"Thank you, Kitazawa-sama."
Namiashi Raidō finally let out a breath and sheathed his black katana.
He subconsciously glanced at Hyūga Hinata.
With her level, there was no way she should have been able to dodge all of his attacks so perfectly.
The only explanation was that bow.
But ninja tools were also part of one's strength, so he had nothing to complain about.
Namiashi Raidō dispelled his Cursed Seal of Earth and left the field.
"Congrats on your win."
Kitazawa reached out, ruffled Hinata's hair, and said with a smile.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei."
Hinata couldn't help but let the corners of her lips curl up. "I only won because of the Moonchaser Bow you gave me."
"Moonchaser, huh? Nice name."
Kitazawa praised it, then added, "Go take a break."
"Mm."
Hinata turned away happily and left.
Kitazawa didn't linger either and went back to his seat.
He bumped his right leg lightly against Tsunade's thigh.
"Tsunade-sensei."
Kitazawa smiled. "That makes it eleven wins and three losses now."
"I'm not going to weasel out of the bet!"
Tsunade shot him a glare, clearly annoyed.
"Good."
Kitazawa nodded, satisfied.
When Hinata returned to the Advanced Class lineup, she was immediately surrounded by Ino and the others.
"Hinata."
Inuzuka Kiba was the first to speak. "You dodged everything ahead of time. How'd you pull that off?"
"There's a Yin Release monster named Satori sealed inside my bow."
Hinata explained, "It can sense emotions."
"That strong?"
Yamanaka Ino asked in surprise. "Doesn't that mean no one will be able to hit you from now on?"
"No."
Hinata shook her head. "If I can't react in time, I'll still get hit."
"With your Byakugan, that kind of situation shouldn't happen very often."
Nara Shikamaru said thoughtfully.
"Byakugan plus emotion sensing… your power just shot way up."
Ino could feel the jealousy creeping in.
She wanted a ninja tool that strong too.
But she knew very well that tools like this only appear when fate feels like it.
Hyuga Neji froze for a moment.
This was the first time he'd learned that his Fatefeather Bow and Hinata's Moonchaser Bow weren't the same.
Thinking about it, it made sense.
Moonchaser had Satori sealed inside; Fatefeather had the Zero-Tails.
If Satori's ability was emotion sensing, then what special ability did the Zero-Tails have?
Neji had been so busy training his Spiral Arrows that he hadn't really studied the Zero-Tails at all.
Uchiha Sasuke, on the other hand, was just stunned.
Is this even fair?
He'd thought that after spending three months mastering the three-tomoe Sharingan, he'd walk back into the Advanced Class and roll everyone.
But Neji and Hinata had silently given him a reality check.
Especially Hinata's Moonchaser Bow.
That emotion-sensing ability was practically a hard counter to all ninja.
Luckily, Itachi had already explained to him how to ignore that kind of power: empty your mind.
Although Sasuke felt that "emptying his mind" was… not exactly his specialty.
Tayuya's gaze had also fallen on the Moonchaser Bow.
If her bamboo flute also had a Yin Release monster sealed inside, wouldn't her genjutsu become unbeatable?
But that was just a fantasy. There weren't that many powerful Yin Release monsters in the ninja world.
Tayuya felt the most important thing right now was figuring out how to raise her own strength.
She already couldn't beat Hinata or Neji as it was. Whether they had bows or not didn't change that fact much for her.
But she didn't want to fall out of the top ten. Worst case, she could not afford to drop out of the top eighteen.
Kimimaro stood where he was, brows tightly knit.
Before this, relying on the Cursed Seal of Earth and his Shikotsumyaku, he could still barely edge out Hinata and Neji if luck was on his side.
But now that they each had a bow, his chances of winning had basically vanished.
His only real long-range option was Shikotsumyaku: Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets.
Every other Shikotsumyaku technique he'd mastered was close-quarters.
Byakugan plus a bow was more than enough to beat him from afar.
Kimimaro felt guilty toward Orochimaru.
After joining the Advanced Class, he was no longer that "invincible genius" of the Sound.
"Fifteenth match: Kaguya Kimimaro versus Akimichi Shitō!"
Iruka Umino shouted loudly.
"Kaguya?"
