The Perfect Embodiment of the Will of Fire?

"His true condition?" Yagami Kei was startled and hurriedly asked, "Could it be that Soseki wasn't injured at all?"

"It's not that he wasn't injured, but that his injuries were nowhere near as severe as they appeared." The Third Hokage looked at Soseki, his eyes full of admiration. "More precisely, he was deliberately guiding himself into getting hurt. Those injuries looked serious, but in reality, they wouldn't have much impact on the battle."

"Th-this kind of thing can be done too?"

"Of course it can, but the prerequisite is..." The Third Hokage was in a pleasant mood and could not help taking out his pipe for a smoke. "Having a sufficient understanding of your own body."

"There's one more thing: he has pushed the Healing Technique to its limits. Even if I used the Healing Technique myself, I might not be able to do better than he did!"

The people around them could not help widening their eyes. Although the Hokage was not a specialized Medical Ninja, as the renowned Professor of Ninjutsu of the Shinobi World, his attainments in Medical Ninjutsu actually surpassed those of the vast majority of Medical Ninja.

For him to say something like that was enough to show Soseki's talent in Medical Ninjutsu.

Even as they marveled, someone still asked in confusion, "But what's the point of doing this? No matter how much he disguises it, his strength won't increase in the slightest!"

The Third Hokage blew out a ring of smoke. "It isn't as simple as you think. Asuma should know very well how effective Medical Ninjutsu is, yet now, he's getting impatient!"

Everyone was shocked, only then noticing that Asuma was already drenched in sweat.

Not only was his breathing ragged, but his steps had become much more disorderly as well.

This was... psychological warfare?

"It's true. His condition really has recovered!" After several clashes, Asuma confirmed what he had seen.

On the other side, Soseki did not try to provoke his opponent with words. Instead, his eyes remained resolute as he silently launched attack after attack at Asuma.

Yet the more Soseki acted this way, the more Asuma became convinced that he was unfathomable.

Clone Technique!

Driven by the immense pressure Soseki exerted, Asuma achieved a breakthrough in the heat of battle. He created one more clone, but it was still useless. Clones without physical substance could not interfere with Soseki's judgment at all; they merely wasted Chakra for nothing.

Perhaps because his Medical Ninjutsu had been "exposed," Soseki no longer maintained the stalemate either. Instead, he adopted the same violent fighting style as Asuma.

Before long, his body was covered in wounds.

Then, before Asuma's despairing eyes, Soseki placed his left hand over his chest again, and his seemingly severe injuries rapidly healed.

"Again? So strong... is this Soseki's true strength?" Looking at Soseki's calm expression, Asuma's chest heaved violently, and even the hands gripping his Chakra Blade trembled slightly.

Although he had held the "upper hand" earlier, the rhythm of the battle had actually been controlled by his opponent from the very beginning. Coupled with the fact that Soseki's expression had not changed at all throughout the fight, Asuma found him impossible to read.

All sorts of complicated factors intertwined, gradually breaking down Asuma's psychological defenses and allowing the Psychological Suggestion Soseki had planted before the battle to take root and grow.

In the end, his mentality completely collapsed!

"Ah! Asuma is going to lose!"

"Yeah, his rhythm has been completely thrown off."

"That kid called Soseki is just too strong!"

"More like he's too shameless! There's no way to fight someone like that!"

Not many could see Soseki's true strength. Seeing Asuma's attacks become increasingly disorganized, everyone around them had already reached a verdict on the battle.

Asuma noticed his own problem too, but it was useless. The more he tried to calm down, the more agitated he became. Amid his chaotic thoughts, several more wounds appeared on his body.

"Calm down. Get a grip on yourself!" Asuma breathed heavily and viciously bit the tip of his tongue. "The key to this battle is Soseki's Medical Ninjutsu, but his hand seals are too fast. There's no time to interrupt him. In that case, I can only make his Medical Ninjutsu ineffective. In other words, I need an attack beyond its limits to make Soseki lose his ability to fight outright."

"Though I'm still not proficient with this move, I can only go all out!" Asuma approached his opponent while forming hand seals. "Snake—Ram—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger, Great Fireball Technique!"

"Th-that's actually a C-rank ninjutsu!"

"You've got to be kidding! A genin-level ninjutsu in the hands of an apprentice ninja?"

The older students around them could not help widening their eyes. While they were still struggling with E-rank ninjutsu, a new student was already capable of using genin-level ninjutsu!

Even if he was the Hokage's son, wasn't this still far too outrageous?

As they marveled, everyone suddenly came to their senses. "Oh no, Soseki..."

