Hokage: You Call This Guy the Savior?!

"Lord Hokage, the prosperity of Konoha is truly enviable." As Hiruzen returned to his seat, the Kazekage beside him remarked with a sigh.

"Haha, since the Kazekage has traveled such a long distance, you might as well stay for a few more days. Konoha will certainly provide full hospitality to our allies." Hiruzen chuckled, responding with a smile of his own.

"I envy your younger generation even more; so many outstanding talents have emerged that they occupy six out of the ten available slots. By comparison, it is truly shameful."

"Oh? Doesn't your Sunagakure also have three people who secured spots? What, is that not enough to satisfy you?"

"That is why I was thinking, if the top three finishers all turn out to be ninjas from our Sunagakure, Lord Hokage's expression would surely be quite interesting."

The Kazekage's aggressive words caused Hiruzen to raise an eyebrow.

"I, however, find it somewhat strange. I heard that the Daimyo of the Land of Wind significantly slashed the military budget, yet looking at the performance of these three, it does not look like the result of scrimping and saving. Could it be that you poured all your resources into them just to put on a facade?"

The Kazekage's smile faded, but he quickly regained his composure: "Lord Hokage jests. They perform well only because they are my children, possess pure bloodlines, and have inherited orthodox secret techniques; such performance is only natural."

"I personally think you are a clever man, Kazekage, knowing how to develop during times of peace. If you can let a few elites make a name for themselves, even if the village's overall strength declines, it will still intimidate neighboring countries and keep them from acting rashly."

As he spoke, Hiruzen gestured toward the battlefield below and continued: "And this place is the best stage for Sunagakure to demonstrate its strength."

The Kazekage could no longer smile; his strategy had been completely seen through by the other party, despite his own self-satisfaction.

As expected of an old fox!

Is he threatening me?

Telling me not to have other thoughts or unilaterally abolish the alliance agreement between our two countries?

It is a pity that the arrow is already on the string and must be fired; some things are no longer up to you.

"Then let us watch the performance of the younger generation."

"Indeed, let us."

"There is still one examinee who hasn't arrived. Shouldn't he be directly disqualified?" Before the matches had even begun, Kankuro voiced his challenge.

Everyone knew he was talking about Sasuke, and they turned their gazes toward him.

"If he does not arrive by the time his match is scheduled, it will be counted as a forfeit," Genma Shiranui said.

Because Gekko Hayate had met a tragic end, the proctor had been replaced by Genma Shiranui, who gave an immediate answer after a moment of thought.

"Oh? Truly worthy of being Konoha's home turf." Anyone could hear the sarcasm in Kankuro's words.

"Say less. Father is watching us from above. Even if Sasuke arrives in time, I won't lose." Temari patted Kankuro on the shoulder, completely unbothered.

"Hmph, let's hope so."

"[The Blockhead] Naruto Uzumaki VS [The Clear-Headed] Neji Hyuga."

Seeing the first matchup displayed on the electronic board, the audience began flipping through the materials they had on hand with great interest; these were distributed for free, one for everyone.

In fact, the audience had already learned about these two long before this; the Ninja Star cards circulating out of Konoha were very popular elsewhere, especially among high-ranking officials and nobles who would spend large sums of money just to chase the trend.

Looking at their strength on paper, Neji undoubtedly held an absolute advantage, not to mention that the name Hyuga was a household word—this was the largest ninja clan in Konoha, so naturally, everyone favored Neji.

For the ninjas who understood the strength of both sides, this match also lacked suspense; it was highly probable that Neji would finish off Naruto within a minute, and then the next match could begin.

Some even placed bets on how long it would take for Naruto to concede; there were quite a few betting on under a minute, and some even more extreme bets on under thirty seconds.

If you bet on anything over two minutes, you would only invite ridicule from others—are you looking down on the Hyuga Clan or looking down on Neji?

As for those who favored Naruto to win this match, there was almost no one.

No, there was one, and that was Keiichi, who placed his bet at the last moment; only he bet that Naruto would win.

However, he didn't bet much, so everyone just assumed he was cheering for his friend.

