The match was halfway through.
Kazuma's bees had already been greatly depleted, and unlike Kikaichū, their slow breeding speed was a major drawback.
So, at that moment, there weren't many bees left in his hive that could contend with Aburame Ryoma.
If he released all of them, the outcome wouldn't change much, and he would only lose all his bees, greatly reducing his strength.
Just re-breeding them would take a long time.
In the end, after weighing the pros and cons, he could only reluctantly choose to concede.
The moment he conceded, the swarms of Kikaichū dispersed, splitting into several wisps that burrowed into Aburame Ryoma's voluminous robe.
At this, Kazuma, also an Insect Handler, couldn't help but feel a tremor in his heart.
This was completely using one's own body as a nest, allowing Kikaichū to build their homes within it.
A slight mishap could lead to death, and the pain involved was almost unimaginable for an ordinary person.
Although his clan also commanded insects, they completely lacked the courage of the Aburame Clan.
To this day, they still carried beehives into battle, and while years of iteration and revision had made the hives relatively light and easy to carry.
Compared to the Aburame Clan, they ultimately lacked some courage.
Faced with this, he could only shake his head helplessly. No matter what the elders of his clan said, he was convinced by this battle.
"Aburame Ryoma, I am thoroughly convinced by this battle. The Aburame Clan is truly formidable."
Aburame Ryoma nodded, "You are also a very good opponent. It's my first time fighting an Insect Handler from outside my clan, and I've learned a lot."
Then he pulled out his phone and waved it. "How about we add each other as friends? We can discuss insect handling techniques in the future."
Kazuma was naturally very willing. The two exchanged phone numbers directly, then quickly left the stage.
"It seems they've become friends through fighting," Ōnoki said, eating from a fruit platter.
"The battles between the Aburame Clan and the Kamizuru Clan date back to before Konohagakure was founded. While some animosity might still linger, it was a fair and square duel, so losing shouldn't be too bad."
Torifu then continued, "However, from today's battle, it seems the Kamizuru Clan still cannot defeat the Aburame Clan. This might be an issue with the insect handling jutsu they possess. Perhaps bees just can't beat Kikaichū."
Torifu didn't pay too much attention to this little interlude; the Aburame Clan's reputation as the foremost Insect Handler clan was unshakeable.
The appearance of this Kamizuru Clan genius in the arena, and his public defeat, only further confirmed this.
It also made the Aburame Clan's name even more prominent.
After all, only with competition would the title of "foremost insect handling clan" truly hold weight.
Otherwise, if you're the only insect handling clan, what's the point of first or second?
"This bee-controlling technique seems to be naturally countered by the Aburame Clan's Kikaichū," the Kazekage suddenly remarked from the side.
"Kikaichū are extremely tiny, so they rely on swarming to amplify their power. Bees are several times larger than Kikaichū, and their stingers simply can't reach them."
The others nodded upon hearing this; it was quite obvious, which was why Ōnoki hadn't held out much hope for the Kamizuru Clan at all.
Moreover, if Kamizuru lost this time, they wouldn't be particularly high-profile in the village; in fact, they'd be even more discreet than usual, to avoid villagers gossiping.
This also made it easier for Ōnoki to manage the village.
The Kage weren't particularly interested in the battle between the Aburame Clan and the Kamizuru Clan.
However, the spectators in the stands were incredibly enthusiastic, especially the usually reserved uncles from the Aburame Clan.
They were wildly waving flags and shouting, praising Aburame Ryoma for a splendid job and bringing honor to the Aburame Clan.
This made other spectators turn their heads, seemingly surprised that the usually low-key Aburame Clan had such an unknown side.
But it seemed their usual discretion had suppressed them for too long, as these sunglasses-wearing uncles completely ignored the villagers' discussions and continued to loudly cheer for Aburame Ryoma.
Even after Ryoma had left the stage, they didn't stop.
"What's gotten into the Aburame Clan? They're acting so crazy, it's unlike them," Hashirama quipped.
And how would Tobirama know what was happening? Wasn't the Aburame Clan usually the one with the lowest presence and the most discreet behavior?
What possessed them today? Winning one battle shouldn't make them act like this, should it?
"Perhaps they want a change of pace? As Torifu would say, are they no longer going for the 'cool and aloof' image?" Mito analyzed seriously from the side, even using Torifu's words as an example.
"Who knows, but this is good too. It shows us another side of them."
Apart from Hashirama, the leaders of several other clans who had come to oversee also expressed surprise at the Aburame clan members' unusual behavior.
They even thought they had caught some illness.
However, soon after the next pair of contestants entered, the Aburame clan members quickly reined in their antics.
They reverted to their usual appearance of seeming indifferent to everything, though in reality, it was just their low presence; even if they cared deeply, no one would notice.
The subsequent battles between the other contestants weren't as interesting as the one between the Aburame and Kamizuru competitors.
They were merely decent; one ninja from Sunagakure, perhaps due to nervousness, even made a very obvious mistake.
This allowed his opponent to find an opening and defeat him with a direct combo.
This made the Kazekage's face alternate between green and red, while the other Kage could only laugh secretly, daring not to make a sound.
The matches continued, with contestants stepping onto the stage one by one, full of enthusiasm, only to depart dejectedly in the end.
Time passed quickly. By the end of the morning, half of the matches for Group One and Group Two were already completed.
Since today's matches were very important, determining the champion and runner-up, the villagers were afraid of missing anything.
After returning home for lunch, they hurried back to the arena, not forgetting to bring enough snacks and water.
They prepared to spend the entire afternoon watching, eager to see which two contestants would contend for the championship and runner-up titles.
Some villagers, acting like seers, boldly declared that the champion would definitely be between Yahiko and Konan.
Others argued that Yahiko hadn't even fought once yet, and his strength was still unknown, so it was too rash to declare he could compete for the championship.
Sasori, also a Kage's disciple, had a strong possibility of contending for the championship as well.
For a time, opinions varied, with everyone having their own favorite.
Even some Iwagakure contestants, whom the Tsuchikage himself didn't favor, were believed by some villagers to be capable of winning the championship.
By the end of the predictions, it started to feel more like a joke or a game.
And amidst the villagers' discussions, an orange-haired youth, clad in a black, golden-lotus patterned robe, slowly made his way into the arena.