As a difficult technique among C-rank ninjutsu, the Great Fireball Technique possessed an extremely wide attack range and devastating power. Yet Soseki seemed to have been scared stiff, standing there blankly until the massive fireball swallowed him whole.

Boom!

A surging heat wave swept out as raging flames devoured everything!

"I... I killed Soseki?" Seeing this, Asuma's hands trembled, the light vanished from his eyes, and his entire body seemed to lose its vitality.

Just as Asuma was overwhelmed with grief, a sudden chill touched his neck, accompanied by Soseki's slightly apologetic voice.

"Sorry, Asuma."

Asuma was overjoyed. Sniffling, he turned around and asked, "Soseki, you're not dead?"

Soseki withdrew the kunai pressed against the back of Asuma's neck and said helplessly, "The Hokage didn't even intervene, so of course that means I was confident I could avoid it!"

"Right! That annoying old man of mine was here too!"

Soseki wore a strange expression. "Asuma, your tongue?"

Asuma looked embarrassed. "I accidentally bit my tongue just now. Ahem, I'll get it under control."

Asuma straightened his tongue, then changed the subject. "By the way, how did you dodge that just now?"

Soseki smiled. "Naturally, it was because of the Substitution Technique!"

"You know the Substitution Technique too? But I've never seen you use it before!"

"Just because I hadn't used it before doesn't mean I couldn't! After all, I don't have as much Chakra as you do."

Asuma still found it hard to believe. "In only half a month, you not only learned such incredible Medical Ninjutsu, but you can even use the Substitution Technique so well!"

Soseki asked as though it were only natural, "For people like us, isn't the Substitution Technique something you can learn after watching it a few times?"

Soseki truly had not taken this matter to heart. Compared with a genius like Uchiha Itachi, who could learn the Great Fireball Technique after seeing it once, this level of performance only made him an ordinary genius.

"Learn it... after watching it a few times?" Asuma's eyes were blank, and he seemed at a loss. After a long while, his gaze darkened as he sighed. "I-I might be holding back geniuses like you. That's right, I'm actually just an ordinary person, aren't I?"

For someone still at that chuunibyou age, the blow of having his fantasies shattered was indeed rather severe.

Just as Asuma sank into self-doubt, a pair of hands rested on his shoulders.

"What are you talking about, Asuma? You're so strong. In terms of actual strength, I'm no match for you at all!"

As he spoke, Soseki's tone suddenly turned serious. "If just one defeat leaves you this dejected, then as your opponent, I'll be very, very disappointed!"

Asuma looked up and met Soseki's eyes, which seemed to dance with brilliant light.

In that instant, an inexplicable emotion filled his heart.

Asuma sniffed hard and said in a thick nasal voice, "I understand. Next time... next time, I'll definitely defeat you!"

Seeing Asuma return to being that familiar chuunibyou boy again, Soseki smiled. "Then let's form the Reconciliation Seal!"

"Yeah!"

On the other side, Takeuchi Taiga, Asuma's instructor, lowered his head in shame.

"Hokage-sama, this is a serious failure on my part!"

Asuma had the best diet, the best resources, and the guidance of a "top-tier" teacher like him.

Yet he had still lost, and lost to a newcomer with no resources at all—a war orphan. Such an outcome made Takeuchi Taiga feel he could not escape blame.

The Third Hokage merely waved his hand with a smile. "You've already done very well. I saw his growth in Asuma."

"But Young Master Asuma still lost!"

"Losing now is better than losing on the battlefield later. Besides, he lost because his opponent was simply too strong!" The Third Hokage smiled as he tapped his pipe. "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, even I would find it hard to believe that this was something a newcomer who had only studied at the Ninja Academy for half a month could accomplish!"

Takeuchi Taiga nodded vigorously. That kid was simply a monster!

Cheers rose from the field in wave after wave.

The Third Hokage watched the scene with a smile. Beyond Soseki's talent, what he valued even more was Soseki's "background" and "sunshine."

Over the past few days, he had also looked into Soseki's experiences.

The more he learned, the more he understood how rare and precious the boy was.

A war orphan, yet not withdrawn or resentful. Instead, he used a sunny attitude every day to warm those around him. At Konoha Hospital, nearly every doctor and patient was exceptionally fond of him.

It was the same at the Ninja Academy. In just half a month, he had earned the recognition of his entire class as their leader.

This was simply the perfect embodiment of the Will of Fire. No wonder he could say such things... The Third Hokage sighed inwardly, then smiled. "Let's go. Leave this time of laughter to them."

Thanks to Changed Name Costs One Hundred for the 500 reward, and Book Friend 1259032828563337216 for the 100 reward. After this battle, the protagonist will begin pulling off some flashy moves. Soseki's flashy moves are super, super numerous.