First Battle with the Sharingan

Uchiha Fugaku's eyes widened, his pupils turning blood-red as three tomoe spun within them. Liuxia's movements before him slowed to a crawl. I can see the trajectory of every move. It's over!

The tomoe in Uchiha Fugaku's eyes whirled rapidly as he focused all his concentration on the unique ability of the Sharingan—dynamic vision. Relying on this miraculous skill, he keenly captured a flaw in Liuxia's shuriken throw. He immediately flung his own shuriken, striking Liuxia's with pinpoint accuracy, then skillfully tugged the attached wire to set them spinning.

Under Uchiha Fugaku's precise control, the shuriken seemed to come alive, sweeping forward like a whirlwind of steel wire. In an instant, Liuxia was tightly bound and unable to move. The corners of Uchiha Fugaku's mouth curled into a cunning smile.

However, he did not cease his assault. His hands blurred into afterimages: "Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!" A massive plume of flame erupted from his mouth like a ferocious fire dragon. The dragon surged along the wire, claws bared as it lunged toward Liuxia.

The intense heat caused the moisture in the air to evaporate rapidly, forming a thin mist that glowed with an eerie orange-red hue under the firelight. The flames reflected on the faces of Uchiha Fugaku and Liuxia, making their expressions appear even more severe and distorted.

"BOOM!" With a deafening roar, the Red Dragon rampaged, igniting everything in its path. The scorching heat of the raging inferno suffocated everyone present. Liuxia was trapped within the sea of fire, his fate uncertain.

Oh no, did I go too far? Is he going to die? Uchiha Fugaku suddenly realized he might have been too impulsive, a wave of regret and worry surging in his heart.

There's no time to save him! Everything happened too fast! I'm just a lowly Special Jonin, why did they make me supervise this fight? If something goes wrong, will they dock my pay? The proctoring teacher on the sidelines panicked, complaining frantically to himself. He had expected a standard sparring match, not for Uchiha Fugaku's strength to be this overwhelming or the battle this intense. Faced with such a situation, he was helpless, forced to watch as the fire grew ever larger.

"Where are you looking?!"

A whisper suddenly reached Uchiha Fugaku's ears. He started in shock and spun around, though he had no time to wonder how Liuxia had broken free. Liuxia was already charging at him with a long sword! Uchiha Fugaku didn't have a moment to think; he quickly reached for a kunai at his waist, barely managing to block the strike.

He took a closer look and couldn't help but silently praise the weapon: What a fine blade! The sword's surface was as vivid and striking as fresh blood, casting a chilling, unsettling gleam in the sunlight. Uchiha Fugaku and Liuxia clashed, their weapons meeting in a flurry of sparks. In the blink of an eye, they had traded several blows.

After another intense collision, Uchiha Fugaku frowned. Even with the Sharingan to perceive Liuxia's every move, the opponent's speed was astonishing, and his strikes were vicious and precise, aiming for vital points and forcing him to rely entirely on taijutsu to keep up. But if this continued, his inferior taijutsu would eventually put him at a disadvantage. He couldn't let himself be led by the nose!

"Genjutsu: Sharingan!"

Uchiha Fugaku's eyes widened as he unleashed the Uchiha clan's signature genjutsu. It was one of their most practical techniques; by locking eyes with the opponent, he could maximize the hypnotic power of the Sharingan. It allowed him to trap the target in a terrifying illusion, stripping them of their physical freedom or disrupting their movements. It was versatile and nearly impossible for an average ninja to resist. This was why the ninja world warned against facing a Sharingan user one-on-one unless you were a freak like Guy who had mastered taijutsu to the extreme—if you didn't avoid eye contact or possess strength equal to theirs, you were as good as lost!

"What's the point of widening your eyes? Are you trying to stare me to death?" Liuxia saw Uchiha Fugaku slow down and stare at him with a fierce, wide-eyed expression. Sure, this guy is pretty ugly, but he's not going to scare me to death with his face! Liuxia thought to himself, though his movements didn't falter. He slammed the hilt of his sword into Uchiha Fugaku, sending him flying several meters away! Uchiha Fugaku crashed to the ground and lay there, motionless.

Swish!

Liuxia didn't let his guard down just because he had knocked Uchiha Fugaku back. Instead, he used the Body Flicker Technique, his figure flashing as he chased after his opponent, eager to end the fight! He lunged forward with his sword, aiming directly at the fallen Uchiha Fugaku. He didn't believe it could be this easy to defeat him! However...

"The match is decided! Stop your attack! Or I will disqualify you! Stop now!"

The proctoring teacher saw that Uchiha Fugaku was unconscious, yet the other boy refused to stop, still desperately pursuing him. He groaned inwardly. Ugh, how unlucky! How did I end up with people from the rival Uchiha and Senju clans? This is going to be a disaster!

Uchiha Fugaku had used the Dragon Fire Technique, seemingly intent on burning his opponent to ash; and this Liuxia was even worse, continuing his assault with a sword and Body Flicker even after his opponent was out cold, as if he meant to kill him. If he hadn't intervened in time, Uchiha Fugaku might have met his end.

This battle was too intense, too cruel! The teacher shook his head helplessly. I'm just a Special Jonin! Too much work, low pay, other Jonin are showing off, and I can't even beat the candidates. I've worked for years and can't even afford a house in Konoha! I should just retire!

"My apologies, I thought he was faking it. I didn't expect to actually win!"

This was truly how Liuxia felt. He hadn't expected Uchiha Fugaku to lose so easily, and so miserably. He had thought they would fight for another three hundred rounds before he won by a narrow margin, then spend a few days in the hospital—hopefully meeting a pretty nurse. And yet! He had just won?! He didn't throw the fight to curry favor with the Hokage's faction, did he? Looking down at the unconscious Uchiha Fugaku, Liuxia couldn't resist his curiosity and poked him with his foot to see if he was really out.

"Hey, hey, hey! I'm talking to you, candidate! Stop! No, wait! Stop kicking him! He's already out! You've won, get out of here! The Third Hokage is already waiting for you in his office!"

With that, he immediately hoisted Uchiha Fugaku onto his back and ran, fearing what else might happen if he stayed.

"Hey! Teacher! I really didn't mean it! I was just curious!"