Kageka Maple VS Nara Zentaro

"Since you dare to say that, it seems you're quite confident in your abilities..."

Akeshi walked slightly towards Kageka Maple, her cold and beautiful face slowly approaching Kageka Maple's face, stopping when their noses were only about a centimeter apart. Then, she lowered her voice and said, "Why don't you let me witness your Shadow Release tonight?"

Kageka Maple felt Akeshi's warm breath on her face, making her cheeks slightly red. She said shyly, "It would be my honor to spar with the Uchiha's genius."

The meaning in Kageka Maple's words was self-evident.

Akeshi took a step back, looking at the girl who was different from usual. A playful look appeared on her face for the first time, as if she was looking forward to the evening.

Although Akeshi and Kageka Maple spoke softly, Yuzuru's hearing allowed him to hear everything clearly. He hadn't expected the Shadow Release to change Kageka Maple's personality so quickly. Before obtaining the Shadow Release, she was so delicate, timid, and lovable, but as she gained control over the Shadow Release and her own strength increased, her personality had undergone a complete reversal. Her words and actions not only contained a hint of dominance and overbearingness, but she was also constantly filled with unparalleled confidence...

Senju Nawaki, who had been running with his head down, suddenly bumped into something soft. When he looked up, he saw a warm hand gently rubbing his head.

"Big sis!"

Senju Nawaki exclaimed in surprise, then hugged Tsunade's slender waist with both hands, acting like a spoiled child, shaking his head from side to side...

"Alright, alright."

Tsunade patted Senju Nawaki's back, comforting him, "That Uchiha genius is indeed very strong. Although she's only six years old, she already has the strength of a Chuunin. It's not your fault that you're not her opponent..."

Hearing Tsunade's words, Senju Nawaki immediately took a few steps back, looking at Tsunade with a surprised expression.

"Big sis, you found out so quickly?"

"No, that's not right..."

Senju Nawaki quickly shook his head, rejecting his own idea.

"...So, you've been secretly watching my fight with Uchiha Akihime? Right?"

Tsunade didn't say anything, but nodded.

"Big sis, am I very pathetic?"

Senju Nawaki was immediately dejected. His embarrassing appearance had been seen by his beloved sister, making him feel so ashamed that he wanted to find a hole to hide in.

"No."

Tsunade shook her head as she walked in front of Senju Nawaki, saying to him very seriously, "The reason why a ninja is a ninja is because they must endure what ordinary people cannot endure! You are still young, and you will definitely face more failures in the future, so there is no need to care about these things at all. Not only should you not care, but you should also use these failures as the driving force for your own strength. Only by knowing shame and striving for progress can you become stronger!"

Although Senju Nawaki didn't understand most of what Tsunade said, he understood one thing: failure is not terrible, what is terrible is not having a heart to withstand failure!

"Big sis, I understand!"

Senju Nawaki seemed to understand something, and a raging fire suddenly appeared in the depths of his eyes. Then, he said to Tsunade with great seriousness, "Big sis, please train me during this summer vacation!"

"Special training?"

Tsunade didn't agree immediately when she heard this.

"Big sis, can you?"

But when she saw her only younger brother begging her, Tsunade's heart softened, and she had no choice but to take out the little time she had left to train him.

"Let's make it clear first, special training is not a joke. I will train you according to the standards of a ninja. If you can't endure hardship..."

Tsunade said with a serious face.

"Don't worry, Big sis, I definitely can!"

Tsunade's words were interrupted directly by Senju Nawaki, who showed Tsunade his white teeth, his sunny face full of seriousness and persistence.

"Because... I'm the man who will become Hokage!"

Tsunade firmly remembered and preserved this scene, because she was also looking forward to whether Senju Nawaki could inherit the position once held by his grandfather and great-uncle. If that day really came in the future, it would probably be an exciting and thrilling thing...

"You're just a little brat. If you want to become Hokage, you should first think about becoming a Genin!"

Tsunade heavily flicked Senju Nawaki's forehead, then laughed as she watched him wince in pain.

"Big sis, that hurts!"

Senju Nawaki rubbed his forehead, complaining.

"Alright, let's go have dinner first. Big sis will treat you."

"Big sis is the best! I want to eat barbecue!"

"No problem!"

The principal's office at the Ninja Academy.

