Now, for the final match of the first round, only Sasuke vs Shino remained. With continuous matches, considerable time had passed, and Sasuke and Kakashi finally arrived.
"Really, sorry we're late!" Looking at everyone, Kakashi smiled apologetically, though no apology was evident.
"Sa... Sasuke!" Sakura above finally showed a smile upon seeing Sasuke.
"Name?" Looking at Sasuke, Genma asked calmly.
"Uchiha... Sasuke." Hearing Genma's question, Sasuke slowly replied.
"He finally made it!" Lee also showed a smile.
'Seriously, being so late and still acting all high and mighty.' Shikamaru, still on his way up, thought to himself.
"Uchiha! Uchiha!" With an Uchiha's appearance, the audience above cheered loudly. Many had come specifically to see the famed abilities of the last remaining Uchiha Clan's member.
"Hmph, you're really late. Thought you were too scared to face me!" Seeing Sasuke arrive, Naruto excitedly jumped down from the competitor's area.
"Did you win your first match?" Looking at Naruto, Sasuke simply showed a faint smile.
"Of course!" Hearing him, Naruto replied excitedly.
"Don't get too careless, you idiot." Seeing Naruto's excitement, Sasuke said coolly.
"Um, we made quite an entrance, but... that guy Sasuke won't be disqualified, will he?" Kakashi asked hesitantly.
"Does your habit of being late rub off on others?" Hearing Kakashi, Genma sighed.
"And then... what happened?"
"No problem. Sasuke's match was postponed. It just happens to be the last match of the first round now. Although you cut it close, you're not disqualified." Seeing Kakashi's concern, Genma said calmly.
"Ahaha, that's good, that's good!" Hearing this, Kakashi scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.
Meanwhile, Sasuke noticed the injured Gaara and the completely unharmed Takeru, feeling surprised. Though he hadn't fought Gaara personally, Gaara had sought him out earlier.
The overwhelming killing intent and dangerous aura were evident. Moreover, Kakashi had warned him about Gaara's terror, stating he was likely the biggest threat. But now, it seemed that assessment might have been wrong.
"Naruto, Gaara fought Takeru, right?" Thinking of something, Sasuke directly asked Naruto for confirmation.
"Mhm." Hearing Sasuke, Naruto's expression turned serious, no longer playful. He slowly nodded.
"Was he strong?" Seeing Naruto like this, Sasuke's heart sank.
"Very strong. If Takeru got serious, I probably couldn't take even one move." Hearing Sasuke, Naruto hesitated before speaking.
Hearing Naruto, Sasuke's pupils contracted. As Naruto's teammate, he knew Naruto's capabilities.
Though he hadn't seen Naruto for a month and didn't know how much he'd improved, Naruto had defeated Neji.
Based on earlier observations, Naruto's strength wasn't weak. Yet Naruto now said such a thing, which naturally shocked Sasuke...
Hearing this, Kakashi also looked surprised at Takeru.
Soon, Genma had Shino come down and instructed irrelevant people like Kakashi and Shikamaru to leave.
"The rules are similar to the preliminaries. The match continues until one dies or surrenders. Sometimes, I'll stop the match when the outcome is clear. That's my decision."
Because Sasuke was late, Genma explained the rules again.
Kakashi, upon reaching the audience area, immediately went to Guy.
"Guy, is Lee's body completely recovered?" Seeing the spirited Lee, Kakashi was stunned and asked curiously.
"Thanks for your concern, it's completely fine now!" Hearing Kakashi, Lee excitedly gave a thumbs-up.
"Mhm, fully recovered." Regarding Kakashi's concern, Guy smiled.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Just as Kakashi was about to ask, Sakura called him.
"Sorry, sorry. You must have been worried too. Sorry for not contacting you." Hearing Sakura, Kakashi showed an apologetic look.
"That's okay. Kakashi-sensei, the mark on Sasuke's neck is gone, right? Is that..." Sakura hesitated, then asked.
"Don't worry. It's nothing." Hearing Sakura, Kakashi said softly.
"Mhm." Hearing Kakashi, Sakura smiled again.
'One, two, three, four... seven, eight. Eight people. Such a big arena, only eight Anbu? Only two teams is too few. And... there are too few spectators here. What exactly is the Hokage thinking?' Instinctively surveying the arena, Kakashi frowned.
Though many people had gradually returned after Takeru's match, there were still far fewer than before. Many seats were empty.
"No, without knowing the enemy's specific actions, we have to scatter the Anbu in the village's main areas. It's about to start. Though we can't let our guard down, let's focus on the match for now."
One could say, as expected of Kakashi's close friend. Seeing Kakashi's expression, Guy immediately understood Kakashi's thoughts and spoke softly to him.
"Kakashi, how did you train Sasuke? I'll carefully check your results because you'll always be my rival!" Suddenly, Guy turned to Kakashi with a competitive smile.
"Huh? Did you say something?" Noticing Guy's gaze, Kakashi looked at him curiously.
'No way, Kakashi! Why are you always so heartless?' Seeing Kakashi's reaction, Guy's morale collapsed again, his smile completely stiffening.
"You two, to the center." On the battlefield, Genma spoke to Sasuke and Shino.
"Begin!" Seeing both close in, Genma quickly announced the start and leaped away.
Shino, upon hearing this, immediately jumped back to create distance from Sasuke. Then, a massive swarm of kikaichu flew from his arms, looking like a dense, dark cloud.
Ui and Ritsu on the viewing platform even instinctively stopped using Observation Haki… it was just too disgusting.
Seeing this, Sasuke quickly threw two shuriken at him.
Shino, not daring to be careless, quickly leaped away from his spot.
However, Sasuke watched where Shino would land and charged forward. Seeing Sasuke's fist rapidly approaching, Shino hurriedly used kikaichu to block in front of himself, preparing for both defense and offense.
But just before contacting the kikaichu, Sasuke abruptly halted, showing a light smile. His body vanished from the spot, reappearing beside Shino, then delivering a punch...
Bam" The immense force struck Shino's face, instantly sending him flying.
'So fast. Basically the same speed as Lee's standard, and...' Seeing this, Guy was stunned.
'Exactly the same Taijutsu movements as mine!' Lee was also surprised.
The sent-flying Shino stood up, feeling great pain, his brow furrowed.
"Bring it on!" After sending Shino flying, Sasuke stood confidently, smiling at him.
Hearing this, Shino clasped his hands together. A massive swarm of kikaichu charged at Sasuke. But Sasuke moved swiftly, shaking off the insects. The kikaichu couldn't keep up with Sasuke's speed.
Noticing this, Shino's expression grew more serious. He saw Sasuke rapidly approaching him.
"Secret Technique: Insect Wall!" Without hesitation, Shino softly called out. A large number of kikaichu surrounded him, rotating at high speed around him for defense...
Seeing this, Sasuke's poised fist paused. He quickly distanced himself with super-fast speed.
Looking at the insect barrier, Sasuke knew Taijutsu attacks wouldn't work. But dealing with insects didn't worry him either.
Then, Sasuke quickly performed hand seals. "Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"
With the seals complete, Sasuke spewed numerous small fireballs from his mouth, attacking the kikaichu.