The Chunin Exams.
Ninjas from various countries arrived in Konoha one after another.
According to the examination system, they were to take the first exam in Konoha.
"Wow! So this is Konoha. It's so lively!"
A girl with short bluish-green hair, orange eyes, and brown skin held her hand above her eyebrows, shielding her forehead as she looked around curiously.
Her steps were so light she couldn't seem to stop moving; one moment she was leaning over a stall to peek, the next she was tilting her head to observe passing Ninjas.
She chattered incessantly, her tone filled with joy. She was like a restless little sparrow, unable to hide the curiosity and excitement in her eyes.
Aoki Yoru stood on a high rooftop, watching the lively young girl on the street.
"The Seven-Tails Jinchuriki from Takigakure—Fuu? She really is full of energy."
Her Chakra was too conspicuous, like a bright lamp in the dark night; Aoki Yoru spotted her instantly.
However, for a Jinchuriki to be so cheerful, one had to admit that the leader of Takigakure was at least a competent one.
After all, allowing a Jinchuriki to come out and make friends required a level of courage that not everyone possessed.
To put it bluntly, even the Third Hokage might not have had that kind of resolve if he were in that position.
Jinchuriki from other major nations, with the exception of the Land of Lightning, lived extremely miserable lives.
Naruto being able to remain cheerful was a special case, which Aoki Yoru was one hundred percent certain was due to the influence of Ashura's Chakra.
Anyone else growing up in that environment would surely have become another Gaara—isn't Uzumaki Menma a perfect example?
This could be seen as a continuation of the last exam, with many familiar faces. The difference was that the Land of Rice Fields, Orochimaru's base, did not participate this time.
Unlike the original story, Ajisai's trio from the Land of Rain did not come.
But it made sense; everyone knew the Land of Rain was the Akatsuki Organization's headquarters, and since their goal was the Tailed Beasts, why would they be invited to participate?
In the original story, the reason they were invited was to determine if Hanzou was still alive and if Amegakure was still under his rule.
Amegakure also took the opportunity to send a sensory unit to track the Jinchuriki, and they actually managed to find them.
The One-Tails Jinchuriki, Kazekage Gaara of Sunagakure, and the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, Fuu of the Land of Waterfall.
Afterward, Fuu was ambushed by Kakuzu and Hidan on her way back to her Village and was captured.
"I wonder if your luck will be just as bad this time," Aoki Yoru lamented.
But he also knew it couldn't be stopped. No matter what, she would still be captured. If they couldn't find out who the Jinchuriki was, the Akatsuki Organization would simply attack Takigakure directly.
With Takigakure's strength, they might barely reach Kage-level for a short burst using the Hero's Water, but they could never be a match for them.
Any single pair from the Akatsuki Organization could wipe out their entire Village.
Just look at the guards beside Fuu; they barely scratched the level of Jonin. In Konoha, they would only be Special Jonin.
Moreover, capturing Jinchuriki was not only the Akatsuki's goal but also the goal of Madara and Black Zetsu.
Even if he were to go all out and wipe out the Akatsuki, Black Zetsu would undoubtedly resurrect Madara without hesitation. At that point, no one in the entire Ninja World would be able to stop him.
Suddenly, the figures of Kenta and Yui appeared beside him. Kenta said with a teasing look,
"What are you looking at? That little girl wouldn't happen to be your type, would she?"
Aoki Yoru rolled his eyes at him. "Weren't you two off on your Jonin qualification missions? Why are you back?"
Kenta and Yui were strong enough, but unless it was wartime, one had to complete a large number of missions to become a Jonin during peacetime.
Due to their performance in the Police Force and their contributions during the 'Fire Festival', Tsunade had specifically reduced their quota and given them several A-rank missions as promotion tasks.
"We've already finished several missions. Now we're back in the Village to see Hokage-sama for the rest."
Aoki Yoru looked at them in surprise. He remembered they had left the Village with ten A-rank missions; he didn't expect them to finish so many in less than a month.
Excluding the time spent traveling, the actual time they spent executing the missions was extremely short.
Kenta mimicked Guy by giving a thumbs-up and showing a confident smile. "We'll catch up to you as soon as possible."
At this point, Yui, who was standing nearby, said, "Alright, we need to report back to Hokage-sama. We just saw you here and came over specifically to say hello."
Then, she and Kenta vanished from the spot.
The first stage of the Chunin Exams.
It was still a traditional written exam, but the format strongly reflected the intellectual style of the Nara Clan.
The three members of each squad were separated into different exam rooms. Each person's paper had three questions worth 30, 40, and 50 points. They could only choose one to answer, and all communication or signaling was strictly forbidden.
If a squad's total score exceeded 100 points, they were immediately disqualified. Teams that weren't disqualified were then filtered based on the average score; those below the average were also eliminated.
It didn't test rote memorization, but rather used this "team chemistry problem" to assess the squad's coordination, tactical intuition, and overall perspective.
Someone had to sacrifice a high-score option, and someone had to make an accurate judgment. No one could succeed alone, and no one could pass relying solely on personal ability.
To be honest, if it were Aoki Yoru, he would have preferred Ibiki Morino's style. After all, testing information gathering didn't involve so many mental gymnastics.
"Oh! I didn't expect so many people to pass the written exam."
On the roof of the exam hall, Aoki Yoru stood with team leaders like Asuma, unable to help but comment as they watched the many candidates who had passed.
"It seems the quality of this year's candidates is quite good. At least in terms of teamwork, they surpass the previous year."
Asuma slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, looking down at the candidates. "Almost none of these candidates are fresh graduates. They've been teammates for several years, so it's not surprising the pass rate is higher."
"However, there are too many people. We need to filter some out."
Aoki Yoru nodded in agreement. With so many passing, the quality of the individuals was uneven. If they were actually sent into the 'Demon Desert', there would be heavy casualties.
"Don't worry, Shikamaru has a contingency plan."
With Shikamaru's intelligence, how could he not have thought of this? After all, during the last Chunin Exams after the Forest of Death, because too many people passed, a special elimination round was added at the Central Tower.
Just then, Shikamaru and Temari walked out, and the field immediately fell silent.
Temari leaned on her giant iron fan and looked down at the candidates. "Since too many people passed, we must eliminate some of you."
The location for the next stage is the Demon Desert in Sunagakure. All squads must travel from Konoha to the Desert Monitoring Station meeting point within 72 hours. The last thirty teams to arrive will be directly disqualified."
"Also, combat is forbidden on the road. If you want to fight, you'll have plenty of opportunities in the second exam."
After Temari finished speaking, the field went momentarily stunned, as if they hadn't processed it.
At that moment, the clever ones had already started moving, and others quickly snapped out of it to follow.
Aoki Yoru leaned against the railing and said with interest, "Who do you think will arrive first?"
Asuma, Kurenai, and Guy immediately became interested. Guy gave a thumbs-up, revealing his pearly white teeth. "Lee and his team, of course! Thanks to Hokage-sama for arranging such a helper for them."
Aoki Yoru was stunned for a moment, then laughed. "True. Sai's ability is perfect for traveling."
Kurenai watched the students scrambling to leave and said, "Aside from our students, the probability of other Konoha Genin passing isn't high."
Aoki Yoru and Guy nodded in agreement.
Whether someone can become a Chunin is usually apparent early on. Konoha does have late bloomers, but they are few and far between—truly as rare as phoenix feathers or unicorn horns.