https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-517-Notable-Powerful-Individuals/12558776/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-519-Jonin-Teacher-and-Nagato-s-Dark-Transformation-/12558778/
Chapter 518: Nagato's Terrifying Strength
Chapter 518: Nagato's Terrifying Strength
After Nagato's fight concluded, Kakashi returned to the first competition zone, awaiting the commencement of the second round while also observing the ninjas within the zone.
As Kakashi returned relatively late, most of the first round had already taken place, and he only managed to catch a handful of matches before the second round was about to begin.
Kakashi remained calm and collected, basing his assessment on his observations across multiple zones; the average strength of the ninjas participating in the Young Ninjas Competition was, in his opinion, on par with that of a Chunin.
Forget about them; even someone like Yahiko could, with a bit of luck and provided they didn't come across a ninja like Nagato, easily make it to the elimination rounds.
"A bit easier than I imagined," Kakashi thought to himself.
In Kakashi's initial expectations, the highly anticipated competition would be fierce and attract numerous young geniuses from the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
However, reality painted a different picture. Among the over two hundred participating ninjas, those from the Five Great Shinobi Villages were actually in the minority.
Kakashi was most familiar with the situation in Konoha, and from there, only eighteen ninjas had signed up.
Regarding Kirigakure, Kakashi had only spotted the team led by Terumi Mei, consisting of six mist ninjas in total.
For Sunagakure, Kakashi had only seen one team of four sand ninjas.
Iwagakure, on the other hand, boasted a larger number, with a rough estimate of twenty-one participants, making it the ninja village with the highest number of representatives.
Kumogakure had the fewest participants, with only three of their ninjas spotted by Kakashi, and he hadn't encountered many others from the village within the Six Paths City either.
Kakashi attributed this situation to two main reasons.
Firstly, with the ongoing war, it was understandable that the Great Ninja Villages wouldn't dispatch too many of their young geniuses to participate in the competition.
Secondly, the allure of the rewards varied for different ninja villages. While Fire Dragon Riot currently held the title of the strongest fire jutsu, it was still just a fire jutsu.
Take Kirigakure, for example; ninjas proficient in fire jutsu were few and far between, and even among that scarce number, it was uncertain if they could master Fire Dragon Riot. Thus, Kirigakure's interest in the competition would naturally be limited.
Kakashi surmised that Kirigakure probably sent ninjas with the mindset that even if they didn't stand a chance, they couldn't let others take the prize so easily.
"That's good," Kakashi nodded inwardly. "If ninjas like Killer B were to show up, even Might Guy would have a hard time."
Killer B had risen to fame at a young age. Even when Kakashi was still a Chunin, Killer B had already gained renown alongside the Fourth Raikage throughout the ninja world.
Kakashi had encountered the new 'A and B' combination a couple of times during missions, giving him some insight into Killer B's strength.
"Round two, match one: Number one, Hatake Kakashi, versus number three, Komiyama Yuuji!"
Hearing the referee's call, Kakashi pushed aside his thoughts and stepped onto the combat arena.
Komiyama Yuuji sighed and, with a resigned look on his face, made his way forward as well.
Even before the fight began, given Kakashi's performance in his previous match, the odds of Komiyama Yuuji winning were virtually zero.
"Begin!"
"Lightning Flash!"
Whoosh!
As soon as the referee's voice fell, Kakashi focused his breathing, drew out the White Light Chakra Sabre, and charged forward like a bolt of lightning.
Komiyama Yuuji merely felt a blinding flash of light before his eyes, and just as he drew out his kunai, the short blade of the White Light Chakra Sabre was already pressed against his neck.
Once again, the battle ended in the blink of an eye.
Unlike his previous fight, this time, Kakashi's victory was unquestionable, as his opponent in the first match had been relatively unknown.
Those with numbers below eight couldn't help but sigh upon witnessing this. How were they supposed to fight? It felt like their defeat was already a foregone conclusion.
Without hesitation, Kakashi rushed over to the sixth competition zone as soon as the match ended.
The reason he had swiftly defeated his opponent was that he was afraid he'd miss Sand Crab's match if he arrived too late.
Sand Crab was number three, which meant he would be fighting in the first match of the second round.
Fortunately, the pace of the matches in the sixth competition zone was slightly slower, and by the time Kakashi arrived, the first round was still ongoing, with only the final match left.
Kakashi quietly stood in the sixth zone, awaiting the start of the second round.
As Nagato's number was towards the back, there was no need to rush over to the seventh zone yet.
"Match one of the second round: Number one, Shuusan, versus number three, Sand Crab!"
