Duel II

Naruto's Shadow Clones could not touch Sasuke at all, but his real body had not been idle either. He used one clone to prepare the Rasengan, then charged in under the cover of his many clones.

Sasuke had not noticed Naruto charging over and was still clearing out the clones. This was a good chance to practice his Tai Chi intent. But the Shadow Clones suddenly opened up a path, and Naruto rushed right in front of him. It was useless, though. Sasuke sidestepped Naruto, tripped his feet, then shoved his palm against Naruto's back. Naruto flew out like a cannonball, the Rasengan still held out in front of him, clearing away every clone in his path.

A few minutes later, all the clones had been cleared away. Sasuke looked at Naruto without even breathing hard, while Naruto was somewhat exhausted. Maintaining a large number of Shadow Clones and fighting at close range had drained plenty of his stamina, yet it had accomplished nothing.

"How is it, Naruto? Do you have any other tricks? I haven't even warmed up yet," Sasuke said as he looked at Naruto.

"Don't get cocky! I'm going all out now!" Naruto shouted, his face flushed red. Then he began gathering Chakra. This time, he was going to use the Nine-Tails' Chakra. Red Chakra overflowed from his body, forming a vortex around him as the surrounding lake water began to churn.

"Oh? Looks like you're finally getting serious. Then let me see it." Sasuke once again assumed the Three-Body Stance, a posture that balanced attack and defense.

Naruto finished preparing. "Here I come." The moment he spoke, Naruto vanished. His speed had increased this much? What a monster. Sasuke tracked Naruto's movements. Nothing could escape the Sharingan's sight, but his body could not keep up. The eighteen hundred kilograms of weights had now become a burden. He only had time to take a defensive stance and raise both hands in front of him.

Bang! Sasuke braced his legs against the impact. Though he was not sent flying backward, his feet carved two white trails across the lake's surface. "How about it, Sasuke? Does this count as warming up now?" Naruto laughed smugly.

"Not bad. As expected of my companion. You really are formidable when you get serious. You are indeed worthy of me using my full strength," Sasuke said seriously as he lowered his hands.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked blankly. Sasuke only smiled without answering. He took off his glasses, reducing the Chakra flowing into his eyes. The Four-Tomoe changed into Three-Tomoe, much like the transformation between Three-Tomoe and Mangekyo.

"Sharingan? Why do you have the Sharingan too? Like Kakashi-sensei?" Sasuke felt annoyed when he heard that. "Didn't I tell you back in the Land of Waves? The Sharingan is an eye unique to the Uchiha Clan. How can you not remember that?"

"Oh, then how does Kakashi-sensei have it?"

"You can ask sensei about that yourself." With that, Sasuke ignored him and crouched down to untie the straps around his legs. He was taking off his weights.

"I didn't expect Sasuke to have already awakened Three-Tomoe. He really knows how to hide things," Kakashi said.

"Indeed. Awakening Three-Tomoe at that age... the Uchiha Clan truly is formidable. Their geniuses emerge without end." Tsunade spoke solemnly. "What is that?"

Sasuke removed the weights from both legs and tossed them directly toward the shore. Bang! Bang! Dust rose from the ground.

"Kids these days really are diligent, wearing weights that are several hundred kilograms." Just as Tsunade finished sighing, Sasuke removed the weights from his arms, followed by those around his waist. "That has to be over a thousand kilograms." The spectators exclaimed in amazement.

After removing the weights, Sasuke stretched his limbs and lightly hopped on the lake's surface a few times. Then he said to Naruto, "I'm going all out now. Are you ready?"

"You're really sneaky. So you've been wearing weights all this time. It seems like you never took them off before," Naruto said angrily.

"Heh, that's right. You're the first person who has made me take them off."

"Come on." Naruto assumed a fighting stance. Sasuke directly formed hand seals, his fingers moving even faster than before. "Water Style! High Pressure Water Arrow Technique!" He used Chakra to create high pressure and fired a continuous stream of water arrows with powerful piercing force.

Sharp whistling filled the air as transparent water arrows reflected the sunlight and shot toward Naruto. Naruto began moving at high speed to close in on Sasuke. He did not know any Ninjutsu, and the techniques he did know were all close-combat types, so he could only keep approaching.

"Did he invent that technique himself?" Jiraiya asked Kakashi.

"It should be an improvement. Inventing Ninjutsu is not easy. The Third Hokage used a similar Fire Style Ninjutsu when fighting Orochimaru."

"That's right, I did use one. But his is faster and has greater penetrating power. Under high pressure, water gains cutting and piercing force." The Third Hokage spoke for the first time.

Naruto leaped about, dodging Sasuke's water arrows as he drew closer and closer. Sasuke suddenly stopped the technique and vanished from where he stood. When he reappeared, he was behind Naruto, driving an elbow into his back. Naruto was sent stumbling forward by the heavy blow. Sasuke flickered and appeared in front of him again. Naruto's pupils contracted as Sasuke kicked upward with one leg, striking Naruto beneath the chin and sending him flying upward.

"Shadow of the Dancing Leaf." Sasuke leaped up and flashed beneath Naruto. He slapped Naruto's right shoulder with one hand, then swung his left leg toward Naruto's left side. This was the move he had used during the Chunin Exams, but his current speed and strength were on an entirely different level. This time, Sasuke directly unleashed a full Lion's Barrage combo.

Bang! Naruto was slammed directly into the water. Falling into water hurt far less than hitting the ground, after all; this was not a fight to the death. Naruto's ability to withstand blows had improved considerably, since the Nine-Tails' Chakra possessed healing properties. After entering the water, he immediately used Shadow Clones, then burst out of the water and attacked Sasuke again.

"Naruto is no match for Sasuke," Tsunade said.

"That's hard to say. Naruto's Chakra reserves are simply too vast. If this turns into a battle of attrition, it is still uncertain who will win." Jiraiya did not agree with Tsunade.

"Don't forget, this is not a fight to the death. If this were an actual life-or-death battle, Naruto might already be dead. Sasuke has not even used any large-scale Water Style Ninjutsu yet."

"Naruto hasn't used the Summoning Technique either." The two began arguing, while Kakashi continued watching the duel closely. Sasuke had used the Sharingan and removed his weights, yet he still did not seem to be fighting at full strength. What was going on? Kakashi believed Sasuke was the same type of ninja as himself, so he speculated based on his own traits.

At this moment, Naruto was still beneath the water, using the cover of his Shadow Clones to prepare a Rasengan. He was waiting for an opportunity to attack from below, while Sasuke stood on the water's surface, dealing with the Shadow Clones.