Ninja Combat Practice

Ninja Academy, outdoor class.

They were practicing Ninja Combat Practice.

"...Perform the Reconciliation Seal. All right, the next pair: Choji Akimichi and Shikamaru Nara, step forward." Iruka called their names from the roster in his hand.

"Um... Sensei?" Choji said hesitantly to Iruka.

"What is it?" Iruka asked.

"I don't want to fight my friends..." Choji said honestly. Shikamaru was his best friend, and he really did not want to fight him.

Iruka broke out in a sweat. "No, it's not as serious as you think... This is just traditional Ninja Combat Practice. Even the Hokage of every generation used it to spar and train..."

Before he could finish sweating over it, the cool little guy Shikamaru had already turned around and started walking away. With his hands in his pockets and his eyes closed, Shikamaru said, "Sensei, I'm not participating. Just count it as my surrender... Please move on to the next pair."

Iruka was exhausted.

In the crowd, Kiba, with a puppy perched on his head, chuckled. "That guy has no drive at all. I bet he'll never become a Chunin in his life!" Beside him, the masked Shino said in a muffled voice, "Not necessarily. Life is a long road, perhaps..." Kiba cut him off. "Enough already!"

Among the fangirl squad, Ino said unhappily, "Honestly, Shikamaru is always complaining that things are troublesome, but he's the most troublesome one himself. Choji is the same as always too, no backbone at all!" Sakura, one of the fangirl twins beside her, asked curiously, "Ino, are you close with them?" Ino muttered, "Sort of, because of my father..."

After calming himself down, Iruka announced, "Then Shikamaru and Choji, perform the Reconciliation Seal. Next pair: Naruto Uzumaki and... Sasuke Uchiha."

Shikamaru and Choji formed the seal.

"Sorry, Shikamaru..." Choji said apologetically.

Shikamaru smiled. "It's fine. You didn't want to fight anyway, and I think it's too troublesome."

Choji smiled as well.

The two stepped off the field. Shikamaru gave Naruto a deep look.

"Good luck, Sasuke!"

"Go, Sasuke! Beat him into a pulp!"

The moment Sasuke stepped onto the field, the fangirl squad erupted as if someone had lit a fuse.

A huge bead of sweat appeared on Naruto's head. They were teammates, after all. Sakura, did she really have to make her stance so obvious...?

Still, I wasn't the same as before.

Naruto stood his ground confidently. There was no pride or eagerness on his face, only calmness.

To him, the hardships of his seventeen years of life, the war-torn Shinobi World War, and all the partings and deaths felt as though they had happened only yesterday. A fight between children his own age could no longer stir even the slightest ripple in his heart.

Sasuke was equally calm.

Naruto's calmness was like the blue sky and vast sea.

Sasuke's calmness was like withered wood and stagnant water.

"Now then, Naruto Uzumaki versus Sasuke Uchiha. First, perform the Opposition Seal."

Naruto no longer had the shallow urge to defeat Sasuke just to prove himself, and he was no longer so rash. He raised his right hand and formed the Opposition Seal.

But Sasuke did not move for a long while.

"Sasuke..." Iruka sighed helplessly again and explained, "Before beginning Ninja Combat Practice, both opponents must form their own one-handed seal. It is the most basic courtesy. First, it prepares you for the two-handed seals that follow. Second, it signals to your opponent that you are ready."

"Though it may seem somewhat formalistic, it is basic etiquette, so Sasuke..."

"...Hmph." Sasuke came back to himself, snorted coldly, and formed the seal.

Whatever. It was all just a waste of time anyway.

Sasuke had never regarded anyone his age as worthy of notice.

The only person in his eyes now was that man.

Iruka announced, "Begin!"

Sasuke charged at Naruto, naturally launching into a practiced series of taijutsu attacks, but Naruto easily blocked them.

Huh? Sasuke was startled. He had thought one move would be enough to put this dead last flat on the ground.

"Don't lose focus!" Naruto knocked Sasuke's fist aside and lashed out with a kick.

