Special Jōnin - Aoba Yamashiro

"Everyone, Konoha's growth and prosperity depend on every member of this great family. Whether Genin, Chunin, or Jonin, they all work to build this warm and harmonious home. The glory of the previous generation gave us our place in the Shinobi World, and the fresh blood of the next generation is the foundation of this home. They represent Konoha's future. I've gathered everyone here today because a student at our Ninja Academy has submitted a request to graduate early. His name is Issui Kanna, and he possesses the legendary Eye of Heaven Kekkei Genkai. He joined Konoha two years ago and has since married into the Hyuga Clan." The Third spoke in a deep, stirring voice, and no one dared make a sound.

"Go on. Show them everything you've got. Don't be afraid; there's nothing to fear. Just work hard and do your best..." Hiashi said in front of Issui.

Issui nodded and walked to the center of the training ground.

"Aoba, you'll be Issui's opponent. Don't take it too far," the Third said to Aoba Yamashiro.

"Ah, yes, Lord Hokage." Aoba Yamashiro answered and walked silently to the center.

"I didn't expect Lord Hokage to send Aoba in," Hyuga said calmly. But judging by his expression, he was a little worried; his brow was faintly furrowed.

"Yeah, Aoba's quite strong. He specializes in Fire Style and Taijutsu, and he's well-rounded. He won't be easy to deal with," Chōza said from the side.

"They're about to start," Shikaku reminded them.

"Hello, my name is Issui Kanna. I specialize in Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and my own Kekkei Genkai—a Dōjutsu. I hope you'll give me everything you've got. Please guide me." Issui extended his right hand and formed a seal, folding his thumb, ring finger, and little finger together while holding his index and middle fingers straight up.

"Is that the Seal of Confrontation?" The Third looked at Issui in surprise.

"Yes. This is only a simple test. Afterward, Aoba and I will still be Konoha shinobi, and what we strive for and protect will be the same-Konoha." Issui nodded, making his position clear. Konoha was what he intended to protect.

"All right, then I won't hold back. I hope you pass, because otherwise I won't agree to letting an immature shinobi go to the battlefield." Aoba formed the Seal of Confrontation as well.

"Hm? The test begins now!" Kakashi, acting as referee, announced.

Aoba and Issui did not attack immediately. Both waited for the other to make a move.

Suddenly, a leaf drifted down. The moment it touched the ground, both moved at once, using Taijutsu. Aoba was somewhat faster and more experienced, and as time passed, Issui gradually fell behind. In the end, faced with a fierce whip kick from Aoba, Issui had to form hand seals quickly and use the Substitution Technique to dodge. The wooden stake used for the substitution shattered into several pieces under Aoba's powerful attack, showing just how much force the kick carried.

"(Mini) Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!!!" The instant Issui used the Substitution Technique, he rapidly formed hand seals and opened his mouth wide. A torrent of water sprayed out, turning the entire field into a small pond.

"Oh, impressive. He can actually use such a powerful Ninjutsu. It should be beyond C-rank, though it hasn't reached B-rank." Sarutobi, known as the Professor of Ninjutsu, saw the subtleties of the technique at a glance.

That was right. It was a scaled-down version of Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave. By controlling the amount of chakra fed into it, the user could reduce the amount of water produced along with the chakra spent. It was not as powerful as the lake Kisame created in the original story. This was also a Water Release technique Issui had never shown anyone else. Back when he attended the Ninja Academy, Issui had already tested his chakra nature and found that he had both lightning and water affinities. In his previous life, Issui had been very curious about the various nature transformation techniques and had compiled many of their hand seal sequences. Combined with some Ninjutsu from this body's original memories-after all, no matter how small Heaven Village was, it was still a village, and as the village chief's grandson, he was bound to have access to plenty of Ninjutsu information—he had been training in both lightning- and water-natured Ninjutsu all along. He had only practiced when no one else could discover him, and Hinata was the only person who knew about them.

Water counters fire. Aoba's at a disadvantage. With his nature countered, his abilities have been greatly reduced, Kakashi thought.

Wow, what a strong kid. Now I can go all out. Konoha Gale, ah-ha! Aoba was even more impressed. He's already learned such powerful Ninjutsu at his age. But I'm not so simple...

Smack...

In the blink of an eye, Issui was kicked. It was so fast that a Genin would not have been able to see it at all. How impressive.

Issui, who had fallen onto the surface of the water, immediately formed several hand seals. Just as his hands stopped moving, Aoba rushed in and struck him, but this time the Issui he hit turned into a wooden stake again.

"Lightning Release: Earth Flow!!!"

A clear, childish voice rang out, and blue electricity came racing across the water from behind Aoba.

Aoba's body jolted as the Lightning Release Ninjutsu struck him. Combined with Water Release, its power was greatly increased.

But Aoba reacted quickly, giving Issui no chance to attack again. He immediately used the Substitution Technique to escape the attack's range.

"Ram, horse, snake, dragon, rat, ox, tiger. Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!!!" To eliminate the disadvantage, Aoba had to evaporate the water on the field. This powerful B-rank Ninjutsu was enough to dry up the little pond.

"Eye of Heaven — White — Sealing Domain!!!" Issui had no choice but to use his trump-card secret technique, the Eye of Heaven's Dōjutsu.

"Huh? What's going on? I can't use my Ninjutsu." Aoba stopped breathing fire and asked Issui in confusion.

"This is the Dōjutsu of my Heaven Eye. Inside my domain, your Ninjutsu won't work. If you force yourself to use it, the chakra in your body will run wild. The stronger the Ninjutsu, the greater the disruption. If you're not careful, you could even be gravely injured and die!" Issui offered the friendly warning.

