Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi

"By the way, there's a child I need you to look after now that you're back," the Third suddenly remembered, preparing to entrust Naruto to Jiraiya.

Hearing this, Jiraiya's first thought was of the red-clothed boy he had met during the day. "I'm used to my freedom. I'm not in the mood to take on any more disciples," he first said evasively, then changed the subject. "Sensei, when I returned to the village today, I saw a boy in red clothes on the street with a mysterious black mark on his forehead. I wonder if you know who this child is." The impression Kusuo had left on him was simply too deep; he was itching to find out more.

"That child! You must be talking about Hatake Kusuo," the Third said. "He's a descendant of the Hatake clan, Kakashi's cousin. His talent is not bad; at such a young age, he already possesses strength no less than that of a jonin." The Third spoke casually, but he didn't mention that his own son had been defeated by him. Firstly, there was no need. Secondly, it was still quite embarrassing. After all, no matter how much of a genius Kusuo was, he was still just a boy. Being defeated by a boy was still a bit shameful to talk about.

"So he's Kakashi's cousin... Sensei, I want to take him as my disciple and teach him well during this time."

At these words, the Third's eyebrows and beard shot up in anger. "Weren't you just saying you were used to your freedom and not in the mood to take on disciples? Why are you going back on your word now?" he said, annoyed.

Jiraiya scratched the back of his head and laughed. "Haha, did I say that? Hahahaha..."

The old master and disciple chatted for a while. In the end, the task of entrusting Naruto to him was still given to Jiraiya. Although he was very interested in Kusuo, Jiraiya could still distinguish between his personal feelings and his responsibility to the village. "Don't worry. In any case, he is also Minato's child. I will teach him well." Thinking of Minato Namikaze, Jiraiya sighed. Before leaving, he made a promise to the Third Hokage.

Time flew by, and a month passed. Kusuo spent his days swinging his sword and meditating.

[Current Template Role-Play Percentage: 52.02%.] Note: This number is inconsistent with previous progression.

Ever since unlocking the Crimson Blade, he had vaguely felt that his strength was now complete. He had basically unlocked all of Yoriichi Tsugikuni's skills. The problem that had been giving him a headache, the Transparent World, had actually been emerging in his mind all along. It was just that at the beginning, he couldn't see the blood and meridians of the human body very well. Now, as the template unlocked more and more, Kusuo could "see" more and more. One day, all the illusions of this world would be shattered under his eyes.

Compared to him, Naruto and Sasuke's strength had improved by leaps and bounds. After a "chance" encounter, Naruto had officially become Jiraiya's disciple. And Sasuke had learned the Chidori from Kakashi. Both children of destiny were now full of confidence, wanting to show off their skills in the upcoming third test.

And that day arrived.

In the arena at the center of Konoha, the seats were already packed with a sea of people. The clan heads and outstanding children of the great families—Hyuga, Yamanaka, Nara, Akimichi, Sarutobi, Inuzuka, and so on—were all present. In addition, a large number of commoners were there to witness this grand event.

There were eight finalists this time: Hatake Kusuo, Hinata Hyuga, Naruto Uzumaki, Gaara, Sasuke Uchiha, Temari, Kankuro, and Shikamaru Nara. The rest had been eliminated for various reasons. Unlike the original story, the highly anticipated super genius, Neji, was absent. Instead, it was Hinata who stood here.

"Father! Look, it's Big Sister!" Hinata entered the arena together with Kusuo. The handsome boy and beautiful girl attracted a lot of attention, and little Hanabi spotted her sister immediately. She was a total sister-con.

Hyuga Hiashi sat in the stands with the core members of the Hyuga clan, as still as a mountain, maintaining the dignity and prestige of a clan head. He gave a slight nod, his heart actually very pleased. When he had heard that his daughter had actually defeated the genius of the branch family, Neji, he had been so shocked he jumped up from his tatami mat, repeatedly asking if the news was true. After making inquiries from multiple sources and confirming the news, Hiashi had wept with joy in a deserted corner. If Hinata can beat Neji, then Hanabi is no match for her either. For a moment, he had even wanted to re-groom his eldest daughter as the heir to the main family. But that was just a fleeting thought. He knew very well who had brought about all of this. Hatake Kusuo, the boy he had placed his bet on, was gradually beginning to radiate his own light.

Genma Shiranui, a former member of the Hokage's personal guard, with his special and powerful skills, was serving as the head proctor this time. He held a roster, a senbon needle in his mouth. With a blow of his whistle, he officially sounded the horn for the start of the matches.

"First match: Naruto Uzumaki versus Hinata Hyuga!"

The first match was a civil war within Team 10. Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly and gave Hinata a goofy grin. "Sorry, Hinata! I won't be holding back later, so you better be careful!"

Hinata, standing beside Kusuo, smiled serenely and walked forward with Naruto. With the proctor's command, the two immediately clashed.

But...

"Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms!"

"Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!"

"Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

Hah~ With her body as the center, Hinata created a mystical circular Eight Trigrams formation. A series of dense, muffled palm strikes, one after another, hit Naruto's shadow clones. In a few seconds, just a few seconds, she cleared all of Naruto's clones from the field.

