On the sixth day before the start of the Chunin Exams, Shinobi from all participating villages gathered.
Among the Great Shinobi Countries, there were three: Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Kumogakure, while the minor Shinobi villages were Kusagakure, Takigakure, and Amegakure. All those three minor villages were located close to the Land of Fire.
Other minor villages would definitely come if they were invited, but inviting more minor villages wouldn't really change much.
Despite a lot of outsiders coming to Konoha, it didn't disrupt the normal lives of Konoha residents. After all, most Shinobi that participated in the Chunin exams rarely left their accommodations area.
Iwagakure had been warned by Onoki in advance not to cause trouble in Konoha, so Iwagakure Shinobi behaved themselves. They didn't engage in any unusual activities even when they went shopping.
Sunagakure, on the other hand, was diligently training at Rasa's request, leaving no time to stir up any trouble.
Kumogakure was even more obedient. After being intimidated by Nagasawa, they had no plan of stirring up trouble. Their only focus was on completing the Chunin Exams and returning to Kumogakure.
All Great Shinobi Countries were well-behaved, and the minor Shinobi villages followed suit. They followed suit and stayed in the accommodations, quietly awaiting the start of the Chunin Exams.
However, keeping it all bottled in wasn't good either. On the last day before the exams, the three Great Shinobi Countries allowed their Genin to unwind in Konoha.
Of course, essential warnings were still in place, emphasizing that causing trouble was not allowed.
"Finally, some rest. Lord Fourth is really strict," a black-haired girl with Sunagakure forehead protector hanging around her neck complained.
"Now that we can rest, let's go shopping. The shopping district is more bustling than in Sunagakure, and there must be many skincare and makeup products we don't have," The black-haired girl invited her companion, another girl whose attire leaned towards traditional Sunagakure style. Her white headcloth covered almost all of her face, leaving only her eyes visible.
Looking around, the second girl sighed and said, "Sato, the accommodation area is not far from here. If Lord Kazekage hears about this, we'll be in trouble."
"Of course not, Lord Kazekage should be busy with the other Kage. He won't hear about it," Sato proudly declared.
"Come on, Maki, we rarely get a chance to visit Konoha. We have to make the most of it. Who knows when the next time will be?" Sato held Maki's hand, speaking with a hint of playfulness.
After hesitating for a moment, Maki couldn't resist Sato's continuous pleading and agreed to accompany her for shopping.
"Yay, I knew you're the best!" Sato cheered in a low voice.
"I really don't know how you developed this personality of yours," Maki said, somewhat puzzled, looking at Sato.
Personality is closely related to the environment, and being in the Land of Wind, covered by yellow sand, the women in the country tend to be bolder and stronger compared to other countries.
For example, Maki's teacher, Pakura, whom Maki believed to be the ideal woman. Maki had never seen Pakura show any signs of weakness; she was always decisive and strong-willed. In Maki's mind, even the Fourth Kazekage was no match to her teacher.
Unfortunately, wars are cruel, and despite her master being an exceptionally powerful Shinobi, hailed as Tsunagakure hero, she still perished in battle.
"Hehe, being different is what makes it interesting. If everyone had the same personality, wouldn't the world be boring?" Sato flashed a smile that Maki considered silly.
Sato grabbed Maki's hand, happily strolling through the streets of Konoha.
It was evening, a time when everything would be pitch black in Sunagakure, and no shops would be open. In the desert, there was a significant temperature difference between day and night, making nights too cold for people to go out. Naturally, shop owners didn't want to open their stores for the few who might venture out in the freezing night.
But at this moment, Konoha was brightly lit, almost as if it were daytime, or rather, even livelier than daytime because some shops closed during the day.
Sato's eyes sparkled with curiosity as she looked at Konoha in the night.
Maki was also a bit absent-minded, but she quickly snapped out of it.
As good as this place might be, it wasn't her home. Her home was in the Land of Wind, in Sunagakure. Even though she lived alone, he had many beautiful memories there.
