Chapter 113: Days of Playing a Tragic Role in Konoha
On the streets of Konoha.
The Sunagakure (Village Hidden by Sand) team arriving for the Chunin Exams came to a halt.
Baki's face was filled with disbelief, his eyes wide as he stared at Uehara Naraka standing by the roadside, his gaze full of incredulity.
Uehara's appearance had changed somewhat over the years, but Baki could still recognize him from the contours of his face. The image of that arrogant youth was already deeply etched in his mind, precisely because he had killed the Fourth Kazekage, nearly causing Sunagakure to collapse.
"Long time no see, Mr. Baki."
Uehara Naraka slowly walked towards Baki, leaned in close, and whispered, "What should be said, and what shouldn't be said – remember to have discretion, understand? Otherwise, this time, I can't guarantee I'll spare you and the One-Tail Jinchūriki."
Baki's body trembled slightly. He asked gravely, "You fellow... what do you want to do, coming to Konoha?"
"Of course, it's to participate in the Chunin Exams."
Uehara Naraka walked around Baki and went to Gaara. Looking at the fierce-faced, red-haired youth, he reached out and patted Gaara's hair.
Kankurō's expression changed abruptly, terrified Gaara would rampage here. His sister, Temari, even more panicked, cried out to stop him, "Don't!"
Over these four years, Gaara's temper had grown increasingly volatile.
Even though Kankurō and Temari were Gaara's relatives, they couldn't help but fear their younger brother, afraid Gaara would go on a killing spree.
However, Gaara made no move.
Yellow sand gradually seeped out from the gourd on Gaara's back, slowly appearing to block Uehara Naraka's hand.
Thump!
The yellow sand was patted away by Uehara, scattering onto Gaara.
Uehara Naraka gently brushed the yellow sand off Gaara and said in a low voice, "Little fellow, if you're also here to participate in the Chunin Exams, then we're opponents, you know. I hope you don't run away too quickly this time..."
Gaara looked up with a grim expression, stared into Uehara Naraka's eyes, and said coldly, "Get your dirty hands off!"
"Then why don't you kill me now?"
Uehara Naraka pressed his hand on Gaara's head, a slight smile on his lips, "Because you know your own weakness, that you fundamentally can't match me, right?"
"Sooner or later, I will kill you!"
Gaara gritted his teeth.
"Then you'll have to be careful."
Uehara Naraka patted Gaara's head and continued with a smile, "Deaths are permitted in the Chunin Exams, you know. You have to try your best, Gaara!"
"..."
Gaara looked sullenly at the departing Uehara Naraka.
Although Gaara had become increasingly bloodthirsty and cruel, he still had a bit of self-awareness.
Even the One-Tail Shukaku at full power had been thrashed by Uehara Naraka, let alone his current self, whose strength wasn't particularly great.
These Chunin Exams were overshadowed before they even began.
"Is that guy a ninja from Amegakure (Village Hidden in the Rain)?"
Kankurō looked unhappily at Uehara's retreating figure and was about to take down his Crow puppet from his back, but Baki waved his hand to stop him.
Temari's expression was also somewhat grave, "That guy is far too arrogant. Is his strength really that great?"
"That bastard..."
Gaara's body gradually began to tremble, the veins on his face becoming more prominent, a madness slowly appearing in his eyes, "Very... very strong!"
A look of worry appeared on Baki's face. He shook his head, "You three go to the inn first. I'll go discuss with the others and report to Lady Chiyo."
He hadn't expected that these Chunin Exams would actually attract a ninja like Uehara Naraka. Were the people of Konohagakure (Village Hidden in the Leaves) out of their minds?
Someone capable of killing a Fourth Kazekage was actually allowed to participate in the Chunin Exams?
It couldn't be more absurd!
However, when Baki reported to Sunagakure's Chiyo and Ebizō, Ebizō thought this matter wasn't too problematic, prioritizing the "Chunin Exam plan" as before.
As for the matter of that guy Uehara Naraka potentially going on a slaughter spree during the Chunin Exams, Ebizō was very clear Konoha would absolutely not allow such a thing to happen. If it really did happen, it would conveniently cause Amegakure and Konoha to become enemies.
Besides Baki, someone in Konoha had also noticed Uehara Naraka.
In fact, apart from him, no one else would care that there was a guy named Uehara Naraka on the list of Genin sent by Amegakure to participate in the Chunin Exams.
Precisely Team 7's Jonin instructor, Kakashi Hatake.
Ichiraku Ramen.
Uehara Naraka was slurping his ramen very happily.
Uehara was in an excellent mood right now. Doing missions in Konoha was always so simple, and these missions were so easy to complete; even eating a bowl of ramen had a mission reward.
If Kakashi Hatake weren't beside him, he would probably be even happier.
Kakashi Hatake sat beside Uehara Naraka, holding a glass of plain water, and asked, "So you're a ninja from Amegakure... Looks like that guy Obito has been hiding in Amegakure ever since the Great Ninja War ended, right?"
They had met before in Kirigakure (Village Hidden by Mist).
At that time, Kakashi Hatake learned from Uehara Naraka (in disguise) that Uchiha Obito had been hiding in a small hidden village, competing with Uehara Naraka for the position of leader's successor.
Unfortunately, Kakashi hadn't expected that Uchiha Obito was actually hiding in Amegakure, and furthermore, under the command of the Ninja Demigod, Hanzō of the Salamander.
