I, Uchiha: Split Konoha

Chapter 287 Five Shadows Gather! The Exam Begins!

Chunin Exams.

Adjacent to the Death Forest, a massive venue appeared.

The sun shone brightly that day, and the venue was bustling with activity, filled with a dense crowd of people brimming with excitement.

Ninjas maintained order, while the Byakugan and sensory ninjas of the Hyuga clan constantly observed the crowd in the venue.

Ordinary merchants and villagers without chakra gathered in one place, while those with chakra gathered in another.

It perfectly separates ordinary people from those who possess chakra, with each area having ninjas from the barrier team.

Once the seats are full, the barrier team will erect a barrier to protect the people in the audience, claiming that some of the ninjas in this genin battle have reached the jonin level, and they are afraid of accidentally injuring them.

There were also dignitaries from various countries, seated in luxurious seats, protected by a barrier, with ninjas on guard inside the barrier at all times.

The guards from various noble families, because they possessed chakra and were outsiders, were also assigned to a separate area and protected by the same barrier.

The appearance of the barrier gave people a sense of security, but it also served to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the situation to cause trouble.

Even before the Chunin Exams began, the huge venue was already bustling with noise.

……

The Sarutobi clan.

Sarutobi Asuma walked slowly into his clan's compound with his head down, then tossed a medicine bottle aside.

"Crunch."

The door opened, and inside, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was still the same as before, staring blankly at the huge character "忍" (ninja) in a calligraphy scroll.

"Father!"

With a hoarse voice, Asuma gave a bitter laugh, slumped to his father's side, and began to mutter to himself.

"I can't handle the clan's militant faction anymore, I really can't handle it anymore. They've actually secretly colluded with the Sand Ninja..."

"Now that the evidence is irrefutable, for the sake of the Sarutobi clan's bloodline, for the sake of Konohamaru, I choose..."

Overwhelmed with grief, Sarutobi Asuma shed two tears, then tremblingly and slowly took out the chakra weapon, Hien, that his father had given him.

"Father!"

Tears streamed down, dripping onto the wooden floor. Feiyan, channeling wind-attribute chakra, was about to pierce her father's heart.

But at that moment, his dull and lifeless eyes suddenly brightened.

"Asuma!"

At the sudden call, Asuma's eyes trembled instantly, and he looked up, his tear-streaked face filled with shock.

"Father! Father!"

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, slowly turned his head, revealing a hoarse voice, while the blank expression on his face had long since disappeared.

It turned out that all these years had been a disguise. At this moment, Asma seemed to understand something, but it was precisely because he understood that he found it even more unbelievable.

If all of this is true, then who is the leader of the fighting faction within the clan? And who is colluding with the Sand Village?

All of this was the last thing Sarutobi Asuma wanted to see.

"Asuma, you've grown up."

A relieved smile appeared on Hiruzen Sarutobi's face as he heard the hoarse yet familiar voice.

Sarutobi Asuma's blank stare was filled with disbelief the next moment!

"Father! You! Did you do all this?! Why did you collude with the Sand Village ninja?! Why?!"

Seeing his son's incredulous tears, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi fell silent, his eyes finally hardening with determination.

"Asuma, Konoha cannot fall into the hands of the evil Uchiha!"

"Just for this! Is this why you colluded with the Sand Village ninja?!" At this moment, Sarutobi Asuma roared and questioned madly.

In his mind, no matter how despicable his father was, he would never be involved with traitors who colluded with the Sand Village ninja, but right now!

Asuma's heart was breaking, but Hiruzen Sarutobi just snorted coldly when he saw this.

"Asuma, for Konoha, for the village!"

"Father, then what is the family?" Asma asked loudly.

Faced with his son's questioning, Hiruzen Sarutobi the Third Hokage remained resolute.

"Asuma, rest assured, everything I've done is for the village. What you call colluding with the Sand Ninja was actually a tactic Father used to divert the Uchiha's attention, and it was a deliberate act of exposure..."

With Hiruzen Sarutobi's hoarse explanation, Asuma Sarutobi finally understood everything.

He understood, but he still couldn't comprehend it!

At this moment, Asma looked at his father with pain, almost unable to recognize him.

"Father, for what you believe to be the Will of Fire, you used the entire family as bait! Do you know what will become of the family?"

After a long silence, Hiruzen Sarutobi said in a hoarse voice, "I know! But for the village, for the Will of Fire, I am willing to sacrifice the entire Sarutobi clan."

"The village cannot fall into the hands of the evil Uchiha. Asuma, don't worry. This time, your father is making amends for his mistakes. Tsunade and Jiraiya will be there to help the village."

In Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind, anyone but a member of the Uchiha clan would do. Moreover, if his plan succeeded, Konoha would inevitably fall into Tsunade's hands.

