"Begin!"
"Please guide me."
Kyuushin and Nawaki formed the Seal of Confrontation, bowed to each other, and then took their stances, ready to begin the day's assessment. Though it was called an assessment, it was really only for Nawaki.
Over the past two years, Nawaki had followed Kyuushin's advice, diligently training to improve his strength and no longer being as restless as before. Of course, whenever he did get restless, Kyuushin would spar with him, using his fists to teach him how to calm down. With his companions as sparring partners, and despite Nawaki appearing a bit simple-minded, he wasn't entirely foolish; at least, he had some aptitude for learning ninjutsu.
Consequently, he had made great progress over these two years. Although he still couldn't compare to Kyuushin, he had reached the level of an average Chunin. At this stage, staying in the Ninja Academy no longer held much meaning. He needed real combat experience to rapidly increase his fighting power, so he once again requested to graduate from Tsunade and Mito.
This time, Kyuushin didn't stop him. He and Nawaki trained together frequently, so he naturally knew Nawaki's skill level. At least now, if he went to the battlefield, a few explosive tags shouldn't be able to take his life. Tsunade and Mito also knew they couldn't continue to hold him back, so they proposed that he have a real combat assessment with Kyuushin to gauge his current level before making a decision. Thus, this spar in the training ground came to be.
Mito and Tsunade were naturally present, so Nawaki seemed particularly spirited.
"I won't hold back today!"
"Bring it on," Kyuushin nodded.
No sooner had he spoken than Nawaki stepped forward and threw a punch. Kyuushin didn't dodge or evade; the moment the punch landed on him, his figure twisted and transformed into a wooden stake that split into pieces with a "bang."
Missing his strike, Nawaki seemed a little annoyed, not because he hadn't hit Kyuushin, but because of the ninjutsu he had used: the Substitution Jutsu. He felt Kyuushin was toying with him.
Kyuushin emerged from behind a large tree, saying as he walked, "Your speed is a bit slow. Remember to work more on that in the future. Also, in combat, you must always remain calm. I've told you this many times before."
With Nawaki's strength, passing this assessment shouldn't be a problem. After all, Mito and the others weren't truly expecting Nawaki to defeat Kyuushin. Therefore, Kyuushin approached this spar with a teaching mindset.
Nawaki took a deep breath, barely managing to calm himself. He knew Kyuushin was right. Looking at Kyuushin, who had once again walked in front of him, he no longer impulsively charged forward. Instead, he took out several shuriken from his ninja tool pouch and flicked them out casually. Three shuriken flew towards Kyuushin in a triangular formation, and Nawaki himself chased after them, rushing towards him quickly.
Facing this, Kyuushin also pulled out a kunai, first deflecting the shuriken. Seeing Nawaki charging forward, he delivered a front kick. Nawaki's reaction was extremely quick. Although he couldn't stop in time, he used the momentum to fall to the side, simultaneously performing a sweeping leg kick towards Kyuushin's standing foot.
However, Kyuushin knew Nawaki's strength and naturally wouldn't underestimate him. His previous front kick had only used half his power. Facing Nawaki's counterattack, he simply didn't retract his leg. He powerfully pushed off with his other foot and jumped up, dodging the sweeping kick while simultaneously throwing his kunai straight at Nawaki.
At this moment, Nawaki had just completed his sweeping kick. He could only roll to the side, somewhat clumsily dodging the kunai. If Kyuushin were to pursue the attack at this point, Nawaki would have no power to resist. But Kyuushin didn't pursue. Instead, he stood there at his leisure, waiting for Nawaki to get up.
"You seem different from our previous spars," Nawaki said, a little surprised.
Kyuushin nodded. "Before, it was mostly about practicing moves, not a real match. A true match is about doing everything possible to win, just like when you encounter an enemy ninja on a mission, you must do everything possible to kill them." In their previous spars, Kyuushin would go easy on him, letting him unleash his full potential before securing victory.
"Your attacks need to be more ruthless," he added, offering guidance. "Those shuriken just now should have aimed for the enemy's vital points." After graduating, it was inevitable to encounter enemy ninja, and that wouldn't be like their playful spars. Nawaki's mindset needed to change.
Nawaki nodded. He stood in front of Kyuushin again, a hint of his former naivety gone, replaced by a sharper edge. He still started with shuriken, but this time the angles were much more cunning, forcing Kyuushin to expend more effort. Meanwhile, Nawaki used this opening to quickly form hand signs.
"Water Release: Water Whip Technique!"
From the small pond behind Nawaki, several whips made of water suddenly appeared and quickly wrapped around Kyuushin. Born into the Senju clan, Nawaki had no shortage of ninjutsu. As his chakra control improved, he had learned a few C-rank jutsu. This technique was practical for binding enemies, but since Nawaki had not yet learned water nature transformation, he still needed to use a natural water source, and its power wasn't considered great.
Therefore, it was easy for Kyuushin to counter. With a "whoosh," he used the Body Flicker Technique to instantly disappear. The next second, he appeared behind Nawaki. However, the technique has a momentary stiffness upon use, which even Kyuushin couldn't avoid without the Gene Lock. This brief pause allowed Nawaki to react. He turned and elbowed Kyuushin in the ribs.
But Kyuushin was prepared. Facing Nawaki's elbow strike, he raised his arm and steadily blocked it, then seized Nawaki's arm, firmly locking his hand. The next second, he revealed a peculiar smile.