"Kakashi, can your Sharingan keep up with my movements?"
Sasuke's smirk widened.
His pursuit of the 'Upper Moon Two' and his clash with the Fourth Raikage had boosted his confidence, making him feel that facing an elite shinobi like Kakashi should be a breeze.
Moreover, when he went all out, he clearly sensed that Kakashi's speed and strength were far inferior to the Fourth Raikage's, which only fueled his confidence further.
On Kakashi's side.
Initially, he only intended to test Sasuke, to confirm that the Sasuke in the village was the real deal, not a shadow clone. After all, Uchiha Itachi had pulled off such a stunt years ago.
It was said that for an entire semester, the Itachi attending the shinobi academy was merely a shadow clone. The entire faculty and student body were fooled. If not for Itachi getting caught up in a vicious brawl that exposed his shadow clone, no one would have realized the Itachi they studied with every day was just a clone until the semester ended.
But as the fight went on, Sasuke's taunts ignited Kakashi's competitive spirit.
Or rather, he began to realize that coddling Sasuke wouldn't truly guide him down the right path. Instead, it would only make Sasuke more arrogant. So, he decided to seize this opportunity to teach Sasuke what it truly takes to become a shinobi!
"Then let's see what else the academy taught you besides what I've shown you!"
Kakashi responded to Sasuke's provocation while swiftly forming hand signs.
In the distance.
Swish, swish, swish.
Amid the sound of slicing wind, Danzo, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado, the three advisory elders, landed beside the Third Hokage.
Koharu shook her head. "It doesn't look like a shadow clone."
"Hm!" The Third nodded, removing the pipe from his mouth. "If the accusations from the Tsuchikage and Raikage are true, Sasuke wouldn't have had time to return to the Hidden Leaf Village from the Land of Iron!"
"Not necessarily!" Danzo scoffed, countering, "Space-time ninjutsu, reverse summoning jutsu—these could allow Uchiha Sasuke to return to the Hidden Leaf from the Land of Iron in an instant. Hiruzen, don't forget, if Uchiha Sasuke truly joined the Akatsuki, with their resources, covering for him like this isn't entirely impossible!"
The Third didn't argue back but instead asked, "Then what's the Akatsuki's goal? Why expose Sasuke while going to such lengths to cover for him?"
"This…"
Danzo fell silent.
The Akatsuki had no shortage of manpower. To deal with an 'Upper Moon Two,' there was no need for Sasuke to risk exposing himself by going to the Land of Iron.
Homura Mitokado, who had stayed out of the discussion, suddenly spoke up. "What's going on? It looks like Kakashi's getting serious!"
The group set aside their thoughts and turned their attention to the training field.
Sasuke burst out from the smoke of an exploding tag, leaping into the air, hands forming signs. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Whoosh!
A massive fireball erupted from his mouth, carrying scorching heat as it surged toward Kakashi.
Almost simultaneously with Sasuke's Great Fireball Jutsu, Kakashi completed his hand signs, slamming his hands to the ground. A wall of earth rose instantly, shielding him.
Boom!
The fireball collided with the earth wall, unleashing a thunderous roar.
The commotion in the training field drew nearby shinobi, even alerting the Anbu. But seeing the Third Hokage and the advisory elders observing, they tactfully halted, refraining from interfering in Kakashi and Sasuke's duel.
On the field.
Before the smoke cleared, Sasuke pulled several kunai from his pouch and hurled them toward the field.
Clang, clang, clang.
The kunai collided in midair, altering their trajectories to bypass the earth wall shielding Kakashi. Under the pale moonlight, sharp-eyed onlookers could spot nearly invisible steel wires tied to the kunai's ends.
Soon, the kunai that avoided the wall's front circled around it, using their momentum and the attached wires to bind both Kakashi, hiding behind the wall, and the wall itself together.
Now perched on a large tree, Sasuke smirked and completed another set of hand signs. "Fire Release: Dragon Fire Jutsu!"
Boom!
A fiery dragon shot from Sasuke's mouth, striking the earth wall head-on. It pierced through the wall, engulfing Kakashi, who was bound to it by the wires.
"This!?"
"Are they serious?"
"Not good!"
The watching shinobi gasped in shock.
Kakashi and Sasuke were both well-known figures in the village, and many knew Kakashi was Sasuke's mentor. They had assumed this was just a routine spar, never expecting Sasuke to unleash such a powerful Fire Release jutsu.
Compared to the average shinobi, the Third and the village elders remained calm, silently observing without a change in expression.
As he watched the figure melt in the flames, Sasuke began to feel uneasy. "I didn't actually take him out, did I?"
Landing in front of the earth wall, he frowned at the hole his Dragon Fire Jutsu had blasted through.
Just as he stepped forward to investigate behind the wall, the ground beneath him cracked with a snap.
Sasuke glanced down, only to see a surge of lightning erupt from the earth.
"He was hiding underground!"
Sasuke quickly assessed, leaping backward while forming hand signs, then activating Chidori!
Zzt, zzt, zzt.
In an instant, accompanied by the shrill screech of Chidori, his right arm sparked with dazzling lightning!
The two bolts of lightning collided!
But to Sasuke's surprise, the Kakashi pierced by his Chidori suddenly turned into an arc of electricity, surging into his body.
"Not good—it's a Lightning Clone Jutsu!"
Realizing his mistake, Sasuke felt his body begin to numb, his heartbeat growing erratic.
Sensing danger, he leaped high onto a tree with a better vantage point, trying to locate Kakashi.
But the moment he landed, steel wires tightened around him. Before he could react, he was bound tightly to the tree trunk, unable to move a single finger.
Swish.
Kakashi appeared before Sasuke. "This is the new lesson: ninja tool usage. Have you learned?"
"Damn it!"
Sasuke gritted his teeth.
If he activated Susanoo, he could break free instantly. But before the fight, he'd declared he wouldn't use his Mangekyo Sharingan. Backing out now would be too humiliating to bear.