Designated

"Hey—" the students on the Training Ground cried out in unison.

"All right, all right!" Teacher pressed both hands down and said, "We'll follow these rules today. Everyone can choose one opponent. We have twenty-five matches to finish today, so time is tight."

Everyone could choose an opponent? Wasn't Teacher supposed to assign them? This seemed kind of interesting! So, who should I choose?

Chiba secretly took out the half-eaten steamed bun and nibbled on it while glancing around.

Uchiha Hirohiko? Chiba quietly settled on his target. If he wanted to draw attention, he had to pick the top student in the grade.

"All right! I choose Hirohiko!" As soon as Teacher finished speaking, a little boy raised his hand, stepped forward, and pointed at Uchiha Hirohiko in the crowd.

"Hey, Ono, what are you doing? You're a dead last!" The students immediately began shouting.

Ono curled his lips disdainfully and thought, You idiots. If I lose to Hirohiko, Dad and Mom won't scold me when I get home. If I lose to the top student, even they won't have anything to say!

"Good!" Teacher approved the spar.

Chiba looked at Ono, then at Uchiha Hirohiko as he slowly stepped forward.

Too late. Well, whatever. I'll see just how strong Uchiha Hirohiko is!

After forming the Seal of Confrontation, Teacher announced the start.

Then Chiba's pupils narrowed slightly.

The match had already been decided! In an instant, Uchiha Hirohiko pinned Ono beneath him, holding a kunai to Ono's throat.

Ono broke out in a cold sweat, his little face turning deathly pale. With a cold, gleaming kunai pressed against his neck, how could his face not be pale?

"Uchiha Hirohiko wins!" Teacher announced.

Uchiha Hirohiko kept a cold expression as he put away the kunai and slowly stood. Ono shakily got to his feet as well.

After forming the Seal of Reconciliation, the two returned to the crowd.

Even after returning to the crowd, Ono's body still seemed to be trembling. Cold sweat dripped down his face, and he looked terrifyingly pale.

Killing intent... Had this Uchiha Hirohiko already stained his hands with blood? Chiba put down his steamed bun and frowned.

And he subdued Ono in a single move. That speed was so fast!

A genius truly couldn't be underestimated! Chiba had originally thought that, having learned the Eight Gates, even with only three gates open, he could already crush these students. But now it seemed that Uchiha Hirohiko would not be so easy to deal with.

"Who's next?" Teacher said.

"I..." Before Teacher's words had even faded, a crisp voice like a warbler rang out as Hyuga Yukina stepped from the crowd.

When Teacher saw that it was Hyuga Yukina, he nodded. "Choose an opponent."

"Is it finally time for Hirohiko and Young Miss to settle things?" one boy said excitedly, clearly anticipating a duel between Hyuga Yukina and Uchiha Hirohiko.

"There's no need to ask who she'll choose, right? It has to be Hirohiko. Other than Hirohiko, who here can defeat Young Miss?" another boy said.

"Yeah, Young Miss doesn't like fighting weak people. Only Hirohiko qualifies."

"Hey, what do you think will happen when Young Miss and Hirohiko fight this time?"

"What do you mean, what will happen? Their record is currently three to one. Hirohiko has beaten Young Miss three times, while Young Miss has only beaten Hirohiko once. Of course Hirohiko will win."

"But Young Miss is really strong too."

"Of course she is! Other than Hirohiko, no one can beat her!"

Over among the girls.

"Sigh, it's Yukina and Hirohiko again." One girl sighed, her tone full of jealousy.

"Do you think Hirohiko and Yukina are dating? I often see them walking together after school." Compared to sparring, the girls clearly cared more about romance.

"What nonsense. The Hyuga Clan and the Uchiha are just on the same route home!" one girl objected.

"But look at them. Hirohiko is so handsome, Yukina is so pretty, and they're both so strong." Another girl spoke dejectedly.

The girls looked over at Yukina and all fell silent. They couldn't compare! Then they looked at Hirohiko.

Ah! He was so handsome!

The girls' eyes immediately turned into hearts.

"I choose..." Hyuga Yukina swept her gaze over the crowd, her eyes stopping on Uchiha Hirohiko.

It really was Hirohiko!

Everyone wore expressions of utter certainty.

Uchiha Hirohiko also frowned slightly. He knew Yukina's strength very well. She was strong, absolutely not comparable to those dead lasts. If he fought her, he would have to give it his full focus.

"Taki Chiba!" Hyuga Yukina's pink lips spoke that name.

Taki Chiba? The students all froze, then erupted into an uproar!

"What! Taki Chiba?" the students cried out in unison.

Young Miss actually chose Taki Chiba, that traitor's son? Was he that strong? "Impossible, impossible! Fourth from the bottom, Taki Chiba is a dead last too! What's wrong with Young Miss?" Ono had recovered by now, but upon hearing Hyuga Yukina's choice, he shook his head repeatedly in disbelief.

As the last-ranked student, he paid close attention to those at the bottom. He knew Chiba's ranking very clearly.

What? He was a dead last too? The girls were disappointed.

Why didn't Yukina choose Hirohiko? They wouldn't get to see his handsome fighting stance! What a pity!

Uchiha Hirohiko was also slightly stunned. He slowly turned around and stared in astonishment at Chiba behind him, who had picked up his steamed bun and was about to take a bite.

Yukina chose him as her opponent? Was this a joke? Uchiha Hirohiko found it hard to believe. It was not that he was arrogant, but only he could contend with Yukina here. And this person looked entirely ordinary. Whether in taijutsu, Shurikenjutsu, or the Three Body Techniques, this guy's performance had been completely average. No, not average—terrible! He had observed every classmate and understood their strength. This Taki Chiba was absolutely among the weakest.

Yukina would completely crush him! Why would she choose him? Forget Uchiha Hirohiko, even Chiba himself was somewhat stunned. He had even forgotten to bite into his steamed bun.

He had never expected Yukina to choose him as her opponent.

"Taki Chiba, take the field." Teacher was also somewhat surprised. He understood Hyuga Yukina's personality well. She was a serious genius. Though inferior to Uchiha Hirohiko, she was still an exceptional talent and one of the seeds for the future. Moreover, the Gentle Fist passed down solely through the Hyuga Clan was tremendously powerful. Privately, he thought very highly of her.

As for Taki Chiba, setting aside his background, there was simply nothing remarkable about his performance. He was mediocre, even poor, the type of student considered a dead last.

Even in Shurikenjutsu and the Three Body Techniques, he was inferior to Ono, another dead last. If his taijutsu had not been slightly better, Taki Chiba would not even have been ranked forty-seventh. He would have been placed dead last.

Taki Chiba's strength was, at most, on the same level as Ono.

Oh! So that was it!

Teacher suddenly understood.

Yukina had always been competing with Hirohiko! Seeing Hirohiko defeat Ono instantly, she refused to accept it and wanted to instantly defeat Taki Chiba in one move as well!

So that was it!

Teacher understood in an instant. The surprise on his face changed into an expression of realization. By then, Chiba was already standing before Yukina, and the two had formed the Seal of Confrontation.

Sigh, poor Taki Chiba. He had become a sacrifice in the rivalry between geniuses! Teacher sighed inwardly, then announced, "Begin!"

There was a power outage today, so the update was late. Sorry!