"Naruto is still that strong even with restrictions on him," Kiba Inuzuka said with a sigh.
"Sasuke already did really well—he's just a bit short on chakra," Shikamaru Nara said, hands clasped behind his head.
"A bit? You call that 'a bit'?" Ino Yamanaka couldn't help but complain.
"There's no point comparing chakra with someone who isn't even human," Tayuya shook her head.
When she'd first joined the Advanced Class, she'd been full of ambition.
But now she'd accepted reality. Facing people like Naruto Uzumaki… no matter how hard she tried, all she could feel was powerless.
"Still, Naruto's team might not necessarily win the third round," Ino suddenly pivoted. "I think Hinata's team has the bigger advantage."
After all, she and Yakumo Kurama's team had lost to Hinata Hyuga's team.
"Hard to say," Shikamaru shook his head. "Naruto's team has Tenten—her ninja hound can track our position."
"Sure, but a ninja hound's tracking range can't compare to Hinata's Byakugan," Ino said with her hands on her hips. "I'm betting on—"
She stopped halfway.
Because she suddenly thought of Sakura Haruno.
She couldn't become a jinx like that.
"Just do your best," Hinata said softly.
Making it to the third round already felt satisfying enough to her.
There were so many geniuses in the Advanced Class.
She wanted first place, of course—but reality didn't allow it.
As long as she gave it everything, she'd feel she'd lived up to Kitazawa's training.
A moment later, Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and the others returned to the Advanced Class lineup.
"Third round, first match: Naruto Uzumaki's team versus Hinata Hyuga's team," Kitazawa announced as he looked over the students. "You have five minutes to choose restriction conditions for your opponents."
"We choose: Naruto is forbidden from using Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu and the tailed-beast's power," Hinata said five minutes later. "And Tenten is forbidden from using the Shiromari."
No surprises in the restrictions.
After all, those were basically the only three things you could restrict from Naruto's team.
"We choose: Hinata is forbidden from using Burst Arrow and Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms," Naruto said next. "And Shikamaru's Shadow Imitation Jutsu."
Explosive Arrow was a Yin Release secret technique. Naruto had Kurama to help him, but Choji Akimichi and Tenten didn't.
As for Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms—this was aimed at Naruto and Choji, who leaned more toward taijutsu.
For taijutsu fighters, the Sixty-Four Palms was practically a natural predator. One mistake and your chakra points would get sealed, leaving you unable to move.
Meanwhile, Spiral Arrow and Phantom Arc Arrow were strong, but Tenten could counter them with her ninja tools.
After all, she was extremely good at weapon throwing.
Hinata's remaining two teammates were Shikamaru Nara and Hotaru.
There wasn't much worth banning from Hotaru—she only knew some Water Release techniques.
Shikamaru, on the other hand, was troublesome.
In the end, from his many secret techniques, they chose Shadow Imitation Jutsu—an annoying, survival-oriented technique that was especially hard to deal with.
"Exactly what I expected," Shikamaru said calmly.
He'd predicted all three restrictions Naruto's team would choose.
But prediction was one thing—actually defeating Naruto's team was still very hard.
Their raw strength was simply higher.
The two teams entered the Forest of Death from opposite sides.
"I'm guessing Hinata's team will use the same strategy they used against Yakumo's team," Tenten said as they walked.
"Then what do we do?" Choji scratched his head. "Hinata's Byakugan means she'll see everything we do."
"I could try using Wind Release: Gale Palm to speed up our team," Naruto said after thinking a bit.
"That could work," Tenten paused, "but then it becomes a contest of reaction speed."
Hinata's Byakugan could basically see the whole field.
Gale Palm could accelerate them, but it wouldn't let them cross the entire field in an instant.
That meant Hinata's team would have time to respond.
Most likely, it would turn into a chase.
"Got any better ideas?" Choji asked, looking at her.
"Not yet," Tenten said, frowning.
"At least you've got Yueyue. We won't lose them," Choji said, relieved.
"I've got an idea!" Naruto suddenly lit up. "I can use the Transformation Jutsu to blend in with the ninja tools, and then Choji can throw me out."
"Huh?" Choji blanked for a second.
How was that plan not completely insane?
"Good idea!" Tenten thought for a moment, and immediately felt it was very feasible.
"I don't know how far I can throw you," Choji said hesitantly.
"Add Wind Release," Tenten said after a bit of thought. "Naruto can make two shadow clones and have them use Wind Release: Gale Palm to boost the throw."
"Works!" Naruto gave a thumbs-up. "Let our youth take flight!"
"Battle start," Kitazawa reminded them fifteen minutes later.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto formed hand seals immediately.
Two shadow clones appeared in a puff of smoke.
Right then, Hinata's volley of arrows was already above their heads.
