The official tournament roster was released shortly afterward, and the opponents for each participant were also announced by the organizers.
This time, it's the same two-choice system; only the winner among the 12 ninjas can advance to the final assessment.
This match is not just about winning or losing, but also about performance on the field. If you perform well but still lose, it's not impossible to be promoted to Chunin.
The battle lasts for two days, with six matches per day, making it the most exciting and intense assessment.
"I can't believe you're the first one to go on in this assessment!"
The group from the Northern Lands arrived at the examination hall early in the morning. Kidomaru, with his hands behind his head, spoke to Sakon and Ukon.
Sakon and Ukon's performance was quite ordinary. Having a strong opponent was exactly what he wanted, and he didn't have any worries or anxieties.
"It's rare to encounter a worthy opponent, and I can't wait any longer!"
As he spoke of Sakon and Ukon, he licked his lips, and everyone could see that he was indeed very excited.
His opponent was none other than Neji Hyuga. As the only opponent from the Hyuga Clan to enter the official tournament, his strength was among the best of his peers in Konoha.
In the Original Work story, he almost died fighting Kidomaru to the death. If it weren't for the Konoha's halo, or rather, the righteous halo, he probably wouldn't have survived.
Although they haven't encountered their old rival Kidomaru yet, it's still a good match for Sakon and Ukon, since both of them are skilled in close combat, especially on flat ground like the training ground.
Once everyone had arrived, the two invigilators quickly stepped forward to announce the rules, and the competition officially began.
It is worth mentioning that, in order to ensure fairness, one of the two proctors was Bai, who was in charge of proctoring all three matches.
In the training ground, Sakon and Ukon, and Neji exchanged greetings before the battle began.
"The Hyuga Clan's Byakugan and Taijutsu are renowned throughout the Ninja World. Today, I'm going to see for myself!"
Sakon and Ukon and You Jin charged toward the other party, each wielding a boning knife similar to the Killer B.
Neji also drew a Kunai and, instead of retreating, advanced to meet the attack.
Watching the back-and-forth battle below, the Third Hokage in the audience nodded slightly.
"The Hyuga Clan has produced a promising talent!"
Upon hearing this, a complex expression flashed across Hyuga Hiashi's eyes, followed by a faint smile.
"Thank you for your praise, sir. Compared to the other geniuses of Konoha, Neji far behind!"
He was humble yet proud, but only he knew that while he was happy that the Hyuga Clan members had entered the official tournament, Neji was just his nephew.
He so wished the person in the arena was his daughter Hinata; the Main Family and the branch family are ultimately different. No matter how outstanding Neji is, he cannot change this fact.
But as the only member of the family to enter the official competition, his absence would seem petty.
The two chatted idly, mostly about the upcoming Chunin Ninja Exams, since Hizashi hadn't yet grasped the core of power in the village.
Neji's talent is truly outstanding, and his strength is among the best in the Hyuga Clan of this generation. Sakon and Ukon have been attacking for so long but haven't gained any advantage.
However, Neji was also unable to defeat his opponent; Sakon and Ukon's Taijutsu and speed swordsmanship made it quite difficult for him to deal with them.
"It seems it will be difficult to win you over without going all out!"
After a stalemate lasting for half a day, black spots of tattoos simultaneously appeared on the faces of Sakon and Ukon; these were the Heaven's Curse Mark.
Seeing this change, Neji knew that his opponent was serious. He also readjusted his breathing and his expression became more serious. The two clashed again in the next moment.
This time, Neji clearly felt that his opponent's speed and strength had increased.
Sakon directly took the two razors from Ukon's hands. Although they still had two hands, the two shared one body, and Ukon's feet could coordinate with Sakon's leverage and power.
This makes it easy for Sakon to control four swords, somewhat similar to Killer B's Ninja Sword Style.
Actually, this is the number of swords that Orochimaru tailored for Sakon and Ukon. Otherwise, it would Shirou not to make good use of their four arms and four legs.
"This..."
Sasuke, watching from the audience, was also dumbfounded. At this moment, his Sharingan was fully activated, and he could see Sakon and Ukon's movements clearly, but he knew that even if he could see everything clearly, his body could not keep up with the movements of his opponents.
Not only him, but all the candidates present were stunned by this scene.
He was fighting Neji, who possessed the Byakugan, and even so, Neji still suffered several knife wounds.
But then something even more surprising happened.
The twin swords struck Neji's Kunai with a heavy blow. At the moment the swords clashed, Sakon released his grip. As the twin swords spun in mid-air, Ukon kicked the two swords stuck in the ground into his hands with his heel.
At the same time, Ukon quickly Hand Seals. Neji, having exhausted his old power and not yet unleashing his new power, naturally dared not confront him head-on and immediately pulled back to create distance.
Sakon then launched the two swords he had just received, and then caught the spinning swords in mid-air and threw them out again.
Three swords, arranged in a triangular formation, attacked Neji after another, with the last sword even blocking his path.
With his amazing eyesight and superb agility, Neji narrowly avoided the attack, but Ukon had already finished his hand seals.
"Water Release · Water Colliding Wave!"
At this moment, Ukon's head had already turned around, and a Water Release rushed towards Neji.
Neji, who had already exhausted a lot of energy, didn't even have time to catch his breath before the oncoming water was already in front of him. He could only helplessly use the Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven.
But that wasn't all; Sakon's Hand Seals were completed almost the instant the water hit him.
Lightning Release: Inspired Wave!
Water Release with Lightning Release —this was originally a technique of Darui, but Sakon and Ukon couldn't use it at this time. However, since he had two hands and two mouths, he could separate the Ninjutsu and then combine it, achieving the same power as a B-rank Ninjutsu.
Because of the hasty response, Neji was covered in water stains, and what was worse, there were three swords stuck in the ground, forming a triangular pattern around him.
The next moment, lightning successfully connected the three razors on the ground with Neji as the center, and an electric net made him stop what he was doing.
The Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven can withstand physical attacks, and even elemental attacks like wind and fire, but not lightning.
"Ah...!"
Neji, struck by lightning, felt a tingling sensation all over his body, and his Chakra circulation became sluggish.
Seeing Neji gritting his teeth and holding on under such attacks, Ukon finished using Water Release, joined in again, launching a Lightning Release attack at him as well.
It's certainly not fair for two people to fight one, but is it fair for those Jinchuriki to participate?
The audience was already stunned by the series of maneuvers performed by Sakon and Ukon; they never imagined that it could be done like this.
The ninjas from Kumogakure were completely dumbfounded. The opponent's fighting style was so similar to their village's style, or rather, the style of a certain person.
As expected, Neji, who had taken the hit, immediately knelt on the ground, his hands and feet trembling slightly uncontrollably, clearly having been severely shocked by the electric shock.
"I declare Sakon and Ukon the victors!"
As the referee's voice rang out, Sakon and Ukon collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. His stamina was being depleted even more from the rapid swings of his sword.
The two swords that Neji flicked away at the end weren't intentionally showing off; he simply couldn't hold them very well.
Fortunately, the other party was successfully scared off, otherwise I would not have had the chance to deliver the decisive blow.
Fortunately, his opponent was Neji, who was good at close combat. If he had encountered someone who could harass from a distance, the two of them would have had to separate.
However, their teamwork wouldn't be as seamless as it is now, and they would consume more Chakra, so the outcome would be uncertain.
"Fortunately... we won the first match!"