Chapter 224: Preliminary Matches
Over the following days, nothing particularly noteworthy occurred. Except on the second morning, when Sakura was also transported back to the tower by Naruto's Flying Thunder God technique, she noticed Satsuki's complexion looked unusually terrible, surrounded by an aura of low pressure that made her afraid to ask questions.
Though the five-day wait was rather boring, Team Seven decided to make full use of this time to rest and recuperate, ensuring they'd face the upcoming exam in peak condition.
Subsequently, the other Konoha squads arrived one after another. To Naruto's relief, his same-year classmates—the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino, and Hyuga Hinata's Team Eight—had all successfully passed the second exam, and none bore any serious injuries.
It seemed Orochimaru had indeed withdrawn, and Yakushi Kabuto, as Orochimaru's right-hand man, had also failed to appear, presumably having fled together. This discovery put Naruto's mind somewhat at ease.
The five-day time limit finally ended. In the final tally, eighteen candidates total had passed the second exam. They were guided by Konoha's ANBU to another location—a spacious plaza with an open field of vision. At the front of the plaza stood a massive stone sculpture of hands forming seals, imposing in its grandeur. The jonin instructors of each squad and the exam proctors had all gathered.
Naruto even spotted Uchiha Fugaku among the proctors. What struck him as odd, however, was that from start to finish, Satsuki hadn't once looked in her father's direction, much less approached to greet him. This abnormal silence caught Naruto's attention.
In the instructor lineup, Might Guy was excitedly speaking to Kakashi. "Kakashi! Every time I think about your subordinates, I really do envy you! Though my subordinates are equally excellent, compared to that Naruto kid, they certainly still have some way to go."
Kakashi responded without turning his head. "To say such dispirited things? That's not like you at all."
"These aren't dispirited words, but facing reality! After all, on the path of youth, there are times filled with bitterness and severity! Though speaking of your other two subordinates, even that genius from the Uchiha clan—in terms of taijutsu, compared to my adorable student Lee, I'm afraid she still falls a bit short!"
"...Hmm?" Kakashi finally turned his head, his one visible eye filled with pure bewilderment as he asked slowly, "What did you just say?"
This completely sincere, entirely malicious dismissal instantly froze the enthusiasm on Guy's face. The crushing sense of being utterly ignored made a vein bulge at his temple as he clenched his fists tightly.
Damn... is he using this dismissal tactic to deliberately provoke me? Guy roared internally. As expected... my eternal rival! I'll remember this tactic!
Next, the Third Hokage standing at the forefront began explaining the rules for the final exam.
Sarutobi Hiruzen first expounded on the deeper meaning of the Joint Chunin Exams. The gist was that the candidates' performance in the exam directly symbolized their respective villages' strength and potential, which would in turn affect how client nations evaluated the villages and subsequent mission allocations.
This was essentially a miniature war disguised as an exam, carrying out national competition—like a sports festival... a cruel sports festival where one could pay with their life at any moment.
Next, a man who kept coughing, pale-faced and wearing a standard ninja vest, walked forward with unsteady steps.
"Ahem... I'm the proctor for these preliminary matches, Gekko Hayate. Let me say upfront, what's about to proceed is the preliminary round for the third exam. Ahem... Since the official matches are individual combat, considering the numbers, you may choose to withdraw now."
His explanation was constantly interrupted by coughing, and his appearance—as if he might cough himself to death at any moment—made some candidates worry despite themselves. Is this proctor really okay? It feels like even the most exhausted candidates who endured five days in the Forest of Death are in better shape than this guy!
Though some candidates felt somewhat dissatisfied with Gekko Hayate's explanation—that since the third official exam would invite daimyo and important figures from various nations to observe, and the schedule was limited, they needed to eliminate over half the contestants through preliminaries—no one raised objections. Perhaps even if they had objections, there was no point voicing them.
"It seems... ahem... no one is choosing to withdraw," Gekko Hayate said weakly. "Then, the preliminaries will now begin. The rules are individual combat. With exactly six teams totaling eighteen people, there will be exactly nine matches."
"There are no additional restrictions on the rules. Battle will continue until one party dies, falls, or voluntarily surrenders. If you don't want to die, please surrender promptly. The participants for each match will be randomly determined by that electronic display screen."
Naruto looked up at that massive LED electronic display screen... Good, I don't even have the desire to complain anymore. It seems I've gotten used to this world's twisted tech tree.
As the names on the screen began scrolling rapidly, lights flashing urgently before finally stopping, displaying the opponents for the first match.
However, when everyone saw clearly those two names, the entire exam hall instantly fell into an eerie silence. Everyone froze in place.
[Uzumaki Naruto VS Uchiha Satsuki]