After several rounds of fierce competition, the winners of the four arenas in the Ninja Academy Tournament were finally decided!
They were — Namikaze Minato, Hyūga Kagami, Yūhi Daispring, and Leo!
Except for Leo, the other three were all scions of Konoha's great clans, each blessed with extraordinary talent.
Namikaze Minato was a bit of a special case — not from a noble family, but he was a personal student chosen by one of the Legendary Sannin, so his background was by no means weak.
Although at this time Jiraiya had yet to earn the title of "Sannin," he was still the disciple of the Third Hokage.
From that perspective, Minato could also be said to have a connection to the Hokage himself.
As for Leo — he was just a child from another village, alone in the world with no family, no background. The only thing he could rely on was himself.
"Next, we will draw lots!" the proctor announced calmly.
The four contestants stepped forward to draw their slips, and when Leo opened his, he found his opponent — the Hyūga clan prodigy, Hyūga Kagami.
Thus, the two final matchups were set:
Namikaze Minato vs. Yūhi Daispring,
Leo vs. Hyūga Kagami!
"The first match, Leo versus Hyūga Kagami. Please form the Seal of Opposition!" the chūnin proctor instructed.
The Seal of Opposition was a traditional gesture between ninja before battle — much like the martial salute used by ancient warriors of Huaxia, it was a sign of mutual respect between opponents.
Minato and Daispring stepped out of the ring to watch the match unfold.
Leo and Hyūga Kagami faced each other, forming the seal, then took their fighting stances.
The spectators were electric with anticipation — this was the most awaited showdown of the tournament!
"Go, Leo!" Kushina shouted loudly, completely ignoring the stares around her.
She even rallied a few of her newly recruited "followers" to cheer alongside her.
At the floating platform in the center, the Third Hokage, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru were watching intently.
"To have made it this far is already impressive," Jiraiya muttered sourly. "But facing the Hyūga prodigy, that Leo kid has little chance of winning."
He was still bitter that his favored student, Minato, had been overshadowed.
Tsunade chuckled coldly. If he knew this kid killed an elite chūnin all on his own, he wouldn't be saying that.
"Don't underestimate that child, Jiraiya," Orochimaru said, his lips curving into that trademark serpentine smile. "He might just surprise us."
The Third Hokage remained silent. He already knew much about Leo — and to him, the boy was both impressive and… troublesome.
In the arena, a storm was about to break.
Hyūga Kagami, a branch member of the Hyūga clan, possessed the Byakugan bloodline — his talent far exceeded that of his peers.
He had once been ranked among the same class of geniuses as Namikaze Minato and Uchiha Tsuki.
"Your strength isn't bad — better than I expected," Kagami said arrogantly. "But I am not that fool Uchiha Tsuki. Before these eyes of mine, your taijutsu is meaningless!"
His Byakugan activated, the veins bulging beneath the skin around his eyes.
A wave of invisible pressure radiated outward.
Through the Byakugan, Leo's body was laid bare — his chakra pathways, his tenketsu, even the flow of his chakra could be seen with perfect clarity.
By following the movement of chakra through those pathways, Kagami could predict every motion Leo would make.
That was why the Byakugan, like the Sharingan, was the nemesis of taijutsu users.
In fact, against close-range fighters, the Hyūga's Gentle Fist style was arguably even deadlier than the Sharingan.
"Is that so?" Leo replied coolly. He knew full well how terrifying the Byakugan was — but so what?
The crowd held its breath, waiting to see how he would counter the Hyūga clan's famed techniques.
Yet what Leo did next shocked everyone.
His fighting style was… absurdly simple.
No fancy ninjutsu. No clever feints.
Just a single step forward — and a straight punch.
No matter what noble clan you come from… Hyūga, Gentle Fist — I'll blow it all away with one punch.
"Armament Haki — Hardening!"
His iron-black fist shot forward, the air itself roaring in protest as if thunder cracked around it.
"Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms!"
Kagami stepped forward, his body poised in the graceful stance of the Gentle Fist. Beneath his feet, an enormous Eight Trigrams symbol flared to life.
Within that domain, the Hyūga's power was multiplied.
He struck first — his palms slicing the air, his Byakugan locking onto the weakest point in Leo's arm.
In the instant they closed the distance, Kagami's body moved like a serpent, dodging the direct punch and extending two fingers straight for Leo's tenketsu!
He knew better than to clash head-on with that monstrous strength — his plan was to create the illusion of a frontal assault, then strike the pressure points to cut off chakra flow.
If he succeeded, victory was guaranteed.
"Got you!" Kagami's eyes gleamed with triumph.
"Naïve," Leo sneered.
In that instant, his entire arm hardened like black steel. Armament Haki armor — harder than iron. You think you can seal my chakra with a poke?
"??"
Kagami's face froze the moment his fingers touched Leo's arm.
What should've been flesh and blood… was cold, unyielding metal!
Crack!
A sharp sound of bone snapping rang out.
"AHHH!"
Kagami screamed in agony, collapsing backward.
The entire arena fell silent.
What… just happened?
Before anyone could recover —
Strike while the iron's hot.
Leo's figure blurred forward, his fist slamming into Kagami's gut.
The explosive impact sent him flying, completely unconscious before he even hit the ground.
The whole sequence flowed seamlessly — swift, efficient, ruthless.
It was the kind of precision only a seasoned combat veteran could display, not a mere academy student.
The crowd erupted in disbelief.
Hyūga Kagami lay motionless, while the proctor chūnin approached, gave Leo a long look, and announced solemnly:
"Winner — Leo!"
"What… just happened?" Jiraiya was completely dumbfounded in the stands.
Tsunade, however, was utterly unsurprised.
After all, I've seen that little monster kill a man and bury the body without blinking.
"What a terrifying talent for a ninja," Orochimaru murmured, eyes gleaming with interest.
The next battle — Namikaze Minato versus Yūhi Daispring — was a clash between two prodigies.
The Yūhi clan, one of Konoha's noble families, specialized in genjutsu, and Daispring had already mastered powerful illusions.
Minato was forced into a difficult fight, but in the end, relying on his exceptional ninjutsu talent, he managed to break free and seize victory!
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested: patreon.com/HorizonStudios0