Chapter 448: Earning a Title

From an outsider's perspective, the Mist Jonin suddenly froze in a daze, and the Miyashita Yuki he was holding immediately seized the opportunity to break free from his control.

The next moment, the sound of shuriken cutting through the air rang out.

Swish! Swish!

Several flaming shuriken enveloped the Mist Jonin and pierced through his body.

With that, all three Mist Jonin were completely wiped out.

The remaining Mist ninja on the field were all horrified, their will to fight completely shattered.

Before the battle began, not a single Mist ninja had imagined it would end like this.

They had three Jonin and nine Chunin and Genin—already a formidable elite squad.

And their opponents were just an ordinary Konoha squad plus one genius ninja.

Logically, there was no way they should have lost, but they did—and it was a crushing defeat, with all three Jonin dead.

In fact, even Shisui's teammates were utterly shocked by this.

"So this is what a true genius looks like..." Takagi Shinji let out a relieved breath, a delighted smile spreading across his face.

He had been prepared to sacrifice himself, but Shisui had apparently been holding back all along, his strength far greater than imagined.

"If even Shisui is this strong, just how terrifying must Might Guy be? He's said to be even stronger than Shisui."

Takagi Shinji figured that all the Mist ninja here combined might not be enough for Might Guy to handle alone.

"You were really cool today." Uesugi Toru was completely in awe of Shisui.

Given Shisui's current performance, back when they sparred, it wasn't just holding back—it was like holding back a flood; otherwise, Shisui would have instantly wiped him out.

"Quick-witted and incredibly strong—he's way too perfect." The still shaken Miyashita Yuki praised him.

Just now, Miyashita Yuki thought she was going to die, but she never expected Shisui could still rescue her.

With a rescue like that, if it happened to someone with a romantic mind, they'd probably already be picking out names for their kids.

But Miyashita Yuki wasn't thinking too much about that right now—she just felt that Shisui was terrifyingly strong, and having him as a teammate gave an overwhelming sense of security.

The more seriously injured Kobayashi Kenji finally felt the weight lift from his heart; the goddess of victory had already smiled upon their squad.

After killing the last Mist Jonin, Shisui didn't stop. He exited the Flame Breathing Chakra Mode and turned his gaze to the Mist Chunin who was fighting Kobayashi Kenji, casting a genjutsu.

Kobayashi Kenji seized the opportunity Shisui gave him to turn the tables, heavily injuring the Mist Chunin.

Seeing this, the remaining Mist Chunin realized the situation was hopeless and used every trick to try to escape. Takagi Shinji and his team killed one fleeing Mist ninja and wounded two others but didn't pursue further, because Shisui hadn't followed.

"Let's retreat. I'm not in great shape right now." Shisui said directly, wasting no time.

Flame Breathing Chakra Mode was indeed powerful, but the consumption was also substantial. Plus, he had been using his Sharingan all along, so his body had reached its limit.

If he had been able to continue fighting, Shisui would never have used his Sharingan just to support his teammates—he would have handled things himself, which was much safer.

Takagi Shinji nodded, carried Shisui on his back, and quickly retreated with his students.

The silently observing Moon Shadow clone also followed and left.

Unless a typhoon was blowing in from the coast, there was no way a normal natural wind could disperse the Mist Technique performed by a Jonin. It was actually him who had used Wind Release to blow away the thick fog.

The Mist Technique was indeed a decent jutsu, capable of countering the Sharingan to some extent.

If Moon hadn't intervened, even Shisui, after entering Flame Breathing Chakra Mode, wouldn't have been able to achieve such results.

After returning to camp, Takagi Shinji immediately reported their encounter and results to Orochimaru.

On one hand, Orochimaru investigated the situation of other squads; on the other hand, he promoted the Takagi Squad as a typical example.

Although it couldn't compare to the skirmish where Moon killed Mizunotsuki Kan, the valuable thing about the Takagi Shinji Squad was that they won by overcoming a stronger enemy with a weaker force.

Not every normal squad would be lucky enough to encounter someone as strong as Moon to save them each time, and the Takagi Shinji Squad was a prime example of self-reliance and perseverance.

As for Shisui, because of his own battle merits and his relationship with Moon, Orochimaru made sure to focus his publicity efforts on him.

Plus, surviving Mist ninja spread new intel about Shisui to the Mist forces, making the name Uchiha Shisui increasingly renowned on the eastern front.

