No more talking—Mikami Yuu and Guy slammed into each other instantly!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The crisp sounds of fists and feet colliding rang out through the morning mist.
Compared to Hyūga Kamon's Gentle Fist, Guy's "Steel Fist" assault was clearly fiercer. Every punch and kick carried shocking power and speed, crashing down like a violent storm. Mikami Yuu, meanwhile, was more agile—predicting, dodging, and blocking again and again, occasionally catching an opening to counterattack.
BANG—!
Mikami Yuu's whip-like roundhouse swept into Guy's blocking arm. Guy only let out a muffled grunt, stumbled half a step, then stabilized immediately. Without pause, he twisted his waist and drove a heavy punch into Mikami Yuu's shoulder, leaving a numb ache.
"Hiss…"
Mikami Yuu's eyes flickered. "As expected of the 'Azure Beast'—that durability and strength are unreal. Even after I opened the 'Gate of Guy,' I still can't overpower him physically. That's ridiculous…"
Looks like his "partial transformation: Might Guy's body" still had room for optimization.
After another dozen exchanges,
Guy spotted an opening and roared, unleashing a heavy twisting spinning kick!
"Leaf Great Whirlwind!"
Whoosh—!
Mikami Yuu vanished from where he stood and reappeared seven or eight meters off to the side and behind. All that remained was a stone dropping from midair—Guy's kick sent it flying, smashing into a nearby tree and shaking its branches violently.
"Haha—so good!"
Guy planted his foot and grinned a mouthful of white teeth. "Yuu! I know you were holding back. You didn't use anything beyond taijutsu! Next time—next time I'll bring out even greater strength and fight you at full power, no holding back!"
"Sure. Next time."
As the fight ended, Mikami Yuu saw a text box appear:
[Eight Gates: Hmph… that was an average fight—not as intense as I imagined. But since you worked hard so early and even brought me to fight today, I'll let you off for now. I'll come find you later for training!]
[Eight Gates Affection +1. Current affection: 6/100 (Stranger)]
"…This affection really is brutal to raise."
Mikami Yuu complained to himself.
Come to think of it, he'd always found it strange—why could the system detect the Hyūga clan's "Gentle Fist," but not "Steel Fist"?
He figured it was probably a completeness issue.
Gentle Fist was a complete martial system: it focused on striking chakra points, damaging the opponent's chakra network and internal organs—highly technical.
Whereas "Steel Fist" was just a broad label—an umbrella term for chakra-reinforced strikes to increase damage, basically part of Konoha Style Taijutsu. So the system didn't count it in the "pretty girl" category.
But "Monster Strength" punches probably would count.
If he got a chance to connect with Tsunade in the future, he could try learning it.
…
That morning,
Mikami Yuu said goodbye to the hot-blooded Might father and son, then went to the west-side training grounds and practiced jutsu by a clear stream.
He took a deep breath, hands flashing as he drove chakra to circulate rapidly.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Water Style: Wild Water Wave Jutsu!"
BOOM!
WHOOSH!
A nearly person-tall orange-red fireball and a surging torrent of water alternated in midair—sometimes whipping up waves across the river surface, sometimes scorching the water into hazy steam that drifted outward.
Now that the exams were over, Mikami Yuu wasn't chasing sheer size and power. Instead, he focused on feeling how the two traits—Spirit of Fire and Water Dancer—buffed the techniques.
Especially the latter.
When he deliberately shaped the water as he cast—into whirlpools, spheres, sprinkler-like sprays, and other forms—the chakra consumption of Wild Water Wave clearly shifted in subtle ways. It felt like Wild Water Wave itself was paying attention to him.
After the session ended,
Great Fireball and Wild Water Wave each gained about +2 affection.
And with that,
Wild Water Wave successfully advanced:
Wild Water Wave Jutsu (Affection: 50/100 — Intimate)
(Stage rewards obtained twice: Constitution +2; Trait: Water Dancer — Your Water Release has more artistic possibilities. When casting, if you create an artistic shape that satisfies Wild Water Wave, chakra consumption is reduced by 40%.)
Stage one was 30%, stage two 40%…
So at max it might be 60%.
For Wild Water Wave alone, cutting chakra consumption by two-thirds wasn't that huge.
But…
If he could put skins like Water Dragon Bullet or Water Colliding Wave on her, that would be a different story.
Add in Constitution that could theoretically keep climbing…
Maybe one day, Mikami Yuu could achieve something like Tobirama's "Sea Release."
In comparison, once Great Fireball passed 60 affection, it stopped increasing quickly.
He didn't know if that was because he hadn't given a gift, or because he hadn't triggered special events like he did with the Three Basic Jutsu…
Mikami Yuu stopped to rest, sitting cross-legged on a rock by the stream. While recovering chakra, he sank his mind into the galgame system and opened the chat bubble with [Great Fireball Jutsu].
Mikami Yuu: "Little Fire, quick question. Do you know Phoenix Sage Fire Jutsu?"
Great Fireball Jutsu: "Huh? Phoenix Sage Fire… yeah. You could say she's a little sister from my clan. Why?"
Mikami Yuu: "Nothing. Just heard the name somewhere… what's your relationship like?"
Great Fireball Jutsu: "Relationship? So-so! That brat is too playful, always dressing herself up all flashy, not realizing the inside is what matters. Only uncultured nouveau riche types wrap themselves in fancy clothes."
"…Uh…"
Mikami Yuu thought: this feels like sour grapes.
If he chose Fire Formation Wall and gifted it to Great Fireball, would she also flip instantly and become a "nouveau riche" herself…?
At that moment,
a certain jutsu that loved stirring drama showed up again:
[Clone Technique (Water Clone form): Oooh, isn't this Lady Great Fireball? Two days and you've fallen off already? Talking about "inner quality" when you just don't have new clothes to wear~]
[Clone Technique: But I bet Mikami-chan won't give you a gift anyway. After all, your reputation isn't great. You look glamorous on the outside, but do you know what people call you behind your back?]
[Great Fireball Jutsu: Shut up! Don't say that!]
[Clone Technique: Hehe. People call you—"Kindness Jutsu"! Because you never hit anyone, so you must be kind~]
[Great Fireball Jutsu: AAAAAH! Clone Technique, you hateful brat! I'm going to burn you!!! (The flames around her surge violently, showing she's completely losing it.)]
"…"
Mikami Yuu was speechless for a moment.
Honestly, among all the jutsu, these two were like a pair of doomed lovebirds.
They were the most active and the most likely to bicker, to the point Mikami Yuu sometimes worried Great Fireball's affection might drop because of Clone Technique's constant heckling…
And then—
[Ding! Special event keyword detected. Time-limited mission triggered!]
~~~
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