Kankurō, with his face paint still on, came down and took Temari away. Just like Atsui from Kumogakure earlier, Konoha's medical team gave her a quick examination and determined that her injuries weren't serious.
Even if there had been a problem, the two villages probably wouldn't have wanted Konoha treating her anyway. Their teams had medical ninja accompanying them.
That was just how ninja were—especially among the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Everyone was deeply wary of one another. Unless absolutely necessary, they would never rely on outsiders.
Gaara showed no reaction at all to his sister's defeat or even her injuries. He merely stared at Tenten's group with those murderous panda-like eyes, desperately suppressing the urge to charge over and kill them.
Baki stayed beside him, silently praying that this troublesome brat wouldn't do anything reckless.
In this world, they weren't carrying out any Konoha Crush plan, so there was naturally no need to release Shukaku.
And even if it came out, it'd be useless anyway. At most, it would end up tied up and turned into somebody's pet.
After her victory, Tenten lightly floated back up to the stands like a little bird. Makoto rewarded her with a head pat, instantly making the girl beam with satisfaction.
After the first four preliminary matches, both Team Three and Team Seven had already sent out two members each—and every single one had won.
Now the pressure had shifted onto Naruto and Lee.
Naruto looked completely confident, practically like a miniature Namikaze Minato.
Lee, meanwhile, was still overflowing with passion and excitement.
"If the next match still isn't me, then today's training gets extended by another hour! And if the one after that still isn't me, I'll add another hour after that too!"
Guy gave him a gleaming thumbs-up.
"Lee, I'll train with you."
Makoto added dryly, "If Lee ends up fighting in the last match, then neither of you is sleeping tonight."
Just then, the fifth preliminary matchup was decided.
[Gaara VS Akimichi Chōji]
The moment Makoto saw Gaara's name, his eyelid twitched slightly. But after realizing the opponent was Chōji, the chubby kid, he finally truly felt that the world had changed.
Looks like the Goddess of Fate wasn't actually that stubborn after all.
At Hayate's signal, the two competitors stepped forward and faced each other.
Gaara stared at the fat boy before him with open killing intent, leaving Chōji completely baffled.
Did I steal your chips or drink your milk tea or something?
Soon, the battle erupted into something resembling a dump truck crashing into a sand dune.
Chōji was far stronger than he had been in the original timeline, but his combat style still relied primarily on taijutsu, meaning Gaara countered him perfectly.
His non-Samui-version Human Bullet Tank carried terrifying momentum, like a massive heavy-duty truck capable of sending people straight into another world through reincarnation.
After enduring several impacts with his Sand Shield, Gaara abruptly changed tactics. He spread sand all across Chōji's charging path and, at the critical moment, shifted the trajectory of his attack.
The veteran driver's "truck" instantly lost control, drifting wildly across the arena before smashing headfirst into the thick wall, leaving Chōji dizzy and disoriented.
Chōji no longer had the strength to continue fighting, and Gaara claimed victory.
But he wasn't satisfied.
The sand still hadn't tasted blood.
It was starving.
Gaara raised his right hand, and the sand covering the ground surged upward under his control, forming a massive wave that wrapped around Chōji, intending to crush him alive.
"Sand Coffin."
But Hayate moved even faster. Drawing his blade, he slashed out several wind blades that shattered the sand sphere apart and rescued Chōji. Up in the stands, Asuma finally let out a sigh of relief before quickly jumping down to retrieve his student.
Seeing that his opponent had so many people worried about him, the lonely, affection-starved kid instantly snapped.
"You meddling bastard… why did you save him?!"
Hayate replied calmly, "I already explained it before the match started. As both examiner and referee, if I determine that the winner has already been decided, then I'll intervene to prevent unnecessary casualties."
Baki instantly appeared beside Gaara in a Body Flicker, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"That's enough, Gaara. Stop here."
Gaara glanced at his jonin instructor and Gekkō Hayate. The savage expression on his face slowly disappeared, returning to the same cold indifference as before, as though nothing had happened at all. Without another word, he turned and walked back toward the stands.
On the other side, Asuma lit several more cigarettes in frustration.
Two members of his Team Ten had already been eliminated in a row, causing everyone's gaze to slowly drift toward Shikamaru.
The lazy boy's current thought process was simple:
If I announce my surrender now, my teacher will probably beat me to death on the spot before I even make it home.
...
Preliminary Match Six: Rock Lee VS Chōjūrō.
The instant he finally saw his own name appear, Lee—who had still been busy restraining himself moments earlier—suddenly looked like he'd been injected with adrenaline.
"Guy-sensei! It's finally my turn!"
Guy grinned proudly.
"Go, Lee. The time has come to unleash your youth."
"Yes, sir!"
Lee leapt down in a single bound and landed in the center of the arena.
On the other side, Chōjūrō saw that his opponent's enthusiasm was practically overflowing off the charts, immediately losing some confidence.
"Um… um… I just hope I won't disappoint everyone…"
Zabuza, who had returned to Kirigakure, looked noticeably gentler than before.
