Overtaking on the Curve

"Young master, I tugged on your sleeve just now to signal you, but you ignored me!"

Shimura Genma wore a deeply aggrieved expression as he slowly shuffled away, trying to put some distance between himself and this cousin who was courting death.

"Cough, cough... Hokage sir, you misheard me. I wasn't talking about the Ninja Academy principal, but the Ninja Academy vice principal!"

After glaring at his little brother, who was retreating from him, Shimura Kentei turned around and coughed dryly. He claimed that everyone had misunderstood him—he had meant the vice principal, not Sarutobi Hiruzen, the actual principal.

It was not entirely Shimura Kentei's fault. Although Sarutobi Hiruzen was the Ninja Academy principal, he rarely visited the academy. Even when he did, it was in his capacity as Hokage.

Moreover, Shimura Kentei had never been interested in such matters before, which was why today's farce had happened.

However, the moment he said that, the atmosphere fell silent once more. The looks everyone gave him gradually became even stranger.

This kid was truly ruthless!

That strange atmosphere left Shimura Kentei somewhat bewildered. He turned and shot an inquiring look at Shimura Genma, who had already moved three meters away.

"Young master, the clan head is the nominal vice principal of our Ninja Academy!"

Having retreated to a safe distance, Shimura Genma finally relaxed and quietly reminded him. In return, Shimura Kentei gave him a vicious glare.

"Cough, cough... Hokage sir, you misheard me again. What I meant was that our Ninja Academy's system is outdated. It has delayed many talented youths, and all it produces is a bunch of useless trash. This bunch of trash cannot possibly uphold the Will of Fire or protect Konoha!"

After another dry cough, Shimura Kentei ignored the strange stares of everyone present and declared that all the graduates before him were trash.

The moment those words fell, the atmosphere went silent again before erupting like a volcano. Everyone was furious.

"You worthless cripple, I've put up with you for long enough! Come out and die!"

"You trash who doesn't know the difference between life and death!"

"You failure who's repeated three years, what right do you have to spew such nonsense?"

Everyone glared at him furiously. Had they not retained a shred of rationality, they would have already rushed him together.

"That's Danzo's son, isn't it?"

Tsunade Hime crossed her arms, squeezing her pair of peerless weapons into an even more terrifying display. She was rather curious about Shimura Kentei.

She wondered whether that old fellow Shimura Danzō had been cuckolded.

This son of his did not resemble him in temperament at all. No matter how she looked at it, he did not seem like Shimura Danzō's child.

"I've heard of that kid. It seems he was born prematurely, so his body's chakra points never fully formed. They then mutated after birth, leaving him unable to form hand seals or use ninjutsu. He also doesn't have much talent for chakra cultivation."

Orochimaru licked his lips. He had little interest in Shimura Kentei, but he was greatly interested in the boy's father, Shimura Danzō.

That old man had quite a few good things in his hands right now!

"His chakra reserves are indeed a little low!"

After sensing him out, Jiraiya nodded slightly. In his perception, Shimura Kentei's chakra reserves were extremely meager, not even reaching the minimum standard for a Genin.

At his age, he truly had no talent as a ninja. Sending him to the Ninja Academy was practically a waste.

And for someone with such strength to make such arrogant claims, calling him arrogant was not even enough. It was simply brainless, unreasonable behavior.

To think that Shimura Danzō, known as the Shadow of Shinobi, had produced such a foolish son. A tiger of a father truly had a dog of a son!

Was this the retribution for doing too many bad things?

"Nonsense!"

His old face darkening, Sarutobi Hiruzen also felt this was brainless behavior. He reprimanded him lightly and signaled for the Anbu hidden in the shadows to take that unreasonable brat away.

"Excuse me!"

An Anbu ninja wearing a fox mask appeared beside Shimura Kentei. He placed a hand on Kentei's shoulder, intending to take him away immediately, only for Shimura Kentei to seize his wrist.

Feeling the tremendous strength on his wrist, the Anbu ninja's heart skipped a beat. He looked up and found a smiling face before him.

"Big brother Anbu, lend me your body for a little performance!"

"Super Strength Technique!"

