Chapter 217: The Gap Between a Jonin and a Kage-in-Training
Then again, to have the strength of a Jonin, that's more than enough to enter the Anbu! Among ordinary ninja, that's already the level of a big shot worth looking up to.
Of Konoha's over one hundred thousand ninja (including clerical and logistics types who generally don't participate much in battle), the number of Jonin, even at a generous estimate, is less than a thousand.
If a rookie has the strength of a Jonin, then he is absolutely a figure at the top of the pyramid.
However, as for Haruno Sakura, as an elite among elite Jonin, she was close to the very tip of the pyramid.
It was just that, as the proctor right now, she had to suppress her true strength and engage in an evenly matched contest with the rookie at the Jonin level, in order to allow White Fox to display all of his power.
On the field, she and the rookie were exchanging ninjutsu one after another, continuously.
"Ice Style: Swallow Snowstorm!" "Earth Style: Mud Wall!"...
Rubble flew, hard ice shattered; fireballs exploded, water waves surged...
Amidst the gorgeous clash of ninjutsu, there were also interspersions of clones or the real body, clashing with the rookie in taijutsu and exchanging ninja tools.
The roar of ninjutsu, the clash of ninja tools, rose and fell one after another, an endless stream. The fight was abnormally fierce—at least, that's what the ninja on the viewing platform thought.
"These two are both so strong!" The Anbu ninja leaned against the railing of the viewing platform, his upper body unconsciously leaning out, his eyes fixed on the battle below.
He was not surprised that the rising star Haruno Sakura, who had recently become a hot topic of discussion, had this kind of strength. He had long since accepted the setting that Sakura had high strength at such a young age. But the rookie's performance was also quite impressive, which was a bit beyond his expectations.
"He should have been promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin a few years ago. Now, just looking at his strength, he's already firmly at the Jonin level. If he trains in the Anbu for a period of time and then goes for the Jonin assessment, he'll be another newly promoted high-level ninja," he thought to himself, basically having already given this rookie a passing grade.
However, the civilian ninja, Yūichi, saw more—although his own strength was not strong, after being tempered in the personnel department for so long, his eye for talent was quite good.
"Haruno Sakura is basically suppressing most of her strength in this battle," he said with certainty after watching for a while.
The battle below looked intense, but in fact, every time Sakura dodged the opponent's ninjutsu, it was at the very last moment. Once or twice could be said to be a coincidence, that Sakura had narrowly dodged. But for it to be like this every time could only mean that the opponent's ninjutsu, in her eyes, still had huge openings. So much so that a ninjutsu that others saw as an extreme-limit dodge was actually completely effortless for the girl, without the slightest hint of being in a difficult situation.
On the contrary, the few ninjutsu she casually sent out were swift and fast, often forcing the opponent into a state of confusion. Even a simple Water Rampage, when cast from her hands, was unusually powerful, able to turn something rotten into something magical.
Whether it was the speed, power, or skill of the ninjutsu casting, there was a huge, hidden gap between the two.
This was a matter of course. After having been tested by the bombardment of a ninjutsu maniac like Kakuzu, she now felt quite bored when facing this kind of Jonin-level battle again.
The combat rhythm of a Jonin was naturally slower than Kakuzu's rhythm. Step by step, although there were not many mistakes, there were also not many surprises.
It was dull and tasteless.
A battle like this between the two, if it were a life-or-death struggle, then it could be described in one word.
"Toying."
Haruno Sakura was completely toying with her opponent, not using her full strength, just watching with great interest as the enemy struggled in her hands.
Of course, this was now an Anbu assessment.
So to describe it as "toying" was not appropriate. It should be said that the proctor was deliberately holding back, not instantly killing the candidate at the beginning, but letting the candidate display all of his strength.
This was precisely what a superior ninja, as a proctor, should do when assessing a lower-ranked ninja.
The gap in their strength was so large that even when the girl used an Ice Substitution Jutsu, dodged a full-powered Great Fireball from the rookie, and appeared from the air, her graceful figure seemed particularly poised and calm.
Standing not far away, the panting rookie, at this moment, also realized that there was a considerable gap in their strengths.
He had already tried his best, and it could even be said that under Sakura's pressure and inducement, he had performed above his usual level, yet he was still helpless against the other party.
The rookie vigorously wiped the beads of sweat from his head. His hair and the bodysuit on his body were already completely soaked, yet from beginning to end, he hadn't even been able to touch the corner of the proctor's clothes.
