In the blink of an eye, four years had passed.
Thwack! Boom! Pow!
In a sun-dappled forest clearing just outside Konoha Village, a continuous series of sharp, impactful sounds of combat echoed. Sunlight streamed down through the gaps in the dense canopy, illuminating two young figures as they constantly moved, their forms blurring as they sparred intensely. One of them wore the distinctive blue attire of the Uchiha clan, while the other had a shock of bright blond hair and the characteristic six whisker-like marks on his cheeks.
These two were, unmistakably, Sasuke and Naruto, both of whom had grown considerably taller and more mature.
More than five years had now passed since Tatsuya had taken them under his wing. Naruto and Sasuke's current strength had long since far surpassed what their counterparts in the original timeline possessed at this age. Judging solely from their current taijutsu exchange, their skill and power were already far beyond what any other students still at the Ninja Academy could possibly compare to.
In fact, both Naruto and Sasuke had long harbored the desire to graduate early from the Ninja Academy. However, this ambition had consistently been suppressed by Tatsuya, and they had not yet succeeded in convincing him.
Around the dueling Naruto and Sasuke, several other children of roughly the same age stood at a distance, watching the intense spar with rapt attention.
"Sasuke! Go for it!" "Sasuke! You can do it!"
Among the onlookers, two voices cheered with particular enthusiasm. It was Sakura and Ino, both fervently encouraging Sasuke.
On the makeshift battlefield, Naruto, who was currently engaged in fierce combat with Sasuke, heard the two girls cheering for his rival and felt a surge of irritation. His movements couldn't help but speed up a notch, his strikes becoming a little more forceful. That annoying jerk always steals the spotlight! Naruto fumed inwardly. Sakura's attention is completely captivated by him!
Ever since Tatsuya had taken both Naruto and Sasuke as his students and begun teaching them ninjutsu and combat skills, a subtle, unspoken rivalry had constantly simmered between the two boys. Sasuke's natural good looks, his prodigious talent, and his perpetually cool, aloof demeanor greatly annoyed Naruto. Naruto desperately wanted to defeat Sasuke, to earn his rival's genuine acknowledgment and respect. More importantly, Naruto yearned to snatch Sakura's attention away from Sasuke and direct it towards himself.
Opposite him, Sasuke, feeling the increased force behind Naruto's attacks, also adopted a more serious expression, his focus sharpening. After these past few years of training and growing up together, Sasuke's initial perception of Naruto had long since changed. At first, in Sasuke's eyes, Naruto had been nothing more than a talentless, annoying dead-last. Sasuke had even felt some resentment that Naruto was allowed to receive Tatsuya's guidance alongside him.
However, under Tatsuya's unorthodox and demanding tutelage, Naruto had gradually begun to display his own remarkable, hidden potential. Firstly, there was his indomitable will, his absolute refusal to give up. In the early stages of Tatsuya's training, due to the significant difference in their natural talent, there had been a noticeable gap in Naruto and Sasuke's learning progress. But Naruto, through sheer, unwavering determination and an almost superhuman amount of repetitive, grueling training, had gradually managed to catch up.
Secondly, there was Naruto's incredible physical constitution and astonishing recovery rate. Sasuke hadn't noticed this at first; it was only after Tatsuya had pointed it out to him that Sasuke had become aware of it. On the surface, Naruto's physical abilities didn't seem particularly extraordinary, but he somehow managed to recover completely by the next day, even after undergoing incredibly intense, body-breaking training sessions the night before. This was something Sasuke simply couldn't match. Sasuke himself had once tried to emulate Naruto's extreme training regimen for a period, but his body simply couldn't withstand the strain. Such over-training not only didn't accelerate his growth but actually became a hindrance, leading to injuries and exhaustion.
Thirdly, and perhaps most significantly, there was the terrifying monster sealed within Naruto's body. Tatsuya had once, under controlled conditions, partially released the seal on Naruto, allowing a fraction of the Nine-Tails' immense power to manifest. The sheer, overwhelming ferocity and vastness of that chakra… even now, Sasuke felt a shiver of apprehension when he recalled it.
