Chapter 346: The Beginning
While Ishiro's disciples and the Konoha delegation were engaged in round after round of sparring, the second stage of the joint Chunin Exams finally came to an official close.
Among this year's candidates, there were no particularly outstanding individuals. The ninja who entered the final round included participants from Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Konohagakure, and even several from smaller hidden villages.
Shikaizumi Nara found it incredible that three Konoha teams had made it to the finals. He recalled how, when Iwagakure participated in the exams hosted by Konoha, Konoha had done everything possible to eliminate the Iwa teams early on.
"Could it be that Iwagakure isn't afraid of Konoha winning the Chunin Exams they're hosting? They're not afraid of losing face?" Shikaizumi Nara wondered aloud.
Kakashi thought for a moment and replied, "I heard that during the last joint Chunin Exams hosted by Iwagakure, the winner was a Suna-nin. That Suna-nin not only stole the show but also won the grand prize offered by Iwa."
Shikaizumi considered this. "Let's put that aside for now. Apart from the three teams, the other squads have to return to the village. Have the personnel arrangements been made?"
Kakashi nodded. "They're arranged. They will depart tomorrow."
"Good. Remind them to be extra careful and not to linger on the road. Although our contact with the village has been cut off, the village should have people waiting for us at the border. Oh, and tell them not to go through the Land of Grass or the Land of Waterfalls. Have them take the passage that now belongs to the Land of Earth, the one between those two countries," Shikaizumi added, still feeling uneasy.
"Don't give Iwagakure any opportunities. Leaving the Land of Earth makes it easier for them to launch an attack and frame someone else. It's much safer to remain within the borders of the Land of Earth."
Kakashi thought for a moment, understood Shikaizumi's meaning, and nodded in agreement. "You get some rest then. I'll go make the arrangements."
"Alright. Thank you for your hard work, Kakashi," Shikaizumi said. He felt helpless; normally, these were his responsibilities.
However, Shikaizumi Nara was clearly overthinking it. Ishiro couldn't care less about these departing ninja. If Ishiro were truly to disregard all decorum and attack another nation's delegation, his target would be Kakashi, not the others.
The day after the second exam ended, Ishiro and Ikura arrived at the sparring ground they had agreed upon with Kakashi.
"Although sparring can increase combat experience, it's obviously more effective for geniuses. Aren't you afraid Kakashi will end up like Kawakita?" Ikura didn't understand why Ishiro had agreed to Kakashi's challenge.
Ishiro said, "Do you think that if we infiltrated Konoha and fought Hiruzen Sarutobi to the death, Kakashi would intervene?"
Ikura thought about it. "He probably would. If he didn't, he'd become a rogue ninja."
"That's true, but what if we gave Kakashi an excuse? Like setting up a barrier or something," Ishiro asked again.
Ikura hesitated. "Are you talking about his father, White Fang? You think he would watch Hiruzen die and do nothing?"
"Perhaps also because of his teacher, Minato Namikaze. Of course, his father is the main reason. Minato's death was something Hiruzen also didn't want to see, and at least he died a hero. But his father was different. Not only did he commit suicide, but he wasn't even qualified to have his name on the Konoha Memorial Stone," Ishiro explained.
"No matter how Hiruzen brainwashed Kakashi afterward, Kakashi definitely harbors dissatisfaction towards the Konoha leadership. I estimate that in Kakashi's heart, compared to the mastermind Danzō, Hiruzen's inaction probably incites even more hatred."
"Even if we help Konoha cultivate a Kage-level shinobi, it will be a Kage who is estranged from the Konoha leadership. As long as Hiruzen Sarutobi is alive, Kakashi will never be able to accept the Konoha high command."
"Besides, among the Konoha leadership, don't we still have an ally in Danzō? If Kakashi becomes Kage-level, the one who will be most anxious is Danzō."
"Why was White Fang forced to commit suicide? It was because he posed a threat to Danzō. Danzō intended to inherit the title of Fourth Hokage back then, and White Fang was the biggest obstacle in his path."
"Do you think Danzō would make a move on Hatake Kakashi? I doubt it. Konoha is already facing a shortage of talent. If Danzō eliminated all the geniuses among the younger generation, what use would it be even if he did become Hokage?" Ikura was skeptical.
Ishiro chuckled. "Hehe, you don't know Danzō well enough. That man is very interesting. In his early years, he thought his greatest threat was White Fang, so he forced White Fang to his death."
"After that, he thought his biggest rival was Orochimaru, so he drove Orochimaru away."
"Then, Minato Namikaze suddenly snatched the fruits of his victory, so he sat by and watched as foreign enemies invaded, watching as Minato died in battle."
"I reckon that Danzō should have figured it out by now. All the talented young ninja in Konoha are his potential enemies. He probably has the urge to eliminate every single one of them."
Ikura thought for a moment. "So what you're saying is, I should guide him with all my strength?"