To avoid punishment, the Mist ninja not only described Shisui's strength in vivid detail but even exaggerated it somewhat.

Thus, Shisui, who had gained a certain reputation among both friend and foe, began to acquire a nickname.

At first, it was chaotic — some called him the Flame Demon, others called him the Phantom Eye.

In the end, because of Shisui's spectral and masterful use of the Body Flicker Technique, everyone settled on calling him — Shisui of the Body Flicker.

……

……

Konoha Village, Konoha Hospital.

Fully recovered, Might Guy finished his discharge procedures and looked up at the sky.

Gazing at the cloudless azure sky, Might Guy raised his arm. "What a perfect day for a fight."

"My dear friend must be eager to spar with me. Youth is about to burn!" Remembering what Obito had told him earlier, Might Guy strode briskly toward Kakashi's house.

Since Kakashi wanted to experience his Eight Gates and Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, Might Guy naturally responded to his friend's expectations at the fastest speed.

Just as Might Guy was about to reach Kakashi's front door, the door opened and Kakashi walked out.

"Yo, Kakashi! What a coincidence!" Might Guy laughed excitedly and greeted Kakashi.

Kakashi had a dark look on his face as he watched Might Guy. "You call running into me at my own doorstep a coincidence?"

"Let's not bother with such trivial matters. Let's have an intense, thrilling, youth-filled, hot-blooded battle!" Might Guy gave Kakashi a thumbs-up and laughed as he issued the invitation.

He couldn't wait to show Kakashi the immense power of the Rock Breathing Chakra Mode.

"Compared to what I'm about to do, sparring is the trivial matter," Kakashi flatly refused.

He had zero confidence in beating Might Guy as he was now; Kakashi had no desire to be a punching bag.

Might Guy's expression turned serious. More important than sparring? Could it be...

"Kakashi, when did you contract an incurable disease? Don't give up! Let's go find Lady Tsunade together," Might Guy encouraged.

Kakashi couldn't hold it together. He was just about to go grocery shopping — how did that become an incurable disease?

"Guy, you should spend less time with Obito from now on. Your comprehension is already quite far from that of a normal person," Kakashi advised.

Might Guy scratched his head in confusion, not understanding how the two things Kakashi mentioned were related.

"If you don't have anything to do, head back. I need to go buy groceries." With that, Kakashi prepared to leave.

"What? The important thing is buying groceries?" Might Guy's eyes widened in disbelief.

Kakashi stopped in his tracks and nodded calmly. Grocery shopping was far more important than getting beaten up.

"How can buying groceries be more important than a fight?" Might Guy couldn't accept it. He had come with so much passion.

"It depends on the time. Right now, buying groceries is indeed more important," Kakashi replied.

If it were Might Guy before mastering Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, Kakashi might have had some interest.

After all, pressure can be turned into motivation, and fighting someone stronger can stimulate growth to a certain extent.

But having witnessed the effect of Rock Breathing Chakra Mode layered over the Eight Gates, Kakashi understood that the gap between them was no longer trivial. When the difference in strength is too great, fighting loses its meaning.

"But my friend, weren't you looking forward to fighting me when I use Rock Breathing Chakra Mode?" Might Guy asked in confusion.

This development was completely opposite to what he had imagined.

In Might Guy's imagination, the process was that he would challenge Kakashi, Kakashi would excitedly accept, then they would battle for three hundred rounds, and finally Might Guy would win, while Kakashi would also gain something from the fight.

"I don't look forward to it now," Kakashi said mercilessly. Who would look forward to being tormented?

"Did I misremember what Obito said?" Might Guy scratched his hair with his right hand, looking deep in thought.

Kakashi's eyes sharpened as he picked out the key phrase — Obito's words.

"What did Obito tell you?" Kakashi asked calmly, without changing his expression.

"Earlier, didn't everyone give you a gift for your promotion to jonin? Before giving the gift, we all got together and discussed it. At that time, Obito told me that you really wanted to fight me at full strength," Might Guy recalled and explained.

Kakashi finally understood what was going on. So someone had been stirring things up.

"Guy, you must have misremembered because you hadn't fully recovered at that time. I never said that. Maybe Obito himself wanted to fight you," Kakashi thought for a moment and said.

"Is that so?" Might Guy was a bit skeptical.

He was injured in body, not in head. How could he misremember such a simple statement?

"Of course. Do you think I would forget my own words?" Kakashi retorted.

"What you say, my friend, also makes sense." Might Guy was losing confidence.

