After wrapping up his deal with Orochimaru, Kitazawa went to find Uchiha Itachi.
The task he gave Itachi was simple: keep an eye on Orochimaru, and report regularly on the progress of the artificial humans.
Once they were done talking, Kitazawa left the Hokage Tower and returned to the Anbu base.
The moment he stepped into his office, Konan appeared in front of him.
Kitazawa reached out and pinched her cheek, then walked over to his desk.
He opened a blank scroll and laid it on the desktop.
Aside from the artificial humans, the other thing in his transaction with Orochimaru was the Chimera Technique.
The Chimera Technique came from Hiruko.
Hiruko was a shinobi of the same generation as Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya, but his talent wasn't great.
To make up for that lack of talent, he developed the Chimera Technique.
Its effect was to forcibly combine other people's kekkei genkai—up to five in total.
In the original timeline, Hiruko combined Storm Release, Dark Release, Steel Release, and Swift Release.
For the fifth kekkei genkai, he chose Kakashi Hatake's Sharingan—only to be defeated in the end by Uzumaki Naruto and the others.
Hiruko was no longer in Konoha.
Like Orochimaru, he'd been exposed for researching forbidden techniques and conducting illegal human experimentation, and from that point on he became a missing-nin.
Kitazawa originally wanted to hand the job of finding Hiruko to Itachi, but with Itachi already tasked to monitor Orochimaru, there was no way he could split his attention.
After a brief moment of thought, Kitazawa wrote down the names of two Anbu squads—eight shinobi in total.
He didn't plan to personally retrieve the Chimera Technique.
First, final exams were coming up, so he didn't need to leave the village for missions.
Second, the Chimera Technique sounded useful, but in practice it was too awkward and limited.
Still, it suited Orochimaru—he could use it on artificial humans.
After writing the names, Kitazawa rolled the scroll back up.
He walked to the door and casually handed it to a nearby Anbu operative, telling him to go notify them.
When the door closed, Kitazawa walked over to Konan, who was sitting on the sofa.
Konan reflexively stood up.
Kitazawa met her cool, clear gaze.
After holding it for two seconds, he lowered his head and gave her soft, red lips a light bite.
"So how's the situation on Sunagakure's side?" Kitazawa asked casually, pulling her supple body into his arms.
"No changes," Konan replied.
Kitazawa felt a little more at ease.
He raised a hand, gently combing through her hair with his fingers, and fell into thought.
Sunagakure didn't know that Amegakure was backed by the Akatsuki.
Hanzo's name might be intimidating, but in the end he was only one person—hardly enough to keep Sunagakure cautious for long.
If Sunagakure joined forces with Kirigakure, they might very well launch a real war against Amegakure.
Kitazawa thought to himself that he needed to master the Flying Thunder God Technique as soon as possible.
He came back to himself, his gaze dropping to Konan's pale neck.
Kitazawa leaned in, catching a faint fragrance.
Konan felt a warm breath brush her skin.
Her cheeks flushed slightly. Tilting her head, she voluntaryly exposed her neck fully to him.
"I'm not some kind of vampire," Kitazawa couldn't help laughing.
"What's a vampire?" Konan looked at him and asked.
"A night-creature that likes to drink the blood of beautiful women," Kitazawa said, patting her head.
"Does the shinobi world have monsters like that?" Konan asked, puzzled.
"No," Kitazawa explained. "I saw it in a novel."
"I see." Konan nodded, then added, "I rarely read novels. I've only read…"
She stopped halfway, realizing what she'd almost said.
"Only read what?" Kitazawa asked, stroking her cheek.
"Only read one novel—The Tale of the Gutsy Ninja," Konan thought for a moment and answered.
She hadn't said it earlier because The Tale of the Gutsy Ninja was written by Jiraiya.
But thinking about it carefully, it was just a book—it wouldn't expose that she, Nagato, and Yahiko had once been Jiraiya's students.
"I didn't expect you to like that one," Kitazawa said with a smile, having guessed why she hesitated. "It was written by Jiraiya-sama."
"I read it a long time ago. Back then I didn't really pay attention to who the author was," Konan said coolly.
"Good thing you didn't read the second novel Jiraiya-sama wrote," Kitazawa chuckled.
"I haven't read it, but I've heard of it," Konan said honestly.
"If you're interested in stories, I've got a few I can tell you," Kitazawa said casually.
"Mm." Konan answered without taking it too seriously.
