The arena fell silent as the screen began to reveal the names of the next combatants: Jasper Ōtsutsuki vs. Temari.
Surprises filled the crowd. Few knew of Jasper's background as an Ōtsutsuki. While many believed he would give a worthy fight, Temari received little praise.
Arthur, however, couldn't help but notice the subtle shift in the atmosphere. A few disgruntled snorts could be heard. Sasuke's annoyance and averted gaze made it clear that he was not a fan, likely due to Jasper's brash personality.
What also interested Arthur was how quiet Team Guy was.
"Try not to hurt her, okay?" Alice said, eyeing Jasper.
"Babe, come on, why would I even think about it?"
She then narrowed her gaze. "I'm serious…"
"Fine, fine. I'll go light."
As the spotlight focused on the platform, Jasper sauntered forward with a cocky grin. Temari remained composed as she walked to the opposite end.
"That giant fan's not gonna help," Jasper taunted.
Temari furrowed her brow, unaware that anyone knew of her fighting style. Not believing him, she smirked. "We'll just see about that."
"See what, you whore?" Many spectators gasped. Such blatant disrespect toward an opponent, especially a skilled kunoichi like Temari, was unheard of. "I'll send you right back to the Sand when I'm through with you."
"Jasper!" Margaret yelled from the balcony.
Unfazed by her outburst, he turned toward her and spat, "Shut up and watch how the best ninja does it."
Margaret's face turned red with frustration. Before she could scream, Alice calmed her down. Jasper's constant barrage of insults, while initially amusing to them, was starting to grate on their nerves.
There was a fine line between playful banter and sheer cruelty, and Jasper seemed oblivious to where it lay.
Even Alex didn't take Jasper's comment lightly. Neither did the other Jōnin, some unsure of his real skill sets.
"Why would you say that?!" Jada asked, nudging Arthur.
"Guess he's just getting into the fight," Arthur shrugged.
Temari seemed to remain unfazed by Jasper's taunts. With a swift movement, she unfurled her giant fan, creating a sudden gust of wind that ruffled Jasper's hair.
"Keep that tough guy act as long as you can," she growled.
Arthur leaned forward to focus. Jasper's initial outburst, while distasteful, had served a purpose: it had thrown Temari off balance, disrupting her usual calm demeanour.
Hayate raised his hand to signal the match. "Begin!"
Jasper wasted no time giving a feral grin as he squatted down, digging his elbows into his knees. A jolt of raw energy then surged through his body, causing his muscles to bulge beneath his clothes.
The crowd gasped.
'So that's it,' Arthur thought.
The air around Jasper began to heat up slightly as a green aura swirled around him. His skin turned red from the boiling blood circulating through his veins, and his all-white eyes snapped open.
"Fourth gate: gate of pain, open!"
Before Temari could even react, he vanished from his starting position, reappearing behind her in a blink. Then, a sickening crack echoed through the arena as he landed a vicious blow to her back. Ka-bang!
Temari crumpled and flew forward. Jasper didn't relent, quickly circling her like a predator.
A flurry of merciless taijutsu attacks followed, each one landing their mark.
The crowd was stunned into silence, with many wondering how a Genin could move at such high speeds. All the players could feel the disgust radiating from Might Guy specifically.
"I'm curious," Arthur said to Jada. "When did he learn it?"
"I... I have no idea. He never mentioned it to anyone before."
For Jasper's final blow, he delivered a brutal knee strike to Temari's abdomen. Her expression was filled with pain and shock as she coughed up a spray of stomach fluids. Then she fell to the floor, clutching her stomach.
Everyone watched as she finally lost consciousness. The fourth gate was then deactivated, leaving Jasper drained but victorious.
"Should've watched your mouth, you ugly whore."
Hayate finally raised his hand. "The winner of the match… is Jasper Ōtsutsuki."
The jubilant cheers that typically accompanied a victory were replaced by stunned silence. Unlike the previous fights thus far, there was no show of sportsmanlike respect whatsoever.
No, this was a one-sided beatdown, one that left a sour feeling for Team Baki.
Jasper didn't care. He only looked at Might Guy and gave him an unruly smirk. The once enthusiastic Jōnin wore a disappointed expression, allowing Arthur to connect the dots.
He remembered Alice stating that Jasper would be off training in secret. But she never said he was training by himself. If Arthur was correct, he must have tracked Might Guy down and tricked the Jōnin into revealing his knowledge of the Eight Gates.
In the story, Rock Lee required permission from Might Guy to use that technique. Now Jasper was treating it like it was his own to do as he pleased.
Upon looking at the faces of the others, Arthur confirmed that Might Guy was the only one with disappointment filling his features. Who could blame that Jōnin for feeling the way that he did? Might Guy had been fooled—currently witnessing a disheartening display of barbaric violence with a technique his own father had sacrificed himself for.
Jasper eventually sauntered back toward the second floor, where Alice was waiting with an upset expression. The two then argued back and forth, drawing unwanted attention. Based on their talk, she seemed to know that she had known about his Eight Gates the entire time.
Everyone knew he had the Byakugan. Now he was an Ōtsutsuki with the Eight Gates. The balance of power had greatly shifted in his favour.
Things finally settled once Hayate prepared for the next round.
Six matches had taken place. That left four more matches and eight ninjas who had yet to fight: Chōji, Shino, Jada, Gaara, Kiba, Neji, Naruto, and Arthur.
Of those eight, only Jada would be a problem. Arthur had already proved himself capable of outmatching her in a fight. Yet that was prior to her awakening her Sharingan. Who knew what techniques she'd learned since then?
