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At this moment, Uzumaki Naruto was shouting, while Uchiha Sasuke stared intently at Kakashi's left eye.
Those scarlet tomoe... he knew them better than anyone. That eye belonged to the Uchiha clan.
Staring at Kakashi, his mind spiraled with thoughts.
Was it Kakashi who stole the Uchiha's power? Had he taken an Uchiha life to claim that eye? Or was it the village—Konoha—that harvested the Sharingan from fallen Uchiha on the battlefield and transplanted it into this man?
Regardless of the truth, one thing was certain—Sasuke hated him for it. Unless he gave a clear answer, Sasuke, the last scion of the Uchiha, would fight Kakashi to the death.
"This eye?" Kakashi touched his left eye gently. "It's a precious gift… from a comrade. The details—"
Whoosh!
Before he could finish, Ye Dou had already swung his blade.
"It's not a good habit to interrupt others."
"You talk too much."
Ye Dou's voice was icy, and his blade even colder. One slash failed, so he followed with another—relentless, giving Kakashi no space to breathe.
One strike!
Two slashes!
Three flashes!
...
He moved like a machine of death, chaining strikes without pause, each blow more ferocious than the last.
The clash of steel echoed through the training field, sparks flying with every impact.
Naruto watched, eyes wide and jaw dropped.
Sasuke, buried up to his waist in the ground, clenched his fists. His pride burned as he watched the chaotic exchange of strikes, each one fast enough to blur.
This… this was the true strength of the boy who had beaten him every year, without fail, for the past five years.
"Damn it… damn it… DAMN IT!"
Just thinking about how Ye Dou was the 'whetstone' that he had left behind made Sasuke's blood boil. He wanted to scream, to vent his frustration—but in the end, he gritted his teeth and stayed silent.
The gap between them was too wide. One of them—Sasuke—had been defeated instantly. The other—Ye Dou—was going blow for blow with Kakashi.
A tie?
Ye Dou didn't think so.
He hadn't used his full strength—and even now, he still couldn't defeat Kakashi.
He could feel it. Bit by bit, Kakashi was adapting to his speed. From barely blocking to responding calmly. That damn eye…
Sharingan.
That eye really was something else—descended from the bloodline of the Sage of Six Paths, the Ōtsutsuki.
As it evolved, the Sharingan could read and copy taijutsu, identify weaknesses, and counter perfectly. And worse—it came with innate genjutsu proficiency, requiring constant vigilance.
Ye Dou was on guard constantly. And yet, he didn't realize Kakashi, too, was feeling the pressure.
He remembered when he had once pushed to spar seriously against the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, only to be instantly overwhelmed without Minato even trying.
And now?
He was using the Sharingan—and he still couldn't dominate a child. It didn't make any sense!
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[Team 7 Formation]
Clang!
Steel met steel—Ye Dou's ninja blade clashed with Kakashi's kunai, sparks flying in a shower of friction and force.
But it was different now.
Kakashi was keeping up.
That was the power of the Sharingan. It couldn't see chakra pathways like the Byakugan, but in a fight, it was the ultimate counter tool.
Unless Ye Dou became so fast that Kakashi could see the strike, but not react in time—he wouldn't win.
He pulled back, panting lightly.
In his arsenal, he did have one technique—one terrifying slash—that might end things in an instant.
But it wasn't stable.
It was a move that combined Shave—the ultra-high-speed movement technique—with his own Feiyan-style slash. Once initiated, he would strike rapidly in a barrage of slashes that could tear through almost anything.
But gravity-enhanced speed came with risk.
Without Haki—or some other way to predict his own movement—he couldn't guarantee precise control.
If I kill him, I'm screwed.
He hesitated.
Then exhaled, lowering his blade slightly.
Forget it. I'm not using Ranwu.
"Don't lose focus in battle, Ye Dou!"
The voice came from nowhere—Kakashi's voice. Instinctively, Ye Dou looked down.
Too late.
A hand was already at his throat.
Shadow clone?!
When had he cast the jutsu?
Ye Dou tried to leap away—but his legs wouldn't move. The earth beneath him had turned to sludge, locking his feet in place.
"Doton: Yomi Numa!"
(Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld!)
He was trapped.
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