"Senju Nawaki!"
As Kato Taka's voice rang out, a kid with light brown hair and brown eyes, wearing a blue pendant necklace and a white robe, slowly parted the crowd and made his way toward the arena. He walked so slowly that the distance of barely twenty paces took him a full five minutes!
At last, just as everyone was about to lose patience, Nawaki finally stepped onto the field. Kato Taka was about to announce the start of the match when Nawaki suddenly shouted and pointed at the genin across from him:
"Who's that nobody over there? State your name!"M.
"..."
The genin's mouth twitched, but he didn't answer. Seeing that his opponent was ignoring him, Nawaki immediately took offense:
"Hey, you no-name genin! Your attitude is very unfriendly..."
Nawaki gave his white robe a shake. The words "Fourth Hokage," written crookedly across it in red paint, nearly blinded everyone:
"So this is how you treat the future Fourth Hokage?
"You should know that as the Fourth Hokage, I have talent no less than the First Hokage's!
"Do you know that every loyal shinobi must hold the Hokage in reverence?
"Do you know that if everyone in the village acted like you, how could I lead the village toward prosperity and hope?
"Do you know that, as a Hokage..."
"You little brat, I'm not dead yet!"
The Third Hokage hadn't even finished processing the shock Zhou Duan had given him when another oddball appeared, so obsessed with becoming Hokage that he'd lost his mind. The Third could no longer hold back and bellowed:
"Nawaki, quit dragging this out and get on with the exam!"
Whether as Hokage or as a caring elder, the Third's words clearly got through to Nawaki. Nawaki nodded obediently at him, then turned back to the genin:
"I've silenced that annoying old man. Now, rude and lowly opponent, prepare to face my divine judgment!"
After saying this, Nawaki figured that if he kept showing off, the Third might end up examining him personally. So he stopped talking, formed Hand Seals, and began preparing a ninjutsu. The moment he did, the genin across from him was utterly stunned!
The genin wasn't shocked by Nawaki's speed. He'd only formed three seals so far; even a newly enrolled student could leave him in the dust.
Nor was the genin shocked because he recognized the jutsu as fearsome. Nawaki had only formed three seals, and judging by the look of things, he still had plenty more to go. Who knew what jutsu he was planning to use?
What truly stunned the genin was that, at the start of the fight, Nawaki hadn't put any distance between them, thrown a weapon to force him back, or put up any kind of defense. He'd done nothing at all, simply standing less than two meters away and beginning to prepare a ninjutsu!
The genin was utterly at a loss. Should I stupidly wait for this kid to finish his seals before we fight? Or should I knock this idiot out with one punch?
He was the First Hokage's grandson, after all. He shouldn't let the boy lose too badly. But this kid's combat sense was unbelievably stupid!
The genin fought down the urge to attack and discreetly glanced toward the Third. The Third looked no less awkward than he did, and discreetly nodded at him.
Zhou Duan, who had been watching from nearby, silently took it all in. He marveled at the village's darkness, while also witnessing the battle of Senju Nawaki, a genius shinobi said to have talent rivaling the God of Shinobi, the peacemaker of the troubled Shinobi World, the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama!
There wasn't much to see, really. Nawaki's ninjutsu were indeed powerful, but the fight could be summed up in a few lines:
Senju Nawaki took three minutes to use the A-rank jutsu Earth Release: Earth Dragon Strike. The genin barely dodged it with his movement technique!
Senju Nawaki took five minutes to use the wide-area A-rank jutsu Earth Release: Hell's Thorns. The genin barely dodged it with the B-rank defensive jutsu Earth Release: Earth Rising Platform and the Substitution Technique!
Senju Nawaki ran out of Chakra, grew exhausted, and could no longer move. The genin walked up and knocked him down with one punch!
Watching Nawaki get floored by a single straight punch, yet still marvel at how formidable his opponent was and ask the nameless genin to become his underling, Zhou Duan looked at the Third Hokage with deep sympathy. Having a kid like this must have made the Third's expression quite something!
Sure enough, the Third, usually so kind and gentle, now wore a face as black as the bottom of a pot. Zhou Duan was certain that if the Third had to choose between fighting to the death against the Kage of another village and standing here to watch Nawaki's battle, he would choose the former without hesitation!
Fortunately, Zhou Duan and Nawaki's fight was an extreme exception. The other shinobi fought normally, which gave the Third a reason to stay.
"Hyuga Utsuru wins!"
With Kato Taka's decision, this round of exams for more than fifty students came to an end. They had only just finished learning the basics, so only three of them managed to defeat their genin examiners: Zhou Duan, Namikaze Minato, and Hyuga Utsuru. Only five managed to fight them to a draw, and all of those had secret techniques passed down by their clans.
There were fifteen classes, with a thousand students in total. Zhou Duan's class was the last to finish its exam. The Third looked over the students and nodded silently. There were few especially outstanding graduates, but this was about average for previous years. He stepped in front of everyone and spoke slowly:
"You are all Konoha's hope. The village's future will depend on you. You've probably heard that, because the fighting at the front is growing fierce, your class will be sent directly into battle against the Sand Shinobi. The battlefield is the cruelest place, but it is also where people are tempered most and shinobi can reach their greatest potential. I hope every one of you becomes a powerful shinobi. All right, I'll say no more. You'll be notified of your assignments in due course. You have only two days to prepare. Strive for the glory of the village!"
After finishing his speech, the Third Hokage vanished from the scene. The students, who had still been reliving the earlier battles, sobered up. At Kato Taka's wave, they turned into streaks of black and left. Everyone knew that a harsh battlefield awaited them!
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