Chapter 87: Shinho—Still Fired Up?

Sasuke Uchiha slowly regained consciousness.

The first thing he saw was the faint green glow of healing chakra, followed by Shinho's face hovering above him.

He blinked, his mind clouded with confusion, unsure of what had just happened. Then, the sight of Naruto's bright yellow hair came into focus, bringing everything back.

"Sasuke," Naruto called out with concern. "You okay?"

"..."

Sasuke instinctively clenched his fists.

He had lost again.

And this time, there were no excuses. He couldn't claim the ground was too slippery or blame a mistake in his technique. He had trained hard, he had improved—but Naruto had improved even more.

How did this happen? Naruto was supposed to be the dead last, the dropout, yet now he's surpassing me in strength.

"I'm fine," Sasuke muttered, pushing himself up. Without saying more, he left the field.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura ran after him.

"Did I go too far?" Naruto scratched his head as he muttered.

"It's not your fault," Shinho said with a hint of deeper meaning. "In fact, this might actually be better for him."

Naruto tilted his head.

"There's still one more battle left," Iruka reminded everyone.

"Oh, right!" Naruto's mood quickly shifted as excitement took over. "Shinho, it's finally time for our match!"

Shinho glanced at Naruto, then stepped forward to the center of the training field.

"Good luck, Shinho-kun!" Ino cheered from the sidelines, waving her hands enthusiastically.

Hinata, though more reserved, hesitated for a moment before shyly raising her hand and giving a small wave as well.

She couldn't bring herself to be as bold as Ino, but her eyes never left Shinho.

"Shinho!" Naruto raised his thumb, his signature grin flashing across his face. "For the sake of youth, let's burn bright! Leaf Whirlwind!"

Naruto rushed forward, his kick spinning toward Shinho like a flash of lightning.

Naruto knew Shinho's strength all too well as such gave it his all right from the start.

But Shinho stood still. Without moving his feet, he caught Naruto's ankle mid-kick.

Naruto's eyes widened in shock. Leaf Whirlwind can be caught like this?

He struggled to break free, but Shinho's hold remained firm.

A moment later, Naruto found himself airborne as Shinho effortlessly flung him aside.

In midair, Naruto twisted his body, managing to land on his feet. He wiped the sweat from his brow as his gaze fixed on Shinho.

Not even a single step—Shinho hadn't even shifted his position. Was this his true strength?

Naruto gritted his teeth, channeling all of his chakra.

Leaf Strong Whirlwind!

This technique was an even stronger version of the original Leaf Whirlwind. Naruto's body moved with blinding speed, becoming a blur of green wind as he closed in on Shinho.

His right leg spun in a powerful roundhouse kick, the force even greater than what he had used against Sasuke earlier. The sheer speed kicked up a gust of wind, sending dust flying into the air.

BAM!

Naruto's leg connected squarely with Shinho's arm, creating a shockwave that blasted forth.

Shinho's hair flew back from the impact, but once again, his body remained unmoved.

Naruto's face went slack with disbelief.

All of his youthful fire and energy… were extinguished in an instant.

He had given it his all, and yet Shinho hadn't even budged.

With a simple push, Shinho pressed his arm forward, causing Naruto to stagger backward.

Determined not to give up, Naruto charged again, but the result was the same. No matter how hard he tried, Shinho blocked his attacks with casual ease, not even needing to shift his stance.

"It's just hopeless," Kiba muttered, shaking his head. "Naruto's used his best moves, but Shinho isn't even breaking a sweat."

Shinho wasn't using any advanced techniques—just basic defense. But even that was enough to overwhelm Naruto.

"Shikamaru, do you see any way out of this?" Choji asked between bites of his chips.

"Sometimes, brains just can't beat raw power," Shikamaru replied, scratching his head. "There's no strategy for dealing with that."

If it were him, he'd just lie down and accept his defeat.

"How is your brother so strong?" Kiba asked Shino, looking a bit dazed.

Good question. I'd like to know too, Shino thought to himself.

"We have the same parents, but…" Shino mumbled, "I don't know."

"I've noticed your brother never uses his insects when fighting," Shikamaru pointed out, curious. "Is he not good with them?"

Shino shook his head. "No. His insects are much stronger than mine—by several times."

Shikamaru's eyes widened. "It seems we're just not worth his full effort."

"How does Shinho train?" Ino wondered aloud, her curiosity growing by the second.

"You could ask him," Shino suggested subtly. "He might tell you if you're the one asking."

Ino's eyes sparkled and her expression brightened at the thought.

"I give up!" Naruto finally admitted, raising his hands in surrender. He realized there was no point in continuing—he simply wasn't on Shinho's level.

He hadn't even pushed Shinho to use half of his strength.

"I've decided! Tonight, I'm going to run a hundred laps around the village!" Naruto declared with resolve, his previous sense of disappointment long gone.

"Shinho wins," Iruka announced, though there had been no suspense in the outcome.

Every time Iruka thought his students—Naruto and Sasuke—had surprised him, Shinho would step up and shock him even more. He had come to the realization that even he might not even be able to defeat his own students anymore.

"Results will be posted tomorrow at the school's bulletin board," Iruka clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "You're dismissed!"

"Yay!" The class cheered, scattering in all directions.

Iruka hurried back to the teachers' office.

"Hey... Iruka... cough... finished already?" coughed Hayate Gekko, looking even more frail than usual.

"Just finished," Iruka replied as he approached. "Thanks for the hard work, Hayate-senpai."

The second-year teachers, like Hayate, were responsible for grading the first-year theory exams to ensure fairness and avoid any bias from the students' homeroom teachers.

"No... cough... no problem..." Hayate clutched his chest, coughing uncontrollably.

"Are you okay, Hayate-senpai?" Iruka asked, alarmed. If he dies right here, I'll be in so much trouble.

"I'm fine, just an old problem," Hayate waved it off weakly. "Here are the results. Take a look."

"Finished? Already?!" Iruka blinked in surprise.

"I used the Shadow Clone Jutsu to speed things up," Hayate explained.

Iruka couldn't hide his envy. At this rate, Hayate would likely be promoted soon—he was far too skilled to remain as a mere teacher for long.

"Shinho is first again. Well, no surprise there," Iruka muttered with a smile as he glanced at the results.

"The same kid who defeated Neji in one punch?" Hayate coughed lightly as he asked.

"That's the one," Iruka nodded.

"Incredible," Hayate mused. As Neji's teacher, he had witnessed Neji's talent firsthand. In his opinion, Neji was already stronger than most genin.

But for Neji to lose in just one move to Shinho—it was almost unbelievable.

"It truly is," Iruka readily agreed, recalling Shinho's casual dominance earlier that day.

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