"Now, the first round begins. Cough! Other than the two combatants, everyone else, please move to the second floor."
Seeing the first pair of combatants standing before him, Gekko Hayate glanced at the various formations behind him and spoke.
At his words, everyone swiftly turned around and chose their spots. Some went in pairs, some in groups, and some alone, all heading up to the second floor to clear the space for the combatants.
Then, after the examinees had gone upstairs, the Third Hokage, the Jonin instructors, and the other unrelated personnel followed one after another.
"Hey! Kakashi Teacher!"
At that moment, Uzumaki Naruto, who had been lingering with Haruno Sakura out of concern for Second Pillar, suddenly let out an excited shout.
Haruno Sakura looked over and saw that their teacher, Kakashi, was walking toward them.
"Sasuke... don't use the Sharingan."
At the same time, Kakashi had already stopped behind Second Pillar, his voice casually drifting out with those words.
Huh? Hearing Kakashi's voice suddenly sound from behind him, Second Pillar froze slightly.
"So you know."
Then, those words left his mouth.
"If the Cursed Seal on your neck goes berserk, you'll die."
Hearing Second Pillar's deliberately casual tone, Kakashi spoke gravely.
"I figured."
At those words, Second Pillar narrowed his eyes slightly. A trace of gravity crossed his face as he spoke.
Judging from the last time the Cursed Seal had erupted, he understood very clearly how much it affected him.
He knew that.
"But it's fine. The exam will be stopped when that happens. I'll stop you. I look forward to working with you then."
As though he had expected Second Pillar to say that, Kakashi's tone turned casual again.
While Second Pillar was still stunned by those words, footsteps sounded. Kakashi had already slipped his hands