That Day When Suzuki-kun Wasn't the Mob-B! Chapter 500: The Chunin Exams Begin! (Patreon)

Unlike Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, who had stayed behind, Suzuki and his team quickly entered the venue and arrived at the exam location. It was hidden by a weak genjutsu that made others mistake the room, but with their teacher, Kurenai, who was a master of genjutsu, how could this type of illusion trap them?

Then again, while it was rude, Suzuki had a hard time saying that his teacher, Kurenai, was a master of genjutsu.

"Is that Suzuki?"

In the observation room, a masked ninja with silver hair, Kakashi Hatake, stared curiously at Suzuki. Why was he curious? It was because Suzuki was the new student of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. What kind of young man could somehow become the student of the old Hokage so suddenly?

Hiruzen's age wasn't young; or rather, it wouldn't be weird if he suddenly passed away. Yet somehow, he had chosen Suzuki to be his student, so how could Kakashi not be curious?

"Yeah, he is talented and strong." Kurenai sighed as she realized she was weaker than Suzuki. But when she thought about how he was chosen by Tsunade and Hiruzen as a student, it was perfectly normal. Still, it hurt her pride that he had somehow gotten better at genjutsu than she was.

"...Did he win against you or something?" Kakashi couldn't help but ask, noticing the subtle expression on Kurenai's face.

"No, but he won against Asuma," Kurenai quickly replied, throwing all the focus of the conversation onto the chain-smoking ninja with stubble.

"Why did you have to say that?!" Asuma was ashamed, even if he knew it was the truth.

Still, Kurenai only looked away, her focus remaining on Suzuki.

Asuma's lips twitched, feeling quite regretful that he had decided to go to the Land of Fire's capital to serve as the daimyo's bodyguard for several years, which had somehow made his relationship with Kurenai less close than before. After all, during his youth, he had often tried to make Kurenai fall in love with him, but since he had been away, he had to start from the beginning again.

Then again, who could be his opponent?

With how handsome he was, his rank, his talent, and his family (being the only son of the Third Hokage), if such a background couldn't make Kurenai fall in love, who could?

Kakashi?

Well, Asuma had never thought of Kakashi as an opponent. Even though Kakashi was slightly more handsome than him, he knew well that Kakashi's true lover was his own right hand.

"......."

Kakashi only glanced at Asuma with deadpan eyes and continued to read his Icha Icha Paradise, where the plot involved a young man somehow stealing a mature, married woman from her husband.

The story was definitely immoral, yet he had to admit he couldn't help but continue reading it. He then somehow glanced at Kurenai, then at Suzuki, before looking at Kurenai again.

Hmm...

Kakashi thought that he might be reading too many of these novels.

"Can we work together later?"

Shikamaru shamelessly asked as he, Choji, and Ino casually joined Suzuki's group.

"That depends on the exam first." Suzuki glanced at Shikamaru and asked, "Do you think that if the venue is indoors, there will be a chance to work together? It might be a duel between all of us."

"No way." Shikamaru shook his head, showing firm confidence despite his lazy expression. "There are so many of us around here. Do you think those examiners have the patience to act as referees for everyone's fights? And a battle royale, like a war where all of us fight at once, is also impossible, as the venue is too small."

So, what kind of exam would they face?

Suzuki and Shikamaru looked at each other and nodded, without saying anything.

Yet, without a doubt, Shikamaru felt jealous of Hinata and Shino, who were on the same team as Suzuki, as this guy was the smartest person besides himself.

Also, why had this guy changed so much?

It hadn't been long since they graduated—or rather, it had just been a few months—but somehow, Suzuki had grown taller and more powerful. There was also this aura that made people feel they would lose to him, while his allies felt a sense of relief. Somehow, it made Shikamaru understand why Hiruzen had wanted him as a disciple.

All of a sudden, a killing intent spread through the room as everyone looked toward the venue's entrance and saw three ninjas from Sunagakure.

In the lead, a young man with red hair, no eyebrows, and a tattoo on his forehead walked in with gloomy eyes. It made people—even the higher-ranked examiners—feel threatened.

"W-Who are they?"

"Are they from Sunagakure?"

"...We should move away from them."

Quiet mutters were heard, yet everyone was more or less of the same mindset, as they decided to back away upon encountering this group of Sunagakure ninjas led by the red-haired young man with a gourd.

"How troublesome..."

Shikamaru sighed as he moved closer to Suzuki.

Yup, being with Suzuki is safer, he thought.

Naturally, this dangerous young man somehow noticed Suzuki's group and stared at Suzuki for a while. Suzuki calmly stared back before the young man looked away with his group.

Still, the two following him—a slightly older young man in black clothing wearing war paint and carrying something on his back, and a young woman with a large fan on her back—also glanced in Suzuki's direction because of their leader's reaction.

While the slightly older young man wore an arrogant, disdainful expression, the young woman stared calmly at Suzuki's face for a while, then nodded. Suzuki nodded in return.

Hmm... Temari is beautiful.

Suzuki naturally knew who they were: Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari. Those two guys aside, Temari was a beautiful girl, which made it easy to understand why Shikamaru eventually married her.

"What? Why did you look at me like that?" Shikamaru felt Suzuki's gaze was so weird!

"Nothing. Let's just go in. It's troublesome outside."

As Hiruzen's student, Suzuki also had to maintain his teacher's image, which meant appearing gentle, kind, and sunny to make himself approachable. But this also proved troublesome, as it meant many people would gather around him.

If this were a normal occasion, it wouldn't matter, but this was an exam. Some shameless or stupid groups might simply ask him to help them, which was something he didn't want to bother with.

Being a good person isn't nice, huh?

Suzuki thought as he stepped inside the classroom, followed by Hinata and Shino.

"Let's go in too, Shikamaru!" Saying that, Ino didn't wait for Shikamaru and quickly entered.

"......." Shikamaru.

"Let's go, Choji."

"Okay."

Choji nodded as he continued to eat.

Meanwhile, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura also arrived. Since they had encountered trouble—such as a young man in green spandex—and gotten into a fight, they naturally missed Suzuki and his group. But in the corner, a man with glasses stared in Suzuki's direction as he muttered, "So, that's the new student of the Third Hokage..."

As the lenses of his glasses glinted, he couldn't help but want to share this news with his master. But before that, the first phase of the Chunin Exam started.