Inside Hall Number 3, there were several unique individuals who had made it to the final examination.
The first was Ulti.
She wore the same tight blue outfit that clung to her slim waist and accentuated her voluptuous figure. Her blue mask covered her face, and her sharp eyes carefully watched as one examinee after another entered the hall. When Maki stepped in last, her gaze locked onto him immediately.
She inspected him.
She couldn't see his face clearly because of the shadow cast by his hood.
The second was Fumikage Tokoyami.
Tokoyami's most notable feature was his bird-like head. It was covered in sleek, dark feathers that pointed backward like hair. He had a yellow hooked beak, and interestingly, despite having a beak, he possessed human-like teeth inside. His red, narrow eyes gave him an intense and edgy look that matched his serious personality.
Around his neck was a red choker, worn in honor of his favorite hero, Dark Crystal.
Below the neck, Tokoyami looked surprisingly normal compared to his head. He was relatively short, standing at 158 cm (around 5'2"), with a slim but fit build.
Attached to him was Dark Shadow — a sentient, shadowy purple-and-black creature resembling a spectral version of Tokoyami himself. Dark Shadow had fierce, glowing yellow eyes.
Fumikage Tokoyami
Authority: Genetics
Category: Quirk
Epithet: Dark Shadow
Tokoyami sat calmly with his arms crossed while Dark Shadow scanned the hall.
Suddenly—
Both of them opened their eyes at the same time.
They felt it.
The atmosphere dropped.
Their gaze shifted and landed on Maki, who was walking up the steps past them.
Tokoyami muttered, "Darkness shrouds your path."
Maki seemed to hear him. He glanced at Tokoyami and replied, "Darkness exists in the deepest part of the ocean."
Tokoyami nodded slowly. "Indeed. It exists in the deepest part of the heart."
Maki tilted his head slightly.
He didn't understand.
He thought Tokoyami was literally asking where darkness exists. And since he grew up in the sea, his natural answer was the ocean.
It seemed, however, that this fellow meant something else.
Tokoyami, on the other hand, believed Maki's response carried a double meaning.
But Maki didn't pry further.
He simply walked past him.
The third was Riruka Dokugamine.
Her eyes were glued to Maki. Even though she couldn't see his real face, her instincts told her that this one was a gem.
In her mind, she was already forming a plan.
She wanted to put him inside her doll and uncover what that hood was hiding.
The fourth was Temari.
Beside her rested a massive closed fan.
She wore a short-sleeved, high-collared black kimono-style dress that reached mid-thigh. A striking red scarf tied around her waist acted as a belt, providing sharp contrast against the black fabric. She wore black fingerless gloves to help her grip her massive iron fan in combat.
Her sandy-blonde hair was tied into four distinct pigtails, styled in a slightly wild and angular fashion. Her sharp teal eyes reflected her blunt and confident personality.
Temari
Authority: Chakra
Category: Ninjutsu
Epithet: Wind Release (Fūton)
Her abilities revolved entirely around her Giant Folding Fan (Kyodai Sensu).
The purple circles on her fan were not mere decoration — they represented the stages of her power.
First Moon: Basic wind gusts capable of deflecting projectiles such as kunai and needles.
Second Moon: Stronger winds capable of knocking back multiple enemies.
Third Moon: Maximum power. Once revealed, she could create localized tornadoes and slicing vacuums.
She had been trying to concentrate.
But then she saw him.
The man who had almost forced her to kneel— back when the four-eyed examinee confronted him.
She still remembered that chakra suppression gripping her neck, making it hard to breathe.
Now, she stared at him again.
And she refused to back down so easily.
At the far corner of the hall sat the yellow-haired man — the same one who had used wind-like spheres to annihilate monsters during the survival test.
His eyes were initially on the instructor in front.
"As beautiful as always," he muttered.
Then his gaze dropped to Temari, seated just below him.
"Fuck… there's no Shikamaru here. I'll have you soon."
He leaned back slightly.
Then the sliding door opened again.
He saw Mei — the Mizukage.
"Fucking hell… just look at that body and that face."
But then—
He noticed the massive man following behind her, carrying a sword as large as himself.
He saw how Mei spoke to him closely, casually.
His fist clenched.
His teeth ground together.
"Who the hell is that? Is he—no… probably not. This stupid world isn't the same shit, Maybe he's some relative."
He watched Mei happily talking to Maki.
The longer he watched, the angrier he became.
Then he saw Maki walk up the stairs and choose a seat in the third row — where no one had been sitting.
His eyes never left him.
Sharp.
Narrowed.
Hostile.
Maki took his seat and waited for the test to begin.
He didn't notice that the others were staring at him instead of focusing on the upcoming examination.
When Kurenai Yūhi saw that all 100 students were finally present, she gave the instructions.
"It's simple," she said. "Answer everything. Don't miss a single question. You have two hours to complete seventy questions."
"And don't even think about cheating. You'd be the dumbest person to ever try that here at UA."
Everyone nodded.
She pressed a button on the instructor's table.
From each examinee's desk, a flat square panel at the corner slid open. A tablet rose up, powered on automatically, and the test appeared on its screen.
Kurenai looked over the hall once more.
"Start the examination."
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