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"Alright, first up is the Transformation Jutsu..." Sēji said, his gaze locked onto Kaito with an unreadable expression.
Kaito wasn't exactly nervous—he still had a few months to master the jutsu before graduation. But with everyone watching, he knew he had to make it look good. If he didn't, Sēji would definitely take the chance to humiliate him in front of everyone. There was no way Kaito was letting that happen.
"Alright." Kaito nodded, closing his eyes as he swiftly weaved through a series of hand signs—Dog, Boar, Ram. In his mind, he focused on a clear image of what he wanted to transform into: Sēji. Since jutsu relied heavily on imagery, he had to visualize every detail of the transformation to make it work.
He could feel the chakra flowing through his network of pathways, guided by his intent and shaped by the seals.
The chakra flowed smoothly as Kaito formed the dog seal, following the familiar pathway he had practiced countless times. He clenched his toes, steadying himself before transitioning into the boar seal. For a brief moment, his chakra wavered, but he quickly regained control, forcing it into place.
Taking a deep breath, he moved onto the final hand sign. His palm was damp with sweat as he formed the ram seal, his fingers locking into position. The instant the seal was complete, his chakra surged forward, bursting outward in a sudden explosion of smoke that filled the space around him.
Slowly, the smoke cleared, and he stood there, waiting. Without a mirror, he had no way of knowing if the jutsu had worked, so all he could do was watch Sēji's reaction. One thing was certain—he felt taller, his gaze now meeting Sēji's directly.
Sēji, however, showed no real reaction. His expression remained neutral as he simply shrugged. "Could be better... but, good job," he said.
Kaito let out a quiet sigh of relief before releasing the transformation jutsu, the energy fading as he returned to his normal form.
"Now, the Clone Jutsu," he instructed, watching Kaito closely. Kaito nodded, bringing his hands together and quickly forming the necessary hand signs: Tiger → Boar → Ox → Dog.
Unlike before, when his chakra had been somewhat easier to control, executing the Clone Jutsu proved to be much more difficult. Frustration flickered across his face as he concentrated, realizing that performing even a basic justu demanded more effort than he initially thought.
Kaito managed to pull it off with ease though, and in an instant, a puff of smoke appeared right beside him. As the smoke cleared, a clone of Kaito stood wobbily—but it was thinner, paler, and clearly not a perfect copy. Kaito furrowed his brow in frustration, almost forming a unibrow from how hard he was scowling.
Glancing down at the clone's feet, he immediately noticed the giveaway—it had no shadow. Which was the one downside of this justu. He needed to learn the Shadow Clone Jutsu for real.
The class burst into laughter, some students failing to hold back their snickers. Kaito didn't care much if they laughed or not, but before he could react, Sēji spoke up. His expression remained unreadable as he said, "Not bad, but you still have time to improve..."
Kaito let out a sigh and dispelled his clone.
"And lastly, the Rope Escape Jutsu," Sēji said, forming a single hand sign. In an instant a puff of smoke surrounded Kaito, and as it cleared thick ropes wrapprf around Kaito, binding him tightly.
Kaito recalled the hand sign Miyu had used before and mimicked it. He felt his chakra surge, but then—nothing. The ropes were still wrapped around him. Frowning, he tried again. Chakra pulsed through his body, but just like before, his chakra quickly died down and the ropes didn't loosen at all.
Sēji observed him with a neutral expression. "Hmm... okay, two out of three."
With a simple hand sign, the ropes around Kaito unraveled, slumping to the floor before vanishing in a puff of smoke.
"Alright, head back to your seat," Sēji instructed.
Kaito exhaled, as he walked back to his seat. His chakra control was better than practically everybody in the class, so why couldn't he get the justu's down perfectly? He'd have to study it later and figure out what went wrong.
Kaito pulled out his seat and sat down.
"Don't worry, Kaito. You still have time to get better," Izumi said, trying to cheer him up. But Kaito wasn't sad or mad—he was just confused. Despite having better control than everybody in the class, he still couldn't perform the three Jutsu perfectly.
"Alright... now that everyone has had their turn, let's head to the training grounds," Sēji announced, clapping his hands to get the students' attention. As he walked out the door, the rest of the students got up from their seats and followed him to the training grounds.
Kaito trailed behind the crowd, blending in as he observed where they were headed. The class exited the building and arrived at the training grounds—an open space covered in packed dirt, with barely any grass except for a few stubborn weeds sprouting along the edges.
At the far end, large wooden training stumps stood tall. Some were thin, others thick, each bearing scars from past training sessions. Deep gashes and splintered wood marked the ones used for slashing drills, while others had dents and cracks, evidence of repeated blunt force attacks.
