Tatsuma couldn't shake the suspicion that Orochimaru was merely performing a well-crafted act, yet lacked concrete evidence to support his intuition. He found himself helplessly observing Orochimaru, who maintained an air of sophistication with a touch of subtle malevolence. Throughout the course of his existence, Orochimaru took particular pleasure in toying with individuals who proudly deemed themselves "geniuses."
However, a direct assault on Kushina would be far too conspicuous. Orochimaru deemed it more effective to center attention on Tatsuma, creating an illusion that would lead Kushina to believe she was the favored one.
After all, she had a break in the middle, and after the rest, she would face Minato, who had just concluded a fierce battle. As for whether Kushina would secure a victory due to this?
Even though Sarutobi-sensei didn't harbor hopes for Kushina to triumph in the initial round, Orochimaru remained indifferent. All that mattered to him was ensuring Kushina ultimately failed to graduate.
Tatsuma squinted at Orochimaru, who was wearing an insidious smile, then released Kushina, allowing her to return to the sidelines for a moment of respite.
"Any more questions?"
Orochimaru tilted his head slightly, locking eyes with Tatsuma. Tatsuma shook his head and, with determination, formed the Seal of Confrontation, redirecting his focus toward Minato. "Minato, we can start anytime."
Minato had initially hoped Tatsuma would take some time to regain his strength, but with Tatsuma showing no inclination to stall, Minato had no alternative but to step forward, summoning the Seal of Confrontation.
Yet, an unsettling feeling lingered with Minato. It appeared that Tatsuma had refrained from offering his usual praises today. It wasn't as if Minato needed Tatsuma's commendation to engage in a fight, but after two and a half years of camaraderie, Minato couldn't ignore the absence of Tatsuma's customary praise. There had to be a reason for this.
As the two executed the Seal of Confrontation and then lowered their hands, Orochimaru also directed some attention, intrigued to observe how Tatsuma would approach the match with both stamina and chakra significantly depleted.
However, after completing the Seal of Confrontation, the two refrained from an immediate assault, leaving Orochimaru perplexed and furrowing his brow. In that moment, Tatsuma lifted his head, revealing a radiant smile.
"Orochimaru-sama, I concede."
"Hmm?"
Tatsuma's words took Orochimaru somewhat off guard. After all, the information he had gathered about Tatsuma emphasized Tatsuma's exceptional competitiveness—a drive so intense that he sought to engage in competition in even the most trivial aspects of life.
But now, Tatsuma was unexpectedly conceding. Orochimaru glanced at Minato, who wore an expression that seemed to convey, "I knew it," and then shifted his gaze back to Tatsuma, who had already formed the Seal of Reconciliation. Orochimaru inquired, "Care to explain the reason?"
"Because I've already secured the qualification to advance to the next round of the test, haven't I?"
Tatsuma's smile remained brilliant. His competitiveness was undeniably robust, but it operated on the premise that he had a genuine chance of victory, seizing the opponent's talent. In his current state, facing Minato left him with no chance. After all, he was competitive, not a masochist.
Tatsuma's response momentarily froze Orochimaru's expression. In the rules he had just outlined, it was explicitly stated that each participant needed to secure at least one victory to progress to the next round of the assessment.
However, Orochimaru had not anticipated that Tatsuma would seize upon a casual remark to cleverly manipulate the situation, effectively "toying" with him—especially considering Tatsuma posed yet another challenge. The current standings were Tatsuma with one win and one loss, Kushina with one loss, and Minato with one win. If, in the third round, Minato chose to navigate the rules as Tatsuma had, then all three would boast at least one victory, making them eligible for the next round.
"Aren't you afraid that I could use your failure to engage as a reason to strip you of the qualification to continue the assessment?"
Orochimaru scrutinized Tatsuma, eager to discern his decision. However, Tatsuma simply shrugged and remarked, "You forgot, you didn't mention any other rules. I made sure to ask."
Indeed, Orochimaru recalled their prior conversation, silently applauding Tatsuma for his meticulousness. Little did he realize that Tatsuma's thoroughness was aimed at preempting Orochimaru from causing complications, and Orochimaru had inadvertently fallen into Tatsuma's cleverly laid trap.
No, in a way, this trap was inadvertently laid by Orochimaru himself. If he hadn't deliberately made things challenging for Tatsuma, then Tatsuma wouldn't have had the opportunity to exploit this loophole.
"Alright, let's begin the third round. Minato, face off against Kushina."
Orochimaru redirected his gaze, focusing on Kushina, who was still in shock and struggled to fully grasp the sudden turn of events. After regaining her composure, Kushina shot a discontented glare at Tatsuma and exclaimed, "Always resorting to petty tricks!"
"Don't forget, you're the only one left now who needs to pursue victory. Best of luck."
Tatsuma retorted in a sarcastic tone as they passed each other. Kushina attempted to intentionally bump into Tatsuma with her shoulder, but Tatsuma appeared to anticipate it, effortlessly sidestepping. Kushina stumbled a couple of steps instead.
"Darn it!"
Frustrated by her failed attempt, Kushina redirected her emotions toward Minato, who stood before her with a resigned smile. Glaring at Minato's seemingly apologetic expression, Kushina burst out, "Why are you grinning, sissy? Do you think you've already won?!"
Minato froze for a moment. His peculiar smile earlier was merely a reaction to Tatsuma's peculiar actions and the evident clash between Tatsuma and Kushina.
However, Minato didn't anticipate that once again, due to his own smile, Kushina would misunderstand him. He himself couldn't recall how many times Kushina had misinterpreted his smiles.
Yet, Minato refrained from providing any clarifications; it was simply part of his inherent nature. Tatsuma often dubbed him as a steamed bun. Honestly, Minato remained puzzled about why Tatsuma used a steamed bun to describe his personality (Warm and Soft basically).
Minato shook his head, cleared his thoughts, raised the hand he had recently lowered, formed the Seal of Confrontation, and said, "Kushina, do you need to take a break?"
"Hmph! You've even formed the Seal of Confrontation. Are you planning to give me time to rest? Besides, I don't need it!"
Kushina adjusted her still sore left shoulder joint, and her right hand also assumed the Seal of Confrontation. The moment they released their hands, Minato's expression shifted.
Suddenly, six shurikens materialized in his hand and were swiftly launched toward Kushina, who had yet to react.
As the shurikens left Minato's hand, he frowned, regretting that he shouldn't have approached the battle with the same sense of urgency as with Tatsuma. After all, he and Kushina hadn't undergone numerous practical combat drills, and their familiarity with each other was limited.
Hence, his combat approach had the potential to inflict harm upon Kushina. However, remorse held no sway now. When Kushina realized and attempted to evade, it was already too late. Two shurikens sliced across her, causing blood to splatter.
From the outset, the outcome of the battle had been predetermined. Kushina was defeated even more swiftly than when facing Tatsuma. Tatsuma wasn't in peak condition after their battle, and she wasn't at her best either.
After a while, Minato, with two victories, observed the sulking Kushina and extended his hand, saying, "Sorry, but I promise you, I will carry your determination and take the first step toward becoming a ninja."
"Who asked you to carry it?! Wuu wuu~"
As she spoke, Kushina suddenly erupted into loud sobs. Minato felt somewhat helpless. Orochimaru, Sarutobi Atoma, and Tatsuma all silently directed their gaze toward the seemingly distant horizon, allowing Kushina to continue crying.
They understood that Kushina needed this emotional release to express her emotions.
----
Check out my patreon for more advanced chapters up to 50 at patreon.com/HellGolt