When I'm Hokage, You'll Regret It

But by the time he reacted, it was already a little too late. The instant he met those Sharingan eyes, Kakashi immediately felt dazed, and even the flow of chakra within him became disrupted for a moment.

After all, he himself possessed a Sharingan, and because it was a Mangekyō, Kakashi had fairly high resistance to Illusion Techniques.

As long as it was not a Mangekyō-level Illusion Technique like Tsukuyomi, Kakashi could still break free within a short time.

The moment he realized he had fallen under an Illusion Technique, Kakashi began disrupting the chakra within his body.

After all, Kakashi was an elite jōnin. It took him just over a second to dispel the Illusion Technique.

But one second was often enough to determine the outcome of a battle between ninjas.

Not to mention that Kakashi had hesitated just now.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

A massive fireball flew past Kakashi's ear and crashed into the training ground, erupting in a tremendous explosion.

Since this was only an assessment, Genya had not intended to kill Kakashi.

Kakashi realized that as well. If Genya had not held back just now, the Great Fireball would have taken more than half his life.

Looking at Genya before him, Kakashi's expression became more complicated than ever. He stared deeply at Genya, then declared his surrender.

Although he had not used his Sharingan or his trump card, a loss was a loss.

Quite a few people present could tell that if this had been a battlefield, Genya would have already roasted Kakashi into charcoal.

The entire battle had lasted less than a minute. Two elite jōnin-level ninjas had practically decided life and death already.

No one found that strange. That was simply the nature of being a ninja.

In battle, the one who survived was often not the stronger one, but the one who did not reveal a weakness first.

A momentary lapse could decide life and death.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened somewhat. After all, Kakashi was the "Copy Ninja" they had heavily promoted, yet he had actually lost to a legitimate Uchiha member during a jōnin assessment.

This loss also meant all his earlier calculations had come to nothing.

A young Uchiha who had only just awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan had actually defeated the heavily promoted "Copy Ninja" Kakashi with ease.

To some extent, it was a resounding slap in their faces.

Sarutobi Hiruzen forced a smile at Uchiha Yashiro beside him. "Uchiha Genya has done very well. He will surely become a pillar of Konoha in the future."

Uchiha Yashiro's expression did not change in the slightest. There was not even a hint of gratification in his eyes as he looked at Genya.

"As an Uchiha clansman who has awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, victory is only natural."

That was right. Uchiha Yashiro had believed so from beginning to end. That was the pride of the Uchiha.

It was not that he had so much confidence in Genya, his junior, but that he had confidence in the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

That counterfeit with only one Sharingan had somehow earned the title of "Copy Ninja." It was simply laughable.

True Uchiha had never cared for such hollow fame.

Sarutobi Hiruzen choked up, not knowing how to continue.

In a somewhat foul mood, Sarutobi Hiruzen immediately announced that Genya had passed the assessment and become a jōnin.

After becoming a jōnin, a voice sounded in Genya's mind.

[Novice mission completed: Advance to jōnin]

[Reward obtained: One Myriad World Lottery chance]

[Use now?]

No.

He was still out in public, and no one knew what form a lottery prize might appear in.

To be safe, he would wait until he got home and was alone.

Sarutobi Hiruzen repeated those remarks about the Will of Fire before leaving with Kakashi.

Uchiha Yashiro patted Genya on the shoulder and said earnestly:

"Don't forget to attend tonight's clan meeting."

Genya nodded casually. He did not care about such matters at all right now.

Getting home quickly to see what good thing he could draw from the lottery was what mattered most.

After bringing Kakashi back to his office, Sarutobi Hiruzen asked how Kakashi had felt during his battle with Genya.

Although he had watched the entire battle, some things could only be understood by Kakashi, who had fought Genya firsthand.

After briefly describing his battle with Genya, Sarutobi Hiruzen took out his pipe and began puffing away.

After a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen asked a question.

"If you had used your Sharingan, do you think Genya would have been a match for you?"

Kakashi had not used his Sharingan in that battle. While carelessness had played a part, the truth was that he simply had not had time to use it.

After thinking for a moment, Kakashi said, "I feel that Genya was still holding back. He did not use his full strength."

"However, I have recently been practicing a special ninjutsu as well. If we count that, it would be an even match."

Kakashi had put it very tactfully. What he meant was that he was not confident he could defeat Genya.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened further.

In truth, he had already guessed as much. Uchiha Genya had used very few ninjutsu throughout the battle, yet he had suppressed the battle-hardened Kakashi in a short time.

A ninja did not need to know too many techniques. As long as they could be used at a critical moment, that was enough.

The Uchiha clan... Why did the Uchiha produce one or two such extraordinarily gifted people every generation?

"One more thing. When Genya met your eyes, what exactly did he make you see?"

An old fox like Sarutobi Hiruzen had naturally noticed that Kakashi had been unusually quiet all along. It was not difficult to infer that Genya had shown Kakashi something rather unusual within the Illusion Technique.

For a ninja, there was nothing wrong with doing such a thing.

Even digging up someone's ancestral graves in an Illusion Technique was commonplace. Illusion Techniques existed to disrupt one's mentality and make one reveal weaknesses.

But because of the Uchiha clan's nature, the matter still cast a shadow over Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart. He worried that Genya might be one of those evil Uchiha who would stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

Kakashi: "..."

He truly did not know how to explain it, because Genya had used that brief opening in the Illusion Technique to convey a message to him.

Just as he was wondering whether to tell Sarutobi Hiruzen the truth, the office door was violently kicked open.

A man leaning on a cane entered, his head wrapped in bandages that covered his right eye.

"Danzo, how many times have I told you? Knock before coming in!" Sarutobi Hiruzen said angrily.

Danzo merely snorted, with no intention of changing his ways.

Seeing this troublesome figure arrive, Kakashi, who did not want anything to do with Shimura Danzō, immediately excused himself.

"Third Hokage, I will take my leave first."

He had seen scenes like this plenty of times. Every time, the Third Hokage and Danzo parted on bad terms, and their lines were almost exactly the same.

He had no interest whatsoever in watching this repetitive scene again.

Sarutobi Hiruzen waved his hand. Kakashi gave Danzo a brief bow and left.

After all, no matter how unpopular Shimura Danzō was, he was still the Hokage Assistant and one of Konoha's higher-ups.

Once the nuisance was gone, Danzo raised his voice, sounding as though he were demanding an explanation from Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Hiruzen, I heard the Uchiha clan has produced another genius. At such a young age, he awakened the Three-Tomoe! And he even defeated Kakashi!"

"When will you finally wake up? Such an evil bloodline should not be allowed to remain in Konoha!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen continued smoking calmly.

"That does not seem to be something you should concern yourself with. Just manage your Root."

Danzo snorted. "You are not expecting that brat to be like Shisui, are you? The Uchiha are evil by nature. We must tighten our surveillance of them!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen slammed his hand onto the desk. "Enough, Danzo! I am the Hokage!"

Those words seemed to flip a switch. Danzo stormed out, slamming the door behind him and leaving these words behind.

"Hiruzen, you will regret this!"