Hoshiyomi had no idea that Kuugetsu had secretly activated her Sharingan. Hearing her provocative challenge, he could tell she was trying to bait him—seeking an opening in his Transparent Escape Technique.
Even though he had intentionally suppressed his strength to about the level of a chūnin, Hoshiyomi still didn't think Kuugetsu would be able to pierce through the stealth technique so easily. He silently moved around behind her and slashed again.
A shallow cut appeared across her back. Kuugetsu grunted and turned her head—just in time to catch a flickering glimpse of Hoshiyomi's outline.
"Got you," she said.
Then, her movements suddenly accelerated as she swung her blade toward him.
In truth, Kuugetsu hadn't gotten faster—it was her perception that had changed. With her Sharingan now active, her visual acuity had sharply increased. Given that Hoshiyomi had limited his speed and power to chūnin-level, she managed to lock onto his movement trajectory.
Hoshiyomi made a soft sound of surprise—not because of her sudden counterattack, but because her sweeping motion had lifted the heavy bangs that usually covered her eyes…
And there they were: a pair of two-tomoe Sharingan.
That genuinely surprised him.
He'd suspected she might have awakened her Sharingan. After all, children with great talent who suffer constant bullying and emotional suppression often awaken it early.
But what he hadn't expected was for her to already possess two tomoe in both eyes. Whether she was born with an exceptional gift or had gone through some intense, private experience that had evolved her Sharingan, he couldn't say.
But to possess such eyes at just ten years old? That was nearly enough to forgo further testing. Hoshiyomi now had a rough estimate of her strength.
Without the Sharingan, she barely reached the level of a standard chūnin.
With it active, she could likely defeat most chūnin.
But she was still quite a distance away from special jōnin.
Roughly, she was a bit weaker than Minato.
Now that Hoshiyomi had a clear grasp of her capabilities, he saw no need to prolong this little game.
Naturally, he wasn't going to let her strike him. With a simple parry of his Mikazuki Munechika, he effortlessly blocked her attack.
The clash of blades disrupted the Transparent Escape Technique, making Hoshiyomi briefly visible—though only in the transformed appearance of the middle-aged man he'd been using.
Even if it was only for a moment, Kuugetsu seized the opportunity. She infused her body with chakra, amping up her speed, and locked her gaze on him to prevent him from reactivating the jutsu.
She unleashed a full sequence of Uchiha-style kenjutsu—smooth, precise, and practiced. There was no rigidity in her form; it was clear she'd put in a great deal of training.
Hoshiyomi no longer intended to use Transparent Escape. He revealed his true form and met each strike calmly, deflecting her swordsmanship move for move. A smile of appreciation tugged at his lips.
Her kenjutsu talent wasn't far behind Sakumo's in his prime.
And with the added edge of the Sharingan? Her potential was practically limitless.
Kuugetsu, however, was growing more and more alarmed.
She knew her swordsmanship wasn't particularly intimidating to veteran shinobi, but she had never imagined someone would be able to break it down so easily.
She had studied kenjutsu tirelessly. It was obvious this man hadn't trained in Uchiha-style kenjutsu—he was dismantling her techniques purely through instinct and observation, reacting in real-time with surgical precision.
Within moments, she had exhausted her full sequence of Uchiha-style sword forms.
And not once had she landed a clean hit—not even clipped a strand of his hair.
Now that she'd run through her whole form, her attacks became noticeably less fluid.
This was a common hurdle for beginners in kenjutsu: they could execute full patterns but struggled to adapt them dynamically in a real fight. Unless one had mastered intermediate-level techniques, this limitation was unavoidable.
It was like wielding three powerful, well-rehearsed opening moves—only to falter completely after that.
Though her slashes remained fierce, the fluidity from earlier was gone.
She tried to reset back to the initial stance, but Hoshiyomi wouldn't give her the space.
Having gauged her swordsmanship level, he no longer went easy.
He feinted upward, knocking her right arm with a rising slash. Before she could react, he flipped his grip and tapped her hand with the hilt.
Pain shot through her hand, and her grip loosened. The blade fell to the ground.
Before she could retrieve it, Mikazuki Munechika was already resting horizontally against her neck.
Kuugetsu didn't flinch. Instead, she closed her eyes with grim resolve and said:
"Go ahead and kill me."
Hoshiyomi chuckled at that.
He withdrew his blade and said lazily:
"Stop reaching—there's no need. Your ninja pouch is with me. And don't bother scraping your foot, either. That noise was loud enough I heard it three steps ago."
Kuugetsu froze. She opened her eyes and looked down—sure enough, her ninja pouch was dangling from his hand.
For a brief moment, her cold, guarded expression cracked into one of shocked disbelief.
"When…?"
She stopped mid-sentence—perhaps realizing that kind of tone didn't match her usual personality. Her expression shifted back to stoic as she demanded:
"Who are you? Why have you been following me?"
Hoshiyomi smiled faintly, striking the pose of a mysterious sage:
"Someone sent me to take you on as a disciple."
He had expected her to be either awestruck or suspicious.
Instead, Kuugetsu rolled her eyes and snorted:
"Bullshit."
That caught Hoshiyomi off guard. He hadn't expected this side of her to be so... unfiltered.
"I'm serious."
"Then tell me—who sent you?"
"Your father."
"Liar. My father's stationed on the front lines. How could he have sent you?"
"Because I'm his superior officer. Recognize me now?"
As he spoke, Hoshiyomi lifted a hand and canceled his Transformation Jutsu, revealing his true face.
Kuugetsu gave him a once-over. Her expression shifted into a strange mix of surprise and confusion.
She connected his swordsmanship, her father's last words before departing, and Kushina's constant bragging...
A few seconds later, realization dawned.
"You're... Gekkō Hoshiyomi?"
Hoshiyomi gave her an amused look.
"When you first enrolled, you used to hide behind your dad and call me 'Big Brother Hoshiyomi.' And now you just use my name like we're strangers?"
Kuugetsu's expression grew a bit awkward. Eventually, she muttered:
"That was her. Not me."
Hoshiyomi's smile deepened.
So I was right.
He'd already suspected there was some form of split personality at play. The drastic changes in behavior and speech patterns before and after battle were too obvious.
It reminded him of early Sakura, but this was far more extreme.
Now that Kuugetsu had basically confirmed it herself, he no longer had any doubts.
Hoshiyomi knew this wasn't something to confront directly. The topic of split personalities was sensitive—and pressing her would only backfire.
Instead, he planned to lock in her apprenticeship while this more assertive personality was in control.
Looking her in the eye, he asked plainly:
"So—do you want to become my student?"
Kuugetsu stared at him, clearly torn. After a long pause, she finally answered, coolly and cryptically:
"That's her decision."
Author's Notes:
Just as many readers guessed, Kuugetsu does indeed have a dissociative identity disorder. If you've been paying close attention to her actions—or noticed the visual hints in the comments section—it's been foreshadowed. But don't worry: her personality issue won't be left unresolved. It'll definitely be addressed in future chapters.