A few days later, after completing the mission to subjugate the giant bear, the two returned to Konohagakure.
At four o'clock the next morning, Shinichi went out as usual and began his daily morning run around the village.
The sky had not yet brightened, and the streets were silent; only the steady and powerful sound of his footsteps echoed.
He did not know how long he had been running when, as he passed the outskirts of a training ground, a bright green figure cut in from the side like a gust of wind, steadily keeping pace beside him.
"Shinichi, long time no see!"
The person was Might Duy. Dressed in his signature green jumpsuit, his stride carried a spring-like vitality. The red silk sash at his waist, tied to his forehead protector, fluttered lightly in the wind, and on his face was the same passionate smile as always, as if it would never fade.
"Yeah, Duy-senpai." Shinichi nodded slightly, replying with even breathing.
As someone who had trained day after day for years, it was far from the first time Shinichi had run into the famous hot-blooded father and son during his morning exercises.
Over time, though they could not be called close friends, they had at least become familiar faces to one another—running companions who could stop and exchange a few words.
"Isn't Guy with you today?" Shinichi asked casually.
"He's out on a mission," Duy replied. His voice remained as loud as ever, yet on closer listen there was a faint, subtle pause.
"Senpai didn't go with him?" Shinichi followed up.
Though it sounded somewhat surprising, Might Guy had indeed been among those who graduated early—earlier than Shinichi, in fact. He had successfully graduated last year and become a genin.
However, similar to Shinichi, he had not been assigned to a regular squad. Since graduating, he had been following his father, Might Duy, handling basic D-rank missions around the village.
Hearing the question, the ever-uplifted smile on Might Duy's face faltered almost imperceptibly. He raised a hand and scratched his stiff black hair, revealing a rare expression tinged with embarrassment and helplessness.
"That kid Guy… said he's grown up now and can carry out missions on his own, so…"
He did not finish the sentence, but Shinichi already understood.
This was probably a stage every child goes through while growing up—when young, they see their father as an omnipotent hero; but once they step into a broader world and come into contact with the eyes and judgments of others, their mindset quietly begins to change.
Especially at Might Guy's age, when one's pride is sensitive and one is particularly concerned with how others see them.
After becoming a shinobi, he had perhaps more directly felt the disdain and even mockery from some in the village toward his father as a "perennial genin" who "only knows taijutsu."
Those youthful declarations from his father that had once made his blood boil with passion, under other people's strange looks, seemed to have turned into out-of-place clownish behavior, making him feel embarrassed—so much so that he was even ashamed to appear together with his father.
This sense of distance and inner conflict would probably continue all the way until that turning point arrived—until Might Duy passed the Eight Gates on to him, until the day he was driven into a desperate situation on a mission and surrounded by the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
At that time, the father he had always felt ashamed of would descend from the sky like a burning meteor, and with a mortal body, blaze forth a miraculous radiance.
Only then would every knot in his heart be completely washed away by scalding tears and pride.
But all of that was for later.
Thinking this, Shinichi suddenly stopped running. He turned to Might Duy beside him and spoke with a serious expression: "Senpai, there's something I'd like to discuss with you. I heard that this year's Chūnin Exams will be held in Sunagakure. I plan to participate, but my team is still short one person. I'd like to invite you to be my teammate and go together."
Hearing this, Might Duy was clearly stunned. He blinked, as if doubting he had heard wrong, then hurriedly waved his hands. His smile carried his usual straightforward brightness, but also a trace of awkwardness: "Shinichi, don't joke around! You're a recognized genius in the village—everyone can see your strength. I…I'm just a perennial genin who only knows a few taijutsu moves. I don't understand ninjutsu or genjutsu at all. If I team up with you, I'm afraid I'll drag you down and hold back your future!"
"Senpai, I'm serious." Shinichi looked at him and said earnestly, "In my eyes, senpai is someone with great strength. You've poured all your effort into taijutsu alone—this focus and perseverance, day after day for decades, is something worthy of respect in itself. Anyone who can hone taijutsu to its limits cannot have their strength underestimated. To be honest with you, I know another shinobi who has trained his taijutsu to an extremely high level, and this time I'm also planning to invite him to serve as the leader and captain of our team."
Might Duy was left a little at a loss by these words, his voice even a few degrees lower than usual: "Shinichi, you…you're praising me too much. I really…"
"Senpai!" Shinichi cut him off, his tone growing even more earnest. "Senpai often tells Guy that even if you only know taijutsu, you can still become a great shinobi. Those words are full of strength. But if even the senpai who says those words doesn't truly believe in himself deep down, and thinks he isn't qualified and will only hold others back—then how much strength can those words really have left?"
He gazed into Might Duy's somewhat dazed eyes and said slowly, "Senpai, a father is a child's first and most important role model. If senpai himself cannot face and believe in his own path, then how can you truly make Guy believe that even by focusing on taijutsu like his father, he can really walk a radiant path as a shinobi?"
The morning light gradually brightened, reflecting on Shinichi's calm and earnest face. Looking at the sincere-eyed boy before him, the flame that had burned in Might Duy's chest for years—sometimes even overlooked by himself—seemed to be quietly stirred, burning a little brighter.
"You're right, Shinichi! Then let us let our youth bloom in Sunagakure!"
After successfully inviting Might Duy, that same evening Shinichi went to find Old Master Chen, who was instructing Ishizuka Ryū at the training ground.
On the grounds that Old Master Chen had once promised, "When you become a chūnin, I will teach you a new taijutsu move," he sincerely invited Old Master Chen to serve as the jōnin leader of his team and go to Sunagakure together.
Shinichi's reason was direct: he hoped Old Master Chen could personally witness the moment he was promoted to chūnin.
Old Master Chen adjusted his round dark glasses, pondered briefly, and agreed.
Late at night, lying in bed, Shinichi fell into thought.
Graduating and becoming a chūnin in the same year had always been the path he had planned before graduation. He needed to obtain, step by step, the attribute enhancements brought by the professional Entries of [Genin] and [Chūnin] through rapid career advancement.
More importantly, the opportunity to draw Entries that accompanied each promotion was crucial. According to the previous pattern, starting from chūnin, there would very likely be a chance to access higher-tier blue Entry draws.
This was the fundamental motivation behind his urgency—even his willingness to consider going to Sunagakure to take the Chūnin Exams. He needed to solidify the foundation of his strength as quickly as possible before the comprehensive upheaval that might arrive.
It was just that when he learned that this session of the Chūnin Exams would be held in Sunagakure, he had indeed hesitated.
But now, with Jiraiya—one of the Sannin—serving as the overall leader, Old Master Chen, the strongest taijutsu shinobi of Konohagakure, along with Maruboshi Kōsuke and Might Duy, two perennial genin, as teammates—
The Third Hokage might even attend the final round.
After some consideration, Shinichi felt there was nothing much to worry about. Even if some unexpected change truly occurred in Sunagakure, it would be enough to handle it.
Because this lineup could completely stage a Sunagakure-version of a collapse plan right there in Sunagakure.
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