Although Yuki Yuichi's Sharingan had been granted by a template, to outsiders, he had awakened it thanks to Uchiha Obito's eye drops.
So when Kakashi Hatake said that, he hadn't just insulted Uchiha Obito—he'd insulted Yuki Yuichi too.
Seeing Yuki Yuichi's arm around his shoulders, Kakashi Hatake froze.
Oh no. I forgot this guy awakened his Sharingan with eye drops!
Hearing Yuki Yuichi's words, Kakashi felt numb all over.
Uchiha Obito clutched his head and walked over to a nearby pavilion. Seeing him, Yuhi Kurenai took an ointment from the medical kit and handed it to him.
"Here. Take this."
"My dad says this ointment works really well. The swelling should go down in just a day."
Uchiha Obito took it and carefully rubbed it onto his head.
"Ow!"
"That really hurts."
Just then, Sarutobi Asuma's voice reached them. "Look, look! They're about to fight!"
Yuhi Kurenai stood and walked to the edge of the training ground, watching Yuki Yuichi with concern.
Uchiha Obito stayed seated on the bench, applying the ointment as he watched Yuki Yuichi and Kakashi Hatake form the Seal of Confrontation.
"Yuki Yuichi! There's no way you can beat me this time!" Kakashi Hatake declared, then charged in first, wooden sword in hand.
Yuki Yuichi charged at him too.
"Yuichi, go!"
"Beat Kakashi to a pulp!" Uchiha Obito stood up and cheered Yuki Yuichi on.
Hearing that, Sarutobi Asuma glanced at Uchiha Obito, then shouted too.
"Go, Kakashi!"
"You can't lose again!"
Yuhi Kurenai was at the very front, but she didn't cheer. She watched Yuki Yuichi with a worried expression.
Uchiha Obito and Sarutobi Asuma exchanged a glance, their eyes meeting as though faint sparks had flashed between them.
At the same time, both of them raised their voices another notch.
Neither Kakashi Hatake nor Yuki Yuichi used ninjutsu.
Ninjutsu was too dangerous for them. They still hadn't quite gotten the hang of it, and there was no teacher here. If they lost control, they'd be done for.
So they stuck to Taijutsu and swordsmanship.
Yuki Yuichi charged straight at Kakashi Hatake. With Nintaijutsu: Guard passively reducing damage by twenty percent, Taijutsu was the best fit for him.
"Cakashi!"
"Yuichi!"
They shouted to each other as they closed the distance at high speed. The wooden sword in Kakashi Hatake's hand swept through the air, slashing toward Yuki Yuichi's head.
Yuki Yuichi aimed a kick at Kakashi Hatake's abdomen.
But just as they were about to land their blows, they both shifted their bodies and dodged.
At the same time, they said in unison, "You think you can hit me with that?"
They kept talking, but neither of them let up for a moment.
Relying on his formidable physique, Yuki Yuichi planted one foot and lifted the other, kicking at Kakashi Hatake's arm from the right.
Kakashi Hatake didn't hesitate. He rolled backward.
But Yuki Yuichi was incredibly fast. No matter how quickly Kakashi Hatake dodged, he was a little too slow.
At that distance, Yuki Yuichi's kick should have struck his arm. But because of Kakashi Hatake's movement, it was now headed straight for his waist.
Kakashi Hatake realized it too. He hurriedly brought up his wooden sword to block, but Yuki Yuichi kicked it clean in half.
His kick broke through the wooden sword and struck Kakashi Hatake, sending him flying three or four meters.
That would have counted as Monster Strength in an ordinary world, but this was the world of Naruto.
Yuki Yuichi's kick had been powerful, but it was nowhere near Monster Strength.
Kakashi Hatake crashed into a wooden post, making it shudder.
He got back to his feet, ignoring the pain, and looked at the wooden sword in his hand, now reduced to a short broken stump. Then he tossed it aside.
"You've gotten stronger again!"
"But so have I!"
Kakashi Hatake charged forward, ready to take Yuki Yuichi on in a Taijutsu match.
Yuki Yuichi laughed when he saw him coming. "Bring it on!"
"A real man should trade punch for punch!"
With that, Yuki Yuichi charged forward too.
As they clashed, Yuki Yuichi immediately felt that Kakashi Hatake's arms were far from weak.
That was only natural. He practiced the Hatake Style Sword Technique, which meant drilling his strikes every day. There was no way his arms could be weak.
Sarutobi Asuma and Uchiha Obito, who had been cheering from the sidelines, fell silent.
They could only stare at the two of them, stunned.
"So this is... how strong they are..." Sarutobi Asuma murmured, watching them with envy.
If he had talent and strength like theirs, maybe no one would talk about his father anymore.
He wanted people to recognize him too!
Yuki Yuichi and Kakashi Hatake's fight went on.
Yuki Yuichi was stronger, but Kakashi Hatake was strong too. Though he couldn't match Yuki Yuichi, his blows still packed a punch.
And Kakashi Hatake was more agile than he was.
Under Hatake Sakumo's tutelage, Kakashi Hatake had been trained according to the standard methods for a ninja.
Caught off guard, Kakashi Hatake landed a punch on his chest. Yuki Yuichi's blood surged, his throat burned, and he was about to spit blood.
But the moment he caught sight of Yuhi Kurenai from the corner of his eye, he forced it back down.
Yuki Yuichi crouched low, panting, and looked up at Kakashi Hatake.
Kakashi Hatake didn't look much better than he did.
Yuki Yuichi's kick had hampered his movement, and he'd taken a few more hits after that.
A clear fist-shaped bruise, blue and purple, marked the area around Kakashi Hatake's right eye.
His right eye had swollen too.
After catching his breath, Yuki Yuichi stood up again.
The Uzumaki Clan bloodline greatly enhanced his recovery. He couldn't bounce back instantly, but even a short rest helped him regain some strength.
When Yuki Yuichi got to his feet, Kakashi Hatake assumed a fighting stance too. Still, he managed to say, "That... whew... punch hurt, didn't it?"
"That was my... hah... strongest hit!"
Kakashi Hatake was still panting, speaking in fits and starts. Yuki Yuichi had recovered much more. He tore off the parts of his clothes that had been damaged in the fight.
He left his upper body bare, revealing a blue-black fist-shaped bruise on his chest.
For an ordinary person, it would have been a serious injury.
That punch had been powerful, and it had landed squarely on his chest.
But for someone of the Uzumaki Clan, it was nothing at all.
Yuki Yuichi tossed his torn clothes aside and laughed wildly. "Heh heh heh... Hahahahaha! A mere serious injury—what is there to fear?"
"Come on!!!"
Yuki Yuichi's voice rang out with vigor.
Kakashi Hatake's heart gave a jolt.
How did he recover so quickly?!
But there was no time to think about it. Yuki Yuichi charged at him.
Kakashi Hatake had already used up a lot of his strength and still hadn't recovered. For a moment, all he could do was fend off the attacks in a panic.
Yuki Yuichi's punches grew heavier with each blow, leaving Kakashi Hatake in utter misery.
"Now's my chance!" Yuki Yuichi's eyes lit up. He seized an opening, grabbed both of Kakashi Hatake's arms, and swung with all his strength.
Kakashi Hatake went flying.
"Kakashi, there's no shame in losing to me. The shame is in not daring to face me!"
"I hereby acknowledge you as the strongest!"
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