Preliminary Day

The day of the open preliminaries was livelier than any ordinary class.

Before dawn had fully broken, quite a few students had already gathered around the outer edge of the special training ground to watch. Even several upperclassman instructors stood in the distance observing. Though this was only internal Ninja Academy training, the names "Uchiha Ling" and "Sasuke Uchiha" alone were enough to draw countless eyes.

When Ling reached the edge of the field, Ino was leaning against the railing, loosening up her wrists.

She had tied her wrist guards tightly today, and even her usual carefree air had faded considerably. When she saw Ling approach, she looked him over from head to toe before raising her brows with a smile. "Don't tell me you practiced by yourself until late again last night."

"It was fine."

"Whenever you say it was fine, it basically means you overdid it." Ino huffed, though there was no real anger in her tone. "Anyway, don't get yourself injured too early today. I still want to watch your match with Sasuke."

Not far away, Hinata had come too.

She clutched a small packet of candy in her hands. At first, she seemed unsure whether she should approach, but when her gaze met Ling's, she finally gathered her courage and took two steps closer, offering him the candy.

"This... if you eat some before the match, you'll feel better."

Ling accepted it, paused, then said quietly, "Thank you."

Hinata visibly froze for a moment, a faint blush quickly coloring her cheeks. After nodding softly, she stepped aside. Ino watched the scene, the corner of her lips curving imperceptibly, as though she were smiling—or keeping score.

Izumo quickly explained the rules.

The preliminaries consisted of two rounds. Opponents would be decided by drawing lots, and the winners would advance directly into the top four. The losers were not completely eliminated, however, and their later rankings would be determined by performance scores.

In other words, today would not only decide who could move forward, but also who was qualified to stand in the brightest spotlight.

The first round began quickly.

Kiba's opponent was no weakling, but Kiba's condition had clearly been tempered by the intense special training of late. After several close-range clashes, he forcibly drove his opponent beyond the white line with a fiercer series of attacks, claiming victory. The moment he stepped out of the ring, he smugly pumped his fist toward the sidelines, looking as though one foot was already in the top four.

Ino's victory was even more impressive.

She was not a pure power fighter, but she had an excellent grasp of rhythm. Switching between feints and real attacks, she led her opponent into increasing confusion. During the first two exchanges, she deliberately retreated, making her opponent think she excelled at fighting while backing away. Once her opponent began habitually pressing forward, her steps abruptly halted. With a backhand flick, she sent out two wooden kunai—one real, one fake—forcing her opponent to raise an arm in defense. Then she closed in from the side and placed an extremely precise wooden kunai point just before their throat.

"Stop. Ino Yamanaka wins."

Even Izumo gave her an extra glance. He clearly had not expected that this girl, who normally seemed more like someone who was good with words, could be so crisp and decisive in actual combat.

When Ino left the field, sweat had appeared at her temples, yet she still turned her head to look for Ling first. Seeing that he was watching, she raised her chin as though silently saying, See that?

Hinata's first-round match was the most difficult.

Her opponent was better at closing in than she was, and she was pressured heavily from the very start. Yet she gritted her teeth and held her rhythm bit by bit, using sharper observation to seize a single opening and narrowly claim victory in the end. Her face was still pale when she stepped down, but she nevertheless bowed seriously to the instructor.

When Ling passed by her, he paused for a moment. "You fought well."

Hinata's breathing was still uneven from the exhaustion, but upon hearing those words, it felt as though something in her chest suddenly grew lighter. She looked up at him and said softly, "You too... you'll definitely win."

When it was Ling's turn, the training ground became noticeably quieter.

His opponent was Moonlight Lan, known among the top ten for his steadiness—a boy with quick movements and equally quick reactions. Compared to someone like Kiba, who charged head-on, Lan was more the type to constantly circle around and probe for his opponent's mistakes.

"Begin!"

Lan immediately pulled away, his footwork light and quick. Clearly, he had no intention of giving Ling a comfortable chance to get close. Ling did not rush forward either. His gaze remained locked on the subtle changes in his opponent's shoulders, wrists, and toes.

When the first wooden kunai flew out, Lan was clearly trying to bait a reaction.

Ling sidestepped it, but did not immediately pursue, instead allowing Lan to establish the rhythm first. The instant the second kunai, the real attack, came flying at him, he suddenly pressed forward. A brief wisp of compressed chakra flashed beneath his feet, and that was enough speed.

Lan had not expected him to cut in at that moment. He hastily retreated half a step, only for Ling to close the distance in the next instant and dismantle three moves in succession.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

The first strike knocked his wrist aside.

The second disrupted his center of gravity.

The third drove him directly to the edge of the white line.

Lan tried to pull away again, but Ling gave him no chance. His movements grew tighter with every exchange, yet he always kept them at the edge of "enough to suppress without fully revealing himself." In the end, he forced Lan beyond the white line with a shoulder ram, ending the match cleanly and decisively.

Many people at the sidelines had not even understood what had happened before the match was over.

"So fast?"

"Isn't Lan really good at keeping people at a distance?"

Shikamaru watched the field, narrowing his eyes slightly.

The most impressive thing about Ling's match was not his speed, but knowing when to be fast. He looked calm at first, but he only truly exerted himself once—and with that single burst, he locked down the entire match.

When Ling stepped off the field, Ino was waiting nearby.

"You really refuse to let people watch you for even a little longer." She reached out and brushed the dust from his sleeve, the gesture so natural that it seemed long familiar. "I wanted to watch a little more of how you pinned him down."

Ling lowered his gaze to her hand. "Didn't you already see it?"

"That's different." Ino withdrew her hand, amusement in her eyes. "The way you are on the field is even more annoying than usual."

Before the second round, the top four had already begun to take shape.

Sasuke also easily defeated his opponent on the other side. His movements were sharper than usual, leaving almost no room for retaliation. His Fire Release was swift and fierce, drawing a chorus of low gasps from the stands.

The four who ultimately entered the crucial round were, as expected, the ones most favored to do so.

Ling.

Sasuke.

Kiba.

Ino.

The instant the list came out, the sidelines erupted into commotion.

Because everyone knew that the next draw would most likely force the most anticipated matchups to happen early.

Kiba rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming. "Hopefully I don't run into you two first."

Ino shot him a look. "Trying to pick on the weak?"

"I'm trying to live a little longer," Kiba replied matter-of-factly.

During the brief lull before the draw, Ino suddenly leaned closer to Ling and lowered her voice. "If you really face Sasuke, then beat him down hard for me."

Ling turned to look at her.

His quiet eyes made Ino's heart skip a beat, but her expression remained steady. She even deliberately added, "Don't misunderstand. I just want to know exactly how badly you can suppress him."

Not far away, Hinata was looking over as well, her fingers quietly tightening around the hem of her clothes. She could not say things as directly as Ino could, but what she was thinking was actually much the same.

Ling stood to one side, his expression still calm. Only when the box of lots was brought out did his gaze darken slightly.

He knew that the real preliminaries were only beginning now.