Konoha was a big village, no doubt about that, and Uchiha Akira's Fire Release had turned half the sky red. It wasn't long before the huge mass of thunderclouds gathering in the sky caught the attention of everyone in the village.
People began looking in the direction of the storm, whispering to one another in confusion.
anwhile, several ANBU mbers were already closing in to investigate what was going on. After all, sothing like this didn't happen every day.
This was all happening as the Jonin exam was about to begin.
Naturally, many other ninja from the various villages were staying in Konoha at the ti.
While they didn't have the authority to investigate, that didn't stop them from observing from afar.
Back to the thunderclouds-under Akira's control, the lightning began to concentrate within the clouds.
The rumbling of thunder grew louder and louder.
At that mont, countless eyes turned toward the source of the noise. It was clear to anyone watching that this wasn't a natural storm.
Was this so kind of jutsu?
"That's so fierce lightning!" a ninja from the Cloud Village muttered as he stared at the clouds, his expression growing serious.
Cloud ninjas knew lightning better than anyone. They didn't need to feel the chakra involved —just a glance at the furious bolts within the thunderclouds was enough to understand how terrifying this was.
"The power... it's overwhelming!"
Even from a distance, the sheer intensity of the lightning was apparent. And standing right beneath it, Sasuke couldn't help but tremble. The concentrated lightning overhead made his heart race with fear. Every living being had an innate fear of thunder and lightning, and Sasuke was no exception.
Especially not when this was natural lightning, sothing far more devastating than any ordinary Lightning Release technique.
Suddenly, amidst the rolling thunder, a sound echoed a deep, primal roar. It was hard to tell if it was the voice of the lightning itself or so kind of beast.
Then, the clouds parted, and a massive creature, ford entirely of lightning, erged from the storm. Its enormous head lood over the earth, gazing down as though it were so ancient god-beast surveying the world below.
"Kirin... Is this the Lightning Release jutsu, Kirin? It's like the lightning itself has co to life!" Sasuke thought, his heart pounding as he stared up at the creature's head. The sheer pressure it radiated left him utterly shaken.
The beast of lightning took one last look at the ground below before retreating back into the clouds. But in the next mont, under Akira's control, the massive Kirin-like bolt of lightning descended from the sky with terrifying force.
The sky lit up, as bright as midday, and for a brief mont, everything disappeared into a blinding white light. The only thing that remained was the deafening sound of thunder, roaring like a beast.
It felt like an eternity before the thunder finally faded, and Sasuke's Sharingan restored his vision.
Looking around, he saw that everything within a few hundred ters had been scorched black.
Sasuke was left speechless, his mind reeling from what he had just witnessed. The raw, destructive power of that lightning was beyond anything man-made. This was nature's fury at its purest, and no ordinary Lightning Release technique could compare.
"Was that... a Lightning Release jutsu?" An Iwa ninja from the Hidden Stone Village muttered, his eyes wide as he stared at the dissipating storm clouds. His face was pale with shock. Lightning Release techniques naturally had an advantage over Earth Release, so it was no surprise that the Iwa ninja were particularly shaken by the sheer power of this jutsu. What kind of Earth Release technique could possibly withstand sothing like that?
"Since when did Konoha's Lightning Release get this powerful?!"
Ninja from the Cloud Village, well-versed in lightning techniques, were equally stunned by Kirin's destructive force. They had always believed that their village had the strongest Lightning Release users in the world, but this display from Konoha was on par with anything they could do.
Was this the strength of the Hidden Leaf, the greatest of the Five Great Shinobi Nations?
Each of the other Great Villages had their own specialties. The Sand Village had puppetry and wind techniques, the Stone Village had earth and dust techniques, the Mist Village had water techniques, and the Cloud Village had lightning.
But Konoha was a different story. They had mastered techniques across all elents-wind, fire, water, earth, and lightning—and they excelled at each one. Add in the Sharingan and Byakugan, and it beca clear just how deep Konoha's strength ran.
