Xia Li only knew that during this period, Moonlight Gale seemed to have already died. As for the others, no one had told him anything. Naturally, Xia Li didn't remember the whereabouts of those followers either. They were probably dead as well—at least, that was his guess.
After all, no matter how you looked at it, those three Sound ninjas were merely victims. The true mastermind was Orochimaru...
Xia Li glanced at the veiled Kazekage standing beside the Third Kazekage. Even though he knew it was Orochimaru in disguise, it was best not to act rashly. Orochimaru had already made his preparations, while Konoha was still in the process of preparing.
Just like Konoha's response strategy, under Xia Li's suggestion, the second phase had actually already begun ahead of schedule. However, in order to ensure survival on the surface, most of those being evacuated were civilians—women, children, and the elderly—who had no combat ability. That was all.
The reason they hadn't taken action earlier was to avoid alerting the enemy. But now, with the third round of the Chunin Exams beginning and everyone's attention focused on the event, there was finally an opportunity to carry out further mobilization.
It could be said that the longer the current situation dragged on, the more advantageous it was for Konoha. Combat preparations were already complete; the only remaining issue was the evacuation of civilians.
Thinking of this, a trace of confusion flashed again in Xia Li's eyes. Clearly, in such an emergency, all ANBU members had already taken action.
Among them, the forces controlled by the advisors had also begun to move. Of course, not everyone still had the ability to protect themselves, which was understandable.
However, there was still one organization within Konoha that refused to take action on the surface. They were unsuited to appear publicly and instead were tasked with protecting Konoha's foundation.
Yes—this organization was the Root.
They always claimed to act for Konoha's benefit, yet in reality, they served Danzo.
This wasn't hard to understand. Danzo likely hoped that the Third Hokage would die during this turmoil, giving him a chance to become Hokage himself.
Although this wasn't explicitly shown in the original story, it was easy to imagine that Danzo's actions were far from insignificant. Unfortunately for him, he hadn't expected that the two elder advisors and the Third Hokage's disciples would be so aligned in their thinking.
In other words, as long as there were other suitable candidates for Hokage, Danzo must never be allowed to take the position.
Just like after the Third Hokage's death, the first people the two advisors wanted to recommend were Jiraiya—who was hardly ever in the village—and Tsunade, who was also frequently absent.
If not Jiraiya, then Tsunade would do.
Danzo's first priority, therefore, had to be eliminating both of them. Only after both Jiraiya and Tsunade were out of the picture would he consider making his move.
It must be said that although the two advisors, Mito Kadeni and Koharu Utatane, were somewhat stubborn and conservative, they were genuinely acting for Konoha's benefit. Their thinking was limited, yes—but their intentions weren't malicious.
Of course, they also looked out for themselves, but as long as they didn't harm Konoha, that was only human nature and not entirely unreasonable.
Danzo, however, was completely different.
He always claimed everything he did was for Konoha, yet in reality, his actions to achieve personal goals severely damaged the village's interests.
If not for him, Konoha's top-tier strength would never have declined to its current level. Not to mention others—just Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi, who were absolutely loyal to Konoha, were already top-tier powerhouses.
If they had remained, would Orochimaru even have dared to invade? Even if the enemy had two Orochimarus, it wouldn't have been too concerning.
If not for Danzo, the relationship between the Uchiha clan and Konoha might never have deteriorated to that extent. The tragedy of genocide might never have happened.
Going further… perhaps Nagato wouldn't have been pushed into the Akatsuki?
But reality wasn't so simple. After all, Nagato's fate had long been arranged by Madara. Even without someone like Danzo, someone else might have played a similar role.
Still, under different circumstances, perhaps Konoha's situation would have been better. Maybe the village wouldn't have been destroyed by Shinra Tensei…
Xia Li tapped his temple lightly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
This time, his legitimate request for help had been rejected, further lowering his tolerance for Danzo. If he ever gained power, the first thing he would do would be to eliminate him completely.
No… perhaps handing him over to Sasuke would be a better idea.
