Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 193 A Fleeting Show of Bloodshed

Class 7 is moving forward very quickly.

Sasuke's Sharingan can see through all hidden dangers, including poisonous insects, snakes, and traps.

Naruto's [Kagura Mind's Eye] allows him to grasp a large-scale situation and provide early warnings of battle.

Sakura Haruno's superhuman strength can sweep away all obstacles.

Moreover, Naruto Uzumaki is the strongest and most approachable, enough to unite the three genin into one. With their combined efforts, they are even closer to the finish line than Darui's team from Kumogakure.

Suddenly, Naruto sensed a presence that was both strange and familiar.

The other party also had the attitude of "Kagura's Mind's Eye". Although it was not fully awakened, it instinctively resisted after being observed by Naruto, forming a spherical blind spot.

Naruto Uzumaki signaled, "Stop!"

Sasuke and Sakura quickly changed from a single column of marching troops to a triangular formation for defense and vigilance.

Before his teammates could ask, Naruto spoke up, "I've discovered a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, and he's very talented. At the very least, he possesses the [Kagura Mind's Eye] that's about to awaken naturally."

97

Sakura Haruno exclaimed in surprise, "It was a natural awakening? His talent is truly outstanding?"

Sasuke Uchiha said, "Let's find him and turn him into a Konoha ninja."

Naruto Uzumaki nodded: "That's what I think too."

Sakura Haruno agreed: "Then let's hurry, so nothing unexpected happens."

Next, they reverted to a marching column, this time with Naruto Uzumaki leading the way, Sakura Haruno bringing up the rear, and Sasuke Uchiha deactivating his Sharingan to relieve fatigue.

Their decision stemmed from the teachings of the Fifth Hokage, Natsume: interests are more important than reputation; the Uzumaki clan was once an ally of Konoha, and unless they have become clear enemies, they should be rescued.

For the descendants of the Uzumaki clan who were able to participate in the Chunin Exams, there was no happier life than being a Konoha ninja.

What? The descendants of the Uzumaki clan are opposed by the original ninja village?

Are there still any stubborn ninja villages that dare to oppose Konoha's demands? Do they have a death wish?

If you hand over the person honestly, nothing will happen. If you dare to refuse, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha won't hesitate to send them to their deaths.

Afterwards, the Fifth Hokage would happily go out and completely crush this ignorant village into dust.

Apart from the four great ninja villages with profound historical foundations and a united people, the smaller ninja villages, after suffering such a devastating disaster, had no choice but to disband and disappear.

The Grass Village of the Land of Grass has been destroyed several times, but it has been able to rebuild each time.

However, a closer look reveals that while each rebuilt Grass Ninja Village maintains its consistent "cheapness," the people are completely replaced, and there is absolutely no connection between the rebuilt and previous Grass Ninja Villages.

The unique characteristics of Kusanagi-nin are not due to the nature of humanity, but rather determined by its unique geographical and cultural environment.

The Grass Ninja operate between the four great nations, but unlike the Land of Rain, which is the main battlefield, they must be cunning and treacherous, betraying information from all sides, stealing any ninjutsu they can access, and deceiving talented children.

Those ninja who couldn't bring themselves to cheat and swindle were either wiped out by the wary ninjas of the major powers, or starved to death in poverty.

The Grass Ninja Village squad was fleeing for their lives, pursued by a squad of Genin from Rain Ninja Village.

To ensure a high elimination rate, Xia Zuo did not eliminate the competition for passes. All genin teams still had to fight to seize passes from other teams, and they also had to collect both yin and yang to pass the second round of exams.

These small ninja villages dared not attack the five great ninja villages; they could only fight amongst themselves.

When the Rain Ninja Team discovered a Grass Ninja Team and, after testing them, confirmed that the opponent's strength was far inferior, the Rain Ninja Team members were simply overjoyed.

Because Nagato didn't want to waste precious talent, and he couldn't send mediocre people to Konoha and anger the Fifth Hokage, Konan chose teams that were decent in strength but morally questionable.

Such ninjas would never let go of a weakling, no matter what.

Once they obtain the pass, they can conceal themselves and head towards the finish line, greatly increasing their chances of passing the exam alive.

After that, no matter what, they could become Chunin, and the opportunity for promotion and a raise was right in front of them, so how could they not work hard?

But sometimes hard work doesn't guarantee success; it can even lead to disaster.

It's hard to say who's the strongest in the Grass Ninja Team, but the weakest is definitely Xiang, who's always hungry and gets her blood sucked.

