Chapter 450: Dreaming of Being a Dragon Before Even Slaying One
Chapter 450: Dreaming of Being a Dragon Before Even Slaying One
Might Guy and Hyuga Hizashi approached each other swiftly, one throwing a punch and the other extending his palm. Guy's straight punch was powerful and forceful, while Hizashi, utilizing his Byakugan, expertly deflected it with subtle force.
Subsequently, they both unleashed their chakra, their hand and foot movements so swift that afterimages were left hanging in the air as they collided dozens of times in an instant.
Whoosh!
Finally, their fists and palms met, causing them each to retreat a few steps.
"This strength… It's even stronger than I anticipated," Hizashi thought to himself, feeling a slight pain in his palm.
"But he's probably still holding back."
Although Hizashi had sensed Guy's robust physique, which belied his age, this level of strength was still insufficient to take on the four Ninjas of the Seven Swordsmen.
"Konoha Whirlwind!"
Guy's face lit up with excitement as he charged forward once more, unleashing a rapid whirlwind kick.
Boom!
Hizashi sidestepped just as Guy's whirlwind kick was about to strike, and a nearby tree toppled over. Such direct attacks were unlikely to hit him; after all, his Byakugan, capable of seeing through objects, was not just for show.
Unless the speed was so fast that his body couldn't react, these types of attacks wouldn't work on him.
This was also why Hizashi was confident enough to hold his own against multiple Swordsmen; his Byakugan, which could see through everything, coupled with the Absolute Defense of the Hachimon, granted him an extraordinarily robust defensive capability.
Seizing the opportunity, Hizashi gathered chakra in his palm and swiftly struck at Guy's chakra pressure points.
Although Guy's last encounter with a Hyuga clan ninja was years ago, he had sparred with Kakashi numerous times and was cautious of abilities like the Byakugan and its similar counterparts.
As Hizashi's palm lashed out, Guy raised his arm in defense, preventing Hizashi's gentle fist from striking the correct pressure point.
Smack!
Even so, Hizashi's formidable palm strike still sent Guy flying a considerable distance.
"What an excellent opponent," Guy exclaimed. "I had intended to save this for Kakashi, but since he's not interested in fighting me at the moment, I might as well give it a test run on you." Guy burst into laughter.
Under normal circumstances, he would have likely used the Konoha Dragon God technique again to probe for more information from Hizashi.
But Guy hadn't engaged in a battle for over a month, and he genuinely wanted to experience the power of the Rock Breathing Chakra Mode once more.
It was a rare opportunity to come across a taijutsu expert like Hizashi, and Guy was itching to test his might.
"Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, Activate!"
Guy clenched his fists and glared intently, focusing his breathing to an extreme, entering a state that was somewhat indescribable. With each breath, his body underwent rapid transformations.
Strong.
Incredibly strong.
This was the first sensation Guy felt in his mind.
It was his second time entering the Rock Breathing Chakra Mode. The first time had been during a life-or-death battle, so Guy hadn't had the luxury to savor the experience. But this time, he could afford to relish the changes occurring in his body.
Rock Breathing's focused breathing had the most apparent enhancing effect on the body, and the Rock Breathing Chakra Mode took this to the extreme. At this moment, Guy felt that he could pulverize rocks with a single punch, even without using chakra.
"As I thought, he was holding back before," Hizashi remarked, his expression turning grave as he sensed the aura emanating from Guy.
The current Guy gave off the impression of a human beast, a stark contrast to the five-gates Guy he had faced initially.
"Konoha Whirlwind!"
Guy unleashed his chakra and lunged forward with a powerful step, his foot creating a pit in the ground.
Whoosh!
Hizashi saw Guy charging at him, but just as he was about to dodge, Guy was already by his side. Hizashi had no choice but to gather chakra and block with his arm.
Bang!
A dull impact sound rang out, and Hizashi was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing through several trees before coming to a halt.
"He's scarier than the last one," remarked Uzuki Yukimaru, shaking her head.
When examiners encountered examinees like Guy, they knew they were in for a challenging time. His strength far exceeded that of a typical Chunin.
Forget Chunin; there weren't many in Konoha who could confidently claim they could beat Guy in a one-on-one fight. And those who could were renowned and formidable warriors.
