Naruto: The Hidden Protector

187: Good Times Make Weak Men, Hard Times Make Strong Men

After a while, Orochimaru stopped his rambling. Kabuto, seeing that his master was now back to normal, decided to continue with the conversation.

"Master Orochimaru, should we send ninjas from the Sound Village to participate in the upcoming Chunin Exams?" Kabuto asked as he pushed up his glasses, reflecting the light.

Orochimaru thought about it for a moment and asked, "When are the Chunin Exams being held?"

"According to my sources, two months from now," Kabuto answered, watching Orochimaru, who was deep in thought.

Then, suddenly, Orochimaru let out a chilling laugh as his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

"Two months... That is more than enough time," Orochimaru hissed softly, his voice filled with cold excitement. "Of course, we will send our ninjas to participate, Kabuto. It would be rude of me to ignore a grand stage that my old teacher went through so much trouble to build."

He began to pace around the dim hallway, his long tongue slipping out to lick his pale lips. "Choose a few capable genin from the Sound Village. They don't need to actually care about passing the exam. Their only job is to blend in, gather information, and act as my eyes and ears inside the Leaf Village."

He suddenly stopped and spoke, "Also, send someone to contact Rasa. I heard the Sand Village is so poor that their respected Kazekage even has to go outside to mine gold just to support the village."

Kabuto nodded smoothly, a calm smile playing on his face. "Understood, Orochimaru-sama. I will personally arrange a team to go meet the Kazekage. But Orochimaru-sama, what kind of message should I deliver to him?"

Orochimaru chuckled darkly as he spoke, "Tell Rasa to see if he wants to join my plan to attack Konoha. Tell him he can rob all the villagers in Konoha. His only requirement is to bring their Jinchuriki to the Leaf Village to keep the ninjas distracted enough for me to deal with Hiruzen and Tsunade."

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama. I will make sure the Kazekage is informed of your proposal." With that, Kabuto quickly walked out of the laboratory to finish the assigned task he was given. In his eyes, a very excited light was flickering.

As the sound of Kabuto's footsteps faded down the cold stone corridor, the heavy doors of the secret lab slid shut, and the isolation seals flickered back to life with a faint blue glow.

Orochimaru stood alone in the dim hallway for a moment, his lips curling into a wicked, twisted grin. The plan was finally taking shape. With the Hidden Sand Village desperately needing money, Rasa would have no choice but to bite the bait.

" Fufufu, Sensei, I hope you love my surprise for you. Hahahahahaha " Orochimaru's cackling laughter sounded in the secret lab, making anyone who heard it shiver in fright.

.....

While dark undercurrents began to move in the shadows, Konoha, still completely unaware of the impending doom, happily looked forward to the upcoming Chunin Exams.

The atmosphere in the village grew more festive by the day. Colorful banners stretched across the streets, lanterns lit up the night sky, and the endless chatter of excited crowds filled the air.

While the villagers were excitedly preparing for the upcoming festival, the genin ninjas who were selected for this year's Chunin Exam were training like crazy. Especially for the older ninjas, the pressure on them was intense. Unlike in the original story, where mostly the Rookie 12 were present, this time many older genin who had failed in previous years were allowed to join.

Of course, Hiruzen had originally wanted to stop this. He felt that allowing such old ninjas to participate would make it look like Konoha lacked young talent when presented to the visiting nobles and dignitaries. He wanted to showcase fresh, brilliant geniuses to impress the clients.

But Tsunade completely refuted him, saying that this matter was absolutely non-negotiable. She argued that every genin who worked hard deserved a fair chance to promote, regardless of their age, and she refused to hide them away just for the sake of the village's vanity.

And besides, she honestly didn't care whether these so-called nobles really thought about Konoha because Izanami was still protecting Konoha. In fact, she even thought those nobles would be too busy trying to curry favor against Izanami to care about the Chunin exam.

But in this group of genins, there was a team that, unlike the rest of genins were actually relaxing. And this team is none other than Team 7 led by Kakashi Hatake. As the team that was packed with the most talented team members and the least motivated jonin sensei, Team 7 actually had to practice on their own. Of course, Kakashi wasn't that heartless as to leave his students to their own devices.

Kakashi at first tried to train Team 7, but he quickly realized that he was actually not needed at all. The three genin had already found their own incredible paths to growth.

Naruto now had a massive collection of knowledge that he got directly from Izanami. This priceless archive included the secret ninjutsu scrolls of the Uzumaki and Senju clans and even the legendary techniques of the Rushifā clan. With such deep resources and Izanami's backing, Naruto's training was completely taken care of.

As for Sasuke, he didn't need Kakashi's help either. He had the full support of the thriving Uchiha clan, along with the personal guidance of his dear sister Kiyomi and his brother, who ensured his sharingan and taijutsu were sharpening by the day.

The only one who couldn't train in traditional combat styles like the boys was Sakura. However, she didn't fall behind. Using her excellent, precise chakra control, she was able to work part-time at the Konoha Hospital. This allowed her to get noticed by Tsunade herself, learning medical ninjutsu directly under the Hokage's guidance.

Seeing his students completely set, Kakashi could only shrug, pull out his favorite orange book, and enjoy his unexpected free time. The most he did was gather them together to teach them some common knowledge about the ninja world—the kind of practical survival skills and harsh realities that only someone who had witnessed and survived a war could pass down.

In short, apart from doing some simple D-rank missions to keep up appearances, Team 7 spent their days in a very lively atmosphere, listening to the various stories from Kakashi.

Even though they didn't need him for ninjutsu training, the trio always paid close attention whenever Kakashi spoke about his past missions, tactical mind games, and the clever tricks one needed to survive dangerous situations. After all, although Kakashi could sometimes act like a lazy good-for-nothing with the Sharingan, his rich experience as a former Anbu captain and the youngest jonin in Konoha's history was incredibly helpful.

He taught them how to read between the lines of a mission scroll, how to spot hidden traps that standard sensory jutsu might miss, and how to psychologically manipulate an enemy during a tense standoff.

In short, his advice was very much needed for these greenhorns who didn't know the true dark side of this world. This was especially true for these three youngsters, who were able to live in absolute peace under Izanami's terrifying prestige.

One should know that at this time in the original timeline, Konoha was barely recovering from the aftermath of the Third Ninja World War, leaving everyone on edge. But now, things were completely different. Like they say, peacetime makes the younger generation weak and naive because the adults subconsciously shield them from the darkness and pressure they went through during their own childhoods.

Thanks to Izanami keeping the massive threats at bay, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura had the luxury of growing up without constant fear. They were exceptionally strong, yes, but they lacked the cynical grit of children raised on a battlefield. And Kakashi's advice may actually one day help these youngsters escape from death. 

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