She'd only read one novel—she wasn't obsessed with them.
But since Kitazawa felt like telling her stories, she was willing to be a good listener. She wouldn't ruin his mood.
"Good girl." Kitazawa lowered his head and kissed her again. "I'm going to train. If anything comes up, find me at the training grounds nearby."
Konan nodded.
Only after Kitazawa left and the door closed did she withdraw her gaze.
A month passed in the blink of an eye. Once December began, Konoha welcomed its first snowfall.
After breakfast, Kitazawa and Kurenai Yuhi arrived at the shinobi academy.
The students in the Advanced Class—now all adult trainees—were either chatting or already training.
"Kitazawa-senpai." Iruka Umino hurried over.
"You two talk." Kurenai waved a hand and walked toward the students.
"These are the final exam papers." Iruka paused, then asked, "When are we setting the finals?"
"December fifteenth," Kitazawa said after a moment.
Since one monthly exam had been canceled, the final was moved up.
That worked out too—it cleared time for his birthday on the twenty-first.
"No issues with the exam." After reviewing it, Kitazawa handed it back to Iruka.
[Current Mission: Teach Shion five sealing techniques within one year.]
[Reward: Five Elements Seal.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
Three sudden lines of text appeared.
Kitazawa glanced at them, then turned to look at Shion.
He had to admit—her sealing talent was impressive. She'd mastered five sealing techniques already.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
Once she learned one more—Evil Sealing Method—he could arrange for her to start studying medical ninjutsu.
"Go handle your work," Kitazawa said to Iruka, then walked toward Shion.
He explained the Evil Sealing Method to her for half an hour, then left behind a shadow clone to continue guiding her.
At nine in the morning, the Advanced Class officially began.
Kitazawa took Uzumaki Naruto to the Forest of Death.
After nearly two months of chakra-control training, Naruto could now climb smoothly all the way to the top of the Wood Dragon.
"Today I'm going to teach you how to use Kurama's chakra," Kitazawa said, stopping.
Naruto had now entered the first stage of being a jinchūriki: borrowing the tailed beast's chakra.
The second stage would be partial tailed-beast transformation—forming a chakra cloak, with the number of tails corresponding to the tailed beast.
But Naruto was different from other jinchūriki: his partial transformation could be divided into two sub-stages.
Because his number of tails didn't appear all at once.
Take Utakata, for example—his partial transformation went straight to six tails, corresponding to the Six-Tails Saiken.
In the original timeline, when Naruto fought Orochimaru, he only reached four tails. It wasn't until the battle against Pain that he manifested six and then eight.
Put simply: every time he manifested one additional tail, his power spiked dramatically.
Kitazawa planned that within these two weeks, Naruto would be able to use one tail.
That would mark the completion of stage one—borrowing chakra.
In the original timeline, Naruto had basically skipped this stage and jumped straight into partial transformation.
It couldn't be helped—Kurama's chakra reserves were absurd.
But now, they could start properly from stage one.
First, because Naruto was still a very young adult.
Second, because Kurama was willing to cooperate.
A week later.
As usual, Kitazawa finished breakfast and headed to the academy with Kurenai.
But the moment they stepped outside, an Anbu operative wearing a mask appeared in front of them.
"I'll go on ahead." Kurenai took the hint and left on her own.
After all, she wasn't Anbu.
"Kitazawa." Konan produced a scroll. "Anbu asked me to pass this to you."
Kitazawa already knew what would be on it.
Because the mission to capture Hiruko was the one he'd given to Antelope.
He opened the scroll—and sure enough, it contained the Chimera Technique.
After reading it carefully, his brows knit tight.
This Chimera Technique was even more sinister than he'd expected.
He'd assumed it was a fusion technique.
But in reality, it was a merger technique.
It didn't fuse kekkei genkai—it merged the user with the shinobi who possessed that kekkei genkai.
It reminded Kitazawa of Yakushi Kabuto from the original timeline.
Kabuto had transplanted the cells of the Sound Five to gain their abilities.
This Chimera Technique was similar in spirit.
If it was used for cloning, it might be worth trying.
It might even be possible to create an artificial human with five kekkei genkai.
Cloning technology might violate ethics—but using it was one thing, and having it available was another.
That was exactly why he intended to give the Chimera Technique to Orochimaru.
"Thanks for making the trip, Konan," Kitazawa said, tucking the Chimera Technique away.
Konan didn't speak—she just looked at him.
