Hiss—
Inside the surveillance room, a wave of gasps could be heard. For a moment, the temperature in the room seemed to rise ever so slightly.
And the reason for such a reaction was naturally Aoshi.
This time, everyone in the surveillance room clearly saw how Aoshi simultaneously exchanged sword strikes with Killer Bee while forming one-handed seals to perform a Water Style jutsu to block Masaki's attack.
They were all Jonin, and under normal circumstances, they wouldn't react like this, unless they truly couldn't help it.
Just like now.
"No more pretending. You're really going to keep saying that guy's a Genin?" You couldn't blame the Cloud and Sand shinobi for their reaction. Even they couldn't pull off what Aoshi just did.
In that kind of situation, they'd simply try to push Killer Bee back first, then dodge Masaki's attack.
Faced with these remarks, the Konoha Jonin who had spoken earlier fell silent. Even he began to question whether his memory was faulty; could Aoshi actually be a Jonin?
But then he quickly dismissed that thought. There was no way his memory was wrong.
If Aoshi really was a Jonin, then based on what he had just shown, he'd be among the elite of even that rank—and there was no way someone like that would be unknown to him.
"I'm telling you, he's just a Genin! If you don't believe me, feel free to investigate!"
Hearing the Konoha Jonin still stubbornly insisting, both the Cloud and Sand shinobi couldn't help but twitch their lips. If Aoshi's earlier performance could barely be rationalized, then this recent display left no room for explanation.
No one believed that their own village's Genin could be this far behind a Genin from Konoha.
"I'll report this to Captain Toroi."
"Same here. I'll report it to Lord Rasa."
However, they were merely ordinary Jonin. Whether or not an official investigation would happen depended on Toroi and Rasa's decision.
The Konoha Jonin didn't stop them. He believed that if Lord Hokage had arranged things this way, then they had nothing to fear from any investigation.
Unaware that his performance had scared the Jonin of both Cloud and Sand into wanting to investigate him, Aoshi slashed Killer Bee in the stomach.
Blood immediately burst forth, forcing Killer Bee to retreat.
Aoshi made no effort to chase after him and continued standing calmly in place, watching.
"You alright?" Seeing Killer Bee wounded, Masaki asked out of genuine concern—after all, they were allies at the moment.
"Just a scratch. I'm fine." Killer Bee sheathed his blades as he spoke.
After the swordfight just now, he was fully aware that he couldn't beat Aoshi in swordsmanship. "Do you have any stronger jutsu? Don't hold back now."
After a moment of silence, Masaki shook his head. "That's all I've got. You saw it too, my Wind Style didn't work on him at all."
"I've still got one move left. In a moment, help me draw his attention."
Killer Bee was referring to the Lariat.
This move could be used solo or in tandem with the future Fourth Raikage A to perform their ultimate combo technique—Double Lariat.
Given Aoshi's overwhelming strength, Killer Bee needed Masaki's help to ensure the move would land successfully.
Despite the two openly discussing tactics in front of him, Aoshi didn't bother stopping them. In fact, he still had the presence of mind to check in on how Kushina's fight was going against the other two Sand ninja.
Although she wasn't completely overpowering them like Aoshi was, Kushina still had the upper hand.
After separating Rindō and Haruko with explosive tags earlier, she focused her attacks on Haruko first, since she was also a kunoichi.
As a member of the Uzumaki clan, Kushina not only possessed a massive chakra reserve but was also a top-tier taijutsu user—stronger even than many male shinobi, let alone Haruko.
Once Kushina closed the distance, Haruko couldn't hold her ground without Rindo's help.
Even though Rindo quickly came to assist, Haruko was already coughing up blood from Kushina's assault.
The "Red Hot-Blooded Habanero" nickname wasn't just for show. After sending Haruko flying with a kick, Kushina shifted her attacks onto Rindo.
"Damn it! Don't underestimate me!" Rindo shouted in frustration, but shouting didn't change the fact that he was no match for Kushina.
In just a few moves, he began to falter.
Even though Haruko ignored her injuries to support him with Wind Style jutsu, it only managed to slightly delay the inevitable.
In the end, Rindo was sent flying by another powerful kick—and landed squarely on top of Haruko.
Meanwhile, Masaki also sprang into action. Realizing his ninjutsu was ineffective, he drew a kunai and charged toward Aoshi.
Taijutsu was the foundation of any shinobi—even if he specialized in Wind Style, his physical combat couldn't be weak.
But against Aoshi, Masaki's taijutsu wasn't even worth mentioning. Even Killer Bee couldn't overpower Aoshi—what chance did Masaki have?
Masaki knew that too. So, gritting his teeth, he suddenly lunged forward and wrapped his arms around the one Aoshi used to hold his blade.
Seizing the opportunity, Killer Bee's attack closed in on Aoshi.
He raised his arm and drove it toward Aoshi's neck—a vulnerable spot where even a glancing blow could be devastating.
Feeling the wind from the incoming strike, Aoshi silently acknowledged the move's power. No wonder Killer Bee in the future would nearly kill Sasuke with this technique.
"But right now... You two are still too weak." A cold, sharp voice rang out.
Aoshi swiftly raised his leg and kicked Killer Bee hard.
The sheer force of the blow launched him through the air and sent him crashing through a tree before hitting the ground.
However, compared to Motoi, Killer Bee was much tougher. He took the hit head-on and didn't lose consciousness like Motoi had.
"B!" Seeing this, Hiko—who had been tending to Motoi—hurried over, carrying him toward Killer Bee.
"Toss the scroll. We're leaving." Killer Bee made his decision on the spot.
Losing a scroll was better than losing their lives. Besides, with their strength, they could always snatch another scroll from another team later.
Hiko didn't object to his choice.
After dealing with Killer Bee, Masaki was no challenge for Aoshi and was swiftly defeated as well.
He made the same decision as Killer Bee—he tossed his scroll and fled along with Rindō and Seiko without looking back.
Just like that, two individuals hailed as the strongest in their respective villages had joined forces and still lost miserably to Aoshi. All they could do was flee in disgrace.
"I can treat your wounds for you!"
Seeing them flee, Aoshi shouted sincerely—but none of them turned back. If anything, they ran even faster.
Aoshi truly did want to heal them. After all, the second stage of the exam would last five full days, and no one was allowed to leave the Forest of Death midway.
That meant, during this time, the Genin participating in this round were his only chance to earn system rewards. That was also why Aoshi had been holding back during the battle.
"Kushina, both scrolls they threw are Earth Scrolls—the ones we need!"
Picking up the scrolls, Kushina's face lit up with joy.