Chapter 8: Pride
The forest echoed with the sharp clang of metal colliding.
Every so often, a deafening boom rolled through the trees, sounding like an explosion.
Minato Namikaze immediately recognized the disturbance. Kumogakure had already engaged one of Konoha's mission teams.
"I'll go ahead. Keep up."
Without waiting for a response, Minato vanished with the Body Flicker Technique, racing toward the battlefield.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The others could only watch his figure disappear into the distance before hurriedly following after him.
Then another figure suddenly broke away from the group.
Whoosh!
"Gōenji?"
The Konoha shinobi stared in surprise as he rapidly caught up with Minato.
"Does that guy's Body Flicker work that well too?"
They knew Gōenji was strong, but they hadn't expected his movement technique to be this impressive.
Are all Uchiha really monsters when it comes to this sort of thing?
Gōenji followed closely behind Minato, kicking off the ground and covering a considerable distance with each step.
But even after improving the technique, he could still feel its limitations.
The basic Body Flicker Technique still isn't enough.
His goal was to watch Minato fight A and Killer B.
Since he'd been given such a convenient opportunity, there was no way he was going to miss it.
Besides, he didn't have much reason to worry about his own safety.
With his current strength, he could protect himself during a small-scale engagement. With Minato present as well, the chances of anything going seriously wrong were extremely low.
Unless the Third Raikage himself appeared.
Fortunately, that was impossible.
The Third Raikage wasn't even on this battlefield.
The war wasn't simply Konoha fighting all four other great villages at once. The situation was far more complicated.
Ōnoki, the old fox, had never abandoned his ambitions toward the Land of Lightning.
The Third Raikage was currently occupied dealing with Iwagakure's forces.
Gōenji had called the Body Flicker Technique limited for a reason.
If it were already perfect, there would be no reason for people like Minato and Shisui to become famous for their speed.
And then there was Sakumo Hatake.
In the original story, most fans simply knew the White Fang as an exceptionally powerful shinobi.
But Gōenji knew more.
Aside from his swordsmanship, Sakumo's Body Flicker Technique was one of his greatest strengths.
I need to improve this technique.
I need to turn it into something uniquely mine.
Gōenji had already been considering a solution.
Fire Release.
If he could use the explosive force of Fire Release for propulsion, he might be able to increase his acceleration dramatically.
Unlike Lightning Release, which could stimulate and enhance the body itself, Fire Release would function more like rocket propulsion.
There were countless details he still needed to solve.
That was why the technique wasn't finished yet.
Still, he felt that he was close.
He had already understood the basic principles.
Now he simply needed to organize and refine them into a usable system.
Whether the final result would actually meet his expectations was another matter.
Whoosh!
Gōenji gradually fell farther behind Minato.
But he wasn't worried.
The battlefield was already close.
There was no need to force himself to keep up.
A moment later, a thunderous explosion shook the forest ahead.
Gōenji landed on a tree trunk and immediately activated his Sharingan.
His vision swept across the battlefield. Several injured Konoha and Cloud shinobi had already retreated toward their respective units, while everyone's attention remained fixed on the center.
Three figures stood there.
Minato.
A.
And Killer B.
Gōenji's eyes narrowed.
Whoosh!
His Sharingan tracked every movement.
Every shift in their bodies.
Every fluctuation of chakra.
Every change in position.
His enhanced mind processed the information at an absurd speed, desperately absorbing everything he could.
Watching the battle was only part of the reason he'd come.
The more important reason was to learn from these experts.
For someone with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan and his extraordinary ability to process information, this was an opportunity he couldn't afford to waste.
The speed of both sides was astonishing.
Minato's Flying Thunder God Technique allowed him to appear and disappear almost instantly.
A's Lightning Release Chakra Mode gave him terrifying acceleration.
Even Killer B's reaction speed and attack speed were extraordinary.
In some respects, their ability to respond to such rapid movements seemed almost comparable to the perception granted by his Sharingan.
That's probably the result of their highly conditioned nervous systems.
Their eyesight naturally couldn't compare with his Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
What they possessed instead was the result of brutal training and countless battles.
Their bodies had been conditioned to respond almost instinctively.
Years of combat experience had allowed them to perceive and react to movements at speeds that would be impossible for ordinary shinobi.
Cloud shinobi really do have an extraordinary approach to taijutsu.
Gōenji's gaze shifted between A and Killer B.
I'll have to develop my own taijutsu someday.
Then his attention returned to Minato.
The Flying Thunder God Technique.
One of the techniques Gōenji had admired most in his previous life.
The technique was also the foundation of Minato's terrifying reputation as the Yellow Flash.
And now, he was finally witnessing it in person.
Gōenji watched carefully as Minato's kunai appeared in his hand.
In the middle of the exchange, the weapon struck Killer B, leaving behind the Flying Thunder God formula.
Gōenji's eyes narrowed.
I can't learn this.
Even with the Sharingan's extraordinary dynamic vision, he couldn't simply copy the Flying Thunder God Technique.
The problem wasn't the physical movement.
It was the formula.
The Flying Thunder God seal was a form of fūinjutsu.
And fūinjutsu was notoriously difficult to master.
Gōenji remembered the state of his predecessor's studies.
Books and scrolls had once been piled around him as he tried to learn the fundamentals of sealing techniques.
It was almost like studying medicine.
You couldn't simply skim through a few books.
You had to understand them.
Memorize them.
Then apply that knowledge.
Only after mastering the fundamentals could someone advance further.
Even with his enhanced intelligence, Gōenji wasn't confident that he could reach Minato's level of mastery.
No wonder the Sharingan can't simply copy everything.
It could copy many ordinary techniques.
But secret techniques, bloodline abilities, and complex fūinjutsu were another matter entirely.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
By this time, the rest of Gōenji's squad had finally caught up.
Akimichi Dōtō stared at Killer B's strange tails.
"That's the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki..."
Inuzuka Gaku's expression became solemn.
"They actually brought out a jinchūriki."
Even after arriving, however, the Konoha shinobi didn't dare interfere.
The outcome of the battle still depended on the three people fighting in the center.
"Gōenji..."
Gaku glanced toward him.
"Can you keep up with their speed—"
He stopped halfway through the sentence.
If Gōenji could truly keep up with those three, he wouldn't be standing here watching.
He would already be fighting alongside Minato.
There would be no reason for him to stand on the sidelines like a cheerleader.
Gōenji raised his head.
"Give me a few years."
His eyes gleamed with confidence.
"When I'm twenty, killing them will be as easy as slaughtering dogs."
It was obviously a boast.
But Gōenji didn't think he was being any more arrogant than necessary.
Unfortunately, his transmigration had not come with the standard cheat system.
He had no mysterious interface.
No rewards.
No instant power-ups.
He could only improve himself step by step, refining his own combat system while relying on his knowledge of the future to survive.
I really am jealous of system users.
If I had a system, I wouldn't need to think so much.
I could simply kill.
Kill.
And keep killing.
"..."
Inuzuka Gaku and the others were left speechless.
What an arrogant Uchiha.
There was no denying that the Uchiha were proud.
But this guy was taking it a little too far.
At present, only a handful of Uchiha had truly overwhelming reputations.
Uchiha Fugaku.
And Shisui, the Body Flicker.
Yet neither had reached Minato's level of battlefield fame.
Gōenji, however, merely stared at the battlefield with absolute confidence.
He wasn't satisfied with being a spectator forever.
One day, he would stand on the same battlefield as these monsters.
And when that day came...
He would make sure no one could look down on him again.