Talent System In The Naruto Universe

The abruptly concluded battle left everyone both shocked and puzzled.

Hanekawa's genjutsu had only affected Sarutobi Asuma, and from the spectators' perspective, the fight seemed utterly bizarre.

Asuma had suddenly stopped moving, standing frozen in place.

Then Hanekawa simply walked up to him with a kunai and won effortlessly.

The crowd had anticipated two possible outcomes:

1. Asuma achieving a one-sided victory.

2. Hanekawa revealing hidden skills, resulting in a closely contested match.

But no one had imagined the fight would end like this.

"So strong!"

Rin Nohara exclaimed in awe.

Among all types of ninjutsu, aside from Kekkei Genkai, medical ninjutsu and genjutsu were the hardest to master.

For Hanekawa to learn genjutsu at such a young age meant he was undoubtedly a genius among geniuses.

Kakashi Hatake nodded slightly at her words.

For the first time, his interest was piqued.

Previously, after defeating Asuma, Kakashi had struggled to find a worthy opponent and was prepared to graduate early.

Now he had a new goal: to defeat Hanekawa before graduating.

"It's just genjutsu!"

Obito Uchiha grumbled in defiance at Rin's admiration. "No genjutsu can stand against the Sharingan!"

"Say that after you awaken it," Kakashi replied casually.

"I will awaken it!"

Obito's face turned red with frustration.

Unlike the Byakugan, awakening the Sharingan required specific talent. So far, Obito had shown no signs of activating it.

"I believe in you, Obito," Rin said gently, trying to diffuse the tension. "Your potential is no less than anyone else's."

"Heh!"

Obito immediately broke into a goofy smile, his frustration vanishing.

"Let's go," Kakashi said, turning away. "I'll treat you to dinner, Rin."

Obito froze, realizing too late that he had lost their bet.

Crap!

His heart ached at the thought.

This time, he had lost completely.

"Obito," Rin called back to him with a kind smile. "Come with us."

"I don't mind," Kakashi added indifferently.

"Rin!"

Obito was overwhelmed with emotion.

As the fight wrapped up, the other students began to leave, their curiosity satisfied.

Only Kurenai Yuhi ran excitedly toward Hanekawa.

Whoever said genjutsu wasn't powerful? Genjutsu was amazing!

"Hanekawa!"

Kurenai's face was flushed like a red apple as she called out to him.

Hanekawa snapped out of his thoughts and smiled at her.

He had been distracted by the newly triggered trait:

[E-Rank Talent: Storm Series]

Trigger Condition: Defeat Young Sarutobi Asuma.

Effect: Increases Wind Release talent by 10%.

The new trait had been an unexpected surprise.

He hadn't thought defeating opponents could trigger new abilities.

Although the bonus was only 10%, it gave him many new ideas.

If he defeated Kakashi, would he gain a Lightning Release talent?

And if he beat a stronger version of Asuma in the future, would the Wind Release bonus increase further?

---

"Asuma," Hanekawa said sincerely, "you're amazing. If you had held out a little longer, I would've run out of chakra and lost."

This was a lie.

Hanekawa needed Asuma to keep challenging him so he could unlock more traits.

The best way to achieve that was to give him hope, to make him feel like victory was just within reach.

Asuma froze in confusion.

What does this mean? Was this a gesture of goodwill?

But… there was no way he could accept that!

"I'll be back!"

Asuma declared, glancing at Kurenai before storming off.

He felt utterly defeated, his world shattered.

---

Asuma returned home in silence.

Pushing open the door, he changed his shoes and walked straight to his room without saying a word.

"Asuma," called Hiruzen Sarutobi, his father. "Why didn't you greet me?"

Asuma ignored him entirely, not even lifting his head.

"…"

Hiruzen's face stiffened.

He was used to Asuma being a bit rebellious, but today of all days, there were guests present.

He had even been planning to reward him with a fancy gift.

"Old man, it's rare to see you so flustered," said a voice teasingly. "What happened this time?"

Sounds of faint laughter echoed through the room.

"Excuse me for the embarrassment, Tsunade," Sarutobi Hiruzen said awkwardly.

As the Third Hokage, he had rarely faced such humiliation in front of his students.

"It's nothing," Tsunade replied casually. "Kids are like that."

Then, her tone shifted. "But it seems like Asuma ran into something unusual."

Hiruzen thought back to Asuma's earlier behavior. It was indeed odd.

After a moment's reflection, he gave a command: "Haru, investigate the matter."

Tsunade was his former student, and since things had already reached this point, he saw no need to hide anything from her.

"In the meantime, how's Minato's recovery?" Hiruzen asked.

"He's fine now," Tsunade replied with a confident smile. "With me handling it, you don't need to worry."

"True," Hiruzen said, frowning slightly. "But I didn't expect Minato to be so gravely injured."

"When the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki loses control, anything can happen," Tsunade said, shaking her head. "Fortunately, he had the Flying Raijin Jutsu. Otherwise, the damage would have been catastrophic."

At this, Hiruzen's expression turned grim with lingering fear.

If Kushina Uzumaki had reached Konoha while in that state, the chaos would have been unimaginable.

---

"Lord Hokage."

A knock on the door broke the tension.

Haru, a masked Anbu ninja, stepped inside and handed over a scroll.

Without a doubt, it contained the results of the investigation into Asuma.

Hiruzen, curious, opened the scroll.

Let's see what's going on.

Given Asuma's background and skill, it was unlikely he'd face bullying at school.

But as he read, Hiruzen let out a soft sound of surprise.

He lost to Hanekawa?

The thought was absurd.

Asuma's talent wasn't top-tier, but it was solid enough.

Most importantly, he had already been training for over six months.

Before entering the academy, Asuma had received instruction from elite jōnin.

And Hanekawa?

He had only been learning for a week.

The only explanation was that Hanekawa was an exceptionally rare genjutsu prodigy.

On top of that, his demeanor was commendable.

After defeating Asuma, he hadn't gloated. Instead, he had tried to console him.

An idea struck Hiruzen's mind.

This was an opportunity.

A chance to mend his strained relationship with Asuma.

---

"Finished reading?" Tsunade extended her hand.

Hiruzen passed her the scroll without hesitation.

"A first-year student mastering genjutsu?" Tsunade scanned the report and raised an eyebrow. "Seems like we've got another genius on our hands."

"Indeed," Hiruzen said, standing up. "I'm going to speak with Asuma."

"Alright." Tsunade set the scroll down and added, "I'll go check how Lady Biwako is doing with dinner."

She was referring to Hiruzen's wife, Biwako Sarutobi.

---

"Asuma," Hiruzen called, knocking on his son's door.

"Not here!" came the muffled reply, dripping with frustration.

"Don't you want to defeat Hanekawa?" Hiruzen asked after a brief pause. "I can teach you how to break genjutsu."

Silence fell between them.

After a moment, the door creaked open.

Asuma stood there, his face tense. "Speak. Quickly!"

Seeing this, Hiruzen's lips curled into a smile.

Hanekawa, you're a good kid.

--

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