Ninja World: I, Kisame Hoshigaki, am no longer human!

He said with a veiled sarcasm, making a gesture as if to press the play button.

"and many more!"

Kurenai quickly reached out to stop her, her chubby face turning pale instantly.

She wasn't afraid that Kisame would expose her, but rather she was worried about Asuma.

Because Asuma is the Hokage's son, if this matter were to be exposed, it would not only have a serious impact on him, but also on the reputation of the Third Hokage and even the entire Hidden Leaf Village.

Although Kurenai was young, she deeply understood the stakes involved.

That's why she refused Asma's offer when she was at the stairwell.

Unexpectedly, Kisame still managed to record their conversation.

After a moment of silence.

"So... what do you want now?"

Kurenai gritted her teeth, lowered her stance, and pleaded with Kisame, "This whole thing is my fault from beginning to end, it has nothing to do with Asuma. As long as you hand over the recording pen to me and promise not to tell anyone about this, I... I'll agree to anything you ask."

As she spoke these words, tears welled in her eyes, but her gaze remained resolute.

She really is a naive young girl.

Kisame had no doubt that even if he asked Kurenai to give herself up, she would probably agree with tears in her eyes for Asuma's sake.

The young ninjas of Konoha are indeed like flowers in a greenhouse, too easily destroyed.

but.

Kisame doesn't consider himself a good person, but he still has his bottom line.

He wouldn't do such a bad thing.

45. The Hunt Begins

Snapped.

Thinking of this, Kisame tossed the recording pen to Kurenai Yuhi and said to her:

"Go to the infirmary and see your boyfriend right away. And give him my regards. All the grudges between Asma and me are now wiped clean. Do you understand what I mean?"

Kurenai Yuhi took the recorder, paused for a moment, but quickly realized what was happening and kept assuring Kisame:

"Don't worry, I'll persuade Asma to stop bothering you. Thank you."

After saying that, she wiped away her tears, turned around quickly, and ran out.

Watching Kurenai's departing figure, Kisame pulled a voice recorder out of his pocket.

This is a backup, just in case.

If Asuma doesn't listen to Kurenai's advice and insists on opposing him, Kisame will release the recording, even if it means a fight to the death.

The title of Chunin is nothing to Kisame.

However, the reputation of the Sarutobi clan and the Hokage cannot withstand damage.

Once Asuma understands this, he will likely have no choice but to accept the fact that he was beaten up twice by Kisame for no reason.

time flies.

As noon arrived, the first exam finally ended, and more than sixty people advanced to the next round.

Kisame's two temporary teammates were unfortunately eliminated, which means that from the second exam onwards, he will have to fight alone.

This was exactly what he wanted.

For Kisame, teammates are mostly a burden.

Clang.

The door to the lounge was suddenly pushed open; it was the examiner for the second round.

She was a beautiful woman in her early twenties with long, flowing red hair that reached her waist. She appeared optimistic and cheerful, with a touch of feistiness.

Kushina Uzumaki, a survivor of Uzushio Village, is now a Jonin of Konoha.

She strode in, pointed to her face with her thumb, and announced to everyone with a smile that she was the chief examiner.

Confident and beautiful.

"The Uzumaki Clan..."

Kisame muttered to himself, looking at the spirited Kushina on the podium, feeling somewhat moved.

After all, he might possess the Uzumaki bloodline, and it's possible he's related to Kushina.

However, the Uzumaki clan is ultimately extinct and has become history; there's no need to dwell on these things anymore.

Under Kushina's arrangement, the examinees left the rest room and went to the restaurant for lunch before heading to the second examination room in the afternoon.

In the restaurant.

Kisame found a quiet spot by the window and enjoyed his lunch while admiring the view outside.

When the other candidates saw him, they all looked wary and walked around him with their trays, no one daring to sit near him.

The only exception is Matt Kay.

After getting his food, he saw Kisame by the window and his eyes lit up. He told his two teammates beside him and then ran over excitedly.

