27 Seconds!

Kakashi heard the news and, for once, wore an expression of genuine interest.

He had seen his fair share of clowns, but to see one foolish enough to challenge someone of Qingyu's caliber—he really had to go see that for himself.

And so, the group surged toward the Third Training Ground in a grand procession.

Sarutobi Asuma had tagged along, dragging his best friends—Yamanaka Tsukano, Nara Inshui, and Akimichi Domaru—with him; the new generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans was present in its entirety.

"Qingyu?"

Nara Inshui stroked his chin.

He was a grade ahead of Asuma, but he too had heard that an incredible genius had emerged among the new students.

"That's right, that's Qingyu."

Sarutobi Asuma crossed his arms over his chest.

Qingyu glanced around the training ground and realized there were quite a few people present.

Aside from their own class, there were several upperclassmen who had rushed over upon hearing the news, standing in twos and threes along the edge of the field, whispering and discussing the spectacle.

Qingyu then withdrew his gaze and looked at Obito, who was standing opposite him.

"Let's begin, Obito."

Qingyu said calmly.

"Hmph, don't think you're so great just because you've awakened the Sharingan!"

Obito pulled down his yellow goggles, covering his eyes completely.

He had specifically pasted a layer of paper on the inside of the goggles to block any genjutsu attacks from Qingyu's Sharingan.

For someone like him who hadn't awakened his own eyes, the Sharingan's genjutsu was something that would cause him to explode if he so much as took a second look.

Therefore, Obito had made special preparations to counter Qingyu's Sharingan.

"Obito-kun has really prepared for this."

Shizune was somewhat surprised.

"It's about to start..."

Rin Nohara clasped her hands in front of her chest, her gaze shifting back and forth between the two.

The next moment, Obito made the first move.

He pulled several shuriken tied with specialized steel wires from his ninja pouch and flung them forward, sending them flying toward Qingyu.

Swish! Swish!

Mid-flight, Obito hooked his fingers, the steel wires suddenly tightened, and the trajectory of the shuriken shifted in an instant.

Uchiha Style Shurikenjutsu!

Qingyu understood immediately, and a single tomoe quietly emerged in his eyes.

At the same time, he had already begun to learn the technique.

Substitution Technique.

Qingyu's figure left a wooden log in place as his real body rapidly moved several meters away.

Thud.

The steel wires of the shuriken sliced the wooden log Qingyu had prepared in half.

"Using the 'Substitution Technique' to dodge? You're looking down on me too much!"

Obito frowned, clearly dissatisfied with Qingyu's method of response.

The "Substitution Technique" essentially involved rapidly swapping one's body with a substitute object at the moment of an attack, combined with smoke to create the illusion of being hit.

Being able to perform it so fluidly meant that Qingyu's speed was faster than his; otherwise, it would have been impossible to have the time to pull out a wooden log while dodging.

In Obito's eyes, this was Qingyu deliberately toying with him.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

Obito formed the hand seals: Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger.

The six hand seals were completed within a few seconds.

He took a deep breath, gathered chakra in his throat, and spewed out a ball of fire significantly smaller than the one Uchiha Tekka had produced last time.

Half-baked.

Qingyu judged silently.

Compared to the barely passable fireball of Uchiha Tekka, Obito's effort could only be described as a large flame.

However, it was already enough.

While Obito was forming his hand seals, Qingyu had already circled behind him.

The moment the flames dissipated, Obito's pupils contracted violently; the space in front of him was empty.

Water Release: Water Bullet Barrage.

Several water bullets struck from behind Obito, grazing his hair before slamming heavily into the ground and splashing mud everywhere.

Obito froze in place, maintaining his hand seal posture without moving an inch.

If Qingyu had aimed for his body just now, he would already be lying on the ground, unable to get back up.

"You lost, Obito."

Qingyu said.

Snap!

After dodging Obito's opening move, Qingyu made his move, and Obito couldn't even dodge it.

As he was now, he was fully deserving of the title of "dead last."

[Detected collectible trait: Fire Release Affinity]

[D-rank trait: Fire Release Affinity]

[Effect: When practicing Fire Release ninjutsu, learning speed increases by 20%.]

Qingyu glanced at the newly dropped trait and nodded slightly to himself.

Although no space-time related traits had dropped, Fire Release Affinity wasn't bad either.

It was a pity that Obito's chakra was still too low; it would be great if he could farm him regularly.

"Qingyu won just like that?"

Yamanaka Tsukano sat on the grass at the edge of the field, holding his small ninja dog in his arms.

From his perspective as a bystander, the entire battle from start to finish hadn't even lasted half a minute.

Obito's shuriken manipulation technique had looked like something, but after Qingyu dodged it, the rest was a completely one-sided crush.

"I thought Obito might have some new tricks."

Sarutobi Asuma was deeply disappointed.

He had actually thought that since Obito dared to initiate a challenge, he might have had some kind of trump card, but this was it?

Kakashi stood to the side with his hands in his pockets, too lazy to even offer a critique.

Obito crouched on the ground, his entire body looking as if his bones had been pulled out, his head lowered in silence.

His expression was hidden behind his goggles, but his fists were already clenched tight.

"Obito, you've already improved a lot since last time."

Rin Nohara walked over, crouched down, and comforted him softly.

Obito's ears twitched, and he finally lifted his head a little.

Although losing was embarrassing, having Rin come to comfort him personally... it seemed like it wasn't a total loss after all.

"Hmph, I'll definitely win next time!"

Obito pointed at Qingyu and announced loudly.

"Fine, I'll be waiting."

Qingyu nodded.

This wasn't just polite talk.

He was genuinely waiting for Obito to come and deliver more traits next time.

If Obito could come often, it would be very beneficial for Qingyu.

The crowd of onlookers dispersed quickly after watching this anticlimactic, one-sided match.

They had wanted to see the drama of a dead-last underdog making a comeback, but the facts proved that a dead-last was still a dead-last.

Instead, Qingyu's image as a genius was further solidified in their minds.

After returning, Qingyu intended to carry out his daily training.

Even with the power of the system, Qingyu didn't plan to rely on it entirely.

If he did that, wouldn't he just be a puppet pushed forward by the system?

In Qingyu's view, the help the system provided was indeed immense, but one shouldn't give up eating for fear of choking; otherwise, he would inevitably become lazy.

The world of ninjas was cruel; even Naruto, who was nearly invincible in his prime, had grown complacent for a decade in Boruto, only to have his stomach pierced by a random Uchiha Shin.

If it weren't for Naruto's Nine-Tails recovery ability, those injuries could easily have been fatal.

"Are you sure there's no team leader yet?"

After Qingyu finished his training, he saw Tsunade asking him a question.

"That hasn't happened yet; isn't it decided only after graduation?"

Qingyu asked, puzzled.

"Some can be decided in advance; it's just that they only officially lead the team after graduation."

Tsunade replied.

Qingyu understood immediately upon hearing this.

He remembered that in the original story, Kakashi had also known in advance that Naruto would become his student.

Therefore, it was not impossible for some team leaders to choose to make contact ahead of time.

However, in Qingyu's opinion, it was still a bit too early.

"This is the first time I've heard of this."

Qingyuan said.

"What do you think of Orochimaru?"

Tsunade suddenly asked.