"Oh wow! That's really terrifying!"
Surrounded by the three, Kizaru habitually muttered his catchphrase.
Familiar with Kizaru's speaking habit, the three surrounding him were not affected.
They glanced at each other, nodding slightly in an uncoordinated manner.
Sticking to their pre-arranged plan, Inabi first threw two shuriken at Kizaru before starting to weave hand signs.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"
After shouting out the name to alert his teammates, Inabi continuously expelled several fireballs from his mouth, resembling blooming phoenix flowers, aiming towards Kizaru.
Following suit, when the small fireballs were about to hit Kizaru, both Toda and Yuki moved.
To avoid being hit by the fireballs, the two momentarily hesitated in their rhythm and only rushed towards Kizaru when the fireballs were about to reach him.
The plan of the three was decent, but Kizaru's speed was too fast. Facing the incoming fireballs, Kizaru exerted force with his legs and jumped into the air.
Seeing Kizaru evade the fireball attack by jumping into the air, Yuki didn't hesitate and followed suit, appearing above Kizaru.
Gripping the ninja sword with both hands and covering the blade with chakra, Yuki aimed a diagonal slash towards Kizaru.
To coordinate with Yuki, Toda also jumped into the air, his left hand leading while his right hand recoiled to gather strength.
With force from his waist, Toda's right hand, after gathering strength, struck towards Kizaru's abdomen.
"Not bad!" Kizaru complimented the two's joint attack with a smile as he pushed off with both legs, executing the Body Flicker Jutsu.
In mid-air, Kizaru leaped to his side, evading the pincer attack.
This sudden movement from Kizaru caught the two off guard.
Yuki, who had swung down with force, had her ninja sword cut through the air, aiming downwards towards Toda's head.
"Watch out!" Seeing this, Inabi in the rear couldn't help but shout.
With a slight change in expression, Yuki pressed her lips tightly together, barely adjusting her posture in the air. Her ninja sword drew a semicircle in the air, its sharp blade passing above Toda's head.
Feeling a bit embarrassed as he landed on the ground, Toda looked at the few strands of hair falling from the sky and couldn't help but feel relieved.
That was really close just now!
As Toda sighed with relief, Yuki also landed on the ground, feeling a little guilty as she looked at the small patch of baldness on her teammate's head.
"Toda..."
"We're still in the assessment, don't get distracted!" The tension of the assessment made Toda overlook the fact that there was a slightly chilling spot on his scalp.
Using his Sharingan, which provided excellent vision, Inabi also noticed the small bald patch on Toda's head.
Suppressing a laugh, Inabi also kept a wary eye on Kizaru, who was flying step by step in the air.
As the last one to descend from the air, Kizaru looked at the three ahead, ready to increase the pressure.
"The warm-up is over."
Reminding them, Kizaru drew his ninja sword for the first time.
Tossing the scabbard aside, Kizaru held the sword with one hand, facing the three.
Hearing Kizaru's words, the three knew that Kizaru was getting serious.
Their faces turned serious as each planned their response.
"Spread out!"
"Attack!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
They shouted in unison, but their actions were far from coordinated.
While Yuki executed the Body Flicker Jutsu and disappeared from her original position, Toda, on the contrary, charged straight towards Kizaru.
As for Inabi, his giant fireball directly collided with Toda's attacking path.
Halting his steps in a hurry, Toda was a bit panicked as he dodged the fireball released by Inabi.
"You idiot!" Unable to hold back any longer, Toda shouted loudly.
"Bastard! You... Watch out!" Just as he was about to retort, Inabi saw Kizaru making a move and hurriedly issued a warning.
Hearing Inabi's reminder, Toda's heart skipped a beat. With his Byakugan activated, he also noticed Kizaru's actions.
His eyes saw it, his brain registered it, but Toda's body couldn't react in time.
Kizaru appeared beside Toda, and as he turned his head, Kizaru lifted his right foot and kicked Toda's head.
Taken by surprise, Toda felt a sharp pain on the side of his face and his head spun as he was sent flying.
"Toda!" Seeing this, Inabi shouted, then threw his shuriken towards Kizaru.
Twisting his body, Kizaru dodged the shuriken's attack. Then, seeing Inabi rushing towards Toda who had fallen to the ground, Kizaru raised his right hand.
With his ninja sword in hand, Kizaru swung it towards the space between Inabi and Toda.
The flying slash Kizaru unleashed almost passed in front of Inabi, blocking his path.
Crossing his hands to block his face, Inabi felt a tearing pain on the outer parts of his hands, causing cold sweat to break out.
Looking at the ground in front of him, torn apart by the flying slash, then at a protruding rock split in half in the distance, Inabi swallowed hard, feeling relieved.
If he hadn't reacted in time just now and took one more step forward, he would have been cut in half by Kizaru's slash.
Facing death at such close range for the first time, Inabi's legs instinctively trembled.
Turning his head to the side where Kizaru was, Inabi, who was startled, couldn't speak for a moment.
