XX-level Hokage

Over the past year, her dreams have become much more normal, and her mood has gradually calmed down. As a result, she accepted Asma's pursuit, and her life finally returned to normal.

Kurenai had asked Tae and also subtly inquired about Mashiro, and both gave extremely positive feedback. However, for some reason, Kurenai always felt that something was off about her, so she avoided having too much contact with her.

Is Teacher Hong really avoiding me? "Zhenbai's voice came from the bridge."

A shadowy ninja followed Kurenai when she left, which is why Mashiro found this place so easily.

“We don’t have much interaction to begin with, and our social circles are different, so why would you say I’m avoiding you?” Hong said softly, tossing a red maple leaf into the stream under the bridge.

"Red, you always seem the same, no matter where you are: intelligent, meticulous, generous, and with a touch of melancholy that no one knows about," Mashiro said softly as she walked to Red's side.

"Who exactly are you?" Hong Jing stepped aside and said coldly. Zhenbai shrugged and activated the illusion-real transformation.

At the same time, an eye slowly opened from the part of its chest that was covered by clothing. "Who am I? You should know."

Hong's eyes began to blur. In her sorrow, she lay on the bed, and a man sat by her side. The man was pale, handsome, and had a gentle smile on his lips: "Hong, did you sleep well last night?"

Immediately after seeing the red, everything went black and he fainted.

When she woke up again, she was already lying in bed. Looking around, she realized this was her room. "Yes, this is your room?" Mashiro's voice came from behind her.

Red turned her head and saw that Mashiro was standing by the window, looking at the scene outside.

"Have you guessed who I am?" Mashiro turned her head and asked softly. Kurenai lowered her head and remained silent for a long time before saying, "Uchiha, Zero!"

Mashiro turned and walked to the bedside, reaching out to stroke Kurenai's hair. Kurenai did not react.

Mashiro's hand continued downwards, stroking Red's face, stopping at Red's eyes.

Then Mashiro pulled a necklace from her pocket. The necklace featured a large, sparkling ruby ​​that shone with a reddish light. "This must be the largest ruby ​​in all of Konoha. It suits your eyes perfectly."

As she spoke, Mashiro placed the necklace around Kurenai's neck. Kurenai still did not react.

Mashiro's hand continued downwards.

The red one was untied, and then...

Hong gripped the bedsheet tightly with her hands, her gaze...

Mashiro then turned and walked towards the door, seemingly about to leave. "What exactly do you want?"

Just as Mashiro was about to open the door, Kurenai asked in a low voice. Mashiro did not answer.

He turned around, opened the door, and left.

Shortly after Mashiro left, the sound of various pieces of furniture falling over came from the room.

Chapter Twenty-One: Ninjas from Various Countries

"Why did Kazekage-sama send Gaara to participate in the Chunin Exams in Konoha? This is not only bad for Gaara, but also dangerous for the other ninja from other villages who are taking the exams," the Kazekage said, looking at the Kazekage's command token with great dissatisfaction.

“Lord Kazekage must have his own reasons,” Kankuro reassured him from the side.

"I have to go find him and find out what he's thinking." With that, Shouhan walked out the door.

As the child of the Fourth Kazekage, she had the privilege of meeting the Kazekage directly. Unfortunately, the Fourth Kazekage is dead, and the current Fourth Kazekage in Sunagakure is Orochimaru.

So a few hours later, Temari returned home, suppressing her anger, and brought even worse news.

After the Third Shinobi World War, the Sand Village gradually declined, while the neighboring Konoha Village rapidly recovered and developed. This powerful neighbor made the entire Sand Village...

The higher-ups were alarmed, so the Sand Village and Sound Village allied themselves to launch an offensive against Konoha during the Chunin Exams. The three of them, including Tehan, were to be the vanguard of this offensive, and they wanted to kill as many of Konoha's young genin as possible during the battle.

Kankuro and Gaara readily agreed to the plan, and Tessa sighed in relief. The second stage began, and the Sand Ninja team officially set off.

On the other side, Kurotsuchi, a member of the Iwa ninja, sat on the desk in the Tsuchikage's office.

"Oki-san, are we really going to participate in the Chunin Exams in Konoha?"

Kurotsuchi asked, puzzled, "Because of the Third Shinobi World War, the relationship between Iwagakure and Konoha has never been good, and Konoha has never sent a representative to participate in the Chunin Exams."

