Naruto: The Information Broker from the Uchiha Clan.

Chapter 345 Differential Treatment

"boom!!"

Amidst the rising dust, a crimson figure descended from the sky and landed before everyone.

The nine-tailed fox, now back to its normal size, twisted its neck: "I've gotten used to the shrunken version, so coming back to normal feels a little uncomfortable."

Turning his head, a massive surge of crimson chakra erupted, and the magnified, ferocious appearance of the Nine-Tails made everyone in front of him swallow hard.

"Bang!"

The giant claw descended, and the ground cracked inch by inch.

"You bunch of bastards, how dare you embezzle my money! Do you have a death wish?!"

corruption?!

In an instant, more than forty pairs of eyes turned to Iwagakure's Zhidou.

How could there still be corruption under such dire circumstances? A look of utter contempt flashed in everyone's eyes!

Because of Onoki's questionable actions during several Shinobi World Wars, the various ninja villages have long distrusted Iwagakure.

So after Kurama finished speaking, everyone began to have some doubts, wondering if Iwagakure's Jido had really embezzled the money that was supposed to be given to Kurama to buy his life.

Under such suspicious gazes, Chito became anxious, as he was well aware of his responsibilities in this Chunin Exam.

The Tsuchikage's instructions before we arrived were still ringing in my ears. Although Iwagakure had not yet been attacked, its situation was not much better than that of Sunagakure and Kumogakure.

"If you can unite and defeat Uchiha Kumo's three disciples in this joint Chunin Exam, it will give the four great ninja villages hope for the future."

"Yes... it can only be in the future. Because although we really don't want to admit it, Konoha has indeed achieved their goal of becoming the leader of the five villages without waging war."

"Habits... they're really scary!"

"The Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure is dead, and the Fifth Raikage of Kumogakure is dead. After the death of that old man, Genji, the Fifth Mizukage of Kirigakure did not harbor any lingering hatred from the past, nor did she have the determination to fight to the death..."

"Once, Iwagakure was protected under the name of the Two Scales, but now, the Two Scales, Onoki, will become Iwagakure's death warrant..."

"Chito... Perhaps I am truly selfish, but in order to preserve even a spark of resistance for the future, I urge you to complete this secret mission entrusted to you, even at the cost of your life!"

"After my death, the Fourth Tsuchikage will be Akatsuchi, and only Akatsuchi truly serves their interests..."

"If possible, the Fifth Tsuchikage would be that kid, Akatsuchi, but if that's not the case, let Akatsuchi remain the Tsuchikage!"

"After I die, remember this: obey Konoha's arrangements in everything!"

"They won't let the Iwagakure ninjas deliberately go to their deaths. If it were just a matter of this scale, they could easily do it now..."

"So don't worry too much. Keep your life and wait patiently for the changes that will come in the future."

"Whether or not Uzumaki Sora is colluding with Konoha, their ideals may just happen to coincide at this moment, but things will definitely change in the future, otherwise they wouldn't be in such a hurry..."

……

As if giving his last words, the Tsuchikage had even decided on the successor to the Fourth Hokage.

At that time, besides himself, there was also Lord Tsuchikage, but he did not question the selection of the Fourth Tsuchikage.

Lord Yellow Earth's anger was only revealed after he left the Earth Shadow's residence.

However, what angered him was not the selection of the Fourth Tsuchikage, but the humiliating situation that Iwagakure was facing.

"Ha! Iwagakure, one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, has to sacrifice the Tsuchikage who has served for decades just to survive! I don't agree with this way of life!"

"No one in Iwagakure would condone such a cowardly existence!"

"What a disgrace! As a son, as a Jonin of Iwagakure, this is a disgrace to us!"

After a long while, Huang Tu, the son of the third Tsuchikage, sighed.

"Perhaps this is why the old man didn't want me to be the fourth generation? Akatsuchi's personality is just right."

"If Iwagakure doesn't want to be destroyed, it has no choice but to endure."

