Chapter 88: The Eight Inner Gates and the Tournament!

Chapter 88: The Eight Inner Gates and the Tournament!

At this moment, loud cheers erupted from the spectator stands:

"It's Kakashi Hatake from the Hatake clan! And from Sunagakure, we have Lady Chiyo!"

"Lady Chiyo! We want to see your swimsuit! Show us your swimsuit!"

"Lady Chiyo!? Is this Grandma Chiyo?"

Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and the others from the Ninja World were astonished, their jaws dropping at the sight of the rather attractive-looking auntie on the temporal communication device, finding it hard to associate her with the wrinkled old granny they knew.

"The difference is just too huge. They're about the same age, yet one is a granny while the other is an auntie. Why is that so?" Sakura exclaimed in surprise.

"It's the martial way! The martial way has the effects of prolonging life and beautifying one's appearance! Didn't I tell you guys about this before? And you actually forgot about it? That's so uncool of you!" Empire Lee complained.

"Ah, sorry... I thought you were just boasting about it, but I didn't expect it to be true," Sakura muttered.

Ino Yamanaka, Tenten, and the other female ninjas had sparkling eyes, as no woman could resist the allure of beauty and longevity. The Empire was indeed amazing! Their hearts yearned even more for what it had to offer.

"I wonder how strong the Kakashi-sensei from this other world is? A battle between people from the Empire... I'm quite looking forward to it," said a group of Konoha ninjas, their eyes gleaming with anticipation, but their focus was quite different from the others.

On the stage, Empire Minato enthusiastically held the microphone and announced, "Here they come! For this match, the Fire State and the Green State have sent forth Kakashi Hatake and Chiyo, respectively. Both are well-known powerhouses from the Empire, so I won't spend too much time introducing them. Now, please maintain a distance of 500 meters from each other and begin the battle at the signal."

Kakashi and Chiyo from the Empire faced each other, not in a hurry to immediately move apart.

Chiyo from the Empire smiled slightly and said, "Kakashi from the Hatake clan, I didn't expect it to be you this time. I thought it would be your father, Sakumo."

"My father doesn't like competitions. He only focuses on his martial arts training. So, this time, I'm taking his place as the final contestant. If Grandma Chiyo underestimates me because of that, she's going to be in for a big loss," Kakashi from the Empire replied with a smile.

"Underestimate? I wouldn't dare. I'm just feeling a sense of admiration for the abundance of talent in the Fire State. Aside from the three Dragon Soul clans, there's also a group of remarkable powerhouses. Only a state like this could nurture an overpowered genius like His Majesty..." Empire Chiyo marveled, turning around to create some distance.

Empire Kakashi also started to back away.

Taking advantage of this break, Tsunade from the Ninja World turned her head towards Kakashi, who was not far away, and asked, "Kakashi, how strong are you in this world?"

This question caused Ninja World Kakashi to scratch his head embarrassingly, and before he could answer, someone else spoke up.

"Asking him is useless. He doesn't even have the qualifications to fight with my dad. I beat him up!" said a voice belonging to none other than Empire Kakashi's son, Zazed.

"Zazed! Don't talk nonsense!" Empire Rin reprimanded her son for not giving the other Kakashi any face, gently patting his head.

"Huh?"

Tsunade froze, and the Konoha ninjas, including Naruto, were equally stunned.

"What do you mean? How can Kakashi-sensei, a talented heir of the Hatake clan, praised by His Majesty himself, lose to a brat like you?" Naruto exclaimed.

"You're just bragging! You don't look that old yourself! Kids like to exaggerate and boast! You look about the same age as Konohamaru. How could you possibly have defeated Kakashi-senpai?"

"Impossible! Kakashi is one of our elite jonin in Konoha. There's no way he'd lose to a brat like you!" The group of ninjas expressed their disbelief.

Sakura unconsciously glanced at Naruto, causing him to feel a bit embarrassed.

He, too, had been beaten up by the Empire's brats! These kids were freakishly strong! And here they were, those who hadn't experienced such a beating, talking down on Kakashi!

Naruto thought to himself, not daring to reveal his own embarrassing experience.

"Hey! What do you mean by that? I'm the heir of the Hatake clan, a genius praised by His Majesty himself. Defeating someone like my godfather is nothing out of the ordinary. Are you looking down on me?" Zazed protested, clearly unhappy.

"Kakashi, you... You didn't really get beaten up by this kid, did you?" Tsunade asked, her suspicion growing as she looked at Zazed's earnest, angry expression.

Beside them, Orochimaru, Sasuke, and Kabuto Yakushi directed their gazes towards Kakashi, awaiting his response.

"Lady Tsunade... Zazed is very strong. He's a shadow-level expert, and I'm no match for him..." Kakashi scratched his head awkwardly.

"Hey! Did you hear that? And you still don't believe me! I told you, my dad is a famous powerhouse in the Fire State. Back when he was young, he was no weaker than me..." Zazed boasted, but before he could finish, Empire Rin gently patted his head again.

"Alright, alright, you don't know how to choose your words. What's this about being no weaker than you when he was young? Are you trying to reverse the parent-child relationship or something? Who's the parent, and who's the child here?"

