Chapter 323: The Taijutsu Ranking Tournament Begins; Oh!! This Is Youth! [HN]

Konoha Training Ground Number Forty Three had now officially been renamed the Konoha Taijutsu Arena.

Time passed quietly, and the day of the Taijutsu Ranking Tournament finally arrived.

Konoha was bustling with excitement.

The renovated circular stands were packed with spectators, while the specially reinforced arena in the center reflected a solid gleam under the sunlight.

The air was filled with the aroma of popcorn and grilled squid, mixed with the excited discussions of the villagers, creating an atmosphere that felt almost like a festival.

“Have you heard? Even the other villages sent people this time! Just a week ago, Hokage-sama approved the requests from the surrounding shinobi villages to participate.”

“Of course! See over there? Those are people from Kumogakure. I heard their Raikage personally ordered them to observe the tournament carefully!”

“Hmph! Perfect. Let them see just how powerful Konoha’s taijutsu is!”

“…”

In the special section of the stands, Hokage Chiya sat calmly with Tsunade and Mikoto beside him. Even in their loose yukata, the two women could not hide their graceful presence.

Their appearance immediately drew waves of cheers and attention from the crowd.

Chiya smiled as he swept his gaze across the entire arena, pausing slightly on the observers from Iwagakure, Kumogakure, Sunagakure, and Kirigakure.

He understood.

This Taijutsu Tournament had already become a window through which Konoha could display its soft power.

“I hereby announce!”

Chiya stood up, his voice neither loud nor forceful, yet it clearly reached every corner of the arena.

“The first Konoha Taijutsu Ranking Tournament officially begins!”

“No need for further words. Use your sweat and your cheers to show everyone the true meaning of taijutsu!”

“Ohhhhhhh!!”

The response was a deafening roar of cheers, with one dazzling patch of green standing out above all the rest.

Might Dai and Might Guy were both teary eyed as father and son embraced tightly, their teeth gleaming with emotion.

“Father! This is the greatest stage of youth!”

“That’s right, Guy! Let our passion set this arena ablaze!”

“…”

The preliminary rounds used a round robin group format, and fierce battles broke out simultaneously across the various smaller arenas.

“Next, Uchiha Obito versus Yū Kōta!”

Obito took a deep breath and jumped onto the arena.

He instinctively adjusted his forehead protector before glancing toward the stands, where Nohara Rin was smiling and waving at him.

He immediately became full of energy.

‘Rin is watching! I absolutely can’t lose!’

His opponent, Yū Kōta, had dark skin and bulging muscles on his arms. He sneered.

“An Uchiha ninja? Don’t tell me you only use your Sharingan to stare at women.”

“Enough nonsense!”

Obito’s face reddened as he looked toward the referee.

Once both sides were ready, the Jonin referee announced,

“Begin!”

Obito’s eyes sharpened, and he launched the first attack.

His movements were much faster than before, and his basic taijutsu had become extremely solid.

More importantly, his Sharingan sharply captured every subtle movement of his opponent.

His opponent came from Kumogakure, a village that placed tremendous importance on taijutsu.

After evading Obito’s attack, he quickly closed the distance and counterattacked.

Obito was no longer the same person he had been before.

After this period of training, his strength had improved tremendously.

Combined with the insight of his Sharingan, he could always evade attacks at the last possible moment, accurately predicting his opponent’s movements.

“I see it!”

He shouted softly and smoothly shifted his body to the side, using his opponent’s momentum as he lunged past.

A clean Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique disrupted his opponent’s vision.

Obito immediately closed the distance and drove his elbow precisely into the opening beneath his opponent’s ribs.

“Winner, Uchiha Obito!”

Obito breathed slightly heavily before proudly giving Rin a victory sign, earning an encouraging smile from her.

He put his hands on his hips and looked at Yū Kōta, who had just gotten back to his feet.

“Hmph! See that? This is the true strength of Uchiha Obito!”

