Sarutobi Hiruzen gave a grand wave of his hand, officially announcing the start of Uchiha Itachi's Chūnin Exam match.
The opponent assigned to Itachi was none other than Hatake Kakashi, who at this time had just suffered the successive loss of his friends and teacher, leaving him deeply shaken. Even after joining the Anbu, Kakashi's distinctive silver hair made it nearly impossible for him to conceal his identity—almost every ninja recognized him immediately.
Kakashi's gaze was icy cold. Facing the still-young Itachi, he spoke in a chilling tone:
"Let's begin."
Hatake Kakashi's name was thunderously famous to Uchiha Itachi—becoming a jōnin at only twelve, copying countless ninjutsu with the Sharingan he'd received from an Uchiha comrade. Known as "Copy Ninja Kakashi" and "Sharingan Kakashi," his reputation echoed across nations.
Now nineteen years old, Kakashi was at the very peak of his combat ability.
As for Itachi, in the past five years he had fully evolved his Sharingan—from single tomoe in each eye to fully matured three-tomoe Sharingan in both.
Itachi activated his Sharingan, but still didn't dare underestimate Kakashi. He chose to strike first.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!"
Itachi rapidly formed hand signs, spewing forth a massive roaring fire dragon that charged straight at Kakashi.
Facing the onrushing flames, Kakashi formed signs as well and pressed both palms to the ground.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
A towering wall of water surged upward, blocking the fire dragon. Fire and water collided violently, filling the area with dense steam and mist.
Itachi, Sharingan spinning, slipped into the fog to conceal himself.
Kakashi's visible eye scanned the surroundings, searching for any trace of Itachi.
Suddenly, Itachi's voice echoed from within the haze:
"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson!"
Countless flaming projectiles, each hiding a shuriken inside, pierced through the fog and shot toward Kakashi.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Kakashi summoned a gust of wind, intending to blow out the flames.
But the very instant the fire was extinguished, what greeted him were the shuriken concealed beneath, hurtling straight toward his vital points.
The examiners watching from the sidelines gasped at the precision and seamless concealment of Itachi's technique.
The shuriken struck Kakashi—yet instead of the sound of metal cutting flesh, there was a sharp clack against solid wood.
In the blink of an eye, Kakashi had vanished. In his place was a wooden log pierced with shuriken.
Kakashi's emotionless voice came from behind Itachi:
"It's over…"
The kunai in Kakashi's hand was already pressed against Itachi's neck.
But Itachi displayed no panic. He slowly turned his head, his scarlet Sharingan glinting—and in the next moment his entire body dissolved into a flock of crows, scattering before re-forming at a distance.
"A genjutsu, huh…"
Itachi's skill exceeded Kakashi's expectations. Kakashi lifted his forehead protector, revealing the Sharingan hidden beneath, meeting Itachi's gaze with his own.
The duel between Itachi and Kakashi stunned the examiners.
Though neither had used high-ranked ninjutsu yet, their exchanges and layered tactics were extraordinary. In fact, the true fight was only beginning now—the earlier actions had merely been probes to gauge each other's strength.
Seeing Kakashi reveal his Sharingan, Itachi slowly drew the katana at his waist. This time, Kakashi made the first move. Gripping his kunai in a reverse grip with a quick spin, he charged toward Itachi.
Itachi swung his blade, repeatedly deflecting Kakashi's strikes, using his Sharingan to find openings and aim for Kakashi's vital spots. Kakashi was surprised by Itachi's swordsmanship; after all, Kakashi's father had been the famed White Fang of the Leaf, and Kakashi himself had inherited some of his sword skills.
Though the Uchiha Clan had members who used swords, Itachi's techniques were not their style at all—the finesse of his swordwork surpassed even that of anyone in the Hidden Leaf.
After trading pure taijutsu and kenjutsu for a while, the two instinctively leapt back, creating distance.
Itachi was already breathing heavily, while Kakashi remained almost exactly as he'd been before the fight started.
This couldn't be helped—Itachi was still only ten, his body far from its peak physical condition.
If Kakashi was exerting fifty percent of his strength, Itachi had to use sixty or even seventy percent just to keep up. That disparity drained his stamina rapidly.
Itachi knew he couldn't afford a prolonged fight. The longer this dragged on, the lower his chances of victory. And with what he'd already shown, becoming a Chūnin was practically guaranteed.
Having reached a decision, Itachi took a deep breath and exhaled—his breath almost like fire.
Kakashi sensed the sudden shift in Itachi's aura and was shocked.
Was this truly the pressure released by a mere genin who hadn't even been promoted to Chūnin yet?
Even Kakashi himself, when he became a jōnin at twelve, hadn't radiated anything like this.
On the main spectator's seat, Sarutobi Hiruzen narrowed his eyes slightly at Itachi's transformation.
"So… this is that mysterious swordsman's technique—the Sun Breathing Style."
Gekko Hayate, though originally proficient in the Konoha-ryū sword style, had never possessed the strength of a jōnin.
But after training for a period under a certain mysterious swordsman, his swordsmanship had advanced dramatically—now surpassing the jōnin threshold.
Hiruzen's own son, Asuma, was friends with that swordsman, and from him Hiruzen learned that both Hayate and Itachi had trained under that man.
Now, it appeared Uchiha Itachi had inherited that swordsman's sword-style.
"Sun Breathing: Fourth Form – Burning Bones, Summer Sun!"
Itachi rushed toward Kakashi, spinning as he unleashed blazing sword strikes. The remaining puddles on the ground evaporated instantly.
"What kind of sword style is this?! Is it some sort of forbidden technique?!"
Facing the scorching flames, Kakashi felt the intense heat radiating from Itachi's blade and was inwardly alarmed.
"Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!"
A wall of earth rose before Kakashi to block the strike.
But the wall lasted only an instant before being shattered into fragments by the fiery slash.
Just as Itachi was about to reach Kakashi—
Lightning roared in Kakashi's hand, like a thousand birds screaming.
"Raikiri!"
Raikiri and Burning Bones Summer Sun collided, erupting into a blinding flash that engulfed the entire battlefield, making it impossible to see what was happening inside.
Everyone except Sarutobi Hiruzen leaned forward in shock from the stands, straining to see.
"So… who won?"
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