As Tsunade left, Jiraiya also returned to his original position, then looked at the transparent crystal ball in front of him with a curious expression. A highly anticipated battle was being broadcast live on it.

"Hiruzen Sarutobi-sensei, you still dare to say that you didn't manipulate things behind the scenes?"

Jiraiya looked at the two who were about to fight, and immediately said in disbelief.

"..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi was speechless. The person in charge of this battle was really that Ootani Yuuto guy. He hadn't even asked about it, but who would have known that the first match would be Uchiha Akihime versus Senju Nawaki, and who would have known that this battle would be between Kageka Maple and a junior from the Nara Clan?

Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi remain silent, Orochimaru also cast a suspicious look at him, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Hiruzen Sarutobi-sensei, we are all our own people. We won't tell anyone if you tell us."

"That's right."

Jiraiya nodded.

"What are you afraid of when Tsunade, that she-devil, is already gone?"

"..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi continued to remain silent, completely ignoring his two students, and instead focused his attention on the transparent crystal ball in front of him.

Because the battle was about to begin.

On the battlefield.

Nara Zentaro arrived inside the pre-designated circle, which was about one meter in diameter. The area was quite small, which was why Senju Nawaki had used a large-scale ninjutsu earlier. After all, engaging Uchiha Akihime in taijutsu within such a confined space would definitely put him at a disadvantage...

"Hello, Senior."

Kageka Maple politely greeted Nara Zentaro, who was not far away. Her adorable appearance and gentle voice immediately attracted support and cheers from many male seniors.

"Don't be afraid, Junior! If that guy gets too rough with you, we'll make him pay later!"

"Go, Junior!"

"..."

Shouts of encouragement rang out from outside the arena, making Zentaro break out in a cold sweat. Were these guys really so easily swayed by a pretty face?

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"Thank you, Seniors..."

Kageka Maple naturally gave the seniors outside the arena a sweet smile, a sight that further captivated their hearts...

"Hmph!"

Akeshi, who was next to Yuzuru, snorted coldly at the scene, seemingly venting her dissatisfaction.

"...Begin the match."

Ootani Yuuto, who was on the sidelines, shook his head with a smile and then directly announced the start of the match.

The moment Ootani Yuuto announced the start of the match, Kageka Maple immediately entered battle mode. Her cute face instantly became serious and focused, giving her a unique kind of beauty.

"Shadow Release: Shadow Ball Barrage!"

A low shout rang out as Kageka Maple raised her right arm, her right hand open. Instantly, five shadow balls, each the size of a baby's fist, shot out like bullets, heading straight for Nara Zentaro.

"!"

Zentaro was shocked to see this. The shadow balls were too fast, not giving him any time to use ninjutsu. Therefore, he could only rely on his body's agility and flexibility to forcibly dodge the five shadow balls.

Pa pa...

A total of five shadow balls came, but only two hit Nara Zentaro. Like water-filled balloons, they suddenly burst open when they touched Nara Zentaro's body, covering him in black ink.

"What is this stuff?"

Zentaro tried to sense the essence of the black ink on his body, but he couldn't figure it out.

"Senior, please don't get distracted!"

At this moment, Kageka Maple's voice came, and several more shadow balls came flying.

Zentaro again relied on his body's flexibility to dodge some of the shadow balls, but he still got some of the burst ink on him.

"Does it have the characteristic of absorbing chakra?"

Soon, Zentaro analyzed Kageka Maple's purpose. The black ink on his body was silently devouring the chakra within him!

"Trying to defeat me in this way? Not a bad tactic, but the speed at which they absorb chakra is too slow..."

After realizing that these shadow balls posed no immediate threat to him, Zentaro simply ignored Kageka Maple's shadow ball attacks and instead formed hand seals, beginning to use his clan's secret technique - the Shadow Secret Technique!

In the sunlight, the shadow under Zentaro's feet changed shape. From a normal humanoid shadow, it transformed into a needle-like shadow, and under Zentaro's control, it began to gradually become thinner and rapidly extend.

This scene seemed to surprise and shock Kageka Maple, allowing Nara Zentaro, whose accuracy was not very high to begin with, to successfully touch the shadow under Kageka Maple's feet with his shadow on the first try.

"Shadow Imitation Technique, successful!"