"Go back and rest," Kitazawa said with a smile, patting her head.
"Mm." Konan withdrew her gaze, turned, and left.
Kitazawa headed toward the academy.
[Current Mission: Help Aburame Shino breed kikaichū with Earth Release resistance.]
[Reward: Increase your own Earth Release damage resistance by 10%.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
Kitazawa stopped unconsciously at the academy gate.
So they'd finally produced the earth-style mutated kikaichū?
Shino had been developing two variants.
One variant boosted the insects' own defense so they could tank Earth Release techniques head-on.
The other—developed at Kitazawa's suggestion—was a kikaichū that could move freely underground.
Obviously, the second variant was more useful.
Next, should they research Yin Release and Yang Release mutant kikaichū too?
Kitazawa's mind suddenly flicked, recalling the Chimera Technique he'd just obtained.
What would happen if they used the Chimera Technique to merge five mutated kikaichū into a single one?
[Current Mission: Synthesize Five-Release Kikaichū.]
[Reward: Hashirama Senju-level Wood Release.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa froze.
The reward was Hashirama Senju-level Wood Release?
But after the surprise faded, he caught the trick.
The reward looked insanely generous, but it really wasn't.
The biggest difference between "Yamato-level" Wood Release and "Hashirama-level" Wood Release was chakra.
Kitazawa might currently be using a "Yamato version" on paper, but he could still perform high-level techniques like Wood Release: Wood Dragon.
Because he had far more chakra than Yamato.
In theory, he already possessed the "Hashirama version."
Still, it was worth accepting—if nothing else, it was icing on the cake.
"Kitazawa-sensei." Shino approached him the moment he entered the academy.
Shino raised his hand, revealing the earth-burrowing mutated kikaichū—earth kikaichū.
"Keeping five mutated kikaichū strains is a hassle," Kitazawa said with a smile. "We can merge the five strains into a single ultimate Five-Release Kikaichū."
"That's possible?" Shino's heart jolted, doubt showing on his face.
"I have a forbidden technique called the Chimera Technique that can help you," Kitazawa said, patting his shoulder. "After class, I'll explain it in detail."
Nine in the morning.
After spending half an hour teaching Haku a new Water Release technique—Water Release: Heavenly Weeping—Kitazawa went to find Shino.
The two of them began experiments to merge the Five-Release Kikaichū.
Time reached December fifteenth.
The Advanced Class students welcomed the final exam—the last test of the term.
In the Forest of Death.
Kitazawa stood still, looking at a tree a thousand meters away.
In the next instant, chakra surged—and he vanished.
When he appeared again, he was already in front of that tree.
Kitazawa looked at the Flying Thunder God mark on the trunk and smiled reflexively.
After so much study, he'd finally learned the Flying Thunder God Technique.
It was the most basic version, but still.
He hadn't learned Flying Thunder God: Second Step, or Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder yet.
But both were derived variants—once the base technique was mastered, the rest would come quickly.
Flying Thunder God: Second Step was the classic move: throw a Flying Thunder God kunai, teleport to it, and follow up immediately—often with a Rasengan.
Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder was transporting people or objects with the technique—possibly even a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Kitazawa thought for a moment and created a shadow clone.
He wanted to test the maximum range of his Flying Thunder God.
It was spatial transfer; its range limit depended on the user's chakra.
"Go to the northernmost edge of Konoha," Kitazawa ordered.
Konoha might be called a "village," but its footprint was huge—more like a major city.
Kitazawa wanted to see whether he could freely move anywhere within Konoha.
He waited in place. Minutes later, the clone's memories returned.
Kitazawa immediately activated the Flying Thunder God.
The scenery shifted—and in an instant, he moved from the southern Forest of Death to the northern mountain peak connected to the Hokage Rock.
Feeling the chakra cost, Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
Even without entering Yang Release Chakra Mode, his normal chakra reserves were enough to teleport freely anywhere in Konoha.
No question—this would make everything far more convenient.
By that distance estimate, if he activated Yang Release Chakra Mode and went all-out, he could probably blink all the way to Sunagakure.
In other words?
His mobility was basically unstoppable.
No hidden village could tolerate a powerhouse like Kitazawa "sneaking home" and striking their core.
Minato Namikaze had Flying Thunder God, but his baseline power was lower and his offensive options were narrower—mainly Rasengan.
Kitazawa was different.
He could teleport into Sunagakure, drop a Wood Release: Wood Dragon, then leave.
