Away from the camp, Hiroshi led them to a small clearing. The area was wide enough for a fight but enclosed by thick trees, ensuring privacy. The chirping of birds was the only sound breaking the stillness. Katsuro cracked his knuckles, his eyes burning with determination.
Akane's pink eyes scanned the clearing, noting the uneven terrain, the rustling leaves in the wind, and the subtle shifts in Katsuro's stance. He could also sense other presences hiding nearby, observing silently. He smirked inwardly, recognising who they were but choosing to ignore them.
"Not bad," Akane said, his tone casual as he stretched lazily. "At least it's quiet here."
Katsuro's smirk widened, mistaking Akane's words as arrogance. "Quiet enough for me to show you the strength of the Uchiha."
Rolling his eyes at Katsuro's theatrics, Akane shrugged. "Yeah, yeah. Let's get this over with."
Katsuro was about to retort when Hiroshi stepped between them, his voice calm but firm. "This is a spar. As soon as I give the signal, you will start. Do not use lethal techniques. If the situation escalates, I will intervene. However," he paused, his eyes narrowing, "if I see any of you using lethal techniques on purpose, you will be punished. Do you understand?"
Akane and Katsuro both nodded, though the glint in Katsuro's Sharingan hinted at how seriously he took the challenge.
As Hiroshi gave the signal, Katsuro immediately activated his Sharingan. The crimson eyes spun, locking onto Akane with an intensity that would unsettle most opponents. Katsuro dashed forward, launching a flurry of punches and kicks.
Akane's movements were fluid, almost lazy, as he dodged each attack with ease, his expression bored. "Really? Is this it?" he muttered, sidestepping a kick that barely grazed him.
Katsuro growled in frustration, his strikes becoming more aggressive. Even though he could see and anticipate himself hitting Akane, when his hands were about to touch him, Akane would move away, barely enough to not let his fist hit him.
"Stop running and fight me!" Katsuro shouted. It hadn't been long since the fight started, but not being able to hit even once was making Katsuro a bit desperate. The fact that he was using Sharingan, which should give him an edge in the fight, was making the situation even worse.
"Running?" Akane tilted his head, evading another punch effortlessly. "I'm just moving. If you can't land a hit, that's on you."
Katsuro's frustration boiled over at Akane's words. Noticing that he couldn't hit him, Katsuro jumped back. Forming hand signs, he used Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu to attack Akane.
The massive fireball roared toward Akane, scorching the air around it. Akane leapt to the side, the intense heat brushing past him. As he landed, Katsuro's Sharingan flared, locking onto Akane's gaze. In an instant, Akane froze, his body stiffening unnaturally.
From the shadows, Sayuri's eyes widened. "Did he get him?"
The Sharingan symbol in Akane's eyes told her that Akane had lost the fight since he was pulled into an illusion by Katsuro.
In a general situation, this would be the correct answer, but Hiroshi felt something amiss. The attitude shown by Akane before didn't match the match's result, and he didn't think Akane wouldn't know about the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan and illusion, as he could know from which clan they belonged to in their first meeting.
With a frown, Hiroshi crossed his arms and said, "Wait,"
Looking at immobilised Akane, Katsuro grinned.
"Got you!" He murmured and walked towards Akane, his slow steps filled with triumph.
"You're in my world now," When they were close, Katsuro sneered, but as he reached out to grab Akane, a smirk spread across Akane's face. Before Katsuro could react, Akane's hand shot up, grabbing his wrist with a vice-like grip. Katsuro's Sharingan widened in shock.
"An illusion?" Akane chuckled, his voice mocking. "Not bad. But it's nowhere near enough."
With a swift twist, Akane forced Katsuro to the ground, his pink eyes gleaming with amusement. Katsuro gritted his teeth, pushing his Sharingan to its limits to predict Akane's next move. But no matter how hard he tried, Akane's movements were too fast, too smooth, too unpredictable.
