Chapter 48: Shattering Graduation Dreams with a Single Strike
"Rin! I'm here!"
Obito Uchiha excitedly rushed to Rin Nohara's doorstep.
Today was the day to move up to the second year, which meant it was the day to report to the academy.
He had woken up early just so that he could be the first person Rin would see in the new semester.
Reporting on the first day of school was a very special day for Obito Uchiha.
Because the previous year, he had been late and missed the report, but he met Rin Nohara.
That gentle girl had helped him, allowing him to successfully enroll in the academy.
"Oh, it's Obito," the door opened, and a young man walked out.
He bore some resemblance to Rin and was her father.
"Mr. Nohara, is Rin here?" Obito Uchiha asked with an expectant look.
"She's already left," the young man said, shaking his head.
"Huh?" Obito Uchiha asked, surprised. "I remember she always leaves at 7:30."
"She went to Kurenai Yūhi's house," the young man explained.
"Kurenai Yūhi?" Obito Uchiha was even more confused.
Rin Nohara and Kurenai Yūhi's relationship was just average, not close friends. When did they become so close?
Wait!
Obito Uchiha suddenly froze.
He remembered that Hoshikawa lived at Kurenai Yūhi's house.
"Thank you, Mr. Nohara," Obito Uchiha's face changed, and he turned around and sprinted.
He soon arrived at Kurenai Yūhi's house.
The door was not closed.
He ran inside and saw Rin Nohara.
She was sitting to Hoshikawa's left, holding a book and reading.
And Kurenai Yūhi was sitting on his right, holding Hoshikawa and whispering something to him.
"Obito?" Rin Nohara heard footsteps and instinctively turned her head, looking surprised.
"Rin," Obito Uchiha quickly asked, "Why are you here?"
"I had a question I didn't understand, so I came to find Hoshikawa," Rin Nohara explained.
"You could've come to me too!" Obito Uchiha said with a confident look. "I studied hard all vacation and have memorized the textbook!"
"Can you use medical ninjutsu?" Rin Nohara flipped the book over, showing him the cover. It read, "Human Anatomy and Histology."
"Huh?" Obito Uchiha was dumbfounded. "When... when did you start learning medical ninjutsu?"
"Just this vacation," Rin Nohara said, a little embarrassed as she glanced at Hoshikawa. "It's all thanks to Hoshikawa's help."
Obito Uchiha gritted his teeth.
What's the point of a medical ninja? Are they good at fighting?
I'm an Uchiha!
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.
A white-haired boy walked in.
"I'm here for Hoshikawa," Kakashi Hatake said, ignoring the situation in the living room and asking directly.
"Hey, Kakashi, I was here first!" Obito Uchiha said, annoyed.
"What do you need?" Hoshikawa asked, sizing up Kakashi Hatake.
After two months, the aura around him had become even more serious, suggesting he had gone through some special training.
"A duel," Kakashi Hatake said with a blank expression. "If I beat you, I can apply for early graduation."
"What?" Obito Uchiha exclaimed. "You're graduating? Why?"
Rin Nohara also had a look of disbelief.
Enrolling at age five and graduating at age five was an unprecedented event in the Ninja Academy.
"Besides Hoshikawa, no one in the Ninja Academy is my match," Kakashi Hatake said coolly.
In short, it was "how lonely it is to be invincible."
"You bastard!" Obito Uchiha felt insulted and said loudly, "Let's go outside and fight!"
"I want to face Hoshikawa at my best," Kakashi Hatake said calmly.
"You!" Obito Uchiha's face turned red with anger.
"Obito," Rin Nohara quickly pulled him back.
"Are we fighting now?" Hoshikawa asked, standing up.
"Yes," Kakashi Hatake said. "After the fight, I'll graduate. No need to waste time reporting."
He wasn't like Obito Uchiha, who would boast. He was speaking the truth.
In Sakumo Hatake's words, his Hatake-style swordsmanship now surpassed Hoshikawa's from two months ago.
Of course, Hoshikawa would also have improved.
