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The collision was instantaneous, and the outcome was decided.
Shin still floated in the air, completely unscathed—as if he hadn’t even been in a battle.
Might Guy, however, with only a breath of life remaining, fell into the lake created by their fight.
No, it couldn’t even be called a lake anymore… The collision just now had completely evaporated the water—
“His combat strength might not match Hamura Ōtsutsuki, but it’s still impressive,” Shin commented.
Perhaps Eight Gates Guy’s power didn’t quite reach the level of Hamura, whom Shin had killed, but the full force of Night Guy… even Hamura Ōtsutsuki would have struggled to take that hit.
If Eight Gates Guy fought Hamura, Shin estimated he could take at least half of Hamura’s life.
Landing beside Guy, Shin looked at the fallen figure.
Guy’s body was already carbonized, almost turned to charcoal. His right leg was completely destroyed, yet he still clung to a sliver of life.
His life force was truly tenacious—
Without any special constitution, not being a Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, just an ordinary human… for Guy to survive such grievous injuries relied entirely on his willpower.
“Well, I’ll spare your life this time—I don’t usually save people easily. Consider yourself lucky.”
Shin used Yang Release chakra to bring the dying Guy back from the brink.
However, even though Guy was saved, his body was crippled. Forget opening the eight gates again; he probably couldn’t even open six.
Actually, Shin could have completely healed Guy’s injuries, but he didn’t.
People always had to pay the price for their choices.
Since Guy chose to fight him—he had to pay a price. Shin sparing his life was already due to his favorable impression of Guy.
Shin then left, returning to the Land of Whirlpools.
————
Long after Shin departed, tens of miles from the center of their battle, Lee, Sakura, and the awakened Naruto found Kakashi.
“Kakashi-sensei! What happened to you?” Naruto ran over, grabbing Kakashi’s clothes and shaking him vigorously. After a long moment of shaking, the unconscious Kakashi finally woke up.
“Naruto… if you shake me any harder… I might die,” Kakashi said, his face pale, looking at Naruto Uzumaki.
Seeing this, Naruto immediately let go, but still asked with concern, “Kakashi-sensei, are you alright?”
“Whether I’m alright isn’t important. What matters is Guy.” Kakashi’s expression turned heavy.
He had been knocked unconscious by the shockwave earlier and knew nothing of what happened afterward, nor the outcome of the battle. No, regardless of the outcome, whether Guy won or not, he wouldn’t survive.
“Kakashi-sensei! What happened to Guy-sensei?!” Lee asked Kakashi anxiously.
Silence. Kakashi remained silent. He felt he had failed Lee, and even more so, Guy. If not for his decision, they wouldn’t have fought Shin Uzumaki.
If they hadn’t fought, Guy wouldn’t be in this state. Guy had opened the Eighth Gate of the Eight Inner Gates.
After a long, painful silence, Kakashi finally told Lee the truth.
Lee slumped to the ground, his large eyes filled with terror and disbelief. Lee also practiced the Eight Inner Gates; he naturally knew the consequences of opening the eighth gate.
“Guy-sensei… is already…” Rock Lee wept sorrowfully.
If one were to say who in the village had the best relationship with Guy, it wasn’t Kakashi, but Rock Lee.
The bond between Guy and Lee likely surpassed that of father and son. Though, with their similar appearances, they truly did look like father and son.
“We haven’t found Guy yet. We’re not sure—” A glimmer of light flashed in Kakashi’s eyes. Perhaps there’s still hope. Perhaps a miracle exists, and Guy is still alive.
“Let’s go! We’ll find Guy!” Kakashi stood up, but as soon as he did, he couldn’t help but cough up a mouthful of blood.
Even the shockwave, from tens of kilometers away, had severely injured him. If he had been any closer, Kakashi might have been killed by the aftershock.
“Kakashi-sensei, you should rest and recover first. We’ll go find Guy-sensei,” Sakura said to Kakashi.
“NO! I HAVE TO GO!” Kakashi refused. No matter how severe his injuries, he had to go. If Guy was dead, he had to bring Guy’s body back.
————
Their group then arrived at the place where Shin and Guy had fought and found Guy.
“He’s still breathing! Guy is still alive!” Kakashi exclaimed in joyful surprise.
“Really?! Is Guy-sensei really still alive?!” Lee wept with joy.
GREAT! Guy-sensei is still alive!
“Let’s take Guy back first.” Kakashi picked Guy up onto his back, but in his current condition, carrying Guy was truly difficult.
“Kakashi-sensei, let me carry Guy-sensei,” Lee said to Kakashi.
Kakashi ultimately didn’t refuse, letting Lee carry Guy. Then, the group didn’t go to Sunagakure but returned directly to Konoha.
They couldn’t go to Sunagakure now—
Though they were currently allied with Suna and their relationship seemed good, what if Suna decided to attack them?
One must always be wary of others…
They couldn’t afford not to be cautious. Their strength was severely depleted now; if Suna launched a fatal attack, they wouldn’t have the power to resist.
They returned to Konoha all the way and took Guy to the Konoha Hospital.
After a doctor’s examination, they learned Guy’s injuries were extremely severe, almost impossible to recover from. However, his life wasn’t in danger, though he would no longer be suitable to be a ninja.
Kakashi’s expression was somber—his heart filled with self-reproach. He believed Guy’s severe injuries were all his fault.
“Opening the Eight Inner Gates is certain death. Guy didn’t die… Could it be that Shin Uzumaki saved him?” Kakashi speculated inwardly.
Perhaps… Otherwise, he couldn’t explain why Guy was still alive.
Kakashi knew that opening the Eight Inner Gates was a death sentence, with absolutely no exceptions—Guy surviving could only mean Shin Uzumaki had saved him.
“Naruto, you and Sakura go train by yourselves for now,” Kakashi said dejectedly. He felt like he was a jinx—everyone around him basically died.
His father committed suicide when he was five. Later, his friends Obito and Rin also died. His teacher and his teacher’s wife were also dead.
Now—even Guy, with whom he had a very good relationship, was severely injured and could no longer be a ninja. He didn’t know how big a blow this would be to Guy.
Kakashi felt he had no face to see Guy.
As for teaching his students, Kakashi wasn’t in the mood right now.
Jiraiya, after learning the situation, also had nothing to say. Jiraiya didn’t know how to console Kakashi either. After all, Kakashi needed to overcome some things himself.
Jiraiya simply gave Kakashi leave, letting him rest properly.
As for Naruto and the others, Jiraiya arranged for another Jonin to lead them.
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