Chapter 453: An Extremely Dangerous Knife
After a simple test of the Repair Secret Medicine's effectiveness, Mugetsu returned to the camp as quickly as possible and found Guy and the others.
They had just completed a difficult S rank mission, so Kakashi and the team were in a rest period and were not taking new assignments for the time being.
Obito's eyes lit up the moment he noticed Mugetsu approaching with a large egg in his hands.
"Teacher Mugetsu, is that also an egg for a really powerful Nin Beast?" Obito asked, unable to hide his curiosity.
Earlier, Mugetsu had given Kakashi a Nin Beast egg and even emphasized its growth potential. Obito had been envious ever since.
He still did not have a Nin Beast of his own, and he desperately wanted to sign a contract with something cool and powerful.
What worried Obito the most was the future conflict between him and Kakashi.
If he was not weaker than Kakashi, but still lost because Kakashi had a powerful Nin Beast, Obito knew he would explode on the spot.
"It's hard to say exactly how powerful it is," Mugetsu replied after thinking for a moment. "But it won't be bad."
An unknown Pokémon Egg carried too many uncertainties. It could hatch into something as valuable as a Dratini, or as harmless as a Caterpie.
While answering Obito, Mugetsu also returned the greetings from his other disciples. Then he walked up to Guy and handed him a brand new ninja identification card.
"This is…" Guy stared blankly for a second.
Then he saw the rank section.
Jonin.
Guy's eyes widened, and his face broke into pure excitement.
It was a complete, unexpected surprise.
Not long ago, he had failed the Jonin assessment because of the written test. And yet now, he had somehow been promoted anyway.
Obito could not hold back. He stepped closer, staring at Guy's laughing face.
"What is it that has you so happy?" Obito asked, then quickly guessed, "Ninja identification? Did yours fall out during a mission, Guy?"
But the moment Obito saw the rank column, his expression changed.
His eyes went wide. His mouth fell open.
"This… this isn't right. How can it say Jonin?" Obito blurted out, completely stunned. "Didn't you fail the Jonin assessment, Guy?"
They were supposed to be brothers in failure. So how did Guy suddenly sprint ahead and become a Jonin?
Kakashi glanced at the identification, thought for a moment, then spoke calmly.
"Failing the Jonin assessment doesn't mean you can't become a Jonin."
Obito looked like his brain had been hit by a kunai handle.
"What do you mean? Failing is failing. How can you still get promoted?"
"You can cut down a tree with a sword," Kakashi said, voice steady, "or you can smash it with a chakra reinforced fist. Passing the assessment isn't the only path to Jonin."
Obito turned to Mugetsu immediately, as if Kakashi's explanation needed an adult to approve it.
Mugetsu nodded, confirming it. "Guy's merits were recognized by the Third Hokage, so he was exceptionally promoted to Jonin."
Hearing that, Guy puffed out his chest like he was trying to expand into a full sized fortress.
Now he was an excellent ninja acknowledged by the Hokage himself.
Next, if he could keep the title of Mugetsu's strongest disciple, he would be taking a solid step toward becoming the strongest taijutsu user.
Obito's gaze twitched, and he already knew who the egg Mugetsu brought was meant for.
Still, he refused to give up.
"Teacher Mugetsu," Obito asked quickly, clinging to a thin thread of hope, "is there any news about me?"
Guy had graduated at the same time as him. They had been teammates on the battlefield, completing missions together. Logically, their merits should have been close.
Mugetsu shook his head, then looked at Shisui.
"Besides Guy, Shisui has gained the qualification to participate in the Jonin assessment. Once he reports, he can return to Konoha and take the evaluation."
Obito froze like a stone statue.
Kakashi becoming a Jonin first was something Obito could still rationalize by blaming Kakashi's earlier start as a ninja.
But Guy?
Guy becoming a Jonin first shattered every excuse Obito had.
They had climbed up from the bottom together.
Before Mugetsu entered the Ninja Academy, both Obito and Guy were called dead last. Back then, Obito's grades were even slightly better than Guy's.
After becoming Mugetsu's disciples, they both rose from dead last to geniuses. In the academy, they traded wins and losses, almost identical in every way.
Now they fought side by side on the battlefield. They both failed the Jonin assessment.
Yet Guy was promoted based on merit, while Obito received nothing.
It was not just losing. It was getting crushed.
And then there was Shisui, who was now eligible for the Jonin assessment. Shisui was good at both academics and combat, which meant he would probably pass.
Obito's vision darkened. For a moment, life felt hopeless.
