Sometimes the greatest revelation from a battle… isn't the technique, but the discipline behind it.
Lee walked quietly behind the group.
His mind was still replaying the battle he had just witnessed.
Although Guy-sensei hadn't gained the upper hand—
His opponent had been the Raikage.
And Guy had only opened the Sixth Gate, not the Seventh Gate.
More importantly…
This fighting style was different from how Guy usually fought.
Is this what Guy-sensei intends to teach me?
Lee wondered.
Even after arriving at the restaurant, his thoughts hadn't left the battlefield.
He kept replaying every motion in his mind.
He hadn't seen everything clearly.
But based on Guy's teachings over the years, he could reconstruct most of it.
The Eight Gates.
The Breathing Activation Technique.
The Chakra Armor.
And another technique…
Something that could only be used in the Sixth Gate state.
What exactly was the principle behind that move?
While Lee was still thinking—
Souma had already figured it out.
Why had Guy been able to withstand Guillotine Strike?
It wasn't simply because Chakra Armor blocked it.
Before the armor—
Guy had made preparations.
Those punches at the beginning.
At first Souma thought they were the start of Morning Peacock.
But they weren't.
Because immediately afterward Guy had used Night Phoenix instead.
Which meant—
Those punches weren't attacks at all.
They had formed a buffer zone of compressed air waves.
A cushion between Guy and the Raikage.
Reducing the recoil from their collision.
It worked similarly to Souma's Spiral Air Force technique.
That was the second layer of defense Guy had created.
And it had worked.
That was why Guillotine Strike hadn't critically injured him.
The air barrier gave Guy just enough time to shift his body and avoid vital areas.
At the same time—
It absorbed a portion of the shockwave.
Because of that buffer—
Night Phoenix's recoil didn't shatter Guy's bones.
He had only suffered muscle strain.
And a shallow cutting wound where Guillotine Strike partially broke through.
For someone with even basic medical ninjutsu—
That level of injury was easy to treat.
As expected of Guy-sensei…
Souma silently admired him.
Guy didn't understand complex theories.
But his instincts allowed him to create techniques perfectly suited for himself.
He never followed rigid instruction manuals.
Instead—
He adapted.
Flexible.
Creative.
Free from the limitations of the techniques themselves.
By the time dinner ended, Souma had already figured everything out.
Throughout the meal, the Raikage kept drinking and chatting with Guy.
Souma couldn't tell whether the Raikage genuinely wanted to befriend him—
Or whether he was trying to gather information through Atsui.
Either way, it felt strange.
When Souma had watched the Raikage in anime, he'd seemed like nothing more than a hot-headed brute.
But meeting him in person gave a completely different impression.
Even the most hot-tempered man still had a brain.
After dinner, Tsunade, Souma, and Guy returned to the Hokage's office.
The moment they entered—
Tsunade burst out laughing.
"That Raikage is ridiculously prideful!"
Just as Souma had predicted.
Without treatment, the Raikage would have been in severe pain tonight.
Internal injuries like that didn't heal quickly.
They could even leave permanent damage.
And yet—
The Raikage had acted completely fine.
Drinking.
Eating.
Laughing.
Only after dinner had he secretly asked Tsunade to treat his injuries.
The memory alone made her laugh again.
Still—
Seeing the Raikage humbled felt wonderful.
"Guy, you've gotten stronger than before."
"This is Souma's achievement."
Guy shook his head.
"If he hadn't taught me Chakra Armor and the Breathing Activation Technique, I couldn't have fought the Raikage like that."
He paused.
"But the Raikage really is powerful."
"Even after taking my kick, his internal injuries were minor."
"With defense like that…"
"It's no wonder Kumogakure's Lightning Armor is called the strongest defense."
Guy's expression became serious.
If every Kumogakure ninja could reach that level—
Defeating them would be extremely difficult.
Of course, that wasn't currently possible.
Not everyone possessed the monstrous body of the Raikage or his father.
But if Kumogakure obtained Chakra Armor, Overdrive techniques, and breathing methods…
What would happen then?
Tsunade had clearly thought about this as well.
Souma only smiled.
"You're focusing on what we gave away."
"But you're ignoring what we gained."
"Kumogakure's ninjutsu."
"They'll improve, sure."
"But if we improve faster than they do…"
"…then relatively speaking, they're falling behind."
"..."
Guy scratched his head.
He felt like Souma's logic was flawed.
But he couldn't figure out how to argue against it.
It just felt…
Strange.
So he looked at Tsunade for help.
But Tsunade was thinking about something else entirely.
Souma's point was simple.
Konoha wouldn't lose much.
And Kumogakure couldn't realistically close the gap.
Training ninja ultimately required money and resources.
And the Land of Fire had far greater resources than the Land of Lightning.
In the past, tensions between Konoha and the Fire Country nobles had prevented full cooperation.
But now—
Through "civilian ninja systems" and clever diplomacy—
Those forces had finally united.
And the future would only improve.
From Konoha's perspective—
As long as they had time, Kumogakure was not a serious threat.
Meanwhile—
The benefits of alliance were enormous.
One obvious advantage was deterrence against Sunagakure.
Rasa had never learned the meaning of restraint.
He still dreamed of restoring Sunagakure's former glory.
Tsunade understood that well.
Forming ties with Kumogakure would make him hesitate.
Then there was Iwagakure.
Ōnoki had been suspiciously quiet lately.
An alliance with Kumogakure would allow Konoha to address matters in the Land of Earth more confidently.