The fight turned physical, Katsuro throwing punches and kicks in rapid succession, but Akane dodged each one effortlessly, his expression growing more amused by the second.
"You're too focused on your Sharingan," Akane said, dodging a high kick and sweeping Katsuro's legs out from under him. "It makes you predictable."
Katsuro growled, flipping back onto his feet. His movements became more desperate, each strike fueled by frustration. Akane yawned, sidestepping a punch and tapping Katsuro's shoulder mockingly.
From the shadows, Sayuri leaned toward Hiroshi, her voice hushed. "He's toying with him."
Hiroshi nodded grimly, his sharp eyes fixed on Akane. "And he's not even trying. This guy… he's hiding his real strength."
Unbeknownst to both, the hidden observers—ANBU operatives stationed by Hiruzen—watched with growing unease. One of them whispered, "This kid is dangerous. He's making a Uchiha look like a rookie."
"Hmm, but it doesn't matter to us. We just have to report what we saw."
Not far away from the stationed ANBU, Tsunade narrowed her eyes. Even though she was expecting this to happen, and she knew it was something her teacher had to do as Hokage of Konoha, it still stung her heart a little.
"Well, if it were my past self, it would have hurt more. Anyways, this just gave me the answer I needed and told me what I have to do in future." Tsunade's clone murmured and turned her head towards the direction of the fight.
Back in the clearing, Katsuro's Sharingan flared as he charged again, feinting a punch and spinning into a kick. Akane caught the kick with one hand, shaking his head in mock disappointment.
"Better," Akane said, his grip tightening on Katsuro's leg. "But still not enough."
With a powerful twist, Akane sent Katsuro sprawling to the ground. Katsuro's pride was in tatters, but he refused to give up. Activating his Sharingan to its full potential, he launched himself at Akane one last time, his chakra surging with desperation.
Akane's eyes narrowed as he sidestepped Katsuro's wild charge. With a single heavy punch, he struck Katsuro's stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Katsuro crumpled to the ground, gasping for breath, his Sharingan flickering before deactivating.
The scene shocked Sayuri, and her eyes widened in disbelief. "It's over. Just like that. Chunin? He surely isn't just a Chunin."
Hiroshi exhaled slowly, his expression unreadable. "He didn't even break a sweat, and yes, he isn't a chunin. But we don't need to concern ourselves with this."
Sayuri looked at Hiroshi for a moment. A look of realisation appeared on her face when she understood what he meant, but she wouldn't deny that she had developed a curiosity for Akane, who was brought by Tsunade-Hime.
But what happened next shocked them even more. They saw Akane crouching beside Katsuro, his hands glowing with green chakra as he activated his medical jutsu. In seconds, Katsuro's bruises faded, and his breathing steadied. Akane patted his shoulder, his tone almost condescending. "There. Good as new. Next time, don't bite off more than you can chew."
The scene made Sayuri look at Hiroshi, who had an unreadable expression on his face. But inwardly, he was glad that he had decided to cut off the connection with Akane and go his separate ways.
'It feels like seeing the male version of Tsunade-Hime but in a different way. I don't know what type of change he will bring to Konoha if he can grow as much as Tsunade-Hime, but I am sure that many things will change just because of his presence.'
Just as Akane stood, the sound of approaching footsteps caught everyone's attention. Tsunade stepped into the clearing, her golden eyes sharp.
"Akane," she said, her voice firm. "Come with me. Now."
Akane turned to her, his smirk softening into a playful grin. "Guess playtime's over."
With one last glance at Katsuro, who was still catching his breath, Akane followed Tsunade out of the clearing, leaving behind a mix of awe, frustration, and unease among the onlookers.
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Chapter 50 is out on ptreon
It's difficult to post regularly with exams, assignments and spending almost half of the day in college. 🫠🫠 Sometimes I wish I had stayed home and continued as a writer instead of pursuing Engineering. Hehehehe Hahahaha Hahahahahahaha!