Because they had just completed an S-rank mission, Kaede Kitahara's squad was granted an extended period of rest. That was standard procedure. After all, S-rank missions often ended with shattered bones, lost limbs, or worse.
But over the next half month, Kaede did not rest like most ninja.
Instead, he squeezed every possible moment into training.
For him, the Chunin Exams were drawing closer by the day, and the tension in his chest only tightened further.
The first focus was Flying Thunder God.
After acquiring Elementary Space-Time Ninjutsu Talent, he finally met the basic requirements to properly train Flying Thunder God. He could clearly feel himself growing more proficient with each round of practice.
It was completely different from before, when training it had been almost impossible.
During this period, Kaede completed another system draw.
This time, he obtained a textbook titled Medical Ninjutsu From Beginner to Master.
He was absolutely certain this was not a Konoha-issued textbook.
At present, Konoha's medical ninjutsu development was far from systematic. Tsunade, who had once anchored the village's medical research, had been gone for years. As a result, medical ninjutsu was still taught through mentorship, experienced ninja teaching newcomers directly, with no unified teaching materials.
This book was different.
It not only covered medical ninjutsu theory and foundational principles, it also recorded three concrete medical techniques.
The first was a B-rank medical ninjutsu, the Fine Extraction Technique. It allowed the user to extract toxins from the body and even perform organ transplants. Hatake Kakashi's ability to transplant Uchiha Obito's Sharingan and use it immediately had relied on this technique.
The second was an A-rank technique, the Mystical Palm Technique.
By fully activating the cells around an injury, it could heal wounds in just five minutes. Even Tsunade herself considered it a difficult technique.
The final technique was also A-rank.
Chakra Scalpel.
By condensing chakra into the hands and shaping it into a blade, it allowed the user to cut inside a target's body without causing external wounds. The blade could be extended at will and even used directly as a weapon.
This knowledge was practically injected straight into Kaede's mind.
In an instant, he fully mastered all three medical techniques.
His survival capability in the field jumped by more than one level.
Kaede did not keep this to himself.
He immediately began teaching his two teammates as well.
The upcoming Chunin Exams were likely to be the most dangerous in history. He wanted both of them to survive.
Inside a training ground hidden within the forest near the Kitahara residence, the three members of the squad gathered together.
Thanks to his recent wealth and the steady stream of money flowing in from Gato's businesses, Kaede simply spent ten million ryo to buy this small private training ground outright.
Its daily maintenance was entrusted to a professional company. Terrain repairs, target replenishment, and other upkeep were all handled by specialists.
Konoha had several companies that offered this kind of service, and behind each usually stood a powerful ninja clan.
The company Kaede hired, for example, was backed by the Hyuga Clan.
When Kaede and his team were not using the training ground, it was rented out to others.
No more fighting for space in public training areas.
In a place like Konoha, training grounds of all sizes were everywhere. Private ones, public ones, and clan-owned grounds all coexisted.
After all, Konoha was a massive military stronghold.
In reality, it was not just a village. Its scale easily rivaled that of a city.
There were even vast tracts of undeveloped forest within Konoha itself. The Forest of Death used in the second stage of the Chunin Exams was one such training area.
"Ahhh, this is too hard. Way too hard."
Amakusa Ryuji clutched a freshly printed textbook that Kaede had stayed up all night to compile. He scratched his head like a monkey, his face full of despair.
He had thought that after graduating from the academy, he would never have to study again.
Instead, here he was, forced to learn medical ninjutsu theory and structural principles.
Medical ninjutsu was already notoriously difficult.
Over the past half month, he had practically studied himself to tears.
Only during actual combat training did he feel even a shred of enjoyment in being a ninja.
Hyuga Keiko, on the other hand, was a completely different story.
She had already finished studying the basic principles and common knowledge and had begun practicing the first medical technique, the Fine Extraction Technique.
As a B-rank technique, it was relatively easy to learn.
At the moment, she was using a fish as a test subject.
After a short while, her face lit up with joy.
"I did it, Kaede!"
Kaede walked over to take a look.
Hyuga Keiko had indeed successfully performed the Fine Extraction Technique, and it had taken her only about three days.