On one side was the dead-last student who almost failed to graduate, and on the other was a young genius of the Hyuga Clan, with a one-year gap in ninja experience between them; no matter how you looked at it, the result was clear at a glance.

Therefore, when Naruto walked onto the battlefield, the audience had almost no reaction, but when Neji stepped onto the stage, a deafening roar of cheers erupted.

This differential treatment made Naruto even more indignant.

"Neji, I will definitely defeat you!" Naruto raised his fist at Neji, making a vow.

"Empty talk is useless. When you are defeated, please reflect on how ridiculous the words you just said really were." Neji assumed the starting stance of the Gentle Fist, his expression extremely serious.

"The match begins!" Genma Shiranui blew his whistle.

Naruto knew very well what Neji excelled at; he had witnessed the consequences of attacking a master's strength with one's own weakness during the duel between Sasuke and Rock Lee.

And Neji was a master of taijutsu of a different type than Rock Lee.

So, he didn't hesitate to create distance while quickly forming hand seals.

"Multi-Shadow Clone Technique!"

The next moment, sixty or seventy Narutos appeared on the battlefield, occupying every corner.

However, they did not rush forward rashly, but merely surrounded Neji, appearing very cautious.

Seeing this scene, the audience began to whisper; clearly, they had not expected that a little brat with no reputation could master such a rare ninjutsu. Perhaps he could really bring them a surprise.

Shadow clones?

Neji activated his Byakugan, only to find that he couldn't identify Naruto's true body at all, though this was already within his expectations.

"Follow the plan!" All the Naruto shouted in unison, and the clones further away simultaneously drew shuriken from their ninja tool pouches.

Hmph, knowing they are no match for me in close combat, they want to decide the outcome with projectile weapons?

They have a bit of a brain, but thinking this will win them the match is severely underestimating me!

Neji was prepared at any moment to activate Rotation, ensuring that no matter how Naruto threw the shuriken, it would be impossible to cause him any harm.

Do not forget, in Neji's team, there is a ninja tool expert like Tenten, so Neji often sought her out as a sparring partner; the result was that even Tenten could do nothing against him.

Could Naruto possibly be more formidable than Tenten?

Yet, to his surprise, the circle of clones closest to him took the initiative to charge at him.

Looking at this posture, could it be they still want to compete with me in taijutsu?

No matter what Naruto's intentions were, Neji decided to respond with the methods he excelled at most. His Gentle Fist Technique flowed like moving clouds and flowing water, dancing among the many clones like a butterfly. Before long, he had crushed every single one of them.

These clones couldn't even touch the hem of his garment!

Seeing this, Naruto couldn't help but be shocked. Why aren't you playing by the rules!

He had intended to replicate the strategy used against Kabuto Yakushi: first, have the clones lock down Neji's body, then have the others throw the Humming Shuriken. That way, he would be guaranteed a win—the plan was perfect!

Could you, Neji, really be more formidable than Kabuto Yakushi?

However, what Naruto did not know was that the Hyuga Clan's fist techniques were inherently suited for dealing with group attacks; this was their guarantee of survival when caught in chaotic situations on the battlefield.

Kabuto Yakushi, on the other hand, was an assassin-type ninja who only excelled in one-on-one combat, which was why he had been careless enough to be pinned down by his clones.

But since the plan had already reached this stage, he could only grit his teeth and continue, so all the clones immediately took action.

"Wind Style: Humming Shuriken!"

The audience widened their eyes as they watched the scene before them. It was as if countless bees were being released from the clones' hands, then rushing toward Neji like birds returning to their nests, the sound of humming filling the sky.

"What kind of jutsu is this?"

"When did Naruto learn Wind Style?"

"He has actually mastered nature transformation for chakra!"

Ordinary people who didn't know the truth were just watching the spectacle, but in the eyes of knowledgeable ninjas, it appeared so incredible that it sounded like a fantasy.

They had never seen such a move before!

Could it be that Naruto created this himself?

The last person to create a jutsu at the age of thirteen was Kakashi, known as a genius who appears only once in a thousand years!

Moreover, looking at this power, he had clearly mastered wind nature transformation. Is this really just a genin who graduated half a year ago?

