A long time passed.
Only when the evening chill started to creep in did Maki finally snap out of her daze. She scrambled to snatch up the number 35 plate and clutched it to her chest like a priceless treasure, breathing fast.
The whole encounter felt surreal. She stared blankly at the plate tucked against her slightly heaving chest, mind spinning in chaos.
—I actually survived someone that dangerous… and walked away with his plate.
Unbelievable. And yet… thrilling.
But the joy didn't last.
Her gaze drifted to Daimaru's cold corpse lying nearby, and her expression grew complicated.
There was relief that the guy she hated was gone.
After all, from what he'd said, if Shikage hadn't shown up, Daimaru would've definitely come after her.
She might have learned Sunagakure taijutsu, but she was still a support-type ninja—her sealing jutsu wasn't built for killing.
Fighting Daimaru head-on? She wouldn't have walked away unscathed.
There was also a flicker of pity for a fallen comrade.
He was still a Sunagakure shinobi, after all.
But mostly… it was that familiar shinobi sorrow: "the rabbit dies, the dog is cooked."
"Sigh…"
Letting out a long breath, Maki decided to bury Daimaru's body.
He had been a village comrade, after all…
But when she tried to stand, her legs were completely numb. She nearly toppled over.
After a while she finally regained feeling—only to notice a strange dampness underneath her.
One glance downward and her face flushed bright red like an apple.
"Nara… Shikage…"
"He definitely saw…"
"I…"
Just as her thoughts spiraled into panic, a bird call snapped her back to reality.
"Stop overthinking!"
"Maki, stay alert! The exam isn't over yet!"
"Even though I already have enough points, I still have to protect my own plate!"
The serious, focused Maki was back in control.
She carefully scanned her surroundings, then slipped away to find a safe hiding spot to wait out the rest of the exam.
What she didn't know was that the "hunter" who had been assigned her plate was already dead—killed by Shikage.
...
At almost the exact same moment Shikage set off—
Elsewhere in the forest.
Hana Inuzuka crouched expressionlessly on a thick branch, flanked by two Konoha shinobi.
Their targets were resting just ahead.
Hana hadn't wanted to team up.
But her prey had stuck like glue to those two vicious-looking brutes the whole time, giving her no opening.
Luckily, while tracking them she had run into two other Konoha candidates—who just so happened to have those same two brutes as their targets.
The three of them clicked instantly and decided to take down the entire Takigakure trio together.
After waiting a long time, one of the Konoha shinobi decided the moment was right.
He nodded at Hana.
She understood, patting the two ninken beside her.
They were her family's ninja dogs—the Gray Fang triplets.
"Ready?"
The three ninken nodded with human-like intelligence.
With the Inuzuka secret technique primed, Hana signaled her teammates.
The other two struck at the same time.
The instant the five of them clashed, Hana's slender fingers danced through seals:
"Secret Technique: Four Legs Technique!"
"Secret Technique: Beast Human Clone!"
...
BOOM—!
The massive explosion caught the attention of the sprinting Shikage.
He skidded to a stop and looked toward the noise.
His 51.3 Perception stat let him instantly sense a violent, raging chakra erupting like a volcano.
"That feeling… don't tell me…"
"Tch!"
Shikage frowned and sped up.
Someone had used the Hero's Water!
Even if the Anbu mission failed, it wouldn't stop him from joining Anbu.
But he hated the taste of failure!
He could grudgingly accept the Hero's Water being used.
What he refused to accept was anyone getting eliminated by its user!
...
BOOM—!
Dust filled the air.
Hana Inuzuka and the two Konoha shinobi shot backward.
All three wore expressions of pure terror.
Hana was sprawled on the ground, sharp pink nails dug deep into the dirt. Her breathing came in ragged gasps, sweat soaked her forehead, and strands of hair stuck to her skin.
"What the hell is that?"
She stared at the "monster" in front of her, feeling the overwhelming chakra pouring off it, lips pressed tight.
If she hadn't been fast enough just now, Gray Fang would've been badly injured.
The Takigakure ninja had clearly been hiding his real strength!
Reason told her retreating was the smart move.
But…
Her teammates saw her hesitation and shouted,
"If we don't take them down, how do we pass the exam?!"
"Eight hours have already gone by—seventy percent of the candidates are already eliminated!"
"There aren't enough plates left for us to scrape together the points!"
"We have to go all out—no backing down!"
Hana gritted her fangs, took a deep breath, and growled,
"Let's go!"
The four of them clashed again, but this time the three Konoha shinobi were clearly losing ground.
Outside the battlefield, Shibuki and A-Er watched everything with wide eyes.
Unlike A-Er's stone face, Shibuki was visibly shaken.
He rubbed his eyes again and again, muttering in disbelief,
"Hero's Water…?"
As the son of Takigakure's leader, he knew exactly what their village's treasure could do.
Only Hero's Water could make a shinobi explode with several times—or even dozens of times—their normal chakra in an instant.
But chakra was a shinobi's life force. When it ran out, so did their life.
Even if it didn't completely drain them, the severe loss would still cost them at least half their lifespan!
Shibuki's fists clenched tight, eyes wide with shock as he watched A-Da's rampage.
"Why?"
"Why use the Hero's Water here?!"
"This is just an exam!"
"Was it really necessary?!"
Even though he desperately wanted to shine in the Chunin Exams, he knew what really mattered.
He turned to A-Er, voice trembling,
"A-Er, what the hell is going on?!"
A-Er didn't answer. He just stared silently at A-Da, who looked like a war god.
The leader had given strict orders—they were not to tell Shibuki the truth.
Even if it cost them their lives.
Seeing A-Er's silence, Shibuki grew even more confused and upset.
Gritting his teeth, he tried to rush forward to stop A-Da.
A-Da and A-Er had been his friends since they were kids—he couldn't just watch one of them die in front of him!
But the moment he moved, A-Er blocked him.
"Shibuki, you can't go."
A-Er's voice was ice-cold.
He offered no explanation.
The two of them could only watch as A-Da grew stronger and stronger, the chakra pouring off him now so thick it was visible to the naked eye.
"Let me through!"
"No!"
Just as they argued, another deafening boom cut them off.
They whipped their heads around.
The "invincible monster" A-Da had just been smashed into the ground.
Standing on top of him was a tall, straight-backed figure.
The chakra radiating from him wasn't just equal to A-Da's—it was stronger.
Darker. Colder. Bone-chilling.
Shibuki stared at the silhouette, stunned.
"Nara… Shikage?"