Karin didn't have to wonder for long.
Soon enough, the Jōnin and Chūnin proctors began gathering the teams, directing them away from the rooms they had been using and toward a much larger chamber deeper inside the tower.
Karin followed along with her team, Tōji and Naho falling in half a step behind her without needing to be told. Renga-sensei walked with them as well, though as always, he seemed to understand that his role was mostly to look like the adult in charge.
He wasn't.
They all knew that.
The chamber they were led into was large, open, and clearly made for fighting. Stone walls rose high above them, with a large statue at the back and a balcony overlooking the floor below. There was plenty of space for spectators, which made the purpose of the place obvious.
So this was why the tower existed.
Or at least, one of the reasons.
Karin still thought it was stupidly wasteful, but at least it had a use.
More and more people gathered inside the chamber. The Genin teams first, then their sensei, then the proctors, and finally a small crowd of higher-ranking Konoha shinobi.
Karin's senses spread out as naturally as breathing.
Seven teams.
Twenty-one Genin.
No, twenty-one people pretending to be Genin, because there were a few here who were absolutely not normal.
Karin's eyes drifted over the crowd.
Team 7 had made it.
That wasn't surprising. Sasuke and Naruto were both standing, though they looked worn down. Sasuke's chakra felt strange, rougher than before, as if something had been carved into it with a dirty blade. Naruto's was even stranger. It was usually large and wild, but now it felt tangled, like a net had been thrown over it.
And she had a good idea as to the cause of it all.
Orochimaru.
So he had gotten to them.
Karin adjusted her glasses, eyes narrowing slightly.
Sasuke was alive, then. Marked, most likely, but alive. Naruto too, though sealed in some way. Sakura was also there, standing close to them, looking tired and nervous, but not injured in any meaningful way.
Which was both surprising and not.
Given they had fought against Orochimaru himself, the fact that any of them were still alive was a miracle, but then again, it was also proof that the Snake Sannin hadn't wanted to kill them.
Nor had he wanted them to fail, which would explain why even the weakest and most useless was still alive.
He clearly wanted them to continue in the exam, and for that, they all needed to be alive.
Still, given how weak the kunoichi was, Karin wouldn't have been surprised if she had died by accident.
Karin's gaze moved on.
The Hyūga boy was there as well, standing with his team, cold and straight-backed. Neji Hyūga, if she remembered right. His chakra flow was clean, disciplined, and arrogant in the way only a noble clan shinobi could be.
There was also something about him, about his entire demeanor, that just rubbed Karin the wrong way.
She couldn't put an exact word to it, but she disliked him on sight.
There was also the green boy.
Karin's eyes paused.
He was standing near his team, bowl-cut hair shining horribly under the lights, thick eyebrows, green jumpsuit, orange leg warmers, and an expression so painfully earnest it almost hurt to look at.
That had to be Rock Lee.
Which meant the man next to him was...
Karin slowly turned her head.
And stared.
No.
Absolutely not.
That could not be Might Guy.
That could not be the man Kaguya had called one of the most dangerous shinobi in Konoha.
The man looked ridiculous.
The same green jumpsuit. The same bowl cut. The same eyebrows. The same shining teeth. The same pose that made Karin want to look away out of pure secondhand embarrassment.
Karin stared for another few seconds, waiting for her senses to correct her eyes.
They didn't.
His chakra wasn't even that impressive at a glance. Strong, yes, but not monstrous. Not like Kaguya. Not like Pain. Not like a Bijū. Not even like that red-eyed monster from Suna.
And yet Kaguya had warned her about him.
Not casually either.
Kaguya, who treated most S-ranked shinobi as amusing insects, had said not to fight that man.
Karin swallowed down the urge to laugh.
Either Kaguya was wrong, which was almost impossible, or Might Guy was hiding something so well that even Karin's senses couldn't properly measure it.
That was annoying.
It was also interesting.
Very interesting.
"Is something wrong, Karin-sama?" Naho asked quietly from behind her.
"That man looks stupid," Karin muttered.
Naho followed her gaze.
Might Guy was currently giving Rock Lee a proud thumbs-up, both of them smiling so brightly it was almost offensive.
Naho blinked.
"Yes, Karin-sama."
"He is apparently very strong."
Naho stared harder.
"...Are you sure?"
"No," Karin said. "But Kaguya-sama is."
That immediately silenced both Naho and Tōji.
If Kaguya said someone was dangerous, then they were dangerous. Appearance didn't matter. Chakra didn't matter. Common sense didn't matter.
Karin kept that in mind as she continued scanning the room.
Then her senses brushed against someone else.
She almost smiled.
Orochimaru.
He was here.
Not hiding in the walls. Not watching from some distant corner. Not sneaking around the tower like before.
He was standing openly among the adults.
Right there.
Near the Hokage.
Karin had to work very hard not to laugh.
The old man didn't know. None of them knew. The Hokage stood there in his formal robes, pipe in hand, giving off that grandfatherly village-leader aura, while one of the most wanted missing-nin in the world stood close enough to spit on him.
And nobody noticed.
Konoha really was funny.