Unlike the easy victory on Obito’s side, the battle taking place elsewhere involved Koyuki Kazahana, the little “dead last of the Taijutsu Class.”

Her opponent was a Chunin in his mid teens.

The enormous difference in their physiques made the spectators hold their breath for her.

“Little girl, you can still surrender now.”

Seeing Koyuki’s small frame, her opponent kindly advised her to give up.

Koyuki pressed her lips together, her eyes filled with determination.

“The Princess of the Land of Snow doesn’t have ‘retreat without fighting’ in her dictionary!”

The battle began.

The Chunin advanced like a tank, each punch carrying tremendous force.

Koyuki did not try to block him head on.

She remembered Guy’s teachings and relied on nimble footwork and the basic techniques she had learned to redirect force.

She moved like a swallow riding through a storm, constantly shifting and dodging amid the fierce attacks.

“It’s useless! You can’t keep dodging forever!”

Growing impatient, the Chunin increased the intensity of his attacks.

Koyuki was a fraction too slow during one evasion, and the force of a punch grazed her arm, sending a burning pain through it.

She stumbled several steps, her face turning pale as sweat soaked her bangs.

“Give up!”

The man shouted.

“Never!”

Images flashed through Koyuki’s mind.

She remembered the helpless and desperate faces of the people when Koyuki’s uncle Fenghua Dōtō seized power.

She also remembered Hokage Chiya’s expectations of her.

She gritted her teeth.

When another heavy punch missed, she caught the fleeting opening in an instant.

She did not have enough strength to knock him down.

But she had speed and a precise sense of timing.

She suddenly lowered her body and rushed forward.

Instead of attacking directly, she used all her strength to perform an imperfect opening move that contained every bit of her determination.

Her fingers struck a precise point on the back side of her opponent’s knee.

The man suddenly felt his right leg go numb, and his movement immediately became distorted.

Koyuki seized the opportunity and swept his legs out from under him, sending him crashing to the ground.

“Winner, Koyuki Kazahana!”

The entire arena fell silent for a moment before erupting into thunderous applause.

Koyuki collapsed onto her knees, gasping for breath.

Tears mixed with sweat and rolled down her cheeks, but a relieved smile blossomed across her face.

Chiya glanced toward the arena from the stands, approval visible in his eyes.

Koyuki looked toward him and let out a long breath.

She had really done it!

The tournament continued to burn with excitement.

As for the “top student” of the Taijutsu Class, Kakashi…

His matches were rather “boring.”

With taijutsu fundamentals and combat intelligence far beyond those of his peers, he could usually gain an easy advantage.

He even had enough attention to sneak a few glances at a miniature edition of Icha Icha Paradise during the matches, infuriating his opponents.

“Hatake Kakashi! You dare read that trashy book while fighting me?!”

A Sunagakure ninja known for his speed was furious.

Kakashi lazily closed the book and slipped it back into his ninja pouch.

“Ah… sorry. I just happened to reach an interesting part.”

His careless attitude completely enraged his opponent.

The opponent specialized in using Wind Release to accelerate his movements, turning into multiple afterimages as he instantly surrounded Kakashi.

“Let’s see how you dodge this!”

For the first time, Kakashi’s normal speed was completely suppressed.

He could only rely on his exceptional reaction speed to barely block and evade the attacks, leaving him looking somewhat battered.

“Hahaha! So this is Kakashi? Konoha’s genius is nothing special!”

Just as his opponent thought victory was within reach and swept a fierce Wind Blade Kick toward Kakashi, the lazy dead fish eyes that had remained half closed suddenly opened.

A sharp flash of lightning appeared within them.

There were no hand seals.

There was no warning.

“Lightning Release: Body Flicker.”

“Zzz!”

A faint electrical sound rang out, as though countless birds were crying out at once, yet the sound was highly concentrated.

Kakashi’s figure instantly blurred, leaving behind a faint purple electrical afterimage that flickered and jumped in place.

The next instant, he appeared behind his opponent like a ghost, the other end of his kunai lightly pressed against a vital point on the opponent’s back.

