"Is that… a two-tomoe Sharingan?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes tightened.
Though there was some distance between the stands and the arena, as one of the top shinobi in the world his senses far surpassed most. With a single glance he saw the two tomoe in Uchiha Sasuke's eyes.
"It really is a two-tomoe Sharingan," Tsunade said, surprised. "Why awaken it now?"
"Was it triggered by the emotions of defeat?" Hiruzen mused.
As the Second Hokage Senju Tobirama's student, he knew the Uchiha clan well. Whether the Sharingan or the Mangekyō, awakening required an intense emotional jolt. That's why Uchiha usually awakened their eyes after witnessing the death of loved ones.
By comparison, Sasuke's awakening was… unusual. If a single loss could do it, the price seemed awfully small.
"Looks like he cares a great deal about Naruto," Hiruzen suddenly understood.
The loss itself wasn't the point—what mattered was who made him lose.
"This is the bond of the Will of Fire," Hiruzen said, smiling broadly.
Naruto had learned the Rasengan. Sasuke had awakened the two-tomoe Sharingan. The rise of two peerless talents could only mean that Konoha would grow strong again.
Hiruzen remembered the aftermath of the Nine-Tails' rampage, when he'd taken up the Hokage's mantle again in a moment of crisis.
Back then, the village was in ruins with a thin bench of talent, beset by internal and external troubles. Now Tsunade was back, geniuses were emerging among the young, and Konoha had new hope.
"..." Tsunade tugged at the corner of her mouth. Not everything has to tie back to the Will of Fire, you know. But she held her tongue; otherwise Hiruzen would go on about it for half the day.
"A two-tomoe Sharingan?!" If anyone in the stands was more excited than Hiruzen, it was Uchiha Fugaku. Awakening two tomoe at seven—beyond Sasuke, he couldn't think of anyone who'd done it. With talent like that, the Uchiha would surely produce a Hokage. If not for the setting, he might have burst out laughing.
"Opened his eyes again?" Uchiha Itachi watched Sasuke's wild laughter and, surprise aside, arrived at the same thought as Hiruzen. His little brother really was different. Whether the first tomoe or the second, the way he awakened was one of a kind.
To Itachi, most of their clan were the same—inebriated by the Sharingan's power, swollen with pride, blind to the village and the Will of Fire.
Now Sasuke let him glimpse a completely different future for the Uchiha. What he and Shisui had tried to do—Sasuke could carry it on.
"Sasuke came out of this with a blessing in disguise," Uchiha Mikoto sighed in relief. As a mother she hadn't overthought it; she'd just worried he wouldn't handle the loss.
Thankfully the two-tomoe Sharingan appeared out of nowhere and turned things around. Seeing that healthy grin on his face, he clearly wasn't heartbroken at all.
Because of Sasuke's laughter, many people noticed his two-tomoe Sharingan.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Inuzuka Kiba blurted. "Why is Sasuke's strength skyrocketing right along with Naruto's?"
Naruto mastering the Rasengan had shocked them. But Sasuke awakening two tomoe at seven was just as stunning.
"Sasuke-kun never disappoints!" Sakura said excitedly—mostly relieved that Sasuke had shaken off the gloom.
"Two monsters," Nara Shikamaru muttered, twitching a lip. "They're not leaving the rest of us any room to live."
"…" Neji wanted to complain but didn't know where to start. The Uchiha and the Hyuga were Konoha's two eye clans—so why didn't the Byakugan have some mysterious power-spike mechanic like that? With Sasuke at two tomoe, Neji's odds of beating him dropped again. Still, you never know until you fight.
Aburame Shino pushed up his glasses, silently grateful to Kitazawa. Without the Exploding Insects Kitazawa had brought, facing Sasuke and Naruto would have only one outcome: defeat.
Of course, they were classmates—no need to actually use Exploding Insects. He was only hypothesizing. With them, he at least had a chance to peek into the world of top-tier prodigies.
"As expected of the Uchiha," Kurama Yakumo said matter-of-factly. Long ago, the Kurama and Uchiha were equally famed for genjutsu bloodline limits. If she could be this strong so young, naturally Sasuke could too.
Kitazawa had no idea what Yakumo was thinking; if he did, he'd roast her for it. Right now all his attention was on the new lines of text that had popped up in front of his eyes:
[Current Mission: Help Uchiha Sasuke awaken the two-tomoe Sharingan.]
