Nine Seconds! A Few More Seconds Would Have Been Fatal!

The room fell into a deathly silence.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the terrifying Sea Prison, their hearts pounding in fear.

No one wanted to be in Jinbi's place, trapped inside that dreadful rotating water prison.

One second.

Two seconds.

When the ninth second passed, Chiyo's face twisted in panic. She shouted, "Qi Hai! Stop!"

But before her words fully escaped, the Sea Prison · Whirlwind Machine dissolved.

Qi Hai had already ended it—he knew that Jinbi's body wouldn't last beyond ten seconds. Nine seconds was already pushing the limit.

A single extra second could have killed Jinbi outright. Even with his exceptional physical fitness as a taijutsu specialist, any longer might have left him permanently disabled or worse—mentally incapacitated.

Thud.

Jinbi collapsed like a soggy heap of trash, carried by the water flow. Chiyo quickly caught him and checked his condition.

Her expression turned grim. Without hesitation, she forced a secret medicinal pill into his mouth and began using Mystical Palm Technique to stabilize him.

Chiyo wasn't just a master of poison and puppetry—her medical skills were also top-notch, a natural extension of her expertise in toxins.

After five tense minutes of treatment, Chiyo finally stopped.

"Quick, take him to the hospital! Be gentle!"

One of Jinbi's subordinates, Nanwei Jiro, immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to scoop up the unconscious jōnin and rushed him to the medical facility.

As Nanwei disappeared, Chiyo turned to Qi Hai, her expression both resigned and serious.

Her next words shocked everyone present:

"If it had lasted one or two seconds longer, not even I could have saved him."

"What?!"

"Even Advisor Chiyo couldn't have saved him? Jinbi would have died?"

"I thought Qi Hai-sensei was just punishing him a little. I didn't expect it to be this deadly!"

The other jōnin stared at Qi Hai in disbelief, as if he were a monster.

Even Gaara, who rarely showed emotion, was visibly shaken. His stoic, aloof demeanor vanished as he stared at Qi Hai.

"This is my mentor?" Gaara muttered. "Someone who can kill a jōnin in ten seconds? Terrifying!"

Kankurō was trembling uncontrollably. "I'm stuck in a squad with someone even scarier than Gaara. Am I going to survive this?!"

Qi Hai scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "He tried to kill me first," he said matter-of-factly.

Indeed, Jinbi's Earth Style: Rock Spike was a full-blown assassination attempt aimed directly at Qi Hai's vital organs.

No one could fault Qi Hai for retaliating, but the sheer lethality of his response left everyone on edge.

Many of the newly appointed jōnin instinctively took a few steps back, creating a noticeable gap around Qi Hai.

As new jōnin, they had bright futures ahead of them. None of them wanted to take any risks with someone so unpredictable.

Realizing he'd been labeled a violent brute, Qi Hai shrugged helplessly. "Ah, this is just like back in my previous life—beat someone and you're the bad guy, whether you win or lose."

Feeling the heavy atmosphere, Qi Hai decided it was time to leave. But just as he was about to step away, he stopped and turned back.

"Gaara!"

"Kankurō!"

"Temari!"

"You three, meet me tomorrow morning at 4 a.m. sharp at the Sand Village Snack Shop's south branch! Training begins!"

Boom!

The announcement hit the trio like a thunderclap. Having witnessed Qi Hai's terrifying abilities firsthand, they no longer dared to underestimate him.

Temari: "Y-yes, Qi Hai-sensei!" she stammered, suddenly eager to please.

Kankurō: "O-of course, Sensei!" he said, his voice shaking.

Gaara: For the first time, he gave a respectful nod. "Understood."

This was a shocking departure from Gaara's usual behavior—normally, he wouldn't even acknowledge his teachers. As the village's number-one delinquent and most rebellious child, Gaara never played by the rules. But now, even he was subdued.

Satisfied, Qi Hai smiled and walked away.

The room erupted into chatter.

"Ahhh! That was so intense!"

"I didn't even dare to speak while he was here!"

"Qi Hai-sensei is terrifying. How can someone look so friendly yet be so scary?"

"4 a.m. training? That's insane! Is this the secret to his success?"

Bang!

Chiyo slammed her hand on the table.

"Quiet, all of you!" she barked. "Now, let's move on to the next squad. Squad Two: Feiliu, Misha, and Nanwei Mitsu. Mentor: Ma—never mind, it'll be Maki!"

Maki, the Kazekage's personal guard and secretary, was known as Sunagakure's strongest elite jōnin. Under normal circumstances, he would have been the ideal mentor for Gaara's squad.

But with Qi Hai now in the picture, Rasa had reassigned Maki to oversee Squad Two instead.

Originally, Jinbi was supposed to lead Squad Two, but his critical condition left Chiyo no choice but to rely on Maki.

Meanwhile, at the Sunagakure Central Hospital.

The emergency room was in chaos.

Jinbi's condition was critical. Several of his blood vessels had ruptured, and surgeons were scrambling to repair the damage.

The medical staff worked frantically, beads of sweat rolling down their faces.

"Wait... Oh no!" one doctor suddenly exclaimed. "We forgot to administer anesthesia!"

Jinbi, who had briefly regained consciousness from the pain, managed to curse weakly: "Idiots..."

And then he passed out again.

On the third floor of the hospital, in Rasa's room.

True to his reputation as the "Wind Demon," Jinto sat beside Rasa with a bitter expression.

An ANBU operative was reporting on the events of the Jōnin Appointment Ceremony, including how Qi Hai had injured Jinto's son, Jinbi.

Rasa couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity of it all. Looking at Jinto, he asked, "Do you hate Qi Hai for what he did?"

The question carried a warning.

Jinto hesitated before shaking his head. "No, Kazekage-sama. This is entirely my son's fault. Jinbi clearly lacks the qualities of a true jōnin."

Jinto continued, his tone self-critical:

"His intelligence-gathering skills are inadequate—he should have known better than to provoke Qi Hai. His mastery of taijutsu is lacking. His conduct is disgraceful, attacking a fellow shinobi with lethal intent. And worst of all, he disobeyed your orders.

"He's completely unqualified. I humbly request that you demote him back to chūnin."

Jinto knelt, bowing deeply.

Rasa, amused, replied, "Stand up, Jinto. I'm in no position to help you up in my current state."

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