The entire arena fell silent.

Everyone stared wide eyed, including the observers from the other villages.

“What just… happened?”

“When did he…”

“Was that Lightning Release? Ninjutsu enhanced taijutsu?! That speed is insane!”

“…”

Samui, seated in the Kumogakure section, stared blankly.

Even her usually calm face could not conceal her shock.

“That wasn’t ordinary Lightning Release.”

“He pushed the shape transformation of Lightning Release to a new level, creating Lightning Release with greater activity and penetrating power.”

“At the same time, he completely contained it and used almost all of it to stimulate the body’s activity, allowing him to unleash explosive speed in an instant.”

“His control is incredible!”

“This is no longer simple taijutsu. It’s a perfect fusion of taijutsu and ninjutsu!”

“It might even be comparable to that technique of Raikage-sama’s, wouldn’t you say?”

Kakashi put away his kunai and yawned as though he had merely taken a casual walk.

“Well played.”

He calmly said the words before jumping down from the arena, leaving his stunned opponent and the uproarious spectators behind.

“So this is Konoha’s genius ninja, Hatake Kakashi? The son of Hatake Sakumo?!”

“He’s incredible! At this age, he’s already reached this level!”

“…”

Kakashi already carried the halo of a genius, and his performance instantly pushed the atmosphere surrounding the Taijutsu Tournament to another level.

“Next, Might Guy versus Genma Shiranui!”

When they heard Might Guy’s name, the members of the Taijutsu Class all turned their attention toward the arena.

Guy’s opponent was his good friend and rival, Genma Shiranui.

Because the Taijutsu Ranking Tournament used completely random matchups, it was naturally possible for ninja from the same village to be matched against each other.

The two quickly entered the arena.

Guy’s expression was extremely serious.

He knew that Genma’s swordsmanship and footwork were exceptionally flexible, and it would be difficult to defeat him quickly with Guy’s normal offensive style.

“Begin!”

Might Guy charged forward.

“Leaf Whirlwind!”

“Dynamic Entry!”

Genma deflected or evaded each consecutive attack with clever movements.

“Guy, is that all the passion you’ve got?”

Genma tried to disrupt Guy’s rhythm with his words.

Guy stopped moving.

The passionate smile on his face faded, replaced by an expression of absolute seriousness.

“Genma… you’re right! Against an opponent like you, refusing to show my true resolve would be disrespectful to youth and to this tournament!”

Might Guy’s speed and strength surged once again.

“Leaf Great Whirlwind!”

“Reverse Lotus!”

Guy’s speed and strength reached a terrifying level.

He seemed to transform into a green whirlwind, his attacks coming like a sudden storm.

Genma immediately felt the pressure multiply.

His sword moved in a seamless defensive pattern, but he could only barely withstand the attacks as he was forced backward step by step.

“Too… too strong! Is this Guy’s true strength?!”

The spectators cried out in shock.

Yet Guy’s eyes burned with an intense desire for victory and a determination to surpass his limits.

He could feel his blood still surging through his veins.

At this moment, his mind was completely filled with his obsession with youth and his passion for battle.

“This is my ninja way!”

Might Guy’s speed rose another level, becoming almost indistinguishable to the naked eye.

“This speed…”

Genma Shiranui’s face was filled with shock.

When he raised his arm to block a sweeping side kick, the tremendous force shook his arm numb.

“This is way too strong…”

Knowing that he could not compete with Guy in strength, Genma immediately switched to a more agile fighting style.

Guy had already anticipated this.

He pursued him without hesitation.

“Youth!!”

With overwhelming power and wind like speed, Guy’s attacks continued without pause.

In the end, Genma Shiranui was knocked out of the arena.

“Might Guy, victory!”

Guy froze for a moment before finally stopping.

He walked over to Genma and pulled him back to his feet.

Might Guy grinned, revealing an incredibly bright smile that had not changed in the slightest.

“Oh!! This is youth!!”