The atmosphere gradually became delicate.
The classmates watching from the side all felt the change in atmosphere and closed their mouths one by one.
Iruka even had a look of astonishment on his face.
He never expected that Jokichi, who had always been immersed in the world of books, could have such an imposing aura.
Could it be that he had misjudged him?
No matter what others thought, Jokichi and Sasuke in the field had already formed the Seal of Confrontation.
The sparring class aimed to discover each other's shortcomings through actual combat in order to improve combat skills.
Because they were companions of the same village, they needed to form the Seal of Confrontation before the battle, meaning to tell the other party that an attack was about to be launched.
After the battle ended, they had to form the Seal of Reconciliation, indicating that no matter what bad things happened during the battle, they were still companions after the battle ended.
These had been taught in the theory class, and the two were also the type to study attentively in class, so there was no need for Iruka to explain it again.
The two extended their left hands, keeping their index and middle fingers together and pointing them upwards in front of their chests.
The next second.
Bang!
Sasuke exerted force with his right leg, fiercely stomping a deep footprint in the sandy ground, while he himself rushed towards Jokichi swiftly like a cheetah.
The academy had not been open for long, and most of the focus was on basic teaching.
That is, shuriken, kunai, taijutsu, and physical training.
Although Sasuke had done basic training in his clan in advance, he was only leading the others in these basics and did not exceed the curriculum.
Therefore, his attack was plain and unadorned, merely a preemptive strike.
However, this was enough.
Sasuke was very confident in his own strength.
From the age of two, he had pestered Itachi to train together, and from the age of three, he often took a bow and arrow to go out hunting wild boars and tigers with Itachi.
Although he was basically just tagging along, the physical strength and courage trained in this process were incomparable to others in the class.
Even though he had seen Jokichi's training in the Ninth Training Ground and somewhat acknowledged his strength, he did not think he would lose.
The speed was very fast, and the distance of two or three meters was covered in an instant. In the eyes of the observing classmates, Sasuke vanished with a swoosh, turning into an afterimage, and then immediately appeared in front of Jokichi.
His right hand was already clenched tightly, striking towards Jokichi's face.
As for Jokichi, it seemed as if he hadn't reacted yet. He held the thick-covered book with his right hand and gently pushed his glasses with his left hand, his expression calm and composed, without the slightest change.
He must have read himself silly!
This was the thought of most people, while Naruto and Ino even shouted out loud to warn him.
But Sasuke internally cried out that things were not good.
He had seen Jokichi's training and did not think his speed was so fast that the other party could not react.
The other party's expression was not a lack of reaction, but having a well-thought-out plan.
However, a fired arrow cannot turn back.
Although he did not know what countermeasures Jokichi had, all Sasuke could do was increase the power of his fist.
"Stop posturing over there!"
Sasuke roared to embolden himself, and the force of his fist became a bit heavier.
As long as my fist is fast enough and powerful enough, the enemy's countermeasures will not be able to keep up with me.
At this moment, Sasuke was full of confidence. No matter how strong the opponent was, they would not be his match.
A trace of surprise flashed in Jokichi's eyes.
This guy is so confident, could he have some backup plan?
But the situation did not allow for much thought, so Jokichi could only heighten his vigilance in his heart while responding.
He slightly tilted his head, calmly and unhurriedly dodging the fist.
Then he reached out his left hand and grabbed towards Sasuke's collar.
As Sasuke's punch missed, he leaned to the side and actually prepared to adjust his posture to continue attacking.
That is it?
A trace of weirdness flashed in Jokichi's eyes.
Generally speaking, a charged attack either defeats the enemy in one blow or forces the enemy back; otherwise, the attacker must retreat or defend.
Because after a charged attack, it is exactly the moment when the old move is spent and new strength has not yet been generated; launching a second strike requires time to exert force.
Although one can rely on physical fitness to shorten this time.
But when facing an opponent of the same level, this is a flaw.
And Sasuke, who had launched a powerful and heavy strike with the help of a sprint, actually wanted to adjust his posture in front of him to continue attacking after missing.
Is he not taking me seriously?
Or is it... mysterious confidence?
Sure enough, before Sasuke had adjusted his posture, Jokichi firmly grabbed his collar.
Then, he pulled him forward, stuck out his left leg to trip him under his feet, and simultaneously tilted his body sideways.
Sasuke's body instantly lost its balance and fell forward.
His reaction was also extremely fast. At the moment his body lost balance, he reached out both hands, wanting to support himself on the ground at the moment of falling, and then take advantage of the momentum to flip his body and counterattack.
However, before he could take actual action, Jokichi behind him took advantage of the momentum and smashed his entire body onto him.
The strength and weight instantly made Sasuke fall flat on the ground.
Jokichi pinned Sasuke down, pressing his right knee onto the back of Sasuke's neck and grabbing his hair with his left hand to pull it backward.
As soon as he felt him exerting force to try and break free, he would yank his hair and pull backward forcefully.
The pain and the difficulty breathing caused by his raised neck made it very difficult for him to gather strength.
"Admit defeat, I will not let go," Jokichi said indifferently.
"Who, who is going to admit defeat!"
Sasuke struggled with all his might but to no avail.
On the contrary, the lack of oxygen caused by his struggling made his face and neck turn completely red.
"Stop, Jokichi won this sparring match." Iruka spoke up in time to stop the fight.
Seeing this, Jokichi let go of Sasuke, stood up, and took a few steps back.
Sasuke also stood up.
He coughed for a while, and after his breathing returned to normal, he looked at Iruka unyieldingly. "Teacher, do not arbitrarily declare the result, the battle has not ended yet."
"Sasuke, I can understand everyone's desire to win, but..." Iruka shook his head gently. "A loss is a loss. Facing your shortcomings and then making progress through training is the purpose of the sparring class."
"But I..."
"Enough, are you going to question my judgment as a ninja?" Iruka's face turned serious. "If Jokichi had not shown mercy just now, your neck would have been snapped in an instant. Even so, if I had not called a stop, you would have fainted from lack of oxygen. You should properly thank your classmate for showing mercy. If this were on the battlefield, you would not have a chance to start over."
Sasuke no longer retorted.
He lowered his head, bit his lower lip tightly, and clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
He knew that what Iruka said was the truth, it was just that he was unwilling to lose to other peers.
He was clearly full of confidence at the beginning, but ended up being easily instantly defeated by someone.
This kind of psychological gap was truly unacceptable to people.
Looking at Sasuke like this, Iruka sighed inwardly.
Although there hadn't been a year-end major exam yet, Sasuke had always ranked first in daily training performance.
Now, however, he was easily defeated by the usually inconspicuous Jokichi.
This was a somewhat big blow to Sasuke, but this world is just like this, not everything will go one's way.
If Sasuke could not face this failure properly, it would cause a huge hidden danger for his future ninja career.
Therefore, Iruka also changed his usual gentleness. Not only did he not offer comforting words, but he even spoke up to reprimand him.
"Sasuke, form the Seal of Reconciliation!"
Sasuke raised his head, staring at Jokichi with burning eyes.
Jokichi maintained his indifference, quietly looking at him.
"Next time, I will definitely win."
Sasuke extended his right hand to Jokichi, the fighting spirit in his eyes becoming even more vigorous.
Jokichi extended his right hand, formed the seal with him, and a faint smile appeared on his face. "I will absolutely not lose."