"Hold up, kid — I'm not done yet!"
"What mission are you even on?" Tsunade asked sharply, folding her arms.
"The southern border case," Naruto replied evenly. "A full village massacre. Over three hundred households. More than fifteen hundred dead."
Tsunade's eyes widened, her expression turning to pure rage. "That serious, and you're here bothering me instead of catching the murderers?!"
Naruto smirked faintly. "Who said I didn't?"
Before Tsunade could snap again, he gestured toward the distance. "Take a look."
From the horizon, a shadow streaked across the air. A Naruto clone dropped down hard, landing with a dull thud. It dragged a battered man behind it and tossed him to the ground.
The clone burst into white smoke.
Tsunade frowned. "That guy? He doesn't look like he could kill a fly, much less a village."
The man was trembling — filthy, ragged, barely able to meet anyone's eyes.
"Wait," Naruto said calmly. "They're not done arriving."
Moments later, more clones descended — one after another — each hauling a prisoner. Ronin, wandering ninja, mercenary scum.
Fifty-seven in total.
When the final clone dispelled, Naruto exhaled slowly as memories and details flooded back into him.
"That's all of them," he said. "Not one escaped."
Tsunade's face hardened. "These animals killed fifteen hundred people? Who the hell ordered it?"
"They didn't know," Naruto said coldly. "They were hired through black market channels. A masked 'mysterious man' gave the orders — using a clone and Transformation Technique. No trace left."
His eyes narrowed, a thin smile curling at the corner of his lips — but there was no warmth in it. Only ice.
"But we both know how this works, don't we? Whoever benefits most… is usually the real killer."
Tsunade's frown deepened. She could already feel where this was going.
Naruto continued, his tone deadly calm. "The goal was simple — lure me away from Konoha during the Chūnin Exams. Keep me busy out here while someone else makes their move inside the village."
Tsunade clenched her fists. "Those bastards…"
Her voice trembled with fury. "We're going back to Konoha now!"
Naruto raised a hand. "Not yet. Marching straight in will only alert them. Let them think I'm still out here. When they strike, we strike back — clean, fast, and final."
Tsunade's eyes flickered — she understood immediately. He was setting a trap. A bloody one.
"…You've changed, kid," she said quietly. "You think like a veteran commander now."
"What can I say?" Naruto smiled faintly. "Someone's gotta handle the dirty work."
Her gaze shifted to the trembling killers bound before them. "And what about them?"
Naruto's expression hardened into something unreadable. "Garbage like this only wastes the air we breathe."
Tsunade didn't speak. She didn't have to.
Naruto formed seals, his chakra flaring like wildfire.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu."
The murderers screamed — begging, cursing, crying — but the massive blaze drowned every word. In an instant, the clearing turned into an inferno.
When the flames died, only ash remained.
Tsunade stared, eyes slightly wide. The same jutsu — one she'd seen countless times — but under his control, it wasn't a fireball. It was a sun.
She drew in a breath. So this is his power…
Naruto dusted his hands. "All right. Time to go home."
Konoha Village — The Day of the Chūnin Exams
The Five Great Ninja Villages had gathered. Even smaller nations — Grass, Rain, Sound, and Waterfall — had sent their best Genin.
The examinees were divided into three large testing halls.
In one of them, Rock Lee sat rigidly at his desk, his green jumpsuit gleaming under the lantern light. His leg bounced nervously as he scanned the crowd — strangers everywhere.
His teammates were far across the room.
"Damn it," he muttered under his breath. "If this were a fight, I'd be fine… but a written exam?" Sweat rolled down his face.
Across the room, the whispers had already started.
"Look at that guy in the green tights — what a joke."
"Konoha must be desperate if they're sending clowns like that."
"Don't laugh too soon. Did you see those three who came in earlier? Their aura was insane. I'm keeping my distance."
While the foreign Genin gossiped, the Konoha group sat quietly, focused — and strangely disciplined.
"Man," one Grass ninja murmured, "even their rookies feel like veterans. Since when did Konoha get this strong?"
"Must be that training method," another replied. Word is, it's all thanks to that "Demon King."
The first scoffed. "Tch, whatever. Every generation has its legends."
"Don't get cocky," his partner whispered. "You don't want that 'Demon King' hearing your name. He'll make you wish you'd never been born."
Across the room, a figure in a dark cloak smirked quietly to himself — the Kusagakure ninja, Orochimaru in disguise. His tongue flicked against his lips.
"So many fresh bodies… but only one truly interests me." His amber eyes gleamed. "Uzumaki Naruto. Such potential. Such perfection."
He chuckled softly. "I will have him."
The door slammed open.
A wave of killing intent swept through the room. The air went still.
A squad of Konoha proctors entered — grim, uniform, and disciplined. At their head was a tall, scar-faced man with a stare that could freeze lava.
"Quiet down," he barked. "My name is Morino Ibiki. I'll be your examiner for the first round of the Chūnin Selection Exams."
A chill rolled through the crowd.
Ibiki's gaze swept across the room like a blade. "Let's get one thing straight — fighting or sparring without my permission will result in immediate disqualification. Got it?"
No one spoke.
"Good," he said coldly. "Now sit up straight. The first round of the Chūnin Exams begins — now."
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