Battle Kakashi Again

On Konoha's bustling streets, Hyuga Iwa and Might Guy strolled about leisurely.

"Iwa, can I really do it?"

"You can. I believe in you—you absolutely can. Don't you believe in yourself?"

"But I still think I'm too stupid. I can't learn anything."

"Guy, that isn't stupidity. It's persistence. It's... well, the heart of a child." Hyuga Iwa spoke helplessly, then added silently, Actually, it'd be more accurate to call him single-minded.

Seeing that Guy wanted to say something but hesitated, Hyuga Iwa stopped him from asking another question.

"Enough, Guy. You've already asked more than ten times. Can you stop asking?" Hyuga Iwa interrupted him weakly.

Guy opened his mouth at that, then looked utterly dejected.

Hyuga Iwa found it both irritating and amusing. He simply stopped paying attention to him and walked ahead by himself.

"Iwa, wait for me! I won't ask anymore, okay?"

"..."

"Iwa, are you mad?" Guy asked cautiously when Hyuga Iwa ignored him.

"No. I just suddenly don't know what to say. Honestly, I regret telling you all this today."

"Why?" Guy asked in confusion.

"Guy, you need to understand that entering that state requires absolute inner calm. Otherwise, all your effort will be useless. I can feel it—your heart is restless right now."

Hearing Hyuga Iwa's explanation, Guy fell silent for a long while.

"I understand, Iwa. I won't disappoint you."

Guy knew that he had indeed been too impatient lately, too eager for quick results. Maybe he really had disappointed Iwa.

"Alright, Guy, don't look so gloomy. Take it slowly. Some things can't be rushed, or you'll only head in the opposite direction. Let nature take its course and follow your heart—that is the way of nature, and only then will it benefit your training."

"Yeah!"

Guy nodded seriously, his expression resolute.

"Come on, it's getting late. After challenging Kakashi, we still have to go eat ramen."

"Wait for me, Iwa! How about we run there?"

"Be careful the Uchiha Clan sees you and drags you to the Military Police Force for tea."

"Huh? Is the Military Police Force's tea good? Then let's go drink some together next time!"

"..."

Might Duy, following behind them, watched the two laughing and playfully bickering with a gratified expression. But when he noticed Hyuga Iwa occasionally glancing toward his hiding place, he could not suppress his shock.

What sharp perception!

And that was without using the Byakugan!

Might Duy knew that Hyuga Iwa was teaching Guy the sensory method he had created. If it was truly as Hyuga Iwa had described, then he looked forward to Guy and Hyuga Iwa's futures even more.

Perhaps he could ask for some guidance too? That method seemingly had no requirements for chakra control, so could he do it as well?

Might Duy could not help sinking into thought.

When Hyuga Iwa and Guy arrived at Kakashi's home, Kakashi was unexpectedly absent. After asking his father, the White Fang of the Leaf, Hatake Sakumo, they learned that he was probably training in a small forest he often visited.

Watching the two run off, Hatake Sakumo pondered for a moment before saying toward a corner ahead, "Come out."

"Sakumo-sama, hello. As expected of the man revered as the White Fang of the Leaf. You noticed me so easily."

"Oh? So it's Guy. Then the other one must be your son?"

"Yes. That is my son, Might Guy. The other is his friend, Hyuga Iwa."

"A Hyuga, huh? Then why were you following them? Were you worried they might be in danger?" Hatake Sakumo's expression hardened as he asked in a low voice.

If they could be in danger even within Konoha, then the village's public security would be a serious problem!

"No, no, Sakumo-sama. My son wanted to challenge your son Kakashi, so... haha..." Might Duy scratched his head awkwardly and laughed a few times to hide his embarrassment.

Hatake Sakumo froze for a moment, but quickly recovered. He cleared his throat. "Uh, I see. Then I'll go take a look too."

"Uh, that would be wonderful. If my son and the others could receive your guidance, it would truly be their good fortune."

"Uh, hehe, you flatter me. Then let's go. I think I know where they went."

"Then I'll trouble you to lead the way, sir."

Guy led Hyuga Iwa through several turns until they reached the outskirts of Konoha, where there was a small forest. There were many such small forests around Konoha's outskirts.

It was said that those small forests had existed even before Konoha was founded. Meanwhile, the enormous Forest of Death farther outside was supposedly created by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, using Wood Release!

Though the higher-ups had never acknowledged it, that claim was highly trusted among ordinary civilians.

This small forest was not large, and its trees were much smaller than those in the Forest of Death. There was a small clearing within, surrounded by unevenly sized trees. It would be difficult to find without looking carefully.

Guy had discovered this place by chance and found Kakashi training here.

