Ninja Jiahao's Trait?

"Group one, Hatake Kakashi versus Might Guy."

Upon hearing this, Might Guy seemed to ignite, rushing straight in front of Kakashi.

"Kakashi, my fated rival, the day has finally come!"

His green spandex suit reflected the sunlight, and beneath his thick brows, two rows of blindingly white teeth flashed.

Kakashi glanced at Might Guy's already well-developed muscles, then recalled Obito's earlier bluster, and gave a slight nod.

Although it wasn't Qingyu, Might Guy was decent enough.

Compared to a show-off like Obito, Might Guy's physique, built through day-after-day of grueling training, was clearly the real deal.

In terms of raw strength and stamina alone, he was actually a step behind Might Guy.

Conversely, Kakashi's swordsmanship, ninjutsu, and genjutsu were far beyond what Might Guy could match.

"Mn."

The two walked to the sparring area and stood facing each other.

Umino Shika continued to call out several more pairs of names, and the sounds of kunai clashing began to ring out across the training grounds.

"The final group."

Umino Shika's gaze landed on the last line of the roster.

"Qingyu versus Uchiha Tekka."

Uchiha Tekka stepped out from the line.

Just the night before, Uchiha Yashiro had specifically summoned him to the clan's training grounds, instructing him to uphold the dignity of the Uchiha clan and not end up a dead-last loser like Obito.

Qingyu and Uchiha Tekka walked into the sparring area marked by white lines and stood facing each other.

The other groups on the training grounds had also taken their positions, and the air was thick with the tension unique to an exam.

Uchiha Tekka looked at Qingyu before him, his eyes filled with a measuring gaze.

"Come on."

Uchiha Tekka spoke indifferently.

Qingyu's grades in class were indeed good.

But performing well in practice didn't necessarily mean one would perform well in actual combat.

"I suppose it would be more appropriate to call you Senju Qingyu."

Uchiha Tekka said.

Qingyu's father had turned his back on the Uchiha clan years ago, choosing to unite with a woman of the Senju clan.

In Uchiha Tekka's eyes, that made him a traitor.

And Qingyu, naturally, was the son of a traitor.

Calling him Senju Qingyu was already being polite.

If they weren't at school, he would have used much harsher terms.

Upon hearing this, Qingyu's face remained expressionless, though he corrected him:

"No, I don't have a surname now."

After the Senju clan disbanded, its members went their separate ways; a significant portion went to teach at the ninja academy, integrating into every corner of Konoha.

But from that day on, no one could call themselves Senju anymore.

The surname Senju had already become history.

"Hmph."

Uchiha Tekka let out a cold snort, not bothering to dwell on the topic any further.

He raised his right hand and formed the Seal of Confrontation with one hand.

"Don't think of me as just another commoner."

There was a warning in Uchiha Tekka's voice.

"I know ninjutsu."

Qingyu also formed the Seal of Confrontation with one hand, returned the gesture, and then lowered his arm.

"Is that so? I do too."

Qingyu nodded.

On the sidelines, Yūhi Kurenai's gaze shifted back and forth between the two, and she couldn't help but ask in a low voice:

"Who will win?"

She was asking Shizune.

Shizune stood beside her, also keeping her eyes on Qingyu.

"Qingyu is much stronger than he appears on the surface."

Shizune remarked.

Back at Tsunade's house, she had seen Qingyu practicing Water Release ninjutsu and knew that he was actually quite formidable in that regard.

It was just that at the Ninja Academy, Qingyu had never shown it.

Yūhi Kurenai glanced at Shizune, quite surprised.

She had always thought that the high-achieving Qingyu was already quite high-profile, but looking at it now, had he actually been hiding his strength?

Sarutobi Asuma pulled his hood up over his head and shoved his hands into his pockets, even mimicking Kakashi by wearing a mask.

Because today was the day of the monthly exam, Sarutobi Asuma intended to dress as coolly as possible.

