Youyu watched the foreign village ninjas fleeing the central tower like they were escaping from the Forest of Death. He muttered to himself.
In exchange for just a few red flowers, Konoha had collected all of their scrolls.
Since Youyu was on the way, none of them dared to fight back.
So, in this second stage of the Chūnin Exams—
Aside from Youyu, everyone else from Konoha had advanced!
"Doesn't matter. If that old man from the Third doesn't give me my wine, I'm not leaving his house!"
Youyu glared at the two guards posted at the Forest of Death entrance. Under their trembling stares, he calmly walked out.
"Phew—he's finally gone."
The two guards looked at each other and sighed in relief.
He was someone who flattened the Forest of Death… and even dared to curse Lord Orochimaru.
They couldn't afford to mess with him.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Foreign village genin were rushing toward the designated exit at full speed.
Some kept glancing back in terror, as if they feared that monster would catch up again.
Even though they knew the exam was over, they had all been psychologically scarred by Youyu.
"Konoha! I'm never coming here again!"
A Cloud ninja (from Kumogakure) ran while sobbing.
He'd always called himself a tough guy—yet this exam in Konoha had completely broken him.
"There's the exit!"
Haneda Kaito shouted in excitement, carrying the unconscious Kisame Hoshigaki. His feet barely touched the ground as he sprinted.
"Sensei!"
"Sensei, I made it out alive!"
"Waaaaah—"
—
As soon as the foreign genin reached the exit and saw their respective teachers, several of them broke down crying.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Before their tearful reunions could even begin, countless figures appeared out of thin air, surrounding them.
"ANBU?! Third Hokage—what the hell is the meaning of this?!"
One of the foreign jonin—who had accompanied his team—scowled as he saw the Konoha ninja and a dozen ANBU operatives encircling them.
ANBU only existed in the Five Great Villages. They answered directly to the Kage, making them the sharpest tool in the Kage's hand.
The jonin from Kumogakure stared grimly at where Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, should've been — the central tower.
"Don't panic. Konoha won't harm you," Hiruzen said, stepping forward. "But… what happened here cannot leave with you."
His gaze was sharp and commanding, and his chakra pressure locked onto every foreign shinobi present.
Flanking him were Jiraiya, Minato Namikaze, Kurenai Yuhi, and other trusted elites of the Third Hokage.
What happened during the second exam must be buried.
Youyu's terrifying power could not be known outside of Konoha.
It couldn't even spread within Konoha!
These memories must be erased.
"Damn it…"
The foreign jonin clenched his fists, clearly frustrated—but he wasn't stupid.
Just Jiraiya and Hiruzen alone could take them down.
"Begin."
Hiruzen gave the command, and Konoha ninja instantly moved.
"What are you doing?!"
"Konoha! Are you trying to start a war?!"
"Bastards!"
Shouts and resistance echoed—but were quickly silenced.
Even the strongest among them—like Kisame's mentor and the jonin from Kumogakure—couldn't hold out.
Jiraiya personally stepped in and suppressed them all.
Soon after, Konoha's special sealing team and members of the Yamanaka clan began sealing away everyone's memories—and rewriting key details.
They were skilled professionals—even better than Sasori of the Red Sand when it came to memory tampering.
Before long, it was complete.
"Huh? What's going on?"
The former Swordsman of the Mist—Jinpachi Munashi—shook his head with a grimace. He felt a headache and a strange sense of emptiness.
"You've all worked hard to get here," Hiruzen said warmly. "Though it's unfortunate that your exam journey ends here, we appreciate your participation in the Chūnin Exams."
"Wait… did we lose? Who did we lose to?"
Jinpachi looked at the injured Kisame, his expression dark.
"..." Kisame simply shook his head. He had the faint sense something terrifying had happened—but couldn't remember what.
Just then—
"Huh? Old man? What are you doing here?"
A cheerful voice rang out.
Hiruzen's expression instantly froze.
"What?!"
Everyone turned to look—and their scalps went numb.
"He… he's here…"
Kisame's eyes went bloodshot, and his body trembled. He felt a strange sensation—like facing a natural predator.
He had no memory of Youyu, and yet he was terrified.
"What's with you guys?"
Youyu blinked as he saw the foreign shinobi trembling, sweat pouring down their faces, eyes filled with incomprehensible dread.
"Who are you?!"
Jinpachi Munashi stepped forward and shouted, sensing something was very wrong.
Why were genin afraid of this guy? Why was Kisame reacting like that?
Youyu rolled his eyes. He could tell at a glance—Hiruzen must've messed with their memories.
But Youyu didn't care. He wasn't trying to stay low-key—he only cared about whether Hiruzen kept his promise.
"Lord Hokage!"
With a grin, Youyu ran over to Hiruzen, ignoring his expression full of black lines.
"Lord Hokage, these guys—how about I just…"
He made a slicing gesture across his neck, sending foreign genin into a panic.
"NO! MONSTER!"
"I—I don't wanna die!"
Foreign genin fell to the ground, clutching their heads and screaming in fear.
"Alright, alright! Youyu, everything I promised you—I'll make sure you get it."
Hiruzen quickly interrupted before Youyu could say anything else.
He was secretly shocked.
It was clear—the fear these people felt for Youyu had already penetrated their souls.
Even after the memory wipe, just seeing a familiar gesture from Youyu was enough to trigger terror.
If this kept up, the memory seals might break!
Seeing Youyu's smug smile, Hiruzen sighed.
Who said Youyu was just a drunken maniac who only knew how to fight and drink?
He was definitely not stupid.
"Then tomorrow, Lord Hokage, I'll swing by your place… and pick up the wine."
Grinning, Youyu hummed a tune and walked away—leaving behind a group of trembling, broken shinobi from the other villages.