Qualified candidates in the third qualifying round:
Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Gaara, Kankuro, Temari, Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba Inuzuka, Dosu.
Shino Aburame has a bye and is automatically promoted.
A total of eleven people have advanced.
The preliminaries are over and the third exam will be in one month.
After a while, Xiu led Team 7 and several others back to Hot Spring Inn.
In order to celebrate that all members passed the preliminaries, Xiu specially asked the kitchen to prepare a feast for the three of them.
Wagyu hot pot, seafood sashimi, and even specially ordered takeout from Ichiraku Ramen for Naruto.
While eating, Xiu also talked about the precautions for the third exam. "In the next exam, Naruto's opponent is Kiba Inuzuka. There is basically no suspense in the game. Sasuke's opponent is Neji. You have to pay a little attention. Rotation's defensive effect is a little stronger than I thought."
"Chidori can't break through either?" Sasuke asked.
"Chidori... it depends on your control level."
Xiu thought for a moment, "Chidori is a thrusting skill that is specially designed to break through defenses. The effect on ordinary defenses will be very obvious, but Rotation is a constantly rotating and flowing Chakra. Even if the gap is torn, it will be filled instantly, and it also has a certain knockback effect, which is likely to bounce your attack away."
Sasuke frowned. "Is there any other way?"
"Use your brain! I fight without thinking because I have super strength. Do you have it too?"
Xiu tapped his temples with his fingertips. "Think about it carefully, all you need is a simple level Ninjutsu."
Sasuke's eyes flickered. "Earth Release·Headhunter Jutsu?"
Xiu clapped his hands with satisfaction. "Not bad, although it is not as good as Akamaru, but it is already very smart."
Sasuke:"..."
Are you kidding me? How could I be inferior to a dog...
He only thought it was a show of his daily venomous remarks, and did not realize that the other party was serious this time.
"Rotation's defense is only against the ground, but there is no defense against his feet. Apart from these, just pay a little attention to his acupuncture ability." Xiu said lightly.
"Is it that simple?" Sasuke was a little skeptical. "I heard that Byakugan has a 360-degree viewing angle. It should also be visible underground, right?"
Xiu shook his head and explained uncomfortably, "Whether it is Sharingan or Byakugan, the brain may be overloaded due to receiving a large amount of information. At least Neji should not be able to pay attention to every angle of view in real time, especially when the attention is focused on a certain area."
"Headhunter Jutsu only has level 1, so it won't be difficult to master. Although it doesn't have the same attributes as your Chakra, it's just more expensive. Among the ground-escape techniques like Earth Release, this is the most cost-effective technique."
"I understand."
Sasuke nodded, hesitated for two seconds, and muttered, "Thank you, Master."
The corner of Xiu's mouth curled up, and he turned to look at Sakura: "As for Sakura, let's just forfeit the next match against Gaara."
Sakura Haruno moved for a moment, then nodded. "I understand."
"Are you going to give up without even fighting?" Naruto was a little confused. "Is that guy very strong?"
"It's still quite difficult for the current Sakura." Xiu didn't explain too much and picked up the cup, "Anyway, congratulations on passing the second exam. Let's take a good rest today. Cheers!"
"Cheers!"3
After dinner, Sasuke went home directly. He also wanted to report the good news of his promotion to his mother, while Naruto put on his yukata and rushed into the men's bath.
"Teacher Xiu!"
Sakura stopped Xiu who was about to go back to the backyard. "Can we talk?"
She held her hands behind her back in a coquettish manner, looking at Xiu with a nervous look in her eyes and a hint of expectation.
Seeing her look like this, a smile flashed in Xiu's eyes, "Okay."
A moment later, inside a police room.
Sakura Knelt down and sat down opposite Xiu: "In the third exam, can I really just abstain?"
"Well... that's what it looks like so far."
Xiu nodded. "Your strength is not weaker than the ordinary Chunin, but Gaara is not an ordinary person. Did you remember telling you about Naruto's identity?"
Sakura was startled. "You mean..."
"That Gaara is also Tailed Beast Jinchūriki."
Xiu explained, "There are a total of Nine Tailed Beasts in the world, and each one has the power to easily destroy a country. The one inside Gaara is One-Tail. Although it is the weakest among Tailed Beast, it is not something you can handle with your strength."
Sakura was puzzled. "But...Naruto is also Jinchūriki, right? It doesn't look very dangerous."
Xiu shook his head. "Naruto is Uzumaki. Although he is a mixed race, Chakra is far more numerous than the average person and can effectively suppress Tailed Beast. In addition, the seal in his body The seal is also much more advanced than that of One-Tail. The seal in his body comes from Uzumaki. In addition to the huge amount of Chakra, this family is famous for Sealing Jutsu."
"The seal in Naruto's body was set by Fourth Hokage himself. Even though it has been eroded a lot by Nine-Tails Chakra, it is still stronger than those in other villages. As long as the emotions are not severely stimulated, there is basically no risk of Tailed Beast Chakra being leaked."
