As Neji's Eight Trigrams formation surged, Tendo felt a subtle, crushing pressure manifest beneath his feet. It was as if an invisible seal had been etched into the earth, turning the very air heavy and restrictive.
The Sixty-Four Palms? Tendo's outward expression remained like glass, but his mind was racing. Shouldn't he be years away from mastering this? Did the stress of our spar force a breakthrough?
There was no time for theory. Neji moved. His palms became a blur of afterimages, his speed multiplying as he struck with the rhythmic precision of falling rain. Each thrust was aimed at a vital tenketsu, a relentless storm designed to systematically dismantle Tendo's chakra network.
I was coasting at seventy percent, Tendo realized, his cynicism sharpening into focus. Time to stop playing the 'nice senior.'
He flooded his limbs with chakra, the sheer raw output of his Uchiha-refined reserves tearing through the restrictive pressure of the Trigrams. His mastery of Konoha-Style Taijutsu synchronized perfectly with his bloodline's kinetic insight. He didn't need to out-speed the rain; he just needed to know where the drops wouldn't fall.
He can't sustain this, Tendo noted, tracking the minute tremors in Neji's wrists. Win by defending. Let the prodigy burn himself out.
The gamble paid off. After a frantic, airtight sequence, Neji's rhythm faltered. His breathing grew ragged, his chakra reserves hitting the red line from forcing a technique his young body wasn't yet ready to house.
Seizing the opening, Tendo swept Neji's last strike aside with a fluid circular motion. Before the boy could reset his center of gravity, Tendo stepped into his guard and lightly tapped two fingers against Neji's forehead.
"I'll take the win, little brother Neji."
[Mission Complete: Hyūga Neji defeated. Byakugan Reward issued.]
A roar of chatter erupted from the onlookers. To the civilian students, it was a logical conclusion—a Chunin beating a student was the natural order. But to the heirs of the great clans, the nuance of the fight was chilling.
Hyūga Hinata stood frozen, her fingers twisting nervously in her jacket. Neji-niisan... he already mastered the Sixty-Four Palms? The realization of her cousin's genius, and the casual way the "desk-job" Chunin had weathered it, made her shrink into herself. She wanted to offer comfort, but her own inadequacy kept her rooted to the spot, her gaze dropping to her sandals.
Nearby, Uchiha Sasuke's knuckles were white. He stared at the center of the ring, his mind a whirlwind of agitation. He was the "Genius of the Uchiha," yet he knew with a soul-crushing certainty that he wouldn't have lasted three moves against either of them.
What have I been doing with my life? Sasuke thought, the shadows of the massacre looming larger in his mind. And that gesture... that forehead poke...
The familiar movement sent a spike of trauma through Sasuke's heart. Did this man know him? Was there some connection to the brother he hated?
Tendo, ever the puppet master, watched the ripples of his actions. He hadn't poked Neji's forehead by accident; he was fishing for a reaction. And the System, ever predictable, took the bait.
[Latest Mission: Train Hyūga Hinata and boost her self-confidence. Reward: Gentle Fist Art: Tenketsu.]
[Latest Mission: Train Uchiha Sasuke and shatter his self-confidence. Reward: Fire Nature Chakra Enhancement.]
Tendo suppressed a laugh. Shatter his self-confidence? The System was ruthless. And apparently, its definition of "Clan Restoration" was broad enough to include the Hyūga. If everyone of Ōtsutsuki descent is an 'Uchiha' in your eyes, System, we're going to have a very large family reunion.
Mizuki, meanwhile, was vibrating with a silent, impotent rage. He had hoped the Hyūga would take offense at Tendo's victory, but Neji was currently bowing to Tendo, thanking him for the "mercy" of the lesson. Tendo was even giving the boy pointers on his palm placement. The two looked like brothers.
"Good. Very good."
The aged, gravelly voice cut through the chatter like a kunai. A short figure in a white-and-red cloak strolled into the clearing. His hair was gray, his face lined with the weight of decades, but the authority he radiated was absolute.
"Hokage-sama!" The cry went up as everyone bowed in unison.
"At ease, at ease," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, a grandfatherly smile crinkling his eyes. "In this yard, I am merely your Academy Principal. I've been watching from the start. A practical drill before graduation—it's a splendid idea."
He looked at Mizuki, who stood up straighter, his swollen face flushed with pride. "Who proposed this?"
Mizuki raised a shaky hand, nodding eagerly.
"Giving students a taste of a formal shinobi's strength," Hiruzen mused, "is visionary." Mizuki felt like he was floating on air, the pain in his jaw forgotten. "The key, however, was the choice of opponent. I've been derelict in my duties if I've failed to scout such a hidden gem."
The tone shifted. Mizuki's smile faltered as the Third turned his gaze to Tendo.
"Tendo, you're quite the overqualified Agricultural Researcher," Hiruzen chuckled. "It seems I've been wasting your talents behind a desk."
"Hokage-sama, you overpraise me," Tendo said, bowing his head while his lips twitched. Keep it coming, old man. I've got plenty of room for ego.
"Hokage-sama, he's the core of my research squad!" Inuzuka Akita interjected, sensing a poaching attempt. "We're right on the verge of a breakthrough with the harvesters. You can't take him!"
"Now, now, Akita, we all work for the Will of Fire," Hiruzen chided gently. "But I have a compromise. Tendo shall take a part-time post here at the Academy as a Combat Instructor. Two classes a week to give the graduates a real edge. What do you think?"
"Our schedule is already tight—" Akita started.
"I'll increase the Research Squad's funding by twenty percent starting next month," Hiruzen said casually.
Akita's protest died in her throat. She looked at Tendo, then at the imaginary piles of ryo.
"And I believe your personal salary could use an adjustment upward as well, Tendo," the Third added, sealing the deal with a wink.
"I suppose I can find the time," Tendo replied, the picture of a dutiful soldier.
Hiruzen patted his shoulder. "Splendid. Report for your first class tomorrow."