Obito stood in the middle of the field. After forming the Hand Seals, his chest heaved as he took a deep breath.
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
Then he forcefully spat out a small fireball.
The fireball was only about the size of a palm, and it flew very slowly.
For a moment, the entire schoolyard fell into a brief silence,
Everyone stared at the slowly drifting fireball, dumbfounded, as if they couldn't believe their eyes.
A snicker broke the silence. Then the entire field erupted in laughter.
The students doubled over, their smiles unrestrained and brazen, as if they were watching a ridiculous farce.
"You call that a jutsu? Hahaha!"
One boy laughed so hard that tears nearly streamed from his eyes. He slapped his thigh and pointed at Obito,
His shrill laughter echoed across the schoolyard.
"Don't be so mean. He may be a Dead Last, but he still managed to use it. Hahaha!"
Another girl joined in, her laughter tinged with mockery, making Obito's expression even uglier.
Amid all the jeering, only Rin wore a bright smile as she called out,
"Obito, that was great! You actually used a jutsu!"
Kakashi watched the slowly drifting fireball,
First a flash of surprise crossed his face, then an indescribable sense of shame welled up inside him.
He couldn't believe he had just tensed up and taken such a trivial little fireball seriously.
Not wanting to waste any more time, Kakashi darted aside with ease, dodging the fireball's "attack."
He ran toward Obito, intending to end this farce at once.
Obito was still lost in the crowd's laughter, his eyes full of disappointment and resentment,
He didn't react at all to Kakashi's rapid approach.
Kakashi's movements were clean and decisive, without a hint of hesitation. He swept Obito's legs out from under him.
Obito had no time to defend himself before he hit the ground hard.
"It's over."
The teacher's voice rang across the schoolyard, breaking the brief silence.
He let out a small sigh of relief, a satisfied smile appearing on his face,
"You gave me a scare just now. I thought Obito might actually pull it off."
In his eyes, Obito's little fireball had been surprising, but it still posed no real threat to Kakashi.
The students around them burst into laughter again, their voices full of scorn and mockery for Obito.
Obito struggled to his feet, humiliation written all over his face.
He glared furiously at Kakashi, but there was nothing he could do.
Yet amid all the commotion, Amada had fallen into deep thought.
Standing among the crowd, he quietly observed everything, deeply surprised.
Obito really did use that jutsu.
He mused to himself,
The fireball was so small because of his limited chakra. But if he didn't have enough chakra, shouldn't the jutsu have failed? How did he manage to pull it off with so little chakra? Obito is only around five or six years old, isn't he? Could he be a genius too?
Perhaps Obito's potential is far greater than I imagined.
Amada thought to himself.
What they didn't know was that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and a white-haired ninja were standing on the roof of the school building,
Quietly watching everything below.
"Sakumo, Kakashi is as outstanding as ever. A fine son of yours."
Hiruzen's eyes were full of praise, and he wore a warm smile. His voice conveyed his approval and admiration for Kakashi.
Sakumo Hatake's lips curled into a modest smile. He said softly,
"Not quite. He's still too green. He just stood there doing nothing while his opponent formed Hand Seals to use a jutsu."
As an experienced ninja, he had keenly noticed Kakashi's shortcoming in battle.
Hiruzen nodded slightly. His gaze swept over the students in the schoolyard before finally settling on Obito.
"But that Uchiha Obito is rather interesting too. He managed to use a jutsu despite not having enough chakra. Perhaps being a Dead Last is just a rumor. With proper training, he could become another excellent ninja who protects Konoha."
Following Hiruzen's gaze, Sakumo studied Obito carefully.
Though Obito had just lost, his eyes still held a stubborn, unyielding glint.
Sakumo nodded slightly, agreeing with Hiruzen,
He too felt that this boy named Obito had potential that shouldn't be overlooked.
"Next match. Sarutobi Asuma and Uchiha Amada, get ready!"
The teacher's voice rang out. Hearing his name, Amada walked forward steadily.
As he drew closer to Asuma, Amada clearly saw a hint of anger in Asuma's eyes.
It's probably because I looked at Kurenai Yuhi a little too long earlier.
"At this age, he's already getting jealous over a girl. What an unusually mature kid."
Amada silently grumbled to himself, unable to keep a helpless smile from appearing.
"Hey, Dead Last! I, Sarutobi Asuma, am going to teach you a lesson today. You'll see that only the strong are worthy of Kurenai!"
Asuma shouted, his words dripping with adolescent bravado.
Amada could only smile helplessly. He wasn't angry at Asuma's provocation,
He just thought the boy's behavior was childish and ridiculous.
He adjusted his breathing slightly and quickly assumed a defensive stance the moment the teacher announced, "Begin!"
Seeing that Amada was completely unmoved by his taunts, Asuma's anger flared.
"You detestable jerk! How dare you ignore me!"
He roared, pushed off hard with his feet, and charged toward Amada.
In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Amada, throwing a straight punch without hesitation.
As far as he was concerned, Amada was just a Dead Last,
And he could easily beat him with the simplest Taijutsu, humiliating him in front of everyone.
He put all his strength into the punch, as if he meant to send Amada flying with a single blow.
But to Amada, Asuma's movements were full of openings.
He shifted slightly to the side, easily avoiding Asuma's straight punch.
Asuma's fist grazed his clothes, stirring a faint breeze.
When his punch missed, surprise flashed across Asuma's face, but he didn't give up.
Almost at once, he spun around and used the momentum to launch a powerful roundhouse kick.
But Amada had already anticipated his move. He simply stayed calm,
Dipping slightly before hopping back with ease to avoid Asuma's kick.
For the rest of the match, Asuma attacked Amada like a madman.
He threw one technique after another, but no matter how hard he tried, Amada dodged every attack with ease.
Amada moved like a nimble dancer, gliding through the gaps between Asuma's attacks,
Always leaving Asuma's strikes to hit nothing but air.
Gradually, Asuma's breathing grew ragged. Beads of sweat covered his forehead, and his chest heaved violently.
His stamina wore down with every successive attack, and his movements grew slower and slower.
"You! Can you do anything besides dodge? If you've got the guts, fight me head-on!"
Asuma shouted furiously.
Amada ignored his taunts and continued to defend and evade at an unhurried pace.
His gaze remained calm and focused as he watched Asuma's every move.
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