Chapter 26: This Is the Chunin Exam?

Outside the Death Forest, sunlight filtered through the dense canopy, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

The proctor of the second exam, future Anko Mitarashi, had arrived early and waited for the competing teams.

At this moment, she was pulling out three entire skewers of tri-color dango and devouring them eagerly.

I’m just eating, eating, eating!

Gaining weight?

Not possible.

I’ve been binge-eating continuously for over twenty years—my weight hasn’t gone up at all.

As moments passed, all competing teams gradually assembled.

Anko checked the time and nodded in satisfaction.

Her gaze swept back and forth among the candidates.

Randomly pick a lucky spectator.

That yellow-haired brat over there.

Such a clear, stupid look in his eyes.

Obviously never tainted by knowledge.

Looks easy to scare.

The next instant, Anko Mitarashi flicked her wrist; the wooden skewer still clutched in her hand shot out, slicing across Naruto Uzumaki’s cheek.

Naruto flinched violently, his eyes wide with shock.

“Kid, stop looking around—this exam can kill Itachi.”

Anko’s voice, cold and sinister, whispered beside Naruto’s ear, sending a chill down his spine and freezing him in place.

Seeing Naruto thoroughly frightened, Anko cleared her throat and began explaining the exam rules.

“The second exam is the Scroll Conflict. I will distribute two different types of scrolls—each team receives only one.”

She paused, scanning the crowd.

“The other scroll must be taken from other teams inside the Death Forest.”

Anko wasted no more words and gestured for each team to draw their scroll and entry point.

In her view, the brutal slaughter soon to unfold in the Death Forest would be the best teacher for these candidates—forcing them to truly understand the cruelty of the ninja world.

“So, what scroll did Itachi draw?”

Luo Jie turned to Lei Menyue, expression calm.

Even if Itachi didn’t get a scroll, it’s fine.

I can take one.

After all, what’s yours is mine, what’s everyone’s is Luo Jie’s.

No problem.

Lei Menyue whispered, “Heaven Scroll.”

Luo Jie nodded and asked, “Entry number?”

Lei Menyue replied, “Ninth Entry.”

As he spoke, a flicker of hesitation crossed his face.

This scroll is hot to handle.

Lei Menyue feared losing the scroll—and feared his teammates thinking him useless.

Even though in this Chunin Exam brimming with prodigies, he truly was useless.

He wasn’t last, but he was nowhere near the top.

Still, Lei Menyue had his pride.

He couldn’t let them look down on him.

“What’s wrong?”

Luo Jie sensed Lei Menyue’s unease.

Lei Menyue cracked.

He made up his mind.

A leg-hanger should know his place.

Why struggle to die on your own when Itachi can ride your teammates’ coattails?

So Lei Menyue lifted his head and looked at Luo Jie.

His gaze burned with intensity.

“Just keep the scroll with Itachi.”

Luo Jie exhaled in relief.

He looked so intense—I thought he had something up his sleeve.

Itachi say that? Then no problem.

Luo Jie didn’t care where the scroll was stored.

Even if lost, he could still take one… from someone else.

But seeing Lei Menyue’s state, Luo Jie gave him no pressure.

He simply patted Lei Menyue’s shoulder lightly and took the scroll with a smile.

This eased Lei Menyue’s tense heart just a little.

Then, Luo Jie’s trio followed the proctor to the entrance and waited quietly.

Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting shifting patterns on the ground.

Luo Jie glanced up casually toward the neighboring Tenth Entry—and his gaze instantly locked onto the three-person team there.

Hey, isn’t that mysterious Bookman guy?

Good, not next door to Snake Uncle’s funhouse.

Luo Jie’s lips curled into a smug, hated grin.

There stood Yaoshidou with his two spy teammates.

Chitongkai and Jianmeicheng both wore masks, hiding their expressions; their entire outfits screamed “we’re suspicious.”

Who in Konoha sneaks around like this?

They might as well have a sign on their backs saying “I’m a spy.”

