The street, swept clean on purpose, looked unusually tidy. On both sides, it was crowded with people, their calls and haggling blurring into a constant din. Behind the vendors, shops stood freshly repainted—bright and neat—completely out of sync with Sunagakure's otherwise dull and barren tone.
Clearly, this was a commercial street freshly renovated by Suna in preparation for the Chūnin Exams.
Yuki Yoru, having swapped out his Mizukage robes for a loose, casual yukata, strolled through the street like an ordinary traveler.
Each of the Five Great Nations had sent an elite squad to this year's Chūnin Exams. Though the number of participants was small, their strength far surpassed that of standard Chūnin.
From Kumogakure came Darui, heir to the Third Raikage's Black Lightning and future Fifth Raikage.
Iwagakure sent Deidara, originally set to be the Fourth Tsuchikage—if not for his obsession with art and complete neglect of even his fiancée, Kurotsuchi. He was now the infamous "Azure Dragon of the Akatsuki."
Konohagakure had sent the legendary Uchiha Trio, clearly a move by Fugaku to assert the Hidden Leaf's dominance through sheer firepower.
Team composition?
Yes, in the era of the First Hokage, Uchiha always required two balanced teammates.
But under the Fifth Hokage's rule?
An Uchiha needed no one but another Uchiha.
The strongest team was three Uchiha—three blades that cut through everything!
Beyond the Big Five, several minor villages had also sent recognizable faces.
Villages like the Village of Artisans, Lock, Waterfall, Grass, and others all dispatched fairly skilled shinobi.
But what caught Yoru's attention most was a three-person team from Hoshigakure—the Village Hidden Among Stars.
Back at the end of the Third Great Ninja War, Yoru had sent Captain Yagura of the 13th Division to retrieve Hoshigakure's mysterious meteorite—the Star.
With Yagura's overwhelming power, the operation had gone smoothly. The Star had been taken and was now sealed deep within Shadow Island, serving as one of Kirigakure's alternate energy cores.
Without the Star, Hoshigakure should have lost its very foundation.
Yet now, Yoru's spiritual sense told him—those three Genin still held Star Chakra within them.
"Interesting… Could Hoshigakure have another meteorite?"
Yoru raised an eyebrow.
The Star was no ordinary rock. That extraterrestrial meteorite contained chakra on par with a Tailed Beast.
Having even one was an unbelievable stroke of cosmic fortune.
If there were a second…
"I'll need to pay Hoshigakure a visit sometime soon."
...
"Thank you for your patronage—twenty ryō… Hey! You haven't paid yet!"
On the side of the street, a vendor handed a three-color dango skewer to a girl standing in front of his stall.
Uchiha Hikari took the skewer and turned to leave. The previously cheerful vendor's face froze in confusion.
"Pay?"
Hikari looked at the man, puzzled.
This village was under Obito's control. She was Obito's partner. In other words—this village was under her control.
And in that case... why would she need to pay?
The three-tomoe Sharingan in her eyes spun silently. The vendor fell silent instantly, his expression blank as a doll's. He stood still, dazed.
But just moments later, a silent pulse rippled through the air—her genjutsu unraveled.
The vendor blinked, dazed but still clinging stubbornly to his desire for money.
"Little girl, you can't just take things without paying!"
"Huh?" Hikari froze, Sharingan spinning again. She began channeling more eye power—but just then, a hand appeared in front of her.
"Here's forty ryō. I'll take one as well."
Her Sharingan shrank instantly. Her head snapped up—and she saw a familiar, handsome face in profile.
Yuki Yoru smiled gently as he handed over the coins and accepted his skewer.
"When you buy something, you pay for it. If you don't… that's just robbery, isn't it?"
His words didn't ease her tension—in fact, they made her warier.
She hadn't sensed his presence at all.
It was as if... he didn't exist. The most terrifying part? He had effortlessly unraveled her genjutsu without even trying.
Uchiha Hikari stepped back instinctively, her eyes locked on him.
His flowing white robe cloaked him completely. No chakra emanated from his body.
No—not even the sense of a person or existence. If she hadn't seen him with her own eyes, she'd have thought she was hallucinating.
Still gripping the dango in one hand, her other moved to her waist on instinct—only to find she wasn't wearing her ninja gear today. She reached for a bare-hand blade technique instead, her hand crackling with chakra as she raised her voice:
"Who... are you?!"
Yoru glanced down briefly, pausing on the crimson three-tomoe Sharingan in her eyes, then looked at her face.
To be fair, the Uchiha were universally attractive, their aesthetics almost absurdly consistent.
But Yoru wasn't a lolicon.
No matter how pretty this girl was, that wasn't what caught his attention.
What did was the power hidden behind her eyes.
Just one glance—and he could feel it. The raw eye power in those Sharingan was immense.
Stronger than Fugaku.
Stronger than Obito.
Perhaps even rivaling Shisui Uchiha.
"You're not with Konoha's Uchiha, are you?"
He glanced at the chakra-clad hand poised to strike, then returned his gaze to her eyes.
"To awaken the Sharingan at your age, and to such a level… it must be painful. Exhausting, even."
Hikari flinched.
She had been about to strike, but his words... made her pause.
"Your parents... they died in the war, didn't they?" Yoru asked softly.
He didn't use any technique—just a whisper of spiritual aura layered into his tone, calming and resonant.
At his words, Hikari pressed her lips together tightly. The chakra faded from her hand. She gave a small nod.
Yoru passed her the second dango he'd bought, then gently ruffled her dark hair.
