Chương 237: Overwhelming

Hagoromo POV Sena followed the two Hidden Stone genin as they tunneled beneath the earth, her pace steady as she navigated over shifting ground, their chakra reserves bleeding away at an alarming rate.

"They will surface very soon," she said while running, her voice calm.

"In that open area between the two large pillars." Kaen stayed just behind her, his Sharingan active, eyes tracking the faint distortions beneath the surface. When the surface ground ahead began to soften unnaturally, he did not hesitate. His hands flew through seals.

"Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu." A massive fireball roared into existence and slammed forward. The two genin burst from the earth looking exhausted, one of them already forming hand seals and slamming his palms into the ground.

"Earth Release: Earth Wall Jutsu." Stone surged upward as the fireball collided violently, scorching and tearing away chunks of earth, but the wall held long enough. They did not waste the opening, retreating while using the wall to break line of sight, flickering away in a desperate retreat. They barely cleared the space before something appeared directly in front of them. Kaen had already moved, his flicker cleaner, farther, and more precise, his Sharingan ensuring perfect placement.

He stood in their path with a grin, his two tomoe spinning as his gaze swept over them, looking for their team medallion. One of the genin whispered, "Shoma, do not look directly at the Sharingan." Shoma nodded quickly, keeping his eyes averted as he murmured, "Goro, what do we do now?" Goro glanced around, jaw tight and breath ragged, before his expression hardened.

"We do not have enough chakra for a prolonged fight. We follow the retreat plan." His eyes flicked toward the open ground as he searched for the second Konoha genin, who appeared a moment later beside Kaen. She was a bit taller than expected, her light blond hair tied back neatly so it would not interfere with her movement, a few loose strands still escaping to catch the glow of the rising sun.

Her pale blue eyes were steady and unreadable, her slim but elegant frame moving with controlled ease, standard shinobi gear fitted neatly against her, clean, practical, and clearly chosen for function over flair. There was a faint chill to her presence that made the air feel tight and uncomfortable. It was not fear exactly, but it was strangely hard to focus on her, like the eye kept sliding away without meaning to.

Her gaze was sharp and calculating, already measuring every route and outcome as the two of them sealed off the last clear path of retreat. Shoma reacted first, hands flying through seals as Kaen surged forward and snapped a kunai toward him. Shoma dove instantly, the blade passing inches above his head as he finished the last seal and slammed his palms into the ground.

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Technique." The ground beneath Kaen rippled and softened abruptly, the stone turning unstable beneath his feet. At the same time, Sena flicked another kunai forward, aiming not at either of them but at the ground directly in front of Goro. His expression twisted as he spotted the explosive tag attached to the handle.

Goro had been counting on perfect timing with his teammate, collapsing a second mud flow as the Konoha team moved to evade the first, sealing the passage and burying their pursuers. That had been the plan. Then he saw the kunai. The angle, the timing, the explosive tag attached to it. His breath caught as he realized Shoma was too close. If he completed the combination, Shoma would take the full blast. He cursed under his breath and abandoned the setup instantly, slamming both hands into the ground instead.

"Earth Release: Earth Wall Jutsu." Stone surged upward just as the tag detonated. The explosion tore through the wall, shattering most of it into fragments and sending shockwaves ripping through the corridor, the wall absorbing the worst of the blast and sparing Shoma from serious injury. The two Iwa genin moved immediately, retreating backward through the lingering cloud of dust and debris, confident their remaining stamina would carry them farther than the Konoha team could pursue.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. They reappeared farther down the corridor and felt it immediately. Despair. Another Konoha genin was approaching. His height stood out at once, wrong for someone so young, shoulders broader than they had any right to be, his build dense and compact rather than bulky, his strength packed tight.

