Kitazawa gazed at the now-awakened Hinata and nodded slightly, a wave of relief washing over him.
All the time, effort, and patience he had invested had finally borne fruit. In the original timeline, Hinata never awakened her Byakugan at such a young age—certainly not at six.
Now, under his guidance, she had awakened it early—and that alone gave him a strong sense of accomplishment.
At the same moment, the system issued his reward.
[Current Task: Help Hinata Hyuga awaken her Byakugan.
Task Reward: Eight Trigrams · Mountain Crusher.]
[The host has completed the task. Reward granted.]
The Eight Trigrams · Mountain Crusher was a variant of the Gentle Fist style, a technique that worked in perfect synergy with the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms.
The former emphasized powerful, explosive bursts of force, while the latter focused on precise, flowing, consecutive strikes.
And after defeating Class 2-A, he would unlock the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms as well. At that point, his overall strength would rival that of an average elite jonin.
"I did it, Kitazawa-sensei!" Hinata came running over, her face flushed with excitement. Having awakened her Byakugan and secured victory, she couldn't contain her joy.
"Congratulations, Hinata," Kitazawa said with a smile.
"Hinata, that was an amazing win!" Ino praised generously.
"The Byakugan really lives up to its name!" Kiba gave her a thumbs-up.
"I've been wanting to ask for a while," Naruto said while scratching his head. "Why are Hinata's eyes all white?"
He had no understanding of bloodline limits and had never heard of the Byakugan.
"Bloodline limit," Aburame Shino began to explain, adjusting his sunglasses—only to be interrupted.
"Let me handle it." Kiba stepped forward proudly and explained the concept to Naruto.
"Wow, that's awesome!" Naruto exclaimed.
"In terms of bloodline limits, the most powerful is the Uchiha clan's Sharingan!" Sakura chimed in confidently, hands on her hips.
"Sasuke, have you awakened yours yet?" Naruto asked curiously.
Uchiha Sasuke's mouth twitched. He didn't even want to respond. If he had activated his Sharingan, would he really still be this low-key?
Still, he couldn't help but envy Hinata. Her strength had clearly skyrocketed after unlocking the Byakugan.
He wasn't sure he could still defeat her as easily as before. The idea of fighting her crossed his mind. But first, he had another opponent: Neji Hyuga.
"Why…?" Mizuki stood stunned.
Just when it seemed like Tenten was about to secure victory, Hinata turned the tables by awakening the Byakugan. The sudden reversal hit him like a punch to the gut.
"Sorry." Tenten returned to the group of second-year students, dejected.
"It's normal to lose to the Byakugan." Neji said calmly.
Mizuki wanted to scold Tenten, but upon hearing Neji's words, he restrained himself. This wasn't the right time to say anything that would damage morale.
"Yeah," Rock Lee said in support. "Hinata really is strong—you don't have to feel down."
Neji glanced at him subconsciously. Was Hinata really that strong now?
Thinking it through, yes—she was. Opening the Byakugan at age six was an extremely rare feat in Hyuga clan history. She truly qualified as a genius.
For the first time, Neji had the urge to fight her. Now… she was worthy of being his opponent.
"Lee." After a long pause, Mizuki turned to him. "You're up next."
Rock Lee had once been the weakest in Class 2-A, but ever since he met Might Guy, his taijutsu had improved rapidly. By now, he was among the top students in the second year.
"Mizuki-sensei! I swear on my youth—I won't let you down!" Rock Lee declared, giving a thumbs-up.
"Mr. Kitazawa!" Naruto called out the moment he saw Rock Lee stepping forward.
"Go," Kitazawa nodded. "Be careful."
He had already intended for Naruto to face Rock Lee, so he went along with it now.
"Alright!" Naruto jumped up and dashed toward the field.
Seeing that Naruto was his opponent, Rock Lee's spirit ignited. His blood surged with energy.
"Lee!" Naruto shouted in excitement.
"Naruto!" Rock Lee responded in kind.
"I didn't think we'd end up as rivals," Naruto said, full of emotion.
"Guy-sensei will definitely be proud of us." Rock Lee clenched his fists. "We're about to battle in taijutsu before the eyes of the Hokage himself!"
In the next second, the two of them hugged each other tightly and burst into tears.
"…?" Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression froze. A question mark practically hovered above his head. What kind of bizarre situation was this?
How had things ended up like this?
"…Full of youthful energy," Shikaku muttered, his eyelids twitching.
"You don't have to phrase it like a compliment," Sarutobi Hiruzen shot back dryly.
"Hokage-sama, I… just had a feeling," Shikaku coughed, struggling to keep a straight expression.
"The match begins!" Kitazawa, unable to hold back any longer, gave the signal to start.
"Watch out, Naruto!" Rock Lee launched a kick without hesitation.
