In the blink of an eye.
Another half month passed, and the Chunin Ninja Exams finals officially began.
The massive, cylindrical arena was packed to the rafters, buzzing with noise.
The daimyo and nobles of the Land of Fire, nobles from allied countries, wealthy merchants, and heads of ninja clans all attended in their finest attire.
Besides them,
there were also villagers from Konoha and residents of the surrounding towns.
The venue was incredibly lively, on par with a major sporting event.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, wore his formal Hokage robes. With a solemn expression, he sat in the best seat in the arena.
Beside him sat Orochimaru, disguised as the Fourth Kazekage.
Orochimaru wore a hat that concealed most of his face, leaving only a pair of cold, shadowy eyes visible.
The Third Hokage exchanged pleasantries with Orochimaru, appearing very warm and cordial.
Before long,
the time arrived.
The Third Hokage rose and walked to the railing to give a brief speech:
"Honored guests who have traveled from afar, and my fellow villagers of Konoha!"
"Welcome to Konoha to watch the finals of this year's Chunin Ninja Exams!"
"Here, the young Genin will demonstrate the fruits of their training, along with their wisdom and courage!"
"I hope you will enjoy watching the ninja show off their skills!"
"Now, I hereby declare: the Chunin Ninja Exams finals officially begin!"
The stands erupted in cheers, shouts of encouragement, cries, and whistles, as if the noise might lift the roof off.
The giant electronic display flickered as it drew the matchups.
First match:
Neji Hyuga vs. Hinata Hyuga
At the sight of those two names, murmurs broke out among the audience.
A civil war within the Hyuga Clan?
The Hyuga Clan was a prestigious ninja clan with a thousand-year legacy, and now it was Konoha's foremost clan. A fight between members of the Hyuga Clan was undoubtedly a sight worth watching.
The two entered the arena.
Neji looked cold and arrogant, while Hinata seemed nervous and uneasy.
The match began.
Neji's movements were precise and efficient, and his mastery of the Gentle Fist was clearly superior.
He effortlessly blocked and deflected Hinata's attacks while taunting her with one cutting remark after another.
Every word struck at the most sensitive part of Hinata's heart.
Hinata struggled to fight back, even bursting out with strength when pushed to the brink.
But the gap between them was simply too great, and her attacks were easily dismantled.
In the end, Neji struck Hinata in the chest with a Gentle Fist blow. Her chakra fell into disarray, and she lost the ability to fight.
"Winner: Neji Hyuga!"
The entire arena fell silent for a moment.
Then an uproar broke out.
Neji Hyuga, a member of the branch family, had just easily defeated the main family's young lady in front of everyone?
It was undoubtedly a huge blow to the authority of the Hyuga Clan's main family.
In the Hyuga Clan's section, clan head Hyuga Hiashi wore a dark expression.
The elders of the main family beside him looked even more displeased.
Neji had not only defeated Hinata; he had also said a great many things he should never have said, crossing the main family's line.
This was truly unforgivable!
In the competitors' viewing area,
Yao, Sasuke, Ino, Shikamaru, and the others were all somewhat silent.
As outsiders, they weren't in a position to judge the Hyuga Clan's system, but Neji had indeed gone a little too far.
Naruto didn't understand all the complications behind it, but when he saw Hinata injured and lying on the ground, he flew into a rage.
"Hey! You jerk called Neji!"
Naruto clutched the railing and yelled at Neji in the arena. "What kind of crap were you saying just now?!"
"Hinata's already worked so hard! You hit her way too hard!"
Naruto shouted furiously, clearly sticking up for Hinata.
Yao couldn't help laughing. He gave Naruto a kick in the butt.
"If you've got time to yap, hurry down there and bring Hinata up so she can be treated!"
As he spoke, Yao shook his head. A wooden tendril sprouted from his hand and rapidly extended into the arena, wrapping around Hinata and lifting her up.
"Karin!"
Yao looked toward Karin.
Ever since he had rescued her, Karin had stayed in Konoha.
A few days ago, a Jōnin leading a team from Kusagakure had come looking for Karin, wanting to take their human blood supply back with them.
But Yao had chased them off, allowing Karin to remain in Konoha for the time being.
"Yes!"
Karin hurried over and used the Mystical Palm Technique to treat Hinata's injuries.
Second match:
Uchiha Yao vs. Uzumaki Naruto
"Huh?!"
Naruto stared at the names on the electronic display, froze for a moment, then clutched his head and let out an exaggerated wail:
"Why does it have to be Yao?! How am I supposed to fight him?!"
Naruto knew Yao was strong. He couldn't possibly beat him.
But giving up wasn't his style!
"Whatever! Even if it's Yao, I still want to give it a try! I'm going to become Hokage!"
The two entered the arena, and countless gazes focused on them.
The ninja from the village were especially eager to see what would happen.
Uchiha Yao!
He had just used powerful Wood Release techniques to suppress Shukaku.
Uzumaki Naruto!
The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki!
Without a doubt, this match seemed full of promise.
Gekko Hayate looked at the two of them. "Are you ready?"
"I'm ready!"
Naruto answered loudly, clenching his fists and taking a fighting stance.
Yao nodded as well.
"Then, begin!"
"Yao!"
Naruto didn't attack right away. Instead, he looked at Yao. "I know you're strong, but don't hold back!"
"Let me see just how big the gap between us really is!"
Yao nodded, his voice calm. "All right! Come at me!"
"Okay!"
Naruto immediately formed hand seals.
"Shadow Clone Technique!"
Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!
Several Shadow Clones appeared, charging at Yao from different directions.
In the viewing area,
Sasuke was watching the fight as well.
Just then,
a person wearing a cat-faced mask and Anbu uniform silently appeared beside Sasuke.
"Uchiha Sasuke!"
The Anbu member leaned close to Sasuke and whispered a few words.
"Uchiha Itachi? He's back in Konoha? Where is he?"
At the mention of Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke's pupils abruptly contracted. Without hesitation, he followed the Anbu member away.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Naruto's Shadow Clones disappeared one after another. In the blink of an eye, Yao had taken them all out, leaving Naruto alone.
Yao hadn't used any ninjutsu; he had kept Naruto at bay with taijutsu alone.
Thud!
A dull impact rang out.
"Waaah!"
Naruto cried out in pain as he was kicked flying once again.
He rolled across the ground several times before stopping, clutching his side and grimacing.
The gap was too great!
So great it was hopeless!
Naruto struggled to his feet, brushed the dust off his clothes, scratched his head, and shouted:
"I'm done! I'm done! There's no way I can beat you! I give up!"
He had always aimed to defeat Yao, but he also knew perfectly well that he was no match for him right now.
If he kept fighting, all he would accomplish was making himself look even more pathetic.
A few days ago, he'd met a lecherous white-haired old man who called himself the "Toad Sage" and somehow learned a Summoning Technique that seemed pretty powerful.
He'd even sworn brotherhood with a giant toad who called himself "Boss Toad."
But it was obvious that kind of power... wasn't suited for use here, much less for fighting Yao.
"Winner: Uchiha Yao!"
Gekko Hayate announced the result.
Applause broke out in the stands. This match had been less a competition than a one-sided beatdown.
Naruto had been suppressed the entire time, and Yao hadn't even used ninjutsu.
Yao walked over to Naruto and reached out to help him up.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine!"
Naruto grimaced. "Yao, you really are amazing!"
"But I won't give up! Someday, I'll catch up to you!"
"I'll be waiting!"
Yao smiled. He wasn't just saying that to be polite; he knew exactly how ridiculously overpowered Naruto's future plot armor would be!
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