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"You guys taking missions too? If it's chopping wood or hauling water, wanna race and see who finishes first? Loser runs an extra two hundred laps this afternoon!"
Guy came jogging over, practically glowing.
Maybe it was because of that whole "fleece the system" stunt last time, but ever since then, Might Guy insisted on dragging Leo into every so-called duel of his…
And once he heard they'd been spamming missions lately, he immediately came up with this ridiculous wager.
Kakashi's face didn't even twitch—he was already used to it.
Among the two teams, the only ones who visibly reacted were Kurenai, Ebisu, and Genma, all of whom covered their faces in silent embarrassment.
Leo smiled lightly. "Can't today."
"Huh? Why not?"Guy blinked.
"We're leaving the village for a C-rank mission," Kakashi said flatly. "We might not be back today."
"What?!"
Guy and his teammates froze, eyes wide in disbelief.
Leaving the village?
No way.
They'd all just graduated. Sure, the other team had a chunin like Kakashi, and their sensei was literally one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya…
Okay, well, when you put it like that—it kind of made sense they'd get C-rank permissions.
Genma and Ebisu pressed their lips together, for the first time truly feeling how much difference a high-level sensei and team strength could make.
In every group, one rule was always true—it's never the lack that bothers people, but the unfairness.
They really weren't feeling great.
But Guy?Guy's eyes lit up like fireworks.
"My eternal friend and rival! No wonder you've been grinding D-rank missions nonstop! The village must have set a requirement before letting you take C-rank, right?!"
"Maybe partly, but strength matters too. Kakashi is a chunin, after all."
Leo shrugged.
Guy fell silent for a moment, then clenched his fist and burst back into enthusiasm. "I'll remember that! Our squad will catch up in no time!"
Aim higher, even if you can only reach the middle.
That was something Leo once told him.
Now, Guy had a new goal—
Their team would be the second among their class to earn the right to take C-rank missions!
Genma and Ebisu froze, then nodded hard. "You guys are strong, yeah… but we're not falling that far behind!"
All of them had gone through testing.
They didn't know what test Jiraiya used, but it obviously wasn't simple. Leo and Kurenai had passed it alongside Kakashi… that spoke volumes.
"I've always believed that,"Leo said with a small nod.
Not long after, a jonin stepped out of the building.
"Let's go."
"Yes, sir!"
Guy's team responded immediately and headed toward the village outskirts.
On the way—
"Don't think too much about them," their jonin, Ryo, said. "Just focus on doing what you should."
Ebisu couldn't help himself. "Sensei… is the gap between us really that big?"
"Even if they have Kakashi, the other two shouldn't be that far ahead, right?" Genma added, confused.
Ryo shook his head.
He looked at the three of them, hesitated, then sighed. "I didn't want to discourage you, but… from what I've heard, the one who performed best during Lord Jiraiya's test wasn't Kakashi. It was Leo."
"What?!"
Genma and Ebisu's faces turned to stone, utterly disbelieving.
Guy, on the other hand—
"OOHHH!! I knew it! Leo's so sharp, and he's crazy strong when we train—of course he's not weak! My youth is BURNING! I'm gonna surpass them all!"
He's lost it,Ebisu thought.
But still…
It was hard to swallow. If the one who made the biggest impact in that test had been Kakashi, they'd just grumble about how unfair it was that the other team had a prodigy.
But Leo?
He was their same age. And in the Academy, he was never labeled a genius or anything. As far as they knew, he started on the same line they did.
Now Ryo was telling them—
Not only was he not average, he was actually the strongest performer under Jiraiya?
He was a genius too?
Genma and Ebisu could hardly believe it.
Ryo sighed again.
"It might be hard to accept, but it's the truth… Most of the clan kids already heard about it through their own channels. Only you civilian genin are still in the dark."
"It's nothing to mope about," Guy said suddenly, turning serious—an actual rarity. "I know how hard Leo and Kakashi work! Sweat is the true glow of youth! We should be inspired by them, not defeated!"
"…For once, that almost makes sense,"Genma muttered.
"When did he get good at talking?"Ebisu whispered.
Guy giggled. "This is all stuff Leo said before!"
Then he flashed a giant, sparkly smile.
"So! Two hundred laps this afternoon! If you can't finish, handstand another hundred!"
"…"
Now that sounded more like him.
Genma and Ebisu looked like they'd just swallowed dirt.
"Hey Leo, how's your Water Release training going?" Jiraiya asked later.
"Not bad," Leo replied. "I was thinking—if I compress the water stream, maybe I can turn the Wave Bullet into a narrow line. Should hit way harder."
Kurenai didn't understand much about ninjutsu, so she just listened quietly.
But—
Jiraiya's expression froze in shock.
A Sannin—shocked.
Kakashi immediately perked up. "Sensei? What's wrong?"
"You probably don't know this, but the 'compression' technique Leo mentioned… the Second Hokage already completed it. The A-rank jutsu Water Severing Wave works exactly like what he just described."
Jiraiya sighed and explained.
Water Severing Wave.
A technique invented by Tobirama Senju himself. Even the toughest material sliced like tofu.
And Leo's thought process…
It was practically identical.
Leo quickly made a show of acting surprised.
Jiraiya studied him for a moment. "…Leo, show me your Wave Bullet."
"Yes, sir."
Leo formed the seals and unleashed the jutsu.
A torrent burst forth like a miniature waterfall—steady, powerful, fully under control.
He had completely mastered it.
And not by copying anyone—he'd naturally discovered more efficient chakra-control methods on his own, and already grasped the essence of the jutsu.
Could the Senju clan's talent be reawakening in this kid…?
Jiraiya was stunned.
Kakashi blinked, even more shocked. Just a few days ago, Leo didn't have this level of precision.
He improved that fast?
Sure, Kakashi himself had grown quickly back in the day… but Leo had always seemed unremarkable.
So this is what it feels liketo be on the other side of the comparison…
Kakashi was speechless.
"Not bad," Jiraiya finally said. "Looks like you've been putting in work. But it's still too early for you to mess with compression-type nature transformations. Even if you could pull it off, you wouldn't be able to use it reliably."
Compression and concentration required massive chakra reserves.
"Yes, sir."
Leo didn't argue—he wasn't planning on attempting it right away anyway.
Then Jiraiya pulled out two pairs of weighted leg bands and tossed them to Kakashi and Leo.
Thud!
Both of them nearly toppled over.
Heavy!
"These are weighted bands. Each of you take a pair," Jiraiya said. "Kurenai, you won't need them yet, but on the road I'll be cutting down our breaks. I want you training continuously. Don't worry about food pills—I've got plenty."
"Yes!"
"Good. Let's move. Destination: Tanzaku Town!"
"….."