The warm aroma of dinner welcomed Hikaru upon his return home. Ayako had prepared a delicious meal to celebrate the success of his year-end exam, and the two siblings sat down to eat together.
"How was your exam today?" Ayako asked, smiling at her brother.
"It was tough, but I did okay," Hikaru replied, taking a bite of his food before questioning her. "What's going on with the plan for Ramen Ichiraku? I thought we were going to celebrate dinner there."
"Sad news for you; the store closed today," Ayako said, shrugging. "I stopped by to check, but the sign in front said 'closed for one day.'"
Hikaru nodded in understanding. "That's too bad; the ramen there is really good." He glanced at his sister for a few seconds and added, "But not as good as your cooking."
Ayako snorted and said, "Nice try, but thanks."
'Nice recovery,' Hikaru thought to himself, sighing with relief at her reaction.
After dinner, Hikaru spent some time reviewing his notes and planning his training for the summer. During the academy's two-month closure, he would have ample time for training. He was nearly finished with his advanced chakra control exercise, Water Surface Walking.
This meant he would soon be comfortable learning any ninjutsu or even genjutsu from his arsenal, starting with low-ranking skills that required minimal chakra use.
In the ninjutsu scroll for Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique), there was a section that specifically stated one should have a minimum threshold of chakra reserved before executing the jutsu safely. As long as this minimum requirement was met, one wouldn't pass out from chakra exhaustion.
Hikaru took this passage seriously, as he wanted to learn the shadow clone technique safely to aid in his training.
Hikaru could also finally start his shape-transformation practices once he completed the chakra control training. This was one of the prerequisites he believed he needed to meet to learn the technique effectively.
As he lay in bed that night, Hikaru couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement for the future and the next steps in his training plan. All the training he had done according to plan had progressed nicely so far. The joy he felt from accomplishing something also greatly motivated him.
Hikaru was aware that the road ahead would be challenging, but he was ready to face it. The fight today between Ryōta and Seiji also motivated him. With a renewed sense of purpose, Hikaru drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the day he would become free and travel to many corners of the Naruto world.
...
'The real fight begins today.'
Hikaru stood in front of the competition venue, watching the fight happening on the training ground near the academy from afar. He was late to the event because he didn't know the exact time the competition would start.
Hikaru tried to find a suitable spectator spot because the front view couldn't see the whole fight. Once he found a new spot, he observed the people around him and noticed many familiar faces.
Koji and Yumi-sensei also arrived at the competition venue. They stood beside the big shot, who was sitting alone among many sensei and his assistants, watching the fight between students competing for early graduation.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, wore his usual Hokage robe, a hat, and his beloved pipe.
Surprised by the old man's appearance, Hikaru thought, 'It seems this event is more important than I thought.'
He also noticed several other academy sensei in the vicinity, but he was unaware of their names.
Gazing at the training ground, he observed that the current fight had just concluded, with a boy from the Hyuga clan emerging as the winner against a girl from the Fūma clan.
Hyuga Nobue
Despite his famous technique in close combat and his opponent's reputation for long-range attacks, he successfully defeated a fourth-year student as a third-year student.
'Dang it! I missed the fight; I should have come earlier,' Hikaru thought with a sad expression. He had thought he would have some spare time for exercise in the morning before coming to the academy to watch the competition, and he didn't think he would miss some of the intriguing fights.
The proctor, Ishikawa Shou, who had overseen the exam, asked the Third Hokage for permission to continue. Once he received permission, he immediately called out the next students, saying, "Alright, the fifth match of today: Uchiha Takeshi and Kajiwara Ryōta!"
"This is the fifth match already?" Hikaru exclaimed upon hearing the news.
Looking below, he found Ryōta and Uchiha Takeshi, the boy from the Uchiha clan with short dark hair spiked up, dressed in black clothes with a paper fan symbol on his back, walking toward the fighting area. "Hopefully, he will be alright."
This time, the rules were even worse than he had anticipated; anyone could use anything in the fight, excluding explosive seals. Although this rule was similar to how he fought with Seiji two weeks ago, this time it involved students from big clans with better techniques.
'Is this still just a fight for early graduation?' Hikaru furrowed his eyebrows, beginning to sweat with concern for his friend. The proctor looked at the two boys and saw they were ready in their positions. He then said, "You can start now!"
Both of them immediately executed the seal of confrontation and prepared to fight. Takeshi glared at the chubby boy in front of him, taunting, "A first-year student challenging a fifth-year student. Is this courage or just plain stupidity? It's not too late to give up!"
'What's all this trash talking? Can't he just start fighting normally?' Hikaru thought with a blank expression but was taken aback when he saw Ryōta decide to attack first.
'Don't tell me he fell for that taunt?' Hikaru pondered, furrowing his brows and closely observing the battle.
Takeshi smirked as he saw his opponent decide to attack him first. He took his Uchiha Taijutsu stance and quickly blocked a fist coming straight at his face with ease by sidestepping to the left, attempting to grab his wrist and counter with a swift kick.