Sēji gathered the class in front of seven stumps lined up side by side. Each stump had four bullseyes painted in white.
"Alright, split into seven groups. Each of you will throw two shuriken or kunai—your choice. Once you're done, move to the back of the line and repeat until I say stop," Sēji instructed. The class nodded in understanding. "Alright, chop chop, get to it," he said, clapping his hands as the students got into position.
Kaito stood in the middle of the line, positioned at the end of one of the seven lines. Beside each line were two wide tree stumps, spaced apart to allow for throwing practice. One stump held an array of shuriken, while the other had a set of kunai.
"First up!...Get ready and go!" Sēji instructed. At his command, the students at the front of the line stepped forward, choosing between a kunai or shuriken before throwing them at the target—a wooden stump marked with a bullseye.
"Next!" Sēji shouted.
The process continued, each student taking their turn, some hitting the target while others missed their mark. Eventually, it was Kaito's turn. He stepped forward, glancing at the two weapon choices laid out before him. It wasn't a tough decision. Without hesitation, he walked over to the stump holding the shuriken and picked one up, rolling it between his fingers as he prepared to throw.
Since he hadn't practiced his throwing technique with a kunai before, he wasn't confident he could make it hit the target consistently. Even though the general method was the same, the way he had to handle a kunai was completely different from a shuriken.
Kaito focused on the target ahead, gripping the shuriken in his hand as he waited for Sēji to give the signal.
"Alright. Ready? ...Go!" Sēji shouted.
Kaito swung his arm forward, releasing the shuriken. It cut through the air, spinning rapidly on its axis before striking dead center on the target. The moment of impact caught everyone's attention. Everyone stopped talking, and all eyes turned to him—even Sēji looked a little surprised.
Kaito looked around, meeting everyone's gaze before turning back around. He then grabbed another shuriken and threw it without hesitation, landing it dead center, right beside the first one.
Sēji looked a bit surprised but quickly masked it with a cool expression. "Next," he called out. Kaito stepped to the back of the line, feeling a few eyes lingering on him as he moved. The shurikenjutsu test continued, with each student taking their turn.
"Alright, not bad for this year. I've seen some good improvements from all of you," Sēji said with a genuine smile. His gaze lingered briefly on Kaito before sweeping across the rest of the class.
"Now that you've all finished the Shurikenjutsu test, we'll move on to a combat test. When I call your names, two of you will step forward and fight. This will help build your combat experience and give you insight into improving your fighting abilities," Sēji explained, pausing for a moment before raising a brow. "Got it?"
The class nodded in unison.
"Good. But just because you're watching doesn't mean you should zone out. Use this as an opportunity to observe your classmates. Learn their strengths, spot their weaknesses. You can either use that knowledge against them or help them grow," Sēji added, causing the class to break into quiet murmurs.
"Quiet down class..." Sēji instructed, waving his hand to settle the murmuring crowd. His sharp gaze scanned the gathered students before he continued. "The first two are... Kaito and Sugikura Tsuneki."
A hush fell over the group as the names were called. Kaito exhaled sharply, his fingers tightening into a fist before relaxing. He had been waiting for this moment, yet he was honestly a bit nervous. Across from him, Sugikura Tsuneki stepped forward, his expression unreadable.
Sugikura stepped out from the crowd and into the middle of the training ground. His short, messy brown hair bounced slightly as he moved, and his sharp green eyes wandering before they locked onto Kaito's. He wore a simple gray long-sleeve shirt and black shorts, paired with the standard open-toed sandals.
Kaito followed suit, stepping forward from the gathering crowd until he stood face-to-face with Sugikura. For a moment, Sugikura's expression remained unreadable. Then, a slow, smug smirk spread across his face. "Well, if it isn't Kaito…" he drawled, cracking his knuckles. "I've been waiting all summer to beat your ass."
"Lucky me...looks like fate's on my side today. I finally get to wipe the floor with you." Sugikura said smugly.
Kaito stared blankly at Sugikura. ' Cliché anime bully... ' He shook his head, sighing inwardly. "Damn, you must really love me or something. You've been waiting all summer just to beat me up?" He cocked his head to the side. "And even weirder...you missed my ass? Sorry, but I don't swing that way."
He brushed Sugikura off and turned slightly, acting as if the fight wasn't even worth his time.
Sugikura's grin disappeared instantly, his brows furrowing into a deep, irritated unibrow. "What the hell did you just say—"
"Stop talking and fight," Sēji interrupted the two.
Sugikura's smile lit up once again. "Happily!" he said, lunging forward.
