The whole crowd was stunned.
Five consecutive types of ninjutsu, followed by genjutsu. Though there seemed to be little difference in his skill with each of the five types of ninjutsu.
But that wasn't the most important part. The real difficulty lay in refining chakra into five different nature transformations in such a short time. The difficulty and chakra consumption were nothing like those of ordinary chakra nature transformations.
The reason Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was known as the Professor of Ninjutsu was that he could skillfully use all five chakra natures.
"Clan head, Hayato's skill with each nature has improved even further since we trained him."
Uchiha Yashiro watched Hayato in the arena and spoke with open admiration.
Knowing five chakra natures wasn't anything special for some elite jonin. But when it came to Hayato's age, that was another matter entirely.
Hayato had only just turned fourteen, yet he could already master and use all five chakra natures with ease. He deserved to be called a genius—and he hardly needed his Sharingan to earn that title.
"Mm. His combat instincts are good, too. But I'm still curious how he dealt with Tekka's Lightning Style: Lightning Ball."
Uchiha Inabi was especially curious about how Hayato had just used that method to neutralize the lightning ball.
"He used his own Lightning Release nature transformation. Just before the lightning ball hit him, he released a faint current too weak for the naked eye to see. And the water left behind by the Water Formation Wall at the start was part of his plan."
Fugaku spoke calmly, gazing at Hayato in the arena with a distant look in his eyes.
Yashiro and Inabi exchanged glances. It wasn't that they hadn't understood; they found it unbelievable precisely because they had.
He'd made these preparations right from the start. Even if he hadn't set things up in advance, coming up with a solution in an instant was beyond what the word "genius" could describe.
Hayato walked over to Tekka and held out a hand. "You were too kind, senior."
At the last moment, Hayato had deliberately directed most of his Fire Style into the Sealing Formation already laid out in the training ground. Otherwise, Tekka might have ended up laid up for more than a month after that blow.
"Hayato, that was well done."
Tekka paused in surprise, then grabbed Hayato's hand and used it to pull himself up, praising him as he did.
The strong earned respect wherever they went.
Besides, Hayato standing before him had been an ordinary Uchiha clansman just six months ago.
At the thought, Tekka gave a wry smile. Why had he suddenly gotten the strange feeling that he was already old?
After all, he was only a few years older than Hayato.
"How did you deal with my Lightning Style: Lightning Ball?" Tekka asked Hayato curiously. That had puzzled him most during the fight.
Hayato had dealt with it so easily.
"Conductive Induction." Hayato only smiled, making no attempt to hide it.
Tekka was taken aback. He stared at Hayato as if he were some kind of monster. "You actually did something this... crazy right at the start of the fight."
"Looks like I really did underestimate you." Tekka was thoroughly convinced now.
"You flatter me, senior."
"Come on. From now on, you're a squad leader just like me. Just call me Tekka." Tekka laughed heartily and patted Hayato on the shoulder.
"Sure, Senior Tekka."
Hayato didn't make a big deal of it, but still called Tekka senior.
Tekka pointed at him, exasperated. "All right, go on. Come find me sometime and I'll introduce you to the others."
Hayato nodded. That was exactly what he wanted. To join a circle, he needed someone to show him the way.
Neither Fugaku nor Shisui was suitable. One was the clan head, while the other was a controversial genius. Someone like Tekka, a squad leader of middling rank, was a much better fit.
The two headed up to the second floor. The clansmen they passed along the way looked at Hayato with all sorts of strange expressions.
Some were envious, some jealous, and some impressed.
Among his peers, only a handful had awakened the Sharingan, and Hayato was the only one with the Three-Tomoe.
And he'd even defeated the talented Senior Tekka, who was several years older than him. That meant that from now on, as long as Hayato didn't do anything wrong, he could become someone with considerable privileges within the Uchiha Clan.
Hayato remained warm and amiable in the face of those looks, occasionally nodding to people he knew.
Tekka watched him from time to time. Seeing him act that way, he was quite pleased.
What an outstanding young man.
Next up was Shisui's fight.
Root Base.
Danzo leaned on his cane as he listened to the report.
"You're saying the entire Police Force gathered at the training ground after finishing their patrols today. And chakra fluctuations could be sensed from the perimeter?"
Danzo's face was dark as he asked the question.
"Yes, Danzo-sama."
The Root shinobi knelt on one knee, his expressionless reply unwavering.
"I understand."
After speaking, Danzo closed his eyes. The Root shinobi kneeling on the ground backed away a few steps and left.
"Hiruzen is a fool, deceived by that brat. But I won't let this go so easily. Heh..."
The flickering candlelight fell across Danzo's face. By the end of his words, he was grinning smugly.
"I'll see how long you can hold out once you're driven into a corner."
Thud!
The sound of his cane striking the ground rang out. Several Root shinobi stepped forward and knelt on one knee, awaiting his orders.
The surroundings slowly sank into darkness, cutting everything off completely.
Hayato and Shisui stood in front of the Police Force Building and formally accepted the squad leader duties bestowed upon them by Fugaku.
As Hayato and Shisui pinned the squad leader badges to their shoulders, Fugaku and several elders offered a few words of encouragement, then left the Police Force Building.
"Please look after us from now on, seniors!"
Hayato brought Shisui to the squad leaders' office and greeted the squad leaders inside.
"Haha! We're all clansmen. No need for that!"
Tekka stood up with a broad smile and draped an arm familiarly over Hayato's shoulder. "This is Yakumi, and this is..."
Following Tekka's introductions, Hayato got to know them one by one. The others had been sitting stiffly, but after seeing Tekka introduce him so warmly, they relaxed and exchanged a few pleasantries with Hayato.
Behind him, Shisui was trying to suppress his envy. Because of what he'd said earlier, some of the clansmen disliked him.
So he didn't say anything just then.
Hayato patted Shisui on the shoulder without drawing attention to it, letting him know he didn't need to feel that way.
Now wasn't the time. At the very least, Hayato had to wait until they'd truly become part of the group before he could introduce Shisui to these people properly.
After finishing the introductions, Tekka took Hayato and Shisui to the other areas.
They still needed to go over squad assignments and task coordination. There were also some things they needed to be taught.
Squad leaders didn't have to patrol like ordinary clansmen, but they still had to help out in certain designated areas.
Before you continue