Challenge

Everyone was rubbing their hands together, ready to show off their skills. Cunxia Ye, with his naturally restless personality, couldn't sit still and said to Chen Fan and the others, "The Third Hokage and the Fourth Hokage are both here. I have to perform well later; maybe the position of Fifth Hokage will be mine."

Shiba Bun looked at Cunxia Ye with disdain and said, "You? You're lucky if you can even graduate, and you're already thinking about being Hokage."

"Of course I can graduate! Even if I can't compare to monsters like Mirai and Uchiha Itachi, my strength is still in the upper-middle tier of the class. You should be the one worrying instead."

"My grades are top-tier, so why would I worry when you aren't?" Shiba Bun spread his hands.

"That's just because you have a better brain and do well in written subjects. When it comes to fighting, you aren't any better than me!"

"Are you admitting that you're an idiot?"

"Asshole! What did you say? I hope we face each other later; I'll show you that having big fists is the only truth that matters."

"Are you trying to say you have simple limbs and a simple mind?" Shiba Bun maintained his calm expression, which infuriated Cunxia Ye.

"Damn it...!"

"Ah~! I remember now, stupidity is contagious. Please stay away from me!"

"Eek~~!" Cunxia Ye scratched his head in frustration.

Mirai placed his hands on both of their shoulders and said, "Stop, quit arguing. Everyone is watching you." Upon hearing Mirai, the two looked up. Sure enough, every student in the class was staring at them. Their faces flushed slightly, and they lowered their heads, grumbling to each other in low voices.

Nakamura Hino was furious at their lack of manners in front of the Third and Fourth Hokage, but Minato and the Third simply smiled, clearly not offended in the slightest.

The Third Hokage nodded at Nakamura and said, "Alright, Nakamura, let the students begin."

"Yes, Third Hokage-sama." After acknowledging the order, Nakamura Hino turned to face all the students in the class. "As you can see, the Third Hokage and the Fourth Hokage have taken time out of their busy schedules to come here and watch your matches. You must all show your true strength! If you catch the eye of the Hokage, one of you might very well become the next Hokage. When that day comes, I, as your teacher, will be very proud."

"Although this tournament is one-on-one, the rules have been slightly modified. I will call names according to student numbers, and others may apply to challenge them. The winner of a challenge advances to the second round. If no one challenges, the student may choose any opponent from those who have advanced. We aren't ranking the top few; we are selecting a single winner. There will only be one victor, and everyone else will be a loser. Whether you succeed or fail, you must show your best side in front of the Third and Fourth Hokage!"

These rules were quite interesting; if one avoided fighting, they could save stamina, but choosing one's own opponent could also lead to a disadvantageous position.

"Yes!!" all the students shouted in response.

Nakamura nodded and said, "Very well, let's begin with the first one, Yamazaki!"

"Coming!" Yamazaki raised his hand and walked out.

"Does anyone challenge him?"

"I will!" A boy jumped out to issue a challenge. The two soon clashed; after half a year of practical training, all the students had made significant physical progress, and the fight was quite a spectacle.

At this moment, three boys were huddled together. The leader was Sato, who had fought Mirai for the first time half a year ago. He had encountered Mirai once in a subsequent match and was defeated. He had also faced Uchiha Itachi twice. Back then, Mirai wasn't a match for Uchiha Itachi, let alone Sato, who couldn't even beat Mirai, let alone Itachi. He had been easily defeated by Itachi, and perhaps because Itachi was Mirai's cousin, he held a grudge against Mirai for it.

Sato said to the two boys beside him, "If no one challenges Mirai later, you two go and challenge him."

"But we aren't Mirai's match," the two boys replied.

"I know you aren't his match. All you need to do is drain that guy's stamina, and then I will personally defeat him and return all the humiliation he gave me! If you succeed, I'll treat you to barbecue three times!"

Hearing there was good food involved, the two boys agreed. "Alright." Children were always easy to bribe.

Before long, it was Mirai's turn. Nakamura asked if anyone wanted to challenge him, and as expected, it was quiet. Mirai had always been first in daily training; looking for trouble with him now was just asking for a beating. At the very least, they needed Mirai's stamina to be depleted first.

Seeing no one step forward, Sato nudged one of the boys, signaling him to challenge. Thinking of the delicious food, the boy stepped out to challenge Mirai.

He launched an attack on Mirai immediately. While his strength wasn't weak among the students—at least mid-tier—the gap between them was simply too vast. Mirai dodged all of the boy's attacks and struck him once on the neck, causing the boy to collapse in a spectacular faint.

The Third and Fourth Hokage both nodded upon seeing this. A child's exceptional talent could be seen at a young age, whether they were a hard-working genius or a naturally gifted one.

Both of them knew Mirai's background. The Third, in particular, saw glimpses of Minato in Mirai—or perhaps he was even more gifted than Minato. With high natural talent, sufficient effort, and a good temperament, such a child would surely become a powerhouse in Konoha and even had a high chance of becoming the next Hokage. The Third had a habit of "peeking" at talented children, so aside from the System Shop, many of Mirai's secrets had been seen through by this shameless old man, though Mirai remained unaware.

The Fourth simply felt that Mirai was a great kid who would become even stronger in the future.

Soon, the first round concluded. Through the survival of the fittest, the few people who were on good terms with Mirai all advanced to the second round, and the number of participants was halved.

When it was Mirai's turn again, someone else stood up to challenge him. This time, the opponent also launched a fierce attack, but after fighting for a while, Mirai found an opening and kicked him away, securing the victory.

By the third round, there weren't many people left. Mirai was ranked first, and before Nakamura could even speak, Sato jumped out to challenge him.