Muzan vs. Kakashi

"You want to spar with me?"

Muzan looked at the prepared Kakashi with interest. Seeing the solemn look on his face, he knew this battle was unavoidable.

He took off his coat. Since it was nighttime, he decided to tell Kakashi outright.

"At night, my strength increases greatly. You'd better be prepared."

Even the aura that occasionally leaked from beneath his crimson eyes carried a kind of disdain. It was not that Muzan looked down on Kakashi; it was an inheritance from his bloodline. Especially beneath the bright moon, Muzan felt a bloodthirsty urge rising within him.

Kakashi was already an outstanding Genin. Whether it was the Three Body Technique or basic ninjutsu, he had mastered them all. He truly deserved the title of Konoha's foremost prodigy.

Not even the pressure brought by his older brother could make Kakashi fall behind in the slightest.

"Hmph! Don't look down on me! Let your little brother show you how a real ninja fights!"

In the small courtyard of the Hatake Household, dense tree shadows swayed in the wind. A sharp glint flashed through Kakashi's eyes, and in an instant, he rushed before Muzan.

Thanks to Muzan, Kakashi had been constantly sparring with Might Guy lately, and his taijutsu had improved by leaps and bounds. He had also deliberately trained with sandbags tied to his body. If an ordinary person took one of Kakashi's kicks, their bones would be broken and they would pass out.

Bang!

Muzan raised both arms in front of him. The other's sudden burst of force made him slide back about ten centimeters. His arms went numb with pain, leaving him slightly unaccustomed to it, but he quickly adjusted.

"That was a good flying kick. Looks like you've been putting in plenty of effort lately."

"Isn't that because of you? Still, big brother's body really has gotten stronger."

No matter who won or lost, Kakashi was sincerely happy. Muzan's body had always been an inescapable cloud hanging over their family. Even though that exchange had only been a test, Kakashi could clearly sense the changes in his brother's body. It seemed the Bloodline Limit had greatly affected him.

"I'm going to use my real strength too."

Kakashi was taking advantage of the fact that Muzan could not use ninjutsu. The old Muzan had been too weak to practice any kind of ninjutsu, so Kakashi intended to make full use of his advantage.

"Not a bad way to fight."

Watching Kakashi disappear before him, Muzan did not attack immediately. Instead, he offered praise. He had only recently begun learning ninjutsu, and lately had been practicing kunai throwing techniques and chakra control. Sparring with Kakashi gave him a clearer understanding of ninjutsu.

"But it's still not perfect."

Kakashi had overlooked the most crucial point: concealing his presence. Muzan could accurately distinguish the auras of different living beings. In the future, Kakashi's ninja hounds would make up for this weakness.

"What?!"

Bang!

Kakashi barely used the Substitution Jutsu to evade Muzan's punch. Turning back, he noticed the large tree behind him. Muzan's fist had actually punched straight through its trunk. His face twitched as he stared at Muzan.

"How did you find where I was hiding?"

He had always been confident in his concealment techniques. Staring into Muzan's eyes, he wondered if Muzan was like the Hyuga, able to see hidden chakra. That made Muzan's ability seem more like that of a sensory ninja.

"When you defeat me, I'll tell you."

The Kakashi who had just landed was greeted by Muzan's storm of punches. They rained down on him like raindrops, forcing him to retreat again and again. Before long, signs of exhaustion appeared.

I have to widen the distance. Brother's physical abilities after awakening his Bloodline Limit are too strong.

At the instant Muzan threw a punch, Kakashi used the Substitution Jutsu to swap himself with a piece of wood behind him. This gave him enough space, and several kunai appeared in his hand.

They directly sealed off Muzan's retreat, leaving him nowhere to back away.

"You're hitting your own older brother that hard?"

He forcibly twisted his body into a bizarre posture, and Muzan's bones could be seen shifting out of place.

Muzan, who aspired to become a medical ninja to solve his physical problems, had extensive knowledge of medicine. The displaced bones were all joints. The moment he evaded the kunai, his body immediately returned to normal.

"You've got some nerve saying that!"

Muzan hit even harder than Kakashi. The hands that had blocked Muzan's attacks were already swollen red like pig trotters.

"Hahaha! Next, I'll show you the power of Blood Demon Art."

Seeing the other shaking out his hands, a smile unconsciously appeared at the corner of Muzan's lips. The moment he raised his head, Kakashi's figure was reflected in his eyes.

Blood Demon Art! Black Blood Brambles!

Black thorns under Muzan's control grew from his arms. Like the sharp thorns of roses, they surrounded him, carving countless marks into the ground wherever they passed.

Even the bluestone slabs laid along the ground were whipped by the thorns and split directly in half.

"What kind of ability is this?!"

This was Kakashi's first time fighting a ninja with a Bloodline Limit. Watching the thorns rush toward him, he knew that if he were caught by them, he would immediately lose his ability to fight. He used the Substitution Jutsu to evade the thorns, his hands rapidly forming seals as flames gathered in his mouth.

Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!

These were not real thorns, but thorn-shaped weapons Muzan had evolved from his cells. Being scorched by flames still sent pain back to him.

"So this is the power of ninjutsu—a Fireball Jutsu formed by gathering chakra in the mouth."

He had seen Kakashi form seals, but unfortunately, he did not understand the flow of chakra. Otherwise, with his own chakra, he could also release a Fireball Jutsu.

"Your Fireball Jutsu can't destroy my thorns. Admit defeat, Kakashi!"

The thorns converged, completely crushing the Fireball Jutsu that had left Kakashi's body. Muzan's current form could no longer be called human.

"Don't joke, big brother."

The stubbornness in his words was not reflected in his body. Kakashi possessed five chakra natures, but his young body could not hold much chakra. The Fireball Jutsu was already one of the few offensive ninjutsu he had, yet it had not harmed Muzan at all.

Kakashi considered a way to respond. With little chakra remaining, he needed to rely on the Three Body Technique and kunai to win.

He threw out several kunai. Muzan initially thought Kakashi was wasting his effort, but suddenly sensed something was wrong.

"Just as expected of a ninja trained by Father. Your combat experience is stronger than even a Genin's."

The instant the kunai flew out, Kakashi used the Substitution Jutsu to switch bodies with one of them. Then he used the Transformation Jutsu to hide within the kunai, crossing through the encirclement of thorns with this method.

Just as he thought his plan had succeeded, he suddenly saw a massive number of thorns wrapping around him.

Bang!

A cloud of white smoke appeared. Kakashi was tightly surrounded by thorns. Combined with his exhausted chakra and the cuts across his body, he no longer had any chance of turning defeat into victory.

"You lost, Kakashi."