Karin Senju's Wood Release technique took Minato Namikaze completely by surprise. He had expected Karin might use a few basic D-Rank Ninjutsu, but she'd opened with Wood Release. That was far beyond anything he'd anticipated.
Though he hadn't been prepared, Minato Namikaze was, after all, the man known as the Yellow Flash. Even with four wooden pillars closing in on him, he reacted swiftly.
Minato dipped his body, spun low to the ground, and kicked the base of one of the pillars. Using the force of the impact to propel himself away from the encirclement, he quickly escaped the pillars' reach. Then he lightly touched the ground with his right hand, flipped over, and landed steadily on his feet.
Minato's movements had flowed seamlessly from one to the next, smooth and graceful. In the modern era, even Olympic gymnastics judges would have given him high marks.
"She can use Wood Release?! This child has mastered Wood Release—the same technique as the First!"
"The Senju Clan has produced another Wood Release Kekkei Genkai user! Our young generation in Konoha has a new genius!"
"Is that girl Senju Nawaki's daughter? The First's great-granddaughter!"
The parents watching the test had been fairly quiet, but the moment they saw Karin Senju use Wood Release, the stands erupted with excitement. Wood Release Kekkei Genkai wasn't like other Kekkei Genkai. It was the same bloodline ability as that of the God of Shinobi. Its appearance also conveyed another message: the Senju Clan was even willing to send one of its most exceptional members to the Ninja Academy.
Once word got out that a Wood Release Kekkei Genkai had appeared during the Ninja Academy tests, some of the shinobi clans that hadn't wanted to send their children to the academy would surely reconsider.
Wood Release didn't just