[Mission Reward: Two-tomoe Sharingan.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
Power surged through Kitazawa's body. No wonder Sasuke had let out the classic Uchiha cackle—your strength really did jump after awakening. The most obvious change was chakra: up by roughly a full elite chūnin's worth. For Sasuke, that was huge. For Kitazawa, who already had two full "bars" of chakra, it was icing on the cake.
But that wasn't the point. The point was that the two-tomoe Sharingan came with stronger abilities: enhanced dynamic vision and an even better knack for copying ninjutsu and taijutsu.
That alone would save Kitazawa a lot of training time. On top of that, his Sharingan genjutsu would hit harder. Not that he could run off to test it right now—the Student Council selection matches weren't over.
"Kitazawa-sensei!" Sasuke suddenly remembered something, cut off his laughter, and asked, "Can I keep fighting Naruto?"
"I've already announced the result. Starting up again breaks the rules," Kitazawa said with a shake of his head.
Sasuke's intent was obvious. With the two-tomoe awakened he felt "back," eager to beat Naruto immediately and reclaim the face he'd just lost.
"No need to rush," Kitazawa said, patting his shoulder. "It's only the second round. You'll likely meet again."
He figured a little scheduling might be in order. Ballooning ego wasn't great for learning Lightning Release, and it wouldn't trigger new missions.
But he wasn't about to set up another Naruto rematch—better to remind Sasuke there's more than one person in Class 1-A who can beat him.
"Alright, both of you, off the field," Kitazawa said, glancing at Naruto.
Anyone else their age would have steered clear after seeing Sasuke awaken two tomoe. Not Naruto. He was buzzing, itching for more, and he actually looked disappointed when Kitazawa said no.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei." Sasuke took a deep breath and stepped down. Seeing Sakura and the others rush up to meet him, he couldn't help the smile tugging at his lips.
If you didn't know better, you'd think he was the one who'd beaten Naruto. Naruto's reception wasn't shabby either—Rasengan's power and prestige spoke for themselves.
"Tenth match of Round Two: Aburame Shino vs. Akimichi Choji!" Kitazawa called out, voice raised to drown out the chatter and pull everyone back to the exam. Hard not to buzz after the last fight: one kid pulled out Rasengan, the other awakened two tomoe. They're freaking seven.
Shino and Choji stepped into the ring. To be fair, neither was weak—Shino especially stood out among his peers. But compared to Naruto vs. Sasuke, this bout felt ordinary.
"Winner: Aburame Shino," Kitazawa announced. Without clan secrets, Choji just couldn't match him. Honestly, even with them it would be tough.
Time slid by; Round Two neared its end.
"I'll now announce the students advancing to Round Three," Kitazawa said from mid-field, opening the roster.
Though the whole school entered this Student Council Selection Matches, most of those reaching Round Three were from Class 1-A—about the same names as the last monthly exam: Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, Aburame Shino, Kurama Yakumo, Hyuga Hinata, Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Inuzuka Kiba. Only Karin, Akimichi Choji, and Haruno Sakura failed to advance. Outside their class, it was just Rock Lee, Hyuga Neji, Tenten, and Inuzuka Hana.
There was no funny business from Kitazawa. This was simply the level of the Academy. Master the Three Basic Jutsu and you're a genin; meanwhile Sasuke and Naruto already knew as many techniques as a typical chūnin—and of far higher quality. Most chūnin don't touch A-rank, and even B-rank is rare; they mostly rely on C-rank. Sasuke and Naruto were just… ridiculous.
"Twelve students in Round Three, and Class 1-A takes eight slots," Hiruzen said after hearing the list. "In teaching, Kitazawa really is one of a kind."
Sasuke and Naruto's gifts were great, but without Kitazawa they wouldn't have grown this fast. Hiruzen thought of his own cohort: himself, Shimura Danzo, Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane—top talents, proven by their current strength and positions.
Yet none of them had shone at the Academy like Sasuke and Naruto did now. The difference, ultimately, was Kitazawa.
He'd also noticed the Academy's issues. Were the other teachers unwilling to teach? Not exactly—just limited. And students varied wildly. Take the Shadow Clone Jutsu: Naruto and Kiba had the talent to learn it. For others, teaching it was pointless. Many barely grasped the basic Clone Jutsu.
Hiruzen stroked his chin. He should find time to talk with Kitazawa about fixing the Academy's problems.
"First match of Round Three: Hyuga Hinata vs. Rock Lee!" Break over, Kitazawa went to the draw box again.
"Hinata!" Ino clenched a fist. "You can do it!"
