"You won this time, but next time it'll be me!"
Haruno Sakura protested, unwilling to accept it.
"Next time I'm still the one who wins!"
Yamanaka Ino beamed, putting away her ninja flower prop with absolute confidence.
"Hmph, we'll see!"
Sakura shot her a glare, still defiant.
"Don't forget you're treating me to yakiniku tonight."
Ino said it without the slightest bit of courtesy.
Sakura's face fell. She could already feel her allowance taking flight.
"Winner: Yamanaka Ino."
Kitazawa announced with a smile.
"We'll step down first, Kitazawa-sensei!"
Ino happily waved to him, then tugged Sakura back into the Advanced Class line.
"Round One, Match Two: Hyūga Hinata vs. Aburame Shino."
Kitazawa drew the lots and spoke.
As his words fell, three lines of text flashed before his eyes:
[Current Mission: Help Yamanaka Ino defeat Haruno Sakura in the next monthly exam.]
[Reward: Mind Clone Switch Technique.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
It was Ino's task. As for the reward—nothing more to say.
Kitazawa glanced at Hinata.
She walked calmly to the center.
Aburame Shino pushed his glasses up.
He'd sparred Hinata a few times and never won.
The Byakugan is a hard counter to his kikaichū. Even with his newer fire-type kikaichū, they were still useless against it.
This time would likely be the same.
And in fact, it was.
The kikaichū Shino released did nothing to Hinata. She seized an opening, used the Body Flicker to close in, and unleashed Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms.
Shino tried to defend with kikaichū, but it was pointless.
Once the insects were wiped out, he was sent flying.
"Winner: Hyūga Hinata."
Kitazawa nodded to himself.
Compared with how she was in the original timeline, this Hinata was improving at a stunning pace.
"Feels like Hinata's gotten a lot stronger," Ino murmured.
"It's the Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms," Hyūga Neji drew a long breath. "At this point she's no worse than me—she's fully cashing in on her talent."
The reasons were her improved temperament and eating without restriction—three full meals a day.
Of course, there was also Kitazawa's coaching.
"No wonder," Ino said. She'd heard of the Thirty-Two Palms. The Hyūga Gentle Fist is as famous as the Uchiha's Fire Release.
Uchiha Sasuke frowned.
The Thirty-Two Palms were even faster than he'd expected. Even with two-tomoe Sharingan, one slip and you'd get tagged.
Fortunately, he now had Leaf-style Kenjutsu and Fire Release to keep things out of close range.
Uzumaki Naruto scratched his head.
After Kitazawa's practical combat training, thinking before acting had become a habit.
Same idea as Sasuke: the best way to handle the Thirty-Two Palms was to keep it long-range.
With Multiple Shadow Clones plus throwing tools and Wind Release: Gale Palm, he could do exactly that.
"Round One, Match Three: Kurama Yakumo vs. Akimichi Chōji."
Kitazawa checked the slip in his hand and announced it.
"Rough start for you, Chōji."
Nara Shikamaru patted Chōji on the shoulder.
"Just do your best," Ino comforted him. "It's only a monthly exam anyway."
Sakura pouted.
That's not what you said when you were fighting me.
"Mm."
Chōji was quite at ease.
Right now he was mostly interested in food and didn't care much about winning or losing.
"Youth means facing challenges head-on!"
Naruto stuck up a thumbs-up. "Chōji, you got this!"
With a goofy grin, Chōji walked onto the field.
Knowing how strong Kurama Yakumo was, he opened at full power.
Partial Multi-Size!
Chōji's right arm swelled in an instant.
His palm spread wide, like a giant windmill, grabbing toward Yakumo.
The Advanced Class let out a collective gasp.
Sasuke and Naruto had already shown off plenty of jutsu, but this was their first time seeing the Akimichi clan's secret techniques.
"Whoa!"
Naruto's eyes sparkled. "That jutsu is awesome!"
He was already picturing how ridiculous it'd be paired with Multiple Shadow Clones.
"It's an Akimichi clan secret technique," Inuzuka Kiba explained. "It's called the Partial Multi-Size Technique."
"If it's the full Multi-Size, you can become a giant taller than the school building," Ino added with a smile.
"Too strong!"
Naruto immediately pictured a sky full of giants—Multiple Shadow Clones plus Multi-Size everywhere.
Unfortunately, he couldn't learn it.
After nearly a year at the Academy, he'd picked up some basics: secret techniques are clan-exclusive.
"Yakumo's not using genjutsu?"
Sasuke looked surprised.
Everyone turned their attention back to the field.
Facing the massive hand, Yakumo chose to slip past it.
She seized the moment and snapped a kick into his wrist.
Chōji never expected Yakumo to press with taijutsu.
He stumbled forward.
