As Gekko Hayate finished speaking, the names on the large screen beside him began scrolling rapidly!
Before long, the names stopped scrolling! The matchup displayed on the screen was: Naruto Uzumaki vs. Kiba Inuzuka!
All twelve looked a little surprised. They hadn't expected the very first match to pit two of them against each other!
Neither of them moved, however. They knew each other far too well and had sparred countless times, so both had a pretty good idea of who would win. Besides, this tower couldn't withstand a battle between them!
Naruto looked at Kiba, signaling for him to step down!
Kiba gave a wry smile and called out to Gekko Hayate, "Hayate! There's no need for this match! I forfeit!"
Fortunately, most of the spectators were from Konoha and knew something about them, so they weren't surprised!
Some of the contestants, however, began muttering among themselves and mocking Kiba. Kiba and the others paid them no mind!
After all, why should an eagle soaring through the sky care what an ant on the ground thought?
Gekko Hayate wasn't surprised by Kiba's surrender. After all, even he wasn't confident he could defeat Naruto as he was now!
"Naruto Uzumaki wins! Next match!" Gekko Hayate announced briskly, then had someone start the screen scrolling again!
The next few matches pitted members of the Konoha 12 against other contestants. Each of them took down their opponent with a single move!
Everyone present, especially the ninja from other villages, finally understood their reaction to the first match and gained a rough idea of those two fighters' strength!
"Ninth match! Rock Lee vs. Gaara!"
Gekko Hayate looked at the large screen and announced the matchup again.
Once he finished speaking, Gekko Hayate leaped up to the spectator stands. In the blink of an