Sasuke found it hard to believe.
Before graduation, he could still clearly see the gap between himself and Yagyu.
But how long had it been since graduation?
Now he could not even see Yagyu's shadow anymore.
How could this not make Sasuke feel despair?
After all, his ultimate goal was to kill Itachi, and Itachi was on the same level as Yagyu.
Did that not mean he was simply too weak?
Did he still have any chance for revenge?
Rumors truly harmed people.
If Yagyu knew what Sasuke was thinking at this moment, he would definitely tell him.
"Sasuke, you are overthinking it."
With Yagyu's current strength, there was still a considerable gap between him and Itachi.
Of course, Yagyu would never say that out loud, that would be undermining himself.
Returning to the main point.
After flattening the forest with one move, Yagyu remained on guard, Orochimaru had already disappeared from his sight.
As for sensory techniques, there were countless ways to evade them.
Even Yagyu himself could easily avoid many forms of detection.
That was why the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan was so famous.
Under its vision, almost no one could escape detection.
It was extremely powerful.
After remaining alert for a long time and still not seeing Orochimaru appear, Yagyu frowned.
The three members of Team Seven below were also confused.
"Why has he not come out yet?"
Naruto asked nervously.
"Does that person not want the scroll anymore?"
Whoosh.
A sound of breaking wind rang out.
Yagyu's figure landed beside the three.
Looking at the crater created by the attack, Yagyu spoke.
"It seems he has retreated, he ran quite fast."
Hearing Yagyu's words, Team Seven relaxed.
Even Sasuke, who was usually proud, did the same.
He was different from his original self at this stage.
He could accept defeat and acknowledge those stronger than himself, he also still had the confidence to surpass them.
Sheathing his blade, Yagyu glanced at their battered state.
"Be careful, I do not know why, but based on my perception, his target from the beginning was you three, the next part of the exam will be even more dangerous, do not lower your guard."
After giving his warning, Yagyu's figure flashed and disappeared instantly, leaving behind the three with tense and thoughtful expressions.
Whoosh.
Moving rapidly through the trees, Yagyu's face showed a thoughtful expression.
"He actually retreated, that should not be the case, most likely he did not want to expose himself too early and lose the chance to plant the curse mark on Sasuke."
However, this brief exchange allowed Yagyu to roughly gauge his own strength.
He was indeed at the elite Jonin level.
But in reality,
He was already very close to Kage level.
"If one of my attributes surpasses one thousand, I should be evaluated as Kage level by the system."
His current stats were approaching eight hundred.
It would not be long before they exceeded one thousand.
If he obtained powerful rewards in the coming days,
For example,
Wood Release.
Mangekyo Sharingan.
Or a major increase in the development of his Senju Sage Body.
Then he could directly break into the Kage level.
"There is no point overthinking."
Looking ahead, Yagyu's face showed anticipation.
"Better focus on completing the current task."
He quickly moved toward the nearest ninja team.
In this exam, Yagyu had two objectives, collecting both Heaven and Earth scrolls and patrolling the entire testing ground.
Five days passed.
For Yagyu, who often handled high-level missions, five days was nothing more than a fleeting moment.
On the fifth day of the second stage of the Chunin Exams.
At the central tower of the Forest of Death.
After successfully passing the second stage and completing the patrol mission assigned by the Third Hokage, Yagyu also arrived.
Standing in the preliminary arena, looking at the participants who had passed, Yagyu was not surprised.
Especially Team Ten.
After his encounter with Orochimaru, Yagyu obtained the scroll and then found Ino's team.
For most of the five days, he stayed with Team Ten.
With Yagyu's strength, ensuring their success was effortless.
More interestingly,
Perhaps because of Yagyu's presence, after being stopped once, Orochimaru never appeared again in Yagyu's perception.
It was as if he had disappeared out of fear.
But in reality, Orochimaru simply did not want unnecessary complications.
Yagyu looked toward Sasuke.
A trace of seriousness appeared in his eyes.
"Orochimaru's 'curse mark' has still been planted, that chakra is now rapidly merging with Sasuke's own chakra, while amplifying the darkness within him."
The curse mark was a form of Senjutsu.
But it carried severe side effects.
It amplified the darkness and desires within a person.
For someone already unstable like Sasuke, it acted like a catalyst.
"The rest depends on him."
Yagyu withdrew his gaze.
"Unless he figures it out himself, no one else can change him."
Naruto had already done a lot for Sasuke.
Yet Sasuke still walked down the wrong path.
In the end, it depended on his own choices.
As Yagyu stopped focusing on Sasuke, the process of the third stage preliminaries began.
The Third Hokage appeared and explained the meaning of the Chunin Exams.
Then the chief examiner of the third stage, Hayate Gekko, stepped forward and began arranging the preliminary matches.
Cough cough.
After coughing lightly, Hayate spoke seriously.
"Next, we will begin the preliminary matches for the third stage, since there are twenty-one participants remaining, one person will be randomly selected to advance directly."
Because of Yagyu's presence, the original number of twenty became twenty-one.
Allowing one person to advance automatically was the best solution.
No one objected.
After all, if one could advance without effort, that would naturally be the best outcome.
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