Chapter 223: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms vs. True Moon Style
Neji looked as if he had just heard the biggest joke in the world, even looking at Hinata as if she were an idiot.
He felt that the words he had just said to her were a complete waste of breath. She was just a piece of trash who happened to be born in the main family; there was no need to be serious with her.
However, on account of her being willing to call him "brother," Neji showed a final shred of patience. "I'll give you one last chance. You are not suited to be a ninja. Surrender now."
"You are too kind. You always try to avoid conflict, and you habitually cater to the thoughts of others."
"You have no self-confidence, you're always feeling inferior, yet you were forced to participate in this exam because you had to register as a team of three."
"Now that we've reached the individual match stage, there's no need for you to persevere any longer. Let it end here."
Hinata looked at Neji strangely. Although his words were full of contempt and disdain, she still felt a tiny bit of kindness. This was something she had never observed before. She had thought that he hated her deeply because of her lack of strength and the events of their parents' generation.
Realizing this, a faint smile appeared on her lips. "Let's begin, Neji-niisan."
"Hmph. I'm truly casting my pearls before swine. You incorrigible main family miss. You will regret this."
Neji activated his Byakugan, but his heart was puzzled.
If the old Hinata had heard his words, she would have definitely shrunk back in a panic. But the current Hinata's gaze hadn't wavered in the slightest. Could it be that her relationship with Akiyama Makoto had really changed her that much?
This forced him to re-evaluate Makoto. In the past, he had thought he was just a playboy who enjoyed tricking girls.
However, there was no way Neji could have imagined that Hinata had not only grown in strength, but had also reviewed her "simulation" with Makoto, realizing her future achievements and her place in life. This meant she would no longer be lost, but would only strive for the beautiful future that she saw in her mind.
Besides, she had already witnessed the battle of gods in the Fourth Great Ninja War. No matter how much of a genius he was now, how could he compare?
Hinata also calmly activated her Byakugan. "Let's settle this."
The next second, the two of them began to trade blows. Much of the time, it looked as if their palms were just pushing against each other. Compared to the wide-open stances of the Strong Fist or the all-destroying punch of Chakra Enhanced Strength, the battle between Gentle Fist users looked a bit flashy and impractical. Even their fists seemed light and airy.
But only those who could sense or see chakra would discover that with every punch they threw, the chakra from their fingertips would stab into the opponent's body like a spike. Every successful touch could potentially be a one-hit-kill.
If it was a match between two Hyūga clan members, then the only way to win was to not let the other person touch you at all.
"Who has the upper hand?" Naruto frowned, unable to understand what he was seeing.
Beside him, Kakashi was also looking at Hinata in surprise, because in his eyes, the two of them were evenly matched. In terms of pure Gentle Fist skill, Neji was undoubtedly superior. But Hinata was able to block his wrist at the last second, neutralizing his strikes. This had led to a stalemate.
Has this child... improved this much?
Many people looked at Kurenai, who was smiling triumphantly. Although she was well aware that at least half the credit for Hinata's improvement belonged to Makoto, she was still the teacher who had guided her training and sparred with her. Coupled with Hinata's own hard work, it wasn't too much for the two of them to take half the credit, was it?
Neji also gradually began to feel the pressure. He had wanted to silently strike the tenketsu on her arm and disable her Gentle Fist, but it turned out she was not as weak as he had imagined, and even seemed to know his thoughts. They had been fighting for several minutes now, and neither of them had yet to land a single hit on the other's tenketsu. In his eyes, this was an incredibly unbelievable thing.
On Hinata's side, sweat was trickling down her forehead. She had indeed seen through his thoughts. She could even see the direction and angle of his strikes clearly, and could faintly sense where he was about to attack. This strange feeling had confused her at first, but she soon realized that her eyes were different.
She knew that in the future, after her eyes had absorbed enough pupil power, they would evolve into the Analysis Eye. But unlike the Sharingan, there was no fundamental structural evolution between the Analysis Eye and the Byakugan. Therefore, the powerful functions of the Analysis Eye... the current Byakugan theoretically also possessed them, just in a much weaker form.
With this understanding, her heart was at ease.
Perhaps she couldn't win against him in Gentle Fist techniques, but in terms of the Byakugan... I'm sorry. This is a power that Makoto and I brought back from the future. I will not lose.
"It seems I have indeed underestimated you. For that, I apologize."
Neji took a step back, his eyes gradually turning cold, a clear killing intent rising.
He prided himself on being a genius of the Hyūga. It was only the injustice of fate and the corruption of the clan system that had allowed a "failure" like her to become the clan's successor. Because of this, he was angry, indignant, and then fell into despair, finally channeling all his hatred for the main family into the motivation to become stronger.
If he couldn't even beat her now, wouldn't that mean that everything he had believed in and held onto in the past had just been empty talk, a joke?
Therefore, he took a step back, assumed the stance for the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, and decided to crush the girl in front of him in one go.
"But... the ninja game ends here. What comes next is a battle to the death."
"Lady Hinata, are you prepared to die?"
The Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms was originally a technique that only the main family could learn, but he had managed to learn it through his own talent. To use it against her now was a form of revenge against her and the main family.
Seeing this, several of the Jōnin, including Kurenai, tensed up, ready to intervene. They knew the power of this move; it could really kill someone.
But looking at Hinata's calm and composed appearance, they hesitated. Could she be confident that she can handle this?
In the end, many of their gazes turned to Makoto. Neji hadn't lowered his voice just now when he had claimed that Hinata was also his girlfriend. Although he already had more girlfriends than one could count, he was probably the person in the arena closest to her. What would his reaction be?
He was naturally confident that he could save her, but if she were beaten half to death, he would also be very angry.
But at this moment, he did not make the decision for her. Instead, he calmly asked, "Hinata, are you confident?"
She smiled and struck a strange pose. She crossed her arms in an "X," and faint chakra threads flowed from her fingertips. It was her original technique, the Gentle Fist: True Moon Style.
Only then did she speak. "Makoto-kun, if I win, you have to remember to reward me."
"Alright. I'll be waiting."
He returned her smile. Since she had said so, he could only trust her.
"You're courting death!"
Neji, seeing that he had given her a chance and she hadn't taken it, attacked with lethal intent.
Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. One palm strike was faster than the last.
Although he felt this kind of fighting style was a pure waste—if you can kill someone with one palm, why hit them sixty-four times?—in reality, this move was not just a static ultimate. It was integrated into the Gentle Fist forms, incorporating a series of countermeasures such as blocking, countering, and predicting the enemy's movements. Not all sixty-four palms needed to land. Just a few hits to the vital points were enough.
He seemed to have eight arms in an instant, each striking at her from different angles.
Everyone was sweating for her, but her next performance left them standing there, stunned.
She pulled her hands apart, and ten chakra threads extended from her fingertips. If they were just chakra threads, they naturally wouldn't have much damaging ability. But under her control, these ten threads turned into a chakra net, ruthlessly enveloping him.
His pupils constricted, and he hesitated for a split second, but ultimately chose to meet it head-on. He could see these chakra threads. He didn't think that something so slender could have any power. He condensed chakra at his fingertips, like scissors, and tried to cut them.
But the threads were tougher than steel wire. They instantly wrapped around his hands, and then, like a spider's web, bound them completely.
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