Yaoshidou noticed Luo Jie’s gaze and immediately plastered on a sweet, smiling face.

Playing the kind senior again.

Lei Menyue also noticed Yaoshidou ’s group—his tense nerves instantly relaxed, and he breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

It’s Senior Dō!

Senior Dō, who failed the Chunin Exam seven times.

Perfect—we’re saved.

To meet Senior Dō, a perpetual failure, is truly lucky.

Luo Jie’s trio and the spy trio were separated by only a few hundred meters.

If they searched deliberately after entering the Death Forest, they’d find them quickly.

With a bit more luck, they could easily snatch the other scroll from them and advance directly.

Victory was within reach.

Lei Menyue grew more excited, slowly developing bizarre confidence.

At that moment, Luo Jie suddenly seemed to think of something, his lips curving into a teasing smirk.

He pulled out the scroll from his pocket, deliberately turning the Heaven Scroll’s emblem toward Yaoshidou ’s group—and waved it deliberately.

Why wait until Senior Dō ascends to dragonhood to play this move?

Yaoshidou ’s gaze behind his glasses turned icy.

What’s the meaning of this?

Do these Konoha brats really think I’m a soft target?

These Konoha genin are bold these days.

Yaoshidou adjusted his glasses, already formulating a plan.

I need the Heaven Scroll anyway.

Once inside, I’ll give them a little lesson.

Maybe next life, they’ll learn to be humble.

Yaoshidou had gathered plenty of intelligence on Luo Jie’s trio beforehand.

Though not particularly impressive, he still had a sense of duty—he didn’t ignore anyone.

Lei Menyue: average strength, utterly unremarkable, no threat.

Luo Jie: decent strength, but only Chunin-level—not enough to worry him.

The only one slightly noteworthy was Anmabayun , a genius inheriting the Anma clan’s kekkei genkai.

Too bad her body had severe flaws—hardly a real threat.

All soft targets!

…

Moments slipped away, second by second.

Soon, Utatane Anko’s voice shattered the silence.

“The exam has officially begun!”

The examiner stationed at the ninth entrance heard the command and opened the gate.

Almost the instant the gate opened, Rojie and the other two vanished from the entrance, leaving only an empty stretch of grass.

Just after they dashed into the Death Forest, an eerie stillness settled around them, broken only by the occasional chirping of insects and the rustle of footsteps on fallen leaves.

Suddenly, Rojie seemed to sense something, his gaze sharpening.

One arm wrapped around the slender waist of Kuma Yagumo, the other grabbed the back collar of Lei Menyue.

At the very moment he reacted, a dark shadow shot out from the grass like a phantom.

It was Jian Meicheng.

His eyes glinted with malice as the shuriken he hurled flashed with cold light, streaking toward the spot where the three had just been.

If they had been slow to dodge, Rojie and the others would have been riddled with blades.

Rojie saw this and snorted coldly.

Knew Itachi’d ambush from the grass!

Since Itachi struck first, don’t blame me for being ruthless.

He fixed his gaze on Jian Meicheng as he emerged from the grass, and while the other was still mid-hand seal, Rojie opened his mouth—no seals, not even a bother.

Burn!

Sage Art: Flame Ejection!

In an instant, a thick torrent of blazing fire erupted from his mouth.

The inferno surged toward Jian Meicheng at terrifying speed.

He clearly hadn’t expected Rojie’s counterattack to be so swift.

How is it possible to attack without hand seals?

Jian Meicheng, who had been so confident moments before, flashed a look of terror in his eyes—he tried to dodge, but it was already too late.

The flames engulfed him instantly, leaving no time for a scream; his entire body rapidly carbonized under the intense heat.

In the blink of an eye, he was reduced to ash, leaving only scattered black fragments drifting in the air.

Far away, perched atop a tree trunk, Kabuto Yakushi witnessed it all.

He instinctively adjusted his glasses; a glint flashed across the lenses, hiding the shock in his eyes.

Is this even a Chunin Exam?

Is this Hidden Leaf brat really that strong?

(End of Chapter)