Head Pat

Silence.

Every sound vanished eerily at this moment, and everyone stared blankly at the scene before them.

Kakashi's defeat had been far too swift and simple; it was something no one had anticipated.

They knew Akiyama Shun was strong and had considered the possibility that he might win against Kakashi.

But Kakashi was, after all, a genius among geniuses; they had assumed the battle would at least be a prolonged struggle.

Yet the fight had ended so abruptly!

Akiyama Shun's clash with Kakashi was nothing short of a total crushing!

At this moment, many students felt even more relieved that they hadn't been number eleven.

The other students were merely watching for the spectacle, but Uzuki Yugao was different.

She was a practitioner of Konoha Style Swordsmanship, and upon seeing Akiyama Shun execute that move, her small hand gripping her sword tightened.

The teachers watching from the sidelines were also stunned.

What had they just witnessed?

The A-rank technique of Konoha Style Swordsmanship, the Dance of the Crescent Moon!

The number of people in all of Konoha who knew this move could be counted on one hand!

When, and how, had this child, Akiyama Shun, learned it!?

And what was that just now?

The students couldn't tell, but with the keen eyes of the teachers, they recognized it instantly: Shadow Clone!

He knew that too!?

"Still want to fight?"

Akiyama Shun performed a flourish with his sword and sheathed it.

"Again!"

After rising to his feet, Kakashi quickly flickered away. He did not reach for his short blade; instead, once he reached a safe distance, he pulled out a kunai.

Since Kakashi chose to forgo his weapon, Akiyama Shun did not reach for his either.

With a flick of his right arm, he tossed the sword aside, the scabbard piercing the ground and standing upright.

Seeing that Akiyama Shun was ready, Kakashi launched the kunai in his hand toward him.

However, while the kunai was still in flight, Akiyama Shun had already thrown a shuriken, striking the flying kunai and intercepting the attack.

Not only that, but Kakashi also noticed a faint glint in the space between Akiyama Shun and the shuriken.

Wire!

Akiyama Shun twisted his wrist, pulling the wire to send both the shuriken and the kunai hurtling toward Kakashi!

Kakashi had no time to block; in his haste, he could only leap to the side, narrowly dodging the attack.

"Fire Style!"

As soon as Kakashi steadied himself, his hands began to move rapidly!

"Snake-Ram-Monkey-Boar..."

Fine! If he's weaving signs, I'll weave signs too!

"Fire Style..."

Seeing Kakashi prepare a ninjutsu, Akiyama Shun began weaving signs as well. Even though his opponent had started first, Akiyama Shun's hand speed was clearly a fraction faster than Kakashi's.

"Ram-Horse-Snake-Dragon..."

Seeing the two of them weaving signs, the crowd erupted into cheers once again.

These students, who had only been in the academy for six months, had never seen such a scene. Asuma had used a Fire Style technique before, but he had simply crushed his opponent, lacking any real spectacle.

This time, however, it was different between Akiyama Shun and Kakashi.

Both of them were weaving signs, clearly preparing to clash with ninjutsu!

A beam struggle was bound to be exciting!

Kazama Shinya stood to the side, watching with a furrowed brow.

He wasn't surprised that both of them could use ninjutsu; it wasn't as if he hadn't seen genius ninjas before.

The problem was that he was very familiar with Kakashi's signs—it was the standard Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu, the first fire technique learned by many ninjas with fire-natured chakra.

For instance, that was the same technique Asuma had used earlier.

But these signs from Akiyama Shun...

No, that's not right!

At this moment, Akiyama Shun and Kakashi had both finished their signs—or rather, to be precise, Akiyama Shun had been about 0.3 seconds faster than Kakashi.

"Fire Style: Great Fire Dragon Technique!"

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"

As Kakashi released his chakra, a mass of orange flame surged toward Akiyama Shun, carrying with it a scorching heat.

Compared to Asuma's Great Fireball Technique, Kakashi's version was a step above in both power and range.

However, at the end of the day, it was still just a Great Fireball Technique.

An orange dragon head made of flame, possessing a temperature far exceeding that of the fireball, slammed into it!

Kakashi's fireball technique was like a toy in front of Akiyama Shun's fire dragon; it didn't even have the qualifications to clash, collapsing upon the slightest contact!

