The audience erupted in confusion, their voices overlapping in a sea of disbelief. No one understood what had just happened. Murmurs surged like waves through the arena, carrying both astonishment and curiosity.
It was the examiner who finally stepped forward, raising his hand for silence before explaining in a calm, steady voice.
"Just now… in order to replace Hyūga Akane and Kusuo Hatake in the bracket, the Hokage himself entered with his shadow clone under the alias 'Monkey Jump.' Unexpected as it may seem, that shadow clone was defeated… by his very own disciple, Uchiha Shigure."
For a moment, the stands froze in silence. Then the words sank in, sparking a deafening roar.
"Shigure! You're incredible!"
"He actually beat the Hokage-sama's clone!"
"A five-year-old defeating the Third Hokage's shadow clone! Who could stop him?"
"The boy's future is limitless!"
The cries and cheers thundered across the coliseum, their energy hitting like a physical wave. Shigure found himself at the epicenter of awe and admiration—not only Konoha's rising star, but already a name whispered across the shinobi world. At such a young age, his strength had reached incomprehensible heights. Even the great Hokage's projection had fallen before him.
"Monkey Jump, huh… Sarutobi-sensei really has some tricks up his sleeve." Shigure allowed himself a faint smile, his sharp eyes flickering briefly toward the Third Hokage seated in the VIP section. The old man met his gaze, his expression unreadable.
The examiner strode to Shigure's side. "Uchiha Shigure," he asked formally, "do you require a break? The final match will begin shortly. Ten minutes are yours if you wish it."
Shigure shook his head immediately, his voice unwavering. "No need. I'll claim victory in a single breath. Rest would only dull my edge."
Though his duel with the Third Hokage's shadow clone had been fierce, it had consumed but a fraction of his reserves—barely a drop from the ocean of chakra flowing within him.
"So be it," the examiner declared. He turned, projecting his voice until it echoed through the grounds. "Uchiha Shigure declines his rest! Then, we shall proceed without delay. Let the challenger take the field—Yoshida Kappei!"
From the waiting room emerged a boy who walked with deliberate calm, his footsteps steady against the hushed backdrop. His opponent, Yoshida Kappei—at least, that was the name the records carried. Few among the audience could tell what kind of strength he truly wielded, but the murmurs suggested everyone anticipated a final worthy of legend.
"I hereby announce," the examiner proclaimed, raising one arm before slicing it down, "the decisive match of this Chūnin Selection Exam! Yoshida Kappei versus Uchiha Shigure! Begin!"
The clash sparked instantly. Shuriken filled the air in a glittering storm.
Whip—whip—whip!
Steel sliced the wind as both competitors maintained their distance, hands flashing in practiced rhythm.
Clang-clang-clang! Sparks burst as their volleys collided, turning midair into a blazing web of ricochet. To the observers, the precision was bewildering—both combatants wielded shuriken with elite mastery, their every throw deadly, their reflexes equal.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!" Shigure's voice rang out. He twisted his wrist, hurling three perfectly angled stars that multiplied in a sudden eruption, splitting into dozens, then hundreds, darting toward Kappei like a storm.
Kappei's eyes sharpened. Without flinching, he drew a short kotachi and spun, his blade striking sparks as he deflected each incoming shuriken. His movements were impossibly fast, the clash of metal against metal rapid and unerring until every last star clattered harmlessly to the ground.
"Impressive swordsmanship," Shigure admitted sincerely as he tightened his grip on the Dragon Fang Blade, its black edge glinting with ominous promise.
Kappei leveled his own eyes forward. Their gazes locked, a steel-edged current of killing intent surging silently between them.
Both vanished.
Whoosh!
They reappeared mid-strike, each having unleashed the Body Flicker Technique. Kappei's katana swept overhead, blade trailing a streak of speed, but Shigure's violet Sharingan—his Byakuran—already tracked the movement. His own flicker was cleaner, sharper, leaving Kappei straining as his strike was preempted.
Kappei grimaced under the pressure, blocking desperately. "As expected of you, Shigure! Even I… I feel the weight of your force like a mountain pressing down. Your strength—at least on par with an elite jōnin!" His words, as much praise as acknowledgment, underlined his tightened grip.
