Chapter 450: Before Slaying the Dragon, I Wanted to Become an Evil Dragon
Guy and Hiashi closed the distance in a blink, one throwing a straight punch, the other striking with a precise palm. Guy's punch was brutal and direct, packed with overwhelming force. Hiashi, however, used the Byakugan's advantage to read the motion and dissolve the impact with subtle redirection.
In the next instant, both released chakra at the same time.
Their bodies blurred, afterimages overlapping as fists and palms collided dozens of times in a heartbeat.
Whoosh! Whoosh!!
At last, knuckles met a guarded palm, and both men slid back several steps.
"This strength really is as frightening as expected," Hiashi thought, feeling a faint sting spread through his hand.
"But he still hasn't shown everything."
Hiashi could already tell Guy's physique was abnormal for his age, but this level of power still did not explain how he had held off four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
"Leaf Great Whirlwind!"
Guy grinned, surged forward again, and snapped into a spinning kick that tore through the air like lightning.
Boom!
Hiashi shifted aside at the last moment. The kick missed him by a hair, and the large tree behind him dropped with a crash.
Straightforward attacks like that were hard to land on him. The Byakugan was not just for show. Unless the speed reached a level his body could not physically respond to, these kinds of strikes would not touch him.
That was exactly why Hiashi was confident he could contend with multiple Ninja Swordsmen. The Byakugan that could see through everything, paired with the absolute defense of Rotation, gave him terrifying defensive stability.
Hiashi seized the opening immediately, chakra gathering in his palm as he struck for Guy's chakra points.
Guy had not fought a Hyuga in years, but he had clashed with Kakashi countless times. He was wary of abilities that resembled the Byakugan and Transparent World.
The moment Hiashi's palm moved, Guy raised his arm to block, preventing the Gentle Fist from landing on the correct points.
Thud!
Even so, the force behind Hiashi's palm still launched Guy backward.
"What an incredible opponent!" Guy laughed, eyes blazing. "I wanted to save this for Kakashi, but since Kakashi doesn't want to fight me right now, I'll test it on you first!"
Under normal circumstances, he would have used Leaf Dragon God again to probe Hiashi and force out more information.
But Guy had not fought in over a month, and he was desperate to feel the power of Rock Breathing Chakra Mode again.
A taijutsu master like Hiashi was rare. Guy's blood was already boiling.
"Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, activate!"
Guy clenched his fists and narrowed his gaze. His breathing tightened to the extreme, and his body entered a state that was hard to describe. With every breath, the change became more obvious, like his entire frame was being reforged.
Strong.
So strong.
That was the first thing Guy felt.
This was only his second time entering Rock Breathing Chakra Mode. The first time had been life or death, leaving no room to notice details. Now, with his mind steady, he could clearly sense what was happening inside him.
Rock Breathing's concentrated breathing was the most direct way to strengthen the body, and Rock Breathing Chakra Mode pushed that to its limit. Guy felt like he could shatter stone with a single punch even without using chakra.
"So he really was holding back," Hiashi thought, expression turning serious as the surge of power rolled off Guy.
This version of Guy felt less like a person and more like a human beast.
"Leaf Whirlwind!"
Guy exploded forward. His stomp cratered the ground.
Whoosh!
Hiashi saw the kick coming and began to shift away, but before he could complete the movement, Guy was already in front of him.
Hiashi had no choice.
He gathered chakra and raised his arm to block.
Bang!
A dull impact echoed, and Hiashi was sent flying like a cannonball. He crashed through several large trees before finally stopping.
"Each one is more terrifying than the last," Ketsu muttered, shaking his head.
For an examiner, drawing a candidate like Guy was a nightmare.
His strength was far beyond a normal Chunin. Forget Chunin, there were not many people in all of Konoha who could confidently say they would win against him one on one, and every person who could was a name known throughout the village.
At the level that shook the entire Ninja World, it went without saying. Powerhouses like the Third Hokage and the Sannin could defeat Guy with ease. Then there were those with war achievements, like Minato and Mugetsu, who could also win easily. There were also shinobi at Teacher Chen's level who could win, though it would not be simple.
