Can We Make Peace?

Shimizu and Pakura both used Fire Release Ninjutsu, filling the arena with a dazzling display of flames.

Explosions rang out as the flames blasted the ground into a field of craters.

The nobles and merchants alike watched closely.

Just this one match alone made them feel they'd gotten their money's worth.

It was too dazzling to look like a fight between ninja. It was more like a performance!

"That's incredible. Is this the Uchiha Clan's Fire Release?"

Uchiha Inabi's teammate asked him, looking astonished.

"Uh... I think so."

Uchiha Inabi hesitated, then nodded.

Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique was a signature jutsu. Most Uchiha ninja knew it.

But he'd never seen that Fire Release jutsu that let its user move instantaneously.

"Did Shimizu create it himself, or was the scroll for this jutsu tucked away in a corner somewhere? I've never seen it before."

Uchiha Inabi rubbed his chin and muttered to himself.

"Uchiha...!"

Hyuga Tetsu gripped the water cup he'd brought so tightly that his knuckles whitened, his Byakugan locked firmly on Shimizu.

I've trained for so long just so I could face you openly and fairly.

That way, no one could say anything. It would be a perfectly legitimate spar.

"This time, I'll show Xia that last time was just an accident."

Hyuga Tetsu shouted inwardly. If the Hyuga Main Family saw how talented he was, they might even arrange for him to marry Xia.

"Enough."

Pakura flipped backward several times and landed on the scorched ground.

She'd had enough of chasing Shimizu around. She gathered her chakra, ready to settle things with one decisive strike.

"Scorch Release: Extremely Steam Murder!"

Pakura raised both hands. A massive fireball gathered in front of her, its deep crimson color almost like dripping blood.

Then Pakura puffed out her cheeks and blew a powerful gust of wind.

The wind swept over the fireball, boosting its power by several times.

"That's a pretty good ability."

Shimizu pondered whether, once he drew the Scorch Release Kekkei Genkai from the Simulator in the future, it would increase the power of his Fire Body Flicker as well.

Then those trails of flame wouldn't merely obscure his movements; they'd be a weapon capable of draining the moisture from his enemies!

"Lightning Style: Regenerative Body Refinement."

In a voice no one could hear, Shimizu activated the jutsu he'd created himself.

The tiny current inside his body suddenly multiplied several times over.

Pain flooded Shimizu's entire body, then Medical Chakra soothed it away.

Once he reached a point of equilibrium, Shimizu vanished from the spot again.

This time, he left behind more than flames. Deep within them, arcs of electricity seemed to flicker faintly.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique."

Shimizu spat out several small fireballs in quick succession. Faint arcs of electricity flickered inside them as they scattered in every direction, as beautiful as the seedpods of a phoenix flower.

This was a C-rank jutsu. The user controlled the trajectories of all the fireballs with their chakra. If shuriken were added, it would become the B-rank Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson.

Every cell in Shimizu's body had been activated, increasing the activity of his chakra as well.

"That speed won't work on me anymore."

Dragging the giant fireball behind her, Pakura dodged the fireballs with a sidestep. A radiant smile curled her lips. After their earlier clash, she'd already grown used to Shimizu's speed.

At this distance, she could easily dodge, then slam Scorch Release: Extremely Steam Murder into him.

"You still..."

Pakura's full lips parted slightly, their fine lines almost visible. She was just about to taunt Shimizu and put an end to the fight when she suddenly felt as though she'd sunk into a swamp. Her movements slowed considerably.

"Paralysis!"

Pakura's pupils contracted. When had she been hit by a jutsu?

She looked back in shock, then worked it out based on where the paralysis had taken hold: it was the fireball that had just passed by her waist!

Thud! Thud! Thud!

While she was distracted, the remaining fireballs all struck Pakura.

She could no longer maintain Scorch Release: Extremely Steam Murder. The jutsu collapsed, and she fell to the ground in a sorry heap.

"Shimizu wins!"

Seeing the result, the examiner hurried out and ordered the Medical Team to step in.

"No need."

Pakura's clothes seemed to be made of a special fire-resistant material. They hadn't burned away, only been scorched by the flames.

She stood up through the pain, her pale skin now flushed red.

"No burns?"

Shimizu carefully examined Pakura's skin.

He also understood why living in the desert day after day hadn't left her skin dark and rough from the sun and wind.

Scorch Release was a Kekkei Genkai, something that could be inherited. That meant it altered the body at a fundamental level, with its traits encoded into her DNA. Her resistance to fire had increased as a result.

"I'll remember you, Uchiha Shimizu."

Pakura gave Shimizu a long look with her amber-brown eyes, then limped out of the arena.

"Shimizu, you're amazing!"

Uchiha Inabi got along fairly well with Shimizu, so he was the first to congratulate him.

"I just got lucky."

Shimizu shook his head.

He was a little disappointed. Wasn't she supposed to be the hero of Sunagakure?

She'd gone down before he'd even used his full strength?

Shimizu left the arena, deep in thought. Should he still go work as a medic in the rear?

After all, his strength had already grown beyond what he'd expected.

After Shimizu left, the examiner quickly used a jutsu to repair the pockmarked surface, which had been blasted by Fire Release.

The next pair of candidates followed their assigned order and proceeded with their matches in an orderly fashion.

The sun gradually sank toward the horizon.

Fights between ninja could last several minutes or end in a single exchange.

So it wasn't long before Shimizu was called back to the arena.

His opponent was someone he knew: Hyuga Tetsu.

The moment he stepped into the arena, Tetsu began muttering incessantly to himself. Shimizu quickly grew impatient.

He dealt with him using one Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique.

He also quietly memorized Hyuga Tetsu's Gentle Fist, planning to study it later.

As dusk approached, it was finally Shimizu's turn to face Kurenai Yuhi.

The two stood in the open arena as the examiner introduced them.

"I'm glad you weren't beaten by anyone else."

Kurenai Yuhi's exquisite features looked more defined in the glow of dusk. Her long, curling black hair fell to her waist.

The weariness and sorrow that had once clouded her expression had given way to a hint of vitality in the sunset.

"If someone else had beaten you, I'd have been very disappointed."

After watching Shimizu all day, Kurenai Yuhi was sure she'd figured out how he fought.

She was even a little glad she'd devoted all her time to genjutsu, letting her other training fall behind.

Uchiha Shimizu, meanwhile, had used Fire Release in such a flashy way that it was obvious he'd neglected his genjutsu training.

Kurenai Yuhi felt confident again. This time, she would defeat Uchiha Shimizu once and for all.

Then she'd repay him for every rotten thing he'd done to her, without holding anything back.

"Can we make peace?"

Shimizu gave her a faintly amused look.

"Huh?"

Kurenai Yuhi froze. They'd come this far, and he still thought she'd make peace with him?

He was dreaming!

Every night, she relived that same dream. She was almost on the verge of a breakdown!

"If we don't make peace, this will be the first step toward your downfall. You know that, right? When we fight, we need something to wager."