If he stopped holding back, he could cause devastation comparable to a Nine-Tails incident.
Kitazawa suddenly thought of Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands.
If he activated that, then used Flying Thunder God to teleport the gigantic wooden Bodhisattva statue…
Just imagining it was terrifying.
And once he mastered Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder, he could bring others with him as well.
With that in mind, Kitazawa headed back into Konoha.
As he moved around, he left Flying Thunder God marks in several places he frequented.
Flying Thunder God marks couldn't be destroyed—unless the object bearing the mark was removed entirely.
Before long, Kitazawa arrived at the Hokage Tower.
He casually left a hidden Flying Thunder God mark near the entrance.
"Tsunade-sensei." Kitazawa pushed the door open and entered the Hokage's office.
"What do you want?" Tsunade glanced at him, then lowered her head to keep reading.
"I learned the Flying Thunder God Technique," Kitazawa said with a smile.
"Really?" Tsunade looked up instinctively, her heart giving a small jolt.
Kitazawa didn't answer. He walked to her desk and placed a Flying Thunder God mark on the surface.
Then he teleported to the tower entrance—and in another flash, returned to the Hokage's office.
Watching him vanish and reappear, Tsunade had no choice but to believe it.
Her mood instantly became complicated.
On one hand, she was happy for Konoha.
Wood Release plus Flying Thunder God meant Konoha was effectively unbeatable.
On the other hand, she'd promised Kitazawa that once he learned Flying Thunder God, she would give him a "special reward."
"Tsunade-sensei," Kitazawa asked, "what's the special reward?"
"I'll give it to you next week on your birthday," Tsunade said, biting her lip.
Being forced to give it right now caught her off guard—she wasn't mentally ready.
"Tsunade-sensei." Kitazawa raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're going back on your word?"
"Do I look like someone who breaks promises?" Tsunade rolled her eyes. "If I said I'd give it to you, I will."
Kitazawa blinked.
You've had "credit" before? He thought.
There was still a whole box of IOUs in her house.
But it was only a few days. He could wait.
"Then if the special reward is delayed, do I get a bonus reward?" Kitazawa pressed shamelessly.
"You're a Konoha high-ranker—why are you so unserious all the time?" Tsunade snapped.
"I'm just making a reasonable request within Konoha's rules," Kitazawa said without changing expression.
"…" Tsunade's mouth twitched.
This guy really had a thick face.
"Come here." Tsunade beckoned him.
Kitazawa's eyes lit up and he quickly leaned in.
Before he could steady himself, Tsunade pulled him in and pressed his head against her chest.
He froze for a beat, then let out a small breath, catching a clean, warm scent.
For this brief moment, he was getting the same "treatment" as a certain necklace.
Unfortunately, in less than a minute, Tsunade pushed him away.
"Alright, enough. I still have work," Tsunade said, and kicked him when she saw his lingering look.
"Okay. Thank you, Tsunade-sensei," Kitazawa said properly.
Tsunade glanced at him, said nothing, and returned to her paperwork.
Kitazawa left the Hokage's office and went back to his own office at the Anbu base.
He looked left and right, then left a Flying Thunder God mark inside the desk drawer.
When he lifted his head, he met Konan's gaze.
A thought stirred. He beckoned her over.
Konan walked up to him.
Kitazawa stood, bent forward, and buried his face against her chest as well.
Konan's body stiffened instinctively.
She could feel the warmth of his breath against her upper chest, and a faint blush spread across her pale cheeks.
But she didn't push him away.
A little awkwardly, she wrapped her arms around his head—then quickly adapted and returned to calm.
Kitazawa thought to himself that Konan really was more obedient.
Still… Tsunade, as Hokage, truly embodied "broad-minded" in the most literal sense.
Not that Konan was lacking.
Kitazawa lifted his head, his gaze settling.
He stroked Konan's cheek, then headed for the academy.
The Advanced Class theory exam was nearing its end.
Kitazawa didn't interrupt them—Iruka would handle grading.
He left Flying Thunder God marks at both the academy field and his own office, then vanished.
In the next moment, he was back in the Forest of Death.
Learning Flying Thunder God was only the beginning.
Only after mastering Second Step and Guiding Thunder could he say he had fully grasped it.
Kitazawa casually took out a kunai and carved a Flying Thunder God mark onto it.
Everyone's Flying Thunder God mark was different.
Tobirama Senju used a diagram-style formula. Minato used written script.
