"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
With a light cry, a high-pressure stream of water shot out from the treetop nearby.
Though it differed from Senju Tobirama's high-level Water Release technique by only one character, it was nothing more than an ordinary C-rank Water Release.
Tsunade followed right behind the water stream, leaping down from above without hesitation, swinging her small fists straight toward him.
Although Monster Strength was a Senju clan secret technique, it required extremely advanced chakra control, much like medical ninjutsu—something the current Tsunade clearly had not mastered yet.
But with the Senju clan's naturally strong physique, combined with her momentum from above, the punch still carried considerable force.
Below her, Senju Mori suddenly quickened his movements. With one strike, he flicked the short sword from Hatake Sakumo's hand and lightly back-stepped, allowing the water jet to splash against the spot where he had just been standing.
At the instant he blocked Tsunade's attack, three shuriken sliced through the air—it was Orochimaru.
His target was precise: not Senju Mori himself, but the two bells tied at Mori's waist. At the same time, Sakumo quickly picked up his short blade and charged at Mori once more.
"A good combination."
Senju Mori assessed silently, though his hands did not slow. With several crisp clangs, he easily knocked down the shuriken using a kunai.
The battle that followed took place entirely within the scope of fundamentals—
Sakumo acted as the main attacker, using his unusually good speed for his age to try repeatedly to pin Mori down.
After using Water Release once, Tsunade clearly lacked chakra and switched to basic taijutsu and kunai attacks.
Orochimaru remained on the outskirts of the battlefield, launching repeated surprise attacks with shuriken, while using terrain and substitution techniques to continually reposition himself.
Senju Mori kept his strength suppressed to the level of a chūnin.
He used no ninjutsu or Body Flicker—only basic taijutsu and shuriken throwing to respond.
In Mori's view, although Orochimaru was the top student of this academy class, that ranking came from a combined evaluation of written tests and practical exams.
Orochimaru's combat intelligence was indeed impressive—always interfering at the most opportune moment.
But the academy had only taught the most basic substitution, transformation, and clone techniques, plus shuriken throwing. No matter how creatively he used these simplistic tools, they posed no real threat.
Judging purely by individual strength, Hatake Sakumo actually had the upper hand.
After all, no matter how talented Orochimaru was, he was still a boy from a civilian background—while Sakumo's father, Hatake Shūichi, was a certified elite jōnin.
Fifteen minutes later, the three children were all panting hard.
At the age of seven, their bodies simply couldn't endure prolonged high-intensity combat.
Senju Mori felt that he had seen enough.
As Sakumo's full-strength slash was dodged, his momentum carried him stumbling forward. At that moment, Mori casually hooked a foot around his ankle—
The small, white-haired boy instantly lost his balance.
Almost at the same time, he sidestepped Tsunade's pounce and flicked his finger against her wrist—her kunai clattered to the ground.
Orochimaru quietly stepped out from behind a tree. Three shuriken were stuck in the ground by his feet; he knew there was no point in hiding anymore.
Senju Mori looked at the slightly discouraged trio, took the bells from his waist and shook them lightly. After the crisp sound drew the children's attention, he smiled and began his assessment:
"Sakumo, your swordsmanship fundamentals are solid, but your attacks are too monotonous. They're easy to read. A seasoned shinobi uses ninjutsu to complement their blade work…"
Then he looked toward Tsunade.
"Your chakra reserves and physical strength far exceed those of your peers—that is your advantage as a member of the Senju clan."
"But your chakra control is terrible. You wasted a huge amount while performing ninjutsu. That's why a single Water Release consumed more than half your chakra."
"As for you, Orochimaru…"
Mori paused for a moment, then praised him sincerely:
"You're keenly aware of your own strengths and weaknesses. Your timing and tactical choices are the best among the three of you. As expected from this year's top student."
"But there's still much you need to learn. You can't become a powerful ninja relying only on the basic three techniques."
The three children's faces fell, but Mori couldn't help laughing.
"You didn't get the bells today, but that doesn't mean you failed. I saw your potential, your teamwork, and… each of your strengths and weaknesses."
He clapped his hands, dispersing the heavy mood, and under their surprised gazes he walked over to a tree trunk.
"Next, I'll teach you the technique of chakra control."
As he spoke, Mori began walking up the vertical tree trunk as if on flat ground, explaining:
"Just like this—you refine chakra, gather it at the soles of your feet, and use it to adhere to the tree. The feet are the hardest place to accumulate chakra, which means…"
…
In the days that followed, whenever he wasn't training himself or handling state affairs, Senju Mori set aside time each day to instruct the three little ones.
Mori was nearly an all-rounder as a shinobi.
The Senju clan's sword techniques, monstrous strength, taijutsu, and chakra nature and form changes for Water, Earth, and Wind…
So within less than a week, after guiding the three through basic tree-climbing and water-walking exercises, he gradually began teaching them more advanced knowledge.
"The two most important elements in performing ninjutsu are speed and stealth."
At the training field, Mori lectured on the essentials of ninjutsu.
"Speed needs little explanation. Whether it's increasing your hand-seal speed or simplifying the seals for a particular technique, the goal is to release your jutsu faster than your opponent."
"And stealth is just as important."
At this point, Mori suddenly smiled, glancing meaningfully at Tsunade:
"Only an idiot shouts out the name of their technique. If you want ninjutsu to work effectively, the best method is a sneak attack—strike before the enemy can react."
"Understand?"
"Understood—"
But before the three children even finished their answer, the solid ground beneath them suddenly split open. A terrifying sensation of free-fall struck them instantly.
They had no time to react—they dropped straight down.
A moment later, a giant hand of rock scooped the three of them back up, and the cracked ground closed again.
Seeing the three little brats still shaken, Mori continued with a smile:
"Earth Release: Ground Splitting Technique. This is just an ordinary B-rank Earth Release, but used properly, it can deal extremely effective damage."
"The essence of ninjutsu is achieving your goal with less chakra, and doing so efficiently…"