"Chito... you've planted the seeds of future rebellion; it all depends on you."

"That girl Kurotsuchi will also be participating in this Chunin Exams. I need to make her remember this, remember this humiliation!"

……

Scenes from before he arrived flashed through Chito's mind, and the Nine-Tails' chakra that filled the air no longer seemed so terrifying.

But the next moment, a still somewhat immature figure walked up from beside it, facing the terrifying pressure of the Nine-Tails.

"The Uchiha lord arranged for you to be here, which is certainly not to eliminate us all, nor is it for such a small amount of money."

"As a tailed beast that has existed for thousands of years, Lord Kurama, with your wisdom, you must understand this as well."

Upon hearing this, Little Nine-Tailed nodded repeatedly.

"Little girl, you not only have long legs, but you're also quite right. With my intelligence, I certainly understand these things."

Hei Tu finally breathed a sigh of relief after receiving a reply.

He then continued, "We have fifteen teams here, forty-five people, and they are basically all opponents of those three from Konoha's Team 7 this time."

"In this situation, if we are all eliminated by you, then there's no point in talking about the test that Lord Uchiha put on Team 7!"

Little Nine-Tailed Fox stared at Kurotsuchi with wide eyes: "So, little girl, you mean I'm lying?!"

Just as she was about to erupt in anger, Kurotsuchi shook her head: "Lord Nine-Tails, you are a tailed beast that has lived for thousands of years. The oldest among us is only seventeen years old. How could you possibly lie to us?"

"But there are forty-five of us here, and each of us gave Zhi Tu twenty thousand taels of silver, which is the price you, Lord Nine-Tailed Fox, set. So what I want to know is, how much did Zhi Tu give you? That way we can find out how much he embezzled!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Chito was about to explain, but Kurotsuchi stopped him with her raised hand.

The little nine-tailed fox stroked its chin and thought this made sense, so it plopped down and started counting on its paws.

"Twenty thousand taels per person, sixty thousand taels per squad... fifteen squads in total..."

"Anyway, it should be 1.8 million taels, but that bastard from Iwagakure only gave me 900,000 taels. He actually dared to embezzle half of it!"

"They even fool foxes! They're not human!"

"I've worked so hard for five days, and I haven't even earned a penny. That bastard is despicable! Unforgivable!"

The furious Nine-Tailed Fox stood with its paws on its hips, looking extremely angry.

After he finished speaking, the group of people looked at each other in bewilderment.

If it weren't for those streams of crimson chakra, some people probably would have burst out laughing.

"Damn it, was that intentional?"

"It doesn't seem like it was intentional..."

"Damn it! Did Uchiha Yun teach it arithmetic?"

"I knew Iwagakure wouldn't be that stupid in this situation... But what should we do next?"

"Should we discuss arithmetic problems with it?"

"Do you want to be silenced?"

"Let's see what that guy from Iwagakure is going to do..."

"Stupid, idiot, bastard..."

"Uchiha Yun let it in to protect his disciple. How could he make such a simple mistake? Can you believe it?"

……

The muttering sound rang out, and Nine-Tails' perception clearly allowed it to be heard perfectly.

For a moment, the little nine-tailed fox, who was standing with her hands on her hips, blushed.

Glancing at the forty-five little devils in front of him, Little Nine-Tailed Fox thought to himself, "Why don't I just kill them all? Then I can just say that I calculated it to be nine hundred thousand taels."

but……

That bastard Yun made it very clear: eliminating a group of people is fine, but if he ruins them all, he'll have to stay sealed away for the next hundred years.

When the yellow-haired brat's half-body comes out, won't I be able to watch it look cool?

No no no!

Kurotsuchi, who was opposite him, stared intently at the little Nine-Tails. Seeing its changing expression, he sighed inwardly, clearly aware of the Nine-Tails' embarrassment.

Although it's unclear why the tailed beast known as the Nine-Tailed Fox has taken this form, now is obviously not the time to dwell on such matters.