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. What the village values is your future."
Haku watched the changed Zabuza-sama with a soft smile.
"Hurry up and get down there already, damn it. You talk too much!"
The arrogant teenager Suigetsu shoved his teammate straight into the arena.
Hayate said, "Then the two of you may begin."
The instant his words fell, the already impatient Lee exploded forward at high speed and immediately kicked the still-confused Chōjūrō flat onto the ground, knocking him out cold in a single blow.
The current Lee was basically a PLUS version enhanced by natural energy.
As for poor Chōjūrō, he still hadn't obtained his personal weapon yet—Dual Swords: Hiramekarei. His combat style mainly revolved around Water Release, and among Kirigakure's younger generation, whose talent pool had suffered a severe gap in recent years, he was already considered one of the best.
Unfortunately, he didn't even manage to use a single jutsu before instantly getting GG'd.
Nobody could really see the difference in raw strength, but that combat experience…
It was painfully lacking.
Lee stared blankly.
"Uh… that's it? It's already over?"
Wait, I haven't even taken off my weights yet. I haven't even opened the Eight Gates to unleash my youth.
Chōjūrō: Good thing I passed out fast.
Suigetsu shouted from above, "Hey, hey, Zabuza-sensei… is Chōjūrō actually a ninja?"
Zabuza didn't answer. He merely sighed inwardly.
Konoha had become far too strong. It had already left Kirigakure—another one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages—far behind.
Hayate announced, "Winner: Rock Lee."
Although Lee still hadn't had his fill, he chose to return to his team. Now, all of his hopes were placed on the final tournament.
He no longer had any expectations for opponents from the other villages.
Tenten, Neji, Sasuke, and Naruto were the ones he truly wanted to defeat.
...
Preliminary Match Seven: Uzumaki Naruto VS Inuzuka Kiba.
Another all-Konoha matchup.
The moment Makoto saw the pairing, he immediately perked up.
Looks like the Goddess of Fate was finally putting in work. There was a chance this match might produce that legendary iconic scene… though the odds probably weren't very high.
He forcibly suppressed the urge to smack Naruto into becoming mentally disabled on the spot. After all, the kid's father was sitting right there below the stands. It'd be awkward beating someone else's son in front of him.
Down in the arena, Kiba's confidence was overflowing.
"Come on, Naruto! Let me see how much you've improved. I even prepared a secret move specifically for you!"
Naruto shook his head.
"Kiba, just forfeit. You're not my opponent."
"You bastard! Don't look down on me!"
The dog boy's rage instantly hit MAX level. At the same time, he casually fed his beloved dog Akamaru a secret pill.
Secret Technique: Beast Human Clone!
Akamaru transformed into Kiba's appearance, sprouting sharp fangs and long claws from both hands as the two launched a coordinated barrage of taijutsu attacks against Naruto.
Unfortunately for Kiba, comparing numbers with Naruto was a losing battle from the start.
Still, Naruto didn't use Multiple Shadow Clone Technique. Relying purely on the skill of his original body, he blocked Kiba's dual assault head-on. Then he suddenly leapt into the air and kicked both Kiba and Akamaru away simultaneously.
Kiba immediately realized his old rival had become far stronger than before. Left with no choice, he changed tactics and had the transformed Akamaru jump onto his back while forming hand seals to cast Shadow Clone Technique.
The newly created man-and-dog pair quickly circled around to Naruto's opposite side and coordinated with the original body to launch another attack.
Secret Technique: Double Fang Over Fang!
Two spiraling torrents of claw strikes tore toward Naruto simultaneously.
Naruto's expression didn't change in the slightest. The instant the attack reached him, he jumped into the air, with Kiba's attack pursuing him closely behind.
"Let's see how you dodge in midair now!"
And then he immediately found out exactly how Naruto planned to dodge.
Although Naruto wasn't on Tenten's level—she had already trained her Wind Release to the point of achieving the early stages of true flight through levitation—he could still freely change direction in midair and even boost his altitude a second time.
After instantly shifting position to evade Kiba's attack, Naruto seized the moment when the Double Fang Over Fang trajectories converged. He slammed his right hand downward, and a Massive Rasengan exploded outward, blowing apart Kiba and Akamaru's shadow clone while also instantly making the originals themselves go GG.
Hayate announced, "Winner: Uzumaki Naruto."
Lying in the corner against the wall, Kiba angrily pounded the ground.
"Damn it… I lost again."
"Woof!"
Unfortunately, Akamaru wasn't a talking dog, so only Kiba could understand what he meant. Unlike Meko's partner Rocky, who could verbally roast people one moment and tear apart an entire house the next.
Seeing his son win, the father watching from the audience—the Fourth Hokage—nodded in satisfaction.
Although Naruto lacked talent in the Flying Thunder God Technique, as a ninja overall, he had already surpassed Minato himself at the same age.
Makoto, meanwhile, looked somewhat disappointed.
Sure enough, he still hadn't gotten to witness the legendary iconic scene of defeating an enemy with Fart Release.
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---