Kaito barely had time to react before Sugikura's fist shot toward his face. He twisted just in time, the punch grazing his cheekbone as he countered with a sharp elbow aimed at Sugikura's ribs. The impact landed, making Sugikura grunt, but he didn't slow down. Instead, he shifted his weight and threw a knee toward Kaito's stomach.
Kaito braced, letting the strike glance off as he retaliated with a leg kick, aiming low at Sugikura's calf. The blow forced Sugikura to step back, but he used the momentum to spin and drive his heel toward Kaito's head. Kaito ducked, feeling the air shift above him as he surged forward, ramming his shoulder into Sugikura's chest. They tumbled to the ground, both scrambling for control.
Sugikura hooked Kaito's arm and tried to flip him onto his back, but Kaito twisted free and slammed his palm into Sugikura's jaw, forcing distance between them. They both got back to their feet, breathing hard but grinning.
Sugikura feinted left before launching a brutal right hook. Kaito saw it coming and parried, immediately countering with a jab to the ribs followed by a sharp knee to Sugikura's thigh. Sugikura winced but grabbed Kaito's arm, yanking him forward and trapping him in a clinch. He drove an elbow into Kaito's shoulder before attempting to sweep his legs out, but Kaito hooked his foot around Sugikura's and refused to go down.
With a growl, Kaito shifted his weight and slammed Sugikura onto the ground. He moved to pin him, but Sugikura slipped free, locking his legs around Kaito's waist and flipping them over. Kaito gasped as his back hit the dirt, but he reacted instantly, driving his knee up into Sugikura's ribs and forcing them apart again.
They rolled apart, panting, each assessing the other. Neither had the upper hand. Sweat dripped down Kaito's forehead as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Sugikura grinned, shaking out his sore arm.
"How the fuck are you this good?" Sugikura grunted, wiping sweat from his brow, his breath coming in short bursts.
Kaito smirked, shifting his stance slightly. "I'm just that good. And you're shit."
Sugikura's eye twitched, his fingers curling into fists. "What the fuck did you just say?" he grumbled.
He shifted his weight onto his back leg, then exploded forward, throwing a wild right hook. "I'm gonna fucking kill you!"
Kaito raised his arms in a tight X, bracing for impact. The punch crashed against his guard, rattling his bones. Before he could counter, Sugikura twisted, driving a knee toward Kaito's ribs. Kaito barely managed to twist his torso, taking the blow against his forearm instead.
Snarling, Kaito lashed out with a sharp elbow, aiming for Sugikura's chin. Sugikura ducked at the last second and rammed his shoulder into Kaito's chest, forcing him back. He followed up with a quick left kick toward Kaito's thigh, deadening the muscle on impact.
Kaito hissed but used the momentum, grabbing Sugikura's arm and pulling him in, twisting his hips to throw him over. Sugikura countered mid-air, shifting his weight and landing on his feet before immediately swinging a knee toward Kaito's stomach. Kaito barely had time to block before Sugikura followed with a rapid series of punches, aiming for his head.
Kaito ducked under a straight punch and lunged in, driving a hook into Sugikura's ribs. The impact made Sugikura stumble, but he caught himself and returned the favor, his fist slamming into Kaito's side. The two locked eyes, both panting, sweat dripping from their faces. Neither willing to back down.
"Stop!..." Seiji's voice cut through the fight like a blade. Sugikura stopped mid-motion, fists still raised, just a few feet from Kaito.
Seiji crossed his arms. "We don't need an all-out war on the first day. It's a draw."
"What..? A draw, with this fuckin-"
"Watch your mouth before I have to shut it for you... My decision is final. If you have a problem, we can deal with it right here." Seiji cut Sugikura off, making it clear he wasn't playing around.
Sugikura clenched his jaw, biting his bottom lip to keep from snapping back. His fists trembled at his sides, but he knew better than to push his luck. With a frustrated huff, he kicked at the dirt and turned on his heel, storming back toward the crowd.
Kaito just stood there, trying to regain his breathing, all while sweat dripped down from his brow. He could still feel the sting where Sugikura's strikes had landed, a dull throb beneath his skin. Which wasn't a problem since he could heal it using his medical ninjustu.
He clenched his jaw, his frustration bubbling beneath the surface. If the fight had gone on any longer, he knew Sugikura would have won. He had tied with someone who wasn't even a standout at the Academy. Just a regular student. A nobody. He wasn't even in the Naruto plot for God's sake, he was literal canon fodder.
That wasn't good enough. He was weak. Right now, he was nothing. That had to change. He had to get stronger...way stronger.
But at least he hadn't lost.
It was a draw. For now, that would have to do.
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