Chapter 33: Almost Knocked Kakashi Out with One Punch

Sakura, seeing her two teammates itching for a fight, quickly pulled a kunai from her pouch and held it in front of her.

She had a rough idea of what was going on in her head.

Kakashi-sensei wasn't just any regular shinobi—he was a Jōnin in charge of their squad!

No matter how strong Naruto and Sasuke were, did they really think they could beat him?

Why couldn't they sit down and discuss a proper plan to grab the bells?

Sakura felt a headache coming on as she watched her two reckless teammates.

But Naruto and Sasuke had something else in mind.

From the start, their goal was to defeat Kakashi.

Grabbing the bells was just a side mission.

They exchanged glances and silently agreed to strike first.

Years of working together had honed their coordination to a near-instant understanding. A single look was enough to communicate complex plans—it was practically an encrypted form of communication.

Naruto twitched his fingers slightly, and in an instant, dozens of glowing portals appeared around Kakashi, completely surrounding him.

Over the years, Naruto had identified and worked on his weaknesses in battle.

Take the portals, for example.

In the past, his hand movements would give away when he was about to cast the technique. His enemies could easily spot the shift before he even made a move.

It had taken him half a year to break this habit and control the spell with minimal movement.

Then there was the glaring issue with the portals themselves…

But Naruto had found a way to fix that too.

If he summoned enough portals, his opponent wouldn't be able to predict which one he'd emerge from. It would confuse his enemy and apply constant mental pressure—an extremely effective tactic.

Kakashi wiped sweat from his forehead as he looked at the dozens of portals surrounding him.

Even he hadn't seen this coming—Naruto's technique was too unpredictable.

To think, he was the one who had taught Naruto how to use this jutsu.

But Naruto had already taken it to such a high level?

"This is getting troublesome," Kakashi sighed, his expression growing more serious.

He could feel the intensity of Naruto's intent.

Not only did he have to prepare for Naruto and Sasuke simultaneously appearing in his blind spots, but he also had to be on guard for potential jutsu coming from any of the portals.

Naruto, at least, wasn't a major concern—Kakashi knew the boy hadn't learned that many jutsu.

But Sasuke...

He would likely use throwing techniques or Fire Release jutsu to attack.

Meanwhile, Sakura stood by, staring at the sea of portals, questioning her entire reality.

Most of the shinobi in Konoha knew Naruto could use this technique.

But she had never seen him open so many portals at once!

As the top student in theory, she fully understood just how incredible this feat was.

Just watching the portals surrounding Kakashi was making her brain feel like it was overheating.

"You've got to be kidding me…"

"Is he even human…?"

Naruto let out a cheeky grin and formed a hand seal.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Poof! Poof! Poof!

Hundreds of clones instantly appeared on the battlefield, and Kakashi's eyes widened in shock.

How much chakra does this kid have?

The sheer number of clones completely blocked Kakashi's field of vision.

All he could see was a sea of blonde hair.

Sasuke and Sakura were nowhere to be seen.

Even the glowing purple portals were hidden from view.

At this point, Kakashi had to rely on his memory to keep track of where the portals were located.

"Charge."

"Take down that white-haired old man."

"Attack."

The clones yelled as they charged towards Kakashi in a massive wave, tightening the space he had to dodge.

'Looks like I'll have to rely on taijutsu, then...'

Kakashi pulled out a kunai and held it firmly in his hand, leaning forward slightly. With a quick push off his legs, he darted toward the mass of blondes.

It was the only option left.

Naruto's taijutsu skills still couldn't match Kakashi's experience as a veteran shinobi.

As soon as they clashed, the number of clones rapidly decreased, vanishing one by one.

On average, Kakashi only needed about three moves to take out each clone.

Whoosh—

Just as Kakashi was fully immersed in the fight, a fireball flew in from the side.

The clones closest to him immediately jumped in, locking onto his limbs, trying to hold him down, even if it was only for a second.

Boom—

The fireball hit where Kakashi was, kicking up a cloud of dust, but there was no sign of his body. Only a charred log remained on the ground.

"Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique!"

Sasuke's eyes widened in alarm, his instincts screaming danger.

At that moment, one of Naruto's portals appeared behind Sasuke, its purple light reflecting off his face. He immediately leaned backward, falling into the portal and vanishing from his original position.

The next second, Kakashi emerged from where Sasuke had been standing, his frustration clear.

He never imagined that the very jutsu he had once taught Naruto would now be used against him.

And the worst part was…

He still hadn't found Naruto's real body.

Naruto was hiding in the shadows, using his space-time jutsu to evade attacks. Kakashi had no idea how to deal with it.

These kids were like slippery eels—impossible to catch and even harder to pin down.

This is giving me a headache...

Kakashi's gaze shifted to Sakura, who was still standing there, clueless.

Of the three, she was the weakest and easiest to deal with.

Any sensible shinobi would eliminate or control the weakest link first.

In a blur, Kakashi disappeared from his spot, completely ignoring the sea of clones.

"Sakura!"

"Get into the portal!"