Seeing the grass ninja headband on Shuusan's head, Kakashi felt a twinge of disappointment.
While there were indeed some formidable ninjas from the smaller villages, they were too few and far between, and Kakashi guessed that he probably wouldn't get to see much of Sand Crab's abilities this time either.
As Kakashi had expected, Sand Crab easily crushed Shuusan using only taijutsu and didn't even resort to using his chakra threads.
"Match two of the second round: Number five, Momochi Zabuza, versus..."
Hearing the referee's call, Kakashi looked up towards the combat arena.
Sensing Kakashi's gaze, Zabuza turned and looked back at him.
"Have you come to watch my battle specifically? My swordsmanship has become even sharper since the last time we met."
Zabuza still remembered the power Kakashi had unleashed two years ago during the Chunin Exams to protect his friends and his village.
Zabuza hadn't yet found someone worth devoting his life and sword to, but he had been training diligently these past two years.
While he didn't think he could defeat Kakashi, Zabuza believed he could at least give Kakashi a taste of a thrilling battle.
With a significant amount of time remaining before Nagato's fight, Kakashi decided to head to the fourth competition zone to watch Yahiko.
Even before reaching the fourth zone, Kakashi could hear Obito cheering Yahiko on.
Kakashi observed for a while. Yahiko's opponent was of an average Jonin level, and Yahiko easily overwhelmed him with just basic taijutsu.
This didn't surprise Kakashi. While Yahiko specialized in medical ninjutsu, his overall abilities were on par with a Konoha Jonin. As long as he wasn't compared to the likes of Kakashi and his team, his strength was still formidable.
After greeting the two, Kakashi quickly made his way to the fifth competition zone, where Kakashi's friend, Genma Shiranui, was located.
As Kakashi arrived, Genma was just concluding his battle and stepping down from the arena. He spotted Kakashi and greeted him.
Kakashi returned the greeting and asked, "Genma, have you noticed any ninjas in the fifth competition zone that we should be wary of?"
Kakashi believed that Genma, being the observant ninja he was, would have taken note of any exceptional performers.
"There's an Iwagakure ninja called Ootsutsu who possesses the Explosion Release Kekkei Genkai. He's quite strong," Genma replied.
"However, his number is quite far back, so we won't be meeting him in the preliminary rounds."
"I suspect that the numbering system for this tournament might not be entirely random," Genma mused. "It seems they're trying to prevent strong ninjas from clashing before the elimination rounds."
"I've conducted some investigations in the surrounding competition zones, and I haven't witnessed any intense battles between evenly matched opponents. It's either one-sided or between ninjas of similar mediocrity," Genma added.
"Your suspicion is likely correct," Kakashi nodded, and then shared all the information he had gathered.
"It seems this Ninja Temple has a rather extensive intelligence network," Kakashi remarked.
It was only natural for them to be aware of the talented ninjas in their neighboring countries. However, to know the strengths of all the young ninjas participating in the tournament would require a formidable intelligence network.
After all, not all talented ninjas would have a notable track record. For example, before Kakashi and his team had ventured onto the battlefield, even within Konoha, their reputations weren't that well-known, let alone throughout Fire Country or the entire ninja world.
And even if they did have battle records, unless they achieved something on the scale of Minato, they wouldn't become famous across the ninja world. At best, they would gain recognition among those they fought against, and their names might spread to some extent in the surrounding countries.
Kakashi didn't dwell too long on the topic of the numbering system, as it was overall advantageous for them.
As the time for Nagato's battle drew near, Kakashi made his way to the seventh competition zone to watch Nagato fight.
"Round two, match five: Number seventeen, Namera Radou, versus number nineteen, Nagato!"
Kakashi silently mourned for Namera Radou for zero-point-one seconds. There was no way Radou could win, and it was just a matter of how many of Nagato's attacks he could withstand before Kakashi could gather more intelligence on Nagato's abilities.
"He's a formidable opponent," Namera Radou said, taking a deep breath and looking serious as he stepped into the arena.
"Good luck, Radou!" Kakashi offered words of encouragement, hoping that Radou could hold out a little longer.
"Since you've come to cheer me on, Kakashi, I won't let you down," Radou said, sounding determined upon hearing Kakashi's voice.
As the battle commenced, Radou immediately retreated and performed a series of hand seals, creating two shadow clones that moved in perfect sync, one to the left and one to the right, aiming to create an opening for the original.
At the same time, Nagato also created a shadow clone, and both the original and the clone remained expressionless as they swiftly performed a series of hand seals.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
"Wind Style: Compression Tempest!"