So she was the first to fall after being chased by the Rain Ninja Squad.

After Xiang fell, the two grass ninjas didn't even look at her and took the opportunity to speed up and escape.

Incense's healing abilities are precious, but if you use even the most precious healing abilities for free for too long, the Grass Ninja will habitually overlook their rarity.

It's like a towel that's already dirty; you don't feel any heartache at all if you throw it away.

It can also draw the enemy's attention, which is even better.

The two Grass Ninja genin ran away quickly, and the three Rain Ninja were also very tired. Even though they knew that the pass should be with the escaping ninja, they still stopped, grabbed Xiang, and began to interrogate her.

Kaori had absolutely no loyalty to the Grass Ninja Village, and when questioned by the Rain Ninja, she told them everything.

She pleaded, "Don't kill me! I know medical ninjutsu; I'm very useful."

The leader of the Rain Ninjas angrily retorted, "We're not injured, we don't need treatment at all! What we want is a pass!"

Another Rain Ninja asked, "Could you... get a pass?"

Xiang cried and said, "I'm just an unwanted medical ninja. They just abandoned me when they ran away. How could they possibly exchange my pass for me?"

The second Rain Ninja sneered, "If you can't be replaced, it means you're useless."

"Useless trash, just die."

Rain Ninja raised the umbrella in her hand, and the sharp blade of the umbrella ribs sprang out with a "whoosh" and stabbed down towards Xiang's neck.

Xiang ran until her limbs were sore and weak, unable to escape or resist. She could only close her eyes in despair and wait for death to come.

But the umbrella-shaped blade stopped at Xiang's neck, only piercing it a little bit. However, the cold blade and the fear of hovering between life and death tormented Xiang.

Rain Ninja sighed bitterly, "Sigh, she really is a useless piece of trash. Kill her, then we'll go after the Grass Ninja. We must wipe them all out today and get the pass!"

The leader of the Rain Ninja adjusted his straw hat and said, "Alright, kill them."

The second Rain Ninja raised his umbrella weapon again and swung it down forcefully, this time without holding back.

Just then, Sakura Haruno's voice rang out, asking, "Naruto, what do we do?"

Naruto Uzumaki coldly replied, "Kill them all."

Sakura Haruno: "Okay."

Before the terrified Rain Ninja could react, the pink-haired girl had already switched personalities, exuding a cold and heroic aura, and rushed towards the Rain Ninja with murderous intent.

Her fair and delicate little hands clenched into fists and slammed them down on the umbrella that was being swung downwards with lightning speed.

With a loud clang, the steel umbrella instantly disintegrated, its canopy shattering into pieces, and its steel components, such as the ribs, shaft, and springs, breaking apart.

The shattered metal parts, like shrapnel, pierced the surrounding trees and soil, and also entered the bodies of the three Rain Ninja, instantly knocking them down.

Xiang was also within the range of the shrapnel, but Naruto appeared in front of her, and with a swift movement of his hands, he caught all the shrapnel in his grasp.

In a secluded room, Xia Zuo noticed the scene captured by the surveillance camera. His eyes flashed, and he activated Magnet Release to freeze the image on the relevant screen, then replayed an earlier scene that had no ninjas at all.

Xia Zuo did not conceal the fluctuations of his Magnet Release chakra, which immediately attracted the attention of several ninjas around him.

Orochimaru slightly raised his eyes, Tsunade paused in her drinking, and Kakashi Hatake and Izumi Uchiha suddenly stood up and looked at Xia Zuo.

Uchiha Shisui not only stood up immediately, but also knelt down on one knee in front of Xia Zuo, asking, "Fifth Hokage, what happened?"

Xia Zuo smiled and said, "Naruto rescued a girl from the Rain Ninja; she is a descendant of the Uzumaki clan."

He first looked at Kakashi Hatake and ordered, "Kakashi, you are the Jonin instructor of Team 7. Go and deal with the girl from the Uzumaki lineage."

Then he looked at Uchiha Shisui and ordered, "Shisui, this girl came with the Grass Ninja Team. Go and take care of those two Grass Ninja."

Kakashi Hatake stood up, knelt down on one knee beside Shisui, and the two of them said in unison, "Yes! Fifth Hokage!"

Then the two young Kage-level ninjas disappeared simultaneously from the secret room.

Tsunade raised her hand, drank the wine in her cup, and then sighed, "I never expected that Kakashi would improve so much after just a little training from the Fifth Hokage. In just three months, he's on par with the three of us old guys."

