A towering, mountain-like figure, with a square, rugged face.Just looking at him, no one would ever guess that the person standing there — wearing the Iwagakure forehead protector — was actually a 14-year-old genius from Iwagakure.
Gōdo!
A figure with an outstanding combat record.Was this the shinobi world's version of "speak of the devil and he appears"?
"Here you go."Honda Taka, Akira Sato's stocky teammate, smoothly completed the transaction.Once he got the intelligence manual, Gōdo immediately flipped to the last pages, to the rankings.
He had come here after hearing about the intelligence manual along the way.
"…Has my information been leaked?"After reading his own entry, Gōdo couldn't help but think this.His information was supposed to be under strict lock and key.He hadn't expected anyone to leak it.
It had to be the work of either the Sand or Leaf Villages!Those two villages knowing his details wasn't surprising; now they were simply spreading it through third-party channels.
And why was he so sure?Because they were doing the exact same thing — leaking details about Konoha and Suna's examinees.
Each of the great ninja villages had been releasing information, but the intelligence manual was by far the fastest and most influential.Thanks to its clear evaluation system, anyone could instantly understand a ninja's strengths and abilities.In the past, you'd have to pore over detailed reports just to get a rough sense of an unfamiliar opponent.
Brilliant.Whoever came up with this evaluation framework was an absolute genius.
"Captain! This time, we'll make sure the entire shinobi world knows that Iwagakure's genius is second to none!"One of the Iwa-nin, fired up after seeing their team's ranking, clenched his fists with excitement.Yeah — until now, the spotlight had always been on the talents from other villages. Finally, it was Iwa's turn to shine.
Iwagakure had always been known for unity and rock-hard stubbornness, not for nurturing prodigies — but now they finally had someone who could outshine the top talents from all the other villages.
Pride and excitement filled every Iwa-nin present.
In the shinobi world, honor meant everything.The big villages never spared any effort in promoting their own prodigies, even though standing out painted a big target on their backs.Why? Because the benefits for the village were massive.
To put it in perspective:The five great shinobi villages were essentially the five biggest mercenary companies.A genius was like the "star mercenary" — plenty of clients would specifically hire the village because of the reputation tied to that ninja.
You only truly understood this once you were inside the ninja world.That's why, even though promoting a genius attracted danger, the villages kept doing it — the rewards were just too great.
"Tch, you really think you're the strongest just because of some dumb ranking? How naïve!"A voice sneered as a Suna-nin, wearing a Sand forehead protector and flanked by a male and female teammate, approached.
Oh right — he was holding an intelligence manual too.Akira Sato quickly realized: this was the person ranked second — the genius from Sunagakure.
Of course, the great villages could consistently produce prodigies.With their vast resources and populations, small villages simply couldn't compete.Even if a small village had someone equally talented, they'd never gain the same fame.
For the small villages, the joint Chūnin Exams were the best chance they had.If a talented ninja made a name for themselves here, they'd not only gain personal benefits but also bring a flood of commissions and rewards back to their home village.That's why, even knowing the joint exams were a brutal meat grinder, the small villages kept sending teams every time.
"Maki."Gōdo spoke the name flatly, and a heavy wave of killing intent radiated from his body, almost strong enough to crush the air.
Remember: in the shinobi world, "killing intent" wasn't just a figure of speech — it was a real, tangible force.In the future, Orochimaru would use killing intent to freeze even elite jōnin like Kakashi, and back when Sasuke was still a genin, it would paralyze him completely.
Right now, Gōdo's killing intent wasn't quite at that level — but it was still intense.Only someone who had killed many could generate that kind of presence.
It was clear: Iwagakure was dead set on promoting their genius to the top.And what better stage to do that than the joint Chūnin Exams?
Who knew — maybe Iwagakure had kept Gōdo's existence a secret all this time precisely so he could make a stunning debut here.
As the tension between the two squads escalated, all the non-ninja nearby quietly backed away.Villagers in shinobi villages were used to seeing ninja — if this were any ordinary village, people would have bolted the moment things got tense.
But Akira Sato and his two teammates stayed right at their stall, munching on snacks and watching the show.
Akira's eyes locked onto the incoming Suna-nin.Maki!He vaguely remembered this guy — the future squad leader of Suna's main team.He hadn't expected Maki to be so famous in his youth, or to have such a brash, arrogant personality — completely unlike the calm and composed figure he'd become later.
Then again, it made sense.Anyone destined to become an elite jōnin wouldn't have been some unknown nobody as a teenager.Shinobi wasn't a profession with "late bloomers."Prodigies and strong fighters showed their colors early — only rare exceptions like Obito or Naruto suddenly exploded in strength after graduation.
"Gōdo!"Maki took a step forward, meeting Gōdo's killing intent head-on without flinching.Their teammates moved into flanking positions, the tension sharp and electric.
Suddenly—
A cold, piercing killing intent sliced through the standoff, cutting across both groups like a blade.
A little white-haired figure, masked and sharp-eyed, was calmly walking toward the stall.
Kakashi!He had arrived.
And no, it wasn't a coincidence.With the Chūnin Exams starting tomorrow, plenty of examinees were wandering around gathering intelligence — this street was a common route.
"Well, looks like everyone's here now," Honda Taka murmured under his breath.
Akira Sato and Yamashiro Koji, who had just finished reading the intelligence manual, instantly understood.He was referring to the top three geniuses on the ranking list — all gathered in one spot.
"Kakashi…?"Both Gōdo and Maki spoke his name at the same time, their eyes flashing with barely suppressed killing intent.
The name of Konoha's "super genius," the son of Sakumo Hatake, was one they had heard plenty about.In fact, one of their explicit missions during the joint Chūnin Exams was to eliminate prodigies from rival villages — and Kakashi was right at the top of the hit list.
Especially for Maki.Sunagakure despised and feared Kakashi.In the last Great Ninja War, Sakumo Hatake's short sword had slaughtered countless Suna-nin.Now his son, already a prodigy, was rising — how could Suna not see him as a threat?
If Maki ever got the chance, he'd gladly wipe out this hidden danger for his village.
Unfortunately, they all knew: flashing a bit of killing intent was fine, but actually making a move was impossible.Did they think the ANBU and Uchiha patrol squads lurking nearby were just for decoration?
Anyone who dared attack would be instantly arrested, no questions asked.The Uchiha clan didn't mess around when it came to maintaining order.
"This time, the Chūnin Exam champion will be us — Iwagakure!"Gōdo declared in a calm, confident voice.
"Hmph! Don't kid yourself. The winner will be Sunagakure!"Maki shot back, sharp and defiant.
"Boring."Kakashi tossed out the word casually, then turned to the stall where Akira Sato and Yamashiro Koji were still watching."Minato-sensei sent me to call you two."
With that, he turned and walked away, as if none of the tension mattered to him at all.His cool, detached aura was maxed out.
No wonder Sasuke would one day become a master of brooding cool — clearly, he had role models.When the teacher knows how to play it cool, the students naturally follow suit.
(End of Chapter)