"Manipulated Tools: Heavenly Chain Disaster!"
Tenten immediately pulled out her largest scroll and threw it into the sky.
The scroll unfurled, spraying out all kinds of ninja tools.
"Multi-Size Technique!"
Choji's body instantly grew larger.
But he wasn't done.
"Partial Multi-Size Technique!"
His already thick arms bulged even bigger.
Naruto leapt up and used Transformation Jutsu, turning into a massive boomerang.
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
Naruto's two shadow clones formed hand seals at once.
Two blasts of fierce wind shot out, wrapping around the boomerang.
"That direction! Around 1,300 to 1,400 meters!" Tenten quickly calculated Hinata's team's approximate direction and distance based on the arrows' trajectory.
She was exceptionally skilled with ninja tools, so she was highly sensitive to—and fluent in—this kind of data.
Choji grabbed the boomerang, roared, and hurled it with all his strength.
"Move!" Hinata noticed and shouted urgently.
"What's going on?" Shikamaru asked instinctively.
From his perspective, the fight had only just started.
No matter how strong Naruto's team was, there was no way they'd already reached them.
Boom!
As his words fell, a boomerang slammed down about three hundred meters to their left.
With a pop, it turned back into Naruto.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto immediately dispelled the shadow clones, then used Shadow Clone Jutsu again.
In the blink of an eye, he had one clone on each side.
"???" Shikamaru's face filled with question marks.
"Leaf Dragon God!"
Before they could react, Naruto extended his arms and began spinning.
In an instant, three enormous green dragons descended.
Shikamaru and Hotaru were defeated almost immediately.
Only Hinata held on a bit longer with her Moonchaser Bow.
But without Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, it was hard for her to deal effective damage against the Leaf Dragon God, and she ultimately fell as well.
"Winner: Naruto Uzumaki's team," Kitazawa declared when he saw it.
"I have to admit—Naruto's method was really effective," Kosuke Maruboshi said with emotion.
"Naruto really does come up with some wild ideas," Kurenai Yuhi agreed.
"But making it work isn't that simple," Baojun Chen said thoughtfully. "Choji, Tenten, and Naruto—none of them can be missing reminding."
Choji had the power.
Tenten could calculate the distance.
And Naruto… well, he had the strength.
If you didn't have the ability to take on three people at once, getting thrown right into Hinata's team would just be suicide.
"That was kind of a lucky hit," Kosuke nodded. "But still."
"Luck is also part of strength," Baojun said with a smile.
"Let's go over," Kurenai reminded them. "They're about to announce the final rankings for this term's exam."
At the same time, the Advanced Class students erupted into discussion.
"Naruto seriously came up with that?" Kiba asked, stunned.
"As expected of Naruto!" Rock Lee said excitedly. "That plan is overflowing with endless youth!"
"You really can't go three sentences without 'youth,' can you?" Kiba teased.
"It's because Naruto is strong," Neji Hyuga cut right to the point.
"True," Ino agreed. "Besides Naruto, who else would dare face three people alone?"
"Sasuke-kun can too!" Sakura immediately argued back.
Sasuke didn't say much.
He did have the ability to fight three on one, but he wasn't as steady as Naruto—there was still a chance he could lose.
He needed to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan as soon as possible.
Sasuke clenched his teeth, deciding he'd spar more with Naruto during summer break.
If it let him awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan, getting beaten up would be worth it.
Soon, Naruto and Hinata's group returned.
"I'll announce the rankings for this team battle first," Kitazawa said once everyone was present.
Even though restrictions were added this time, the scoring system hadn't changed: a team score and a captain score.
Both winning and losing teams would receive points.
"First place: Naruto Uzumaki. Second: Hinata Hyuga. Third: Sasuke Uchiha. Fourth: Yakumo Kurama," Kitazawa read evenly. "Fifth: Tenten. Sixth: Choji Akimichi… Twenty-first: Hotaru."
After finishing the team battle rankings, he read out the written exam rankings and the final overall rankings.
"That concludes this term's final exams," Kitazawa said with a smile. "I hope you'll all keep working hard next semester."
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!" the students of the Advanced Class said in unison.
"Go back and rest," Kitazawa nodded.
After the students left, he greeted Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others, then went home with Kurenai.
"Kitazawa-sensei," Karin stood up and called out. "Kurenai-sensei."
"Why are you studying medical ninjutsu the moment you get back?" Kitazawa asked, glancing at the scroll on the coffee table. A fish lay on top of it.
"Nothing else to do," Karin replied.
Tsunade, Uzumaki Rina, and Shizune were still at the Hokage Tower and hadn't come home.
And since she'd returned early, she'd been alone at home—so she started studying medical ninjutsu.
"Being diligent is good, but you still need to rest when it's time," Kurenai said as she stepped forward and patted Karin's head.