"Oh wow! That was really close!" Seeing Inabi looking at him, Kizaru calculated his position accurately in his mind, knowing that Inabi wouldn't be hit by the slash, and said with a smile.
"Don't... Don't come over!"
Due to Kizaru's pulling back, Toda, who was kicked away, only felt a bit dizzy with a swollen cheek, but he was still conscious.
Supporting himself with his hands on the ground, Toda climbed up and looked at Inabi, who looked dumbfounded in front of him, his cheeks slightly flushed.
"Inabi... You mustn't get distracted in battle!" Reminding him while speaking, Kizaru, holding his sword, charged towards Inabi.
"Watch out!" Still feeling dizzy, Toda, who couldn't stand up for a while, hurriedly shouted out the warning.
"Ahhh!" Toda's reminder made Inabi barely regain his senses.
Faced with Kizaru who had already rushed in front of him, he could only frantically take out his shuriken, trying to block Kizaru's downward slash.
In his panic, Inabi couldn't hold the shuriken firmly. The shuriken in his hand made contact with Kizaru's downward slash and flew out of his hand.
"This is bad!"
With only this thought in his mind, as his right hand, which failed to hold the shuriken steady, fell, Inabi could only watch helplessly as Kizaru's ninja sword, in Kizaru's hand, swung down towards him.
At the last moment, Kizaru's downward slash stopped in front of Inabi's face.
The lifted heart fell suddenly, and Inabi, who had escaped death once again, collapsed on the ground.
"Amazing, Yuki!"
Just as Inabi felt guilty, Kizaru, standing in front of him, suddenly spoke up.
Hearing Kizaru's voice, Inabi quickly looked ahead, his gaze passing through Kizaru's long legs, and he saw a pair of slender legs.
It was his teammate, Yuki!
Behind Kizaru, a cold-faced Yuki held a ninja sword against Kizaru's waist.
Intentionally exposing a vulnerability to test the teamwork awareness of the three, Kizaru raised his hands in surrender.
"Yuki, you've gotten faster!"
"You lose, big bro Kizaru!" Hearing Kizaru's affirmation, Yuki smiled.
Hearing their conversation, Inabi seemed to understand what had just happened. He quickly stood up from the ground and walked to Kizaru's side, next to Yuki.
"Yuki, thank you just now." Looking at Yuki, Inabi said sincerely.
"The assessment isn't over yet." Without beating around the bush, Yuki reminded.
Nodding, Inabi took out the last shuriken from his waist pouch.
Approaching Kizaru, Inabi, due to his height, placed the shuriken against Kizaru's abdomen.
"Sensei, have we passed the assessment?"
"Oh wow! The assessment isn't that simple!"
Seeing Inabi's actions, Kizaru laughed, speaking in place of Sakumo, giving his answer.
Facing Kizaru's words, both Yuki and Inabi became tense. They watched Kizaru vigilantly, ready for any sudden movements.
As they nervously watched Kizaru, his body seemed to teleport, disappearing instantly from where he stood.
When Kizaru vanished, Inabi and Yuki reacted, their eyes widening in shock.
"Your reactions were too slow!"
Hearing Kizaru's voice, both of them looked towards the sound, only to find Kizaru already standing next to Toda.
With his right hand holding a blade, Kizaru's ninja sword was against Toda's neck.
"The assessment is over!" Smiling, Kizaru spoke.
With their weapon-holding hands falling weakly, Inabi and Yuki looked disappointedly at Toda, who was under Kizaru's control.
Sakumo, who had been watching the match from the sidelines, deliberately put on an angry expression as he walked into the training ground.
"Inabi, why didn't you rescue Toda when Yuki had Kizaru restrained?" Walking up to Inabi and Yuki, Sakumo asked angrily.
"I..." Inabi wanted to explain that he thought they had already won, but faced with Sakumo's intimidating gaze, he opened his mouth, then lowered his head in honesty.
"You three didn't pass this assessment. I can only let you..."
With Sakumo's words, his three students all wore uncomfortable expressions. Inabi, who felt most responsible, even shed tears.
"Sakumo-sensei, give them another chance!" According to the pre-agreed plan, Kizaru spoke up to plead for the three.
Hearing Kizaru's words, the three clung to this last straw of hope, looking at Sakumo with pleading eyes.
Facing the pitiful looks of his three students, Sakumo deliberately paused for a while before slightly easing his expression, saying, "Rest for ten minutes. One final assessment!"
Seeing Sakumo giving them a second chance, the three showed expressions of relief.
Wiping the tears from his face, Inabi learned his lesson. He immediately ran to Toda's side and helped him up.
"Toda, I'm sorry just now! If it weren't for me..."
"No, it was my own distraction in battle." Interrupting Inabi's apology, Toda also took initiative to address his own shortcomings.
At this moment, Yuki also approached, looking at the two teammates, and said, "Let's rest well. We can't afford to fail again next time."
Standing side by side with Kizaru, watching their teammates apologize to each other and encourage each other, Sakumo's eyes showed a hint of relief.
It seems that this assessment has been successful!