"Guy, leave me behind and run! Kurenai and Shisui's combined team is closing in."
Yamashiro Aoba saw the signal flare in the distance and immediately sent out crows to scout. Soon...
He spotted the enemy.
A team of six!
"How many?"
"Six!"
"..."
Might Guy cursed inwardly.
Damn it.
They only had two people. How were they supposed to handle a team of that size?
If they stayed together, neither of them would make it out alive.
Gritting his teeth, he said, "I'll use a secret technique to get us out of here!"
"No, listen to me. I'm not as strong as them, and this is only the first sweep. The second sweep is the critical one. You need to get inside the safe zone and hide, waiting for the second sweep."
"If we can make it into the top five, our team still has a chance to advance to the third round."
Aoba spoke rapidly.
Without Obito dragging down their collective intelligence, Might Guy finally became someone he could reason with.
He felt relieved.
But unfortunately...
They were missing one person, and now they were up against Kurenai and Shisui's combined team.
There was no way they could win.
"They're coming. Damn it! Aoba, I'll get you to the third round!"
Might Guy also sensed them.
Kurenai, Shisui.
And also Ebisu and Raidō Namiashi.
There was no way they could win!
Unless he opened at least four of the Eight Gates.
However.
When Might Duy taught him the Eight Gates, he had said that the Eight Gates were to be opened for the sake of protection.
If he opened four or more gates for a mere exam, he'd probably get beaten to death by his old man when he got home.
"It's Guy! Surround him, don't let him escape!"
Shisui, recognizing Might Guy, immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to chase after him.
As Kyōichi's student, he was well aware of the strength of Might Guy and his father.
This was a major threat!
If they could use their six-man team to eliminate Might Guy here, they would have one less enemy to worry about during the second sweep.
Ebisu naturally didn't want to do this.
But.
He was now on Kurenai's team and couldn't openly let them go, so he turned to deal with Yamashiro Aoba instead.
Raidō Namiashi was in the same awkward position.
Thus.
Only Shisui's team went after Might Guy.
However.
Just as Shisui intercepted Might Guy, he suddenly saw Guy's speed explode.
*Whoosh~*
The sound of wind echoed.
Shisui, halfway through forming hand seals for a genjutsu, watched as Might Guy sped away.
Too fast!
This speed...
"Is this the secret technique Sensei mentioned?"
Shisui thought to himself.
There was no way to catch up.
He had no choice but to give up and regroup to deal with Yamashiro Aoba first.
However.
Due to Obito and Guy's reckless charge earlier, their team hadn't gathered any resources. "Killing" Yamashiro Aoba only gave them a single point—nothing else.
Even Ebisu felt a bit embarrassed.
He could vaguely guess what had happened—normally, when their sensei wasn't around, he and Genma could keep Might Guy in check. But in a new team, there was no one to do that.
---
"Aoba's not bad, but it's a shame his strength is lacking."
Sandaime sighed.
Yamashiro Aoba's thinking was sound.
He knew what to do, how to implement tactics, and what would be advantageous.
But unfortunately.
His strength wasn't yet sufficient to be a chūnin.
As for Might Guy...
Sandaime only remembered that he was fast. He had no real impression of his other abilities.
"Sandaime-sama, Yamashiro Aoba and the others have only graduated for less than half a year. To have this level of strength is already a testament to Kyōichi-sensei's special training. In previous years, they might not even have reached this level."
Hagane Kotetsu stepped forward to explain.
With Kyōichi's training methods, the gaps in Konoha's mid- and lower-level ninja forces could be quickly filled.
Unfortunately.
This kind of training couldn't be extended to all genin.
There were too many of them!
Moreover, many genin had already passed the optimal age for training, so further instruction wouldn't be as effective.
As for partial training, Kurenai was already working on it.
At the same time.
All the jōnin noticed this six-man team.
They had tactics.
They were decisive, ruthless, and moved quickly.