"Hey, Guy, are you sure it's here? You didn't get the place wrong, did you?"

"I don't know whether he'll be here today, but I've run into him here several times."

"Fine, then let's look around."

As they spoke, Hyuga Iwa and Guy pushed through the bushes and entered a clearing. At the moment, it was completely empty.

"We came for nothing. He isn't here."

"Ahh!! Then where did Kakashi go?"

"Guy, how about we just forget it?"

"Ah, what a shame."

"I heard you were looking for me?" A voice suddenly sounded behind them.

Hyuga Iwa jumped at the sudden voice, his body trembling involuntarily. But after seeing who stood behind them, he patted Guy. "Guy, did he hide just now because of you?"

"How could that be!"

The moment Kakashi saw Guy, he had guessed why he had come today and rolled his eyes.

Hyuga Iwa smiled. "Kakashi, Guy has come to challenge you again."

"Then let's begin."

Looking at the eager Guy, Kakashi knew he could not avoid this today. He stopped making excuses and agreed directly. After all, since their last match, Kakashi had come to acknowledge Guy.

Kakashi's straightforward agreement caught Guy off guard for a moment. But once he realized Kakashi had accepted his challenge, he instantly became excited.

As casual and unrestrained as ever, Kakashi stood there with both hands in his pockets, his expression blank as he watched Guy.

Guy's determined face was filled with a smile. He was truly happy—this was the first time Kakashi had agreed to duel him face-to-face.

With a light shout, Guy charged forward.

Since Guy only knew taijutsu, his battles had never involved any fancy tricks.

"Watch my Leaf Taijutsu." Guy rapidly closed the distance. His right hand clenched into a fist as he threw a simple Black Tiger Steals the Heart straight at Kakashi's chest.

Kakashi also knew that Guy could not use any ninjutsu. Without much thought, he stepped diagonally aside and narrowly avoided Guy's fist.

In the past, Kakashi would have counterattacked immediately and defeated Guy in one move. But this time, he had no chance. The instant Kakashi dodged, Guy's footwork changed swiftly, and his left leg lashed out like a long whip.

They were too close, and Kakashi had not expected Guy to change moves so quickly. Realizing it was too late to dodge, he spread his palms and met the kick.

With a crisp smack, Kakashi borrowed the force to leap half a step back. Then he stomped the ground and lunged forward, throwing a kick of his own at Guy's waist.

Guy refused to yield and kicked out as well.

Their feet collided fiercely, then quickly withdrew before they exchanged several more kicks in rapid succession.

After several hard clashes, the two separated.

Though Kakashi's face remained expressionless, his heart was shaken. His aching feet had already gone somewhat numb, yet Guy appeared to feel nothing at all.

As expected, he could not trade blows head-on with a Steel Fist Style taijutsu practitioner. He would only be the one at a disadvantage.

Kakashi immediately changed tactics. He stopped clashing with Guy directly and began dodging instead.

However, Guy's attacks were no longer so easy to evade. They looked simple, but combined with his increasingly varied footwork and leg techniques, they pushed Kakashi into a flustered scramble.

Kakashi was somewhat astonished. Guy's taijutsu had caught up to his own in such a short time!

What Kakashi did not know was that as Guy fought, Hyuga Iwa's teachings unconsciously surfaced in his mind.

Among all martial arts, only speed was invincible. When dueling someone, your punches had to be fast, fierce, and accurate, but you could not put all your strength into every strike. You had to combine hardness with softness, and speed with slowness. At the same time, your body had to rise and fall lightly, your kicks had to be at the proper height, your steps had to be precise, and you could not kick blindly...

Guy had always remembered Hyuga Iwa's words firmly, because they were genuinely useful. Even his father, Might Duy, could not explain such key points.

The taijutsu training common among civilians in the Shinobi World was more like an education in getting beaten up. After getting hit enough times, one gradually learned how to respond.

Although Hyuga Iwa himself was only a half-baked amateur, he possessed the knowledge of his previous life. During their sparring matches, he had countless little tricks that made Guy miserable while also broadening his horizons.

Hyuga Iwa's techniques were meaningless to ninjas who revered ninjutsu, because they rarely fought others using pure taijutsu.

Moreover, some small techniques were useful when they could not use ninjutsu, but once ninjutsu was involved, they might not necessarily be useful anymore.

But who could say they were definitely useless?

Thus, Guy, keeping those teachings firmly in mind, attacked faster and faster. Not only was his speed fast, his rhythm was even faster!

For a moment, Kakashi felt like prey trapped in a spiderweb, tightly bound. Guy's attacks came from every direction, forcing him to scramble desperately and leaving him nearly unable to defend himself!

Kakashi knew that if this continued, he would definitely lose!