Kitazawa also used written script, but only a single character: "北"—Kita, "North."
The key to Flying Thunder God: Second Step wasn't simply teleporting to the kunai.
It was unleashing a technique at the instant you arrived.
Minato used Rasengan.
Because Rasengan required no hand seals and could be launched instantly—making it the fastest possible strike.
If you had to form seals after arriving, the enemy would notice, and the whole point of an ambush would be lost.
Compared to Minato, Kitazawa had far more options.
Sharingan genjutsu. Byakugan: Pressure. Shikotsumyaku techniques.
And beyond bloodline techniques—chakra-enhanced strength worked too.
At full power, it hit harder than Rasengan.
After thinking it over, Kitazawa decided to start by pairing Flying Thunder God: Second Step with chakra-enhanced strength.
The next day.
On the academy field—
"I can't believe the final exam is individual matches," Tenten said in surprise.
"Probably because we got new classmates," Shikamaru Nara said, glancing at Shion, Chino, and Hotaru.
"Looks like the rankings are going to change again," Ino Yamanaka agreed.
"Even without them, the rankings would change," Kiba Inuzuka said smugly. "Now that I've got Akamaru, my rank's definitely going up again."
"Don't celebrate too early!" Tayuya snorted. "You're not the only one improving!"
"The new students are strong too—especially Chino. Her Ketsuryūgan is basically on par with the Sharingan," Ino said. She'd fought Chino in the arena before and knew her strength.
"She's definitely not as good as Sasuke-kun!" Sakura Haruno immediately shot back.
"I really am not as good as Sasuke," Chino said with a smile.
She'd been in the Advanced Class long enough now, and through daily training she'd already gotten a good feel for everyone's level.
Sasuke Uchiha had been practicing the Supreme Ultimate Rasengan with Uzumaki Naruto lately.
The sheer power of it made it obvious—Chino didn't need to fight them to know she couldn't win.
Sakura froze for a moment. Since Chino admitted it herself, Sakura couldn't really keep arguing.
"Aren't you curious what Naruto's been training lately?" Shino adjusted his glasses.
Aside from occasionally practicing Supreme Ultimate Rasengan with Sasuke, Naruto had spent most of his time being taken to the Forest of Death by Kitazawa.
"That's definitely some youth-filled training!" Rock Lee said, giving a thumbs-up.
"Exactly!" Naruto grinned. "You'll all see my blazing youth soon enough!"
Sasuke glanced at him.
A bad feeling crept up in his chest.
Had Naruto improved again?
But that didn't make sense.
While learning Yang Release: Rasengan and Supreme Ultimate Rasengan, could Naruto really also be learning an even stronger third technique?
"It's fine," Shikamaru said, hands behind his head, fully giving up. "Either way, we can't beat you."
"Not including Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said, hands on her hips. "I think—"
"You'll know who wins after you fight," Sasuke cut her off calmly, shutting down her jinx.
"Kitazawa-sensei is here!" Ino spotted him in the distance and waved excitedly.
Hinata Hyuga turned to look.
Kitazawa and Kurenai walked onto the field.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, Kakashi Hatake, Master Chen, and Kosuke Maruboshi had arrived early and were chatting at the edge.
"Kitazawa-senpai." Iruka came up to greet him.
"Iruka, go draw the matchups," Kitazawa nodded.
There was no system mission tied to this exam, so there was no need for any "behind-the-scenes adjustments."
"Got it." Iruka walked over to the students.
Kitazawa and Kurenai went to greet Hiruzen and the others one by one.
The six of them stood at the field's edge, watching Iruka.
"First round, first match: Chino versus Haku," Iruka announced after drawing lots.
"Chino's Ketsuryūgan is somewhat of a counter to Haku," Kosuke commented.
"It's not exactly a counter," Hiruzen said with a chuckle. "It's that Ketsuryūgan genjutsu has a real advantage at this stage."
"After all, the Ketsuryūgan was famous in the Warring States era alongside the Sharingan," Master Chen said, not surprised.
"Not so simple," Kurenai said, favoring Haku. "Haku has a kekkei genkai too—Ice Release."
"They're both strong," Kitazawa said, watching Chino and Haku. "Top fifteen isn't a problem for either of them."
"Speaking of that, should the Advanced Class bring in another instructor?" Kurenai mused. "At this point we could form seven squads for team battles and field missions."
"Agreed," Kosuke said.
As instructors, they knew exactly how capable these students were.