"Is Lord Nine-Tailed Fox testing us?"

O？

Kurotsuchi continued, "With the Nine-Tails' power, even taking on a mission on the black market, a mission worth thirty million ryo would be a piece of cake, right?"

"With such power, nine hundred thousand taels is utterly insignificant. The only thing I can think of is that Lord Kurama is testing us!"

"Perhaps this is also part of the Chunin Exams, to test whether we have the courage to face Lord Kurama!"

Is that right?

Yes! That's exactly what I thought from the beginning!

The little nine-tailed fox clapped its two paws together: "That's right! Little girl, you're right. I was just testing your courage!"

"As a ninja, one must have the courage to face powerful enemies! Back then, Hashirama Senju was recognized by me, which is why I gave him the opportunity to be sealed!"

Heitu's expression remained unchanged, but inwardly he was filled with endless complaints.

Have you no shame?

The next moment, Kurotsuchi bowed slightly and said, "In that case, we should have passed Lord Kurama's test, right?"

The little nine-tailed fox waved its paw: "Go, go, you've made it through. As long as you don't get caught by me again, you'll be fine."

These words alarmed Wu Ye, who was standing behind Zhi Tu, and he quickly said, "You're not following us again..., are you...?"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhi Tu turned around and slashed him into liquid water.

In an instant, the members of the Hidden Mist moved, but were stopped by a single look from Kurotsuchi.

Feeling somewhat ashamed after recovering from the liquid water, Wuye stepped back and stood silently behind Zhitu.

"That guy just now had some mental issues, please don't take offense, Nine-Tails-sama. To express our gratitude, if we lose any money later, we'll give it all to you."

"Um?"

Little Nine-Tailed Fox's eyes widened instantly, then her vertical pupils narrowed in the next second: "Not bad, not bad, little girl, you're really good. Alright! I understand now, as long as you really run out of money, everything will definitely go smoothly from here on out!"

With a slight bow, Heitu turned and led the fifteen squads away.

Not far away, Heitu could still sense the watchful eyes of those behind him.

"Everyone, throw all your money on the ground and don't look."

At this moment, all forty-five carefully selected people understood what Heitu meant.

Although it was a bit frustrating, the money itself was useless in the Forest of Death except for the Nine-Tailed Fox.

Compared to missions and lives, money is not important to ninjas.

As a result, the forty-five people left their wallets scattered all over the ground before hurrying away from the place.

Hei Tu only breathed a sigh of relief once the feeling of being watched from behind disappeared.

Zhi Tu, who was standing nearby, took out a water bottle and handed it to her: "You shouldn't have stepped forward. If you're wrong, then Iwagakure will suffer a great loss."

Heitu smiled dismissively, took the water bottle, and drank it all in one gulp.

"So what if I guessed wrong? Be killed by the Nine-Tails? No way, Uchiha Yun wouldn't do that. After all, my identity is what it is."

"If it were a normal Chunin Exam, I would just die and that would be fine. But if I die at the hands of the Nine-Tails, as the old man's granddaughter, I will inevitably cause the new generation of Iwagakure to hate again."

"The Nine-Tails' appearance wasn't aimed at us. Heh... Uchiha Yun really has a lot of confidence in his disciple!"

Chito paused, then chuckled, "Is that so? Then could we team up with the Nine-Tails?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Kurotsuchi looked at him with an expression as if he were an idiot: "What are you thinking? The existence of the Nine-Tails is just causing them trouble. Do you really think he'll actually take action against that so-called Team 7?"

"As far as I know, what we are facing is half of the Nine-Tails, and the other half is inside the Hokage's son, which allows him to become a perfect Jinchūriki."

"According to intelligence, this half should be the little Nine-Tails who has always been by Uchiha Izumi's side. She's someone you know. It's said that she has become a Jonin instructor, and this time the Genin she brought with her have also come in."