Although he didn't understand what was going on with Kageka Maple, as long as Zentaro's Shadow Secret Technique was completed, then he would be in control.

After all, the Shadow Imitation Technique was Zentaro's most skilled and signature shadow secret technique!

"Maple, you admit de..."

Zentaro had only said half of the word 'defeat' when he realized that his body was strangely unable to move.

"Senior, my ability seems to be a natural counter to your shadow secret technique..."

At this time, Kageka Maple's face showed a smile again. The previous surprise and shock had disappeared, as if it were all just an act.

Then, Kageka Maple slowly took a step forward, and Zentaro, who was inside the circle, also took a step forward, his movements and actions exactly the same as Kageka Maple.

"What is Zentaro doing?"

"Isn't the person who is hit by the Shadow Imitation Technique supposed to be controlled by the user? Why does it look like it's reversed?"

"Is he going to screw up again?"

"..."

The older ninja academy students outside the arena, after seeing this scene, were confused, surprised, and some even laughed in anger.

"That's quite surprising, Kageka Maple's Shadow Release can actually counter the Nara Clan's Shadow Secret Technique!"

At that moment, Akeshi, who had already activated her Two-Tomoe Sharingan, suddenly understood. From her perspective, all the chakra contained within the shadow beneath Zentaro's feet was being eroded by Kageka Maple's ability, and it was forcibly switching roles, with the 'affected' becoming the 'caster'!

Yuzuru, who was nearby, smiled almost imperceptibly upon hearing this.

Just countering the Nara Clan's Shadow Secret Technique?

It's far more than that...

In the Hokage's office at the Ninja Academy.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya, who were watching this scene, all revealed shocked expressions.

Shadow Release is actually a Kekkei Genkai that can counter the Nara Clan's Shadow Secret Technique...

If this were to spread, it would definitely cause a very large impact, especially if the Nara Clan's leaders were to find out. That would be an extremely complicated matter.

After all, the reason secret technique clans are called 'secret technique' clans is because of the family's inherited secret techniques. But when this secret technique suddenly loses its effect in front of someone, then this sense of panic will definitely sweep through the entire clan. After all, no one wants to have such a 'natural enemy' existing!

"This is really a headache..."

After the shock, Hiruzen Sarutobi opened his mouth with some helplessness. The birth of an unknown and powerful Kekkei Genkai is naturally Konoha's good fortune, but Kageka Maple's Shadow Release is the Nara Clan's 'nemesis', which made him scratch his head in annoyance.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru, seeing their teacher's appearance, naturally didn't speak. They'd let the Hokage worry about this himself.

On the battlefield, as Kageka Maple reversed control of the Shadow Imitation Technique, Nara Zentaro had already left the designated circle. With Ootani Yuuto's announcement, Kageka Maple successfully won the battle.

Originally, this low and high-grade battle was a kind of 'ring challenge', but who would have thought that the 'ring leader' would be so 'easily defeated', unable to 'defend' at all!

"Maple, can you tell me what your ability is?"

Zentaro curiously asked Kageka Maple.

"The Hokage personally gave it the name. It's called 'Shadow Release', and it's my Kekkei Genkai..."

Kageka Maple didn't intend to hide it, because she never thought about concealing her information. Moreover, her Shadow Release isn't as simple as it looks...

"Shadow Release..."

Zentaro muttered, and then immediately left, because he felt it was necessary to inform his clan about Kageka Maple's awakening of Shadow Release!

Ootani Yuuto also glanced at the departing Zentaro. He didn't stop him, because Kageka Maple's information would eventually circulate among Konoha's higher-ups. Letting the Nara Clan know first wouldn't hurt anything...

Although Kageka Maple was announced the victor by Ootani Yuuto, her battle with Nara Zentaro was too strange, making it impossible for some Ninja Academy students to understand. Zentaro, the 'caster', was acting like he was the one 'affected'...

"You're strong, I'm looking forward to tonight more and more!"

Crimson eyes shone brightly in Akeshi's eye sockets. After seeing Kageka Maple return, she immediately spoke in a low voice, filled with fighting spirit.

"What beautiful eyes, is this the Uchiha Clan's Eye Technique Kekkei Genkai?"

Kageka Maple didn't answer, but instead, like a curious child, moved closer to Akeshi's face, examining Akeshi's crimson tomoe eyes with her own eyes