Many Konoha shinobi remained stationed at the village's south gate, repairing the damaged walls and fortifications. Meanwhile, Tsunade returned directly to the Hokage Building.
After such a chaotic battle, a mountain of paperwork had suddenly emerged, demanding her immediate attention.
Uchiha Hikaru, on the other hand, brought the remaining four Kage and the Chunin Exam candidates to Konoha's training grounds. He held in his hands the battle report sheets submitted by each team.
"The rules were explained previously, so I won't repeat them. I'll now announce the top 26 shinobi advancing to the final round."
"First place: Uchiha Saya."
"Second place: Hoshigaki Kisame."
"Third place: Gaara."
"Fourth place: Fu."
"Fifth place: Utakata."
"Sixth place: Yukimaru."
"Seventh place: Maruboshi Kosuke."
"Eighth place: Uchiha Sasuke."
"Ninth place: Hyuga Hinata."
"Tenth place: Suigetsu."
"Eleventh place: Kurotsuchi."
"Twelfth place: Uzumaki Naruto."
"Thirteenth place: #3."
"Fourteenth place: Hyuga Neji."
"Fifteenth place: Rock Lee."
"Sixteenth place: Aburame Shino."
"Seventeenth place: Omoi."
"Eighteenth place: Hydrangea."
"Nineteenth place: #1."
"Twentieth place: Karui."
"Twenty-first place: Temari."
"Twenty-second place: Kankuro."
"Twenty-third place: Sand #2."
"Twenty-fourth place: Nara Shikamaru."
"Twenty-fifth place: Akimichi Choji."
"Twenty-sixth place: Tenten."
"Congratulations. You've successfully advanced to the final round."
"After the tournament, we'll determine promotion based on your overall performance."
"Any questions?"
At that moment, Maruboshi Kosuke slowly stepped forward from the lineup.
"Lord Hikaru… I withdraw."
"I'm too old to keep up with the battles that lie ahead. I've been through enough. It's time for me to retire."
As he spoke, his already frail frame seemed to stoop further under the weight of age.
Uchiha Hikaru looked at the old man who had given nearly his entire life to Konoha. After a moment, he nodded.
"Alright. You'll receive your pension as a Jonin."
Maruboshi Kosuke smiled and waved his hand.
"No need to worry, Lord Hikaru. Thanks to Miss Saya's resourcefulness, I've already received my pension."
With that, he walked straight off the training grounds, not forgetting to wave cheerfully to the Genin behind him.
"Thanks, kids. I'm off now! Hahahaha!"
In that moment, Maruboshi Kosuke was already picturing a peaceful, carefree life surrounded by flirtatious, middle-aged women. His posture even straightened with anticipation. That earlier hunchback? Just an old man's act.
Hikaru glanced toward Saya with suspicion in his eyes.
Saya casually looked away, pretending to be innocent—like she had no idea what he was thinking.
Left with no choice, Hikaru turned to Kisame with a questioning glance.
Kisame offered a goofy grin but said nothing.
Then Hikaru shifted his gaze to the other Genin. None of them spoke up. No one seemed eager to explain how their scrolls had mysteriously disappeared.
Until finally, Kurotsuchi shouted:
"That old guy—and those two! The three of them stole all our scrolls!"
"Then they tried to sell us scrolls for 500,000 ryō each! They scammed us out of 2 million!"
Other ninjas quickly joined in, venting their frustrations.
"Two million? That's nothing!"
"The next batch of us had to pay four million—and that was with a 50% discount!"
Hikaru looked at the increasingly irate crowd, finally piecing together what Saya and her group had pulled. He let out a helpless sigh.
Still, in the next instant, his chakra flared—and the oppressive surge of power immediately silenced the entire field.
"Reality's cruel," Hikaru said coldly. "You're lucky they didn't take your lives."
"Better to pay a hefty price now and learn a lesson… than to die on a mission later as a Chunin."
"That's all. You've got one week to recover or improve yourselves."
"The final tournament will be held in Konoha's stadium. Daimyo and nobles from across the ninja world will be in attendance."
"This is your chance—to bring honor to your name and your village. Don't waste it."
Then, Hikaru calmly walked over to Saya and stopped right in front of her, staring.
Saya stubbornly turned her head to the side, pretending to be fascinated by the leaves fluttering nearby.
Ten full minutes passed in this tense silence.
Everyone else on the training field stood frozen, not daring to even shift.
Suigetsu muttered under his breath: "Damn… this Konoha assistant Hokage is scary. If he doesn't move, how can we?"
Finally, realizing the standoff could go on forever, Hikaru reached out and grabbed Saya's hand.
"Let's go eat some barbecue."
Saya's face instantly lit up with a smile. She hummed cheerfully as she followed alongside him.
"Hmmm~"
Kisame saw this and instantly panicked. His right arm was still broken, and he'd used almost all his chakra during that last fight to earn points.
No way. I have to disappear—fast. Or I'll be next in line for punishment!
. . .
Once Hikaru and Saya had left, the tension on the training field finally lifted. Everyone exhaled in unison.
Sasuke gave Naruto a light punch on the shoulder.
"What a drag. Looks like I'm still better than you."
But Naruto wasn't in the mood for jabs. He walked over to Sakura, who stood off to the side looking disheartened. He didn't know what to say.
Sasuke noticed Sakura's silence. She was the only one from their team who hadn't made it to the finals.
"Sakura, don't worry. It's not like this guy Naruto will actually get promoted."
"When I become a Chunin, I'll replace Kakashi-sensei as the leader of Team 7."
"Hahaha!"
As he spoke, Sasuke was already picturing a future where Naruto obeyed his every command and called him "Captain Sasuke."
Beautiful.
Finally, Sakura cracked a laugh, her earlier gloom fading.
"Okay!"
Seeing her smile again, Naruto immediately slugged Sasuke back.
"Damn you, Sasuke! I should be team leader! With your skills, no way you're getting promoted!"
Watching them bicker lifted Sakura's spirits. Whether she got promoted or not wasn't the most important thing—she just didn't want to be left behind.
But seeing how fast Naruto and Sasuke were progressing, she understood: she had to get stronger.
Otherwise, she really would be left behind.
Kakashi-sensei once told her her chakra control far exceeded that of most ninja. Maybe…
Maybe the path of a medical ninja is the right one for me...
. . .
-------
Send Power Stones
Bonus Chapter at 150 Power Stone
Second Bonus Chapter - 300 Power Stones
---------------------
Join my Patreon and get access to 50+ early chapters before anyone else! 🔥
https://www.patreon.com/UK21
Your Support is Truly Appreciated 🫂