Yagura and Hyuga Hiashi fought fiercely, and the Konoha residents in the audience watched with excitement.
Compared to the battle between Minato and Mei Terumi, the battle between Hiashi and Yagura was more engaging.
After all, Namikaze Minato is a pure assassin. He darts around during battle, leaving only a blur of golden light in the field.
Mei Terumi, on the other hand, was evasive during the previous fight. As a ranged-type shinobi, she hid at a distance and continuously cast ninjutsu to attack Minato.
All in all, although their battle was intense, it lacked the thrill of a direct clash.
But Hiashi and Yagura were different.
Though Hiashi also uses chakra, his style leans heavily toward close combat.
Yagura, while skilled in Water Release, also has solid taijutsu and can be considered a balanced fighter in both ninjutsu and hand-to-hand combat.
Their battle was a mix of close-quarters fighting and ninjutsu, intense and full of highlights. There wasn't a dull moment throughout the match.
Of course, this was just the opinion of the Konoha villagers—people like Zenkichi saw it differently.
Zenkichi found their fight so boring that he took out his nail clippers and began trimming his nails for what must've been the tenth time.
After tidying up his nails, Zenkichi pulled a sealing scroll from his robe under Mei Terumi's stunned gaze, unsealing a thermos from within.
He calmly unscrewed the cap and took a sip of tea, glancing lazily at Terumi Mei.
"I lost to you," Terumi Mei said with a helpless sigh.
Not long after, the battle between Yagura and Hiashi also concluded. Although Hiashi was strong, he couldn't close the gap between himself and someone like Yagura, a shinobi capable of becoming a Mizukage.
For example, against someone like Senju Hashirama, no number of counter techniques could stop the overwhelming force of a Forest Release. Counters can help close a gap—but only to a point. A significant power difference still determines the outcome.
Even clever planning or backstage manipulation can only go so far—you still need strength to win!
Yagura sneered.
Yagura, worthy of being the future Fourth Mizukage, defeated Hiashi at the cost of sustaining some injuries.
"Congratulations," Zenkichi said with a small smile as Yagura returned, looking battered but proud.
Yagura scoffed. "Worry about yourself! Your opponent is from the Uchiha clan. In a one-on-one fight, they always come out on top."
"To be chosen by Konoha to face you, your opponent probably already awakened the Sharingan."
Just then, an announcement rang out from the high platform.
"The third match: Arakawa Zenkichi vs. Uchiha Fugaku!"
A boy wearing a standard Konoha flak jacket stepped into the arena. On the back of his uniform was a fan symbol—the crest of the Uchiha clan.
"Uchiha Fugaku, huh?" Zenkichi looked at the father of future legends like Itachi and Sasuke. At this point in time, Fugaku was still a young shinobi.
Well, "young" was relative. The three-tomoe Sharingan swirling in his eyes said plenty about his strength.
A burst of golden light exploded from Zenkichi's body as he transformed into particles of light and shot toward the center of the stadium.
The countless golden particles reassembled opposite Uchiha Fugaku, revealing Zenkichi's form.
"A young Uchiha prodigy, huh?"
"It's scary to awaken the three-tomoe Sharingan at this age," Zenkichi said casually, his tone laced with sarcasm.
"Are you looking down on the Uchiha? That's only because you haven't seen our true power yet," Fugaku replied coldly. His three tomoe rotated rapidly, his gaze sharp and intense.
Up in the stands—
Young Uchiha Obito turned excitedly to Nohara Rin. "Did you see that, Rin? That's the Sharingan—our Uchiha bloodline's power, admired and feared by many!"
"As an Uchiha, I'll awaken my Sharingan too! And I'll carry on this power!"
As he spoke, Obito stole a shy glance at Rin.
Rin smiled kindly, and Obito's face turned bright red, his vision swimming.
He imagined a future where he and Rin had a child together—one who would also inherit the Uchiha blood and awaken the Sharingan...
Back in the arena—
"Uchiha Fugaku, I hope you can figure out what Zenkichi's true ability is," muttered the Third Hokage as he smoked his pipe thoughtfully.
The Uchiha's Sharingan is famed for analyzing enemy weaknesses, even the flaws in ninjutsu.
Arranging Fugaku as Zenkichi's opponent wasn't just about competition—it was also a test for Konoha.
"Evil-eyed Fugaku… He's not to be underestimated," the Third Hokage said quietly.
"Young Uchiha," Zenkichi said as he looked at Fugaku, "do you know what I really am?"
"I am the sun."
As his words rang out, a blinding golden light burst from Zenkichi's body.
Fugaku instinctively closed his eyes, and the Konoha villagers in the stands quickly looked away.
"So bright!"
"I can't even look directly at it!"
Gasps of surprise echoed across the stadium. Many in the crowd couldn't even watch the fight anymore.
"I can keep fighting like this. Can you?"
"You Uchiha rely so much on your eyes. If even the Sharingan can't bear to look at me, how will you fight me?"
Zenkichi's expression was calm as he observed his opponent.
He wanted to see if Konoha had developed any countermeasures to this ability.
"It's just bright light. I'll wear sunglasses."
Fugaku scoffed and pulled out a pair of oversized black shades, slipping them on to shield his eyes from the blinding glare.
With the sunglasses acting as a filter, Fugaku was no longer affected by the intense light. His three tomoe continued spinning behind the tinted lenses, locked on Zenkichi.
"Tch. What a pity."
"The Sharingan's greatest strength is its ability to cast genjutsu through eye contact."
"That kind of instant illusion is hard to defend against—it's one of the main reasons people fear the Uchiha."
"But with those sunglasses on… can you still use that power, young Uchiha?"
Zenkichi chuckled.
Konoha's little sunglasses trick might help against the glare, but it wouldn't affect him much at all.
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