"Lariat!"
As soon as the match began, Kiraru let out a beastlike roar. The arcs of electricity coiling around him transformed into a raging blue bolt of lightning. It tore through the air with a series of explosive cracks, charging straight at Qi Luna with the force of a thunderclap.
Faced with speed and strength far beyond a Genin's, and even greater than most Chunin's, Qi Luna sucked in a sharp breath.
Even if my Mind's Eye of the Kagura can track Kiraru's movements, most people would have a hard time dodging or blocking that attack!
Qi Luna thought, but his hands never slowed.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
A wall of water suddenly appeared between them, blocking Kiraru's view. By the time he tore through it in a flash of lightning, Qi Luna had already vanished!
"Vortex Style: First Form: Violent Step!"
"Vortex Style: Second Form: Break: Adamantine Sword Flash!"
Using the water wall for cover and the Vortex Style's high-speed movement, Qi Luna deftly dodged Kiraru's attack and launched a counterattack. Several golden chains wrapped around his right hand, their pointed tips joining together in front of his fist to form a sharp cone that shot toward Kiraru at high speed!
As a bloodline ability of the Uzumaki Clan, Adamantine Sealing Chains could suppress chakra. Even Tailed Beasts had to avoid their edge, so the Lightning Release chakra coating Kiraru offered no defense at all. The chains tore through it with ease, the sharp cone aimed straight at his head!
Though the chains had failed to protect him and he could feel his Lightning Release chakra being suppressed, Kiraru reacted in an instant, quickly tilting his head to dodge the attack.
"Ah, you're too naive!"
"Vortex Style: Second Form: Chaos: Adamantine Sheath Breaker!"
The Adamantine Chain cone Kiraru had nearly dodged instantly split into nine chains, blossoming like flower petals. Even though Kiraru did everything he could to evade them, the chains still left a gash across his left cheek!
"Were you trying to kill me, you Leaf bastard?!"
He had nearly died just then, and despite giving it everything he had, he hadn't fully escaped the attack. Kiraru no longer felt like delivering his clumsy rap. Realizing his opponent was no ordinary ninja, he grew intensely alert.
"You actually dodged it?"
No wonder he'll inherit the name Bee one day!
Qi Luna couldn't help admiring Kiraru's agility. He had a powerful body, but he was flexible, too. He kept that last thought to himself.
"There's a limit to how much you can look down on me! Don't get cocky, you Leaf bastard!"
"Ninja Art: Wild Dance of the Crane: Four Swords!"
Kiraru cursed at Qi Luna, then drew the four spiked short swords from his back and tossed them into the air. He caught them precisely with different joints of his body, then launched another attack with a series of bizarre movements.
As he dodged Kiraru's seemingly ridiculous and absurd yet deadly rapid-fire attacks, or blocked them with Adamantine Chains, Qi Luna's mouth twitched.
Those moves look absolutely ridiculous, but somehow they make for the most effective attacks. He's not even as old as I am, yet he's already starting to show the fearsome might of Killer Bee!
"Impressive swordsmanship. Now try my Nintaijutsu!"
"Vortex Style: Fifth Form: Blade Cloud Roll!"
As he spoke, Qi Luna released a large amount of chakra from his body. It coated his skin, forming a protective layer like a cloak!
"A Jinchūriki? No... wait! It's just Water Release chakra with Chakra Nature Transformation. Is it a technique like Lightning Release Armor? Did he develop it himself? What a genius!"
Kiraru and the foreign delegations watching from the stands weren't the only ones shocked. Even the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was amazed by Qi Luna's development of ninjutsu.
"He's just like me. He can't be allowed to live!"
That thought had crossed the minds of the foreign delegation members. Even the one-eyed man with a cane in a shadowy corner had the same thought when he saw what happened!
"Uzumaki... A pack of stray dogs, and yet they still keep producing one genius after another! Insolent!"
"Wasn't there a young girl from the Uzumaki Clan in the second round, too? It would be the greatest honor of her life to join Kumogakure!"
"The heavens certainly favor Konoha. It keeps producing one genius after another! Why can't Iwagakure have people like that?!"
"I remember our village caught a red-haired little girl a while ago, too. She's only a 'blood bag' and has no talent as a ninja, but maybe her descendants will have such strong talent one day..."
The foreign delegations had their own calculations, but for now, none of those thoughts could affect the match.
Wrapped in his Chakra Cloak, Qi Luna swept aside one of Kiraru's thrusts with a roundhouse kick, then spun and kicked him away. As he moved his limbs, blades of water formed all over his body and shot toward the spot where Kiraru was about to land.
"Lava Release: Rubber Ball!"
A young Kumogakure Jonin wearing a 雷-lettered eyepatch over his left eye suddenly appeared in the middle of the arena. He spat out a rubber ball, which enveloped Kiraru and shielded him from the several incoming water blades.
"I'm Dodai of Kumogakure. I'm declaring Kiraru the loser of this match!"
With that, he left with Kiraru inside the rubber ball.
It didn't cut through? Looks like I'll have to prioritize training in Wind and Lightning Release Chakra Nature Transformation!
Qi Luna wasn't surprised to see "Rubber Uncle" Dodai step in and save Kiraru. He was simply dissatisfied that his Vortex Style Nintaijutsu hadn't broken through Dodai's defense.
Neither chief examiner Inuzuka Gaku nor the representatives of the other nations' delegations had any objections to Dodai declaring Kiraru the loser. They only felt a little wistful: the remaining matches would just be "exhibition matches" among Konoha's own ninjas. Perhaps, to keep them from gathering useful intelligence, Konoha's ninjas would just go through the motions and humor them.
Sure enough, in the seventh match, Nara Shikaku and Akimichi Choza actually tried to concede before the other. Shikaku suffered from his lazy personality and even "lost" when it came to conceding, so he was forced to advance...
In the end, Yamanaka Inoichi advanced by default.
Thus, Konoha claimed all eight spots in the top ranks of this Joint Chunin Exams!
The second round was even more ridiculous!
First match:
Namikaze Minato beat Kushina thanks to his overwhelming speed;
Second match:
After Akimichi Yoshimaru took a minor injury from Shirokumo Hayama's Wind Release: Vacuum Sword, he immediately conceded;
Third match:
Nonō gave up her spot, saying she had already used up what little chakra she had in the previous round;
Fourth match:
Nara Shikaku failed to beat Yamanaka Inoichi and was forced to advance again...
Minato and Qi Luna won their semifinal matches once more.
In the final, after using Minato to test his Vortex Style Nintaijutsu again, Qi Luna voluntarily conceded and left the arena...
The representatives of the other nations' shinobi villages merely wore expressions that said they'd expected as much, then departed one after another.
Now, all they had to do was negotiate the terms of a ceasefire with Konoha the next day. Then they could leave Konoha and go home to grow cotton...
Before you continue