Chapter 442: Jonin Inspection

“What’s going on? The Clan Head actually…” Hyuga Qingyu was somewhat incredulous.

Not activating the Byakugan greatly affects a Hyuga Clan member’s strength, but Kakashi didn’t use any special techniques. Hyuga Hiashi shouldn’t have lost in such a basic Taijutsu clash.

“As expected of a genius who fought the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist on the battlefield, Hiashi was too overconfident this time.” Mimurabe Ketsu thought as he looked at the battleground.

The esteemed Head of the Hyuga Clan being suppressed in Taijutsu by a ten-year-old Chunin—if this news got out, no one would believe it; it sounds too fake.

“Use Gentle Fist! Give Kakashi a good beating.” Obito silently cheered for Hyuga Hiashi in his heart.

He hoped that the Hyuga Clan Head could display the powerful strength of a clan leader and thoroughly beat Kakashi.

As if hearing Obito’s thoughts, Hyuga Hiashi concentrated Chakra around his eyes. After activating the Byakugan, the veins around his eyes instantly bulged, and his aura changed.

One instance might be a coincidence, but several exchanges made Hyuga Hiashi realize Kakashi’s unusual skill. If he didn’t activate his Byakugan now, it might not be the examinee but him, the examiner, who would lose combat capability prematurely.

However, what surprised Hyuga Hiashi was that even after activating his Byakugan, ordinary Taijutsu still couldn’t faze Kakashi. Kakashi was like an experienced Ninja who had fought thousands of battles, precisely predicting all of Hyuga Hiashi’s attacks.

Hyuga Hiashi’s Byakugan also saw through Kakashi’s movements, and for a moment, the two were in a stalemate.

In fact, at this point, Hyuga Hiashi had already given Kakashi’s Taijutsu full marks in his heart, because Kakashi’s performance was even better than Hyuga Qingyu, who possessed the Byakugan. This was truly rare.

“Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!”

Hyuga Hiashi pondered for a moment, then gathered Chakra and assumed a stance, preparing to use the Hyuga Clan’s main family secret technique. At the same time, his family’s juniors were watching, so he had to regain the face he had just lost.

Gentle Fist is the Hyuga family’s secret Taijutsu, passed down for a thousand years, and a mandatory Taijutsu for all Hyuga Clan Ninja.

However, the branch family only learns the most basic part of Gentle Fist. Beyond that are advanced techniques that only the main family can learn, and Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms is one of them.

“Flash!”

Realizing that Hyuga Hiashi was getting serious, Kakashi didn’t hesitate. He immediately converted all the Chakra gathered in his legs into Lightning Release Chakra to activate his cells and enhance his body. The moment Hyuga Hiashi swung his palm, he transformed into a bolt of lightning, leaving the attack range of Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, causing Hyuga Hiashi’s attack to hit nothing but air.

“Such a fast Lightning Body Flicker Technique.”

Hyuga Hiashi suppressed the countless surprises in his heart, unleashed Chakra, and pursued.

Just as their distance continuously closed, Kakashi, who was running, suddenly braked, abruptly drew his White Fang Short Blade, and turned to swing it at the pursuing Hyuga Hiashi.

Hyuga Hiashi’s expression remained unchanged. He braked and stopped at a spot Kakashi couldn’t reach with his swing. He had already seen through Kakashi’s attack based on the changes in Kakashi’s body muscles.

Zzzzt! Zzzzt! Zzzzt!

A large amount of Lightning Release Chakra flowed from Kakashi’s palm into the White Fang Short Blade, gradually extending into a lightning blade.

“Eight Trigrams Palm: Revolving Heaven!”

Feeling the danger, Hyuga Hiashi immediately unleashed the Hyuga Clan’s absolute defense, transforming into a continuously rotating Chakra Ball to block the incoming blade.

Kakashi, whose attack was blocked again, wasn’t disappointed. After all, his opponent was the Hyuga Clan Head; it would be abnormal if he could easily succeed.

“Lightning Release: False Darkness.”

Kakashi retreated rapidly, gathering Chakra in his mouth and spitting out a large lightning spear towards Hyuga Hiashi.

Pseudo-Darkness requires a lot of Chakra, so Kakashi rarely used it in actual combat because it wasn’t as cost-effective as Lightning Release sword techniques.

But this was a simulated combat, and the goal wasn’t to win but to pass the exam. So Kakashi used Pseudo-Darkness, an advanced Lightning Release, to demonstrate his Lightning Release Ninjutsu level.

“Eight Trigrams: Empty Palm Wall!”

Facing the fierce lightning spear, Hyuga Hiashi immediately unleashed Chakra and used his most powerful Taijutsu.

