Chapter 52: The Mist Ninja Strike!

"Begin!"

With the referee’s command, the sound of Chidori shrieked instantly.

Fujinaka Genma and Kakashi erupted with Chidori simultaneously; the noisy chirping of Chidori filled the entire exam hall at once.

Kakashi was enveloped in blue lightning, while Fujinaka Genma was wrapped in white arcs.

In the instant their bodies were shrouded in arcs, they vanished from their spots; most spectators hadn’t even caught their movements before they clashed three times in midair.

Without the clashing sound of kunai, many spectators couldn’t even lock onto their positions.

Undoubtedly, this was high-speed, high-power combat—no probing, no preliminaries; they went all out from the start.

The speed of their attacks was beyond the tracking ability of any Chunin.

Meanwhile, the Konoha Jounin judge, Hikari Shinichi, couldn’t help but sweat from his brow.

Are these really Genin?

I’d believe Itachi if Itachi said they were Jounin!

He feared that if anything went wrong, even he as a Jounin wouldn’t have time to intervene.

Thus, Hikari Shinichi was on razor-sharp alert, completely losing the casual composure he’d had as a judge.

Undoubtedly, this was an extraordinary duel.

On the spectator stands, Rin, who had been cheering moments ago, now held her breath, straining to track Kakashi’s movements.

Suddenly.

Boom. Kakashi crashed to the ground, cracking the floor instantly.

"Kakashi!"

Rin couldn’t help but cry out.

"This Fujinaka Genma is incredibly strong!"

Sasuke Uchiha had already frozen in shock.

He knew Kakashi’s strength well, and had heard of Fujinaka Genma’s name recently, but hadn’t taken it seriously—never expecting it to be this real...

Though kicked flying, Kakashi didn’t panic; as he landed, his jutsu was already complete—a towering wall erupted from the ground.

Fujinaka Genma, descending diagonally from the air, smashed through the stone wall with a thunderous crash and pierced Kakashi’s chest with pinpoint accuracy.

"Kakashi!"

Rin instinctively covered her mouth.

Sasuke Uchiha couldn’t help but gasp—then saw Kakashi dissolve into a burst of lightning.

Lightning Release: Clone Technique!

Many watching exhaled in relief.

In contrast, Hyuga Mio, Might Guy, and Ebisu remained as calm as ever.

They knew Kakashi well enough to understand his Lightning Release was formidable—he often trained with Fujinaka Genma.

"Still, Genma will win."

Hyuga Mio concluded inwardly.

After destroying Kakashi’s Lightning Clone, Fujinaka Genma vanished instantly from his spot.

Sure enough, a hand burst from the ground—then grasped nothing.

Earth Release: Head Hunter Jutsu.

Thus,

Fujinaka Genma and Kakashi faced off again, separated by distance.

But Kakashi was now breathing heavily.

Clearly, his stamina was heavily depleted.

Fujinaka Genma remained composed and calm.

"Genma, your strength has grown even more!"

Kakashi rubbed his chest; that kick had nearly knocked the breath out of him.

Fujinaka Genma smiled. "Not bad."

He had held back.

Had he used full force, he could’ve shattered Kakashi’s ribs outright—absolute instant kill level.

With his current physical enhancement and relentless daily training, his strength surpassed even pure taijutsu specialists like Guy.

Of course, once Guy opens the Eight Gates, that’s another matter.

But in raw body strength, Guy absolutely cannot match him.

After catching his breath, Kakashi summoned arcs again on his hands—this time, he didn’t cover his whole body; it drained too much chakra.

Thus, the clash resumed.

Lightning Release taijutsu exchange.

Jutsu exchange.

Spectators’ eyes grew dizzy.

Kakashi unleashed everything he’d learned, while Fujinaka Genma countered solely with Lightning Release taijutsu and Lei Qie.

Ten minutes later.

Boom.

Kakashi’s stamina exhausted, he collapsed, motionless.

Judge Hikari Shinichi let out a long breath and rushed forward, seizing Fujinaka Genma’s hand to declare him the winner.

Lying on the ground, gasping, Kakashi thought: "The gap between me and Genma keeps widening—he hasn’t even used his Wind Release or his Lightning Release Rasengan, and I’ve already used every technique I have."

On the other side,

Hiruzen Sarutobi, having watched the battle, wore a broad smile.

Extremely satisfied!

Both young men will become pillars of Konoha’s future.

Moreover, he could see Fujinaka Genma had been effortlessly dominating his duel with Kakashi.

Clearly, his strength far surpassed Kakashi’s by more than a margin.

"It seems becoming a team Jounin is entirely feasible."

After Fujinaka Genma finished his individual exam, Hyuga Mio quickly took her turn.

Her opponent was a Genin Fujinaka Genma didn’t know; she easily won with Hyuga clan taijutsu.

Next was Ebisu, who faced Hiruzen Asuma—and lost.

Watching, Fujinaka Genma had to admit: Asuma was truly impressive.

But,

Fortunately, the Chunin exam wasn’t judged solely by wins and losses, but by overall performance across all three tests.

After the Chunin exam concluded, Hiruzen Sarutobi announced the promotion list on the spot: Fujinaka Genma’s entire team passed.

As for Kakashi’s side, Sasuke Uchiha had clearly fallen behind.

This guy failed the first test by cheating, and was instantly defeated by Guy in both the second and third tests—he showed none of the qualities expected of a Chunin.

Remember, not every Konoha team is led by a Jounin.

Most are led by Chunin.

Or composed of several Chunin.

And Konoha’s backbone force consists of Chunin.

Leaving the exam site, Fujinaka Genma and his three teammates each held a qualification form and a Ma Jia.

From now on,

They were a Chunin team.

"Let’s celebrate together—I’ll treat everyone!"

Hyuga Mio beamed.

Fujinaka Genma was about to agree when a masked figure suddenly appeared before him.

"Fujinaka Genma, the Hokage requests your presence."

The Hokage's direct ANBU unit.

Fujinaka Genma nodded, then handed his items to Hyuga Mio. "Go to Ichiraku Ramen and wait for me."

"Got it!"

Hyuga Mio and the other two nodded in unison.

Five minutes later.

Fujinaka Genma arrived at the Hokage Tower, knocked, and entered the Hokage’s office. "Third Hokage, Itachi wished to see me?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi turned, holding a pipe. "I’ve decided to promote Itachi to Jounin, as a team leader."

Fujinaka Genma paused, then nodded. "Understood. I won’t disappoint Itachi."

"Good."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. "News has just arrived: the Mist ninja have mobilized. I need Itachi to lead your team out tomorrow to report to Jiraiya at the front."

"Yes."

Fujinaka Genma accepted the order.

But he hadn’t expected the Mist Ninja to arrive so quickly.

The Mist Ninja battlefield is no safer than the Rock Ninja front.

Suddenly, Fujinaka Genma heard the voices of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist Village.

Would he encounter them?

If he did… hmm, those seven swords were actually quite impressive.