[Haruno Sakura: Ughhh, I'm so bored! Why isn't our jonin sensei here yet? Team 7's the only one still in the classroom.]
[Tenten: They've already assigned the teams? @Yamanaka Ino, how's it going on your end?]
[Yamanaka Ino: We're on the training field. Just finished introductions, now we're prepping for a combat drill. And not only did I miss the chance to be in a team with Sasuke, but our teacher is some scruffy old guy with a beard! Totally lame!]
[Haruno Sakura: Wait, weren't you crushing on Mori Shin now? Why are you still hung up on my Sasuke-kun? Don't tell me you're trying to sit on two chairs at once? For real? For real?]
[Yamanaka Ino: Forehead Girl, don't get cocky! Your sensei is probably a closet perv!!]
[Haruno Sakura: Impossible! Don't try to shake my faith! I'm finally on a team with Sasuke-kun, cry harder! Nyah-nyah~!]
[Tenten: Alright, enough bickering. Did you two forget the second rule of this chat? Want to get punished again?]
[Haruno Sakura: Tch!]
[Yamanaka Ino: True that. I'm not into electric shocks like some foreheads around here.]
[Haruno Sakura: ....]
[Yamanaka Ino: Ugh, I'm so done! We've got combat drills and then we're supposed to verify those videos from the future. Kinda jealous of certain foreheads who get to sit in class doing nothing.]
[Haruno Sakura: Go to hell!!!]
---
"I… I didn't mean to!"
Seeing the dark, furious expressions on both Endo Daisho and Shin's faces, Ryota collapsed to the ground in a panic, nearly wetting himself from fear.
Chie Mai froze as well, panic flickering across her features before she quickly composed herself and tried to defend her actions.
"Daisho-sensei, you just said there were no rules during the exam — that we could use any means necessary! And at the Academy, we were taught that a ninja must prioritize the mission above all else, to complete it at any cost!"
Her justification wasn't baseless. That was the way of the shinobi world — the strong devour the weak. But whether Daisho would accept it was another matter entirely.
Whoosh! Endo Daisho appeared in front of her in a flash.
"You're right. But the exam isn't over. You stopped—because you decided to quit?" His voice was cold, sharp, practically whispering into Chie Mai's ear.
Her face twisted. She immediately pulled out a kunai to defend herself. But before she could even move, Daisho slammed his fist into her stomach. He held no sympathy for someone who would betray her own teammates — if he hadn't feared killing her, he wouldn't have shown even this much restraint. Even so, the blow was brutal. Chie Mai doubled over, retching violently as agony contorted her face. It was as if her guts had been completely smashed.
"And you…" In another blur, Daisho appeared next to Ryota. "If you're surrounded by enemies during a mission, will you piss yourself from fear then too?" His voice was as cold as a blade.
"I…" Ryota's face went pale as death. He opened his mouth, ready to beg for mercy or maybe even surrender the exam altogether.
But Daisho had no intention of letting him speak. With a swift kick, he sent Ryota flying. Thud! Ryota's body slammed into the trunk of a large tree, unconscious before he could even scream.
"I… I give up!" Chie Mai shouted as Daisho's glare turned back toward her. Despite the pain tearing through her stomach, she forced herself to speak up. She was genuinely afraid that if she hesitated for even a second, Daisho would beat her to death.
As her words echoed in the air, Chie Mai saw a flicker of disappointment flash in Daisho's eyes — he had really been planning to keep hitting her! Not a shred of dignity as a teacher, not a hint of mercy just because she was a girl. Chie Mai clenched her jaw in fury.
Just you wait! I'm not quitting the shinobi path — I swear I'll find a way to get stronger and repay this humiliation a hundred times over! Rage howled in her heart. Chie Mai wasn't one to forgive and forget. If she couldn't retaliate directly, she'd find other ways to get even.
Meanwhile, Mori Shin was also seething with the desire for vengeance against both Chie Mai and Ryota. But now wasn't the time. He was still processing how fast Daisho had handled the situation. Even that couldn't cool the fire boiling in his chest. And suddenly, that burning fury seemed to ignite something deep inside him — a power that surged up from his dantian and poured through his body like molten lava.
Endo Daisho didn't notice the change in Shin's state. With a sigh of regret, he turned toward him and said,
"You're the last one standing. I'm sorry to say, your team has failed the exam. You may have the strength and character to pass on your own, but ninja operate in teams of three. You'll have to return to the Academy for re-training. Luck is part of destiny too. I hope next time, you get teammates who are worth something."
He was about to officially wrap up Team 9's exam and announce their disbandment.
But just then, Mori Shin raised his head and let out a wild, bestial roar.
A torrent of power burst from his body. The air crackled as a strange and terrifying aura erupted around him — so intense that even Endo Daisho's face changed.
"What… what is this?" Daisho's voice trembled with disbelief. That aura—it posed a threat even to him, a jonin.
"This guy… what's happening to him?" Chie Mai staggered back, fear twisting her features. She'd just betrayed him—and now, instinctively, she feared his rage was about to descend on her.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh! In the next instant, as if responding to the energy pouring from Shin, a dark substance surged from underground. It was a pitch-black mass, somewhere between soil and stone, impossible to identify. It twisted upward in vine-like tendrils, exploding from the earth and rapidly snaking toward everyone in the area.
Everything happened too fast. No one had time to react. The moment the black tendrils emerged, they spread in every direction. Chie Mai and the unconscious Ryota were instantly wrapped up, completely unable to resist.
Endo Daisho's expression darkened. He pushed off the ground and soared into the air. But as he evaded the first wave of tendrils, others surged toward him from all sides. Caught midair without a foothold, and underestimating the black substance's strength, Daisho hesitated for a moment — and that was enough. He only managed to swipe away a couple of tendrils before the rest bound him fast.
His first instinct was to blast them off with a surge of chakra.
But the moment he tried, his eyes widened in shock — this black substance had an incredible suction force. It drank his chakra like a sponge, fast and relentless. In seconds, he could feel his strength draining away. The flow of chakra leaving his body was like water pouring from a broken dam — and he realized, to his horror, that he couldn't break free on his own.
Meanwhile, not far from the chaos, Team 10 was in the middle of their combat training when they heard the commotion.
Something was wrong.
Their jonin leader, Asuma Sarutobi, immediately sensed danger. He halted his team's drill and bolted toward the source of the disturbance. Ino's expression shifted — without hesitation, she ran after him. At the same time, she fired off a message in the group chat:
[Yamanaka Ino: There's some kind of commotion coming from where Shin is!]
"What a drag…" Shikamaru frowned. He had no desire to get involved, but when he saw Ino already charging ahead, he sighed and dragged Chōji along with him.