Tsunade refused to believe in bad luck and challenged Mokgetsu again, but Mokgetsu won once more.
Now Tsunade understood that Mokgetsu's luck in gambling was normal, unlike her own. Her victory in the first match was just a coincidence.
"Oh well, at least I won once. But after losing for so long and suddenly winning, I hope nothing bad happens," Tsunade said casually.
These words caught Mokgetsu's attention.
Although Tsunade always lost at gambling, she occasionally won a few times, but every win was followed by something unfortunate.
...
Might Guy stood before a five-meter high boulder. He slowly pulled out the single-section staff given to him by Mokgetsu, gripping the staff with his left hand and the chain with his right hand. Then, he slightly parted his legs and turned his body to the right.
"Dragon Slayer Legend: Golden Horizon!"
Might Guy placed his left hand in front of him, the right hand at his waist, and extended his index and middle fingers. With a shout, he charged at the boulder. During his charge, he made a sword-drawing motion with his left hand to drive his right hand forward, creating a thin golden line.
Boom!
A massive explosion was heard, a dazzling golden light flashed, and the boulder split into two, shattering apart.
After executing the Golden Horizon, Guy's fingers twitched involuntarily.
Guy didn't mind the pain from his fingers; his face was filled with immense excitement because he had finally managed to preliminarily use the Golden Horizon.
However, unlike Mokgetsu, who could use the Golden Horizon in a normal state, Guy could only utilize it with the boost of the Eight Gates.
Nevertheless, Guy was satisfied as the power of the Golden Horizon was incredibly strong. The strike easily shattered the five-meter boulder without much difficulty.
"The power of this taijutsu is incredible," Shiranui Genma exclaimed in awe.
For a normal ninja like him, Guy's performance was astonishing, seeing a stone the size of a small house smashed to pieces just like that.
Ebisu nodded in agreement.
"Is this the taijutsu Mokgetsu taught you?" Teacher Chen approached Guy, glanced at the destroyed boulder, and asked.
In his eyes, this taijutsu was very impressive, its power even greater than the Konoha Dragon God.
Of course, these were different categories; the Konoha Dragon God was for wide-range attacks and had its own advantages.
"Yes, but this taijutsu wasn't developed by Teacher Mokgetsu," Guy nodded enthusiastically, then began telling Teacher Chen the story of this taijutsu.
He thought the story was particularly fascinating and wanted to share it with others.
"Taijutsu from before the Ninja Village era? Dragon Slayer?" Teacher Chen tried to recall, but couldn't find any related memory.
However, Teacher Chen didn't care much; he wasn't a history expert and didn't know about particularly ancient figures.
"I didn't know Mokgetsu had this trick up his sleeve during our last spar; I have to ask him for another lesson," Teacher Chen wanted to see the Golden Horizon demonstrated by Mokgetsu.
Originally, Teacher Chen had lost the motivation to train in taijutsu, feeling he had reached his peak.
It's not that he considered himself invincible; he knew he couldn't defeat the Hokage or the Sannin, but he didn't see it as a shortcoming of his taijutsu, rather a limitation in his other ninja skills.
Things changed after meeting Mokgetsu. Their battle seemed evenly matched on the surface, but Chen knew Mokgetsu had the upper hand.
Perhaps it was the immense pressure from Mokgetsu's taijutsu that spurred improvement in what Chen thought was a plateau, albeit a small one, but it was delightful for Chen who hadn't felt improvement in a long time.
Upon discovering Mokgetsu still had such a powerful taijutsu in Golden Horizon unused, he wanted to battle Mokgetsu again to see if he could break through further.
"Teacher Mokgetsu seems really busy lately. Want me to ask him for you?" Guy scratched his head and asked.
Teacher Chen nodded without hesitation.
After finishing his training, Guy went straight to Mokgetsu's house to inquire, as the training in the Southern Border Forest was over by then.
"In about a month and a half," Mokgetsu thought for a moment and replied.
He was willing to spar in taijutsu, but couldn't find time in the next month and a half.
"It's already dinnertime; why not stay for a meal before you go?" Mokgetsu invited.
A look of yearning flashed on Guy's face; it had been some time since he last tasted Mokgetsu's cooking.
However, worried that his father might wait for him to have dinner together, Guy dashed home to inform his father before running back to Mokgetsu's place for dinner.
After dinner, Guy didn't head home but went straight to Kakashi's direction.
He had already made significant progress in the Eight Gates, unlocking the Fourth Gate and mastering the Golden Horizon. He believed he could beat Kakashi.
"Yo, Kakashi, let's have a passionate battle," with his understanding of Kakashi, Guy quickly found him and issued a challenge.
Kakashi looked at Guy with black lines on his forehead and retorted, "Isn't it strange to challenge someone here?"
Upon saying that, Kakashi turned his body awkwardly; they were in the bathroom!
Although Guy's behavior left him speechless, Kakashi was somewhat used to it since Guy rarely considered the setting or atmosphere.
After washing his hands, Kakashi took Guy to the yard to prepare for battle.
After prolonged practice, Kakashi had truly mastered the Transparent World, not only gaining perfect control over his own body but also seeing through others'.
"My dear friend, to defeat you, I've been training hard ever since the Chunin Examination ended, so be prepared to taste defeat," Guy said with a confident smile.
Previously, he barely lost to Kakashi with the Three Gates and Konoha Dragon God. Now, having unlocked the Fourth Gate and mastered the Golden Horizon, he wouldn't lose again.
"Oh? But I haven't slackened either. Who's going to taste defeat is still up in the air," Kakashi replied indifferently.
After continuously defeating Obito, Guy, and Shisui, he had regained the confidence of a genius, believing he could win against anyone of his age in front of him.
"Hahaha," hearing Kakashi's confidence, Guy couldn't help but burst into laughter and gave Kakashi a thumbs-up.
"As expected of a dear friend. Let's start the battle after a three-count."
Kakashi nodded.
"Three, two, one, begin!"
"Breath of Rock, Full Concentration! Eight Gates, Life Gate, open!"
Once started, Guy immediately concentrated his breathing and opened the Third Gate of the Eight Gates.
"Breath of Thunder, Full Concentration!"
Kakashi also concentrated his breathing and condensed chakra for Lightning Attribute Chakra nature changes.
Whoosh!
Both figures flashed simultaneously, rushing at each other.
Long-term training had made Guy's body stronger. Even with just three gates open, his strength was significantly higher, and every punch and kick was powerful.
Though Kakashi could use Lightning Attribute Chakra to activate cells and enhance strength, it was chakra-consuming, so he avoided head-on clashes with Guy and activated the Transparent World to enhance his perception.
With the Transparent World's boost, Guy's every move was read by Kakashi.
This made it tough for Guy, unable to hit Kakashi while Kakashi landed blows on him.
Though the Breath of Rock made him quite resilient, Kakashi's strikes were potent due to the Transparent World, and Guy found himself at a disadvantage.
However, Guy didn't panic; instead, his smile widened.
The stronger Kakashi was, the more excited Guy felt, as winning under such conditions would feel even more fulfilling.
"My dear friend, this is a move I've prepared specifically for you, never used in other battles before."
Since Guy first opened the Injure Gate at home, only Mokgetsu and Might Duy knew about it.
"Eight Gates, Injure Gate, open!"
PS: Sorry, it's quite late and I'm feeling exhausted, I didn't mean to end the chapter abruptly. Today's update is 8k.