The symbols spun into a ring and finally came to a stop.
Name on the left: Genma Shiranui.
Name on the right: Raido Namiashi.
Genma jumped down without hesitation, while I focused on the row where Raido appeared. He wore a red band across the bridge of his nose and a red shirt with white trim.
He's still hiding the scar, I thought as they faced each other.
"Begin!" the examiner shouted, and both instantly leapt back in opposite directions.
The arena was suddenly swallowed by a cloud of dust.
Raido used a smokescreen, I realized, squinting, though almost nothing was visible.
They're about the same age, and we were in the same class, so it's interesting what has changed…
The sounds of blows echoed across the arena, but through the dust it was impossible to tell who was attacking. Suddenly, a shadow burst out of the cloud — Genma. He landed on one knee, barely managing to set a kunai in front of him for defense.
"Fast…" someone muttered from the stands.
Raido lunged out of the dust with a kick. Genma rolled sharply to the side, and the strike missed his head by mere centimeters.
Genma snapped his fingers, and a needle glinted between his teeth. He exhaled sharply — a senbon shot forward. Raido barely managed to block with a kunai, but the needle clipped his sleeve, tearing the fabric.
"Hm, accurate," the examiner remarked.
Raido didn't hesitate. He formed a hand seal and slammed his palm into the ground. The dust rose again, thicker this time. The next instant, Genma felt a jolt in his back and tumbled forward.
"Got you," Raido said quietly, appearing at his side.
Genma spun around, blocking the strike with his elbow. Their fists collided, and for a second they froze, staring each other down.
"You've gotten faster," Genma smirked.
"And you're still too confident," Raido replied.
They jumped back simultaneously, breathing hard. The dust began to settle, and the spectators could finally see them both. Neither looked defeated — just scratched and short of breath.
This fight won't end easily, I thought, sensing that things were only going to get more serious.
"Don't drag it out," Genma said quietly and dashed forward.
He moved sharply, almost in bursts. Two senbon flew from his mouth at once. Raido sidestepped, but Genma was already close. A punch, a turn, a sweep — everything flowed as a single combination.
Raido fell onto one hand, rolled, and sprang back up immediately. He was breathing hard, but his eyes remained calm.
He's waiting, I realized. He's not forcing it.
Genma attacked again, faster than before. One strike — empty. A second — air.
At that moment, Raido stepped sharply inside the distance.
"Now."
He grabbed Genma by the sleeve, turned, and used Genma's own momentum against him. Genma couldn't react in time — he was thrown aside and slammed onto his back. Dust surged up again.
Genma tried to rise, but Raido was already there. One quick strike to the wrist — the senbon fell. A second to the shoulder, not strong, but precise. Genma froze, teeth clenched.
Raido stepped back and placed a kunai against his chest.
Silence hung for several seconds.
"Match over! Victory to Raido!" the examiner announced.
Genma didn't even show half his skills, I thought as the fight ended. He was constantly dragged into close combat — maybe that was Raido's strategy all along…
My thoughts were interrupted by Guy.
Without any warning, he jumped down into the arena.
"Uh…" I thought, quickly glancing at the screen.
Obito Uchiha versus Might Guy.
Obito was shouting something, waving his arms, clearly trying to look menacing and dangerous. He puffed out his chest and pointed at the arena.
"First I'll destroy you, bushy-brows, and then your partner!" he yelled.
Yeah, yeah… I thought, already guessing how this would end.
The next moment, Obito got distracted. He turned toward the stands, where Rin was waving at him and shouting encouragement. His threatening expression instantly turned into a goofy smile.
"Rin, watch this! This one's for you!" he blurted out, completely forgetting where he was.
"I will prove the power of youth!" Guy shouted at the top of his lungs, taking his stance. His eyes were literally blazing, and his pose was ridiculously perfect and confident.
"Begin!" the examiner called out.
But apparently Obito was too busy dreaming about Rin, because he missed it entirely.
Guy exploded forward instantly. One step, one strike — clean, precise, without wasted movement. Obito didn't even understand what happened. He spun around and collapsed onto the ground, staring at the ceiling with total confusion in his eyes.
"Victory to Might Guy!" the examiner's voice rang out.
There was a brief silence, then a ripple of laughter spread through the stands. Obito lay there blinking, as if the world had just betrayed him.
That was cringe, I thought, watching Obito's "world-ending threat" get humiliated for the second time in a row by a single blow.
Genma finally looked a bit more cheerful after the previous matches.
"Well, next time it'll work out," I said, giving him a light slap on the shoulder.
"Yeah, whatever," he replied with a slightly foolish smile, lowering his gaze.
The arena was cleared, and at last the display lit up again:
Kotetsu Hagane versus Inuzuka Shirai.
I straightened up.
So this is it, I thought, feeling adrenaline rise inside me.
"Good luck," Genma said, lightly punching my shoulder.
On the opposite side of the arena stood a guy with brown hair, wild facial features, and red fang markings painted on his cheeks. Beside him walked his partner — a ninken, a black dog with several scars across its body. It was clear the dog had seen more than one real battle.
As I looked at him, I tried to recall everything I knew. This guy had only shown up on the second day of the exam, and in all the time he'd been at the base, I hadn't learned much about him. But I did know something about the Inuzuka clan and some of their techniques, which I'd seen before. Possible actions and strategies began to line up in my mind.
He looked at me and smiled. In his eyes flashed the anticipation of an easy victory. It wasn't the joy itself that gave him away, but the smile — self-satisfied, slightly provocative.
I tightened my grip on the hilt of my blade and stepped forward. The ninken growled softly, and the air around it seemed to tense.
"Begin!" the examiner shouted.