Orochimaru's disguise was good. She would give him that. His chakra was wrapped, folded, and hidden beneath the skin of someone else. A normal sensor likely wouldn't notice anything wrong. Even a good sensor might miss him if they didn't already know what to look for.
But Karin had met him already.
She knew the feeling of his chakra.
Cold. Slithering. Wrong.
Like a snake moving through wet grass.
For a brief moment, she wondered if she should say something.
Then she almost laughed again.
Why would she?
This was Konoha's problem.
Besides, Kaguya-sama had told her not to interfere with Orochimaru unless he forced the issue. He was useful, in the way dangerous, unstable tools were sometimes useful, and if he wished to stand right beside the Hokage while wearing another person's face, then Karin had no reason to spoil the game.
It was funny.
And if he killed the Hokage, well, that would also be funny.
A sharp cough drew everyone's attention.
The old Hokage stepped forward, and the room slowly quieted down.
"First, allow me to congratulate all of you for passing the second stage of the Chūnin Selection Exams," he said, looking over the assembled Genin. "Reaching this point is no small achievement."
Karin glanced at Gaara.
Gaara looked bored.
She agreed with him.
The Hokage continued speaking, explaining the purpose of the exam, the hidden meaning behind the alliance between villages, and the importance of demonstrating strength to employers, nobles, and other nations.
Karin listened, though only halfway.
It was all very political.
Kaguya-sama would probably have hated the speech.
Or perhaps she would have found it amusing.
The short version was simple: the Chūnin Exam was not really about promoting Chūnin. It was a controlled battlefield where villages showed off their young talent in front of people with money and influence.
That made sense.
It was still stupid, but it made sense.
Then came the important part.
"However," the Hokage said, his tone shifting slightly, "more teams passed the second stage than expected."
Karin smiled faintly.
There it was.
"Because of this, we will hold a preliminary round before the third stage. These will be individual matches. The winners will advance to the final stage of the exam."
A ripple passed through the gathered Genin.
Some were excited.
Some were nervous.
Some were pretending they weren't nervous.
Tōji leaned closer, voice low. "Individual matches?"
"Yes," Karin said.
He grinned beneath his mask. "Good."
"Don't get too excited," Karin said. "You probably won't win."
Tōji deflated slightly.
Naho, standing on Karin's other side, nodded as if this was a perfectly reasonable statement.
"Yes, Karin-sama."
Tōji shot her a betrayed look.
Karin ignored him.
The Chūnin proctor from before, the sick-looking one named Hayate, stepped forward next. He coughed into one hand, looking like he might die before the first match even started.
"Before we begin," he said, his voice quiet but carrying well enough through the chamber, "anyone who wishes to withdraw should do so now. Once the matches begin, you will fight until one side is unable to continue, surrenders, or I judge that continuing would be too dangerous."
Karin's gaze swept across the Genin.
Who would quit?
Most wouldn't. Pride would keep them standing even if common sense said otherwise.
Still, if someone was hurt badly enough, they would have little choice but to withdraw, not that Karin spotted anyone like that.
The worst hurt seemed to be Sasuke, and he was still among the strongest Genin gathered here.
Even at his worst, he was better than most, so unless he was truly unlucky, he could easily advance to the next round.
So Karin didn't expect anyone to give up a chance to fight, to prove themselves at this point.
It was, after all, considerably less dangerous than the forest had been, so who would step out at this point?
Then one hand rose.
Kabuto Yakushi.
Karin's eyes narrowed.
Interesting.
The silver-haired Konoha Genin adjusted his glasses and gave an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry," Kabuto said. "I used up a lot of chakra in the second exam and haven't had time to recover it. I'm in no state to fight right now, so I don't think I can continue."
Liar.
Karin did not even need her senses for that one.
His chakra was controlled. Too controlled. His posture was slightly weary, but not nearly as weak as he wanted everyone to believe. He was injured, perhaps, but not enough to withdraw unless he wanted to.
So why?
Orochimaru didn't react.
Which was an answer all by itself.
Kabuto was his.
Or at least connected to him.
Karin's smile sharpened.
This exam really was full of interesting people.
Hayate accepted the withdrawal, and Kabuto stepped away from the line of competitors, looking embarrassed and harmless.
He was good.
Not good enough for Karin, but good.
With his withdrawal, the number dropped from twenty-one to twenty.
Clean.
Convenient.
Almost... too convenient.
Had she been wrong when she thought Kabuto was someone connected to Orochimaru? Was he a pure Konoha plant? But that didn't feel right either.
She couldn't make heads or tails of the entire situation; too much information was missing.
But it felt almost planned, reducing the number to an even twenty.
That meant ten after the eliminations, and that was a fine enough number for the finals, very clean indeed.
But in the end, she stopped thinking about it. It was hardly important.
A large board above the chamber flickered to life. Names began to flash across it, moving too quickly for most of the Genin to follow.
Karin watched easily.
Sasuke Uchiha.
Yoroi Akadō.
The names stopped.
Hayate coughed again.
"The first match will be Sasuke Uchiha versus Yoroi Akadō."
(End of chapter)
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