The next morning arrived quickly.
The sun had barely risen when the remaining students gathered near the massive arena of the Ancient Masters Village. The structure was enormous, built from dark stone walls that had witnessed countless ninja examinations in the past.
Kaelen stood beside Allan near the entrance gate. The morning air was cool, but the tension among the students made the atmosphere feel heavy.
Allan stretched his arms nervously.
"So this is the place where the final stage happens," he said while looking around.
Kaelen nodded slowly. His eyes carefully observed the surroundings.
Large stone walls surrounded the arena, and several high-ranking ninjas stood on the upper platforms watching everything below.
"These must be the exam supervisors," Kaelen thought.
Nearby, the other main teams had also arrived.
Ryuzen and Darek stood confidently near the center of the arena. Ryuzen looked completely relaxed, while Darek remained silent with his arms crossed.
Ryuzen noticed Kaelen looking at him and smirked slightly.
"Looks like we finally made it to the final stage," he said.
Kaelen didn't reply. He simply nodded.
Not far away, Kaito and Sora were quietly discussing something.
Sora seemed to be analyzing the battlefield carefully while Kaito focused on the arena entrance.
"Strategy first," Sora whispered.
Kaito nodded.
Nearby, Mira and Ren stood calmly. Mira appeared relaxed, while Ren remained silent as usual, watching everything with sharp eyes.
A loud voice suddenly broke the silence.
"WOW! This arena is huge!"
Everyone immediately knew who it was.
Taro.
He looked around excitedly.
"This is going to be fun!"
Beside him, Akira shook his head slightly.
"Try to stay focused," Akira said calmly.
Taro laughed.
"Relax! We'll win anyway."
Before anyone could say anything else, the large gates of the arena slowly opened.
The sound of heavy stone moving echoed across the entire area.
The A-Rank examiner stepped forward once again.
All the students immediately became silent.
"The final stage of the Ninja Examination will now begin," he announced.
His voice echoed through the arena.
"You will fight in teams of two against other teams."
"Your performance will be evaluated based on teamwork, strategy, control of your elemental powers, and combat ability."
He paused for a moment before continuing.
"Only ten teams will pass this stage and become official ninjas."
The students listened carefully.
"Battles will begin shortly."
Several exam supervisors began organizing the teams.
Kaelen and Allan stood quietly while watching the first battle begin.
Two teams entered the arena.
The moment the signal was given, the fight started immediately.
Explosions of elemental power filled the arena. Fire, wind, and earth attacks collided while the supervisors carefully observed every movement.
Within minutes, one team was defeated and removed from the battlefield.
More battles followed.
Some were quick. Others were intense.
Many teams were eliminated one after another.
Kaelen watched carefully.
"Pay attention," he said quietly to Allan. "We can learn from these fights."
Allan nodded.
"I see it."
Suddenly a powerful explosion shook the arena.
Everyone turned to look.
Ryuzen and Darek had entered their match.
Ryuzen's fire power burned fiercely as he attacked aggressively, while Darek controlled the battlefield with powerful earth defenses.
Their opponents were quickly overwhelmed.
Within a short time, the match ended.
The supervisors nodded while writing notes.
"Strong team," Allan whispered.
Kaelen agreed silently.
Soon after, another battle began.
This time it was Kaito and Sora.
Their fighting style was completely different.
Instead of attacking directly, Sora calmly guided Kaito's movements. Their speed and coordination confused their opponents.
Within moments, the battle ended.
"Strategy," Kaelen thought.
Another match began.
Mira and Ren stepped into the arena.
Mira controlled water with incredible precision while Ren moved silently through the battlefield.
Their teamwork was smooth and efficient.
They also won their battle.
Next, it was Taro and Akira.
Taro rushed forward with excitement while flames burst from his attacks.
Akira stayed calm behind him, carefully controlling his fire to support every movement.
Their opponents struggled to keep up.
Soon, their match ended as well.
As the battles continued, the number of remaining teams slowly decreased.
Kaelen could feel his heartbeat becoming faster.
Then one of the supervisors finally called out loudly:
"Next match…"
He looked directly toward Kaelen.
"Kaelen and Allan."
Allan looked at Kaelen and smiled.
"Well… our turn."
Kaelen slowly stepped forward toward the arena.
The real test was about to begin.
The arena became quiet as Kaelen and Allan stepped onto the battlefield.
A light wind moved across the stone ground, carrying small clouds of dust through the air. High stone walls surrounded the arena, and above them several exam supervisors watched carefully from the observation platforms.
Kaelen's eyes moved slowly across the battlefield. On the opposite side stood their opponents—two students who looked calm and confident.
"These two don't look weak," Allan whispered.
Kaelen nodded slightly.
