I Believe You'll Win

The next day, people had packed the area outside the arena early in the morning.

Chiya stood at the edge of the contestants' passageway and looked up. The Third Hokage was already seated, with the Kazekage beside him. His bamboo hat was pulled low, concealing half his face.

Even from this far away, Chiya felt a chill run down his back.

The stands were nearly full by now. Everyone was eagerly awaiting the upcoming matches, and their conversations mingled into a chaotic din.

Chiya sighed. A disaster was about to descend.

He had barely slept the night before.

He still couldn't think of any good way to break the deadlock. For now, he could only take things one step at a time.

He had even fantasized that if Konoha lacked manpower, Danzo might send Root to defend against the enemy, leaving him with no time to capture Chiya.

"Hey, Chiya!"

Naruto came over from the side, his face brimming with excitement.

"It's almost my turn. Make sure you watch closely!"

Chiya smiled at him.

"Sure. I believe in you, Naruto. You'll definitely win."

Naruto immediately broke into a wide grin.

"Of course! You've got good taste. Today, I'm definitely gonna knock that Neji flat on his back!"

Sakura stood nearby, nervous as could be.

"Naruto, don't just rush in blindly right from the start."

"Don't worry, Sakura. I'm really strong now!"

Chiya listened to them bicker, but his gaze swept over the stands again.

Shikamaru leaned against the railing, looking half asleep. Choji sat beside him, eating. Ino was farther down.

Chiya's expression darkened at once.

She had still come.

Ino saw him too.

The two looked at each other through the crowd. Ino froze for a moment, then quickly turned her face away and pretended to listen to the person beside her.

Chiya watched her.

Ino kept up the act for a while, but eventually couldn't resist sneaking another glance over. Her eyes met Chiya's again.

Her ears instantly turned red, and her lips moved.

They were too far apart for him to hear.

But Chiya understood.

She was saying: None of your business.

Chiya closed his eyes, nearly laughing in anger.

He had spoken so seriously yesterday, yet she hadn't listened at all.

At that moment, a voice rang out from the arena.

"First match: Naruto Uzumaki versus Neji Hyuga."

Naruto vigorously slapped his cheeks and headed toward the arena.

Halfway there, he turned back and waved his fist at them.

"Watch closely!"

Neji was already standing in the center of the field. His Byakugan swept over Naruto, his expression ice-cold.

Once the match began, Naruto immediately created a huge number of Shadow Clones and charged in. Puffs of white smoke exploded across the field with repeated bangs. Neji stood in the middle, his footing steady, his palm strikes so fast they were nearly impossible to see.

Before long, Naruto was sent flying.

He got back up and rushed in again.

Only to be knocked away again.

Sakura cried out anxiously several times from the side, but Naruto seemed not to hear. He wiped the dust off his face, bared his teeth, and stood up once more.

When Neji's Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms struck Naruto, a string of dull impacts echoed across the arena. Naruto crashed to the ground and did not move for quite some time.

Quite a few people thought it was over.

The next instant, red chakra rose from his body.

The battle that followed ended quickly.

Neji used Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven to block Naruto's attack, sending Naruto crashing into a cloud of dust. Just when everyone thought he had lost, the ground suddenly exploded with a bang. Naruto burst up from underground and drove a fist into Neji's chin.

Neji fell.

The arena instantly erupted.

Genma took a look, then raised his hand and announced.

"The winner is Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto stood in the arena, his face covered in dust and his teeth showing in a broad grin.

"I won!"

Sakura jumped up excitedly.

Chiya smiled as well.

Even though he had known the outcome long ago, seeing this guy personally smash the word fate to pieces still felt satisfying.

He looked up toward the stands.

Ino was smiling too.

Her eyes curved slightly whenever she smiled, and the sulky look she had worn toward him earlier was completely gone. But halfway through her smile, she seemed to remember something and secretly glanced at Chiya again.

Their eyes met.

The smile on Ino's face stiffened for a moment, and she immediately turned her head away.

But Chiya could no longer smile.

He hoped she wouldn't run around later. He hoped she wouldn't follow him.

Chiya's fingers slowly curled into a fist.

The arena soon began preparing for the second match.

Gaara had already risen to his feet.

The gourd of sand on his back swayed lightly. Fine sand trickled from its opening and slowly slithered around his feet.

Genma looked toward the contestants' passageway.

"Second match: Sasuke Uchiha versus Gaara."

No one emerged from the passageway.

Naruto had just returned to the upper level when he froze.

"Where's Sasuke? Why hasn't that guy shown up yet?"

Sakura's face had gone slightly pale too.

"Didn't Kakashi-sensei take him away for training?"

People in the stands began shouting in dissatisfaction.

Gaara stood in the arena with his head lowered, saying nothing. But more and more sand gathered around him, as though it had a temper of its own, crawling in circles around his feet.

Up above, the Third Hokage exchanged a few quiet words with the Kazekage, then spoke briefly to his subordinates.

Below, after receiving the signal, Genma spoke with a Senbon clenched between his teeth.

"Sasuke Uchiha has not arrived yet. The match will be postponed."

The crowd immediately broke into an uproar.

Naruto let out a breath of relief. "That scared me! I almost thought Sasuke would lose by default!"

Sakura said nothing, only tightening her fists.

At that moment, two figures suddenly appeared above the arena.

Kakashi had one hand in his pocket, while the other rested on Sasuke's shoulder.

Sasuke stood beside him. He had changed clothes, and his gaze was cold. The wind stirred the black hair over his forehead, making him look completely different from how he had a month ago.

The noise in the arena suddenly rose.

Naruto's eyes widened at once.

"Sasuke!"

Kakashi's eyes curved as though nothing had happened.

"Yo, sorry. We got a little lost on the way."

Sasuke ignored him.

He dropped down from above and landed in the center of the field.

Gaara slowly raised his head, his gaze like that of a predator spotting prey.

The two stared at each other from opposite sides of the field, neither making the first move. Wind swept fine sand across the ground with a faint rustling sound. The crowd that had been discussing things moments ago gradually fell quieter.

Genma held the Senbon between his teeth and swept his gaze over the two of them.

"Second match: Sasuke Uchiha versus Gaara."

He raised his hand.

"Begin."

The instant his words fell, the sand at Gaara's feet abruptly burst upward and swept toward Sasuke with a rush.

Sasuke moved his feet, and his entire body suddenly vanished from where he stood.

Boom!

The sand slammed into the ground, sending shattered stones flying.

Naruto's eyes widened. "So fast!"

The next moment, Sasuke had already rushed to Gaara's side and kicked at his face. The sand automatically rose to block it. With a bang, the sand shield was knocked sideways by the kick.

Sasuke did not stop.

He landed and lowered his body. Bracing one hand against the ground, he spun sharply, sweeping his other leg directly at Gaara's lower body. Sand surged up again, but Sasuke seemed to have calculated it already. He used the recoil to flip backward, and the instant his toes touched the ground, he charged forward again.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In just a few breaths, several dull impacts had already echoed through the arena.

The noise from the stands abruptly rose.

Chiya leaned beside the contestants' passageway, his eyes following Sasuke the entire time.