"We can go watch a movie this afternoon," Kitazawa suggested.
"Sure!" Kurenai's eyes lit up and she immediately agreed.
Karin nodded too.
After lunch, the three of them went to the cinema.
There happened to be a movie starring Yukie Fujikaze.
Even though she'd become the daimyo of the Land of Snow, she still hadn't given up acting.
It was a great way to promote the country—and to make money.
For example, the film they watched today was shot on location in the Land of Snow.
Kitazawa even saw the early framework of the "Ice and Snow World" concept he'd suggested back then.
But transportation was still limited, and the trip was far, so usually only wealthy nobles and rich merchants could afford to visit the Land of Snow.
If the Ice and Snow World was ever going to truly become popular, it would take a peaceful era.
After the movie, the three of them walked around the streets for a while before heading home.
The moment Kitazawa stepped into the living room, he saw Tsunade sprawled on the couch with zero decorum.
There were faint sounds coming from the kitchen—Shizune and Uzumaki Rina were preparing dinner.
"Did the Advanced Class team battle take all day?" Tsunade asked casually, glancing at Kitazawa.
"No," Kitazawa explained. "We went out and watched a movie."
"And you didn't invite me?" Tsunade sat up reflexively. "If you came to get me, I could've worked half a day less."
"If we invited you… are you sure you'd go watch a movie?" Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
"…Fair," Tsunade admitted. "I'd definitely go to the casino."
"As expected of Tsunade-sama," Kurenai said, genuinely impressed.
At the very least, she couldn't say those two sentences with that much confidence.
"And that's why Tsunade-sensei is the Hokage," Kitazawa joked.
Tsunade immediately shot him a glare.
"Do you have any plans for summer break?" Kurenai changed the subject.
"No—your summer break," Tsunade sighed. "I don't get summer break."
As Hokage, the only thing that even counted as a holiday all year was New Year's.
Kitazawa silently thought: when he became Hokage, he'd definitely change the vacation policy.
"Tomorrow, Kitazawa and I are heading out," Tsunade said, thinking of Roshi. "We've found the location of Iwagakure's Four-Tails jinchūriki—Roshi."
"Then I can't really help. Be careful," Kurenai said, pausing for a moment, very self-aware.
Her strength had improved a lot, but for most ninja, a jinchūriki was an unbeatable existence.
Unless her strength reached the level of the Five Great Villages' Kage.
"Don't worry," Kitazawa chuckled. "I've already mastered Sage Mode."
Kurenai nodded.
She'd learned yesterday that Kitazawa had mastered Sage Mode.
Sage Mode's fame had largely been made by Jiraiya.
As for Hashirama Senju, Wood Release was so famous that people overlooked the fact he'd also learned Sage Mode.
But if you thought about it, it made sense.
After all, Hashirama's Sage Mode was probably only ever seen by Madara Uchiha.
"I remember Roshi isn't a rogue ninja from Iwagakure," Kurenai suddenly recalled something. "If you capture him, won't that cause conflict between Konoha and Iwa?"
"Iwa will definitely be unhappy," Kitazawa said indifferently. "But they won't go to war over one Roshi."
In truth, he actually hoped Iwa would start a war.
Because right now, he was almost invincible in the ninja world.
Still, to be safe, he would wait a bit longer.
He'd wait until he mastered Senjutsu: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands.
From another angle, capturing Roshi would create bad blood with Iwa.
Later, Kitazawa could more easily sow discord and push Iwa into starting a war—planting a future "hook," so to speak.
[Current Mission: Defeat the Four-Tails jinchūriki Roshi.]
[Mission Reward: Lava Release Chakra Mode.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
The system mission was showing up now?
Still, the reward wasn't bad—it would save him a lot of time.
In Kitazawa's view, among Lava Release techniques, Lava Release Chakra Mode was the most valuable.
If he could automatically learn Lava Release Chakra Mode, then the other Lava Release techniques didn't need to be rushed—he could learn them later when he had time.
The three of them chatted for a while, and soon it was time to eat.
That night passed without incident.
The next day, Kitazawa and Kurenai arrived at the Ninja Academy.
Even though it was summer break, most Advanced Class students, as usual, started training early.
After thinking for a moment, Kitazawa went to find Hiruzen Sarutobi.
He was going out with Tsunade to find the Four-Tails jinchūriki Roshi today, so he couldn't guide the Advanced Class students.
Especially Sasuke and Naruto's combat training.
After asking Hiruzen to cover for him, Kitazawa headed to the Hokage's office.
He pushed the door open and found Tsunade already waiting.
The reason you could say she was "waiting" was because she wasn't handling paperwork—she was standing by the window, looking at the view.
Kitazawa's gaze fell on her full, peachy hips.
