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"Light, I can see again, that's great!"

At Training Ground 42, when Might Guy saw the light again, he couldn't help but feel tears welling up.

This time, it wasn't out of emotion, but because his eyes were involuntarily shedding tears.

"This guy, I thought I was going blind!"

Asuma rubbed his aching eyes in frustration. He had only intended to watch a match, never expecting such an incident.

"Senior, your brother is truly unpredictable." Although Uchiha Itachi was also affected, he said with a smile.

Kakashi rubbed his affected right eye and said, "He's just a little clever, but this move reminds me of the Lightning Style Illusion Jutsu - Lightning Illusion Flash Pillar."

"In that case, Gu Qi is still holding a grudge about what happened before!" Kurenai said.

"What happened before?" Itachi asked curiously.

Kakashi said calmly, "Last year, Gu Qi had a conflict with an envoy from Kumogakure. He was seriously injured but survived."

Uchiha Itachi suddenly understood. Last year's incident had caused quite a stir, but he hadn't expected Gu Qi to be involved.

"I didn't expect Senior's brother to be so powerful!" Uchiha Itachi praised sincerely.

Kakashi shook his head, "Although he's powerful, he's not as powerful as you."

"Senior flatters me."

While they were chatting, the situation on the training ground changed again.

"Not bad, little brother, I didn't expect your skills to be so much better now." Anko said as she blocked Gu Qi's flying kick.

Gu Qi shot her a glare. He was already somewhat exhausted and didn't want to waste energy talking to her.

Gu Qi was only five years old. Although he had been trained by Might Guy for a long time, his body hadn't fully developed yet, and stamina remained one of his weaknesses.

"Kid, surrender! You've already earned my approval. I promise I'll go easy on you this time," Anko said.

Gu Qi didn't reply and launched another Konoha Whirlwind kick.

"If that's the case, then don't blame me for being impolite!" Anko smiled slightly and began to form hand seals again.

"Fire Style - Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"

Fist-sized fireballs were spat from Anko's mouth, scattering in all directions towards Gu Qi.

This completely blocked Gu Qi's movement path, forcing him to advance only through the gaps between the fireballs.

"I'm not afraid of you! Rasengan, Shield of Protection!"

Gu Qi refused to back down, quickly gathering Chakra in his right palm. Soon, a blue ball of Chakra appeared.

Then, Gu Qi's left hand wasn't idle either; a light blue shield was released.

"To release two ninjutsu simultaneously, it's simply unbelievable!" Asuma watched Gu Qi in shock, not even noticing the cigarette that fell from his mouth.

"Kakashi, in terms of ninjutsu mastery, Gu Qi's talent might have already surpassed yours," Might Guy said with his arms crossed.

Kakashi said calmly, "If that's all there is to it, then it's too early to say."

"Senior, you have a remarkable brother."

"It's a shame. If Gu Qi were a few years older, he might have won this duel. But now, Gu Qi is going to lose," Kurenai shook her head with some regret.

On the training ground, Gu Qi deflected the fireballs with his Electromagnetic Shield while rapidly charging towards Anko.

"Kid, let me teach you something! When fighting an enemy, you must pay attention to everything. For example, the ground!"

As Anko spoke, she quickly formed hand seals and said, "Raging Snake Crush!"

With a roar, the ground beneath Gu Qi's feet suddenly broke open, and two giant pythons shot out, coiling around Gu Qi.

"⊙∀⊙! Rasengan!" Gu Qi was startled and immediately struck the right python with his Rasengan.

Bang!

The right python took fatal damage and disappeared, but the left python directly coiled around Gu Qi.

"Surrender! Otherwise, you'll be spending some time in the hospital!" Anko said triumphantly to Gu Qi with her arms crossed.

Gu Qi lowered his head without speaking, looking utterly defeated.

"Still not surrendering? Then don't blame me for getting serious!" Seeing Gu Qi's silence, Anko clenched her fist and walked towards him step by step.

"Interesting!" Kakashi and Itachi said in unison.

