Gaara turned around and stared at the boy's back, who looked to be a couple of years older than him and was as tall as Kankuro.
"What's your name?"
The Uzumaki stopped and turned around to smile at him.
"My name is Uzumaki Enma."
"You're the son of the Red Storm!" Temari gasped in surprise, and seeing his smile, her cheeks coloured faintly.
"I am," he nodded. "And you three are the children of the Kazekage, if I am not mistaken."
His voice was loud enough for everyone to hear, and even Karin looked back in surprise.
Sakura was stunned, and both Naruto and Sasuke were equally shocked.
They finally understood why that boy in the black outfit had acted so confidently after hearing who Konohamaru was.
A fight between two children was insignificant in front of the treaty between the two villages.
As long as it was just a punch or two, and no serious harm was done, he would be allowed to get away with it.
Konohamaru too became very tense when Kankuro smirked in his direction.
"Yes," the blonde nodded. "My name is Temari, and these are my younger brothers, Kankuro and Gaara."
"Nice to meet you, Temari-hime." He gave her a slight bow, and she blushed even more.
However, before she could speak to him again, she heard a cold voice from behind.
"Temari… let's go," said Gaara as he flickered away, and both his siblings quickly followed him.
"Enma."
"Yeah?" The Uzumaki glanced towards the Uchiha.
"Are you taking part in the Chunin Exams?" he asked, and both Naruto and Sakura perked up their ears.
"Yes. Anko-sensei has already recommended us for the exams."
Sasuke nodded to his words and looked at Naruto and Sakura.
"Let's go. We need to find Kakashi."
"Yes! Just wait, Enma. We're also going to take part in these Chunin Exams and become Chunins, dattebayo!" Naruto declared and quickly followed his teammate.
Sakura, however, hesitated and looked towards Enma.
"Do you think we should take these Chunin Exams?" she asked.
"Sasuke is fine, both mentally and physically fit enough to take these exams and pass. He might even become a Chunin. Naruto is not mentally ready, but he is physically capable. However, I don't think he will be promoted to the rank of Chunin, even if he reaches the finals. As for you… you are weak," he stated plainly. "You will drag them down, and you have both mental and physical issues. You are not ready."
"Hey, what do you mean, I have mental and physical issues?!" she angrily retorted, clenching her fists.
"You are clever, but a fool at the same time. And you are too weak when it comes to actual combat. Most importantly, you are not serious about becoming a kunoichi, and all you seem to dream about is being Sasuke's girlfriend."
"You…" she felt a flush of shame at his words. "You…"
"What? Did I say anything wrong?" he asked, and tears welled in her eyes.
"Yes! You're wrong! And I will prove it to you!" she gritted her teeth and ran past him, as if fleeing a nightmare.
Enma watched her vanish into an alley and then sit down against the wall, sobbing quietly in pain and humiliation, and he sighed in his heart.
"Konohamaru, Moegi, Udon."
"Yes!" the three answered in unison.
"Do not play around during these days. Stay safe. There are a lot of foreign shinobi in the village for the Chunin Exams, and there's a possibility that something bad could happen." He spoke gently. "If you want, you can play in the Uzumaki Forest with Hanabi, Hiyori, Hinoko, and their friends. Arashi, Yurito, and Akita play there as well."
"Okay!" Udon and Moegi became very excited at getting permission to enter the Uzumaki Forest.
Konohamaru, however, was less enthusiastic about befriending Arashi, Yurito, and Akita, even though they were classmates.
"I'll ask Jiji," he said as an excuse, and Enma nodded.
"Just be careful, all right?"
"Yes, Enma-nii," Moegi obediently nodded.
"Nii-san, we're going back to the District to train for the exams," Karin suddenly said to him.
He knew that she was talking about herself and Shizuka, who was sitting atop the tree where Sasuke had been earlier.
The Uzumaki Princess and Nakagami quickly flickered away, and Enma smiled lightly before he blurred from his position.
Not far away, atop a tree, the sole team from Otogakure was eavesdropping on the conversations of the Konoha and Suna shinobi.
"Those Suna shinobi, the Uchiha, and those two Uzumaki are worth keeping an eye on. We need more intel on them…" The one with the bandages around his face spoke, but tensed up when he felt a kunai press to the back of his head.
"Oi, oi, I don't like people spying on me, and you even plan to keep doing it?"
The playful voice shocked the two genin beside him, who ended up entangling their feet in ninja wires when they moved.
"You cannot attack us," the masked genin said, and Enma laughed quietly.
"Perhaps not right now, but I can kill you later and show no mercy when we meet in the later stages of the exam. So, you had better not try to spy on me and my team again."
