Xunfeng was happy for Yoshihime, of course. She was only a Genin, yet she had already displayed strength on par with a jōnin. Naturally, all eyes were on her.
The matches still had to continue. The names on the screen flashed again, and this time, Xunfeng didn't recognize either of them.
Still, Xunfeng watched the match closely. There were many people with special abilities in the Shinobi World, as well as many talented ninja. He couldn't just shut himself away and train in isolation; he had to keep learning and observing if he wanted to improve.
Xunfeng didn't care who won this match. He was interested in the three members of the team that had arrived first.
One of them was named Uchiha Xunfeng. Another wore a mask. Xunfeng simply thought he looked familiar, but couldn't place him. The last was tall and burly, and Xunfeng had no idea who he was.
Then the Third Hokage called out, "Stop!" The names scrolling across the screen came to a halt once more.
"This match: Minato Namikaze versus Aburame Shinnosuke!" When Xunfeng heard the name, he'd almost laughed. Shin-chan's full name was Nohara Shinnosuke, after all. But when he realized this was the person from the second team to arrive, he put the thought aside.
Using his sensory abilities, Xunfeng realized that the guy named Shinnosuke was covered in chakra from head to toe.
"An Aburame who raises Kikaichū inside his body? This could be troublesome. Minato's better at close combat." Xunfeng felt a little worried.
But Minato smiled at Xunfeng, as if to say, Just watch.
Then the match began at once.
It went about as Xunfeng had expected. Aburame Shinnosuke used his Kikaichū to keep Minato at a distance, and Minato couldn't get close to him at all.
The Kikaichū could devour chakra, and when they swarmed their target, even Minato could only lose.
Minato kept throwing Explosive Tags and Kunai, but they could only kill some of the Kikaichū. There was no way to get rid of all the annoying little things.
"Insect Sphere!" His opponent unleashed a powerful move, and Minato was eventually swallowed up. The spectators around them all sighed at the unfortunate outcome.
However, Xunfeng could see that the Minato who'd been swallowed was only a substitute.
Almost all the Kikaichū had gone after Minato's substitute. Meanwhile, Minato detonated the Explosive Tags he'd placed on the large wooden post.
Boom! Flames shot into the sky, killing a great many Kikaichū.
Minato didn't hesitate. The moment he detonated the tags, he charged straight at Aburame Shinnosuke.
"Too naive!" Aburame Shinnosuke didn't panic at all. He raised his hand, sending countless Kikaichū surging toward Minato once again.
But when the Kikaichū swallowed Minato, he vanished with another poof.
"Damn it! It was a Shadow Clone!"
"He used the Body Replacement Technique and Explosive Tags to kill my bugs, then used a Shadow Clone to bait me into attacking? Where's the real one? Where is he!?" Aburame Shinnosuke panicked and immediately turned to search for him.
But Minato appeared behind Aburame Shinnosuke in an instant.
"Armament Haki!" Minato used Armament Haki, then drove a solid punch into Aburame Shinnosuke.
"Argh!" Aburame Shinnosuke's whole body flew through the air before crashing to the ground.
"The Flying Thunder God Technique!?" Even Xunfeng hadn't expected this guy to master the Flying Thunder God so quickly.
"I see!" Xunfeng suddenly understood. Minato hadn't been throwing Kunai at random from the start. He must have marked them with the Flying Thunder God Formula beforehand, then deliberately tossed them near the Aburame.
"He used the Body Replacement Technique and a Shadow Clone, and he even learned the Flying Thunder God. That black power, too—is he learning from Xunfeng? Impressive!" Minato's performance had undoubtedly amazed the Third Hokage.
"Good!" It had been a spectacular match, and everyone had seen how outstanding Minato was.
Xunfeng had to admit that Minato's talent was exceptional.
"Not bad! You actually learned the Flying Thunder God," Xunfeng praised him.
"And you even used Armament Haki. I didn't know you were this impressive." Xunfeng smiled at Minato.
"Xunfeng, don't say that. I'm still a long way behind you." Minato knew his own limits. He understood that an unbridgeable gap separated him from Xunfeng.
The match ended with Minato's victory.
Next, the names on the big screen began scrolling again, and the Third Hokage called for them to stop.
At last, two unfamiliar names appeared on the screen.
Xunfeng took a look. The contestants this time were the tall, burly member of the team that had arrived first,
and the captain of the team that had arrived second.
One was named Matsubara, and the other was Ryokichi Akimichi.
The first was muscular, while the second was hefty. Both were power-type fighters.
Xunfeng knew that the team that had arrived first was full of remarkable people. Uchiha Xunshui was powerful, and this Matsubara was surely no slouch either. As for the person who'd seemed familiar, Xunfeng thought he was probably the strongest of them all.
Ryokichi Akimichi was obviously from the Akimichi Clan. They had a special ability that let them convert fat into huge amounts of chakra. In terms of the destructive power of their Taijutsu alone, the Akimichi Clan was the strongest among the clans of Konohagakure.
Matsubara was clearly from Konoha as well, but Xunfeng knew nothing about his abilities.
"Just surrender. Otherwise, you're going to lose badly," Matsubara advised Ryokichi Akimichi.
"I'd like to, but then the whole team would be eliminated." Ryokichi Akimichi clearly wasn't the competitive type.
When the Third Hokage announced the start of the match, Ryokichi Akimichi took the initiative and attacked Matsubara.
"Human Bullet Tank!" The Akimichi Clan's attacks were incredibly destructive. Ryokichi Akimichi charged at Matsubara, but Matsubara didn't move an inch.
"Is he that weak? Is he really going to lose just like that?" Xunfeng thought worriedly.
But at the most crucial moment, Matsubara moved.
The next second, Matsubara was already on the other side of the arena.
"So fast!" Xunfeng was a little surprised.
He immediately understood what this guy's ability was.
"I see! No wonder he's so muscular—and so fast! He's a Taijutsu specialist!" Xunfeng had just caught sight of his movements. In terms of speed alone, this Matsubara was even faster than Rock Lee in the original story.
"Where do you think you're running? Human Bullet Tank!" The Akimichi kept attacking in Matsubara's direction with devastating force, but Matsubara easily dodged each attack with his speed.
Before long, the Akimichi realized that his attacks were too clumsy to hit his opponent.
"Pant, pant!" Ryokichi Akimichi gasped for breath. For a moment, he had no idea how to attack.
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