Might Guy's Shock

Uchiha Mai and Sarutobi Asuma stood on opposite sides, each raising a hand to form the Seal of Confrontation.

Konoha is a large village with many customs; ninjas are required to perform the Seal of Confrontation before formal sparring matches, the same gesture seen on the two statues at the Valley of the End.

After the fight, they must perform the Seal of Reconciliation, signifying that there is no lingering resentment and that they have made peace—a way of saying, "I hope you don't take it to heart that I beat you so badly just now."

"Go, Big Brother Asuma! Knock him to the ground!"

"Go, Boss! Smash that face of his!"

Asuma's lackeys waved their fists and shouted, cheering on their leader.

Uchiha Mai had long grown accustomed to the hostility from the boys at the ninja academy; is it my fault I'm handsome?

The girls, seeing this, were not to be outdone, waving their hands to cheer for their idol: "Mai-kun, teach that arrogant guy a lesson!"

"Mai-kun, bruise that monkey's face and let him know he's just a jerk relying on the Hokage's influence!"

In the Naruto manga or TV show from his previous life, there wasn't much description of the experiences of Kakashi's generation while at the ninja academy.

It was only mentioned that Asuma was a delinquent in his youth, quite rebellious, and after clashing with Sarutobi Hiruzen, he ran off to the capital of the Land of Fire.

Having experienced it firsthand, Uchiha Mai found that this brat Asuma was indeed quite the delinquent at the academy, spending his days acting arrogant with his little gang; while he didn't do anything truly evil, he was certainly quite annoying.

Naturally, the girls had no fondness for such a delinquent.

Seeing all the girls siding with Uchiha Mai, Asuma's face flushed bright red. Am I really that unpopular with girls?

Yuhi Kurenai looked around, and seeing everyone cheering for Uchiha Mai, she also raised her hand and called out timidly: "Mai-kun, be careful."

"Pfft!" That was the sound of Asuma's heart being stabbed.

Seeing that the atmosphere had been sufficiently stoked, their teacher, Murakami Keining, raised his hand and brought it down sharply, shouting: "Begin!"

Asuma was just about to rush forward to bruise Uchiha Mai's face when he saw Uchiha Mai adopt a strange posture, bouncing on the spot, and he abruptly halted his steps.

Uchiha Mai held his left fist forward, level with his shoulder, with his elbow bent at roughly a 90-degree angle, while his right fist was held back to guard his jaw, his head tucked slightly down.

His torso remained upright, but because his waist was slightly bent, his upper body leaned forward. His legs were also staggered, one in front and one behind, knees slightly bent, with his feet parallel and spaced roughly shoulder-width apart.

What kind of strange stance is this? Asuma was momentarily confused.

"Mai's stance looks a bit ugly; it doesn't suit that infuriating face of his," Obito remarked from the sidelines.

"How is this ugly? Don't talk if you don't understand," Yuhi Kurenai turned and glared at Obito, scolding him.

Obito shut his mouth obediently, thinking to himself that if anyone else had struck that pose, she would have called it ugly long before he did.

Might Guy observed Uchiha Mai intently for a long time, then suddenly, his excitement and joy overflowed, tears streaming down his face: "Ah, I understand! I understand!

I am not the only ninja in the school who specializes in taijutsu, and taijutsu is not a technique practiced only by losers with no talent for ninjutsu!"

Might Guy's expressions were always overt, passionate, and positive; this shout drew everyone's attention, including Asuma, who was facing off against Uchiha Mai.

"Damn bowl-cut, what did you understand?" Obito asked suspiciously.

Might Guy wiped away the tears shed from his overwhelming excitement and explained passionately: "Although Mai's stance looks strange, it is actually a highly sophisticated taijutsu preparatory posture.

His left fist is forward for probing and attacking; his right fist is held back to guard his chin while also being ready to deliver a heavy blow at a critical moment—retracting the fist allows for a more powerful strike.

The chin is a vulnerable part of the human body; once struck hard, one can easily be knocked unconscious. To further protect this weakness, Uchiha Mai has even tucked his head down.

At the same time, his knees are slightly bent to better generate power. His feet are staggered but parallel, which maximizes his balance.

Overall, this is a stance that allows for both offense and defense in a direct taijutsu confrontation."

Seeing Uchiha Mai practice taijutsu made Might Guy happier than anyone.

For a long time, taijutsu ninjas had not been valued by the major ninja villages; Might Guy's own father, Might Duy, remained a genin even in his later years because he lacked talent for ninjutsu.

No one knew better than Might Guy how powerful his father, Might Duy, truly was. After opening the Eight Inner Gates, Might Duy could defeat ordinary chunin with absolute ease.

Like Might Duy, Might Guy lacked talent for ninjutsu, yet he always viewed his father as his idol, firmly believing that one could become a powerful ninja using only taijutsu.

It was just that because he looked a bit goofy and couldn't use ninjutsu, he was never well-regarded by his classmates at the academy and was often discriminated against.

Now that the academy idol Uchiha Mai was also practicing taijutsu, let's see what you all have to say now?

That's an Uchiha, for heaven's sake!

"Oh." Obito just nodded, not really understanding but feeling it was impressive, then turned his gaze back to the two facing off.

The reactions of the other students were almost identical to Obito's; they didn't think Might Guy was amazing, nor did they think taijutsu was amazing, just because of his explanation.

They only thought Uchiha Mai was amazing for having researched such a cool thing at such a young age.

Might Guy still didn't understand this world—everything depends on one's face.

"Offense and defense? I don't believe it."

On the field, Sarutobi Asuma gritted his teeth; hearing Might Guy praise Uchiha Mai only made him more resentful. What does a pretty boy know about taijutsu?

Asuma lunged forward, throwing a punch toward Uchiha Mai's face.

Uchiha Mai's pupils constricted slightly; he tilted his head back just enough to dodge Asuma's fist, then landed a quick, precise light punch to Asuma's cheek, bruising it on the spot.

"Good!"

Inside the office, Sarutobi Hiruzen clapped in approval. I've been wanting to teach this little brat a lesson for a long time.

Uchiha Mai landed his strike and immediately retreated two steps, putting distance between himself and Asuma again without rushing to press the attack.

"Hiss~"

Asuma sucked in a cold breath of pain, tears nearly welling up in his eyes; how was this pretty boy's punch so accurate?

Having taken a hit, Asuma learned his lesson and stopped rushing to attack, instead circling Uchiha Mai with a solemn expression, searching for an opening.

Uchiha Mai smiled; Mayweather's fighting techniques were still highly effective, at least in battles between genin.

Genin were inexperienced, their hand seal speed was lacking, and their chakra reserves were insufficient, so they mostly relied on taijutsu to brawl.

The occasional ninjutsu they used was nothing more than common techniques like the Body Flicker, Body Replacement, or Transformation, so the outcome was ultimately decided by taijutsu.

At this stage, Mayweather's boxing techniques could play a massive role. Even if a ninja battle wasn't a boxing match, the principle remained the same.

The boxing stance could be applied just as effectively to unrestricted mixed martial arts and kickboxing.

Furthermore, the most important aspects were philosophy and intelligence.

Just as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is known as "human chess," boxing is not merely a contest of strength; many of its techniques and combat insights were well worth borrowing.