Thanks to Hyūga Hinata, Uzumaki Naruto had already won the sparring match before he even made a move.
Of course, Naruto was a little unhappy. This wasn't what he had planned. He had wanted to make a big impression.
Who knew his plan would fail before it even started?
He glanced secretly at Haruno Sakura, only to find that her eyes were fixed on Uchiha Sasuke. She hadn't noticed him at all.
Uzumaki Naruto returned to the group dejectedly.
"Next group..." Iruka announced.
The sparring matches continued...
Shihouin Naraku noticed Naruto's expression. At this point, Naruto had no idea about Hyūga Hinata's feelings for him. He was completely clueless.
Of course, the main reason was that Uzumaki Naruto's mind was entirely focused on Haruno Sakura.
Although there had been that strange incident during his match with Hyūga Hinata, it wasn't long before Naruto's turn came again.
This time, the sparring went smoothly. Uzumaki Naruto defeated his classmate in record time, winning the match before everyone's surprised eyes.
Seeing the shocked looks of his classmates and friends, Naruto wanted to puff out his chest with pride. But when he looked at Haruno Sakura, he found that she was still keeping her eyes on Uchiha Sasuke.
"Sasuke, I'll definitely defeat you!" the extremely confident Naruto shouted at Uchiha Sasuke, but Sasuke just turned his head away with a cold snort, completely ignoring him.
"Why you..."
Uzumaki Naruto was so angry he almost rushed forward, but fortunately, Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chōji held him back.
"It's so lively down there!" Shihouin Naraku watched the commotion on the training ground with interest. He turned to Kakashi and said, "Naruto's a bit cleverer than we thought. Did you see that just now?"
"Hmm... his tree-walking training hasn't been wasted after all," Hatake Kakashi nodded. They had both seen the key to Naruto's victory in the sparring match.
"Although he's still a little unskilled, he gathered chakra under his feet at the beginning, and his burst of speed was so fast that his opponent couldn't react and immediately fell into a disadvantage."
"But if he wants to rely on just that ability, he's still a long way from defeating Uchiha Sasuke."
Shihouin Naraku agreed with Kakashi's assessment. Uzumaki Naruto hadn't built a solid foundation yet, and he still had a long way to go if he wanted to use speed bursts to defeat Uchiha Sasuke.
But after just a few days of training, there had been such a big improvement. Naruto's natural ability was quite impressive.
"Final match..." Iruka called out.
"Uchiha Sasuke!"
"Uzumaki Naruto!"
Uchiha Sasuke, still maintaining his cool and handsome appearance, stood up while Uzumaki Naruto glared at him angrily.
This time, Sasuke didn't keep his hands in his pockets. He took them out.
He was still full of confidence, but after several sparring matches, Naruto was no longer the dead last, so Sasuke reluctantly decided to take this seriously.
But just serious enough—after all, Uchiha Sasuke's true goal wasn't to defeat his classmates but to take revenge and kill his brother, Uchiha Itachi!
"Begin!"
At Iruka-sensei's command, Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke instantly rushed toward each other.
The ground beneath Naruto's feet stirred up sand as he increased his speed, swinging his fists at Sasuke.
Concentrating the chakra under his feet was no longer a big problem for Naruto, but he still couldn't maintain it for long periods. With his current control, he couldn't output large amounts of chakra for extended times while dealing with the interference from the Nine-Tails' chakra.
"Hmph!"
Seeing the fist coming close, Uchiha Sasuke dodged by leaning sideways. He supported himself on the ground with one hand and kicked toward Naruto with his right leg.
Naruto's punch missed, and with his momentum carrying him forward, he could only watch as Sasuke's kick connected. He nearly fell over.
But at that moment, the chakra under his feet firmly anchored him to the ground.
He endured the pain, grabbed Sasuke's leg with both hands and used his strength to throw him.
Uchiha Sasuke rolled and regained his footing. By then, Naruto had already pounced on him. Still unsteady, Sasuke could only punch back. Their fists collided instantly.
Already off-balance, the impact made Sasuke stagger backwards.
Seeing this, Naruto immediately sensed a chance to defeat Sasuke. While pulling back his fist, he suddenly dropped low and swept his leg to trip Sasuke.
But Sasuke used the opportunity to flip backwards. Supporting himself with his hands, he bent his body into a bow shape and kicked Naruto's shoulders, sending him flying.
Naruto rolled several times on the ground. Before he could stand up, Sasuke appeared and kicked him again.
Ignoring the embarrassment, Naruto continued rolling, then stood up with a somersault and rushed toward Sasuke without hesitation. Just as Sasuke was about to turn and avoid him, Naruto threw another punch.
"Thud!"
Uchiha Sasuke stretched out one hand and tightly grasped Naruto's fist.
"Thud!"
Uzumaki Naruto's other hand also caught Sasuke's incoming fist.
The two of them were at a stalemate!
...
"Is this really Naruto?" Umino Iruka looked at the scene in disbelief.
"What's going on with Naruto?" The usual laziness in Nara Shikamaru's eyes had disappeared, replaced by shock as he watched the battle.
"No way! Naruto can't be a match for Sasuke!" This was the surprised cry from the girls who had been cheering for Uchiha Sasuke.
"Crunch!"
Akimichi Chōji wore an expression that said Naruto was truly impressive, and he grabbed another handful of potato chips.
He had just participated in a sparring match himself and had lost without question. The fight had consumed a lot of energy, so he needed to eat something quickly to replenish it.
"Not bad. Whether it was what you said to him, Kakashi, or what the Third Hokage told him, Naruto remembered it all. This kid's combat intelligence is indeed not low," Shihouin Naraku commented as he watched the match with interest.
He wasn't surprised by Naruto's improvement. In the early stages, Naruto's progress might not be noticeable due to his weak foundation, but as long as he didn't give up training, his improvements would surprise everyone who had looked down on him.
The Nine-Tails' power and the Uzumaki bloodline were Naruto's foundation. In time, this foundation would become the fuel for his progress, driving his strength to soar dramatically.
Hatake Kakashi was completely engrossed in watching Naruto and Sasuke spar. For a moment, he seemed to see his younger self fighting with a lively and cheerful Uchiha boy.
"Obito..." Kakashi couldn't help but touch his covered eye, where the Sharingan given by his former teammate was hidden.
"Hmph!"
A cold snort broke the silence.
No one noticed that the space on the Academy rooftop suddenly twisted, and a mysterious man in a black robe and mask appeared.
The masked figure glanced at the sparring match below and sneered disdainfully. "Child's play..."
Then, the mysterious masked man turned his attention to Shihouin Naraku and Hatake Kakashi hiding in the shadows. To be more precise, he was looking at Hatake Kakashi.
"Hehehe..."
The surface of the rooftop rippled like water, and a strange plant-like man emerged. His body was unusual, half white and half black as if two people had been forcibly merged together.
The white half spoke with a smile: "Is that Itachi's brother? He looks pretty good..."
"He's far worse than Uchiha Itachi. Their talents aren't even on the same level," the mysterious masked man answered coldly, but his eyes remained fixed on Hatake Kakashi.
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