The Land of Fire. Hidden Leaf Village.

The atmosphere inside the village right now was deeply strange.

A concert had left tens of thousands of civilians wildly excited, but the incident that had erupted in the middle left everyone equally furious.

After all, Kumogakure from the Land of Lightning had brazenly attacked the Hidden Leaf Village and even tried to abduct its women.

That was absolutely unforgivable!

And just look at who they had tried to take, Mito Uzumaki, Kushina Uzumaki, Mikoto Uchiha, Hinata Hyūga, Ino Yamanaka, Sakura Haruno, Tenten.

Every single one of those women now commanded enormous popularity throughout the Hidden Leaf Village.

What Kumogakure had done was the equivalent of squatting on the village's neck to relieve themselves, and then wiping with a Leaf villager's hair when they were done.

This was beyond what anyone could endure!

The concert was still going. Nobody had any heart left to watch it. The crowd was demanding war, especially the civilians, who had gone home to grab knives, clubs, and sticks, every last one of them itching to give Kumogakure's ninja something to remember.

And so an utterly bizarre scene unfolded: people singing on stage, while tens of thousands of fans below brandished makeshift weapons.

The two ninja currently on stage were Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake.

The song they were performing was the one Hirofumi Ito had tailor-made for the two of them, "You Exist in My Song."

Might Guy had an arm slung around Kakashi Hatake's neck and was belting it out at full volume.

"You exist deep within my mind~~

In my dreams, in my heart, in my song~~

You exist deep within my mind~~

In my dreams, in my heart, in my song~~

Kakashi! Your turn!"

Faced with that enthusiasm, Kakashi Hatake honestly had no idea how to respond. This friend had been growing increasingly abnormal lately.

Abnormal in every respect.

Abnormal in terms of power. Abnormal in terms of personality.

On the power side: Might Guy was no longer bound by the limitations of the Eight Inner Gates. The Eight Inner Gates was a terrifying technique, one that could unleash combat power surpassing the Hokage level in an extremely short span of time. But the price it demanded was equally immense.

Opening the Gate of Death meant certain death. No exceptions.

So in Kakashi Hatake's memory, Might Guy had previously only ever pushed the Eight Inner Gates as far as the Gate of Wonder. And even without opening the eighth gate, Kakashi Hatake was still no match for this friend.

Then, the last time, Might Guy had gone ahead and opened the eighth gate directly. Died in a blaze of glory. Kakashi Hatake had helped carry the body to the burial site.

Then things started getting abnormal.

Might Guy had stopped fearing death.

The Eight Inner Gates held no limitations anymore. Might Guy could open all eight gates at will, and after dying could simply have Hirofumi revive them on the spot.

So now this person was pestering Kakashi Hatake for duels every single day.

And almost every day, screaming that the technique called Night Guy was being saved especially for Kakashi Hatake.

Damn it. Even though Hirofumi could revive the dead through summoning, Kakashi Hatake had absolutely no desire to die for no good reason.

And Kakashi Hatake had seen Night Guy firsthand. Taking a direct hit from that move would probably reduce a person to scattered fragments of skin.

Yet that blockhead Might Guy had the nerve to say Kakashi Hatake was looking down on Night Guy, that Kakashi Hatake thought it wasn't powerful enough. And ever since, had been training like a maniac, developing new techniques.

Talking about forging an even more ferocious move to bestow upon Kakashi Hatake as a gift.

Damn it! That lunatic seemed genuinely determined to kill Kakashi Hatake!

And beyond the power, the mentality had gotten equally abnormal.

Almost every single day, pestering Kakashi Hatake to sing "Who Is My Groom" together.

Kakashi Hatake was completely baffled.

Could that song even be sung by two men?!

Just think about who had been singing it. Running through everyone in the village Kakashi Hatake could remember: Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi, Neji Hyūga and Tenten, Hinata Hyūga and Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, Hirofumi Ito and Ino Yamanaka, Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha, and oh right, also Kakashi Hatake's own teacher and teacher's wife.

Every single one of them: a couple.