Inuzuka Tsume blurted out, "You mean from that Kaguya clan that got wiped out in the Hidden Mist?"
"That's right, the very same Kaguya clan of the Hidden Mist."
Aburame Shibi replied. "Orochimaru-sama was the one who rescued him."
He'd taken part in the snake-hunting operation with Tsunade and Kitazawa, so he still remembered Kimimaro.
"I see."
Tsume nodded.
She hadn't gone on that mission against Orochimaru, so she hadn't known the details.
"First it was Ice Release, and now it's Shikotsumyaku."
Chōza Akimichi couldn't help but chuckle. "Who'd have thought the Mist's two great kekkei genkai would both end up here in Konoha?"
"And if nothing unexpected happens, the Mist probably won't see Ice Release or Shikotsumyaku again."
Shikaku Nara added.
"Shikotsumyaku is a nightmare for taijutsu-type ninja. I wonder if Shitō can win."
Aburame Shibi dragged the topic back on track.
Akimichi Shitō was a jōnin of the Akimichi clan.
In the original story, he only appeared twice.
Once was against Deva Path Pain, where he got knocked out in one hit.
The second was in the Fourth Great Ninja War, guarding and blocking Uzumaki Naruto.
"The Akimichi aren't your typical taijutsu users."
Shikaku shook his head. "And Shitō is one of the clan's top jonin."
"Even so, you still can't underestimate the Advanced Class kids."
Chōza joked. "If someone whips out another bow, Shitō won't be able to do anything either."
Shikaku paused, then swallowed what he was about to say.
He'd almost said, "Where are all these insanely strong bows coming from?" But then he remembered Kitazawa had already produced two of them, so he decided to let it go.
"Begin!"
Iruka called, then retreated to the side.
Kimimaro stared at Shitō expressionlessly.
His fights against Neji and Hinata were future worries.
Right now, the priority was doing everything he could to win this spar.
He said "doing everything he could" because he wasn't confident.
The moment the fight began, Kimimaro went straight into Cursed Seal of Earth: Stage Two.
The spectators had already seen Jūgo and Kotetsu Hagane's Cursed Seals, so they weren't particularly shocked.
Akimichi Shitō, seeing this, immediately pulled out a long staff.
Shikotsumyaku: Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets!
Kimimaro raised both hands and ten bone bullets shot from his fingertips.
Then his whole body turned into a blur as he chased after them.
Shitō didn't say a word and swung his staff.
The blur of the staff formed a semicircle, blocking all the bone bullets.
Shikotsumyaku: Dance of the Willow!
White bones burst from all over Kimimaro's body.
He moved like a drifting willow catkin, launching a flurry of attacks in an instant.
Shitō immediately found himself scrambling.
Kimimaro's entire body was covered in sharp bones.
It felt like he was facing a swordsman using Seven Sword Style, blades stabbing at him from all kinds of weird angles.
"Shikotsumyaku really is terrifying."
Chōza said in admiration.
"Well, they were the Mist's number one ninja clan."
Shikaku nodded.
"Too bad they're gone now."
Hyūga Hiashi watched Kimimaro, a hint of regret on his face.
Only then did Shikaku and the others remember there was a distant blood relation between the Hyuga and Kaguya clans.
"At least there's still a bit of hope left."
Uchiha Fugaku said slowly.
He was wondering if there was any potential in combining Shikotsumyaku with the Sharingan.
The Hyuga's tradition was in-clan marriage, which gave them the highest possible chance to ensure the next generation awakened the Byakugan.
Of course, there were exceptions.
If the one marrying into the Hyuga clan was a high-ranking Konoha ninja, or even the Hokage, then no one would dare oppose it.
The Uchiha were different; they had no such tradition. There were plenty of Uchihas who had married outside the clan.
For example, Uchiha Izumi's father wasn't an Uchiha.
But once she awakened the Sharingan, she could still return to the Uchiha clan.
In fact, it wasn't just Fugaku; the other clan heads were thinking the same thing.
Kimimaro was good-looking, strong, and had no family.
He was basically the perfect son-in-law candidate.
Aside from Kimimaro, Haku was in almost the same situation.
Of course, since they were both Kitazawa's students, no one dared to force anything.
