Instant Kill

A cannon blast interrupted Bridge and Graves's love-hate feud. The year-end assessment had officially begun.

The host appeared at the center of the venue, and Senga was astonished to discover that it was Tokikake, whom he had not seen in quite some time.

Tokikake had finally shed his ever-present brown casual clothes and changed into a black suit. Unfortunately, limited by both his build and looks, he resembled an oversized black pig.

Striking what he thought was a dashing pose, Tokikake grandly read out the competition rules, then glanced at Gion on the raised platform.

The audience below, however, was not so accommodating. Seeing him dawdle onstage without announcing the start of the match, they forgot that he was a Vice Admiral and began shouting for him to get off the stage.

Tokikake could not keep up his expression any longer. He hastily announced the start of the competition before slinking away in embarrassment.

The rules were simple. Since there were not many Training Camp trainees to begin with, the contestants were divided into four major groups—A, B, C, and D. Each pair would face off in a small bracket, with the venue split into four sections. The four eventual winners would then draw lots to determine their next matchups.

The winners of each two groups would enter the finals, while the two losers would compete for third place.

Senga, Bridge, and the other two happened to be distributed among the four major groups, avoiding the awkwardness of eliminating one of their own right at the start.

Senga was in the first pairing of Group A, making him the first to take the stage. After Chaton announced the start, a staff member came to notify Senga that it was time for his match.

Bridge and the others also headed to their respective competition areas.

Senga walked unhurriedly onto the arena and stopped in its center. His Rinnegan gleamed brilliantly beneath the sunlight. He looked toward the raised platform and made a small reassuring gesture.

The Navy higher-ups on the platform all turned to Gion. With their strength, they could naturally tell that Senga had been looking at her.

Gion ignored the reactions around her. The instant Senga appeared onstage, her eyes lit up, and she unconsciously leaned forward. Tsuru glanced at her and thought to herself that her younger sister might truly be serious this time. A few days ago, she had even come asking her to prepare several Devil Fruits for Uchiha Senga.

Good grief, preparing Devil Fruits—and several at that. Did she even hear herself? Was her dear little sister treating Devil Fruits like cabbages? Still, this was someone her own sister had taken a liking to. What else could she do but agree? She could consider them part of the dowry, perhaps?

Agreement aside, Tsuru still needed to observe Uchiha Senga carefully, both his strength and his character.

On the arena, Senga withdrew his gaze and turned to look at his opponent.

Chris looked miserable. As someone from the same class as Senga, how could he not know Senga's strength? Smoker's miserable state in the cafeteria was still vivid in his mind.

Why did I have to run into such a freak?! Chris thought bitterly.

Naturally, Senga had no idea that Chris's inner thoughts were so abundant. He simply stood quietly where he was, waiting for the signal to begin.

Finally, the gunshot rang out. The match had begun.

The instant the gunshot sounded, Senga remained perfectly still. He merely raised his eyes slightly and unleashed a minimum-power Shinra Tensei. In the next moment, Chris was embedded in the wall beneath the spectator stands.

The entire match had lasted only one second from beginning to end. The competitors in the other areas had not even exchanged their first moves.

The spectators did not even know what had happened before the match was over. Some still looked around blankly, searching for Chris.

Seeing Senga end the battle so cleanly and decisively, Gion was delighted. She was the first to applaud, and soon one person after another joined in, until applause filled the entire competition venue.

There had been no fierce exchange of blows, but the impact of such absolute strength was enormous nonetheless. Senga's first move had also let everyone truly understand that his strength fully matched the reputation he possessed.

Senga did not hurry off the arena. He used Universal Pull to draw Chris out of the wall and let him land steadily on the ground.

Chris had not suffered any serious injuries. The Repulsion Force had merely left his head spinning, and he had already regained his senses.

Seeing that Senga had deliberately brought him down, preserving at least some of his dignity, the little resentment in Chris's heart faded away. Before leaving, he cast Senga a grateful look.

Tsuru gave a slight nod when she saw Senga's actions. No matter how great the difference in strength, he still knew how to respect his own people. As someone inclined toward the doves, she highly approved of that.

The others were more concerned with Senga's strength. Sengoku smiled as he stroked his small tuft of beard. The more stunning Senga's performance was, the more it proved that his own judgment and decision had been completely correct, did it not?

Kizaru stopped trimming his nails and said in his strange tone, "How scary. I heard this newcomer named Uchiha Senga hasn't eaten a Devil Fruit, yet he possesses more than one ability. What a little monster."

Gion shot Kizaru a glare. You're the monster, you creepy glowing yellow monkey who ate the Pervert-Pervert Fruit!

Akainu lowered his cap. He was not overly interested in Senga's methods of attack. In his view, any method of attack was simply an expression of strength. As long as one was strong enough, nothing else mattered, and he had already gained a preliminary understanding of Senga's power.

Chris had been taken down in one move, but that did not mean he was weak. Chris was from the elite Training Camp, and Akainu, who had also trained there, knew that even its weakest members could not be that weak. At the very least, they possessed the strength of a Navy captain.

The fact that someone like that had been defeated by Senga in a single move already said a great deal. This Uchiha Senga possessed at least Rear Admiral-level combat strength, and he was not even eighteen yet!

He absolutely had to recruit Uchiha Senga and make him understand his justice. At the very least, he could not allow him to go to Aokiji's side. How could indecisiveness ever put an end to evil?

Aokiji remained seated without moving, merely casting a covert glance at Akainu. He knew that Akainu had taken an interest in Uchiha Senga and wanted to bring him under his command.

Before the Ohara incident, he would not have cared about such matters. But after what happened, he deeply disagreed with Akainu's justice. Therefore, if Akainu truly tried to recruit him, he would not stand by and watch. If a talent like Senga boarded Akainu's ship, there might well be a second Akainu in the making.

With their own thoughts in mind, the Navy higher-ups fell silent and quietly watched the remaining matches.