Meanwhile, despite the complaints of the surrounding villagers, the third round of the Chunin Exams finally began.
Why had it taken so long?
Because they had been stalling for time.
At this moment, only Naruto and Neji remained on the field from the first match. The other seven had returned to their respective waiting areas. Among them, Ino had found Xia Li's position and greeted him.
Then—
The third round officially began.
Naruto Uzumaki vs. Neji Hyuga!
Chapter 139: Naruto — Sorry, Sasuke, I'm Going to Play with This Armor First!
On the arena, Naruto and Neji didn't immediately begin fighting.
Naruto stared at Neji and said, "The day has finally come. I will definitely defeat you!"
"Hmph." Neji sneered. "I remember you're a failure. Aside from your stamina, your abilities ranked at the bottom in the academy."
"Someone like you could never defeat me."
Even as he spoke, Neji had already taken the starting stance of the Hyuga clan.
Though his words were dismissive, he had seen Naruto fight—he knew better than to underestimate him.
"Hmph, everyone says that. But I promised Hinata—I'll beat you!" Naruto grinned, pointing his thumb at himself.
"And I've got one more advantage…"
"I never go back on my word!"
With that, Naruto moved.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Neji frowned. As expected—he still couldn't see through it. The clones had chakra flow and even mimicked the meridian system. Even the Byakugan couldn't distinguish the real body.
Soon, Naruto and his clones formed hand seals again—Wind Release: Gale Palm.
Neji reacted quickly, destroying several clones with shuriken. But it wasn't enough to stop the technique.
Watching this, Neji's expression turned serious.
This kind of attack was extremely difficult to counter.
Naruto's clones only needed one seal, and when combined with Gale Palm, it became nearly unstoppable.
This was troublesome.
Xia Li smiled from the sidelines. This technique might not defeat Neji outright, but it would definitely put him in a difficult position.
The wind-coated clones weren't as fragile as normal ones—perfect for Naruto.
In the next moment, Naruto charged forward with his clones.
Neji easily dodged and struck with his Gentle Fist—but something felt wrong.
Even after breaking through the wind barrier, the impact felt strange. There was no pain, no explosion.
That realization sent a chill down his spine.
Naruto seized the opening and punched him, sending Neji flying back with the explosive force of Gale Palm.
"So that's your pressure point attack? Doesn't hurt much," Naruto said.
Neji took a deep breath. Ordinary strikes weren't enough—he needed more chakra.
Then—
Neji assumed a new stance.
The Hyuga clan was shocked.
"Sixty-Four Palms…?"
If no one had taught him, then Neji had learned it himself.
That level of talent was terrifying.
Soon, Naruto's clones were destroyed one by one.
But Xia Li frowned slightly.
"If you need Sixty-Four Palms just to deal with clones… then this becomes a battle of stamina."
And against Naruto?
That was basically asking to lose.
Realizing this, Neji changed tactics again.
"Eight Trigrams: Rotation!"
His body spun rapidly, chakra bursting outward like a vortex, sweeping away all the clones.
Finally, he rushed toward Naruto.
Theoretically, Naruto should have retreated and repeated his strategy.
But instead—
He charged forward.
Xia Li covered his face.
Typical Naruto.
The tide instantly turned as Neji struck him with Sixty-Four Palms.
The audience was thrilled.
But Xia Li just smiled.
"Not necessarily."
After all—
Naruto had the Nine-Tails.
Even if his own chakra was sealed, the Nine-Tails' chakra was different. It couldn't be sealed the same way.
Sure enough, after a heated exchange of words—
Naruto finally unleashed it.
A red chakra cloak formed around him.
Even the Third Hokage was surprised.
But Xia Li's eyes lit up even more.
"This isn't just the Nine-Tails…"
"It's armor."
Wind Armor.
It originated from Gale Palm, but at this level, it had become something entirely new.
And as its creator—
Xia Li could clearly see how that armor was formed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
for 30 advanced chapter, visit my patreon
'patreon.com/fatimasoomro123'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"