Dieyewasi

"How about it? Would he become complacent and arrogant?"

"Probably not. People who know gratitude also know humility."

"Easy for you to say. If he loses himself in this glory, it could ruin him."

"Ahem, no need to worry. Kakashi is still there."

"Kakashi?"

At that moment, Genma, Ebisu, and Kamise Yushi had gathered together. Rather than cheering for Might Guy with the others, they were analyzing the downsides of his participation in the competition.

The Daimyo of the Land of This was simply too farsighted. Whether it was the Gourmet Competition or the Imperial Martial Competition, both were rare forms of entertainment in this era, but they also served as excellent stages that inspired people to strive and work hard. It was very easy to gain a sense of honor on such a stage.

Kamise Yushi clearly did not know about the complicated relationship between Might Guy and Kakashi. Speaking of which, he had been the one who brought the two of them together to discuss things.

But what exactly the relationship between Might Guy and Kakashi was, no one could say clearly. Perhaps it was pure and innocent, but perhaps there was also some indescribable meaning hidden within it.

After giving his thanks, Might Guy stepped off the stage and immediately threw himself back into training, as though he had completely forgotten what had just happened. Yushi, who had wanted to talk to him, opened his mouth but did not know what to say.

Might Guy was still the same Might Guy. No matter how much glory he received, he remained the most hardworking one. Once Yushi understood that, he stopped worrying and turned his attention to Dieyewasi's fight.

Dieyewasi, like Ebisu, had been targeted, and even more viciously at that.

After all, with Ebisu, Might Guy, and Washi gathered together, it was easy for others to guess that they knew one another.

Though everyone was shocked by the three boys' ages, no one would underestimate them anymore. As a result, Washi was heavily targeted.

Dieyewasi had originally wanted to fight a prolonged battle like Ebisu, but those people had prepared for one as well. They chased him while looking for chances to rest.

The two opponents took turns attacking, their coordination growing more polished by the moment.

Dieyewasi quickly fell into a difficult situation and had no way to break it. He was not Might Guy; he could not perform the Body Flicker without Chakra. Thus, he could only choose to go all out.

He calculated the pattern of changes in the distance between his two opponents, then rushed toward the one closest to him when the two were relatively far apart.

He had not intended to land a decisive blow. His punch was merely meant to test the other man's response and look for an opening. However, his opponent had far more combat experience and deliberately maintained a defensive stance after blocking the attack.

Dieyewasi still ended up facing two opponents alone, and what awaited him was a genuine hard fight. As the saying went, do not bully an honest person. If you truly drove an honest person into a corner, the consequences would be severe.

Compared with the other three-person melees, this one seemed fiercer than any before it.

Because he was shorter, Washi focused entirely on attacking their lower bodies. This prevented the other two from fighting freely, forcing them to guard against threats from below from time to time.

However, their arms were longer, and every strike that could reach Washi landed on him. Before long, his face had swollen up like a pig's head.

Yet surprisingly, Washi did not make a sound from beginning to end. He bit down hard on his lower lip until blood seeped out.

That made the two men surrounding him feel their scalps tingle.

What was wrong with kids these days?

Did they have to be this tough, this full of fighting spirit!?

The longer they fought Washi, the more their hearts trembled. They truly felt a little ashamed—two grown men joining forces to bully a child. When Washi began to sway unsteadily, one of them hurriedly said, "That's enough. Stop forcing yourself. We don't want to hit you anymore."

The man had sought the other's agreement beforehand. It could be said that neither of them had any fighting spirit left toward Washi.

When Washi remained silent for a long time, the other man hurriedly said, "You're still a child. This match is important to us, but you have plenty of chances ahead of you. There are competitions this afternoon too. If you keep holding on like this, it won't do you any good."

Dieyewasi lifted his terribly swollen eyelids and drew a difficult breath. "I... I held everyone back, but I can't back down just because it's hard. At the very least... at least I have to defeat one of you!"

Neither man really understood what the boy meant, while Dieyewasi imagined his teammates around him all trapped in difficult situations. He himself was already struggling to remain standing. If he fell now, what would happen to his teammates?

This was what he had always worried about~

All along, he had felt that he was the one holding the team back. He was not good at communicating, and his Taijutsu was not as good as Might Guy's. During missions, Ebisu and Might Guy usually played the major roles, while he always performed without anything remarkable. Though he never said it aloud, he would always reflect on himself after every task.

And he would often conclude that he had held everyone back, which was why he now possessed a persistence beyond anything he had shown before.

"Ebisu, what's wrong with Washi...?"

Might Guy stared in shock at Washi, who was swaying in the arena yet still stubbornly fighting. Washi was usually quiet and unassuming, but the determination he displayed now left even Might Guy amazed—and deeply worried.

"Maybe... he has something he refuses to give up on too." Ebisu frowned. He also could not understand what Dieyewasi was persisting for, so that was all he could tell Might Guy.

He would never believe that someone like Washi, who was willing to quietly contribute without recognition, would stubbornly endure just because losing the match was embarrassing.

