"If there are no objections, then we will begin the draw."
After glancing at all the candidates, Hayate Gekko spoke, then turned to the screen beside him.
All the candidates' names appeared on it, then began rapidly scrolling.
After three seconds,
The scrolling stopped.
A name appeared on the screen.
Sasuke Uchiha.
Seeing this name, everyone was slightly surprised, their gazes all turned toward Sasuke, who stood calmly in the arena with his hands in his pockets.
"I announce, Sasuke Uchiha advances directly to the third stage."
Hayate declared.
"Next, the preliminary matches will officially begin, first match."
After he finished speaking, the screen split into two, names on both sides began to scroll rapidly again.
Soon, the first match was decided.
Shino Aburame vs Yoroi Akado.
"Both participants remain, everyone else proceed to the second floor."
Hearing this, Yagyu and the others left the arena, only Shino and Yoroi remained.
Under Hayate's supervision, the battle was about to begin.
On the second floor, aside from the Jonin instructors of each team, Anko, who was Yagyu's teammate and also acting as an instructor, was waiting there after completing the second stage.
Because Yagyu had confronted Orochimaru earlier, and Orochimaru chose not to complicate matters, Anko did not encounter him during her investigation.
So she was uninjured, and the curse mark on her shoulder showed no abnormalities.
Together with Team Ten, Yagyu approached Anko, who was chatting with Asuma and Kurenai.
"Anko."
Yagyu looked at her with a serious expression.
"I need to ask you for a small favor."
Hearing this, Anko was slightly stunned, then leaned closer.
After Yagyu whispered a few words in her ear, Anko's expression immediately became serious.
Her gaze shifted toward Team Seven, specifically Sasuke.
Without hesitation, she walked over.
After speaking briefly with Kakashi, the two of them took Sasuke and left the arena.
Where they went was obvious.
"Sasuke has gone."
Seeing this, Yagyu's gaze shifted to the opposite second floor, toward the Sound Village Jonin instructor.
"In that case, Orochimaru should have gone as well."
From the moment he arrived, Yagyu had already sensed Orochimaru's completely different chakra.
Even though he did not know how it was concealed, the Sound Village was Orochimaru's creation.
That person was definitely him.
Sure enough, when their eyes met, Orochimaru gave Yagyu a faint smile.
Then, in a puff of smoke, he disappeared.
"Shadow clone."
Yagyu's expression showed no surprise.
"Even a Kage-level shinobi would not risk coming here in person."
If Orochimaru's real body had come, it would have been extremely dangerous.
There were many people here who knew him.
Even a small mistake could result in him being surrounded and killed.
With Orochimaru's personality, he would never take such a risk before everything was prepared.
"Yagyu, what is it?"
Ino, who was unusually quiet beside him, asked softly.
"Is something wrong?"
Yagyu shook his head and smiled.
"It is nothing, even if something is wrong, it is not something we can deal with right now, just focus on the preliminaries."
Ino nodded gently, holding Yagyu's arm while watching the battle below.
Behind them, Asuma looked at Ino with surprise.
He turned to Shikamaru.
"Shikamaru, is Ino always like this when she is with Yagyu?"
Shikamaru immediately understood and replied helplessly.
"Ino only acts like this in front of Yagyu."
Asuma smiled.
"I see, a perfect match."
As he spoke, he glanced at Kurenai beside him.
As someone experienced, Asuma understood these things very well.
The first match took quite some time before ending.
Shino's strength was solid among the new generation.
Defeating Yoroi was expected, though it took some effort.
In the end, he still won.
Team Eight secured the first victory.
After the match ended, the screen began scrolling again.
Soon, the next match appeared.
Yagyu Sōsuke vs Zaku.
Whoosh.
When Yagyu's name appeared, almost everyone turned their gaze toward him.
By now, his reputation had spread, everyone knew who he was.
"Yagyu, it is your turn."
Ino said with admiration.
"Do your best."
Yagyu smiled and nodded.
He looked toward Zaku, who was already standing in the arena.
A gust of wind passed.
Yagyu's figure disappeared and reappeared in the arena, standing before Zaku.
"Both sides are ready."
Hayate looked at them seriously.
"You may begin at any time."
Zaku, whose arm had been injured by Sasuke, stared at Yagyu with seriousness.
"Yagyu Sōsuke, the top graduate who is even stronger than Sasuke Uchiha."
Yagyu's expression remained calm.
"You can attack at any time, because when I move, the only thing you will see is your own defeat."
That was extremely arrogant.
Everyone present had the same thought.
No matter how strong he was, speaking like this was excessive.
A shinobi should remain reserved and hide their strength.
Yagyu's behavior was clearly over the top.
Even the Third Hokage could not help but twitch his lips.
Yagyu was excellent in every aspect.
But he was not perfect.
In the Hokage's eyes,
Yagyu needed a crushing defeat.
Because he was simply too fond of showing off.
----------
Patreon Advance 30 Chapters: patreon .com/OneFic