"Since you can't figure it out, why not go ask Obito?" Kakashi pointed out a clear path for Might Guy.

Might Guy showed a look of sudden realization, bid farewell to Kakashi, and went to Obito's home, while Kakashi went out to buy groceries as originally planned.

After listening to Might Guy's question, Obito inwardly cursed Kakashi for being too cunning—his technique of shifting blame was simply top-notch.

But Obito absolutely did not want to take this blame. If Kakashi didn't want to be tortured, neither did he. Back then, Might Guy had used a single move, "Golden Horizon," to break the Decapitating Carving Knife while nearly killing Juzo in the process.

If the other members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist hadn't intervened, Juzo would have died.

"Maybe I misremembered. Sorry about that, Guy." Obito apologized with a foolish grin.

Sending Might Guy back to Kakashi was definitely not an option. If Might Guy was tricked by Kakashi into believing it was him, that would be a disaster.

Might Guy could only return disappointed. However, he didn't waste the good weather and trained for an entire day, which he hadn't done in a while.

The next day, Might Guy participated in the jonin exam.

Unlike the time with Kakashi, this time besides Might Guy, there was only one other examinee.

However, the practical exam proctors were still Hiashi Hyuga and Mimura Haken.

After all, there weren't many jonin in Konoha with free time, and even fewer with the qualifications to conduct jonin exams.

"A super genius who fought four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist." Thinking of Might Guy's achievements, Hiashi Hyuga felt a chill in his heart.

Although there were no kills to his record, facing opponents of the level of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and occupying four of them at once, even if it was just a simple skirmish, was a testament to extraordinary strength.

Even if Hiashi Hyuga himself went, he didn't have full confidence he could achieve the same effect as Might Guy. Only if it were reduced to three of him would he be confident.

"Hiashi, you're really going to have to work hard this time," Mimura Haken teased.

Might Guy had all his skills focused on taijutsu. Of course, Hiruzen Sarutobi would not arrange for Mimura Haken, who was more skilled in ninjutsu, to examine Might Guy.

There were only two proctors in total. If not Mimura Haken, then it had to be Hiashi Hyuga.

"I will properly fulfill my duties as a proctor." Hiashi Hyuga prepared to give his all.

When examining Kakashi, Hiashi Hyuga did not know that Kakashi was also so excellent in taijutsu, which is why he did not activate his Byakugan.

Might Guy was different. All the intelligence on Might Guy was about taijutsu and nothing else; he had never used a single ninjutsu in battle.

"Might Guy, prepare for battle." As the referee called out Might Guy's name, both Might Guy and Hiashi Hyuga entered the combat arena to prepare for battle.

"The Byakugan... haven't faced it in a while." Looking at Hiashi Hyuga's pure white eyes, Might Guy thought of a certain opponent from his ninja academy days.

That one was also a respectable opponent. In the first semester of the fourth grade, Might Guy had even undergone special training to defeat him.

"I think his name was Hyuga Daimon?" Might Guy recalled the opponent's name.

"Begin!" Seeing that both were ready, the referee shouted.

Hearing the referee's voice, Might Guy instantly focused all his mind, his breathing became concentrated, and his aura changed rapidly.

"Eight Gates: First Gate, Gate of Opening, open!... Fifth Gate, Gate of Closing, open!"

The proctor had explained the rules very clearly before the exam began. In this simulated combat, they needed to display their strongest strength. So Might Guy, without hesitation, concentrated his breathing and opened the Eight Gates up to the Fifth Gate.

Without entering Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, this was already Might Guy's full power.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

At the moment all five gates opened simultaneously, a massive amount of chakra surged from Might Guy's body. A powerful aura rose from him, creating an invisible current that pushed away dust and leaves around him.

Hiashi Hyuga activated his Byakugan at the first moment. Through the Byakugan, he could clearly see the violent and powerful chakra inside Might Guy's body.

"No wonder he chose to specialize in taijutsu. In this state, even if he had trained in ninjutsu, he couldn't use it." Hiashi Hyuga perceived the drawback of the Eight Gates.

Given the violent degree of chakra in Might Guy's body now, not to mention ninjutsu, even some taijutsu that required fine chakra control would be difficult to use.

Hiashi Hyuga did not underestimate Might Guy because of this. Such powerful chakra, even if used to reinforce the body in the most straightforward and

Skill is certainly useful, but if one is strong enough, raw power can overcome many techniques.