Sasuke hurriedly dodged, and the two began exchanging blows back and forth.

The children watching immediately started talking among themselves.

"No way... Naruto can actually fight Sasuke evenly?"

"You're kidding. Is this really the same dead last?"

"I must still be dreaming..."

Shikamaru watched Naruto and Sasuke calmly as they traded taijutsu in the field, thinking, This isn't an even match. Sasuke is clearly already giving it his all, while Naruto...

Looking at Sasuke's fierce expression and Naruto's perpetually calm face, Shikamaru was secretly shocked. This guy's improvement is way too terrifying...

"Naruto..." Hinata was happy for Naruto's performance from within the crowd.

Damn it... Sasuke found an opening and leaped backward, rapidly forming hand seals with both hands. Snake! Ram! Monkey! Boar! Horse! Tiger!

Great Fireball Technique!

Blazing flames rushed toward him, but Naruto's expression did not change. A Great Fireball of this level was nothing compared to the Great Fireballs of Itachi and Sasuke in his memories. It was practically just a bubble with a little heat.

I've won!

Though it had consumed a great deal of Chakra, Sasuke was confident that this dead last could not withstand the technique.

However...

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Four shuriken curved around the fireball and shot toward Sasuke.

Damn it. Sasuke gritted his teeth and made a swift judgment. He could not dodge them! With a swish, he hooked a kunai from the tool pouch on his leg. Clang, clang, clang, clang! He deflected them with perfect precision.

Poof, poof, poof, poof! The four shuriken turned into four identical Narutos.

This is bad! Sasuke understood instantly.

"Ras!" One of the Narutos kicked Sasuke into the air, then vanished into white smoke with a poof.

"en!" Another Naruto took over and kicked Sasuke higher into the air. Poof.

"Shu!" The third kick. Poof.

"ri!" The fourth kick. Poof.

Sasuke reached the highest point. Naruto's voice came from above his head. "Barrage!" Naruto's original body had timed it perfectly, leaping to the highest point and delivering one final downward axe kick to Sasuke.

Bang! Sasuke crashed to the ground.

Dust flew everywhere.

The entire field fell silent.

Tap. Naruto landed, while Sasuke lay at his feet.

"No matter how I look at it, this is way too exaggerated..." Iruka finally came back to his senses after a long while.

The children watching were even more stunned. What the hell was this? The dead last had utterly crushed the top student of the Uchiha Clan? Was this really the strength of a six-year-old Ninja Academy student?

"Naruto..." Hinata was both shocked and happy. Naruto had worked so hard. He really had become stronger...

"That's ridiculous, isn't it?" Shikamaru stared in disbelief, while Choji was so startled that the chips in his hand fell to the ground.

"...Ahem. In any case, Naruto wins. Next is the Reconciliation Seal." Iruka announced awkwardly. Even he felt that the words coming out of his mouth were profoundly out of place.

Naruto extended a hand toward Sasuke. He had not used his full strength, so Sasuke should not have been seriously hurt.

Sasuke raised his head, his face incomparably ugly. He slapped Naruto's hand away, climbed to his feet, and walked silently toward the edge of the crowd.

The crowd hurriedly made way. No one wanted to provoke Sasuke at a time like this.

"What a terrible temper." Naruto clicked his tongue, then turned to Iruka. "So, Iruka-sensei, can I leave now?"

"Ah, ah..." Iruka nodded. His worldview had yet to recover from the shock.

Naruto also started walking away, and the children quickly opened a path for him. Naruto scratched his head, then spotted Sasuke's back beneath the wire fence ahead and hurried after him.

"Hey!" Naruto called out to him.

Sasuke stopped but did not turn around. "What is it?" His voice made it obvious that he was in a very bad mood.

"You saw it, right? You can't even beat me now, so stop thinking about getting revenge on Itachi every day. Instead, train like mad before graduation. This is the time he traded everything he had to give you."

Naruto spoke seriously.