Both opponents stood ready. One of them rested his hand on the ground while the other watched Kaelen carefully, waiting for the signal to begin.
Above them, the A-Rank examiner raised his hand.
The entire arena fell silent.
"Battle… begin!"
The moment the signal was given, the ground suddenly shook.
"Earth Style!"
The opponent slammed his hand onto the arena floor. Large stone pillars burst upward from the ground, shooting toward Kaelen and Allan like spears.
Kaelen jumped backward quickly while Allan moved to the side.
Before they could fully recover, the second opponent attacked.
"Wind Style!"
Sharp blades of wind shot across the arena, cutting through the air toward Allan.
"Water Style!"
Allan reacted instantly. Water rose from the ground and formed a flowing shield that blocked the wind blades. The water splashed across the arena floor, spreading quickly.
But their opponents were not giving them any time to think.
The earth user moved his hands again.
The stone pillars shifted direction and surrounded Kaelen, forming a rough cage of rock.
Kaelen quickly jumped from one pillar to another, avoiding being trapped.
"These two are working together perfectly," he thought.
Meanwhile Allan struggled to defend against the continuous wind attacks. Each strike pushed him backward across the wet ground.
The battle had only just begun, yet the pressure was already intense.
Above the arena, several supervisors watched closely.
"Good coordination," one of them said quietly.
Back in the arena, Kaelen finally landed beside Allan.
"We need to break their rhythm," Kaelen said.
Allan nodded.
"I have an idea."
Allan stepped forward and raised both hands.
"Water Style!"
A powerful stream of water surged across the battlefield, spreading quickly over the stone ground. The arena floor became extremely slippery.
The wind user lost his footing for a moment.
But the earth user reacted quickly.
"Earth Wall!"
A massive wall of stone rose from the ground, blocking Kaelen's path before he could reach the wind user.
The enemy team quickly recovered.
The wind user launched another powerful attack while the earth user moved the stone pillars again, forcing Kaelen backward.
For a few seconds, it looked like Kaelen and Allan were losing control of the fight.
Allan wiped sweat from his forehead.
"These guys are strong."
Kaelen took a deep breath.
In his mind, he remembered Razen's voice during training.
"Strength alone isn't enough. Control your body, your mind… and your blade."
Kaelen slowly reached behind his back.
The sound of metal sliding echoed softly.
He drew his sword.
The blade reflected the sunlight as it appeared.
Several people watching from the stands noticed immediately.
"He's using a sword?"
The wind opponent rushed forward, trying to stop him before he could attack.
But Kaelen's movement suddenly changed.
His body moved faster.
Months of brutal training under Razen had strengthened every muscle in his body.
Kaelen dashed forward.
The earth user reacted instantly.
"Stone Barrier!"
Another stone wall rose from the ground.
But Kaelen didn't slow down.
Instead, he jumped.
The sword flashed in the air.
With one powerful swing, the blade struck the stone barrier.
Crack!
A deep fracture spread across the wall.
The earth user's eyes widened in shock.
Kaelen pushed forward with another strike.
The stone barrier shattered.
At the same time Allan moved.
"Water Bind!"
Water from the arena floor suddenly wrapped around the wind user's legs, trapping him for a moment.
That moment was enough.
Kaelen landed behind the earth user.
Before the opponent could react, Kaelen turned and struck with the flat side of the blade.
The opponent collapsed to the ground.
The wind user struggled to escape Allan's water trap and launched one final desperate attack.
A sharp wind blade flew toward Kaelen.
But Kaelen moved calmly.
He stepped forward and swung his sword once more.
The attack was deflected instantly.
In the next moment Kaelen moved like lightning.
His final strike stopped the opponent before he could attack again.
The wind user fell to the ground beside his teammate.
The arena suddenly became silent.
For a moment no one spoke.
Then the supervisor raised his hand.
"Battle finished!"
"Victory: Kaelen and Allan."
The tension in Allan's shoulders finally disappeared.
He let out a long breath.
"That was… a lot harder than the previous fights."
Kaelen slowly lowered his sword.
"Yes."
But inside, he felt something different.
For the first time in the exam, he had truly used the training Razen had given him.
Above the arena, the supervisors were writing notes.
One of them spoke quietly.
"That boy's sword control… interesting."
Kaelen and Allan walked back toward the waiting area where the other teams stood.
Taro raised his hand excitedly.
"That was awesome!"
Akira simply nodded.
Ryuzen looked at Kaelen with a small smirk.
"Not bad."
Kaelen didn't respond. His eyes moved back toward the arena.
More battles were still happening.
The exam was not over yet.
But Kaelen knew one thing clearly.
He and Allan had taken another step closer to becoming true ninjas of the Ancient Masters Village.