Ninjutsu Rivaling an S-Rank Forbidden Technique: Sunset!

Inside the high tower!

Watching the two genius teams battle on the screen, the nobles and wealthy merchants observing the match were thrilled beyond measure.

They normally had no chance to watch a battle like this.

At the same time, watching such battles allowed them to gauge the future strength of the major ninja villages, so the Joint Chunin Exams had never lacked spectators.

In the entertainment-starved ninja world, there was no spectacle more enjoyable than this.

The Ninja World War was even more exciting.

But who would dare watch that? That would not be seeking entertainment—it would be seeking death.

Naturally, the higher-ups of the Three Great Ninja Villages watched even more intently.

Because these genin also represented their villages' future.

If given the chance, they would not mind resorting to underhanded methods.

But with the higher-ups keeping one another in check, anyone who truly dared pull something like that would trigger a war on the spot.

That was also why the Kage had to attend in person.

To protect their village's future.

They could die in battle, but they could not die to conspiracies.

Well, that only applied to the major villages.

The smaller ninja villages and independent examinees were another matter.

Tang Ping, Kakashi, Koji, good luck!

Standing behind the Hokage's chair and serving as part of the cheering section, Minato Namikaze silently cheered on his three disciples.

Death Forest!

The battle was extremely fierce.

Not only was Baki's team wounded across the board, but Team 3 was as well.

It was not because they were fighting too desperately.

It was because people kept jumping out to ambush them during the fight.

Both Baki and Kakashi were geniuses, so they naturally received special attention from the hunters.

As for the others, they had simply been caught in the crossfire.

Yet they could not retreat.

Once they retreated, it would be difficult to explain themselves.

All that could be said was—

The future Chunin Exams were nothing more than entertainment. This was the true Joint Chunin Exams, and also the prelude to war.

When there was no Ninja World War, only a stage like this could display a village's strength to other ninja villages and the ninja world.

Clang, clang!

The two sides' weapons collided as their close-quarters battle continued.

This was what a real ninja battle looked like.

That kind of battle where both sides constantly bombarded each other with high-powered ninjutsu from start to finish was completely fake.

Even jonin did not have enough Chakra in battle to cast many ninjutsu, and the higher the rank of a ninjutsu, the greater its consumption.

Therefore, every use of ninjutsu was incredibly important.

Even jonin were so sparing with their ninjutsu. If it were genin, more than half of them would simply not use ninjutsu at all.

Even though most examinees participating in the Joint Chunin Exams were elites, they were still far from capable of carpeting the ground with ninjutsu.

Even Tang Ping was conserving Chakra.

Because once a ninja ran out of Chakra, they were merely an "ordinary person."

Thus, close-quarters combat enhanced with Chakra.

That was the most correct and efficient method in battle.

Caw!

Taiyi, high in the sky, suddenly burst into flames, and its presence surged dramatically.

Tang Ping was going to end this battle of attrition.

If this continued, not only would they have no chance of winning, but more importantly, even their own safety would be at risk.

There were a large number of hunters around them.

"Damn it, you actually dared to lose focus!"

The girl from Baki's team fighting Tang Ping—Juan—was so angry that her cheeks puffed up.

She had originally thought she could easily take down this insignificant fellow from the intelligence reports, but she had never expected him to be so strong.

Not to mention that frighteningly powerful Summoning Beast.

Even his own strength was nothing like the weakness described in the intelligence manual.

"Don't you think we're in danger right now?"

Tang Ping reminded her after evading her attack.

The reason they had fought to a draw was entirely because both sides were at the level of pecking at each other in close combat.

"Danger?"

After sensing her surroundings, Juan's movements suddenly slowed.

Because their two teams had already been surrounded by examinees.

A small number would have been manageable.

But there were more than several dozen of them.

It was simply terrifying!

That number already accounted for more than a tenth of the examinees in the second exam.

Ordinary examinees might want to make a name for themselves by defeating geniuses like them.

But they would never intend to kill them.

At the very least, they would not attack for that reason.

It was fine if geniuses from major ninja villages died at the hands of geniuses from other major ninja villages.

A smaller ninja village could defeat them, but if they killed them, would they believe that someone would come knocking to "show them some warmth" the moment they left the exam grounds?

So how could dozens of examinees from small ninja villages possibly surround them?

