Naruto : Back to the Past

"Naruto, would it be okay for you to have a match with Sarada Uchiha?" Iruka sensei asked. He had heard from the Hokage that Naruto was very skilled, but he wanted to see it for himself. That's why he chose Sarada Uchiha for Naruto to spar with — she was the top student in their class.

"It's fine by me," Naruto replied in an easygoing manner.

Sarada gave a quick nod in agreement. She had been eager to test her skills against this new blond-haired ninja to see what he was all about.

"Okay, but let's go over the rules one more time. You can't use any Ninjutsu or illusion techniques, okay? Just hand-to-hand combat. We'll stop the fight if one of you can't keep going or gives up."

"With that said, you two can start."

Sarada rushed towards Naruto and swung her left fist at him. Naruto smoothly moved to the side, avoiding her punch without any trouble.

'She's quite quick,' he thought, noting that Sarada was even swifter than Hinata.

Without missing a beat, Sarada spun her body around, bringing her right leg up in a sideways kick aimed right at Naruto.

The strength behind Sarada's kick was intense, sending a whoosh of air with it. But Naruto didn't even seem to flinch as he caught her leg in his hand. He could have used this moment to win the match, but instead, he gently let go of her leg, signaling he wanted the spar to continue.

Catching the slight smile on Naruto's face, Sarada realized he was giving her a chance to keep going. A spark of annoyance flickered in her – 'This guy...' – but she was also eager to prove herself.

Sarada wasn't about to give up. She took a deep breath and focused, then launched into a series of new moves. She tried a swift, straight punch, aiming right for Naruto's chest. But Naruto stepped to the side, dodging easily.

She followed up with a quick, low sweep with her leg, trying to knock Naruto off his feet. But he jumped, lightly hopping over her leg and landing smoothly.

Next, Sarada attempted a combination of moves she had been perfecting for a while. She feinted a punch, then spun around, aiming a high kick towards Naruto's head. But again, Naruto bent backward, just far enough to avoid the kick, his balance never wavering.

Growing frustrated but still determined, Sarada tried a different tactic. She moved in close to Naruto, her fists and feet flying in a flurry of strikes from all angles. She was like a whirlwind, but Naruto was like the calm at the center. He moved back and forth, side to side, his body swaying gently like a reed in the wind, never touched by the storm of her attacks.

Every attempt Sarada made was met with Naruto's effortless dodges. Her strikes were fast and well-practiced, but Naruto seemed to predict them every time, always one step ahead.

"Wow, check out Naruto!"

"He's avoiding every single one of Sarada's moves. It's incredible!"

"Yeah, I can't see any way for Sarada to beat him at this rate."

These were just some of the comments whispered by classmates as they watched the spar with wide eyes. Sarada was known to be really good at Taijutsu, but against Naruto, her skills just didn't seem to be enough. It was clear to everyone watching that Naruto was effortlessly dodging her attacks.

"I can't believe how fast Naruto is, even with only one arm!"

"Is there anything Sarada can do to hit him? It seems impossible!"

Iruka, watching from the side, was deep in thought. 'The Hokage was right about Naruto being extraordinary,' he mused. As their teacher, he hoped this experience would push Sarada to train even harder, to reach a level where she could challenge Naruto successfully.

"Whoa... Naruto's really strong," Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, and Shino couldn't hide their surprise. They had always known Sarada as the best in Taijutsu in their class. But now, they were seeing something completely new. For the first time, they saw Sarada, who they all thought of as a genius, having a tough time in a match against Naruto.

Around the room, many of the girls started shouting out cheers for Naruto, impressed by his skills.

Sakura, who was standing next to Ino, didn't join in the cheering. She was too busy arguing with Ino about something else while they watched the match.

Hinata, though she really wanted to cheer for Naruto, felt too shy to shout out loud. But her twin sister, Hanabi, watched Naruto with keen interest. She hadn't expected him to be so skilled in Taijutsu.

In their class, Hanabi was often compared to Sarada in Taijutsu skills. Even though she had never beaten Sarada in their practice fights, Hanabi had always come very close. Seeing Naruto's performance, she was both surprised and intrigued.

Around 20 minutes later, Sarada was panting. This was the first time, Sarada had been in such a situation. Forget about winning, she couldn't even land an attack on Naruto. 