Uchiha Izumi sat down again and chuckled, "Because Kakashi-senpai was already very strong, and with Might Guy-senpai's encouragement over the years, he has been training diligently without stopping. However, he was troubled by his own mind and was unable to unleash his full power."

Tsunade sensed the hostility in Izumi's tone and felt a little uneasy, but to hide her unease, she looked at Izumi openly.

"Hmm, I almost forgot, there's also you, little girl. You defeated the Fourth Kazekage last year, so you must have awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan by now, right?"

"Hehe, Tsunade-neechan~, of course I awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan, otherwise how could I have defeated a Kage-level ninja at the age of 16?"

"Oh my, Quan-mei~ mei~, awakening the Mangekyou Sharingan at 16 years old, of course we old folks can't compare."

"You can't say that. Tsunade-neechan~ she's not old at all. She looks like a 16-year-old girl, even younger than me."

"And that figure—tsk tsk, it's truly enviable."

The secret room suddenly turned into a chaotic battlefield, leaving Xia Zuo and Orochimaru completely bewildered and taking several seconds to react.

Orochimaru blinked and looked at Xia Zuo with a mocking expression: What are you going to do?

Xia Zuo raised an eyebrow: That's easy, watch me!

He reached out his right hand and pulled Uchiha Izumi close, pressing her to his right side.

Then, with his left hand, he grabbed Tsunade, who was angrily pouring wine, along with the bottle and glass, and pulled her to his left.

Xia Zuo's movements were extremely fast and irresistible, forcing the two Kage-level female ninjas to sit down obediently.

In this instant, without uttering a single word, Xia Zuo brought the chaotic situation to the forefront.

Both Tsunade and Uchiha Izumi felt ashamed and angry, and both struggled to stand up. Tsunade thought that if she got up, she would punch Xia Zuo hard and send him flying. Uchiha Izumi thought that if she got up, she would run home and ignore her brother Xia Zuo.

However, none of them succeeded.

Xia Zuo didn't even lift a finger; his mere aura was enough to weigh down the two men, making it impossible for them to stand up.

This force is not a real force, but a psychological oppression that makes the two of them "believe" that a mountain is pressing down on their shoulders, leaving them with no way to resist.

After repeated fruitless struggles, Tsunade and Izumi Uchiha couldn't help but lose their temper and subconsciously used their true abilities.

Tsunade was the first to make a move. She bit her red lips and released the seal between her eyebrows.

[Unsealing the Yin Seal]

The diamond-shaped pattern between Tsunade's eyebrows dissipated into facial markings, and the stored chakra poured out, flowing throughout her body and unleashing a terrifying aura.

However, it was still useless. Tsunade couldn't move a single finger, and even her terrifying aura was confined around her body, unable to spread out at all.

In a fit of rage, Tsunade used the Yin Seal as a foundation to unleash her ultimate technique.

[Ninja Art: Creation and Rebirth - Hundred Healings Technique]

Marks spread throughout his body, forcibly simulating Hashirama's Sage Mode through the rapid circulation of chakra.

But it still didn't work; the simulated Hashirama Senju wasn't the real Hashirama Senju, and there was a huge difference between the two.

Despite Xia Zuo's slightly more serious control, Tsunade's all-out effort did not change her inability to stand up.

On the other side, as Izumi Uchiha's eyes darted around, the three tomoe expanded into a complex pattern of nested triple triangles, indicating that she had activated her Mangekyou Sharingan.

However, Izumi Uchiha was not as impulsive and willful as Tsunade. After trying her best to break free to no avail, she did not continue to try to activate Susanoo.

After their efforts, both female ninjas, who were at the Kage level, realized that they were no match for Xia Zuo and didn't even have the right to get angry.

The principle that ninjas do not fight against the strong was immediately recalled, instantly extinguishing most of their anger.

Then, the instinct of women to admire the strong arose, and her admiration for the Fifth Hokage, Natsume, dissipated the remaining anger.

Tsunade recalled her intimate moments with Xia Zuo, and the guilt she felt as a third party in their relationship; while Uchiha Izumi recalled her childhood bond with Xia Zuo, and the protection and help he provided after the night of the massacre.

Different experiences and emotions, under the uncontrollable suppression, gave rise to a strong love.

Because Tsunade and Izumi Uchiha were so close, yet separated by their beloved Natsume, they inexplicably developed a sense of mutual respect and camaraderie.