The three from Gaara's group and the three from Neji's group were all stained with varying amounts of blood.
Except for Gaara and Neji, the other four had clothes that were somewhat tattered.
"Looks like they got here by defeating their proctors too."
Ye Fan stroked his chin, a smile on his face.
Their strength had already reached Chunin level, especially Gaara and Neji.
"Hey, Ye Fan!"
The moment Rock Lee saw Ye Fan, he waved excitedly, his eyes filled with admiration.
Watching Ye Fan fight the proctor so effortlessly, he hadn't realized how difficult it was until he faced one himself.
After fighting the proctor, Rock Lee admired Ye Fan's strength even more.
From the moment he won, Rock Lee had gained a new goal to chase.
Before, Neji had always been his goal. After Ye Fan appeared, his name took precedence over Neji's.
"Congratulations. Looks like you've got Chunin-level strength too."
Ye Fan smiled as he replied to Rock Lee. Among this generation of Konoha's Twelve Young Ninja, aside from Sasuke, who had defected, and Sakura, the others were all quite trustworthy.
They all had their own ninja ways and beliefs.
"Ye Fan, you're incredible! Who taught you taijutsu? Could you teach me sometime?"
Rock Lee flashed a broad grin, sincerity in his eyes. He was genuinely asking for guidance.
Proud as Neji was, he said nothing. Still, it was clear from his expression that he acknowledged Ye Fan's strength.
Tenten, meanwhile, was thrilled. She couldn't take her eyes off Ye Fan.
Handsome and powerful, Ye Fan fit her ideal type perfectly.
Gaara and the others stood on the other side, watching what was happening.
Gaara's eyes were full of excitement and anticipation. He could barely contain his own restless eagerness.
He wanted so badly to nourish his sand with Ye Fan's blood.
It had been many years since he'd encountered a pure taijutsu specialist like Ye Fan.
"My taijutsu? I suppose I learned it from Jiraiya. Ever since I left Konoha, I've been by his side. He taught me a lot."
"Jiraiya? You mean the legendary Sannin, Lord Jiraiya?!"
"That's right."
Everyone was stunned by Ye Fan's answer.
Even Gaara, who was usually so aloof, looked at Ye Fan with newfound respect.
Jiraiya's fame had spread far and wide. He was renowned throughout the entire shinobi world.
In the present day, almost everyone in the shinobi world had heard of him.
Ninja from other villages even considered Jiraiya Konoha's strongest fighter.
They all believed that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was old and no longer a match for Jiraiya.
Many people speculated that Jiraiya might become Konoha's next Hokage.
"Wow! No wonder your taijutsu is so strong. You're Lord Jiraiya's student!"
Tenten's eyes widened. It suddenly seemed to her that everything made sense.
"He's one of the legendary Sannin!" Rock Lee said, his face alight with excitement.
Hearing this, Neji's lingering questions were answered.
He'd been wondering how Ye Fan could possess such strength. Now that he knew Ye Fan was Jiraiya's student, it all seemed perfectly natural.
Jiraiya himself was exceptionally powerful, and he'd spent years traveling around the world. He was bound to encounter many dangers.
Ye Fan had been by his side the whole time, so he'd naturally had plenty of chances to gain combat experience—unlike them, who had always stayed in Konoha.
Frequent battles made one's strength grow quickly.
Seeing Rock Lee's excitement, Ye Fan smiled. "Teacher Guy is incredibly strong too. You probably can't even imagine how powerful he is!"
Thinking of the man who had nearly kicked the story to its conclusion, Ye Fan felt a surge of respect.
Might Guy might seem unreliable in everyday life, but when it mattered, he was a man you could count on.
He and Jiraiya had one thing in common: they were both goofy most of the time, but never let anyone down when it counted!
"Teacher Guy is really that strong?"
Seeing the respect suddenly appear in Ye Fan's eyes, Neji couldn't help asking.
At first, when he'd learned he was assigned to Guy's team, he'd been deeply unhappy.
He'd thought the Main Family was suppressing him, trying to keep him from growing.
After all, as far as he knew, Might Guy was a taijutsu specialist and couldn't teach him anything about ninjutsu.
Though he'd grown used to life on Guy's team after spending so much time with them, he'd always felt some resentment.
Now he saw Ye Fan, a man so confident it bordered on arrogance, looking at Guy with respect—and he was completely thrown.
Suddenly, an incredible thought surfaced in his mind: perhaps the Hyuga Clan's Main Family hadn't deliberately held him back after all!
Ye Fan seemed to see what Neji was thinking. He hesitated, then spoke:
"Actually, maybe some things aren't the way you imagine them.
"Perhaps some people make their choices willingly, rather than being forced into them."
Rock Lee and the others didn't understand what he meant, but Neji caught the implication behind Ye Fan's words.
Ye Fan was clearly referring to the Hyuga Clan and the issue of the Main and Branch Families.
Neji furrowed his brow. He didn't believe a word of it.
He couldn't believe his father had chosen to die willingly!
Neji was about to say something, but Ye Fan cut him off. "There are things you'll understand one day. You can argue with me then."
After that, Ye Fan began discussing taijutsu with Rock Lee.
Although it seemed like a discussion, Ye Fan was actually giving Rock Lee pointers.
Some questions that had puzzled Rock Lee became clear after Ye Fan explained them in simple, practical terms.
Three or four minutes later, Naruto's group arrived as well.
Naruto and Sasuke looked far worse for wear than Neji and the others.
Their clothes were covered in dust and bloodstains. They'd clearly been through a grueling battle.
By comparison, Sakura didn't have a speck of dust on her.
Anyone could tell at a glance that Sakura had stayed in the back and hadn't joined the fight!
After Naruto's group arrived, more and more people gradually made their way there.
Ye Fan took a rough look. Counting his own group, there were twenty-seven teams and seventy-nine people in all.
Ye Fan also spotted Orochimaru among the groups!
Ye Fan looked at Orochimaru and saw that he was watching him too.
Orochimaru's gaze kept shifting between him and Sasuke.
Ye Fan knew Orochimaru was considering him and Sasuke as potential vessels, deciding which one would be more suitable.
Orochimaru stuck out his long tongue at Ye Fan. Ye Fan gave him a cold smile.
Both of them were thinking about capturing the other!
"Well, there are quite a few newcomers this year!"
Mitaraishi Anko suddenly appeared in a tree, wearing fishnet stockings and very short shorts, a skewer of dango in her mouth as she laughed loudly.
Before you continue