First battle with Minato

Hearing Qingyun's rebuke, Minato Namikaze gritted his teeth, gathered Chakra in his feet, and raced toward him.

He did not choose to compete with Qingyun in Tai Chi Fist. He knew he was not as proficient at it as Qingyun.

But Tai Chi Fist was not Minato Namikaze's only strength.

Ever since he was little, he had been especially sensitive to the wind. He could sense its joy, its flow, and its explosive force.

Now, he made his Chakra mimic the flow of wind and gathered it in his feet, instantly bursting into motion at a speed even greater than Qingyun's.

Minato Namikaze truly was a Ninjutsu prodigy. Through sheer chance, he had actually grasped a trace of Chakra Nature Transformation on his own.

Watching from the sidelines, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Hiruzen Sarutobi widened their eyes, staring at Minato Namikaze in amazement.

"Tsk, tsk. My future student really takes after me. So clever even as a kid!"

Jiraiya planted his hands on his hips and roared with laughter.

"Idiot."

Orochimaru rolled his eyes, but he could not conceal the envy in them.

At this point, Orochimaru had not yet turned to darkness. Though aloof, he was still cold on the outside and warm on the inside, and he cared deeply about his teammates.

It was obvious that Minato Namikaze was exceptionally well suited to training under Jiraiya, who excelled at both Wind and Fire Release.

Thus, he had never considered stealing the student Jiraiya had his eye on.

Instead, a flicker crossed Orochimaru's eyes as he watched Qingyun. He murmured, "That speed already surpasses an ordinary Chunin's. How will your strange Taijutsu handle it? Can your eyes follow someone that fast?"

As Hiruzen Sarutobi watched the two gifted boys in the arena, a trace of satisfaction rose in his heart. If Qingyun and Minato Namikaze continued to have such temperaments, they would become pillars of Konoha.

Tsunade, meanwhile, watched Qingyun with shining eyes. She wanted to see how he would handle Minato Namikaze, whose speed surpassed that of an ordinary Chunin.

In the arena, Qingyun's pupils contracted as he saw Minato Namikaze race toward him in a blur. Not daring to be careless, he hurriedly gathered his Internal Force.

His hands moved through Tai Chi Fist, seemingly slow yet swift, and before Minato Namikaze reached him, the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram took shape.

Clang!

The Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram had barely formed when Minato Namikaze's attack came from behind Qingyun.

Fortunately, the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram was highly effective against physical attacks like this. Otherwise, that single strike would have severely impaired Qingyun's fighting ability.

When his first strike failed, Minato Namikaze immediately darted away. A second later, he attacked Qingyun again from a different direction.

Qingyun could not keep up with Minato Namikaze's speed at all. He could only keep strengthening his defense, his eyes scanning in every direction, yet all he saw were afterimages.

Qingyun understood that this was Minato Namikaze's strategy. Though the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram possessed astonishing defensive power, there were only two ways to break through it.

The first was to exceed the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram's limits, forcibly breaking its defense with an attack stronger than an ordinary Chunin's.

The second was to break through the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram's defense with Ninjutsu.

Besides those two quick methods, there was also a slower one: wearing him down.

Maintaining this Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram consumed a great deal of Internal Force, several times more than usual.

Once Qingyun's Internal Force ran low, Minato Namikaze could exploit the opening and defeat him in one fell swoop.

Understanding Minato Namikaze's intentions, Qingyun quickly came up with two possible responses.

The first was to activate his Sharingan. The dynamic vision of his Two-Tomoe Sharingan was even better than that of the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan. Once activated, it would certainly allow him to see Minato Namikaze clearly.

The second was to surpass his limits, using the pressure from Minato Namikaze to force a Breakthrough in his current limits.

This approach was unreliable. If he failed to achieve a Breakthrough, he would have no way to handle Minato Namikaze's speed.

Yet Qingyun chose the second option without hesitation.

Awakening a Two-Tomoe Sharingan at six years old would reveal a talent certain to throw the currently peaceful Konoha into turmoil.

Especially since his current identity was so unusual.

On the surface, he had left the Uchiha Clan and sought refuge with old man Sarutobi. In reality, the Uchiha leadership did not even know he existed.

Once his Two-Tomoe Sharingan was exposed, the Uchiha leadership would go all out to win him over.

Old man Sarutobi's attitude toward him would certainly change as well. He would no longer be as mild as he was now.

Danzo, that Rat in the Gutter, would also emerge to stir up trouble.

With three sides fighting over him, whichever one he joined, the other two would spare no effort to assassinate him. They would never let him mature!

There were too many drawbacks. Naturally, Qingyun would not choose such a perilous path.

