Match 3:Uchiha Yao vs. Gaara
"My turn."
Yao nodded to Sasuke and Naruto beside him, then leaped from the high platform, landing lightly in the center of the arena.
A wave of enthusiastic cheering immediately erupted from the stands.
"Yao! Go! Do it! Beat that panda-eyed guy! I've wanted to smack him for ages!" Naruto gripped the railing, punching the air with gusto.
"Yao-kun! Good luck!" Sakura screamed excitedly.
"Yao! Please be careful! That Sand guy is dangerous!" Ino shouted with worry.
In the Forest of Death, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio had witnessed Gaara killing other ninja with their own eyes. It had left a significant psychological shadow on them; just seeing Gaara now made them terrified.
Although Yao was strong, in Ino's eyes, he wasn't as monstrous as Gaara.
The cheering from the Konoha side drew dissatisfaction from the Sand Village representatives.
"Hmph. Konoha brats, you're too loud! Quiet down!"
Kankuro crossed his arms, a mocking sneer on his face. "Just watch closely. That Uchiha kid is going to get beaten to a pulp by Gaara in no time!"
"What did you say?!" Naruto reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "Yao is super strong! That panda-eyes doesn't stand a chance!"
"Defeat Gaara? Konoha kid, you're too naive!"
Temari scoffed, her face showing total confidence in her brother. "At the Chunin level, no one can defeat Gaara. His power is not something you can imagine!"
However, as Temari looked at Gaara, a trace of fear flashed deep within her eyes. She knew better than anyone about the monster sleeping inside him, and his nearly heartless power.
In the arena, Hayate Gekko coughed twice and announced the start of the match.
Yao and Gaara stood opposite each other.
Gaara's eyes were hollow and numb, devoid of any emotion.
The cork of the gourd on his back popped open quietly, and fine sand began to flow out, swirling around his feet.
"Uchiha... Yao."
Gaara's voice was raspy and cold. "I will kill you."
Simple words, yet the naked killing intent behind them spread through the air like a tangible substance.
"Is that so?"
Yao's expression remained calm. "If you are referring to the monster inside you, I apologize, but you might be disappointed."
Gaara's pupils constricted.
"Kill you!"
The moment Gaara's voice fell, the yellow sand at his feet erupted like an awakening viper.
With a piercing whistle of wind, the sand instantly lunged at Yao.
Yao had anticipated it.
He moved with an effortless, relaxed grace.
Just a split second before the sand made contact, he dodged by a hair's breadth. The grains of sand grazed the hem of his clothes but failed to touch his body.
Gaara's eyes remained cold. He manipulated more and more sand, the speed increasing as he unleashed various ninjutsu with ease.
Sand Shuriken!Sand Binding Coffin!Sand Shower Barrage!
Yao moved like a phantom, weaving freely through the net of sand.
His speed, reaction time, and physical coordination were clearly superior to the speed of Gaara's sand.
This was no accident!
Before awakening his System, Yao understood the importance of Taijutsu and had never slackened in tempering the foundation of his body.
After all, when a ninja fights to the bitter end and runs out of chakra, they have to rely on Taijutsu!
And after obtaining the Sage's Body, Yao's physical attributes had undergone a qualitative leap—strength, speed, endurance, and reaction time had all skyrocketed.
Gaara's sand was fast, certainly, but trying to catch Yao? It was still lacking.
Whoosh!
Once again, Yao slipped out of the closing grasp of a sand claw half a second early, landing lightly on a rock.
He casually rolled his neck, producing a soft clicking sound.
"Alright, Panda-eyes!"
Yao looked at Gaara. "The warm-up is about over. Now, I'm going to get serious!"
He raised his right hand, and a blinding blue light erupted from his palm.
Massive amounts of chakra converged wildly! Spinning! Compressing!
The surrounding air was churned up, emitting a low, vibrating hum.
In the blink of an eye, a sphere of blue light, far larger in diameter than a standard Rasengan, appeared in his hand.
Big Ball Rasengan!
"That is..."
The Third Hokage's pipe nearly slipped from his hand, his face filled with astonishment.
The viewing area for the guiding Jonin instantly exploded into chaos.
Kakashi's eyes widened into perfect circles, his mouth hanging open unconsciously.
Asuma forgot to light his cigarette. Kurenai covered her mouth in shock.
Guy's thick eyebrows shot up high, forgetting to even shout about "Youth."
"Kakashi, is that the Fourth's Rasengan?" Guy asked in disbelief.
"It is the Rasengan! But the size is clearly much larger than a normal one!" Kakashi's voice trembled slightly. "Obviously, this is an advanced form of the Rasengan!"
He knew Yao had spent a day mastering the Rasengan and Chidori.
But he hadn't expected this.
Yao had actually mastered a derivative form of the Rasengan!
When did this happen? During the half-month after returning from the Land of Waves?
"How come Yao's Rasengan is so much bigger than mine?"
Naruto stared at the blue sphere of light, his eyes bulging. Subconsciously, he gestured to the size of the ball he usually formed, completely shocked.
"Idiot!"
Sasuke commented weakly, "He obviously injected a massive amount of chakra into the base Rasengan to develop a stronger variant!"
Sasuke felt a sense of defeat.
The three of them had learned the Chidori and Rasengan at the same time.
He and Naruto had barely mastered the basics of their respective techniques.
But Yao? Not only had he mastered the Chidori's derivative, the Chidori Sharp Spear, but he was also doing tricks with the Rasengan.
Is this guy a monster? Are we really twin brothers? Why is the gap between us so huge?
"Is... is that so?" Naruto listened, only half-understanding.
However, everyone's shock was clearly premature.
Just then.
The originally low hum of chakra suddenly turned sharp and piercing.
It sounded as if countless high-speed saw blades were frantically grinding against the air.
Around the blue Big Ball Rasengan, a clearly visible ring of razor-sharp serrated blades abruptly materialized.
These blades spun at high speed along with the core Rasengan, producing a cutting sound that set one's teeth on edge.
The originally stable spherical structure now looked more like a storm-forged shuriken filled with the aura of destruction.
"Th... This is..."
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, could no longer maintain his composure. His cloudy eyes were filled with disbelief.
"Adding Wind Nature Transformation to the Shape Transformation of the Rasengan? How is it possible to maintain both changes simultaneously and keep it stable?"
The Sand Village's leading Jonin, Baki, broke out in a cold sweat. "Lord Hokage, hasn't this kid from your village taken things a bit too far?"
Baki could sense the terror of the Rasenshuriken; it gave him heart palpitations.
Under his mask, Kakashi's mouth formed an "O" shape, his Sharingan in his left eye spinning madly.
He tried to analyze the composition of that terrifying jutsu, but the feedback he received nearly overloaded his brain.
Guy forgot to pose. Kurenai and Asuma were speechless. The Rasengan was a jutsu developed by the Fourth Hokage.
And now, this Uchiha brat had actually added nature transformation to it. It was simply outrageous!
Over on the Sand Village side.
The composure and sneers on Temari and Kankuro's faces froze instantly.