The newly added Chino, Shion, and Hotaru all had the strength to break into the top eighteen.
"I've been thinking the same," Kitazawa nodded. "Do you have anyone to recommend?"
"Preferably a jōnin," Kakashi said.
Normally, academy instructors only needed to be chūnin.
But a chūnin in the Advanced Class likely wouldn't even crack the top eighteen—let alone teach this group.
"I think Guy could work," Master Chen suggested.
Kakashi and Hiruzen's expressions subtly changed.
"Guy's strong, but his personality isn't suited for teaching," Hiruzen cleared his throat.
With Naruto and Lee already spreading the "youth" virus, adding more would be a disaster.
Konoha's future would be… not bright.
"Konoha has plenty of elite jōnin, but most of them hold key posts," Kosuke said, rubbing his temples.
"Yamato," Kitazawa said, a thought clicking into place.
"Yamato?" Hiruzen and Kakashi both paused.
Because as far as they knew, Yamato had Wood Release.
"Who's Yamato?" Kosuke and Master Chen looked puzzled.
"An Anbu shinobi, skilled in Earth Release and Water Release," Kitazawa said, then added, "and Wood Release."
"Wood Release?" Kosuke asked, shocked.
"There's another Wood Release user?" Master Chen blurted.
Even Kurenai looked surprised.
But with Kitazawa's Wood Release right in front of them, they recovered quickly.
"His Wood Release is far inferior to Kitazawa's," Hiruzen said, shaking his head. "That's exactly why he was kept in Anbu."
Yamato's existence really was due to be brought into the light.
Kitazawa had already drawn all attention anyway.
"Yamato was under me back when I was in Anbu. He's very capable," Kakashi added.
He personally welcomed the idea of Yamato teaching the Advanced Class.
They were familiar faces.
"Then he's more than qualified," Kosuke nodded.
"After the practical exam ends, I'll go notify him," Kitazawa said, settling it.
In the original timeline, Yamato had temporarily served as Team 7's leader.
Not as good as Kakashi, but certainly not weak.
"Begin!" Iruka's shout cut off their conversation.
"Water Release: Water Wave!" Chino and Haku formed seals at the same time.
Two streams of water collided in midair.
With the same technique, output depended on the user's chakra and their mastery of nature transformation.
Water splashed everywhere.
The two streams dispersed, the force breaking more on Haku's side.
In Water Release fundamentals, Chino was slightly stronger.
She'd simply studied it longer than Haku.
"Ice Release: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!" Haku didn't lose heart. Calm-faced, he formed seals again.
After a brief probe, he moved to real power.
Because he knew Chino had the Ketsuryūgan.
Snow-white ice mirrors appeared out of nowhere, surrounding Chino.
Chino's heart jumped. She immediately activated the Ketsuryūgan.
It was her first time seeing Ice Release.
Haku's figure vanished. Chino scanned around—nothing.
Her brow furrowed. Something felt wrong.
"Chino lost the initiative," Hiruzen said, shaking his head. "This fight tilts slightly in Haku's favor."
He'd thought Chino's genjutsu might dominate early, but Haku gave her no room.
Inside Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals, Chino couldn't really cast genjutsu.
After all, Ketsuryūgan hypnosis required seeing the target directly.
"Chino lacks intel," Kosuke said bluntly.
"You can't blame her," Kitazawa said casually. "She just joined—she hasn't fully learned everyone's styles yet."
A sharp tearing sound cut the air.
Haku appeared in one of the mirrors and flicked his wrists—
A storm of senbon shot out at vicious angles, sealing off Chino's immediate space.
Chino reacted fast.
Her Ketsuryūgan's perception wasn't quite Sharingan-tier, but it was far better than normal sight.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
Water surged around her, forming a cylindrical wall.
Tobirama's Water Formation Wall—perfectly defending against Haku's senbon.
But it only covered the sides.
Another wave of senbon descended—this time from above.
Haku had shifted into a mirror suspended in midair.
"Water Release: Rain Drizzle!"
Chino summoned a dense swarm of water droplets.
Under the senbon barrage, the droplets burst into sprays of water.
Chino dropped Water Formation Wall and charged straight at Haku.
But halfway there, Haku vanished again.
Chino braked hard and hastily formed seals.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
She used her strongest Water Release technique.
A roaring water dragon slammed into an ice mirror, making it tremble violently.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!" Haku formed seals, raising a wall of water against the mirror.
