Practical Combat Exercise

After the bitter lesson they had learned last time, Itachi, Izumo Kamizuki, and the others would almost always take a wide detour whenever they saw Yu at the Ninja Academy, as if they had seen a ghost.

On this day, all the ninja students of Class 3, where Yu was enrolled, gathered on the vast training grounds of the Ninja Academy.

"Students, today's exercise is a live combat drill."

"This is to increase your practical experience and reveal your individual shortcomings."

Looking at all the ninja students of Class 3 assembled before him, the instructor, Kurenai Yuhi's Father, nodded with satisfaction and announced in a loud voice.

"Therefore, today's live combat drill will take the form of an indiscriminate melee."

"You may choose your own opponents, and you may also seek out temporary teammates during the battle."

A melee-style live combat drill?

Hearing the words of their homeroom teacher, Kurenai Yuhi's Father, all the ninja students present immediately broke into a buzz of discussion.

Yu, in particular, standing amidst the crowd, immediately felt several hostile gazes land upon him.

It seems...

The educational methods of the Ninja Academy during wartime are indeed different from those in times of peace.

As if he hadn't noticed the hostile gazes around him, Yu stood in the crowd, lost in thought.

After all, in a real battle, anything could happen.

This type of live combat drill could indeed directly reveal a ninja's adaptability and flaws.

It is worth mentioning that the instructor for Yu's Class 3, this man with black hair, red eyes, and a somewhat gaunt face, was none other than Kurenai Yuhi's Father, a Konoha Jonin who would later sacrifice his life during the Nine-Tails incident.

Although Kurenai Yuhi's Father had not yet reached the status of a Jonin at this time, nor did he hold the rank of an instructor for Chunin and Genin as he did in the original story, his strength had already reached the level of a Jonin, making him the strongest among all the instructors currently at the Ninja Academy.

It was precisely because of his confidence in his own strength that Kurenai Yuhi's Father dared to use an indiscriminate melee, a format that carried a high risk of casualties, to hone the skills of all the ninja students present as much as possible.

"Then..."

"The live combat drill, begin now!"

Without any superfluous chatter, Kurenai Yuhi's Father announced the start and stepped aside to observe the exercise.

"Sorry, classmate Yakushi!"

Sure enough, the moment Kurenai Yuhi's Father announced the start of the drill, a voice immediately came from behind Yu.

Taking advantage of the moment when all the other students were scrambling to find bushes and trees for cover, a classmate rushed up behind Yu and threw a punch at his back.

As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Yu's gaze flickered in the face of this expected sneak attack.

With a slight sidestep, he dodged the incoming fist by a hair's breadth.

"Wah wah wah! It hurts! Let go, quickly!!"

Accompanied by a wail of pain, Yu easily spun around and appeared behind his attacker.

He grabbed the boy's arm and gave it a light twist, pinning it behind his back so that he was completely unable to move.

"Shiranui Itsuki, you're out!"

Seeing that a student had been subdued by Yu less than two seconds after the start of the drill, Kurenai Yuhi's Father, who was observing from the sidelines, immediately declared him out, a strange glint flashing in his crimson eyes.

As the instructor for Class 3, Kurenai Yuhi's Father held Yu in high regard, as he was a student whose performance in every aspect could surpass that of the Uchiha Clan's genius, Uchiha Shisui.

He also wanted to use today's drill to see exactly what level of strength this boy, who could outperform the genius Uchiha Shisui in grades, had truly reached.

"Swish, swish, swish!!"

Several sharp whistling sounds cut through the air.

The very moment Yu had kicked Shiranui Itsuki out of the drill, five or six sharp shuriken flew in from the surrounding area, pinning themselves into Yu's body in the blink of an eye!

"Ah! Teacher! That guy Yu has been killed!!"

After all, they were just children at the Ninja Academy; seeing this scene, several students nearby immediately screamed in alarm.

"Quiet! Watch closely!"

Beside them, Kurenai Yuhi's Father let out a sharp shout, a flash of brilliance crossing his deep red eyes.

"Bang!!"

As his voice fell, Hane, who had been struck by the shuriken in the arena, transformed directly into a log.

"Hmm... the Body Replacement Technique was executed perfectly."

"Even I almost failed to see when he switched his real body just now."

Seeing the Body Replacement Technique Hane had just displayed, Kurenai Yuhi's Father nodded in satisfaction as he watched from the sidelines.

"Hey, that shuriken just now..."

"It already exposed the hiding spots of every one of you."

A calm voice rang out, and Hane reappeared, alive and well, in everyone's line of sight.

His body turned into a high-speed blur, and in the blink of an eye, he knocked all the Ninja Academy students who had thrown the shuriken to the ground.

"Ow! That hurts!!"

"Teacher Yuhi! This guy Yakushi Hane is too strong!!"

After all four or five Ninja Academy students had been taken down and eliminated by Hane, they rubbed their aching limbs and walked over to Kurenai Yuhi's Father, complaining.

"So cool!!"

"Go Hane-dono! Take them all down!!"

At this moment, seeing Hane's refined appearance and overwhelming strength in the arena, the group of girls watching from the side were so excited they were nearly fainting, seemingly having formed a fan club to cheer him on.

Hane-dono?

Hearing the new title the group of girls had given him, a bitter smile tugged at the corner of Hane's mouth. Such an exaggerated phenomenon could only happen in a two-dimensional world...

Thinking this to himself, his footsteps did not falter in the slightest.

In the eyes of the onlookers, Hane walked through the chaotic training ground as if he were taking a leisurely stroll.

Along the way, he casually dealt with one sudden opponent after another.

"Secret Technique: Insect Sphere!!"

At this moment, accompanied by a soft shout, a dense swarm of black insects suddenly spread through the air, closing in on Hane from all directions.

"The Aburame clan's secret technique?"

"There are so few insects; it seems he hasn't mastered it yet..."

Facing the Ninja Academy student Aburame Shiro who had suddenly appeared before him, along with the insects that were surrounding him like a faint black mist in the air, Hane's expression remained calm. Although the Aburame clan's secret techniques were formidable, this level of skill from a Ninja Academy student was not enough to pose any threat to him.

"Konoha Whirlwind!!"

With a soft shout, Hane lowered his body slightly.

The powerful whip kick unleashed from his foot instantly formed a fierce whirlwind.

It swept away all the surrounding insects, along with Aburame Shiro himself, sending them flying.