"Are you finally getting serious?" Yamato looked at him calmly, but the response he received was immediate.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet Technique!"
Two Shadow Clones formed hand seals at the same time. A roaring water dragon and a ferocious earth dragon surged forward from the left and right, closing in on Yamato from both flanks.
"A distraction?"
Yamato's eyes flickered slightly, instantly seeing through Shin's intent. The real killing move had to be what the original body was preparing.
Sure enough, Shin's original body had already completed his hand seals.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
A massive surge of water crashed forward like a flood breaking through a dam, overwhelming everything in its path from the front.
A well-executed triple pincer attack… but… Yamato slammed both hands onto the ground. "Wood Release: Creation of a Forest!"
In an instant, more than a dozen massive trees erupted violently from the earth, forming a dense forest barrier both ahead and along the flanks.
The water dragon and earth dragon slammed into the forest, their power steadily weakened as they collided with the thick trunks.
At the same time, the raging torrent of the Great Waterfall was redirected and dispersed by the trees, its destructive force significantly reduced.
"He altered the terrain with minimal chakra…" Shin analyzed the move internally.
Although the forest wasn't fully formed, it had been placed with perfect precision, completely disrupting his coordinated assault.
Moments later, the weakened water flow swept across the training ground, washing over the unconscious bodies of Ken and Yumi and even dragging them a short distance along the ground.
The cold water jolted their nerves, and with Yamato having held back his strength.
"Cough… cough…!" Ken was the first to stir, pushing himself up weakly as he looked around in confusion. "What… what happened…?"
Yumi also woke under the cold shock, shaking the water from her hair, equally disoriented. "Did… the water wake us up?"
They stared at the sudden forest and flooding terrain around them, then at Shin and Yamato facing each other from opposite ends.
For a moment, they couldn't make sense of anything.
Their awakening immediately drew the attention of both Shin and Yamato.
And in that instant, Yamato seized the brief distraction caused by Shin's attention shifting toward his teammates.
Swoosh—!
His body merged seamlessly into the shadows of the trees. In the next instant, he appeared behind a nearby trunk beside Shin like a ghost.
"Wood Release: Smothering Binding Technique!" Vine-like wooden tendrils shot forward, coiling rapidly toward Shin's legs.
Danger!
Shin's instincts screamed.
He leapt backward at his absolute limit, while one of his Shadow Clones surged forward on its own initiative, only to be instantly bound by the wooden restraints.
Poof! The clone dispersed into smoke.
"You dodged it? Good reaction speed, but…" Yamato's voice remained calm, but his offense never paused.
His hands struck the ground again in a single fluid motion.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spear!" Just as Shin's feet were about to touch down, the ground beneath him erupted violently.
Several sharp stone spikes burst upward, stabbing toward him from below with lethal precision.
Shin's pupils shrank, his expression shifting drastically. He was still airborne—there was no footing, no leverage.
A critical moment, his hands moved rapidly, forming seals in front of his chest as he exhaled downward.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
Mud burst forth from his mouth, instantly expanding and shaping into a thick, curved wall beneath him.
Bang! Bang! Bang—!
The rock spikes slammed violently into the earth wall, sending fragments flying in all directions.
The wall trembled under the impact, cracks spreading across its surface, but it held. Barely.
Landing atop the structure, Shin let out a controlled breath. He glanced at the cracked surface beneath his feet, a thin layer of cold sweat forming on his forehead.
"Yamato-sensei… are you trying to kill me?" That series of rapid, lethal attacks had pushed even him into a moment of real danger.
Yamato paused briefly, a hint of awkwardness flashing across his face before he let out a small, apologetic smile.
"Sorry. I got a bit carried away."
Even so, he gradually eased his offensive stance.
Looking at Shin standing atop the earth wall, his tone shifted, carrying genuine admiration. "But Shin… the impression you give me is very unusual."
"My instincts in battle told me that you would definitely avoid attacks of that level. Your strength continues to surprise me."
He paused for a moment before continuing.
"Your reaction speed, your judgment, your ability to choose the optimal response in an instant… at your age, among everyone I've known, you can easily rank in the top two."
"Top two…?" Standing atop the earth wall, Shin repeated the words softly.
A name immediately surfaced in his mind: Copy Ninja Kakashi
The man who always wore a mask, revealing only one lazy, dead-fish eye, yet whose reputation echoed across the entire shinobi world.
There was no doubt. In Yamato's mind, that unquestioned number one could only be Kakashi Hatake.
After all… Yamato was practically his biggest admirer.
Not far away, Ken and Yumi, who had just been roused by the cold surge of water, took in the intense and thrilling scene that had just unfolded before their eyes.
