On the contestants' spectator stand, Hinata leaned lazily in the corner, her pure white eyes watching the arena below. In reality, most of her Divine Sense had already spread out like a fine spider web, silently enveloping the main VIP stand and its surrounding areas.
She clearly saw the seemingly harmonious but sharp conversation between Orochimaru, disguised as the Kazekage, and the Third Hokage. She also saw the Otogakure and Sand Ninja hidden throughout the audience, quietly adjusting their positions like venomous snakes waiting for a signal.
Her main body, using a simple Transformation Jutsu in the shadows, took on the appearance of an unremarkable middle-aged man in ordinary villager's clothing. Like a drop of water merging into the ocean, she moved silently to the entrance of a lower-level stand closest to the main VIP stand.
This position allowed her to clearly observe the movements on the main stand and intervene at the shortest distance if necessary.
On the field below, the second match between Nara Shikamaru and Temari had already ended.
Shikamaru, relying on his incredibly high IQ, had laid an exquisite shadow trap and already had the victory in his grasp. However, because his Chakra was exhausted and he felt that "women are too troublesome," he chose to forfeit, causing a stir of confusion and disbelief in the stands.
[Keep shouting, what do you know? This is called losing the match but winning at life. Temari is so beautiful.]
Hinata silently gave Shikamaru a thumbs up; as expected of him.
Immediately following was the highly anticipated third match—
Uchiha Sasuke VS Gaara!
Sasuke, arriving late in a flashy manner, was dressed in black. The Curse Mark on his face had been temporarily suppressed by Kakashi's sealing technique, but the coldness and sharpness within those Sharingan eyes were even more intense than a month ago.
Meanwhile, Gaara was like a demon returned from Hell, surrounded by a killing intent and madness that was thicker and more unstable than during the preliminaries.
The shame of being heavily injured by Hinata, combined with the constant whispers of Shukaku within him, had pushed his sanity to the brink of collapse.
After a few simple rounds of exchange, the battle reached a fever pitch! Sasuke demonstrated the results of his month of special training: his speed was astonishing, his Taijutsu was fierce, and his Sharingan accurately captured the trajectory of Gaara's sand, repeatedly breaking through the defense and leaving wounds on Gaara's body.
"How is this possible!"
Gaara was both shocked and enraged. His sand danced even more violently, but he was showing signs of being unable to hold his ground.
"This is the power I gained to kill a certain man!"
Sasuke sneered. His figure was so fast he almost left afterimages; this was the Ninjutsu he had mastered while he Cultivate with Kakashi during this time.
Finally, bolstered by extreme speed, Sasuke caught a flaw Gaara exposed in his anger! He raised his right hand high, and a piercing, noisy sound like the chirping of a thousand birds resonated throughout the arena, incredibly sharp.
Dazzling blue lightning condensed and compressed wildly in his palm, emitting a devastating aura that made one's scalp tingle!
"Chidori!"
Sasuke roared, turning into a bolt of blue electricity and piercing straight toward Gaara's strongest sand defense, hastily condensed in front of him—the Absolute Defense: Shield of Shukaku!
"BOOM!!!!!!"
The lightning and the sand shield collided violently, producing a deafening roar! The blinding light forced many people to instinctively close their eyes.
As the light faded, Sasuke's Chidori could be seen successfully piercing through the Shield of Shukaku, stabbing deeply into Gaara's shoulder! Blood gushed out instantly!
However, in the next moment, Gaara did not fall. Instead, he clutched his head, seemingly enduring immense pain.
"Arghhh—"
Gaara let out a non-human howl mixed with agony. Instead of more blood flowing from the wound pierced by the Chidori, thick sand carrying Shukaku's Chakra began to seep out.
Just as the Tailed Beast was about to go on a complete rampage and the entire venue was falling into panic—
Thump... thump... thump...
On the stands, thousands of spectators went limp and fell to the ground like mowed wheat, sinking into a deep sleep.
Even many weak-willed Chunin in the arena and most of the Genin candidates were not spared!
A massive Genjutsu covering the entire arena was activated!
"Enemy attack! It's a Genjutsu!"
Kakashi, Guy, Asuma, and other Jonin reacted instantly, shouting loudly in an attempt to wake those around them, but it was too late!
Almost at the same time the Genjutsu was activated—
On the main VIP stand, a sudden change occurred!
The "Orochimaru" disguised as the Fourth Kazekage revealed a cruel smile of a successful conspiracy.
With speed difficult to catch with the naked eye, he suddenly struck! His left hand clamped tightly onto the neck of Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi beside him, and the cold blade of a Kunai in his right hand was already precisely pressed against the old man's throat!
"Kazekage! You...!"
The Third Hokage's pupils constricted.
The "Kazekage" leaped onto the roof with the Third Hokage's body, and Hinata took the opportunity to follow.
"Hehehe... Sensei, it's been a long time."
Orochimaru tore off his Kazekage disguise, revealing that pale and cold face. His long tongue licked his lips, his eyes filled with undisguised killing intent and mockery.
"Orochimaru..."
The Sandaime's eyes were bloodshot, looking as if they would burst.
"Hehe... Do it!"
Orochimaru gave the command!
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
Four figures wearing Otogakure uniforms and eerie masks instantly appeared at the four corners of the main stand, forming hand signs simultaneously!
"Four Violet Flames Formation!"
Four purple walls of light burning with raging flames rose into the sky and quickly closed, forming a massive cubic barrier that completely sealed off and isolated the entire main stand! Inside the barrier, only the kidnapped Third Hokage, Orochimaru, the four Otogakure ninja maintaining the barrier, and an inconspicuous person in the corner remained.
"Protect Hokage-sama!" Outside the barrier, the Anbu who had reacted tried to charge the barrier, but the purple walls of fire contained powerful energy, instantly repelling and burning the approaching Anbu!
"It's useless. I've been preparing for a long time; how could it be broken so easily?"
Orochimaru sneered triumphantly and released his grip on the Third Hokage.
The Konoha Crush plan has officially begun! The allied forces of the Sand Ninja and Otogakure began to engage in a chaotic battle with the startled Konoha Ninja on the outskirts!
In the midst of this chaos, no one noticed that in the inconspicuous shadow at the edge of the Formation, the "middle-aged man" disguised as an ordinary villager—Hinata Hyuga—slowly raised her head.
Her pure white eyes calmly watched the tense master-disciple duel inside the barrier and the sudden outbreak of bloody slaughter outside.
"Finally... it has begun."
Orochimaru also noticed Hinata at the very edge.
"Oh my, it seems someone unlucky has been caught up in this."
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