When Anyo had first graduated, he had cared about none of his classmates except Minato, much less formed any bonds with them. He had swept across the battlefield alongside White Fang, like a lone wolf.
Thinking back now, his choice back then had not been wrong. Everyone grew in different ways. If he really had formed any bonds, anyone who followed Anyo onto the battlefield would probably have died long ago.
After the three Sound Ninja retreated in defeat, leaving behind the Earth Scroll and slinking away, Tenten went to rescue Rock Lee, then left after saying goodbye to Sakura.
Neji looked at Rock Lee and sighed helplessly. "We need to hurry. We're still one scroll short. So much time has passed that some teams might already have arrived."
"Catch." Anyo casually tossed over a scroll. "I've got an extra. It's yours."
Neji was about to return the scroll when Anyo continued, "Don't refuse. This test means nothing to you except wasted time. The matches coming up are when you'll really get to show your strength."
Hearing this, Neji tightened his grip on the scroll and accepted it, agreeing with Anyo.
The six of them formed an alliance and quietly headed toward the finish.
Rock Lee kept looking at the three beside him and quietly asked Tenten, "How did you form an alliance? Why didn't I know? Also, their masks are so cool. Could I..."
Before Tenten could answer, Anyo took out a book and tossed it over. "Here, take a look. Whichever one you like in there, I'll give you a mask of it."
Rock Lee looked at the book in his hands. Its title was written in four large Chinese characters: Transformers.
Curious, Rock Lee opened to the first page and soon became engrossed, even forgetting all about