Needless to say, the ones at the top of the ninja world, like the Sannin and the Third Hokage, could easily trounce Guy. Then there were the likes of Minato Namikaze and Hayate Gekko, whose battle records in the war spoke for themselves; they, too, could effortlessly defeat Guy. Lastly, there was someone like Chen, who could still emerge victorious, although the process wouldn't be a walk in the park.
Even Chen, the last of this list, was known for having the most formidable taijutsu in Konoha. This fact alone attested to the terrifying level of strength Guy had attained.
Guy pressed his advantage, channeling more chakra and executing an even more potent whirlwind kick after scoring a hit.
"Konoha Strong Whirlwind!"
The Strong Whirlwind was currently the most powerful technique in Guy's whirlwind series. If someone were to be kicked by this move, the consequences would be far more severe than just crashing into a few trees.
"Eight Trigrams Palm: Heavenly Spin!"
Hizashi abandoned evasive maneuvers and resorted to a secret technique that their Hyuga clan boasted as an absolute defense.
The Heavenly Spin was more than just deflecting an incoming attack. In essence, it was a chakra sphere that spun like a top at high speed, allowing it to not only defend but also reflect physical attacks.
Bang!
Guy's heavy whirlwind kick slammed into the chakra sphere, producing a loud sound. In the next moment, the enormous force generated by the sphere's high-speed rotation sent Guy flying, returning the force of his kick.
Guy slid across the ground, creating two grooves over eight meters long, before finally coming to a stop.
"What an interesting taijutsu," Guy remarked, stretching his body, which was unharmed, his expression now even more exhilarated.
In the Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, his defensive capabilities were robust, and such a counterattack wasn't enough to injure him.
Guy was curious if Hizashi's chakra shield could withstand his Golden Heaven Splitter.
However, Guy quickly dismissed the thought. Even with the Rock Breathing Chakra Mode activated at the five-gates stage, it was already giving him a lot of pressure. Using a regular taijutsu move would be fine, but the Golden Heaven Splitter would definitely injure his palms.
If it were Kakashi who wanted to gauge Guy's strength, he would use it, but this was a Jonin examination, so it wasn't worth the risk.
"Konoha Dragon God!"
Guy's body erupted with massive amounts of chakra, spinning rapidly before transforming into a colossal green dragon.
Executing the Konoha Dragon God technique wasn't without its toll, but using it once wouldn't be too problematic.
Whoosh!
Terrifying gales suddenly sprang to life, and the airflow, akin to wind blades, obliterated everything around Guy, sucking it into the green dragon. The dragon's expanding body seemed intent on destroying everything in its path.
"Eight Trigrams Empty Wall Palm!"
Without hesitation, Hizashi channeled all his chakra into his palms and executed his most powerful taijutsu.
Boom!!
The palms, condensed with abundant chakra, struck the air, creating a deafening blast. The trees in front of Hizashi were all snapped by the powerful force, and then the massive green dragon collided with them.
Bang! Bang!
The shockwaves from the collision of the two mighty forces caused the ground to explode, halting the dragon's advance and even pushing it back under the immense pressure.
However, as Guy continued to exert his strength, the dragon stubbornly withstood the force and eventually broke through the momentum of Hizashi's strike, step by step.
Hizashi lowered his hands, and the sharp wind blades left marks on his clothes and body.
"The examination is over!" The referee immediately declared the test concluded and asked both parties to stop upon seeing this situation.
Guy quickly turned the dragon around and canceled his chakra supply, exiting the Eight Inner Gates and Rock Breathing Chakra Mode.
"Phew." Guy exhaled deeply and gently rubbed his heart and lungs.
"I need to strengthen my body and make it stronger!" Guy thought to himself.
At present, his hardware couldn't quite keep up with his software. The Rock Breathing Chakra Mode put too much pressure on his body, not because of the mode itself but because his body wasn't robust enough to withstand such tremendous power.
As Guy walked out of the combat area, his thoughts raced, and he glanced at Hizashi's retreating figure with a complex expression.
Not long ago, he had lamented that Mizuki had been defeated by an examinee, causing the assessment to end early. Now, it seemed that it was his turn to face the same fate.
"If the Hyuga clan could produce such a genius, perhaps the title of Konoha's foremost noble clan would not belong to the Uchiha," Hizashi thought with a hint of unwillingness.
Both the Hyuga and the Uchiha clans possessed bloodline limits related to dojutsu, and both were ancient and renowned ninja clans. Inevitably, people would compare the two.
