Chapter 49: The Trial Begins

The white-haired man stood before everyone, wearing an extremely kind smile on his face. However, among the crowd, including Minato and a few others, they vaguely sensed the sharp edge in his eyes, as piercing as a blade, cutting straight through one's heart.

"It's actually Sakumo Hatake!"

Not far from Minato and the others, Nawaki's tone carried a hint of excitement. Minato followed his voice and asked, "Big Brother Nawaki, what's the background of our chief examiner?"

Nawaki turned his head and said with a tone of admiration, "Sakumo Hatake, a super genius from the small Hatake clan of Konoha, his swordsmanship is unparalleled in the ninja world. His name is even known by ninjas from other countries. It's said that he became a Jonin in Konoha at only thirteen years old."

This simple introduction made Minato's heart skip a beat. Jonin was the true core of the village, and even his teacher, Jiraiya, only became a Jonin at fourteen years old.

Seeming to know what Minato was thinking, Nawaki added, "My sister said that apart from the Third Hokage, Sakumo Hatake's strength is the most unfathomable in the village, and he's the strongest person besides the Third. Even she, Jiraiya, and Big Brother Orochimaru are a little inferior to him."

Minato didn't expect that the young man before them was so formidable. The fact that he was appointed as the chief examiner for this trial showed how much importance the village leadership placed on it.

Among the crowd, those from major clans, such as the two Hyuga brothers, Uchiha Homura, and Mikoto, had obviously heard of the man before them, and their expressions inadvertently showed surprise.

However, most of the students had varied expressions, with many looking anxious because the Forest of Death they saw through the iron fence in front of them was too ominous.

At this time, Sakumo Hatake spoke, "Regarding the rules of the ninja ability trial, I won't waste any more words. In front of you is this trial's venue, the Forest of Death, with a total of 44 entrances. Next, we will assign your positions, and you will enter the venue through these entrances."

"Some of you may know that this place is often used as the venue for the Chunin Exams, but with your overall quality, you naturally do not meet the requirements for that level of examination. Therefore, this trial is simply a test of your abilities."

"The rules are simple. Within the three-day period, you just need to continuously defeat your opponents. The last ten remaining can pass this trial."

After understanding the rules, most students from the ninja academy had looks of despair on their faces because their opponents this time included not only students but also actual ninjas. Such rules were simply imbalanced.

Upon hearing this, Minato suddenly felt admiration for the person who formulated these rules because passing this trial required more than just pure combat ability.

These rules meant that even if you hid in the Forest of Death for three days, as long as you were one of the last ten remaining, you would pass.

So, it wasn't just testing their combat abilities.

Many of the Genin, on the other hand, were all smiling because, in their eyes, the students from the ninja academy were not even worth considering as opponents.

"Three days? Then what will we eat in there?" someone asked at this time.

Sakumo Hatake smiled slightly and said, "That depends on your own abilities to find food."

For those Genin, this was still acceptable since they had become ninjas for nearly a year. Although most of them had not carried out particularly high-level missions, they all had some experience with outdoor survival.

However, Minato and the others were different; they had absolutely no experience in this regard. If they had to find food in the wild themselves, they might not even be able to tell if the food was poisonous or not.

"Hehe, Kushina, Minato, follow me after we enter the Forest of Death," Mikoto said with a confident smile, seeing the troubled expressions on the two.

Since childhood, she had not only received combat training within her clan but also studied various aspects required to become an outstanding ninja.

Among the crowd, there were intermittent sighs of despair, with most not harboring any hope of passing.

Although the trial lasted three days, simply trying to survive would not be so easy.

"Everyone, try to stick together after entering the Forest of Death. Our opponents are all Genin with some experience," Minato said to his classmates nearby. After briefly considering the rules, he realized that sticking together would be the most effective and safest method for most of the students from the ninja academy.

He asked each classmate to spread his idea, even though they were all competitors at this time. Still, Minato wanted to ensure that every student could demonstrate their true abilities and not be eliminated without a fair chance.

Minato's actions caught the attention of the chief examiner, Sakumo Hatake. Before taking on this role, the Third Hokage had given him a task and mentioned this child's name.

To quickly find the flexibility within the rules and share his plan with those around him.

"Jiraiya's disciple?" Sakumo narrowed his eyes, then said loudly to everyone, "In the Forest of Death, everything depends on you. The only thing the village can guarantee is that you won't die in there. Work hard to avoid suffering and pass this trial to receive the rewards!"

"Now, start forming groups!" After Sakumo finished speaking, the ten Chunin began randomly dividing everyone into groups, seemingly without any prior planning.

"Minato, this time we're opponents. If I encounter you, I won't go easy on you," Nawaki said from the side, but he still extended his arm and smiled at Minato.

"Senior Nawaki, I won't lose easily either!" Minato stretched out his arm and fist-bumped him, smiling.

On the other side, Uchiha Homura's gaze never left Minato for a moment.

Afterward, the ten Chunin divided the nearly three hundred people into more than forty groups and led them to different areas.

The participants also entered the Forest of Death at different times.

Minato and Kushina were assigned to the same group, while Mikoto was placed in a different group.

A Chunin led a group of about thirty people, with four different groups, opening different entrances for them. In front of Minato and Kushina, more than twenty people had entered the trial grounds.

Minato and Kushina were the last group. When the Chunin opened the final iron gate, Kushina nervously grabbed Minato's hand. He gave her a reassuring look.

This was undoubtedly the Third Hokage's intentional arrangement, and Minato had to protect Kushina.

The ninja ability trial officially began!

(End of Chapter)