"We haven't sorted things out with Konoha about what happened at the border. It's likely the work of a third party. Sarutobi wrote to me saying they've found out."

"There's a clue about that faction, and it's related to Deidara. So, since the Chunin Exams are here, take Akatsuchi and a few other young ninjas over there and ask them about Sarutobi Deidara. Also, take a look at the strength of Konoha's younger generation," Onoki said, stroking his beard.

"It's related to my senior brother, alright then." Kurotsuchi said with a smile. On the other side, the Sound Ninja, Grass Ninja, and Waterfall Ninja each had their own thoughts.

As the exam date approaches, ninjas from the guest village are gathering in Konoha.

In Konoha's largest shopping street, Mashiro was strolling around with Sakura. Over the past year, Sakura had basically been tamed by Mashiro.

The reason I say "different" is because Sakura herself discovered that obeying Shinji's orders didn't actually affect her life; on the contrary, it made her life more comfortable.

Mashiro remembers her birthday, prepares gifts for her, knows her hobbies, and hides their special relationship from her family and classmates. Although Mashiro's orders are all perverted, Sakura secretly enjoys them.

"Do you want to pass the Chunin Exams?" Mashiro asked, touching Sakura's neck.

Sakura was eating takoyaki when she heard Mashiro's words and knew that she was up to something again. Her face turned red as she asked, "What do you want me to do this time?"

Masashi was taken aback for a moment, then quickly recovered and said with a smile, "I didn't mean anything by it. As one of the people in charge of the Chunin Exams, I just wanted to ask if you needed any help. I didn't expect you to connect it to something strange. Well then, I won't be polite. Tonight..."

The noise subsided, and Mashiro leaned close to Sakura's ear and whispered something. Sakura's face flushed even more.

Just then, a short-haired girl in a red cheongsam and a strong, fat man walked over.

Seeing the headbands on their heads, Sakura's thoughts shifted, and she said to Mashiro, "They are Iwa ninjas."

Mashiro was also surprised. She was already quite surprised that the Iwa ninja would come to participate in the Chunin Exams, but she didn't expect that it would be Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi who came. She just hoped that old guy Onoki didn't come, otherwise it would be troublesome to carry out the plan.

Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi were oblivious to Mashiro and Sakura, who were observing the scene in Konoha with great curiosity.

"Nice legs," Mashiro said softly after Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi walked by. "What are you saying?" Koro asked, having overheard Mashiro's words.

"Your legs are pretty good too, just... a little small," Mashiro said, sizing up Sakura's body. "Go to hell!"

Sakura took out a takoyaki and stuffed it into Mashiro's mouth.

On the other side, Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Namino, and Choji were shopping together.

"Seriously, Sakura and Mashiro aren't coming over, why should I go shopping with you guys?" Naruto complained.

"We're supposed to compete against ninjas from other villages in the Chunin Exams. We originally wanted to get together with the Konoha ninjas, but Mashiro and Sakura were both busy, and Hinata and Kiba were training with Kurenai-sensei, so only a few of us were left when we gathered," Shikamaru said helplessly.

“Mashiro and Sakura should be together right now,” Ino suddenly said.

"Huh? You know where Mashiro and Sakura are? Tell me quickly," Naruto asked. "I'm just guessing," Ino said irritably.

At this moment, Sasuke suddenly stopped and frowned. "What's wrong?" Choji asked, munching on snacks, seeing Sasuke stop.

“That ninja up ahead is troublesome,” Sasuke said seriously. “Who? Let me see.”

After hearing Sasuke's words, Naruto looked in the direction Sasuke was pointing. Kankuro was asking for directions not far ahead.

"Haha, Sasuke, the troublesome ninja you're talking about isn't that weird tattooed old man from over there, is it?" Naruto patted Sasuke on the shoulder and laughed.

Naruto's voice reached Kankuro's ears, and his face darkened as he shouted at Naruto, "You brat, who are you calling a weird tattooed old man?"

"Are you a contestant from Sand Ninja? Don't worry about him, he's a bit mentally unstable." Ino noticed Kankuro's Sand Ninja headband and, fearing it might cause trouble, patted Naruto's head and said to Kankuro.

Kankuro was about to say something more when Gaara approached. Upon seeing Gaara, Kankuro's expression became very complicated, and he stepped aside. Gaara glanced around, his gaze settling on Sasuke, and the two locked eyes.

"What's your name?" Gaara suddenly asked. "Uchiha Sasuke," Sasuke replied coldly.

