Majestic Destroyer Flame!

"Hayato Hyuga of Konoha wins!"

The moment Hayato Hyuga's gaze shifted toward Tetsuya Raikō's heart, Arakawa Kiba had already appeared beside him with the Body Flicker Technique. Once Arakawa Kiba declared Hayato the winner, Hayato naturally had no reason to strike again.

"He fooled his enemy with the Clone Technique, then used his real body to strike his opponent's Tenketsu with the Gentle Fist for an instant takedown. That boy Hayato has really grown."

On the arena's second floor, Kazuhiko Sarutobi could not help praising his student's brilliant performance. Elsewhere, Sandō Raikō was cursing Hayato. In Sandō's eyes, Hayato's sneak attack made him no better than a rat. Had Tetsuya not let his guard down, Hayato would never have been a match for his friend.

After Hayato's fight ended, battles between the other villages followed. With so many participants from Sunagakure, some of its ninja even faced one another. But these children's scuffles naturally failed to interest Madara Uchiha. After watching two or three matches, he closed his eyes to rest. In complete contrast to Madara Uchiha, Hayato Hyuga remained enthusiastic about every match despite having already fought and qualified for the main tournament. His displeasure with Kumogakure was obvious, though. Whenever a Kumogakure contestant fought, Hayato cheered for their opponent.

"Number twenty-five, Sandō Raikō of Kumogakure. Number twenty-six, Uchiha Itachi of Konoha."

As the fights proceeded one pair after another, it finally came time for the last match. By a remarkable coincidence, Madara Uchiha's opponent was none other than Sandō Raikō, who had provoked him earlier.

"Itachi, you'd better win! You're the one I'm striving to catch up to. If you lose to this big guy, I'll look down on you for the rest of my life!"

Before Madara Uchiha entered the arena, Hayato Hyuga stood before him with a solemn expression and offered encouragement. Madara Uchiha merely gave a disdainful smile.

He's striving to catch up to me?

"Teacher Kazuhiko, look at him! Isn't he a little too full of himself?"

Indignant at being ignored by Madara Uchiha, Hayato Hyuga complained to Kazuhiko, but Kazuhiko's attention was elsewhere.

Am I imagining it? Uchiha Itachi seems a little different from usual today.

Previously, Madara Uchiha had given Kazuhiko the impression that he was utterly indifferent to everything. Today, however, when Madara Uchiha heard that his opponent was Sandō Raikō, Kazuhiko had clearly caught a trace of delight on his face.

"So it's you, brat! Hahaha! Has Konoha run out of people? They actually sent an eight-year-old who hasn't even awakened his Sharingan to take the chunin ninja exams."

Before the match began, Sandō Raikō mercilessly mocked Madara Uchiha, who did not even reach his waist. Sandō had already decided to gouge out his opponent's eyes. Once he had torn out Madara Uchiha's eyes, he would toss them in front of Hayato Hyuga. That would teach the boy to make so much noise earlier. Then, if he met Hayato in the main tournament, he would gouge out Hayato's eyes too.

"You said you wanted to collect the Uchiha Clan's eyes. If you don't mind my asking, is that because someone else in Kumogakure already has that hobby, and you're following their example?"

"No, it's just a personal hobby. Tell you what, brat. I'll spare you for now if you kneel and beg for mercy. Once you awaken your Sharingan, why don't you gouge out your own eyes and bring them to me?"

Madara Uchiha did not respond to Sandō's continued provocations. Seeing that both contestants had finished talking, Arakawa Kiba, who was overseeing the match, announced its start.

"Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"

As soon as Arakawa Kiba's announcement rang out, Madara Uchiha had already finished his hand seals while Sandō Raikō was still forming his. Madara Uchiha opened his mouth and exhaled, unleashing a vast torrent of flames from his small mouth that engulfed the entire arena. Across from him, Sandō Raikō had never seen such terrifying Fire Release. When he saw the Majestic Destroyer Flame sweeping toward him, he even forgot to run. Meanwhile, on the arena's second floor, Sandō Raikō's jōnin instructor immediately prepared to use the Body Flicker Technique to rescue him upon seeing Madara Uchiha's terrifying Fire Release. But the moment the thought arose, the intense heat of the Majestic Destroyer Flame had already reached the second floor. To keep his other students safe, he could only stay there and use ninjutsu to guard against its spillover. When the Majestic Destroyer Flame ended, all that remained of Sandō Raikō in the arena was his charred corpse.

"Uchiha Itachi! This is murder!"

Watching his beloved student die before his eyes, Arashi Yakō, the jōnin from Kumogakure, roared in fury. As he entered the arena, Arakawa Kiba and Kazuhiko Sarutobi moved to face him.

His heart still pounding, Arakawa Kiba glanced at Madara Uchiha, who stood expressionless where he was, then at Sandō Raikō, who had died without even having time to scream. Despite having seen countless young prodigies, Arakawa Kiba still found himself wondering whether that Majestic Destroyer Flame truly was a technique this eight-year-old child could wield.

Even Arakawa Kiba, an elite jōnin, had no absolute confidence that he could have escaped Madara Uchiha's Majestic Destroyer Flame unscathed had he been in Sandō's place. As the arena's referee, he should have intervened whenever a genin's life was threatened. But the range and power of Madara Uchiha's ninjutsu were simply too overwhelming. Even Arakawa Kiba had been forced to stay out of its path, so Sandō Raikō's death beneath that technique was hardly surprising.

"I never imagined that the ninja who threatened before the match to collect my Uchiha Clan's Sharingan would be so pathetically weak. If I'd known your Kumogakure ninja couldn't take a hit, I would have held back."

Adults would not get angry over a child's nonsense. But if a child's wild words touched an adult's sore spot, then he needed to be taught a lesson.

Arashi Yakō was right. Madara Uchiha had attacked with the intent to kill Sandō Raikō. But they had signed life-and-death waivers for the genin exams, so dying at an opponent's hands was an anticipated possibility. Although no one had died in the twelve matches before Madara Uchiha's, that did not mean Madara was forbidden from killing.

"You little bastard! I'll gouge out your eyes!"

Consumed by rage, Arashi Yakō sent chakra coursing through his body. With Lightning Release stimulating his flesh, his speed and strength increased enormously. Even Kazuhiko Sarutobi and Arakawa Kiba, both fellow jōnin, would struggle to stop him. Just then, the utterly composed Madara Uchiha spoke.

"What, do you want to dance too?"