The Chunin Exams: The Price of Seeing Too Much

Hayate's body was still suspended in midair.

In that fleeting moment while drifting through the air, he realized that although Orochimaru had seen through his transparent technique, he had no intention of attacking him. Instead, the Sannin continued running forward without even looking back.

Or was he fleeing? His unusual behavior left Hayate puzzled. Was he avoiding something?

But there was nothing behind him.

Even though he didn't fully understand, since Orochimaru had been spotted in Konoha, as a Konoha ninja, Hayate had no choice but to continue his pursuit.

Quickly stabilizing his body midair, Hayate prepared to immediately give chase the moment he landed.

However, just as Hayate reached the highest point of his trajectory, his entire body suddenly froze as if it were fixed in place, suspended motionless in midair.

This seemingly eerie scene felt strange to him.

It wasn't that his body was floating on its own, but rather that some invisible force had clamped down on him entirely.

He could distinctly feel pressure from his chest and back, like a pair of pliers gripping him tightly.

He tried to lift his right hand to reach for the sword on his back, but his right hand seemed to be trapped by the same force, unable to move.

With no other choice, he adapted and used his left hand to draw the sword from his back, wildly slashing at the empty space in front of him.

Against this invisible power, Hayate couldn't even muster the most basic resistance; he could only flail like a helpless child.

"Ah!"

"Ah!"

His expression and the movements of his sword grew increasingly frantic, but no matter how desperately he struggled, he couldn't harm the Hound of Tindalos in the slightest.

It was as if the hound sensed his frantic resistance; the grip on Hayate's body tightened.

Crack.

The crisp sound of bones breaking echoed; several of Hayate's ribs had been crushed.

The oppressive force squeezing Hayate made him feel as if the space inside his body was being compressed. This sensation of shrinking, of becoming increasingly insignificant, was more terrifying than facing death itself.

Especially when confronted by an intangible threat.

However, the Hound of Tindalos didn't directly kill Hayate, because he hadn't seen it.

The Hound of Tindalos is a terror reserved for those who traverse time and space. Without violating this taboo, it's nearly impossible to perceive it.

As such, no one had been able to describe the exact appearance of the Hound of Tindalos.

This was because only time travelers could see their existence, and anyone who had seen them has already been hunted to death.

But Hayate's reckless resistance had angered the hound. Even though he hadn't violated the taboo, the Hound of Tindalos decided to kill this insignificant human.

It extended its suspended claw into a spear-like shape, aiming it at Hayate's throat.

But just as the sharp tip of the claw was about to pierce his throat, it suddenly stopped.

The hound sensed an unpleasant aura emanating from a necklace hanging around Hayate's neck.

This aura was repulsive to the Hound of Tindalos and detested by most mythical creatures. Some weaker beings would even fear contamination by this aura.

Woof!

Woof!

With a few angry growls, the hound flung Hayate's body away like discarded trash, tossing him onto the street below. Then it fled swiftly, not lingering for a moment longer.

Lying on the ground, Hayate remained oblivious to what had just happened, only hearing the faint sound of dog barks as his consciousness faded.

---

In the spacious private room, Konoha's high-ranking officials—Danzō, Hiruzen, Homura, and Koharu—all gathered.

Lying on the hospital bed was none other than Hayate.

At this moment, he had already regained consciousness and was explaining to the Konoha leadership what had transpired the previous night.

"I never expected Orochimaru to infiltrate Konoha," Hiruzen began, as was his habit of speaking first. This elicited a displeased expression from Danzō, who stood nearby.

"This is the result of your incompetence during your tenure as Hokage. If you had deployed the entire ANBU force to capture Orochimaru immediately, that insignificant traitor would've been apprehended long ago."

"If capturing Orochimaru was so simple, then why didn't you catch him when you were in charge?" Hiruzen retorted.

"That's because Orochimaru had already established secret hideouts after years of fleeing. If it had been right after he defected from Konoha, I would've captured him without fail."

"Don't forget whose actions drove Orochimaru to defect in the first place."

Just as Danzō and Hiruzen became immersed in their endless blame game, Homura cleared his throat to interject. "This is not the time to debate who was at fault in the past."

Koharu nodded in agreement. "Yes, the priority now is figuring out how to deal with his infiltration of the village."

"Orochimaru sneaking into Konoha is definitely not a coincidence," Hiruzen suggested. "He must have some sort of plan. I recommend canceling the Chunin Exams immediately and conducting a thorough investigation of everyone in the village, including the outsiders."

"Absolutely not!" Danzō immediately objected to Hiruzen's proposal.

"The ninja teams from various villages have already arrived in Konoha. Moreover, dignitaries and officials from all nations are here. Are you suggesting we embarrass Konoha by panicking over an unresolved traitor?"

"Even so, we can't keep this matter under wraps any longer. Should we really continue to hide it?" Hiruzen raised his voice.

"Still, canceling the Chunin Exams is out of the question! The exams must proceed as scheduled. We only need the ANBU and my Root division to investigate Orochimaru in secret."

Danzō's strong reaction stemmed from his concern that canceling the Chunin Exams would not only embarrass Konoha but also diminish his credibility as the Fifth Hokage in the eyes of the Fire Daimyō, threatening his position as Hokage.

As the standoff between Danzō and Hiruzen continued, a knock on the door interrupted them.

"Hokage-sama, Hayate's family is here to visit," announced a nurse from outside.

Taking advantage of the pause, Homura quickly stepped in as the peacemaker.

"Ahem, let's discuss the matter further back at the Hokage Office. Arguing here will only disturb the patient's rest."

