(Toji's)
The stalemate continued for several hours before Afro's will could finally no longer bear the exhaustion in his body.
The man's body fell backward, breathing heavily, sweat covering his skin, yet his hand still gripped his sword firmly, and his eyes seemed troubled. There was the excitement of a good fight to the death, but also a deep desire to continue and a sense of sadness at not being able to.
Toji looked at the man with conflicting feelings inside him, he could have won hours earlier, he could have opened a few gates, just two would have been enough to completely tip the scales in his favor.
He could have used some Jutsu, catching Afro by surprise, he could even have tested his slowing spell. Instead, he fought the man for hours using only Kenjutsu.
Toji looked at Afro's figure lying on the ground, his body trembling, not from exhaustion, but as if Afro were searching for the strength to get up again.
That kind of fierce willpower, few ninjas in this world can truly do something like that, well, Afro is a Samurai, not a ninja.
Toji walked calmly in front of Afro, stopping right beside the man, Shakukonto slowly rising above Afro. The man had no fear in his eyes as he watched the blade rising above his chest.
All Toji could see was sadness at not being able to continue fighting and a fierce desire to get up, there was no fear there.
The blade was raised in front of Toji, its flat side serving as a mirror, he could see his own eyes. He didn't see the expected indifference, but... pity.
Even though Afro could only keep up with him in his weakest state, he saw how much Afro had grown in the short time they fought.
How strong would this guy get with the right training? Toji believes that even the current Sasuke, using only his sword, would lose to Afro, even with his Sharingan.
Slowly, Toji's eyes became determined. He pushed the blade away with a sigh. The purple snake opened its mouth, revealing Shakukonto's sheath. Toji placed it inside, and the snake swallowed the sword. Toji turned and slowly walked away.
Afro was surprised, and his brow immediately furrowed tightly, as if he had drawn energy from his anger. He slowly raised his torso, his eyes filled with fury.
-Kill me!- he demanded.
Toji didn't stop, didn't look away, Afro's furious eyes watched him disappear into the forest.
All that remained was the ground covered in sweat and blood, along with the enraged Afro.
Even after all the fighting, his expression had never changed, but at that moment, his face looked like a demon from hell, his resentment soaring to the heavens.
Even so, his body was too weak, he couldn't fully stand up. He could only watch Toji disappear into the twilight.
//-//
(General's POV)
The entire village was in an intense festive mood.
Merchants of all kinds shouted excitedly, the Chunin Exam attracted not only nobles but also traders who came from all over the ninja world, with local products from dozens of regions.
Jugo had modified the wooden structure outside the village into a large wooden stadium in the style of the Colosseum, the stadium was entirely made of white wood. Guren had struck deals with dozens of merchants and financial groups, some for products, others for advertising.
There were even cases of participants being approached with offers of sponsorship in exchange for wearing clothes and using products from different brands.
Guren got furious and kicked all those guys out, ironically, soon after, all the participants from Otogakure were seen using products from local village businesses, Guren was truly two-faced.
Although all the Daimyos were invited, only three Daimyos appeared, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, the Daimyo of the Land of Sound, and the Daimyo of the Land of Waterfalls.
Apart from that, the lesser nobles varied in their origins.
The other Daimyos did not come for various reasons. The Daimyos from the other four large countries didn't want to come simply to be mocked by the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. The Daimyos from the other small countries had the same reason, but those who would mock them would be the Daimyos from the Land of Sound and the Land of Waterfall.
Of course, to show support for the land of Sound, which was dominating the agricultural and, recently, livestock business, many lesser nobles from those countries still "came on their own", in reality they were sent to improve relations with Sound without the Daimyos of those lands themselves wanting to come.
From the perspective of ninja leaders, besides Tsunade and the leader of Takigakure, Shibuki, only Gaara came, but ninjas from different countries stayed in Otogakure to watch the final exam.
The stands, which could hold hundreds of thousands of people, were filling up rapidly, even civilians came from nearby towns to watch the competition, especially civilians from the Land of Sound itself.
Compared to the arena used by Konoha, the coliseum created by Jugo was ridiculously larger, a soccer game could be played there without any problems.
At the highest point, several cabins were built for nobles, wealthy merchants, and ninjas from other villages.
In addition to the view of the arena, there were also TVs showing various angles of the arena, and there was even a hired commentator.
At that point, the whole situation had practically turned into a carnival.