Even Teacher Chen, who sat at the bottom of that group, was still a terrifying figure known as Konoha's strongest taijutsu user. That alone said enough about how far Guy's strength had climbed.
Guy did not let up after gaining advantage. He poured in more force, gathered more chakra, and spun into an even heavier kick.
"Leaf Strong Whirlwind!"
Strong Whirlwind was currently Guy's most powerful spinning technique. If it landed cleanly, the result would not be as simple as a few broken trees.
Hiashi did not dodge.
Instead, he abandoned evasion entirely and unleashed the Hyuga clan's secret technique, the so called absolute defense.
"Eight Trigrams Palms: Rotation!"
Rotation was not simply blocking an attack. It was a high speed spinning sphere of chakra, like a top, capable of reflecting physical force.
Bang!
Guy's crushing kick slammed into the chakra sphere with an explosive sound. In the next instant, the rotation's returned force blasted Guy backward, sending the power of his own kick back into his body.
Guy skidded, carving two long furrows into the ground with his feet before he finally stopped.
"That's a fascinating taijutsu technique," Guy said, rolling his shoulders. His excitement only grew.
His defense in Rock Breathing Chakra Mode was ridiculous. A counter like that was not enough to injure him.
For a moment, Guy wondered if Hiashi's chakra shield could block Golden Skyline.
But he only thought about it.
Even with only five gates open, Rock Breathing Chakra Mode already put heavy pressure on his body. Ordinary taijutsu was fine, but using Golden Skyline would definitely injure his palm.
If Kakashi truly wanted to experience his full strength, Guy would use it.
But this was a Jonin exam. It was not worth it.
"Leaf Dragon God!"
A massive amount of chakra erupted from Guy. His body spun at terrifying speed, and in that rotation, his form turned into a giant azure dragon.
Leaf Dragon God also carried a heavy burden, but using it once was still acceptable.
Whoosh! Whoosh!!
Fierce gales erupted around him. Air currents like wind blades shredded everything nearby, dragging debris into the azure dragon. Its expanding body looked as if it wanted to devour the entire arena.
"Teacher Chen's taijutsu," Hiashi muttered, frowning as he recognized it.
Rotation was not all powerful. It was not suited to handling a taijutsu like Leaf Dragon God.
Hiashi did not hesitate.
He gathered all his chakra into both palms and unleashed his most powerful strike.
"Eight Trigrams: Empty Palm Wall!"
Boom! Boom!!
His palms struck the air, detonating with thunderous force. Every tree in front of him shattered under the shock, and the wall of impact crashed straight into the azure dragon.
Bang! Bang!
The collision's aftershock blasted the ground apart. The dragon's forward momentum stalled, and it was even pushed back for a moment.
But Guy kept forcing it forward.
Step by step, the azure dragon crushed through Hiashi's pressure and broke the technique apart.
Hiashi's arms dropped. Sharp wind blades tore at his clothes and left shallow marks across his body.
"Exam over!" the referee shouted immediately, ending it early. "Both sides, stop!"
Guy redirected the azure dragon at once, cut off the chakra supply, and exited both the Eight Gates and Rock Breathing Chakra Mode.
"Phew." He exhaled hard, pressing a hand lightly to his chest.
"I still need to train harder and make my body stronger," Guy thought.
It felt like his hardware could not keep up with his software. The pressure from Rock Breathing Chakra Mode was not the technique's flaw. It was his body not being strong enough to fully endure that power yet.
Guy walked out of the arena, deep in thought.
Hiashi watched him go, expression complicated.
Not long ago, Hiashi had lamented Ketsu's defeat by a candidate and the early end of that exam.
He did not expect to be on the receiving end so soon.
"If the Hyuga clan could produce a genius like that, then the top noble clan in Konoha might not be the Uchiha anymore," Hiashi thought, a trace of unwillingness surfacing.
