Chapter 212: When a Ninja Faces a Crisis of Trust (Part 3)
In front of the ring toss booth—
Kakashi held the Nine Tails plush prize in his hand and said to Might Guy, who was sitting in a wheelchair, "Looks like I won, Guy."
"Mm, congratulations, Kakashi."
Might Guy, seated in his wheelchair, offered a sincere smile as he congratulated him.
"Sigh…" Kakashi let out a sigh. The Nine Tails plush dropped to the ground from his hand. At the same time, his other hand swiftly drew a shuriken from his ninja pouch and held it against Might Guy's neck in one seamless motion. Even Sarutobi Mirai, standing nearby, didn't react in time. Kakashi's exposed eye sharpened with a dangerous glint as he stared at "Might Guy" and demanded, "Who are you really?!"
"What are you talking about, Kakashi? I'm Might Guy."
Might Guy responded with a goofy smile, equal parts awkward and confused.
Sarutobi Mirai stared at him, formed a hand seal for a sensory technique, then said to Kakashi, "Lord Sixth, there's no trace of chakra on Guy-senpai."
"I really am the real Guy, Kakashi. Are you under a genjutsu?"
Seated in the wheelchair, Might Guy looked at Kakashi with a mixture of worry and urgency.
"Genjutsu Release!"
Mirai performed a genjutsu-breaking technique on Kakashi and then looked up at him. After all, she was his bodyguard—if anything were to happen to the Sixth Hokage, she'd feel personally responsible.
"I'm not under a genjutsu, Mirai. If anything, it's Might Guy…" Kakashi narrowed his eyes. "Your appearance may be identical, but your habits gave you away. The real Guy is a training maniac, but you've been quietly sitting in that wheelchair this entire time. Not only that, Guy is the kind of troublesome guy who insists on turning everything into a competition with me…"
"Is that so…"
"Lord Sixth, look out!"
Before Might Guy could finish, Sarutobi Mirai urgently warned him.
Might Guy leapt into the air. His right arm transformed into a scientific ninja tool resembling a Gatling gun and began firing down at Kakashi and Mirai. Flames sprayed from the gun barrel—it was the Phoenix Fire Technique.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Kakashi quickly formed hand seals and slammed his palms into the ground. A wall of earth rose in front of them, blocking the stream of Phoenix Fire coming from Might Guy.
"Lord Sixth, the villagers…"
Mirai instinctively took a step back and hid behind Kakashi.
Scanning the area, Kakashi noticed the villagers—men and women, old and young—slowly closing in. He said, "Looks like these villagers are the same as that Guy—they've been mimicked by someone. Mirai, don't hold back. Take them down!"
"But…"
Mirai looked at Kakashi, then at the steadily approaching villagers. She could bring herself to attack adults, but striking children or the elderly still crossed a line she wasn't ready to step over.
"Who are you really? Where is the real Might Guy? And what's your purpose in infiltrating the Hidden Leaf Village?!"
On the other side, Kakashi's battle with the fake Guy had reached a stalemate. Though he hadn't yet seen the real Guy, Kakashi could deduce that the real one must be outside the village—after all, two Might Guys appearing in the village would be far too conspicuous.
"What are you talking about, Kakashi? I am Might Guy!"
The fake Guy grinned, flashing a row of dazzling white teeth, even as the Gatling gun on his arm continued its relentless barrage.
"The Earth-Style Wall won't hold much longer…"
Pinned down by the firepower, Kakashi stayed crouched behind the wall, not daring to peek out.
"Come on out, Kakashi! Let's head back to the village together."
The fake Might Guy's voice rang out as the Gatling gun on his right arm suddenly spun even faster.
"Lightning Release: Shadow Clone Technique!"
Two Lightning Release Shadow Clones of Kakashi appeared to his left and right.
These clones functioned like standard shadow clones, with one key difference—when destroyed, they turned into lightning, attacking and paralyzing enemies in the vicinity.
The two clones flanked and charged the fake Guy from both sides. In response, his left arm transformed into a second Gatling gun. With both arms firing, he swept toward the incoming clones.
"Now!" Kakashi leapt into the air, lightning crackling around his right hand. "Lightning Release: Lightning Transmission!"
He extended the Purple Electricity technique like a chain, wrapping it around Might Guy.
Sparks exploded where the lightning touched skin.
A normal human's skin would've been scorched by now, with cries of pain following. But instead, the "skin" revealed liquid metal underneath.
"Lord Sixth!"
Hearing Mirai's voice, Kakashi turned to see the villagers' hands transforming into blades as they steadily closed in.
"Hey! I've got your comrade here! Don't come any closer!"
Kakashi pressed the lightning-charged hand to the side of fake Guy's neck, threatening the enemies around them.
"Hahahaha! That won't work, Kakashi!"
A voice rang out, drawing both Kakashi's and Mirai's attention.
"Red Wolf… and Orochimaru?!"
As the Sixth Hokage, Kakashi was well aware that "Red Wolf" referred to Jiraiya, and "Gray Wolf" to Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru… Orochimaru…" Mirai muttered for a moment, then suddenly exclaimed, "Isn't he one of the legendary Three Sannin, on par with Lady Fifth?!"
"I'm not Orochimaru! I'm your Great King Gray Wolf! Get it right!"
Standing atop a rooftop, Gray Wolf looked down imposingly at the two surrounded by liquid metal robots.
In truth, Gray Wolf had no intention of showing himself in public. While he did like to boast now and then, that was something reserved for his downtime. At the moment, he was busy building a time machine.
But since Red Wolf insisted on going out, he had no choice. Always the doting husband, Gray Wolf had put aside his work to accompany her.
"Surprised, aren't you, Kakashi?" Red Wolf said from his side. "This fellow here—the cloned Gray Wolf from S.H.I.E.L.D.—has managed to create liquid metal robots that can perfectly imitate anyone."
Though the praise came from Red Wolf, Gray Wolf wasn't exactly thrilled, because she referred to him as a clone.
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and silently vowed to finish the time machine and take her back to Green Grassland.
"Cloned Gray Wolf…"
Kakashi looked at him. From the way he'd grandly introduced himself as "Great King Gray Wolf," he could already tell—this definitely wasn't Orochimaru.
Orochimaru would never say something so embarrassing.