"The first match, Gekko Nightdance versus Yuma Taka..."
Akaba glanced over. His opponent was one of the three ninja from Taki village.
This kind of opponent wasn't even worth watching.
He gave a brief glance, then casually sat down and fell asleep.
Predictably,
Soon enough, Nightdance easily claimed victory.
The three from Taki village had passed the second stage thanks to Orochimaru, but in the third stage they became pitiful cannon fodder.
Within just four or five rounds, all three Taki ninja were completely eliminated.
"Looks like Sunagakure's playing with the match setups,"
Shishio whispered next to Akaba.
"Mm."
"Now that all the Taki participants are eliminated, doesn't this mean we'll be facing off internally next?"
"Yeah."
"..."
Shishio looked at his teammate, unsure if he was asleep or not. After a moment of speechless frustration, he turned his attention to Sakumo.
Unlike Akaba, Sakumo was fired up and eager to fight Sankai.
Totally uncommunicative, huh?
Sighing helplessly, Shishio could only wait quietly.
Match fixing?
Didn't every tournament organizer play a few games? If Konoha hosted, they'd do the same.
But Shishio was still young—it was normal for him to care about such things.
Leaning against a rock, Akaba quickly fell asleep.
Not long afterward,
"Akaba, it's your turn."
Kicked awake, Akaba blinked sleepily before sitting up.
His gaze swept around and immediately changed expression—the recently returned Tsunade was heavily wounded, sitting motionless not far away.
Her body covered in countless wounds, her clothes torn by sharp objects everywhere.
Further away, Yuhi Shinku also bore injuries. Noticing Akaba's gaze, he managed a tired smile. "Be careful. The opponent might be a speed-type ninja."
Clearly, Yuhi Shinku had lost due to speed disadvantage.
Akaba looked toward the distance.
Among the gathered Suna genin, Sankai had just sat down.
"It's him!"
Then he looked up at the board.
On the signboard there, the match listed was: Sakuma Akaba vs Yuma Taka.
Who was Yuma Taka? He didn't care. But as he approached, Akaba immediately recognized the person behind the nameplate.
It was Ebizo!
"I understand."
Akaba nodded appreciatively toward Shishio who had woken him, then stood up and walked into the arena.
In the middle of the canyon, Yuma Taka had been waiting.
Seeing Akaba appear, he sneered, "You're skilled in genjutsu, but I won't give you any chance."
"Still an uninteresting strategy," Chiyo stated bluntly.
"As long as it wins, isn't that what matters?" Ebizo shrugged indifferently.
According to his calculations, although Akaba's genjutsu was strong, with a speed-specialist ninja disrupting his technique casting, supported by elemental techniques, defeating Akaba was guaranteed.
This had already been proven effective against Yuhi Shinku, and Yuma Taka was precisely the fastest genin in Sunagakure.
Referee Joji Tanaka glanced upward and started the countdown.
"I'll end this fight at maximum speed," Taka continued. "You won't stand a chance!"
Akaba ignored him completely, not even pulling out his brush and sketchpad.
The moment "one" was shouted, Taka accelerated forward toward him in an instant.
However,
as he approached, Akaba's hands swiftly formed hand seals.
He executed the [Narakami no Jutsu] in the blink of an eye.
Taka halted momentarily right before Akaba as the technique took effect.
In the next second, without hesitation, Akaba wasted no time pulling a kunai from his sleeve and hurling it behind him.
At the same time, Yuma Taka dispelled the effects of [Narakami no Jutsu].
"We surrender."
Ebizō felt something ominous.
Before he could even finish saying that, Yuma Taka suddenly screamed in pain.
"This genjutsu can be dispelled anytime. To ensure victory, I have no choice but to do this. Besides, you were too slow."
Apologetically, Akaba bowed.
Then, he turned around and stepped down from the stage.
Instantly, Chiyo appeared beside Taka, yet there was nothing she could do for a fatal wound straight through the heart without Medical Ninjutsu. Medication alone wasn't enough to save Yuma Taka now.
Helplessly shaking her head, she fed him one pill.
This poison induced immediate unconsciousness and plunged him into a coma. This was the only thing she could offer.
Yuma Taka, a promising speed-type ninja, had been killed like this.
"Sorry, Akaba comes from the Sakuma clan and his body is weak. He only had this one chance."
Kakashi Windseer casually explained.
Whether others believed him or not didn't matter; at least, he himself believed what he said.
Shamon was suffering inside, but on the outside, he managed only a strained grin. "I understand. I know quite well about the Sakuma clan. Also, since Yuma Taka voluntarily signed the consent form, his death isn't Akaba's responsibility."
As Akaba reached the bottom, he happened to lock eyes with Sankai for a brief moment before both turned away.
Signing a peace treaty between their nations and reaching a consensus for alliance didn't necessarily mean real peace.
The Chunin Exams would be another battlefield.
"Not bad at all!"
Tsunade smirked slightly and leaned back against the wall, shifting into a more comfortable posture.
"Just a minor role? Remember, this story revolves around me."
Playfully, Akaba half-joked.
Sand Village planned to specifically target them? Then he'd show them he wasn't someone easily messed with.
Joji Tanaka remained silent for a moment.
Then, after glancing around, he announced, "Let's continue with the next match: Mitashigo Shishio versus Yo Takagi."
"This one's mine."
Mitashigo Shishio sneered coldly and proceeded downstairs.
Soon afterward, the battle began.
Everyone from Konoha watched the scene unfold, visibly relaxing.
Though everyone fully understood Shishio's abilities, they knew he definitely wasn't among the strongest ranks. His strength lay in versatility—he usually never revealed his full capabilities.
Sunagakure clearly underestimated him because of his unpredictability. There was simply no way their fighter could beat Shishio.
Nonetheless, Shishio had other plans, intentionally holding back his power while exchanging blows evenly with the enemy.
Finally, barely managing to overwhelm his opponent with a powerful fireball jutsu.
Though not dead, the opponent would suffer severe facial disfigurement by current medical standards.
How ruthless!
Sankai clenched his fist tightly.
After a brief silence, Shamon realized that Leaf Village was now retaliating.
Sunagakure could arrange suitable opponents to suppress their rivals, but naturally, the other side also skillfully exploited the rules to teach them a lesson.
In any case, they had no reason to berate the Konoha genin.
But if things kept going on like this, with the current power level of the Konoha ninja...
He glanced up and gave a slight shake of his head.
Shamon's message was clear—stop all unnecessary tricks.
Ebizō hesitated, then finally let out a bitter sigh.
Even with thorough intelligence gathering, the gap in power was just too great. A carefully arranged countermeasure had unexpectedly become a death sentence.
"The next match: Sakumo Hatake vs. Sarutobi Shinnosuke."
Another civil match.
But for Akaba and the others, that no longer mattered.
Now there was only one goal—to defeat whoever Sunagakure intended to protect.
Who was that person from Sunagakure?
Undoubtedly, Sankai, who possessed [Magnet Release]!
Sakumo and Shinnosuke's battle was intense. Though lightning-type chakra usually held an advantage over earth-type, once a technique reached a certain level of strength, such advantages could no longer guarantee complete dominance.
Shinnosuke's [Earth Release] was extremely strong, durable enough to withstand [Lightning Release] for an extended period. But even the strongest defense had its weaknesses—and Sakumo happened to be exceptionally skilled at finding those flaws.
Eventually, Shinnosuke had no choice but to concede defeat.
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