"What?" The onlookers were shocked. A secret technique like this was immensely useful in battle. Its effects might not be apparent over a small area, but over a large one, it could influence the outcome of an entire battlefield. Within this domain, no Ninjutsu other than secret techniques, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu could be used. And the Byakugan was immune to Genjutsu; unless it was cast with an Uchiha Mangekyō Sharingan, ordinary Genjutsu would not work.

"Eight Trigrams Two Palms... Four Palms... Eight Palms... Sixteen Palms... Thirty-Two Palms." Before Aoba could react, Issui swiftly used the Hyuga Clan's secret technique.

"Konoha Whirlwind!!!" Aoba reacted the instant Issui brought out the Eight Trigrams Palm, using Konoha Taijutsu the moment he was struck. Unfortunately, he was still a step too late and was hit.

Aoba, knocked to the ground, suddenly vanished in a puff of white smoke. It was a Shadow Clone! When had he done it?

Issui suddenly remembered that when he had used the Lightning Release Ninjutsu, Aoba had created a Shadow Clone the instant he used the Substitution Technique and hidden it on the ground. The Eye of Heaven had indeed seen it at the time, and the Eight Trigrams Palm had already locked onto Aoba himself. But when Aoba used Konoha Whirlwind, he had switched places with his Shadow Clone using the E-rank Escape Technique. Although his chakra had gone slightly out of control, Aoba had escaped that way.

Damn it. Now that Aoba has escaped, he'll definitely attack. I should get out of here immediately, Issui thought.

"Secret technique: Stone Needle!!!"

Unfortunately, it was too late. Aoba attacked from behind Issui, wrapping a rope around him. Issui then felt a wave of numbness pass through his body, and a shuriken appeared at his neck.

Aoba had already guessed the range of Issui's Sealing Domain. He had then quickly used the Escape Technique to get outside its coverage and used a secret technique to paralyze Issui.

"I lost. Actually, after using those two C-rank Ninjutsu earlier, I didn't have much chakra left. I activated the secret technique's domain to end the fight quickly. After all, Aoba, you have a lot more chakra than I do. I didn't expect to fail anyway," Issui said helplessly. Although Issui's chakra could recover in small amounts, he was still a Genin, and the amount he recovered could not begin to offset what he spent.

"Not at all. I suffered a slight injury myself from forcing my Ninjutsu. And to deal with you, I actually used a B-rank Fire Style technique and a secret Ninjutsu on top of that, so I used up quite a bit too. I think you've already surpassed the average Chunin. With a little more experience, you could probably hold your own against a Jonin. I wasn't nearly this strong at your age," Aoba said sheepishly.

"Now then, the result of this test is a pass. Issui Kanna will become a Genin. Currently eight years old, he will graduate early. Submit your detailed personal information tomorrow for the records." The Third took a puff of his pipe and spoke slowly.

"Yay!!!" Issui jumped for joy.

Everyone present applauded, acknowledging Issui's strength.

"Impressive strength, enough to rival Kakashi and Itachi back then. He's already beyond the level of a Genin, and an ordinary Chunin would be no match for him either. After completing some missions and gaining some experience, he can reach the level of a Jonin. Another child prodigy." Hiashi also looked very happy. After all, Issui was a member of the Hyuga Clan and his son-in-law, practically half a son. The Hyuga Clan's strength would grow considerably in the future, and at Issui's rate of growth and with his potential, becoming a Kage Level shinobi would naturally be no problem.

I didn't expect him to be so strong. I have to work hard too. I'm definitely going to become Konoha's greatest Hokage. Naruto watched the delighted Issui on the field, his desire to grow stronger deepening. As long as I become a powerful shinobi, I'll be acknowledged by this many people too.

"Tch." Sasuke watched Issui on the field, deeply shaken. I didn't expect him to be hiding so much. With how strong he is now, I probably couldn't last three exchanges against him. How can I get revenge like this? How can I kill that man? I have to work hard...

"Issui-kun keeps getting stronger. I'll work hard to catch up with him," Hinata thought, clenching her little hands and encouraging herself.

"All right, the test has ended perfectly. Everyone, go home and rest. Kakashi, come with me for a moment," the Third said.

Issui calmed his excitement and left with the members of the Hyuga Clan.

"Kakashi, what do you think of that boy...?" the Third asked mildly as he stood atop Hokage Rock, his eyes fixed silently on the blue sky.

"He's a genius, I suppose. From my interactions with him, he seems to have deep feelings for Konoha, but..." Kakashi stopped halfway through.

"But what...?"

"But I can't see any desire for power in his eyes, and that confident look seems to be affirming something. He isn't like Orochimaru, or Jiraiya, and he's even less like Itachi. I can't see through him. But I saw a bit of our teacher Namikaze in him: full of confidence, sunny... Yet he really isn't interested in the position of Hokage..."

"What a deeply feeling child. As for his personality, I suppose I'd say he's a combination of Jiraiya and Minato. Sigh. The reason I agreed to Hiashi's request back then was to make him develop feelings for Konoha. It seems to have worked out well enough. I know Hiashi's temperament; he's different from Fugaku, so I trust him. And I called you here today to ask you to protect the boy for a while. I'm worried about Root..."

"Lord Danzo?" Kakashi's brow furrowed slightly.

"That child has great potential. I don't want him to walk into the darkness and become another Orochimaru. What happened with Orochimaru back then has already caused me great pain..."