Sasuke's gaze was filled with disdain: "Kakashi, you're really useless. I made the right choice by leaving the village. If I had stayed and followed you, I would have ended up like that dead last, Naruto."

"Damn it, Sasuke! What nonsense are you spouting?! Who are you calling a dead last? I'm very strong now!" Naruto Uzumaki from the Ninja World couldn't help but shout in anger at Sasuke's words.

Unfortunately, no one paid any attention to him.

With this interruption, Tsunade from the Ninja World also stopped listening to Zazed and turned to ask, "So, between these two, who is stronger?"

"How can we know who's stronger or weaker without them actually fighting? The Empire may have a system to gauge strength, but it's too one-dimensional," Sakumo Hatake from the Empire spoke up.

"That's true," Tsunade from the Ninja World agreed, and everyone finally turned their attention back to the stage.

At that moment, Empire Kakashi and Chiyo took their respective positions.

A dozen guards surrounded the stage and formed hand seals, creating a barrier.

As the barrier rose, Empire Minato waved his hand, and his figure disappeared.

Empire Chiyo's expression immediately turned solemn. She leaped backward, and in the next moment, a series of puffs of smoke emerged.

Countless metal puppets, like an army, appeared around Empire Chiyo.

Seeing these puppets, the audience exclaimed in surprise.

Boom!

Just then, a flash of lightning appeared where Empire Kakashi had been standing.

Clang!

The next moment, a metallic clang rang out as Empire Kakashi's figure, shimmering with lightning, appeared just two meters in front of Empire Chiyo. He swung his short blade, but it was blocked by a metal puppet with its arms raised, its body gleaming with a metallic luster.

"So fast! Barely caught a glimpse, but this world's Kakashi is indeed very strong.

However, this Chiyo is also not to be underestimated. She actually blocked such a swift attack.

And so many puppets... there must be at least a thousand! A thousand metal puppets could probably destroy a country...

By the way, where are the puppet control strings?"

Tsunade's pupils constricted.

"Puppet control strings? No one uses those ancient things anymore.

This is spiritual manipulation.

Chiyo is using her mental power to control these puppets.

It's much more precise than using strings."

As the two chatted, on the stage, Empire Chiyo, who had blocked Kakashi's attack with the metal puppets, landed and proudly said, "Kakashi! I know that the Hatake clan's sword techniques are formidable, capable of slicing through ordinary things with a single strike. But the metal used for these puppets is a new super-alloy developed by Scorpion. Your Hatake clan's swords simply can't cut through them.

Let's see how you plan to win now!"

As her words landed, the thousands of metal puppets sprang into action.

One of the puppets closest to Empire Kakashi threw a punch.

Those that were a little farther away shot beams of white light from their chests.

Boom!

The metal puppet's fist and the beams of light struck the ground, creating a crater several meters in diameter.

However, Empire Kakashi's figure had long since vanished.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Kakashi's figure kept flashing, and the entire arena was filled with the almost continuous sound of metal clanging.

The metal puppets' fists swung, and the beams of white light continuously shot into the air, creating one crater after another on the ground.

In just a moment, the entire massive stage was covered in craters, as if it had been bombarded by a missile strike.

Witnessing this scene, the group from the Ninja World of Konoha:

"I can't see clearly! I can't make out what's happening at all! I... I can't even see the other world's Kakashi!"

"It's too fast! I can only hear the constant clanging."

"It looks like Chiyo is controlling the puppets, but it's like she's fighting the air..."

"If we were up against such an enemy, wouldn't we be completely blind and helpless?"

"But even with such incredible speed... Chiyo is somehow able to block the attacks. And the destructive power of those puppets is incredible... It feels like each attack is at least a C-rank ninjutsu..."

"I feel like... I might not even be able to beat a single one of those puppets."

"Is... is this what a battle between strong people looks like? Who... who can actually see what's happening in this fight?"

The group of ninjas looked at each other, unsure of what to make of the battle.

Then, they turned their gazes to Naruto, Might Guy, and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, the jonin of Konoha.

"Don't look at me. I'm in the same boat as you. I can't see clearly either. The Empire's Kakashi is frighteningly strong," Kakashi's father, Sakumo, shook his head helplessly.

"Me neither," Choza added.

The others shook their heads as well.

Then, they looked at Konoha's taijutsu master, Might Guy, and the village's martial arts expert, Naruto.

Feeling their gazes, Might Guy's expression turned solemn as he said, "I can't see clearly either! The other world's Kakashi is too strong!

Perhaps this is the strength that the genius Kakashi, who gave up his youth and passion, should possess!

But I won't give up! Burn, my youth! My passion!

Eight Inner Gates, open! Gate of Rest, Gate of Life, Gate of Hurt, Gate of Joy, open!"

Might Guy's chakra erupted like a blazing inferno.

He couldn't help but exclaim in delight, "I can see clearly now! Kakashi is so fast!

He's like a bolt of lightning, constantly attacking Chiyo from all angles.

But Chiyo is also incredibly strong. She manages to block each attack with those puppets.

Wow! The other puppets are also playing a huge role, constantly forcing Kakashi to dodge and reposition! Wow, wow, wow! Is this what a heated battle between strong people looks like? I'm burning up! My passion is ignited!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end