Murakami Kaze was well-built, but the contours of the muscles beneath his clothes made them bulge slightly.
You could tell he possessed explosive strength.
His face was covered in stubble, and he looked to be in his twenties.
"I won't be as stupid as Akano Ryofu. When dealing with someone from the Uchiha Clan, there's no need to talk about fairness!"
He let out a sinister laugh, the corners of his mouth lifting in a cold smile.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes flashed. Though the two shinobi he'd chosen to fight were nominally Genin, both had Chunin-level strength. And Murakami Kaze was even strong enough to rival an elite Chunin!
Unlike ordinary shinobi, however, Murakami Kaze was a pure Taijutsu specialist!
Taijutsu specialists rarely achieved great heights, but Aogami Yama, an elite Chunin, would make an excellent test for Uchiha Gray!
Sarutobi Hiruzen was eager to see how Uchiha Gray would handle an opponent like that.
Gray wore a strange expression. The shinobi before him was clearly a Taijutsu specialist.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's intention couldn't have been clearer: he wanted to test Gray's full strength by demonstrating the speed and power of a Taijutsu specialist.
But... You're a Taijutsu specialist, and you want to compete in speed with me, someone who has the Glint-Glint Fruit's abilities?
"I now declare the match between Uchiha Gray and Murayama Kaze begun."
The referee shouted.
Murakami Kaze lunged forward in an instant, swift as the wind, sweeping across the arena like a whirlwind!
He had no intention of holding back. He was going to teach Uchiha Gray a lesson.
He wanted the Uchiha Clan to know that even ordinary people could become powerful shinobi, and that they couldn't just look down on them!
"You arrogant brat from the Uchiha Clan, surrender like a good boy!"
In a split second, his attack was already right in front of Uchiha Gray's face.
But in the very next instant, Uchiha Gray vanished.
Murakami Kaze was indeed fast, but to Gray, who possessed part of the Glint-Glint Fruit's abilities, he was as slow as a snail!
Uchiha Gray's lips curled into a smile. If he were facing a Ninjutsu specialist, he might have been wary.
But a shinobi who only knew Taijutsu couldn't touch a single hair on his head, even if he went all out.
This wasn't an overwhelming gap in strength. It was a difference in dimensions!
"Bang!"
Uchiha Gray struck, his right leg seeming to turn into light as he kicked out with tremendous force.
Murakami Kaze hadn't even reacted. The kick sent him flying dozens of meters before he slammed into a wall!
The kick, delivered at incredible speed, carried immense force. Even an ordinary Chunin wouldn't have been able to withstand it.
Yet Murakami Kaze, a Taijutsu specialist, managed to stagger back to his feet.
His head was spinning, and he felt as if a prehistoric beast had just rammed into him!
Fear appeared in his eyes. What kind of being was Uchiha Gray?
That kick had been far faster than any human could move.
It had filled him with the fear of death. He had no doubt that if Uchiha Gray had put a little more strength into it, he would have been kicked to pieces!
It was an instinctive feeling.
And beneath Uchiha Gray's faintly amused expression, he could sense a bone-deep chill.
If he kept provoking this man, he'd be killed!
"I-I surrender!" Murakami Kaze couldn't help shouting.
Afterward, he lowered his head in fear and didn't say another word, no matter what anyone said.
Uchiha Gray stood still again, calm and composed, as if nothing had happened.
Uchiha Itachi would awaken his Sharingan this year, and his Mangekyō Sharingan at thirteen.
I'm eight this year. Beating a Chunin shouldn't be a problem, right?
Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō could no longer sit still. If Uchiha Itachi's performance had just impressed them, then Uchiha Gray's had left them so shocked they could barely stay in their seats!
If they couldn't bring a talent like this under their control, then they would have to destroy him!
At only eight years old, he had effortlessly defeated an elite Chunin. Did that mean Uchiha Gray already had the strength of a special Jonin, or even an ordinary Jonin!?
It was terrifying.
An eight-year-old Jonin!
Even Kakashi, back in the war era, hadn't become a Jonin until he was twelve.
Could the Uchiha Clan be about to produce another being as powerful as Uchiha Madara?
"Hiruzen, I have a request. Uchiha Gray must join Root, and I'll be the one to train him!"
"A shinobi as powerful as he is can only reach his full potential in Root. Besides, I can see the Will of Fire of Kagami Uchiha in him!"
"Absolutely not!"
Shimura Danzō tried to continue, but Sarutobi Hiruzen refused without hesitation, his eyes glinting with cold light.
Leaf was in desperate need of talent.
And Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Gray, both members of the Uchiha Clan and bearers of the Will of Fire, were peerless geniuses.
He had to keep Uchiha Itachi under his control, and he would bind Uchiha Gray to Anbu as well.
"I've already made arrangements for Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Gray. They'll both become Anbu shinobi in the future!"
Shimura Danzō's face darkened with anger. His voice rumbled like a beast's growl. "Hiruzen, you're being far too greedy!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen was furious too.
The village had been hit by one incident after another lately. The day before, Cloud Hidden's shinobi had acted arrogantly and domineeringly, showing that they didn't take him seriously at all.
It had left him seething.
He deeply understood how important it was for the next generation of shinobi to grow up quickly. If this matter were delayed any longer, it wouldn't just be a question of saving face.
The other four great shinobi villages could start walking all over him at any moment!
A bone-deep chill!
The air seemed to drop several degrees, turning icy cold. Sarutobi Hiruzen stared fixedly at Shimura Danzō, his gaze frigid.
He sneered. "Far too greedy? Danzō, don't forget—I'm the Hokage!"
"I have the final say in everything that happens in the village!"
Shimura Danzō's face instantly turned ashen, his expression icy!
He slowly sat back down, but kept his eyes fixed on Uchiha Gray and Uchiha Itachi.
Even if Sarutobi Hiruzen planned to put them both in Anbu, that wouldn't happen until they graduated and became Chunin.
Until then, he still had at least a year or two to scheme and change things!
Sooner or later, he would win Uchiha Gray and Uchiha Itachi over!
"Just you wait, Sarutobi Hiruzen. One day, I, Shimura Danzō, will defeat you and become the greatest Hokage Leaf has ever known!"
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