Chapter 30: Do you want to know my name?

Although that was said, Yakushi Kabuto still generously displayed his card.

Seven years as a Genin, with an impressive resume. He has completed 163 D-rank missions and 28 C-rank missions.

He is a very standard old Genin, an unremarkable mediocrity.

When the person being questioned provides evidence, it cannot be entirely trusted.

However, being able to produce it does say something.

A resume is hard to fake; seven years of experience have been watched by many eyes.

So...

He is unwilling to show his strength, but has to accompany his teammates for the exam?

It's reasonable to befriend the village's geniuses.

Rock Lee is an outstanding Taijutsu ninja, and his data is firmly memorized by Sasuke.

The Sand Village Jinchūriki's name is Gaara, and information about him is not detailed, only mission records.

Besides these few individuals,

Naruto discovered some other interesting targets.

A few ninjas wearing "Sound Village" forehead protectors kept their eyes on Sasuke.

A red-haired female ninja from the Grass Village gave Naruto an inexplicable sense of familiarity with her chakra.

The first exam soon began.

It was a written test.

The rules were somewhat peculiar, clearly a method to test individual abilities, yet the final score was evaluated as a team.

And the rules relatively encouraged "cheating."

In the exam, if "cheating" was "caught," two points would be deducted each time, meaning... until the fifth time, the candidate would not be disqualified.

Besides the familiar faces of "Izumo" and "Kotetsu" among the candidates, there were some ninjas with chakra far exceeding the Genin level who proficiently answered the questions as soon as the exam started.

Undoubtedly, they had the answers and served as reference targets to encourage candidates to cheat.

So, the true content of this exam was not entirely about the mastery of "knowledge."

But rather about the ability to gather information without being detected as much as possible.

The final question, posed by the examiner "Morino Ibiki," used the harsh condition of "forever being a Genin" to pressure and screen out ninjas who lacked confidence in their intelligence-gathering abilities.

The second exam followed immediately.

The examiner was a flamboyant woman who broke in through the window with great flair.

She took them to the next exam site.

"I am the examiner for this round, Mitarashi Anko." She spoke boldly, her voice as hearty as her actions, "The second round is simple: it's a survival test!"

She explained the rules.

Each team would randomly carry either a "Heaven" or "Earth" scroll. The ultimate goal was to collect both types of scrolls and reach the central tower of the training field within five days.

Naruto wasn't very interested in these details; his gaze was fixed on a Grass Village ninja.

This person was tall, wearing a conical hat with short streamers inscribed with the word "悪 (Evil)" three times, long hair down to the waist, with an effeminate demeanor.

This person...

He had a vague impression; he had glanced at him briefly while observing the red-haired female ninja.

He remembered that the person's chakra wasn't this strong back then.

But now,

It was extremely dazzling, even surpassing Gaara. It was even superior to Hatake Kakashi, among the many ninjas Naruto had encountered, only Sarutobi Hiruzen could compare.

Such a significant change.

Was it some special concealment technique?

Or...

The Grass ninja was exceptionally perceptive.

Almost instantly, he sensed Naruto's gaze, moved his eyes away from Mitarashi Anko, turned his head, grinned, and flicked his tongue.

The second exam officially began, and each team was guided to their respective entrances.

When the time came, the examiner gave the order.

The candidates entered the exam site—the 44th training ground, also known as the "Forest of Death."

"What should we do?" Haruno Sakura peeked around, holding a kunai, a bit nervous.

Sasuke looked at the other person in their team: "Naruto can sense chakra. With our strength, no team should be a match for us. Let's randomly pick one, gather the Heaven and Earth scrolls, and quickly head to the tower."

Naruto shook his head: "Gaara is a tough guy."

"And just now... that Grass ninja's chakra is also formidable."

Sasuke was taken aback.

"Formidable?"

He would actually use this term to describe it.

What kind of level is that...

"Let's go find someone first," Naruto said, extending his hand to sense the chaotic flow of energy from all directions. "I'm a bit curious about her."

"Her?"

This surprised both Sasuke and Sakura.

Naruto didn't seem like someone who would be interested in girls at this moment.

"What kind of girl?" Sakura asked. "Is she from our village?"

She thought for a moment.

It couldn't be Ino.

Then it must be... the eldest daughter of the Hyuga clan from Team 8, who is almost invisible but has a remarkable status?

"It's a kunoichi from the Grass Village whom I saw during the exam," Naruto answered cheerfully, "the red-haired one."

As soon as he mentioned her, both of them immediately remembered.

Red hair was too distinctive.

"Her chakra feels somewhat familiar to me," Naruto continued. "I want to ask her if she has any connection to me."

Sasuke asked softly, "A member of your clan, Naruto?"

"Probably," Naruto nodded.

They moved through the dense forest, occasionally hearing the sounds of ninja techniques being released or the agonizing cries of those in battle, as some teams had already encountered and fought each other.

However, along the way, no one bothered them.

Even though Naruto and his team were among the youngest and seemingly the easiest to bully.

But...

They had the aura of strong individuals, so most did not consider them as "prey."

Suddenly.

Naruto stopped.

Sasuke and Sakura also halted in succession.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto stared at a seemingly ordinary spot under a tree: "Come out, Grass ninja. With your strength, do you still need to ambush us?"

In response to his words, the earth surged.

As it rose, it gradually formed into a human shape: "Such sharp senses."

"You still saw through it?"

He extended his hand, revealing a scroll with the Chinese character "Earth" written on it: "Mine is the Earth Scroll, what's yours?"

"May I take a look?"

Naruto raised his hand, gripping the handle of his blade: "Do you still need to make up such lies?"

"I doubt you're a genin participating in the exam."

"But rather someone who infiltrated for a special purpose."

"Who is your target?"

"Me?"

"Or Sasuke?"

The Grass ninja looked at him in astonishment: "What's your name?"

He had already vaguely confirmed an answer in his heart.

Blond hair, from Konoha, sharp intuition...

"Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto answered. "It seems your target is Sasuke."

"After the Sharingan, are you?"

The Grass ninja laughed loudly.

Indeed.

The surname "Uzumaki"… is the child of Namikaze Minato.

"Interesting," his tone relaxed. "I never expected to encounter such a surprise upon returning to the village."

"Have you been targeting me since before the second exam started?"

Naruto interrupted him: "As a courtesy, shouldn't you give your name?"

"My name?" The Grass ninja stuck out his unusually long and exaggerated tongue, lightly licking his lips. Two prominent teeth, sharp like fangs, made his whole demeanor even more sinister, like a snake: "If you want to know, show me your capability."

"Let me see if you're qualified."

Chakra surged.

Killing intent filled the air, birds and insects fled in terror.

Sasuke's eyes widened, instinctively raising a hand to his forehead.

He felt...

like he was already dead.