"He defected after his identity was exposed."
Uehara Naraka put down his bowl, slowly picking at the ramen in his bowl with his chopsticks, and said softly, "I don't know anything about what happened later. Mr. Kakashi doesn't need to ask me either. Right now, I wish I could cut that S-rank rogue ninja of your Konoha into eight pieces."
"Uh... let's not talk about this."
Kakashi Hatake frowned, tightened his grip on the water cup in his hand, and turned to another matter, "During the Land of Waves mission, I encountered two people..."
As he spoke these words, Kakashi Hatake's eyes stared intently at Uehara Naraka's movements, his voice gradually becoming somewhat grave, "Coincidentally, before that, I had also encountered them and personally saw them obeying your command..."
Kakashi Hatake was talking about Mangetsu Hōzuki and Zabuza Momochi.
Clearly, during the Land of Waves mission, these two had caused him and Team 7 a lot of trouble. If not for Lightning Release ninjutsu happening to counter Mangetsu Hōzuki's Hydrification Technique, Team 7 might have been completely wiped out in the Land of Waves.
"They are not our Ame ninjas!"
Uehara Naraka shook his head, his face somewhat indignant, "Regarding this matter, you might as well go ask your S-rank rogue ninja, ask Uchiha Obito what he himself did!"
"They defected to Obito?"
Kakashi Hatake nearly crushed his water cup. He had roughly guessed from Uehara Naraka's words why Uehara Naraka was so angry.
"Mm, your Konoha's Uchiha Obito is truly formidable."
Uehara Naraka turned his head to look at Kakashi Hatake, a half-smile on his face, "Thanks to that Uchiha Obito, our losses can be described as extremely severe. Amegakure's years of hard work were stolen by him and went down the drain."
"..."
Kakashi Hatake's expression was slightly awkward. Having roughly confirmed his thoughts, he just forced an explanation, "Those two kids you abducted in Kirigakure back then, haven't they already joined your Amegakure?"
"Kimimaro and Haku are not Mist ninjas; they are wandering children from the Land of Water."
Uehara Naraka shook his head. After explaining seriously, he looked somewhat mockingly at Kakashi Hatake, "Uchiha Obito is definitely your Konoha's spy. After all, if our Amegakure became strong, Konoha's situation wouldn't be too good, right? Now that he has caused our Amegakure to suffer heavy losses, your Konoha higher-ups must be very satisfied!"
"How could that be? Konoha and Amegakure have a peace treaty."
Kakashi Hatake's expression was subtle. He suddenly thought of something, stared intently at Uehara Naraka's face, and asked, "Your Excellency's purpose in participating in these Chunin Exams... is it to proclaim Amegakure's strength?"
Kakashi Hatake had personally witnessed Uehara Naraka's strength. When this guy was twelve, in the Land of Water, killing a group of Jonin and Chunin was like slaughtering chickens and dogs.
Given Uehara Naraka's power, why would he need to participate in the Chunin Exams?
"Yes."
Uehara Naraka took this opportunity to directly state his reason for participating in the Chunin Exams, "Because the losses brought about by that guy Uchiha Obito's defection were too great, our village's situation is not good. Lord Hanzō is worried neighboring countries will covet us."
"Ever since I graduated, I've always been the secret weapon prepared for arms races like the Chunin Exams. Now, I can only come and participate in these kids' games."
Hearing Uehara Naraka's words, he sounded somewhat wistful and lost.
A feeling of a hero in despair arose spontaneously. Kakashi Hatake couldn't help but sigh at the difficulty of survival for small hidden villages.
If Uehara Naraka were their Konoha ninja, he wouldn't need to prepare for the Chunin Exams at all; he could definitely sit in the position of an ANBU squad captain.
It's just that if Uehara Naraka participated in the Chunin Exams, these exams seemed like they would be somewhat dangerous. Kakashi Hatake somewhat wanted to dissuade Team 7 from participating.
Kakashi Hatake sighed, "If Your Excellency is participating, then those kids in my class don't need to participate, lest the blow to them be too great... I originally wanted them to gain some experience in the Chunin Exams."
"Don't!"
Uehara Naraka nearly spat out a mouthful of water. If Team 7 didn't participate in the Chunin Exams because of him, what would happen to his side quests?
Uehara Naraka's strength had stagnated for a while; he was just waiting to harvest the "leeks" of Team 7 and the Konoha 12!
"This is Konoha; I can't possibly do anything too dangerous."
Uehara Naraka put his arm around Kakashi Hatake's shoulder, revealing a hearty smile, "How about this, Mr. Kakashi, let's have a sparring match, test my current strength. Regardless of win or lose, I will take special care of those kids in your class. How about I put on a good show for them?"
"Is that necessary?"
Kakashi Hatake was simply at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
"I've come from afar."
Uehara Naraka was very insistent. He even proactively proposed, "Mr. Kakashi can also call your good friend over. Let's all spar together."
"Whether it's Lord Hanzō or Konoha's Lord Hokage, their ages are already advanced. In the future, missions or exchanges between our two villages will be carried out by people like us, right?"
"I think this proposal is not bad."
An aged voice suddenly reached both their ears.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, holding his pipe and wearing the Hokage hat, walked into Ichiraku Ramen. Looking at Uehara Naraka, a kind, elderly smile slowly appeared on his face, "Kakashi, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"
(End of Chapter)
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