July.
Judging by the timing, the Chunin Exams should be coming soon.
"Yemu Hyuga!!"
"Yemu Hyuga, get out here!!"
Early that morning.
Before Yemu Hyuga had even gotten out of bed, he heard a voice from downstairs that was practically begging for a beating.
"Who is it!!"
Qingxue Uchiha got up from beside Yemu.
After throwing on a black shirt, she grabbed the frying pan beside her in irritation and opened the window.
"What's all the racket? Are you itching for a beating?"
Qingxue Uchiha demanded of Sasuke below.
"Hurry up and get Yemu out of bed! I want to duel him!!"
Sasuke Uchiha wasn't remotely surprised to see Qingxue appear at Yemu's window.
Even someone deaf and mute wouldn't believe those two weren't sleeping together.
"Yemu, that brat Sasuke is here to challenge you again."
Qingxue turned to find Yemu already getting up, her expression speechless.
Did that brat enjoy getting beaten up?
"All right, I'll go take a look."
Yemu rubbed the corners of his eyes as he got out of bed.
He'd spent a while fooling around with this girl last night and hadn't gotten much rest.
The Chunin Exams were coming up soon.
Was Sasuke planning to test his strength?
"Sasuke, what are you yelling about this early in the morning? Don't you sleep?"
Yemu Hyuga yawned.
He slowly walked out of the room.
"The sun's already high in the sky! Yemu, why are you still sleeping? Aren't you afraid I'll surpass you if you keep slacking off?"
Sasuke Uchiha's eyes burned with fighting spirit.
Ever since he'd encountered that white-clad Masked Man on his mission in the Land of Waves.
Sasuke's desire to grow stronger had only intensified.
He had to become stronger, even stronger than that mysterious man in white. Only then could he kill Uchiha Itachi with his own hands!!
"What are you doing here? Didn't your instructor give you any missions?"
Yemu Hyuga headed toward an open area.
"Dammit, don't bring up Kakashi! All he does every day is make us run errands. I suspect he's using us to earn mission fees."
"He gets our labor for free and calls it training."
Yemu Hyuga reached an empty stretch of flat ground.
"Come on."
Yemu beckoned.
Since he had nothing else to do, he might as well farm some gold coins-emotion points-from Sasuke.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!!"
Sasuke Uchiha was brimming with confidence.
He'd experienced a life-or-death battle, and his opponent had been Zabuza, an expert assassin from Kirigakure.
That made Sasuke Uchiha believe he definitely had more actual combat experience than Yemu.
Boom!!
A fireball roared toward Yemu.
Several shuriken followed, cutting off the space around him.
"You've got something there." Yemu was in a good mood. "Just not much."
Yemu held both hands behind his back, looking utterly relaxed.
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!!"
"Wind Release: Great Storm Technique!!"
After dodging the shuriken.
Yemu Hyuga formed hand seals with both hands at once, each hand making a completely different set.
"What the fuck?? Casting simultaneously? What the hell is that?"
Sasuke Uchiha was dumbstruck on the spot, his face nearly turning into a shocked reaction meme.
Not only was Yemu casting simultaneously, but he was using two highly difficult ninjutsu at the same time!
Was that even humanly possible?
Sasuke Uchiha had thought that even if he couldn't defeat Yemu, he should at least be able to trade blows with him.
Now it looked like he was nothing but a clown.
If that combination ninjutsu hit him, he'd probably be laid out flat for quite a while.
Boom!!
The heat from the fire dragon blew Sasuke's hair upward.
Before his eyes, a raging fire dragon circled Yemu, the constantly rising gale making its flames swell even higher.
"Fight my *****!!"
An exquisitely foul greeting burst from Sasuke Uchiha's mouth.
[Sasuke Uchiha felt stunned. Emotion points harvested: 500+] [Sasuke Uchiha was dumbfounded. Emotion points harvested: 300+]
Seeing that Sasuke had truly lost his will to fight, Yemu stopped forming hand seals.
He didn't want to add a huge crater right next to his home, either.
"Sasuke, why aren't you fighting anymore?"
Yemu wore a teasing expression.
Seeing Sasuke's face practically screaming curses made him want to laugh.
Come on, man. You've got cheats too, but yours haven't awakened yet.
In front of a real cheater like me, you're still a little runt.
Yemu delivered his final verdict.
"If you suck, practice more!!"
"Yemu, how did you learn that Fire Release Ninjutsu!!"
Sasuke Uchiha's eyes lit up.
Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!
That was an advanced ninjutsu. Forget casting it-Sasuke hadn't even started learning it yet.
"What, want to learn?"
Yemu walked over to Sasuke.
One beating had made this brat a lot more obedient.
"I do!!" Sasuke Uchiha nodded quickly, his eyes full of anticipation.
"If you want to learn, ask your instructor. I never said I'd teach you."
Yemu Hyuga waved a hand. "Want another beating? In Taijutsu this time?"
"You bastard!" Sasuke Uchiha realized Yemu had played him, and his expression darkened.
"Come on." Seeing Sasuke's fighting spirit rise again, Yemu curled a finger, motioning for him to attack.
Yemu assumed the opening stance of Eight Extremities Fist and said casually, "Enemies who stand before me either flee for their lives or suffer utter defeat."
"I refuse to accept this!!"
Sasuke Uchiha charged as he spoke.
Why? They were all about the same age, so why was the gap so enormous?
Sasuke couldn't accept it at all.
He clearly trained so hard.
He even put in extra work every night.
So why was the gap still so huge?
If Yemu had known what Sasuke was thinking, he probably would have quipped that if hard work were enough, what would anyone need cheats for?
"I give, I give... stop hitting me... fuck..."
Sasuke Uchiha lay sprawled on the ground, his face covered in bruises.
He'd been crushed in ninjutsu and utterly demolished in Taijutsu.
Could Sharingan Genjutsu be the only way to defeat Yemu?
[Sasuke Uchiha had been humbled. Emotion points harvested: 500+]
"Next time... next time, I'll definitely beat you..."
Dragging his thoroughly battered body along, Sasuke Uchiha slowly headed toward Konoha's streets.
"Remember to have the medical team look at you," Yemu reminded him with a wave. "And you're welcome to come back next time."
Every time Uchiha Sasuke came over, he dropped a four-digit haul of emotion points.
He was one fat cash cow.
"What? Sasuke ran off again?" Having changed her clothes, Qingxue Uchiha walked slowly over to Yemu.
"Yemu, did you beat Sasuke up again?" Hinata asked curiously from beside Qingxue.
Yemu rubbed his nose. "Ahem, what do you mean, beat him up? You're making it sound like I was bullying a little kid."
"We're the same age. Our fight was a no-rules match."
"Come on. The Chunin Exams are almost here. Let's keep training at the secret base."
Yemu reminded the two girls behind him.
With the joint Chunin Exams organized by the major nations about to begin, Team 8 hadn't taken on any missions lately.
"Huh? More training? Yemu, can't you go a little easier on us?"
Qingxue Uchiha followed beside Yemu, looking at him plaintively.
The phrase "go easy on a girl" didn't seem to exist in his dictionary.
"Go easier?" Yemu slowly turned to look at Qingxue, who stood a head shorter than him.
"Ow~"
"Why did you kick me?"
Qingxue held her backside, her gaze reproachful.
"Your future enemies won't go easy on you. Look at Hinata-she hasn't complained."
The corners of Qingxue Uchiha's lips quietly lifted, and faint pink hearts flickered in her eyes. Did it ever occur to you that I said that on purpose?
I just love it when you kick me hard~♡
Before you continue