For the two of them, Kakashi Hatake had already planned out training methods long ago.
But—
The appearance of Jiraiya,
and Sasuke's intense desire for power…
Both had gone beyond his expectations.
When Orion and Kakashi returned to where the others were training—
Even though it was already night,
They could still see:
Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki were standing on top of trees—
Panting heavily.
Clearly exhausted.
Sakura Haruno stood below, watching them.
When she saw Orion and Kakashi arrive, she immediately walked over—
And started inspecting Orion from head to toe.
"Orion… did you actually train?"
"Why can't I tell at all?"
"Oh?" Orion smiled slightly.
"And how did you come to that conclusion?"
Sakura circled him once and said:
"Your clothes aren't even wrinkled."
"How could you have trained?"
"You didn't just slack off with Kakashi-sensei all afternoon, did you?"
Then she added seriously:
"That won't do."
"You might be strong, but if you don't train, you'll stagnate."
"And then Sasuke—or even Naruto—might surpass you."
Orion just smiled.
He didn't explain.
There was no need.
Kakashi stepped in and changed the topic.
"How are they doing?"
Sakura smiled.
"They've both got it."
"Even Naruto has been working really hard."
As she spoke—
She deliberately glanced at Orion.
Clearly saying it for him to hear.
She didn't dislike Orion—
She was just worried he might fall behind.
Orion understood.
But still said nothing.
Kakashi looked up at Sasuke and Naruto—
Standing on the treetops, staring at each other.
Competing.
"They learned fast…"
"Sasuke, sure—but Naruto too?"
Sakura turned to Kakashi curiously.
"Kakashi-sensei… you didn't just go somewhere to rest, right?"
Kakashi replied calmly:
"Do you think he would allow that?"
"Even if I wanted to rest… he wouldn't."
Sakura blinked.
"But then… why does Orion show no signs of training?"
Kakashi glanced at Orion—
Then at himself.
Even his own clothes had small tears.
"…You're right."
"Not even a single trace."
Then he muttered:
"This… is the gap."
Sakura looked confused.
She couldn't understand what he meant.
Kakashi smiled slightly.
"He can control chakra to an incredibly precise level."
"Even better than me."
Orion simply smiled faintly.
Sakura leaned closer and whispered:
"What is Kakashi-sensei even talking about?"
Orion replied casually:
"He says things like this all the time."
"Don't worry about it."
Sakura looked between the two of them.
She felt—
They were hiding something.
But she didn't push further.
Instead, she asked:
"Where did you guys train earlier?"
"There were several tremors just now."
"I almost thought that guy—"
Zabuza Momochi
"—had come back."
Orion paused.
"…Tremors?"
Sakura nodded.
"Yeah, pretty strong ones."
Because of the distance—
And the forest in between—
She had no idea those "tremors" were caused by Orion.
Orion glanced at Kakashi, then said calmly:
"Maybe this place is on a fault line."
"After all, it's normal for a place like the Land of Waves to have earthquakes."
Sakura accepted the explanation without doubt.
In reality—
Those "tremors" were caused by:
Orion's ChidoriSeveral Earth Style techniques afterward
Earth Style—
Though mainly defensive—
Created massive impact when activated.
And consumed a huge amount of chakra.
That was also why Kakashi had nearly run out of chakra earlier.
The Fall
At that moment—
Sasuke and Naruto noticed Orion and Kakashi had returned.
They prepared to climb down.
But—
They had forgotten something.
Their chakra…
Was already exhausted.
As soon as they moved—
Their chakra failed.
"SASUKE! NARUTO!!"
Sakura screamed from below.
Kakashi glanced at Orion.
Orion nodded.
In the instant—
Before Sasuke and Naruto could even react—
Before they could even black out—
Both Orion and Kakashi vanished.
Next moment:
Kakashi appeared beside SasukeOrion appeared beside Naruto
They caught them mid-air.
Then—
Like lightning:
Kakashi became a streak of blue lightningOrion became a streak of golden lightning
Both landed instantly on the ground.
After setting them down—
Kakashi smiled.
"You're faster than me now."
Naruto and Sasuke finally came back to their senses.
They looked at each other.
Both felt—
Embarrassed.
They had wanted to show off their progress.
Instead—
They made fools of themselves.
Naruto looked at Orion in shock.
He hadn't even seen what happened—
Only a flash—
And he was already on the ground.
This was the first time Naruto truly felt—
Orion's overwhelming strength.
Even Sasuke—
Stared at Orion in disbelief.
That golden lightning—
That speed—
He had never seen Orion move like that before.
Before, he already knew he wasn't Orion's match.
But now—
The gap between them…
Was like heaven and earth.
Sakura was also stunned.
Kakashi's speed?
She could understand.
He was an elite jōnin.
But Orion—
Turned into a streak of golden lightning—
Even faster than Kakashi.
So fast—
She could only see the afterimage.
She muttered:
"…Did he learn that from Kakashi-sensei just now?"
"That's Lightning Style, right?"
"He never showed it before…"
Then suddenly—
She froze.
"…I just said he didn't train…"
"How could he possibly be slacking?"
"If he were that kind of person… he wouldn't be this strong…"
At that moment—
Sakura felt extremely embarrassed.
Orion had only smiled earlier.
Now thinking back—
She felt like a complete fool.
Silence fell.
Sasuke was silentNaruto was silentSakura was silent
But Orion and Kakashi didn't notice.
Kakashi looked at Sasuke and Naruto seriously.
"You two exhausted your chakra completely."
"That was dangerous."
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