Eight Trigrams: Empty Palm Wall is actually a combined Taijutsu. Two people simultaneously releasing Eight Trigrams Empty Palm forms Eight Trigrams: Empty Palm Wall. However, Hyuga Hiashi had already mastered Eight Trigrams Empty Palm to an incredibly proficient degree, coupled with his powerful Chakra, Hyuga Hiashi could perform Eight Trigrams: Empty Palm Wall by himself.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Boom!

A terrifying shockwave was generated. The trees around Hyuga Hiashi were flattened by this terrifying impact, and the strong winds caused by the powerful impact made the Training Ground trees rustle.

Whoosh!

Without hesitation, Kakashi immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to change his position.

The next moment, the shockwave shattered the lightning spear and slammed into the ground where Kakashi had just stood, creating a crater.

“It’s still a bit difficult for me to defeat a Jonin of this level by myself right now. If Might Guy were here, he’d probably have a chance.” Kakashi thought, looking at the destruction caused by Hyuga Hiashi’s Taijutsu.

For Kakashi, Hyuga Hiashi was a very troublesome opponent. His highly pure and proficient Byakugan, combined with his offensive and defensive Gentle Fist, made Hyuga Hiashi seem to have no weaknesses.

Kakashi completely gave up the idea of defeating the examiner to end the battle. He would take the exam like a regular examinee, trying to display all his abilities.

Taijutsu, Lightning Release Ninjutsu, Lightning Release sword techniques, Earth Release Ninjutsu, Genjutsu—Kakashi used all the abilities he had mastered within those fifteen minutes.

“If it’s him, he might even surpass White Fang.” Mimurabe Ketsu praised in his heart.

He was a veteran Jonin, having become a Jonin during the Second Shinobi World War.

Mimura Ketsu had once witnessed White Fang reaping enemies on the battlefield, and the impact was so great that he still couldn’t forget it to this day.

When Mimurabe Ketsu saw White Fang, short sword in hand, slaughtering enemy Ninja troops as if slicing vegetables, he finally understood what a true genius was.

Mimura Ketsu had also been praised as a genius, but after that, he believed that at most, he could only be considered a talent, far from a genius.

But even White Fang, who had greatly shocked Mimurabe Ketsu, was still not as good as the current Kakashi. At least, Mimurabe Ketsu had never heard of White Fang being able to fight evenly with an excellent Konoha Jonin at the age of ten.

“Uchiha Obito.” The judging Jonin called out the name of the last examinee.

Mimura Ketsu dismissed the thoughts in his mind and walked into the battleground, ready to conduct the combat assessment.

Hyuga Hiashi had given him a reminder: never be careless when facing these extraordinary geniuses, or you might lose face.

“Finally, it’s my turn.” Obito stretched his body and walked into the arena.

At this moment, Obito was a bit anxious; he wanted to finish quickly and go back to reading.

With the Sharingan, cheating wasn’t difficult for him, but Obito would still try his best to rely on himself first. Cheating was a last resort.

Although it might seem a bit late to study now, Obito felt that his usual practice tests had given him some accumulation, and a last-minute study session might just be enough to scrape by.

“If an examinee loses combat capability before fifteen minutes, points are deducted. But if an examinee defeats the examiner before fifteen minutes, is it considered a normal end to the battle, or how is it counted?” Obito asked directly.

Logically speaking, an examinee defeating an examiner would definitely be a bonus. Just in case, Obito still asked. If he didn’t fail the theory test but instead failed the practical test, Obito would truly be furious.

“It will be a high score.” Mimurabe Ketsu replied with a faint smile.

Currently, there haven’t been any cases of examinees defeating examiners in Jonin assessments. After all, the Jonin qualified to be examiners for the Jonin assessment are not ordinary Jonin. If someone had the strength to defeat them, they should have already become Jonin.

“Then, Uncle, you need to be careful. My flames are very strong.” Obito felt that Mimurabe Ketsu’s attitude was good, so he kindly warned him.

“Because you’re a genius, of course.” Mimurabe Ketsu didn’t dismiss it but took note.

“Begin combat!” The judging Jonin shouted.

“Flame Breathing, Full Concentration!”

Obito quickly focused his breathing, then retreated while gathering Chakra in his throat to release Fire Release.

“Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!”

A large amount of high-temperature flames spewed from Obito’s mouth, rapidly forming a giant fireball five meters high, hurtling towards Mimurabe Ketsu.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Immediately after, Obito activated his Three-Tomoe Sharingan and rapidly threw Shuriken, sealing off Mimurabe Ketsu’s escape routes and forcing Mimurabe Ketsu to take his Great Fireball head-on.

Mimura Ketsu was, after all, an experienced veteran Jonin. He used his Kunai to block some Shuriken and the nearby trees to block others. With a few agile movements, he flashed out of Obito’s attack net.

“Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!”

Mimura Ketsu tapped his toes on the ground, leaped onto a tree, and bounced between different trees, spitting out numerous fist-sized fireballs towards Obito.

