This was the match.One of the most anticipated fights of the entire exam.
Hayate stood at the center of the arena, and even through his usual lethargy, he could feel it—
The tension in the air.
Heavy, electric, and filled with expectation.
He took a steady breath before announcing, "With Dosu Kinuta of Otogakure having withdrawn from the exam, this match will now be between Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki."
A wave of surprise and excitement rippled through the crowd. Dosu's quiet disappearance had been… suspicious. But no one cared now. Because Naruto's presence swallowed the negatives whole.
And Hinata? She wasn't just standing next to Naruto's spotlight anymore—she had carved out one of her own.
With her quiet strength, the Hyuga clan had begun to heal from centuries of inner division. Branch members were being heard. The old chains were breaking. And at the center of it all… was the gentle girl who refused to give up on kindness.
The crowd loved her.
In the stands, little Hanabi tugged on her father's sleeve.
"Father… who should I support?" she asked, clearly torn. Her fingers fidgeted with the edge of her kimono.
Hiashi looked at her, the corner of his eyes softening. "Who do you love more?"
"I don't know… I like both," she answered instantly.
"Then support both," he said with a rare smile.
Hanabi frowned. "But one of them will lose. That'll make me sad…"
Beside them, Hana chuckled softly. "Hanabi, sometimes… you support not to make someone win, but so they know you love them—no matter the result."
Hanabi's frown melted into a smile. "Then… I'll support them both!" She hugged her parents, and they returned it warmly. The Hyuga family was healing in more ways than one.
Meanwhile, across the stadium, excited whispers filled the stands:
"Naruto Uzumaki—he was the top of his class, right?"
"Yeah, my nephew said no one could beat him in the academy!"
"But Hinata's no joke. She's the Hyuga heiress, and she's gotten crazy strong lately!"
Up in the Uzumaki-Kushina squad—
Sakura cupped her hands and yelled, "HINATA, YOU GOT THIS!"
"YESSS, show us the Byakugan blitz!" Ino joined in with her usual flair.
"Smash him," Tenten added with a fist pump.
"Beat him up good!" Karin grinned. "I'll kiss him after to fix it."
Down in the arena…
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Hinata, they're literally booing me now."
Hinata smiled serenely. "Naruto-kun, they're just playing around."
Naruto gave a wry chuckle. "Yeah, I know. Still hurts though."
Meanwhile…
Kushina's eyes narrowed from the stands. "Kana… see those girls?"
Kana, calm as ever, responded, "They're just teasing. You know they love him."
"I know! But still… if they don't support him now, what happens after marriage?" Kushina muttered, spiraling.
Kana chuckled, reading her mind. She's always like this when it comes to Naruto—spirals like a chakra tornado.
"Kushina, breathe. Look—he's smiling, see? Laughing it off like he always does."
Kushina glanced at the arena. Naruto was indeed grinning like a goof, shaking his head at the girls' antics."…Maybe. But—"
"No buts." Kana nudged her. "Just watch the match."
Kushina grumbled but turned her attention back to the arena, huffing, "Fine…"
With the Kage...
"This feels like a main character arc," Rasa commented, arms folded.
"Well," Hiruzen smiled, "Naruto's a bit of a local legend. Not every genin has a bridge named after him."
Rasa's eyebrow twitched. "That's… absurd."
"Welcome to Konoha," Hiruzen replied.
Down below, Hayate raised his hand. His voice cut clean through the noise—
"BEGIN!"
And just like that, the real storm began to brew.
Hinata and Naruto both took their fighting stances, the air between them charged like a lightning storm waiting to crack.
Hinata activated her Byakugan—veins bulging beside her eyes, a soft hum of chakra coating her limbs. Calm, collected, dangerous.
Naruto stood firm, no flashy moves, but… his stance?
It was unmistakably Hyūga Taijutsu.
Not perfect, but precise enough to make any Hyūga clan elder squint in disbelief.
From the stands, Hiashi furrowed his brow.
"Is that… our stance?" he asked.
Hanabi blinked. "Wait, when did Naruto learn that?"
Hana smiled knowingly. "They trained together. For years. Every morning before missions, every night after. Hinata didn't just fall for him—she taught him."
Down in the arena, the storm broke.
Both fighters lunged.
Hinata's palm flew to Naruto's chest. Naruto swung his arm up to block. BAM! Shockwaves rippled outward.
He pushed forward with a palm strike of his own, mimicking the Jūken, but she parried with grace. Their hands blurred—strike, block, counter, evade.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Each impact felt like a drumbeat on the crowd's heart.
Up with the Kages.
"I didn't know Hyūga Taijutsu could even be used without the Byakugan," Hiruzen muttered, clearly intrigued.
Rasa raised a brow. "Forget that. How did he even learn it? Isn't it forbidden for outsiders?"
Hiruzen gave a half-smirk. "Do you see the girl he's fighting? Hinata Hyūga—he's been training with her for years, and she is one of his lovers."
Rasa squinted toward the arena. "They allowed an outsider into the Hyūga grounds?"
"He's not just any outsider," Hiruzen said, voice dipping slightly. "He's the son of the Fourth Hokage—Minato Namikaze. And Hinata isn't just a clan member… she's the princess."
Rasa leaned back. "I see… so that's how it is."
But then a glint crossed his eyes. "Wait a second—you said one of his girlfriends?"
Hiruzen gave a slow nod.
"…So, there's polygamy in your village?"
"We've never banned it," Hiruzen replied, tone casual. "It's rare, sure. Most shinobi settle with one partner—myself included. Even after my wife passed, I never remarried."
Rasa blinked, trying to process. "Your village is… colorful."
