Chapter 8: What? Did You Learn From Comics?
"Are you… going to fight me?"
This time, Kakashi was even more confused.
On one hand, he wasn't interested in fighting a student.On the other, he didn't want to crush Sasuke's already fragile pride too harshly.
He knew better than anyone what Sasuke's strength level was.
"Aren't you afraid, Kakashi-sensei?"
Seeing Kakashi's indifferent expression, Sasuke deliberately provoked him with a smirk.
"I'm not the same as before! My current power has undergone earth-shaking changes!"
"Earth-shaking changes?"
Kakashi raised an eyebrow, giving Sasuke another look.
Indeed, something about him did feel different… but only slightly.
"Kakashi-senpai, what should I do?"Yamato, who had been supervising reconstruction nearby, stopped what he was doing and came over.
He had already heard some things about Sasuke from Kakashi before.And now, seeing the boy standing there with that arrogant attitude, Yamato silently sighed.
Aside from the details Kakashi mentioned, this Uchiha kid was clearly a handful.
A Genin challenging a Jōnin—in any ninja village, such a thing would only invite ridicule.
After all, when had a Genin ever defeated a Jōnin?
But Sasuke was quick to respond to that silent judgment.
"Hmph, I'm not joking. Kakashi-sensei, even you won't be able to win against this eye!"
As he spoke, Sasuke's left pupil transformed into a golden clock, his arms crossing over his chest.
In an instant, a rifle and pistol materialized in his hands, and behind him, a massive, glowing clock began to turn.
"This is…?!"
Kakashi's eye widened in shock.
Sasuke's eye had turned into a clock?And what was that giant clock behind him?
He hadn't seen any hand seals.He hadn't even felt chakra fluctuations.
Was this… some kind of bloodline limit?
But Sasuke already had the Sharingan!
"What the hell is going on, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked, concern flickering in his voice.
But all he got in return was Sasuke's cold snort.
"Tch. Stop wasting words, Kakashi-sensei. If you want to know, then beat me!"
"So that's what's giving you confidence…"Kakashi sighed helplessly, unsure whether to laugh or scold.
Was he, Konoha's Copy Ninja, really being challenged like this by a Genin?
Still, he knew Sasuke wouldn't back down.
"Alright. I understand. I'll accept your challenge.""But not here—this place isn't suited for battle. Follow me."
Soon after, the two stood in a secluded training arena, where they could fight without restraint.
The air was tense, heavy with anticipation.
Kakashi took out a kunai.
"When this kunai hits the ground, the match begins. Any problem with that?"
"No problem," Sasuke replied calmly.
"Good."
Kakashi flicked the kunai high into the air.
The instant it left his hand—
Before Sasuke could even blink—Kakashi threw three more kunai, cutting off all three of Sasuke's possible evasion routes.
Then, at blinding speed, he closed the distance—Kunai raised, wind slicing as he thrust toward Sasuke's neck.
"It's over…"
Kakashi thought to himself.Even though his opponent was only a Genin, he had still used seventy to eighty percent of his strength.He wanted to end it quickly.
If this were the old Sasuke, that blow would have been decisive.
But—
"First Bullet!"
BOOM!
Just as Kakashi entered striking range, Sasuke pulled the trigger without hesitation.
A gunshot echoed through the air.
There were guns in the shinobi world,but they were practically useless in battle due to chakra-based defenses.Few ever used them seriously.
"Sasuke!"
Kakashi's heart jolted as he saw Sasuke apparently shoot himself.
But the expected spray of blood never came.Instead—
Sasuke vanished.
"What—?!"
When Kakashi sensed his surroundings again, he froze.
Sasuke was behind him.
And the barrel of that golden pistol was already aimed at his back.
"Second Bullet!"
BOOM!
Normally, Kakashi could easily evade such an attack.The bullet's speed wasn't the problem—it was the timing.He could react before it fired.
But this time, Sasuke had teleported.Kakashi hadn't even realized it happened.
At that range… there was no avoiding it.
"Crap—!"
The bullet struck his back.Yet strangely, Kakashi felt no pain.No blood. No wound.
"What… happened?"
He frowned, confusion spreading across his face.
But there was no time to think—he needed to move, to get distance.
Yet as soon as he tried,his body refused to respond.
No—it wasn't that it wouldn't move.It was that it was moving in slow motion.
Every motion—every heartbeat—stretched out endlessly.No matter how hard he tried to accelerate,his body remained sluggish and heavy,like time itself had slowed around him.
In that moment, Kakashi understood.
He couldn't move.He couldn't dodge.
Even a normal person could kill him like this.
He could only watch, wide-eyed,as Sasuke calmly approached and pressed a kunai against his chest.
"You lost, Kakashi-sensei."
Sasuke's breathing was slightly ragged.
To slow Kakashi's time while accelerating his own speed had consumed ten minutes of lifespan and nearly all his chakra.The cost was steep—but the result was undeniable.
The battle was already decided.
He tossed the kunai aside, released the Emperor's Eye, and covered his forehead with one hand—his shoulders shaking slightly—
Then he couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Hahahahahahahahaha!"
Laughter burst out uncontrollably.
This was the power of the Emperor Keke.Such overwhelming force!
Of course, Sasuke knew Kakashi's defeat was partly due to ignorance.If both sides had known each other's abilities beforehand,the result might have been different.
After all, ninjas were fragile creatures—high offense, low defense.
Still…a victory was a victory.
The same Kakashi who had easily overpowered him before—was now the one lying defeated.
It almost felt like a dream.
Kakashi twitched his mouth slightly, watching Sasuke's smug expression.
He wasn't angry.He didn't mind losing.What really caught his attention was the strange ability Sasuke had just displayed.
"Sasuke… that power. What exactly was it?"
He knew Sasuke too well.A few days ago, the boy was still just an ordinary Genin.In fact, he still was.
His taijutsu, ninjutsu, genjutsu, and chakra reserves hadn't changed.Only that strange clock-like ability was new.
If not for that power, Kakashi would never have lost.
That ability—it reeked of time manipulation.
It was terrifyingly unfair.Without knowing its nature, anyone could fall instantly.
"You want to know, Kakashi-sensei?" Sasuke asked with a sly grin.
The arrogance in his tone was almost boyish.After bottling up his frustration for so long, he finally let loose.
He reached into his clothes and proudly pulled out a manga—the one he had brought from Su Li's home.
"I learned it from this comic."
"…What?"
Kakashi's expression stiffened, his single visible eye widening.
He stared blankly at the book Sasuke held up.For a long moment, he didn't even blink.
Did Sasuke just say…he learned this from a comic?
The great Copy Ninja of Konoha had just been defeated—by a Genin who gained his power from reading manga.
Kakashi didn't even know what expression to make.