Chapter 32: The Tailed Beast and the Tournament
Four Days Later.
"How could it be her?"
As the time limit expired, Liumu stood up just in time to see the final team entering the hall below.
"Who? Who?" Mizukage asked eagerly, following Liumu's gaze.
The last team to arrive was from Kumogakure. Two men, one woman. All three bore shuriken-shaped tattoos on their arms.
Liumu's attention was fixed on the sole kunoichi among them.
"She's pretty. Do you know her?"
Liumu shook his head, but his frown never relaxed. In his memory, besides the Eight-Tails, the Land of Lightning hosted another Tailed Beast: the Two-Tails, Matatabi.
The Two-Tails, known as the 'Nekomata,' was covered in blue chakra flames, with one blue eye and one yellow. It was said to be a very courteous beast.
If the Eight-Tails and Killer Bee were the most harmonious Jinchūriki-Tailed Beast pair, the Two-Tails and its Jinchūriki were even more so.
The reason Liumu thought of the Two-Tails now was because the girl in this Kumo team was its Jinchūriki: Yugito Nii.
She had waist-length braided hair flowing freely down her back. Her heroic face already bore the bearing of a mature beauty—delicate brows, red lips, a graceful figure.
After respectfully handing over the Heaven and Earth scrolls to the proctor, she and her teammates retreated to a quiet corner to rest.
Normally, Yugito, like Killer Bee, should have been a hidden asset, secretly protected. Why was she openly participating in the Chunin Exams?
Puzzled, Liumu recalled the tragic fate awaiting her in the future. He grinned and shook his head.
"A pity."
...
The second stage concluded. After the Kumo Jonin announced the cutoff, the scores from the first written exam were integrated. Only 18 individuals from 6 teams remained eligible for the third stage's individual battles.
Among them: two teams from Konoha; one from Kumo; one from Iwa; one from Kiri; and the final team hailed from the little-known Land of Craftsmen.
The Land of Craftsmen was a minor nation specializing in forging ninja tools for other countries. While their own shinobi weren't particularly strong, the weapons they developed often possessed incredible abilities.
Observing the three of them, Liumu's mind raced. In his memory, the Land of Craftsmen rose to prominence after a master smith named Seimei. According to the lore, to revive Seimei, its ninja even plotted to capture a tailed beast using their tools—a plan foiled by Konoha ninja. In that conflict, their weapons had left a deep impression.
"If we face them in the individual rounds, we must be cautious," Liumu said, glancing at Kakashi and Mizukage.
...
The third stage commenced. The names of all qualifying ninja appeared on a large screen at the hall's center.
A Kumo Jonin stepped forward, announcing the rules. "The third stage is a one-on-one individual battle. Surrender is permitted. Killing is forbidden. Once a combatant yields, the opponent must cease attack immediately. If a combatant is rendered unconscious or incapacitated, the referee will assess the situation and declare a winner."
The final Chunin promotion results would be decided by a panel of Jonin from each village, based on overall performance across all three stages.
"Then… let the matches begin!"
"First match…"
The Kumo Jonin's sharp call echoed. Instantly, all eyes turned to the electronic screen behind him.
Names flashed rapidly across the screen. As the Jonin shouted "Stop!", one name solidified: Hatake Kakashi.
His opponent was the yellow-haired kunoichi from Iwagakure—the same one who had clashed with Liumu's team twice before.
"Whew… scared me. I thought I was unlucky enough to draw him."
Seeing it was Kakashi, the yellow-haired kunoichi let out a long sigh of relief. The large Iwa ninja beside her warned, "Don't get careless. Stay vigilant."
"It's him."
Kakashi looked at his opponent, then slowly stepped out from the crowd, making his way to the central arena.
"Then… begin!"
Hearing the Jonin's command, the yellow-haired kunoichi pushed off with her feet, rapidly retreating. Once dozens of meters from Kakashi, her hands flew through seals. "Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
A khaki-colored dragon head erupted from the ground beneath her, immediately spewing a barrage of stone shards toward Kakashi.
Seeing this, Kakashi leaped aside, barely evading. He then drew an explosive-tagged shuriken from his waist and hurled it straight at her.
But…
Thud.
After watching the shuriken strike the kunoichi squarely, everyone present heard a strange, dull sound.
BOOM!
The explosion erupted, instantly shrouding the arena in thick smoke.
"What was that sound just now?" someone in the audience exclaimed.
The large Iwa ninja smiled, an air of unmistakable confidence about him. They might not be able to beat Liumu, but against Kakashi's current methods, his teammate was untouchable.
"That's Skin Hardening!" Mizukage, standing on the second-floor balcony, frowned as she observed the scene below. "She must be like me—able to coat her entire body with Earth-nature chakra to achieve a rock-like defense."
Sure enough, as the smoke cleared, the yellow-haired kunoichi's exposed skin was covered in web-like cracks. Under everyone's gaze, the cracks shattered, revealing her undamaged skin beneath.
"Even an explosive tag can't harm her?!"
The explosive tag's blast was roughly equivalent to a grenade. Yet even that had only shattered her earthen 'armor.'
On the arena, Kakashi watched her, his mind racing for a counter. But the kunoichi gave him no time to think.
Crossing her arms, she shouted, "Hah!" With a poof, she created a clone. The clone charged toward Kakashi. The kunoichi smiled slightly and yelled, "Now!"
BOOM!
The clone detonated like a cannonball. Just as the audience thought Kakashi was done for, they saw him shoot sideways out of the dust cloud.
"Hmph. Just a child after all. Fooled you!" The kunoichi aimed at Kakashi's airborne form and unleashed another Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet.
With no leverage mid-air, Kakashi had no means of evasion.
As the Earth Dragon Bullet struck him directly, Kakashi transformed into a charred log with a poof.
"Damn it!"
(End of Chapter)
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