Regarding Gaara, he isn't an average ninja. From a young age, he was trained as a weapon, honing his skills and chakra reserves to become a force to be reckoned with. Even as a child, his power was undeniable, effortlessly eliminating assassins sent after him.
He specializes in sand manipulation, carrying a gourd filled with his personal sand that was also infused with his chakra. He could also use surrounding sand or break down minerals to create more if need be.
The sand itself can be incredibly versatile, used for both offense and defense. He could shape it into weapons like shuriken and swords, use it to fly, sense hidden targets, create clones, and even grant himself a 'third eye' for recon.
That was actually how he passed the written exams: by using a third eye to peer at everyone else's answers.
Anyone facing Gaara would have quite the problem since his preferred tactic was to stay out of close-quarters combat while using sand to attack from afar. Even when his opponent did come in close range, he had an automatic sand shield for defense, said to be a result of his mother's love protecting him even after her death.
If breached, he could activate heavy sand armour to further protect him from being injured.
What was most disturbing about him was his Tailed Beast, Shukaku, a monstrous entity that vastly increased his power but risked him losing control.
If things went south quickly for Gaara, he might release the One-Tailed early. And if that were to happen, it would be the biggest fault caused by the players.
Eventually, the giant screen above the platform showed the next names: Naruto Uzumaki vs. Kiba Inuzuka.
A raucous cheer erupted from the stands, with many of the players and Naruto's team encouraging him.
Kiba received a far more subdued level of support, primarily from his loyal teammates. Even so, he felt cocky, still believing Naruto to be the slacker of the academy, the dead-last student with a penchant for pranks.
Naruto, meanwhile, strolled onto the platform with a confident swagger. When the two fighters met in the center, Kiba mocked him, saying that it would be a walk in the park.
"Keep dreaming," Naruto confidently said.
Arthur furrowed his brow. This wasn't even close to the Naruto he remembered from his initial observations—the Naruto who randomly hurled out brash pronouncements before his fights. No, this Naruto seemed too well prepared.
"Begin!"
Kiba, eager to assert his dominance, lunged forward, Akamaru by his side. But Naruto didn't hesitate to put up a hand sign.
"Multi-shadow clone jutsu!"
Four identical Narutos materialized beside the original, causing Kiba to quickly skid to a halt.
"Show em who's boss, cuz!" cheered William.
Arthur watched as the Narutos sprang into action with surprising coordination.
Three of them engaged Kiba and Akamaru in a bombardment of kicks and punches. The real Naruto, meanwhile, flanked Kiba from behind, delivering a swift kick that sent the Inuzuka flying. By the time Kiba recovered on the floor, he was caught off guard again by more incoming Narutos.
His initial confidence had disappeared.
Trying to launch himself to gain some breathing room, he was immediately surrounded by four more clones that had been summoned. Now eight Narutos filled the arena.
Kiba charged with his 'Fang Over Fang' technique, spiraling through many of the Narutos. Two turned into nothing but smoke, but when he reached the third, the clone didn't move.
That Naruto waited until the last second before unleashing a spinning low kick.
"Leaf whirlwind!"
Some of the crowd gasped as it connected squarely with Kiba's shin, sending him stumbling backward.
"When did he learn that?!" Lee asked in surprise.
"Doesn't sound like you taught it to him," Neji commented. "What say you, Guy-sen—"
"Now that's what I'm talking about, Naruto!" Might Guy cheered.
Kakashi closed his eyes in embarrassment, unaware that Guy even knew who Naruto was. And to be frank, even he wasn't sure of how Naruto knew that technique.
Akamaru yipped in surprise as the other Narutos swarmed the dog. In just moments, they held him by his paws.
Now Arthur was certain: Naruto was strategizing, knowing that holding Akamaru would throw Kiba off track.
Seizing the opportunity, another Naruto launched himself at the disoriented Kiba.
"Leaf hurricane!"
Kiba could only raise his arms in a futile attempt to block as he was hit twice. The other Narutos joined in, and each of their kicks landed with a solid thud, sending Kiba further off balance. With a final, powerful upward thrust, the real Naruto appeared and launched Kiba skyward.
Kiba's body slowly turned end over end before slamming back down to the floor. Then all the clones dispersed.
The boy, in his triumphant stance, screamed, "Don't ever underestimate Naruto Uzumaki!"
The crowd erupted in cheers. Even Kiba's loyal teammates joined in on the hoorahs.
"Didn't that look a little familiar to you?" Jada asked Arthur.
"What do you mean...?"
"Oh yeah!" she yelled. "I forgot you never played the video games. Do you remember when Alex said that ultimate jutsus are in here too?"
"Yeah…"
"Well, it's not just for us to use either. Everyone can use them. That attack you saw Naruto use was the 'Green Beast'."
Arthur had never heard of this. Apparently, the "Green Beast" was an alter ego of a Naruto who was highly skilled at taijutsu.
Arthur's initial annoyance gave way to a cold dread. It was bad enough that some of the main characters were buffed, but Naruto's potential had further increased—a potential that was being nurtured, likely by William's training with the main character.
If that kept up, Naruto would be even stronger than he was written to have been in his prime.
Hayate soon approached, raised his hand, and said, "The winner is Naruto Uzumaki."
Another cacophony of cheers and whistles filled the room. Naruto, chest puffed with pride, pumped his fist in the air. He had proven himself to be a worthy ninja who represented the Leaf Village indubitably.
From the stands, Sakura gave him a proud smile. Sasuke couldn't help but crack a small grin. Perhaps the character most impressed by this display of fighting was Kakashi, who saw none other than his sensei, Minato, in his pupil.