Just as Sasuke was reveling in the power his Sharingan brought him, imagining how he would see through Naruto's every move and win with ease, an immense, completely unexpected force slammed into his face!
Thud!
With a dull impact, Naruto's hand drove Sasuke's head-and his entire body-into the ground with irresistible force.
After his first Konoha Whirlwind had been blocked, Naruto hadn't paused for even a moment. Relying on muscle memory and combat instinct, he had spun around and launched a second attack even faster than the first!
His movements flowed together seamlessly, giving Sasuke no time to catch his breath or adjust to his Sharingan.
A little dust rose into the air.
Looking down at Sasuke, who lay pinned to the ground, momentarily dazed by the shock and impact, Naruto silently thought:
Sorry, Sasuke. The Sharingan was never a guaranteed path to victory!
The match was decided!
As Naruto pinned Sasuke to the ground in one decisive move, defeating him utterly, two completely different waves of noise erupted across the training ground.
Some of the girls watching from the sidelines couldn't accept their idol's defeat. They immediately began screaming, their voices filled with concern and disbelief:
"Sasuke-kun!"
"Aaaah! How did this happen?"
"Sasuke-kun, are you all right?"
In stark contrast to the girls' reactions, the boys broke into enthusiastic cheers.
They had long felt somewhat resentful of Sasuke's icy demeanor and the adoration he received from the girls. Seeing Naruto defeat him, they couldn't help cheering to their hearts' content:
"Ooooooh!"
"OHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Nice work!"
"You're amazing, Naruto!"
"I had no idea you were this strong!"
Cheers, whistles, and applause mingled together. At that moment, Naruto seemed to have become a hero in the boys' eyes.
Hiding behind the crowd, Hinata watched Naruto help Sasuke up with a shy, apologetic smile. Her cheeks warmed, and her heart beat a little faster.
She unconsciously wrung her hands together, praising him quietly but with absolute conviction in her heart:
Naruto-kun... you're amazing!
Although she knew Naruto had been training hard all along, she had never imagined his Taijutsu was already strong enough to defeat Sasuke-kun, who always ranked first!
Meanwhile, Ino was also astonished by the strength Naruto had displayed.
Unlike Sakura beside her, who was lamenting Sasuke's defeat and even felt a little upset that Naruto had been too rough, Ino kept her eyes on Naruto.
When she saw Naruto kindly reach out to help Sasuke, only for him to roughly swat Naruto's hand away, she instinctively wanted to step forward and say or do something for Naruto. In the end, however, her reserve and the confusion around her kept her from taking that step.
As she watched the blond boy in the field, she couldn't help comparing him to Sasuke:
Now that Naruto has covered up his whisker marks, he really is handsome-in a bright, cheerful way.
And today, he proved he's even stronger than Sasuke!
More importantly... his personality is so much better than Sasuke's!
As the commotion continued along the sidelines, a sudden burst of energy erupted around Might Guy. Once those around him quieted down, he closed the Gate of Opening, the first of the Eight Gates.
"Good!"
His booming voice rang out like a bell, instantly drowning out all the noise and swiftly quieting the crowd. The students all turned their eyes toward their passionate teacher.
"Although you're still only academy students."
Guy's gaze swept over Naruto and Sasuke, who had just gotten to his feet, his tone full of approval.
"In that fight, Naruto and Sasuke both fully demonstrated the strength and qualities needed to become Genin. Especially when it comes to Taijutsu and fighting spirit."
Then his tone shifted, and he pointed at Naruto, identifying a clear shortcoming. "But Naruto, your ninjutsu still needs some work."
This was indeed one of the few times Might Guy had seen Naruto attempt to use ninjutsu.
Although the attempt had ultimately failed, producing only a defective clone, Guy believed that trying it during such an intense fight and managing to create a roughly human-shaped clone rather than a puff of smoke was already a very good start!
"All right!"
Might Guy took the still somewhat disgruntled Sasuke in one hand and the perfectly composed Naruto in the other, leading them to the center of the field.
"No matter who wins or loses, respecting one another and remembering what you've learned is the true essence of youth! Now, make the Seal of Reconciliation!"
Under Guy's watchful eye, the two raised their hands again and made the Seal of Reconciliation, symbolizing the end of the fight and the resolution of their grievances.
Afterward, they each returned to the ranks of students.
Standing before all the students with his hands on his hips, Guy flashed a toothy grin and said frankly, "Students, I'm a ninja who specializes in Taijutsu! Taijutsu is all I know. I'm not skilled in ninjutsu."
Then his tone shifted, filling with confidence. "So what I can teach you in my Combat Training Class is pure Taijutsu, along with how to use your bodies to respond to and defeat opponents who use ninjutsu when you can't use it yourselves, or when your ninjutsu is countered. Don't underestimate Taijutsu. It's an indispensable part of training in the springtime of youth!"
Might Guy's lively Combat Training Class continued on the field.
Meanwhile, a detailed report of the match had already reached Third Hiruzen Sarutobi's desk. With his pipe between his lips, he carefully read every detail recorded by the ANBU.
"He awakened his Sharingan on his own at such a young age?"
Reading the report's description of Sasuke, the Third nodded slightly. "A rare genius of the Uchiha Clan indeed."
However, although Sasuke's awakening of the Sharingan surprised the Third, that was about the extent of it.
After all, he had seen an even more brilliant Uchiha prodigy who had awakened his eyes earlier and wielded their power to its fullest.
That person was Sasuke Uchiha's older brother-Uchiha Itachi.
With Itachi having set the standard, Sasuke's performance, though excellent, remained within his expectations.
What interested him more was Naruto's performance.
The report stated clearly that Naruto had held back early in the fight, initially unwilling to use his full strength against a comrade. Later, even when facing Sasuke with his Sharingan awakened and even using the Great Fireball Technique, Naruto had repeatedly and deliberately reduced his force while holding the advantage, clearly to avoid seriously injuring Sasuke Uchiha.
In the Third's eyes, that restraint and desire to protect a comrade were far more precious than a newly awakened pair of Sharingan, and much more in keeping with his hopes for Naruto.
By noon, a more detailed record and evaluation of Might Guy's Combat Training Class had also reached the Third.
He carefully leafed through the report, which offered a fair assessment of Guy's performance. "Compared to veteran teachers with solid theoretical foundations and extensive teaching experience, Guy may fall somewhat short in his teaching methods and explanations of theory."
"However, as an elite Jonin with countless battles behind him, his understanding of actual combat, control of its pace, and ability to respond on the spot are far superior to those of the academy's Chunin-level teachers."
Overall, Guy's lessons were sound and effective, with his Taijutsu instruction particularly worthy of praise.
Upon reaching the end of the report, the Third couldn't help smiling helplessly, for the observer had appended a slightly teasing remark:
"The only drawback... may be that Teacher Guy is always passionately shouting things like 'youth' and 'hot-blooded spirit,' which makes it difficult for quite a few of the younger students to handle his enthusiasm."