Since it was a high-to-low attack, the fireballs from different angles formed a net of fire. Even Obito with his Sharingan couldn’t completely dodge it.

Upon receiving this information, Obito directly gave up on dodging. Compared to defense and evasion, he was still better at offense.

“Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!”

A large amount of Chakra in Obito’s throat was instantly converted into Fire Release Chakra and then transformed into high-temperature flames, spewed out by Obito.

The continuously spewed flames quickly formed a small sea of fire. Under Obito’s control, the sea of fire split into three fire dragons that rose like a wall of fire, blocking all incoming fireballs.

“This Fire Release control is indeed quite impressive.” Mimurabe Ketsu nodded in his heart. Being able to control an advanced offensive Fire Release like this was not simple.

“And the power is also extraordinary.” When the fire dragons attacked, Mimurabe Ketsu noticed that Obito’s flames were very hot.

“But if this is all, it’s not enough to defeat me.” Mimurabe Ketsu released the large amount of Chakra he had gathered.

“Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!”

A huge, thick earth wall suddenly rose in front of Mimurabe Ketsu, blocking all the incoming flames. Although its surface turned charred, it still stood firm.

Besides Fire Release, Mimurabe Ketsu was also skilled in Earth Release. In combat, Mimurabe Ketsu generally preferred to use Fire Release for offense and Earth Release for defense.

“Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!”

Mimura Ketsu leaped onto the Earth Flow Wall, formed hand signs, and spat a fire dragon at Obito.

Obito was not unfamiliar with this Ninjutsu; it was the first Fire Release Ninjutsu he learned with Muzuki.

“Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!”

Obito ultimately chose to use the same Ninjutsu to test Mimurabe Ketsu’s Fire Release level.

When the same Nature Transformation and the same Ninjutsu clash, if one loses, there are no excuses; it simply means their strength is insufficient.

Boom! Boom!

The two fire dragons collided, causing a violent explosion. Dazzling fiery red light bloomed, and ultimately, both fire dragons vanished simultaneously, leaving only charred ground.

“These two are truly geniuses who collaboratively killed Suikazan Fuguki; they are too strong.” Sakata Genji couldn’t help but exclaim at the sight.

The result of this Ninjutsu clash almost proved that Obito’s Fire Release was no worse than Mimurabe Ketsu’s.

Although Mimurabe Ketsu was not a Jonin known for his strength, he was still an experienced veteran Jonin. Sakata Genji felt that Obito’s practical assessment had already passed at this point; displaying this level of performance surely guaranteed a high score.

“Uncle’s Fire Release isn’t weak either, but I still have my final trump card.” Obito showed delight after seeing the fire dragons cancel each other out.

Mimura Ketsu’s Fire Release level was similar to his own in Full Concentration state, so it would definitely be inferior to his Fire Release under Flame Breathing Chakra Mode.

Obito silently pushed Flame Breathing to its limit, entering Flame Breathing Chakra Mode. The Chakra within his body was continuously consumed, transforming into power that strengthened his body.

After entering Flame Breathing Chakra Mode, Obito charged directly at Mimurabe Ketsu without any defense.

Mimura Ketsu looked at Obito, who was full of openings, and felt something was off. Given Obito’s previous performance, he shouldn’t be doing something so irrational.

“Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!”

Obito didn’t form hand signs; with just a thought, the Chakra in his throat instantly transformed into flames and was expelled by Obito.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

At the same time, Obito’s hands were not idle; he threw Shuriken at extremely tricky angles.

“No hand signs, using Ninjutsu while throwing Shuriken?” Mimurabe Ketsu was astonished.

In his twenty-plus years as a Ninja, he had never seen such a flashy move. Not only did he not need hand signs, but he could also throw Shuriken while using Ninjutsu.

One must know that using Ninjutsu requires mental effort to control the Chakra within the body. Mimurabe Ketsu truly couldn’t understand how Obito managed such an operation, being able to multitask and plan Shuriken throws while using Ninjutsu.

Obito wasn’t just throwing Shuriken ordinarily, which only requires a hand. Obito was using a special Uchiha Shuriken throwing technique that required mental effort.

Caught off guard, Mimurabe Ketsu was flustered by Obito’s attacks. Fortunately, Mimurabe Ketsu’s experience was rich enough that he adjusted in time, only suffering minor superficial injuries.

“He’s using Flame Breathing Chakra Mode now.” Kakashi immediately recognized Obito’s current state.

If Kakashi had mastered Lightning Release Chakra Mode, he wouldn’t use it in the Jonin assessment, because once used, there were only two possibilities: either he would lose combat capability before fifteen minutes, or he would defeat the examiner.

A normal performance would allow him to pass the exam more steadily.

However, their opponents were different. Kakashi believed Obito had a good chance. Mimurabe Ketsu was older than Hyuga Hiashi, but his strength was inferior to Hyuga Hiashi’s.