Temari had always been confident. She probably never imagined she would lose. For a moment, she couldn't accept the result.
But if one looked at her fighting style, it was clear her wind-based jutsu with the fan excelled at long-range combat. Once it came to close quarters, she was at a disadvantage. Coupled with Tenten's impressive taijutsu, defeating Temari wasn't difficult at all.
Natsuki, however, cast a thoughtful glance at Shikamaru.
Originally, it was supposed to be Shikamaru who fought Temari in the finals. That battle would have been the start of their bond, one that eventually led to a relationship born through cooperation and mutual understanding.
But now, Temari had lost to Tenten.
Shikamaru's future wife might be gone.
Still, Natsuki didn't intend to interfere. If Shikamaru and Temari were truly meant to be, fate would eventually pull them together again.
Then came the tenth match: Uzumaki Naruto vs. Natsuki.
Naruto stared at the board in disbelief.
He was stunned.
How could he be this unlucky? Of all people, he had to face the strongest?
How could he possibly win?
After all, Natsuki had defeated Orochimaru by himself, while Naruto had only exchanged one blow with the man before passing out.
The difference in strength was clear. There didn't even seem to be a point in fighting.
Shikamaru spoke up bluntly.
"Naruto, just give up. The outcome's already decided."
The others looked at Naruto with the same eyes. They didn't say anything, but Naruto knew what they meant. And strangely, that just made him more defiant.
"I know Natsuki's strong! But how can I say I'll lose if I haven't even tried?! Dattebayo!"
He was always like this—blindly confident, believing courage alone could overcome anything. And to be fair, that tactic only worked at the very end of the story.
That's how he beat Neji.
That's how he beat Nagato.
That's how he even moved Obito.
But why didn't it work on Kaguya?
Because Kaguya didn't care about talking—she just obliterated anyone in her way.
And in this moment, Natsuki wasn't in the mood to talk either.
In a flash of Raiton Shunshin (Lightning Style: Flicker), he appeared in the center of the field. He didn't speak. He didn't blink. He just stared at Naruto until Naruto felt a chill.
But the words had already been said—Naruto had no choice but to step onto the battlefield.
"Natsuki! I'm going to give it everything I've got! I won't lose! Dattebayo!"
Trying to fire off a good ol' Talk no Jutsu, or maybe just psych himself up.
But Natsuki just stared at him silently, saying nothing. Naruto felt the awkwardness rise.
Thankfully, Gekkō called for the match to begin.
Naruto immediately used Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu), summoning dozens of clones to swarm Natsuki.
But chakra threads were already glowing at Natsuki's fingertips.
In a flash of Raiton Shunshin, Natsuki zipped through the shadow clones, weaving his threads with precision, wrapping each one before looping behind Naruto's back.
All the Narutos turned around, confused—just in time to see Natsuki yank his hands back.
The chakra threads instantly tightened. All the shadow clones collided into each other and exploded in a chain reaction.
In the blink of an eye, the battlefield was clear.
Naruto blinked, confused.
His clones… were all gone?
Before he could react further, he realized he couldn't move. His body was wrapped tightly in chakra threads.
Natsuki didn't explain a thing. He simply stepped forward, threw a punch, and knocked Naruto to the ground. And before Hayate could say anything, he sat on Naruto's back, kunai aimed directly at his head.
Finally, Gekkō cleared his throat.
"Enough! Winner: Natsuki!"
"Huh?!"
Naruto was dumbfounded.
He knew Natsuki was strong—but this strong?
He didn't even see how he lost. One second, clones—next second, gone. What just happened?!
At last, Natsuki explained.
"See these chakra threads on my fingers? You're always reckless and don't pay attention. While I was moving through your clones, I looped the threads around them. When I pulled them tight, it was like setting off a trap—they all crashed together and poofed."
"Ohh! Natsuki, that's amazing!"
Naruto couldn't help but admire him—but then he remembered how fast he lost and looked a bit down again.
Natsuki just smiled and unraveled the chakra threads.
That was the way to handle it—don't talk too much during the fight. Just subdue the opponent, step on them, and aim a kunai at their head. The referee has to declare victory.
Then talk afterward—that's the proper way.
As Natsuki and Naruto returned to the viewing platform, Shikamaru leaned against the wall.
"Told you. The outcome was obvious. Should've just surrendered and saved yourself the trouble."
Naruto couldn't come up with a comeback—because anything a loser said would sound hollow.
Thankfully, Natsuki threw him a lifeline.
"Don't say it like that, Shikamaru. Winning and losing is one thing—having the courage to step into the ring is another. At the very least, Naruto had the guts to fight me. That's worth something."
Naruto immediately perked up.
"Exactly! I've got plenty of courage! Dattebayo!"
Shikamaru rolled his eyes.
He knew Natsuki was giving Naruto a way to save face.
And only a blockhead like Naruto wouldn't realize it.
Next came the eleventh match: Rock Lee vs. Gaara!
Here it was—another fated battle. But could Lee actually win?
Right now, Lee had re-equipped his ankle weights. Maybe it was because he had protected his teammates in the Forest of Death and earned praise from Guy, but he was brimming with confidence.
Facing Gaara, Lee raised his bandaged fists—his eyes filled with unshakable resolve.
But fate, it seemed, was playing a cruel joke.
Lee's attacks couldn't break Gaara's defenses. Even when he dropped his weights and boosted his speed, he still couldn't beat him.
Then came the shocker—Lee opened the Fifth Gate of the Hachimon Tonkō (Eight Gates Released Formation).
The sheer power stunned everyone watching. He cracked through Gaara's sand armor and came close to seriously injuring him.
But opening the fifth gate came at a steep price. Lee, after his blazing assault, was left battered and broken.
In the end, a furious Gaara tried to kill him with his sand.
Fortunately, Guy intervened just in time, stopping the sand from crushing Lee's body.
Though Lee's life was saved, the match was lost.
Still—despite the pain and unconsciousness—Lee stood back up.
Everyone watching was stunned.
His will to fight, even in that state, was awe-inspiring.
But soon, the bad news followed.
Lee's injuries were severe. With Konoha's current medical capabilities, he might never be able to be a ninja again…
(End of Chapter)
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