"Huh? What?" Naruto, who had prided himself on his recent progress, was dumbfounded. He had been training with the Pervy Sage all this time and had improved tremendously. Why was he at a disadvantage right from the start? Before he could recover, Hinata's figure had already flickered in front of him.

"Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Shattering Void Strike!"

A palm strike carrying a massive amount of chakra hit Naruto in the chest, sending him flying. He tumbled a dozen times on the ground before he could barely stop himself.

Naruto, covered in dust, wiped his nose, unwilling to give up. He was about to form a seal and look for another chance when—

"Winner, Hinata Hyuga!"

Genma Shiranui had already announced the winner.

"Huh? Why? I haven't lost yet!" Not understanding the situation, Naruto was baffled and loudly protested.

Genma gave him a look and said faintly, "Look behind you."

Naruto turned his head and found that Hinata had, at some unknown point, gotten behind him and was holding a kunai to his neck.

"But! I still..." I still have a lot of jutsu I haven't used yet! Naruto really wanted to say this, but seeing that the match was over and there was no chance, he could only slink out of the arena, covered in dust. A month of hard training, in exchange for such a hasty ending. The child of destiny's heart was still quite unwilling. But then he thought, the winner was his own teammate, and somehow it didn't feel so bad.

After the first match was Temari versus Shikamaru. Just like the original story, Shikamaru designed the entire battle process with his extremely clever mind but forfeited at the end due to a lack of chakra.

Next was the third battle: Sasuke versus Gaara.

"I will kill you." Genma stood between the two. Gaara didn't hold back at all, sneering at Sasuke as he said the words. Genma glanced at him calmly but said nothing. The Chunin Exams... had no restrictions on methods.

"Your strength is indeed great, but unfortunately for you, you've run into me. I'll let you witness the power of our Uchiha clan's Sharingan! To fall under these eyes, you will have no complaints about losing."

"You!" Gaara was enraged by his dismissive attitude. "I'll let you know what it means to die an ugly death!"

The whistle blew. The battle began!

Gaara stared darkly at Sasuke, his hands pressing down in the air. A massive amount of sand flowed out from the gourd on his back, then drilled into the ground, churning it violently. Before long, it had spread throughout the entire arena. Even the civilians in the stands could feel the vibrations underground.

"What is Gaara doing?!" In the audience, the Sand Village ninja shot to their feet. This move, it was clear Gaara was planning to use all his chakra to destroy the entire arena. But if he overused this power, it would definitely trigger the One-Tail Shukaku inside him ahead of schedule. At that point, the mission would be thrown into chaos.

"Let me show you my ultimate ninjutsu. Let me show you what despair is!"

"Today, you will die at my feet!" Gaara smiled cruelly and squeezed his hands together. In an instant, countless sand tendrils climbed onto Sasuke's body, covering him completely.

"No one can escape the range of my sand! Die for me!"

BOOM!

BOOM!

Continuous explosions. A heaven-shaking roar. Aside from the stands, the entire center of the arena erupted in an astonishing tremor. The Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral, a jutsu of massive scale and power, was now displaying its divine might.

"Fourth Kazekage, I need an explanation!" The Third Hokage and Orochimaru, disguised as the Fourth Kazekage, were sitting together in the chief viewing platform. He could see at a glance that Sasuke was in crisis. Buried underground and subjected to such a massive explosion, his life or death was unknown.

"Hehe, the Chunin Exams are a clash of true strength. Life and death are decided by fate. You can't blame others," the 'Fourth Kazekage' chuckled lightly, not paying any mind to the Third Hokage's anger.

But Gaara was staring fixedly at the center of the explosion, his hands, which were outputting chakra to maintain the blast, trembling slightly. There, it felt like something was about to break through, something beyond his control.

VMM!

The sound of a thousand birds chirping rose into the sky, carrying a blue electric light that dazzled the eyes of countless spectators.

"Th-this..."

"So cool!"

"Oh my god! Look at the lightning wrapped around his hand!"

"If I remember correctly, that's your ninjutsu, the Chidori, isn't it, Kakashi? Don't tell me Sasuke learned that move in just one month?" Kurenai was astonished. If it was true, Sasuke's talent was a bit too superior.

The entire audience stood up. Shock. Uproar. Amazement. Everyone stared at the center of the arena in shock.

In the middle of the explosion, Sasuke stood up, his clothes in tatters. Although he was a mess, covered in dirt and with his clothes torn, at this moment, his eyes were shining brightly, and he was looking at Gaara with a smile.

"Chidori!"

With a loud shout, Sasuke's eyes instantly turned crimson. He broke through to Gaara's front. Like a thousand birds chirping incessantly, that was the origin of the name of Kakashi's lightning-style ninjutsu.

"Fall for me." The blue arc of electricity cut through Gaara's sand, successfully breaking through his indestructible sand wall.

At the same time, feather-like rain began to fall from the sky. The commoners in the stands and the weaker genin all fell into a deep sleep.

The Konoha Crush... had begun.

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