Naruto immediately asked excitedly, "What about me?"
"I'm not interested," Gaara replied coldly and began to turn away.
"But actually, I think you asked the wrong person," Shiki raised his voice and shouted at Gaara.
Temari glanced back. Although Shiki didn't possess that piercing icy coolness of Sasuke capable of stabbing straight into one's heart, he still possessed a charm of his own.
But only Temari turned her head slightly; as for Gaara, he completely ignored this man who had suddenly appeared from nowhere.
"Shiki-niisan, you've been disregarded too," Konohamaru shrugged his shoulders, though his words revealed his displeasure.
Precisely the two people he respected most were Naruto and Shiki.
Now, the two people he respected most were being ignored by the same individual—how could he possibly accept this calmly?
Shiki squatted down and patted Konohamaru on the head, saying, "I'll show you all something fun later."
"Don't act so cheerful after getting ignored like that, Shiki-niisan. You're not even up to Naruto-niisan's level."
Konohamaru turned his face away stubbornly, clearly sulking.
Even Sakura felt somewhat puzzled. Shiki seemed to have lost his edge, taking such disregard so lightly—shouldn't he have shown at least some reaction?
Right now, Naruto's loud clamoring indeed seemed superior to Shiki's demeanor.
At this moment, Sasuke felt a sudden sense of satisfaction. It wasn't that important whether Naruto got Gaara's approval anyway.
But the fact that Shiki, who had always overshadowed him, also failed to gain Gaara's recognition made him feel genuinely relieved.
After all, perhaps only between geniuses could there be mutual respect. Someone like Shiki, who abandoned his gift and failed to carry his responsibility, would eventually be surpassed by those true geniuses.
[A sound that woke the deaf and rattled the soul] instantly caused everyone to cover their ears, although ringing already filled their ears.
All chaotic thoughts came to a sudden stop at that moment; the powerful crash was even more shocking than the sight itself.
A mysterious black object slammed heavily beside Gaara.
The reason it landed beside him was simple—a wall of sand blocked the powerful strike.
Yet, this unknown object had embedded itself deeply into the sand wall. It seemed just a tiny bit more force would break through this shield seemingly capable of blocking anything.
However, the person behind such a terrifying attack looked slightly helpless, "If I had a choice, I really wouldn't have wanted to do it this way."
Immediately afterward, however, Shiki's eyes gleamed brightly, "But without doing it this way, someone like you probably wouldn't even notice me."
Only then did everyone notice—the black object identical to the one thrown was still held tightly in Shiki's right hand.
"Is that... weights? How heavy must these weights be to create such an incredible impact?" Sakura's eyes widened in disbelief.
Chapter 113: Benevolence and Cruelty
The sand no longer sensed forward pressure, dispersing outward and reforming into the gourd resting behind Gaara.
The black weights lost all support and crashed heavily onto the ground, shattering the image of Shiki as a gentle and radiant person in everyone's hearts.
Shiki's kindness often made people forget that he was also powerful. Yet every time he unintentionally displayed his strength, it would shock everyone.
"Fascinating," Gaara said, turning to look at Shiki. Although the sand shielding him wasn't even his strongest defense,
someone who could achieve such a level so effortlessly deserved his full attention.
Even stirred excitement within him.
"You're right; I probably asked the wrong person. It seems you carry a presence that stands out," Gaara declared, his gaze slicing like a blade until meeting Shiki's eyes. "What is your name?"
"Shiki Uzumaki," Shiki responded with his name, yet he shook his head. "I told you you've asked the wrong person, but not because you didn't ask for my name."
Gaara locked his cold glare on Shiki's face, an icy stare capable of sending chills down anyone else's spine. "Are you saying there's someone here stronger than you?"
Each word struck deep into their chests. The concept of overwhelming presence often felt intangible.
Yet Gaara nearly solidified his pressure into something physical—an extremely sharp dagger hanging above each person's neck.
Almost everyone believed Gaara was furious at this moment. After all, he was the type who might kill someone over the smallest slight.
But Shiki knew Gaara was thrilled—so eager he could barely contain himself, his restless sands behind him betraying his excitement.
Sasuke remained silent, his cold gaze sweeping toward Shiki too. As a genius, being casually ignored was something he absolutely could not tolerate.
A genius could be defeated, could die in battle. But what he could never bear was being overlooked.
After all, he wasn't like Naruto—the kind of person who could smile through endless neglect.
Still, Sasuke indeed wanted to hear what Shiki had to say next. Judging from Shiki's expression, it seemed someone truly stronger than all of them stood here now.
It couldn't be Sakura; she was weaker than Naruto.
Certainly not Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon—the three kids; they were definitely no match.
As for the two Gaara had brought along, the fear in their eyes made it clear—they were no match for him.
Then who could it be?
Could it possibly be that dead-last, Naruto? Even Sasuke let out a mocking snort.
Although deep inside, he unwillingly admitted that Naruto kept getting stronger, no longer the same dead-last he used to be.
But even now, his strength still couldn't compare with theirs—true prodigies.
Could someone else really be here?
Sasuke couldn't help but glance around. He suspected the one Shiki spoke of must be someone deliberately concealed,
just as he had done—leaping silently to a branch unseen, watching everything unfold below.
"Naruto, tell him your full name," Shiki stated calmly, his eyes meeting Gaara's unwaveringly.
If anyone could defeat Gaara, at least for now, only one person might stand a chance.
That's Naruto.
Though confident in his current mastery of Konoha-style swordsmanship, Shiki knew he could only take on Gaara if he didn't unleash the tailed beast.
Among everyone present, only Naruto was capable of defeating Gaara. Because Naruto was able to last until the end and still tap into Nine-Tails' power.
Naruto pointed at himself in surprise and laughed, "Huh? Me? Ha ha! Told ya—Shiki, you're the one who really knows talent!"
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