Forming a Team

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Before long, Guy, now released from the Eight Gates, slowly walked back into the small forest.

Seeing that Guy had undone the technique, Naoki relaxed inwardly, but his mouth remained cold. "Under the perfect defense of my Rotation, every attack is useless. You should have felt that clearly enough."

Panting, Guy said, "Naoki, the Hyuga clan's Byakugan and Gentle Fist really live up to their reputation. I feel as if every move I make is seen through by your eyes."

In the four-gates state, both of Guy's full-powered attacks had been blocked by Naoki in what looked like an effortless manner. Guy felt that even if they continued fighting, he would have no chance of winning.

Naoki looked calm. "Of course. I saw through all your attacks."

Guy sat down on the ground. "Ah, I still lost."

"Forcing me to use Rotation means your secret technique has some merit." After a pause, Naoki added, "Rest properly today. Tomorrow morning, meet me at the Mission Center."

Guy froze first, then exclaimed, "You... you're willing to team up with me for missions?"

"I don't like waiting. Don't be late."

After leaving those clipped words behind, Naoki said nothing more and hurried home. At this point, his whole body felt as if it was about to fall apart. If he did not leave now, he really might not be able to keep up the act.

Guy, who was oblivious by nature, seemed completely fine. He cheered and bounced all the way home.

Not long after Naoki and Guy left one after another, a squad of ANBU appeared in the small forest where they had fought.

After briefly inspecting the scene, one ANBU said, "There are no traces of ninjutsu. It doesn't look like any ninja tools were used either. This seems to have been pure taijutsu."

The leading ANBU said in a low voice, "Have we confirmed the identities of the two who fought?"

Another ANBU member replied, "Yes. One is a chunin from the Hyuga branch family named Naoki Hyuga. The other is Might Duy's son, the chunin Might Guy. Judging by the traces, the Hyuga boy seems to have won."

The ANBU captain looked around at the trees toppled in every direction and the many pits of different sizes scattered across the ground. "They caused this much damage with taijutsu alone. Report it to Lord Hokage. These two boys are worth paying attention to."

On Naoki's side, when he returned home, he found Suzu helping him clean. Warmth immediately rose in his heart.

Suzu quickly came out to greet him. "Naoki, welcome home!"

Naoki smiled. "Sorry for the trouble."

In front of Suzu, Naoki put down every disguise and every guard. If there was anyone in the village he could trust unconditionally, it was the simple girl before him.

Suzu noticed Naoki's red and swollen arms and exclaimed, "How did you get hurt? Come here. I'll bandage you."

"It's nothing. I was careless during a spar."

Suzu pulled Naoki onto the tatami and applied medicine as she said, "Naoki, Lord Hizashi asked me to apologize to you on his behalf. He hopes you can forgive him."

Hizashi Hyuga was the twin younger brother of the clan head, Hiashi Hyuga. On ordinary days, he assisted his elder brother in managing the branch family.

Naoki was confused. "Forgive him? Forgive him for what?"

Suzu said, "Aren't you angry? Everyone thought you were angry with the clan, and that's why you haven't wanted to return to the compound lately."

Hearing Suzu say that, Naoki immediately understood.

Without question, the clan had misunderstood.

Inside the clan, they clearly believed Naoki resented them for not speaking up for him when he was caught up in Orochimaru's defection. They thought that was why he had distanced himself.

In truth, Naoki had never hated the clan.

He understood better than anyone that great clans like the Uchiha and the Hyuga might look impressive inside the village, but in reality, they had great difficulty influencing the village's decision-making core.

Hizashi's future death was the best example. Even when acting in self-defense, the clan would not be able to protect its own clan head. They would have to sacrifice Hiashi's twin brother, Hizashi, just to barely pass the crisis.

So what ability would the clan have to protect Naoki during Orochimaru's defection?

Naoki did not hate the clan because he knew the clan truly had the heart to help but not the power.

He had distanced himself from the clan only to protect the secret of the Tenseigan. Still, this misunderstanding could be useful. Otherwise, distancing himself from the clan for no reason would inevitably arouse suspicion from the village leadership.

The simple Suzu did not notice Naoki's distraction and continued, "Lord Hizashi also said that during today's meeting, Lord Jiraiya praised you. He said you stayed calm when facing Kumogakure's Two-Tails jinchuriki and did not disgrace the village."

Looking at Suzu, who seemed proud on his behalf, Naoki smiled gently. "Lord Jiraiya returned to the village?"

Suzu nodded. "Lord Jiraiya came back today."

Naoki thought inwardly, 'If the village can make Jiraiya abandon his obsession with chasing Orochimaru and return, then the trouble Konoha faces is even worse than I expected.'

In fact, during the Third Shinobi War, Konoha no longer held the same advantage over the other major shinobi villages that it had during the First and Second Shinobi Wars.

If not for the sudden rise of the Fourth Hokage, who single-handedly reversed the situation on several battlefields, the war might still have been locked in stalemate. So when the other major villages learned that Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, had defected and that the Fourth Hokage and his wife, the Nine-Tails jinchuriki, had died unexpectedly, it was impossible for them not to have improper thoughts.

After Suzu applied medicine to all the swollen areas on Naoki's body, he rested early.

The fight against Guy had been the hardest battle he had fought since obtaining the Tenseigan. At the same time, it had given him a great deal of experience and insight.

As a taijutsu sparring partner, Guy was simply flawless.

Early the next morning, Naoki wrapped bandages around both arms and both legs before heading to the Mission Center.

One night of rest was not enough for the bruises on his body to recover completely. For the sake of face, Naoki had no intention of letting Guy discover that he was covered in injuries.

Guy had been waiting at the entrance of the Mission Center for a long time. When he saw Naoki arrive, he waved from far away. "Naoki, over here! Over here!"

Watching Guy bounce up and down at the Mission Center entrance while calling to him, Naoki's face filled with embarrassment.

Once inside the Mission Center, Naoki went straight to the list of A-rank missions.

Guy whispered beside him, "Naoki, aren't A-rank missions only for jonin?"

Naoki casually explained, "A few days ago, I led a team and completed an A-rank mission, so I received special permission to accept some A-rank missions."

Guy was shocked. "What? You completed an A-rank mission?"

For Guy, who spent his days dealing with C-rank and D-rank missions, completing an A-rank mission existed only in his imagination. Hearing that Naoki had led a team and completed one as a chunin naturally surprised him.

Naoki glanced at him. "What's so strange about that? With me and an Uchiha kid together, completing an A-rank mission is normal."

Guy scratched his head and laughed. "That makes sense. You're a genius, after all!"

Naoki nodded in satisfaction. That was exactly the powerful image he wanted to establish in Guy's mind, even though he personally felt that the word genius did not have much to do with him.

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