking the exam solo. Combined with the information Kabuto had ntioned earlier, only idiots like those Grass ninja still couldn't see reality.
The three Kusagakure genin stood nearby with ugly expressions.
Quite a few genin noticed the subtle tension and chose not to enter the forest imdiately.
They wanted to see how this conflict would play out.
Konoha's rookies were also watching.
Naruto scratched his head. "That Kintsuchi guy is going alone?"
Sasuke stared at Kyoshin, his Sharingan slowly spinning. "He didn't make a move back in the Land of Waves. I'm curious how strong he actually is."
———
Ti passed little by little.
So teams could no longer hold back and rushed into the Forest of Death first.
They wanted to widen the distance between themselves and the stronger competitors as quickly as possible to avoid early clashes.
But nearly half the genin still remained where they were, observing both Kyoshin's group and the Kusagakure team.
Behind his mask, Kyoshin's calm gaze settled on the three Grass ninja, sending chills down their spines.
The pressure kept building.
The Kusagakure leader gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "Move! Get into the forest first!"
The three of them no longer dared linger and imdiately charged into the entrance, vanishing among the dense trees.
The instant their figures disappeared... Kyoshin moved.
No hand seals.
No preparatory motion.
His figure blurred instantly, turning into an afterimage as he vanished from where he stood.
Body Flicker Technique.
The observing genin only felt their vision blur before Kyoshin disappeared.
Only a handful barely managed to catch his movent trajectory.
"What a fast Body Flicker!" Sasuke's pupils contracted slightly.
Kabuto Yakushi pushed up his glasses, narrowing his eyes behind the lenses.
———
[Inside the Forest of Death]
The three Kusagakure ninja were sprinting desperately.
"Damn it! That Iwa Anbu is following us!"
"Split up and run!"
"No! We'll die faster if we split up!"
Their leader clenched his teeth. "We stop him together!"
All three halted simultaneously and turned to form hand seals.
They knew they couldn't escape. Their only option now was to fight with everything they had.
"Water Style: Great Water Sphere Technique!"
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
Because they ca from Kusagakure, most of the ninjutsu they had access to were common, widely available techniques with diocre power.
Kyoshin applied the Light-Weight Rock Technique to himself, instantly rising into the air and effortlessly avoiding the attacks. After forming hand seals, he clapped his hands together.
Behind him, dozens upon dozens of scorching light spheres appeared, radiating terrifying heat and white steam.
This was Scorch Release, created after Kyoshin perfectly fused the nature transformations of Wind chakra and Fire chakra.
When using ninjutsu, Kyoshin had no habit of shouting technique nas.
In fact, he hadn't even nad this technique yet.
The glowing spheres rained down toward the ground.
The Grass ninja imdiately scattered in response.
But there were over fifty of those spheres, and once they struck the ground, they erupted into orange-red steam that rapidly spread outward.
Sizzle!
The steam covered a radius of over a hundred ters, rapidly evaporating all moisture within it.
The screams of the three Kusagakure ninja rang out as their skin cracked and their muscles shriveled. In the blink of an eye, they beca dried corpses.
Thud!
The mummified bodies hit the ground with dull sounds.
Once the Scorch Release dispersed, Kyoshin descended and pulled a scroll from the leader's clothes.
Deidara and the others arrived shortly afterward. Kyoshin casually tossed the scroll to Kurotsuchi.
"Perfect. That makes a matching set for your team."
"Kurotsuchi, take the team directly to the central tower. I have other matters to deal with."
Kurotsuchi caught the scroll and nodded, "Understood!"
"Deidara." Kyoshin turned to him again. "Don't act alone."
"Hah?" Deidara looked annoyed. "Coming here to play house with these little brats is already irritating enough. I haven't even shown off my art yet, yeah!"
But after seeing Kyoshin's expression, Deidara sighed. "Got it, teacher."
In front of Kyoshin, Deidara still had a rebellious streak, but he was also unusually obedient.
That probably had sothing to do with the help Kyoshin had given him, along with Kyoshin's attitude toward rogue ninja.
In any case, Deidara had personally witnessed several of Kyoshin's battles against missing-nin.
He knew very well that he didn't want to be reduced to ashes by Dust Release.
He didn't want to beco a mummy through Scorch Release.
He didn't want to be buried alive in lava by Lava Release.
He didn't want to be crushed to death beneath a mountain.
He didn't want to be shredded into chunks of flesh by raging winds...
Kurotsuchi, Deidara, and Karin headed straight for the tower.
They already possessed a complete Heaven-and-Earth scroll set, but almost nobody dared target them.
And even if soone did, they'd first have to get past Deidara.
According to the original tiline, Deidara would likely already have caught the Akatsuki's attention by now, though he hadn't displayed Kage-level combat strength yet, so Itachi had never "invited" him into the organization.
But now, Deidara was only stronger than in the original story, and by a considerable margin.
After all, under Kyoshin's "careful guidance," Deidara was less a ninja now and more a weapons expert.
Even now, whenever Kyoshin thought back to the ti Deidara proudly showed him a "mortar cannon," the whole thing still felt bizarrely out of place.
Outside the forest's iron fence.
The genin scattered as they rushed deep into the woods, all wanting to stay as far away from Kyoshin as possible.
Kabuto lowered himself and quietly moved away from Kyoshin while ntally organizing the information from the earlier battle.
Scorch Release, a kekkei genkai that once belonged to Sunagakure. Extrely powerful.
And judging by the scale of Kyoshin's use of Scorch Release, his understanding of it had already reached a terrifying level. At the very least, this guy's chakra reserves far exceeded Kabuto's estimated figures.
Naruto suddenly shouted toward Kyoshin, "Kintsuchi bro! We'll wait for you at the central tower!"
"Shut up!" Sasuke gritted his teeth, looking like he wanted to sew Naruto's mouth shut. "We don't even know if he's friend or foe."
Naruto grinned. "Hehe~ I believe Kintsuchi bro would never attack !"
Behind the mask, Kyoshin smiled. 'Naruto is still Naruto~'
'Still so enthusiastic and sociable.'
'Still so… naive.'
Since that was the case, then he'd just have to let Naruto experience how cruel the real world could be.
Kyoshin: "Hand over your scrolls."
Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura: "..."
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