Second Exam: First Battle

There was a pioneer.

Naturally, more and more people joined in later.

"I choose to withdraw..."

I abstain.

"Me too."

One by one, people raised their hands, then broke away from the group and went to the Cloud Ninja on the side to write down their names.

In less than a minute, a total of six people left.

One Cloud Ninja, one was a Sand Ninja, and the remaining four were Konoha Ninja.

Kaguya Shuuya lost her arm, Rindou Uzumaki still walks with a limp, and Choji Akimichi was stabbed in the battle with the Cloud Ninja. Fortunately, he had a lot of fat, so his internal organs were not damaged, but he was warned not to do any more strenuous exercise.

The fourth person was quite unexpected.

Shuyuan also raised her hand, choosing to withdraw from the competition.

I abstain.

He spoke calmly, then lowered his hand, walked out of the line of examinees, and went to the Cloud Ninja beside him to announce his name.

"What's going on here?"

Temari stared blankly at Shuyuan's retreating figure.

She clearly remembered Gaara's level of fear of this Konoha Ninja, and vaguely regarded him as an extremely dangerous target.

Unexpectedly, they actually abstained here?

She glanced at Gaara with great concern.

As expected, Gaara frowned deeply, his brows furrowing into a tight knot, and every pore exuded an aura of anger and displeasure.

He was already prepared for a fair and square fight in the battle to come...

The other party played a trick on him like this!

"Brother Bai."

Shuyuan walked to Bai's side.

"Shuyuan, have you found anything?"

"There's nothing there, nothing at all. We couldn't find a single trace inside the stone tower..." Shuyuan shook her head vigorously.

He used Mind's Eye of the Kagura to search the entire stone tower, inside and out, every corner, three times, but still found nothing.

Upon hearing Shuyuan's words, Bai pondered for a moment before saying, "Perhaps Senju Zen and Uchiha Genso's target isn't here? Maybe the person they're eyeing is inside Kumogakure?"

"Maybe!"

Shuyuan nodded, but then shook her head.

"But I don't have a good feeling about it. Ever since I entered the stone tower, I've felt inexplicably restless... as if my instincts are sending out a warning."

He scratched his messy, unkempt hair in frustration, feeling depressed.

"... Instinct?"

Haku did not dismiss this unreliable claim; a ninja's intuition or instinct can sometimes be surprisingly accurate.

"Let's wait and see! What will happen next..."

Before he could finish speaking, he shut his mouth and turned his gaze to the Third Raikage.

Another minute passed, but not a seventh person raised their hand to withdraw.

"Alright, now you only have thirty-three people left, an odd number!" The Third Raikage coughed lightly and continued, "You will engage in one-on-one individual battles according to the names drawn, and the last person to receive a bye... is considered to have lost outright. The sixteen winners will advance and participate in the third round of the exam."

After the Third Raikage finished speaking, he looked at Nozomi and said, "Nozomi, you will be in charge from now on."

"Yes, Lord Raikage."

hope knelt down and bowed his head in response.

The Third Raikage Body Flicker Technique teleported to the platform on the second floor, sat in the large stone chair, and looked down at the venue below.

The Jonin also retreated to the platforms on both sides, leaning against the railings to watch the commotion unfold.

"The second exam also has no restrictions... The battle continues until one side is down, unable to resist, surrenders, or dies... So," Xi looked at the examinees, a captivating smile on her face, "If you don't want to die here and be carried away, it's better to surrender sooner rather than later..."

"Of course, you don't need to worry too much. If I determine that the outcome is already decided, and to avoid the ground being soiled by extra corpses... I will stop the exam, after all, cleaning the ground is a hassle..."

"Gulp!"

A loud swallowing sound came from among the test takers.

Aside from a few individuals Gaara who possessed absolute confidence, some of the remaining examinees were already beginning to regret pushing themselves to participate in the second exam...

"Slap! Slap!"

hope clapped his hands, and the wall next to the head of the giant Buddha statue behind him suddenly moved, revealing a black display screen.

"See the display screen above? This is the tool that will decide your fate... It will show the contestants' names, so pray that you don't encounter strong opponents, and pray that you don't get a bye..."

"That's a bye, which is equivalent to immediate defeat. Isn't that just unfair? Is it all about luck?"

Naruto raised his hand and asked.

"This candidate asked a very good question. Let me make it clear to you before the exam... Luck is also a part of ability."

Hope said solemnly.

Countless ninjas have died because of bad luck, so never underestimate the power of luck.

Naruto pouted. He had never quite understood these kinds of mystical answers, so he didn't know how to refute them.

Moreover, hope didn't intend to give him a chance to refute.

He announced directly, "Alright... Now, we will directly announce the list of the two sides competing in the first exam..."

All the examinees' eyes immediately fell on the suddenly lit screen, Jonin standing on the platform also watched with great interest as a series of names flashed on the screen.

Three seconds.

The screen finally stopped flickering.

Naruto Uzumaki VS Rock Lee.

Two blood-red names were reflected deep in everyone's eyes.

"Naruto, that idiot, is in the first round?"

"Who is Rock Lee? I've never heard of that name before."

"Is it a Sand Ninja? Or Cloud Ninja?"

Whispering and murmuring arose.

"Alright, the names for the first match have been announced. The two combatants, please stay here. Everyone else, please go to the lounge area on the second floor and wait."

Xi waved his hand to shoo the crowd away, quickly leaving Naruto and Rock Lee behind.

"No way? They're actually ninjas from Konoha?"

Ino gripped the railing, staring at Rock Lee in surprise.

"And what's with that hairstyle and clothes? Are they dressing up as a kappa?"

Upon hearing Ino's shout, Senju Sayuri and the others couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Neji and Tenten, who were also Rock Lee's partners, shook their heads helplessly. They didn't pursue Ino's words, because... they had also complained about Rock Lee and Might Guy's outfits more than once. With their watermelon heads and green bodysuits, it was no wonder people associated them with kappa!

Shuyuan.

Suzuran walked over quickly and asked in a low voice.

Can Naruto win?

"It's hard to say! I don't know anything about Rock Lee..."

"I see!"

Suzuran nodded, then stood naturally beside Shuyuan, the two of them watching the commotion unfold. (To be continued)