Kyōichi, Konoha’s Life Mentor

Things were different from Naruto's era.

The selection for Chunin and Jonin examinations was actually determined by the village. The Joint Chunin Exams came after the war, as a means for villages to compete in peacetime.

So, this Jonin examination was organized internally by Konoha.

During wartime, the promotion process to Jonin was usually simple, but the current situation was different—the war was coming to an end.

Yes. The Third Hokage had mentioned this to Kyōichi.

The fighting on the frontlines had completely ended, with Sunagakure suing for peace. Now, the shinobi were withdrawing from their positions, and the war was in its final stages. Some shinobi would even be returning to the village soon.

The graduation exam for the ninja academy was also on the agenda.

"Looks like I'll need to find a way to speed up progress during this time. It would be a waste not to take advantage of so many promising students," Kyōichi pondered.

If his understanding of the system wasn't wrong, teaching the Body Flicker Technique next should yield considerable benefits.

However, just teaching children would only bring limited rewards.

"Seems like I need to study this system more."

Looking at the newcomer rewards, his current rewards weren't particularly high.

There must be ways to obtain higher rewards!

The next day, Kyōichi had no classes. He left his shadow clone to practice swordsmanship while he went out to exercise.

The streets were more crowded.

It seemed some shinobi had already returned!

Kyōichi saw a familiar face.

Dressed all in green.

Might Guy.

He had graduated from the ninja academy at age seven. During that exam, he had faced off against Obito, even interrupting Obito's hand signs for the Fireball Jutsu.

After running a bit further, Kyōichi saw another "familiar" face.

Might Duy!

He wore the same outfit, and except for having more facial hair, he looked exactly like an enlarged version of Guy.

Might Duy?

Kyōichi's interest was immediately piqued.

This was a perfect target!

Others might not know, but he understood just how physically strong Might Duy was.

In the original story, even without knowing proper taijutsu techniques, Might Duy had opened the Eight Gates and defeated the famous Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist with just basic punches and kicks, relying on his powerful physique alone.

If he learned proper taijutsu techniques, imagine what he could achieve?

Kyōichi was very excited.

If he could guide Might Duy, the rewards would surely be extraordinary.

However, if he approached randomly offering to teach, they'd probably think he was crazy.

He needed to take it slow.

Thinking this, he continued running as normal.

Might Duy didn't notice at first.

But by the second lap, he noticed Kyōichi who kept running.

Was there another ninja in the village who was passionate about taijutsu?

And moreover...

He was very young, probably fifteen or sixteen at most.

Might Duy became curious.

Third lap, fourth lap...

Might Guy accelerated.

Kyōichi laughed internally.

Kids really couldn't stay patient, already trying to compete?

He also increased his speed.

Kyōichi had Senju bloodline, his body recovered quickly. Though not as sturdy as Might Duy, still...

"I might not outrun your father, but I can certainly outrun you!"

An hour later.

Might Guy noticed that Kyōichi wasn't even red-faced or breathing hard. He realized this youth, who was a few years older than him, wasn't even using much effort, and could definitely run faster if he wanted to without much strain.

Just as he was considering whether to remove his weights...

"Guy! You..."

BANG!

A heavy thud.

Might Guy was kicked flying.

Then.

Might Duy zoomed over, tears streaming down his face as he held his son's head saying: "You fool! Training hard isn't meant for competing and showing off!"

"Yes, Father, I understand my mistake."

"..."

Taking a deep breath.

No wonder Guy was called a rare beast by Kisame - you could already see signs of it in Might Duy.

The two hugged and cried streams of tears.

Even though Kyōichi had seen this in anime, he still felt strongly uncomfortable. These two would definitely be diagnosed with severe social anxiety disorder in his era.

Too intense!

However, to others, it was just somewhat awkward.

At this moment, he was considering whether to walk away for a while and come back later.

Fortunately, the crying stopped.

"Thank you for not taking offense at my child's behavior!" Might Duy said gratefully.

Though he didn't know Kyōichi's rank, he vaguely sensed he was at least a Chunin or even stronger.

"It's just exercise, no big deal," Kyōichi shook his head.

Then, he bid farewell to Might Duy and Might Guy, continued running forward, and after some distance, began practicing techniques in a roadside grove.

Actually, it was the taijutsu technique that Guy had studied.

Leaf Whirlwind.

This move was the core of Guy's Strong Fist style, with many later taijutsu techniques derived from it. It wasn't too difficult; Kyōichi's shadow clone had practiced it to a decent level in half a day.

At first, Might Duy and Might Guy paid no attention.

However, after passing by several times and seeing Kyōichi still practicing the spinning kick, they couldn't help but start analyzing this taijutsu technique.

Finally...

"Aren't you two running anymore?"

"Ah... We're very sorry, we were secretly watching you practice. We sincerely apologize!"

Might Duy immediately bowed in apology.

Though shinobi training wasn't that secretive, watching someone's techniques closely could lead to conflicts.

"It's nothing. I'm still researching this technique myself. If you're interested, we can study it together. Let me introduce myself - I'm Kanda Kyōichi, a sensei at the ninja academy. And you are?"

"You're a academy sensei?" Might Guy was surprised.

He didn't look much older than himself...

"Kanda-sensei, I'm Might Duy, and this is my son Might Guy," Might Duy said, pulling Guy closer.

"You both have very strong physiques. Would you like to research taijutsu techniques with me?"

"Well..."

"You really want to teach me?"

Duy hesitated, but Might Guy couldn't contain himself anymore.

This technique really appealed to him!

He wanted to learn.

"It's not really that impressive of a technique, I'm just experimenting," Kyōichi said.

Suddenly exerting force, he jumped into a spinning kick, striking heavily against a tree.

The thick tree shook several times.

"It's actually just a simple spinning kick, but when combined with physical strength and chakra, it can deliver different levels of attack."

Kyōichi demonstrated again, this time kicking a rock instead of the tree.

BANG!

With one kick, the rock shattered.

"That's, that's amazing! Father..."

Might Guy turned to look at Might Duy.

He wanted to learn.

But...

Might Duy had said before that it took him twenty years to master that one technique. If he got distracted learning other techniques, he might not be able to master his father's technique.

Guy was hesitant.

In fact, Might Duy was also hesitating.

He was a perpetual Genin, and his son Guy wasn't considered a genius either. At school, except for taijutsu, all his other grades were failing. He only graduated because of his exceptional taijutsu.

Usually, both of them weren't very popular.

This young man was already a Chunin at such a young age, and was so friendly that he was even willing to teach them taijutsu...

"Kanda-sensei, this..."

"It's just taijutsu," Kyōichi said without pressuring them, continuing to practice on his own.

Might Guy mimicked the movements on the side, while Might Duy hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't pull Guy away.