After scattering the Great Fireball, the flame dragon head remained completely unaffected, charging toward Kakashi without a single flicker of damage!

Even from a distance of over ten meters, Kakashi could already feel the terrifying temperature radiating from that orange-red flame dragon!

If he were to be hit by this ninjutsu...

"Water Style: Water Wall!"

The moment before the technique was about to strike, Kazama Shinya had already arrived in front of Kakashi.

With the release of his ninjutsu, a wall composed of water enveloped the two of them.

The moment the Great Fire Dragon struck the Water Wall, a hissing sound of evaporation rang out.

Only when the Great Fire Dragon had completely vanished did Kazama Shinya dare to stop the flow of his chakra.

Are you kidding me!

Even though he had blocked Akiyama Shun's attack, Kazama Shinya felt his scalp tingle.

It wasn't that blocking Akiyama Shun's attack was difficult, but that a technique like the Great Fire Dragon was simply not something someone of Akiyama Shun's age should be able to unleash!

And that was on top of the Shadow Clone and the Dance of the Crescent Moon from earlier...

Where on earth am I?

Is this really a first-year practical exam at the Ninja Academy?

"Are you hurt?"

Akiyama Shun's weak yet concerned voice drifted over from a distance.

Although this move was terrifying, Akiyama Shun certainly hadn't intended to kill Kakashi, and he knew this move would never be enough to kill him.

Not to mention Kazama Shinya, he reckoned that Sarutobi Hiruzen was likely watching them through that crystal ball right now, and there were probably a few Anbu members nearby, all waiting to step in if any accidents occurred.

In short, the life-threatening danger of a genius like Kakashi was absolutely not something he needed to worry about.

Kazama Shinya looked over and saw that the entire ground had been scorched black by the high heat, and at the end of this blackened path stood Akiyama Shun, who looked much weaker than before.

This move had consumed a massive amount of his chakra.

"...I lost."

Kakashi's expression at this moment was one of bewilderment mixed with a hint of helplessness.

He had worked so hard for so long to master his ninjutsu, all to defeat Akiyama Shun in the practical exam, only for his opponent to pull out something like that?

What else could he do?

Fine, you win.

Hearing Kakashi concede, Kazama Shinya hurriedly stepped between the two and announced loudly, "The winner is Akiyama Shun! Now, both of you, perform the Seal of Reconciliation!"

Kazama Shinya spoke at a rapid pace this time, eager to announce the result of the battle, fearing that if they decided to fight again and Akiyama Shun pulled out another outrageous ninjutsu, he wouldn't be able to handle the shock.

After Akiyama Shun and Kakashi performed the Seal of Reconciliation.

Under Kakashi's puzzled gaze, Akiyama Shun reached out, placed his hand on Kakashi's head, and patted it twice.

"...What are you doing?"

"Comforting you."

Hearing Akiyama Shun's words and feeling the hand still stroking his head, Kakashi couldn't keep his composure.

"Next time, I will definitely beat you!"

With that, he turned and ran away quickly.

Heh heh heh!

That felt great!

Akiyama Shun wore a smile; as expected, patting someone's head in reality was much more satisfying than doing it in a game.

As Akiyama Shun left the combat arena and walked toward the crowd, the students finally snapped out of their stupor, and enthusiastic cheers erupted into the sky!

"Akiyama Shun!"

"That was so cool, Akiyama Shun!"

"What was that ninjutsu? Did I hear Great Fire Dragon? Isn't that supposed to be a B-rank ninjutsu?"

"Hahaha, I knew you could do it!"

After Akiyama Shun finished his battle, several other students took the stage to spar.

However, their fights were naturally not as intense as the one between Akiyama Shun and Kakashi.

Soon enough, the practical examination came to an end.

The scoring for the practical exam was not complicated; Kazama Shinya simply had to grade everyone based on their performance, and the results were available immediately.

There was no doubt about the first place; it was naturally Akiyama Shun.

Second place went to Kakashi. Although he had lost to Akiyama Shun, that did not mean he was weak. His performance was solid, and as long as he wasn't facing Akiyama Shun, the rest of the class combined would be no match for him.

Yuhi Kurenai took fourth place, falling just a step behind Asuma.