Victory

Facing the incoming Great Fireball, Matsushita quickly formed hand seals and used Water Release: Water Wave. A huge stream of chakra-infused water surged from his mouth and gathered into a wave. It not only extinguished the Great Fireball, but still had enough force to rush toward Nawaki!

But Nawaki had already completed his second ninjutsu in an instant. He slapped both hands against the ground before him, and the earth rapidly cracked and rose into a wave of soil that surged toward Matsushita. It stopped the water and swiftly formed a circular wall around him, which became a mound in the blink of an eye and completely encased him. Earth Release Barrier: Earth Prison Dome.

Nawaki's hand seals were so fast that he completed two ninjutsu in less than a second. The second technique was unleashed almost simultaneously with Matsushita's Water Release. Thanks to the principle of elemental advantage, Earth Prison Dome easily countered Water Wave and trapped Matsushita before he could react.

This was the strategy Nawaki had devised before using Fire Release: a duet of ninjutsu that took advantage of his far superior hand-seal speed and the principle of elemental advantage!

Any shinobi whose hand-seal speed and chakra reserves weren't much greater than his own would fall for it. There were many combinations for this kind of Ninjutsu Duet, each using different elements, making it incredibly versatile. As long as his opponent wasn't a kekkei genkai user, it was highly effective in battles below Kage Level. Even against a Kage-level opponent, it could have a remarkable effect if used by surprise.

Ninjutsu Duet, or even a quintet, was a tactical technique Nawaki had tailored for the Senju Clan, based on their five elemental chakra natures and large chakra reserves. This was the first time he had used it, and it had worked perfectly.

If Nawaki had chosen an offensive Earth Release technique for his second ninjutsu, such as Earth Spear or Antlion Hell, Matsushita might already have been dead.

Nawaki pressed one hand against the earthen prison, controlling the barrier as it absorbed Matsushita's chakra to reinforce the walls. He moved in a small circle around the prison at a steady pace, keeping the chakra evenly distributed through the earth.

"Teacher Matsushita, you should surrender! Your strength and taijutsu aren't enough to break this barrier. You'll just run out of chakra in the end!"

Hearing Nawaki's words from inside the prison, Matsushita used a kunai to carve a deep gouge into the earthen wall. But it quickly returned to its original shape as if it were alive, while the chakra inside him dwindled rapidly.

With no other choice, Matsushita surrendered.

The battle between the two had lasted less than three minutes. That was the way of shinobi combat: all kinds of strange ninjutsu appeared one after another, and you never knew how many trump cards your opponent had or what they might do next. One moment of carelessness could leave you in a desperate situation—or dead.

The Third Hokage watched Nawaki with admiration. "You've already mastered ninjutsu of several different elements? And your hand-seal speed and timing were both impeccable. It seems this child has a real talent for ninjutsu, and would be very suited to becoming my student."

Tsunade pursed her lips at that. "I think Nawaki's taijutsu techniques have more potential. I wonder how difficult they are to train in? If I could learn them and combine them with my Strength of a Hundred Fist, I'm confident I could take on even Teacher Sarutobi!"

"Uh..." Sarutobi was at a loss for words. With his insight, he could naturally see the true power of the Konoha Six Powers. If Nawaki weren't so young, and his body and stamina weren't inadequate for the demands of high-intensity combat, he could have beaten Matsushita through nothing but repeated surprise attacks with Shunpo.

Hearing Tsunade, Jiraiya cried out, "Are you kidding? Tsunade's strength is already ridiculous! One punch from her is enough to kill you. If she combined it with that Body Flicker Technique and could fly, wouldn't there be nowhere to escape, on land or in the sky?"

Orochimaru added with an eerie smile, "That's not all. If she also learned the defensive taijutsu that can deflect Shuriken, it would cover her weakness in defense. I'm sure the other three techniques have offensive applications too. The Konoha Six Powers really are a complete set of taijutsu techniques. Tsunade, your younger brother has extraordinary talent!"

"Of course he does!" Tsunade replied proudly.

Orochimaru was only thirteen. Although his parents' deaths had already set him on the path to pursuing immortality, he was nowhere near as unhinged as he would become during the Third Shinobi World War, when he experimented on his fellow villagers. He had only modified himself with snake cells, and hadn't even begun studying the forbidden techniques in the Scroll of Sealing. In the end, he was still just a slightly above-average elite jonin. Without being the Third Hokage's student and his ties to the Senju Clan, he would have been no different from an ordinary jonin.

Without great power and status, his ambitions hadn't yet grown to a frenzied level! So although he yearned for Nawaki's power and coveted it, he had not the slightest intention of making a move against him!

Not only did the Third Hokage and the Konoha High Command value Nawaki, but his big-sister-obsessed older sister Tsunade was more than he could handle at present. Nawaki himself was already strong, and had Wood Release as a trump card. Orochimaru had no certainty that he could defeat him.

With Orochimaru's intelligence, he had already abandoned the idea of forcibly taking Nawaki's power. Instead, he was considering how to get what he wanted through trade and cooperation.

Nawaki's talent and status made him fully worthy of being Orochimaru's equal. And for some reason, although Nawaki's outward appearance was sunny and flawless, Orochimaru sensed that he possessed the same greed and ambition as himself!

He would make an excellent partner. That was what the young Orochimaru thought, before he had ever been betrayed by Danzo.

However, at his current level of strength, Orochimaru had nothing to offer that might tempt Nawaki. So he couldn't reveal his hand too soon. He decided to keep observing from the shadows and test Nawaki once the time was right.

"Heh heh heh... I really envy you, Tsunade," Orochimaru said with an insinuating smile.

"Hmph! Nawaki should have been my student. Teacher Sarutobi snatched him away from me! What a sly old man!" Jiraiya loudly complained, drawing the attention of the high-ranking officials.

A deep furrow appeared between Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows. He raised his hand and gave Jiraiya a hard chop on the head.

Jiraiya crouched on the ground, clutching his head and yelping in pain. "Old man! What was that for?"

"Shut up, Jiraiya!" Sarutobi roared. "In a few years, you might not even be Nawaki's match! What makes you think you have the right to take him as your student? Get back to training! You good-for-nothing brat, you have no respect for your teacher!"

"Lord Hokage, did Jiraiya make you angry again? But you shouldn't keep hitting him on the head. You'll make him dumber and dumber," Nawaki said with a smile as he came over to the group.

The Third Hokage immediately put on a kind expression for Nawaki. He couldn't help it; the kid was far too cunning. "Nawaki, congratulations on becoming a shinobi capable of standing on your own. Tomorrow, you'll begin your shinobi career under the guidance of a jonin instructor. Are you ready?"