Huff!!! Huff!!!!

"Let's stop this spar. The winner already has been decided." Iruka said. 

However, Sarada was very stubborn. She did not want to lose. "But I can still keep going," Sarada said to Iruka-sensei. 

"Sarada, others also need some chance to spar. Also, by now, it should be clear that you cannot defeat Naruto." Iruka knew that his words might be harsh but Sarada needed to understand and accept the reality of the situation. There was no way that she could defeat Naruto. 

But Sarada felt that she could still win once she activated her Sharingan. But she never used her Sharingan in a spar. Just like Hanabi and Hinata never used their Byakugan in their spars. This was an unspoken rule. 

"How can you be so strong when you're the same age as me?" Sarada asked Naruto, her curiosity clear in her voice.

Naruto responded with a simple, friendly smile. "I've spent a lot of time training," he said.

Watching from a distance, Iruka sensed that Naruto was downplaying his abilities. He had a feeling that even he, a teacher, might not be able to hit Naruto, despite Naruto having only one arm.

As he looked at Sarada, Naruto thought back to his own experiences. 'The Taijutsu battles I had in my world, especially during the war, make this feel like playing as kids,' he reflected. He kept these thoughts to himself, though, not wanting to discourage Sarada.

"The next match will be between Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka." At these words, Ino and Sakura exchanged sharp looks, their competitive spirits flaring up. They both walked determinedly towards the practice area. Meanwhile, Naruto and Sarada joined their classmates on the sidelines, ready to watch the next match.

"I won't lose to you next time," Sarada declared, feeling a surge of competitiveness. This was her first loss in a Taijutsu match and it lit a fire in her. She was determined to practice even harder so she could beat Naruto one day.

"You can always try," Naruto replied, still smiling.

"Hmph!!!" Sarada just huffed and walked off, still feeling the sting of her loss.

"I'm going to beat you so bad, you silly Pig!" Sakura shouted, her eyes fixed on Ino.

"Yeah, right, Billboard Brow!" Ino shot back, ready to face Sakura.

As their spar started, Naruto couldn't help but notice that both Sakura and Ino's Taijutsu skills were not very impressive.

'Sakura isn't from a well-known clan, so maybe she hasn't had great teachers for Taijutsu. But what about Ino? She's supposed to be the future leader of the Yamanaka clan. Doesn't she train in Taijutsu?' Naruto wondered to himself, watching them with a critical eye.

Naruto decided to leave the sparring area and walked over to where Shikamaru and the others were. They were all gathered under a tree, watching the ongoing fight.

Choji was munching on potato chips, his attention split between the bag in his hand and the match.

Shikamaru was sitting with his back against the tree trunk, looking as bored as he usually did.

Kiba stood near Choji, and his loyal dog, Akamaru, was lying on the ground close to Shikamaru, enjoying a rest.

Shino was next to Kiba, surrounded by many tiny bugs that buzzed around him, creating a somewhat eerie scene.

"Hey, guys! What's the deal with Ino and Sakura? Did something happen to make them so mad at each other?" Naruto asked, curious about the heated exchange he was witnessing. At that moment, Sakura and Ino were in a tangle, each pulling the other's hair fiercely. Watching this, Naruto felt his eye twitch again at the sight of their messy fight.

'I don't know if at this point this should be even considered a Taijutsu fight.' Naruto thought.

"They've always been like that for as long as I could remember," Shikamaru answered in his usual laid-back way.

"The name is Shikamaru from the Nara clan." he introduced himself to Naruto, the new student in their class.

"I'm Choji, from the Akimichi clan." Choji offered. "Hey, Naruto, do you want some chips?" Naruto accepted a chip from Choji and ate it.

"And I'm Kiba from the Inuzuka clan. This little guy here is my dog, Akamaru."

Woof!

Akamaru barked, his white fur shining in the sunlight as if he was saying hello to Naruto in his own way.

"This is Shino." Shino was more on the quiet side and didn't talk much. He simply nodded his head towards Naruto, a silent form of saying hello without using words.

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Shika, Choji, Kiba, and Shino all look the same. [They wore the same dress and had the same hairstyle as they did during Naruto Shippuden.]