Numerous dignitaries and wealthy merchants arrived at the Hidden Leaf Village in ox carts.
The Daimyo of the Land of Fire declined the invitation, citing illness, but three of his senior officials and advisors attended in his stead.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the first match was Ino versus Temari. Determined not to be late, Ino arrived early at the arena, making her final preparations.
The referee from the preliminary matches, Hayate Gekko, had been hospitalized, so the role for the official exams was taken over by another Special Jonin—Shiranui Genma, who had once served as a guard for the Fourth Hokage.
This Special Jonin belonged to the same generation as Kakashi and Asuma. Back then, overshadowed by the brilliance of their prodigious classmate Kakashi, these ninjas had seemed rather ordinary. But after more than a decade of steady growth, they had all become key figures in the village.
Ino wasn't familiar with Shiranui Genma—they had never spoken before. With the match about to begin, there was no time for idle chatter. Ignoring the noise from the stands, she stood quietly, waiting.
The Third Hokage and the "Fourth Kazekage" appeared simultaneously in the viewing box. Then, just before the arena gates closed, Naruto came sprinting from a distance, chased by a herd of bulls. One particularly strong bull rammed its head right into his backside.
With a yelp, Naruto flew over ten meters through the air, landing face-first in a parabolic arc. His momentum carved a trench in the ground as he slid to a stop in front of the other contestants, looking utterly disheveled. Sasuke found his teammate's display so embarrassing that he turned his head away, pretending not to know him. In the end, Shikamaru was the one who helped Naruto up.
Shiranui Genma glanced at the high platform, where the Third Hokage gave him a slight nod, signaling the start of the match.
Standing at the center of the arena, he gestured to the two competitors—Ino on his left and Temari on his right.
The first match was a showdown between two blonde kunoichi.
If anyone claimed this arrangement was random, no one would believe it.
Ino's apprenticeship under Tsunade had gradually become an open secret. As the granddaughter of the First Hokage, Tsunade already held the title of the Hidden Leaf's princess. By extension, Ino could now—loosely speaking—be considered a princess of the village as well.
Thanks to deliberate promotion by certain parties, the first match was framed as a battle between the Hidden Leaf Princess and the Sunagakure Princess.
Ino's midriff-baring outfit was undeniably alluring, her exposed skin gleaming like porcelain under the sunlight. She had also swapped her flat, youthful high-top sandals for a pair of black chunky heels, matching the style of Tsunade and Shizune.
Temari, three years older, had a graceful figure and exotic charm, her beauty equally striking.
The moment their eyes met, an unspoken hostility flickered between them.
Like repels like—and with their similarities in hair color, personality, looks, physique, and background, the animosity was all the more palpable.
When Tenten shouted, "Ino, beat that musclehead for me!" the tension between the two reached its peak.
"Hmph, Yamanaka Boar. I've slaughtered plenty of boars this month—such crude creatures! All they do is roll around in the mud and then rub tree resin all over themselves. I wonder if your defenses are as strong as theirs?" Temari's opening taunt was dripping with venom.
Ino immediately fired back, "You old hag from Sunagakure, you must be unwanted in your village, right? How pathetic—absolutely no redeeming qualities. Oh wait, my bad, I misspoke. Actually, you do have one advantage: you're freakishly strong!"
As she spoke, she raised her middle finger and made a gesture that hadn't appeared in this world before, shaking it vigorously twice. To her surprise, Temari understood it perfectly!
Shiranui Genma sensed the thick tension between them and instinctively took two steps back, muttering softly, "First match... begin!"
"I'll tear your mouth to shreds!"
The moment Genma's words fell, Temari snapped open her massive ninja fan, glaring at Ino with undisguised hostility. Before the match, Kankuro had urged her to forfeit—just go through the motions and be done with it. After all, they were here to destroy Konoha, not genuinely aiming for Chunin promotion. Why take it so seriously? Saving chakra for the coming battle was the real priority. But Temari had outright refused!
The taunt about being a "freak of strength" still echoed in her ears, growing more infuriating the more she thought about it. She'd been bottling up this rage for a month, and Ino's provocative gesture had reignited it. The instant Genma announced the start, Temari channeled all her strength into her arms and swung her fan forward with full force.
Fine, call me a freak of strength—I'll own it! And now I'll crush you with one swing!
She opened with the highly offensive B-rank Wind Release Ninjutsu: "Great Sickle Weasel!"
As the ninja fan swept through the air, multiple chakra wind blades shot out chaotically. Two of them angled low, instantly carving deep trenches into the ground.
Under Tsunade's tutelage, Ino had abandoned her old combat style of starting with two shadow clones and then spamming ninjutsu. Her new strategy was to observe, probe, and gather intel first, striking only after understanding her opponent—a textbook ninja approach.
The moment Temari swung her fan, Ino had already guessed her move. As the wind blades flew out, Ino stomped her right foot, pivoting halfway to dodge them. Using the rotational momentum, she hurled a kunai with an exploding tag attached from her left hand.
Temari raised her fan to block the tag, then backflipped, using the fan's levitating properties and the smoke from the explosion as cover. She dashed at blinding speed to Ino's flank, preparing for a taijutsu ambush.
"You? Too slow!" Ino gathered chakra into her foot, lifting her left leg high before slamming it down like a battle-axe toward the side.
"HEAVEN KICK OF PAIN!" The colossal impact cratered the ground with spiderweb cracks, shattering Temari's high-speed ambush plan. Instead, the shockwave left her lightly injured.
Up in the stands, the Third Hokage and the "Fourth Kazekage" nodded slightly—the move looked familiar.
"SUPERHUMAN STRENGTH FIST!" Ino pressed her assault relentlessly. Temari's taijutsu was on par with hers—slower but stronger. Tsunade's Superhuman Strength Fist, which concentrated chakra at a single point, balanced their strength disparity.
Call me a wild boar? I'll show you wild!
Every punch and kick carried devastating force. Temari, now past caring, thought, Fine, if I end up unmarried, so be it! I was born with monstrous strength—how could I lose to you?
The two kunoichi exchanged over a dozen frenzied blows in the blink of an eye.
Ino was enjoying the fight, but she had to admit that Temari's strength stat far surpassed her own. While she could manage a few exchanges using Superhuman Strength Fist and Heaven Kick of Pain, prolonging the battle would be troublesome. This was just a warm-up, and she didn't want to waste too much time.
"Enough. I've already figured you out completely. I'll finish you in three moves!" she boasted.
Then, she formed hand seals—"Earth Release: Underground Voyage"—and burrowed into the ground.