This ninja in Naruto is unscientific

Chapter 281 Mei Terumi

The summer sun pierced through the lush foliage of the tree, casting dappled, dancing spots of light across the Senju clan's training grounds.

"Ding! Ding! Ding!"

The rapid clanging of metal echoed continuously, accompanied by a faint airflow caused by the surge of chakra, which rustled the surrounding bushes.

Kushina Uzumaki stood in the center of the field, her long, fiery red hair dancing wildly in the wind, and several golden chakra chains behind her slithering through the air like serpents.

She held a thick stack of evaluation forms in her hand, her sharp gaze sweeping over the two panting girls opposite her.

"You're too slow, Kana! Your Body Flicker Technique is off; your center of gravity shifted three centimeters when your left foot landed. Shizune, while your chakra scalpel's cuts are precise, the release frequency isn't consistent enough. Against a high-speed enemy, you simply can't seize that fleeting opening!"

Kushina's voice was clear and bright, with an undeniable sternness.

Kana wiped the sweat from her face. Her once neat red pigtails were now disheveled, with a few strands of hair sticking wetly to her forehead.

She was leaning on a practice stick, her chest heaving violently.

"Kushina-neechan... this level of special training... has been going on for almost half a month now." Kana's voice trembled slightly. "I feel like my chakra meridians are about to catch fire."

Shizune, who was standing to the side, was holding Tun Tun, who had fallen asleep out of boredom. She was leaning against a wooden stake, and her once clean white training clothes were now covered with grass clippings and dirt.

She touched Tun Tun's head, her fingertips still unconsciously pulsating with a faint green light.

"We've exceeded the targets set by Lady Tsunade," Shizune added, panting.

Kushina's originally serious expression finally relaxed the moment she saw the two girls' miserable state.

"Alright, stop playing the victim."

Kushina stuffed the evaluation form into her bosom, and with a casual wave of her hand, a bulging floral wallet drew an arc in the air and landed precisely in Kana's arms.

"The Chunin Exams are just around the corner, so let's call it a day. It's good to release some pressure before the exams, otherwise, if you're too stressed, you'll run into problems."

She pointed towards the gate, a smile playing on her lips.

"I'm giving you guys the afternoon off. Take this money and go for a stroll in the new district's commercial street. While you're at it, bring me a box of red bean daifuku from that store in the capital."

"Have a holiday?!"

Chanel paused for two seconds, then let out a cheer loud enough to startle the birds returning to their nests in the trees.

She leaped up like a deer released from its reins, her earlier exhaustion seemingly vanishing in an instant. Grabbing Jingyin's hand, she rushed out of the clan's territory.

"Hooray! I want to eat three-color dumplings! Quiet up, we're going to have a long line at the dessert shop if we're late!"

Shizune stumbled from the tug, managing only to hold onto Ton-Ton with one hand, and hurriedly called out to Kushina, "Kushina-neechan, let's go!"

Watching the two girls walk away, Kushina leaned back against the tree trunk and let out a long breath.

She looked up at the towering modern buildings in the center of the village, a hint of emotion flashing in her eyes.

"That guy, Che, has turned Konoha into a place I don't recognize..."

This place is supposed to be the center of Konoha, but compared to the new district, it feels like a very backward little village.

……

Konoha New District.

If the old town's Konoha is like an ancient tree with deep roots, exuding the weight and weight of time, then the new town is like a giant glass curtain wall that reflects countless illusions under the sunlight.

The smooth road surface stretched to the horizon, dry and free of any dampness found in the old alleyways.

The buildings lining both sides of the street, constructed by engineering teams, exude a modernity that would amaze any foreign visitor.

"Wow...is this really our village?"

Kana stopped and looked up at the Konoha Star City in front of her, whose outer walls were covered with huge electronic displays.

The screen was playing a loop of the new refrigerator's logo, its vibrant colors almost seeming to flow out of the air.

"Every time I come here, I feel like I've come to the wrong place," Shizune sighed softly. The little pig in her arms had woken up and was staring curiously at a landscape fountain that automatically sprayed mist in the distance.

This area no longer uses traditional wooden doors; all shops have been fitted with bright, transparent, explosion-proof floor-to-ceiling windows.

The outdoor unit of the air conditioner hummed low in the shadows, sending gushes of cool air into the room.

The streets were crowded with pedestrians, mostly merchants and tourists from various countries, in addition to ninjas in Konoha uniforms.

Dressed in colorful exotic costumes and carrying large and small bags, they lingered in front of the dazzling array of goods.

Chanel pulled Silent into a shop called Tech Lifestyle Center. The shop was well-air-conditioned and softly lit.

"Look at this! The handheld video storage device that Brother Che mentioned. Just press it once and it will save the image to you." Xiang Nai curiously poked at the display item in the counter.

"That's too expensive. It's enough to buy us a year's worth of kunai." Shizune calmly pulled her away.

On the other side of the street, the doors of the Konoha Hotel sensed someone approaching, and the two heavy, fully transparent glass doors slid open silently to the sides.

A young woman wearing a dark blue fitted long dress walked out.

She looked to be about eleven years old, with long, reddish-brown hair cascading over her shoulders like a waterfall. Long bangs hung down, covering the right half of her face, revealing only a left eye that exuded a cool and wary aura.

