Flying Thunder God Is Used Like This?

Returning home, Hyuga Hane glanced at the Shadow Clone studying in the study before heading to the bedroom.

He took a die from his pocket and stared at the number on top, his eyes flickering.

One point, small.

He lost, Tsunade won.

"Lord Danzo, I have brought her back."

In the dimly lit room, Danzo looked coldly at a young girl, flanked by two Jonin from Root.

"Brand her with the Root Seal."

"Yes!" The Jonin on the left stepped forward, branding the curse mark onto the girl despite her terrified struggles.

"No! Lady Tsunade, save me..."

Danzo watched the girl's futile resistance in silence, his heart cold.

Hiruzen, did you really think I wouldn't know about the arrangements you made for Tsunade?

Improving the curse seal hardly required calling back a Tsunade suffering from hemophobia; you want her to break the Caged Bird, don't you?

Unfortunately, by doing this, you have offended more than just me.

I hope you know when to be sensible, Tsunade.

Two mornings later, Hyuga Hane arrived at the village gate early, only to find two ninjas already standing there.

Both were acquaintances.

Uchiha Yakumaru, and... Hatake Kakashi.

"You've been quite the center of attention lately!"

Yakumaru's mouth turned down in a sarcastic sneer. "Not only did you master the Flying Thunder God, but you also took down the Seven Ninja Swordsmen alongside the Hokage. Truly impressive. Unlike me, who can only recuperate at home."

Hyuga Hane looked him over, puzzled. "Did you drink vinegar this morning? Why do I smell something sour?"

"I once heard a medical ninja say that consuming vinegar in the morning can damage your stomach. You should take care of your health."

"...I am merely frustrated that I wasn't by the Hokage's side to protect him!"

Deep breath, another deep breath. Uchiha Yakumaru kept warning himself: The Hokage will be here soon, I cannot lose my composure!

"You wanted to fight the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?"

Hyuga Hane shook his head, frowning as he analyzed the situation for him. "You specialize in genjutsu and Fire Style. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen are a group of seven, and many of them use Water Release. If you tried to face them, it would be very difficult. You would only be a burden to the Hokage."

Uchiha Yakumaru stared at him intensely, feeling a string inside him stretched to its breaking point.

Yet Hyuga Hane continued, "You Uchiha always take winning and losing so seriously, viewing defeat as a disgrace. Why seek out such humiliation?"

Off to the side, Kakashi, who had been reading his little book, couldn't help but look up at Hyuga Hane.

This conversation felt familiar; when Obito was still around, he seemed to say things like this often.

That...

Kakashi looked back at the head-bowed Uchiha Yakumaru.

The string... had snapped.

"Ahhh! Hyuga Hane, you bastard!"

A white flash of a blade cut through the air, sharp and relentless.

Hyuga Hane stepped back.

Clearly, Uchiha Yakumaru had a solid grasp of the basics of swordsmanship; even in a fit of rage, this strike was steady.

But as for how much this actually improved Yakumaru's combat power... basically none.

If that was the case, why even use a sword?

While pondering this, Hyuga Hane dodged Uchiha Yakumaru's attacks repeatedly.

After venting for dozens of strikes, Uchiha Yakumaru calmed down, fire igniting in his eyes.

I'll let you experience the fruits of my recent training this time.

Hum-hum-hum

The blade in Yakumaru's hand vibrated slightly, the sound causing Hyuga Hane to knit his brows.

A subtle surge of Chakra was eroding his mind, but it couldn't break through his ocular power defenses.

So that's it, a genjutsu triggered by sound?

"You are remarkable, perhaps even more talented than I am! But you cannot surpass the foundation of the Uchiha over a thousand years. This technique was created by a predecessor who never awakened the Sharingan. You better—"

Uchiha Yakumaru's voice trailed off. Seeing Hane watching him with an expressionless face, he stopped his attack and looked at his blade in disbelief.

Was his training not up to par?

Why didn't the opponent fall into the genjutsu?

Although he had suffered enough for his recklessness recently, he had learned from his mistakes and begun studying genjutsu; this auditory genjutsu was an A-rank technique, and its difficulty was immense.

With such a short time spent learning, he had indeed only mastered the basics, but could he not even make Hyuga Hane falter for a moment?

"Hmm, I've seen your recent improvements; there's no need to continue the demonstration."

Hyuga Hane stepped past Uchiha Yakumaru, who had been stabbed yet again, and walked toward Kakashi. "You're Kakashi, right? We met at the Ninja Academy."

"Hello." Kakashi nodded, his peripheral vision catching the dejected Uchiha Yakumaru. "Aren't you going to comfort him?"

"He has a very strong resilience." Hyuga Hane shook his head.

"Is that so?"

Withdrawing his gaze thoughtfully, Kakashi returned his attention to his book. "You wanted to test his strength, didn't you?"

"After all, we are teammates; I need to know his current level."

"So you can save him on the battlefield?"

"No, that way it's easier for me to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to send him in front of an enemy of similar strength once I've pinpointed their location," Hyuga Hane said casually.

Kakashi fell silent.

An image surfaced in his mind.

On the battlefield, a Mist Ninja was observing his surroundings when a voice descended from the sky.

Your opponent has been matched.

Then, a Flying Thunder God Kunai and Uchiha Yakumaru appeared one after the other in front of the enemy.

And the owner of that voice was none other than Hyuga Hane...

Is that how the Flying Thunder God Technique is supposed to be used?

I've learned something new today.

Having recovered from his depression, Uchiha Yakumaru returned to the two of them. He glanced at Kakashi, who was buried in his book, and asked Hyuga Hane with a hint of annoyance, "Are you two very close?"

I lost again; I'll have to increase my training later!

"We met at the Ninja Academy."

"Oh, so he's a senior? Do you know the content of the dirty book he's reading?"

Uchiha Yakumaru clasped his hands behind his head, glanced at the book in Kakashi's hand, and whispered, "The day before yesterday, he came to our clan grounds to notify me about today's assembly and ran into a junior named Uchiha Shisui. The two of them hit it off quite well."

"He even gave Shisui a copy of that book. As a result, the elder who looks after Shisui came to find me that very night, blocked me at the entrance, and demanded information on Kakashi—he wanted to break this guy's legs!"

Hyuga Hane, who hadn't paid much attention initially, felt his expression twist slightly upon hearing the keywords "dirty book" and "Shisui."

The dirty book Kakashi was reading... he gave it to Shisui? He remembered that Shisui was only ten years old, right?

That definitely deserved a beating...

"Is everyone here?"

Before Uchiha Yakumaru could get an answer from Hyuga Hane, a gentle voice reached everyone's ears.

Looking toward the source of the sound, three figures gradually approached.

Namikaze Minato, Kushina, and a girl about the same height as Kakashi.

—Nohara Rin.

Noticing the arrivals, Kakashi returned from the world of his book, his brows furrowing as he looked at them.

"Wasn't it decided that Rin would join Lady Tsunade's Medical Corps to study and wouldn't be going on missions for the time being? And why is Kushina here as well?"

"Lady Tsunade didn't agree to that proposal, and besides, Rin..."

Without mentioning Kushina, Minato looked at Rin helplessly.

This usually gentle girl now wore an expression of determination. "I'm sorry, Kakashi, but I want to use my own eyes to witness the arrival of peace for Obito."

"Don't worry, I will only stay at the base and act as a medical ninja!"