He was, after all, his disciple.

As long as they weren't Uchiha, everyone else was better than the Uchiha—that was the Third Hokage's mindset.

puff!

Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was explaining, a voice suddenly rang out, and the precious chakra metal weapon, Flying Swallow, emanating wind-style chakra, pierced directly through his chest.

"Asuma!"

Finally, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and said, "Well done, Asuma."

With a bang, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned into a puff of white smoke, while Asuma, whose eyes were glazed over, was shocked.

"Father! You've gone mad! You've really gone mad!"

"For your self-righteous Will of Fire, you've destroyed your family and now you have to bear the brunt of infamy!"

Upon seeing that his father was a shadow clone, Sarutobi Asuma screamed wildly.

He knew it was too late, everything was too late!

His father had used the Sarutobi clan as bait and must have gone to the Chunin Exams venue by now, but it was too late for him.

"Damn it, the water source is poisoned!"

"Oh no! A barrier has appeared and trapped us!"

At that moment, the Sarutobi clan was in complete panic, but all the former high-level Jonin had vanished without a trace.

Inside the Sarutobi clan's secret chamber, a group of Jonin lay on the ground in agony, their faces pale and writhing weakly.

With a swish, the door opened and a tall figure walked in.

Upon seeing the newcomer, the Jonin of the Sarutobi clan were filled with rage.

"Asma! You traitor!"

"You scoundrel! You'll die a horrible death!"

"Traitor, you actually slaughtered your own family..."

Vicious curses echoed incessantly, but what awaited them was a brutal massacre.

With blood splattering everywhere, Hien was now covered in the blood of his kin, and Sarutobi Asuma looked like a demon who had walked out of hell.

Tears streamed down her face, but her hands never stopped, and her eyes went from pain to numbness.

When he had slaughtered the last man, Sarutobi Asuma looked at the mess and blood-soaked ground, and he broke down in a fit of mad laughter.

"Ha ha, you wicked race, you all deserve to die! You all deserve to die, ha ha!"

Amidst his maniacal laughter, Sarutobi Asuma's eyes were filled with madness and savagery; he had fallen into a frenzy and lost his reason.

After bursting out of the clan's secret chamber, Sarutobi Asuma killed anyone he saw, like a tiger among sheep in the clan's territory where there were no Jonin.

The elderly and children were all killed without any mercy.

Hidden in the shadows, Obito's Sharingan revealed a bewitching, bloodthirsty light. Upon seeing this scene, he laughed, and his grotesque laughter grew louder and louder.

"Haha, kill them. Once you come to your senses, you'll never have a chance to turn back."

When Asuma's mind was on the verge of collapse, Obito with his mask seized the opportunity and used the Sharingan's powerful genjutsu to draw out Asuma's evil and bloodlust.

At this moment, the surrounding barrier had completely sealed off the Sarutobi clan.

When he sensed the people outside, Masked Obito smiled. "It seems I need to help Asuma. At least when Jiraiya brings his men in, Asuma needs to finish his masterpiece."

Meanwhile, on the other side of Konoha, the Chunin Exams were in full swing.

The Chunin Exam venue.

With the arrival of the Fourth Kazekage Rasa, the Fourth Raikage A, and the Third Tsuchikage Onoki, the atmosphere in the venue reached its peak.

Amidst the resounding cheers, excited people were shouting everywhere.

"welcome."

The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, and the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, are the only two women among the current Five Kage. They stood up with heroic bearing to welcome the arrival of the three Kage.

The gathering of the five great ninjas in public is practically a grand event in the ninja world.

"Heh, as expected of Konoha."

The cunning Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, spoke with a chuckle, but his words were full of provocation.

Tsunade, of course, understood and laughed heartily, "That's Jiraiya. Now that Konoha and Kirigakure are one family, it's naturally the strongest village."

The two were talking at cross purposes.

However, Tsunade was not one to suffer a loss. Looking at the guards brought by the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, she couldn't help but shake her head and say, "They're all so old. It's really strange that Iwagakure doesn't even have a single person worth mentioning."

As the saying goes, you shouldn't expose someone's weaknesses when you're insulting them, but Tsunade only exposes their weaknesses.

Onoki's face stiffened instantly, his heart filled with resentment, but he had to suppress it and pretend to be relaxed, laughing loudly, "With this body of mine, I can work for another ten years or so without any problem."

Seeing this, Mei Terumi chuckled and said, "Tsunade-neechan, our village has quite a few rising stars. I feel like I'm getting old."

Damn it, I know you guys have a lot of geniuses, but you can't be this cocky.

Onoki, who was practically cursing under his breath, had to maintain a smile in front of so many people.

As the five figures took their seats, the entire venue erupted in another round of thunderous cheers.

Five shadows gathered, and just then, a voice slowly rose from behind.

