Although Sakura's earlier defeat had already served as a precedent, Minato and the others were still somewhat surprised when Naruko lost as well.
Minato turned to Genma, who was standing behind him.
"Genma, that's your cousin, right?"
"Yes, Lord Fourth."
"He performed very well. Both his strength and his intelligence are outstanding."
"You flatter him. Miss Naruko performed excellently as well."
And so the two began praising each other's students.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Danzō and Hiruzen were beginning to feel that something wasn't quite right.
"Danzō… the taijutsu and shuriken techniques used by that boy Nagi…"
"Yes. They resemble Sensei's style."
"Indeed. The few of us studied Sensei's combat methods as well, but we only learned a little. Most of those techniques simply didn't suit us.
"But that boy… it feels as though he has fully integrated Sensei's techniques and mastered them to perfection."
Danzō thought for a moment.
"Could it be that Sensei left behind some other forbidden technique?"
"A forbidden technique?"
Hiruzen immediately recalled the various forbidden jutsu their teacher had researched—techniques related to souls, life, and other taboo subjects.
A strange thought began forming in both of their minds.
Perhaps their teacher hadn't truly abandoned Konoha even after death. Perhaps he was still watching over the village through some soul-based forbidden jutsu.
The more they thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
Of course, they couldn't jump to conclusions yet. They would have to keep observing.
After a short break, the final match began.
Hinata Hyūga vs. Nagi
The two formed the Seal of Confrontation.
Hinata smiled gently.
"I knew you'd make it this far. Even though we're friends, I won't hold back."
"Alright."
Hinata moved first, dashing forward and striking with a palm.
Nagi seized the opportunity, catching her wrist and flipping her over his shoulder.
Hinata quickly regained her balance. Chakra gathered in her palm as she spun sharply and struck toward Nagi again.
Nagi also coated his hand with Yang Release chakra and returned the strike.
Smack!
Their palms collided.
Hinata was forced back several meters.
At that moment, she felt something was very strange.
Her earlier strike had been Gentle Fist, which should inject chakra into the opponent's body and block their chakra points.
But something had gone wrong.
"My chakra… didn't enter his body?"
Hinata rushed forward again and exchanged several more palm strikes with Nagi.
Soon she realized something shocking.
Whenever her chakra touched his body, it felt as though it had struck an invisible, solid barrier. No matter what she tried, she couldn't inject her chakra into him.
"So it really won't work… In that case, even the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms probably won't be effective."
"Then…"
"Byakugan!"
The veins around Hinata's eyes bulged as her dōjutsu activated.
She looked toward Nagi—
—and was immediately startled.
His entire body was covered in golden chakra, making him look like a small golden figure.
"What is this? I can't even see his chakra network…?"
Left with no other option—
"Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Palm!"
Hinata decided to engage in a direct taijutsu clash.
Since she couldn't see his chakra pathways and couldn't inject chakra into his body, she would instead enhance her attacks with chakra directly.
She rushed forward with both palms striking.
Nagi answered with both palms as well.
After several exchanges, Hinata quickly fell into a disadvantage.
"He's so strong!"
Only then did she realize just how large the gap between them was.
If she wanted to win, she could only gamble everything on one move.
Taking a step forward, Hinata closed the distance until her body was nearly against Nagi's chest.
Chakra burst out from the chakra points across her body.
"Eight Trigrams Palm: Rotation!"
She intended to use the powerful impact of Rotation to strike Nagi directly.
But at that moment—
A violent torrent of water suddenly erupted around Nagi.
The water wrapped around him, forming a semicylindrical blue barrier.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
But it didn't stop there.
The water on the barrier suddenly began spinning at high speed, transforming into a rapidly rotating water vortex.
Danzō and Hiruzen widened their eyes.
"That's Sensei's Water Shockwave!?"
"And he even transformed Water Formation Wall into Water Shockwave—that was one of Sensei's signature attack patterns!"
At that moment, both men had already begun subconsciously linking Nagi to their former teacher.
The spinning water vortex collided with Hinata's hemispherical Rotation.
Rotation vs. Rotation.
In the end, Nagi's water vortex shattered Hinata's Rotation.
The immense impact sent Hinata flying into the air.
She tried to stabilize herself midair.
But because her Rotation had just been forcibly broken, her chakra hadn't recovered yet.
She began falling straight down.
Hinata closed her eyes.
After a moment, however, the pain she expected never came.
Instead—
She felt warmth.
When she opened her eyes, she discovered that she was being carried in Nagi's arms in a princess carry.
Moments earlier, Nagi had noticed something was wrong.
Without hesitation, he used Body Flicker Technique to instantly appear at her landing point and caught her safely.
He asked with concern,
"Are you alright?"
Hinata stared at Nagi's face, momentarily lost in a daze.
But she quickly snapped back to reality.
Raising her hand, she said with a gentle smile:
"Referee… I concede."
The referee finally reacted.
"The winner is—Nagi !"
"Wooooah!"
"Incredible!"
"Aren't these two stronger than freshly graduated genin already?"
"Seriously…"
Students and teachers alike burst into applause, loudly congratulating Nagi.
The scene was almost picture-perfect:
Nagi holding Hinata in his arms while everyone around them cheered.
A very harmonious sight.
Except for one person…
"That brat! How dare he—!"
The veins around Hiashi Hyūga's eyes bulged violently.
Even though he knew Nagi had just saved Hinata, he still felt extremely unhappy.
"I haven't even carried her in two years! Damn it… I'm so jealous!!"
Finally, the Fourth Hokage personally presented the award to Nagi and congratulated him.
Hiashi Hyūga: ...
My image is completely ruined.
Hinata Hyūga: ...
So in that world, I actually ended up with Nagi…
Hanabi Hyūga: ...
It's the first time I've seen Father like this. Even though it's just a screen, it's kind of interesting.
Jiraiya: Hey Hiashi… your daughter complex is a little too much…
Kakashi Hatake: Yeah. Hinata's gaze might look a little suspicious, but look at Nagi's eyes—they're completely pure.
Hiashi Hyūga: ...
Are you comforting me or stabbing me?
The screen continued.
A few days later, Nagi was out shopping when he "coincidentally" ran into Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō Shimura.
The two smiled when they saw him.
Using Nagi's recent tournament victory as an excuse, they invited him to dinner.
Before Nagi even had a chance to refuse, each of them grabbed one of his arms and dragged the somewhat bewildered boy into a private room.
After ordering a large spread of delicious food, they began chatting with him.
From daily life—
to life at the Ninja Academy—
then from the Academy to the time when it was first established—
until the topic finally shifted to its founder.
The Second Hokage.
"Tell us, Nagi," Hiruzen asked with a smile.
"What do you think of the Second Hokage, the man who founded the Ninja Academy?"
"Lord Tobirama Senju…"
When Nagi heard that name, he didn't know why—
—but a deep sense of sorrow suddenly welled up in his heart.
PS: I've been releasing chapters daily . Honestly, it hurts seeing almost no support on Patreon after all that work.If you're enjoying the fic, even a little, supporting me would mean a lot. It helps a student stay independent .
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