(T/N: There is now a p.atreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early release of up to 30 chapters edited smoothly. https://www.p.atreon.com/INeedRest)
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Colt's face darkened as soon as he heard him, and he instantly appeared before Neji.
'So fast!'
Neji couldn't even track Colt's movements.
Cold sweat dripped from his forehead.
"Hyūga Neji, right? From now on, pray you don't face Hinata in the Chūnin Exam," Colt warned coldly. "If she gets hurt because of you, I will kill you without mercy."
The indifference in Colt's voice made Neji's heart tremble. He felt genuine killing intent.
Before Neji could respond, Colt had already left with Hinata and the others, heading to the exam site.
Guy suddenly put his hand on Neji's shoulder. "Listen to Colt. The hatred between you and the main family shouldn't be taken out on that little girl."
There was one more thing Guy didn't say: Neji truly couldn't defeat Colt.
"Kamiyo Colt!" Neji clenched his fists, staring at Colt's retreating back.
The group of six arrived at the examination room. Looking at the two white doors, Naruto pushed them open without hesitation and walked in.
Instantly, hundreds of people in the classroom turned to stare at them.
"Wow, there are a lot of people..." Sakura shivered slightly, clearly intimidated.
Colt glanced around and nodded to Shikamaru and his team.
"It's him!" Kankuro's body trembled involuntarily, still unable to forget the threat of death he had felt that day. To him, Colt seemed even scarier than Gaara.
Temari's eyes were complex. This young Konoha ninja had shown her no mercy - a feeling she had never experienced as the Sunagakure's princess.
Though Gaara appeared calm, the killing intent in his eyes was undisguised.
Colt ignored them, instead searching for any trace of Orochimaru.
He remembered that Orochimaru had disguised himself as a Kusagakure ninja to take the Chūnin Exam, but he couldn't spot him.
"You newcomers are causing quite a commotion," a white-haired man with glasses approached Colt's group, eyeing Sasuke discreetly.
"Who are you?" Colt asked, feigning ignorance.
"I'm Yakushi Kabuto, your senpai here. I've taken the Chūnin Exam seven times."
Kabuto's smile was friendly, but to Colt, it seemed fake.
"Seven times? You must be an idiot," Naruto blurted out bluntly.
Kabuto didn't refute at all, nodding in agreement. "Sometimes it's just bad luck."
He then took out a stack of cards. "To pass the exam this time, I've worked hard to collect information on all the candidates. If you're interested, I can share it with you."
Sasuke's eyes lit up at this. "Any information on Rock Lee?"
Kabuto's smile widened, his confidence growing. "Of course. I have detailed information on all Konoha shinobis especially." He pulled out a card and infused it with Chakra.
"Rock Lee, one year older than you, trained by Might Guy. He's completed 11 C-rank missions and 20 D-rank missions."
Sasuke frowned after hearing Lee's information. Only one year older? It seemed he still wasn't working hard enough. If he could master those skills...
Naruto, fascinated by Kabuto's cards, pointed to Gaara and his team. "Do you have information on them?"
"Sunagakure ninjas?" Kabuto's eyes glinted. "Gaara of the Sand, one B-rank mission, seven C-rank missions. It's incredible for a genin to complete a B-rank mission."
Kabuto added a fake exclamation at the end.
Colt, intrigued, approached Kabuto. "Do you have a card on me?"
He wanted to see the extent of Kabuto's intelligence gathering.
A bead of cold sweat appeared on Kabuto's forehead. He was indeed very interested in Colt.
"Kamiyo Colt, Konoha's top rookie. Graduated less than two months ago. Has completed one S-rank mission, one A-rank mission, six B-rank missions, and eight C-rank missions. Rumored to possess a powerful medical bloodline. Extremely strong."
"What? An S-rank mission?" Temari, overhearing their conversation, couldn't help but exclaim. This Kamiyo Colt had actually completed an S-rank mission!
The light in Gaara's eyes grew even more excited. This opponent was truly worthy!
"Bastard, you're quite the braggart. Why not claim he's completed SS-rank missions while you're at it?" a discordant voice interrupted.
Colt saw it was Dosu, the bandage-covered Sound ninja.
"These are ninjas from Otogakure, a small village. Don't mind them," Kabuto explained, still playing his role seriously.
Hearing this, the Sound trio's eyes immediately turned hostile. Despite being in the exam room, they moved to attack Kabuto.
Dosu, however, rushed towards Colt. He wanted to see what this Konoha shinobi, who supposedly completed an S-rank mission, was capable of!
The special device on his arm, designed to release sound waves, spun rapidly. This was a tool created by Orochimaru himself. Even the strongest ninja couldn't resist its power!
A glimmer of pride flashed in Dosu's eyes, anticipating Colt's defeat.
Colt raised his eyebrows slightly and stepped forward. Understanding Dosu's technique, he released a gust of wind from his palm, creating a chaotic flow around his body.
Dosu's expression changed drastically. His sonic attack required precise control, and with external interference, its power immediately dissipated.
"Since you don't want to take the exam, I'll give you a send-off," Colt said indifferently. He grabbed Dosu's arm, crushing the sonic device.
With a powerful kick to Dosu's chest, Colt sent him flying.
Dosu's eyes bulged as he was slammed into the blackboard at the front of the classroom, cracking it.
The other two Sound ninjas' expressions changed dramatically. They abandoned their attack on Kabuto and rushed back to their teammate's side.
Only then did Colt's face return to normal. If it weren't for the fact that killing someone on the spot would cause problems for Konoha, he would have eliminated Dosu immediately. But this outcome was nearly the same. With serious injuries and his device destroyed, Dosu would definitely not survive the second exam.
Bang!
A puff of smoke appeared, revealing the scarred face of Ibiki Morino along with the other proctors.
As the Konoha's head of the Torture and Interrogation Force, Ibiki wore a black leather jacket. His scarred face brought a different kind of chill to the room.
"I've been waiting for a while. I'm Ibiki Morino, the proctor for the first phase of the Chūnin Selection Exams."
His appearance shocked almost everyone. The classroom fell silent.
Looking at the bloodied Dosu, Ibiki showed a weird smile.
"Seems like you're quite energetic, eager to fight already."
Ibiki's smile quickly vanished as his expression hardened.
"You have one minute to return to your seats immediately, or you'll be disqualified!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the genin who had been watching the commotion quickly dispersed and returned to their positions. Even Dosu, while coughing up blood, struggled back to his seat.
He glared resentfully at Colt, who seemed completely unfazed.
Meanwhile, the proctors also took their positions, eyeing the candidates with amusement. Many Chūnin served as examiners for the Chūnin Exams partly to enjoy the nervousness and anxiety of these novices.
As the test papers were distributed, Ibiki explained the rules and announced the start of the exam.
"Now, start!"
The atmosphere in the examination room instantly became tense!