Naruto : Konoha Light

As the two cried, Shimizu couldn't help but ask with some doubt, "Senior Might Duy, where does your strength come from? I'm a bit worried—it seems enormous!"

Hearing this, Might Duy, who was known only as a lower-ranked ninja, suddenly revealed an intense strength that Shimizu found terrifying. Was this some kind of forbidden technique that shouldn't be used?

Might Duy flashed a confident smile. "This is the strength I have trained in for twenty years—the Eight Gates Released Formation!"

Might Guy tilted his head in confusion. "Eight Gates Released Formation?"

Shimizu was shocked. "The Eight Gates Released Formation is a top-tier taijutsu technique developed by the Second Hokage, but it's only classified as an A-rank ability. It shouldn't be this powerful..."

"The original Eight Gates can't achieve this level," Might Duy admitted, his eyes gleaming with confidence. "But when I fully open the last gate... I can reach a state beyond limits!"

Might Guy stared in awe—he had never seen his father in such high spirits before.

"The Eight Gates was developed in just a few days by the Second Hokage," Might Duy continued, "but it took me twenty years to truly master it. Doesn't this prove that hard work can surpass natural talent?" His voice surged with passion. "Might Guy, you can do it too!"

Tears streamed down Might Guy's face. "Father, I will definitely achieve it!"

Shimizu, however, remained unaffected by their emotional exchange, nodding slightly. "The final gate requires sacrificing one's own life... The Second Hokage must have realized this and abandoned further development."

"Or perhaps he originally intended it to be used alongside the Reanimation Jutsu," he speculated. "But later discovered that opening the last gate consumes the user's life force, something the reanimated dead do not possess. So, he never pursued it further?"

As Shimizu pondered, Might Duy placed both hands on Might Guy's shoulders. "This technique was my graduation gift..."

Might Guy suddenly understood. His father had worked hard to complete missions, and in exchange, he received an A-rank technique that no one else wanted.

"Because my talent was too poor," Might Duy said, "even learning B-rank techniques was difficult. So, I chose this one—so long as I trained hard enough, I could master it!"

"But my progress was too slow. My classmates were taking on C-rank missions, while I was still training. They became full-fledged ninjas, but I was still training!"

"I never told you because I didn't want you to feel discouraged..."

"Father!" Might Guy suddenly shouted. "I will definitely succeed, because I have an even greater father than you did!"

Might Duy was shocked, tears welling up. "Might Guy, you're stronger than me!"

Giving a thumbs-up,Might Guy declared, "I will definitely achieve it!"

Just as the two were about to cry on each other's shoulders again, Shimizu quickly interrupted. "Senior Might Duy, while I don't fully understand why someone as strong as you remains a lower-ranked ninja, I can recommend you to Master Tsunade."

Hearing this, Might Guy became excited. "That's great, Father! You won't have to take on D-rank missions anymore!"

However, after a moment of thought, Might Duy slowly shook his head.

"Father, why...?"

"Do you remember what I told you when you realized you weren't good at ninjutsu or genjutsu?"

Might Guy nodded firmly. "You said that realizing my weaknesses was actually a good thing—because knowing my limitations allows me to maximize my strengths!"

"Everything has two sides," Might Duy explained. "Being a lower-ranked ninja may not be as glamorous as being an elite, but it also grants me freedom!" He gave a big thumbs-up and grinned. "Because I'm just a lower-ranked ninja, no one pays attention to me in battle. That means I can protect what's most precious to me!"

Tears streamed down Might Guy's face. "Father!"

Might Duy, equally moved, cried, "Son!"

"No wonder he was able to charge into battle like that in the original events," Shimizu realized, his mind shaken. "So, he had been watching and protecting from the shadows all along?"

"But more than that," he thought, "lower-ranked ninja are usually given the least important missions. It's only someone like him—whom no one notices—who can truly act in the shadows!"

"In this harsh world, he might just be the greatest father of all," Shimizu silently reflected. He stepped back quietly, leaving the father and son to their moment.

A few days later, at another father's home...

Since realizing his own strategic plans were useless, Shinku had stopped trying to train with Shimizu Outside

Kurenai. At least this way, she could be happier.

With a sigh, Shinku asked, "Shimizu, how's your training going?"

He shook his head. "Not great."

"Don't worry,"Shinku reassured him. "B-rank genjutsu is a significant hurdle. But even reaching this level at six years old is already a record in the Hidden Leaf!"

he then sighed with some regret. "It's just a shame you spent an entire year solidifying your foundation. Otherwise, you could've broken the record even earlier."

In his eyes, Shimizu was a prodigy—most people took months to learn the basics, but he had spent an entire year just reinforcing them.

"But maybe that's just what talent looks like," he thought, recalling how it took him two years to learn the basics. Even then, his teachers had praised his talent in genjutsu. Compared to Shimizu, however, he now felt a bit embarrassed.

Shimizu accepted the compliment with a smile, though inwardly, he didn't care much.

After all, his so-called record would soon be broken.

A five-year-old would soon graduate, and before that, he'd already mastered an A-rank technique—the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu. A "cheat-level" genius.

"But if I weren't splitting my focus between medical ninjutsu and genjutsu," Shimizu mused, "I could probably reach that level too."

Seeing his calm expression, Shinku felt reassured.

"Still," Shimizu added, "I've been thinking... When I hit a bottleneck in genjutsu, if I switch my focus to medical ninjutsu for a while, I come back to find the genjutsu barrier broken without even realizing it."

"Really?" Shinku was surprised. he had talent, but mastering genjutsu took everything he had. he had never experimented with other fields like Shimizu.

Shimizu nodded seriously. "None of my past teachers ever mentioned this, but it's like taking a break from math by solving an English test instead."

"Alternating work and rest makes sense!"

"So, I've been wondering—could the same apply to ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu? Could mastering one help understand the others?"

Shinku stared at him, speechless.

This kid wasn't satisfied with just two fields—now he wanted to master all three?

"If that's the case," he thought, "shouldn't I be the one learning from him instead?"

Author Note : When Kakashi went to school, he was already able to use the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu. This was shown in episode 639 of the anime.