After winning the match, Choji Akimichi beamed. As soon as he stepped off the platform, he pulled out a bag of potato chips, tore it open, and replenished the energy he had spent during the fight.
The final match was Uchiha Sasuke versus Naruto Uzumaki.
The atmosphere around the arena instantly ignited.
"Sasuke-kun—good luck!"
"Sasuke-kun, you're the best!"
The moment Sasuke stepped into the arena, the girls gathered around it clasped their hands to their chests, their eyes shining brightly as they erupted into a perfectly coordinated cheer.
"He's way too popular." Choji was so envious he even forgot to eat his chips.
"Tch." Tsume Inuzuka was a little indignant. She felt she was no worse than Sasuke.
Shikamaru Nara, meanwhile, was glad he hadn't grown up looking like Sasuke. Otherwise, just dealing with all those girls every day would've been enough to give him a headache.
"Naruto-kun... good luck." Standing in a corner, Hyuga Hinata quietly cheered him on in her heart.
Uchiha Sasuke furrowed his brow slightly.
Too noisy.
He thought it to himself, but his face remained expressionless. He simply kept his hands in his pockets and gazed calmly ahead.
In stark contrast to the lively scene on this side was the quiet on the other.
Naruto stood there with his hands on his hips and his chest puffed out, trying his best to look like he was popular too.
But the truth was, the space around him was empty. No one cheered him on. No one even spared him a second glance.
He looked at the boy across from him, surrounded by admirers as if he were the center of the universe. Seeing him standing there so nonchalantly, hands in his pockets, inexplicably made Naruto's anger flare.
Naruto raised a finger and pointed at him, shouting, "Uchiha Sasuke, I'm going to beat you today, then steal all your fans!"
Sasuke didn't even raise an eyelid.
He'd heard Naruto say that countless times already.
Naruto gritted his teeth, displeased that Sasuke hadn't responded.
"Begin," Qiushui said calmly.
Naruto reached for the ninja tool pouch at his waist. He was going to make the first move and show everyone—including Uchiha Sasuke—how strong he was.
But the next moment, he froze.
For some reason, the clasp on his pouch was stuck tight. He yanked at it, but it wouldn't open. He yanked again, and still it wouldn't budge.
He panicked and gave it a sharp tug.
Clatter—
Kunai and shuriken spilled all over the floor, their crisp clinks painfully embarrassing.
The arena fell silent for a moment, then erupted in unabashed laughter.
"Hahaha, Naruto, you can't even hold on to your shuriken! How do you expect to fight? Just give up already!"
"Exactly! You're a dead-last loser. How could you possibly beat Sasuke? Quit wasting our time!"
The voices were shrill and grating, drilling mercilessly into Naruto's ears.
Fortunately, Naruto was already used to it. A flicker of embarrassment crossed his face, quickly covered by his stubbornness.
He lifted his head and looked at Sasuke.
Sasuke was still standing where he'd been, hands in his pockets. He hadn't taken advantage of the opening to attack, and his expression hadn't changed in the slightest.
It was as if he didn't take Naruto seriously at all.
Naruto grew even more indignant.
"Raaah!"
He shouted and charged straight at Sasuke, one fist clenched.
He had no tactics, no form—just a headlong rush.
It looked imposing, but he was leaving himself wide open.
Sasuke still didn't move.
He simply stood there with his hands in his pockets, watching Naruto charge closer and closer.
Five meters. Three meters. One meter.
Just as Naruto was about to crash into him, Sasuke finally moved.
He was astonishingly fast. All that remained where he'd stood was an afterimage. The next moment—
"Ah! Ouch, ouch!"
Naruto's cries rang through the entire training hall.
He lay face-down on the floor, his arms twisted behind his back, pinned down by Sasuke's knee. A chill touched his neck: a kunai pressed against his skin, held perfectly still.
The match was over.
Naruto struggled to get up. He refused to accept it. He couldn't give up. He still hadn't—
But when he turned his head and met Sasuke's gaze, all his struggles stopped.
Those eyes were empty.
There was no mockery, no contempt, none of the strange looks other people gave him—not even the smugness a victor ought to feel.
Naruto didn't know how to describe Sasuke's gaze. He opened his mouth, but the words died before he could say them.
[Talent cultivation complete] [Overall evaluation: B] [Reward received—Wind Style: Gale Palm (Beginner)]
Qiushui looked at the reward, a thoughtful expression on his face. This time, the evaluation was B, and the reward's proficiency level had dropped several grades compared to before. He'd only received the beginner level.
He soon understood why. This had been a practical combat lesson, and he'd stood off to the side the entire time instead of teaching them concepts as he had in previous classes.
Qiushui decided that from then on, after each match in a practical lesson, he would offer suggestions tailored to the students' shortcomings. He hoped that would improve his evaluation.
A flood of memories about the Wind Style: Gale Palm technique immediately surfaced in his mind.
Wind Style: Gale Palm was a C-rank technique developed by Jiraiya. The person most skilled at using it was Boruto Uzumaki.
The technique focused chakra in the palm to form a high-density whirlwind, then released it all at once to create a shock wave. It could be used as a ranged shock-wave attack, or the wind pressure could be compressed against the palm to strengthen Taijutsu strikes. It could also provide propulsion to assist with jumping or movement.
Qiushui recalled that Naruto's chakra nature seemed to be Wind. He could teach him the technique later.
What's more, this technique required less chakra control than other techniques. With the Talent Aura's boost, Qiushui believed Naruto should be able to learn it in a short time.
The only drawback was that the system hadn't provided any Wind-nature chakra. Naruto could still use the technique, but there would be a significant difference compared to using it with Wind-nature chakra.
A notification appeared before Qiushui.
[Main Quest: The Path to Cultivating High-Quality Talent Naruto Uzumaki] [Quest requirement: Get Naruto Uzumaki into the top fifteen on the exam at the end of the month] [Quest reward: Granted after a comprehensive assessment based on quest completion]
Qiushui looked at the quest before him, surprise on his face.
He hadn't expected binding a talent to trigger an additional cultivation quest.
He'd already planned to cultivate Naruto properly. Now he'd have to put even more effort into it.
"I wonder if talents who haven't been bound can trigger quests like this too. That'd be even better," Qiushui muttered.
He looked toward Naruto, who stood in the distance in a corner, looking withdrawn, and walked over.
"Teacher Qiushui." Hearing footsteps, Naruto looked up and called out.
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