Naruto saw the look in Kakashi's eyes and immediately knew he was up to no good.

As Kakashi vanished, Naruto quickly called out to the dazed Sakura, opening a portal beside her.

But doing so exposed Naruto's real body to Kakashi's line of sight.

Sasuke, realizing his teammate was in danger, immediately pulled out his weapons and hurled them into the nearest portal.

Naruto's portals were incredibly useful.

Before, Sasuke had to calculate the angle of his throws to make sure they would hit the enemy's vital spots or avoid being dodged.

But now…

All he had to do was toss his weapons into Naruto's portals, and the rest was taken care of.

By the time Sakura realized she was in danger, Kakashi was already in front of her, casting a genjutsu to immobilize her, then dodging the weapons flying out of the portals.

Ding ding ding—

Kunai and shuriken clattered to the ground near Kakashi's feet, causing him to break out in a cold sweat.

They're so fast!

These two kids were working together so well it was making Kakashi's scalp tingle.

If he had been a second slower just now, Sasuke's weapons would have pierced right through him.

But at least...

The weakest link had been neutralized.

Sakura stood frozen in place, her eyes dull and occasionally flickering with fear as her body trembled uncontrollably under the genjutsu.

Naruto and Sasuke, seeing this, weren't too surprised.

They hadn't expected much from Sakura to begin with.

What did catch them off guard was how shameless Kakashi was.

Fighting a three-man team, and he goes for the weakest first?

Naruto, unable to contain his anger any longer, opened a portal next to Kakashi and charged straight at him.

"Kakashi-sensei, show me what you've got!"

Sasuke: ?

Sasuke, who was about to launch his own attack, paused for a moment, his expression turning odd.

Naruto's words...

Why did they sound so much like something that man had once said to him?

Had Naruto overheard him sleep-talking?

Sensing Naruto's approach, Kakashi quickly widened the distance between them.

In this situation, if he got tied up fighting Naruto, Sasuke would definitely take the opportunity to attack.

'I'll have to use the Sharingan...'

Kakashi lifted his headband, revealing his three-tomoe Sharingan.

The moment Sasuke saw it, he couldn't hold back his shock.

"How do you have the Sharingan!?"

"That's..."

"A gift from a friend."

Kakashi replied casually before disappearing with a flicker, avoiding Naruto once again.

But there was no way Naruto would let him escape that easily.

Sure, the Body Flicker Technique was fast, but could it be faster than my portals?

The next second, as Kakashi reappeared, Naruto was already on him, his fist aiming straight for Kakashi's side.

Smack—

Reacting quickly, Kakashi twisted his body and caught Naruto's wrist just in time.

By now, sweat was dripping down his forehead.

That was close...

If he had been just a bit slower, this kid would've crushed his kidney.

Kakashi, now fully serious, kicked Naruto hard, sending him flying.

But to his shock…

Naruto landed on his feet almost immediately, showing no signs of being injured.

How?

Even a regular Jōnin would need a moment to recover after taking a hit like that.

Kakashi could only scream internally.

What on earth did his sensei's wife give birth to?

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu."

Sasuke's attack arrived just in time, not giving Kakashi even a moment to catch his breath.

As soon as the Fire Release was unleashed, Sasuke closed in, launching a series of taijutsu strikes at Kakashi.

However, what he didn't expect was…

When Sasuke's punch landed on Kakashi, the latter vanished in a flash of lightning, leaving Sasuke momentarily paralyzed by the effects of the Lightning Release.

Suddenly, Sasuke felt the ground beneath him shift, and before he knew it, his entire body was submerged into the earth, leaving only his head above the surface.

With this, both Sasuke and Sakura were rendered unable to continue fighting.

Naruto, still standing, locked eyes on Kakashi in the distance and readied his stance for another attack. Seeing Naruto's movements, Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle.

'This kid…'

'Is he recreating that scene from when he was six and fought me?'

Naruto shuffled his feet and, with a loud cry, charged straight toward Kakashi.

But just as he was about to close the distance, Naruto disappeared into one of his portals.

Kakashi, noticing his sudden disappearance, didn't hesitate to activate the Body Flicker Technique, vanishing from his spot as well.

He moved toward the portal where Naruto had just vanished.

In the next instant, both Naruto and Kakashi reappeared at almost the same time.

The distance between them was so close that Kakashi could clearly see the mischievous smile on Naruto's face.

'Wait a second?'

'Did this kid lure me into the portal on purpose?'

Boom—

Naruto smiled slightly as he looked at Kakashi in front of him, and before Kakashi could react, Naruto's fist slammed into his abdomen.

Fortunately, Kakashi managed to raise his arm just in time to block Naruto's punch.

However, a sharp cracking sound echoed around them.

Crack—

Ugh—

Kakashi felt a numbness shoot through his arm, immediately followed by excruciating pain.

He knew his right arm was done for…

'Just what kind of monster is this kid?'

Kakashi fell to his knees, his head resting against the ground, completely motionless.

He looked utterly pained.

"Uh… Kakashi-sensei, are you okay?"

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