On the arena, Shin and Ryoichi leapt apart after a clash.
The crowd's clamor suddenly fell silent. Everyone held their breath as both fighters regained their composure.
Shin looked grim. He cast away the broken kunai in his hand and drew a fresh one from his weapons pouch. His Police Force vest was now full of tears, with bloodstains spreading like crimson mist across its green surface.
Though his wounds were superficial without damaging tendons or bones, what troubled him most was his nearly spent stamina.
Right now he could clearly hear his own heavy, rapid breathing while feeling aching muscles all over and trembling legs slightly.
Across from him, Ryoichi also looked miserable, dragging his long blade and glaring coldly at Shin with a twisted expression.
Two deep wounds bled continuously on his body, and his chest still ached painfully from Shin's powerful knee strike during their fight.
"Hiss—!"
After inhaling sharply through clenched teeth, Ryoichi decided not to wait any longer. "Let's settle this!" he declared.
Saying that, he charged directly at Shin with his sword raised.
Shin hadn't recovered yet but had no choice but to force himself upright, gripping his kunai tightly in reverse while waiting for Ryoichi's attack.
Both fighters had reached their limits, desperately squeezing every last bit of energy and chakra they possessed.
The fight devolved from jonin-level mastery to something rawer—chunin-grade struggle.
Yet the drop in power didn't dull the excitement at all—in fact, to regular fans, the fight felt more exciting than ever.
In the arena, Ryoichi became a black shadow darting around Shin constantly, occasionally seizing opportunities to slash toward vital spots with his long sword.
Shin, already exhausted physically, could only hold his kunai helplessly while guarding critical areas of his body.
He fought on desperately—but if it weren't for the blood still pouring from Ryoichi's wounds, he might've given up already.
As he kept fighting, fatigue increased and his vision blurred more. Suddenly, the approaching Ryoichi seemed to split into two figures before his eyes.
Startled greatly, when he regained focus again, a cold blade already rested against his neck.
Looking at his opponent whose eyes remained bloodshot, Shin realized only then that his chakra had been over-consumed to the point he'd unconsciously deactivated his Sharingan.
Ryoichi growled slowly, "Shin, one year ago your strength surpassed mine. But comfortable living eroded your skills, while war forged mine! This is why you fall before my blade today!"
Shin remained silent; he knew he'd been fairly defeated.
Their abilities were practically equal—perhaps even slightly favorable towards himself. However, fresh from the battlefield, Ryoichi meticulously rationed every ounce of his chakra during the fight, choosing to endure wounds rather than squander precious energy. This allowed Ryoichi to remain somewhat effective until the very end.
"Match result: Third round victory goes to Uchiha Ryoichi!"
As soon as the referee announced it, Kintai smirked toward The Third, saying with laughter, "Thanks for letting me keep Ryoichi back then!"
Feeling irritation upon noticing The Third's amused gaze, Fugaku grew secretly angry.
Kintai truly lacked situational awareness, provoking him repeatedly right in front of the higher-ups.
Even so, Fugaku kept his expression under control and said indifferently, "If you like it, that's fine!"
But Kintai didn't let him off the hook. He continued, "What if Shinki wins again? That would be good too. Aozora is still so young—what business does he have being an instructor? If he loses, maybe he'll learn a lesson and attend lectures given by Ryoichi and Shinki at the Flying Tigers."
Upon hearing this, instead of getting angry with Kintai, Fugaku smiled and said, "If Shinki really beats him, I'll personally send Aozora to attend Flying Tigers lectures every single day!"
He had personally measured Aozora's strength before. The boy was a true Elite Jonin.
If it were Ryoichi fighting, perhaps Aozora might trip over his own feet.
But against Shinki? Fugaku simply couldn't find any reason why Aozora would lose.
When Kintai saw the confidence in Fugaku's gaze, he frowned slightly. Could it be that Aozora's record wasn't exaggerated at all?
Still, killing four Jonin within one year of graduation seemed too unbelievable!
After quickly tidying up the arena, the referee hurriedly announced, "Fourth Match: Uchiha Aozora vs. Uchiha Shinki!"
As soon as the referee finished speaking, Shinki [Body Flicker Technique]ed onto the stage. His eyes gleamed with excitement as he locked eyes with Aozora.
Down below, Shisui took the opportunity to encourage Aozora privately before the female fans could go wild: "Aozora, cheer up!"
Aozora nodded slightly and replied casually, "I'm just stepping out for a moment."
Before he even finished speaking, he had already crossed his hands behind his back and lightly soared into the ring. His graceful figure caused screams from the female audience, and even some slight shaking of heads among several ninja.
Ninja valued speed and stealth in running and jumping—so to them, Aozora's flying leaps seemed flashy and impractical.
The two figures standing opposite each other on the platform—one black and one white—drew astonished murmurs from the watching ninja.
Chakra has many uses, and most female ninja have secret techniques to maintain their skin and appearance, but male ninja rarely bother with such things.
They absolutely couldn't believe Aozora's complexion came naturally.
One muscular taijutsu specialist immediately declared, "This Uchiha Aozora will definitely lose! Just looking at physical strength alone makes all the difference. Look at Uchiha Shinki's skin—rough like sand. Even a knife cutting across it might get chipped.
But what about Uchiha Aozora? With his artificially maintained smooth skin, besides being slashed by a blade, probably even a needle prick would make him bleed nonstop!"
His statement was exaggerated, but gained agreement among most nearby taijutsu specialists.
Compared to the pretty-boy Aozora, they naturally found someone like sun-tanned Shinki more relatable.
However, one taijutsu specialist shook his head and argued, "You don't understand! Beneath that pale skin lie muscles as solid as rock, surging with power! Taijutsu cannot be judged merely by appearances!"
When others were about to argue against his view...
They turned around and saw it was Might Guy, the taijutsu fanatic. Immediately, everyone fell silent.
Out of respect for Might Guy's authority, although they didn't voice objections, they all fixed their eyes on the arena, waiting eagerly to see Aozora make a fool of himself.
On the stage, Shinki's eyes revealed a cruel gleam. Coldly, he said, "Finally, it's your turn!"
Aozora smiled and asked, "Are you really so eager to lose?"
"Lost?"
Shinki laughed so hard he nearly fell over, slapping his knee repeatedly.
After a moment, he finally straightened up and said, "You actually think you're qualified? Just because others call you a genius, have you forgotten your own worth?"
Aozora shook his head, about to reply, when the referee waved to interrupt and announced loudly, "Barrier up! Match starts now!"
As soon as the referee's words fell, sharp cheers began rising from the stands.
As the female cheering rose, some male spectators who were just there for the show became unhappy. They eagerly cheered for Shinki, building his momentum.
Amidst the male voices chanting encouragement for Shinki, Tetsuka's voice rang out sharply.
"Aozora! Teach Shinki a good lesson for me!"
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