"Did Senior notice it too?" Uchiha Itachi asked, seeing Kakashi lift his forehead protector to reveal his Sharingan, and said with a smile.

Kakashi nodded, "It seems Gu Qi has grown a lot these past few days."

"What are you guys talking about?" Kurenai asked, confused.

"Could it be..." Asuma and Might Guy, being seasoned veterans, heard their words and looked towards the training ground thoughtfully.

"Hurry up and surrender, or I'll have to take action."

While the onlookers watched, Anko walked up to Gu Qi, who was trapped by the pythons, and threatened him directly.

Hearing Anko's words, Gu Qi raised his head, revealing his pearly white teeth, and said word by word with a smile, "You... WON'T!"

Seeing Gu Qi's smile, Anko's alarm bells went off in her heart, and she instinctively took a step back.

This step back saved Anko's life.

Splash!

From the holes where two pythons had emerged from the ground, a person suddenly appeared and punched Anko directly on the chin.

However, because Anko had stepped back in advance, the punch only caused her pain and didn't incapacitate her opponent.

"What a shame..." Itachi shook his head regretfully.

If that punch had landed squarely on Anko, this match would have been over.

"Huh! It missed!" Gu Qi said regretfully.

With that, Gu Qi disappeared.

"It was a Shadow Clone? When?!" Asuma asked in surprise.

Uchiha Itachi explained, "After Gu Qi injured the pythons with the Rasengan, he used the smoke to release a Shadow Clone to hide in the pit. His main body remained on the ground as bait, trapped by the other python."

"To think of such a tactic in such a short time, he's truly amazing!" Might Guy said with deep emotion.

Kurenai shook her head, watching Gu Qi being beaten by Anko on the training ground, "It's a shame indeed, Gu Qi still lost in the end."

"That's not surprising. Anko has rich mission experience, and her instincts protect her the moment she senses danger. If it were a genin with little experience, Gu Qi might have won," Kakashi said calmly.

"If it were me, I might not have been able to dodge that blow," Kurenai said with a hint of embarrassment after thinking about it.

"That's not necessarily true. A woman's intuition is often more accurate than a man's," Asuma said, lighting a cigarette.

However, in his heart, he was pondering whether he could dodge that punch. At the same time, he wondered if Might Guy and Kakashi could do it.

"I think I could dodge it! What about you, my lifelong rival, Kakashi!"

"Huh? Was someone talking just now?" Kakashi asked, confused.

"Um, shouldn't we stop the match now?"

Itachi raised his hand, pointing at Gu Qi, who was being continuously beaten, and said softly.

At Konoha's dumpling shop, Anko, Kurenai, Asuma, and Might Guy were happily sitting together, eating dumplings to celebrate Gu Qi's loss in the match.

"Don't look so glum, here, have a dumpling and cheer up," Kurenai said with a smile, offering a skewer of dumplings to Gu Qi, who had a long face.

Gu Qi's mouth twitched. His handsome face could only be described as miserable to behold right now, and he had no appetite for dumplings.

"I don't want any!" Gu Qi turned his face away angrily.

"Kakashi is treating us, Gu Qi, have a dumpling!" Might Guy said with a smile.

Kakashi and Itachi had already left because they had to go on a mission, so they didn't attend Gu Qi's consolation party. However, they left some money with Might Guy for everyone to eat dumplings.

"Hmph!" Seeing Might Guy, Gu Qi became even more annoyed. If he hadn't been distracted, Gu Qi wouldn't have been beaten so badly before the match was finally declared over.

"Alright, don't be angry anymore. I won't ask you to treat me to dumplings for a week. Let's drop it," Anko walked over and patted Gu Qi on the shoulder.

Gu Qi glanced at Anko resentfully. If it weren't for her, would he be in such a miserable state?

"I've decided! I'll work hard again tomorrow! Big Sister Anko, in a year, we'll have another match," Gu Qi issued a new challenge to Anko.

Anko smiled and shook her head, "Forget it. With your current growth rate, I won't be your opponent in a year.

Instead of being embarrassed then, it's better to keep this record to brag about later!"

"Damn it~"