Chapter 14
Afternoon – Training Ground
All the students from Iruka's class and Mizuki's class gathered together for the annual grade-wide practical combat exercise.
The rules were simple: rankings were already set, but anyone could challenge someone above them. The loser surrendered their spot.
Rankings didn't come with any real rewards or benefits—just four words: bragging rights!
Sakyo held first place. Surprisingly, second place wasn't Naruto.
Though Naruto was something of a legend at the academy (mostly for picking fights), he always slacked off during practical exercises. He rarely challenged anyone, so over time his ranking had dropped pretty low.
Sakyo was waiting for Naruto to challenge her, but instead of him, she got an unexpected opponent.
…Hyūga Hinata!
Hinata challenged Sakyo. Once both were in position, Iruka announced, "Friendship first, competition second—begin!"
"Naruto-kun… I've been training really hard. Let me show you the results!"
Right from the start, Hinata activated her Byakugan, her gaze fixed determinedly on Sakyo.
She didn't know if she could win, but she was willing to try.
However…
Hinata's eyes suddenly widened. Her mouth parted slightly as she muttered in a daze, "So… so big…"
"No, wait…"
Whatever she saw made her face turn bright red. In her mind: If it's bound that tightly… won't it get damaged?
Across from her, Sakyo was clearly getting angry.
Because Hinata had just discovered her secret!
Normally, unless a Hyūga deliberately focused, the Byakugan only showed the body's framework and chakra flow.
Since the human body naturally contains chakra, the flow around Sakyo's chest was obviously… far more intense than that of the other boys.
"Hmph!"
During class, Sakyo had already seen Hinata and Naruto being all lovey-dovey, and it had built up quite a bit of resentment.
She knew it was all Naruto's fault.
He'd already led Hinata on, yet he still acted that way toward her—making her unable to control her own feelings. Every time she saw Hinata and Naruto being "like that," she got jealous.
And the worst part? She couldn't even say anything—she had to bottle it all up!
"Come on!"
Sakyo closed her eyes tightly, then reopened them—revealing a pair of Sharingan that made her face look strikingly demonic.
The moment "Sasuke" stepped up, a swarm of fangirls lost control. They screamed his name, wave after wave, as if trying to drown Sakyo in their voices.
Every time this happened, Sakyo felt a strange, uncomfortable sensation. She really didn't like having her name shouted like that…
Battles between genin-level students were basically just taijutsu.
On top of that, practical exercises banned overly aggressive ninjutsu.
Even kunai had to be wooden!
Both Sakyo and Hinata were taijutsu experts. Without a word, they charged in—every move precise and experienced.
Hinata… could keep up with Sakyo's speed!
From the crowd, Naruto watched in shock. He hadn't expected Hinata to be this strong.
Having trained with Sakyo often, he knew her speed was top-tier for their age.
And with the Sharingan boosting her reaction time, it was absurdly fast.
As expected of the Hyūga clan—their taijutsu prowess was no joke!
However… as Sakyo gradually pushed her Sharingan's capabilities, her dynamic vision sharpened, and her attacks grew fiercer. Hinata started struggling to keep up.
Bang~
Suddenly, Sakyo landed a solid palm strike on Hinata's shoulder.
Hinata tried to steady herself, but Sakyo immediately dropped low, sweeping a kick at her ankle…
From the sidelines, Naruto winced in sympathy. With that stumble, Hinata had essentially lost.
In a real fight, she wouldn't have been able to block Sakyo's follow-up.
Chakra surged in Naruto's legs. In a flash, he appeared beside Hinata, catching her soft, falling body in his arms~
Seeing Naruto jump in, Iruka smoothly declared, "Winner—Uchiha Sasuke!"
One second… two seconds… three seconds…
Hinata couldn't meet Naruto's eyes. She shyly whispered, "Naruto-kun~ Can you put me down now?"
Naruto nodded and gently released her.
"Damn it!"
Not far away, Sakyo gritted her teeth watching the scene.
That Uzumaki Naruto—never missing a chance to take advantage!
He was like that with Hinata, and he was like that with her.
A shameless pervert and total scumbag!
So why… couldn't she just let it go?!
Naruto, of course, noticed Sakyo's murderous glare—but it didn't intimidate him at all. If anything, it excited him.
Because it proved she cared about him a lot.
Seeing Naruto still holding Hinata's hand and saying caring words, jealousy flared in Sakyo's chest.
Without thinking, she blurted out, "Uzumaki Naruto—I challenge you!"
She had to stop him. Otherwise, she was sure Naruto would drag things out with Hinata for half an hour, sneaking plenty of cheap feels along the way.
But Iruka said to Sakyo, "You just finished a fight. Don't you need a break?"
"Also, Naruto's ranking is lower than yours—you can't challenge someone below you."
Naruto suddenly cut in, "Then how about I challenge Sasuke?"
Iruka looked at him helplessly. "Fine. Be careful."
Naruto's words instantly enraged the crowd.
After all, Sakyo was extremely popular.
Even though Naruto had a bad reputation and loved fighting, that didn't stop the classmates from mocking him.
"Just a monster daring to challenge Sasuke?"
"Sasuke-kun is so cool~ Go Sasuke-kun, you're invincible! Kyaa~"
"He couldn't stand seeing the person he likes get hit—such a loser."
"Ahh~ Sasuke~~ Sasuke~~~"
"Ugh, why are all these fangirls like this? It's Naruto challenging Sasuke right now!"
By now, under Iruka's guidance, Hinata and Sakyo had performed the seal of reconciliation, and Hinata had left the field.
Sakyo's pretty face darkened as she stared at Naruto. An inexplicable anger made her want to lash out.
Especially after seeing him catch Hinata like that—she'd nearly lost control and used genjutsu.
The fact that Naruto only got the chance because she'd attacked Hinata made it even more unbearable.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got—until, without realizing it, the single tomoe in her Sharingan had evolved into two.