Undoubtedly, the Uchiha clan was acknowledged as the stronger of the two, much stronger, in fact. That was why they were known as Konoha's foremost noble clan.
Although the Uchiha clan didn't have a good reputation in Konoha, people could see their strength for themselves.
However, while the Uchiha clan had greater power, the Hyuga clan's ninjas were more well-liked.
On the one hand, the Uchiha clan's ninjas were generally proud and aloof. On the other hand, the Byakugan's strategic value was exceptionally high.
The Sharingan of the Uchiha was powerful, but only the Uchiha who possessed it benefited from its strength.
In contrast, the Hyuga clan's Byakugan granted their entire squad an extraordinarily long-range vision, akin to having a full-map vision hack.
"I hope the next generation will produce more outstanding children," Hizashi thought pragmatically.
While he wasn't weak, he couldn't compare to genius ninjas like Minato Namikaze and Hayate Gekko. He could only maintain the Hyuga clan's current status and couldn't lead them to greater heights.
If this generation couldn't achieve it, then they could only pin their hopes on the next. Hizashi resolved that if he had offspring, he would educate them strictly and cultivate them to become genius ninjas like Kakashi Hatake and Might Guy.
...
Might Guy had a blast during the practical examination, but when it came to the afternoon's theory test, he was stumped.
He couldn't understand it at all. Although he recognized each character, when they were combined like this, they became utterly foreign to him.
Guy would rather fight the four Ninjas of the Seven Swordsmen again than face these challenging problems.
That was his sentiment, but to obtain the proof of being an excellent ninja sooner, Guy gritted his teeth and filled out the exam paper.
He couldn't guarantee how much he got right, but he had written quite a lot.
"As expected of my best friend, even overcoming such difficulties to become a jounin. I'm impressed," said a weary-looking Guy as he exited the examination room.
After being tormented by the intricate questions, he now fully understood why the jounin rank was proof of being an excellent ninja. One would have to read extensively and memorize a vast array of knowledge to pass such a challenging exam.
The results of the jounin examination were released promptly.
"Your practical performance was outstanding and almost perfect. However, you lacked significantly in the theory section. Your overall performance in the examination is insufficient for promotion to jounin," the notifying ninja carefully conveyed using gentle language.
"Haha, it's as bad as I expected," Guy scratched his head, not entirely surprised.
He had never been good at theory.
"There will be a makeup exam later. If you continue to work hard, you can still become a jounin," the notifying ninja consoled, as was customary.
In truth, he felt that with Guy's theory score, it would be challenging to pass the jounin examination and get promoted. However, saying that outright would be too hurtful.
Moreover, Guy didn't necessarily need to take the jounin examination route. With his achievements in battle, he could easily become a jounin by accumulating a few more merits on the battlefield.
"Since I've failed this time, there's no helping it. I'll just have to work harder and pass next time," Guy encouraged himself.
On the same day, Kakashi and Obito came to find Guy.
"Guy-sensei, did you also fail to become a jounin?" Obito asked eagerly as soon as he walked through the door.
It wasn't that Obito wished for Guy's failure; he just didn't want to be the only one who hadn't passed among the three of them.
"Obito, you really know how to talk. Don't say that next time," Kakashi sighed.
Guy didn't seem to mind at all and nodded frankly, "Yeah, they said my theory score was too low, so I need to study harder and take the makeup exam."
Obito draped his arm around Guy's shoulder, unable to contain his smile. He was relieved that he wasn't the only one who hadn't passed.
"This theory exam is too difficult and unreasonable. When we become higher-ups in the future, let's abolish the theory exam together!" Obito declared, acting like a good comrade who would stick together through thick and thin.
"Once we're higher-ups, we won't need to take the exam anyway. Whether we abolish it or not won't make a difference," Guy honestly pointed out.
Obito suddenly woke up to reality.
When he became a high-ranking official, who would still examine him? It should be him examining others.
If he abolished the theory exam, he would only be benefiting others and letting them enjoy the perks.
"Then let's increase the difficulty of the exam and make Konoha's ninjas the elite of the elite," Obito suggested, changing his tune.
Kakashi gave Obito a disdainful look. Obito, you're so naive right now.
"Let's talk about the future later. We have more important matters to discuss now," Kakashi interrupted.
He hadn't come here to watch Obito gradually turn into the type of person he despised the most. He had come to discuss their return to the battlefield.
(End of Chapter)
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