But their clans had plenty of girls around the same age. They could "accidentally" arrange some interactions. If feelings developed, it'd be pure profit.
Clang!
Akimichi Shitō smacked Kimimaro away with a heavy swing and quickly opened up some distance.
He put the long staff away.
After that brief exchange, he understood he couldn't win at close range. He'd have to use the Akimichi clan's secret arts.
Multi-Size Technique!
In an instant, Shitō's body swelled up, turning into a five-meter-tall giant.
If this hadn't been a school training field, he could have grown even larger.
Kimimaro's breath caught. He could feel the pressure.
Shikotsumyaku: Dance of the Larch!
He pulled a bone sword out of his left arm.
Kimimaro leapt into the air, charging straight at Shitō.
Super Open Hand Slap!
Shitō gathered chakra into his hands, making them as heavy as sledgehammers.
He brought them down toward Kimimaro.
The sheer force of it whipped up gusts of wind.
Kimimaro grit his teeth, stabbing his bone sword over and over into Shitō's palms.
Bloody grooves appeared on Shitō's hands.
But compared to his massive body, those wounds were basically scratches.
Kimimaro felt a mountain-like weight pressing down on him, dragging his body downward.
At the last second, he stepped back, slipping out from the range of Shitō's palms.
Boom!
Shitō's hands slammed into the ground.
The earth cracked and collapsed downward.
Hatake Kakashi flickered in front of Tsunade and the others, quickly using Earth Release to stop the ground from caving in further.
At the same time, Sarutobi Hiruzen also moved, protecting the Advanced Class students.
Kimimaro's eyes suddenly sharpened—he'd found an opening.
He vaulted forward, sprinting up Shitō's arm and gripping his bone sword tight, stabbing toward Shitō's head.
Human Bullet Tank!
Shitō pulled his head and limbs inward, curling his whole body into a ball.
Then he spun and slammed straight into Kimimaro.
Kimimaro's pupils shrank. He instinctively raised both hands to protect his head as bones erupted all over his body.
The spinning Human Bullet smashed again and again into his bone armor.
After a second of stalemate, Kimimaro simply couldn't stop that monstrous force anymore and was sent flying.
Shitō shifted direction mid-roll and rammed him again.
Before Kimimaro could even hit the ground, he was knocked away in midair once more.
His head was spinning from the impacts.
Just as Shitō was about to crash into him yet again, Kitazawa suddenly appeared in front of Kimimaro and pulled him out of the way.
Shitō immediately stopped and canceled his Multi-Size Technique.
He let out a long breath.
To be honest, he and Chōza had been thinking the same thing—both of them had been terrified that Kimimaro would suddenly pull a bow out of nowhere.
Fortunately, that nightmare scenario never happened.
"Winner: Akimichi Shitō!"
Iruka announced the result promptly.
"The Advanced Class is terrifying."
Izumo Kamizuki sighed. "Fifteen spars, and they've only lost four."
"Seriously. A bunch of students fighting full-fledged ninja and going eleven wins, four losses? Who's going to believe that?"
Kotetsu Hagane agreed completely.
"You can't put all the blame on us for losing."
Ebisu shook his head, reminding them, "Think about who their teachers are."
Uchiha Tekka, Hyuga Homon, Uzuki Yugao and the others went quiet.
Sarutobi Asuma, who hadn't gone on yet, was feeling pressure like never before.
Sure, Ebisu had a point—but the problem was that Asuma was the son of Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Normally, that'd mean the audience would have even higher expectations for him.
But what if he lost? Where would he put his face?
And losing to students of Hatake Kakashi and Kitazawa would only make it worse.
Yet the Advanced Class kids were all performing way beyond expectations.
Asuma's mindset had already shifted from "I'm absolutely winning this" to "as long as I don't lose, it's a win."
"Sixteenth match: Uchiha Sasuke versus Uchiha Inabi!"
Iruka quickly announced the next pair.
Finally,
The moment Fugaku heard Sasuke's name, he snapped to attention.
The Hyuga clan had just put on a huge show. The Uchiha couldn't afford to fall behind.
Awakening the three-tomoe Sharingan at eight years old was definitely going to shock everyone.
The only problem was that Inabi, as his opponent, would be a serious challenge for Sasuke.