Danzō cast a sidelong glance at Hayate lying on the bed, then at Hiruzen, before leaving without another word.

Homura and Koharu nodded politely at Hayate before following Danzō out.

Hiruzen, watching Danzō's retreating figure, let out a long sigh, then turned and smiled at Hayate.

"You just focus on recovering. Don't worry about your duties as a referee for the Chunin Exams."

"Understood, Hiruzen-sama," Hayate replied.

With that, Hiruzen also left the room.

After the Konoha leadership departed, a handsome young man peeked his head around the doorframe, his face streaked with tears. He then rushed toward Hayate, crying.

"Hayate-niisan!"

Haku lunged at Hayate, accidentally pressing against his injured rib, causing Hayate to wince in pain.

"Ah! I'm sorry! I wasn't careful enough," Haku apologized.

"Haha, it's fine," Hayate replied with a chuckle, shaking his head. He gently patted Haku's head before glancing toward the door, where Kagami was slowly entering.

"Kagami, come in!" Hayate called.

"Ah, oh," Kagami hesitated slightly but eventually stepped inside and asked about Hayate's injuries.

"It's just a few fractured ribs. I'll recover fully in about a month," Hayate explained.

"But I won't be able to take on missions during the Chunin Exams, which is a bit of a shame."

"Ah, ah..."

Pale-faced, Hayate forced a reassuring smile at Kagami. Even though he was the one injured, he still comforted others—such was Hayate's gentle nature.

What Hayate referred to as a "shame" was the S-rank mission assigned during the Chunin Exams.

At 23, he was considered exceptionally young among special jonin, having completed 96 A-rank missions—a record that outshone many of his peers.

This made him one of the most promising candidates to be promoted to jonin in Konoha before the age of 30.

However, promotion from special jonin to jonin required meeting a strict criterion: completing S-rank missions.

Being so young, he had yet to complete a single S-rank mission, falling far short of the requirement.

Moreover, in these times of relative peace, missions involving S-rank intelligence tied to inter-village secrets were exceedingly rare.

The mission to monitor Baki during the Chunin Exams was a rare and undisputed S-rank opportunity, making it particularly important to Hayate.

Kagami had once advised him indirectly not to risk his life so recklessly for missions, even suggesting it wouldn't matter if he remained a special jonin for the rest of his life.

But Hayate replied that it was all for a beautiful future with Yūgao.

Now, with his injuries, he was unable to participate in any tasks related to the Chunin Exams. He couldn't help but feel some regret, as this was indeed a prime opportunity to build merit.

In contrast, Kagami felt this might not be a bad thing at all.

By getting injured early, Hayate was effectively removed from the Chunin Exams. This meant he wouldn't serve as an exam proctor nor risk being discovered while monitoring Baki, which could lead to his death—and leave Yūgao widowed.

And the price for avoiding all that? Just a few broken ribs—a light injury for a ninja.

This perfectly aligned with the old saying: "A blessing in disguise."

Of course, Kagami credited his earlier decision to hand the Old Seal to Hayate before his mission. Otherwise, a the hound would have drained his bodily fluids with its hollow, straw-like tongue.

Thanks to intelligence obtained through his "spider's vision," Kagami had long been aware that Orochimaru harbored deep resentment over the events of his defection years ago.

To investigate the events of that time, Orochimaru even had the resurrected Mi-Go craft a dose of Liao through the Edo Tensei technique.

This development surprised Kagami, as it seemed Orochimaru had acquired even more esoteric knowledge from the Mi-Go and the Necronomicon than he had initially anticipated.

The Hounds of Tindalos were the bane of all time travelers. Long ago, a certain time traveler consumed Liao to undertake a lengthy historical exploration, uncovering the chronicles of human civilization and even the Earth's entire timeline.

In their hubris, this time traveler extended their consciousness into the isolated angular time islands, only to discover the existence of the Hounds of Tindalos.

According to their original lore, the Hounds of Tindalos are creatures that existed on Earth in ancient times.

Due to their existence in discontinuous time—which does not flow normally like curved time—they remain stationed like watchful guards at specific points in time.

And since the Hounds of Tindalos couldn't be perceived by humans within normal spacetime—and the events of the past are already immutable—the hounds would not affect anyone or anything from that era.

But if anyone dared to travel back in time, they would face the relentless pursuit of the hound.

The Hounds of Tindalos were considered among the most powerful and relentless entities below the Great Old Ones.

Renowned as "Team-Wipe Engines," their immortality and ability to pursue souls across time and space make them more formidable than some less-impressive Great Old Ones.

---

Late at night, a figure clad in a black cloak swiftly moved through the alleys and streets of Konoha.

Carefully avoiding the heavy patrols of the Inuzuka clan, the figure finally arrived at a secluded location. It was an isolated building on the edge of Konoha, clearly chosen for its discreet and hidden nature.

The figure walked slowly to the tightly shut iron door and knocked lightly in a specific pattern.

After a while, the door opened from within, revealing Kin Tsuchi, one of the participants from Oto in the Chunin Exams.

Kin's expression wasn't particularly welcoming as she recognized the visitor. She spoke with slight disdain. "So it's you—Kabuto."

Kabuto responded with a harmless, polite smile, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Of course, it's me. Who else would know the code?"

"What do you want?" Kin's attitude remained unfriendly.

"I'm here to report some information to Orochimaru-sama and to share intelligence about the first written test of the Chunin Exams two days from now."

"What? Are you not going to let me in?"

Although Kin was visibly reluctant, she eventually allowed Kabuto to step inside.