One must know that even many adult ninjas might not necessarily master this kind of nature transformation, so why could this thirteen-year-old brat do it?

Naruto's performance refreshed everyone's perception of him.

This brat actually has some real skill to have made it into the finals!

Even those who were originally pessimistic about him began to look forward to his next performance.

"Kakashi, I thought you only favored the brat from the Uchiha clan, but I didn't expect you to be so attentive to Naruto as well. You taught him this Wind Style, didn't you?"

The person speaking was Jiraiya, who was hiding among the spectators, and who else could be standing next to him but Kakashi?

Kakashi had been purely 'kidnapped' by Jiraiya to watch the match; otherwise, he should have been by Sasuke's side at this time.

"Lord Jiraiya, you jest. Isn't this something you taught him? You know me—I excel in Lightning Style," Kakashi said with a bitter smile.

This remark made Jiraiya raise an eyebrow, feeling quite surprised.

If it wasn't Kakashi who taught him, then who could it be?

This is a self-created jutsu; is there any need to deny it so firmly?

Fine, even if you didn't teach him, there are only a few in the Leaf Village who excel in Wind Style. Could it be Danzo?

In any case, Jiraiya refused to believe that Naruto could create a jutsu at this age, and one that looked quite powerful at that.

However, it also consumed a lot of chakra; it wouldn't be usable by anyone else, so it was only suitable for Naruto.

"This jutsu wasn't taught by me; I excel in Fire Style. That wind nature transformation must have been taught by you, right?"

"This wasn't taught by me either. As far as I know, he shouldn't have been able to master a skill as difficult as nature transformation," Kakashi waved his hands repeatedly.

"This isn't even a jutsu, is there any need for you to deny it to the death?" Jiraiya frowned tightly.

"It really wasn't me!"

"But I haven't taught him either... could it be that this kid is self-taught?"

"Do you think Naruto has that kind of insight?"

"Certainly not." Jiraiya denied it flatly; he had already figured out his disciple's talent over these past few days.

Aside from having decent perseverance, he had nothing else.

"Then there must be some expert other than you or me guiding him." Kakashi rubbed his chin, unable to stop his brow from furrowing.

"I just don't know what this person's intentions are. What if it's someone with ulterior motives like Orochimaru..." Jiraiya also fell into deep thought, agreeing with Kakashi's assessment.

"Whoever it is, at least for now, it seems Naruto is learning legitimate things. However, since it concerns a Jinchuriki, it is necessary to investigate this person's identity."

"That's right. Leave this matter to me; I will find Naruto and get to the bottom of it."

Kakashi glanced at the state of the battle and whispered, "It looks like this match is about to end. I need to bring Sasuke back as soon as possible."

"Hmm, go ahead."

No sooner said than done; just as everyone was still marveling at Naruto's performance, Neji had already executed the perfect countermeasure.

"Eight Trigrams Palms: Heavenly Spin!"

Neji released chakra from all his tenketsu simultaneously and spun his body at high speed, creating a translucent dome. Any Humming Shuriken that touched it was deflected, leaving the battlefield in a state of utter chaos.

These shuriken possessed considerable power; even the trees set up in the arena were sliced in half, and the ground was riddled with deep trenches, a testament to the strength of the technique.

Yet, Neji stood there completely unscathed, his clothes still neat, showing not a hint of disarray.

On the contrary, Naruto's clones were wiped out entirely by the deflected shuriken, leaving only his real body standing there with a dazed look in his eyes.

How can this be?!

It was as if Naruto was realizing for the first time what a gap in ability meant. Was this the most highly regarded genius ninja of the previous class?

Neji's astonishing display sparked a flurry of discussion, but everyone felt it was within reason, making it less surprising than Naruto's earlier performance.

If a genius didn't perform beyond expectations, could they even be called a genius?

"Naruto, I have to admit, you did surprise me a little. But is this your trump card? It's nowhere near enough to take me down."

Neji strode toward Naruto, who retreated involuntarily. The psychological balance between the two had already shifted; Neji had gained the upper hand before even making a move.

"Don't look down on me! I'm going to be the Hokage, I can't fall here!" Naruto refused to concede, at least in words.