What business did Kakashi Hatake and Might Guy have singing that song?!

Oh right, almost forgot. Besides all those people, two others had also sung it: the First Hokage Hashirama Senju, and Madara Uchiha.

Those two seniors could be set aside.

After all, Hashirama Senju had a wife. Two close friends singing a duet together wasn't really a problem when one of them was already married, nobody could say anything about that. But neither Kakashi Hatake nor Might Guy had a wife.

If the two of them actually sang that song together, what on earth would that even mean?!

Alas. Maybe Kakashi Hatake really should find a wife. The family had been pressing hard lately. The Hatake Clan had always passed down through a single line, if Kakashi Hatake didn't take a wife and have a few children, the clan line would die out right here.

Thinking about this closest friend, and about finding a wife, Kakashi Hatake's mind drifted to two former teammates, Obito Uchiha and Rin Nohara.

So many things were understood now. Obito hadn't died.

And the true culprit behind the attack on the Hidden Leaf Village all those years ago, the one responsible for the deaths of Kakashi Hatake's teacher and teacher's wife, that was Obito.

It was genuinely hard to believe. How could Obito have done something like that?!

But the facts were right there, leaving no room for doubt.

Kakashi Hatake reached up and touched the Sharingan hidden beneath the eye-patch.

"Obito. Why did you do it. When will we ever see each other again. Was there suffering behind everything you did — I so hope there was. I really do!"

The mood sank. Might Guy, arm still around Kakashi Hatake's shoulder on that stage, could see it plainly.

Lately, this closest friend had been falling into these dark spells frequently, especially since learning about Obito Uchiha.

The moment that thought crossed Might Guy's mind, blue steam began rising from Might Guy's body.

This was the closest friend.

Might Guy simply could not stand watching this person stay trapped in that darkness.

So then — let Kakashi Hatake feel the full power of Might Guy's youth!

➤ Next: Kakashi Hatake Awakens the Mangekyō

Chapter 250 - Kakashi Hatake Awakens the Mangekyō

That thought hit Might Guy like a lightning bolt, and the shout tore out of the throat.

"Eight Inner Gates! Gate of Wonder! Open!

Kakashi! My dearest rival!

While in my arms, you're still thinking about another man?

Could it be you want to feel my youth?!

Youth absolutely cannot allow such a thing!

Could it be you want to feel the Night Guy I've prepared for you?!

Or are you going to sing 'Who Is My Groom' with me?!"

Kakashi spun around with an expression of pure horror.

This damn weirdo was at it again!

"Pull that steam back right now! I'll sing! Fine, I'll sing!

You exist~~~ deep, deep in my mind!"

The moment those words left Kakashi's mouth, Might Guy locked both arms around Kakashi and refused to let go.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

NOW that's my rival!

This is youth!"

Tucked inside Might Guy's arms, Kakashi looked almost small, a little helpless, a little ridiculous. But underneath the mask, the corner of the mouth curved up without permission.

Kakashi knew this person too well.

All this pestering over the past weeks, it was never really about the concert, was it? It was about making sure Kakashi didn't sink too deep into whatever quiet misery had been building up.

This absolute idiot...

Down in the crowd, tens of thousands of Hidden Leaf fans were losing their minds. Every single one of them clutching knives, forks, or makeshift batons, all screaming about youth, waving whatever was in hand, singing at the top of their lungs right along with Might Guy and kakashi hatake,

"Do you still remember~~~

Walking side by side together~~~

Through those bustling alleyways~~~

Even though you and I were strangers, just passersby~~~

We still felt it~~~

A single glance, a single heartbeat~~~

..."

Might Guy stood at full power, the Eight Inner Gates open and roaring, one hand clutching a microphone, one arm locked around Kakashi, and belted it out.

"Like a dream it seems~~~ destined to be~~~

You exist~~~ deep, deep in my mind!"

And then, apparently having too much fun to stop there, Might Guy swept Kakashi clean off both feet into a full princess carry.

Kakashi's brain went blank.

