Mei found the situation rather unexpected, but she quickly adjusted her mindset.
After all, both she and Jie had risen to the positions of Mizukage and Hokage at roughly the same time. This batch of genin participating in the Chunin Exams was, for all intents and purposes, the first generation personally cultivated under their leadership.
Because of that, Mei was genuinely curious.
Were the Hidden Mist genin she had trained stronger, or were the Konoha genin raised by Jie Uchiha superior?
Meanwhile, after hearing the Cloud ninja's report, a faint smile appeared on Jie's face.
The three genin were finally getting to work.
It was a pity they hadn't encountered shinobi from the Hidden Stone, but in the end, it made little difference. Using the Hidden Mist as an example would still serve as an excellent deterrent to the other villages.
What interested Jie more was how thoroughly those three would carry out their task, and what kind of surprise they might bring him.
Meanwhile, deep within the forest, Team 7 silently watched the direction of the approaching chakra signatures.
After a brief wait, a squad of Hidden Mist shinobi finally stepped out from the foliage and appeared before them.
"Konoha ninja?"
Seeing that the three kids hadn't fled, a hint of surprise flashed across the Mist ninjas' faces.
But that surprise quickly turned into unconcealed excitement.
"Hahaha! We searched all over for them, only for them to walk right into our hands!"
"The others spent forever looking and found nothing, yet we run into them this easily."
As they looked at the trio's young faces, cruel smiles slowly spread across the Mist shinobi's expressions.
Jie had openly disregarded the Hidden Mist and had even caused their respected senior, Ao, to lose his precious Byakugan. Now that they finally had a chance, they naturally wanted to avenge Ao and reclaim some honor for their village.
Besides, this was the Chunin Exams. Casualties were nothing unusual.
Even if these three brats died here, it would only mean they lacked the strength to survive. No village could use that as an excuse to start an international conflict.
"I'll take the blond one. You two handle the others," one Mist ninja said to his teammates.
"Tch, you really know how to pick," another complained.
"That blond brat is obviously the strongest." Afraid the best target would be taken, he quickly added... "In that case, the black-haired one is mine."
"Then I'll take the girl." The final Mist shinobi slowly pulled a kunai from his pouch, a twisted grin spreading across his face.
"Breaking weak prey is always fun."
Although Mei had already begun reforming Kirigakure, the brutality of the old "Blood Mist" era clearly hadn't disappeared completely.
"What are those Mist guys talking about?" Naruto asked, scratching his head in confusion as he glanced at Sasuke. "Why aren't they attacking yet? Did they get scared after realizing how strong we are?"
"Idiot," Sasuke replied mercilessly. "Anyone can tell they're deciding who fights who."
"Oh, so that's what's happening?" Naruto slapped his forehead in realization. Then his face darkened.
"Man, these guys are seriously annoying!"
Hinata silently nodded in agreement with Sasuke. Possessing the Thousand-Pupil Byakugan, her perception far surpassed Sasuke's while his Sharingan remained dormant. By reading the Mist ninjas' lips, she had already understood their conversation perfectly.
'Breaking weak prey is always fun...'
Hinata's gaze gradually turned cold.
'People like that shouldn't be allowed to exist.'
At that moment, the three Mist shinobi finally finished choosing their targets. Their savage eyes locked onto the Konoha trio.
"Die, Konoha brats!"
With manic roars, the Mist ninja gripped their kunai tightly and charged straight at the three genin.
The moment the enemy moved, Team 7 immediately became alert.
This was their first time fighting shinobi from another village. Although their opponents were also genin, they were clearly much older and physically more mature.
The trio knew their age placed them at a disadvantage in terms of raw physical strength, so they raised their guard to the maximum from the very start.
However, the moment they saw the detailed movements of the charging Mist ninja, the exact same thought surfaced in all three of their minds at once.
'…That's it?'
Not only were the attackers slow, but their movements were sloppy and full of openings, completely lacking any real sense of danger. In a single glance, the three genin could already think of dozens of ways to take them down.
Sasuke's thoughts raced.
'Could this be a trap? Are they deliberately exposing openings to lure us into attacking?'
He drew in a sharp breath.
'Terrifying… So this is the level of shinobi from other villages? To scheme this deeply despite only being genin…'
With that thought in mind, Sasuke immediately activated his three-tomoe Sharingan, preparing for the possibility that the Mist ninja might suddenly unleash hidden strength.
At almost the exact same moment, Hinata activated her Thousand-Pupil Byakugan, while wisps of ominous red Nine-Tails chakra slowly began leaking from Naruto's body.
Although countless thoughts seemed to pass through Sasuke and Hinata's enhanced perception, to the Mist ninja, only a brief instant had gone by.
The three older genin instantly closed the distance, rushing straight toward the children.
"Die, Konoha ninja!"
"The Hidden Mist is the strongest village in the ninja world!"
"This year's Chunin titles will belong to the Mist!"
Seeing their targets already within reach, triumphant and cruel smiles spread across the attackers' faces.
"Chidori!"
"Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"
"Gentle Fist: Thunderclap Eight Trigrams!"
Facing what they believed to be a dangerous and highly deceptive assault, Team 7 didn't dare hold back in the slightest. The trio immediately unleashed the strongest techniques they could use.
A series of heavy, muffled impacts echoed through the forest.
The three Mist shinobi were blasted away like broken ragdolls, their eyes filled with utter disbelief.
'T-Too strong…'
'So this is the power of Konoha ninja…?'
'I have to warn the others… no matter what, don't provoke Konoha…'
Those final thoughts flashed through their minds before darkness swallowed their vision completely. The three bodies slammed heavily into the ground and stopped moving.
For a moment, the forest fell silent.
Looking at the aftermath of their attacks, the trio stared at one another in confusion.
"So… were those Mist ninja just really weak?" Naruto asked after a long silence, scratching his head as the Nine-Tails chakra around him slowly faded. "Or are shinobi from the other villages all this weak?"
Hearing that, Sasuke subconsciously nodded as his Sharingan slowly disappeared.
"They really did seem weak," he admitted. "Or maybe… we're just too strong?"
Hinata didn't join the conversation.
Looking at the Mist shinobi she had blasted several meters away with a single strike, excitement flickered through her pale eyes.
'I'm finally strong enough to help Brother Jie.'
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