The physical‑fitness test was over, and everyone collapsed onto the ground to rest—everyone except Uzumaki Naruto.
Because he had taken first place, he was so excited that he ran a full circle around the crowd.
Kitazawa felt he was only one step away from shouting, "We are the champions!"
"Such a familiar sight," Nara Shikaku murmured, watching the blur of motion and thinking of the Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato.
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in satisfaction.
Right now, Uzumaki Naruto truly carried a hint of Minato's aura—though it was even more suffused with youthful vigor.
At this point, however, there was nothing Hiruzen could—or would—change.
He turned toward Kitazawa.
What reward should I give him?
By village rules, a special reward is granted only when a ninja over‑performs a mission or renders exceptional service.
Kitazawa was merely a teacher; strictly speaking he wasn't eligible.
But Naruto's unique status overrode such niceties: even if Kitazawa were rewarded, no one would object.
A stable jinchūriki is, after all, priceless to Konoha.
"Lost again?" Mizuki muttered in a daze.
Yūhi Kurenai glanced over, feeling a bit sorry for him; if she had lost three events in a row, she would look the same.
Kitazawa did not add insult to injury.
Instead, he pondered his lineup for the coming sparring matches.
There was no doubt that 2nd‑Year Class A would field Hyūga Neji, Tenten and Rock Lee.
Kurama Yakumo could handle Neji.
Uzumaki Naruto could take on Rock Lee—today's fitness test had already shown Lee was a notch below Naruto.
Tenten, though, was trickier: her mountain of ninja tools felt like a dimensionality‑reduction strike.
The Class 1 students—Uchiha Sasuke and the others—were still young; one careless move against all those weapons and they could crash hard.
Kitazawa's first choice was Uchiha Sasuke.
Though the Sharingan had not awakened, Sasuke had Fire Release and shurikenjutsu enough to trade volleys with Tenten.
A second candidate occurred to him: Hyūga Hinata.
If she activated the Byakugan, Tenten's tools would mean little—three‑hundred‑sixty‑degree vision makes a difference.
The only risk: what if she didn't awaken it?
Kitazawa decided he would have to push her.
"Congratulations to 1st‑Year Class A for another win. We'll break for thirty minutes, then begin the live‑combat matches," Sarutobi announced, fulfilling his role as referee.
"Right—there's still the combat round!"
Hearing that, Mizuki revived a bit. Among ninja, real strength shows only in combat; the other events were flashy sideshows. He clung to this last straw and grew serious, returning to his class to lay out tactics. As a chūnin his eye was keener than his students'; he could more or less guess the five fighters Class 1‑A would send and passed on last‑minute pointers.
"Aren't you going to talk to your kids?" Kurenai asked the unhurried Kitazawa.
"I've said everything that needs saying. The rest is up to them."
He smiled. "I trust them."
"Your students truly do perform amazingly," Kurenai said, puzzled. "I have no idea how you teach them."
"If you have time, I can teach you," Kitazawa replied with a wink.
"You want to be my teacher?" She rolled her eyes. "Dream on."
Kitazawa merely smiled; he wasn't joking. In the original story Kurenai was a jōnin but far from top‑tier. If possible, he really did want to teach her a few jutsu—when the system obliged.
…
Half an hour later everyone, rested, ringed the practice field.
The final event—live combat. Each class would send only five students to fight, their very best.
Sarutobi stood in the center as referee, eager; the geniuses of Konoha's next generation were all here. The performances of Hyūga Neji, Uzumaki Naruto and the others would quite literally shape the village's future—no exaggeration. Not since the class of Hatake Kakashi, Might Guy and Sarutobi Asuma had there been so many prodigies.
"I'll now state the rules," Sarutobi said calmly. "First, no reckless brawling—stop before it goes too far. Second, absolute fairness: I will miss no calls and show no favoritism."
"Mizuki," Kitazawa said, "please."