For the proud and driven Sasuke, these aspects of Naruto's being served as a powerful, constant stimulus. He absolutely could not, would not, lose to Naruto.
With these thoughts fueling his determination, Sasuke also increased the power and intensity of his own strikes. After another sharp exchange of blows, both their bodies were sent flying backward, disengaging from the clash.
"Sasuke, this time, I'm definitely going to show you my true power!" Naruto, extending his right foot to lightly tap the ground and arrest his backward momentum, looked up at Sasuke opposite him, his voice filled with grim determination. With that, Naruto brought the index and middle fingers of both his hands together, then crossed his hands in a distinctive plus-shaped seal.
Poof!
Two clouds of white smoke erupted, and two identical copies of Naruto appeared on either side of the original. Having created two Shadow Clones, the three Narutos immediately charged towards Sasuke in a coordinated assault.
"That's the Shadow Clone Jutsu! I can't believe Naruto has already learned that technique!" Watching Naruto create two Shadow Clones, Nara Shikamaru, who was among the onlookers, said in a low, serious voice, his usual lazy demeanor momentarily forgotten.
Shikamaru, at this age, still looked quite young and perpetually wore an expression of languid indifference. But seeing Naruto unleash this particular ninjutsu, the look on his face changed instantly. The Shadow Clone Jutsu, he knew, was a B-rank ninjutsu, an advanced technique that was definitely considered high-level for ninja of their current age and experience. For Naruto to have learned this jutsu before even graduating from the Ninja Academy was truly astonishing. Such demonstrated strength was somewhat beyond Shikamaru's expectations.
It was common knowledge in the Ninja Academy that both Naruto and Sasuke had been taken as students by Konoha's strongest ninja, Tatsuya Akimichi. Naruto and Sasuke's skills had always been at the top of their class. During their time at the Ninja Academy, the other students had almost never seen Naruto or Sasuke fight with their full strength. This was because the standard assessment tasks and sparring matches at the Academy were simply too easy for them. Both of them usually passed with minimal effort.
Furthermore, their Academy instructor, Iruka-sensei, and the other teachers, out of consideration for the morale of the other students, had never allowed Naruto and Sasuke to have a public, all-out sparring match at the school. After all, too vast a disparity in skill wouldn't inspire others; it would more likely lead to discouragement and feelings of inadequacy. This was actually the first time Shikamaru and the others had seen the two of them fight seriously in a private setting.
Thinking this, Shikamaru couldn't help but glance towards Akimichi Choji, who was standing nearby, constantly munching on a bag of snacks. Among their group of friends, only Choji had also received some training from Tatsuya alongside Sasuke and Naruto.
"Shikamaru, don't worry. They haven't even gotten truly serious yet," Choji said, noticing Shikamaru's gaze. He mistakenly thought Shikamaru was worried that Naruto and Sasuke might get carried away and actually hurt each other, so he offered a word of reassurance.
Hearing Choji's well-intentioned but utterly off-the-mark comment, several dark lines appeared on Shikamaru's forehead, and he fell silent, too exasperated to reply.
"Aaah! Sasuke, be careful!" "Naruto, don't you dare bully Sasuke!"
Not far from Shikamaru, Sakura and Ino, the two girls, were reacting very differently. One cried out in alarm for Sasuke's safety, while the other directly threatened Naruto. Naruto could acutely feel the deep-seated animosity emanating from the two girls.
Facing the three attacking Narutos, Sasuke didn't dare to be careless. He immediately activated his Sharingan, its single tomoe spinning in his eye. Hearing the girls' voices, Sasuke's brow furrowed in annoyance, and then he proactively moved to engage the oncoming assault.
Another series of intense, rapid-fire sounds of fists and feet colliding echoed through the clearing. Against Sasuke, who had activated his Sharingan, Naruto, even with his two Shadow Clones, failed to gain an advantage. After several dozen exchanges, both Shadow Clones were struck decisively by Sasuke and dispelled into smoke. Naruto's real body also took a solid punch, and the two of them once again separated, their chests heaving as they panted slightly, their gazes locked intently on each other.