His face was unmistakably young, but his hair was a chaotic mess of deep, near-black strands, not truly black but dark enough to drink in the light, sticking out in every direction as if it had never known a comb. It only made the way he stood more unsettling, relaxed and grounded, like he had already dismissed them as a threat. His muscles were not exaggerated, but they were obvious in motion, every step carrying unmistakable power beyond what his impressive frame already suggested.

His eyes were an unusual color, sharp and bright, and the moment Goro met his gaze, irritation flared for reasons he could not explain. A crooked, shit-eating grin was plastered across his face, confident and infuriating, as if he were belittling them without saying a word, like his very existence was somehow offensive. Noa POV The Iwa genin looked annoyed the moment they focused on me, for reasons I could not quite place. I shrugged and spoke plainly.

"You are almost out of chakra, and we have a sensor on our team. It is over. Hand over your medallion and walk away. There is no need for anyone to get hurt." The words only seemed to fuel their anger. One of them lunged at me instead, hands coating themselves in stone as he burned the last of his chakra. He swung wildly while shouting over his shoulder, "Goro, run for it. I will stall him." I slipped beneath the heavy, predictable punch and drove a single, clean strike into his gut.

The impact lifted him slightly off his feet, sending him skidding backward as his eyes rolled up and his body went limp before hitting the ground. The last Iwa genin had already flickered away, only to be stopped once more by Kaen. Kaen slashed down with a kunai, but the genin reacted with impressive control, coating his chest in a thin layer of hardened earth that absorbed the blow before it could draw blood. He countered immediately, driving a powerful kick toward Kaen's torso.

Kaen's Sharingan caught it in time, and he ducked, sweeping low with his leg. To his surprise, the genin reinforced his legs with an even denser layer of stone. The impact sent pain shooting up Kaen's leg, forcing a sharp breath from him as he staggered back. The Iwa genin pressed the advantage, slashing down at Kaen with his kunai, but Sena intervened.

She could not stop the strike head-on, not against that strength, so she moved with it instead, redirecting the blow and drawing him off balance through subtle shifts of momentum that felt almost dance-like. He stumbled as she spun past him, and in the same fluid motion she rotated faster, carving a precise, slightly deep slash across his back before leaping clear. His counterstrike cut through empty air where she had been a heartbeat earlier. The entire exchange took no more than two seconds.

Sena was already standing several meters away, composed and faintly smiling. Kaen had disengaged as well, rubbing his leg with a grimace. The Iwa genin looked at the three of us, then at his unconscious teammate, and let out a long breath. With stubborn resolve, he raised his hands into a fighting stance and said through clenched teeth, "I can do this all day." I stepped forward and replied with a mocking calm, "Luckily, we will not need to." That was when he felt it.

His vision blurred slightly, and he disrupted his chakra on instinct, but the sensation did not fade. He tried to move and nearly stumbled.

"What is this?" His eyes widened as realization struck, anger flashing across his face.

"Poison?" Sena answered calmly, her voice steady and reassuring.

"It is only a sedative. You will fall asleep and wake up later feeling fine. Do not worry. We will leave you and your friends somewhere safe." He did not get the chance to respond before his legs gave out and he collapsed onto the stone. I approached and searched him quickly, pausing when I found his team medallion secured on his person. That made three. Kaen nodded in approval.

"Great job, Sena." She returned the praise with a small smile, which immediately made his face redden. I shook my head and asked, "So, what now?" Sena's eyes lit up with excitement as she answered, "Now we head for the oasis and the most dangerous part of this phase of the Chunin Exam." A/N: I'm sending my PC in for maintenance since I've been having issues with it suddenly shutting down and freezing constantly, to the point where it's almost becoming unusable.

I'll most likely get it back the same day, as the technician promised, but worst-case scenario I won't be able to post a chapter on Sunday. Wish me good luck, and hopefully the fix isn't too expensive; (Also, let me know what y'all thought of the Third-Person Omniscient POV. Is it better than the usual personal POV? Also also, I hope you enjoyed the fight. Let me know what you think about the team's strength and how Noa is perceived by others lol