Might Dai was inwardly amazed.
Just then, Yakushi Nono, who had been standing nearby, suddenly let out a sharp cry.
"Teacher Bai Xing!"
Her shout startled Uchiha Mikoto, who had been continuously pouring chakra into her fire technique. Instinctively, she stopped attacking.
The flames at her lips gradually faded as her dark eyes focused on the slowly dispersing fireball ahead.
At that moment, Mikoto seemed completely unaware of the figure accelerating from the left side of the fireball's path, kicking up dirt as it approached.
Bai Xing glanced down and noticed that Mikoto had already formed the hand seal for a Substitution Technique.
Without hesitation, he shifted his movement slightly and hurled three shuriken while moving at high speed.
The change in motion caused the afterimage effect of his high-speed movement to disappear.
Only then did Nono finally notice the black-haired boy appearing from another direction.
Bai Xing was now less than fifty meters away from Mikoto.
At the same time, Nono saw three black arcs approaching Mikoto from three different angles.
"Watch out, Mikoto!"
Children often panicked easily when their strength was insufficient.
Meanwhile, Dai remained relatively calm as he observed the fight.
In his mind, however, Bai Xing's level of strength had risen several tiers.
With that kind of ability, Bai Xing could easily become a Special Jōnin.
But then…
Why hadn't he?
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Crisp sounds rang out.
The three shuriken struck Mikoto's body perfectly, and for a moment it looked as if she had truly been hit—her face even showing a desperate expression.
However, Bai Xing had already seen through her movements.
He knew that Mikoto had used a substitution prop to accelerate, demonstrating an advanced form of misdirection.
At that moment, the real Mikoto had already appeared on top of a large tree to his right, quietly regulating her breathing while waiting for another chance to attack.
To a jōnin, this speed would seem ordinary.
But to genin, it was extremely fast.
For example, neither Might Dai nor Yakushi Nono could clearly see the entire exchange.
Nono was extremely nervous because of the distance—she couldn't hear clearly whether the sound had been a thud into wood or the wet sound of flesh being pierced.
Then—
Poof!
A burst of white smoke appeared.
The long-haired girl transformed into a wooden substitution log with three black shuriken embedded in it.
Bai Xing didn't continue attacking.
Instead, he spoke to the two observers.
"Come together."
"Otherwise, if it's just Mikoto alone… it might be a bit difficult."
As he spoke, he casually touched the three bells hanging at his waist.
The bells rang with light jingling sounds.
"Damn it! He's looking down on me!"
Hidden among the leaves high in the tree, Mikoto clenched her fists and gritted her teeth.
His speed just now had truly been fast.
If Nono hadn't shouted, she wouldn't have even noticed Bai Xing appearing from the side.
Is he really a genin?!
If someone told her he was a jōnin specializing in the Body Flicker Technique, she would believe it.
"It seems we can't hold back anymore."
"This is our third time fighting, Bai Xing. You feel different from two years ago."
Might Dai stood up from where he had been observing.
Nono checked her ninja tool pouch to make sure everything was in place and stood beside him.
"Then don't blame us for ganging up on you."
"Alright."
Bai Xing nodded calmly.
"Come at me."
"Let me see how well you've coordinated after doing so many D-rank missions together."
"Don't be too shocked!" Mikoto said proudly as she dropped down from the tree and planted her hands on her hips.
"While you were slacking off and sleeping during missions, we were learning about each other's abilities!"
"Our teamwork will be perfect!"
Bai Xing remained indifferent.
He was the team leader—getting paid more while doing less work was perfectly normal.
"I'll give you one minute."
"Okay!" ×3
The three quickly began whispering about their strategy.
"Bai Xing is way too fast!" Mikoto said angrily. "I knew he was good at taijutsu, but I didn't expect this!"
"Dai, you totally tricked us!"
Dai looked embarrassed.
"The last time I fought Bai Xing was two years ago. Back then he only barely managed to beat me…"
"So I really didn't know he had become this strong."
"There's another thing," Nono added.
"Teacher Bai Xing said his chakra nature was Fire, but just now there were five attributes. Could it be some kind of bloodline ability?"
Dai blinked.
"Wait… wasn't that supposed to be mine?"
Both girls rolled their eyes.
A guy who can't even properly perform the Three Basic Techniques having five chakra natures? Yeah right.
Only then did Dai realize—
Bai Xing had done that on purpose, just to comfort him.
Bai Xing had always been low-key.
Yet this time he had revealed something like that for Dai's sake.
"This is youth!"
"In that case, I can't hold back either!"
Dai decided to reveal something he had been developing.
"I've actually been researching a taijutsu technique that can make taijutsu specialists stronger."
"It's called… the Eight Gates."
They talked for longer than a minute, but Bai Xing didn't interrupt.
After all, he was just a careless teacher. Letting them communicate and deepen their bond wasn't a bad thing.
Soon after—
"Discussion finished. Follow the plan."
"Got it!" ×2
The three immediately spread out.
Two of them disappeared across the training ground.
Dai walked toward the tree where their backpacks and equipment had been placed.
Bai Xing watched as he removed the heavy training weights from his body.
"You're getting serious."
"The last time we fought was two years ago. I wonder how much you've improved."
"Compared to you, my improvement is probably small," Dai said as he removed the final weight and turned around.
"But I've developed a taijutsu that will definitely surprise you!"
"Eight Gates…"
"First Gate — Gate of Opening, open!"
If someone were using the Byakugan, they would see a surge of blue chakra erupting from Dai's brain area.
His body had begun operating beyond its limits, increasing his attack power and movement speed.
Bai Xing looked slightly surprised.
"Now's my chance!"
At that moment, the girl hidden in the nearby grass seized Bai Xing's moment of shock and threw a kunai aimed directly at his side.
Bai Xing glanced at the incoming kunai and easily dodged it.
At the same time, Dai used Bai Xing's distraction to charge forward.
"Leaf Whirlwind!"
A powerful low kick swept across.
Bai Xing jumped backward to avoid it.
Dai immediately rushed forward again.
The two launched into a close-range exchange of punches and kicks.
Sometimes, acting is also a skill.
When someone stands at a higher level and looks down at those below, many things suddenly become easy.
For example—
Bai Xing "accidentally" got struck by Dai, who had opened three gates, and was knocked backward with his arms crossed defensively.
His feet scraped across the ground, leaving two trails of dust.
"Impressive."
"So this is your Eight Gates?"
Bai Xing quickly estimated that Dai, with three gates open, could easily defeat an ordinary chūnin.
But unfortunately—
He could only maintain it for a short time.
After closing the gates, Dai felt his entire body grow weak and sore.
He could barely gather any strength.
But his goal had already been achieved.
"Nono!"
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