Chapter 285: Sasuke’s Dominance!!

“The third match of the Genin Meet—Uchiha Sasuke versus Hōzuki Suigetsu!”

Kitazawa’s voice echoed across the arena as the two names stirred murmurs among the spectators.

Ao made his way to Suigetsu, speaking in a low, firm tone.

“Suigetsu, be careful of his Sharingan—and his genjutsu. Don’t let him catch you off guard.”

Although Ao doubted that Sasuke had truly awakened the Two-Tomoe Sharingan, the shocking displays from Naruto and Yakumo still haunted him. It was best to be cautious—forewarned meant forearmed.

“I understand,” Suigetsu replied with a nod.

The earlier matches had humbled him; he no longer carried the arrogance he once did. But that didn’t mean he lacked confidence.

The Uchiha were famous for Fire Release and genjutsu.

Fortunately, Water Release countered Fire—Suigetsu’s specialty.

The only thing he truly had to guard against… was the eyes.

“Do you think he can win?” one of the Hidden Mist Jōnin asked nervously.

After witnessing Naruto and Yakumo’s overwhelming power, even the proud Mist-nin were beginning to lose faith in their young talents.

“That’s Mangetsu’s little brother,” Zabuza said in a gravelly voice. “We should believe in him.”

After being captured by Itachi and later redeemed by Mei Terumī, Zabuza had mellowed. He hadn’t returned to the Mist early, but he knew Mangetsu well—a prodigy loved by every blade in the village. If Suigetsu was anything like his brother, he’d fight to the last drop.

“He’ll win,” another Jōnin said decisively. “He’s wielding the Blunted Sword—Kabutowari.”

“True.” Zabuza gave a slow nod. “Naruto had the great sword Samehada, but Sasuke doesn’t. This time, the weapon advantage is ours.”

Suigetsu had chosen the Blunted Sword: Kabutowari from the remaining four ninja blades.

Though his heart belonged to the Executioner’s Blade—still in Biwa Jūzō’s hands—Kabutowari was no less deadly.

Despite being called a sword, it was actually a paired axe and hammer. When struck together, they unleashed a crushing shockwave capable of breaking through any defense.

Blunted in name only—it possessed terrifying destructive power.

“No matter what, we have to win this one.”

“If we lose all five matches, it’ll be too humiliating.”

“Exactly. The other two can’t compare to Suigetsu. He’s our last hope—he mustn’t lose!”

The Hidden Mist shinobi clenched their fists, tension thick in the air. None of them had imagined the genin meet would unfold this way. All they could do now was pin their hopes on Suigetsu.

Meanwhile, the Konoha side was almost relaxed.

“One more win and Konoha can declare victory,” said Chōza, his voice full of pride. “Our new generation’s geniuses are truly extraordinary.”

Indeed, this generation—led by Naruto and Sasuke—was the most gifted in the village’s history.

And perhaps, the most terrifying.

“This is thanks to Kitazawa,” said the Third Hokage, smiling warmly. “He’s allowed these children to realize their potential far earlier than expected.”

“Good students and good teachers bring out the best in each other,” added Shikaku coolly. “Just like you and the Sannin, Sandaime-sama.”

The Third Hokage chuckled, the compliment pleasing him.

Among all his accomplishments, nurturing the Three Legendary Shinobi remained one of his proudest.

“Fugaku,” the Hokage said, turning to the Uchiha patriarch, “how do you think your son will fare?”

“Sasuke won’t disappoint us,” Fugaku replied without hesitation.

“I agree,” Hiruzen said.

He knew the boy’s strength well—perhaps even better than Sasuke himself.

From the side, Hiashi watched silently. A quiet sigh escaped him.

It was a pity.

Both Hinata and Neji had the talent to shine in this Genin meet. But by sheer bad luck, they hadn’t drawn the spotlight matches.

When people spoke of this day, they would only remember two names—Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke.

“Sasuke! Youth burns brightest in battle! Go all out and crush him!” Naruto shouted, giving a big thumbs-up.

“No need to go all out,” Sasuke replied coolly, hands in his pockets.

“…”

Kiba, who had been ready to wish him luck, froze.

Too cool. He gets full marks just for that.

“Sasuke-kun!” Sakura’s eyes sparkled. “Show them how it’s done—just take him down easily!”

“Be careful of his weapon,” Neji warned, eyeing the massive hammer-axe.

“That’s the Blunted Sword: Kabutowari,” Shikamaru murmured. “It hits hard—very hard.”

Since Naruto had gotten Samehada, they’d all studied the Seven Ninja Swords. Their properties were no longer secrets among Konoha’s elite.

“I have the Sword of the Thunder God,” Sasuke said indifferently.

“The Hōzuki Clan excels in Water Release,” Shino reminded him.

Sasuke gave a slight nod.

