Chapter 23: Uchiha Clan
Naruto looked at Sasuke.
Even from a distance, he could feel the pride emanating from him.
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Standing there, he was like a prize fighter among roosters, exuding absolute confidence.
Naruto could understand why.
Sasuke had been taught by Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Itachi since he was a child; he was among the best of his peers in shuriken, Ninjutsu, and Taijutsu.
If they had equal amounts of Chakra, the current Naruto wouldn't be certain of defeating him.
After all, his actual combat experience was too little.
Even with Kakashi's guidance, he certainly couldn't compare to two Mangekyo Sharingan users.
Furthermore, not much time had passed.
However, that premise assumed equal Chakra.
With Naruto's current Chakra, if he punched him with full force, the kid would probably cry for a long time.
The difference between a Jonin and a Genin was simply too vast.
Take Zabuza, whom Sasuke encountered after graduation; back then, they were almost paralyzed with fear.
"Are you afraid?"
Seeing that he didn't answer his question, Sasukecrossed his arms and asked.
Afraid?
I'm afraid I'll beat you to death.
Naruto raised his right hand, beckoned with his finger, and said, "Come here."
Sasuke frowned, knowing he had agreed to the spar, but this guy looked calm and composed, appearing quite confident.
He gave a light snort, walked up to Naruto, and said, "Blades have no eyes. If you get hurt, don't blame me."
Oh, he actually knows how to care about people.
Naruto smiled slightly; he decided not to beat Sasuke's face into a pulp, allowing him to keep his handsome dignity.
Sasuke, who hadn't gone through the Night of the Clan Massacre, was, how should one put it... just an ordinary little boy with Uchiha pride.
After witnessing that 'filial' son Uchiha Itachi kill his entire family, his worldview collapsed, and he became stoic from then on.
"Then let's begin."
Naruto formed the Seal of Confrontation with his hands and stepped back two meters.
He carefully recalled the strength of a Genin, trying to drag the fight out with him for a while.
The moment the thought crossed his mind, Sasukeinitiated the attack first.
It was a very simple straight punch aimed at his head.
So slow.
That was Naruto's first thought.
He was used to the speed of the Eight Extremes Fist; compared to that, Sasuke's speed was simply too slow.
Calculating how much strength to use, Narutoextended his right arm, and their fists collided.
With a boom...
Sasuke was sent flying by the massive force.
Naruto gave an embarrassed smile.
Damn... I was too careless!
It took Sasuke a long time to crawl back up.
The look in his eyes and his expression were filled with confusion and disbelief.
"Sorry, Sasuke, it's my first time, I didn't control my strength well,"
Naruto said apologetically.
"You..."
Sasuke was trembling with rage, breaking into a cold sweat despite the heat, his hands and feet icy.
It would have been better if he hadn't explained; the explanation was not only highly aggressive but also extremely insulting.
What did he mean by 'didn't control his strength'?
"Ah, I mean... I was born with great strength. Why don't you try using shuriken or Ninjutsu?"
Naruto stammered, finally finding a plausible reason.
"Really? You're not lying to me?"
Sasuke regained a bit of confidence.
Naruto was the same age as him; no matter how strong he was, he couldn't be that much stronger. If it was just raw strength, that would be understandable.
"Really!"
Naruto nodded repeatedly.
He thought to himself that he must control it properly this time!
He couldn't mess up again!
Sasuke took a deep breath; he planned to use Ninjutsu.
The Fire Release that the Uchiha Clan used to look down upon the Ninja World.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
His hands quickly formed seals, and he spat out a large fireball from his mouth.
The temperature rose abruptly.
Seeing this, Naruto couldn't help but nod; as expected of a genius of the Uchiha Clan.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
He struck the same pose, and a pale blue whirlwind flew out of his mouth.
The Great Fireball Technique was a C-rank Ninjutsu, and so was Great Breakthrough.
There shouldn't be any problems, right?
Under Naruto's slightly nervous gaze, the whirlwind and the fireball met, momentarily locking in a stalemate.
But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, the whirlwind dispersed the fireball and, continuing its momentum, blew Sasuke over again.
"?"
That shouldn't have happened.
Was it because Sasuke was standing on the left side during the clash?
Was he affected by the law of causality?
Naruto thought for a moment and understood the reason.
It was Sasuke's problem.
His Great Fireball Technique wasn't the 'genuine' version.
Oh, no, it should be said that because of his Chakra, his Great Fireball Technique hadn't reached C-rank power.
"Sorry, Sasuke, I didn't..."
Naruto was at a loss for words.
He could no longer find excuses for Sasuke.
"Enough!"
It took Sasuke another long while to get up.
A repeat performance.
Even the densest person would understand it was a matter of a gap in strength.
Moreover, he wasn't stupid.
As a genius of the Uchiha Clan, his judgment was very keen.
After all, he had seen extraordinary powerhouses like Uchiha Itachi.
"I lost this time, but I'll be back next time!"
Sasuke's face was ashen as he admitted his defeat.
"Wait a minute."
Naruto called out to him as he was about to turn and leave.
"Do you still want to humiliate me?"
Sasuke asked with a face full of anger.
"..."
What on earth have you been through?
Do I look that bored?
Bullying a six-year-old kid?
"I have no interest in that."
Naruto shook his head and issued a kingly invitation, "If you have no one to play with, you can come to my training ground to train or spar with me."
Considering the Ashura and Indra Chakra, he planned to build a relationship with Sasuke.
Once they were familiar, he would get some IndraChakra from his body to study.
This was also why he wanted Neji to do scientific research.
Uchiha Madara was able to awaken the Rinneganusing Senju Hashirama's cells.
Could it not work the other way around?
It wasn't explained in the original work, but he intended to try.
Sasuke was stunned, having not expected this.
But he was a proud person.
If it were someone weak, he naturally wouldn't be interested.
As for Naruto, he could barely be considered to have earned his recognition.
Plus, lately, neither his father nor his brother seemed to have time to play with him.
"Since you put it that way, I can't let your kindness go to waste."
Sasuke glanced at him and said, "Where is the training ground? Take me there."
"Follow me."
Naruto led him back to his training ground.
Sasuke was somewhat surprised, looking around at his surroundings.
Strange equipment, a beautiful Treehouse, and golden rice fields.
Was this really something a six-year-old child could achieve?
If it were him...
"You've come at just the right time."
Naruto pointed at the rice field and said, "You can help me harvest."
"You grew this yourself?"
"That's right."
"Why grow this?"
Sasuke gazed at the two rice fields; what he actually wanted to say was, isn't this a waste of time?
"To practice Chakra control."
Naruto began to tell him about the details of growing rice.
"I see."
Sasuke's eyes lit up; there was actually so much knowledge involved.
"Harvesting rice is the same."
Naruto said with a smile, "With such a large quantity of rice, it's very difficult to achieve a uniform cutting height. I plan to use Wind Release, both to practice Chakra control and to practice the change in Chakra nature."
Hearing this, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed: "I don't have a wind affinity."
"But you have a lightning affinity."
Naruto knew he probably hadn't started lightning attribute training yet, since he hadn't met Kakashi.
"How about it? Sasuke, come farm with me."