Shielding Everyone in Front

"Better be careful."

Kiyohara thought to himself.

Mahiru was very strong, a genuine Jonin.

Kakashi was no match for him at all. In the original story, Namikaze Minato had needed to come to his rescue for Kakashi to survive.

Thinking of this, Kiyohara decided to keep a lower profile.

With a slight frown, he quietly positioned himself to shield everyone.

"Everyone, be careful. There are twenty enemies, but most of them are probably Shadow Clones."

Namikaze Minato spoke.

Twenty additional presences had suddenly appeared.

It was very likely that the enemy had used the Shadow Clone Jutsu to create physical duplicates.

"Sensei... I'll charge in. Please cover me."

Kakashi spoke.

He wanted to test the new jutsu he had developed.

"Don't be rash, Kakashi. You should stay in the rear."

Namikaze Minato said.

He then glanced at Kiyohara, who had retreated to the back.

He could not help nodding.

Kiyohara's vigilance was excellent. Kakashi was far too reckless.

With the enemy's identity and strength still unknown, they needed to remain on guard.

In Namikaze Minato's view, no matter how strong a ninja was, a kunai through a vital spot would kill them.

"Sensei... I'm the captain today, right? This is the perfect chance to test the new ninjutsu I'm developing!"

Kakashi did not heed Namikaze Minato's warning.

He lowered his body and let his right hand hang over the grass.

Crackle!

Arcs of lightning flickered continuously in Kakashi's hand, sounding like the cries of a thousand birds!

Chidori!

"So that was Chidori?"

Kiyohara observed the Lightning Release ninjutsu Kakashi had unleashed.

At this stage, the technique was called Chidori. Later, after Kakashi joined the Anbu and used Chidori to split a bolt of lightning, it would be renamed Lightning Blade.

Chidori and Lightning Blade were actually the same technique, and their hand seals were identical as well.

Interestingly, though, the databooks listed Chidori as an A-rank technique and Lightning Blade as an S-rank technique.

"Even with so many enemies, I can take them all out in an instant with this technique!"

Kakashi looked utterly confident. Ignoring Namikaze Minato's attempt to stop him, he charged straight ahead.

Crack-crack-crack-crack!

The piercing sound tore through the silent forest.

"He actually charged right at me?"

Mahiru froze, not expecting Kakashi to discover him and still force the attack.

Seeing this, he threw several shuriken, trying to stop Kakashi.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

A series of piercing sounds rang out. At the same moment, Kiyohara threw his own shuriken.

Kiyohara's shuriken collided with Mahiru's in midair before falling to the ground.

"How is Kiyohara's Shuriken Manipulation Technique better than mine, an Uchiha's?"

Obito had also wanted to throw shuriken and help Kakashi with a feint.

But before he could throw them, Kiyohara had already acted first.

With nothing blocking him, Kakashi was dragged forward by the Chidori in his hand. His speed surged drastically, and he shot out like a bolt of lightning.

Bang!

After being pierced, Mahiru turned into a puff of smoke.

A Shadow Clone!

Everyone's expressions tightened.

Shadow Clones could not be seen through, not even with the Byakugan.

Ninjas could only rely on experience to determine which one was the original body.

Because Shadow Clones distributed chakra evenly among themselves, it was naturally impossible to tell which one was the original.

While everyone else was stunned, Kiyohara kept his eyes fixed on the ground.

He knew Mahiru's next attack would come from beneath the ground.

Sure enough, the ground stirred, and Mahiru burst out with a kunai in hand.

Obito's face filled with panic, thinking Mahiru had come after him.

But Mahiru suddenly changed direction and attacked Kiyohara instead.

Originally, he had intended to kill the ninja bearing the Uchiha Crest, the symbol of the Uchiha clan.

But after realizing that Kiyohara had also detected him immediately, he changed targets.

Bang!

Their weapons collided, and brilliant, sharp sparks flashed and vanished.

"What?!"

Mahiru was stunned.

This brat had actually blocked his attack?

It was as though Kiyohara had been waiting specifically for him!

While Mahiru was distracted, Kiyohara threw another shuriken.

Bang!

Mahiru's Shadow Clone disappeared.

The greatest drawback for most ninjas using Shadow Clones was insufficient chakra!

Mahiru clearly had the same weakness.

Creating twenty Shadow Clones meant dividing his chakra into twenty portions. Everyone had only one-twentieth of their original chakra.

Only someone like Naruto, who could squander chakra freely, could casually create hundreds or even thousands of Shadow Clones without being affected at all.

"The ambush failed?"

Elsewhere, Mahiru's brows furrowed slightly.

He had intended to kill one brat first, yet he had failed.

"Eighteen..."

After circling around and eliminating most of Mahiru's Shadow Clones, Kakashi charged directly toward Mahiru.

"Don't push your luck, you little bastard!"

Mahiru was starting to lose his composure.

It was one thing for that black-haired brat to notice his sneak attack, but now this white-haired brat was just as infuriatingly calm!

Mahiru swung his blade swiftly from an angle. Kakashi was clearly beginning to lose control of the technique.

Mahiru saw that.

Namikaze Minato saw it too.

The next instant, Namikaze Minato vanished from where he stood.

When he reappeared, he grabbed Kakashi and dodged Mahiru's downward slash.

After sending Kakashi to safety, Namikaze Minato removed his field pack.

Just as it was about to hit the ground, he used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport behind Mahiru, pointing a kunai at him.

"Could you be Konoha's... Yellow Flash?"

Cold sweat poured down Mahiru's face. He finally understood why his superiors had instructed them to flee if they encountered Namikaze Minato.

Pfft.

A spray of blood blossomed as Mahiru fell to the ground, lifeless.

"It really is the world of ninjas."

Kiyohara watched Namikaze Minato, who was usually such a kind man, take Mahiru's life without hesitation.

Ninjas had always been a dark profession. Killing was commonplace; it was merely obscured by the adventurous main theme of Naruto's story.

"Ugh..."

Kakashi clutched his wound, and Nohara Rin hurried over to treat him.

Seeing Kakashi's attempt to show off fail, Obito immediately began criticizing him for acting on his own and refusing to listen to Minato-sensei.

"I don't want you lecturing me."

Kakashi shot Obito a glance.

"You two, that's enough."

Namikaze Minato flicked the bloodstains from his kunai.

"This time, Kiyohara is the only one who truly satisfied me."

Namikaze Minato said.

At his words, everyone's eyes turned toward Kiyohara.

"Kakashi, rules are indeed important, but I told you before, didn't I? Depending on the situation, sometimes we have no choice but to adapt..."

Namikaze Minato began explaining his disappointment with their actions this time.

Kakashi had been reckless, while Obito had clearly been frightened stiff.

Kurenai Yuhi, a Genjutsu ninja, and Nohara Rin, a medical ninja, were not combat types, so that was understandable.

Genma Shiranui was somewhat ordinary, average in every aspect. He had neither discovered the enemy nor held the team back when faced with the enemy's attack.

This time, Kiyohara was the only one who satisfied Namikaze Minato!