CHAPTER 76

Kakashi shook his head and said, "I already mentioned this at the meeting. The three Hokage generations have insisted not to use the Barrier Formation again, so for now, we can only rely on surveillance cameras."

Shuimu remained silent for a moment. The Four Purple Flame Formation had been activated swiftly. The combined strength of the four Yin Ren was formidable, and breaking the barrier in a short time seemed nearly impossible. Facing Orochimaru's threat of reincarnation, the three generations had little chance of winning—or even surviving.

"Can't you think of any other options?" Mizuki asked.

"There aren't many people who can intervene at the Hokage level. Ordinary ninja won't make much difference." Asuma Sarutobi was well acquainted with the three Hokage generations. Though he had disagreed with some of their philosophies in his youth, he knew them well. He had long regretted sparing Orochimaru back then, but now that Orochimaru had returned to threaten the village, Asuma never abandoned the idea of punishing him personally, even at the risk of his own life.

Though I knew Asuma's words were true, waiting for the Four Purple Flames to form while seeing the three generations fall in battle made me feel helpless and uneasy.

The only one who might change the outcome was Jiraiya. Though he was currently in the village, Orochimaru's old ties and Jiraiya's complicated feelings made helping the three generations kill Orochimaru a difficult decision. That's why Jiraiya was staying in the shadows, waiting quietly for the right moment—likely when a great threat like the Psychic Beast endangered the village.

"I really don't understand the grudges and grudges between the elders," Mizuki muttered.

He had to put aside unrealistic hopes and focus on the task at hand.

"But it seems Naruto and Sakura both won their matches, which is really unexpected," Kakashi said with a slight smile.

Naruto's victory was possible, albeit difficult. But Sakura winning? That was even more surprising. Their starting strength was worlds apart, and one month's training, even with direct guidance, was hardly enough to bridge that gap.

"You should pay more attention to your students, Kakashi," Mizuki teased.

"For now, there's no problem. Several suspicious targets have already come under observation. If anything happens, I'll act immediately."

"Alright, then I'll go do my duty as a teacher," Kakashi said, waving his hand. He put away the Intimacy Paradise scroll he'd been holding and went to check on Sakura and Naruto.

"Let's head up first. We can't neglect the important people," Asuma and Yūhi Kurenai said, preparing to leave. "We'll come back down if something happens."

"Wait for the large-scale illusion technique—the Nirvana Abode technique. Everyone's busy right now; what else can they do?" Mizuki muttered.

There were only a few ninja present on the battlefield; most were civilians without resistance. If a large-scale casualty incident occurred, Konoha would lose face. It would be too late to protect the civilians after the fact.

Meanwhile, the fights on the field were heating up, and the winners would soon be decided.

Temari's wind-style escape ninjutsu was indeed powerful. When combined with her giant folding fan, she was like a winged tiger. She wasn't the best in close combat, but she made it nearly impossible to get close. Shikamaru's Shadow Possession Jutsu couldn't be used effectively, and the tricks he had devised one after another were being countered.

"The strength of the Sand ninja cannot be underestimated," Mizuki said thoughtfully.

Though Temari couldn't find a way to defeat Shikamaru immediately, don't forget—Shikamaru wasn't an ordinary ninja. With a brilliant mind and excellent aptitude, despite his lazy personality, he wasn't an easy opponent.

The Sand Village was located in the Land of Wind—a harsh environment with scarce resources, completely different from the fertile Land of Fire where Konoha was based. The two losses they suffered during the previous Ninja Wars had hit the Sand Village hard, especially the mysterious disappearance of the Third Kazekage, known as the strongest Kazekage. This had dealt a fatal blow to Sand Village's reputation. Its small share of territory was further reduced, and it struggled to maintain a large ninja force, relying instead on elite ninjas—few in number but highly talented.

Overall, Konoha's strength was the greatest, due to its large ninja population and good overall training. However, mid- to high-level personal combat power in the Sand Village was still stronger than most of Konoha's ninjas. Only the Hidden Mist Village (Kirigakure) could be compared to Sand Village in that respect.

If not for Konoha's favored position and the steady stream of talented ninja it produced, supported by powerful clans, it would have been impossible to overwhelm Sand Village.

However, the recently aged three Hokage generations could no longer support the village like before. So when Orochimaru came knocking, the Sand ninja, already harboring doubts, decided to take their chances.

The duel between Temari and Shikamaru was a microcosm of this struggle. Konoha's outer strength and political influence tried to overcome difficulties through various means, while the Sand ninja prepared for open conflict.

As Asuma said, Shikamaru eventually seized an opening, but his chakra was exhausted, forcing him to admit defeat.

"What do you think?" Kakashi, having just returned from observing the students, asked Mizuki.

"You mean Nara Shikamaru?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Well, he's a genius among geniuses, but," Mizuki glanced at Haruno Sakura, "he relies too much on his intellect. A super high IQ can be a double-edged sword—it's powerful, but it also limits him. I wonder if he'll be able to comprehend something beyond that in the future."

Kakashi nodded approvingly. "You see that very clearly. You deserve to be a teacher."

"Are you complimenting me or yourself? You can't even take care of your three students properly and worry about others?"

"I won't deny it. But we know each other well. Sometimes helping out is necessary."

"You mean Sakura, right?" Mizuki shook his head. "It's not that I don't want to help. If she has any ideas, she can come to me. Honestly, I don't think the entire village understands her. I can't just ask the smartest person in Konoha to study with me and verify everything, but—"

Mizuki looked at Kakashi seriously. "I think you've greatly underestimated Sakura's potential. You should find a better teacher for her. Let me take care of her temporarily—that's fine. For real teaching, you should find someone more reliable."

With only his own medical ninjutsu skills, Mizuki knew he couldn't provide Sakura with a proper training platform. Many of the experimental materials and practice opportunities she needed were resources beyond his reach.

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