Chapter 55: The Coral Awakens

Academy.

The first-year arena gleamed in the morning light as Fujimoto-sensei called out the finalists.

"The finals will be between Kurushimi Misaki and Karatachi Shinji," he announced, his voice carrying an echo of seriousness that contrasted with the relative lightness of the previous bouts.

Misaki entered the arena with a measured pace, her eyes already tinged with red. Shinji followed her, yawning, but there was a tension in his shoulders that betrayed his apparent drowsiness.

"Begin!"

The first exchange was brutal in its speed. Misaki, abandoning the caution she had shown in the previous match, launched herself into a direct attack. Her fist grazed Shinji's cheek, leaving a thin cut.

Blood rose into the air like liquid rubies as a cold smile formed on Misaki's face.

"This time," she whispered, "there's no room for games."

Shinji barely had time to realize that the cut hadn't been accidental before the first small blades of crystallized blood formed around him.

The morning mist seemed to thicken.

The blades of crystallized blood danced in the air like deadly ruby ​​shards. Shinji, suddenly wide awake, quickly formed his seals.

"Suiton: Mizurappa!"

The jet of water collided with the blood shards, momentarily scattering them in a crimson shower. But Misaki was no longer in front of him. A movement in the air, the hiss of a kunai...

The blow landed, sinking into Shinji's back.

Jun'ko held her breath, Aoi covered his eyes.

Only Ren, with his sharp gaze missing no detail, noticed the faintest flicker of chakra an instant before impact.

Poof!

"That was a close call," Shinji grinned, emerging from behind a replacement log. "That was really close."

Small coral formations, barely noticeable, began to emerge from the ground of the arena. But Misaki didn't give him time to develop them. She moved like a scarlet shadow, her every move followed by new blades of crystallized blood.

"Not this time," she growled, his kekkei genkai responding to her determination. "I won't let you play with me!"

Shinji, serious for once, quickly formed his seals. "Kirigakure no Jutsu!"

The mist rose thickly in the arena, drawing a cry of frustration from Misaki. "Doing this trick again?"

That's when she saw him - Ren emerging from the fog, his face unusually gentle. "Misaki," he said softly, "I have something to confess to you. I... I'm in love with you."

Misaki's eyes widened, a sudden blush coloring her cheeks. "What... you..." For a moment, a single precious moment, her guard dropped. Jun'ko couldn't help but laugh. "Ren! I didn't know you had such feelings for Misaki!"

"Technically," Aoi interjected, adjusting his glasses with a smirk, "the probability that Ren actually had such feelings was statistically..."

"Shut up, walking encyclopedia!" Jun'ko interrupted, still laughing. "Let me enjoy this moment!"

Ren maintained his usual impassive expression, but a slight blush colored his gloves. The crystal at his neck pulsed faintly, almost in tune with his embarrassment.

Poof!

Ren's figure vanished, revealing that it had been an illusion created by Shinji's substitution. But it was too late - the small coral formations he had scattered around the arena had done their job. Misaki, trying to regain her footing, stumbled.

It was too late for Misaki now. Shinji emerged from the mist, his fist encased in coral crystals that found its mark with surgical precision.

"Match!" Fujimoto-sensei declared. "Winner: Karatachi Shinji!"

As the mist cleared, revealing Misaki on the ground and Shinji holding out a hand to help her up, the ANBU in the stands exchanged meaningful glances.

"Not bad," the one in the wolf mask muttered. "The Karatachi blood runs strong in him."

"If only Yagura-san had inherited this kekkei genkai," the other added almost absentmindedly, "with his natural talent he would be practically unbeatable."

The mist continued to thin, hiding in its meanders the whispers of fate that were intertwining at that moment. A fate that would bring profound changes to Kirigakure, even if no one could yet imagine how much.

"Beautiful illusion," Misaki whispered as she stood up, a light blush still on her cheeks.

"Oh?" Shinji yawned, returning to his usual drowsiness. "What illusion? I was too busy not falling asleep to notice..."

"The winner of the first-year exams," Fujimoto-sensei announced in a solemn voice, "is Karatachi Shinji!"

The arena erupted in applause, as Jun'ko literally threw herself at Shinji, almost knocking him over. "You did it! And without even falling asleep!"

"Actually," Shinji yawned, "I took a nap during the last exchange..."

"No, you didn't!" Misaki protested, still slightly red.

Yukiko approached with her usual measured pace. "A well-deserved win," she said simply, but there was respect in her tone.

Shinji approached Ren, scratching the back of his neck with an embarrassed smile. "Um... sorry I borrowed your face for that illusion. It was the first thing that came to mind to surprise her."

"Don't worry," Ren replied with a slight smile. "The important thing is that it worked."

After about ten minutes, when the examiners had finished conferring, Fujimoto-sensei returned to the center of the arena.

"Here are the final first-year standings," Fujimoto-sensei announced.

"Oh!" Aoi exclaimed, scribbling frantically on a piece of paper. "If I do the math... Shinji got 26 points in theory, 27 in practice, plus 40 points for the final victory... 93 points total! And Jun'ko..."

"Kaito," Fujimoto-sensei sighed, "can you wait until I finish?"

"Sorry, sensei," Aoi blushed, but continued to mutter to himself. "Jun'ko scored 74 points - 25 in theory, 29 in practice, and 20 for reaching the quarterfinals. I, on the other hand..." he grimaced, "67 points - at least the 29 in theory made up for the loss in the eighth-finals..."

Fujimoto-sensei proceeded to announce the final standings, while Aoi continued his calculations, whispering: "Shin beat me to the quarterfinals, so 20 points instead of 10, which added to his..."

1) Karatachi Shinji (93 points)

2) Kurushimi Misaki (92 points)

3) Yuki Yukiko (87 points)

4) Koshima Kurara (86 points)

5) Hōzuki Hiroshi (78 points)

6) Tsuki Jun'ko (74 points)

7) Mizutani Ren (72 points)

8) Kaguya Shin (71 points)

9) Kaito Aoi (67 points)10) Mori Mizuchi / Munashi Touma / Terano Kaori (61 points)

11) Kenji Irame / Rajino Koga / Ishin Taki (60 points)

"To all the participants," Fujimoto-sensei continued, "congratulations. You have proven yourself worthy of calling yourselves students of Kirigakure. Classes will resume in two weeks."

As the students dispersed, Jun'ko had not yet stopped teasing Ren for "his declaration of love," while Aoi tried to calculate the statistical odds that such an illusion would work on an opponent in combat.