The Third Hokage's Favoritism
"The winner advances, the loser is eliminated."
One person will receive a bye and directly advance to the final individual competition!
"And the more scorecards you have, the greater the chance of getting a bye in the first round!" Hatake Sakumo said.
Shiyu thought to herself, "Does that mean I can advance directly in this round?"
"Ready, everyone?" Hatake Sakumo then pointed to the big screen, which then began to scroll.
"Stop!" Hatake Sakumo shouted "Stop!", two lines of text on the screen clearly showed the participants in the first match.
"Match 1! Katsuhira Yoshida vs. Ebisu!"
Shiyu wasn't particularly interested in who won or lost the first match, so he went straight to the Hokage's side.
"Teacher Sarutobi, I need to report some urgent events that just occurred in the Konoha Forest." Shiyu then told him about the Kirigakure Ninja's intrusion into Konoha, and at the same time handed the encrypted scroll in her hand to the Third Hokage.
The Third Hokage turned grave upon hearing Shiyu's words. After all, the Five Great Nations had been recovering from the wounds of the Second Shinobi World War in recent years, and the restless ninja villages were now at risk of launching another war.
"Give the scroll to Inoichi to decipher, and strengthen the defenses around the village." The Third Hokage handed the scroll to a trusted Anbu, then asked directly, "Shiyu? Did you see any Uchiha Clan during the tournament?"
Shiyu knew that the Third Hokage likely already knew about the Uchiha Clan's attack on him, so he quickly came up with a plan and spoke up.
"Yes, I saw it. I was in the forest, engaged in a perfectly normal ninja card battle with other examinees, when suddenly the Uchiha Clan's Jonin ganged up on me to kill me? I don't know the specific reason!"
The Third Hokage nodded; he was naturally aware that the Uchiha had attacked Shiyu.
"If someone tries to kill me, of course I'll fight back; after all, it's just an exam."
"And just then, the Kirigakure Jonin, and they massacred the Uchiha Clan. Although I am named Uchiha, I don't feel much of a sense of belonging, as you know Teacher Sarutobi. But even so, I am still Konoha ninja!"
"Since those Kirigakure Ninja killed my Konoha Ninja, I naturally retaliated accordingly! That's why I killed them one by one. It's pitiful that the Uchiha Clan also suffered at the hands of the Kirigakure! They were all wiped out!"
Shiyu blamed the Uchiha deaths entirely on Kirigakure, since both sides were dead and no one could prove that Shiyu was lying.
The Third Hokage was taken aback; he hadn't expected Shiyu's wit to be so astonishing.
The Third Hokage glanced at Shiyu, showing no sign of blame, but his expression became slightly more serious as he spoke in a cautionary tone, "Shiyu, not only are you incredibly strong, but you also possess one of the most brilliant minds I've ever seen among ninjas. Your thinking is extremely mature, and in the future, you are very likely to become Konoha's most powerful ninja."
"I can also see that you are a ninja who has inherited the Will of Fire. Therefore, I hope you are aware of the potential consequences of your actions and take precautions in advance. If there is anything I can do to help you, please tell me. You are my disciple."
Shiyu was a little surprised. The Third Hokage was the Hokage, and Uchiha people; it was impossible that he hadn't had any suspicions.
The Uchiha are the largest clan in Konoha. Logically, the Third Hokage should have at least chosen to act as a peacemaker to reduce conflict, or even stood up for the Uchiha Clan, Shiyu would have considered reasonable. However, the Third Hokage remained neutral even after learning about the feud between Shiyu and the Uchiha Clan.
Therefore, what the Third Hokage was actually saying was, "You're very capable and intelligent! Your future is limitless! You are the future hope of Konoha! So, you need to be careful of the Uchiha Clan! If you need my help, come to me! You are my successor!"
Therefore, while outwardly appearing neutral and ignoring everything, they had already secretly sided with Shiyu.
As for the reason? Shiyu couldn't figure it out for the time being.
Shiyu decided not to reveal the matter of "Root". Danzo playing dirty tricks and wasn't afraid of Shiyu exposing him. Even if Shiyu told the Third Hokage, Danzo wouldn't be in any trouble. At most, he would have a fight with the Third Hokage.
However, Danzo also had the support of two great advisors, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura.
The Third Hokage thought Shiyu was pondering the meaning of his words, so he patted Shiyu on the shoulder and advised, "Child, you'll understand eventually. Focus on your exams first."
"Okay, Teacher Sarutobi." Shiyu nodded and Teleportation to his teammate's side.
"This guy's Body Flicker Technique is incredibly fast. He actually managed to take down seventeen Kirigakure and Jonin Chunin Kirigakure."
"He's probably already at least at the level of Jonin. And he's only five years old."
Even Hiruzen Sarutobi at this moment could hardly estimate how strong Shigure Shiyu would be.
"We must protect him." A resolute look appeared in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes.
The battle had begun, but neither side remained motionless.
But the large beads of sweat on Ebisu's forehead showed that he was still putting up a strenuous resistance.
"Genjutsu battle? Isn't Katsuhira Ninjutsu- type ninja?" Violet also found it a bit strange, wondering when Katsuhira's Genjutsu had become so strong.
"This guy seems different from when I first met him, "Shiyu also noticed a slight change.
In the end Ebisu collapsed to the ground, losing the match.
"Amazing!" Violet was surprised that Katsuhira actually won the match using Genjutsu.
Hatake Sakumo glanced at the scene and announced, "Ebisu lost! The winner of this match Katsuhira Yoshida!"
"It's okay, Ebisu! I'll cheer you on!" Might Guy was always so full of energy.
"It seems the enemy used Genjutsu. Honestly, none of us in this group know any Genjutsu." Genma Shiranui was also at a loss.
Ebisu shook his head, returned to the stands, and said to his teammates, "I was unlucky. I'll just have to try harder next time. I'll cheer you on."
Then, Hatake Sakumo announced the start of the draw for the second match, and the names began scrolling on the screen.
"Stop! The second match! Obito Uchiha versus Might Guy!" Hatake Sakumo announced.
"It's him again?!" Obito wasn't very confident. His opponent was Might Guy, the Taijutsu Might Guy, and Guy was also his opponent during the last Chunin Exams.
Might Guy became even more excited and uttered a famous quote from his disciple Rock Lee, which he said sometime in the future.
"There are two kinds of geniuses in this world! One kind is born geniuses, like your Uchiha Clan, and the other kind is geniuses who work hard, like me!"