"Kisame-nii, are you taking the second exam alone? I believe in you; even if you're alone, you'll definitely pass!"

As Kai spoke, he grinned, revealing his teeth, and gave Kisame a thumbs-up, genuinely admiring the latter's strength.

"I wish you good luck in passing the test, Kai."

Kisame returned the smile, glancing at Kai's two teammates not far away.

Genma Shiranui was alright; he later became the bodyguard of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.

Another Ebisu is Konohamaru's tutor in the original work. He has a talent for guidance and teaching, but his strength is very average. It seems that he only became a Chunin at the age of 17.

He's a drag on the team.

Overall, judging from their strength on paper, Kai's team is in the lower-middle tier among all the participating teams in the second round.

The chances of advancing are not optimistic.

The two ate and chatted for a while.

"Kai, it's time to go." Might Guy's two teammates called to him from a distance, while casting wary glances at Kisame.

They were worried that their team had been targeted by Kisame Hoshigaki beforehand.

"Brother Kisame, I'll be going now." Kai picked up the plate and said goodbye to Kisame.

"Wait. Here are some explosive tags for you. They might come in handy during the upcoming exams."

Kisame suddenly called out to Might Guy, shoved a stack of explosive tags into his hand, and ordered in an unquestionable tone, "Don't refuse me, just take it."

"Then I won't be polite, thank you Kisame-nii!"

Might Guy scratched the back of his head sheepishly, bowed to Kisame, and happily accepted the gift.

His family was very poor; explosive tags were a luxury for them.

Kisame watched Kai leave, and after the latter reunited with his teammates, they walked out of the restaurant.

Instead of getting up and joining the group immediately, he remained seated with his eyes closed.

next second.

In Kisame's mind, a point of light was slowly moving in the darkness.

It's Matt Kai.

To be precise, it was the explosive tags on Kai's body.

Those explosive tags were created by Kisame using the power of his Exploding Blade Spray. They contained special chakra, and he could sense their exact location as long as the distance was no more than ten kilometers.

Half an hour later.

More than sixty examinees, led by Kushina Uzumaki and a group of Chunin proctors, arrived at Konoha's 44th training ground—the Forest of Death.

Konoha Village covers a vast area, nearly a thousand square kilometers.

In this vast forest, dozens of training grounds have been planned and built.

The Forest of Death is one of the most frequently used locations. It's located in the northeast corner of Konoha City, close by, and its large area and complex terrain make it ideal as a practical testing ground for the Chunin Exams.

Before the second exam begins, each participant needs to sign a consent form because there is a possibility of injury or death.

"It's not too late to quit now."

Kushina waved the documents in her hand, a smile curving her lips as her bright eyes swept over everyone.

No one backed down.

Before participating in the competition, everyone was mentally prepared. Now that we've come this far, how could we possibly give up?

After everyone had signed the consent form, Kushina officially announced the exam rules:

Each team will be randomly assigned a Heaven Scroll or an Earth Scroll. Only by stealing scrolls from other teams, collecting both Heaven and Earth scrolls, and arriving at the central tower in the Death Forest within the specified time can they successfully pass the test.

Kisame received a Heavenly Scroll.

He knew that the scroll actually contained a summoning jutsu. If a candidate opened the scroll without authorization, it would summon the Chunin Examiner, knock him unconscious on the spot, and disqualify him.

After receiving the scrolls, the more than twenty teams clearly divided into two factions, each choosing their "prey".

Although Kisame was alone, no one dared to make a move against him.

Putting everything else aside, the fact that he defeated the genius ninja Kakashi alone is enough to instill fear in these competing ninjas.

Even those elite Kumogakure genin wouldn't risk targeting Kisame at this time, since there were weaker targets available.

Even if I were to have a final battle with Kisame Hoshigaki, it would be more appropriate to wait until the third exam, when it would be one-on-one.

Kisame's gaze swept across the crowd.

He didn't see Kurenai Yuhi, presumably because she chose to withdraw from the competition to take care of the injured Asuma.