Terumi Mei.

As the core of the participants from Kirigakure in this competition, she had just checked in with the newly appointed Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, half an hour earlier.

Ignoring her companions' amazement at the white box in the room that could blow cold air, she walked alone into the sunlit street.

The air here is so dry.

This was Mei Terumi's first impression. The absence of the perpetual thick fog and the salty sea breeze made her feel somewhat unaccustomed to it.

She walked slowly down the street, her right hand habitually resting on her ninja tool pouch, her body muscles constantly tense and ready for battle.

However, her tense demeanor seemed out of place with her surroundings.

She saw two Konoha genin sitting on a bench by the roadside sharing an outrageously large parfait, laughing at each other for the cream on the corners of their mouths.

She saw a modest woman pushing a stroller, pointing at a new rice cooker in a shop window, calculating her household expenses.

She also saw several Konoha Jonin chatting and laughing with civilians, their arms around each other's shoulders.

"Is this an illusion?"

Mei Terumi stopped in her tracks, her left eye slightly narrowed.

In Kirigakure, sunlight is a luxury, smiles are dangerous, and ninjas only need to complete their missions.

But here, the people on the streets of Konoha are all beaming with genuine smiles.

She felt an indescribable restlessness, and beneath that restlessness lay a longing she dared not admit.

A feeling of thirst rose from deep in my throat.

Mei Terumi looked around and spotted a strangely shaped square machine next to a utility pole.

The machine is entirely silver-gray, with a huge transparent panel on the front and neatly arranged metal cans of various colors on the back.

There was an electronic screen on top of the machine, displaying numbers.

Mei Terumi walked up to the unknown machine.

She took a coin out of her pocket and looked at the coin slots on the machine panel.

Mei Terumi frowned and tried to insert a coin, but the coin came out by itself.

She then tried to sense the machine's internal structure using chakra, only to discover that it was filled with complex micro-sealing circuits that directly interfered with her perception.

"Click, click."

She tried pressing the outlet, but nothing came out.

Mei Terumi's left pupil contracted slightly, and her palm emitted a glow of chakra.

"Um... the coin isn't placed there."

A clear voice came from the side.

Mei Terumi's chakra vanished instantly, and she whirled around like a startled bird, her right hand already gripping a kunai.

Kana and Shizune were standing not far away.

The red-haired girl held up a string of tricolor dumplings coated in glistening syrup, her large eyes brimming with curiosity. Beside her, the black-haired girl held a pink piglet and nodded somewhat shyly to Mei Terumi.

"You must be new to Konoha, right?"

Kana completely ignored the gleaming kunai in Mei Terumi's hand, walked up casually, and pointed to the narrow gap in the upper right corner of the vending machine.

"This is called a vending machine. It was developed jointly by a research institute and an electronics company. It's the only one of its kind in the whole city."

"You can't fit it in the bottom gap, you have to try it in the top gap first. After you hear a ding, the light at the bottom will turn on. Then you can choose the one you want to drink and press it down."

"Here are the instructions for use." Shizune pointed to the instructions on the machine.

Mei Terumi stared at Kana for a few seconds, then slowly put the kunai back into her ninja tool pouch.

The red-haired girl's breathing was steady, but her whole body was full of openings, and there was not even any sign of her chakra circulating.

But faced with this inexplicable kindness, Mei Terumi found herself unable to respond with the same coldness as usual.

"……I see."

Mei Terumi answered curtly. Following Kana's instructions, she inserted the coin into the gap.

"jingle."

The sound of coins falling into the cash box was crisp and pleasant.

The row of buttons below, each printed with a different fruit pattern, lit up with a faint green light.

Mei Terumi stared at a jar labeled "Deep Sea Blue" and pressed it down.

"Clang!"

A mechanical clicking sound came from inside the machine, and a can of dark blue soda water, emitting a slight chill, rolled down to the dispensing slot at the bottom.

Mei Terumi bent down and took out the jar. The cool touch through her fingertips slightly calmed her inner anxiety.

"You're a genin from Kirigakure, right? Here to participate in the Chunin Exams?"

Kana leaned closer, staring at the four water-ripple-like patterns on Mei Terumi's forehead protector.

"My name is Kana Uzumaki, and this is Shizune. We're also going to take the Chunin Exams."

Chanel extended her hand generously, her smile more dazzling than the sunlight.

"Since you're out shopping alone, would you like us to show you around? There's a ninja tool shop up ahead that's having a sale. I heard they have a lot of novel gadgets that can be used without chakra."

Mei Terumi pulled the tab, and with a "hiss," a stream of fine bubbles shot out.

She took a sip of the cold soda water, her gaze lingering on Chanel and Shizune for a moment.

Are these Konoha genin... really opponents you'll have to fight to the death in the exam?

Mei Terumi.

The girl with brownish-red hair casually gave her name.

"Let's go," she heard herself say.

And so, on this sunny afternoon in Konoha, three girls of similar age walked along the street adorned with modern streetlights.

A gentle breeze blew by, and Chanel's loud recommendations about the dessert shop mingled with her quiet, admonishments.

Mei Terumi held the can of soda water and for the first time felt that the streets without fog weren't so unbearable after all.