"Heh! These two little brats have already grown so quickly, haven't they?" In the VIP box, Orochimaru, watching the scene unfold below, murmured softly to himself, a faint, knowing smile playing on his lips. As he spoke, his gaze couldn't help but shift towards the spectator stands behind him. There, a young man with white hair, dressed in a long, flowing robe, stood silently before his seat.
This young man seemed to sense Orochimaru's gaze. He gave Orochimaru a slight nod, then his figure flickered and vanished from the spot.
Swoosh~
On the high wall of the arena, a figure flashed, and the white-haired young man appeared beside Neji.
"It's you!" Seeing the white-haired youth suddenly appear beside him, Neji's expression tensed. The white-haired young man was none other than Kimimaro, who had been sent to Konoha over two years ago. After undergoing Tatsuya's treatment, Kimimaro was currently able to barely sustain himself. Towards Kimimaro, Neji had always harbored a deep sense of vigilance. Although he had never seen Kimimaro fight, he knew that this individual before him was definitely not someone to be trifled with.
"Don't worry. I'm here to help you," Kimimaro said, glancing briefly at Neji, his voice soft. After speaking, Kimimaro turned his gaze back towards the Akatsuki members approaching from outside the arena walls. He murmured softly to himself, "To be able to fight a good battle in the final moments of my life… that doesn't seem too bad." With that, Kimimaro leaped down from the high wall, his figure flashing as he appeared beside Naruto.
"Kimimaro, you're here!" Seeing Kimimaro, Naruto exclaimed happily. Over these past two-plus years, he had seen Kimimaro several times at Tatsuya's side; the two were already acquainted.
"This is really getting the blood pumping!" Watching the spirited Naruto and Sasuke, Shikamaru, standing on the high wall, couldn't help but say with a hint of envy. Among all the Konoha Genin, Naruto and Sasuke were definitely in a league of their own. Even Choji was slightly inferior compared to those two. And now, these two had each summoned a powerful beast… Were they even trying to let others live?!
"Mm! Looks like we can't fall behind either!" Beside Shikamaru, Choji, hearing this, also put away his snacks, then leaped down from the high wall. While his body was still in mid-air, a puff of white smoke erupted below him, and a giant dog appeared. The giant dog's physique was much smaller than Gamabunta's or Seiryu's, but the fierce aura emanating from its body clearly indicated its formidable strength.
Cha-maru! After years of cultivation, Cha-maru had also grown into one of the most powerful summoning beasts in the ninja world.
Ugh! Watching this scene, Shikamaru couldn't help but lightly slap his forehead, somewhat speechless. Beside Hinata, Kiba Inuzuka, seeing Cha-maru appear, had a look of utter envy on his face. Cha-maru was the summoning beast their Inuzuka clan coveted the most.
"Haha! This truly is the springtime of youth, filled with passion! Anko, Kurenai, we can't let these students outshine us!" Eight Inner Gates, Open! Watching the Konoha Genin bare their fangs one by one, Might Guy exclaimed excitedly. With that, he directly opened the Eight Inner Gates up to the Sixth Gate, the Gate of Joy, and a surge of green energy instantly erupted from his body.
"Heh heh! As if!" Mitarashi Anko, hearing this, playfully tweaked her nose, a look of excitement also appearing on her face. Faced with Akatsuki's assault, a powerful fighting spirit surged through the entire group of Konoha defenders.
"As expected of Konoha, the head of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Truly admirable," Kisame Hoshigaki, who was approaching from the distance, couldn't help but remark upon seeing this display. His voice was dry, his tone filled with an unreadable, complex emotion. For Kisame, who had spent a long time in the era of the Bloody Mist, the vibrant, unyielding spirit Konoha was currently displaying undoubtedly stirred something within him. However, all of this vitality, he mused, would probably soon turn into mournful cries.
"Eliminate them. Capture the Seven-Tails and the Nine-Tails," Tendo Pain, floating in the sky, commanded coldly, observing the scene below. As his words fell, the Akatsuki members on either side of him immediately split into two groups. Kisame Hoshigaki, Uchiha Hiroomi, Sasori, Kakuzu, Hidan, and Deidara charged directly towards Naruto, Sasuke, and their group. Tendo Pain, meanwhile, led the remaining five Paths of Pain towards the spectator stands. His target was Fu.
"Let's go!" Seeing the approaching Akatsuki members, the defenders both on and off the high wall surged forward to meet them. Soon, a continuous barrage of battle sounds and explosions erupted in the dense forest just outside the tournament arena walls.
Swoosh~
In the tournament arena, Baki, along with Temari and Kankuro, appeared beside Gaara. Baki said to Gaara, "Gaara, let's go!"
Hearing Baki's words, Gaara didn't answer. His gaze had already shifted to the spectator stands. Over there, the Six Paths of Pain had already arrived. Watching this scene, Gaara's eyes flickered with an intense, crazed killing intent.
"Gaara!" Seeing this, Baki's tone became more forceful. As he spoke, he began to walk towards Gaara.
"I'll kill you!" Gaara suddenly whirled around and roared at Baki.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~
The moment his words fell, countless tendrils of sand surged towards Baki. Seeing this, Baki's face darkened, and he quickly leaped back to evade the attack.
"Gaara!" Seeing this, Temari cried out in alarm.
And just as Temari cried out, a spatial vortex silently appeared beside Gaara. The masked Obito and Tobi (in his goofy persona) emerged together.
"What a violent little fellow," Tobi remarked playfully, looking at Gaara. As he spoke, he clasped his hands together.
Poof!
From the ground beneath Gaara's feet, several powerful tree branches erupted, instantly binding Gaara tightly.
"Wood Style!" Baki, who had leaped back to avoid the sand, exclaimed in shock, his expression changing drastically. Caught completely off guard, the young and ferociously unstable Gaara was instantly restrained by a single move.
Obito stepped forward and reached out his hand. Another spatial vortex appeared, and when it vanished, Gaara was no longer in the tournament arena.
"Gaara!" Temari cried out, about to rush forward.
"Let's go, quickly!" Beside her, Kankuro grabbed her arm and pulled her back, retreating rapidly. They simply couldn't deal with these two Akatsuki members in their black and red cloud robes.
After capturing the One-Tail Jinchuriki, Gaara, with such ease, Obito and Tobi lost all interest in Baki, Temari, and Kankuro. They leaped up onto the high wall of the arena.
"Everyone, be careful!" Seeing the two Akatsuki members suddenly appear from behind, Shikamaru quickly shouted a warning. Unfortunately, it was too late.
Clang, clang, clang~
With a series of sharp, metallic sounds, iron chains, like nimble, striking snakes, whipped out, and in a few swift movements, swept Shikamaru, Ino, Sakura, Rock Lee, and Neji, who had been standing on the high wall observing the battle, off their feet and down into the arena below.
Towards this group of "small fry" who weren't even Chunin yet, Obito didn't even have the interest to deliver a killing blow. At this moment, all his attention was focused on Naruto over there.