Alone and Infinite.

Chapter 273 Black Charcoal's Face

There was no break between the first and second rounds of exams.

As usual, Li Xia put on a green vest and listened to the details of the second round of exams with a bit of boredom.

The period leading up to the actual start of the 'Konoha Crush Plan' is somewhat like a transitional animation in the story.

This also gives the Apostles time to act, although everyone can guess that the second phase of the main quest is related to the 'Chunin Exams'.

However, the specific mode is unclear. It could be a storyline involving killing important characters, destroying landmarks, or simply attack and defense.

Li Xia did a lot of work in the first round, so the second round was much easier.

The stage is set up; all that's left is to announce the program and start the performance.

"There are two scrolls in total, one is the scroll of heaven and the other is the scroll of earth."

Each team holds one of them, and you must collect the complete Heaven and Earth Scroll within five days.

Then head to the tower at the very center of the Death Forest.

The examiner for this exam, Mitarashi Anko, spoke loudly.

Li Xia's attention, however, was drawn to a Sound Ninja wearing a straw hat and with pale skin.

The charcoal-colored man sitting with him on a high tree branch simply winked at the sound ninja.

Orochimaru, who had been pretending to be a master by remaining silent and creating a cold and eerie atmosphere, instantly lost his composure.

He visibly collapsed.

She glared helplessly at Black Charcoal, then pulled down her straw hat, trying to hide Black Charcoal's comical facial expressions.

Aowu couldn't help but burst into laughter, "Orochimaru is really interesting."

Is Orochimaru interesting? Of course he is, but only if the strength is equal and the goals are the same.

"Next, you'll go over there to sign the waiver of liability, then collect the scroll, and you can set off!"

Mitarashi Anko waved her hand, indicating that the examinees should do as they pleased.

He then pulled out three-colored meatballs from somewhere, sat on a chair, hummed a little tune, and slurped them up.

Only the candidates looked somber.

A death warrant!
In peacetime, these genin mostly perform errands and miscellaneous tasks.

It is extremely rare for a mission like the 7th Team's escort mission to turn into a battle with Zabuza.

The vast majority of genin have never even experienced any dangerous situations.

"Let's go, let's get to work."

Li Xia ruffled the black cat's head, then turned and leaped into the jungle.

The so-called "life or death contract" is mainly just for scaring people.

There are indeed death quotas, but the higher-ups want to avoid deaths altogether.

Each genin was trained with considerable effort.

What does it mean to die during an exam?
Li Xia's side even has side quests.

It's a very simple reward: you get 500 Hall Points for each Genin you save.

Something is better than nothing, but even a mosquito's leg is meat.

I was originally planning to just coast along, but now I have to make a move for those 500 Hall of Fame points.

Li Xia suspected that the Hall of Light couldn't stand seeing him idle and was deliberately creating trouble for him.

so.
"I'll lie down for a while. Call me if anything happens."

A hammock was hung high in the tree branch, and Li Xia lay down inside it.

The kitten has very sensitive ears and a better nose than me. Now that it has Sharingan, its eyesight is even better.

In a sense, charcoal is now almost a perfect creation of nature.

"Meow!"

With a powerful leap, Black Charcoal flew at such speed that only a black shadow could be seen, and after a few bounds on the branches, it leaped into the jungle.

It has always been so energetic.

Awoo watched its figure disappear and then simply hid away, being lazy.

He enthusiastically took a pen and notebook and began writing down his 'grand plan' after his resurrection next to Li Xia.

The main issue is what methods the team currently lacks and what skills it needs to develop.

Li Xia glanced at it and thought that Aowu might be overthinking it. The description it gave was something like "holding a great sword and unleashing sword energy hundreds of meters long."

He knew that Aowu must have been playing Sekiro lately.

Despite its name, the Forest of Death is a place of death, but the area near the treetops is surprisingly beautiful.

The undulating treetops swayed, and the dense leaves moved in waves, forming green ripples.

Amidst the rustling sound, Li Xia shifted her body to prevent the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves from shining into her eyes.

Nothing happened on the first day.

The orange campfire licked the wild boar meat on the iron fork, and the dark red flesh gradually lost its color as it was roasted.

The pale yellow oil droplets sparked and crackled as they fell.

Li Xia flipped the iron skewer over, while Ao Wu carefully coated the meat with a brush full of sauce, layer by layer.

"When I live, Grandpa Long must eat 18 meals a day!"

Aowu has begun to 'swell' in power; as for whether Li Xia can kill the Third Hokage...

It never doubted, because if the leader said he would be resurrected, then he would definitely succeed.

“I’ll remember that for you. 18 meals, you have to eat one every hour.”