He stared intently at the girl who had calmly substituted and landed in another place.
He noticed that she was wearing casual, everyday sandals. The style was exquisite and nice to look at, but they were definitely not suitable for combat—Haruno Sakura's shoes and mask had both been destroyed in the battle with Kakuzu, and the new ones had not yet been issued.
This kind of sandal, which would snap with just a little force, was still completely intact after fighting for so long. And looking at those exposed, delicate, and fair little feet, which had remained spotless to this day, he knew just how much the proctor had been holding back.
His heart was instantly filled with dejection.
Haruno Sakura saw the change in her opponent's eyes, and that he seemed to have lost his fighting spirit. She knew that this assessment should also be over. No matter how she suppressed her strength and made it look like they were fighting back and forth, in the end, she had forgotten to act out the feeling of a close battle and of being evenly matched, and the rookie had seen through her disguise.
The level the opponent had displayed was about that of a Jonin. His taijutsu level was passable, and his ninjutsu was quite good. A typical ninjutsu-type ninja.
And her own proctor, if he wasn't blind, would naturally be able to see that Sakura's strength had already far surpassed the required level for a Tokubetsu Jonin.
"The assessment is in the bag."
She thought to herself. Whether she was talking about her opponent or herself.
"Proctor Tobi, I've already lost this battle," the rookie said with a wry smile. "But can I see your true abilities? That way, I'll have some comfort in my heart."
Haruno Sakura shook her head. This ninja was not bad in other aspects, but his mental fortitude needed a little strengthening.
However, since the candidate had made such a request...
"Alright. Since you've put it that way, then watch with your eyes wide open—"
She used a little of her true ability.
"—Don't blink."
As she said this, in an instant the rookie had no time to react, Sakura had already appeared behind him with a Body Flicker, an ice blade radiating a harsh, cold air pressed against his neck.
"Ice Style: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!"
The medium was precisely the Ice Style ninjutsu she had tested just now.
White Fox had followed her suggestion and had widened his eyes, but he had not reacted at all. He had only seen the girl suddenly disappear, and then his vital point was already held by someone.
"I've lost," the rookie said after being stunned for a long while.
"Is this the feeling the ninja who faced the Golden Flash had back then?" After the ice blade was moved from his neck, he couldn't help but touch the place where the ice blade had rested. Even though he knew that the proctor would not deal him a heavy blow, a thrilling feeling of having escaped death still rose in him.
"The Fourth Hokage was much faster than me," the girl said, walking to the side with a bright smile. She was not being modest; this was a fact. In terms of the Body Flicker, she was still far from reaching the level of Namikaze Minato.
After the battle on the field had ended, a low discussion sounded from the viewing platform.
"Hn, this new Anbu member is strong enough. He passes," the one who spoke was the neatly dressed, unfamiliar Anbu, Ken'ichi. He made a checkmark on a piece of paper in his hand. "Shino, what do you think?"
"It's no problem for him to join a squad numbered outside seventy. After he's gained more experience, we can consider moving him to a team in the top fifty," Shino said, touching his chin. "But forget about joining my Squad 14. He's still far from it. And after Yūgao stepped down, I'm hoping for a new taijutsu-type, or a balanced or genjutsu-type would also be fine. The only thing I don't need is a ninjutsu-type ninja. I already have Haruno Sakura. There's no need for another one."
"Tch, then why didn't you take that Sai just now?" Ken'ichi pouted with disdain and asked back. "He's a balanced type and also has a secret technique. His strength seems pretty good. If my team wasn't full, I would have wanted to pull him into my squad!"
"I won't take anyone who comes from Root," Shino said, shaking his head resolutely. He turned his head to look at his colleague from the personnel department and took the opportunity to tease him, "Our team's Haruno Sakura already has the strength of an elite Jonin. You guys' Tokubetsu Jonin assessment won't fail her, will you?"
"Of course not," Takeuchi Yūichi, who was in charge of assessing Haruno Sakura, said, holding up the similarly checked document in his hand. "She has no problem in terms of strength. Today's assessment ends here. I'll be taking her with me now."
"You're not going to let her fight a few more matches?" Shino said, a mysterious smile on his face. "It will be very exciting, you know!"
Takeuchi Yūichi put away the document in his hand and raised an eyebrow. "Hn?"
Just then, the small door downstairs was opened again.
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