Besides, injuries of that severity could not be endured merely out of fear of losing face. Seeing what Washi was going through and how he persisted, Ebisu even felt slightly moved. He did not know where that feeling came from; he only felt that the small figure seemed very dependable now.

Yushi, the temporary captain, along with Genma and the others, were also worried about Washi.

Kurenai and Genma knew Washi better than Raiton did, and they likewise did not believe someone with such a good mentality would stubbornly hold on simply because he feared losing the match.

Raiton often shamelessly ate Washi's snacks, but he also knew that those snacks did not truly belong to him until they entered his stomach.

All things considered, he was very fond of Washi as well, but he was equally stunned that Washi insisted on continuing the fight like this.

He suddenly felt that honest people were not so easy to bully after all. Thinking of how he had eaten other people's food without a care in the past, his spine now felt a little cold.

Everyone watched the duel on the stage with tense hearts. Not only Yushi's group of six, but the audience and contestants alike were shocked by Washi's persistence, holding their breath one after another.

Noticing the deathly silence around them, Washi's two opponents also sensed that something was wrong. They exchanged a glance, gritted their teeth, and threw their fists at Washi.

They truly had no choice. Bullying a child and facing one opponent with two people was already embarrassing enough, yet their opponent was tough as iron. Now they had even less face to show anyone, so they went wild, veins bulging in their arms as they used every ounce of their strength.

"Bang!"

Both fists landed, yet it was like sinking stones into the sea—there was no effect whatsoever.

To their surprise, the person before them was a scar-faced man staring at them with a gloomy expression. He paid no attention at all to the full-force fists that had struck his body.

The two men froze completely.

As wild thoughts began to swirl through their minds about the relationship between this man and the boy, the man turned around, crouched down, and straightened Dieyewasi's clothes.

"Alright, you've already done exceptionally well. Your teacher is proud of you, Washi~"

"Teach... er, I..."

"It's alright. You already possess a strong enough heart. You're still young, and your strength will gradually improve."

At that moment, sunlight shone across Baiyun Yano's face, giving him an indescribable warmth. It made Washi stop struggling with himself, though tears began streaming down his face.

"This... how could you..."

"Referee, he has conceded. Sorry for interrupting the match~"

Before the referee could rebuke him, Noma solemnly bowed in apology.

"Fine, then. Get down quickly."

"Thanks~"

With that, Noma supported Washi and slowly helped him off the stage.

"Alright, he's gone. Continue the match!"

The referee looked at the two stunned contestants, both disdainful and angry.

Bullying a child was one thing, but the boy had already left and they were still standing there spacing out. What a waste of time!

By then, Washi had reached the area below the stage, where he was greeted by treatment from a group of half-baked doctors.

Of the eight of them, not one knew Medical Ninjutsu. The two teachers could only hastily handle his injuries using some wilderness first-aid methods. Genma took out some ointment and even stuck a few needles into Washi.

Throughout the entire process, Dieyewasi did not change his sitting posture or move much at all. He practically let everyone do as they pleased, just short of having the word "obedient" written across his face.

After the treatment, Washi's head was wrapped so thoroughly in bandages that he barely looked human anymore.

The seven of them tactfully avoided mentioning the competition and started finding other things to talk about.

The perceptive Ebisu first sniffed the air, then turned his gaze toward Noma, who had returned.

Noma had been acting strangely ever since he came back. He kept covering his neck and wiping at something, his expression somewhat unnatural.

So Ebisu leaned close to Washi's ear and asked, "Hey, Washi, do you remember whether there was anything on Sensei's neck when he went up on the stage?"

Prompted by Ebisu, Washi looked at Noma and began to recall.

He remembered that Noma had taken two punches head-on. Later, when he turned around, the sunlight shining on him had been a little dazzling, but Washi had still seen him clearly enough.

He distinctly remembered that the spot Noma was covering now seemed to have red circles on it.

He did not understand what they were, nor did he find them strange. After all, plenty of people in Konohagakure painted markings on their faces. Maybe they were special neck markings~

So he said, "They were red circles. There seemed to be a lot of them, and some parts overlapped. It was a very strange pattern~"

"Ahem, I understand. Um... it's nothing. Just focus on recovering. By the way, we still have a mission in a few days~" Ebisu was mature for his age, so how could he not know what they were? While finding it amusing, he also had many thoughts.

"Ebisu, sorry. I held you all back again~"

"Uh, Washi, why would you say that? Might Guy and I both think you're very dependable. You know? When you fought so relentlessly, I was thinking that if we were on a battlefield, you, Washi, would fight just as desperately to protect us, right?"

"Ah, is... that so?" Dieyewasi opened his mouth, his eyes instantly filling with tears. "Yeah, I won't let anyone hurt you. We're teammates, members of Fifth Squad!"

"Ha, Washi, stop talking. Eat more of your snacks and recover properly~" As Ebisu spoke, he stuffed several dried sweet potatoes into Washi's hands.

"Mmm~ Thank you~"

I suddenly feel like writing about bonds is gradually turning gay...