Defeated Dog

The blue bricks cracked inch by inch.

A strong hiss sounded like a chainsaw cutting metal.

Naruto felt as if he'd punched a spinning glass ball; the force of his fist pushed in a few inches before sliding off. He stumbled two steps sideways before regaining his balance.

He looked back in surprise and saw Neji's arms trembling as he adopted a new stance.

"Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

Neji charged at him, his palms striking towards his chest.

Naruto felt a fleeting desire to hold back, to see the opponent complete the entire palm technique, but this was a battle. Going all out was the greatest respect for a serious opponent.

His iron-like fist struck out again, carrying the scent of gunpowder.

Fierce and precise.

Neji's palms struck his fist, and a soft energy attempted to penetrate his skin and flesh to invade his internal organs. Naruto vibrated the chakra in his blood vessels, intercepting and eliminating it.

Neji's arms were thrown up limply, like two noodles. Blood seeped through, and his face was contorted in unbearable pain.

"You have lost," Naruto retracted his fist, standing tall with his hands behind his back.

Neji found it hard to believe this reality. It was like entering the woods to catch a wild rabbit, only for the rabbit to suddenly transform into a fierce tiger and viciously slam him to the ground, leaving him unable to even struggle.

Everyone was watching them.

He had provoked this, and now he was the loser, like a joke. Someone was indeed laughing.

Only Lady Hinata was crying.

Was she heartbroken that a servant from the branch family had been beaten?

Neji blinked, looking at Naruto, unable to comprehend why he was so strong.

Naruto remained silent, offering no humiliation or belittlement.

A green blur shot down from the high platform like a bullet. Seeing Neji's hands shattered and bleeding, Might Guy shouted, "Medical team! Quickly take Neji to the hospital!"

Two medical ninjas in white pulled out a stretcher and ran over. They carefully laid Neji down and carried him away.

Once the heavily injured Neji was out of sight, the other genin seemed to wake from a dream, looking in fear at Naruto, who had defeated the strongest genius of the Hyuga Clan without a scratch.

Might Guy gave Naruto a solemn look before returning to Kakashi's side on the platform. "As expected of you, Kakashi, the disciple of my fated rival."

Kakashi shoved his hands into his pockets. "I've barely taught him anything."

Anko Mitarashi, wearing the same style of windbreaker as Naruto, crossed her arms. "I didn't expect this kid to be this strong."

She seemed to recall something and shook her head vigorously.

On the stage, Gekko Hayate held the remote control. "The elimination matches begin. Two by two, the winners step forward."

Beep~!

The pixelated screen flickered with names.

Beep! The names paused.

Uzumaki Naruto; Yamanaka Ino.

Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

Naruto turned and looked at the Tenth Class of his year, a purple-clad girl with long, light blonde hair tied in a ponytail and a slender figure.

A daughter of a noble clan, learning secret techniques.

He was quite interested in experiencing her secret techniques.

In Yamanaka Ino's impression, Naruto was a dim-witted shorty. She, on the other hand, was a proud girl who valued appearance and strength, and had never paid much attention to Naruto.

She only started to remember his name because the person she liked, Sasuke, and her childhood friend and rival, Haruno Sakura, were in the same class as Naruto.

But now, facing Naruto's gaze, she couldn't muster her usual proud smile.

Bang.

Naruto took a step forward.

Yamanaka Ino trembled as if electrocuted. "I surrender!"

Gekko Hayate announced, "Uzumaki Naruto wins."

He then pressed the remote.

As pairs of names appeared, the genin showcased their unique abilities and fought with all sorts of strange techniques.

Kankuro, the puppet-controlling ninja from Sunagakure.

Nara Shikamaru from the Tenth Class, who simulated shadows, and Akimichi Choji, who inflated into a meatball.

Kiba Inuzuka, who openly ate stimulant pills called 'soldier pills' and fed them to his dog, but it wasn't considered a violation, and was classified as ninja tool usage.

