“Teacher… I’m the captain today, right? As it happens, I’ve been wanting to try the new ninjutsu I’m developing!”
Kakashi paid no heed to Minato Namikaze’s advice.
He crouched low, lowering his right hand toward the grass.
Crackle!
Arcs of lightning flickered ceaselessly in Kakashi’s hand, like the chirping of a thousand birds!
Chidori!
“So that’s the ‘Chidori’?”
Qingyuan observed the Lightning Release ninjutsu Kakashi had unleashed.
At this point, the technique was called “Chidori.” Later, after Kakashi joined ANBU and used Chidori to cleave a bolt of lightning in two, it was renamed “Raikiri.”
“Chidori” and “Raikiri” were actually the same technique, and their hand seals were identical as well.
What was interesting, though, was that according to the databook, “Chidori” was classified as an A-rank technique, while “Raikiri” was classified as an S-rank technique.
“Even if there are a lot of enemies, this technique can deal with them all in an instant!”
Kakashi looked confident.
Ignoring Minato Namikaze’s attempts to stop him, he charged straight out.
Crack-crack-crack-crack!
A succession of sharp whooshes split the silence of the forest.
“He actually charged straight at me?”
Majiku was taken aback.
He had not expected Kakashi to discover his presence and still come at him head-on.
Seeing this, he threw several shuriken, trying to stop Kakashi.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
A relentless series of sounds tore through the air, and at that moment, Qingyuan hurled shuriken as well.
The shuriken he threw collided with Majiku’s in midair, then fell to the ground.
“How is Qingyuan’s shuriken technique better than mine, an Uchiha’s?”
Obito had also wanted to throw shuriken as a feint for Kakashi.
But before he could do so, Qingyuan had already acted first.
With no one blocking him, the Chidori in Kakashi’s hand pulled him along, accelerating him sharply.
He shot forward like a bolt of lightning.
Bang!
Majiku was pierced through, only to turn into a cloud of smoke.
Everyone tensed.
Shadow clones could not be seen through, not even with the Byakugan.
A ninja could only rely on experience to judge which one was the real body.
Because a shadow clone evenly distributed all its chakra, there was naturally no way to tell which one was the original.
While the others were momentarily distracted, Qingyuan kept his eyes fixed on the ground.
He knew that Majiku’s next attack would emerge from the ground.
Sure enough, the ground stirred, and Majiku emerged from it with a kunai in hand.
Obito looked panicked, thinking Majiku had come for him.
Instead, Majiku turned toward Qingyuan and attacked.
At first, he had intended to kill the ninja wearing the Uchiha clan’s embroidered flame-fan crest.
But when he realized Qingyuan had spotted him immediately as well, he changed targets.
Bang!
Weapons clashed, and a bright, sharp spark flashed and vanished in an instant.
“What!”
Majiku was stunned.
This brat had actually blocked his attack?
It was almost as if he had been waiting there specifically for him!
While Majiku was stunned, Qingyuan threw another shuriken.
Bang!
Majiku’s shadow clone disappeared.
The biggest drawback for most ninjas using shadow clones was running out of chakra!
Majiku clearly had that weakness too.
Creating twenty shadow clones meant dividing his chakra into twenty portions—each one had only one-twentieth of his original chakra.
Only someone like Naruto, who could squander chakra at will, could casually split into hundreds or thousands of shadow clones without being affected in the slightest.
“The ambush failed?”
Elsewhere, Majiku’s brow furrowed slightly.
He had intended to kill one of the brats first, but the ambush had failed.
“Number eighteen…”
Kakashi circled around and, after taking out most of Majiku’s shadow clones, headed straight for Majiku.
“Don’t push your luck, you little bastard!”
Majiku was starting to lose his composure.
That black-haired brat being able to detect his ambush was one thing, but now this white-haired brat was also infuriatingly calm!
Majiku quickly chose an angle and swung his blade.
Majiku had noticed this.
Minato Namikaze had noticed it too.
The next moment, Minato Namikaze vanished from where he stood.
When he reappeared, he grabbed Kakashi and carried him past Majiku’s downward slash.
After putting Kakashi in a safe place, Minato Namikaze took off his field pack.
Just before it touched the ground, he used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport behind Majiku, a kunai leveled at him.
“Could you be Konoha’s… ‘Yellow Flash’?”
Majiku broke out in a cold sweat and finally understood why his superiors had told them that, if they ever encountered Minato Namikaze, running was their best option.
Spurt.
A spray of blood rose, and Majiku collapsed lifeless to the ground.
“So this really is the world of ninjas.”
Qingyuan watched as Minato Namikaze, who was usually such a good-natured man, took Majiku’s life without hesitation.
Being a ninja had always been a dark profession—killing was commonplace.
It was only that the main storyline of Naruto’s adventures had glossed over it.
“Ngh…”
Kakashi clutched his wound, and Rin Nohara hurried over to treat him.
Seeing that Kakashi’s attempt to show off had failed, Obito immediately began berating him for acting recklessly on his own and not listening to Teacher Minato.
“I don’t want to hear that from you.”
Kakashi glanced at Obito.
“That’s enough, you two.”
Minato Namikaze flicked the blood off his kunai.
“This time, Qingyuan was the only one who truly satisfied me.”
At his words, everyone’s gaze turned to Qingyuan.
“Kakashi, rules are indeed important, but I told you, didn’t I? Depending on the actual circumstances, sometimes we have no choice but to adapt…”
Minato Namikaze began explaining how disappointed he was in the operation.
Kakashi had been reckless, while Obito had clearly been frozen in place by fear.
The genjutsu specialist Kurenai Yuhi and the medical ninja Rin Nohara were not combat types, so that was understandable.
Shiranui Genma, on the other hand, was somewhat mediocre—average in every respect.
He had not detected the enemy, but he had also not been a hindrance when the enemy attacked.
This time, Qingyuan alone had satisfied Minato!