She was not a once-in-a-generation genius, but this was still an excellent result.
Unlike the academically hopeless Amakusa Ryuji, Hyuga Keiko had always been a good student. Her chakra control was also outstanding, perfectly matching the prerequisites for learning medical ninjutsu.
"Nice, nice. Practice it a bit more, then move on to test rabbits. You should have it fully down after that," Kaede said with a smile and a nod.
Keiko beamed.
She had previously known a bit of the Mystical Palm Technique, but she was not proficient. She had learned it by coincidence, without proper theoretical grounding, so her progress had been painfully slow.
Now, with Kaede's materials, her improvement was rapid.
The Mystical Palm Technique quickly went from awkward to smooth, and even the Fine Extraction Technique was shaping up nicely.
If she could also master Chakra Scalpel, she would be fully qualified as a basic medical ninja. At the very least, she could handle emergency treatment within a squad.
"Kaede, is this Chunin Exam really going to be that dangerous?" Amakusa Ryuji asked, setting the book aside.
Ever since Kaede had seemingly awakened overnight, Ryuji had been trained to the brink of collapse.
While his growth could not compare to Kaede's explosive progress, he had gone from barely touching the Chunin threshold to being able to fight veteran Chunin head-on.
Against miscellaneous Chunin like the Demon Brothers, he could handle them on his own.
Even if he was still the weakest of the three, passing a Chunin Exam should not have been a problem.
If even he could not pass, then this exam would be absurdly difficult.
In the past, Konoha's Chunin Exams were mostly procedural. As long as your strength was acceptable and your luck was decent, you passed.
Kaede himself had passed that way.
Before obtaining the diary system, his strength had only been around an average Chunin level, and yet he had still passed.
"This time is completely different," Kaede shook his head. "According to the insider information I have, this exam is a joint selection between villages. It's not just testing your qualifications as Chunin. It's closer to a war exercise in a time of peace."
He remembered clearly that in the original events, there were plenty of fighters at Chunin level, and even someone beyond that like Gaara appeared.
In the end, the one who passed was Nara Shikamaru, who displayed outstanding strategic ability.
Of course, that definitely had nothing to do with his Jonin squad leader father, Nara Shikaku.
"In peacetime, the Chunin Exams are the peaceful version of war," Kaede explained. "They determine mission distribution and village standing."
"That's why every joint Chunin Exam is especially brutal. Each village sends out its strongest Genin."
"These Genin are not rookies. Even the so-called newcomers are elite among elites, starting at Chunin level. Some may even be Jonin level."
"Jonin level coming to take the Chunin Exam? That's just cheating," Ryuji could not help complaining.
But this time, it snapped him fully awake.
Before, he had thought that with their current strength, casually passing the Chunin Exam would be easy. He had not really understood why Kaede was taking it so seriously.
Now he did.
This joint Chunin Exam was on an entirely different level.
Chunin everywhere.
Even Jonin-level monsters mixed in.
The gap between Chunin and Jonin was massive. Jonin were the backbone of the Five Great Villages.
If someone like that appeared in a Chunin Exam, it would be one-sided slaughter.
"If you want, we can skip this one," Kaede said with a faint smile. "I can recommend you next year instead."
As the squad leader, the recommendation authority was in his hands.
If he decided to wait, they would have no choice but to wait.
"No, don't," Ryuji shook his head frantically. "If we did that, Keiko would kill me."
He glanced cautiously at Hyuga Keiko before continuing.
"And besides, even if they're strong, we're not weak either. We've got Keiko, a bloodline ninja from a major clan. We're not worse than them."
He had his reasons.
Other villages might be strong, but they were not helpless. One-on-one, they could fight veteran Chunin and even reach elite Chunin territory.
Keiko nodded.
She knew better than anyone how much she had improved over this period.
Compared to her time under their previous squad leader, Akai Akimoto, the difference was night and day.
Aside from a few secrets Kaede could not share, he had taught them with complete sincerity.
They had been teammates for years. He did not want to one day hear news of their deaths.
"Kaede, don't worry. With our strength, as long as we're careful, we'll be fine," Hyuga Keiko said.
"And don't forget, I have the Byakugan. They won't get the chance to ambush us."