At that moment, the twenty-two remaining candidates gathered in the center of the examination hall.
"How are there still this many people? What a drag," Shikamaru complained, his voice laced with his usual impatience.
Standing beside him, Ino noticed Sasuke and exclaimed in surprise, "Ah! Sasuke made it through too!"
"Well, obviously... after how hard we worked to help them, it'd be pathetic if they didn't pass," Shikamaru muttered. He briefly recalled the overwhelming victory the Uchiha siblings had secured against the Sound Trio.
At the front of the room, the Jonin stood with arms crossed. Might Guy, the embodiment of youthful energy, nodded at the twenty-two Genin with a look of approval, as if bestowing a silent reward.
"Not bad at all! You've got great luck!" Guy proclaimed. "But as long as my team is here, don't get your hopes up. The next stage is all about raw skill. Remember, Kakashi, youth can be bittersweet, but it's always severe!"
Kakashi, however, didn't seem to be listening. His sharp gaze was fixed on his four students, focusing specifically on Sasuke.
The three members of Team 3 also took notice of Kakashi. Tenten, seeing him for the first time, thought to herself with a hint of admiration, So that's Guy-sensei's eternal rival? Just looking at him, Guy-sensei doesn't look like he stands a chance.
"Guy-sensei is the best!" Rock Lee declared, his faith unshakable.
A heavy silence fell over the room as everyone did the math. Out of the original twenty-six teams, only seven remained. From these seven groups, the victors of the third exam would be decided.
Even the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was caught off guard. He hadn't expected so many to survive, especially since most were rookies. He glanced back at the four mentors; he finally understood why they had been so adamant about recommending their students.
The remaining roster consisted of thirteen first and second-year Genin from Konoha, along with Gaara's team, Kabuto Yakushi, and the Sound Trio, twenty-two in total.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped forward to address the crowd. "We will now begin the third exam. But before that, there is something I must tell you all."
"I must explain the true purpose of this exam. Why do we hold these joint exams between allied nations?"
Seeing the confused expressions on their faces, Hiruzen gave a small smile and adjusted his Hokage hat. "The goal is to foster a sense of friendship and coexistence between allies while raising the overall level of ninja capability. That is our true objective."
He went on to explain that the Chunin Exams served as a vital opportunity for neighboring countries to gauge each other's military strength. Nations and villages that performed well would receive a higher volume of mission requests. Thus, this exam was not just about personal glory; it was tied to the very economic prosperity of their homes.
"The third exam will be observed by the leaders of various nations," Hiruzen continued. "Therefore, you must fight with your lives on the line. This is no mere performance."
While the Third Hokage was still speaking, Gaara grew restless.
"Who cares about all that?" Gaara barked, interrupting him. "Just tell us the details of this 'life-or-death' exam!"
Despite Gaara's blatant disrespect, Hiruzen simply smiled. "Very well. I shall now introduce the details of the third exam."
Suddenly, with a rustle of wind, a new figure appeared before the group.
"Forgive me, Hokage-sama... but as the proctor for this stage, allow me, Hayate Gekko, to explain."
"It's in your hands," Hiruzen said calmly.
Hayate Gekko turned around, let out a few ragged coughs, and began explaining the rules. He dropped a bombshell: because too many Genin had passed the second stage, a preliminary round would be held immediately to eliminate half of them.
This was to be an "extra test" before the final stage could even begin.
"By the way, I forgot to mention," Hayate added, "this will be individual combat. If anyone wishes to withdraw, you may do so now."
Suddenly, Kanon noticed something was wrong with Sasuke.
"Nii-chan, what's happening?" she asked, her voice filled with concern.
Sasuke was drenched in a cold sweat, his body trembling uncontrollably. His hand was clamped over the mark on his neck, his teeth gritted in agony.
Sakura rushed to his side. "Sasuke, you should withdraw from the preliminaries!"
Naruto froze, turning back to look at his teammates.
"Sasuke, you've been acting strange ever since you were attacked by that Orochimaru guy," Sakura pleaded. "That mark... it's still hurting, isn't it?"
Kanon's eyes widened. "Who is Orochimaru? And what happened to my brother's neck?"
Sakura quickly filled her in on what had happened while they were separated. Kanon's face twisted with rage, her teeth bared. "If I ever see that Orochimaru again, I'm going to kill him!"
Kanon looked at Sasuke with worry, but unlike Sakura, she didn't ask him to quit. She knew her brother. He would never back down, and as his sister, she chose to believe in his strength.
Sakura, however, was terrified for his safety. She was willing to give up the entire exam for him. "Sasuke, I'm telling the teacher about that mark, no matter what!"
Just as Sakura began to raise her hand to signal the proctor, Kabuto Yakushi beat her to it, raising his hand to withdraw.
Hayate Gekko noted the withdrawal. "Are there any others who wish to quit?"
When Sakura tried to raise her hand again, Sasuke forcefully slapped it down.
"Don't you dare say a word about this wound!" Sasuke's voice shook, but it was incredibly firm.
"Why are you being so stubborn?!" Sakura cried, tears welling in her eyes. "I can't stand seeing you in this much pain!"
"This isn't just an exam to me. I don't care about becoming a Chunin!" Sasuke's voice grew even more resolute. "I just want to know if I'm strong enough... I want to fight the strongest opponents here, so that... I can kill that man!"
Sasuke's eyes were filled with an uncompromising intensity. "You understand too, don't you? This isn't just about me..."
"I understand," Kanon whispered, lowering her head. She knew that Itachi was the shadow looming over Sasuke's path, the catalyst for his every move. She knew her brother was shouldering all the hatred and vengeance himself, trying to leave only the warm light for her to see.
"Nii-chan... thank you," Kanon said softly.
"Dummy, what are you thanking me for? It's what I'm supposed to do," Sasuke said, a ghost of a smirk appearing on his lips. He then turned back to a tearful Sakura and said firmly, "Even so, I won't allow you to get in my way!"
Watching from the side, Naruto couldn't help but yell, "You jerk! Quit acting so cool, you idiot! Kanon and Sakura are just worried about you—"
Before Naruto could finish, Sasuke turned to him with a challenging grin. "Naruto, I want to fight you, too!"
Naruto blinked, caught off guard, but then a matching grin broke across his face. "Yeah! Sasuke, I want to fight you too!"
"Kanon, you too!" Naruto said, extending a fist toward her. "I want to have a fair match with you."
"Bring it on! But I'm warning you, you're going to lose," Kanon said, bumping her fist against Naruto's.
"I won't lose!"
Kanon let out a mischievous laugh. "Even if you become Hokage, you'll still lose to me!"
"No way!"
"You're pretty confident, Kanon," Naruto said, his blood pumping with excitement.
Sakura and Sasuke could only shake their heads. These two "hot-blooded idiots" were truly something else.
Seeing that no one else was withdrawing, Hayate Gekko made the official announcement. "Very well. The preliminaries will now begin."
"The rounds will consist of one-on-one individual combat in a live-action format."
"We had twenty-one participants; with one withdrawal, we have exactly twenty. There will be ten matches in total. The winners will advance to the third exam."
"There are no rules. You fight until one party dies, collapses, or surrenders. If you don't want to die, concede early. However, if a winner is clearly decided, I will intervene to prevent unnecessary casualties."
"Now, the electronic scoreboard will decide your fate."
He glanced at Anko Mitarashi, who understood immediately. She activated the screen.
"It will randomly display the names of the two combatants for each match. Now, let us reveal the first pair."