Kakashi looked at the tag and fell silent for a moment.
If this had been real combat, he would have stepped into the blast radius the moment he chased Shin-getsu here.
And from the very first step Shin-getsu took backward, he had been leading him here.
Naruto saw the tag too.
His mouth fell open.
"When did you put that there?"
Shin-getsu said,
"When you got hit by that pebble."
Naruto: "..."
So getting beaten up had a use like this too?
Kakashi gave a wry smile.
"Even with your eyes affected last night, you can still do this much?"
Shin-getsu withdrew his hand.
"I'm just not using those eyes."
Kakashi understood.
It was not that he could not fight.
He simply was not using his Mangekyo for now.
Shisui and Itachi understood as well.
Shin-getsu's strength should not be tied solely to those Mangekyo.
They were merely his sharpest blades.
But even before those blades left their sheaths, he could still kill.
Kakashi pulled down his forehead protector, revealing the Sharingan in his left eye.
Naruto jumped in surprise.
"You have red eyes too?"
Kakashi did not explain. He merely looked at Shin-getsu.
"Another round?"
Three tomoe slowly appeared in Shin-getsu's eyes.
"Alright."
This time, Kakashi did not probe him.
His hand seals were swift.
Water surged up from the ground, forming a water blade that sliced toward Shin-getsu's leg.
Shin-getsu raised his foot, chakra pulsing beneath his sole.
Before the water blade could fully form, he crushed the technique's core with a stomp.
Kakashi's gaze sharpened.
The next instant, he appeared behind and to Shin-getsu's side.
His kunai thrust forward.
Shin-getsu turned and blocked.
Clang!
Metal rang out.
Kakashi's left eye spun rapidly.
Shin-getsu's eyes were turning as well.
The instant the two pairs of Sharingan met, Naruto