Bai Ye vs. Yu Yan
"It's just you and Bai Ye now. We've all had our turn—just relax and have some fun," Asuma said with a teasing grin, his bamboo stick trembling slightly in his hands.
"Maybe I'll be the one left out this time," Bai Ye muttered, indifferent to the banter. After another match was drawn, only four contestants remained.
"There's only a one-in-three chance now. You two might not even face each other," Yue said, her expression tense as she looked between her teammates. One of them getting eliminated was inevitable if they were matched, but at least the other would advance.
"Don't be such a pessimist," Yu Yan replied, grabbing Yue's cheeks in mild irritation. Deep down, she knew that if she had to face Bai Ye, she'd probably lose. She wouldn't even get the chance to struggle.
"The next match: Gyoda Masashi versus Ishitani Daisuke."
Orochimaru's voice floated over from the announcer's platform, instantly turning Yu Yan to stone. Her entire body froze, and her nerves went taut.
"Huh. So I guess we're the finale," Bai Ye said nonchalantly.
Realistically, Bai Ye didn't see either of the two remaining opponents as a threat. He'd watched their earlier fights—uninspired, full of wasted movement. No edge, no killing intent. Just textbook drills.
But as fate would have it, the worst-case scenario loomed: facing Yu Yan.
"Well, two of us will reach the third round either way," Obito chimed in, little stars forming in his eyes. A goofy grin split his face.
The idea of reaching the final round right after graduation lit a fire in him—completely ignoring that he was still the weakest among their peers.
While Obito continued his starry-eyed dreaming, Bai Ye vaulted onto the guardrail to get a better view. The current match was practically decided, so he figured he might as well head down early.
"Bai Ye!"
He stopped, knees bent mid-leap, turning his head at the familiar voice.
A flying kick from Yu Yan struck his lower back. With a sharp whoosh, both of them launched off the second floor—Bai Ye gliding downward like a human sled with Yu Yan balanced atop him, riding him like a skateboard. She even added a spinning flourish at the end for style.
"Yuyan, that was unnecessary…" Asuma said half-heartedly, though the glint in his eyes betrayed his amusement.
Most of the betting boards had their disks pegged on Bai Ye to win. The thought of Yu Yan pulling off an upset put a mischievous smirk on Asuma's face.
"You pervert."
Bai Ye dusted himself off like it was nothing—just as Yu Yan expected. That kick hadn't hurt him. Not really. But it gave her a small emotional win.
"I didn't arrange for this matchup, you know," Bai Ye grumbled. The kick didn't do much damage, but still—she got the drop on him, and he wanted to pay her back.
"Bankai!"
The instant Bai Ye's voice fell, he vanished.
Yu Yan's eyes snapped open, Byakugan veins bulging around her temples. She activated her defensive technique instantly, her chakra distribution far more refined than before. After months of refining Bankai, its chakra drain was no longer as taxing as when she first learned it.
"You're really opening with that?" Bai Ye reappeared behind her, surprised at her decisiveness.
Even if Bankai now consumed less chakra, she'd already fought a previous match. Her reserves shouldn't be too deep. Opening with a heavy technique like that was a gamble.
"If I had your speed, I wouldn't need this," Yu Yan muttered internally. Since she couldn't outrun him, she had to rely on brute defense.
Spinning to redirect the force, she channeled her momentum into a single strike—her right palm surged with chakra and slammed toward Bai Ye's left shoulder.
Bai Ye, uncharacteristically careless, had just kicked with his right foot moments ago and hadn't fully recovered. Blood oozed from his toes—he was currently balancing on his left leg.
He shifted sideways and raised his left arm, parrying Yu Yan's palm with practiced ease. His forearm guided her attack along its outer edge, nullifying the momentum. Then he planted his left foot and surged forward, cutting off her ability to regroup.
Yu Yan gave up defending with her right and switched tactics.
Her left hand, fingertips glowing faintly blue, shot upward toward Bai Ye's abdomen.
He had anticipated it.
Snatching her wrist mid-motion, he halted her strike a fraction of a second before impact. Still, a thin trickle of blood escaped his lips. The strike hadn't connected fully—yet it had disrupted his chakra flow, just for a moment.
"A remote pressure effect?" Bai Ye thought. "Like a hybrid of Hakuda and the Five Elements Seal…"
The move was clearly experimental—its control was shaky and power suboptimal. Still, it had momentarily disoriented him.
But that moment passed quickly.
Yu Yan had no time to react as Bai Ye's shoulder rammed into her, throwing her off balance. She hit the ground on her back with a loud thud, the wind knocked from her lungs.
Even so, she wasn't done.
Twisting her body left, she fired her right knee upward—straight toward Bai Ye's groin.
His eyes widened.
"Shit!"
In a split-second panic, Bai Ye snapped his legs upward, forming a protective shield. The knee still made contact, climbing with disturbing persistence, but at least he managed to deflect the worst of it.
Not fully. Not entirely. But enough.