Chapter 316: The Coordination Between the Akimichi and Sarutobi Clans
In Kumogakure, the Raikage and Killer Bee's AB duo are idols to many.
Because of this, Kumogakure has the highest number of participants signing up for the two-person team matches.
One after another, they form teams with their close partners, imitating the coordination of the Raikage and Killer Bee.
However…
"Double Lariat! Hah!"
"Nani?!"
Seeing that two Konoha shinobi below had actually used the signature technique of Kumogakure's AB duo, the Raikage stood up in shock.
This wasn't just some ordinary Kumogakure technique being copied, this was the Double Lariat!
It wasn't only a signature of Kumogakure, but also the symbol of the AB duo's identity, and even the technique used by successive Raikage to select their partners!
Back then, under the orders of his father, the Third Raikage, he had searched the entire village for a partner.
Men and women alike came forward, attempting to coordinate with him using the Double Lariat, but in the end, only Killer Bee succeeded.
Having equal strength alone was far from enough.
No two people in the world have exactly the same strength.
What was needed was mutual understanding, being able to sense each other's intent, coordinate with the other's output, and control one's own strength accordingly.
Even biological brothers might not have that level of tacit understanding.
So how could these two possibly…
Across the entire ninja world, aside from the AB duo, the only ones capable of such seamless coordination were Naruto and Sasuke. They once used a technique that supposedly required perfectly equal chakra ratios, "Scorch Release: Halo Hurricane Jet Black Arrow Style Zero", yet managed to execute it perfectly on their very first attempt.
But no one found it strange that Naruto and Sasuke could coordinate like that.
After all, their bond was obvious to everyone.
But now…
"Hokage, those two were taught by you, weren't they? They reduced the difficulty of coordination through the precise chakra control of medical ninjutsu."
The Raikage quickly saw through it.
"That's right."
Tsunade admitted it directly.
"Um…"
Sarada suddenly spoke.
Shiromo had brought them up to the viewing platform, where the view was much clearer.
"Hokage-sama, are they… a female couple?"
Sarada asked cautiously.
In her original world, her mother and Aunt Ino were just close friends. But ever since she discovered the bond between her father and the Seventh Hokage, Sarada had begun to question everything.
What she had once believed to be "truth" might just be a surface illusion used by adults to cover up messy realities!
"I suppose you could say that."
Tsunade glanced at Sarada oddly and replied.
Sakura and Ino were both her students and worked in the medical department, so of course they were female colleagues.
"Ugh!"
Sarada clutched her chest, staggered back a few steps, and sat down.
Even the Fifth Hokage said so…
This world really was just as Great-Grandma Uchiha had said, it needed a thorough cleansing.
"Nice work, Forehead."
"You too, Ino-pig."
After defeating another team, the two on the field clapped hands.
"Their relationship really resembles Naruto and Sasuke's. Sasuke often smiles while calling Naruto a 'dead last' or an 'idiot.'"
Watching the harmonious scene below, Kakashi felt deeply gratified, as if he were seeing Team Minato again.
Damn it, Kakashi really can relate anything to the past.
"Huh?"
Sarada turned blankly to look at Kakashi.
Sakura and Ino's relationship resembled Sasuke and Naruto…
That confirmed it again…
"Oh? Who are these two next?"
Tsunade frowned as she saw the next pair from Kumogakure.
"Hokage-dono, you wouldn't mind, would you? Isn't there also a subordinate with Byakugan standing behind the Mizukage?"
The Raikage quickly put up a defense to prevent Tsunade from criticizing anything.
Among the two stepping onto the field below, one was the Akimichi clan shinobi who had appeared in the earlier photograph.
But at this age…
"She's still a genin?"
Tsunade asked with a frown.
She couldn't shake the feeling that Kumogakure was up to something.
"When she was rescued by Kumogakure on the battlefield, she was still a genin. She hasn't participated in the Chunin Exams over the years, so she naturally remains a genin."
The Raikage gave a perfectly reasonable explanation.
Tsunade couldn't really argue with that.
Back then, Konoha Genin had beaten the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist into a joke.
Sunagakure had a genin who became Kazekage right after the Chunin Exams.
Everyone had their own cases, no one had the right to criticize.
Akimichi Rianko, because of Naruto's special circumstances and her notably plump build, Tsunade recognized her.
As for the other person, Tsunade couldn't recognize them at all.
She didn't know whether they were from Kumogakure or Konoha.
Even if they were from Konoha, with so many casualties and missing shinobi from the war, it would be impossible to verify them one by one.
"Raikage-dono, I just thought of something. If Konoha's Nara clan used the Shadow Imitation Technique to control their teammate, and then used the Double Lariat, wouldn't the force be perfectly identical?"
Still annoyed by the Raikage's earlier jab, Tsunade suddenly came up with a way to return the favor.
Never mind that the Nara clan wasn't particularly skilled in taijutsu, just whether the method was theoretically possible.
As long as it was possible, it would be enough to irritate the Raikage.
Sure enough.
The Raikage's expression immediately turned sour.
It was one thing for those two female ninja below to use it together.
They were Tsunade's students.
And Tsunade couldn't take on unlimited disciples.
But the Nara clan was different.
That was an entire clan.
If Shadow Imitation Technique combined with the Double Lariat really worked, then this move might shift from being a Raikage legacy technique to a Nara clan legacy technique.
Damn it, how infuriating!
He who mocks others will one day be mocked in return.
For the first time, the Raikage helplessly understood the meaning of that saying.
The battle below was about to begin.
"Next match: Konoha's Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino versus Kumogakure's Akimichi Rianko and Sarutobi Amane!"
"Sarutobi?"
Tsunade's expression changed.
She hadn't expected that the other unrecognized person would actually belong to Konoha's Sarutobi clan.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, crouched in a corner watching the match, also stiffened.
The Sarutobi clan specialized in Fire Release, so…
"Fatty, don't bother testing them, go big right away!"
Sarutobi Amane slapped her chest twice, signaling Akimichi Rianko to attack.
"Got it!"
"Expansion Technique: Human Bullet Tank!"
Akimichi Rianko clapped her hands together and transformed into a massive rolling sphere, charging toward Sakura and Ino.
"There's nothing unusual about this move… isn't this just Choji's family's standard Human Bullet Tank tactic? Unless…"
Shikamaru, watching from the audience, began analyzing the situation.
"Fire Release: Great Flame Technique!"
Sarutobi Amane formed hand seals and expelled a fierce blaze from her mouth.
But her target wasn't Sakura or Ino, it was Akimichi Rianko, who was using the Human Bullet Tank!
The flames of the Great Flame Technique engulfed the rolling sphere. Rianko's fat and oils acted as fuel, making the fire burn even more intensely.
A terrifying, high-speed spinning wheel of flames surged forward, sweeping toward Sakura and Ino with overwhelming force.
This move was essentially a physical-body version of a fire-attribute Rasenshuriken!
(End of this chapter)