Xiu said, and couldn't help but sneer, "Look at that Gaara again, does he look like a normal person?"
Sakura shook his head quickly. Anyone with eyes could see that the guy was not mentally normal.
"Unlike Naruto, the Tailed Beast in his body may go berserk at any time, but..."
Xiu held his chin with one hand and looked at Sakura thoughtfully. "With me present, it's not that I can't fight him. After all, the third exam tests comprehensive literacy. In this aspect, you are obviously better than the two reckless men Naruto and Sasuke."
"As long as you show enough qualities to take on the role of Chunin, it doesn't matter even if your strength is slightly weaker. After all, you are facing Jinchūriki."
Looking at Xiu's half-smiling expression, Sakura bit her lower lip lightly with her eyes looking shameful, sad, and with a hint of expectation.
She raised her eyes to look at Xiu, her green eyes looking watery. "... Please teach me, Teacher Xiu."
Xiu's eyes gradually slid down her cheek. "But it will be very hard... Are you really ready to wake up?"
Hearing this, Sakura stood up silently. She lowered her head and stared into Xiu's eyes without any dodge.
After a rustling sound, a dazzling holy light appeared in the room.
Seeing this, Xiu gently raised his hand, Sakura's body trembled violently, he raised his head high, and an uncontrollable gasp came from his throat.
Her legs softened and she slowly knelt down and sat down.
"I see, Water Release? Is this what you rely on?"
Xiu rubbed his fingers with interest, feeling Xiu's recognition of his strength, Sakura suddenly trembled with excitement.
"The idea is good. Water Release is indeed more restrained than Gaara's sand. It just so happens that your Chakra has dual attributes of water and soil, but it is not enough at this level."
Xiu raised his sword and pointed with one hand Hand Seals: "Let me teach you. In Water Release's practice, it is best to master the water attribute Chakra Nature Transformation, but that can only be mastered at the Jonin stage. One month is far from enough."
"But we can find another way. What does your power of escape depend on?"
"Well..."
Sakura whimpered softly, and after a while he trembled and said, "How much water?"
"No, as long as your control over Chakra is high enough, even if you only have a basin of water, you can still use Hard Whirlpool Water Blade that can cut iron like mud."
Xiu shook his head, kept moving his hands, and continued Hand Seals: "I wonder if you have ever seen flood discharge from a river dam?"
Sakura shook his head crazily, his nose twitching slightly.
Because she was too excited to learn the new Ninjutsu, her face was flushed and she was a little delirious with excitement.
"When the river dam releases floods, too much water accumulates upstream, so once the floodgate is opened, the water from the floodgate will explode with a powerful impact under the action of the upstream water pressure."
"Therefore, if you want to increase the power of Water Release, you first need to block the flood outlet, and then pressurize it to completely explode."
"Ah...~"
Answer to questions, Sakura suddenly groaned softly, with tears of gratitude in his eyes, and held Xiu's shoulders with trembling hands.
"I suggest you try to feel the feeling of being blocked first..."
Xiu stretched out his hand and gently pulled her into his arms. "But the question now is, which end to block first? Most Water Release are sprayed from the mouth, or they can gush out from the ground. The specific application method still depends on the individual."
Hearing this, Sakura immediately put his hands around Xiu's neck, his eyes full of desire, and he exhaled like a blue. "I want to try here first..."
"It doesn't work here, you have to figure out your position."
Xiu gently raised her hand and gently pressed her lips with her wet fingertips. "At least for the time being, you are not qualified. What will happen in the future depends on your cultivation performance."
Sakura A trace of darkness flashed in his eyes, but it was replaced by joy in an instant.
She slowly reached out her hand and helped Xiu take off her coat that was soaked with sweat due to Hand Seals for too long. Her eyes fell on Xiu's sword, and her eyes sobered up a little.
"I want to learn... gushing pose first."
Perhaps because of the lack of ventilation in the room, Sakura felt a little dizzy after half a day of studying, his face turned red, and his speech was a little unclear.
She looked at Xiu with a hint of prayer in her eyes. "This is my first time learning Water Release."
"Then let me teach you step by step."
Xiu held her shoulders, helped her adjust the direction of the operation, and injected Chakra into her. "Remember, for Water Release, a one-time boost is not enough, you must continue to boost, like this..."
"Oh..."
Feeling Xiu's surging Chakra, Sakura took a deep breath, and an indescribable sense of fulfillment spread throughout her body.
Feeling as if she had been reborn, a tear fell from the corner of her eye.
"Is this kind of pressure okay?" Xiu asked with concern.
"Huh..."
Sakura is breathing rapidly. "I can still... wuwu..."
"Sure enough, it is still a bit too difficult for you to learn this level of Water Release for the first time."
Xiu patted her back. "Don't be anxious, take your time."
For a long time, wow...
A surging water column surged high, and Water Release and Sakura shouted in excitement when they saw Water Release being released successfully.
Then Chakra was seriously overdrafted and rolled her eyes and collapsed on the tatami...