But his Konoha-style swordsmanship was, after all, not as good as the Hatake-style, with a lower ceiling and limited room for improvement, so he was full of confidence.
Hoshikawa walked out of the house.
He would definitely accept an entry being offered.
Based on Asuma Sarutobi's experience, this time he could probably get another upgrade.
After all, Kakashi Hatake looked too confident!
Plus, he had a father with a good eye.
But... my apologies.
Hoshikawa took out a katana.
This was the chakra metal sword he had asked Amamura to forge, which cost ten million ryo.
[C-rank Ninja Tool Entry: Thunderfire Sword.]
[Trigger Condition: Possess a chakra metal katana.]
[Effect: Chakra conductivity increased by 10%, durability increased by 100%.]
"Let's begin," Hoshikawa gestured for him to make the first move.
Kakashi Hatake snorted softly.
He was looking down on him!
He was no longer the same as he was before.
Kakashi Hatake's body moved, and he instantly appeared in front of Hoshikawa.
He held a short blade in one hand and thrust it forward.
"So fast!" Obito Uchiha said, his face looking ugly.
He couldn't even see it clearly!
But the next second, he was suddenly stunned.
Kakashi Hatake flew backward even faster.
"What happened?" Rin Nohara blinked.
How did the winner get decided so quickly?
Two months ago, they at least had a back-and-forth.
Kakashi Hatake lay on the ground, his face full of shock.
He had just rushed forward, his short blade was blocked by Hoshikawa, and then a powerful recoil force sent him flying.
"Are you hurt?" Hoshikawa walked up to him and asked. "I can heal you."
"My hand," Kakashi Hatake said, feeling his right hand had lost all feeling.
Hoshikawa extended his hands, and a pale green chakra lit up.
"Is that... medical ninjutsu?!" Rin Nohara's eyes widened.
Although she was learning medical ninjutsu, she was only learning the most basic of basics and wasn't involved in actual ninjutsu.
From what she knew, because medical ninjutsu was extremely difficult, most ninja could only learn it long after they graduated.
[E-rank Talent Entry 'Thunderblade' has been upgraded.]
[Lightning Release talent and swordsmanship talent have been increased by 30% from the original base.]
Hoshikawa withdrew his hands, feeling very satisfied.
Kakashi Hatake picked up his short blade and turned to leave.
"Wait," Hoshikawa said with a smile, extending an invitation. "Let's go to school together."
Kakashi Hatake stopped.
After a few seconds of hesitation, he nodded.
One duel had shattered his dream of graduating.
He could only continue reporting to the academy, and he wanted to know why Hoshikawa's improvement was so terrifying.
If Hoshikawa knew what he was thinking, he could only tell him, "Kid, that's just a cheat code."
In two months, he had learned three medical ninjutsu: the Healing Hands Technique, the Healing Jutsu, and the Anesthetic Jutsu.
After that, he got a new entry.
[D-rank Talent Entry: Medical Ninja.]
[Trigger Condition: Possess three medical ninjutsu entries.]
[Effect: The effectiveness of all medical ninjutsu is increased by 30%.]
The effect was not unexpected, but Hoshikawa was more excited about the synthesized entries.
[C-rank Talent Entry: Monstrous Strength.]
[Trigger Condition: Synthesize D-rank entry 'Medical Ninja' and E-rank entry 'Swift Footwork'.]
[Effect: Yang Release talent is increased by 100% from the original base, and strength is increased by 50% from the original base.]
[Note: Has two synthesis paths.]
[Path one: Adding C-rank entry Medical Chunin and C-rank entry Strong Body can synthesize B-rank entry Physical Recovery.]
[Path two: Adding C-rank entry Medical Chunin, C-rank entry Strong Body, and C-rank entry Swift as the Wind can synthesize B-rank entry Self-Healing.]
His long-awaited Yang Release talent came true, and it also came with an increase in strength.
Unlike 'Innate Full Chakra', 'Monstrous Strength' could be upgraded.
Without a doubt, Hoshikawa knew he would choose the second path.
He just didn't know if this Self-Healing was the same as Hashirama Senju's.
....
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