"Prince, during your fight with Orochimaru, did he reveal any useful information?"
Inside the tower, after finishing his questions with Red Bean, the Third Hokage turned his gaze towards Li Chuan.
Li Chuan pretended to think for a moment, then replied:
"I feel like he was targeting Sasuke's Sharingan. Perhaps he wants to seize the Sharingan. I suggest it would be best to send more people to secretly protect Sasuke."
Since the intelligence hadn't been obtained yet, he naturally couldn't let Orochimaru easily plant the curse mark on Sasuke.
The Third Hokage nodded, and instructed Kakashi and Might Guy:
"We cannot let Orochimaru take Sasuke's eyes. I'll trouble the two of you to make another trip and watch over him in secret. However, if Orochimaru doesn't appear, do not interfere with their exams."
He couldn't allow Sasuke to be in danger, because that was the promise he made to Itachi. More importantly, if something truly happened to Sasuke, Itachi might really become a rogue Ninja.
Kakashi and Might Guy are both Elite Jonin. One has the Sharingan and is proficient in five nature Ninjutsu, while the other is extremely strong in taijutsu. Working together, even if they couldn't defeat Orochimaru, they could repel him.
"Yes, Hokage."
Kakashi and Might Guy nodded and left first.
After Kakashi and Might Guy left, the Third Hokage turned to Li Chuan again, a look of gratitude on his face:
"Prince, thank you so much for your help this time."
He was sincere in this. If it wasn't for Li Chuan drawing out Orochimaru, the result would definitely not be what it was now.
Li Chuan waved his hand and smiled:
"Hokage, you are too kind. This Prince regards Sasuke and the others as younger siblings.
Moreover, Konoha represents our Land of Fire and is the foundation of our Land of Fire. How could this Prince stand by and watch a rogue Ninja cause trouble in the Village, damaging Konoha's prestige, especially during this critical period."
He paused here, deliberately sighing.
"It's just a pity that this Prince's talent is insufficient, and my strength isn't enough. I couldn't take down Orochimaru and could only barely hold him off."
Hearing Li Chuan's words, the Third Hokage's expression was a bit strange, but in the end, he still comforted him:
"That is not your fault, Prince. It is the dereliction of duty of me, the Hokage. Your Highness, you formally began learning Ninjutsu after entering the Fire Temple less than a year ago. To have the strength you possess now is already considered a rare prodigy in the World."
After learning that Li Chuan, the Prince of the Land of Fire, was the Ninja monk from the Fire Temple in the Land of Waves, the Third Hokage sent Ninja to the capital to collect information on Li Chuan, and even had his son Asuma specifically write a letter to the abbot of the Fire Temple to inquire.
The result he received also greatly surprised him.
It turned out that Prince Li Chuan didn't cultivate at the Fire Temple from a young age, but only entered Fire Temple under Chiriku's tutelage more than nine months ago, and then began refining Chakra and learning Ninjutsu.
In less than a year, he had cultivated to a strength close to that of a special Jonin. This talent could definitely be considered top-tier.
Even more terrifying was that in less than two months since the Land of Waves mission, this Prince's strength had improved significantly again. Being able to hold off Orochimaru meant he was undoubtedly at Jonin level strength.
"What!"
At this moment, Tenzō, Red Bean, and the few Anbu Ninja guards in the office, hearing the Third Hokage say this, immediately looked at Li Chuan with disbelief.
They originally thought that for Li Chuan's age, having the strength he did now was truly the genius among geniuses.
But they never expected that he had only been learning Ninjutsu for less than a year. This talent was simply pressing all the top performers of their generation in the Village onto the ground and rubbing them wildly.
Indeed, the geniuses in this World are not the strongest, only stronger.
"Hahaha, it's not that exaggerated. This Prince has been cultivating martial arts since childhood while staying at the mansion, it's just that others didn't know. Although it's true that I've been refining Chakra and learning Ninjutsu for less than a year, I haven't actually mastered many Ninjutsu.
Therefore, this Prince is not very proficient in Ninjutsu. If there's an opportunity, it would be great if the Jonin of Konoha could provide some guidance."
Li Chuan laughed heartily, subtly hinting.
The Third Hokage tapped his finger on his knee, also understanding what Li Chuan wanted to express, and then smiled:
"Rest assured, Prince. If you ask any Jonin in Konoha for guidance on Ninjutsu, I believe they will not refuse, including this old man."
Some unique Ninjutsu of Konoha would definitely not be taught to Li Chuan, but some common Ninjutsu that other Villages also possess would naturally not be a problem. This includes some techniques for learning Ninjutsu, experience in combining Ninjutsu, and so on.
A Prince who has helped Konoha Village multiple times and is close to them is worth trying to win over.
Five days later, the training hall on the first floor of the tower.
The Third Hokage, along with all the examiners and Jonin, stood at the front podium explaining the significance of the Chunin Selection Exams to the Genin from various Villages who had passed the Forest of Death test.
Meanwhile, Li Chuan stood on the corridor of the second floor, scanning the Genin.
"It seems because of my intervention, there have been some deviations in the Genin who passed."
He remembered that originally there were twenty-eight teams participating in the Forest of Death round, and only seven teams passed in the end. However, there were clearly more than seven teams on the field now, specifically nine teams.
In addition to the original seven teams, there was an extra team from Amegakure consisting of Oboro, Mubi, and Kagari, as well as one team from Grass Ninja Village.
There were two Genin teams from Grass Ninja Village who passed the first exam. The first team was killed and replaced by Orochimaru before entering the Forest of Death.
The second team got separated shortly after entering the forest. As a result, Karin, who was intended as a human medicine pill, first accidentally found rice cakes and red bean soup and survived, and later found the Heaven Scroll that Orochimaru had discarded after leaving.
Finally, after finding the other two Grass Ninja Village Ninja, they rushed to the tower just as time was about to run out.
"This Karin, I can take her under my wing after this ends."
Her red hair was very noticeable, so Li Chuan recognized the identity of the girl from Grass Ninja Village at a glance.
Karin is a descendant of the Uzumaki clan. After the Uzumaki clan was destroyed back then, she and her Mother fled to the Land of Grass and were taken in by the Land of Grass.
Because she, like her Mother, possessed the special constitution that allowed her Chakra and injuries to recover if someone bit her, she became the human medicine pot of Grass Ninja Village. Her Mother had already died not long ago after being overused.
What Li Chuan valued was not Karin's healing constitution; he had healing magic himself, which was not inferior in effect.
What he valued was Karin's other innate ability, Kagura Shingan. By closing her eyes, she could sense the Chakra and location of enemies within a radius of dozens of kilometers. In this World, this was considered a top-tier sensory talent.
There was also the Uzumaki clan's unique Sealing Technique talent, as well as the secret Adamantine Chains sealing Ninjutsu, a super-strong Sealing Technique that could even seal Tailed Beasts.
Having learned Adamantine Chains, he could try sealing the Obscurus the next time he went to the Wizard World.
The Third Hokage finished speaking, and the preliminary examiner, Moonlight Hayate, appeared and began to announce the rules for the upcoming matches. Yakushi Kabuto, meanwhile, voluntarily withdrew from the competition early due to physical injury, leaving the arena.
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