You Don't Come Any Closer!

Hikawa was quite satisfied.

The effect brought by the D-Rank Entry "Ninja Tool Mastery" was indeed overwhelming among first-years.

Although Obito Uchiha was not dead last, aside from Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, his fundamentals were far too poor.

Without the Sharingan, he was also unable to evade a full-force Kunai strengthened by 30% arm strength.

At that moment, three lines of text appeared before Hikawa's eyes.

E-Rank Talent Entry: Fire-Breathing Kid.

Trigger Condition: Defeat the young Obito Uchiha.

Effect: Increases Fire Release talent by 10% on top of its original foundation.

A double blessing!

Just like Sarutobi Asuma, Obito Uchiha had also triggered a new entry.

The difference was that his involved Fire Release.

"Asuma."

Hikawa beckoned to him.

Come over here.

He was now looking forward to Sarutobi Asuma dropping more gold.

"..."

Sarutobi Asuma no longer had his earlier arrogance.

He was not an idiot.

Those two Kunai had made him keenly aware of a powerful sense of danger.

At the same time, he was somewhat speechless. You were a genjutsu ninja, so why were your Kunai getting stronger and stronger?

But at this point, he could not back down.

Sarutobi Asuma walked to stand opposite him with a grave expression.

After forming the Opposing Hand Seal, he swiftly made Hand Seals with both hands.

Wind Release: Violent Wind Palm!

Chakra transformed into wind. As he clapped his hands, compressed wind immediately roared forth.

He had chosen a fast attack.

But in the next second, Hikawa shifted directly to the left, evading the violent wind as if he had anticipated it beforehand.

"What?"

Sarutobi Asuma's eyes widened.

Did I fall under genjutsu again?

When?

Sarutobi Asuma instinctively formed Hand Seals.

Genjutsu Release!

His Chakra flow became slightly chaotic, but it had no effect because he had not fallen under genjutsu.

Sarutobi Asuma let out a breath of relief, only for Hikawa's face to suddenly appear before his eyes.

His heart nearly stopped. Oh no, don't come any closer!

Fox Mind Technique!

Caught completely off guard, Sarutobi Asuma had nowhere to dodge and froze on the spot.

"..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen could not help smacking his forehead.

It was a mess, a complete mess! The whole fight had turned into a tangled jumble.

Sarutobi Asuma had completely fallen into Hikawa's rhythm.

He even suspected that defeating Obito Uchiha had been part of the plan, all to make him launch a fast attack.

It was impossible to guard against.

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Hikawa and noticed that he was frowning.

Was he dissatisfied?

The pride of a genius.

Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed inwardly. Sarutobi Asuma's talent was ultimately a little lacking.

But as the Hokage, he was delighted that Konoha had produced another genius, especially one he had snatched away.

"Damn it!"

In his extreme fury, Sarutobi Asuma could only be furious.

He broke free from the Fox Mind Technique, but it took him three seconds.

If this had been a battle of life and death, three seconds would have been enough for him to die several times over.

"I'll be back!"

Sarutobi Asuma threw out that threat and turned to leave.

"Asuma!"

Hikawa suddenly called after him.

"What is it?"

Sarutobi Asuma asked impatiently.

"Your Wind Release is very strong."

Hikawa spoke with a serious expression.

"Of course it is!"

Sarutobi Asuma froze for a moment before saying loudly, "Next time, you'll see even stronger Wind Release! And when that time comes, I'll definitely win!"

The bait had worked!

Hikawa could not help smiling.

He had just defeated Sarutobi Asuma, but no new entry had been triggered, which was why he had frowned in dissatisfaction.

He guessed it was because the intensity was not high enough.

After all, after its previous effect upgrade, "Shippuden" was already a D-Rank Entry.

To upgrade it again, Sarutobi Asuma would probably need to become a genin or chunin.

"This is the Will of Fire!"

Watching this scene, Sarutobi Hiruzen could not help revealing a gratified smile.

In his view, how could children lie? It had to be a genuine outpouring of emotion.

Konoha had plenty of geniuses. One more would not make much difference, but a genius with the Will of Fire was another matter entirely.

Perhaps he could persuade Tsunade to take him into the Hokage's lineage.

"My turn!"

Hatake Kakashi walked onto the field expressionlessly, then drew the short sword from his back.

Hikawa's genjutsu and ninja tools were both stronger than his. His only advantage was the Hatake family's sword style.

"How much of your skill does Kakashi possess in his swordsmanship?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen asked curiously.

"Lord Hokage."

Hatake Sakumo smiled and said, "He is only a child. At most, he has one-tenth of my ability."

"One-tenth of your ability already surpasses most genin."

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head and said.

"You flatter him, Lord Hokage."

Hatake Sakumo said modestly.

"You, honestly, you're always so..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly stopped because Hikawa had taken out a samurai sword.

"Interesting."

Hatake Sakumo's spirits lifted at the sight. "It seems Hikawa has been hiding something."

What was going on?

Standing at the edge of the field, Sarutobi Asuma instinctively showed an incredulous expression.

Could it be that I hadn't forced Hikawa to use his full strength just now?

No, bro, you'd been playing with me the whole time?

Sarutobi Asuma covered his neck, feeling as though he were suffocating.

"Hey, has he gone crazy? He actually drew a sword in front of Kakashi?"

Obito Uchiha looked somewhat dazed.

The Uchiha Clan was famous for using Kunai, but that was on the condition that they had the Sharingan.

He did not have it, so he could still accept losing.

The Hatake family's sword style had no such restrictions.

In terms of fame, it was no less renowned than the Uchiha Clan.

"Obito."

Rin Nohara shook her head and said, "Don't underestimate Hikawa. He's very strong."

"This isn't a question of whether he's strong or not."

Obito Uchiha could not help arguing, "He's the kind of..."

"Go, Hikawa!"

Before he could finish, Yuhi Kurenai interrupted him.

What followed were all kinds of cheers.

Obito Uchiha could not help staring in astonishment.

Since when had Hikawa become so popular?

You really deserve to die!

You're actually more smug than Hatake Kakashi!

Obito Uchiha instinctively looked toward Rin Nohara. There was a gleam in her eyes, and a powerful sense of crisis immediately washed over him.

"You know how to use a sword?"

Hatake Kakashi looked at the samurai sword, paused slightly, and asked.

"Just a little."

Hikawa smiled and replied.

He was not certain he could defeat Hatake Kakashi.

But with the 30% arm strength from "Ninja Tool Mastery" and the 10% swordsmanship boost from "Swordsmanship Ninja," his chances of winning were still high.

After all, Hatake Kakashi was only five years old.

"Be careful."

Hatake Kakashi offered a warning, then said no more.

He bent slightly, exerted force through his legs, and burst forth at incredible speed. The short sword in his hand shot out like a streak of light.

Hikawa raised his right hand and held the samurai sword horizontally before him.

But Hatake Kakashi reacted quickly. His short sword abruptly halted, then swept sideways.

If it landed, Hikawa would inevitably be cut in half and turned into 2.5 Gojo.

That was the defining trait of Hatake Sakumo's Sword Style.

Fast, precise, and ruthless, like an assassin—every strike was lethal.

Against ninjas with high attack and low defense, it was simply unstoppable.

But a longer weapon held the advantage.

Hikawa twisted his arm, and the samurai sword slashed toward Hatake Kakashi first.

Clang!

Hatake Kakashi swiftly drew back his sword and blocked the samurai sword.

The instant their blades connected, his expression changed slightly.

A tremendous force surged at him, forcing him back several steps.