Water could extinguish fire—but he was no longer a ninja who relied on just one element.

Sasuke stepped onto the high platform, his gaze locking with Suigetsu’s.

All eyes turned to them.

Without question, this was the decisive battle of the Genin Meet.

If Suigetsu won, the Hidden Mist would still have hope.

If Sasuke won, it would be Konoha’s complete victory.

Kitazawa watched quietly from above, feeling the ripples of his butterfly effect.

In the original timeline, Sasuke and Suigetsu would’ve fought side by side as teammates in Team Hawk.

But here, fate had turned them into opponents.

“The match begins!”

Kitazawa’s voice rang out.

“Water Release: Water Gun!”

Suigetsu raised his index finger and fired a thin, high-velocity stream of water—fast enough to blur into a streak of blue.

At the same time, he charged forward with Kabutowari, the massive axe raised to cleave Sasuke in two.

A flash of crimson.

Sasuke’s Sharingan spun to life, the twin tomoe glowing. He tilted his head slightly, dodging the water bullet with effortless grace.

A gust of wind rippled past as Sasuke drew a kunai.

The two weapons met with a dull, heavy thud.

“Two-Tomoe Sharingan!?”

Suigetsu’s heart skipped a beat. He averted his gaze, avoiding eye contact.

Then, with his left hand, he swung the hammer down—not at Sasuke, but at the axe itself.

Sasuke’s eyes narrowed.

That wasn’t a mistake. It was Kabutowari’s true form of attack.

Sensing danger, Sasuke blurred backward with a Body Flicker.

A deafening shockwave exploded where he’d just been standing, fracturing the stone floor into a spiderweb of cracks.

The Hidden Mist shinobi erupted in gasps—not at the sword’s power, but at the crimson eyes gleaming on the field.

Two tomoe.

That alone meant Sasuke had already reached Chunin-level ability—at the age of seven.

Mei bit her lip, feeling a mix of awe and dread.

Ao’s reports, which she’d doubted, had now become undeniable truth.

Konoha hadn’t exaggerated.

Could these children truly defeat jōnin?

The more she thought about it, the more terrifyingly possible it seemed.

Back on the platform, Sasuke advanced. The sword of thunder god in his hand hummed with electric energy.

He didn’t use genjutsu.

He didn’t need to.

The Sword of the Thunder God cut through the air, buzzing like a live wire.

Suigetsu intercepted it, hammer meeting steel—but Sasuke was faster this time.

His blade twisted upward at the last second, wedging between the axe and hammer.

The hammer struck the blade instead of the axe.

“What—!?”

Suigetsu’s eyes widened in disbelief.

That timing, that precision… he couldn’t even see it happen.

“In front of these eyes of mine,” Sasuke said coolly, “every move you make is meaningless.”

Lightning surged from the Thunder God’s blade, racing along the metal.

Suigetsu’s instincts screamed. He dropped Kabutowari and leapt back just in time—the weapon crackled violently, sparking against the stone floor.

Zabuza’s jaw tightened.

He knew swordsmanship—and he knew what this meant.

“He forced him to abandon his weapon after only two exchanges…”

The other Mist jōnin fell silent.

“Shut up,” Ao snapped, unable to hide his frustration.

Mei simply exhaled and shook her head. There was no more room for delusion.

Against a Two-Tomoe Sharingan, there was no hiding—every movement was laid bare.

“Water Release: Water Hail!”

Suigetsu flew through hand seals, sending a barrage of water bullets forward like a rainstorm of needles.

“Fire Release: Great Fireball!”

Sasuke inhaled sharply and exhaled a massive sphere of flame, five meters wide.

The fire met the water midair—hissing steam burst forth, blanketing the field in thick mist.

Suigetsu’s eyes gleamed. Now!

He lunged through the mist, reaching for his fallen weapon—

But four shuriken whistled out of the haze, slicing through the air from different directions.

Suigetsu hit the ground in a clumsy roll, narrowly dodging all four.

Abandoning the idea of reclaiming Kabutowari, he raised a hand.

“Water Release: Water Gun!”

A bullet of water shot toward Sasuke’s silhouette in the mist.

“It seems you only know those two Water Release jutsu,” Sasuke’s calm voice replied as he stepped sideways, letting the projectile slice harmlessly past him.

The remark hit harder than any attack.

Suigetsu froze, fury trembling in his chest.

Did Sasuke have any idea how rare it was to master two Water Release jutsu at seven years old?

But then, his anger faltered.

Because his opponent—the one belittling him—was also seven.

“This boring battle… it’s time to end it.”

Sasuke’s voice was calm, almost cold. In the next instant, he vanished—a blur of speed as he charged at Suigetsu.

Leaf Style: Willow!

The Sword of the Thunder God sliced through the air, its blade gleaming with an electric shimmer.

