Minato vs. Nagato

"Big Brother Qingshui, who do you think would win, Nagato or Senior Brother Minato?"

Qingshui gave the question some thought before answering.

"Nagato would win."

If any Konoha Ninja had heard that, they would have immediately objected.

Minato had long been known throughout Konoha as a Commoner Genius. The fact that Lord Jiraiya had taken him on as a student as soon as he graduated was proof enough.

After all, Lord Jiraiya was the Third Hokage's student. Not just anyone was qualified to become his pupil.

Those who had once doubted Minato had long since been won over by his performance.

In their eyes, there was no Ninja more talented than Minato.

But there was always someone better, and Nagato was every bit as much of a genius.

In Qingshui's view, even though Nagato had only been training under Jiraiya for a little over a year, he was already definitely stronger than Minato, who was a few years older.

After all, Nagato had the Uzumaki Clan's bloodline and the Rinnegan.

"But I think Senior Brother Minato is pretty strong, too."

Seeing how certain Qingshui was, Konan, who had personally sparred with Minato, shared her thoughts.

Of course, that didn't mean she wanted Nagato to lose.

They were all fellow students, but Konan was clearly closer to Nagato.

"Then let's wait and see."

Qingshui offered no explanation. He simply ruffled Konan's hair and said that.

"Begin!"

At Jiraiya's command, Minato vanished from where he stood.

Body Flicker Technique!

After spending the past few days around Nagato, Minato knew just how immense his Chakra was—so immense that it seemed almost inhuman. He couldn't afford to get dragged into a battle of attrition.

His plan was to win with speed.

That was his strength, after all.

Almost the instant Jiraiya's words left his mouth, Minato was already in front of Nagato.

He thrust the Kunai gripped tightly in his hand at Nagato.

But Minato had underestimated Nagato's perception.

Nagato didn't have the Sharingan's exceptional dynamic vision, but the Rinnegan was still more perceptive than ordinary eyes.

Minato was still young, and he hadn't mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique yet.

So just as Minato's attack was about to land, Nagato drew his own Kunai and blocked it in time.

A sharp clang rang out, and Minato's face filled with surprise.

He clearly hadn't expected his attack, delivered at such speed, to come up empty.

Minato had thought that even if the blow didn't defeat Nagato outright, it would at least injure him and give Minato an advantage in the fight to come.

"Minato still underestimated Nagato," Qingshui said, shaking his head as he watched from the sidelines.

With his keen eye, he could tell at a glance what Minato had been aiming for.

The strategy might have been sound, but Minato wasn't strong enough yet to pull it off perfectly.

"Big Brother Qingshui, what are you talking about?"

Yahiko looked confused, and Konan seemed just as puzzled.

The two of them simply lacked enough combat experience.

Only after Qingshui explained did they finally understand, their faces registering surprise.

Meanwhile, Nagato immediately counterattacked after blocking Minato's assault.

After a flurry of exchanges, Minato realized he had no advantage in Taijutsu, either, and promptly retreated to create some distance.

Then Minato made his next move. In an instant, he hurled more than a dozen Shuriken at Nagato.

As they flew, the Shuriken collided with one another and changed course. In the end, they attacked Nagato from the front, back, left, and right.

Like a net spreading open, they closed around him.

It was Shurikenjutsu on par with the Uchiha Clan's.

At the same time, Minato rapidly formed Hand Seals, planning to use the opening to defeat Nagato with a Ninjutsu.

Qingshui watched, a note of approval in his expression.

In just a moment, Minato had already come up with a second way to take on his opponent.

"Oh no! With that many Shuriken, Nagato can't dodge them all!"

Yahiko looked worried.

But Qingshui's next words quickly calmed him down.

"Don't worry. That won't be enough to stop Nagato."

Minato seemed to have the initiative, but Nagato had actually been the one with the advantage all along.

As if to prove Qingshui right, the next moment, without Nagato moving at all, every Shuriken closing in on him was sent flying.

Shinra Tensei!

Thanks to Jiraiya's instruction, Nagato had learned to use some of the Rinnegan's basic abilities with reasonable proficiency.

"What?"

To Minato, the sight looked utterly bizarre.

Until now, he hadn't known Nagato could do anything so strange.

But he didn't have time to figure out what Nagato had done to repel the Shuriken. With his Hand Seals complete, Minato unleashed a Ninjutsu at him.

Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique!

After Minato learned Wind Release Nature Transformation, Jiraiya had taught him this technique.

It turned wind into blades that could slice through objects. Its power was enough to cut through flesh and bone in an instant.

"Minato has a good grasp of Wind Cutter Technique. He's already as good as some Chunin," Qingshui remarked, having mastered the technique himself.

He could tell that Minato was much more proficient with it than he was.

"Does that mean Nagato's going to lose?"

"Minato's Wind Cutter Technique is powerful, but it's still no match for Nagato."

As Qingshui spoke, Nagato formed Hand Seals and used a Ninjutsu of his own: Wind Release: Great Breakthrough.

When they had faced the Kirigakure Missing-nin earlier, Qingshui had used this very technique to break through their Kirigakure no Jutsu.

Its power depended on the user's Chakra.

And with Nagato's immense Chakra, the technique's power was naturally formidable.

That proved to be the case. The terrifying gust Nagato unleashed from his mouth shattered Minato's Wind Cutter Technique by force.

Not only that, but the gale kept rushing toward Minato.

Minato dodged in time, but the wind's range was too wide, and he couldn't get clear.

"Nagato wins!"

Jiraiya's words delivered the final verdict.

"That's great! Nagato won!"

Yahiko was overjoyed to see his friend take the victory.

Konan was just as happy, but she held back so as not to make Minato feel bad.

"Minato, you lost, but it wasn't because you lacked skill. The main reason was that you didn't have enough information."

As he treated Minato, Qingshui tried to reassure him.

Minato had indeed lost so quickly because he hadn't known about the Rinnegan's abilities.

But that didn't mean he could have won even if he'd had that information.

In the face of an overwhelming gap in strength, every scheme was useless.

Knowing that Qingshui was trying to comfort him, Minato smiled. "Don't worry, Big Brother Qingshui. I'm not that fragile."

[After treating Namikaze Minato, you received one Blue Orb.]

[Congratulations! You received 50 points of Chakra.]

After finishing treating Minato, Qingshui turned to Jiraiya.

"Lord Jiraiya, this is a rare opportunity. I'd like to challenge you. Please give me your guidance!"