Upon hearing Naruto call Orochimaru weak, Sasuke's eye twitched, and he felt a wave of helplessness wash over him.
He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but in the end, he chose silence.
*No way to explain this to an idiot!*
Luckily, Sakura was more "patient." She promptly landed a punch on Naruto's head.
"You idiot! Think for a moment. How could someone who can stand against the 'Black Demon' be weak?"
"'Black Demon'?"
Rubbing the growing lump on his head, Naruto looked puzzled. "Who's that?"
"It's your godfather, idiot Naruto!"
Sakura clenched her fists, barely resisting the urge to punch him again as she explained.
"During the Third Great Ninja War, Shigeo led Konoha to defeat both the Cloud and Mist villages. Most enemies never even saw him before being devoured by a swarm of parasitic insects, so they fearfully nicknamed him the 'Black Demon.'"
"Uh... ah!"
Naruto smacked a fist into his palm as a smile broke across his face.
"I remember now! Iruka-sensei mentioned this in history class. I totally paid attention!"
Sakura: "..."
*Yeah, right!*
Seeing Naruto's smug expression, Sakura decided it was pointless to continue the conversation.
At that moment, Sasuke stood up suddenly.
"Alright, the fight over there is done. Let's go!"
With that, he got up and walked away. Naruto and Sakura quickly followed.
The trio soon arrived in front of Shigeo Aburame.
Sasuke was the first to speak. "Who was that just now?"
"Orochimaru," Shigeo replied without hesitation.
"A disciple of the Third Hokage and one of the Legendary Sannin. He defected from Konoha in Year 49, making him an S-rank rogue ninja."
"S-rank?" Sasuke frowned. "Why is he here?"
"Because of you," Shigeo said with a faint smile, adjusting his sunglasses.
"Orochimaru possesses a forbidden jutsu that allows him to take over others' bodies. He's been craving the Uchiha bloodline and the Sharingan for a long time, so he's set his sights on you!"
"..."
Sasuke fell silent, his face cycling through a range of emotions: shock, unease, pride, and anger.
Shigeo found Sasuke's expressions amusing, the corner of his mouth twitching upward slightly.
Sakura noticed this immediately.
*This guy has such a dark sense of humor!*
She internally complained about Shigeo but quickly grabbed Sasuke's hand.
"Sasuke-kun, don't worry. Shigeo-sama is here for this very reason!"
Her words snapped Sasuke out of his thoughts, and his expression became calm once more.
Shigeo shrugged and waved at them.
"Alright, enough chatter. Go finish your exams. Don't worry about Orochimaru—he won't return as long as I'm here."
With that, he disappeared in a flicker of movement.
After Shigeo left, Sasuke turned his gaze. But as he looked ahead, Orochimaru's pale, twisted face suddenly appeared before him, sending a chill down his spine!
Just as he was about to cry out, the face shifted, revealing Naruto's grinning expression.
"Hehe, Sasuke, look what I found! A skin that looks just like a real person. I found it in that big pit over there. Creepy, huh?"
Sasuke: "..."
*Damn it, this idiot nearly gave me a heart attack!*
In that moment, Sasuke seriously considered pulling out his shuriken to teach Naruto a lesson.
But remembering the Chunin Exams, he suppressed his anger and walked away without a word.
Naruto, still holding Orochimaru's shed skin, prepared to follow. But before he could take two steps, Sakura knocked him flat with a punch.
"Idiot Naruto, get rid of that disgusting thing! Now! Immediately!"
"Uh..."
Faced with Sakura's fierce glare, Naruto reluctantly tossed the shed skin aside and trudged toward the center of the Forest of Death.
Meanwhile, the scroll battle was entering its final, intense phase, and casualties began to mount.
Teams were being eliminated one after another, and by the end of the five-day trial, only seven out of the original 26 teams had passed.
The elimination rate was close to 75%!
The remaining participants were the cream of the crop among Genin. In times of war, most of them would already be guaranteed promotion to Chunin.
But this was the joint Chunin Exams, and seven teams were still too many!
Thus began the third stage of the exams: the preliminaries.
Before the preliminaries, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, made a personal appearance to explain the true purpose of the joint Chunin Exams to the participating Genin.
Once his speech was over, Hayate Gekkō, the referee for the third stage, announced the start of the preliminaries, where participants would face off in 1v1 battles.
Shigeo Aburame, as the proctor for the second stage, was also present to observe the matches alongside Ibiki Morino and others.
Seeing Shigeo arrive, both Naruto and Sasuke's eyes lit up.
Naruto's thoughts were simple: he just wanted to impress his godfather and earn praise.
Sasuke's thoughts, however, were far more complex.
He intended to showcase his strength by defeating powerful opponents, hoping to gain Shigeo's approval and join the reformed Police Force.
*He's much stronger than Kakashi. If I earn his recognition and join the Police Force, I might gain the power to kill… Uchiha Itachi!*
With that resolve, Sasuke stared intently at the announcement board, watching as the names shuffled.
Finally, two names were set—**Uchiha Sasuke vs. Akadō Yoroi.**
Hayate Gekkō announced, "Will the two participants on the board please step forward!"
Hearing this, Sasuke and Yoroi emerged from the crowd, standing before Hayate.
Hayate looked at them and asked, "Do either of you have any objections to this match?"
"None," they replied in unison.
"Then... let the first match begin—*cough, cough*—"
Hayate coughed twice before gesturing to the stands.
"All non-participants, please move to the upper viewing area!"
At his instruction, the others climbed the stairs to the observation deck.
Once everyone was in place, Hayate declared the match started.
Sasuke, already impatient, charged toward Yoroi while quickly forming hand seals.
"Serpent—Ram—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger!"
As the seals completed, Sasuke took a deep breath and unleashed a massive fireball.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
This signature Uchiha technique was powerful and had a wide attack range. Yoroi had no choice but to dodge.
With his Sharingan active, Sasuke tracked Yoroi's every move, throwing shuriken attached to wires with both hands. Using his Sharingan and the wires, he controlled their trajectory, ensnaring Yoroi.
Watching this, Shigeo's lips curled into a faint smile.
"Sharingan Windmill Triple Blade… this fight is over. Without the Cursed Mark interfering, Sasuke wins easily."
*(To be continued)*