"The Hidden Mist's Nightless City, the Hozuki Clan, what are your thoughts?"

Wuye grinned, revealing slightly menacing teeth: "As expected of Onoki's granddaughter, the Two Scales. Thanks to you, we were able to leave safely just now."

Kurotsuchi waved her hand: "They're all just fish on the chopping board. Kirigakure's ideas may not be the same as ours. Your Mizukage hasn't attracted any attention at all."

After speaking, Wu Ye remained silent for a moment without directly answering the question.

Instead, she said, "Uchiha Izumi's group has also entered. Her students are said to be the new generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Shika... the Nara family..."

Kurotsuchi smiled and said, "The fact that Kurama didn't follow the Konoha genin to chase us means that Uchiha Kumo has already made a move. Don't overthink it; at least for us, it's not necessarily a bad thing."

……

at the same time.

The twelve members of Konoha, who had already assembled, were now searching for Neji's team.

"They must be in trouble."

Shikamaru frowned as he spoke. The appearance of the Nine-Tails was an inevitable unexpected factor, and many things were already unpredictable.

Sasuke hesitated and said, "I don't know about Neji's power, but as for Rock Lee, if he were to unleash it, it would only be if he encountered the Nine-Tails."

Sai poked his head out and said, "Didn't they bring any money? If they didn't bring any money, they've probably already been eaten, right?"

Naruto retorted, "That's impossible. Even if it gets beaten up, it won't be eaten. It's more likely to eat those guys from other villages. Otherwise, Brother Yun would have to deal with it afterwards."

At this moment, the reconnaissance team, led by Hinata and Karin, and including Shino, Kiba, and Sai's rat, returned.

Both shook their heads.

Hinata frowned and said, "We haven't found any trace of Neji, nor any Hyuga clan markings."

Karin exhaled: "I couldn't sense their chakra, but there was a strong chakra fluctuation three kilometers in our 10 o'clock direction."

Shikamaru quickly asked, "Was it the Nine-Tails? Or did the other ninja villages start fighting first?"

Karin shook her head: "It was the Nine-Tails and some other miscellaneous chakra, but it didn't linger for too long. I guess it was just a matter of paying the money."

After thinking for a moment, Shikamaru looked at everyone and said, "In that case, let's get started."

Naruto paused, then asked, "Aren't you going to look for Neji and the others?"

Shikamaru replied, "Judging from Neji's act of slipping Hinata the note, he was clearly preparing to reunite with her, but we've searched the entire perimeter of the protective netting and still haven't found them."

"In this situation, there are only two possibilities. Either they were captured by the Nine-Tails and didn't have any money with them, or they were captured by our opponents."

"In either case, we have no choice but to go find those people and complete the task of collecting the scrolls. We can't handle the Nine-Tails, Sasuke's Mangekyou Sharingan is sealed, and his three-tomoe Sharingan probably can't control the Nine-Tails, right?"

Sasuke shook his head slightly: "The eye power is not enough. The three-tomoe genjutsu can be broken by it using a sudden burst of chakra. Even the Mangekyou Sharingan might not be able to withstand that level of chakra."

At this moment, Karin hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.

After glancing at Naruto, who was frowning, he sighed and walked out.

"Perhaps... I can give it a try."

In an instant, everyone's eyes turned to Karin.

"The sealing technique of the Uzumaki clan?" Shikamaru asked.

Karin nodded: "Compared to Naruto, I should have inherited more of the Uzumaki clan's physique. Since I came to Konoha, Aunt Kushina and my mother have been teaching me the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques."

(Note: In the original work, Karin couldn't even defeat a bear during the Chunin Exams. After being saved by Sasuke, she fell in love with him at first sight. She didn't use the Adamantine Sealing Chains until she was sixteen years old. Here, there's a three-year gap. During those three years, Kushina and her mother smoothed things over, and she learned to use the Adamantine Sealing Chains.)