“My name is Gaara, remember my name,” Gaara said. The atmosphere between them became somewhat awkward.

Seeing the tense atmosphere between the two, and glancing at the surrounding crowd, Shikamaru sighed, determined not to let them clash. Just as he was about to say something, a clear, cheerful female voice rang out.

"What are you doing?" Then Shouhan walked over.

"I only went to register, and you two have already gotten into trouble." Temari scolded Kankuro. Kankuro glanced at Gaara, but had nothing to say and could only silently endure the insult.

Shouhan pulled Gaara over and said to Sasuke and his group, "My two younger brothers have had some misunderstandings with you all, please don't mind them." Then he left with the two of them.

“Gaara of the Sands, that guy gives off a scary vibe,” Shikamaru said, unusually serious.

"Sasuke, can you defeat him?" Ino asked. "I don't know," Sasuke replied.

I might not be able to defeat him on my own, but with them in tow, it's a different story. Sasuke looked at the shadows on the ground.

“I’ll handle defeating him,” Naruto suddenly said after a long silence. “Don’t overthink it, let’s go eat,” Shikamaru said helplessly.

Chapter Twenty-Two: The Forest of Death

On the day the Chunin Exams began, the participating ninjas from each village gathered at the competition venue. As usual, there was a round of provocation and face-slapping. Then Kabuto appeared and introduced the powerful participating ninjas of this Chunin Exams to the Konoha ninjas.

Once everyone had gathered, the first match began.

The written test consists of 10 questions. One point is deducted for each incorrect answer, and two points are deducted for each attempt, until a score of 0 is reached, at which point the student and their partner are eliminated. As the only subject-specific subject, the written test is both the easiest and the most difficult. It's easy because there's no danger involved, but it's difficult because...

It's because this match is unlikely to happen.

Of course, culture is not essential for ninjas. In order to prevent the elimination of skilled but illiterate ninjas, this real test is their ability to gather intelligence and their teamwork under great pressure, as well as their unwavering will as ninjas.

After Morino Ibiki distributed the exam papers, the exam officially began, and the candidates began to show off their skills.

Inside the examiner's office, the third generation used a monitoring crystal ball to project footage of the first exam. Examiners like Mashiro, who were currently not busy, were...

They monitored every move in the classroom through the screen.

Gaara's Sand Eyes, Namino's Mind Transfer Technique, Shino's Insects, Neji's Byakugan, Sasuke's Sharingan, Sound Ninja Dosu's Sound Literacy, Kankuro's Crow of Shame.

Kiba's beloved dog Akamaru, Akatsuchi's Rock Seal Technique... all sorts of cheating methods emerged one after another. Even Mashiro found it amazing.

Of all the contestants, only a handful truly knew how to answer these questions: Sakura, Tian, ​​Tehan, Kurotsuchi, and Shikamaru. The exam time quickly ended, and the real test began.

After being intimidated by Ibiki Morino, many ninjas gave up, and then Anko appeared.

Seeing this, Mashiro said hello and left the monitoring room. Strolling to the stands, Mashiro walked over to Kurenai's side.

"What? Are you worried about Hinata and the others?" Mashiro asked softly. "Maybe," Akane replied, gazing into the distance.

“You seem to have come to terms with it.” Mashiro placed her hand on Kurenai’s waist.

“There’s nothing to think about or not think about. Maybe I’m really scared of you, but that’s all.” Red turned to look at Mashiro and said, her eyes serious and deep.

"I like you just the way you are. It would be so boring if you were too lifeless. See you later." Seeing Hong's appearance, Mashiro said with a smile. Then she kissed Hong's neck, leaving a deep kiss mark, and then turned and left.

Red remained standing there, lost in thought. A moment later, Asuma approached.

"Sorry, Kurenai, I was a little late because of some things at the Hokage's place," Asuma said apologetically. "It's alright," Kurenai replied woodenly.

For some reason, Asuma vaguely felt that Kurenai's attitude was a bit strange, but he didn't pay much attention to it, assuming that it was because he was late that Kurenai was angry.

"Why are you suddenly wearing a scarf today? I remember you said you didn't like wearing scarves." Asuma asked, noticing Red wearing a red scarf.

"It's nothing, I just saw one at home and brought it with me," Hong said, tightening the apron around her neck.

"Hongdou is in charge of the second round this time. I wonder how many candidates will pass." Seeing that Hongdou didn't want to answer, Asma quickly changed the subject.