The next day, at a training ground in the Hidden Sand Village.
Yubi and the Third Kazekage stood facing each other.
On the sidelines stood many Ninjas from the Village... along with Chiyo and other high-ranking officials.
Sasori and Arai were also among them.
With his arms crossed over his chest, Sasori stared coldly at the two people in the field.
Arai was also very nervous.
The reason why the atmosphere was so special and attracted so many onlookers was because today was Yubi's Chunin promotion exam.
Furthermore, the Third Kazekage himself was acting as his opponent.
This wasn't a treatment just anyone could receive.
They all wanted to see what level Yubi's Bloodline Limit ability had reached... "Yubi... don't hold back. Just let loose and attack me. Don't worry about hurting me," the Kazekage said calmly.
"Alright."
Yubi had a smile on his face.
As the referee to the side made a gesture, his expression also became serious.
Facing a Kage-level powerhouse in battle, the pressure was unlike anything he had ever experienced.
In the distance, Sasori was also focused... for fear of missing even the slightest detail.
This was a good opportunity to understand the Third Kazekage's methods and strength from a close distance... It would also be helpful for the future plans he and Yubi had.
Whoosh!
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Yubi took the initiative.
His figure sped forward, quickly lunging in front of the Third Kazekage.
"Such strong Taijutsu..."
"This is..."
The Sand Ninjas on the sidelines exclaimed.
Because as Yubi closed in on the Kazekage, the path he took wasn't a simple straight line but a zigzag. His body even left behind an afterimage, making it difficult to judge his angle of attack and position.
Yubi was only ten years old. For an ordinary Ninja, even after graduating from the Ninja Academy and undergoing some training, their physical strength couldn't possibly be this abnormal.
One could imagine how terrifying the training intensity Yubi endured was to possess such a body.
That his body could actually handle it... Bang! Bang! Bang!
As soon as he made his move, Yubi used close-quarters combat techniques.
Using both fists and feet, he frantically attacked the motionless Kazekage in front of him. However... no matter how fast he was or how many afterimages he created—even if to outsiders it seemed like he had circled behind the Kazekage for a sneak attack before his initial Taijutsu move finished—ultimately, none of it succeeded.
Because all of his attacks were blocked by the Iron Sand gathering in the air.
Yubi's powerful strikes hit the metallic blocks, producing loud thuds.
"There are no blind spots at all..."
A thought flashed through Yubi's mind as he attacked.
Close combat... really won't work!
The Third Kazekage hadn't even moved; simply by controlling the Iron Sand, he could perform a perfect defense.
This indicated that the opponent's sensory abilities were quite terrifying.
Yubi leaped into the air. Taking advantage of the moment the floating black sand that blocked his Taijutsu began to crumble and fall, he threw a large number of throwing knives at the opening the Kazekage had exposed.
But... it had no effect.
The Kazekage didn't even turn his head. The Iron Sand around him seemed to automatically defend and sense danger; the dispersed Iron Sand transformed from a condensed plate into individual black sand blocks, appearing precisely on the trajectory of the throwing knives and deflecting Yubi's hidden weapons.
"This feeling... is exactly the same as Gaara's, except the substance being controlled is different. Gaara only uses sand, while he uses Iron Sand... it's not the same." Yubi took a deep breath. "I need to be like Rock Lee, using extraordinary Taijutsu to burst with a speed that completely overwhelms his perception and control reaction... Unfortunately, Rock Lee can do it because of the enhancement from the Eight Gates, but I haven't reached that level yet..."
The throwing knives seemingly fell after being deflected by the Iron Sand.
But the moment Yubi landed, with a wave of his arm...
Those "discarded" throwing knives immediately flew back up into the air, pulling threads that instantly entangled and enveloped the space where the Third Kazekage stood.
Immediately after, Yubi pulled hard with both hands, causing the threads to tighten.
He wanted to strangle the target.
However... the Iron Sand floating around the Kazekage suddenly transformed into a cloud of airborne particles, like rising black ash, swirling around him. Even though Yubi pulled the threads taut, making them screech against the Iron Sand, he couldn't cut through that "flowing," liquid-like sand cloud at all.
His series of attacks—Taijutsu, hidden weapons, and self-created Ninjutsu—failed to move the Third Kazekage even an inch.
At this moment, Yubi finally understood a bit why the other man was hailed as the strongest Kazekage in history.
This kind of Bloodline Limit... was indeed abnormal.
At this point, the Kazekage finally took a step, turned around, and looked at the boy who was still pulling the threads.