That was the geopolitical advantage.
Then there was the ninjutsu exchange.
With Souma around—
Tsunade had zero fear of Konoha getting cheated.
She smiled.
"If you're that confident…"
"Then you'll be in charge of this negotiation."
Souma blinked.
"…Alright."
He had originally wanted to refuse.
But he realized something.
The one who needed Kumogakure's knowledge—
Was him.
And the Raikage clearly preferred negotiating with him.
So escaping this responsibility was impossible.
Better to accept it calmly.
"Tsunade-sama, Guy-sensei."
"In that case I'll head back and think about how to structure the exchange."
"Go ahead."
Tsunade nodded.
Souma disappeared with Body Flicker.
Only Guy and Tsunade remained in the office.
"…Tsunade-sama."
"Is this really okay?"
Guy looked stunned.
He hadn't expected her to decide so quickly.
Tsunade waved dismissively.
"Guy."
"Souma may not be your subordinate."
"But he trained under you for a while."
"Why do you have less confidence in him than I do?"
"You mean…?"
"We both understand your concern."
"Sure, Kumogakure will grow stronger after obtaining those techniques."
"But we'll also gain their Lightning Armor research."
She leaned back lazily in her chair.
"With Souma around…"
"One piece of knowledge becomes two."
"Sometimes three."
"Whatever Kumogakure combines…"
"…we can combine too."
Guy froze.
He understood.
Tsunade believed Souma could double or triple the value of any technique they obtained.
That level of trust was astonishing.
But after thinking carefully…
It actually made sense.
Souma's ability was absurd.
Even the most ordinary technique could evolve into multiple new jutsu in his hands.
No wonder Tsunade had placed him in charge.
Guy's eyes brightened.
"You're right!"
"I didn't think of that!"
"But the Raikage really is incredible."
"I never imagined someone could reach that level."
"Guy," Tsunade said gently.
"Don't underestimate yourself."
"The Raikage is Kumogakure's strongest ninja."
"The fact that you could threaten him already proves your strength."
"If you could maintain Chakra Armor in the Seventh Gate…"
"Your power might increase even further."
Guy thought for a moment.
"And if I combine it with Breathing Activation—"
"That's forbidden."
Tsunade's expression turned serious.
"Guy."
"Never combine the Eight Gates with Breathing Activation unless absolutely necessary."
"Especially beyond the Sixth Gate."
Even though Guy had succeeded today—
That didn't mean the combination was safe.
The danger might simply be hidden deeper.
Waiting to explode later.
Especially with the Seventh Gate.
Guy hadn't even fully mastered the Eight Gates alone.
Adding Breathing Activation could easily become suicide.
Guy hesitated.
Then nodded.
"…What about Second Activation?"
In Souma's system, the difference between First and Second Activation involved oxygen intake and overdrive states.
The physical enhancement would be far greater.
Tsunade thought for a long time.
"If you insist on researching it…"
"You must do it under my supervision and Souma's."
"I forbid you from training it alone."
"…Understood."
Guy smiled helplessly.
He knew she meant well.
Developing techniques was dangerous.
Many ninja had permanently crippled themselves through reckless training.
"Don't worry."
Tsunade grinned.
"Right now…"
"Kumogakure is far more anxious than we are."
And she was absolutely right.
Back at the Kumogakure residence—
The Raikage immediately grabbed Atsui.
"You've been training with Might Guy this whole time?"
"Y-Yes!"
Atsui stammered nervously.
"How does he train?"
"Uh…"
"He runs around the village every day."
"He sets challenges for himself."
"Like running five hundred laps around the village."
"If he fails, he runs one hundred laps upside down."
"Then five hundred push-ups."
"If he fails…"
Atsui listed the routine in detail.
Samui listened nearby.
Her brows slowly furrowed.
That amount of training sounded terrifying.
"They do this every day?"
"Yes."
Atsui nodded.
The Raikage exhaled slowly.
No wonder.
Training like that—
How could one not become strong?
But something puzzled him.
"What's the meaning of those challenges?"
"Well…"
"At first I thought they were pointless too."
"But later I realized something."
"If you follow his instructions and keep doing it…"
"Your body gradually becomes stronger."
"..."
Samui covered her face.
Of course it would.
Anyone who trained like that every day would grow stronger.
The problem wasn't the method.
It was the ability to endure it.
But she didn't interrupt.
The Raikage fell into deep thought.
Suddenly Atsui snapped his fingers.
"Oh! And they often take me to eat Life Curry!"
"Especially when we're exhausted."
"After eating it, you feel completely revived!"
"Life Curry?"
The Raikage muttered.
"What kind of dish is that?"
"It's extremely spicy curry!"
"But it feels amazing!"
"You feel like you come back to life instantly!"
The Raikage fell silent again.
Samui glanced at him.
"Raikage-sama… could it be—"
"Don't overthink it."
He shook his head.
"It's just the stimulation of spicy food."
"There's no meal in the world that can instantly revive someone."
As a taijutsu expert, the Raikage understood the body far better than Atsui.
Then—
He couldn't help feeling admiration for Might Guy.
Such brutal training.
Anyone who could endure it daily would inevitably become strong.
The difficulty wasn't the training.
It was persistence.
The Raikage stood up suddenly.
"Good."
"When we return to Kumogakure…"
"…we'll do the same."
He clenched his fist.
"Kumogakure shinobi—"
"Will train like that too."
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