Li Xia kept flipping the skewers, the aroma of spices mixed with the smell of oil slowly wafting through the Death Forest.

In the shadows, pairs of eyes lit up, swallowing hard as they stared at the spot.

Yet none dared to step forward; fear and ferocity switched back and forth in their scarlet eyes.

In the end, they could only stay quietly in the back.

In the past two days, countless ferocious monsters in the Forest of Death have been swiftly killed by that two-legged creature.

The last wild boar that dared to charge has become roast meat.

Li Xia paused in flipping the grilled meat, and sighed with some regret.

"Awoo, it's all yours now."

Li Xia moved the iron skewer to Aowu's hand, stood up, and identified the direction where the black charcoal was located.

"Whoosh!"

His body broke through the obstruction of branches and leaves and disappeared from the spot in an instant.

Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji stood in front of the Sound Ninja. Behind them were Naruto and Sasuke, who were already lying on the ground, and Rock Lee, whose eardrums were almost ruptured. Despite being very strong, he was tricked and could only lie on the ground.

"Damn it. Don't these people care about their comrades at all?"

Seeing that the Sound Ninja were completely unconcerned about the threat they posed, Nara Shikamaru directly attacked his comrades who were being controlled by Ino's Mind Transfer Technique.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. His mind was sharp, but he had never experienced anything like this before.

It even instilled a faint sense of despair in young Shikamaru.

Threatening tactics were ineffective; the opposing team had clearly been through life-or-death battles, and their murderous intent and disregard for their comrades were undeniable.

Faced with such an enemy, the gap in strength will be magnified infinitely.

How to do?
Dad, you've never told me what to do when the enemy doesn't follow the plan!

On the tree trunk high up, Black Charcoal's little ears twitched, and it turned its head and meowed softly.

Li Xia's feet landed lightly on the branches, as if they carried no weight at all.

The thin branch didn't even sway.

"Oh? Is that the scene?"

Li Xia craned his neck to look for a while, matching the scene with the anime he had watched.

It was probably when Naruto unleashed the Nine-Tails' chakra, but he was still no match for Orochimaru, and the seal was disrupted.

The chaos in his chakra also affected his mental state, causing him to fall into a coma.

As for Sasuke, he was just unlucky.

If it were just a regular Sharingan, Orochimaru wouldn't even bother to glance at it.

But he happens to be Uchiha Sasuke, Itachi's younger brother.

Orochimaru had been beaten by Itachi. That's why he was obsessed with Itachi's power and thought that his brother's body might be the best vessel for him.

He simply used Orochimaru's Selection: Neck Bite, leaving Sasuke with the Heavenly Curse Seal.

In fact, after witnessing Li Xia's power, he also developed a considerable interest in the Byakugan.

Unfortunately, the Hyuga clan is keeping a very close watch on them, making it difficult to get a pair of Byakugan out.

"I don't recall anyone dying here, right?"

Li Xia recalled that Sasuke would wake up soon and activate the Heavenly Curse Seal for the first time.

He put on a great show, then thoroughly humiliated three Sound Ninja.

Although he was disabled, he did not die.

"Meow!"

Black Charcoal nodded and gestured with his hand.

"Oh? I see—"

Li Xia understood. Kurotan said he overheard Orochimaru and the Sound Ninja trio talking: if they couldn't kill Sasuke and the others, then the three of them would die.

Although Orochimaru's disguise skills were extremely high, Kurozumi stayed with him for twenty days.

No matter how Orochimaru tried to hide it, Kuroki could still smell the snake's stench.

Orochimaru sensed Kurozumi's presence but didn't pay it any mind.

Three people, 1500 points, that should be fine.

Li Xia stretched his arms and legs. Since he was going to make this money, he couldn't wait until the end.

"Whoosh-"

Two more figures landed in the arena. Hyuga Neji, along with Tenten, finally arrived, following the trail left by Lee.

Neji glanced at the situation in the arena, then looked at Lee lying on the ground, and his calm white eyes gradually filled with anger.

He may seem aloof, but he is actually a very caring person.

"Blind eyes!"

Neji's blood vessels around his eyes suddenly bulged, and he immediately assumed an attack stance.

Li Xia watched with great interest; it was actually the starting stance of Baguazhang.

Neji, who was about to charge forward, suddenly changed his expression and looked back at the side with surprise and uncertainty.
In his vision, a powerful burst of chakra suddenly erupted from the motionless Sasuke.

Sasuke, who was unconscious, slowly got up from the ground, and black patterns like flames covered half of his body.

Looking at his hands with his crimson Sharingan adorned with two tomoe, he revealed a 'Sasuke' smile.

