Hinata shook her head and said, "If the strength Temari showed was only enough to defeat Shino, then she's no match for me."
Naruto smiled; he knew Hinata was speaking the truth.
But to others, Hinata seemed a bit arrogant.
After all, the battle between Temari and Shino Aburame was equally spectacular, with Temari demonstrating the power of her Wind Release.
The match continued.
In the original story, Dosu Kinuta was instructed by Yakushi Kabuto to provoke Gaara prematurely so that he could directly face Sasuke in the third exam, but he was killed by Gaara.
Now, with Gaara eliminated early, Dosu Kinuta had coincidentally survived.
The last match of the first round was Dosu Kinuta vs. Nara Shikamaru.
"Dosu Kinuta didn't die at Gaara's hands. Did I inadvertently change his fate?"
Naruto cast a thoughtful gaze towards the arena.
Nara Shikamaru stood lazily, hands in his pockets, with an expression of "what a pain," as if he could fall asleep at any moment.
Opposite him, Dosu Kinuta was wrapped in dark gray bandages, revealing only his cold right eye. His left arm was adorned with a special metallic amplifier device, emanating an ominous aura.
He silently watched Nara Shikamaru, like a venomous snake poised to strike.
It was Shiranui Genma's voice announcing "Start" once again.
"You seem to be that big fat pig's teammate. Do you want to avenge him?"
Dosu Kinuta didn't rush to attack, instead taunting him.
Nara Shikamaru's expression briefly turned cold, then returned to calm. He raised a hand to pick his ear, letting out a helpless sigh, "What a pain—"
"Don't try to provoke me with words and make me lose my composure."
"Hmph, if that's the case, then let me see what you're capable of!"
Dosu Kinuta stopped with the useless chatter. His body instantly lowered, muscles taut under the bandages, and he charged at Shikamaru like an arrow released from a bowstring.
His speed was extremely fast, his movements concise and deadly.
His goal was clear—get close!
He intended to quickly deal with this seemingly unmotivated Konoha Ninja using taijutsu and the Ninja tool on his left arm.
Nara Shikamaru sighed, his steps seemingly casually sliding backward, while his hands began to form hand signs in front of him, seemingly slowly.
The moment Dosu Kinuta rushed within five meters of him, Nara Shikamaru completed his hand signs!
"Shadow Imitation Jutsu, success!"
A long, narrow, clear shadow rapidly extended from Shikamaru's feet, precisely connecting with Dosu Kinuta's shadow, which was cast on the ground by the sunlight due to his charge.
Dosu Kinuta's charging motion instantly froze!
He felt an invisible force binding his body, keeping him in his forward-charging posture, unable to move!
"What the hell?!"
A hint of shock flashed in Dosu's cold right eye.
He tried to struggle, but his body was completely unresponsive, as if bound tightly by countless invisible threads.
"Whew—" Shikamaru let out a sigh of relief, still looking unenthusiastic, "Finally caught you—Now, please concede, save me the trouble."
He tried to control Dosu Kinuta to make a surrendering gesture.
A cold glint flashed in Dosu Kinuta's eyes. He didn't speak, but the metallic amplifier device on his left arm suddenly emitted a low hum!
"Buzz—"
An invisible, high-frequency vibrational sound wave instantly erupted from him as the center.
This sound wave wasn't directed at hearing, but rather acted directly on a physical level!
The ground beneath Nara Shikamaru's feet suddenly vibrated violently, pebbles bounced, and dust billowed.
This sudden, intense vibration instantly interfered with Shikamaru's precise control over the Shadow Imitation Jutsu. The Chakra connecting their shadows experienced intense fluctuations and distortions due to this vibration.
"Damn it!"
Nara Shikamaru's expression changed slightly, cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
The Shadow Imitation Jutsu requires the user to maintain a high level of concentration to keep the Chakra connection stable, and this kind of strong physical vibration interference is one of its weaknesses!
Just as the shadow connection became extremely unstable, "Hmph!"
Dosu Kinuta seized this critical opportunity, relying on strong willpower and a burst of instantaneous power, to forcefully break free from the loosened restraint.
The force of his struggle even caused his body to lean back slightly.
"Ah—"
In the VIP box, Orochimaru, disguised as the Kazekage, merely flashed a look of mockery in his eyes.
What good was all that effort and performance?
A pawn was ultimately just a pawn.
Not even worth a single strand of Sasuke's hair.
Like Zaku Abumi and Kin Tsuchi, who accompanied him, they had already become living sacrifices for Orochimaru to use for Edo Tensei on the First Hokage and the Second Hokage.
Dosu Kinuta, having broken free, didn't hesitate. He lunged at Nara Shikamaru again with even greater speed.
This time, the metallic amplifier on his left arm was aimed directly at Nara Shikamaru!
"Ninja Art: Resonating Echo Drill!"
With a "buzz" sound.
A visible, highly compressed cylindrical vibrational sound wave, like an air cannon, blasted fiercely from the amplifier's mouth, carrying a piercing shriek and terrifying impact, directly striking Nara Shikamaru's chest.
The air itself distorted where the sound wave passed!
Nara Shikamaru's pupils constricted.
This attack was too fast, and its range was not small.
He had no time to cast Shadow Imitation Jutsu again or completely evade it!
"Tsk!"
Nara Shikamaru could only awkwardly dive to the side and roll.
"Bang!"
The vibrational sound wave grazed his back and slammed into the ground behind him, instantly blasting a basin-sized crater in the hard stone slab, with gravel flying like bullets.
Although Nara Shikamaru avoided the direct impact, he was violently thrown by the shockwave of the explosion, rolling several times on the ground before stopping. His back was burning with pain, his clothes were torn, and he looked disheveled.
Dosu Kinuta didn't give Nara Shikamaru a chance to catch his breath. He raised his left arm again, the amplifier's mouth beginning to gather the next vibrational sound wave, his cold right eye locked onto Nara Shikamaru struggling to get up.
"Damn it—It hurts so much—What a pain in the ass—"
Nara Shikamaru clutched his back, but his mind was racing.
He glanced at the sun overhead, then at his and Dosu's positions, and the crater blasted into the ground.
Just as Dosu Kinuta was about to fire "Resonating Echo Drill" again, Nara Shikamaru suddenly made an unexpected move—
Instead of retreating or defending, he abruptly charged forward, aiming directly at Dosu Kinuta!
"You're asking for death!"
"It seems he has lost his composure."
Dosu Kinuta sneered, his sound wave cannon poised to fire.
However, just as Nara Shikamaru rushed within seven or eight meters of Dosu, he suddenly made a sharp turn and ran towards the edge of the arena, where there was a pile of rubble and a shaded area formed by a previous battle.
At the same time, he formed hand signs again!
"Shadow Imitation Jutsu!"
This time, his shadow didn't extend directly towards Dosu Kinuta, but rather eerily connected to the shaded area of the rubble pile.
And at the same time, Dosu Kinuta's shadow was precisely at the edge of the shaded area of the rubble pile!