The terrifying flames burned for several seconds before slowly fading away.
"So huge!"
Haruno Sakura snapped out of her daze and shouted, "You're amazing, Sasuke‑kun!"
Spurred on by her excitement, the rest of Class 1‑A erupted in cheers as well.
Everyone understood that a Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu of this size was enough to decide the match on the spot.
The gap in strength was so great there was no suspense at all.
Class 2‑A realized the same and fell silent.
"A worthy rival," Hyūga Neji said, his expression tightening.
He had already set Uchiha Sasuke as his benchmark for live‑combat training, and now he felt just how troublesome that opponent was.
Against a Great Fireball like this, all he could do was dodge—there was nothing else.
"What a display of fiery youth!" Rock Lee exclaimed, clenching his fists.
"..." Tenten wordlessly edged a step closer to Neji.
No one knew when it started, but Lee now acted as if he'd been "poisoned," putting the word youth into every sentence.
"How can this be?" Mizuki's eyes went wide in disbelief.
Such an enormous fireball—he'd only ever seen jōnin use one that large.
Dammit! Another detestable genius! Jealousy drove Mizuki nearly mad.
"Yet another peerless prodigy," Nara Shikaku muttered in amazement. "He's only six, and already stronger than many genin."
The Ino–Shika–Chō trio formed an alliance precisely because each clan was relatively weak on its own.
The Uchiha were different: geniuses and powerhouses emerged one after another—enviable to everyone else.
"His raw chakra, his control, even his grasp of nature transformation—every domain is outstanding," Sarutobi Hiruzen commented. "At this rate, his future may not fall far short of Uchiha Itachi's."
Shikaku started; he remembered the Third Hokage once saying Itachi could think from a Hokage's perspective at age seven.
Could an Uchiha actually become Hokage?
He quickly dismissed the notion; he knew all too well where the village leadership really stood on the Uchiha—Hiruzen tried to win them over, while Shimura Danzō suppressed them. The policy seemed to be: keep Konoha stable, but never let the Uchiha grow too strong.
In the arena, Sasuke was basking in a hero's treatment.
"Well done, Sasuke!" Inuzuka Kiba said admiringly.
He didn't usually like Sasuke's aloof personality, but that fireball left nothing to criticize.
Sasuke gave a small nod, doing his best to maintain his cool, unapproachable façade.
The only pity was that neither his father nor his brother was here to witness his glory.
"Sasuke, you truly are my lifelong rival!" Uzumaki Naruto bounded over and slung an arm around his shoulder.
"Naruto, let go of him!" Sakura cried in alarm—she hadn't even touched Sasuke before Naruto managed to grab him!
"..." Sasuke tried to squirm free, but Naruto was physically stronger. His discomfort didn't escape Class 1‑A, and for a moment the air was filled with merry schadenfreude. Watching the proud Sasuke flustered was undeniably entertaining.
"What a pleasant atmosphere," Hiruzen murmured, thoroughly satisfied. This—future Konoha shinobi in high spirits—was exactly what he wanted to see.
"Quiet," homeroom teacher Kitazawa called, noticing Hiruzen walking over.
"You all performed well," the Third announced, "but Class 1‑A takes the lead."
"Yay!" Naruto and his classmates cheered.
"It's only the first event," Mizuki reminded his own class. "As long as you win the next ones, we'll still take the overall victory!"
Class 2‑A's morale revived a bit.
"Excellent—such spirit," Hiruzen said. "Rest ten minutes, then we'll start event two."
During the break, two Anbu helped prepare the field.
The second contest would test chakra control, so Kitazawa had asked for one Earth‑Style and one Water‑Style Anbu.
Instead of transplanting trees, the Earth shinobi raised earthen cylinders; for water‑walking, they ringed the pool with earth and the Water shinobi filled it.
When the course was finished, Kitazawa felt it looked like one of those obstacles‑game TV shows from his previous life—though there were only two stations.