"Mm!" Hinata nodded and walked out. A glance at Kitazawa steadied her further.
"Don't worry," Shikamaru yawned. "Gentle Fist hard-counters Strong Fist. Hinata's odds are good."
"What's Strong Fist?" Naruto asked.
"That's what you practice," Kiba said, clapping his shoulder. "More precisely, everything that isn't the Hyuga's Gentle Fist is Strong Fist."
"Your teacher Guy is the standard-bearer for the Strong Fist style," Shikamaru added.
"Guy-sensei is amazing!" Naruto gave a thumbs-up. "In taijutsu and in youth—my role model!"
"…" Shikamaru was speechless. Learn taijutsu, sure—maybe skip the 'youth.' This kid was too far gone.
"You may be stronger than Neji, but my youth won't lose!" Rock Lee called over.
"…" Shikamaru sighed. Two lost causes. Bury them both.
"Please go easy on me," Hinata said earnestly.
"Leaf Whirlwind!" Rock Lee launched a kick without hesitation.
Hinata slipped to the side, avoiding the spin-kick, and tapped his leg with her right hand. Lee felt the chakra in his right leg seize up. Not surprising; it was the same when he sparred with Neji.
Leaf Rock-Destroying Rise!
Lee didn't dodge; he pressed the attack. He drove his right elbow toward Hinata's head. Aside from taijutsu, he had nothing. He knew closing with Gentle Fist was unwise, but he had to push through. His only chance was to knock Hinata down before his chakra points were fully sealed.
Good plan—harsh reality. Hinata raised her left arm and blocked the elbow, then tapped twice more with her right, sealing two more points. Lee staggered, footing unsteady.
Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!
A gleam flashed in Hinata's Byakugan. She seized the moment and landed eight rapid strikes. Lee hit the ground, unable to move.
"Winner: Hyuga Hinata," Kitazawa said with a small nod. Without the Eight Gates, beating Hinata—or Neji—was too hard for Lee.
"Are you okay?" Hinata hurried over and released the sealed points.
"I'm fine," Lee said, getting up. "What a fight—full of youth!"
Hinata blinked. Where was the youth, exactly? Still hard to understand.
"Second match of Round Three: Uchiha Sasuke vs. Kurama Yakumo!" Kitazawa announced with a smile.
As organizer and referee, cheating would be simple—he didn't even need Wind Release chakra to do it. He'd put the twelve name slips in the draw box himself; all he'd have to do was stick Sasuke's and Yakumo's together.
"How did he draw Yakumo?" Sakura looked worriedly at Sasuke.
"Great draw," Sasuke said, tamping down his delight, brimming with confidence.
In the last monthly exam and spar test, every time he'd met Yakumo he'd been crushed. Simple reason: he couldn't break her genjutsu. Genjutsu duels are contests of Yin Release. He lost because his Yin Release was weaker than hers.
Now it was different—he had two tomoe.
He could clearly feel his Yin Release had doubled, from genin level up to chūnin, and top-tier chūnin at that. He believed he could win.
"Sakura, Sasuke just awakened two tomoe," Shikamaru reminded.
"Oh!" Sakura's eyes lit up. "Sasuke-kun won't lose again!"
Sasuke gave a slight nod. Sakura jinxed him all the time, but no amount of jinxing would flip this one. Hands in pockets, he strolled into the arena with all the poise of a master.
"Yakumo," he said, looking across at her. "Let's make this a battle of genjutsu."
Fall where you fell, rise where you fell. He'd crush Yakumo with genjutsu and wash away the sting of those earlier defeats.
"Alright," Yakumo replied solemnly. She could feel the surging Yin Release rolling off him—far stronger than before.
"This is my first time seeing a two-tomoe Sharingan," Kiba said, eyeing Sasuke. He'd activated it the moment he stepped in—clearly learning from being yanked into genjutsu earlier. Two tomoe didn't just boost Sharingan genjutsu; it also offered some resistance to ordinary genjutsu.
"I wonder what chūnin-level strength really feels like," Naruto said. Neji had told him that two tomoe meant chūnin-class power. In Naruto's mind, chūnin were strong, but how strong exactly, he didn't know.
"Eh?" Ino suddenly frowned. "Why isn't Sasuke moving?"
"What's going on?" Sakura asked, baffled. "Kitazawa-sensei already said to begin."
"Maybe… he's already under genjutsu," Shikamaru said after two seconds' thought, unsure.
"No way!" Sakura was first to object. "He's got two tomoe!"