"That won't be necessary. Just go through the motions. Don't put too much pressure on him, and don't think about defeating him in a few moves. Just drag it out with him. Over the past few days, I've come to understand this Kakashi a little. He's the type of person whose strength grows with pressure," Ishiro said.
"If you aim to defeat him in ten moves, I can guarantee that after twenty moves, he'll still be alive and kicking. If you send a ninja weaker than him into the ring, you might think he can end the fight in ten moves, but perhaps after twenty moves, his opponent will also still be jumping around."
Ikura couldn't quite grasp it, but at least he understood what Ishiro wanted him to do. Stall for time with Kakashi as much as possible, let the hidden Koku observe for a while longer, and if they could get something good out of him, all the better.
Outside the door, a hand rested on it, about to push. Kakashi was caught, unable to decide whether to enter or retreat.
Kakashi didn't think an elite jonin like himself could evade the senses of the two Kage-level individuals inside. Moreover, he hadn't tried to hide his presence on his way over. It was obvious that the conversation between the two had been meant for him to hear. It was just that the moment he heard Hiruzen Sarutobi's name, he had unconsciously stopped in his tracks. He wanted to know how the Iwagakure leadership viewed the leadership of Konoha.
Only after the two inside finished their chat did Kakashi push the door open and enter.
"Yo, Captain Kakashi has arrived! This is our Iwagakure's advisor, Ikura. You've met before. Come, I'll be your referee," Ishiro greeted them as if nothing had happened, ushering Kakashi and Ikura to begin their match.
...
While Ishiro was orchestrating the spar between Kakashi and Ikura, the first rebellion was taking place in Kirigakure.
The rebellion was a response to some of the policies Yagura Karatachi had recently issued to suppress the bloodline clans. The main force of the rebellion was the Kaguya clan, and it had received the tacit approval of some of Kirigakure's high-ranking officials, while the other advisors chose to remain neutral.
Therefore, the rebellion caught Obito, who was controlling Yagura, somewhat off guard. The subordinates he had gathered over the years using Yagura's identity as Mizukage suffered heavy casualties. The Kaguya clan had managed to charge all the way to the vicinity of the Mizukage's office before Yagura detected them.
Although the ultimate victor of this rebellion was Yagura, due to the severe losses among his loyalists, Obito's control over Kirigakure had actually weakened, even though he had eradicated the Kaguya clan.
If the current Kirigakure could produce an official Kage-level ninja, the advisory council might have already been discussing joining forces to overthrow Yagura Karatachi.
...
"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
"Earth Style: Mud Wall!"
In Iwagakure's indoor training ground, Ikura and Kakashi had already been fighting for two hours. Yet, the two were still in a state where neither could do anything to the other.
Ikura was astonished. He was beginning to understand what Ishiro meant. This Kakashi truly grew stronger against the strong and weaker against the weak. No matter how much he increased the frequency of his attacks, Kakashi could handle it. And no matter how much he held back, it was difficult for Kakashi to win.
In two hours of fighting, Ikura had used almost every tool at his disposal. Except for some large-scale, terrain-altering ninjutsu, he had used all his other techniques an average of three times or more.
And what about Kakashi? The variety of ninjutsu he used was definitely greater than his own. Apart from his signature Mud Wall carved with dog heads, which he used frequently, he used his other ninjutsu twice at most. It seemed this Kakashi always had a suitable jutsu to choose from, no matter the situation. It was simply incredible.
Ikura greatly admired Kakashi. Although he wasn't using his full strength, he believed that no one in Iwagakure could last two hours against him in this state. But Kakashi had done it, and with ease, showing no signs of strain.
At this point, there was little meaning in continuing the match unless he used large-scale ninjutsu, which wouldn't be of much help to Kakashi. But considering Koku spying from the other room, Ikura felt he had to continue.
So, Ikura began to speed up his jutsu execution, increase his chakra output, and enhance the power of each ninjutsu.
This time, the pressure Kakashi felt was even greater, and he had to change his tactics to match Ikura's rhythm. This continued for another hour. Finally, completely on the defensive, Kakashi lifted the protector covering his left eye.
"A three-tomoe already?" Ishiro, watching from the sidelines, said in his mind.
With the insight of the Sharingan, Kakashi's predictions of Ikura's moves became more precise, and dealing with them became easier. Soon, the advantage Ikura had built up was gradually erased by Kakashi. The two returned to the back-and-forth exchange they'd had at the beginning.
Just as Ikura was considering whether to add more power to his jutsu, Kakashi conceded.
The reason was simple: he was out of chakra.
The moment he conceded, Kakashi immediately pulled his forehead protector back down.
Ikura blinked, then subconsciously glanced at Ishiro.
Ishiro glared back at him, thinking to himself that his own chakra reserves were increasing every day, and he was on the verge of escaping the embarrassing predicament of being "low on mana."
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