Back when the match was arranged, Kitazawa, planning a Tian Ji horse‑race strategy, had insisted that 2‑A send its fighters first. Mizuki, overconfident, had agreed without hesitation; now he felt that earlier self had been rash. After three straight losses he had completely reevaluated Class 1‑A, and even his strongest confidence—combat—was wavering.
"Tenten," Mizuki called in a low voice.
Morale was low; they needed a victory. Neji, their ace, must anchor the lineup, so the second‑strongest—Tenten—went first.
"Do your best, Tenten!" Rock Lee and the others cheered. Neji only nodded, but the meaning was clear.
"Leave it to me—no problem," Tenten said, patting the big scroll at her hip.
"Hyūga Hinata," Kitazawa called.
"Eh?"
Hinata's face showed open shock; she hadn't expected to be first.
Meeting Kitazawa's eyes, she exhaled slowly and nodded firmly. Kitazawa-sensei has done so much for me—I mustn't let him down! She stepped onto the field with determination.
"Hi, I'm Tenten—Neji's friend," Tenten said cheerfully, hand outstretched. "Neji's mentioned you before. Didn't expect to face you today."
Hinata reflexively glanced at Neji—who stood unmoved, expressionless.
"Hello," she said, giving Tenten's hand a brief shake.
"Careful, Hinata," Tenten warned, opening her scroll. "For Class 2‑A, I won't hold back."
Hinata answered only by settling into a Gentle‑Fist stance.
The instant Tenten's summoning technique triggered, Hinata shot forward—but too late. Wind whistled as a barrage of shuriken rained down. As promised, Tenten held nothing back.
Hinata's eyes widened.
Here Kitazawa's leaf‑catching training bore fruit: her small frame wove swiftly through the lethal hail. While dodging she flicked each shuriken aside with kunai.
"Incredible," Tenten murmured. Using so many tools was borderline cheating—but tools are part of a ninja's art, so no one complained. Still, Hinata's ease in evading them surprised her.
Twin Rising Dragons!
Tenten hurled two full‑sized scrolls; spinning in midair, they became twin dragons spewing a mountain of weapons. If the earlier attack was a straight‑line strike, this was area bombardment.
Hinata was driven into a desperate scramble. She narrowly avoided one kunai, but a shuriken slashed her wrist; blood dripped. Sweat beaded her brow. She tried to dodge, but there were simply too many tools. Must I surrender?
In her mind she saw Kitazawa's warm smile and trusting eyes. No— I must not fall here!
A sudden surge of powerful chakra burst from her. The veins around her eyes bulged—Byakugan awakened. Instantly the world looked different: the once‑blurred weapons stood out with perfect clarity.
"Byakugan?" Tenten's heart jolted—those eyes were identical to Neji's, sharp as surgical scalpels.
Neji himself, usually expressionless, narrowed his gaze in surprise. She awakened now? At that age she's barely behind me. How has she changed so much?
"At this age, awakening the Byakugan is rare," Nara Shikaku remarked.
"Looks like the Hyūga, like the Uchiha, will have two geniuses," Sarutobi said, stroking his beard. As Hokage he knew the clan heiress well and, like Neji, once thought her unsuited to be a ninja—but such a clan head could benefit Konoha.
Still, this dramatic change reminded him of Kitazawa, surely the cause. His satisfaction with the teacher deepened: in under three months Kitazawa had reshaped Naruto, Hinata and others—truly a talent.
With the Byakugan, Hinata's strength skyrocketed. She blitzed through the storm of weapons, closing on Tenten. Without a moment's hesitation she brought her two fingers together and struck the tenketsu on Tenten's wrist. A numbness shot through Tenten's arm; her chakra flow scrambled. Hinata followed up with a palm strike that sent her opponent flying.
"I concede," Tenten sighed. Her tenketsu were sealed; she couldn't summon more weapons, and Hinata could close the distance at will. Every ninja knew what happened once a Hyūga got inside.
"I awakened it…?" Hinata finally realized. An indescribable rush flooded her heart—an exhilarating freedom.