"What are we gonna do about this?"
Shizune quickly relayed the news to Kazama.
"Originally, Tsunade-sama was hoping the ninjas from the other nations in the Martial Arts Tournament would help take down these escaped prisoners. But now, these prisoners are specifically targeting Konoha's Chūnin and Genin. The other nations' ninjas definitely won't lift a finger to help—after all, if Konoha's ninjas get taken out, that's fewer opponents for them in the tournament!"
"Don't worry, you're just short on manpower, right? I've got you covered!"
"Kazama, little brother, I know you're crazy strong, but there are so many prisoners. How can you handle them all by yourself…?"
"Mokuton: Multiple Clone Technique!"
Before Shizune could finish, Kazama created fifty thousand Mokuton (Wood Release) clones in an instant, leaving her so stunned she nearly collapsed.
Shizune couldn't help but think Kazama was some kind of monstrous genius.
"Shizune-neesan, how many prisoners escaped?"
"About five thousand or so."
"Got it!"
With that, Kazama sent his tens of thousands of Mokuton clones out in groups of five to track down the prisoners and drag them back to prison.
Fifty thousand against five thousand? That's an overwhelming advantage.
Thanks to Kazama's army of clones, a task that would've taken days was wrapped up in mere moments. Every single prisoner was rounded up and locked back in their cells.
Shizune was in absolute awe of Kazama's prowess.
Next, Kazama had his Mokuton clones carry the injured Naruto, Sakura, and the others to Konoha Hospital.
Sure, Kazama could've healed them himself, but with the tournament packed with top-tier fighters, even if he patched them up, they'd still likely lose.
After all, the goal was to whittle thousands of competitors down to just ten. Without real strength, there was no way to make it to the end.
By the end of the first round's free-for-all, Konoha was left with only one fighter: Kazama.
He was the only one from Konoha with the skill to go the distance.
Meanwhile, Otogakure's Three-Tails, Four-Tails, Five-Tails, and Six-Tails Jinchūriki all advanced.
This thrilled Kazama, though it was exactly what he'd expected.
These four were Jinchūriki and fought as a team—ordinary ninjas didn't stand a chance against them.
The remaining five spots were filled by ninjas from other nations, including the Seven-Tails Jinchūriki, Kaede, from Takigakure.
"If I can get the Seven-Tails' power, grabbing the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails will be a breeze. Once I collect all nine Tailed Beasts and gain the Ten-Tails' power, just how strong will I be? I bet I could even awaken the Nine-Tomoe Rinne Sharingan!"
Kazama mulled this over as he and the other nine victorious ninjas headed to the second arena.
The next stage—the tournament-style battles—was about to begin.
When Kazama and the others arrived at the second arena, it caused quite a stir.
But the buzz wasn't about Kazama—it was about Otogakure.
Otogakure had always been a nobody in the ninja world.
Yet now, four of their fighters had advanced in the tournament.
And what shocked people even more? All four were Jinchūriki.
That kind of power was something even the five great ninja villages couldn't match.
The leaders of the various ninja villages in attendance were floored.
"Tsunade, your Konoha's Sanada Kazama is impressive, but Otogakure's got you beat. They've got four Jinchūriki in the finals! Even your genius Kazama's gonna have a hard time winning this one!"
The Tsuchikage, whose village didn't have a single ninja advance, couldn't resist taking a jab at Tsunade.
If he knew Kazama was actually the leader of Otogakure, his jaw would probably hit the floor.