After Mizuki and Anko's confession, the two chatted back and forth, until the visitation hours ended, Anko now bearing a satisfied smirk on her face after hearing he opponent's fate.
Apparently, Idate had been removed from the hospital by none other than Orochimaru himself, who looked at Mizuki with a strange glint in his eye.
Anyhow, Idate was now conscious, although barely able to move by himself, even with Orochimaru's help.
The beating that Mizuki had given Idate would surely be one that the boy would never forget, as the memories of his powerlessness in front of what felt like an unstoppable force still sent shivers down his spine.
With all of the participants of the exam now awake, even if not fully healed, it was decided that there would be a closing ceremony for the chunin exams the next day in the mission center.
Unfortunately, Anko was forced to stay at the hospital, as she still had not fully healed from some of her injuries yet, and the hospital wanted to manage her status.
So, Mizuki agreed to help her out with getting around come the next day, much to her appreciation.
The remainder of the day after Mizuki left the hospital came and went pretty quickly, with Mizuki cooking himself a quick meal, making sure to save some leftovers for Anko.
After all, if he was going to smuggle in food for her, he at least wanted to provide some variety.
Mizuki finished his dinner relatively quickly, taking his time after that to sit down in the living room.
His thoughts were racing a mile a minute as he frantically thought of what was going on in his life.
Mizuki: {Finally letting myself go free, huh?}
Honestly, the entertainment industry of the Naruto world was kind of pathetic, with only print media and radio being in wide circulation.
Even among print media, there were hardly any manga and light novels.
Where was he gonna get his fix of shitty harem anime!?
TVs were only just starting to be introduced, and even then, they were incredibly expensive, with the medium only just starting to take off.[1]
The same was happening with computers, as there was virtually nobody who even thought of using computers for recreational purposes, only being used to store data, book appointments, and other such tasks.
And so, whilst thinking about the state of the world's technology, and how there was nearly no good entertainment in the Naruto world, Mizuki drifted off to sleep.
. . . . . .
Mizuki awoke the next day early, slightly anxious as to what the results of the chunin exams that would be announced today.
Whilst he was confident in his own passing, he wasn't entirely sure about some of his friends who lost in the first few rounds.
If they remained genie, the chances of them being sent off as cannon fodder on some suicide mission drastically increased.
After a quick bite to eat, and changing into what he wore for the final phase of the exam, he left for the Hospital in order to pick up Anko.
Sure enough, even though visitation did not open for the next hour, the staff was kind enough to allow Mizuki to help Anko. Being a contestant in the chunin exams does come with its share of perks after all.
The hospital provided a wheelchair for her, which Mizuki helped her get into before thanking some of the hospital staff and pushing her away.
The duo arrived at the ceremony around ten minutes early, with all of the jonin there but some of the genin still pilling in.
For the most part, everybody looked fine.
Guy had a pair of crutches due to one of his legs fracturing when he activated the fifth gate, and Obito had his right arm in a sling due to a fracture along his collarbone.
The aforementioned Anko had her left arm fully healed, although her right was still in a cast. Bandages wrapped around her torso, keeping her freshly healed ribs steady, in addition to the previously mentioned wheelchair.
However, the genin in the worse shape by far was Idate.
Both of his arms were pinned to his sides, still healing after Mizuki broke them.
His jaw was wired shut, as Mizuki had broken it, along with several of Idate's teeth as well.
He could walk on his own, although his torso was even more extensively damaged than Anko's with several of his ribs fractured or broken.
However, even with the wonders of medical ninjutsu, the injury still ended up leaving a scar along Idate's side in the form of a gash where Mizuki's chakra enhanced kick made direct contact.
Hiruzen: "It is excellent to see you all here"
Mizuki's thoughts were interrupted, as all of the genin had finally arrived, and the chunin exam began its official conclusion.
Hiruzen: "Before we announce those who have graduated to the rank of chunin, I just wanted to say how proud I am of you all, and how the Will of Fire. . . . ."
Mizuki began to tune out the Hokage's speech, as it went in all of the directions he would expect.
The King is the next generation?
Check.
The Will of Fire is burning strongly in the genin?
Check.
Subtle war propaganda?
Surprisingly not, but Mizuki supposed that even Hiruzen had some standards, however low they may be. Which was at least more than Danzo could say.
(A/N: Anything is more than Danzo could Say.)
However, the speech mercifully came to a quick end, as Hiruzen went on to announce those who have been promoted to the rank of chunin.
Hiruzen: "The following genin have been chosen to graduate for their display of skill in the exams."
Hiruzen: "Mizuki, for his Taijutsu and Unique style of Ninjutsu"
No surprises there, he was the champion after all.
Hiruzen: "Kakashi, for his kenjutsu and mastery of three chakra natures"
Hiruzen: "Guy, for his mastery of Taijutsu, and his unique technique"
Hiruzen: "Obito, for his mastery of Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and Katon Jutsu"
Again, so far, no surprises, they all performed well enough.
Hiruzen: "Idate, for his mastery of Futon Jutsu and Taijutsu."
Hearing this, Mizuki's face changed to a scowl, and his fists clenched, creating an audible crack, although one that was not so loud as to be heard by the proctors.
Hiruzen: "Finally, Anko, for her mastery of two chakra natures and throwing weapons skills"
Hearing the conclusion of the exams, Mizuki let loose a sigh of relief, as he genuinely feared that if Anko would not pass, there would be a chance of her death.
Still, it was not sunshine and rainbows for everybody, As Rin had a slightly depressed look on her face as she thought about how she failed.
However, Mizuki had faith in the hopeless idiot known as Obito to help her out a little.
Besides, healers were highly valued in the war.
Whilst this made her a priority target for enemies, it also meant that she would be more heavily guarded, and also had a higher chance of battlefield promotion.
In other words, even if she was at risk, the risk itself was minimized.
Next, the now chunin were called up, given a certificate from the Hokage, and their vest from their sensei.
It was decided to do the order in reverse of how they called the names, with Anko being first and Mizuki being last.
Eventually, it was Mizuki's turn to go up and receive his reward.
He shook the Hokage's hand and receiving his certificate before turning and extending his hand to his sensei, Orochimaru.
As he shook his hand and received his Vest, Orochimaru subtly whispered in his ear.
Orochimaru: "Come to the laboratory at 8:00 tonight"
Mizuki: "You almost sound happy that I broke your toy"
Orochimaru looked at him with a bemused smirk as he gave him his vest, and Mizuki turned to walk away, draping the vest overtop his attire, the zipper undone.
And so, with his thoughts racing a mile a minute about what would happen with Orochimaru that night, Mizuki expertly wore a mask of confidence and relief, as he listened to the conclusion of the ceremony before leaving with Anko.
. . . . . .
[1] Ok, so judging by what we saw of TVs in the series, they existed in Naruto's time, as one of the filler characters in that snow movie was a movie star, so I'm just saying that ten years earlier, the industry is a lot weaker and still developing.