With an innocent smile, Shimura Kentei did not wait for the Anbu ninja to respond. He circulated the small amount of chakra in his body and unleashed it, empowering his entire body. Then he grabbed the Anbu ninja by both wrists, swung him up, and viciously smashed him into the ground on the other side.

Any ninja capable of joining the Anbu was naturally no weakling. At minimum, they had to be elite Chunin, and this Anbu ninja was already infinitely close to the level of a special Jonin.

Twisting his body, he landed on both feet and steadied himself.

Before he could make a move, however, another massive force pulled at his wrist. His body was swung up once more.

He was swung dozens of times like that. Finally, after one mistake, his body was smashed heavily into the ground, embedding him within it.

The force of the impact sent pain coursing through the Anbu ninja's body, while his internal organs twisted in agony. Although he had not been injured yet, it was far from pleasant.

That was only because he had flooded his body with chakra and temporarily increased his physical strength. Otherwise, that blow would have made him cough up blood for sure.

"Big brother Anbu, you've worked hard!"

Before the Anbu ninja could recover, Shimura Kentei crouched down and stuffed a prepared envelope into his hand.

The thoroughly confused Anbu ninja looked at the envelope. When he saw the familiar color inside, he swiftly tucked it into his ninja tool pouch.

Without saying anything else, the Anbu ninja rose and looked toward Sarutobi Hiruzen. After receiving a signal, he leaped away, secretly sighing to himself.

As expected of that lord's descendant!

Although he was a ninjutsu-type ninja and not skilled in taijutsu, that was only compared to ninjas of the same level. In terms of taijutsu alone, he could easily sweep aside any Genin.

Yet even after trying several times just now, he had been unable to break free from Shimura Kentei's grip. It was clear just how frightening the other party's strength was.

A tiger of a father truly did not have a dog of a son!

He then touched his ninja tool pouch. Though he had been somewhat embarrassed this time, he felt utterly delighted inside.

The envelope was filled with banknotes in denominations of ten thousand ryo. Judging from its thickness, there had to be at least one hundred thousand ryo in there.

A B-Rank mission these days only paid eighty thousand to two hundred thousand ryo. Moreover, B-Rank missions were usually team missions, so the reward had to be divided among everyone. After the village took its cut, there was not much left.

He had earned one hundred thousand ryo just by playing along with the Shimura Family's young master.

All he wanted to ask was...

Would there be a next time?

At that moment, everyone stared blankly at the human-shaped crater before Shimura Kentei. The crater and the tremors that had just come from the ground fully proved the immense force behind that slam.

There were also many deep footprints, left behind when the Anbu ninja had been swung around earlier.

How could that guy have such tremendous strength?

"Monster Strength Technique!"

Tsunade muttered softly, her beautiful eyes shining as she saw through its secret.

"Monster Strength Technique? That kid used the Monster Strength Technique? Didn't you say he couldn't use ninjutsu? And the Monster Strength Technique is an A-Rank Nintaijutsu!"

Jiraiya was greatly surprised. He knew how hard the ground of this training field was. Besides, the weather had been scorching lately, baking the earth until it was extremely solid. Smashing such a crater into the ground was no easy feat.

Furthermore, the Monster Strength Technique was an A-Rank Nintaijutsu secretly passed down by the Senju Clan. What spread outside were only minor tricks of brute strength, not even worthy of being called a technique.

How could that kid possibly have learned the Monster Strength Technique?

"It isn't Tsunade's Monster Strength Technique, but it should have reached D-Rank. And his physical condition is not weak."

Orochimaru answered part of Jiraiya's confusion, though he himself had many questions.

Wasn't that kid unable to form hand seals and use ninjutsu? How had he suddenly learned this sort of Monster Strength Technique?

And where had that D-Rank Monster Strength Technique come from?

He had never heard of a Monster Strength Technique of that level in the village or the ninja world!

"Is the Shimura Clan researching the Monster Strength Technique as well?"

Tsunade Hime became interested—not in Shimura Kentei, but in the Shimura Clan.

She naturally did not believe that Shimura Kentei had created such a Monster Strength Technique. Developing a Nintaijutsu like the Monster Strength Technique was far more dangerous than developing ordinary ninjutsu. All of its changes occurred inside the body, and a single mistake could damage one's meridians, chakra points, muscles, bones, and skin.