"Konoha Whirlwind!" Naruto countered with a spinning roundhouse of his own.
Two bursts of green wind clashed violently, creating a dull thud as they collided.
"Youth is about fierce battles!" Rock Lee took a step back, then surged forward again, shouting, "Konoha Great Whirlwind!"
"Konoha Rock Uprising!" Naruto wasn't one to fall behind. He countered with the new taijutsu move he had just learned.
Their strikes met mid-air—Lee's upper kick clashing with Naruto's flying elbow.
Bang! A powerful shockwave rippled outward.
Although Rock Lee's face remained calm, he felt the impact clearly—he was at a disadvantage. Naruto's body was sturdy, boosted by the Nine-Tails' chakra and his Uzumaki lineage.
Lee, as a pure taijutsu ninja without any special physique, couldn't compete in sheer toughness. Still, he didn't flinch.
The two exchanged a rapid flurry of punches and kicks, launching into a full-blown taijutsu duel.
"Guy trained him well." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded in approval as he watched Naruto steadily gain the upper hand.
"Naruto's talent is incredible," Nara Shikaku added with a smile.
"It's a shame that taijutsu specialists have clear limitations," Hiruzen said after a moment of thought.
Against ninjutsu users, taijutsu practitioners are often at a disadvantage, especially in drawn-out battles. Only those who mastered the Eight Gates or possessed bloodline limits like the Byakugan could survive long-term as taijutsu specialists.
Hiruzen still hoped Naruto would walk the path of a well-rounded ninja, like Namikaze Minato.
"Come on, Naruto!" After several minutes of fighting, Rock Lee leapt back and shouted, "Give it your all!"
Naruto's expression showed brief hesitation.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's interest was piqued. Could it be that Naruto had learned the Eight Gates? But that was impossible—the technique was too difficult for someone his age.
"Naruto, youth is about going all out!" Rock Lee's voice was serious. "I want to lose knowing I gave everything!"
Mizuki's scalp tingled with unease. What is wrong with these kids? Are they intentionally throwing the match?!
He bitterly regretted ever proposing this friendly match with Kitazawa.
"…Okay!"
Naruto formed hand seals without hesitation.
Shadow Clone Technique!
Two identical Naruto clones appeared from the smoke. They immediately created clones of their own. In the blink of an eye, seven Naruto stood ready on the field.
"Lee, I'm coming!" All seven charged forward, launching Konoha Whirlwinds in unison.
As expected, Rock Lee was quickly overwhelmed by the barrage of spinning kicks from all directions.
"This brat… recreated the effect of the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique?" Sarutobi Hiruzen was visibly surprised.
He began to wonder—should I teach Naruto the real thing? He was clearly well-suited for it.
"Six shadow clones… at age six?" Nara Shikaku murmured, stunned. "Just how much chakra does he have?"
He wasn't the only one in shock.
Mizuki looked like a ghost—drained of all color. Even he couldn't make six shadow clones… and yet, a mere first-year student could do it effortlessly.
There's no beating that… not at this level.
"Is that the Shadow Clone Technique?" Shikamaru blinked in amazement.
"Wait… Naruto already mastered a B-rank ninjutsu?" Inuzuka Kiba felt a painful sense of the gap between himself and Naruto.
Sasuke fell silent. Just moments ago, he had been wondering if he could still defeat the Byakugan-wielding Hinata.
Now he had an even bigger concern—can I even handle seven Narutos?
This was outrageous. How could Class A of the first year be packed with so many monsters?
"The winner is Uzumaki Naruto!" Sarutobi Hiruzen announced the result, a satisfied smile on his face.
Naruto's mastery of the Shadow Clone Technique showed that he was not bound to taijutsu alone. With his potential, he could master both ninjutsu and taijutsu.
And most importantly, Hiruzen knew—Naruto was the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki.
Once he mastered that power… he couldn't even imagine how strong Naruto could become.
"Lee, you okay?" Naruto dispersed his clones and extended a hand to Rock Lee.
"You're really strong… but I swear I'll catch up to you!" Rock Lee wasn't discouraged—his spirit was burning even brighter.
"I'll be waiting!" Naruto flashed a thumbs-up.
"Neji." Mizuki turned to Hyuga Neji. "You're next."
With five total matches and two losses already behind them, Class A of the second year couldn't afford another defeat.
"If you lose… It's over."
"I understand," Neji replied confidently. "I won't lose."
With that, he walked to the center of the field.
Sasuke saw this and instinctively looked at Kitazawa, clearly eager to fight. But what Kitazawa said next stunned everyone.
"Kurama Yakumo," he called out calmly.
"…Not me?" Sasuke froze, speechless.
Neji looked at the quiet, strange girl standing across from him—and fell into deep thought.