After returning Kimimaro's chakra, Samehada bounded back to Naruto's side.
It had only one impression of Kitazawa: fear. After all, its previous wielder, Suikazan Fuguki, was killed by him.
Kitazawa looked at Kimimaro and extended his hand. Pale green chakra flowed out.
Thanks to his Shikotsumyaku (Dead Bone Pulse), Kimimaro had no obvious external injuries. But when he met Wind Release: Vacuum Shuriken with a bone blade inside that storm, the backlash rattled him and left internal damage.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei."
Kimimaro came back to himself from the defeat. Even so, losing to Naruto was hard to accept. Back in the Sound, he was a genius among geniuses in every sense. No matter how many prodigies Orochimaru gathered, none matched him. Yet the first spar after joining the Advanced Class ended in a crushing loss. If Orochimaru heard about this, he'd be terribly disappointed.
"Kimimaro!"
Naruto dispelled his Multiple Shadow Clones and walked over.
Kimimaro looked up on reflex.
"That was a real youth-on-fire kind of match!" Naruto grinned, thumbs up. "Hope we get to run it back sometime!"
Kimimaro froze for a beat, unaccustomed to this. In the Sound, defeat had only one outcome—death. There were no second chances.
Watching the silent Kimimaro, Sasuke felt a sharp sense of déjà vu. Wasn't this exactly how he used to be after losing a spar?
He clenched his fist. He could not afford another loss today.
Even so… after watching this bout, Sasuke still wasn't sure he could beat Naruto. Naruto's power had jumped again, especially that Wind Release: Vacuum Shuriken. Swapping places with Kimimaro, Sasuke wasn't convinced he'd last longer than him. The best plan was to stop Naruto from ever using Wind Release: Vacuum Shuriken—but that was easier said than done. And Naruto didn't just have that; he also had the Rasengan, which he hadn't even used here.
Kimimaro, on the other hand, had laid all his cards on the table.
Sasuke decided Kimimaro would be much easier to handle than Naruto.
Neji fell into thought. He'd figured a fight with Kimimaro would be about even, but after seeing the Cursed Seal of Earth, that was harder to say. The seal massively boosts strength, speed, and chakra—very troublesome.
"If I draw Kimimaro, I'll probably lose," Sakura sighed. "Looks like my practical-exam ranking drops another slot."
Her Water Style did both offense and defense, but it was hard to affect Shikotsumyaku. Unless she flooded him with enough Water techniques to keep him at range and win from afar—but she couldn't do that yet.
"If I catch him with genjutsu before he closes in, I might have a shot," Ino mused.
"You only know once you fight!" Kiba blustered, even if he wasn't confident. "No guarantee the great me can't win!"
Shino adjusted his glasses. Kimimaro put him under heavy pressure, but he didn't care much about winning or losing. If he couldn't win, he couldn't win. They were classmates, not enemies.
"Doesn't Yakumo hard-counter Kimimaro?" Tenten suddenly blurted, struck by a thought.
"Yakumo's genjutsu is stronger than Ino's?" Tayuya asked. To her, for students, B-rank techniques were already the limit—like her and Yamanaka Ino. Kurama Yakumo barely registered; quiet, gentle when she spoke. Could a girl like that be a monster like Naruto? Hard to believe. Konoha was a Great Village, sure, but it couldn't have that many off-the-charts prodigies.
"Yakumo's illusions aren't ordinary genjutsu," Ino said, turning to her. "They're a kekkei genkai once spoken of alongside the Sharingan."
"I think it's stronger than the Sharingan!" Sakura added at once.
No one contradicted her. Judging by current showings, Kurama Yakumo's genjutsu really did edge out Sasuke's Sharingan.
Sometimes Sasuke wondered, too: if they're supposed to be peers, why can't the Sharingan keep up?
"W—what?" Tayuya's pupils shrank. What was with this class? How could there be so many ridiculous geniuses?
"Get used to it," Shikamaru said, glancing at her. "Next to them, the rest of us 'geniuses' are just normal."
"Kimimaro, are you okay?" Jūgo came up to him.
Kimimaro shook his head. Kitazawa had healed his injuries, but that first-ever loss to a peer wouldn't fade so quickly.
"Kimimaro's really strong—my blood's boiling!" Naruto was all fired up. The Advanced Class had gained another classmate worthy of being called a rival.
"Don't get cocky so fast," Sasuke snorted.
"The more you brag, the harder you fall!" Kiba chimed in.
"…?" Sasuke felt like Kiba had just spray-and-prayed that line at everyone.
