One month earlier.
In the mountain ranges of the Land of Lightning, Kumogakure stood at the peak of the highlands, perpetually shrouded beneath a mass of dark storm clouds. From time to time, blue-violet arcs of lightning flashed between the clouds.
Crack!
A blinding bolt of lightning struck, and the thick lightning rod atop the Raikage Building erupted with electric light.
The violent current coursed through the conductor, then was channeled into countless blue crystals throughout the village. Once the flow stabilized, it ran through a network of cables to power the entire Raikage Building.
Live off the mountain if you live by the mountain. Live off the water if you live by the water.
Kumogakure had already turned this harsh geography into an inexhaustible source of energy.
Of course, being able to use the endless lightning so conveniently depended on the help of lightning stones.
Bang!
Inside the Raikage's office, the Fourth Raikage, A, grew angrier the more he thought about it. He slammed a palm onto the desk so hard the whole room shook.
The moment he thought about the destroyed lightning crystal mine, the Black Lightning secret art, Yotsuki Tsuyoshi, and the others who had died, the fire in his chest became impossible to suppress.
Kumogakure had always been the one taking advantage of others. Since when had they ever suffered such a crushing loss?
Boom!
At that very moment, the office door was kicked open.
"Big bro, what did you call me for? Fool, yah fool!"
A dark-skinned rapper wearing sunglasses swaggered into the office. Even the way he spoke rose and fell with a rhythm, and his hands never stopped gesturing. That only made A's already foul mood even worse.
"B, you idiot! Who told you to kick the door open?"
"Sorry, big bro! Fool, yah fool!"
Even Killer B's apology came with his odd cadence. The "fool" at the end was not an insult but more like a habitual rhyme.
"Sigh."
A let out a long breath. He was helpless when it came to his brother's lack of seriousness. If not for how important this mission was, he would never have called him over.
Powerful, yes. Embarrassing to bring around, also yes.
"Konoha is holding a joint Chunin Exam with Sunagakure. Kumogakure is joining this time too. I'll be taking you with me. When we get there, pull yourself together and don't embarrass us. Got it?"
A's voice boomed like thunder, and the hair at his temples stood rigidly upright like a pair of yellow blades.
"Why are we going to take part in some exam held by Konoha and Suna? Fool…"
Crackle, crackle!
Seeing the electricity gathering under his brother's knife-hand, Killer B raised his brows and wisely swallowed the rest of that sentence.
"Hmph."
A shot him a glare, then canceled the poised "Lariat" and tossed a scroll from the edge of the desk straight into B's arms.
Killer B fumbled to catch it, quickly opened it, and began reading. The more he read, the more serious his expression became. For a moment, he even looked like the second strongest warrior in Kumogakure.
"Big bro, are we really going to wade into this muddy water?"
Behind the sunglasses, his eyes narrowed, his tone unexpectedly sober.
The moment Konoha came up, he thought of that Yellow Flash from the Third Shinobi War. Back when the AB Combo had been in high spirits, that man had stopped them cold and nearly crushed their momentum.
"Konoha's not easy prey."
"The Senju and Uchiha are both gone. Hiruzen Sarutobi is old and fading. The Yellow Flash is dead. Konoha is no longer the Konoha it used to be."
A bared his teeth in a cold laugh. Only when the Yellow Flash was mentioned did deep regret show on his face.
His proudest asset had always been his lightning-swift speed, yet when he ran into Namikaze Minato, master of the Flying Thunder God Technique, he had been forced to accept defeat in the very field he valued most.
Ever since then, he had secluded himself in the village and trained bitterly for years. But before he could settle the score with Minato, the man had died in the Nine-Tails incident.
It was infuriating.
Namikaze Minato, this time you will not be there to block the AB Combo.
Seeing the determination in his brother's eyes, Killer B nodded and said no more.
Kumogakure's strength came above all from the remarkable unity of its ninja. Among the great hidden villages, theirs had the fewest rogue ninja by far.
The reason was simple.
Every shinobi in Kumogakure cultivated the Lightning Release Chakra Mode. Whether they were civilians or clan members, all could train in this supreme secret art of Kumogakure. There were no distinctions of bloodline or pedigree.
Everyone trained the same secret art. The strong rose. The weak submitted.
Because all of them could feel clearly, through training, the natural gap in talent between one person and another, it was only natural for the weak to obey the decisions of the strong.
As long as one had enough talent and a strong enough fist, one could inherit the title of Raikage, A, without regard for bloodline, clan, or anything else. Everyone would accept it wholeheartedly.
Kumogakure was united because it was fair. It was sharp because it was united. It was strong because it was sharp.
They were like lightning gathered infinitely into a single point. A's will was the Will of Lightning. And the Will of Lightning was the will of every ninja in Kumogakure.
"Big bro, then who are we sending for the Chunin Exam?"
At B's question, A rubbed his chin with fingers as thick as rolling pins. After a moment's thought, he decided on the lineup.
"You'll come with me as my guard. For the advance team, Darui will lead Omoi, Karui, and Atsui."
Killer B's heart stirred.