"Life seems fragile, like a cicada's wing—but it's as tenacious as wild grass. Some things can't be understood by surface appearances alone."
"The human body holds terrifying potential. But most people never sense it, let alone master it. Chasing illusions in a short life only breeds weakness."
"But those who came before us—their lives may have ended, but their will remains. Their beliefs and legacy are like their eyes—still watching this world. Still watching you."
He shook his head with a quiet sigh.
"So, as one who inherited their will—you should use these eyes to see more of the world."
Hikari stared, stunned, down at the two dango skewers in her hand.
She shook her head.
"Dead is dead. When someone dies, everything ends. All that's left is hatred... and rage."
"Do you understand what that feels like?"
She suddenly looked up at him, expression serious, her petite face intense.
"To watch the person most important to you die in front of you—to see your greatest treasure shatter in your hands!"
Yoru closed his eyes.
"...Of course I understand."
"Your mind goes blank. Your throat feels crushed. You can't breathe—your heart feels like it's stopped beating."
"And in that moment, rage and hatred consume you. You want to destroy everything around you just to release it."
He stepped forward and looked directly into her eyes.
"But listen: Anger can drive you forward—but it must never control you. You must master your rage. Master yourself."
"Only then can you truly perceive the world—and reach the summit."
"...Control myself," Hikari repeated softly.
She shook her head, eyes clouded.
That was easy to say.
But ever since her parents had died, she'd never once been in control. Weapon or tool—it made no difference.
"You're still young," Yoru smiled gently.
"Life is long. There are still so many things for you to experience, to feel, to learn."
He turned his head slightly.
"Your teammate's coming. We'll meet again—if fate allows."
A soft wind blew.
Yoru vanished.
Silently, Hikari stood there.
A few moments later, Konan appeared behind her.
"Suzaku, don't act on your own. The operation's about to begin."
Hikari didn't answer. She looked at her, then turned and walked back to their lodging
...
Three Days Later
In the blink of an eye, three days passed.
With shinobi from all over arriving in Sunagakure, the Joint Chūnin Exams, hosted by Suna and involving most of the ninja world, was finally about to begin.
Before the first round, Suna held a formal gathering. All participants signed liability waivers, and the honored guests—the Fifth Hokage and Fourth Mizukage—made appearances for the opening ceremony.
On the grand platform, Kazekage Rasa gave a long-winded speech, rambling for over half an hour before finally opening a scroll and announcing:
"The rules for the first round of the Chūnin Exam are as follows!"
"This location is the Desert of Iron Sand, where the Third Kazekage once trained his Magnet Release."
"Each of the 56 teams—168 participants—will receive a single, glowing Gold Sand Star as their token."
"Only teams that collect nine stars total and reach the Gold Sand Fortress at the center of the desert by 8 a.m. on Day Three will be considered to have passed."
"The gates of the fortress will not open until 8 a.m. on the third day. Arriving early will not help."
"Every Gold Sand Star is implanted with a tracking seal. Every hour, the Wasteland's safe zone will shrink by three kilometers. Stars outside the shrinking zone become invalid and can't be used to pass."
The moment he said that, the crowd of Genin frowned.
They'd already bought plenty of leaked info from Suna's black-market dealers—info about the desert and fortress included.
In terms of distance, the two landmarks were just over 200 kilometers apart. For trained shinobi, that wasn't too bad—even with venomous scorpions and desert storms.
But with these new rules?
The difficulty had skyrocketed.
Each team started with three stars. To reach nine, they'd have to defeat two other teams, minimum.
Even worse, no one could enter the fortress early. They'd have to camp nearby, while the shrinking zone steadily invalidated the stars of anyone not fast enough.
By Day Three, the area around the fortress would be crawling with desperate teams—all ready to kill.
"Each participant will also receive a special Gold Sand Armband. It holds your stars and doubles as a safety mechanism. If you inject chakra into it, a golden sand barrier will form, protecting your life and summoning a nearby Jōnin to rescue you."
"However, activating the shield also means forfeiting the exam."
When the explanation ended, Rasa nodded. Multiple Suna Jōnin began guiding the Genin toward the Wasteland's entrances, attaching armbands and distributing stars.
Inside the desert, thirty Jōnin had already been stationed, prepared to deal with emergencies.
When all was ready, the 56 teams were evenly distributed to 56 separate entrances.
Time ticked forward.
At exactly 8:00 a.m., Rasa turned to Fugaku and Yoru, gave a nod, then raised his hand.
"Let the First Joint Chūnin Exam of Sunagakure… begin!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Signal flares erupted overhead.
The 56 teams surged into the Desert of Iron Sand!
Meanwhile – A Remote Island Near Kirigakure
The space twisted.
Obito emerged.
Frowning at the desolate landscape, he asked:
"You're sure we can get in from here?"
"This is the weakest part of their barrier—and there are no Kirigakure shinobi or Shinigami guarding it," said Zetsu confidently.
"It's a bit far from the mainland, but if we get through this archipelago, we'll reach Kirigakure proper."
"No guards, no Shinigami, huh?"
Obito's eyes sharpened.
"Then let's begin."
"Seal-Breaking Jutsu!"
He inhaled, rapidly forming hand signs. His palm struck the air—and a series of densely packed sealing symbols lit up around them, spreading across the space.
The air twisted.
An invisible portal opened.
Obito and Zetsu slipped inside.
At the moment the portal opened, countless unknown creatures across the archipelago stirred—as if sensing something.
One by one...
They opened their eyes.
And turned in one direction.