With the anticipation of the entire world, the second day arrived swiftly.
Today, the second round of the First Sage Shinobi World Elite Youth Tournament would take place, and forty-five participants would be eliminated.
Among the 180 contestants who had made it to this stage, each was a genius, each had ranked in the top thirty of their respective regions and had reached the level of at least elite jōnin.
However, in this competition, where only the best of the best would advance, there were simply too many geniuses. Out of the 180 participants, at least 150 would ultimately face elimination.
After all, the Outstanding Youth Ranking only had thirty available spots.
This meant that the tournament was destined to be a fierce battle.
Once again, 180 competitors took the stage today.
Just like yesterday, the battles proceeded in groups of nine at a time.
The winners' bracket would fight first, followed by the losers' bracket.
Today's battles were even more intense than yesterday's.
For those in the winners' bracket, their goal was simple. Keep winning. A total of four victories would guarantee a spot on the Outstanding Youth Ranking.
Thus, their fights were all intense.
However, it was the losers' bracket where the most intense battles took place.
Unlike the winners' bracket, where a loss meant being dropped into the losers' bracket but still having a chance to advance, those in the losers' bracket had no second chances.
For them, a single defeat meant elimination.
Now, they only had one last chance.
With no room for retreat, every competitor fought with everything they had, unleashing every possible technique at their disposal.
Even unfinished jutsu, which many had hesitated to use before, were now being employed without hesitation.
Previously, many competitors had been reluctant to resort to these techniques, fearing the severe side effects. Since this was not the final round, suffering heavy injuries now could mean certain defeat in the next stage.
But everything changed after yesterday's battle, when Hui treated A's injuries.
That moment erased everyone's doubts.
They realized that no matter how severe the backlash from their techniques, no matter how grave their wounds, as long as Hui was present, they would be fine.
Moreover, wasn't Hui's intervention yesterday a direct message to them?
A message telling them to let go of their concerns and fight with all their might?
And so, today, many competitors fought recklessly, giving it their all.
This desperate, all-out combat only made the battles even more exhilarating.
Spectators were enthralled, their blood boiling with excitement.
Additionally, today's battles saw several clashes between top contenders.
With only ninety fighters remaining in the winners' bracket and around twenty to thirty of them being the tournament's favorites, the likelihood of them being paired against each other had increased significantly.
And so, the first high-profile match of the day took place.
A battle between two elites:
Uchiha Ming of the Uchiha clan versus Kei Yukiu of the Yuki clan.
Both were fighters on the level of lower-tier Kage, and both possessed Kekkei Genkai.
One was from the renowned Uchiha clan, possessing the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
The other was from the famous Yuki clan, wielding the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai.
This battle between the two could only be described as a grand spectacle of fire and ice, a song of ice and fire.
After all, one was a master of Fire Release, while the other relied entirely on Ice Release techniques.
In the end, Uchiha Ming emerged victorious.
At the final moment, this beautiful kunoichi of the Uchiha clan ended Kei Yukiu with a genjutsu.
This outcome caught many people off guard, yet at the same time, it made perfect sense.
The relentless Fire Release techniques had almost made them forget the signature strength of the Sharingan.
It was well known that the Sharingan was not just the Eye of Insight or the Eye of Copying, it was also the Eye of Hypnosis.
Its exceptional perception, ability to mimic techniques, and its unpredictable genjutsu were what made the Sharingan so powerful.
"Completely unexpected! Just when everyone was distracted by her Fire Release, Ming finished the fight with genjutsu!"
"This is strategy! This is the Uchiha!"
"What a pity for Kei Yuki. At the start, he was clearly cautious about the Uchiha's genjutsu, but in the final moment, his entire focus was drawn to Ming's Fire Release. He never realized that it was just a feint."
"Yeah, exactly!"
The crowd erupted into discussion.
To many, this battle was just as exciting as yesterday's fight between Konan and A, a battle that left everyone in awe.
Of course, many of the spectators were merely at the level of chūnin or special jōnin, making them oblivious to the true gap in skill between these high-level battles.
…
The second major match of the day was an internal clash between two shinobi from the Hidden Sage Village.
Kurama Byaku vs. Sarutobi Hoshi.
If the previous battle made people recognize the importance of genjutsu, then this battle made them truly witness the terrifying power of genjutsu!
The Kurama clan was known for its expertise in illusion techniques, but that alone wasn't anything remarkable, after all, the Uchiha clan was also proficient in genjutsu.
However, what made the Kurama clan truly formidable was their Kekkei Genkai.
A bloodline ability that could, turn illusions into reality!
This ability even piqued Hui's interest.
Had the Kurama clan not been his loyal followers and allies, he might have captured one of them for research long ago.
After all, the idea of turning illusions into reality sounded absurdly powerful.
What was the difference between this and creating something from nothing?
A power like this undoubtedly involved an extremely high-level usage of the worlds laws.
Unfortunately, the Kurama clan was not only allied with Hui, but also incredibly rare, with only a handful of individuals possessing this Kekkei Genkai.
There simply weren't enough subjects to conduct any meaningful research.
So, for now, Hui could only set this matter aside and wait for a future opportunity.
Returning to the fight, Kurama Byaku completely shattered Sarutobi Hoshi's confidence.
His genjutsu was simply too terrifying, forcing Sarutobi Hoshi to experience his worst inner fears.
Although Hoshi eventually managed to break free from the illusion and overcome his psychological barriers, by then, Kurama Byaku had already reached his side, placing a kunai against his throat.
This match became a mental victory for Sarutobi Hoshi, but in reality, he had lost.
Even his mental victory had been incredibly difficult to achieve.
By the end of the battle, he was drenched in sweat, his face pale with exhaustion.
However, from the spectators' perspective, the match looked completely different.
As soon as the match began, both competitors stood completely still.
After a while, Sarutobi Hoshi began sweating profusely, his face turning ashen, while Kurama Byaku merely let out a relaxed sigh.
Then, Kurama Byaku calmly walked over to Sarutobi Hoshi with a kunai, placing it against his opponent's throat while waiting for him to regain consciousness.
When Sarutobi Hoshi finally awoke, the match was already over.
A fight like this was bizarre beyond belief.
Of course, everyone understood that genjutsu battles were highly dangerous, filled with mind games, mental duels, and clashes that tested one's intelligence and willpower.
But still, this type of fight felt anticlimactic.
"As expected… battles between genjutsu users are definitely the most boring fights to watch without question!"
The audience couldn't help but sigh, hoping that the next matches wouldn't be another illusion-based battle.