There was no need to say much about Darui. He was unquestionably a top-tier elite jonin, inheritor of the Third Raikage's Black Lightning secret art and the Storm Release bloodline. His strength was formidable.
More importantly, he had a calm, steady personality. He was the perfect choice to lead a delegation and deal with Konoha.
As for the three genin taking the exam, B knew them better than anyone.
Omoi and Karui were his disciples, trained personally by him for years. Though they had only recently graduated from the Academy, both were already among the strongest of the chunin tier. If not for their age limiting the growth of their bodies and chakra, they would easily be tokubetsu jonin level already.
Atsui was Karui's younger brother, and he too possessed chunin-level ability.
Sending these monstrous prodigies to take the Chunin Exam in Konoha was clearly A's way of giving Konoha an opening warning.
"Oh! Time to show Konoha the strength of Kumogakure! Fool, yah fool!"
Killer B covered his mouth with one hand and his groin with the other, immediately returning to his "art."
A closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. A giant throbbing anger mark practically appeared on his forehead.
Half a second later!
"Lariat!"
"AAAAAH, BIG BRO!"
Killer B's scream was utterly miserable.
Meanwhile, in the Land of Water, Kirigakure.
The vast sea of mist that never changed kept the mountain-hidden city cloaked from view.
The three who had once secretly plotted a coup in a dark underground chamber were now seated openly in the bright Mizukage's office, discussing matters related to the Chunin Exam.
Lowering her eyes to the intelligence just delivered by the ANBU, Terumi Mei had long since shed the awkwardness of youth. She wore a striking blue dress that hugged her curving figure.
After reading the report several times, Mei thought for a moment, then looked at Genyo, seated across from her.
"For years, Kirigakure has been cut off on this island and barely interacts with the outside world. The number of missions we receive each year is pitiful. Many clients in the Land of Water would rather cross the sea and hire Konoha than come to the mysterious and dangerous Bloody Mist Village. Our development has been severely restricted."
She paused, then continued.
"I believe this joint Chunin Exam involving Konoha, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure is exactly the chance Kirigakure needs to reenter public view. I want Kirigakure's shinobi to participate and display our strength."
Her emerald eyes were full of conviction. Clearly, she had already made up her mind.
As the newly appointed Fifth Mizukage, the greatest reform she had tried to enact was ending the Bloody Mist system. Unfortunately, the results had been minimal. Kirigakure's deep-rooted illness had never been the fault of a single person like the Fourth Mizukage.
The village's elite-only policy had fostered vicious internal strife. Mei believed that instead of continuing to slaughter one another within this tiny place, Kirigakure's shinobi should be thrown outward to fight the shinobi of other villages.
Not all the blood of the Bloody Mist should come from their own people.
"This old man is a sinner of Kirigakure and dares not offer reckless words. Mizukage-sama, you may decide for yourself."
Genyo still looked as he always did, his eyes narrowed as if asleep. Yet now and then, the gleam hidden in that slit of an eye reminded others not to underestimate him.
That answer made Mei stiffen slightly.
After the Fourth Mizukage was revived, it took only a few days for the hidden backdoor left in his abdominal seal by a mysterious figure to come undone. The Three-Tails left his body and slipped into the deep sea, vanishing without a trace.
The Fourth Mizukage died on the spot.
At the time, Mei lacked seniority, and by all rights Genyo should have served as acting Mizukage.
But because both the Mizukage and the Kurihara siblings had disappeared one after another, many civilians suspected Genyo had murdered them. At just that same moment, an elite jonin from the ANBU died in the hospital under a bizarre and gruesome condition, causing a wave of rumors.
Soon, ugly stories linking Genyo and human experimentation spread throughout the village.
The office of acting Mizukage slipped entirely beyond his grasp, and that was what allowed Mei to take the position.
She could be said to have been the greatest beneficiary of the whole affair.
"Mizukage-sama, that is not what I meant. It was all the scheming of Kurihara's remnants."
The perceptive Ao saw Mei's awkwardness and quickly stepped in to defuse it.
Genyo also realized immediately that the implications of his words had been off, and hurried to explain.
"I truly meant nothing else. Since you have already become Mizukage, you need not consult me on every matter. Make your own decisions."
Only then did Mei relax, touching her lips lightly as she smiled.
"Since Genyo has no objections, then Kirigakure will participate in this joint Chunin Exam as well. During my absence, I ask that you take on the burden here."
"As is only proper."
Genyo bowed his head.
With Genyo managing the village, Mei felt reassured. She turned to Ao.
"You will lead the delegation to Konoha this time…"
"That… may not be a good idea, Mizukage-sama."
Ao gave a bitter smile and pointed to his eye.
If he walked into Konoha carrying a Byakugan taken from the Hyuga clan, no matter how one looked at it, it felt more like a provocation than a simple exam visit.
"Do not worry. This exam will gather shinobi from multiple nations. No matter how dissatisfied Konoha may be, they won't dare move against you."
Mei's green eyes were as deep as the sea.
After so much chaos, Kirigakure had lost all its tailed beasts. Its bloodline clans were nearly extinct. Various factions had torn each other apart. At this point, they could barely even field one truly respectable elite jonin.