"My sensory abilities are very special, even among the Uzumaki clan. Logically speaking, I should have already memorized Neji's squad's chakra during the meal, so I shouldn't have failed to sense it."

"The entire Death Forest Training Ground No. 44 is only 20 kilometers in diameter, and we can perceive more than half of that distance."

As soon as he finished speaking, Shikamaru frowned slightly.

"So, Karin, you mean Neji and his team are currently in a special state, right? Like a barrier specifically designed to block senses?"

Karin nodded: "Besides the barrier, there's another possibility: Neji's entire squad is dead. After all, I can't sense dead people."

These words made Hinata tremble, but the next moment Naruto grabbed her hand.

"Don't worry, Neji is someone Brother Yun thinks highly of. Lord Kurama wouldn't dare to really kill him."

Shikamaru chimed in, "With Neji and Lee's power, the Nine-Tails won't kill them. And those guys won't be able to take them down easily if they face Lee's outburst."

"Therefore, there is only one possibility: Lord Yun not only arranged for the little nine-tailed fox to come in and cause trouble, but also arranged for it to have a method that could eliminate the candidates."

"A team that cannot gather the Heaven and Earth Scroll and head to the tower within five days will be considered eliminated in the second test."

"To prevent prey from being rescued while hunting, a barrier to shield their senses and prevent them from escaping is necessary."

"Or you could beat him half to death, tie him up, put him in the tank with some water for five days, that would also work."

At this point, Shikamaru stood up, looked at everyone, and said, "Then the reconnaissance team's next task is to find the Nine-Tails. The Nine-Tails has very strong sensory abilities, so we can only keep it at a distance."

Shikamaru looked at Hinata: "Using Karin's sensory abilities as a location, and then Hinata using her Byakugan to observe from a distance, we can determine the location of the barrier. Shino and Kiba will be responsible for tracking the genin from the other ninja villages. After rescuing Neji and the others, we'll need to devise a plan targeting them."

"Understood!" ×4

……

Meanwhile, the little nine-tailed fox, who had almost lost face, returned to its nest.

It was called a den, but it was really just a temporary fox den.

"Gulp, gulp..."

The little nine-tailed fox, having opened another bottle of wine, squinted at the three little devils it had hung up.

"Don't look at me like that. I didn't make the rules. If you want to blame someone, blame Uchiha Yun."

"Everyone else can leave by paying money, but you fifteen were specifically instructed by Uchiha Yun to stay, and you can't leave even if you pay."

Li, who was being hung up, swayed back and forth, clearly resentful, but unfortunately his mouth was taped shut, preventing him from making a sound.

Crimson chakra surged from behind the Nine-Tails, instantly forming a giant claw that slammed down.

With a single blow, Xiao Li swung up like a swing.

"Don't even think about it. Just hearing your thick eyebrows makes my fur stand on end. And forget about your Eight Gates technique; Uchiha Kumo knows that forbidden jutsu better than you do."

With a long face, Tian Tian pleaded, "Lord Nine-Tails, I've prepared a ton of money in my sealing scroll. Can you give it all to us and let us go for a bit?"

Little Nine-Tails shook its head: "No, no, that bastard Uchiha Yun said that if I let you go, my little treasure trove will be gone. No matter how much I take from you now, this villain will rob it all when we get out."

Tenten quickly replied, "Then I'll pay you privately after the second exam, right? You're the Nine-Tails Lord, how could a lowly ninja like me dare to cheat you out of your money?"

Eh?

This seems like a good idea!

A pair of six-tomoe Rinnegan flashed through Kurama's mind, instantly sending a shiver down his spine.

No, no, if that bastard uses illusion magic directly, I'll definitely fall for it, and I won't even be able to keep the money that's already in my pocket.

Neji, who was standing nearby, was not silenced, and asked directly, "With our strength, we can't possibly fight against the Nine-Tails, but we certainly won't be wiped out as soon as we meet them. This is definitely not what Brother Yun wants."

……

(End of this chapter)