Ice Release!

! Akiyama Shun, what Release did you just say?

Ice Release!?

How was that possible!?

Kakashi was the closest to Akiyama Shun, so he was the first to hear him. His mind was buzzing.

As Kakashi watched, Akiyama Shun leaped into the air ahead of him and flung out three pillars of ice. The moment they struck the ground, they transformed into three dazzling, bone-chilling ice flowers.

Beneath those flowers, the earth had been completely frozen.

Kakashi's Earth Style: Earth Spear couldn't pierce the ice. Before he could even use the jutsu, Ice Release had snuffed it out in the cradle.

In the stands.

After a brief silence, the crowd erupted into enthusiastic cheers.

"Ice Release! Akiyama Shun had Ice Release hidden up his sleeve!"

"Wait, isn't Ice Release from Kirigakure? Isn't Akiyama Shun from Konoha?"

"Why do you care so much about the Five Great Shinobi Villages?"

"Exactly! Just enjoy the fight. Don't worry about anything else."

"Those ice flowers look so beautiful."

"Go touch one, then."

"Never mind."

"..."

The spectators were only there for the spectacle, but the people on the elevated platform were another matter entirely.

Everyone from Konoha stared at Akiyama Shun in shock.

Kekkei Genkai were certainly rare, but one alone wasn't enough to astonish them this much.

The problem was that, until now, they hadn't known Akiyama Shun had a Kekkei Genkai at all. He'd never shown it himself!

Sarutobi Hiruzen was the most shocked of all. He'd expected Akiyama Shun to surprise him, but he hadn't expected such a huge surprise!

A Kekkei Genkai!

Once the shock subsided, a question surfaced in Sarutobi Hiruzen's mind.

Where had this Kekkei Genkai come from?

First of all, Ice Release was the Kekkei Genkai of Kirigakure's Yuki Clan, and the Yuki Clan had already been wiped out, just like the Kaguya Clan.

Akiyama Shun's parents had both been ordinary Konoha Ninja. Neither had a Kekkei Genkai, and they had no connection to Kirigakure whatsoever.

No matter how he looked at it, there was no link to Ice Release.

As for the idea that Akiyama Shun's family were spies from Kirigakure, Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn't even considered it.

Akiyama Shun's family had given their lives for Konoha for three generations. They were as rooted in the village as anyone could be.

Besides, what kind of village would send a spy with a Kekkei Genkai?

How was that any different from announcing through a megaphone, "I'm a spy. I'm not from your village"?

If they weren't spies...

A new possibility suddenly flashed through Sarutobi Hiruzen's mind.

Could Akiyama Shun really have a Kekkei Genkai, but it wasn't actually Ice Release?

That's right!

If it was a brand-new Kekkei Genkai, then everything made sense!

In that instant, all of Akiyama Shun's past performances flashed through Sarutobi Hiruzen's mind. A faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

At that moment, the Third Kazekage saw what had happened. After a brief shock, his tone turned faintly curious.

"So Konoha has an Ice Release ninja. That's unexpected. Isn't that the Kekkei Genkai of the Yuki Clan?"

After speaking, the Third Kazekage turned a dark, wary gaze on Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Sarutobi Hiruzen only smiled. "I never expected that, even at my age, I'd still encounter something new."

Keep pretending, then.

The Third Kazekage took Sarutobi Hiruzen for a fool, but since Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't want to continue the discussion, he let it drop.

After all, they were still allies. There was no need to dwell on something like this.

Everyone turned their attention back to the arena.

Akiyama Shun was now descending from the air, forming Hand Seals with one hand as he fell.

By the time he landed on the ice, his Hand Seals were complete.

"Secret Technique: Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death!"

"You really kept that well hidden."

Kakashi was still shocked, but even as he spoke, he didn't let up.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

As Akiyama Shun unleashed Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death, Kakashi spat out a Fireball Jutsu.

The bone-chilling ice collided with the scorching flames, and a blast of alternating hot and cold air swept across the arena.

Amid the blast, Kakashi's eyes darted around, but he couldn't find Akiyama Shun. All he saw was an Ice Mirror, with Akiyama Shun's reflection inside it.

"Where is he?"

Kakashi had never seen this jutsu before. His first instinct was to look in the opposite direction from the Ice Mirror, but Akiyama Shun wasn't there. He saw only Ice Mirrors, each one reflecting Akiyama Shun.

Kakashi's gaze swept across the arena as he searched for Akiyama Shun.

As he looked for him, however, the corner of his eye caught sight of an Ice Mirror that had appeared beside him without him noticing.

His hair stood on end!

Even without knowing what the thing did, Kakashi knew it was dangerous!

He tried to dodge, but it was too late.

Akiyama Shun emerged from the mirror and landed a devastating Strength of a Hundred Liver-Exploding Fist on Kakashi. Kakashi went flying once again and slammed into the wall!

"Ugh!"

This time, with no mask to hide his mouth, Kakashi spat a mouthful of blood onto the ground.

Even now, Kakashi couldn't understand how Akiyama Shun had gotten beside him.

"Zzzzt!"

As Kakashi was still trying to figure it out, a familiar crackling sound rang in his ears.

He turned toward the sound. It was Akiyama Shun.

Akiyama Shun stood beside Kakashi, holding a Chidori and quietly watching him.

"...I surrender!"

After a brief silence, Kakashi chose to surrender.

There was no point continuing the fight. He hadn't figured out anything about Akiyama Shun's Ice Release, yet Akiyama Shun was already standing beside him with a Chidori in hand.

If they'd been on a battlefield, Kakashi would already be dead.

After Kakashi surrendered, the referee walked to the center of the arena and announced, "The fight is over! The winner is Akiyama Shun!"

"The champion of the Chunin Ninja Exams is..."

The referee deliberately paused.

"Akiyama Shun!"

As soon as the referee made the announcement, the stands erupted into enthusiastic cheers.

"I've never seen ice in my life. Now that I've seen Ice Release, it was worth it."

"Didn't you say you'd never taken the Chunin Ninja Exams? How was it worth it?"

"You're talking too much."

"Ice Release, a self-created jutsu—oh my god, Akiyama Shun!"

This had been the most thrilling fight they'd seen in the Chunin Ninja Exams over the past few years.

The next best had been Kakashi's fight against Karura.

Amid the cheers from the stands, Akiyama Shun placed a hand on Kakashi's head and ruffled his hair twice. Only after seeing Kakashi's face twist did he help him up.

"You! How do you have Ice Release too? Don't tell me you've got something else hidden away as well?"

Faced with Kakashi's question, Akiyama Shun only gave an awkward laugh and didn't answer directly.

He hadn't claimed his monthly allowance this month. He'd been waiting until he officially became a Chunin to collect it.

A Chunin's monthly allowance was twenty draws. Added to the draws he'd earned from signing in, that would bring him to thirty. He'd be able to go wild with them later!

If he happened to get something good, then in a way, he really would have been hiding something.

Seeing Akiyama Shun act that way, Kakashi sighed. He'd known it—Akiyama Shun still had something hidden up his sleeve!