Tayuya ground her teeth. A top-five finish might be out of reach now, but she had to show what she could do and prove getting one-shotted was a fluke.
"Round One, Match Six: Uchiha Sasuke versus Inuzuka Hana," Kitazawa announced after drawing lots.
"Sis, do your best," Kiba said, shaking his head. "You got a worse draw than me."
Tayuya's eyes fixed on Sasuke. She didn't know his exact level, but he'd been confident since the day they met—so he was probably strong. How strong would only be clear after she saw him fight.
Kimimaro forced himself to rally. The Uchiha name was known across the shinobi world. More importantly, there were three rounds in the practical exam—plenty of chances to run into Sasuke. He'd lost once; he had no intention of losing twice.
Sasuke and Hana stepped into the ring. Both were calm—one confident he wouldn't lose, the other accepting she probably couldn't win.
"Quadruple Fang Over Fang!"
Hana and the Haimaru Triplets spun into four roaring tornadoes, barreling at Sasuke.
Sasuke stood his ground and drew the Sword of the Thunder God. He gripped the hilt and swept the blade toward the incoming twisters. Lightning chakra surged; dazzling bolts poured from the sword, coalescing into a churning sea of lightning in front of him.
As the four tornadoes plunged into the lightning sea, violent chakra turbulence exploded where they clashed. Sasuke sheathed the blade and flashed through signs.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Chakra transformed in his throat; a massive fireball hurtled out. The tornadoes, locked against the lightning sea, were struck squarely. More turbulence flared. Their rotation slowed, exposing Hana and the three Haimaru.
Kitazawa raised a Water Wall to shield them.
Hana halted her Quadruple Fang Over Fang at once. "I forfeit," she said decisively.
"Giving Sasuke the Sword of the Thunder God was the perfect call," Hiruzen nodded.
"Sasuke's talent for Lightning even surpasses his Fire," Kakashi added.
"That's rare," Kōsuke Maruboshi chuckled. "An Uchiha prodigy in Lightning."
Hiruzen's expression turned… complicated. (There was once a sunny, graceful Fourth Hokage—and his son, who fought like a runaway storm.)
"So cool, Sasuke!" Sakura clasped her hands, starry-eyed. This was a clean, stylish win—pure top-dog swagger.
Tayuya stared, dazed. A student wielding both Lightning and Fire—was that even reasonable? And he was an Uchiha, with Sharingan and genjutsu on top.
Kimimaro felt the threat. He didn't fear close-quarters, but Lightning and Fire both worked on him. Aside from bone, he was still flesh; a clean hit would be a problem.
"Incredible," Jūgo couldn't help saying. He used to think Kimimaro was the strongest prodigy. Coming to Konoha showed him plenty who were no less gifted.
"Round One, Match Seven: Kurama Yakumo versus Akimichi Chōji," Kitazawa called out.
Tayuya snapped back to attention, looking at the soft-spoken Yakumo. Was her genjutsu really that strong?
"Haha, Chōji, looks like you drew the short straw this month," Kiba laughed.
"What are you saying?" Hana elbowed him, then looked to Chōji. "You got this!"
"If you get caught in an illusion, just concede—it'll save chakra," Shikamaru advised, patting Chōji's shoulder. He wasn't giving up; he was being serious. Yakumo's genjutsu was hard to notice. What if you never realized you were under? That was the trouble with her illusions—people didn't register they were caught. By the time they did, they'd burned through a ton of chakra—or already lost badly.
"Is it really that over the top?" Tayuya frowned. Could a student's genjutsu outclass a jōnin's?
"You'll understand when you meet Yakumo," Ino said. Learning genjutsu herself had only deepened her respect for Yakumo's terror.
"I'm a genjutsu prodigy too. I won't necessarily lose," Tayuya shot back, stubborn.
Yakumo and Chōji took their marks.
"Begin!" Kitazawa announced.
"Partial Expansion Jutsu!"
Chōji's fist ballooned and he charged. Yakumo slid back and, instead of casting an illusion, drew a slender katana and thrust. Pain pricked Chōji's flesh—Partial Expansion boosted defense, but he was still flesh and blood.
"Expansion Jutsu!"
Chōji's whole body swelled until he stood three or four meters tall. (In the original tradition, Chōza could bulk up to sizes rivaling tailed beasts, and the advanced Super Expansion could even let him square up with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. With Chōji's current chakra, three or four meters was already impressive.)
Air boomed as Chōji threw a punch.
"Leaf Whirlwind!"