Ryōta gritted his teeth, used his left hand to guard the attack, and jerked his right hand away from his opponent in an attempt to restrict his movement. He successfully blocked the kick but was still pushed back several steps by the force.
However, his opponent refused to allow him to adjust his position. Takeshi quickly approached him, kicking at his chest. Ryōta dodged the incoming attack and returned with his fist, which was easily evaded. Then, Ryōta aimed a low kick at Takeshi's legs, but he jumped away in acrobatic style, flipping backward and landing a few meters away.
"Nice try, but you're going to have to do better than that," Takeshi taunted with a smile on his face. His confidence had gone through the roof, as if this weren't a competition but a mere exercise for him.
Ryōta, having finally gained his footing but still angry at his opponent's remark, took a breath to calm himself, but Takeshi didn't allow him much time. He took the initiative to charge toward Ryōta, his hand poised with a heavy fist, aiming to knock him down.
After a few moments of exchanging punches, blocks, and dodges, Ryōta decided to jump away from the incoming attack. He threw shurikens toward Takeshi to keep him at bay, then formed a hand seal as he moved to his new position.
A puff of smoke appeared, revealing his two identical clones next to him. Both moved in distinct directions, attempting to circle the opponent while holding a kunai in their hands and waiting for the right time to attack.
Ryōta's main body ran straight back toward Takeshi, performing an up-close attack with a kick aimed at his left side.
"Just a normal clone; this shouldn't take long," Takeshi said with a curling smile, avoiding the approaching blow and retaliating with a kunai in his hand slashing downward. However, before he could align the kunai against his opponent's throat, the clone flung two kunai toward him from both sides.
"Tsk! Little tricks!" Takeshi executed a backflip to evade the two kunai aimed at him, then swiftly retrieved multiple shurikens from his pouch. He returned the attack by throwing shurikens toward Ryōta and the two clones in rapid succession. Both clones immediately dispersed as soon as they came into contact with a shuriken. Ryōta also dodged the shurikens thrown at him.
Seeing Ryōta attempting to get away, Takeshi smirked and said, "Let's see you try to get away from this."
"Sōshuriken no Jutsu" (Manipulated Shuriken Technique).
A translucent string attached to multiple shurikens thrown earlier whizzed in a curved path as Takeshi altered the shurikens' trajectory, aiming at his opponent. Ryōta saw the incoming attacks and couldn't help but feel dazed. The fight wasn't long, but he already felt overwhelmed by his opponent's superior skills.
Thinking he couldn't dodge all the attacks in time, Ryōta squeezed his eyes shut, feeling ashamed of himself for thinking too far ahead. The difference between them was too much.
Takayama Koji saw the situation and prepared to save his student, but his reaction was slightly delayed. Before the shurikens hit the boy, someone intervened just in time, saving him.
Muranaka Hikaru
Another one of his students.
Hearing all the exclamations in the vicinity at the sudden situation, Hikaru rose to his feet, offering his hand to help his friend off the ground. Both of them were now in a different position, away from the attack.
Observing his friend's stunned expression, Hikaru quietly said with a smile, "You did well in the fight; maybe you'll win next time."
"Never give up, remember?"
At the last moment, he had acted instinctively to save his friend. Even though Hikaru knew that other sensei in the area would intervene and save the boy, he couldn't just stand by and watch.
This was his friend, after all.
'Hmm... the boy has some quick feet,' Hiruzen thought as he observed the match's outcome with an amused expression, then glanced at the nearby academy instructor for an answer.
Takayama Koji immediately said, "He's the boy I mentioned in the report, Sandaime-sama."
Hiruzen nodded his head as he recalled information from a report a week ago. He whispered, 'Um... the boy from the Muranaka family.'
"Who are you, jerk?" Takeshi shouted as he saw someone intervene in the fight, "Don't get in the way."
Before Hikaru could respond, the Third Hokage spoke quickly: "Since you chose to interrupt the fight, why don't you continue in your friend's stead? If not, you'll face consequences for interfering with the competition."
Hikaru opened his mouth wide in shock, as if he had heard something ridiculous. For some reason, the Third Hokage compelled him to continue the ongoing battle. Everyone in the area was also surprised by his sudden decision.
After looking around and seeing Koji-sensei give him a nod of encouragement, Hikaru couldn't help but feel even more bewildered. He had just wanted to save his friend; he didn't want to join an unnecessary fight.
He turned to look at his friend, Ryōta. The boy, slowly getting up from the ground, said with a sad expression, "Go for it. I couldn't beat him."
The proctor looked toward Takeshi and asked, "Do you need to rest first?"
"Nah, I didn't even break a sweat earlier," Takeshi said with the same smirk on his face. "Another fight against a first-year student is nothing much."
Hearing another taunt from Takeshi, Ryōta couldn't help but clench his fist and ask, "Can you help beat him for me? Just once?"
Hikaru turned and looked toward Uchiha Takeshi, his eyebrows tightening before he finally sighed and replied lightly,
"I'll try."