Tsunade facepalmed. Although she had very little personal contact with Tatsuma, she knew his competitive streak was miles wide. Two years ago, she had watched him refuse to back down during a year-end exam even at the cost of sustaining injuries.
It seemed that after two years, Tatsuma was still Tatsuma; that part of his personality hadn't changed at all.
Moreover... Tsunade cast a look of profound pity at the back of her brother's head. Nawaki was a good kid in every other way, but he was as talentless as he was reckless.
Just a few days ago, Tsunade had tested Tatsuma and Minato herself. Even if the two hadn't shown their full strength, their raw physical conditioning and Taijutsu prowess were already leagues beyond Nawaki's.
Poor Nawaki... suppressed by his classmates at the Academy, suppressed by her at home, and suppressed by Kushina for the last two years. If he couldn't even beat Kushina, how did he expect to fight the guys who had beaten her?
Still, Tsunade didn't move to stop them. She knew her brother wasn't fragile. His best quality, after all, was his ability to keep getting back up no matter how many times he failed.
In the time it took for her to have these thoughts, Nawaki and Tatsuma had already squared off. They formed the Seal of Confrontation.
"Are you ready?" Nawaki asked.
The question actually caught Tatsuma off guard. Usually, he was the one delivering the pre-fight lines. He quickly recovered, flashing a bright smile.
"As expected of the Senju clan, the true inheritors of the Will of Fire. Even in a spar, you show such consideration for a fellow villager. However... I'd prefer it if you fought seriously. Otherwise, this will be over very quickly."
Nawaki beamed at the first half of the sentence, but the second half made his brows knit together. He deliberately lowered his voice, trying to mimic Orochimaru's cool, detached tone. "Hmph. Save the big talk for later."
"Then let's begin!"
The moment the words left Tatsuma's mouth, Nawaki charged. He lunged forward to close the distance and launched into a stepping front-kick.
Beside them, Tsunade looked away, unable to watch. Her brother's level was... well, even the scrawny Tatsuma from two and a half years ago could have countered that with basic technique.
Tatsuma hadn't expected Nawaki to be quite so "honest." He'd opened with a high-risk, high-commitment move without even a single feint. With Nawaki currently mid-air, countering him was trivial, but for the sake of giving the boy some face, Tatsuma decided not to end it in one exchange.
Tatsuma used a Brush Knee and Twist Step to catch Nawaki's kicking leg. Simultaneously, his right hand delivered a horizontal shove. He didn't use much speed, but when combined with Nawaki's own forward momentum, the palm strike sent Nawaki crashing hard into the dirt.
Grimacing, Nawaki scrambled back to his feet. He didn't seem to realize the massive gap between them yet. As soon as the initial sting of the fall faded, he charged again.
Once more, he used a rapid-stepping dash, closed the distance, and leapt into the air—this time throwing a Superman punch.
Is he obsessed with flying? Tatsuma thought.
He reached up, caught Nawaki's fist, spun his shoulders to generate torque, and simply whipped the airborne boy over his back.
Thud!
This impact was heavier than the last. Nawaki hit the ground and twitched like a reanimated corpse, groaning in pain.
It was only a temporary injury. Nawaki might be a bit thick-headed, but his combined Senju and Uzumaki lineage allowed him to recover with startling speed. Of course, it also helped that Tatsuma had no intention of following up with a finishing blow.
Nawaki stood up and shook out his limbs. "You're pretty good!"
Tsunade closed her eyes. Is my brother blind? Can't he see that the kid is practically letting him walk across an ocean?
The truth was that Nawaki really couldn't see it. He charged straight at Tatsuma a third time. This time, he stayed on the ground, throwing a simple haymaker. Tatsuma dropped into a lunge, bracing his elbow and waiting for Nawaki to run right into it.
"Gack!"
The elbow caught Nawaki right in the solar plexus, making him wheeze. Despite the pain, he gritted his teeth and pushed forward with a straight punch. His spacing was off, and Tatsuma easily dodged it by leaning his head back.
Nawaki tried to pull his overextended arm back, but Tatsuma didn't give him the chance. He grabbed the arm and delivered a front-kick to the stomach. Nawaki doubled over, his legs turning to jelly as he threatened to collapse to his knees.
Tatsuma didn't feel like accepting a kowtow today. He reached around the back of Nawaki's neck, grabbed his chin, and stepped between the boy's feet. With a pull and a trip, he sent Nawaki into a rolling toss.
The roll actually helped Nawaki dissipate the force of the fall. He tumbled twice and stood up, face flushed with a mix of exertion and embarrassment. He was about to charge again when Tsunade opened her mouth to stop him. Tatsuma gave her a small, reassuring wave.
Seeing that Tatsuma had everything under control, she stayed silent.
Nawaki, now a bit frantic, lunged at Tatsuma's waist, clearly trying to initiate a double-leg takedown.
To be fair, it was a solid tactical adjustment. Nawaki's height, weight, and early physical development would have given him a significant advantage on the ground. Unfortunately, he was too desperate. The key to a takedown is the element of surprise.
The moment Nawaki lunged, Tatsuma brought up his knee to block. Nawaki's eyes went wide with terror; he couldn't stop his own momentum, and it looked like his face was about to meet Tatsuma's kneecap.
While Nawaki couldn't change course, Tatsuma was perfectly composed. He tucked his knee inward at the last second, letting it brush past Nawaki's face before snapping it back to catch the boy's shoulder and shove him aside.
Nawaki tumbled to the grass right at Tatsuma's feet. Tatsuma dropped his raised leg, hovering his foot just centimeters above Nawaki's nose. Nawaki froze.
He might have missed the subtleties before, but such a blatant display of restraint was impossible to ignore. He sighed. "I give up. I lost."
[Ding! PHY +2, ENG +3. Would you like to pick up?]
[Yes.]
Tatsuma retracted his foot and bent down to offer the Seal of Reconciliation, pulling Nawaki up.
Nawaki wasn't angry about the loss. In fact, he looked excited. "How do you train? Why is your Taijutsu so much better than mine? Can you teach me?"
Tatsuma's eyes sparkled. He had just discovered another "Fat Sheep."
Beating someone through brute force was the most direct way to win, but most opponents would get discouraged and stop playing after a few rounds. Nawaki's attitude, however, suggested he was someone Tatsuma could "shear" for a long, long time.
"Taijutsu can only be mastered through real combat," Tatsuma said, flashing a look of absolute sincerity. "If you're willing, I can do live sparring with you every day."
"Really?" Nawaki asked, delighted.
Tatsuma nodded, his smile radiant and warm. "I have the utmost respect for people with your level of grit. I'll do everything I can to help—as long as you can stay the course."
"I definitely will!" Nawaki declared, punching his own chest.
Tsunade's expression turned peculiar. For some reason, even though Tatsuma's smile looked perfectly kind and infectious, it gave her the sudden urge to shiver. It felt... eerie.
"Let's go again! I won't lose so fast this time!" Nawaki cheered.
Tatsuma was about to agree when Tsunade's face darkened. "Go again? Like hell you are!"
She looked at Tatsuma and huffed. "Who knows how long Jiraiya and Grandma are going to talk? We're playing cards now!"
"..."