The Lightning Shadow Clone dematerialised as he finished speaking, and all three of them were electrocuted and paralysed for a full minute.
When they finally recovered, sweat poured down their faces, and chills ran up their spines.
Someone like him could easily kill them. There was no doubt in their minds.
The Uzumaki heir was already on the other side of the village, silently observing Ino as she trained alone in her chakra control exercises.
He was, however, keeping an eye on everyone else as well, especially the Kumo teams and the Suna team he had just met.
A smile crossed his face when he saw Choji and Shikamaru running around the river.
Asuma-sensei had managed to force the Nara to take on physical fitness training, but the boy looked as if he would pass out at any moment.
He sighed as he sensed three mischievous little girls approaching, and soon all three jumped onto the branch where he was sitting and settled at his sides.
"No more classes for the day?" he asked his little sister gently, who shook her head.
Hanabi and Hinoko did the same, and he found it rather endearing how their movements were synchronised.
"What are you doing, Nii-sama?" Hiyori asked curiously.
"Relaxing."
"Why?" She tilted her head cutely and giggled when he grabbed her and started tickling her tummy.
Sensing danger, Hanabi and Hinoko leapt off the tree and rushed to the training field, and he chased them, making both girls giggle uncontrollably.
They played tag in the training field for the next hour, until all three girls ended up sprawled on the ground, exhausted but laughing merrily.
Enma lay down on the soft grass too, supporting his head on his hands.
Hanabi and Hinoko looked to the left when someone approached, but relaxed at once and stayed lying down.
"Ino-nee!" Hiyori greeted the Yamanaka cheerfully, who smiled and sat down beside them. "You're so sweaty!"
"Oi!" The blonde pouted, becoming a little self-conscious, but soon grinned at the girls.
"So are you."
"We were training," Hinoko said mischievously, giggling when she heard Enma chuckle.
Though all three girls were less than seven years old, they were exceptionally talented. It was particularly true for Hinoko, who came from a branch of the Sarutobi clan, and despite lacking a bloodline limit like her two friends, managed to keep up with them.
According to Hiyori, she was the best in their class, then Hanabi, with Hinoko in third place.
Given that the class included students from other clans and strong shinobi families, it was testament to Hinoko's ability.
Being an orphan, Hinoko had no parents, siblings, or grandparents to help her, and she had been training on her own until joining the academy.
Now, she spent most of her time with Hanabi and Hiyori at either the Uzumaki Forest and District or at the Hyuga Compound.
What Enma found most amusing was that the girls called themselves the HHH Squad, and sometimes the Ri-Bi-Ko Squad. Just imagining them synchronising their head tilts when announcing themselves made him chuckle.
"Nii-sama," Hiyori suddenly grabbed his hand and gazed at him excitedly. "Are you going to become a Chunin?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Can you and Karin-nee become Jonin before we graduate? We could then be on your or Karin-nee's team!" she said, brimming with hope.
Hanabi and Hinoko grew excited at her words too, and Ino pouted at them.
"I could be your sensei as well…"
"Nope. You're weak," Hanabi said with mock mischief, dashing off as Ino gave chase.
"I can't make any promises, but we'll try to make it work," Enma said gently, patting his little sister's head, and she obediently nodded.
"It will be so much fun!"
A couple of hours later, the four followed Ino to her clan's flower shop.
There, Enma bought the girls the flowers they wanted and then dropped Hinoko at the Sarutobi Compound and Hanabi at the Hyuga Compound.
"Bye-bye!" Hiyori waved happily at her friend, and when Hanabi entered the gate with the two guards, the little Uzumaki Princess opened her arms to her brother. "Nii-sama, up!"
Enma picked her up and, knowing what she wanted, used the Body Flicker Technique to rush to the Uzumaki District, giving her an exhilarating sense of speed.
Upon entering the forest, the two Uzumaki guards, whose job was to keep an eye on the Little Princess, revealed themselves and followed them to the compound.
"Don't forget to wash and get ready for dinner. Kaa-san will be upset," he reminded her gently when she asked to be put down so she could watch Karin and Shizuka sparring in the inner courtyard.
"I know, Nii-sama." She bobbed her head and then excitedly watched the two girls as they worked on their taijutsu.
Enma, as soon as he entered his wing, was ambushed by Arashi, who had lain in wait for him. The little boy laughed when the water shadow clone dematerialised and left him soaked.
Enma then picked him up by the collar and tossed him into his room like a doll, with Arashi laughing all the while.
"I'll catch you one day, Nii-sama!" he declared, and the Uzumaki heir chuckled as he walked to his room.
"You wish!"