A month later, the Third Hokage's proposal to hold the Chunin Exams received unanimous approval from Konoha's upper ranks.
Inside the first-year classroom at the Ninja Academy, Nishinodera announced the news: "Lord Third has decided to hold the Chunin Exams on March 10th of Konoha's 26th year. However, since you haven't graduated yet, you won't be eligible to register. Still, attending as observers can greatly benefit your future exams."
"Nishino-sensei, is there really no way for us to participate in the Chunin Exams?" Nayou, the Little Iceberg, immediately raised her hand after he finished speaking.
"Nope, I'm afraid not, Nayou. Actually, this is for your own safety. Even graduating Genin often struggle to pass and successfully earn promotion."
"Oh, I understand, Nishino-sensei," she replied, her aura seeming even colder than usual.
"Nayou, so you actually want to become a Chunin already?" Shen casually asked, ignoring the resentful look from Nishinodera.
"No, not exactly. I just wanted to spar with some of the participants."
Shen absolutely didn't believe her indifferent tone. He never expected this Little Iceberg would start playing hard to get. Seizing the opportunity to tease her, he immediately suggested, "Well then, how about we kidnap one or two participants and use Transformation Jutsu to take their place in the exam?"
The atmosphere in the classroom immediately turned icy. Students couldn't help questioning their life choices: "Man, you've got a point, but could you please not say it out loud with so many people around? Look at how dark Nishino-sensei's face has gotten!"
Unable to accept such dishonorable methods, she instantly grew furious: "Of course not! I'll participate in the Chunin Exams honorably and become a Chunin that way!"
"Nayou, so you still want to become a Chunin after all."
Hearing her friend's teasing tone, the Little Iceberg felt her cheeks warming slightly.
"As your best friend, naturally I'll do my utmost to help you win first place in the Chunin Exams!" Naturally, Shen knew when to stop teasing before things turned tragic — if she actually got seriously pissed off, that would end in total disaster.
So Shen chose to change the subject. After all, life at the Ninja Academy had gotten seriously dull lately. He was planning to start some serious chaos, using the Chunin Exams as the perfect excuse.
"Really? But you must promise not to cause trouble while helping me." Sensing something off, Nayou demanded assurances.
Shen naturally gave his word repeatedly, claiming he was already above childish nonsense like causing trouble. Meanwhile, though, he silently thought it wouldn't require his direct involvement to create a massive incident anyway.
"How come your smile looks so sinister all of a sudden?"
"Not at all. You must've misread my expression — clearly, this is just a joyful smile."
"Are you really going to stick to that promise?"
"Isn't our friendship enough to earn your trust?"
"I just hope this friendship ship doesn't sink."
At the Uchiha training grounds, our clan leader was locked in a sparring match with his other son.
"Fugaku, your control over shuriken angles has improved greatly!" Kazushi remarked as he flicked a shuriken aimed at him from behind off with a single finger.
"Father, I can't just stand by and watch Shen grow stronger either."
"I'm falling too far behind my younger brother. As an older brother, I need to work twice as hard!"
Seeing his shuriken deflected, Fugaku didn't panic—he still had a secret weapon up his sleeve.
"Fugaku, you're doing great! Bring out whatever techniques you've got. I know you wouldn't start this sparring match without being prepared."
Even though Shen had seen through his plan, Fugaku stayed composed. After gathering his focus, he warned: "Father, please be careful. I still can't control this ninjutsu very well yet."
Kazushi pondered: "A ninjutsu? His element is fire, so most likely it's Fire Release. I'll use Water Release after seeing its strength."
Quickly making his decision, he immediately responded: "Alright Fugaku, let me see the results of your training during this time!"
With his response given, Kazushi immediately activated his chakra. Confident in his ninjutsu skills, he began forming hand seals with both hands while sucking in a deep breath through his teeth.
"It's definitely Fire Release! From the hand seals, it seems similar to the Phoenix Flower technique. It seems that under Shen's influence, Fugaku has also started researching ninjutsu." A warm sense of satisfaction filled Kazushi's heart as he watched his eldest son prepare the technique.
[Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Claw Hong (Huo Dun Feng Xian Hua Zhao Hong)]
Mentally chanting, Fugaku expelled the Phoenix Flower technique from his mouth. Then, after calculating the target position, he raised his hand and shot dozens of shuriken toward the flames. Finally, through instant Shape Transformation, he coated each shuriken with high-temperature flames.
Watching dozens of flaming, high-speed rotating shuriken approaching, Kazushi didn't dare to be complacent. His Sharingan started tracking their trajectory. Sidestepping rapidly to evade the shuriken, he soon dodged the entire attack and gave his assessment: "It combines the scorching damage of Fire Release with the cutting power of shuriken. Even if someone uses Water Release to put out the flames, the shuriken will keep spinning and strike their target. Although it's a good technique, what can it do against the Sharingan?"
When he saw his father successfully dodge all the shuriken, Fugaku didn't panic. With a sharp tug of his hand, he interrupted his father's commentary. With his movement, the shuriken seemed to be yanked back toward Kazushi.
"Chakra threads? No, if that were the case, my eyes would have detected them. So it must be some damn thin thread that even the Sharingan can't pick up!" Observing the shuriken flying toward him again, Kazushi quickly reached part of the answer in his mind.
As his Sharingan continued to spin, tracking trajectories while desperately dodging the flaming shuriken, Kazushi could only awkwardly avoid the attack. In the end, one of the shuriken still grazed the shoulder area of his clothing.
"Father, are you alright?" After releasing the technique, Fugaku anxiously stepped forward to check on his father.
"I'm fine, just slightly burned the clothes." Kazushi patted out the small flame on his shoulder before continuing his evaluation: "Excellent Fire Release technique. Even if the enemy successfully avoids the initial attack, the second wave of attack from behind won't be easy to hit its mark!"
Fugaku didn't let his father's praise go to his head. After slight consideration, he analyzed: "Actually, it's nothing special. I was just thinking, since Shen could infuse chakra into cells, why couldn't I do the same with shuriken?"
"This [Fire Release] technique still has a lot of room for improvement. If I could activate the Sharingan, its accuracy might significantly increase."
"You've already done remarkably well. With this [Fire Release] Ninjutsu, I can feel at ease knowing you're ready to participate in the Chunin Exams," Kazushi encouraged.
"Father, I'm still far from where I should be. Shen has even created Chidori, a Ninjutsu that perfectly complements the Sharingan. Right now, I still struggle with Nature Transformation. If I mastered Nature Transformation alongside Chidori, my confidence would increase by thirty percent," Fugaku analyzed calmly.
Kazushi looked at his composed eldest son with growing satisfaction. "Thankfully, Fugaku inherited my serious and diligent nature. One reckless kid is already more than enough to keep me on edge."
"Father, I suddenly thought of something—do you think Shen will participate in the Chunin Exams? I always have this bad feeling about it."
"That troublemaker? Definitely possible!"
Fugaku's words reminded Kazushi. How could his younger son, who seemed to constantly stir up trouble in the village, possibly miss an event as big as the Chunin Exams? A chill ran down Kazushi's spine—just thinking about what kind of chaos could break loose during the exams.
That evening, the unmistakable sound of DJ scratching from Commercial Street only reinforced his uneasy thoughts.
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