If Shisui became a Jonin, then Obito would truly be the only one among Mugetsu's disciples who was not a Jonin.
In the past, Obito pitied Rin for not having the chance to take the Jonin assessment and becoming a Special Jonin instead.
Right now, Obito suddenly felt that being a Special Jonin did not sound so bad.
"Jonin assessment…" Shisui murmured, falling into thought.
He was happy, genuinely happy, with that quiet joy that came after hard work finally bore fruit.
Before Obito and the others left, Shisui ran missions with them. When they returned to Konoha to rest, Shisui stayed on the battlefield. Aside from the period when he was injured, he hardly rested at all.
Promotion to Jonin had been one of his reasons for pushing himself this hard. Becoming a Jonin would earn him more respect inside the Uchiha clan, and his words would carry more weight.
But he hesitated.
If he returned to Konoha alone for the assessment, he worried that without him, Kakashi and the others would be more likely to encounter danger on high difficulty missions.
He also worried that Obito and the others would quietly improve while he was gone. He had only just mastered Flame Breathing Chakra Mode. He did not want to come back and find Guy and Obito walking around with Armament Haki and Transparent World like it was normal.
Lastly, he worried about Mugetsu.
There was too little information about Mugetsu's future. His exact time of death could not be determined, which meant any major battle could be the one.
Mugetsu noticed Shisui's dilemma and spoke directly.
"I recommend that you report now, Shisui, and return to Konoha for the assessment."
Shisui looked up.
"A person's energy isn't infinite," Mugetsu continued. "You need balance between work and rest. You've done more than enough. It's time to let your nerves relax a little."
If Shisui returned for the assessment, he would get rest. Mugetsu would also receive a promotion reward.
It was a win for both sides.
"Mm." Shisui's heart warmed at the concern in Mugetsu's words, and he nodded. "I'll do it."
Obito's expression turned complex.
Things were developing in the exact direction he least wanted.
"Can a few Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist just pop out of the ground so I can slash a couple of them?" Obito muttered, so desperate for merit that he sounded half delirious.
Kakashi's lips curled into a faint smile.
He had already prepared a hundred different lines to attack Obito's rank. As long as Obito dared to provoke him, Kakashi was ready to make him crumble.
After advising Shisui, Mugetsu turned and handed the Pokémon Egg to Guy, smiling as he spoke.
"Congratulations on becoming a Jonin, Guy."
Guy laughed loudly, thanked Mugetsu, and accepted the egg with both hands.
Standing beside Obito, Kakashi suddenly felt a powerful sourness, like someone was chewing lemons right next to his ear.
When Kakashi glanced at Obito, he could almost hear invisible words floating around him.
Nothing special.
I don't even like Nin Beasts.
"This time, Guy, you need to be more careful," Rin reminded him. "Eggs are fragile."
Guy got excited easily, and Rin genuinely worried he might crush the egg by accident.
"Really? It feels pretty hard to me," Guy said, holding the egg in his left hand while scratching his head with his right.
Even though the shell did not feel fragile, Guy still switched to holding it with both hands. It was a gift from Mugetsu. He had to treat it carefully.
"Either way, being careful is never a bad thing," Rin said, nodding when she saw him steady himself.
Rin did not feel the same envy Obito did.
Even though she did not have a Nin Beast right now, she would soon, and it would come from Shikkotsu Forest, one of the Three Great Holy Sites.
Tsunade had said that as long as Rin passed her assessment, Tsunade would take her as an official disciple, and then she would have Rin sign a blood contract with Shikkotsu Forest.
That assessment was not about fighting Tsunade or surviving a certain number of exchanges. It was designated medical knowledge, studied and mastered. If Rin learned it well, she would pass.
Rin was confident.
She could not match Kakashi and Obito in combat, but her talent in medical theory was genuinely outstanding.
And there was one more thought in the back of her mind.
Kakashi and Guy had both become Jonin. She was still only a Special Jonin.
Mugetsu was probably waiting until she became a full Jonin before giving her a gift.
[System: You gifted your disciple a Pokémon Egg. Due to the disciple's immense gratitude, a great critical reward was triggered, granting you Gentle Fist (Mastery).]
As Guy accepted the egg, the reward message appeared on Mugetsu's panel, and a flood of Gentle Fist training experience surged into his mind.
At first, Mugetsu thought the reward meant only the basic Gentle Fist. After sorting through the memories, he realized it included Eight Trigrams Sixty Four Palms and Rotation as well.
