Sakiya was leaving as Naruto and Sasuke suddenly felt the powerful shockwave from the explosion ahead.
Naruto came to a halt, his eyes locking onto the rising smoke. "That's a big one."
Without hesitation, he continued forward.
Sasuke, however, paused for a moment, his gaze lingering on the aftermath of the blast.
Then, in a flash of lightning, he disappeared—eliminating two nearby ninja in an instant—before dashing toward the explosion site.
"If my guess is right," Sasuke murmured to himself, "this is someone worth fighting."
—
The Takigakure Ninja, still lying motionless on the ground, finally stirred.
Lifting his head, the first thing he saw was the massive crater ahead, still radiating heat.
At the center of the devastation, two familiar figures lay battered and unmoving, their clothes in tatters. But Sakiya was nowhere to be seen.
The Takigakure Ninja sighed and stood up, looking at the two defeated fighters with silent pity.
"Rest in peace."
Without another word, he turned to leave.
But then—
A sudden golden flash appeared in the corner of his eye.
His instincts screamed at him to react, but before he could even turn his head—
"You have been eliminated!"
His eyes widened in shock.
"What?"
"...What???"
"...WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!"
—
The audience burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Look at his face!"
"That guy was acting all confident before, and now he's completely lost!"
"I swear, his brain just short-circuited!"
Even the Five Kage, seated on the high platform, couldn't help but smirk.
Raikage leaned forward, eyes sharp. "See? Even if you have a scroll, you need the chance to use it."
Onoki nodded. "And it's not even an overpowered scroll. Against fighters like them, it's meaningless."
Tsunade crossed her arms, leaning back in her chair. "At the end of the day, raw strength is what matters most."
The other four Kage turned to her, unimpressed.
Their expressions read clearly: "You're the last person who should be saying that."
----
Back in the arena—
The Takigakure Ninja, though unwilling to accept his fate, had no choice but to acknowledge it.
He finally realized that the golden flash from earlier was what had eliminated him.
Meanwhile, Naruto, after searching for a worthy opponent without much luck, returned to the massive crater left by the earlier explosion.
The Takigakure Ninja saw the golden flash again. But now, since he was already eliminated, there was nothing left to fear.
Naruto appeared at the crater's edge, his form cloaked in the Nine-Tails' chakra. Arms crossed, he rested his chin on one hand, studying the scene below.
"Hmm… Looks like I'm too late. But this chakra… it feels like Sakiya's."
The Takigakure Ninja finally got a clear look at the golden blur that had taken him out.
"A… Konoha ninja?!"
His eyes widened in disbelief. "Wait… was it you who eliminated me?!"
Naruto turned, blinking in surprise. Then, with an apologetic grin, he scratched the back of his head.
"Ah—yeah, that was me. Sorry about that."
The Takigakure Ninja clenched his fists for a moment, then sighed, forcing a smile.
"It's fine. You're strong, after all. This is a competition."
Naruto gave him a thumbs-up. "Yeah, but you're not bad either! Keep at it!"
And with that, he disappeared in a golden flash.
The Takigakure Ninja instinctively reached out, wanting to ask who he was—but Naruto was already gone.
"...That speed is terrifying."
Just then—
Lightning crackled.
A flash of blue light streaked toward him, stopping just in front of the crater.
Sasuke stood there, electricity dancing around his body, his Sharingan spinning coldly.
Without a word, he barely glanced at the Takigakure Ninja before scanning the area.
"This chakra… it's a lot like Sakiya's. Was Naruto just here too?"
The Takigakure Ninja stared at Sasuke, feeling an entirely different kind of pressure.
"...Uh—"
Before he could even finish a thought, Sasuke's body surged with lightning.
BZZT—!
In an instant, he vanished.
The Takigakure Ninja flinched as static energy crackled in the air around him, his hair slightly standing on end. His eye twitched as he stared at the empty space where Sasuke had been.
"...What is with these Konoha ninja?!"
--
The battle raged on.
Naruto and Sasuke's names remained at the top of the leaderboard.
Each of them had already eliminated over 400 opponents—together, accounting for nearly a third of the entire competition.
From the original 3,000 participants, fewer than 300 remained.
At this moment, Sakiya observed the battlefield and casually waved her hand.
A glowing pattern appeared in the sky.
The massive light barrier surrounding the arena began to shrink.
Then, with another flick of her wrist, Sakiya unleashed a devastating area attack on a densely packed section of the battlefield.
The shrinking barrier pressed inward at an alarming pace. Unlike the slow-moving barriers used in ordinary shinobi simulations, this one forced quick reactions.
As the battlefield condensed into a tight, two-kilometer zone, hiding was no longer an option.
Many participants, caught off guard, found themselves fully exposed before they could relocate.
Some had already depleted their badge's protective energy in earlier fights. Now, with nowhere left to run, their badges flickered out—instantly eliminating them.
Only the strongest remained.
And now, the real battles were about to begin.
Across the battlefield, powerful fighters clashed.
In one clearing, Tsuchiya and Kurotsuchi locked eyes.
Kurotsuchi, covered in dust and bruises, had clearly been through intense battles.
Tsuchiya was in similar shape.
Both recognized the other as a formidable opponent.
In the next instant—
Tsuchiya's chakra surged.
Kurotsuchi's hands flew through a series of seals.
Elsewhere…
Sakuragi faced off against Chojuro.
Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji had encountered a dangerous enemy team.
Naruto, using his overwhelming speed, had already taken down several Cloud ninja, but the remaining fighters regrouped, preparing a coordinated assault.
Sasuke, meanwhile, found himself up against an unfamiliar squad from a lesser-known village.
Their headbands bore the symbol for "Research."
Kennin? Sasuke thought, narrowing his eyes. He had never heard of them before.
Yet, they had managed to withstand his initial attack—an unusual feat.
The final showdown was approaching.
The strongest fighters were finally crossing paths.
The crowd erupted in excitement.
The moment everyone had been waiting for was here.
It was blade against blade.