Casting aside his distracting thoughts, Qingyun slowly closed his eyes, intending to locate Minato Namikaze by sound.

At first, all the surrounding noise left Qingyun distracted and agitated, unable to calm his mind. Gradually, however, Qingyun's expression became completely serene.

Now, Qingyun felt as though he stood in a pitch-black space. As he slowly moved through Tai Chi Fist, a Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram appeared beneath his feet.

When the Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram fully formed, a dark figure appeared around its edge. Qingyun instinctively attacked it.

But the dark figure moved so quickly that Qingyun could not hit it at all.

Seeing this, Qingyun remained unhurried and composed. You fight your way, and I'll fight mine. He stopped paying attention to the dark figure's constant harassment.

A faint smile appeared on Qingyun's face, and his Tai Chi Fist grew ever more refined, seemingly slow but truly swift. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and slowly reached his right hand toward an empty spot.

Just as everyone was puzzling over his action, Minato Namikaze appeared in Qingyun's grasp a second later.

It looked as though Minato Namikaze had delivered himself straight into Qingyun's hand.

Caught by Qingyun, Minato Namikaze's heart jolted, and he tried to resist. But Qingyun gave him no chance. With a series of shakes of his right hand, he dissipated the force of Minato Namikaze's struggle.

The back of his left hand traced a semicircle before landing limply against Minato Namikaze's chest.

Yet this limp-looking attack, seemingly devoid of power, sent Minato Namikaze stumbling backward.

Qingyun followed close behind Minato Namikaze as he retreated, his hands striking him again and again with soft, yielding blows. After several strikes, Qingyun traced an imaginary Tai Chi Yin-Yang Diagram with both hands, then jolted them forward, sending Minato Namikaze straight off the platform.

Qingyun darted off the platform and appeared behind Minato Namikaze. With strikes from both hands, he dispersed the force inside Minato Namikaze before it could erupt, then caught him securely.

"Cough, cough. Big brother, I lost."

A moment earlier, Minato Namikaze had felt a terrifying force building inside his body, pressing down on him so heavily that he wanted to cough up blood. Fortunately, Qingyun had arrived in time and dispersed it. Otherwise, he would certainly have been seriously injured.

Qingyun smiled faintly and formed the Reconciliation Seal with Minato Namikaze.

Only then did the onlookers snap out of their daze and realize that the fight had already ended.

Clap, clap, clap!

The fight between Qingyun and Minato Namikaze had been even more exciting than a battle between Ninja, and everyone began applauding.

"Idiot, did you see that? That boy named Qingyun was saving Minato Namikaze just now, not trying to hurt him. Qingyun's Taijutsu is very strange. It's somewhat like the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist, but it lacks Gentle Fist's ability to strike chakra points and cut off chakra pathways.

"It looks soft as water, but its power is actually even more fierce than Steel Fist. It can also continually build up hidden force inside an enemy's body. If it suddenly erupts while the enemy is unprepared, they'll be severely injured even if they survive."

When Jiraiya had seen Qingyun knock Minato Namikaze off the platform and still pursue him, he had almost rushed out.

Fortunately, Orochimaru had grabbed Jiraiya in time, preventing a scene.

Jiraiya scratched his messy hair and gave a few embarrassed chuckles.

Meanwhile, after Qingyun and Minato Namikaze finished forming the Reconciliation Seal, Iruka Umino announced that Qingyun had taken first place in their first practical combat session.

Everyone applauded.

"Little brat, want your big sister to heal you?"

Tsunade smiled at Qingyun, looking just like a creepy woman trying to lure a child away.

Qingyun could not help shivering. He stammered, "Wh-what do you want me to do? Can't you just say it? Don't act like that."

Qingyun's soul belonged to an adult, after all. That expanse of snowy skin before his eyes sent his heart racing.

"Tch. What a boring little brat."

Finding Qingyun no fun to tease, Tsunade muttered to herself. Green light gathered in her hand, and she pressed it against Qingyun's injured left arm.

Qingyun felt a cool sensation sweep through his left arm. His eyes widened as he watched it heal at a visible pace, astonishment filling his heart.

Though he had watched television in his previous life and knew that Naruto had miraculous medical techniques such as the Mystical Palm Technique,

that had only been something he saw on a screen. How could it compare to the impact of experiencing it himself?

"Little brat, isn't it amazing? Want to learn?"

Seeing how amazed Qingyun was by the Mystical Palm Technique's effects, Tsunade immediately tempted him.

Qingyun nodded instinctively.

"If you want to learn, become my student!"

Tsunade spoke with a broad smile.

Qingyun froze, then caught on. He glanced at Iruka Umino nearby and whispered into Tsunade's ear, "I'm from the Uchiha Clan. You don't mind?"