Bottleneck

Two months later.

Back Mountain Training Ground.

"Nine thousand nine hundred ninety-seven! Nine thousand nine hundred ninety-eight! Nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine!!"

"Ten thousand!"

Bang!

With the final kick landing on the tree, the trunk shuddered and fallen leaves scattered through the air.

Might Guy retracted his leg and caught his breath.

Ten thousand side kicks, yet no system notification regarding an increase in proficiency echoed in his ears.

Might Guy glanced at the system panel.

[Vajra Leg: 999]
[Vajra Finger: 999]
[Yijin Jing: 758]

As early as ten days ago, the proficiency of both low-grade ultimate techniques had stalled.

But that final point simply refused to budge no matter what he did.

The system indicated that he needed an epiphany or to consume 100 Monk Points to break through.

In short, a bottleneck.

Not that Might Guy had 100 Monk Points to spare.

Even if he did, he wouldn't use them.

If he couldn't even achieve an epiphany for a low-grade ultimate technique, he would be doing a disservice to this body.

Although the proficiency wouldn't rise, he still didn't give up on his daily training.

"Thump!"

Nearby, Obito collapsed onto the ground, sprawled out with his chest heaving violently.

His face was covered in sweat, his clothes were soaked through, and his hair clung to his forehead in damp strands.

"You're already done after just fifty laps?" Might Guy turned his head to look at him.

"Fifty laps?!" Obito glared. "That's fifty laps! Running around the entire Back Mountain! Do you think everyone is a monster like you?!"

Might Guy grinned and gave a thumbs up.

"Youth is meant to burn! The more it burns, the brighter it shines!"

"Burn your head..." Obito rolled his eyes.

Not far away, Kakashi leaned against a tree, holding a Kunai and stabbing it into the wood over and over again.

His movements were light, but every strike landed in the exact same spot.

The tree bark was already densely packed with holes.

He didn't speak, but his eyes flicked toward them.

Further away, Rin sat on a rock, watching them with a smile.

She held a water bottle in her hands, and a neatly folded towel lay beside her.

"Obito, go drink some water." She stood up and walked over.

Obito's eyes lit up, and he scrambled to a sitting position.

"Rin! Did you bring this specifically for—"

Before he could finish, Rin had already walked past him, reached Might Guy, and handed him the water bottle.

"Might Guy, have some water."

Might Guy took it and tilted his head back to take a large gulp.

"Thanks!"

Obito's outstretched hand froze in mid-air.

He remained petrified for two seconds.

Then he turned his head, his face full of indignation.

"Rin!! I'm thirsty too!!"

Rin turned back and smiled.

"There's still some in the bottle, pour it yourself."

Obito: "..."

The corner of Kakashi's mouth twitched.

He didn't laugh out loud, but his shoulders shook.

Footsteps echoed along the forest path.

Kurenai Yuhi trotted over, carrying a cloth bundle.

Her black, curly hair swayed with each step, and her face was slightly flushed.

"I... I'm late."

She walked up to Guy and held out the bundle.

"My mom made... made too much."

Guy took it and opened it up.

It was the usual: rice balls, pickled radishes, and a small box of dumplings.

He picked up a rice ball and took a large bite.

"Mmm, delicious."

Kurenai stood by his side, the corners of her mouth curling up, her eyes bright.

Obito leaned in. "Give me one."

"If you want to eat, go home and get your own."

"You!"

The same old recipe, the same old attitude.

Obito was so angry his teeth itched.

Rin laughed out loud from the side.

Kurenai joined in, her face turning even redder.

Once the laughter died down, she suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, right. You guys shouldn't come to the back mountain to train for a while."

Guy chewed his rice ball and asked, muffled, "Why?"

Kurenai lowered her voice.

"There's a bear."

Obito froze.

"A bear?"

"A Ninja Bear," Kurenai said. "Someone saw it deep in the mountains a few days ago. It's huge, several times larger than an ordinary bear. The village sent quite a few ninjas to look for it, but they couldn't find it."

Rin nodded.

"My dad said the same thing. He told us not to go deep into the back mountain lately."

Obito swallowed hard.

"Then... should we find somewhere else?"

Guy didn't say anything.

He turned his head to look at Kakashi.

Kakashi didn't speak either.

Their gazes met.

And then, simultaneously—

Their eyes lit up.

Seeing those two pairs of eyes, Obito's heart skipped a beat.

"Hey... you two..."

Guy grinned.

"A Ninja Bear?"

Kakashi pulled his Kunai out of the tree.

"They couldn't find it?"

"Doesn't that mean..."

"A rare opportunity for real combat!"

The two spoke in unison.

Guy was genuinely excited.

Over the past few days, he had managed to guess a few things.

To achieve an epiphany, simple training wasn't enough.

He needed real, life-or-death combat.

The appearance of this Ninja Bear was the perfect target!

Obito's face turned pale.

"Are you guys insane?! That's a bear!! A Ninja Bear!!"

Guy stood up and brushed the dirt off his backside.

"What's there to be afraid of?"

Kakashi tucked his Kunai into his ninja tool pouch.

"It's the perfect chance to test the results of these past two months."

Obito's eyes widened as he looked from Guy to Kakashi.

"You two... you two are absolute lunatics!"

Rin was stunned as well.

"Kakashi, are you really going?"

Kakashi didn't say a word.

But his expression said it all.

Kurenai grew anxious.

She grabbed Guy by the sleeve.

"No! It's too dangerous!"

Guy looked down at her.

Kurenai's eyes were rimmed with red, her grip tight.

"You're only six years old! That's a bear! People die from that!"

Guy grinned, showing his teeth.

"It's fine, I have youth."

"What good is youth!"

"Youth is meant to be burned."

Kurenai was choked up by his words.

Tears welled up in her eyes.

Seeing her like that, Guy panicked a little.

"Hey, don't cry..."

Kurenai bit her lip, remaining silent.

But she didn't let go of his sleeve.

At this moment, Kakashi spoke up.

"We'll go at night."

He glanced at Guy.

"There are too many people around right now."

Guy nodded.

"Fine."

Hearing the word "night," Kurenai's tears finally fell.

"You guys..."

She let go of his sleeve and wiped her eyes.

Then, she took a deep breath.

"Then... I'm going too!"

Guy was taken aback.

"What are you going for?"

Kurenai looked up at him, her eyes still red, but her expression was incredibly serious.

"I'll keep an eye on you."

"If... if you can't win, I'll run back and get help!"

Guy opened his mouth.

He wanted to say something, but looking at those red, teary eyes, he swallowed his words.

Obito shook his head frantically from the side.

"I'm not going! You couldn't pay me to go!"

Rin stood up and walked over to Obito's side.

"Obito."

Obito turned his head to look at her.

Rin smiled.

"If you aren't going, then Kurenai and I will follow them."

Obito turned to stone.

"You... you're going too?!"

Rin nodded.

"Mm."

Obito looked at Rin, then at Kurenai, and finally at Guy and Kakashi.

His face cycled through shades of red and white.

Finally—

"I'm going!!!"

He roared it out.

"I absolutely cannot let you two girls go by yourselves! It's too dangerous!"

Rin smiled even more happily.

"Then let's go together."

Obito gritted his teeth.

He felt like he had been played.