At the critical instant, he released Partial Multi-Size, rolled, and sprang up—surprisingly nimble.
Yakumo lunged in.
Just as he rose to his feet, she fired a straight punch.
Chōji reflexively brought both arms up.
Thud!
Fist met forearms.
Both of them jolted back.
But Chōji was bigger and stronger. Even caught off-guard, he held fast.
He shoved Yakumo away and fired back with a punch.
Leaf Whirlwind!
Yakumo answered with a spinning kick.
Then, mixing in Leaf-style taijutsu, she took the fight into close quarters with Chōji.
She was under pressure, sure, but the sight still shook the class.
"Yakumo's taijutsu has gotten this good?" Sakura blurted, stunned.
"Her genjutsu's already the best in class. If she patches the taijutsu gap too—who's supposed to beat that?" Kiba gaped.
Sasuke fell silent.
Yakumo's taijutsu was only decent, but the signal was ominous:
Yakumo was still getting stronger.
A sense of urgency hit him hard.
"Kitazawa-sensei is terrifying—everyone's improving," Ino thought aloud.
Hinata gave a small, unconscious nod.
"Winner: Kurama Yakumo."
Kitazawa announced it.
When her taijutsu was about to buckle, Yakumo switched to genjutsu.
The tide flipped, and Chōji lost in a hurry.
What can you say?
It was a good strategy—maximizing reps on your weak spot to force fast growth.
Time slid by.
All fifteen first-round bouts wrapped up.
"Second round begins now."
After the break, Kitazawa drew again. "Round Two, Match One: Uzumaki Naruto vs. Uchiha Sasuke."
No doubt about it—the bracket had been quietly adjusted again.
"Here we go, the main event."
Even Shikamaru sat up a bit.
He's lazy, but that never stops him from enjoying a good show.
Every Naruto vs. Sasuke bout is a spectacle, and he never gets tired of watching.
"Sasuke-kun! Take Naruto down again!"
Sakura pumped her tiny fists.
"Naruto, let's go! Smash Sasuke!"
Kiba yelled at the top of his lungs.
In an instant, the Advanced Class split into two camps, both sides loud and rowdy.
"Thanks, everyone!"
Naruto waved broadly, grinning. "In the name of youth, I'm not losing this time!"
"Whether you lose isn't up to you."
Sasuke glanced at him, then strode coolly to the center.
"Sasuke! I've been waiting for this—youth means going all out! Come on!"
Naruto walked up, thumb still up.
Sasuke's mouth twitched. He tightened his grip on his ninja blade.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
As usual, Naruto opened by spawning sixty clones.
"More throwing tools again?"
Sasuke flashed through hand signs at once.
Shadow Clone Jutsu!
With a puff of smoke, one clone appeared on either side of him.
He intended to crack it the same way as before.
But to his surprise, Naruto didn't split his clones into three ranks like in earlier fights.
Thirty clones formed a semicircle.
The other thirty lined up behind them.
Sasuke frowned.
What was he setting up?
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
Naruto shouted, clapping his hands together.
Wind-natured chakra compressed between his palms and detonated into a blast of gale.
The entire first rank of shadow clones followed up in unison.
Thirty-one Gale Palms stacked together—wind roared, and the whole training field shuddered.
At the same time, the back rank snapped their wrists and hurled sixty kunai.
"???"
Sasuke's face changed; question marks filled his head.
A storm of wind howled toward him.
The ground trembled and dust boiled wherever it passed.
Riding the wind, the kunai turned into slicing missiles.
Sasuke felt like a lone skiff on a raging sea, about to be swallowed at any moment.
Right now, neither swordsmanship nor genjutsu would help.
Kitazawa's lip twitched.
Having tons of chakra really does mean you can do whatever you want.
He flickered to stand between the spectators and the blast.
Rapid hand signs—then a wall of water surged up to keep Naruto's gale off the crowd.
Out on the field, Sasuke wasn't so lucky.
He snapped back to himself and bolted left.
Body Flicker!
But the wind was too fast, bearing down in a blink.
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
In a rush, Sasuke turned and spat a massive fireball.
It vanished into the storm and got blown away in less than a second.
A single Gale Palm can blast a person off their feet; thirty-one stacked together could punt a building.
Add a cloud of shuriken, and the killing power only climbs.
Sasuke didn't have time for another fire jutsu. He drew his ninjatō instead.
The first wave of shuriken hit.
Steel flashed as he batted them aside—but it was pointless.
When the full force of the gale crashed over him, he was launched.
Kitazawa flickered to meet him.
Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!
A ten-meter wall of earth surged up, swallowing the gale and every last shuriken.
The howling died away.
But the class still stood there, stunned—Sasuke included.
"Winner: Uzumaki Naruto."
Kitazawa lowered the earth wall and announced the result.
