This time was different from when they had gone to Sunagakure.
Back then, the situation had been urgent: Haruto, Kakashi, and Tenzo needed to arrive as quickly as possible to ensure the Sand wouldn't invade Konoha.
But now? Forget Kusagakure—a single village—even if the entire military strength of the Land of Grass were combined, they still posed no real threat to the Leaf.
One full-scale Wood Release: Advent of the World of Flowering Trees could flatten Kusagakure in moments.
That was why Haruto and Kakashi chose to take their time, training along the way while enjoying the scenery.
When necessary, Haruto would even use Wood Release: Three-Room-and-One-Hall Jutsu to create a little lodge out in the wilderness. Camping in the open with the luxury of a wooden villa had its own kind of charm.
Kakashi, for his part, had always walked a path of breadth and variety. His natural gift for learning new techniques was remarkable, and when it came to ninjutsu, his adaptability was second to none.
Especially when one set aside the monsters who appeared later in the Shippuden era, Kakashi was already one of the most outstanding figures in the shinobi world. At just eleven years old, he had already become a Jōnin of the Leaf and fought in the famous Battle of Kannabi Bridge.
On top of that, his Sharingan allowed him to perceive the flow of chakra within an opponent's body, making the study of a technique like the Lightning Release Chakra Mode that much smoother.
After several days of practice, Kakashi had already managed to enter the first stage of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
"Let's begin."
Haruto and Kakashi stepped out of the wooden villa.
They were now in the forests surrounding Kusagakure—remote, uninhabited, and spacious. The terrain was perfect for sparring. And since the village itself was just a short distance away, Haruto wasn't in any particular rush. Instead, he intended to test the results of Kakashi's training through live combat.
"Mm."
Kakashi gave a firm nod. Slowly, his hand reached up and pushed aside his forehead protector, revealing the three-tomoe Sharingan in his left eye.
No matter what, his opponent today was Senju Haruto. If he didn't take this seriously, he wouldn't last even a few exchanges.
"Right…"
Haruto suddenly seemed to remember something.
After all, his own strength far surpassed Kakashi's. If there were no restrictions, the difference in their abilities would be far too despair-inducing.
So Haruto crouched slightly, drew a circle with his foot on the ground, and then stood upright inside it.
"As long as you can force me out of this circle, you win, Kakashi." Haruto clasped his legs tightly together, standing motionless within the boundary.
Kakashi blinked in surprise.
The circle wasn't large—in fact, it was so small that Haruto had to keep his legs close just to stay within it.
Which meant… forcing him back even a single step would count as a victory.
"…Tch."
Kakashi drew a sharp breath.
True, he had trained under Haruto's guidance for days now. He hadn't yet reached the second stage of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, but he had at least succeeded in grasping the technique.
But was Haruto really so confident?
"Even with the Sharingan and Lightning Release Chakra Mode combined, he still doesn't take me seriously?"
Kakashi muttered inwardly, but then something even more outrageous happened.
Instead of focusing on him, Haruto reached into his pouch and pulled out a small novel. With one hand, he flipped it open and said casually,
"Don't hold back. Attack whenever you feel ready."
Kakashi: "???"
What kind of confidence was this?
No—what kind of abyssal gap in strength did it take for someone to fight him while… reading a book?
This wasn't just going easy on him.
This was giving him an ocean of mercy.
And yet Haruto wasn't belittling Kakashi. It was simply that his current power had grown so overwhelming that if he fought even half-seriously, Kakashi would be crushed instantly.
So this was the compromise: a way to give Kakashi a chance to fight, to grow.
But for Kakashi, it was maddening.
"Very well then… don't blame me for what comes next."
His words were polite, but his heart was resolute.
There might be an unbridgeable gulf between himself and Senju Haruto. He might never be able to win.
But at the very least…
He would force Haruto to lower that book.
He would make him step out of that circle.
He would make him fight seriously, even for just one moment.
With that resolve, Kakashi inhaled deeply, pulled a kunai from his pouch, and hurled it straight toward the book in Haruto's hand.
At the same time, his Sharingan tracked every subtle movement, watching Haruto's reaction with absolute focus.
Even if his Sharingan was not a Mangekyō, it was still keen enough to read the finest shifts in chakra and motion.
But what followed left Kakashi completely stunned.
Haruto didn't dodge. Didn't flinch. Didn't even lift his eyes from the page.
The kunai, instead of striking the book, clanged against something unseen—then bounced back as if it had hit an invisible wall.
"…Chakra?"
Kakashi's eyes widened. In all his life, he had never seen chakra used like this.
"Don't waste time on probing attacks, Kakashi," Haruto said in a low voice, though his gaze never left the novel.
He hadn't used any special jutsu. He had simply expanded his chakra outward, forming a thin, unseen barrier around himself—something like a chakra wall that deflected physical attacks.
The principle was simple, yet achieving it to this degree… perhaps only Senju Haruto in the entire shinobi world could do it.
"I see…"
Kakashi exhaled sharply, realization dawning.
Even if Haruto was "holding back with an ocean," he was still not someone a ninja like him could topple easily.
And yet this did not discourage him.
It only set his fighting spirit ablaze.
No matter what—it didn't matter if it was only for the span of a heartbeat—he would force Haruto to acknowledge him.
Without hesitation, Kakashi channeled all of his chakra into his body, flooding it with the essence of Lightning Release. His aura surged as he entered the Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
"…So that's it."
In that instant, Kakashi understood what Haruto had done.
It was just like his Lightning Release Chakra Mode—but instead of giving the chakra an elemental attribute, Haruto had simply expanded his neutral chakra outward for defense.
It was another kind of chakra mode entirely.
Realizing this, Kakashi threw aside all restraint. He lunged forward, the explosive burst of speed cracking the ground beneath his feet and leaving a small crater in his wake.
The sheer power of the momentum was enough to prove the difference Lightning Mode had made.
In mid-air, Kakashi twisted, raising his right leg, and swung it down in a vicious arc—aimed straight at the book in Haruto's hand.
Boom!
With a thunderous crash, two waves of chakra collided, releasing a shockwave that rippled outward.
The blast swept across the forest, toppling trees and splintering trunks in its path.