He walked up behind her, reached out, and wrapped an arm around her slim waist.
Tsunade didn't seem surprised.
In fact, she'd known he was here. The reason she didn't move was because she was letting him hold her.
Tsunade leaned back, her hips pressing against Kitazawa's thigh.
"It's time to go, Tsunade-sensei," Kitazawa said, breathing in her faint, clean fragrance.
"Mhm," Tsunade nodded.
Kitazawa immediately used Flying Thunder God, bringing her to the Land of Birds.
"Where is this?" Tsunade asked, looking around.
"The Land of Birds," Kitazawa answered. "Anbu found Roshi's location."
"Where exactly?" Tsunade asked again.
"I don't know," Kitazawa paused. "But I can find him. Give me a moment."
After he spoke, he vanished from the spot.
Kitazawa activated the Byakugan and, using Flying Thunder God, conducted a carpet-search across the Land of Birds.
Before long, he found Roshi.
"I found him," Kitazawa reappeared in front of Tsunade.
"Flying Thunder God in your hands is truly terrifying," Tsunade couldn't help but sigh.
"What are you afraid of?" Kitazawa patted her butt and asked.
"Have some respect!" Tsunade rolled her eyes. "During a mission, I'm the Hokage!"
"Yes, Hokage-sama," Kitazawa teased. "Then what are your orders?"
"You tell me," Tsunade raised her elbow and nudged him, firing the question back.
"Capture Roshi," Kitazawa chuckled, then asked, "Can I handle this one?"
"Why?" Tsunade asked, puzzled.
"I want to show you Sage Mode," Kitazawa said casually.
"Fine," Tsunade nodded and agreed.
Flying Thunder God activated.
Kitazawa brought Tsunade to a spot near Roshi.
"Be careful," Tsunade warned.
Kitazawa walked toward Roshi.
Halfway there, Roshi appeared right in front of him.
After all, Kitazawa wasn't hiding his presence.
"A ninja from Konoha?" Roshi snorted. "You really are persistent—like a ghost that won't go away!"
He'd been tailed by Konoha Anbu several times before, so he didn't bother giving Kitazawa a friendly face.
Sage Mode!
Kitazawa didn't say a word—he simply clapped his hands together.
"This is…?" Roshi's expression changed. He vaguely sensed something extremely dangerous from Kitazawa.
His face turned serious as he immediately prepared for battle.
Kitazawa looked at him, thinking about which jutsu to use.
In the original story, Roshi had been defeated by Kisame Hoshigaki.
That was because Kisame's Water Release countered Roshi's Lava Release.
But after thinking for a moment, Kitazawa decided not to start with Water Release.
Senjutsu: Rasengan!
Kitazawa extended his hand.
Roshi's heart jolted.
That dangerous aura instantly grew far thicker.
"Rasengan?" Roshi recognized it.
But he didn't have time to think—he formed seals immediately.
Lava Release: Scorching Stream Rock Technique!
Roshi leaned back and spat out more than a dozen magma orbs burning with flames.
Seeing that, Kitazawa immediately increased the infusion of senjutsu chakra.
In an instant, the Senjutsu Rasengan swelled in size.
Boom!
All the magma orbs were smashed to pieces.
"What?!" Roshi's pupils shrank as he formed seals again at high speed.
Lava Release Chakra Mode!
This time, he brought out his real strength.
In the next second, his whole body was covered in magma.
Senjutsu: Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!
Kitazawa clapped his hands.
A colossal water dragon slammed into Roshi.
When the water hit the magma around Roshi's body, huge clouds of steam erupted.
Roshi was knocked back uncontrollably, sent flying.
"That's impossible!" Roshi roared as he was pinned down, unable to rise.
Flames flared even hotter across his body, and only then did he manage to evaporate the water dragon.
"Who the hell are you?" Roshi stared at Kitazawa, still shaken and confused.
They'd only exchanged two moves—and he'd been completely crushed.
For him, that was a first.
Kitazawa didn't answer.
"Bastard!" Roshi felt both humiliated and endangered.
Without hesitation, he drew on the Four-Tails' chakra.
Boom!
Dark red chakra cloaked his entire body, and four tails formed behind him.
This was partial tailed-beast transformation.
Tailed Beast Ball!
With killing intent on his face, Roshi opened his mouth.
Terrifying chakra condensed before him.
Senjutsu: Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!
Kitazawa leapt up and hurled it straight at him midair.
Before the Tailed Beast Ball could fully form, Roshi took a devastating hit.
He screamed.
The tailed-beast cloak, which normally had incredible defensive power, was torn apart as easily as paper.
When it was over, Roshi was covered in blood and had passed out.
Watching from the side, Tsunade couldn't help but gape, mouth wide open.
~~~
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