Naruto: The King Behind the Curtain

Under everyone's gaze, The Third slowly rose from his seat. "Distinguished guests, thank you all for gathering here to witness the Chunin Selection Exam hosted by our Konoha Village. Next, the thirty-two candidates who passed the preliminary rounds will now compete in the official selection matches. Please enjoy the spectacle!"

"The first match: Shidotatsu from Iwagakure vs Mei Terumi from Kirigakure!"

Hearing that, Raikage stirred trouble by saying, "Kitsuchi, it seems Hokage truly favors your village by arranging such an opponent. If you still lose, it'll be inexcusable!"

Mizukage's eyes narrowed as he responded coldly, "Are you belittling our shinobi from Kirigakure?"

Raikage loudly chuckled, "I never said that outright, but didn't those kids compile rankings declaring the strongest Genin from each village? Didn't your so-called strongest Genin get killed while collaborating with Iwa shinobi at the hands of Konoha's ninja? Tsk tsk, if even your top Genin performs at this level, then this girl... hehe, I'm just expressing concern; please don't take offense."

Instantly, Mizukage's eyes overflowed with killing intent, Kitsuchi clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, and even Hokage slightly furrowed his brow.

Standing behind Raikage, A couldn't help but nod thoughtfully—so Pop's "World's Strongest Defense" was probably forged through getting beaten up?

In the arena,

"Damn it, I don't even feel like winning!" Looking at the bracket, Shidotatsu trembled inwardly.

He had just spotted Seiki Shimaseki's name on the bracket for the next round. In other words, should he win this match, he'd have to face that monster in the round of sixteen!

"It seems I'll need to win in a painful manner. That way, I'll have a solid excuse to drop out in the next match!"

Thinking thus, Shidotatsu calmed down slightly, directing a perverted gaze toward the red-haired girl ahead.

Come on, hit me with all you've got!

Meeting Shidotatsu's fervent stare, Mei Terumi was somewhat frightened, silently muttering to herself, "No wonder he ended up mixed up with someone like Zabuza—he must also be a pervert!"

As the referee shouted the start signal, Shidotatsu charged forward immediately.

[Earth Release: Giant Stone Fist!]

A rocky gauntlet resembling earthen armor covered Shidotatsu's right fist. With full-force sprinting, even the air produced a low sonic boom.

From the audience stand, Kitsuchi gave a quiet nod—only this level of ability justified the special training he'd given Shidotatsu these past days.

Mei Terumi refrained from blocking head-on, repeatedly dodging backward. "Earth Release counters Water Release. Under these circumstances, I hardly stand a chance. There are still several matches to fight today—I can't waste too much chakra against him... Looks like I'll have to use that move!"

[Boil Release: Dissolving Acid Bullet!]

"Huh? What is this?" Seeing strange liquid spraying toward him, Shidotatsu instinctively raised his arm to defend.

But in the next moment, he screamed in excruciating pain.

Under everyone's horrified gaze, his rocky gauntlet completely dissolved, and even his skin began rotting away.

"This—is a Kekkei Genkai?"

"I haven't heard of this young girl belonging to any Kekkei Genkai clan," The Third murmured in astonishment. "Does that mean she developed her own bloodline herself? Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine something like this from Mist Village..." He turned toward Mizukage, only to find the other leader equally wide-eyed with shock. "He doesn't either?"

"A Kekkei Genkai developed entirely by herself at just ten years old! What incredible talent!" Mizukage thought excitedly. "Compared to Zabuza, now *that's* the real deal! Who knows, maybe someday she could even develop a Kekkei Tota like Tsuchikage!"

Everyone was stunned, while Kitsuchi silently mourned inwardly. "It can't be real! Could I really get eliminated in the very first round?"

"Iwa getting completely wiped out during the opening match of the Official Competitions!" he imagined how other ninja villages would mock his homeland after this. "Now I'm wondering whether my dad somehow saw this disaster coming and 'conveniently' pulled his back to skip this trip!"

"How amazing!" Kurenai gasped while covering her mouth in surprise on the spectator platform, though quickly adding with confusion, "But didn't Mist have this particular bloodline before?"

Seiki Shimaseki shook his head slightly. "It should be a new Kekkei Genkai she developed herself."

"A genius capable of creating her own bloodline!" Asuma said solemnly after returning from his 'Sage Mode' thinking. Then shaking his head, he continued, "However, talent doesn't necessarily mean strength. If it were me, I'd just need to dodge her attacks carefully."

Ibiki shrugged beside him, "I don't think you need to worry about facing her. After all, her next opponent will be Seiki!"

The Konoha ninjas nearby nodded vigorously in agreement. Talk about being stuck in a graveyard bracket!

"Let's not jump ahead," Seiki chuckled helplessly. "That wouldn't show proper respect to my current opponent."

Asuma gave an odd look, "So does that mean you won't hold back against whoever you faces?"

Meeting his eyes seriously, Seiki replied, "Anyone making it to the official competitions is strong. Of course I won't hold back. Plus, Hokage-sama and the other leaders are watching us right now."

A shiver ran through Asuma as he sighed dramatically, "Oh well! I can only hope they're as resilient as me. Otherwise, there'll be even more broken hearts in the world soon."

Ibiki strongly agreed - Asuma certainly had no shortcomings when it came to overreacting.

Finally the first match ended, and the referee announced, "The winner of the first match is Mei Terumi from Mist Village!"

"The second match: Seiki Shimaseki from Konoha versus Samui from Cloud Village!"

From the Cloud Village side, Yugito and Selina, along with Kayo, waved their little fists enthusiastically cheering for Samui.

Samui nodded to her friends, then took a deep breath before jumping down from the spectator platform.

She knew her opponent was incredibly powerful, but after witnessing Mei Terumi's amazing performance, hope flickered in her heart too. Perhaps she might create a miracle as well?

As Seiki's first "official" battle appearance, this match naturally drew attention from many spectators.

"That's Seiki Shimaseki? Doesn't look special at all!"

"They say he's a genius who's been personally praised by Hokage-sama and other leaders watching from the VIP platform!"

As the other competitor, Samui was also bathed in countless stares. Even though she felt nervous herself, she couldn't help admiring how composed Seiki remained.

"His heart's way stronger than mine!"

At this moment, the referee officially announced, "Match start!"

"I'll make him show at least some of his power!" Samui burst with Lightning and used Chakra to activate her body cells before dashing toward Seiki at an incredible speed.

[Cloud Stream: Shuriken Blade!]

Seiki watched calmly and formed a single Hand Seal in one second.

[Genjutsu: Soul Decay!]

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Samui's advance came to an abrupt stop. With a thud, she collapsed onto the ground and slid forward by inertia until stopping right in front of Seiki.

Seeing this, quite a few teenage girls instinctively patted their chests, letting out a sigh of relief, "Whew, glad I'm not stacked either!"

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