Shino Aburame, whose body had been a parasitic insect nest since childhood.

The ninja from Otogakure who used sound waves and hypnosis.

As one person after another advanced, the names in the final group were no longer needed as a remote display.

Hinata Hyuga; Haruno Sakura.

Haruno Sakura shouted about friendship and bonds, then charged at Hinata Hyuga with great momentum.

She then used all her wisdom and determination, only to be mercilessly defeated by Hinata Hyuga's Gentle Fist, spitting blood from the blows. Hinata Hyuga even gently and compassionately helped her up, saying, "I'm sorry, it's all my fault for being too weak and not controlling my strength."

Haruno Sakura was in pain.

Sasuke and Naruto had both advanced with ease, yet she had been brutally beaten by her love rival.

How could she possibly catch up to the two of them like this?

She needed strength, the kind that could help them at crucial moments, make them realize her importance, and make them rely on her, unable to do without her!

On the stage, Hiruzen Sarutobi cleared his throat heavily, drawing everyone's attention.

"The third exam will be held in one month. Distinguished guests from various countries will be invited to attend. Winning or losing is not the only deciding factor; your performance during the battles will determine whether you can advance to Chunin."

"In other words, everyone has a chance to advance, and it's also possible for everyone to be eliminated. Seize this time and train hard to improve your strength and prepare for the final battle."

Naruto felt no passion for such speeches. He only wanted to see more amazing ninjutsu and powerful people to strengthen himself.

For example, Neji's Eight Trigrams Heavenly Spin – he would practice it as soon as he got back.

The crowd dispersed and left the tower. As Naruto walked, he noticed a short-haired red girl in the stairwell, staring blankly at him. Despite wearing glasses, she was squinting, clearly indicating the prescription was not quite right.

It was the girl who had been drained of blood. Now, with both her teammates dead, she was left alone with the Jonin leading the Kusagakure ninja beside her.

Seeing him look her way, the girl hastily averted her gaze and lowered her head.

He hadn't noticed it before, but now that she was in front of him, Naruto felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity. "What are you looking at me for?"

The girl lowered her head even further.

The leading Jonin said humbly, "I'm sorry, this child isn't very bright."

With that, he roughly grabbed the girl's arm and pulled her aside to let Naruto pass.

The disparity in strength and status was vividly displayed at this moment.

Naruto rarely interfered in other people's affairs. After all, getting involved meant dealing with their entire network of relationships, and often the bullied were also villains.

Pure flowers rarely grew from rotten soil.

But at this moment, although the girl kept her head down, her peripheral vision was constantly on him, as if placing some kind of hope in him.

This hope touched his spirit.

Naruto asked directly and clearly, "Are you living in pain? Do you want to escape from it?"

The girl remained silent.

The leading Jonin's old face tightened. "Ninja training is naturally painful, but our children from the Land of Grass can endure hardship."

Naruto smiled.

This girl was very smart. Before he could guarantee her rescue, remaining silent and obedient was the right thing to do.

He didn't ask any more questions. Arguing openly in this situation would turn into a diplomatic incident, and he was still in his developmental phase, not yet at a level to get involved.

Once they left the village, he would follow them and take them down.

All the ninjas gathered and left the Forest of Death together. For ninja villages like Takigakure, Amegakure, and Kusagakure, which no longer had any participants, the leaders would now take the surviving eliminated members back home.

Naruto walked behind the girl and noticed her fingers continuously drawing circles, from large to small, like a secret code.

But without any framework or category, he truly couldn't guess what it meant.

After bidding farewell to Sasuke and Haruno Sakura upon leaving the forest, he casually headed home. Only after completely disappearing from the Kusagakure ninja's sight did he quietly turn back, lurking in the distance to see which gate they would leave through.

Then, burying his sword, he took a large detour, left the village ahead of them, and hid in the treetops of the main road, lying in wait.