"They're all here."

It was a very soft sound, yet it traveled throughout the entire venue. This sound caused the Tsuchikage, Raikage, and Kazekage to change their expressions, and a look of fear flashed in their eyes.

They didn't even notice, and suddenly Uchiha Yoru appeared.

There was another chair where the five Kage had taken their seats, and under the character "大神" (Great God), Uchiha Yoru appeared.

Instantly, the Chunin Exams erupted in cheers, with countless people shouting excitedly.

"God's Night!"

Amidst the tremendous cheers, mostly from the book ninjas and commoners, the faces of the high-ranking officials and nobles from the daimyo's prefecture were rather grim.

In recent years, the weakening effect of God's Night on the Daimyo's forces cannot be explained in just a few words.

As Uchiha Yoru arrived, many ninjas in the venue bowed respectfully, and many even showed signs of fanatical worship.

This scene instilled even greater fear in the ninjas from various villages who came to visit. What terrifying charisma! They could understand it from the expressions of the Konoha and Kirigakure ninjas.

"The Chunin Exams may begin."

Uchiha Yoru's casual remark was immediately understood by the ninjas who were already prepared in the venue.

"The Chunin Exams Selection Tournament, Round One, is now beginning! Contestants, please come forward!"

Uchiha Sasuke VS Uzumaki Naruto.

Son of the former Uchiha clan leader VS. The posthumous son of the Fourth Hokage.

This is a battle between second-generation masters, and also a duel of geniuses.

"Yo! Naruto Uzumaki has arrived!"

Just then, Naruto Uzumaki, dressed in orange, descended from the sky and gave everyone a thumbs-up as he landed.

swoosh~

As a gentle breeze blew and a leaf fell, Sasuke Uchiha appeared.

However, the moment Uchiha Sasuke appeared, countless ninjas present showed astonished expressions, but these were quickly drowned out by the excited cheers of the audience.

Beneath Uchiha Sasuke's cool and aloof face lay a pure white kimono and black trousers. His chest was open, slightly revealing his eye-catching muscles. Dark black arm guards covered his forearms and extended to his hands. A black rope belt was tied around his waist, and a ninja straight sword was tucked horizontally into it.

This scene shocked countless people.

Especially among the Konoha Jonin, many looked at each other in bewilderment, gazing in the direction of Uchiha Yoru.

Even the Fifth Hokage Tsunade and Mei Terumi on the stage narrowed their eyes when they saw it.

"Night, no wonder you admire and value this brat so much."

"No wonder your talent is far inferior to others, yet you favor this brat so much, Night."

Good heavens, Tsunade and Mei Terumi's words immediately created an awkward atmosphere. Of the three Kage present, only the Kazekage remained silent, so his expression didn't reveal anything. The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, even showed a hint of admiration in his eyes.

Onoki seemed to be saying that the young people were playing quite skillfully, and he admired them.

Among the Jonin present, Zabuza Momochi, unusually, turned to Kakashi and whispered, "Kakashi, could this brat be Lord Yoru's child?"

Many of his other colleagues also cast curious glances at him, as Kakashi Hatake was Uchiha Yoru's classmate and now his right-hand man.

Kakashi sighed, rubbing his forehead. It was too much of a coincidence; Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Yoru looked exactly alike in their youth, especially in their attire.

If it weren't for the fact that Uchiha Yoru's hairstyle is currently styled differently, the two would practically look like they were cut from the same mold.

"Well... I'm not sure either."

Although Kakashi wanted to say no, he became suspicious and fell silent when he saw Sasuke's expression.

Sasuke Uchiha was born in the year of the Nine-Tails' Night. He and Yoru were 14 years old. So Sasuke's birthday is in July. If we count backwards...

Night had already passed away when he was 13! Thinking of this, Kakashi shook his head awkwardly.

Considering the number of women Uchiha Yoru has with him now, it does seem quite possible.

At 13 years old, he already had this ability, not to mention that he developed even faster in the ninja world.

……

However, at this moment, Uchiha Sasuke appeared in the venue, full of arrogance. In his heart, Yoru-sensei was his idol, and he dressed up like this to prove himself.

"Stinky Sasuke."

When Naruto saw Sasuke dressed like this, his eyes widened in disbelief. He pointed at Sasuke and shouted angrily, "If I had known this would happen, I should have changed into a new outfit to show off too!"

"Tch, bottom of the class."

Uchiha Sasuke gave a haughty snort; this time, he was going to prove himself in front of everyone.

Sasuke Uchiha was able to become Yoru-sensei's disciple because he had the ability and talent.

After his initial shock, the referee smiled at Sasuke, secretly deciding that he couldn't afford to let anything happen to him and that he had to keep a close eye on him the whole time.

"The first duel shall now begin!"

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(End of this chapter)