Nagato's original body spat out a compressed fireball that landed in the center of the arena. As soon as it touched the ground, the compressed flames erupted, creating a sea of fire.
Immediately after, Nagato's shadow clone spat out a high-pressure wind ball that collided with the sea of fire, transforming it into a massive storm of flames. The wind fanned the flames, making the inferno even more terrifying as it engulfed Radou's shadow clones.
"Referee, I forfeit," declared Momochi, promptly raising his hand in surrender before the sea of fire could reach him.
If he could get close to Nagato, his expertise in taijutsu might have given him a fighting chance. However, Momochi's speed was simply not enough to close the distance and strike Nagato with his sword before the latter unleashed his ninjutsu.
"Nagato wins!" the referee announced.
"His Fire Style is on par with his Wind Style, and he's capable of combining ninjutsu," Kakashi silently noted, further elevating his assessment of Nagato's threat level.
Kakashi stayed in the seventh competition zone until the end of the second round before returning to his own first zone.
Just like before, Kakashi swiftly defeated his opponent and rushed over to the sixth zone where Sand Crab was located.
Kakashi now had some information about Nagato, but Sand Crab was an enigma. Aside from his chakra threads, all he seemed to have was ordinary taijutsu.
Upon noticing Kakashi's arrival, Momochi straightened his posture subconsciously as he walked towards the combat arena.
"Begin!"
"Mist Hidden Technique!"
As soon as the battle started, Momochi immediately unleashed his chakra, spewing out thick mist to obscure their vision.
Having watched Sand Crab's previous fights, Momochi knew his opponent was no pushover, so he went all out from the start.
Kakashi frowned slightly. As one of the secret techniques of the Kirigakure, the Mist Hidden Technique had a high ceiling. Not only could it not be seen through by Sharingan, but it also eluded Kakashi's 'Transparent World'.
At this moment, Kakashi could only hear the sounds of their battle and make judgments about the situation based on that.
"Does he not have a way to deal with the mist, or is it simply unnecessary?" Kakashi wondered, unable to determine the reason for the lingering mist even after a minute.
Another minute passed, and the sounds of intense fighting rang out. Gradually, the mist dissipated, revealing a defeated Momochi and an unscathed Sand Crab.
Kakashi sighed inwardly. It was not easy to gather information; he had watched three matches and still had nothing useful to show for it. The only thing he could confirm was that Sand Crab was not weak.
Kakashi continued to observe for a while longer, feeling that he would finally be able to gather valuable information in Sand Crab's fourth match.
The fourth round was the last of the preliminary rounds, and ninjas who made it this far were not weak. Additionally, based on the numbering, Sand Crab's final opponent in this round would be from Iwagakure, so he wouldn't start the fight by creating a mist to obscure their vision.
Nagato's third-round opponent was also mediocre, and Nagato once again relied on his wind and fire combination ninjutsu to achieve victory. Kakashi gained no new insights from this fight.
After the third round concluded, there was a three-hour intermission before the final round of battles commenced.
Kakashi and the others took this opportunity to have a meal together and exchange the information they had gathered.
Kakashi shared everything he had learned first, then waited for his disciples to contribute their knowledge.
"So, there are other Akatsuki members who joined the Ninja Competition as well. I saw the leader of Akatsuki, Yahiko, in my zone," Obito spoke up after hearing Kakashi's intelligence about Nagato.
"He seems to specialize in Water Style ninjutsu. I've only seen one of his fights, so I'm not too clear on his abilities," Obito added honestly.
Kakashi glanced at Obito, surprised. He had thought Obito would have stayed in Rin Nohara's zone the entire time, but it seemed Obito had managed to gather some information as well, albeit not much.
After Obito finished speaking, Rin and Genma also shared what they knew about their respective zones.
"I don't think there's anyone particularly noteworthy in my zone," Might Guy scratched his chin thoughtfully.
In the eighth competition zone, everyone paled in comparison to Might Guy's 'Golden Sky'.
If it had been Obito speaking, Kakashi might have thought he was showing off, but when it came from Might Guy, there was no doubt about it.
After all, when Might Guy unleashed his full power, combining the Eight Inner Gates with the Rock Chakra Mode, his strength surpassed that of the Sannin.
Once the fourth round began, Kakashi created a shadow clone to gather information in the sixth zone while his main body returned to the first zone to compete, ensuring he wouldn't miss any crucial intelligence.
PS: Seeking double monthly votes. There will be another 4k chapter released at 1 AM.
I checked yesterday's content and found a small error, which has now been fixed.
Kakashi has actually met Nagato before, but they never interacted. Obito and Yahiko have also met him, but only Genma has seen Konan.
(End of Chapter)
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