Sending Ao was simply the best of poor options.
Fortunately, their younger generation was extraordinarily talented. They would absolutely stand at the forefront in the coming exam.
"Ao, take Ringo Ameyuri, Hozuki Suigetsu, and Chojuro to Konoha."
The names she spoke made both Genyo and Ao frown repeatedly.
These were Kirigakure prodigies with fearsome reputations. Even the weakest among them had tokubetsu jonin-level strength. Forget the Chunin Exams. They would have had a high chance of passing a full jonin promotion test.
"Isn't that lineup a little too strong?" Ao asked, worried. These were the village's future pillars. If they were targeted and eliminated by Konoha because they were too talented, that would be disastrous.
"This is a rare chance for Kirigakure. We must hit hard."
Mei's resolve was absolute. She was determined to produce results.
If you are not willing to risk the child, you won't catch the wolf.
If Kirigakure could seize the spotlight in front of the many hidden villages, then they would not have to worry about mission volume for the next ten years. More importantly, this would be a chance to build ties with foreign powers.
If they only sent weaklings, why would anyone take them seriously?
At last, in Iwagakure, nestled in the rocky mountains and clustered stone valleys…
Onoki held the intelligence report in one hand, his bulbous nose especially red.
"A Chunin Exam joined by four great villages and a pile of little countries… Then Iwagakure has to go too."
"Father, we do have to go…"
Kitsuchi scratched his scalp, more than a little annoyed by the whole troublesome affair.
He did not want to go, but he had no choice.
If all five great villages participated except theirs, and the other four ended up forming some kind of alliance, Iwagakure would be the one left isolated.
Onoki naturally knew Iwagakure could not afford to be absent. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind before he gave his instructions.
"Kitsuchi, you stay and guard the village. Han and I will lead the team to the Chunin Exam."
"Understood, Father."
Kitsuchi nodded at once.
Onoki was very reassured leaving the village in his son's hands. Kitsuchi might be large, plain-looking, and a little dim, but his personal strength was immense. His Earth Release was powerful enough to suppress tailed beasts. He was one of Iwagakure's few high-end combatants.
As for Han, as the Five-Tails jinchuriki, he excelled at raw destruction. If Konoha made any suspicious move, Onoki would have Han transform on the spot. Then Konoha would once again experience the pain of a tailed beast attack.
"Father, have you decided on the candidates for the exam?"
Kitsuchi scratched his head. The lead ninja and the one staying behind were decided, but when it came to the genin candidates, he could not think of anyone.
This generation of genin truly lacked standout prodigies.
For a moment, even Onoki could not think of suitable genin. He scratched his head too. Like the others, Iwagakure was suffering from a severe problem of generational weakness.
"Send Kurotsuchi… and Akatsuchi."
After thinking for a long while, those were the only two names he managed to produce.
Kitsuchi shook his head.
"Kurotsuchi was already promoted to chunin last year and is now preparing for tokubetsu jonin. Akatsuchi has long been preparing for the jonin promotion exam."
Hearing his son's objection, Onoki instantly pursed his lips.
"What is wrong with sending chunin to a Chunin Exam? What problem is there?"
"This…"
Kitsuchi's brain was as solid as a block of stone. If that had not been the case, Onoki would have stepped down long ago and let him inherit the office.
Casting a helpless glance at his disappointing son, Onoki's tiny body slowly floated up from his seat as he stared out the window.
Rocky wasteland, hanging cliffs, barren terrain. Iwagakure's environment was no kinder than that of Sunagakure or Kumogakure.
"Do you believe me when I say that in this Chunin Exam, not a single contestant from the Five Great Villages will be weaker than Kurotsuchi?"
Onoki stood with his hands behind his back, his frame slightly hunched.
He did not know how many more years he would be able to fight.
At the very least, while he still could, he wanted Iwagakure's future to go out and see how vast the world truly was.
Back in Konoha…
"That's the situation."
Hiruzen Sarutobi laid the matter out in full to Konome, the current power behind Root.
"First, the Land of Lightning responded to the joint Chunin Exam for no apparent reason. Then Kirigakure and Iwagakure joined in too. After that, Otogakure, Kusagakure, and a whole host of smaller villages actively signed on. And so, for the first time in history, an all-shinobi-world joint Chunin Exam is about to be held in Konoha."
The more Hiruzen spoke, the more troubled he looked.
At the thought of the coming Chunin Exam, he had been struggling even to sleep.
All five Kage would be gathering in Konoha, and alongside them would come their guards, leading jonin, elite jonin, and Kage-level warriors. There would be so many that one could not count them on both hands.
If chaos erupted inside the village, Konoha itself could be destroyed.
And yet if he backed down now and canceled the exam, Konoha's credibility would collapse with it.
This Chunin Exam was an extraordinarily thorny problem.
Here is the clean translation of the chapter title as well:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't forget to add this story to your Library, drop a review, and leave a Power Stone if you enjoyed it!
Craving more chapters? Join my Patron to unlock advance releases and dive deeper into the story!
[email protected]/_theon
Change @ to "a"