C11 The Seriousness! You Can Fight Now!

"Move it!"

Shizune dashed to the forefront.

"Everyone, take cover. I've got the most stamina; I'll handle him! Shinobi from the Hidden Rain Village are a different breed than those from Hidden Grass Village..."

Fang and Hinata seemed to grasp the gravity of Shizune's statement and quickly stepped back.

Neji exhaled in frustration. The three companions around him were clearly cramping his style.

Yet, if he were to dispatch the adversary before him now, it would only draw more attention, leaving him conflicted.

"Oh? You're familiar with our Hidden Rain Village?"

Long appeared utterly dismissive of the Konoha Village shinobi, radiating arrogance.

"Your Hidden Rain Village is notorious for its isolation, and your leader was once hailed as the Demigod of the Ninja World during the Second Ninja World War—Hanzo of the Salamander. In the war-torn heart of the Hidden Rain Village, even Genin undergo brutal assassination training. It's astonishing that you would even show up here in Konoha Village for the Chunin Exam!"

Shizune was reasonably well-versed in ninja history, though not to such an intricate degree. Both Fang and Hinata had heard rumors.

They were all drained at this point. The fact that this individual had shown up alone suggested a certain level of prowess.

"Hidden Rain Village? Your leader is still Hanzo of the Salamander?"

Neji's brow furrowed in surprise.

"Am I mistaken?"

"You..."

Long was suddenly speechless. Did this Genin from Konoha Village know their village's secret?

The truth was, the Hidden Rain Village's seclusion was meant to keep the death of Hanzo of the Salamander a secret. How could a mere Genin from Konoha possibly know...?

Neji then realized his own slip of the tongue. Such matters were definitely above his pay grade.

"Ha, haha, I was just talking nonsense!"

"Kid, you've piqued my interest now!"

"Splash!"

In a flash, Long's silhouette materialized behind Neji, and the figure that had been standing there a moment before dissolved into a spray of water, scattering in all directions.

The water splashed and transformed into thousands of shards, hurtling towards the group.

"Parasite, Insect Wall!"

Shizune commanded the Parasite to create a barrier, staunchly resisting the onslaught.

Neji, already in close quarters with an opponent, demonstrated endurance skills well beyond a typical Genin—likely at a Chunin level.

With no choice but to continue, Neji prepared to activate his Byakugan, aiming to swiftly end the fight under the cover of surprise.

Then, out of nowhere, Lee's voice rang out.

"Watch my Leaf Whirlwind!"

...

Neji instinctively stepped back as Lee's rapid movements forced the enemy to retreat.

"Tool Control: Heavenly Chain Lock!"

A lengthy ninja tool shot out, swiftly binding the enemy. Tenten leaped down from the tree, "Hand over your scroll if you don't want to get hurt!"

"Heh, the Genin from Konoha Village are pretty good this year, huh?" The enemy chuckled, dissolving into a puddle and seeping into the ground, vanishing without a trace.

"Did he get away?"

Lee inquired.

Neji shrugged: "Seems like it. No point in chasing a desperate foe..."

"Chase what? We agreed to meet up, and here you are, running off on your own?"

Tenten approached, shooting Neji a stern look. Neji took a step back, offering an embarrassed grin.

"Haha, no hard feelings, okay? We ran into some Grass Hidden Village enemies, and Neji here saved us! Hehe!"

Kiba chimed in to back up Neji, and Lee nodded, "Oh? Is that so?"

Tenten turned away, skeptical: "You believe that? With Neji's skills, how could he save anyone?"

"It's true, it's true! If you don't believe me, ask Hinata. Neji saw us getting ambushed and used his skills to fend off every attack..."

They continued their explanations, but Neji could only exhale in frustration. This whole mess was because they had sought him out, wasn't it?

Glancing at the moon, Neji wondered when his adversary would strike next. Today's objective had been thwarted.

He could only hope that by nightfall tomorrow, he'd achieve his goal.

After regrouping, Tenten handed the scroll over to Neji.

"Since everyone already knows you're the weakest, it's perfect to let you hold onto the scroll. Our enemies will never see it coming!"

Lee exclaimed, "Tenten, you're so clever!"

Neji accepted the scroll nonchalantly, though he couldn't shake a feeling of unease.

That night, they slept warily, keeping watch in shifts.

Exhausted from the long search for "that person" and the unexpected combat, Neji drifted into a deep sleep.

He awoke to a new day, with birds singing among the trees.

"Neji, you're up?"

Tenten and Lee were already awake, smiling at him as he got to his feet.

"Neji, hand me the scroll. We're splitting up today. You and Lee have the strongest combat abilities, so you two will engage in battle while I safeguard the scroll..."

Tenten said, extending her hand to Neji.

Neji, still groggy, approached and squinted his eyes.

Lee chimed in, "Yeah, Neji, let Tenten keep the scroll."

Neji nodded slowly and reached inside his clothing.

Suddenly, he pulled out a black... kunai.

"Whoosh!"

"Neji, what are you doing?" Tenten dodged swiftly, and Lee frowned in confusion.

Without a word, Neji quickly formed hand signs.

"Byakugan!"

"Genjutsu Release!"

The illusion dissolved instantly, revealing the true scene around him.

Dawn was breaking, and Lee and Tenten were bound and unconscious under a tree.

"Oh? So that's why the scroll was with you. You managed to break free from our genjutsu?"

Three figures stood before Neji.

Including the previous day's Ryuun, there were three shinobi from the Hidden Rain Village, all dressed in distinctive beige combat attire.

The other two had the stiff movements of zombies.

"Kagari, Mutō, be cautious with this one. He might be more than he seems," Ryuun warned, squinting his eyes. The information Neji had inadvertently revealed forced them to reconsider the ninja they had dismissed as worthless.

Neji examined his hands, noticing that within his Byakugan vision, the chakra in his meridians was flowing even more rapidly, showing no signs of being ensnared by any genjutsu.

With this realization, it was clear that the three figures before him were indeed corporeal. Neji mused to himself, They've really underestimated me.

"Three of them?"

As he saw his teammates restrained, Neji understood the gravity of the situation.

"Haha, yes. I thought you'd be the easiest to handle, so I saved you for last. But to think you'd escape the illusion!"

Long laughed lightly, her gaze on Neji growing more disdainful by the moment.

Neji's eyes swept the area; his Byakugan allowed him a 360-degree view without any blind spots.

"I didn't get a chance to clash with you yesterday, but today, you'll truly understand what it means to face a shinobi from the Hidden Rain Village!" Long advanced, her hands starting to weave signs.

Neji inhaled deeply, his expression turning earnest as the chakra surged faster throughout his body.

"Ah... if you're not a shinobi from Konoha Village, then there's no need for formalities, right? May I begin?"

With that single statement, Neji's composed presence seemed to eclipse everything else.

The shinobi from the Hidden Rain Village seethed with anger, and Long scoffed, "Tsk, you insolent kid, don't try to intimidate us!"

"Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm!"