The two of them stood frozen, their previously dazed expressions now completely replaced by sheer shock.
Ken swallowed hard, his throat tightening as he instinctively nudged Yumi beside him with his elbow.
"Hey… Yumi… are we really taking the same 'Genin' test as that guy?" he muttered in disbelief. "Is this… even a fight we're supposed to be part of?"
Yumi swayed slightly from the nudge, but didn't respond immediately.
Her gaze remained fixed on Shin, who stood atop the earth wall, facing their Jonin instructor head-on.
The image of the deadly stone spikes from moments ago, along with Shin's near-impossible response to them, replayed in her mind again and again.
Her lips parted, trembling slightly, before she finally forced out a few words, "…He's a monster… not at the same level as."
On the battlefield, Shin's thoughts were already racing ahead.
Wood Release… its defensive ability and control over the battlefield are truly troublesome.
Conventional Ninjutsu combinations can't break through it. Closing the distance is difficult to time… and in pure taijutsu, I'm at a disadvantage.
His gaze shifted subtly toward Yamato's waist; the two bells were still there. Untouched.
Then… A faint realization flickered through his mind.
Shin stepped off the earth wall, landing lightly on the ground as he widened the distance between himself and Yamato.
"Yamato-sensei," Shin called out, his voice steady but clear across the battlefield.
"In terms of taijutsu, tactics, and combat experience… I'm not your equal. Against you, complex strategies won't work, and standard Ninjutsu combinations can't break through your Wood Release defense."
He paused briefly. "But… I've still found a way to win."
Hearing this, Yamato didn't grow tense. Instead, a flicker of interest appeared in his eyes.
As a teacher, there was nothing more satisfying than seeing a student attempt to break through a seemingly impossible situation.
"Oh?" Yamato raised an eyebrow slightly. "Let's hear it."
A faint smile curved at Shin's lips.
Then—his eyes sharpened.
"Wood Release is powerful, no doubt about that," he said slowly. "But you have one fatal weakness—" His voice cut through the air. "Your chakra reserves aren't enough."
"What?!" Yamato's pupils shrank instantly, a sense of threat rising sharply within him.
Before he could respond, Shin had already begun forming hand seals.
Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!
Four Shadow Clones appeared in an instant, spreading outward in a fan-shaped formation alongside his original body.
"Next," Shin said, his voice overlapping with his clones as their hands moved in perfect synchronization, "…we settle this in the simplest way possible."
A massive surge of chakra erupted from all five figures at once. The air itself seemed to tremble under the pressure of it.
"Through absolute chakra reserve… and overwhelming Ninjutsu firepower."
"Yamato-sensei—" Before his words had even fully faded, the battlefield exploded.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet Technique!"
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spear!"
"Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
Five large-scale Ninjutsu, launched from five different directions, surged toward Yamato like a collapsing storm.
There were no elaborate maneuvers. No intricate tactics. Only pure, overwhelming destructive force.
A barrage designed to crush everything in its path. Faced with such an assault, Yamato's expression finally changed.
The scale of the ninjutsu, chakra reserve, and range- all of it far surpassed anything Shin had shown before.
How much chakra is he using…? A cold realization struck him. This level of chakra… this isn't normal. This kid… is a monster.
Yamato's hands moved rapidly, forming seals as chakra surged outward. "Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall!"
Thick wooden pillars curved upward from the ground, forming a reinforced arched barrier in front of him.
"Wood Release: World of Trees Wall!"
Immediately after, even larger trees erupted behind the first barrier, intertwining together to create a second, even more durable defensive layer.
Just as the defenses were completed, the attacks struck.
Boom—!
The water dragon and earth dragon slammed violently into the Wood Locking Wall, producing a thunderous roar.
Wood splintered. Cracks spread rapidly across its surface.
Then, the Great Waterfall crashed down.
The first barrier shattered under the overwhelming force.
But the remaining current, now weakened, was intercepted by the World of Trees Wall behind it, its momentum steadily dissipating.
In that narrow window, Yamato moved.
"Body Flicker Technique!"
His figure blurred as he retreated instantly, barely avoiding the Earth Spears erupting from beneath the ground.
At the same time, he formed a one-handed seal, manipulating the shape of the World of the Trees Wall, redirecting the final wave of the Exploding Water Colliding Wave off to the side.
The entire training ground was swallowed by Ninjutsu.
Water surged.
Earth shattered.
Wood splintered.
The clash of ninjutsu was deafening.
Relying on his immense chakra reserves and the flawless coordination of his Shadow Clones, Shin had unleashed a combined Ninjutsu assault equivalent to an entire squad of ninja.
Even an experienced Jonin like Yamato had been forced into full defensive mode. At that moment, he began to fully experience Shin's full strength.