If he had obtained Mastery Gentle Fist back when he first awakened the Byakugan, Mugetsu would have been thrilled.
But now, Gentle Fist felt awkward.
It was the Hyuga clan's inherited taijutsu, and it held an important place in Konoha's taijutsu system.
Gentle Fist could directly damage the chakra circulatory system and internal organs. Since internal organs could hardly be trained, even the strongest ninja could be fatally injured by it.
However, most ninja had high offense and low defense, and Mugetsu already had Armament Haki. On top of that, he could enter multiple Breathing Technique chakra modes.
His attack power was overflowing.
Anyone he could kill with Gentle Fist, he could kill even more easily with other methods, only spending a bit more chakra.
After receiving Guy's reward burst, Mugetsu took out the Repair Secret Medicine and handed it over, instructing Guy and Rin to keep it safe and use it immediately if they suffered severe injuries.
Then Mugetsu activated his Byakugan and looked toward the Pokémon Egg he had given Kakashi.
It seemed that once the designated person began incubating it, his Byakugan no longer saw a void. He could vaguely make out a silhouette inside.
He still could not identify it clearly, but it looked like a four legged Pokémon, something doglike.
Finally, Mugetsu took Kakashi away under the pretext of an assessment.
He planned to check Kakashi's progress over the past two months in Lightning Release chakra nature transformation and swordsmanship, and whether Kakashi had met the training requirements for No Thought Strike.
Mugetsu began by performing an appraisal on Kakashi.
[Name: Kakashi Hatake]
[Chakra: 7800]
[Skills: Transparent World, Lightning Release Chakra Nature Transformation (Mastery: 100/15000), Earth Release Chakra Nature Transformation (Proficient: 2700/3000), Hatake Swordsmanship (Mastery: 150/15000), Thunder Breathing (Proficient: 2600/3000)…]
Over seven thousand chakra, one mastery level nature transformation, plus another nature transformation close to mastery.
That was already close to the standard range for a Konoha Jonin.
But Kakashi's panel was not ordinary.
Transparent World, Mastery Hatake Swordsmanship, multiple mastery level Lightning Release and Earth Release techniques.
Considering Kakashi's age, it was the kind of growth that deserved to be called genius. In only a few years, he had reached numbers others could not touch even after ten or twenty.
Mugetsu closed the panel. The appraisal was useful, but it was never fully comprehensive.
The most accurate judgment came from real performance.
"Use your Lightning Release swordsmanship," Mugetsu said. "Attack me with full force."
Kakashi did not waste words.
He adjusted his breathing, concentrating it to the extreme as he entered Transparent World, then drew the White Fang short blade.
A sharp crackle rang out.
Dazzling yellow lightning flowed from Kakashi's palm into the blade, stretching outward into a solid arc of lightning like a second edge.
Kakashi stepped his right foot forward and slid his left foot back, taking a charging stance.
Under Transparent World, he gathered everything into his sword.
The next strike would be the strongest he could unleash.
After all, his opponent was Mugetsu. Kakashi could go all out without holding back.
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, enemies who had nearly pushed Kakashi's squad into the grave, were casually slaughtered by Mugetsu. Someone like that could not possibly be harmed by Kakashi's current strength.
Still, Kakashi wanted to reach the point where he could hurt Mugetsu, because that would mean he had the power to change the future.
Wanting something and meeting a training goal were different matters, though. Kakashi knew the difference.
"Fire Lightning God!" Kakashi shouted.
Boom!
A thunderous roar exploded as he swung the lightning blade and charged forward at extreme speed.
He moved like a flying lightning dragon, fast and blinding, almost indistinguishable from real lightning itself.
If Mugetsu had not brought Kakashi far away from the camp, the patrol ninja would probably have come running already.
Facing Kakashi's surging strike, Mugetsu entered Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
He clenched his fist in the air, forming a lightning katana, then swung a single slash toward Kakashi.
It was not that No Thought Strike could only be used this way. In fact, using Enma directly would be stronger.
Mugetsu simply did not need that much power. He was testing Kakashi, not cutting him into pieces.
Because Kakashi was in Transparent World, even surrounded by yellow lightning, he could still see Mugetsu's movements clearly.
The instant Mugetsu's blade moved, a chill ran up Kakashi's spine.
That seemingly ordinary slash carried something profound and terrifying, and it gave Kakashi an extremely dangerous feeling.
Danger.
Danger.
His instincts repeated it like a broken record.
If the person in front of him were anyone else, Kakashi would have abandoned the attack immediately and chosen to evade instead.
.....
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