Hearing what Shizune said to Yūhi Kurenai, Sarutobi Asuma had wandered over at some point, arms crossed over his chest, and upon hearing Shizune's words, he struck a pose as if he saw through everything.

"That may be so, but while Qingyu's written test scores have been good, he might not necessarily be stronger than Uchiha Tekka when it comes to real combat."

He specifically adjusted the volume of his voice so that it would be just loud enough for Yūhi Kurenai standing nearby to hear.

"You might not know this, but the Uchiha clan, in addition to their academy courses, arranges for their children to go hunting in the wild. That is real, live-blade combat experience; book smarts and actual combat are two completely different things."

After Sarutobi Asuma finished speaking, he specifically glanced at Yūhi Kurenai out of the corner of his eye, hoping for some feedback from his goddess.

This kind of intelligence wasn't something an average person would know.

He was, after all, the son of the Hokage, and his sources of information were much better than those of ordinary students.

While everyone else assumed that good written grades meant true strength, only he could make such a unique judgment, which was quite...

Unexpectedly, Yūhi Kurenai shook her head.

"Shizune-san lives with Qingyu every day, so she must know the more accurate situation."

Sarutobi Asuma's expression stiffened.

He instinctively wanted to say something to explain, but he was afraid that if he said too much, the goddess would think he was being argumentative and lower his standing in her eyes.

That would be counterproductive.

He had no choice but to shut his mouth and swallow the rest of his words.

[Detected collectible trait: E-rank trait]
[E-rank trait: Class Swagger]
[Effect: Mental resilience is stronger than others, increases Genjutsu resistance by 10%.]

"Swagger?"

Qingyu looked back.

He had just overheard Sarutobi Asuma's whispering.

Perhaps because he had become stronger recently, his hearing had become much sharper.

"Could this 'Swagger' be referring to Asuma?"

Qingyu's expression was strange.

Swagger, in essence, was just being a delinquent youth, not much different from a troublemaker.

Thinking about it carefully, the young Asuma could only be considered to have a little bit of swagger; the degree of it wasn't very high.

Everyone else was following the rules to become ninjas in Konoha, but only Sarutobi Asuma openly went against Sarutobi Hiruzen and even ran off to become a ninja for the Daimyo.

Of course, the mature Asuma who had weathered the storms of the future was indeed different from his younger self, having become a quite reliable ninja.

Qingyu then withdrew his gaze.

A trait that increased Genjutsu resistance was not bad at all.

It was just that Qingyu was very curious: if he kept stacking it, would he be able to withstand the Infinite Tsukuyomi?

"You dare to be distracted while fighting me?"

Uchiha Tekka felt dissatisfied seeing Qingyu looking around.

This guy was completely looking down on him!

"Before we start, I'll say one last thing."

Uchiha Tekka assumed his opening stance for the attack.

"The Uchiha are the number one clan in Konoha!"

Before his voice had even faded, his right hand flickered.

Chi chi chi!

Three shuriken flew out.

This was no basic throwing exercise.

This was the Uchiha Style Shurikenjutsu, honed through the hunting training of the Uchiha clan.

Every shuriken's landing point had been calculated by Uchiha Tekka; anyone with a slightly slower reaction time would have been unable to dodge them.

However, this was completely useless against Qingyu.

Body Flicker Technique!

Qingyu's figure flashed, dodging the projectiles.

Uchiha Tekka frowned.

The next moment, he also utilized the Body Flicker Technique.

Uchiha Tekka's figure left an afterimage in place as he appeared directly before Qingyu.

Uchiha Tekka chose to engage in close-quarters combat immediately, aiming to prevent Qingyu from kiting him.

He was betting that Qingyu would not activate his Sharingan right away.

The burden of the Sharingan was immense, and even members of the Uchiha clan could not activate it casually.

Chakra consumption and ocular fatigue were both factors that had to be considered.

Therefore, he concluded that Qingyu would only use his Sharingan at the most critical moment.

And what he had to do was end this battle quickly before Qingyu opened his eyes.