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A dull, heavy sound echoed across the playground.
"Ugh!"
Hyuga Homon cried out in pain as Ren's powerful kick slammed into his back. His body lurched forward uncontrollably, staggering toward the edge of the arena.
For a moment, it looked as if he might fall straight off the stage.
He barely managed to catch himself.
The Hyuga Clan possessed several powerful defensive techniques. One of them was the famous Eight Trigrams Rotation, an almost perfect defense that could repel attacks in all directions. Another was the ability to coat the body in chakra as a protective barrier.
However—
Rotation was a secret technique reserved for members of the Main House, something Homon had not yet learned.
And the chakra shielding technique required extremely precise chakra control, far beyond what an academy student could achieve.
Fortunately for him, Homon had instinctively tensed his muscles the moment he sensed danger through his Byakugan.
Otherwise, Ren's kick might have knocked the wind out of him completely.
"Ren-kun, that was amazing!"
Rin Nohara covered her mouth in surprise, her eyes sparkling with admiration.
Even she hadn't expected Ren to land such a clean counterattack.
Nearby, Obito pumped his fist enthusiastically.
"Nice one!"
To be honest, Obito's relationship with Ren was fairly ordinary. Sometimes he even felt a strange sense of rivalry because Ren and Rin often talked together.
But there was something he disliked far more than that.
The Hyuga Clan.
For generations, the Hyuga and Uchiha clans had been rivals in Konoha. Their relationship was never exactly friendly.
So seeing a Hyuga clan member getting kicked across the arena?
Obito felt nothing but satisfaction.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Several other students erupted into shocked murmurs.
The sudden reversal had happened too quickly for most of them to understand what they had just witnessed.
Meanwhile, beside the stage—
Mr. Oki and Mr. Himura had both turned around simultaneously.
Their eyes were wide with disbelief.
"This… this is…"
Mr. Oki's voice trembled slightly.
"Space-Time Ninjutsu?!"
His gaze remained fixed on Ren standing in the arena.
In his mind, a familiar figure appeared instantly.
A young man with blond hair.
A legendary prodigy.
Minato Namikaze.
Years ago, Mr. Oki had personally witnessed Minato's incredible Flying Thunder God Technique.
Once someone saw that dazzling teleportation ability, it was impossible to forget.
But geniuses like Minato were incredibly rare.
Even someone as talented as Kakashi Hatake, who graduated from the academy at age five, seemed ordinary compared to that level of brilliance.
And now…
Had another such genius appeared in front of him?
"No," Mr. Himura said suddenly.
He leaned forward, examining the battlefield carefully.
"That's not possible."
"A Ninja Academy student could never master a space-time technique."
He shook his head quickly.
"It must be the Substitution Jutsu."
Mr. Oki blinked.
"…Substitution?"
"Yes," Himura continued.
"Look carefully."
"He used those shuriken as substitution objects."
"And he activated the jutsu the exact moment the Gentle Fist struck."
"That created the illusion of instantaneous teleportation."
Logically speaking, the explanation made perfect sense.
But even so…
One question remained.
How could the substitution be that fast?
Meanwhile, on the arena stage—
The battle was far from finished.
Despite taking a heavy hit, Hyuga Homon was still a clan-trained ninja.
His body ached, but he hadn't lost his composure.
Just before he fell off the stage, he slammed both palms onto the ground and halted his momentum.
Using his core strength, he twisted his body and performed a somewhat clumsy backflip.
Then he landed back inside the arena.
Kneeling on one knee, he breathed heavily.
His eyes burned with anger.
"Damn you, Ren…"
"You actually sneak attacked me!"
Across from him—
Poof!
White smoke burst outward again.
Ren's body split into four identical figures.
He had used the Clone Technique once more.
This time, however, he had created a larger number.
Four white-haired Ren figures instantly spread out across the arena, surrounding Homon from different directions.
The crowd gasped.
Originally, Homon planned to activate his Byakugan again and instantly locate the real Ren.
But when he looked closely—
"…Eh?"
His expression froze.
Through the Byakugan, he could clearly see the chakra flow inside each of the four Ren figures.
And they were all identical.
All shallow.
All unstable.
All clones.
Homon's eyes widened.
That meant—
The real Ren wasn't among them.
But if that was the case…
Then where was he?
Had he hidden beneath the stage?
For the first time, the Hyuga Clan's legendary Byakugan, famous for seeing through illusions, seemed completely useless.
Homon stood frozen, unsure of what to do.
His eyes darted around nervously.
Sweat began sliding down his forehead.
"Hey, Hyuga!"
A loud voice suddenly broke the tension.
Obito.
"Why are you just standing there?"
"Did Ren kick the brains out of you?"
"If you want to surrender, just say it already!"
"Stop wasting everyone's time!"
Several students laughed.
Homon's face turned bright red.
"Shut up!"
"Dead last!"
His humiliation exploded into anger.
Fine.
If I can't identify the real one…
Then I'll destroy them all!
Homon clenched his fists.
"If all the clones disappear and Ren still doesn't appear…"
"Then I win this match anyway!"
With a roar, he launched himself forward.
Like a tiger diving into a flock of sheep, he attacked the nearest clone.
Bang!
One palm strike dispersed it instantly.
White smoke burst into the air.
The clone vanished.
Homon didn't stop.
He spun and struck again.
Bang!
The second clone exploded.
Then the third.
Each clone disappeared in a puff of smoke.
But Homon's anxiety only grew stronger.
Because the real Ren still hadn't appeared.
Meanwhile, his chakra was draining rapidly from these continuous attacks.
Soon, only one clone remained on the arena.
Homon dashed toward it again.
But this time, his eyes were scanning the surrounding ground and shadows.
Where are you hiding…?
Just then—
Something unexpected happened.
A wooden training shuriken lying quietly on the ground suddenly burst into smoke.
Poof!
And from that cloud—
A hand shot out like lightning.
Chakra glowed faintly around the fingers.
The strike drove straight toward Homon's ribs.
"What—?!"
Homon had never expected an attack from that direction.
Before he could react—
Thud!
The palm strike landed.
Pain exploded in his side.
His entire body instantly lost strength.
Before he could recover, Ren grabbed his wrist.
Using Homon's own forward momentum, Ren twisted his body and executed a perfect shoulder throw.
THUD!
Dust burst into the air.
Homon slammed onto the ground below the stage headfirst in an incredibly humiliating position.
A painful groan escaped his mouth.
Meanwhile, Ren stood calmly on the arena.
He exhaled slowly.
His expression was completely composed.
"The match is over," he said calmly.
"You lost."
Ren looked down at Homon.
"Now…"
"Will you apologize to the Three Basic Jutsu?"
For several seconds—
The entire playground was dead silent.
Sunlight fell across Ren's white hair, making it glow faintly.
Below him, the defeated Hyuga prodigy struggled to lift his head.
Homon opened his mouth.
He wanted to say something.
But no words came out.
The outcome was undeniable.
A talented Hyuga clan student.
With the Byakugan activated.
Had just been defeated by a civilian ninja who used nothing but the Three Basic Jutsu.
If Homon had heard this story yesterday, he would have laughed.
But now…
He was the one lying on the ground.
And suddenly—
Every gaze around him felt like a needle stabbing into his skin.
His pride.
His arrogance.
His belief in clan superiority—
All of it had just been shattered.