The impact landed with a dull thud, like a heavy mallet striking thick leather.
A sickening crack followed, the sound of bones snapping. The massive wild boar twitched violently before going completely still.
It let out a short, painful squeal. Its legs gave way, sinking into the swamp.
Might Guy slowly lowered his fists, panting heavily. The boar lay motionless, its limbs occasionally shivering.
Just moments ago, the forest had been alive with violence. Now, suddenly, everything was silent.
Guy stared at the unmoving beast. "Growing this big can't have been easy, Mr. Boar. But you endangered us. I had no choice but to finish this."
Blood seeped from the crater on its forehead, mixing with the mud.
The ferocity in its lone eye dimmed like embers about to die out. Hatred lingered, but the threat was gone.
It tried to lift its head but failed, letting out two mournful grunts toward the scattered roasted meat before dying.
"Dad, that was amazing! Can I become that strong too?"
Kai looked at his father with awe, every word dripping with admiration.
"Yeah! Master Duy, that flaming move just now what was that? Incredible!"
Julian White stood dumbfounded, utterly shocked. Even among the elite of the Senju clan, he had never witnessed such a refined display of taijutsu.
Might Duy raised a thumb, flashing a bright smile. "The Eight Gates! That was my own creation, the culmination of my life's work!"
"Of course it's strong. Guy, train well, and someday you'll catch up to me."
As he spoke, Duy deactivated the Eight Gates.
His body instantly went limp, collapsing to the ground.
Rebound came immediately.
Julian had anticipated it, catching him and gently lowering him to the ground.
"As expected. Pushing beyond your limits always comes with a cost."
He frowned, worry etched across his face. "This technique has side effects. It cannot be used frequently."
Guy grinned, draping an arm over Kai's shoulder. "That cost is nothing! He protected us and eliminated the threat. Your father is incredible, Kai!"
Kai's face lit up with joy. In his eyes, his father had just defeated a monster. Nothing could be better than that.
Besides, this single boar was enough to feed them for weeks.
Julian stared at Duy, expression heavy as lead.
"Do you really think this is a reason to celebrate? Even when you win, pain still lingers."
"Moreover, in war, even if you repel the enemy, the village will suffer casualties. Is that really something to cheer about?"
He wasn't weak-minded. He was deliberately exaggerating to make a point.
A simple question of power was twisted to serve a purpose.
Since this system rewarded attendance, Julian wondered how to maximize its effect.
So he ran a test: he presented a viewpoint.
If others accepted it, their worldview would shift to match his.
In other words, the White Book became the standard.
Its words were their secret code.
Could this earn him store points?
He seized the moment and began to speak, curious to see if he would score.
"What? Should we just stand by and let the boar attack without fighting back?"
"If another village launched an assault, would we just watch them surrender?"
Guy clenched his fists, his face flushing red. He shouted as if ready to spring forward.
Normally a cheerful, sunny boy, his sudden anger startled Julian.
But Julian remained calm, his expression deliberately impassive.
"Why do you think this boar came into this forest?"
"Was it bored? Did it not know humans were dangerous, or that the forest itself was dangerous?"
"No. We captured its piglet. That's why it came."
"It saw the little one on the fire and came for revenge."
Guy's face froze, rigid like forgotten clay, the words looping endlessly in his mind.
Wait wasn't it Julian who caught the piglet and gave it to the Duy family as a gift?
How dare he twist the facts like this?
Guy was dumbfounded, mind blank, trying to speak but unable to form a word.
Finally, he exploded: "You… you shameless scoundrel!"
Kai flitted anxiously between them, like a child caught between feuding parents.
Seeing Guy rendered speechless, and Kai's confused yet adorable expression,
Julian's lips twitched, his cheeks betrayed him.
He snorted, hastily covering his mouth.
Laughter rippled from the corners of his wrinkled eyes, shoulders trembling slightly.
He lowered his head, trying to hide his reddened face, yet a muffled laugh slipped through his fingers.
"Ha ha ha!"
Finally, he surrendered, shoulders sagging, laughing uproariously while wiping tears from his eyes.
"Come on, we grew up together. Do I look that timid to you?"
What he meant was: don't let meaningless quarrels hurt you.
But if someone bullies us, we will never silently endure it.
"A single decisive punch, a hundred follow-ups. Never start a fight, but know when to end one. I just want you to think twice before acting."
"Remember when you used the Underworld Swamp? Your chakra depleted, yet your body suddenly rebounded."
Do you know why that happened?