Okay. The arm around the shoulder earlier, fine. Uncomfortable, but fine. Two good brothers, nobody says anything, it's whatever.

But this?! A princess carry?! In front of tens of thousands of people?!

"Damn Might Guy! Put me down!"

"Kakashi! This is youth!"

Tens of thousands of eyes stared up at the stage with the most deeply unsettling expressions. kakashi hatake, in that moment, wanted nothing more than to die.

Coming to this godforsaken concert. Should've stayed home and mucked out a cesspit instead!

AAAAAAAH!

And then Kakashi felt it.

A tremor. From the Sharingan — the eye that had once belonged to Obito Uchiha.

The three tomoe inside the pupil began to spin. Faster and faster, until they blurred,

and snapped into the pattern of a giant pinwheel.

The chakra vanished.

Not depleted. Not low. Gone. Nearly drained down to nothing in a single instant.

What — what was happening?!

The eye Obito had given, had it just awakened the Mangekyō?!

Kakashi had known Obito possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan. That much wasn't a surprise, Obito had already been using it during the attack on the Hidden Leaf Village. So by all logic, this eye had always been a Mangekyō Sharingan. It just hadn't activated. Not until now.

Of all the days. Of all the moments.

But the drain was something else entirely. Just maintaining the Three-Tomoe Sharingan on a daily basis was already brutal on the body. Now the Mangekyō tears through the chakra reserves in one shot?

No chakra. No strength. Not a single thing left to work with.

And still being princess-carried in Might Guy's arms.

With the Mangekyō draining the reserves dry and Might Guy running the Eight Inner Gates, Kakashi had absolutely nothing left to fight back with. In the eyes of the tens of thousands of fans down below, kakashi hatake looked exactly like a small, adorable girl going completely limp in Might Guy's hold, leaning in, cheeks faintly flushed, the picture of someone collapsing helplessly against another person.

Some people in the audience turned away, unable to look.

Others had already started shipping it.

Kakashi, trapped and powerless, managed one weak sentence.

"Guy... hurry... put me... down..."

"What?! Kakashi! You said don't stop?! You want to feel more of my blazing youth?! This is youth, Kakashi!

You exist~~~~~ deep, deep in my mind!"

Kakashi gave up on life entirely.

The overstimulation from Might Guy. The tens of thousands of staring eyes. The Mangekyō hollowing out every last drop of chakra. It all compounded at once, and kakashi hatake passed out cold, right there in Might Guy's arms.

Might Guy, Eight Inner Gates still blazing, kept bounding across the stage and didn't even notice.

It was only after the song ended that Might Guy finally looked down.

Kakashi lay completely still, draped in the arms like a sleeping beauty.

"Kakashi! Youth absolutely cannot allow sleeping! This is youth!"

BOOM!

The unconscious Kakashi cracked both eyes open, barely.

"Hiss... my head... it's killing me... what is this lump on my head?!"

"Kakashi! This is youth!"

---

When Might Guy and Kakashi's performance finally ended, Shisui Uchiha stepped onto the stage with a look of profound reluctance.

Honestly, there was no desire to be here. No desire to sing, no desire to perform, the Logistics Department didn't run itself, and while this concert was eating up the evening, the work was still piling up back at the office.

But Hokage-sama had insisted. Strongly. Personally hand-picked the song, too. When Hokage-sama gave an order like that, there wasn't much room to say no.

So Shisui Uchiha picked up the microphone and started to sing.

"If only I could see~~~

Then I could easily tell day from night~~~

..............................

The darkness before me isn't black~~~

The white you speak of — what kind of white is it~~~

..............................

You are my eyes~~~

Leading me through the changing of the four seasons~~~

..."

Down in the audience, Danzō Shimura's expression went strange.

Why did it feel like this song was aimed directly at Danzō?

And the way Shisui kept glancing over while singing it...

Was Danzō supposed to be Shisui's eyes?!

In truth, sitting there in the crowd, Danzō had already spent a long time regretting what had been done in the past.

➤ Next: Master, How Could We Possibly Be as Shameless as You!