"That green-haired girl—are you sure she's the Nanabi (Seven-Tails) Jinchuuriki?" Kakashi whispered.

"Absolutely. No doubt about it," Natsuki replied firmly.

"Hmm... she doesn't look weak. And the two male shinobi accompanying her seem strong as well. They've kept their positions slightly behind and to her sides the whole time—clearly acting as her bodyguards. Looks like Takigakure isn't completely foolish; they know it's dangerous to let a Jinchuuriki leave the village," Kakashi remarked.

"Hah! If they're not fools, they shouldn't have let her leave at all," Natsuki added.

"Well... fair point."

Kakashi dropped the topic and turned his attention to the others.

Trailing behind the first group were Lee, Rinya, and Megumi. After them, there was quite a gap before the third wave of candidates. Naruto was even farther back, though thankfully nothing dangerous had appeared yet.

Then Kakashi locked his eyes on the three female genin from Amegakure.

Upon closer inspection, they were really just little girls. Ajisai was the youngest—roughly the same age as Natsuki's generation.

But Kakashi didn't let that fool him. In a world where three-year-olds could kill, it was nothing unusual for twelve- or thirteen-year-olds to be spies. Especially when they came from Amegakure—the suspected stronghold of the Akatsuki.

He and Natsuki exchanged a glance, silently slowed their pace, and began tailing the trio closely from the shadows.

Unexpectedly, the three girls began to talk.

One of them said, "The Land of Fire really is the strongest nation in the shinobi world. I didn't expect it to be this big. That entire forest we just passed through? All part of the Land of Fire. Our Land of Rain probably isn't even as big as that one forest!"

Another chimed in, "It's not just the size! The past few days walking through Konoha's streets—I saw so many delicious foods! Big nations really are different. They never have to worry about starving. Unlike our Land of Rain... a lot of people there are still hungry."

Then came Ajisai's young but severe voice: "That's why... they're unforgivable."

She said with chilling seriousness, "The suffering of small nations—all of it is because of the big nations! The big countries will never understand our pain. The more they enjoy peace and happiness, the more unforgivable they become! We could have had happiness too... but war from the big nations tore our land apart. Our people... our homes...

"If it weren't for Tenshi-sama (Angel-sama), we'd have starved to death long ago.

"So don't forget the pain!

"Don't befriend those from the big nations!

"They are unforgivable!"

The other two girls nodded with conviction. "Ajisai's right! The big nations are unforgivable!"

Ajisai continued, "And don't forget our mission! We must complete it. That is the only way we can live up to the trust and grace that Tenshi-sama has shown us."

"We haven't forgotten! We'll definitely find the Jinchuuriki!" the other two quickly responded.

Ajisai nodded with satisfaction. "Good."

Kakashi and Natsuki, eavesdropping nearby, exchanged a stunned look.

"…Did they just confess everything out loud?"

Natsuki extended a thin chakra thread from his head to Kakashi's and tapped out Morse code through it:

"Kakashi-sensei, that's confirmation, right?"

Kakashi: "Confirmed. These three were definitely sent by Akatsuki to gather intelligence on the Jinchuuriki."

Natsuki: "So… do we make a move?"

Kakashi shook his head. "We can't attack examinees. Just keep an eye on them. More importantly, make sure they don't get near the Jinchuuriki. If they do, and they start anything, we take them down immediately."

Natsuki nodded, though inwardly he felt these girls probably wouldn't gather any useful intel anyway. After all, with the way they were loudly scheming in the middle of the road, their intelligence capabilities couldn't be that high.

They'd probably walk right up to the Jinchuuriki and yell, "You're from a big country! Stay away from us!"

Like that, how would they ever find out who the Jinchuuriki is?

Then another chakra message came from Kakashi:

Natsuki, who do you think this Tenshi-sama they mentioned is?

That's Konan. Who else?

Oh, wait. You've never met Konan. Never mind then.

Natsuki added, "She's probably a senior member of Akatsuki, the one who's taken charge of the people of Amegakure. Judging from how those girls speak of her, she's basically a religious figure to them."

Kakashi nodded.

That was clearly the case. Otherwise, why would they call her Tenshi-sama (Angel-sama)?

As for what Ajisai said—that the suffering of small nations was caused by the big ones—Kakashi couldn't refute it.

He had fought in the Third Great Ninja War and knew all too well how smaller nations became battlegrounds. When two or more great nations clashed, the smaller ones suffered the most.

The Land of Rain was a textbook example.

Especially when Hanzō the Salamander stirred the pot—first provoking Sunagakure, then Konohagakure. His strength and title as "half-god" indeed shook the shinobi world. But the Land of Rain, being a small country, couldn't bear the consequences. During and after the war, its economy and stability plummeted. Countless civilians were displaced. Many went hungry—some even starved to death.

In a twisted world like this, the line between right and wrong had long been blurred. Human life meant less than nothing.

Kakashi and Natsuki didn't consider Konoha to be "the good guys." In war, there were no winners—only losers. Everyone in this twisted world was a loser.

Fortunately, the journey remained mostly uneventful.

After three days, some of the examinees successfully arrived at the gates of Sunagakure—those were the ones who passed.

Even those who exhausted themselves to reach it eventually... if they were over the time limit, they still failed. Harsh, but fair.

Natsuki and Kakashi finally revealed themselves—after all, they had to enter the village. Hiding any longer would only make them look suspicious.

"Natsuki? What are you and Kakashi-sensei doing here?" Tenten spotted her boyfriend first.

"You're not here because you were worried about Tenten's safety... are you?" Shikamaru asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hmph…" Tenten blushed a little, looking bashful.

The others took in the scene, feeling like they'd just been slapped in the face with a sack of dog food.

They were here to serve as proctors, so why did Natsuki come all this way just to publicly flirt?

But Natsuki shook his head. "Tenten doesn't need my protection. Kakashi-senpai and I are here on a mission."

Shikamaru froze for a moment and instinctively glanced at Naruto. Something clicked in his mind.

"…Must be a troublesome mission. And classified. I won't ask, then."

Nearby, Sasuke noticed the look Shikamaru gave Naruto and couldn't help glancing toward the group of examinees as well.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

Just a Chuunin Exam, huh? It wasn't like the last one, where Orochimaru tried to wreck everything.

Yet Tsunade still sent Natsuki and Kakashi over.

There could only be one reason: the safety of the Jinchuuriki.

Now that Naruto had come to Sunagakure, the village housed not one, but two Jinchuuriki.

That meant there was a risk of Akatsuki making a move.

Sasuke's hand moved instinctively to the hilt of his new sword—one he bought using his reward money after slaying Kakuzu. He'd been itching to test it out.

If Akatsuki did show up, he wouldn't mind jumping in.

Especially if that man—Uchiha Itachi—was among them.

Then he could finally test just how far he had come...

(End of Chapter)

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