"You're not doing so badly yourself," Shigure replied evenly, blade driving harder against the smaller weapon forcing a clash. "But if this is all, you'll lose. Will you keep up this charade as 'Yoshida Kappei'? Or will you show me your true face?"
Kappei's teeth clenched as sparks erupted from their locked blades. Sweat glimmered down his temple. "That weapon of yours… ferocious. And your power behind it is monstrous! But—" He pivoted, disengaging with trained agility. "You lack true kenjutsu. Against my sword, I can still trade blows for dozens of rounds!"
Breath quiet, he centered again and called out his next move.
"Wild Wind Sword!"
His form blurred as his flicker entwined with wind release. Gales rippled outward, freezing Shigure's stance momentarily. Flame surged down the kotachi, wrapping the steel in a burning arc. He struck, blade igniting the battlefield with heat.
Shigure's smirk faded. His body blurred to nothingness.
"Where are you looking?"
Kappei's second technique came instantly in pursuit—"Sword Leaps in Flame!"—but his fiery sweep cut only empty air.
Instead, Shigure's presence unfurled around him. From the shadows emerged not one figure but five. Four shadow clones surrounded Kappei in a closing ring, with the original floating above.
Their hands blurred through seals so quickly they melted into a continuous motion invisible to the naked eye.
"Five Styles: Great Continuous Bomb Technique!"
All five Shigure unleashed torrents of chakra at once. Water, fire, earth, lightning, and wind roared from their mouths in a weaving barrage. The five elements twisted together, converging into a cataclysmic fusillade crashing down toward Kappei.
Spectators gasped, stunned. Even Hyūga Hizashi, the stoic leader, blinked wide-eyed.
"That—! Isn't that the Hokage's own compound ninjutsu?!"
Koharu Utatane looked equally shaken. "Impossible… that boy… recreated it alone?!"
On the high dais, Sarutobi Hiruzen tugged at his pipe with trembling fingers. His jaw tightened even as he let out a low murmur. "When I was his age, Tobirama-sama praised me for mastering the Five Elements in theory… yet compared to him, I was a child scratching the surface. Shigure is not a genius. He surpasses genius."
The cascading wave of elemental devastation tore into the arena with apocalyptic force. Kappei's body blurred desperately mid-seal, but even with the flicker technique, escape seemed unthinkable. The ground detonated into ruin, craters opening like wounds, the entire battlefield blanketed in smoke and flame.
Gasps rippled.
"He's dead…"
"No one could survive that…"
Then, from the searing haze, a shadow burst upward into the sky. A flicker at the last instant had saved him—but his disguise was gone.
The boy landing lightly on the torn earth looked nothing like Yoshida Kappei. His round nose was distinct, his body clad in short-sleeved ANBU-style black. A sword was strapped to his back, and most striking of all—the Uchiha crest emblazoned proudly across his shirt. His eyes glowed scarlet, three tomoe dancing in perfect Sharingan symmetry.
Exclamations erupted.
"The Sharingan…!"
"He's an Uchiha?!"
On the stands, Koharu frowned at Hiruzen. "So it was him all along. You knew, didn't you?"
Hiruzen exhaled. "I shall explain properly when the time comes."
Shigure, however, already recognized him. His smile curved upward knowingly.
"So, you finally reveal yourself. Uchiha Shisui… cousin."
The revealed boy tilted his head, Scarlet Sharingan spinning. "You know me? Uchiha Shigure…"
"Isn't it natural?" Shigure answered lightly. "Two geniuses of the Uchiha clan in one generation? Of course we'd know each other."
Shisui's lips curved in answer, a smile full of anticipation. "You're more cheerful than I expected."
"Same to you." Shigure raised his blade again, shoulders tightening in readiness. His grin sharpened into challenge. "Enough disguises. Fight me now—with everything you've got."
The air between them vibrated, charged with energy. Two Sharingan prodigies. Two storms clashing head-on—about to decide the future name of Uchiha genius.
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