This power, this immense power, felt capable of destroying everything. Even the figure I had always hated and feared seemed utterly vulnerable under its influence.

It seems I don't need to intervene. Neji slowly withdrew his hand.

Li Xia, who was high up, patted the black-faced boy's head:
"on!"

A smile appeared on the charcoal-black face, the white beard twitched twice, and the thin branches swayed up and down with the strength of its limbs.

Li Xia's body swayed up and down with the movement of the tree branches, like a leaf on a branch.

Watching what was happening below.

Having already dodged the Sound Ninja Air Cannon, Sasuke waved his hand and sent the enemy flying.

The overwhelming and terrifying power left everyone stunned.

Just as Sasuke was about to continue his attack, a dark figure descended from the sky.

"Meow!"

Sasuke's Sharingan with two tomoe spun rapidly, and a ferocious smile appeared on his face, which was covered with black patterns.

He changed the direction of his hands and headed towards the shadowy figure.

Kuroko's Sharingan, hidden by his colored contact lenses, also spun as he ducked to dodge Sasuke's sweeping arm.

Her hind leg flew up and gently kicked Sasuke, sending him flying far away.

?

Sasuke, who had flown far away, narrowed his eyes, and his ferocious smile turned into surprise.

He didn't expect that even with the Sharingan's enhancement, he still couldn't detect the other party's movement trajectory.

It's like observing the other person's actions from a higher level than observing your own.

How can this be?

This series of events was so fast that even the people in the arena didn't have time to react.

Then they saw Sasuke fly back and land in the crowd.

However, a small black cat, about half a meter tall, appeared in the area.

"Charcoal?"

Neji's eyes lit up with surprise; he recognized the cat—it was his teacher's summoned beast.

So the teacher is here too?
Shikamaru's gaze lingered on the Konoha headband around Kurozumi's neck for a moment before he let out a long sigh of relief.

This must be the proctor's summoned beast, so the death warrant was indeed just to scare them.

I knew it. This kind of behavior, which treats the lives of genin with disregard, is completely against the interests of the village.

It's definitely going to be just like the first exam, designed to put pressure on the genin.

The other genin, however, were completely unaware of what was happening.

I stared blankly as the kitten pulled out a whiteboard from somewhere and started writing and drawing on it.

Then he raised it:
"Sound Ninja! Leave the exam hall immediately, meow! Leave the scrolls behind, you can distribute them as you like, meow!"

"Are you kidding me? You think you can just leave like that?"

Affected by the negative power of the Heavenly Curse Seal, Sasuke pulled open his collar and prepared to form hand seals.

Two figures rushed forward, one of whom was Sakura, who had already cut off her own hair.

The other is Neji; Shikamaru's shadow has already connected with Sasuke's shadow.

"Hey, hey, hey—" Shikamaru wiped the sweat from his forehead: "This is the proctor! Are you sure you want to attack the proctor?"

"Calm down! You're dead if you attack this cat!"

Neji looked at the black charcoal that was waving its little paws at him, and immediately tightened his grip on Sasuke's hand.

He knew how much the teacher doted on the cat; he even gave all of his allowance to the kitten so it could go shopping and buy things for itself.

He didn't care what happened to Sasuke, but this seemingly out-of-touch Uchiha had actually injured his teacher's cat with Fire Release.
Perhaps it was the word "proctor" that finally brought Sasuke back to his senses; he snorted coldly and slowly lowered his hands.

With his mind suddenly relaxed, the cursed seal immediately retreated, and the immense pain that had been suppressed by the chakra surged up instantly.

Sasuke groaned and clutched the cursed seal on his neck tightly with his hand, as if it had been branded with a hot iron.

Kurotan glanced at the somewhat chaotic scene again, then turned around and gestured for the Sound Ninja to quickly leave the examination room.

Watching the pale-faced, dejected Sound Ninja leave.

Heitan also received a notification from Li Xia.

1500 Hall Points have been credited to your account!

Done and call it a day!

"Lord Orochimaru, please allow us to end this ourselves in the manner of ninjas."

Tos and his teammates knelt on the ground, their foreheads pressed tightly into the soil.

They awaited the final judgment from the supreme ruler before them.

Surprisingly, Lord Orochimaru didn't seem angry.

"Get up. Let it go this time. Go back and recover properly."

Tos and his teammates looked up in astonishment, their fear turning into ecstasy.

They actually let him go like that?

Orochimaru looked at his three stunned subordinates and said calmly:
"You're lucky, because of that cat."

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Wow, you guys actually dare to say I'm bad? 15 years ago, I was a champion of drinking!

I stopped drinking alcohol after I drank counterfeit liquor and had to be rushed to the hospital!

(End of this chapter)