"When the gap in strength between you and your opponent is too large, probing attacks are completely useless. You must have the conviction to kill with a single blow. Otherwise... once you give your opponent a chance to breathe, the one in danger... will be you," the Kazekage said slowly.
As soon as he finished speaking, Yubi suddenly felt a strain on his hands, and his arms involuntarily dropped.
Looking closely, he realized that the Iron Sand particles floating in the air had actually all adhered to his threads, increasing their weight and easily breaking his Ninjutsu, making it difficult for him to control.
Clang, clang, clang... One by one, the scalpels fell, each wrapped in Iron Sand and rendered useless.
"It wasn't a probe..."
Facing the Kazekage's warning, Yubi suddenly smiled.
"Hmm?"
In the next second, the Kazekage suddenly noticed something.
But it seemed... too late.
A flash of blood-red color burst forth from beneath his feet.
The floating black sand tried to condense and "chase" the trajectory of the flashing blood light.
But it was half a beat too slow... A streak of crimson pierced through the gaps in the Iron Sand first, hitting the Third Kazekage right between the eyebrows.
Bang!
The sound of this collision was far more ear-piercing than when Yubi had just struck the iron plates with his fists and feet. Many people on the sidelines were startled.
Just by hearing the noise, one could imagine how much terrifying power the "thing" attacking the Kazekage possessed under high-speed inertia.
If it were an ordinary person, their head might have exploded.
But the Kazekage only leaned back slightly. His forehead was covered by a layer of fine Iron Sand, and in the center of the Iron Sand, a bright red "crystal" was embedded.
It was blood... a solidified blood droplet.
"Hiding the ability within Ninjutsu to perform a feint, huh..."
"You actually managed to trick me."
The Kazekage's head gradually returned to its original position as he saw through Yubi's method.
Although Arai had been reporting Yubi's Bloodline Limit growth to him for the past six months, after all, he hadn't seen it with his own eyes... Even if he knew the general idea, it was hard to judge.
During the exchange between the two sides... an extremely tiny blood droplet, when intentionally hidden, was indeed not that easy to "notice."
This was because he hadn't used blood to attack directly... instead, Yubi had "carried" this drop of blood on a throwing knife, using Ninjutsu to deceive his perception and thus close the distance.
If Yubi had used this ability openly and he had detected it early, it would have been impossible to break through the Iron Sand defense.
"Interesting... such a faint drop of blood, and at such a close distance, actually possesses this kind of speed and power," the Third Kazekage remarked with some amazement.
In the distance, seeing the Kazekage being attacked, Chiyo and the other high-ranking officials also felt their hearts tighten.
Although they knew the Kazekage would be fine... Yubi's attack was still somewhat unexpected.
"Your flexibility in wielding your ability is clearly stronger than it was six months ago... You can use objects for remote control instead of just driving it with yourself, and the range is also further... Very good," the Third Kazekage said in a somewhat gratified tone.
Opposite him, Yubi made a pistol gesture, pointing his fingertip at the Kazekage, and smiled. "Thank you for the praise, Kazekage-sama, but I'm still looking forward to our exchange... I'm not satisfied with just reaching this level."
"Good... this competitive spirit is worthy of the title of genius of my Hidden Sand Village."
The Kazekage nodded.
"In that case... I'll get a bit more serious."
After saying that, the Third Kazekage's originally calm eyes suddenly became sharp.
An indescribable pressure erupted from within him.
In an instant, Yubi felt a massive sense of crisis.
The heart-pounding feeling from when he fought to the death with the Konoha Jonin appeared once again.
And... it was even more intense.
"Haha..."
"The show... begins!"
Swept by the stern aura, although Yubi's pressure increased twofold, the expression on his face became excited.
His upturned lips revealed a hint of his small white teeth.
His eyes also flickered with a bit of madness, and he whispered softly.
"Here it comes again..."
Outside the field, Sasori took in all of Yubi's expressions.
Just like when he fought the Konoha Jonin, this was his true nature.
Sasori gave a faint smile.
Boom!
A ball of blood emerged from Yubi's fingertip. Initially, it was the size of a palm, but as it rotated, the blood began to be continuously compressed.
Finally, it condensed to the size of a fingernail.
A small shockwave exploded, and the powerful recoil lifted Yubi's feet off the ground, even blowing his hair up with the air current.
That ball of translucent blood instantly blasted towards his opponent like a cannonball.
"Blood Style: Intentional Crushing Orb!"