Shisui and the others advanced in a diagonal line.
This path was designed to encounter and eliminate enemies.
After the sweep, only eleven teams remained in the safe zone—
Many of them were incomplete.
For example, Genma Shiranui and Might Guy.
Both of their teams were down to just one person, hiding in the forest. The problem was, there were many skilled sensor ninja here...
"Leaf Whirlwind!"
"Burn, my youth!"
"Leaf Great Whirlwind!"
"..."
Amidst the strange shouts.
Might Guy kicked two people, injuring them, and then fled.
Asuma watched his retreating figure, his lips twitching.
They had intended to pick off a lone target, but instead, they got beaten by the "lone target," and they couldn't even catch up.
What a pain!
"Asuma..."
"Let's regroup with Shisui first and make sure we advance to the next round."
Asuma didn't hesitate any longer.
Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane were injured. If they stayed out here any longer, they'd be wiped out.
However.
The next moment, they ran into two other elite teams—
Nara Enji's team and the team with Hyūga Hibiki.
The two teams faced off.
Asuma sensed trouble.
"Asuma's team has already regrouped. If we don't eliminate them now, they'll be a big problem later. I suggest we team up and take them out first."
At times like this, the Byakugan was incredibly useful!
Asuma knew things were bad.
But.
Run?
His beliefs wouldn't allow him to abandon his teammates.
His current teammates weren't seriously injured, so he wanted to cover Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane's retreat.
The consequences were predictable.
"Asuma's done for."
Kyōichi shook his head.
Asuma's team wasn't vigilant enough.
After the sweep, the safe zone shrank.
Everyone who remained understood the rules.
Anywhere a fight broke out, others would come to intervene. Someone like Might Guy, a lone wolf, shouldn't have been provoked.
Those with nothing to lose are fearless.
They didn't gain anything and only ended up in trouble.
Of course.
Asuma's strength wasn't bad. With two kunai and his Vacuum Blade, he managed to take out two of Hyūga Hibiki's teammates. But no matter how strong he was, he was still just one person.
Moreover.
Asuma wanted to save Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane. Even after breaking through the encirclement, he saw his teammates trapped and charged back in, trying to use Fire Release to cover their retreat.
Unfortunately.
Hyūga Hibiki, though a branch family member, wasn't a pushover. He seized the opportunity and struck Asuma's chakra points.
Asuma's combat ability plummeted.
His teammates were "killed" one after another.
By the time he tried to escape, it was too late.
Similar situations occurred in multiple places. Ambush squads frequently appeared, but only teams like Shisui and Kurenai's, who had regrouped early and swept through the area, could dominate and eliminate other squads.
And...
Even if they were injured, they could heal with the Mystical Palm Technique.
"Kurenai learned medical ninjutsu too?"
Sandaime was surprised.
Medical ninjutsu was difficult, even more so than genjutsu!
He hadn't expected Kurenai to take this path.
"Genjutsu users naturally have excellent chakra control. As long as their theoretical knowledge is up to par, they're good candidates for learning medical ninjutsu."
Kyōichi explained.
Additionally, Asuma had also surprised everyone.
His actions were foolish.
But.
His determination to protect his teammates was touching.
Who wouldn't want a teammate like that on the battlefield?
Furthermore.
Almost the moment Asuma's battle began, Kurenai and the others changed direction and charged straight toward them, ignoring any enemies along the way.
This level of coordination.
It showed just how strict and thorough Kyōichi's team training was.
"Kyōichi-sensei has given us a lesson!"
"If the teams hadn't been split up, no other team could have defeated them in this exam."
"Impressive!"
The jōnin present were thoroughly convinced.
This wasn't something achieved overnight.
If the teams hadn't been split, in such a complex forest with multiple enemies, no team could have defeated Kyōichi's students—
Not even elite teams like Might Guy's or Hyūga Hibiki's.
Their overall strength was just too overwhelming!