i am kimimaro

"Kabuto Yakushi!"

Kakashi immediately recognized Kabuto Yakushi when he removed his mask.

They had met once before in Sasuke's ward.

Konoha had been searching for Kabuto's whereabouts these days, but to no avail.

Unexpectedly, he brazenly disguised himself as a Konoha Anbu and took action.

Has Anbu been infiltrated as well?

No, this disguise... it's Root!

Is it related to Danzo again?

Kakashi frowned, coming to a conclusion in his mind.

But this couldn't be used as evidence.

Was Kabuto Yakushi's identity arranged by Danzo?

No, Danzo could easily explain it as Kabuto killing a Root ninja and then impersonating him.

But is that really the case?

Kakashi was more inclined to believe that Danzo was behind this.

It wasn't the first time Danzo wanted to kill the Third Hokage.

When the Fourth Hokage had just died, he even tried to incite Kakashi to kill the Third Hokage.

Danzo was capable of something like joining forces with Suna and Oto to assassinate the Third Hokage.

Thinking of this, Kakashi looked around.

The Anbu ninjas had already started to move, but the Root ninjas were still nowhere to be seen, as usual.

Kakashi was even more certain that this matter was inseparable from Danzo.

"Kakashi, it seems we've been treated as prey."

Being assigned in such a casual manner made Guy extremely unhappy.

"Let's finish this quickly. This mess is quite big, and we still have a lot to do."

"No problem!"

As Guy spoke, he kicked towards Kimimaro.

"Konoha Whirlwind!"

This powerful kick was enough to easily knock out a Chunin.

Bang!

"What!"

Guy's eyes widened in surprise, but he saw Kimimaro extend his right hand and effortlessly block the Konoha Whirlwind.

"If you want to finish me off quickly, it won't be that easy."

Guy felt as if his kick had landed on steel, incredibly hard.

"It seems like a formidable opponent, Kakashi. I'm afraid we can't finish this quickly."

On the other side, Kabuto Yakushi and Kakashi were also engaged in a fierce battle.

The two were evenly matched.

Konoha's two top Jonin were both held back.

On the competition field, Gaara had already been taken away from the scene by Temari and Kankuro, and Sasuke chased after them.

After receiving Kakashi's instructions, Sakura, along with Pakkun, woke up Naruto and Shikamaru and went to support Sasuke.

At this moment, everyone on the competition field, except for those who had fallen into a genjutsu-induced dream, had joined the battle.

"Hey, bug user, we didn't settle things in our last fight. Shall we continue now? This time, I won't hold back."

Suigetsu took out the Kubikiribocho, which Kimimaro had temporarily lent him, from the scroll and pointed it at Shino Aburame.

"As you wish."

Shino also wanted to determine a winner with Suigetsu.

Although he had won the previous battle, he felt frustrated about it.

The battle erupted in full force!

"Hehe, Sensei Sarutobi, look at this beautiful scene of destruction."

"Orochimaru, what exactly are you trying to do? To get Sasuke? To destroy Konoha? Or to kill me?"

"Why ask that? Can't I do all of them?"

Orochimaru licked the cold kunai in his hand, his eyes filled with amusement.

"You're still the same as ever."

"Hehe, the truly interesting things are just about to begin."

The battle between Orochimaru and the Third Hokage commenced.

However, Kimimaro didn't have the time to pay attention to this now. The opponent in front of him was currently the strongest person in Konoha.

The Azure Beast, Might Guy.

"Konoha Great Whirlwind!"

A flying kick, even more powerful than before.

Kimimaro extended both hands, caught the kick, and then used the momentum to throw Guy towards the ground.

Bang!

The ground cracked, forming countless fissures.

"This guy's taijutsu is so strong, but why does it feel familiar? Have I seen it somewhere before?"

Guy wasn't good at recognizing people, but he was quite good at recognizing taijutsu.

"Konoha-style taijutsu, I'm really curious to see how powerful it is when performed by you."

Fighting against Guy, Kimimaro was genuinely excited.

Over the years, there hadn't been many opponents who could make him go all out.

And for Kimimaro, who was proficient in taijutsu, Guy was undoubtedly the opponent he looked forward to the most.

"I didn't expect you to be someone who wants to challenge my taijutsu. You have good taste. However, this idea of yours will make you pay a heavy price! Konoha's Azure Beast has never lost in taijutsu!"

Guy attacked again with Strong Fist!

Even before the fist arrived, a strong gust of wind had already swept over.

Kimimaro didn't retreat or dodge, meeting it with his own fist.

Bang!

A clash of fists!

Both of them took a step back before stabilizing themselves.

"What a powerful fist."

The fighting spirit in Guy's eyes erupted completely.

This was a good opponent, one that made his blood boil.

Kimimaro spread the fingers of his right hand and gently shook them.

Guy's punch was quite powerful.

Kimimaro relied on the Shikotsumyaku's hard bones to unleash powerful punches, while Guy didn't know how many trees he had broken to train his fists to be so hard.

"Truly a worthy opponent."

Kimimaro extended his right hand, and a bone sword emerged from his palm, which he then gripped tightly.

"This is... the Kaguya clan's Shikotsumyaku? Are you also from the Kaguya clan? A relative of Kimimaro? No wonder your taijutsu looked familiar just now."

Seeing this ability that didn't seem human, Guy finally remembered why the taijutsu looked familiar.

Kimimaro didn't answer him but instead tapped his toes and instantly accelerated.

Dance of the Larch!

The bone sword struck, aiming for Guy's chest!

Guy's eyes narrowed slightly, and his right hand quickly pulled something out from his ninja tools.

Clang!

A nunchaku appeared in Guy's hand.

The nunchaku swung, hitting the incoming bone sword directly.

"Ah, da!"

One strike disrupted the bone sword's thrust, changing its direction downwards, and Kimimaro's posture became slightly unstable.

Kimimaro made a quick decision, releasing the bone sword, letting it fall to the ground and bounce up, soaring into the sky.

And Guy quickly retracted the nunchaku, then launched a horizontal sweep at an even faster speed!

This strike was aimed at Kimimaro's head!

Two consecutive strikes, incredibly fast.

But just as the strike was about to land, two bone spikes emerged from Kimimaro's head, blocking the nunchaku.

"What?"

Guy was slightly surprised, having never seen such a strange ninjutsu before.

Using the momentum from the nunchaku, Kimimaro flipped his body, his right leg pointing upwards, and kicked towards Guy's head!

Guy extended his left hand, blocking the kick.

Kimimaro hooked his heel, his body rising smoothly, leaping into the sky, grabbing the bone sword that had just bounced up, and slashing downwards!

Meteor Fall!

The movements connected seamlessly.

This overhead strike made Guy feel threatened.

"Every strike is preparing for the next one. Even if the attack is suddenly interrupted, it can immediately connect to the next move. What terrifying combat instincts."

(End of Chapter)