The champions of the hundred arenas were quickly decided. After all, most of the ninja who had come were at least chunin-level. To Kage-level ninja, it made no difference how many opponents there were. As long as it was a one-on-one fight, no ninja below Kage level had ever won. Under Jin's arrangements, the champions of all one hundred arenas had long since been decided. Continuing the arena matches was merely a way to earn more money. Of course, the arenas featuring famous ninja only brought losses.
On the morning of the sixth day, the champions of the hundred arenas were invited to the enormous fighting grounds. This fighting ground had originally had no name, but during this tournament, ninja from around the world named it—the Heavenly Ninja Challenge Arena.
The Third Hokage stood on the temporary platform and loudly introduced the hundred contestants. Then he announced, "The matches to narrow one hundred down to twenty will now...!"
"Wait!" Every contestant and the tens of thousands of spectators turned to look at Pain, the leader of Akatsuki.
"According to the round-robin rules, that kind of competition isn't intense enough. I suggest a free-for-all on a large open field. Only the final twenty ninja still standing will qualify for the finals. The finals can then proceed in the form of one-on-one challenge matches. That would make the competition more intense, and the audience would be satisfied as well. What do you think, everyone?" Pain's voice echoed through the Heavenly Ninja Challenge Arena. The spectators immediately began discussing it among themselves.
Jin gritted his teeth until they creaked, cursing furiously in his heart. *Akatsuki is ruining my grand plan to make money. How much money would these hundred matches have earned me?! Damn it, all that silver is just gone. Today, I'll