Perhaps due to being confined to the accommodation area for several days of training, Sato was in high spirits, dragging Maki to all sort of place. Even when Maki felt her legs getting tired, Sato remained enthusiastic and showed no signs of fatigue.
"If you're this enthusiastic during training, maybe you could replace Taku as the 'ace'," Maki couldn't help but comment.
Taku was a fifteen-year-old Genin, a year older than Maki and Sato. He was exceptionally strong and could use various Wind Release Techniques. His team was considered the strongest Genin team among Sunagakure team.
Rasa had high hopes for Taku and his team, personally guiding them in their training recently.
However, Maki didn't really feel that she was inferior to Taku. After all, she was Pakura's disciple!
But her strength was challenging to showcase in direct combat because Maki excelled in Sealing Technique.
"It doesn't matter; the Chunin Exam is about participation," Sato said nonchalantly.
Becoming a Chunin would be great, but if you did not, there was always the next time. And if they couldn't pass, being a Genin wasn't that bad. At least they wouldn't starve.
"Where does all your motivation go?" Maki sighed, silently mourning for the Fourth Kazekage for a moment. Even with his constant preaching about ideology, some slip through the net.
"Hey, look over there, something's going on over there," Sato suddenly noticed a gathering crowd in one area.
With her agility and petite stature, Sato dragged Maki and slipped through the curious passerby.
Upon seeing the commotion, Sato surprisingly understood the reason for the commotion without even asking others. She noticed that the conflicting parties were Iwagakure and Kumogakure.
Those two villages had developed a grudge in the previous war, so it wasn't unusual for them to clash.
After inquiring a bit, Sato found out that a Kumogakure Shinobi accidentally bumped into an Iwagakure Shinobi on the street, and then it escalated with the Iwagakure Shinobi accusing, "Are you looking for trouble?"
Kumogakure replied, "I am, what about it?"
And that was how the commotion started.
Perhaps due to warnings from their respective Kage, despite the heated argument, neither side made any move, and no one was harmed.
"You cowardly bunch, dare to settle the score somewhere without witnesses? I'll show you Kumogakure Shinobi how powerful Kumogakure is," a dark-skinned, muscular boy provocatively taunted the Iwagakure Shinobi.
The death of the Third Raikage was a thorn in the hearts for Kumogakure Shinobi. If he had died in a one-on-one battle, it would have been acceptable. However, the Third Raikage faced overwhelming odds against ten thousand Iwagakure Shinobi, ultimately succumbing to exhaustion.
The feat of the Third Raikage fighting against ten thousand made Kumogakure proud, and at the same time, fueled resentment among Kumogakure Shinobi as Iwagakure basically ganged up on the Third Raikage with 10,000 Shinobi.
So, the Kumogakure Shinobi claimed that Iwagakure were all cowards who only knew how to outnumber their opponents.
Right when the Iwagakure Shinobi could no longer endure the provocation and was about to strike, a seemingly honest and gentle-looking young man restrained him.
"Iwata, they've gone too far," the angry Iwagakure Genin said furiously. He was puzzled as to why his teammate Iwata tried to stop him.
"Kando, this is Konoha. We are guests, and causing trouble in the host's home is not a good thing," Iwata forcibly stopped Kando's hand while maintaining a simple and kind smile.
'Too bad,' Samui, a Kumogakure Genin thought. If that Iwagakure Shinobi had attacked, she would have made sure her friends didn't retaliate and took the blow.
Compared to her companions, who were mostly musclebrain, Samui was pretty smart. She preferred to settle everything calmly using her brain.
On the day they arrived in Konoha, Samui felt Nagasawa's overwhelmingly powerful aura, akin to a deity or demon. In the past, no one had managed to intimidate her to that extent. She was certain that not even the Third Raikage, who fought against ten thousand Iwagakure Shinobi, was one-tenth as strong as Nagasawa.
At that moment, she made up her mind to stay completely honest in Konoha. No matter how clever the plans, facing absolute strength would be futile.
"Whatever strategy we have, he'll break it with a punch," she thought.
Nagasawa was too strong that it was unfair. And since they were in Nagasawa's territory, she couldn't see a glimmer of hope for victory.
