"First among the freshmen?"

  Minato had never heard this title before. Until now, the top student of their year had always been Uchiha En.

  In their st battle, Minato hadn’t truly won. At the end, Uchiha En lost focus after performing a Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu, which gave Minato the chance to easily subdue him. If the battle had continued, the outcome was uncertain.

  But the other students in the academy didn’t know this. To them, it seemed like Minato had won by a slight margin.

  So, the title of the "First Freshman" naturally passed to Minato.

  Hearing this, Minato shook his head and expined, "Senpai, I'm not the 'First Freshman.' Uchiha En is very strong. I didn’t truly defeat him..."

  "But if it’s just a spar, I’m fine with that." He added, his eyes narrowing as he spoke.

  Senpai, Rope Tree, didn't know the details of their previous battle, but from Minato’s words, he thought him to be a humble person.

  Looking at the figure in front of him, which was half a head shorter than his own, Rope Tree felt a sense of encountering a worthy opponent.

  "Since that's the case, let’s begin!" Rope Tree grinned and walked toward the open ground in the backyard.

  "Minato, you..." Jiraiya’s voice trailed off. He hadn’t expected them to suddenly start sparring. It wasn’t that he opposed it, but after the intense training earlier that morning, Minato’s stamina hadn't fully recovered.

  In this state, sparring with Rope Tree could lead to injury.

  However, when he saw the determination in Minato's eyes, Jiraiya swallowed the words that had formed at the tip of his tongue.

  "Thank you, Sensei." Minato smiled gratefully, aware of Jiraiya's concern.

  It wasn’t about trying to act tough—his body’s recovery speed had exceeded his expectations. While the fatigue hadn’t completely gone, it was enough for a light spar.

  Besides, he hadn’t used any chakra during the morning’s training.

  Taking his position in the arena, Minato stood several meters away from Rope Tree and bowed. This was the customary greeting for sparring between juniors and seniors in the Hidden Leaf Vilge.

  Rope Tree slightly nodded in return, then narrowed his eyes. "Alright, I’m starting!"

  Swish!

  As soon as he finished speaking, Rope Tree charged at Minato. His speed was incredible, almost creating a gust of wind that ruffled Minato’s bangs.

  A punch headed straight for Minato’s face. From the force of the wind, it was clear that Rope Tree’s strength was formidable. His speed was even faster than Uchiha En’s.

  No surprise, considering he had trained under both Tsunade and Orochimaru!

  Minato’s own strength was considerable, but he had no intention of engaging in a direct contest of power. Plus, being younger meant he cked the same physical advantages.

  Rope Tree’s speed was astounding, but that was Minato’s strength. He swiftly dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the punch, and countered with a hand-chop aimed at Rope Tree's neck.

  Executing a straight punch left one of the hardest movements to retract, and the neck was one of the most vulnerable parts of the body. Minato didn’t need to use much force—just nding a hit would be enough to disorient his opponent, even if they didn’t lose consciousness, severely weakening their fighting ability.

  Rope Tree noticed Minato’s move out of the corner of his eye. With Minato’s speed, he realized that he wouldn’t be able to defend in time.

  But instead of retreating, Rope Tree decided to take the offensive!

  He swiftly swung his left leg back, aiming a kick at Minato.

  The two bodies collided, slightly overpping. Minato’s left side was nearly touching Rope Tree’s, so the kick was meant to destabilize Minato’s bance.

  Minato’s eyes flicked across the situation, forcing him to retract his hand-chop and jump backward to avoid the kick.

  "Impressive..."

  This fight felt even more intense than his previous duel with Uchiha En. If he had been just a fraction slower, he would have lost his bance to Rope Tree’s kick. In that case, he wouldn’t have been able to avoid the ensuing attacks, and he would have lost for sure.

  Rope Tree was equally surprised. Minato had not only neutralized his aggressive assault in an instant, but he had also attempted a counterattack, though Rope Tree had managed to block it. Still, it had been enough to impress him.

  "Well then, I’m not much of a ninjutsu user. Let’s make this a physical taijutsu battle!" Rope Tree grinned, clearly gaining more respect for Minato.

  Minato’s heart skipped a beat. While he had plenty of chakra, he didn’t know any offensive ninjutsu.

  Though he had become Jiraiya’s disciple, it seemed his teacher wasn’t keen on teaching him ninjutsu just yet.

  Even C-rank ninjutsu would likely be difficult for him to handle, just like Uchiha En’s Fireball Jutsu from their st fight.

  He could dodge it using the Body Flicker Technique, but that drained a lot of chakra.

  And speaking of chakra, he couldn't help but think of the Senju cn.

  The Senju cn’s members were born with a body that surpassed ordinary human limits, granting them immense chakra and strength.

  Rope Tree, inheriting the Senju bloodline, had already shown Minato a glimpse of his power. His chakra reserves were undoubtedly greater than Uchiha En’s, meaning his ninjutsu would be even more devastating.

  After all, he had trained under both Tsunade and Orochimaru.

  This was good news for Minato.

  Whoosh!

  Rope Tree’s words had barely finished when he unched himself at Minato again, delivering another powerful assault.

  Minato knew he couldn’t match Rope Tree’s strength head-on, but his agility and unpredictability kept him on equal footing. For a while, neither of them could get the upper hand.

  Jiraiya watched from the sidelines, clearly understanding the level both Minato and Rope Tree were at. If this were purely a spar, they were evenly matched.

  But...

  After a few exchanges, Minato found himself unable to dodge in time and took a solid punch from Rope Tree. He colpsed to the ground, his arms numb and aching from the impact.

  "Rope Tree-senpai, I lost," Minato admitted, acknowledging his defeat graciously.

  Rope Tree extended his hand, and Minato hesitated for a moment before taking it.

  Rope Tree pulled him up and said, "I can tell you were probably training with Jiraiya-sensei earlier. That’s why you were so worn out."

  Minato nodded.

  "You’re really impressive. Tsunade-nee and the others taught me for two years before I reached this level, but even though I don’t know how long you’ve been Jiraiya-sensei’s disciple, for someone your age, it’s clear that I lost."

  Rope Tree’s ughter was warm and hearty. His smile, though not as gentle as Minato’s, had a refreshing charm to it, making it hard not to like him.

  He then extended his right arm with a grin. "Fist bump! From now on, we’re friends!"