At best, one would be crippled. At worst, one would die.

Even the Senju Clan, with their formidable physiques and regenerative abilities as their foundation, had paid a terrible price when creating the Monster Strength Technique.

She wondered how many people the Shimura Clan had crippled or killed to create this D-Rank Monster Strength Technique.

"It was indeed this old man's mistake to overlook such talent as yours, but this alone is not enough to overturn the graduation rules set by this old man!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke in a deep voice then. Interest and resentment both rose in his heart.

He had not expected that old friend of his to quietly create a Monster Strength Technique of this level. Yet Danzō had kept it from him, which deeply saddened him.

Had a crack appeared in the bond between the two of them?

Or had Danzō found someone else outside?

"Actual combat is the most important standard for testing a ninja's strength. One week from now, I'll give this bunch of trash a chance to challenge me. Anyone who can't beat me, someone who can't even graduate, can all go back for another year at the Ninja Academy so they won't disgrace themselves outside!"

With his arms crossed, Shimura Kentei exuded the bearing of an overlord looking down upon the world, completely disregarding all the graduates present.

He was absolutely confident in this regard. After all, those present were merely nine-year-old brats. No matter how talented they were, at most they would possess Chunin-level strength.

As long as they had not reached Jonin level, he could beat them all senseless.

After all, he merely had low chakra reserves and could not form hand seals. It was not as though he could not cultivate. Such a minor issue was nothing to someone like him, who possessed a Golden Finger.

Not to mention anything else, his current physical condition alone was no worse than Rock Lee's during the Chunin Ninja Exams in Naruto. Moreover, unlike Rock Lee, who specialized in speed, he specialized more in strength and was stronger in direct combat.

His arrogant words enraged the graduates around him once again. However, looking at the human-shaped crater left by the Anbu ninja, they ultimately did not curse him as before and could only glare at him furiously.

If looks could kill, Shimura Kentei would have been turned into window screen by now.

"Very good. Actual combat is indeed the most important standard for testing a ninja's strength. I hope your performance one week from now will satisfy this old man."

After giving Shimura Kentei a deep look, Sarutobi Hiruzen left those words behind and turned to depart.

He needed to hurry back and see whether Danzo had someone else outside. Keeping something like this from him was simply outrageous!

His words clearly acknowledged Shimura Kentei's proposal, causing an uproar among the many graduates below.

"Mikoto, that guy is so annoying!"

Senju Nawaki, standing among the crowd, looked thoroughly displeased. A perfectly fine graduation ceremony had been turned into this by that guy's interference.

His older sister had even come to watch this time.

"He isn't weak, and since he said this, he must have something to rely on. We should be careful when the time comes. Don't actually get eliminated and end up returning to the Ninja Academy for another year!"

Uchiha Mikoto's beautiful eyes were likewise fixed on that heroic figure. Her heart was solemn, but she also possessed absolute confidence.

That person's strength was astonishing, but a ninja's combat ability primarily depended on chakra and ninjutsu. In that regard, she held an absolute advantage.

Besides...

At that thought, Uchiha Mikoto sensed the Pupil Power within her eyes, and her confidence grew even stronger.

"My vacation!"

Senju Nawaki's little face fell. He knew that given his sister's personality, regardless of whether he could defeat that guy, she would definitely put him through extra training this week.

He had originally wanted his sister to spend some time playing with him properly. Now, it looked like that was not going to happen.

"I never expected to encounter such an interesting matter upon returning this time!"

Orochimaru licked his lips, anticipation growing in his heart.

"Tsunade, do you think Nawaki will get beaten flat and have to spend another year at the Ninja Academy?"

Jiraiya grinned. He too was looking forward to the battle one week later.

"Hmph!"

Tsunade Hime snorted coldly and could not be bothered to respond to Jiraiya. She gave Shimura Kentei, who stood out from the crowd like a crane among chickens, a deep look before turning away.

That kid did not look foolish. Since he had said such things, he must have something to rely on. It seemed she needed to give Nawaki some intensive training this week, especially in actual combat.

(At the editor's suggestion, there will be two updates per day until the book goes premium. It will not reach the ten thousand words per day promised in the synopsis, but I'll save those chapters and release them after it goes premium. Everyone, look forward to this book going premium!

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