VS Sai

"Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu!" Number Seven spat out a massive ball of flame that collided with Lin Chuan's Water Shock Wave, filling the room with billowing steam.

At the same time, Lin Chuan formed seals again. Two Water Clones emerged from the white vapor, drawing their blades as they searched for Number Seven through the mist. Thanks to the pooled water on the floor, Number Seven's dripping footsteps quickly gave him away, and the Water Clones rushed toward him.

Number Seven only had time to draw his blade and block one Water Clone's attack before the other stabbed him through the chest. When the smoke cleared, Number Seven looked down at the blade in his chest and knew he had lost. The two Lin Chuans dissolved into streams of water, while the original stood at the edge of the room.

"Number Thirty-Three wins." Seeing that Number Seven had been pierced through the chest and was taking in more air than he was letting out, Ryūma Aburame crossed out Number Seven's entry in his notebook, indicating that he had been eliminated.

Lin Chuan sheathed his blade and checked his personal panel. His Life Points had not increased. Apparently, this guy was even less worthwhile than a background extra. He followed the instructions out of the room; someone else would deal with the fallen corpse.

The moment he stepped out, he saw the others who had been injured earlier lying on the floor awaiting treatment. Kabuto Yakushi was tending to the wounded.

"Chuan? Are you hurt? You may need to wait a while." Kabuto Yakushi knew Lin Chuan was the winner the moment he saw him emerge.

"I'm not hurt, Senior Kabuto." Lin Chuan did not know whether Kabuto Yakushi heard him. Spotting an empty corner, he walked over and sat down. He drew his short blade, wiped away the blood, performed some maintenance, then rested and went to sleep.

As the matches gradually ended, everyone realized that three people were missing this time. It turned out that people could die not only from elimination, but during battle as well.

Those who had not been injured returned to the training grounds to continue training. The injured could only recover first. If their wounds were merely superficial, medical ninjutsu could heal them in a day, allowing them to return to training.

There would be another fight at the end of next month. Anyone who did not want to die could only squeeze every last bit out of themselves. Lin Chuan had won this time, but what about next time? And the time after that?

He did not dare stop moving. He did not even have time to talk, spending every day training. When he was tired or sleepy, he slept directly on the training ground without even returning to the dormitory. He did not want to share a room with Kabuto Yakushi.

The end of the second month arrived quickly. The twenty of them stood before the box of lots once more, taking their respective numbers and waiting to be called into battle.

This time, Lin Chuan drew Number Three. He was far more confident than before. After grinding hard all month, his Body Flicker Technique had finally broken through to Chunin.

[Ninjutsu]

[Non-Elemental Ninjutsu]

[E-rank Ninjutsu: Transformation Technique (Genin: 1014/2000)]

[E-rank Ninjutsu: Clone Technique (Genin: 1013/2000)]

[E-rank Ninjutsu: Substitution Technique (Genin: 1017/2000)]

[D-rank Ninjutsu: Body Flicker Technique (Chunin: 2020/4000)]

[B-rank Ninjutsu: Shadow Clone (Genin: 148/1000)]

After breaking through, the Body Flicker Technique had reached Chunin level, and its proficiency cap had risen to four thousand. To break past the limit, he still needed to grind it another two thousand times.

At this stage, the Body Flicker Technique finally felt like a true Chunin-level technique. Genin-level proficiency was fine for Genin, but whether anyone could even use it smoothly at higher levels was questionable. He felt that only techniques with Chunin-level proficiency could be used in battle.

Based on the explosive force of his legs and his burst speed, he calculated that the Body Flicker Technique before Chunin proficiency could only be used to bully weaklings. After reaching Chunin, it finally began to resemble a proper Body Flicker Technique. He had no idea what effect breaking past the limit would bring, but that required another two thousand uses—half a year spent practicing nothing but the Body Flicker Technique.

He could not waste all his chakra on the Body Flicker Technique. He would not see any breakthrough effects from it anytime soon, so he needed to grind other ninjutsu instead.

He had also raised Shadow Clone to Genin level. Fortunately, breaking through to the next stage only required one thousand proficiency, a thousand less than E-rank ninjutsu. It seemed that the higher a ninjutsu's rank, the less proficiency it required to break through. The Grind Panel was surprisingly considerate.