"The rules are simple," he explained when the break ended. "Channel chakra to your feet; the first to the goal wins."
"Line up at the start," Iruka ordered Class 1‑A. Soon both classes stood ready. Ahead lay a broad pool; beyond it, towering cylinders like tree trunks. Reach the top, jump down—that was the finish.
"Neji will get first for sure!" Tenten encouraged.
"Mm," Neji replied calmly; he didn't think she was wrong. The Hyūga prized chakra control—without it, Gentle Fist's tenketsu strikes were impossible.
"We're counting on you, Neji," Mizuki said, patting his shoulder. Losing once was bearable; losing twice in front of the Hokage would be humiliating.
"Sakura, let's see who makes it first," Yamanaka Ino said, stretching.
"Sure," Sakura smiled. "Loser doubles tonight's homework."
"..." Naruto, about to chime in, blanched at double homework and wisely kept quiet. Kitazawa's special tutoring had given him a deep trauma over written assignments.
"Naruto!" Rock Lee gave a thumbs‑up. "Let's have a youthful showdown!"
"No problem!" Naruto flashed gleaming teeth. "In the name of youth!"
"Ready!" Kitazawa cut off the chatter. "Three… two… one… go!"
Everyone dashed onto the water. Naruto and Lee exchanged a look and sprinted—only for a loud splash a few steps in.
"Lee?" Naruto blinked.
"This is as far as I go!" Lee shouted, waist‑deep. "Naruto, carry my youth onward!"
"Lee!" Tears trembled in Naruto's eyes.
"Go for it!" Lee thrust up a thumbs‑up.
"Youth!" Naruto wiped his tears and pushed on—only to tumble in soon after; his control wasn't much better. The only reason he'd lasted that long was Kitazawa's training.
"I'm starting to regret this, Shikaku," Hiruzen sighed.
"Regret what?" Shikaku managed not to laugh.
"I should've stopped Naruto when he went to see Guy," Hiruzen rubbed his forehead. "Too late now—Guy's rubbed off on him."
"A Naruto like that isn't bad for the village," Shikaku reasoned.
"True, but Minato and Kushina will scold me," Hiruzen muttered.
Kitazawa, nearby, twitched his lips. Is this a comedy act?
"Guy is just like that," Kurenai said, laughing. "A pity Kakashi isn't here."
Kitazawa suddenly pictured Naruto becoming Kakashi's student as in the original story—good luck, Kakashi. A Guy‑style pupil might make his head explode.
"Thankfully Guy's not here," Kitazawa laughed.
"Indeed," Kurenai shuddered at the mental image of Guy, Lee, and Naruto embracing in tears.
"Neji's in first?" Kitazawa arched a brow.
In under a minute most students had been eliminated; a few still held on. Water‑walking and tree‑climbing were meant for post‑graduation; doing them years early naturally meant poor results.
"Deserving genius of the Hyūga," Kurenai noted, "but your four students are right on him." She meant Sakura, Ino, Hinata, and Sasuke. Neji's fame made their close pursuit a surprise to many.
"Damn it—am I in a genjutsu?" Mizuki muttered. Neji was a prodigy, but Class 1‑A had four keeping pace? Impossible! Mizuki still believed Neji would win.
A few minutes later, five contestants reached the second stage: climbing the cylinders.
Neji glanced around, frowning—four others had kept up, Hinata among them. Gritting his teeth, he burst forward. Hinata and Sasuke finally fell back, but Sakura and Ino still clung close. Halfway up, Ino slowed; at the same time Neji felt fatigue creep in—his speed unconsciously dropped.
At that very instant, Sakura sprang ahead, reached the top first, and leapt to the finish.
"What—?!" Neji froze, forced to watch Sakura break the tape. He felt thunder‑struck. Losing the first event, he'd had excuses—Gentle Fist wasn't flashy; losing to a Great Fireball was understandable. But this chakra‑control contest? He'd been soundly defeated.
~~~
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