Chino caught his trace and reflexively turned—
But before her genjutsu could activate, Haku disappeared again.
Chino's face darkened.
She was clearly in a crushing disadvantage.
If she couldn't break the ice mirrors, her Ketsuryūgan couldn't land.
Meanwhile, Haku could appear and vanish at will through the mirrors, slowly wearing her down.
Watching this, Kitazawa remembered Haku versus Sasuke from the original timeline—it was basically the same situation.
If Naruto hadn't exploded into rage and forced out Kurama's chakra, both he and Sasuke would've lost to Haku.
Chino held on for two more minutes, then had no choice but to concede.
"Winner: Haku," Iruka announced.
The class immediately erupted into discussion.
"Haku feels way stronger," Kiba said grimly.
He wasn't sure if his attacks could break the mirrors. If not, he'd end up just like Chino.
"Haku's improvement really is shocking," Yakumo Kurama agreed.
"That Ice Release is nasty," Ino nodded. "If you get trapped by the mirrors, you're basically fighting uphill."
"It completely hard-counters our control-type secret techniques," Shikamaru sighed.
"My summons aren't afraid of him!" Tayuya said smugly.
Sasuke, Kimimaro Kaguya, and Neji Hyuga remained calm.
Because they were confident they could break Haku's mirrors.
"Chino got careless. She should've activated the Ketsuryūgan right from the start, like Sasuke-kun," Sakura analyzed.
"Agreed," Shikamaru said. "Ketsuryūgan genjutsu is still scary."
"This is a crisis for us 'older' students!" Kiba scratched his head.
"The Advanced Class doesn't separate old and new," Tenten laughed.
Just then, Iruka announced the second match of the first round: Tenten versus Chōji Akimichi.
That fight ended even faster than the first.
Tenten won easily with Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique.
Watching her, Hiruzen thought of his summon, Enma.
Enma had an indestructible body and could transform into the adamantine staff.
Tenten had learned Hiruzen's Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique and was skilled with summoning, but she wasn't suited for Enma.
Her taijutsu wasn't strong enough.
Hiruzen was more interested in Naruto.
But honestly?
Naruto didn't really need Enma—he already had the greatsword Samehada.
Aside from Naruto, the remaining taijutsu-focused students included Rock Lee and Jūgo—possibly later also Karin and Shion.
Hiruzen still hadn't decided who to pass Enma to.
But he would—because he was getting old.
Aside from the Advanced Class students, he had another candidate: Konohamaru Sarutobi.
Konohamaru's birthday was December twentieth, and in a few days he'd be turning eight.
In other words, next year he could join the Advanced Class.
Then they'd see whether he was qualified to inherit Enma.
As for Asuma Sarutobi, it was already certain he couldn't inherit Enma.
"First round, third match: Hinata Hyuga versus Hotaru," Iruka called loudly.
Hotaru knew a bit of Water Release, but she was nowhere near Chino or Haku—she only had Water Wave and Water Formation Wall.
Hinata used the Phantom Arc Arrow.
Hotaru reacted quickly, raising a wall of water in front of herself.
But Hinata's Yin Release arrow curved in mid-flight, looping around the wall and shooting straight toward her face.
Just before it hit, Kitazawa appeared and pulled Hotaru away.
"Why can that arrow turn?!" Sakura stared, baffled.
"That's the Phantom Arc Arrow Kitazawa-sensei taught us," Neji answered. "Its effect is controlling the arrow's direction."
Sasuke, Kimimaro, and the others immediately felt a headache coming on.
An arrow that could turn meant it was far harder to predict and defend.
Neji smiled faintly.
He thought to himself that there was an even more terrifying World-Ending Arrow.
If they ever saw it, their jaws would drop.
Neji even felt that in a true life-and-death fight, he could use the World-Ending Arrow to defeat Sasuke and Naruto.
"Winner: Hinata Hyuga," Iruka announced, then immediately continued, "First round, fourth match: Karin versus Shion!"
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
To him, Karin and Shion were similar—both studied sealing techniques, and later both would learn medical ninjutsu and taijutsu.
But sealing techniques weren't ideal for direct combat, so the two of them fought using Konoha-style taijutsu.
In the end, Karin's higher proficiency won her the match.
With that, the three new students had all completed their first-round fights.
Kitazawa estimated that Chino and Haku could both make the top fifteen, but Shion and Hotaru would probably end up near the bottom of the top twenty-one.
~~~
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