"Hey look! I think I can see him!"

"Finally! I was wondering when he was going to show up!"

Karui and Omoi jumped from their seats the moment Rei's figure came into view. While most couldn't recognize him with the hood over his face, his villagers knew it was him the moment they could see his new outfit.

"Mabui's gift looks rather good on him, don't think you think C?"

"Yeah. But I'm less concerned about his looks, and more about his competition. Look, all those headbands... you know what this means right?"

While the two children couldn't hide their joy, the adults whispered amongst themselves to share their concerns.

"It would seem Iwagakure is far more brazen than I was initially led to believe. Now I understand why Tango was concerned about today."

Tomoe couldn't help but frown.

While Rei was the only ninja from Kumogakure on stage, every other opponent's alignment was to Ishigakure¹Hidden Rock Village. 

In full knowledge of that village's alliance with Iwagakure, it was clear this match had been rigged against Rei's favor.

As a member of the clan responsible for protecting her home's borders, venturing out into foreign lands so far away from home was not a common practice for Tomoe.

All she knew about the Earth country came from what she'd heard from her colleagues, and experience on the battlefield. Such brazen behavior on their part only served to lower her already bad opinion of them.

"Good grief, he has some bad luck."

"Darui-san, is there truly nothing we can do for him?" Tomoe asked with concern.

"Unfortunately, no. Iwa is the host this time, and what they say goes. In all honesty, I feared Tai and Suzu would have to face similar treatment today, which shows they have some sense."

"Don't be naïve Darui, they're just being extra careful in their efforts of not pushing anyone too far. Ensuring they can still rig the game without any scrutiny whatsoever. I doubt this is the last of it."

"As usual C, you are the rain to my picnic. So dull."

CLAP!

"?!"

"He'll be fine. This won't even slow him down."

Their conjecture was put on hold by Mariko, who remained unperturbed by the foul play the others were concerned with. The foster mother simply smiled as she made sure the kids in front of her didn't stray too far.

"Still he—!"

 

"C. Let's just give our support and enjoy Rei-chan's match. I think you'll be surprised, or rather... you won't be?"

 

♦♦♦

 

{They haven't taken their eyes off of me since the moment I first stepped onto the platform. Honestly, if you're going to cheat, don't be so obvious about it. In any case, let's start off small with some basic movement.}

Rei fought to hold back his smile as Kitsuchi raised his hand, indicating the match was about to start.

The others readied themselves as well.

"BEGIN!"

As his burly arm swung downwards, each one of Rei's opponents turned their bodies, ready to charge at him with no intent of their hiding foul play.

{Shunshin no Jutsu²Body Flicker Technique!} "Let's see how I can move now—WHOAH!!!"

BOOM!

Not even five seconds had passed since the match began. And in that brief moment in time...

"Eh?"

"Wha—?!"

CRASH!

...Rei's body had cracked the floor beneath his feet! His body blasted to the other side of the arena, the only thing stopping it were the bodies of two Genin as the impact from his charge knocked them off the arena floor!

The other Genin couldn't help but pause in confusion, their minds trying to grasp what had happened. He'd moved faster than their eyes could follow. The Ishi-nin had just lost two of their eleven in seconds!

Rei quickly picked himself up from the floor, doing his best to hide the shock forming under his expression.

{That was WAY more than I expected. It seems just assimilating even the tiniest bit of Isshiki's memories and combat experience improves my ability to fight by leaps and bounds. I don't even have to try when it comes to controlling my chakra anymore.

Hmmm... it'd be best to readjust the ratio of energy I use for all my Jutsu now. Better not use any Katon³Fire Style or Suiton⁴Water Style, don't want to get disqualified for killing any of them.

I could do Genjutsu, but I'm saving that as an ace-in-the-hole for later.}

STOMP!

"RAAAAH!"

A large, well-built Genin landed behind Rei. The teenager threw a wild haymaker at his head, only for the latter to casually move to the side, gracefully positioning himself precisely next to his attacker.

Slightly bending his knee, he shifted his body towards his foe, pointing his shoulder towards him, and with one deep breath...

"Kōgeki⁵Leaning Strike...!"

"O-Omph! Guhack!"

...he struck the teen on his torso with the shoulder! Adding him to the list of Genin knocked out of the arena before a single minute had passed.

What was eleven, had now become eight obstacles in his way to the Finals.

"I guess the best way for me to fight now is... using the least amount of energy necessary for attacking. In all honesty, that's how I always should've been fighting."

FWIP! FWIP! FWIP!

The others had no intention of waiting for him. A trio of Ishi-nin took out several kunai with wires attached them.

"Hijutsu: Ishibari⁶Secret Technique: Stone Needles!"

"You idiots really shouldn't announce attacks. I never understood the meaning of that? Whatever, come on meat bags, I ain't got all day!"

"Son of a...!"

"This asshole is just as cocky as Etoro said!"

{Etoro? I knew it. That little shit couldn't help but blab to his allies about me. Which means it's safe to assume every other Ishi-nin in this rigged tournament knows about the abilities of my team. Well... our abilities from two years ago at least.}

The three charged ahead while the other five planned their next move. In response, Rei casually dodged their blades, their attacks didn't even register as a concern.

CLINK!

Rei flawless kicked one of the incoming blades into the arm of the Genin closet to him.

"AH! How'd he do that?!"

"Hey! Watch your blades!"

"What? Oh no!"

"A-A-A-AHHH!"

One of the Genin stuttered on his words as his twitching body fell to the ground.

Rei grew even more impressed with his reactions, as if his body moved before he even told it to, akin to an involuntary defense mechanism!

"Yes. Using excess power is wasteful, if not outright detrimental to... huh? I never thought about how I fought like this before... could it be a result of Isshiki's memories? I've only absorbed a fragment, and my thought process has already shown signs of changing..."

Rei casually picked up his latest quarry with one arm.

{Notitia's warning... it wasn't just about overloading my mind with Isshiki's thousand-year memories. If I become too accustomed to them, I could potentially end up not being "me" anymore. I was right to start slow for a change.}

Ruthlessly hoisting his victim's body like shield, the small blades from the other two impaled his body, forcing them to cease their assault.

"Oh? So, you infuse your chakra into these weapons, which acts like a paralyzing agent. Hmm, it's a nice trick, A Hijutsu suited for a Genin of a nation filled with unique ability-users."

"Tsk! You little...!"

"Still, where have I seen this move before? It feels awfully familiar..."

"When I get my hands on you... HEY! Are you guys just going to sit there?! Let's end this!!"

They glared and cursed at Rei, the latter of whom turned a deaf ear. Smugly smiling as the other five finally decided to join in on the fight. In an instant, all seven had encircled the Genin from Kumogakure.

"Meh, I guess it doesn't matter. It's not like I'll remember the scrub technique from every scrub I'll encounter. Come on scrubs."

The paralyzed Genin still in his arm, he lifted his free hand, raising his middle finger up as he stuck his tongue out. Letting his obscene and disrespectful gestures do the talking, veins popped on the faces of all his foes as they went red from fury.

 

"KILL THAT LITTLE BASTARD!"