Three teams?
If Menma's memory served him right, weren't there five or six teams that passed in the original story?
Had the numbers really been slashed in half? Just three teams left?
Then again, this explained why the preliminaries were scrapped. With three teams—even counting their unique four-man squad in Team 7—that only added up to ten people. That was just one person more than the finals roster in the original timeline. Ten participants fit the stage perfectly for the main tournament.
"That few? Seriously? Only three teams?" Naruto's eyes went wide.
"I think twenty-one teams started the second round," Sakura remarked, sounding a bit rattled. "To think only three made it through..."
Only Sasuke remained indifferent, looking as cool as ever.
'Well, barring any surprises, the other two teams should be... them,' Menma thought silently as they walked toward the main hall where they had first arrived.
And sure enough.
The moment they stepped into the hall, six figures came into view.
It was Gaara's team and Neji's team.
Without a doubt, these two squads represented the highest overall skill level in this Chunin Exam.
In this timeline, it seemed Team Asuma, Team Kurenai, the Sound Ninja team, and even Kabuto's squad had all been eliminated during the second round.
The arrival of Menma and his group immediately drew the attention of Gaara, Neji, and the others.
The moment their gazes locked, the tension was palpable. Gaara's eyes narrowed sharply, while Neji offered a cold, scrutinizing stare.
Two teams from the Hidden Leaf, one from the Hidden Sand.
This wasn't too far off from the predictions made at the start of the exams. After all, the Chunin Exams were essentially a way for the Five Great Ninja Villages to flex their muscles at one another.
Because the preliminary round was skipped, the large crowd of Jonin wasn't present, nor did Hiruzen Sarutobi make an appearance.
Only Hayate Gekkō, serving as the chief proctor for the finals, stood before the ten genin, accompanied by a few assistants.
"Cough, cough... First off, congratulations... cough... to the three teams for passing... the second round..."
Hayate looked like he was on death's door, coughing incessantly.
"I am the chief proctor... cough... for the third round, the main tournament... cough, cough... As for the rules... cough... you should have already heard them from the messengers earlier... so I won't... cough... repeat them. Of course... anyone who wants to quit... cough, cough... can speak up now. If not... cough... let's proceed with drawing lots for the matchups..."
Hayate's demeanor—like a man with a terminal lung condition—made everyone wonder if he was going to cough up a lung right there on the spot.
After speaking, he paused for a moment. Seeing that none of the ten candidates lined up below said a word, he nodded.
"Then... cough... let's begin the draw."
He signaled a subordinate to bring out a box, and the ten candidates stepped up one by one to draw their numbers.
Ten lots, forming five pairs.
Because there were no preliminaries, the bracket for the finals looked drastically different this time around.
When the final results were announced, a flash of surprise crossed Menma's eyes.
For the second match, the board clearly read: Gaara vs. Namikaze Naruto!
And for the first match: Uchiha Sasuke vs. Hyūga Neji.
The four of them had effectively swapped opponents.
The others didn't react much, but Menma found it a little peculiar.
'Is this what they call fate?' Menma mused, finding it slightly amusing.
As for Menma himself, he drew the number five, meaning he would fight in the final match. His opponent was someone who gave him a bit of a headache: Rock Lee.
As mentioned before, without using the Nine-Tails' chakra, the current Menma didn't stand a chance against Rock Lee.
The original story made it very clear how terrifying Lee was when he opened the Fifth Gate. There were very few Jonin who could match that kind of raw power.
Of course, opening five gates at this stage was physically devastating for Lee. In terms of pure physical durability, the Fourth Gate was likely Lee's current limit.
But even just four gates...
Menma wasn't confident he could take that head-on. If nothing else, Lee's speed alone was something the current Menma couldn't hope to keep up with.
However, Menma wasn't too worried about it. Not only did it not really matter if he lost, but there was also a high probability he wouldn't have to fight at all.
His match was scheduled for last.
As long as the Sand Village's plan remained unchanged, Gaara would initiate his Tailed Beast transformation during the second match.
Once that happened, the "Konoha Crush" plan would officially kick off. The tournament would descend into chaos long before Menma's turn came up. The same applied to the third match (Tenten vs. Temari) and the fourth match (Sakura vs. Kankurō).
The others didn't know, but Menma understood clearly: the only thing that mattered in this tournament was the second match between Gaara and Naruto.
"The above is the roster for the main tournament... cough, cough..." Hayate continued in his weak, raspy voice. "You have one month to prepare... cough... I hope you all... bring us some exciting battles..."
Hayate's gaze swept over each of their faces as he dismissed them.
The moment the roster was finalized, the ten young ninja locked onto their respective opponents.
Gaara, in particular, stared at Naruto with a ferocious, unhinged expression, looking like he wanted to kill him right then and there. Beside him, Temari and Kankurō looked visibly nervous.
Naruto, on the other hand, didn't think much of it. He just thought it was cool to fight a ninja from another village, especially since he had met Gaara before and recognized him as strong.
Naruto was actually itching to go.
Meanwhile, Rock Lee was staring at Menma with shining eyes.
Previously, the person he wanted to defeat most was Neji. But now, Menma was squarely in his sights. After all, this was the guy who had surpassed both the Uchiha and the Hokage's son to become the top graduate.
Lee had also just heard from his teacher that Menma had entered the Forest of Death as a one-man squad.
That kind of courage... that kind of strength!
'Oh, oh, oh! The flames of my youth are burning hot!'
Lee's gaze was so intense it felt like you could physically see the fire in his eyes.
Menma just shook his head helplessly in his heart.