Fierce Battle!

Minato's smile faltered. Seeing that the expression on Jiraiya's face was not feigned, he turned his head to look at the two people standing opposite each other in the arena.

Yet, looking at Uchiha Shingen's excessively young face, he still found it somewhat hard to believe.

"Shingen, can he really reach this level..."

Kakashi was trained by his own hand, so he naturally understood Kakashi's level.

Even Minato himself, at that age, was at most at Kakashi's current level.

Those stronger than this were likely only those few from before the founding of Konoha.

Uchiha Shingen... could he already be compared to them?!

No.

That should be unlikely.

Even if there were no clear records in Konoha, it was not difficult to infer that those individuals had reached a level that conventional ninjas could not attain.

They were monsters forged by the era!

"Who knows?!"

Jiraiya crossed his arms over his chest. Seeing that Minato still wore a look of skepticism, he tilted his chin toward the two standing opposite each other on the battlefield:

"Just keep watching and you'll know."

"The last time I saw Shingen go all out was over a month ago. Even then, his strength was already no weaker than an ordinary Jonin."

"After filling in his shortcomings over this past month, his strength..."

"Even I can't see through it anymore."

Hearing this, Minato fell silent for a moment, turning his head to look at the distant battlefield.

If it were truly as Jiraiya said, the Uchiha clan had produced an incredible monster in this era!

No one could say for sure what heights Uchiha Shingen might reach in ten or twenty years!

"Go, Kakashi!"

"Beat that arrogant guy!"

Obito, having recovered from the genjutsu, stood on the sidelines, waving his arms and cheering for Kakashi.

Seeing this, Rin also smiled and chimed in:

"Good luck, Kakashi!"

Accompanied by their cheering, the murderous atmosphere at the scene was completely shattered for a moment, only to suddenly turn heavy again the very next instant!

Clang!

The sound of blades colliding suddenly erupted in the air.

At the heart of the battlefield, sparks flew from the point where the kunai and the short blade were crossed and pressed against each other!

The battle was on the verge of breaking out!

Uchiha Shingen steadily blocked the blade Kakashi had swung down.

A wave of air spread outward, blowing back the hair on his forehead, and those already scarlet Sharingan appeared incomparably dazzling at this moment!

"You're quite impatient, aren't you!"

"Kakashi!"

"I suppose so~"

Kakashi raised his eyes to meet Uchiha Shingen's gaze, a rare and surging fighting spirit appearing in his eyes!

If watching Obito spar with Uchiha Shingen earlier had only made him feel that the man before him was far from simple, then the astonishing force transmitted through the blade at this moment made him realize that Uchiha Shingen was absolutely the strongest peer he had ever fought.

That sense of loneliness born from having no rivals among his peers was, for this moment, somewhat satisfied.

But what remained was a... violent fighting spirit waiting to be unleashed!

"Again!"

"Fine!"

Uchiha Shingen replied indifferently, stepping back to dodge Kakashi's short blade. He spun the kunai around his index finger into a reverse grip and lunged forward with a fierce thrust!

Seeing this, Kakashi did not show weakness. The short blade inherited from his father, the White Fang, seemed to glow under the moonlight as he slashed toward Uchiha Shingen!

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

A dense series of collisions intertwined in the air!

Countless sparks flew, like swarms of fireflies dancing in the night sky, only to vanish in an instant.

At this moment, the two of them engaged in a tacitly understood exchange of taijutsu.

Standing on the sidelines, Obito was already dumbfounded.

He had originally thought that the battle which ended in an instant just now was merely Uchiha Shingen relying on his Three-Tomoe Sharingan to overwhelm his opponent with raw power.

But the scene before him now felt like a slap to his own face.

"Obito..."

"It's alright, you will definitely be able to catch up to them too!"

Rin noticed the dejection on Obito's face and couldn't help but speak up to comfort him.

She was naturally sensitive to the emotional shifts of those around her, and having spent so much time with Obito, she could naturally see the change in him at a glance.

Yet, at a time like this, this was all Rin could do.

But for once, Obito did not respond immediately; instead, he remained silent for a few seconds before looking up at Rin, his eyes filled with determination:

"I definitely will!"

"If even a guy like Shingen can become this strong, I can certainly do it too!"

"Mm-hmm~"

Jiraiya noticed this scene, and a gentle smile could not help but appear on his face:

"Youth is truly wonderful~"

"It even makes me miss the days when I was under the Old Man."

"That guy Orochimaru was a bit arrogant, but thinking back on it now, he was actually quite cute—though, as for now..."

"Let's not talk about that."

"Let's see just what these two brats can achieve."

Beside Jiraiya.

Minato stared at the two figures rapidly exchanging blows in the arena, the anticipation in his eyes gradually shifting into astonishment.

This close-quarters taijutsu engagement was, in reality, not fair.

Kakashi was using the short blade inherited from White Fang, a weapon forged from chakra metal, while Uchiha Shingen was using nothing more than an ordinary kunai.

The performance of the two was simply not on the same level.

Yet, even with the advantage in weaponry, Kakashi had failed to gain an edge in taijutsu, and was even being forced into a retreat by Uchiha Shingen?!

"Is taijutsu what Shingen specializes in?!"

"Not at all!"

Jiraiya shook his head, a rare look of pride appearing on his face:

"Although that kid is considered a bit of a renegade within the Uchiha clan, when it comes to combat, he has inherited the Uchiha's consistent versatility."

"With the support of the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, taijutsu is actually the weakest of his abilities."

Minato froze for a moment, then suddenly turned his head to look at the center of the battlefield, as if responding to the unease in his heart.

As the conversation between Minato and Jiraiya concluded, the taijutsu exchange on the battlefield also reached its end.

Clang—!

Following another collision of blades, the kunai in Uchiha Shingen's hand snapped in two.

Kakashi naturally would not let such a good opportunity slip by; his offensive immediately became even more ferocious, and he slashed directly toward Uchiha Shingen's chest.

But just as he was about to strike, he suddenly felt a wave of heat wash over him, as if it were about to incinerate everything in its path!

"Uchiha Style—Sword Leap Flame!"

On the broken kunai in Uchiha Shingen's hand, crimson flames surged, and he violently slashed forward, unleashing a blade of fire!

After obtaining Sword Leap Flame, Uchiha Shingen had planned to use it as the core to build his own tactical system.

During a month of grueling training, aside from common ninjutsu like Shadow Clone, Uchiha Shingen had also thoroughly mastered Sword Leap Flame.

He had originally been worried about where to find a suitable opponent to spar with, but now that Kakashi had delivered himself to his doorstep, it saved him all that trouble!

Whoosh—!

The scorching heat wave seared Kakashi's face, and in almost an instant, he arched his back to dodge the move that could very well have ended the fight.

Just as Kakashi rose to prepare a counterattack, Uchiha Shingen's fierce kick had already landed squarely on his chest.