Seizing the Initiative
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"A formidable rival?"
Upon hearing Uchiha Yue's words, Hatake Kakashi narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression turning serious.
Clearly, in Hatake Kakashi's eyes, the fact that the Kumogakure ninja Mo Chenfeng received such high praise from Uchiha Yue was enough for him to take him seriously. However, Hatake Kakashi also had his own pride, so the more Uchiha Yue underestimated Mo Chenfeng, the more determined Hatake Kakashi was to defeat the Kumogakure ninja named Mo Chenfeng. Moreover, now that Hatake Kakashi knew that Mo Chenfeng was a member of the Yagami Clan of Kumogakure, it further strengthened Hatake Kakashi's belief in defeating Mo Chenfeng.
It's important to understand that since the samurai faded from the historical stage, only three samurai clans have risen to prominence in the ninja world: the Hatake Clan of Konoha, the Sato Clan of Kirigakure, and the Yagami Clan Hatake Clan Kumogakure. To prove their clan's strength, the Konoha, Kirigakure, and Sato Clan Yagami Clan have been Kumogakure vying for dominance. Now, members of the Kumogakure Yagami Clan are coming to participate in the Chunin Ninja Exams, Hatake Kakashi feels he must defeat them to bring glory to his Yagami Clan Hatake Clan.
As for Uchiha Yue, his thinking was simpler. All the Genin participating in the Chunin Ninja Exams were targets for Uchiha Yue to defeat. Therefore, when Uchiha Yue, Hatake Kakashi, and the others went to the training ground to test Sarutobi Danzō's strength, they remained somewhat silent along the way, clearly keeping an eye on the Kumogakure ninja, Mo Chenfeng.
Immediately afterwards...
After Uchiha Yue arrived at the training ground with Hatake Kakashi and Sarutobi Danzō, he stopped thinking about the Kumogakure ninja Mo Chenfeng. After all, Uchiha Yue was going to participate in the Chunin Ninja Exams with both Sarutobi Danzō and Uchiha Yue Hatake Kakashi, and if Sarutobi Danzō was too weak, he could very well drag down Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi's performance in the Chunin Ninja Exams.
Then, upon arriving at the training ground, Uchiha Yue exchanged a glance with Hatake Kakashi, before shifting his gaze to Sarutobi Danzō, saying, "Danzo, Kakashi and I are going to test your strength and see how well you've mastered Earth Release Ninjutsu. To be fair, you'll choose your opponent!"
"Good!"
As soon as Uchiha Yue finished speaking, Sarutobi Danzō smiled and nodded, saying, "Yuki-kun, your performance on the front lines was truly terrifying. Even with twenty men from the Sunagakure, they couldn't defeat you, so I certainly can't be your match. In that case..." With that, Sarutobi Danzō's gaze fell on Hatake Kakashi, and he continued with a smile, "In that case, Kakashi- kun, I'll choose you as my opponent!"
"Hmph, you'll regret this!"
When Sarutobi Danzō to him, Hatake Kakashi was understandably annoyed. Sarutobi Danzō's words implied that Hatake Kakashi was weaker than Uchiha Yue. A proud man like Hatake Kakashi was bound to feel anger upon hearing such words. Therefore, the instant Sarutobi Danzō, Hatake Kakashi prepared to teach Sarutobi Danzō a lesson and show him his true strength.
At the same time, Uchiha Yue saw Sarutobi Danzō choose Hatake Kakashi as his opponent and also felt that Sarutobi Danzō's choice was somewhat wrong. It should be noted that Hatake Kakashi was not only proficient in the Hatake Clan's Hatake Sword Style but also had considerable skill in Lightning Release Ninjutsu. Sarutobi Danzō, on the other hand, was proficient Ninjutsu Earth Release Ninjutsu, which was precisely countered by Hatake Kakashi's Lightning Release Ninjutsu. Therefore, Sarutobi Danzō's chances of winning against Hatake Kakashi were practically less than 30%.
Afterwards, once Hatake Kakashi Sarutobi Danzō Sarutobi Danzō were ready, Uchiha Yue watched their match from the sidelines.
Hatake Kakashi was already seething with anger, so the instant Uchiha Yue announced the start of the match, he appeared before Hatake Kakashi Sarutobi Danzō. Having participated in numerous missions with Uchiha Yue and others, and distinguished himself on the front lines, Hatake Kakashi had accumulated considerable combat experience. He knew that to deal with Ninjutsu- using ninja like Sarutobi Danzō, he needed to get close and stop him from using Ninjutsu.
But...
Just as Hatake Kakashi was about to get close to Sarutobi Danzō suddenly vanished from Hatake Kakashi's sight!
"Oh? Interesting!"
"Earth Release: Rock Concealment Technique?"
As Sarutobi Danzō disappeared before Hatake Kakashi's eyes, Uchiha Yue immediately sensed that Sarutobi Danzō had used an Earth Release Ninjutsu —Earth Release: Rock Concealment Technique. By hiding among the nearby rocks, Sarutobi Danzō intended to make Hatake Kakashi lose sight of his target. However, Hatake Kakashi's combat experience was far superior; the instant Sarutobi Danzō Rock Concealment Technique, Sarutobi Danzō cleaved through the rock where Danzo was concealed.
"Bang..."
In an instant, Hatake Kakashi's White Fang Blade cleaved through the rock in front of him, revealing Sarutobi Danzō Hatake Kakashi. At such close range, even Uchiha Yue would have to expend considerable effort to defeat Hatake Kakashi, given Hatake Kakashi rigorous training. Therefore, when Uchiha Yue saw Hatake Kakashi close enough to Sarutobi Danzō, Uchiha Yue already knew that Sarutobi Danzō had lost the match.
However, what Uchiha Yue never expected was that Sarutobi Danzō after the opponent had acted!
Moreover, Sarutobi Danzō realized that he was no match for Hatake Kakashi in a direct confrontation, so he began to move around and kite Hatake Kakashi in front of him!
By continuously using Earth Release Ninjutsu to defend against Hatake Kakashi's attacks, Sarutobi Danzō managed to narrowly escape danger almost every time Hatake Kakashi attacked. However, the way he managed to escape danger at the last minute was either because Sarutobi Danzō possessed strength far exceeding Hatake Kakashi's, allowing him to break free from predicaments at the last moment, or because Sarutobi Danzō was simply no match for Hatake Kakashi and could only use this method to escape danger.
Undoubtedly, Sarutobi Danzō's situation falls into the latter category. His strength was originally inferior to Hatake Kakashi's, and he could only use Earth Release Ninjutsu to barely defend against Hatake Kakashi's attacks. Subsequently, Hatake Kakashi Sarutobi Danzō Sarutobi Danzō for ten rounds before finally defeating him and winning the match.
However, just as Hatake Kakashi had won and was about to assess Sarutobi Danzō's strength...
Unexpectedly, Uchiha Yue slowly walked up to Hatake Kakashi and Sarutobi Danzō and said, "Danzo, take a short rest."
"Once you've recovered your Chakra, let's have a match."