Yakumo's kick landed but did nothing; she was swatted away. She twisted midair and landed on her feet.
"When did Chōji learn Expansion?" Sakura asked, surprised.
"No idea," Tenten said. Chōji trained clan secret arts, so he often practiced at home.
"I've gotta work harder," Kiba said, suddenly serious. "I can't let Chōji pass me!" Expansion was a nightmare matchup for his own fang-and-fang style.
Tayuya thought of her three Doki. Their biggest edge was sheer size, which crushed many opponents. But Expansion didn't care about that.
"Why isn't Yakumo using genjutsu?" Tayuya quickly spotted the oddity. If her illusions were that strong, why switch to swordplay? And her sword work wasn't anywhere near Naruto's—just average.
"Yakumo's health is poor, so Kitazawa-sensei has her training taijutsu and swordplay," Ino said.
"Shouldn't she be practicing genjutsu, then?" Tayuya was baffled. If she was physically frail, why spend time on melee?
"Because she doesn't need to," Ino sighed. Compared to Yakumo's kekkei-genkai illusions, extra genjutsu practice felt… unnecessary. Bloodline plus talent could be despair-inducing.
"…?" Tayuya was full of question marks. What do you mean, 'doesn't need to'? Was she already the strongest illusionist in the shinobi world? This was getting absurd.
Kimimaro and Jūgo were just as lost.
The ground shivered. Everyone looked up to see Chōji roll into a massive ball and barrel toward Yakumo. Human Bullet Tank—powerful enough to crush boulders meters thick.
"Terror Illusion!"
Knowing taijutsu and swordplay wouldn't help, Yakumo snapped into genjutsu. The Human Bullet Tank stuttered, then veered off and rumbled away in the wrong direction.
"Chōji's under genjutsu," Shikamaru said, shaking his head. "That's the match."
"When did he get caught?" Tayuya gaped. No seals—instant cast? What kind of freak…
"Winner: Kurama Yakumo!" Kitazawa flashed to Chōji and dispelled the illusion for him.
"Thanks, Kitazawa-sensei," Chōji said, not dejected. Losing to Yakumo was normal.
Kimimaro fell quiet. How did you dodge that? He was confident he could avoid Ino's illusions, but Yakumo's came too suddenly to guard against.
Round One continued.
With Kimimaro, Haku, Tayuya, and Jūgo added, the Advanced Class had grown to thirty-four. They'd planned to keep it at thirty, but you couldn't just kick four people mid-term, so thirty-four it was.
Thirty-four students meant seventeen one-on-one bouts to finish the first round. Those seventeen matches left Kimimaro and Tayuya wide-eyed. Even if they didn't match the first seven, they were still impressive. No question: in the Sound, any one of these Konoha students would be called a prodigy.
During the break, Kimimaro, Jūgo, and Tayuya were all very quiet. The Advanced Class was equal parts surprise and shock. Haku, by contrast, stayed even-keeled. His goal wasn't first place; it was to grow strong enough to join the Anbu and repay Kitazawa for saving his life.
"Konoha's future just keeps getting brighter," Hiruzen said, pleased. If nothing went wrong, Kimimaro would become an elite jōnin—maybe even Kage-class. And thinking he came from the Mist made him want to laugh. A free pickup. Orochimaru, well done.
"When Naruto and the others reach adulthood, it's hard to imagine what Konoha will look like," Kōsuke Maruboshi said, smiling.
"Stronger than it is now, that's for sure," Kakashi said. This class alone could produce several Kage-levels. Without a doubt, the scariest cohort in Konoha's history.
"Round Two begins now."
Kitazawa walked to the box and drew two slips. "Match One: Kurama Yakumo versus Kimimaro."
"Kimimaro, be careful of her illusions," Jūgo warned.
"Go get 'em!" Tayuya didn't know what else to say, so she cheered him on.
"Shikotsumyaku—Willow Dance!"
Kimimaro burst forward in a flash of chakra. His speed was extreme; in almost the blink of an eye, he was in Yakumo's face.
It still wasn't fast enough.
"Terror Illusion!"
An invisible ripple spread out and dragged him into an illusion. Yakumo looked at the bone blade now inches away and quietly took a step back.
Kimimaro stood frozen where he was, unmoving.
That, at least, was what Sasuke, Ino, and the other onlookers saw. Inside the illusion, he was already fighting for his life.
"???"
Tayuya finally felt, viscerally, just how terrifying Kurama Yakumo's genjutsu really was.
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 100 Chapters Ahead of Others!