"You could say that," Hiruzen replied, puffing gently on his pipe. "But colorful doesn't mean broken."
Back in the ring…
Hinata's hands glowed faintly with chakra.
Naruto's hands were bare, but every time he blocked, you could feel the chakra reinforcement behind it.
They weren't fighting to hurt.
They were testing each other. Matching will for will. Strike for strike.
In a dance only lovers and rivals could understand.
Both Naruto and Hinata jumped back, their breathing steady, eyes locked. A moment of silence passed between them—then they surged forward again, fists raised.
"Hinata," Naruto said with a grin, "we should probably spice it up. Don't want the crowd yawning, right?"
Hinata gave that soft smile—the kind that could melt steel.
"I was thinking the same, Naruto-kun."
To the world, it was a fight. To her, it was something more.
Seeing him, clashing with him—it filled her with a joy so deep it felt like sunshine after endless winters. Like a child finally given the treat they'd dreamed about for days… except she never tired of it.
Her heart still skipped, still fluttered. No matter how many times they touched, fought, laughed, or trained—Naruto was her constant surprise. A mystery she wanted to keep exploring forever.
And now—they both raised their arms, took their stances.
The signature Hyūga stance.
The entire stadium fell quiet as the two spoke in unison—
"Hakke!"
"Ichi Shō!""Ni Shō!""Shi Shō!""Hachi Shō!""Jūroku Shō!""Sanjūni Shō!""Rokujūyon Shō!"
The arena shook—not from the technique, but from the sheer awe that followed.
Hinata—yes, it made sense. She was a Hyūga heiress, after all.
But Naruto?
Naruto executed the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms with flawless precision. His movements, his form, the rhythm of his strikes—it wasn't mimicry. It was mastery.
From the crowd, voices erupted.
"Did he just—what?!"
"That's the Hyūga clan's secret technique!"
"Isn't that illegal for outsiders?"
"The Patriarch's going to lose it!"
But the patriarch?
Hiashi Hyūga was beaming.
"Hana," he said, unable to take his eyes off Naruto, "did you see that? That boy—he mastered our clan's most sacred technique. Some of our own can't even do it right after years of training."
Hana nodded, her voice reverent.
"If he had the Byakugan, he'd be hailed as a once-in-a-century Hyūga genius."
Hanabi, eyes wide with wonder, turned to her parents.
"But… how? Naruto doesn't even have the Byakugan. How did he do that?"
Hiashi folded his arms, proud but humble.
"Through the heart. Through discipline. Through sparring every single day with Hinata, through watching, learning, adjusting—not with inherited sight, but with earned insight."
Back in the arena, Naruto and Hinata stood face to face.
Not just rivals. Not just lovers.
Equals.
Two souls dancing through technique, respect, and shared joy.
The stadium—silent for a heartbeat—then erupted.
A roar of awe. Of disbelief. Of raw emotion. Because of that moment?
That was more than a match.
It was history.
With a final exchange of palm strikes—
Both Naruto and Hinata's chakra points were sealed.
No more ninjutsu.No more flashy techniques.No more borrowed strength.
Just raw fists. Pure instinct. And endless willpower.
Now, it was down to pure hand-to-hand combat—the kind of fight that stripped everything but the soul.
"Hinata...""Naruto-kun..."
No hesitation. No fear.
They clashed.
Punch.Kick.Dodge.Parry.
Again and again.
The air cracked around them with every movement. The sheer shockwaves from their blows sent ripples through the stadium.
Parents instinctively gripped their children tighter, afraid they might get pulled into the storm.
Up in the stands—
Temari, Gaara, and Kankuro watched in stunned silence.
Gaara, who had barely spoken a word since his own match, sat frozen.It was Temari who whispered what they were all thinking.
"They're younger than us... but they fight like legends."
Kankuro leaned closer, his voice hushed.
"If they're this strong… do we even have a chance of completing the mission?"
Gaara didn't even blink.
"Orders from the Kazekage. We finish what we started."
All three of their eyes drifted toward the Kage seats… where their father watched with veiled interest.
Minutes passed. Then tens of minutes.
Forty-five minutes of relentless combat.
Neither gave in. Neither backed down.
Their bodies bruised, their clothes torn, blood trickling down arms and cheeks.And still—they smiled.
Not mockingly.Not arrogantly.But with joy.
They were having fun.
"What do you say, ready for the finale?" Naruto asked, breath heavy but eyes blazing.
Hinata, lungs burning, chest heaving, smiled back with every ounce of strength she had left.
"Yes… Naruto-kun."
He dashed forward.
Their fists collided again—
But this time, Naruto's power broke through.
Hinata was launched backward, air rushing past her—
And just before she hit the ground—
He caught her.
Gently. Like something fragile. Precious.
Cradling her in his arms, he whispered,
"You did amazing, Hinata."
And he kissed her softly on the forehead.
Even half-conscious, she smiled.
That smile was everything.
Naruto, with his arms wrapped around her like a prince from legend, walked toward the edge of the arena.
He turned back to Hayate, who stood blinking in disbelief.
"Hey... aren't you gonna announce the result?"
"Ah—right!" Hayate shook off the haze, coughing awkwardly."Hinata Hyuga is unable to continue. Naruto Uzumaki wins and advances to the next round!"
The crowd had been holding their breath for so long—
They exploded.
Cheers so loud they drowned thought.Words lost in waves of sound.
"Best fight EVER!""What kind of monsters are these two?!""They fought without chakra for forty-five minutes! How?!"
Even seasoned shinobi sat with wide eyes, unable to explain it.
Was it stamina?Was it sheer willpower?Was it… love?
No one could say.
But every person in that stadium knew one thing:
They had just witnessed a fight that would be remembered for generations.