The black scroll's cursed seal energy dissipated completely, and the electronic screen in the center of the arena suddenly lit up with a blinding red glow. The jumbled numbers on the Scoreboard reset to zero like corrupted data.
Then, within the red glow, they reassembled into a list of those who had advanced.
"Waganda, everyone passed." Hinata looked up. The names of the Konoha Twelve were right there on the list.
"Tch." Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, a blade of grass between his teeth. He had expected this result.
But as Hinata's gaze swept over the latter half of the list, her azure Tenseigan abruptly constricted. That's wrong. Shouldn't they be from the five great villages?! Why is it them?!
Of the fourteen teams added to the roster, more than half were ninja from Otogakure and Kusagakure. Stranger still, all of them radiated ominous fluctuations identical to Orochimaru's Cursed Seal.
What on earth is going on?
Within the Tenseigan's field of vision.
Dosu's three-person Otogakure team huddled in a corner.
The muscles in Zaku's arms swelled, his bulging veins winding around them like black vines. Black Cursed Seal mist seeped out beneath his bandages and spread along his blood vessels. A bloodthirsty growl rolled from his throat. "Heh heh heh... I want to blast you all to pieces. Kill, kill, kill!"
"Zaku... shut up." The bandaged Dosu's throat bobbed, each breath carrying the grating screech of metal scraping against metal. Traces of blood and black, smoky energy stirred across his bandages.
He had already realized.
The three of them might have been treated as expendable pawns.
Sorrow welled up inside him.
Lord Orochimaru, we have been utterly loyal.
We revered you as a god.
Why did you throw us away like garbage?
Why?? Why?!!
"I... I understand..."
Like a neutered cat,