Suigetsu tried to dodge, but a chill ran through him—his body refused to move. His eyes darted wildly. Sasuke’s figure seemed to blur, like a drifting leaf that could disappear at any moment.

And that blade—that terrifying blade—seemed to exist everywhere at once.

“A genjutsu? When did he—?”

The realization came too late. From within the swarm of sword shadows, the real Sword of the Thunder God flashed forward, stopping an inch from Suigetsu’s eyes.

“You lose,” Sasuke said simply, lowering his weapon.

Suigetsu exhaled sharply, sweat trickling down his temple. He let out a quiet sigh and nodded, fully convinced of his defeat.

There was no trickery, no excuses—just a clean, decisive loss.

If he’d fallen to the Sharingan alone, he might’ve rationalized it away.

But Sasuke had crushed him in both ninjutsu and kenjutsu.

Sasuke sheathed the Thunder God blade and turned toward the audience—his gaze drifting to Fugaku and Itachi.

Neither spoke. With Tsunade and the other Konoha dignitaries nearby, they kept their composure. Only Itachi allowed himself a faint, approving smile.

“Winner: Uchiha Sasuke!”

Kitazawa’s voice carried across the field with a smile.

With both Chōjūrō and Suigetsu defeated, Konoha had already secured three straight victories. The remaining two Hidden Mist genin might as well have been footnotes.

The Mist shinobi sat in heavy silence.

Technically, two matches remained, but everyone knew the result. According to the best-of-five rule, the Genin Meet was already decided.

Losing wasn’t the issue.

But losing like this—being utterly outclassed—was a bitter pill to swallow.

“This was just like Naruto’s match—over too fast,” said Shikamaru, watching Sasuke walk back.

“The Two-Tomoe Sharingan is in a different league,” Ino said, shaking her head. “It’s just that Naruto and Yakumo made us forget how absurdly strong Sasuke already is.”

“Compared to them, I’m doing pretty great,” Kiba added with a grin.

In the Genius Class, Sasuke and Naruto had beaten him senseless more times than he could count—but after seeing the Mist’s ’prodigies,’ he suddenly felt a little better. If they didn’t have those special swords, they weren’t that different from him.

“Sasuke! Worthy of being my eternal rival!” Naruto declared, grinning. “Your youth fills me with fighting spirit!”

Sasuke’s calm expression didn’t waver. “I’m faster than you.”

“Huh? Faster at what?” Naruto blinked.

“Obviously, He finished his opponent faster than you did,” Sakura jumped in, her eyes sparkling. “Sasuke-kun, you were amazing! You beat him in just a few moves!”

Sasuke nodded slightly, hands sliding into his pockets.

Beneath the high platform, Kitazawa stood by the lottery box and gestured politely. “Please draw first.”

Even though the Mist had already lost, the last two matches would still proceed. Anything less would make the Mist look graceless.

Ao stepped forward in silence, drew a slip of paper, and read aloud, “Hyūga Hinata.”

Kitazawa followed, reading his own draw: “Miyamoto Kai.”

Hinata took a quiet breath, gave Ino and the others a polite nod, and stepped onto the platform.

Her pale eyes glanced briefly at Miyamoto Kai—then shifted toward Kitazawa.

“Good luck. Don’t be nervous,” Kitazawa said with an encouraging smile.

Hinata nodded, her expression tightening with focus.

Her Byakugan activated with a faint pulse of chakra.

In a flash, she vanished from sight.

Miyamoto Kai’s eyes darted around—too slow.

Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!

Hinata appeared behind him, her palms striking in rapid succession. Two hits landed on his arms, disrupting his chakra flow. He tried to counter with a kick, but Hinata twisted gracefully out of the way, retaliating with two quick taps to his leg.

Then, in a seamless blur, she stepped forward and unleashed the rest.

Thirty-two precise strikes hit their marks.

Miyamoto Kai collapsed—chakra halted.

“Winner: Hyūga Hinata.”

Kitazawa’s voice echoed again.

Hinata’s lips curved into a small, restrained smile.

It was a shame, she thought wistfully, that this wasn’t the right time or place—otherwise, she might’ve earned one of Kitazawa-sensei’s gentle head pats.

The Mist shinobi sat in silence once more.

And in the final match, Hyūga Neji took the stage.

Just like Hinata, his victory was swift, clean, and absolute.

If the Sharingan ruled over genin and chūnin, then the Byakugan was no less terrifying.

This was the power of Konoha’s bloodline limits—undeniable, overwhelming.

By the end, it wasn’t just defeat the Mist felt—it was despair.

The Genin Meet concluded under a sky heavy with silence.

Mei said nothing as she bid Tsunade farewell and led her subordinates away from the academy.

Though her steps were steady, her heart was anything but calm.

Hidden Mist had not just lost—they had seen the future.

And it was a future dominated by Konoha.

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