Complete Victory Over Namikaze Minato

After breakfast, Natsuki, as usual, walked Yakushi Nonō to the entrance of Konoha Hospital.

"Natsuki."

Yakushi Nonō took two steps, then turned back and clenched her small fist. "Good luck!"

Natsuki smiled and nodded.

Today was the Final Exam for First Grade Class A, but Yakushi Nonō would not be taking part because she was already a student in the Medical Ninja Training Class.

Of course, the Medical Ninja Training Class would have exams as well.

But since it had only been established recently, it had yet to hold any.

Training medical ninja was far too difficult. It was hard to learn much in a short time, so there was naturally no need for exams.

Natsuki soon arrived at the Ninja Academy.

He did not go to the classroom and headed straight for the training field.

First Grade Class A's first Combat Exam was being held on the training field.

"Natsuki."

When Namikaze Minato saw him, he walked over with a smile to greet him.

"Good morning, Minato."

Natsuki returned the greeting.

"For the first Combat Exam, what rank do you think you'll get?"

Namikaze Minato looked at him and asked.

Over the past year, Natsuki had steadily raised his ranking according to his plan. By now, he had settled firmly into third place.

"First place."

Natsuki blinked as he answered.

"First place?"

Namikaze Minato did not react for a moment.

He had asked Natsuki similar questions before, but the answer had always been to simply do his best. This was the first time Natsuki had so explicitly said first place.

Why was he suddenly so confident that he could take first place?

Over the past year, Natsuki had only mastered the Substitution Technique, while he had already learned all Three Body Techniques.

"It seems you really had been hiding something."

Namikaze Minato paused, then said seriously, "For the first Combat Exam, as your friend, I want to see your true strength."

"As you wish."

Natsuki nodded.

"I'll be watching."

Namikaze Minato felt the pressure.

But as a genius, he had his own pride. If Natsuki wanted first place, he would have to get past him first.

Nine in the morning.

Ishida Yu arrived at the training field on time.

Without any unnecessary chatter, he began explaining the rules for First Grade Class A's first Combat Exam.

First, only wooden ninja tools could be used.

Second, they were to stop at the appropriate point and were not allowed to strike to kill.

Third, he would arrange the matchups according to the roster. After three rounds of sparring, the final rankings would be decided.

Once the rules had been announced, First Grade Class A's first Combat Exam officially began.

Natsuki stood at the edge of the field and watched.

Just as he had expected, it was like watching rookies peck at each other.

Other than Namikaze Minato and himself, the other students only knew the Substitution Technique, Basic Taijutsu, and Ninja Tool Throwing.

Such fights were naturally doomed to be far from exciting.

"First match of the second round, Namikaze Minato versus Onodera!"

Ishida Yu shouted.

The clash between first and second place immediately sent First Grade Class A into a frenzy.

Namikaze Minato in particular was extremely popular in the class. Quite a few students shouted encouragement for him in unison, making for an impressive spectacle.

"What are you shouting for?"

Onodera stepped onto the field with a dark expression.

But no one paid any attention to him.

"Minato!"

Seeing this, Onodera turned toward Namikaze Minato and said through gritted teeth, "I've waited a long time for today. First place will definitely be mine!"

Namikaze Minato said nothing and simply began forming the Seal of Confrontation.

After Onodera finished the Seal of Confrontation with a grim face, he immediately flicked both hands and threw six kunai.

All six kunai flew toward Namikaze Minato's vital points.

Namikaze Minato took one look and rushed forward.

"What?"

Onodera's heart jolted.

The next second, something that left him dumbfounded happened.

Without slowing down, Namikaze Minato darted and twisted through the air, evading all six kunai.

By the time Onodera came to his senses, Minato was already in front of him.

In a panic, he raised his leg and kicked at Namikaze Minato.

Namikaze Minato sidestepped the kick and, at the same time, clenched his right hand into a fist as he moved behind him.

Bang!

His punch landed squarely on Onodera's back.

Before Onodera could even pull his leg back, the punch sent him rolling several meters away.