"This is the power of the Five Great Nations..." Even the hardened Iwa and Kumo ninja were in awe of Kirin's might, while the smaller villages, who had sent their own candidates to the exams, could only watch in stunned silence.
Among them were the ninja from the Star Village.
Their leader had once boasted that the Star Village was on the verge of becoming a Great Village, thanks to a teorite that had fallen from the heavens, granting them great power. He had even dared to call himself the Star Shadow.
But now, as they watched the devastating power of Kirin, the Star Village ninja couldn't help but feel like they had been living in a bubble. This was the true power of the Five Great
Nations.
Star Shadow? That title suddenly felt ridiculous.
"Well? Did you get a good look at that Lightning Release: Kirin?" Akira asked, breaking the
silence.
"Yeah, I saw everything. I'll be able to use it when the ti is right," Sasuke replied, his Sharingan eyes still glowing as he nodded seriously. This jutsu, along with the other Chidori variations Akira had taught him, was a perfect fit for him.
While his chakra reserves hadn't increased, Sasuke knew that mastering these techniques would significantly boost his overall combat ability.
A ninja's strength wasn't just about chakra. The jutsu they mastered played a huge role as well. After all, if it were just about chakra, wouldn't the Uzumaki Clan, with their massive
reserves, have ruled the world by now?
"Crack!"
As Akira and Sasuke continued discussing training thods, several ANBU agents appeared, using the Body Flicker technique to arrive swiftly on the scene.
Akira glanced at them but didn't pay them much attention. He did, however, nod in approval
at how quickly they had responded. Kirin had made quite the impact, so it made sense that the
ANBU would show up.
But when the ANBU saw that it was Akira, they quickly withdrew.
If the Head of ANBU was here, there was nothing to worry about.
Besides, with his strength, it wasn't exactly surprising that he could pull off a jutsu as
powerful as Kirin.
"Alright, ti to go," Akira said, waving Sasuke off after discussing a few more details about his training. There was no need for him to stick around any longer.
Sasuke now had a clear focus for his training-he would hone his mastery over the Chidori variations Akira had taught him, making sure he could use them effectively in battle.
anwhile, back with the Iwa ninja, things weren't looking so good.
They had co to Konoha with plans to stir up trouble. But after seeing Kirin in action, they weren't so sure anymore. Lightning Release had a natural advantage over Earth Release, and with this kind of power, any attempt to cause trouble could end in disaster.
They debated amongst themselves but couldn't co up with any solutions.
At the sa ti, the ninja from Iwa-and all the other villages-were trying to figure out who in Konoha had cast that terrifying Lightning Release jutsu.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and the Jonin Exam was officially underway. Each of the Five Great Nations had sent a team of three to participate. In addition, several smaller villages had also sent teams, making a total of twelve squads and thirty-six participants.
The ages of the participants varied. The oldest was a ninja from the Grass Village, who was over fifty years old. After all, these teams were ant to represent the best of each village's
Chunin.
But when it ca to age, the Konoha candidates stood out. They were all around fourteen or fifteen, drawing even more attention to the depth of talent in the Hidden Leaf. For a village to send such young candidates to an exam for Jonin-it was unheard of.
If Konoha wasn't confident, and their young candidates got eliminated early on, it would make the whole exam look like a joke.
"Alright, we've got twelve squads and thirty-six candidates. That's a bit too many. So, in the first round, I'm going to cut half of you," Akira announced, standing before the gathered
candidates.
As Konoha's pride and the Head of ANBU, Akira had been chosen as the lead examiner for the
Jonin Exam.
"You've got to be kidding! You look younger than most of us! What makes you think you're qualified to be the examiner?" one of the candidates, a twenty-sothing ninja from the Light Village, called out, clearly unimpressed.
"Ah, so because I look young, you don't think I'm qualified?" Akira sighed, shaking his head
at the outburst.
Suddenly, Akira raised his hand, and a crackling spear of blue lightning shot across the stage
in an instant, stopping right in front of the shouting ninja.
"Is the fact that my na is Uchiha Akira enough of a qualification for you?" Akira asked, his
voice calm but filled with authority.
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Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 230 at /Emiko1.
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