The combat test, the final part of the practical exam, finally started for real.
A lineup of several experienced chunin stood ready to put the smack on the prospective genin, rotating between themselves to make sure none of them tired out and so the students could not figure out their opponent's fighting style and moves before their turn.
Shiki was fully prepared to wait a while before his turn came, much like in the previous tests, but this time around . . .
"Ryumon Shiki!" The chunin teacher called out the first name that was "randomly" selected.
The white haired boy had a surprised face but stepped forward without delay.
'Being the first is definitely disadvantageous since I haven't seen any of the examiners fight and they are all fully rested and filled with energy but . . .' He eyed each chunin in the lineup.
'I don't think it will matter.' Shiki determined.
"You are allowed to use any of your skills as well as basic ninja tools. No explosive tags if you have them." The teacher warned and the boy's opponent for the exam stepped forward.
He was the most physically imposing of the lineup, near two meters tall but not lanky, instead being built like a brick shithouse. His face was squarish with thick eyebrows and short dark brown hair covered by his headband which he used as a kerchief or bandana.
The man was wearing the standard Konoha shinobi uniform with the Second Great Shinobi war era grey flack jacket over a mesh lined shirt and pants, complemented by standard shinobi sandals and gloves with a metal plate on the back of the hand.
"The name is Domaru. Let's see what you got, kid." The chunin introduced himself with a big smile.
"I'll be in your care." Shiki replied.
Meanwhile, his thoughts were different.
'I didn't notice anything before but did he just look in Danzo's general direction?' The white haired boy questioned.
'Maybe I'm just being paranoid but this guy is my worst matchup in this situation where I'm hiding most of my jutsu and cannot simply stab the guy to death. His endurance and strong build will make landing a decisive blow quite hard . . .' He paused.
'Better safe than sorry.' Shiki decided.
Poor Domaru. He was just here for one last mission as an Elite Chunin before being promoted to Special Jonn for his impressive combat record.
No sinister intent, no special plans, no worries at all.
And now, an abnormal Academy student was brainstorming ways to pack him with the kind of brutal efficiency that would make the higher ups question if Domaru was truly ready for that promotion.
'He looks relaxed and not on guard. Probably underestimates me since I'm just a four year old brat.' Shiki began analyzing.
Kukyo allowed him to process information at an extreme speed, he could make a detailed battle plan in an instant so the few moments before the starting signal was given, were more than enough for him to analyze and make his initial plan of attack.
'In terms of ability, with my jutsu restraints, he probably has me beat but not by much. He is not a clan ninja so he shouldn't have any really impressive jutsu at this stage of his career. Obviously, his strength and endurance are superior but I should still be more agile but not by much.'
'Most importantly, he has me beat in combat experience and the difference is probably not small. My only chance of getting a quick win is to blitz him at the start of the fight. Take him down with a combo attack before he can figure out my level and adjust.'
Coming to a conclusion, Shiki quickly thought of a specific plan of attack and then focused on the battle, just waiting for the starting signal with bated breath.
The poor ignorant Domaru got in stance too but he still had no idea what was coming.
'The kid looks quite serious! Let's see if this little genius lives up to the hype.' He casually thought.
Clearly, Shiki's name was already becoming known amongst certain shinobi circles but not enough to make an elite chunin like him take the white haired boy as a serious threat in combat.
"Make the confrontation seal." The chunin teacher on the side commanded.
Shiki and Domaru obliged, holding the seal up in front of them with their right hands.
"Start!"
In a flash, the white haired boy's hand shot out, launching a kunai with impressive force and speed targeted to center mass but more to the left side of Domaru's torso.
But with the distance between him and his opponent, it was still easy to dodge which the older man did, casually sidestepping to the right since the kunai was more to his left.
A smile still occupied his face and a sharp sound of clashing metal wiped off in an instant.
Hidden in the shadow of the first kunai, was another thrown with even more force.
'Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" Domaru realized.
The second kunai impacted the first at a calculated angle redirecting it straight towards the location the man had dodged towards.
'The kid purposely threw to my left, goading me to dodge to the right and step right in front of his second attack.' The chunin analyzed.
Still, it was far from enough as Domaru pulled out a kunai of his own and swatted Shiki's flying kunai away like nothing.
However, this was still the set up for Shiki's decisive strike.
The moment he tossed out his kunai, the white haired boy body flickered to the position he predicted Domaru would dodge to and after deflecting his second kunai, the man was open.
Using his momentum for extra force since he was hiding his Flicker Flash, Shiki struck at the older man's gut with a flying punch.
But the chunin was an experienced fighter, while he was a bit shaken by the unexpected string of attacks, his instincts were one point.
Not wanting to stab an academy student, rather than use the kunai in his right hand, he instead threw a mean left counter with a balled up fist.
But to his shock, it went right through the boy's body.
'When did he make the clone!?'
In truth, when Shiki body flickered to Domaru's position, he instantly made a clone with no hand seals and made it throw a flying punch while his real body, hidden behind the clone, quickly slid between the chunin's legs, utilizing the massive size difference to take the man's back.
Hitting nothing but air made Domaru's already slightly unstable stance even more unbalanced but now instinctively in serious combat mode, he made a back kick with his full strength on pure reflex.
The feeling of hitting something with a crunching sound immediately woke him from his combat state.
'I just hit the kid with full force.' He worriedly thought.
He was not concerned with the consequences for himself but for the kid in question.
Unfortunately for the man, said kid lacked any such considerations.
The crunch came from a log Shiki had substituted for and he was now in Domaru's blind spot while floating in mid hair from a jump.
With no mercy, he struck out with his left elbow, his right hand palming his left fist for extra power and precisely struck the back of the chunin's head.
The man had not even seen the last attack coming.
To Domaru, one second he was worrying about having struck his young opponent with too much force one second and next thing he knew, everything faded to black.
The reactions from the audience were immediate.
+++++
Hey, Author here!
Just a reminder that you can read up to a FULL MONTH ahead of this site on pa-treon.
I'm trying to become a full time Author now and I'm not going to be starting any new novels just so I can make sure this one is properly completed.
Find those sweet advanced chapters on pa-treon.com/lusoba without the -