"Sasuke, you need to step up your game."
Kakashi, who was pretending to read "Make-Out Paradise," couldn't sit still and stared intently at the battle in the arena.
Hinata asked happily, "Naruto-kun, is Ino going to win?"
Naruto shook his head and said, "I don't think so."
Sasuke has extremely high combat talent, coupled with the Sharingan's enhancement, there's no reason for him to lose so easily.
Although Ino Yamanaka had set up a "minefield" in advance, and her Mind Body Switch Technique was more powerful than in the original story, it wasn't invincible. Everything depended on whether the Mind Body Switch Technique could hit the opponent.
If it couldn't hit, Ino Yamanaka wasn't much stronger than a Chunin.
Just as Naruto had guessed, Sasuke's Sharingan, with its two tomoe, spun wildly, locking onto Ino's Chakra flow and hand sign movements.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
Sasuke, who had his hands in a hand sign, suddenly opened his mouth, and several scorching fireballs shot towards Ino, preventing her from using her Mind Body Switch Technique.
"Such fast hand signs! He was already interfered with his perception and balance, yet he can still quickly come up with a countermeasure?"
Facing the Phoenix Flower Jutsu, Ino Yamanaka's heart skipped a beat. She gritted her teeth and could only quickly dodge.
This gave Uchiha Sasuke another chance to break free from the Mind Body Disturbance Jutsu's influence. He leaped into the air, his hands rapidly forming hand signs again. His cheeks puffed out, and he blew once more, sending another large cluster of fireballs, like dazzling phoenix flowers, raining down from the sky.
Ino Yamanaka saw that none of the fireballs were aimed at her. She raised her hands again, assuming the Mind Body Switch Technique pose, and smiled, "Where are you aiming?"
"It seems the Sharingan's aim is a bit off~"
Before she finished speaking, the Phoenix Flower Jutsu exploded in the "minefield." The Timed Explosive Tag Curse Seals hidden on the ground were either destroyed or detonated prematurely, constantly exploding, forming balls of fire and stirring up rolling thick smoke and dust.
"My Timed Explosive Tag Curse Seals!"
Ino Yamanaka's face changed drastically. Only then did she realize Sasuke's true target was not herself, but the explosive tag minefield she had painstakingly set up in advance.
"Your Mind Body Switch Technique and explosive curse tags are indeed tricky, but as long as my speed is fast enough, you can't aim at me!"
Sasuke's voice came. He used the smoke and dust from the explosion as cover and, with even greater speed, closed in on Ino Yamanaka from the flank.
"Screech—"
A piercing, sharp noise, like a thousand birds chirping in unison, suddenly erupted!
Blinding blue lightning fiercely condensed and compressed in Sasuke's palm—it was Kakashi's secret technique, Chidori!
"Oh no!"
Ino Yamanaka's face changed drastically. She frantically aimed the hole formed by her combined palms at Sasuke.
But Sasuke, with his Sharingan activated and moving at high speed, was no less agile than Rock Lee. Even the specially trained Ino Yamanaka couldn't aim at him instantly.
If she couldn't aim, she would lose.
"I should have left Timed Explosive Tag Curse Seals under my feet too!"
Ino Yamanaka steeled herself, preparing to crouch down, but Sasuke's speed after using Chidori far exceeded her imagination.
By the time Ino Yamanaka gave up on the Mind Body Switch Technique, Sasuke, weaving left and right, had seized her other wrist with one hand, holding the Chidori, and was already upon her.
"Screech!"
The lightning tore through the air, carrying a destructive aura, striking directly at Ino's chest!
Just an instant before the Chidori was about to hit—Sasuke's wrist sharply deflected!
"Bang—!!"
The violent lightning grazed Ino's body and slammed fiercely into the ground behind her.
The hard stone slabs were torn, pulverized, and charred like tofu, leaving a shocking large pit with residual electric arcs still flickering at the bottom!
The strong wind messed up Ino's blonde hair. She looked at the terrifying destruction beside her, still shaken, and cold sweat instantly soaked her back.
She had no doubt that if that blow had connected, she would have been severely injured or even killed.
Sasuke slowly retracted his smoking hand, the lightning in his eyes dissipated, and his Sharingan returned to its normal black color.
He looked coldly at the pale Ino Yamanaka, his voice devoid of any emotion: "Boring. You lost."
Shiranui Genma flashed into the arena, glanced at the destroyed ground and the shaken Ino, then at the expressionless Sasuke, and announced loudly, "Victor—Uchiha Sasuke!"
"I lost—"
Ino Yamanaka returned, looking unhappy.
"Ah, darn it, my private date with Naruto is gone~!"
Ino Yamanaka, back in her seat, stomped her foot in anger, clenching her hands like a puffed-up kitten, squeezing the air a few times. A "#" symbol appeared on her temple.
Losing was one thing, but she also realized how big the gap was between herself and Uchiha Sasuke.
She had thought she was incredibly strong after being specially trained by Naruto for two or three months, but she still couldn't defeat truly top-tier peers her age.
Hinata encouraged her with a clenched fist over her chest: "Ino, it's okay. Keep working hard, and you'll win next time."
"But—you can't say anything about a private date with Naruto, that's—that's too cunning!"
Ino Yamanaka's anger immediately dissipated, and she replied with a cheerful smile, "The next round is you, isn't it? You can learn from me. If you win against your opponent, you'll get a chance to have a private date with Naruto."
"Under the moon, by the Naka River, just the two of you~"
As Ino Yamanaka described it, Hinata's mind conjured a romantic and enchanting scene. Her cheeks instantly flushed, and her eyes couldn't help but glance at Naruto.
Naruto wasn't a block of wood either. He smiled and said, "If you win, I can give you a small reward."
"Really?"
Hinata's eyes sparkled with joy, and she eagerly went to the arena.
...
"Isn't Kankuro too weak?"
Naruto thought of Hinata's opponent in this round and couldn't help but hesitate.
He seemed to have promised too casually.
Third Round: Hyuga Hinata VS Kankuro.
Shiranui Genma stood between the two. On one side was Hyuga Hinata, already in the starting stance of the Hyuga Gentle Fist, and on the other was Kankuro, his hand resting on the bandaged puppet.
Ino Yamanaka, who had just lost her match, had already swept away all gloom. She nudged her butt closer to Naruto and asked curiously, "Naruto, which one do you think is Kankuro's real body, and which one is the disguised puppet?"
You know, in the match at the Central Tower of the Death Forest, Kankuro had confused everyone with his Crow puppet.
It was hard to tell if the body was the body, or if the puppet was the puppet.
Naruto's lips curved into a smile as he replied, "Do you think that question can stump a pair of Byakugan that can see through everything?"
Indeed, before the match officially began, Hinata's eyes widened, and veins bulged on her temples. Byakugan, activate!
"Then—begin—"
Shiranui Genma still flashed away at the fastest speed, leaving the arena to the two contestants.
"I'm sorry, but I have a reason why I must win this match."
Before her words could even touch the ground, a serious-looking Hinata had already lunged towards Kankuro with an arrow-like burst of speed!