With a thunderous crash, the office doors exploded into splinters, and a green blur shot inside.
Who else could it be but Might Guy?
In all of Konohagakure, only he and Rock Lee still insisted on wearing those tight, green bodysuits every single day.
"Lord Senju Haruto!"
Guy had been waiting outside the whole time Kakashi was inside speaking with Haruto, his ear pressed close to the door. From the moment he overheard Haruto's words, he could no longer hold back his emotions and burst through like a hurricane.
Though Guy was a few years older, he knew perfectly well where things stood. Haruto wasn't just a shinobi—he was the Hokage's advisor, one of the highest-ranking figures in the Land of Fire, second only to the Third Hokage himself. Everyone in the village already regarded him as the most likely successor, the man who would eventually become the Fifth Hokage.
And besides, Guy had come here to beg. He would naturally address Haruto with the highest respect.
"This is Guy," Kakashi quickly introduced, glancing at Haruto with an apologetic look.
"It's fine," Haruto waved it off lightly before his eyes shifted toward the man kneeling on one knee before him.
"Lord Haruto, this is my life's request—please, save Rock Lee!" Guy's voice trembled with desperate passion. "He is the most hardworking shinobi I have ever known. More than anyone else in this world, he desires to walk the path of the ninja. This… this is his youth!"
His words spilled out with tears, his usual composure forgotten.
"Guy…" Kakashi cleared his throat, trying to remind him to show at least some restraint in front of Haruto. He understood Guy's pain, but Senju Haruto was not just anyone.
Yet before Haruto could respond, before he could even rise from his seat, a familiar mechanical voice echoed in his mind.
Please heal Rock Lee's arms and legs. Completing this task will unlock a special sign-in reward.
Upon success, a unique prize will be granted.
"Another… special sign-in?" Haruto's brow furrowed slightly. He recalled the last time he had received such a mission—it was when he altered Hyūga Hizashi's doomed fate. The reward then had been the Byakugan itself.
"If I heal Rock Lee… could it be that I'll obtain the Eight Inner Gates?"
His interest was instantly piqued. The Eight Gates might be "just" taijutsu, but the difference between the Seventh and Eighth Gate was nothing short of monstrous. And the power gained wasn't uniform—it varied wildly by individual.
Take Guy's own father, for example. Even when he opened the Eighth Gate with the resolve to die, the most he achieved was defeating the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
But Guy himself… when he unleashed the Eighth Gate, he nearly kicked Uchiha Madara—as the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki no less—to death. Madara himself had declared: I, Madara, acknowledge you as the strongest!
And Haruto's own foundation was even more terrifying than Guy's.
If he gained access to the Eight Gates, his resulting power would be unimaginable.
More than that…
Haruto was deeply curious. If I use a clone to open the Eighth Gate… could I avoid death?
After all, Rock Lee didn't know ninjutsu or genjutsu—he had no way to produce such clones. And Guy, apart from taijutsu, had only ever summoned with summoning techniques.
"Clones differ from one another," Haruto thought carefully. "The standard Bunshin no Jutsu only creates afterimages—useless against experienced shinobi. Water clones are solid but only have a fraction of the original's power. Shadow Clones are fully real, but when dispelled, their exhaustion and injuries rebound to the original body."
"In other words, if I used a Shadow Clone to open the Eighth Gate, when the jutsu ends, the backlash might still kill me."
That was why the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, had classified Multiple Shadow Clones as forbidden—its risks were too great.
But Haruto's clones… were different.
"Wood Clones, when dispelled, simply revert to timber. No strain feeds back to the body. Even Madara himself had trouble discerning my true body from my Wood Clones."
"If a Wood Clone could open the Eight Gates… that power…"
The very thought shocked Haruto himself. That would be power so broken it bordered on unfair.
Of course, this was all speculation. For now, he hadn't actually acquired the Eight Gates, and he would still need to test whether Wood Clones could even withstand the strain of opening them. No matter how enticing, the Eight Gates remained the most extreme technique in the shinobi world—strength bought only at the cost of life.
"Lord Haruto?" Guy swallowed hard, his voice unsteady. Haruto's silence was agonizing, his decision holding the weight of Lee's entire future. Guy was even prepared to sacrifice his own life if it meant his student could bloom once more.
Kakashi stayed quiet. He knew that both his and Guy's words had already been spoken. Haruto's decisions were never swayed by others.
"…Originally, I had no intention of involving myself," Haruto said at last. "But seeing your sincerity… fine. I will go and examine Rock Lee's condition."
He paused, his tone turning firm. "But I offer no promises, and I will not guarantee anything."
Though inwardly he had already resolved to accept the task—for the sake of the sign-in reward—he still kept up his air of detachment.
Guy didn't care in the slightest. The moment Haruto agreed to help, his eyes welled with relief and gratitude. For him, this was enough. He trusted Kakashi more than anyone—and if Kakashi trusted Senju Haruto, then he too would place his faith in him without question.
He wanted to grab Haruto and sprint straight to the hospital right that second.
Even Kakashi exhaled quietly in relief, a weight lifted from his chest.
And so, with Guy leading the way, Haruto and Kakashi followed silently behind him as they made their way toward Rock Lee's hospital room.
Since the final rounds of the Chūnin Exams were still two days away, Naruto and Sakura were already there, visiting Lee and trying to comfort him.
But the atmosphere was painfully awkward.
No matter what Naruto and Sakura said, Lee just couldn't bring himself to listen.
"Lee! Lee!"
Only when Guy's voice thundered from the doorway did Lee slowly turn his head, his movements mechanical, his expression hollow.
"Look who's here, Lee!" Guy said, bursting with excitement. "Lord Haruto himself has come—he'll heal your body for sure!"
"My… my body… healed?"
Lee's eyes went wide, disbelief etched on his face. His mouth fell open in a stunned "O."
It was the kind of news that should have filled him with joy beyond measure—but the shock was too great, leaving him momentarily paralyzed, unable to process it.
Naruto and Sakura turned as well, their eyes locking onto Haruto.
"Haruto-nii! You're back?"
Naruto's face lit up. To him, Senju Haruto had always stood on a divine pedestal.
It wasn't an exaggeration—
In Naruto's heart… Haruto was a god.