For the third month, he planned to train Water Release. Grinding C-rank Water Release was easy and did not consume much chakra, so he could quickly raise his C-rank Water Release to Chunin proficiency.

His chakra was insufficient to rapidly grind B-rank Water Release proficiency, but one B-rank Water Release was an exception. He could exploit Water Release: Heavenly Weeping.

The high-density water needles fired by Heavenly Weeping were normally launched four at a time. He could not fire four water needles in a single shot, only one at a time, but the panel still recorded the proficiency.

He could split the complete Heavenly Weeping water-needle attack into four separate shots and quickly raise Water Release: Heavenly Weeping's proficiency. It might even be possible to grind it past the limit and see what special effects Heavenly Weeping would gain.

"Number Three, it's your turn..."

When Leopard called his number, Lin Chuan closed the Grind Panel. He rose with his slip of paper in hand and glanced at Sai, who had stood up as well. It seemed Sai was this round's opponent. Perhaps he could use this chance to kill him and gain some Life Points.

The two entered the room behind Leopard. Ryūma Aburame was still seated there, holding a record board and recording everyone's life or death.

"Begin when you're ready." Ryūma Aburame looked at Lin Chuan, Number Thirty-Three. Since joining Root, he had performed very well and received an A rating. Sai, Number Nineteen, was also impressive, with ratings generally above B. Combined with his special drawing secret technique, he was a promising prospect.

Judging by their overall strength, Sai would most likely be no match for Lin Chuan. Drawing took time, while a battlefield changed in an instant. Enemies would not wait patiently for someone to finish drawing.

"Ink Mist Technique." Sai raised both hands and formed seals, controlling ink with chakra to swirl around his body and form a mist of ink that concealed him and confused his enemy.

Seeing Sai about to be enveloped by black ink, Lin Chuan instantly gathered chakra in his legs, enhancing his body's explosive power and bursting into high-speed movement.

His feet sprang off the ground like coiled springs, leaving behind an afterimage. His right leg folded in an instant, knee rising as his hips twisted fiercely, releasing every ounce of stored force. A side kick carrying the momentum of his entire body tore straight through the ink with a howling gust of wind and slammed into Sai's abdomen.

"So fast..." Sai only managed to spit out those two words before his entire body flew backward from the ink. He crashed into the wall with a bang, producing a dull boom as blood instantly burst from his mouth.

Whoosh—

Lin Chuan drew his blade and used Body Flicker again, charging forward. His Body Flicker Technique had reached Chunin proficiency; fighting these Genin was simply bullying the weak. His blade stabbed straight toward Sai's heart.

Sai watched the blade grow larger in his pupils. His instinct to survive forced him to shout desperately at Lin Chuan, "I surrender..."

"What? You can surrender?" Lin Chuan could not stop his Body Flicker Technique due to inertia. Just as the blade was about to pierce Sai's heart, a kunai struck it and knocked the short blade away.

Having lost his short blade, Lin Chuan could only crash into Sai, sending him coughing up blood again and splattering Lin Chuan's face with it.

"Number Thirty-Three wins. Number Nineteen, go wait for the next battle." The instant Ryūma Aburame heard Sai surrender, he acted to stop Lin Chuan from delivering a killing blow.

Although deaths in battle were not prohibited, surrender during battle was not prohibited either. He wanted to eliminate the last-place candidate, not have these promising prospects slaughter one another meaninglessly. Those who died without surrendering died, but those who surrendered still had a chance to live.

If someone died during a battle, there would be no need to eliminate the last-place candidate. If no one died during the battles, then the last-place candidate would be physically eliminated. Death was used to force everyone to strive not to be the last.

Hearing Ryūma Aburame announce the result, Lin Chuan regretted that he had failed to kill Sai and gain Life Points. Helplessly, he picked up his short blade, slid it back into the sheath on his back, and headed to the treatment room behind them. He found a corner, closed his eyes, and rested.

Not long after, Shin arrived as well. Seeing that Sai was still alive, he could not help but sigh in relief. He even gave Lin Chuan a grateful look. He probably had no idea that Lin Chuan had genuinely wanted to kill Sai, only to be stopped by Ryūma Aburame.