While dodging, he formed hand seals and extracted chakra for the first time.

"Body Flicker Technique."

Kakashi's speed suddenly increased by nearly half. After barely avoiding Guy's attack, he finally opened up some distance between them.

"Huff, huff..." Kakashi took several deep breaths before he felt somewhat recovered.

He focused his gaze ahead and saw Guy standing there calmly, showing no signs of exhaustion at all.

"Kakashi, what ninjutsu did you use just now? Your speed suddenly became so fast!"

It was Guy's first time seeing Kakashi use ninjutsu during a match with him. He was rather excited, though he also wasted the perfect chance to continue his attack.

"That was the Body Flicker Technique."

"Wow, so that's the Body Flicker Technique! It's really amazing. I just can't learn it no matter what."

Guy did not look upset at all as he said it openly.

Perhaps influenced by Hyuga Iwa, Guy was now more confident in himself.

Hidden to one side, Hatake Sakumo watched Guy's somewhat immature performance with great admiration. "Duy, your son truly is a genius. The future of Leaf Village will definitely have a place for him!"

"Haha, Sakumo-sama, you flatter him, you flatter him. Guy still has a long way to go." Might Duy thought for a moment, then continued, "Actually, Hyuga Iwa taught him all this. Compared to him, Guy still falls far short."

"Oh? I didn't expect you to think so highly of him." Hatake Sakumo was slightly surprised and could not help looking at Hyuga Iwa a few more times.

"Yes. Some of his ideas have benefited even me greatly."

Hatake Sakumo was even more astonished upon hearing that. "Really? But he still looks like a child."

"Yes. Perhaps that is what being a genius means. The Hyuga Clan's foundation truly cannot be underestimated."

Hatake Sakumo nodded in agreement.

While the two spoke, Guy and Kakashi began fighting again.

This time, Kakashi focused completely and responded with all his strength. Aside from ninjutsu of the five major elements, he had already used techniques like the Three Body Technique many times. Though he forced Guy into a somewhat sorry state, he still could not secure victory quickly.

Heavy breathing sounded in his ears. Kakashi knew his stamina was beginning to fail, yet Guy opposite him remained at ease, as relaxed as ever.

Was Guy that monster not tired at all?

For the first time, Kakashi felt a hint of frustration, but quickly cast it aside.

He was Kakashi Hatake! The son of the White Fang of the Leaf! A genius ninja!

Moreover, he was already preparing to submit his graduation application! If he passed the graduation examination, he would become the youngest graduate in the history of the Leaf Ninja Academy!

How could he fail here!

Kakashi's gaze sharpened as his hands rapidly formed seals, so fast that no one could see his movements clearly.

Kakashi took a deep breath, then forcefully exhaled forward. "Fire Release: Great Fireball."

A fireball the size of a human head shot from Kakashi's mouth. In nearly the blink of an eye, it flew before Guy.

Guy, who had briefly lost focus upon seeing the ninjutsu, hurriedly rolled sideways to evade it.

Yet just as he rose to his feet, another fireball came straight at him.

This time, Guy dodged even more awkwardly. He was even caught by the exploding fireball's blast and thrown to the ground.

Just as Guy tried to get up, a kunai was pressed against his throat.

Guy froze instantly. His tensed body suddenly shuddered, then quickly calmed.

Guy took a deep breath and exhaled heavily. His sharp eyes locked onto Kakashi. "You won, but next time, I'll definitely beat you!"

"You won't get that chance."

"Haha, Guy, Kakashi, the duel's over. Let's go eat ramen together!"

"Iwa, now that you mention it, I feel hungry too."

"Then let's go. Kakashi, you should come too."

"Yeah, come on." Seeing Kakashi hesitate, Guy grabbed him. "Iwa, you said you'd treat us to ramen at the Ichiraku Ramen Shop."

"..."

Hyuga Iwa's heart bled...

After the three left, Might Duy and Hatake Sakumo emerged.

"Guy's taijutsu has developed its own ideas. He is merely somewhat immature when dealing with ninjutsu and lacks long-range methods of attack. But overall, for his age, he is already exceptionally impressive. When I was his age, I might not have been stronger than him."

"Thank you for the praise, Sakumo-sama. Guy still has a long road ahead of him."

"No, praise that is deserved is an affirmation of a person. We must not become arrogant and complacent, but neither should we belittle ourselves."

"Yes, sir."

"Duy, it seems your strength is not as weak as people believe."

"..."

"Haha... Sakumo-sama truly thinks highly of a mere Genin like me..."

Watching Might Duy leave, Hatake Sakumo smiled softly. "None of them are simple. Hyuga Iwa, is it? I'll remember you."