"As expected of Minato, the first-place student! He's so strong!"

"Onodera couldn't even last half a minute?"

"That was so cool!"

The students of First Grade Class A could not help but cheer.

Ishida Yu revealed a satisfied smile.

Namikaze Minato had easily defeated Onodera without even using the Three Body Techniques.

Just as I thought.

But Natsuki was not referring to Namikaze Minato defeating Onodera. He meant Minato's terrifying reaction speed and dynamic vision.

With the same Basic Taijutsu, Namikaze Minato was simply faster and stronger than Onodera.

No wonder he would be able to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique in the future.

The Flying Thunder God Technique was Space-Time Ninjutsu, and its greatest characteristic was speed.

Not only would enemies fail to react in time, but even its user could fail to react.

That was when the user needed exceptionally high reaction speed and dynamic vision.

And those two abilities alone provided an overwhelming advantage in battle.

"The winner is Namikaze Minato!"

Ishida Yu announced.

A sunlit smile immediately appeared on Namikaze Minato's face.

He raised his hand and waved to the classmates supporting him.

In contrast, Onodera's face was darker than the bottom of a pot.

But other than raging helplessly, there was nothing else he could do. A loss was a loss, and a win was a win.

"Third match of the third round, Namikaze Minato versus Natsuki!"

Ishida Yu called out energetically.

As long as Namikaze Minato defeated Natsuki, he would be confirmed as the first-place student in this Final Exam.

But he did not think highly of Natsuki.

Even Onodera, who ranked second, had lost. Could Natsuki, who ranked third, really turn things around?

After Natsuki stepped onto the field, he went to the Ninja Tool Rack beside it and picked up a Wooden Ninja Sword.

"A Ninja Sword?"

Namikaze Minato and the others immediately felt confused.

They had never seen Natsuki use a Ninja Sword. They had not even known that he had learned Sword Technique.

Namikaze Minato finished the Seal of Confrontation with a grave expression.

The wind whistled.

He took four kunai from his ninja tools and threw them.

Compared to the kunai Onodera had thrown, his were faster and trickier.

Natsuki moved.

His Ninja Sword traced an arc, precisely knocking aside all four kunai before continuing toward Namikaze Minato's wrist.

Namikaze Minato's heart lurched.

Natsuki's strength had truly exceeded his expectations.

Fortunately, his reactions were fast.

Almost instantly, he drew two more kunai and crossed them to block Natsuki's Ninja Sword.

One Sword Style: Horse Demon!

Natsuki's gaze sharpened.

A steady force erupted from the Ninja Sword as it slashed down fiercely!

"What?"

Namikaze Minato's pupils contracted, followed by a searing pain.

Natsuki's Ninja Sword severed both of his wooden kunai and swept across his chest.

If he had not reacted quickly, and if it had not been a Wooden Sword, he would already have been split in two.

Namikaze Minato looked at Natsuki with lingering fear.

Natsuki remained where he was without pursuing him, merely watching him quietly, yet a sudden pressure descended upon him.

Namikaze Minato gritted his teeth and immediately formed hand seals.

Clone Technique!

Another Namikaze Minato appeared.

The two Namikaze Minatos alternated as they charged at Natsuki.

The Clone Technique was not the Shadow Clone Jutsu. It had no combat ability and could only serve as a feint.

Namikaze Minato's tactic was simple. He and his Clone attacked Natsuki with Basic Taijutsu.

If Natsuki chose the wrong one, the other Minato could seize the opportunity to land an effective attack.

One Sword Style: Iai: Lion Song!

But Natsuki did not make a choice.

The moment the two Namikaze Minatos overlapped, he vanished from where he stood.

His entire body was like a gust of wind sweeping past the two Namikaze Minatos.

Bang!

Namikaze Minato's Clone turned into smoke and vanished.

His own body shuddered, and he let out a pained grunt before collapsing to the ground.

In an instant, the training field fell into dead silence.

"What just happened?"

A bewildered expression appeared on Onodera's face.

He had not even seen Natsuki's last sword strike clearly.