The only possibility was hunters.

As for who had sent them?

Any of the Five Great Ninja Villages was possible.

Konoha might even have sent some, though they naturally could not reveal their identities and could only be treated as hunters as well.

"Taiyi, use Sunset!"

Seeing that the Sunagakure girl had stopped fighting, Tang Ping knew she had realized how dire the situation was and would not attack again. Only then did he issue an order to the Summoning Beast that had been preparing in the sky.

Caw!

Taiyi, its entire body blazing with fierce flames, descended like a sun and smashed heavily toward the ground.

The air burned, and the plants withered!

Faced with Taiyi's almost suicidal indiscriminate attack, everyone stopped fighting.

"You're insane!"

After cursing, the Sunagakure girl quickly retreated to Baki's side.

Taiyi, transformed into a sun, slammed into the ground.

Boom!

Amid an earth-shaking explosion, the entire area was engulfed by blasts and flames.

The power of that single strike was no weaker than some S-Rank Forbidden Techniques.

Of course, it had many shortcomings.

The commotion and preparation time before its use were both obvious flaws.

But this level of destructive power was enough.

Its tremendous destructive power directly overshadowed those flaws.

From that moment on, everyone recognized Taiyi's strength.

Inside the high tower.

"This is...!"

"This Summoning Beast is actually this strong!"

"The power can rival an S-Rank secret technique, can't it?"

The higher-ups of the major ninja villages were all stunned by the power of that strike.

Quite a few people had already begun asking around for information on Taiyi.

The Uchiha ninja in particular were breathing noticeably harder.

They imagined themselves commanding Taiyi and unleashing such a terrifying strike.

Unfortunately, Tang Ping did not know what they were thinking, or he would have told them they were overthinking it.

Taiyi was his Summoning Beast, not like the Ninja Cat Clan, which belonged to the entire Uchiha clan.

Inside the Death Forest!

As soon as the explosion ended, thick smoke filled the battlefield.

Smoke bombs!

Naturally, Tang Ping would not force a breakout.

With dozens of hunters present, it was completely impossible to break out openly.

Thus, Taiyi's all-out strike before ending the summoning was entirely meant to disrupt the battlefield and cover Tang Ping while he did something.

"Move!"

Tang Ping slung the red scroll—the token—over his back and called to his two teammates, who had gathered at his side, to break out.

Black Bear had also been caught in that strike.

After its death, they could naturally take its token.

Kakashi, who had retreated back, glanced at Tang Ping. Aside from liking to slack off and dump responsibilities on others, the guy really was suited to be captain.

The three formed the triangular assault formation they had practiced regularly.

Kakashi, the strongest fighter, took the front, while Tang Ping and Koji positioned themselves at the rear flanks.

This allowed them to respond to any situation.

A figure emerged from the fog.

Whoosh!

Kakashi used the Body Flicker Technique to pounce before the other person. Before they could react, the Kunai in his hand pierced their throat.

If he had struck the heart, the opponent might have been able to send a signal before dying.

Assassination knowledge!

Minato Namikaze's special instruction, along with countless combat techniques, had directly raised Kakashi's combat strength considerably.

With this pathfinder leading the way, Team 3 advanced smoothly.

But there were still unexpected developments.

Whoosh, whoosh!

Tang Ping and Yamaa Koji simultaneously threw Shuriken behind them.

"Wait!"

A somewhat familiar girl's voice rang out, and then a three-person team approached.

It was Baki's team!

Their purpose was obvious without asking.

They were planning to catch a ride with them and leave together.

Ninja did not care about "pride." That was something only Kage-level experts had the right to possess. Small-time ninja like them should worry about surviving first.

Baki did not speak. He merely stared at Kakashi, his eyes brimming with fighting spirit.

But he did not make a move.

He might be arrogant, but he was not brainless.

He naturally understood that they were in danger and that breaking out was their priority, not deciding a victor.

Tang Ping did not mind letting others hitch a ride.

That way, if they encountered danger, they would have more people to serve as shields. He could not have wanted it more.

The two teams tacitly teamed up and forcibly slaughtered their way out of the encirclement.

But the moment they left the smoke-filled area, the two teams that had been preparing to turn on one another came to a stop.

Because they encountered an unexpected situation.