They both had three-tomoe Sharingan. It'd come down to who handled theirs better.
"Why do I feel like I've seen this before?"
Inuzuka Tsume thought of Neji versus Hyuga Homon.
"Does Sasuke have a bow too?"
Aburame Shibi asked instinctively.
Hiashi glanced over at Fugaku.
Like the Byakugan, the Sharingan had excellent perception.
It didn't have long-range zoom or x-ray vision, so it wasn't quite as suited for archery as the Byakugan, but if Sasuke did use a bow, he'd still be way better off than most ninja.
"No."
Fugaku shook his head. "He uses the Sword of the Thunder God."
Most of the people here had been spectators at the exchange event between Konoha and the Mist, so this didn't surprise them.
The Sword of the Thunder God was nothing to scoff at; it just hadn't made as much of a splash as Hinata and Neji's bows.
Over in the Advanced Class lineup—
"Go get 'em, Sasuke-kun!"
Haruno Sakura clenched her little fists and cheered him on.
"Sasuke, let your youth bloom!"
Uzumaki Naruto gave a big thumbs-up.
"Just wait to celebrate my victory."
Sasuke said calmly.
With that, he stepped into the field.
"This won't be an easy win for Sasuke."
Shikamaru shook his head. "He's up against a three-tomoe Uchiha jōnin."
"Sasuke-kun will definitely win!"
Sakura said immediately.
"Sasuke may be an Uchiha, but he's not like a typical Uchiha."
Tenten said with a grin. "In the combat exams, he usually gets into the top three, and it's not mainly because of his Sharingan."
"Yeah."
Ino agreed. "He's better at Lightning Release and swordsmanship."
Neji gave a slight nod.
There was actually another reason: the other two who often shared the top three spots, Kurama Yakumo and Uzumaki Naruto, weren't afraid of the Sharingan or genjutsu.
"Begin!"
Iruka shouted.
Everyone stopped chatting and turned to watch the field.
"Sasuke."
Inabi lifted a hand. "You first."
"I won't hold back, Inabi-senpai."
Sasuke replied evenly.
"You and your brother have similar personalities."
Inabi smiled faintly.
He didn't mind Sasuke's attitude.
In his eyes, that's exactly how a genius of the Uchiha clan ought to carry himself.
Sasuke tightened his grip on the Sword of the Thunder God.
With a Body Flicker, he rushed forward.
Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!
Inabi calmly spat out a huge fireball.
Heat surged across the field.
The flaming sphere was about three meters tall, completely engulfing Sasuke.
Brilliant lightning erupted along the blade of the Sword of the Thunder God.
Sasuke swung once, and the massive fireball split cleanly in two.
Leaf-Style: Willow!
Sasuke twisted his wrist, and the Sword of the Thunder God suddenly accelerated.
"Genjutsu?"
Inabi immediately felt himself freeze in place.
At the same time, his vision filled with overlapping sword afterimage.
He didn't hesitate, instantly activating his three-tomoe Sharingan. The Sword of the Thunder God tore through the chaos of illusory blades and lunged straight for him.
At the crucial moment, he broke free of Leaf-Style: Willow's genjutsu and whipped out a kunai, blocking the Sword of the Thunder God.
Inabi couldn't help exhaling in relief.
A little slower and he'd have been in real trouble.
After that first exchange, he got serious.
"As expected of Itachi's little brother."
Inabi tightened his grip on the kunai and suddenly exerted force, trying to knock the Sword of the Thunder God aside.
But just then, arcs of lightning flared from the Sword of the Thunder God's blade toward him.
Inabi quickly let go and jumped back.
The kunai was immediately struck by the lightning, crackling loudly.
Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson!
Inabi flung out a storm of kunai, then spewed a flood of flames.
The kunai wrapped in fire flared in front of him like a blooming flower.
Sasuke instantly activated his three-tomoe Sharingan.
He held the Sword of the Thunder God, retreating while slashing down the flaming kunai one after another.
The two of them opened up distance again, facing each other across the field.
"What? Sasuke has a three-tomoe Sharingan too?"
Aside from Fugaku and Itachi, Hiashi, Tsume, and the others all stared in shock.
An eight-year-old with three-tomoe Sharingan—none of them could recall any precedent for that.
~~~
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