Roar!
The savage dragon-shaped hurricane plunged from above, hurtling straight toward Shisui Uchiha below.
Before it even struck the ground, its crushing pressure made the entire surface tremble violently.
Its speed and sheer force were terrifying!
Unfortunately, an attack like this was nowhere near enough to defeat Shisui Uchiha.
"Decent power, respectable speed, but..."
Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!
"Still not enough to beat me."
Roar!
As Shisui Uchiha's shout rang out, a wooden dragon covered in spikes, every bit as large as the wind dragon, burst into Teacher Chen's view.
The instant it took shape, the wooden dragon opened its savage, gaping maw and lunged, coiling directly around the wind dragon.
"Who the hell are you, kid?!"
Seeing his wind dragon restrained, Teacher Chen's expression immediately darkened.
To his surprise, he discovered that the wooden dragon not only had terrifying constricting strength, but could even absorb his chakra!
If he did not find a way to defeat his opponent quickly, given how fast this wooden dragon was absorbing chakra...
It would not be long before his defeat was certain!
"There's only one thing left to do."
After a brief stalemate, Teacher Chen suddenly gritted his teeth.
The next instant, the wind dragon's aura suddenly grew frenzied.
Ready to risk it all?
Watching Teacher Chen's actions, Shisui Uchiha seemed to realize something, and his hands flew through another series of hand seals.
At the very same moment, Teacher Chen, caught in the wooden dragon's coils, sent the wind dragon crashing furiously toward him.
Clearly, Teacher Chen intended to take him down with him.
After all, a taijutsu ninja's physique was far stronger than that of an ordinary ninja.
If both were caught in a technique this powerful, the one left standing would undoubtedly be the taijutsu ninja!
"You're still too green to beat me, kid!"
Rumble...
The moment the wind dragon and wooden dragon hit the ground, a massive explosion swallowed the entire courtyard.
But before it could spread outward and destroy the gravestone, clusters of wooden spikes descended from above, instantly forming a prison that enclosed the explosion's entire reach.
Wood Release: Four Pillar Prison Technique!
"Whoa, that was close. Any slower, and I probably wouldn't have managed to get you out in time."
Shisui Uchiha smiled at Teacher Chen in front of him.
"..."
Teacher Chen neither disputed his words nor resisted.
Shisui Uchiha's right hand had already transformed into an enormous wooden mallet aimed straight at his head.
If he tried anything, that wooden spike would smash his head apart.
"Looks like you've finally settled down."
"But fighting is one thing. Nearly destroying your student's gravestone was going a little too far, wouldn't you say?"
The gravestone appeared to belong to Teacher Chen himself, but in truth, something deeper lay buried there.
It was his guilt toward his dead student!
At Shisui Uchiha's words, Teacher Chen's eyes widened, and he turned toward the gravestone.
Only after confirming that it truly remained intact did he roar at Shisui Uchiha.
"How do you know about that?!"
"How, you ask?"
Seeing that the time was about right, Shisui Uchiha released the Wood Release chakra within him and smiled faintly.
"Allow me to introduce myself properly. My name is Senju Ye, of the Senju Clan. Lord Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage, was my teacher."
"That's why I told you not to call me kid. We're actually about the same age, old Chen."
"As for your past, naturally, I have my ways of finding out."
Teacher Chen's face filled with disbelief.
"What?! You're Lord First's student? But you're so young!"
Soon, however, his expression returned to normal, and he slumped onto the ground in dejection.
He could not even be bothered to ask why Shisui Uchiha wore a cloak and refused to show his true face.
"Right. The Senju Clan has always possessed tremendous vitality. It's only natural that you'd look young."
At that, the muscles throughout Teacher Chen's supposedly exhausted body suddenly tensed, and his fists pounded the ground over and over.
"I... I..."
Drip, drip.
Tears fell one by one from Teacher Chen's eyes, soaking his clothes and the tree leaves scattered on the ground.
"I don't deserve to be his teacher! I don't deserve it!"
"If I hadn't taught him taijutsu, if I hadn't sent him onto the battlefield as a taijutsu ninja, if he'd studied under another teacher instead, he never would have died so horribly!"
"Taijutsu... heh, heh, heh. When my student faced the enemy, all they needed was genjutsu to make him die far from home."
Looking at Teacher Chen's dejected face and lifeless eyes, Shisui Uchiha took a few steps forward and approached the gravestone.
He gently brushed the dust on the gravestone with his palm and sighed.
"Where Konoha Dances, the fire burns on. You should know very well that your student's death had little to do with you."
"But..."
"No buts! Old Chen, how long are you going to keep wallowing in despair?!"
Shisui Uchiha suddenly snapped.
"Taijutsu is useless? Then how do you explain the power you just unleashed?"
"If you'd been fighting an ordinary jonin instead of me, you would definitely have won!"
"Face reality. Taijutsu is powerful!"
"..."
Seeing Teacher Chen fall silent again, Shisui Uchiha extended his right hand and continued.
"Come out of retirement, old Chen. Join me in dragging this village, rotten to its very roots, out of the darkness."
"For the Will of Fire, for the village, and so that more teachers won't have their students' lives unjustly taken away."
Hearing Shisui Uchiha's words, Teacher Chen slowly raised his head. He looked at the man standing beside the gravestone, framed by the full moon overhead, and a strange light appeared in his eyes.
"Come on, old Chen."
"..."
Before you continue