Only then did everyone slowly come back to their senses.
Sasuke opened his mouth, then closed it.
He'd lost before he could even show what he could do.
How are you supposed to fight that?
"A C-rank wind jutsu plus Multiple Shadow Clones can get that scary?"
Shikamaru wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
Without Kitazawa's Wall, they'd probably have been caught in it too.
"No normal person has that much chakra!"
Kiba griped.
"That chakra pool is bigger than all of ours put together," Tenten said, equal parts awe and envy.
A few more summons and she'd be dry, but Naruto had just cranked out thirty-one C-rank wind jutsu and still looked fresh. The gap defied words.
Sakura watched the still-shaken Sasuke, worry on her face.
Going in brimming with confidence and getting blown out stung, no question.
Neji stood frowning.
How do you handle that many Gale Palms?
The only way would be to stop him at the start so he can't set it up.
But that was still extremely hard.
For the first time, Neji felt what "stats" really meant.
"Youth is a storm!"
Rock Lee flashed his sparkling teeth. "Naruto, beautifully done!"
Not far away, Kosuke Maruboshi and Hatake Kakashi both looked genuinely surprised for the first time.
Everything up to now had been within expectations, but Naruto's one-of-a-kind Gale Palm tactic had blindsided them.
"That kid's chakra really is something," Kosuke said, impressed.
Kakashi nodded.
He felt Naruto's chakra already exceeded his own—but thinking of Uzumaki Kushina, he relaxed. An Uzumaki plus a Nine-Tails jinchūriki? Of course the chakra is huge.
"Did Kitazawa give him that tactic?" Kosuke wondered. "Against a real powerhouse it's not great—just burns chakra."
After all, Gale Palm is only C-rank; the raw damage isn't that high.
"But for this group of kids, it's hard to answer," Kakashi said, eyes shifting to Sasuke.
Kenjutsu, fire, even genjutsu struggled against that level of wind.
Lightning Release was different—used right, it could flip the script.
Since Sasuke had learned Leaf-style Kenjutsu, it was time to get him back on Lightning Release.
"You two, head down."
Kitazawa patted Sasuke on the shoulder.
Sasuke gave a silent nod and stepped off the field.
"Round Two, Match Two: Tenten vs. Inuzuka Hana."
Kitazawa called it after drawing.
"Sis, watch her ninja tools!"
Kiba shouted a reminder.
"Mm." Hana smiled. "Kitazawa-sensei taught me a new secret technique. Perfect chance to try it."
The word "secret technique" put Tenten instantly on alert.
They hadn't trained together, so she had no idea what Hana had picked up.
They took their marks.
Because she was wary of whatever Hana had, Tenten opened with the Shadow Clone Jutsu Kitazawa had taught her.
Four Tentens snapped their wrists and flung out a storm of tools, dimming the sky.
Hana's face tightened.
She didn't expect Tenten to know Shadow Clones.
But at this point, there was only one thing to do—trust in her new technique.
Quadruple Fang Over Fang!
Hana and the three Haimaru brothers spun into four tornadoes and charged.
A mass of the flying tools were knocked away on contact.
Then the four whirlwinds kicked into another gear and slammed toward Tenten.
"What?!"
Three Tentens bolted to the sides, scattering.
They kept hurling tools as they ran.
All for nothing.
In the original, Fang Over Fang had drilled through a cave; with chakra behind it, its power was no worse than any barrage of tools.
The four twisters split into two pairs and ran down the Tentens on both flanks.
Boom!
They caught her.
The three clones popped instantly, and the real Tenten was blasted back.
Kitazawa flickered in and caught her.
"Thanks, Kitazawa-sensei."
Tenten let out a breath.
"Winner: Inuzuka Hana."
Once they stepped off, Kitazawa announced the result.
The practical exam rolled on.
Starting at nine in the morning, it was soon already eleven.
"Round Three, Match Seven: Uzumaki Naruto vs. Hyūga Neji!"
Kitazawa called out.
This was the third—and last—quiet tweak to the bracket.
Neji wore a grave expression as he stepped up.
Naruto's earlier bout with Sasuke had piled the pressure on.
He had no confidence in this match.
But no matter what, he had to try.
Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!
Neji shot forward at top speed.
He had to suppress Naruto before the Multiple Shadow Clones came out.
But just as he threw the first strike, Naruto clapped his hands—Gale Palm wrapped his whole body, and he accelerated away to open distance.
Neji froze for half a beat.
He hadn't expected Gale Palm to be used like that.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto split into sixty clones.
Eight Trigrams Air Palm!
Neji reacted fast.
In a flash he fired a Vacuum Palm at the real Naruto.
But it was already too late.
Wind Release: Gale Palm!
A mass of wind chakra erupted again, and the storm came crashing down.
~~~
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