To be honest, the combat prowess Naruto displayed had indeed exceeded the duo's expectations.
However, if this was all Naruto had, they weren't about to abandon their capture plan just yet.
Itachi stood there in silence, no one knew what he was thinking.
On the contrary, Kisame, who had just been punched into a spinning top by Naruto, acted as if nothing had happened, his face brimming with fighting spirit.
"Itachi-san, how about I handle him first? You can spend some time with your little brother in the meantime."
Itachi merely glanced at him but didn't refuse.
Meanwhile, Naruto's attention was entirely focused on the giant snake Orochimaru had summoned.
There are snakes in Konoha Village, so big that they can't be stewed in a pot...
Honestly, when Naruto saw such a massive beast, his first thought was that ingredients had arrived.
This was the largest wild animal he'd encountered in the Ninja World so far.
'I wonder if the meat would be too tough…'
It was probably a good thing Jiraiya had only made Naruto sign the Summoning Contract without attempting to summon Gamabunta.
Otherwise, Naruto might've sneaked into Mount Myoboku...
As if sensing the malice, the giant serpent's instincts kicked in, and it involuntarily recoiled.
Unfortunately, it hadn't reached the level of Manda, who could speak human language, so Orochimaru couldn't understand what it was trying to convey.
"Heh heh, Naruto-kun, consider the Kusanagi Sword a gift from me. For now, why don't you play with these two? We'll meet again when the time comes."
After saying that, the giant snake opened its mouth and swallowed him, then the snake instantly disappeared in a puff of smoke.
'Tsk.'
'Don't worry, I'll definitely come find you.'
Naruto stared at the spot where the snake had vanished, grumbling in his heart.
"You have time to look around?"
Suddenly, Kisame's rough voice rang out beside Naruto.
At the same time, his Samehada came crashing down toward Naruto's head with a fierce, whistling slash.
This strike carried a bit of personal grudge, after all, Naruto's earlier punch had nearly knocked him out. Fortunately, as the so-called [Tailless Tailed Beast], Kisame's massive Chakra reserves allowed him to recover from the dizziness quickly.
Samehada, which is still wrapped in bandages, swung down with tremendous force, only to be caught mid-air by Naruto's bare hand.
In terms of pure physical strength, Kisame couldn't do much to Naruto.
Yet, instead of looking surprised, his face broke into a smirk, as if his plan had succeeded.
Sure enough, Naruto's previously distracted expression shifted to confusion as he turned his gaze toward the weapon in his grip.
The Samehada had already torn free of its bandages, revealing its body covered in spikes like a monstrous sea urchin.
What surprised Naruto even more was that the weapon seemed to be moving, as if alive.
"Huh?"
Seeing Naruto's puzzled look, Kisame, as if possessed by the spirit of a stereotypical villain from a cliché movie, actually started explaining his weapon's abilities mid-battle.
"How about it? Can you feel your Chakra draining away...?"
"Hahaha… Samehada really likes your Chakra."
As he spoke the last word, Samehada in Kisame's hand burst free of all its bandages, fully exposing itself to everyone's view.
The sword, with its gaping maw, began shaking its 'scales' as if excitedly stomping its feet, if it had any, over the delicious meal it had just tasted.
"A living sword?"
The proctors and examinees watching from a distance were inwardly shocked, except Sasuke.
His eyes remained locked solely on Itachi, his speed increasing as he sprinted forward. The results of his physical training over the past days were now on full display.
But Itachi still made no move to attack.
Only when Sasuke was right in front of him did he finally murmur, "Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique."
In an instant, Sasuke's charging body froze in place, completely immobilized.
From Sasuke's perspective, he had been impaled by over a dozen giant steel spikes, his consciousness painfully clear but his body utterly unresponsive.
'Damn it! Damn it! How can the gap be this huge?!'
Sasuke charged in, Sasuke got wrecked.
"My foolish little brother... just how far can those Sharingan eyes of yours see..."
Itachi merely glanced at the Two-Tomoe Sharingan in Sasuke's eyes before losing interest and looking away.
This nearly pushed the already furious Sasuke over the edge into complete madness.
Fortunately, he didn't have a Tailed Beast inside him, otherwise, he might have started spamming Tailed Beast Bombs by now.
Seeing Sasuke get taken down in one move, Naruto couldn't ignore it any longer.
"Move!"
Still gripping Samehada with one hand, Naruto swung the Kusanagi Sword he'd just picked up straight at Kisame.
His slash wasn't slow like Kisame's.
In an instant, a massive wound split Kisame's upper body, deep enough to cleave him in two.
Then, without wasting another second, Naruto kicked both Kisame and his sword aside.
After all, to be honest, most people in the Ninja World who use swords are actually using them to attack in conjunction with Ninjutsu.
There are not many who truly delve into swordsmanship, and Kakashi's father, Hatake Sakumo, is one of them.
Naruto's slashing technique, on the other hand, was legitimately on the level of a master swordsman, flawless in both angle and force.
'Come to think of it, I think I also chopped some fish-headed guy in half last time. It seems that I really have bad luck with Fishmen… I'd better not go to Fishman Island next time.'
"Ugh…!"
Even Kisame couldn't hold back a cry of pain from that slash.
But unlike Arlong, in a very short time after being almost cut into two pieces, a surge of Chakra flowed from Samehada's hilt into Kisame's body, rapidly stitching his wound back together.
In just a few seconds, the bone-deep gash had healed, leaving only a thin, discolored scar.
"That hurt! Water Release: Exploding Water Wave!"
After their initial exchange, Kisame realized just how troublesome this Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki was. He no longer hesitated and immediately unleashed a terrain-altering Ninjutsu.
A massive flood of water erupted from his mouth, instantly covering the entire battlefield.
Areas with slightly higher elevation, like where Itachi stood, posing dramatically like some background actor, remained untouched.
But the examinees' side was quickly submerged.
Anko had no choice but to retreat with the examinees, as the battlefield now forcibly split by this Ninjutsu.
Naruto, who is standing at the center of the flood, was directly engulfed.
With the terrain altered, Kisame could now unleash many of his Water Ninjutsu.
"Water Release: Thousand Feeding Sharks!"
Knowing this wasn't some ordinary Genin he was dealing with, Kisame decided not to waste any more time and went straight for his ultimate move.
A huge amount of Chakra erupted as countless sharks, formed from the Chakra-infused water, swarmed toward Naruto.
Meanwhile, Kisame himself blended into the swarm, waiting for an opening to strike.
"Fish-Man Jujutsu: Ebb Tide Lifter… Cross Whirlpool Cascade!"
'You changed the battlefield? Well, you just made it better for me.'
Naruto 'grabbed' the water with both hands before bending down into a throwing stance.
The formless currents were instantly manipulated, gathering and intensifying under some unseen force.
Even underwater, the converging streams took on a darker, denser hue.
The liquid, which is now twisted into a single concentrated force, transformed into a massive cross-shaped torrent that surged toward the oncoming shark swarm.
It can only be said that Uzumaki-sensei is too well-rounded. In those years at sea, aside from drinking and making friends, he'd also mastered various combat styles.
For Fish-Man Jujutsu, an environment like this, which is completely submerged like the deep sea, was absolutely perfect.
One side was chakra-infused water, the other just natural currents… but with sheer volume tipping the scales, it was hard to say which was stronger.
The leading water sharks managed to hold out for a brief moment before being overwhelmed by the relentless surge, dissolving back into Chakra.
The rest of the shark swarm met the same fate.
The school of fish failed to break through the current, and instead, they were completely wiped out.
Fortunately, Kisame managed to escape the swarm in time, narrowly avoiding being swept away by the current.