Both clans possessed eye technique bloodline limits. Both were ancient, powerful, and influential. People naturally compared the Hyuga to the Uchiha.
And that comparison was cruel.
The Uchiha were stronger, far stronger. Otherwise, how could they hold the position of the top noble clan?
The Uchiha had a bad reputation in Konoha, but strength was strength. Everyone with eyes knew who stood above whom.
Even so, Hyuga shinobi were more popular.
On one hand, many Uchiha were arrogant. On the other, the Byakugan held extraordinary strategic value.
The Sharingan was terrifying, but it mainly made the individual Uchiha with the Sharingan terrifying.
The Byakugan, however, could give an entire squad long range vision, like a full map advantage.
"I can only hope the next generation produces some excellent children," Hiashi thought, painfully aware of his own limits.
He was not weak, but he could not compare to geniuses like Minato and Mugetsu. He could maintain the Hyuga clan's standing, but he could not elevate it further.
If this generation could not do it, then he could only place his hopes in the next.
Hiashi decided that once he had descendants, he would educate them strictly, training geniuses who could stand alongside people like Kakashi and Guy.
…
Guy had the time of his life during the practical exam.
But in the afternoon, when the theoretical exam arrived, he felt as if he had been hit by a forbidden technique.
He could not understand it. Not at all.
He recognized every character on the paper, but once they were placed together, they became completely alien.
Guy would rather fight four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen again than face those questions.
That was how he felt, but he still endured it. If passing this test meant earning proof of being an excellent shinobi sooner, then he would grit his teeth and do it.
He could not guarantee how many answers were correct, but he filled every line.
"As expected of my best friend," Guy sighed as he left the exam room, exhausted. "He overcame this and became a Jonin."
Being tortured by those questions finally made him understand why becoming a Jonin was considered proof of excellence. To pass, you had to read so many books and memorize so much.
The results came quickly.
"Your practical performance was excellent, nearly perfect," the proctor said as gently as possible. "But your theoretical knowledge is lacking. Your overall score is not enough for promotion to Jonin."
"Haha, it's as bad as expected," Guy said, scratching his head without surprise.
He had never been good at theory.
"There is still a make up exam," the proctor added in the usual comforting tone. "If you study hard, you can still be promoted."
In truth, with a score like Guy's, passing through the exam route would be difficult.
But saying that would be cruel.
Besides, Guy did not truly need the exam route. With his battlefield achievements, a few more merits would be enough to earn promotion anyway.
"Since I failed, it is what it is," Guy told himself. "I'll work harder and pass next time."
That day, both Kakashi and Obito came to see him.
"Guy, you didn't get promoted either?" Obito blurted the moment he entered.
Obito was not wishing bad on him. It was just that if Guy passed, the situation would be painfully awkward.
Three people took the exam, and Obito would be the only one who failed. That kind of embarrassment could kill a man faster than a kunai.
"Obito," Kakashi said flatly, "you really know how to talk. Don't say that next time."
Guy did not mind. He nodded openly. "They said my theory score was too low. They told me to study and take the make up exam later."
Obito threw an arm around Guy's shoulder, grinning so hard he could not hide it.
Failing was not scary.
Failing alone was scary.
"This theory exam is too difficult and unreasonable!" Obito declared, sounding like a brother in arms. "When we become high ranking officials in the future, we'll abolish it together!"
Guy blinked. "If we become high ranking officials, we won't need to take the theory exam anyway. Abolishing it or not is the same, right?"
Obito froze.
Then his eyes widened with sudden understanding.
If he became a high ranking official, who would dare examine him? He would be the one examining others.
If he abolished the theory test, that just benefited everyone else.
"…Then we should increase the difficulty!" Obito corrected himself instantly. "We'll make Konoha's shinobi the elite of the elite!"
Kakashi looked at him with open disdain. "You're really something right now."
"Let's talk about the future later," Kakashi cut in. "We need to discuss something important."
He was not here to watch Obito evolve into the kind of person he disliked most.
He was here to talk about returning to the battlefield.
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