"Done!"
On the Hurricane Track, one of the White Zetsu clones looked on with satisfaction at the shortcut he had just quietly blocked off. He gave a satisfied nod, then released a small spore clone from his body.
"Go notify the others behind us—tell them that Lady Kaguya is already heading their way down the track."
After sending the message, he dimmed the previously bright lights nearby and stashed away the directional signboard. Humming a tune, he looked up at the desert sky.
As for sabotaging the race course…
What does that have to do with a mere clone like me?!
He was just a lowly spore—he didn't know anything at all!
"Hehe What a lovely night"
...
"Smooth down the throat!"
"Suna's special brew—Scorpion Sake! Brewed with wild desert scorpions, carefully selected to meet the highest nutritional standards. Infused with twelve rare medicinal herbs and prepared with a secret method."
"Men love it! Women love it too!"
"This festival season, don't bring gifts—bring Scorpion Sake, exclusive from Sunagakure!"
After a completely pointless and unattended commercial break…
"Guy?!"
Kakashi's eyes lit up. He had been ready to go out in a blaze of glory, dragging Iwagakure's racers down with him. But now that Might Guy had returned—
It was time to show everyone the true might of Konoha's ninja!
Seeing Guy charge in with his signature loud howl, eyes burning with purpose, then nodding toward him in full seriousness—
Kakashi instantly understood. Guy had caught on.
His single visible eye narrowed. With a focused expression, he raised his hands, standing between his own Shadow car and the rapidly approaching Youth Express, which had slowed and lined up with him.
And just as Youth Express blocked the road ahead of Shadow Car—
Guy arrived beside him.
Kakashi quickly formed a seal.
"Let's do it—Lightning Release:—"
But before he could even finish the jutsu—
"ATAHH!!"
Guy had already leapt into the air and pounced. He caught one of the Iwa-nin racers—easily 200 pounds and still completely dumbfounded—and started dishing out pure, unfiltered taijutsu.
"Konoha Whirlwind!!"
"ATAHH!"
"ATAHH! ATAHH! ATAHH!"
The entire battlefield fell dead silent.
Spectators sat wide-eyed and speechless as Guy, for seemingly no reason at all, broke into a brutal 1v5 melee.
"Beautiful! Truly beautiful! What an exhilarating display!"
Of course, Tobi, ever the chaos-stirring commentator, was the first to shout again.
"I didn't expect the Konoha team to break out of their situation like this! I—Tobi—now crown you... the most fearless of all competitors!"
"But according to the rules of the Shinobi World 4WD Championship, physical combat between racers is strictly forbidden. Violators will be disqualified and banned for one year! And just like that—your race ends here!"
He sighed with mock solemnity.
"But don't be sad! Don't be discouraged! You've made your mark. No one will forget you after this—Konoha's very own wild card… Might Guy!"
What the hell is he even doing?!
Kakashi stared, baffled, watching Guy beat down all five Iwa-nin with zero hesitation. In the end, he could only sigh, turning back to his now-unattended 4WD.
Then—
"Lightning Release: Lightning Current!"
Whatever. As long as no one died, it should be fine.
Meanwhile, Guy seemed to finally realize something was off. Surrounded by Iwa-nin, he stood laughing with hands on his hips, looking down at a racer he had just knocked unconscious.
"Hahaha! My bad! I thought we were dueling for real! Totally forgot we were in a 4WD match!"
"Like hell a sorry excuse like that cuts it!"
The Iwa-nin weren't buying the apology. One of them growled, eyes full of fury, sleeves rolled up, ready to show this Konoha musclehead that Iwagakure wasn't to be trifled with.
"You better give us a damn explanation, or you're finished!"
"Earth Style:—"
But just as the jutsu was about to fire—
"Hold it! Stop right there!"
A Suna-nin tasked with security jumped out, full of righteous smugness.
"What's this? You guys wanna keep brawling?"
He coughed a couple of times, then assumed a strict, official tone.
"This is a competition arena! Do you want to be disqualified?!"
"You Sand guys siding with Konoha now? After what they just—"
"Siding?! What do you take us for? Sunagakure will not protect any rule-breakers—no matter which village they're from!"
The Suna-nin casually picked his nose as he spoke, clearly unconcerned.
"Go ahead. Throw hands if you want. But if you brawl again, you're out. No more racing. Or what—are you willing to hand the win to Konoha?"
That hit a nerve.
The Iwa-nin fell silent, faces twisted in conflict. Their team leader hesitated, unsure what to do.
After a moment—
"What about Konoha?"
"Don't worry," the Suna-nin replied. "We have an entire penalty system in place. Anyone who violates the rules will be dealt with. Iwagakure will be satisfied. Guaranteed."
"Hmmph…"
The Iwa-nin exchanged looks, then turned their eyes toward Kakashi—who had already slipped ahead, blasting through the track at full throttle.
Grinding their teeth, they gave up—for now.
"We expect both Konoha and Sunagakure to give us a full explanation for this mess. Or don't blame us for what happens next."
After throwing down that warning, the Iwa-nin turned back to the race.
No doubt—they were now more determined than ever to take Konoha out of the running.
As for Might Guy...
"You coming with us willingly, or do we have to drag you?"
The Suna-nin turned to him after medical staff carried away the unconscious Iwa-nin.
"Due to your rule violation, you are now officially disqualified. Sunagakure will take you into custody to prevent any further 'outbursts.' You will remain under supervision until Konoha and Iwagakure reach an agreement. Once the penalties are negotiated, you'll be released."
"Mmm."
As a true man of honor, Guy didn't run from his mistake.
It was all Kakashi's fault anyway—with that serious expression and hidden signals, he had totally thrown Guy off and made him forget about the 4WD race altogether!
"Truly worthy of being my eternal rival!"
Guy lifted his head at a 45-degree angle, gazing up at the starry sky.
"Ah… my youth!"
...
"I'll leave Guy to you, President Danzo."
Rasa, the Kazekage, smiled at the grim-faced Shimura Danzo beside him.
"Iwagakure is demanding an official response from your side. Business is business, after all. The Land of Earth is still a valued client of ours. Fortunately, no one died—so let's treat it as a... financial loss to avoid greater misfortune."
Danzo's expression didn't change.
"Thank you." He gave a slow nod.
"I will make sure this incident doesn't affect Sunagakure's reputation."
Might Guy, huh…
He'd once applied to join Root, but Danzo's elite, loyal organization wasn't for just anyone.
Clearly, rejecting him back then was the right call.
"As for Iwagakure... I'll personally speak with them once the event is over."
Just then—
"Wait! What am I seeing?!"
Tobi's voice rang out again, catching both Danzo and Rasa's attention.
"What's that?! Toad Sage—is that a tattoo?! It got a skin change?! What is that thing trying to do?!"
"Stay tuned—this is Tobi, bringing you the latest updates!"