Naruto vs. Sasuke

Life at the Ninja Academy was always so plain and uneventful.

Naruto had considered skipping class before, but in order to maintain the image of a good student, he had still managed to arrive on time every day and never leave early.

That day, he entered the classroom and took his seat as usual.

Before his butt had even warmed the chair, Sakura handed Naruto a cup of freshly squeezed juice, looking bashful and shy.

"Naruto-kun, drinking some juice in the morning is good for your health."

This was the tenth day Sakura had brought him a breakfast drink.

"Thank you, Sakura." Naruto accepted it with a gentle smile. "You don't have to bring me any more in the future. Orange juice isn't cheap either."

"It's fine, it's fine. Our family has lots of orange juice. It's all leftover—no, no, I mean there's extra. It would be a waste not to drink it." Sakura hurriedly explained, silently annoyed at herself for misspeaking.

She was usually carefree and bold, but whenever she faced Naruto, she instinctively became shy and unsure of herself.

"Alright, then thank you." Naruto accepted Sakura's kindness.

During this, he noticed someone watching him and turned his head.

It was the Hyuga girl with short purple hair, Hinata Hyuga.

"Morning." He gave Hinata a gentle smile.

She immediately lowered her head, steam practically rising from it.

The first time Naruto saw Hinata, he recognized her as the pale-eyed girl he had saved years ago.

She had a gentle and kind nature. He wondered whether she had changed at all since then.

Naruto had learned from Rock Lee that Hinata was the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan's main family head.

Just like Sasuke, she was a core figure within her clan.

Naturally, she had access to abundant clan resources, so her strength could not possibly be weak.

Naruto withdrew his gaze and waited for Iruka's lesson.

"Everyone, today we'll be conducting combat practice." Iruka walked into the classroom and spoke gently.

As soon as he finished speaking, the classroom erupted into noise like boiling water with the lid lifted.

This would be their first official battle since entering the Ninja Academy.

Their gazes gathered on Naruto and Sasuke.

They were eager to see how these two geniuses would perform.

"Combat practice? Then I'll be taking first place in our grade this time." Sasuke curled his lips into an arrogant smirk.

"Eaglets fear nothing because they do not know fear." Naruto smiled without changing expression.

"I've actually been preparing that line for a long time." Sasuke instantly lost his composure and sighed before turning serious. "Naruto, this time I'll take off all my weights. Be careful."

Sasuke wanted to get serious.

But that made sense. Ever since Sasuke had begun training, they had never had a truly serious battle without holding anything back.

Naruto smiled and nodded. "I'm looking forward to it."

"Don't let your guard down. Maybe this time, I'll force you to use Kyoka Suigetsu."

In the open field, one-on-one battles were about to begin under Iruka's direction.

The first pair to take the field were two utterly unremarkable students. Even Naruto had not remembered their names yet.

The two nameless students launched straight into an intense brawl. Since they had only recently begun studying at the Ninja Academy, they were not yet proficient in using Kunai or Shuriken.

The fight was terribly unattractive, and quite a few students were already nodding off.

But Naruto watched with great interest.

"Next, Hinata Hyuga versus Murakami Ten."

A battle involving the Hyuga Clan.

Like many of the other students, Naruto perked up.

"The Hyuga Clan specializes in Gentle Fist. Their pale eyes, like our Uchiha eyes, are an extremely rare Kekkei Genkai. They can see through the pathways within an opponent's body and possess exceptional perception," Sasuke said softly.

"How do they compare with your Sharingan?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Of course they can't compare to the Sharingan." Sasuke proudly raised his head.

"Although the Hyuga and Uchiha are both renowned as great noble clans, the Hyuga Clan does not actually have any top-tier experts. And the pale eyes' ability is merely perception. Their potential is completely inferior to the Sharingan's."

At that moment, Sasuke was like a proud peacock.

There's quite a bit of personal bias in that statement, Naruto thought as he quietly watched the field.

Hinata was already fighting the nameless student.

Hinata assumed a peculiar fighting stance. Her eyes turned a pale bluish-white, and veins bulged around them.

Perhaps because he was facing someone from the Hyuga Clan, Murakami Ten looked extremely nervous.

For an ordinary civilian to defeat someone from a great clan was as difficult as reaching the sky, but if he succeeded, he would definitely gain no small amount of attention.

He picked up a kunai, gathered his courage, and charged at Hinata.

"That speed is so slow it looks like a snail to these eyes of mine," Sasuke commented. "If the Hyuga Clan can't even defend against this kind of attack, I'll be seriously disappointed."

Facing her opponent's attack, Hinata remained calm and composed. Every punch and every move carried a natural rhythm.

Her movements appeared slow, yet each one perfectly neutralized her opponent's attacks.

This battle continued for nearly a minute.

Sasuke immediately frowned. "Is that all the Hyuga Clan can do? I could knock this kind of opponent down with one punch."

"So this is soft force." Naruto watched Hinata thoughtfully.

"The Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist can neutralize the opponent's force and even turn it to their own use, achieving the effect of using four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds," Naruto muttered to himself. "Hinata's body has barely left that circle."

"Rather than evenly matched, it would be more accurate to say that Hinata is using Murakami Ten to test out her moves. This may be her first real battle."

Hearing that, Sasuke focused his gaze and noticed that Hinata was using one foot as a pivot, moving only the other to deal with the attacks.

The dirt around her body had been traced into a tiny circle, just large enough for one person, by the movement of her right foot.

"Hmph, the Hyuga Clan does have some skill after all." Sasuke's face reddened as he spoke coldly.

Naruto, meanwhile, wore a pleased expression.

Hinata had grown stronger.

Before long, Hinata defeated Murakami Ten. He was panting so hard he could barely catch his breath, while Hinata remained calm and unruffled, not even flushed or winded.

"Not a battle on the same level, and she's also hiding some of her true strength," Naruto commented.

"Next match: Sasuke Uchiha versus Naruto Uzumaki."

The moment those words were spoken, the venue fell silent.

Then, in an instant, an uproar broke out.

"It's finally our turn. Come on, Naruto." Sasuke rose to his feet with high spirits, and the admiring gazes around him made him forget himself for a moment.

"I'll show you the power of these eyes."

"You haven't even awakened them yet," Naruto said, almost too exhausted to mock him.

The Uchiha Clan's greatest flaw was this kind of foolish arrogance.

"Arrogance will become the stumbling block that brings you down."

Naruto walked into the arena with a gentle smile, looking like a refined young nobleman.

For a moment, the image felt somewhat out of place.

He looked like a young aristocrat who had come to the Ninja Academy for a tour.

"I've waited a long time for this day." Sasuke's lips curved into a wicked smile, drawing shrieks from quite a few girls.

He pulled out a kunai and assumed a fighting stance.

"Let me see the caliber of the Uchiha Clan's genius. I hope you can give me a satisfying fight."

Naruto slowly closed his eyes.

No one, Sasuke included, understood why Naruto was doing this.

But in the next moment, they were all stunned by the commotion Naruto caused.

The students, Sasuke, even Iruka!