So, during the commotion, she didn't intervene. Instead, she instructed her friends not to lay a hand on Iwagakure Shinobi. And then, they would taunt and provoke Iwagakure Gennin as much as possible.
Samui was convinced that as long as Iwagakure dared to make the first move, they would be the unfortunate ones.
However, Samui didn't expect that someone from Iwagakure could still remain composed even after all those tauntings. As expected of a Shinobi that revered rock.
"What's going on? What happened?"
Most people enjoyed watching a commotion, while some were concerned about trouble, so they notified Konoha Military Police Force.
Due to the large number of Shinobi from outsiders, Konoha Military Police Force had been particularly vigilant in patrolling recently and quickly arrived at the scene.
"Iwagakure and Kumogakure?" an Uchiha Jonin from Konoha Military Police Force furrowed his brow slightly and activated his Sharingan.
Uchiha glanced around, confirmed that no damage had occurred, and then asked, "What's going on here?"
"They started it!" An Iwagakure Shinobi quickly explained the situation.
Samui wasn't one to be left behind and promptly clarified, "It was clearly them who deliberately bumps into us."
The Uchiha Jonin was helpless. There was no prove to determine who was at fault.
However, since it was a minor incident with no damage or injuries, Uchiha thought for a moment and said, "I don't care who starts, but considering your young age, I believe you're here for the Chunin Exam, right? Given that there's no damage or injuries caused, I'll let it slide this time.
But let me advise you, don't cause trouble. Otherwise, not only the Chunin Exam, but even your return to the village may be delayed."
Iwagakure and Kumogakure exchanged glances and then apologized to Uchiha before leaving.
Iwagakure and Kumogakure left, and the onlookers naturally left as well.
"I can't believe they didn't fight. That's rare. I thought we were going to witness a battle between Iwagakure and Kumogakure," commented Sato after the crowd left.
"If it weren't for that Uchiha Shinobi coming over, I feel like they would have continued arguing for a while."
"After all, this is Konoha, and Konoha is too dominant now," said Maki with a serious expression.
Although Konoha was considered Sunagakure's 'ally', as a Shinobi from Sunagakure, Maki felt quite uncomfortable seeing Konoha so powerful.
Clearly, Konoha hadn't done anything major, but somehow, it seemed like Konoha had become extraordinarily strong without them realizing it.
Defeating Kumogakure so fast, inviting the three Great Shinobi Countries for a Chunin Exam that three Kage came personally to Konoha. It was hard to imagine, considering just a few years ago, Konoha struggled against the combined forces of the Four Great Shinobi Countries. It was on the verge of collapsing, but now, it had become so powerful that it was strange.
Maki couldn't fathom it.
...
Unlike the Genin from Iwagakure and Kumogakure, Itachi and Kabuto continued their training on the last day.
First of all, they lived in Konoha, so they had no interest in exploring Konoha as they had seen everything already.
The second is that they are very interested in Nagasawa's rewards. If they want to get Nagasawa's rewards, they must make use of the time to practice.
"Itachi, can you use Breathing Styles in battle?" After practicing, Kabuto sat on the grass covered in sweat and asked Itachi.
Itachi nodded, and then said: "I can, but it consumes too much Chakra and stamina, and it also puts a lot of burden on the body, so I can only use it for one minute. More than a minute can cause damage to the body, but less than two minutes is not a big problem. "
"It's a pity that there is not enough time. If you let me minor in your Water Breathing and use the mixed breathing method, I would be more confident in this battle." Itachi sighed.
With such a short battle time, it should be enough to deal with ordinary enemies, but two minutes is not enough to deal with a powerful enemy, and it can only be used as the last trump card.
It has only been a few months since he trained the basic Sun Breathing, and he was able to achieve this because of his talent and hard work.
"It's okay, the Chunin exam doesn't represent all of the Shinobi, and you are so young, you are already excellent." Kabuto consoled Itachi.
Although he knew that Kabuto was consoling him, Kabuto was only a year older than him, and being comforted by his peers rarely happened in his life.