Chapter 225: Analyzing the Shield of Sand, the Feasibility of a New Ninjutsu
Akiyama Makoto instinctively wanted to say no, but then he realized that there was basically no point in keeping this jutsu a secret.
He turned and said, "I'm sure you've figured it out. The essence of this technique is the Sand Village's chakra threads."
"I discovered that Hinata has a strong talent for chakra control, but lacks talent in taijutsu and the Gentle Fist, so I recommended she try to rely more on chakra for her attacks."
"She first learned to control one thread, and now she can control ten. She can even combine and harden them to attack. This was all her own development."
"This jutsu isn't a Hyūga secret technique; it's a ninjutsu she developed. You can ask her if she's willing to teach you, or you can try to comprehend it with your own talent. It's not like this is the first time you've done something like that."
He laid it all out. But he still didn't think Neji could learn it to Hinata's level.
Just now on the second floor, he had already noticed something different about her.
If the improvement in her Gentle Fist and the development of her True Moon Style could be attributed to her hard work and talent, then that moment of hesitation from Neji was, without a doubt, a suppression from her Byakugan.
As expected, her eyes were already showing some signs of the Analysis Eye.
This wasn't surprising; her eyes had this talent to begin with. What she lacked was pupil power and an understanding of her own eyes. As long as she had enough pupil power, her eyes would be upgraded. There were no obstacles to break through.
Therefore, it wasn't strange for her to occasionally use a similar power. He even felt that her ability to develop the True Moon Style to this extent was inseparable from the growth of her eyes.
In other words, even if Neji learned this move, reaching her current level would probably be his limit. But once her eyes were upgraded, her path of using chakra to fight would have only just begun.
Neji looked at him in surprise, not expecting him to be so candid. Although, in his words, this jutsu was nothing special, many times, the most crucial help was just such a casual pointer. Take the Gentle Fist, for example. Wasn't it just a fighting style that used the Byakugan to see tenketsu and meridians, and then used fingertips and chakra to attack them?
But only in actual combat did one know how difficult each step of research and improvement was. He suddenly felt the anger in his heart slowly subside.
Just as he had said, the target of his hatred should not be the current Hinata, not to mention that he had just helped him.
"...Thank you."
Neji thanked him in a low voice.
He looked at him strangely. "It's really not easy to hear a 'thank you' from your mouth. For that 'thank you' alone, I'll protect your life in the future... big brother-in-law."
Neji couldn't help but cough. What the hell is a 'big brother-in-law'?
But looking at his irritatingly handsome face, he said patiently, "Hinata and I are not on good terms, and I'm not qualified to manage her affairs. But I still hope you and she can be happy. If you ever need my help in the future, just ask."
"That's enough. Get some rest."
He turned to leave.
The current him couldn't solve the Hyūga's Caged Bird Seal problem, nor could he resolve the knot in Neji's heart. But he knew that after this battle, he probably wouldn't be so extreme anymore.
He had just stepped out of the room when he saw Hinata, who had already snuck over.
She was leaning against the doorframe. She had just heard the conversation between him and Neji. Although Neji didn't feel he was qualified to manage her affairs, the kind-hearted her saw everyone in her family as important. This was also what Neji had meant when he said she was too kind.
He raised both hands and cupped her face, seeing a happy, moved, and blushing expression.
Hinata, her face being held, did not dodge, but looked at him with a gentle smile and mouthed the words, "Thank you."
"You're welcome. I said I was going to reward you."
She quickly widened her eyes. "This... was the reward?"
"What, you don't like it?"
"I like it, but..." She looked at him shyly. She still wanted more.
But he pretended not to see. "Go on back. The next match is about to start."
But she jumped onto his back from behind, wrapped her arms around his neck, and bit his ear.
He could even hear her muttering, "If you won't give it to me, I'll take it myself!"
When he came out, he was rubbing his cheek, where she had left a bite mark.
She was blushing like an apple. She hadn't really wanted to bite him, but she didn't know what else to do! It seemed she would have to train with him a few more times.
When the two of them returned, they found that the matches were still going on.
The match between Akimichi Chōji and Inuzuka Kiba was lasting longer than expected, and it was also rowdier than expected. On one side, Chōji had curled into a ball to perform the Human Bullet Tank. On the other, Kiba and Akamaru had turned into a drill to perform the Fang Over Fang.
The two sides rammed into each other again and again. In the end, Kiba, with the advantage of an extra dog, won. After all, this was just a match. Chōji would never use his Three-Colored Pills. And since Shikamaru had already lost, it didn't matter if he lost too. The Ino-Shika-Chō trio advanced and retreated as one.
As for why Ino had won... she was the big sister, the exception.
Kiba was dancing with joy, which made Naruto's blood boil. The two of them had no real hatred for each other, but as two very smug people, they were in the habit of bickering.
After a simple cleanup, the final match arrived.
Looking at the names on the screen, Rock Lee vs. Gaara, he sighed softly. What was meant to come had come. But since he was here, he wouldn't let Lee suffer such a serious injury and be sidelined for so long.
Gaara and Rock Lee came onto the field. They had already faced each other in the Forest of Death, so there was no need for more introductions.
Lee immediately launched an attack, a series of taijutsu strikes, but they were all easily blocked by the sand from Gaara's gourd.
Gaara stood motionless. The sand didn't need his conscious control. It was a fully automatic, absolute defense. To break it, one either had to be faster than the sand, or have enough power to pierce through its barrier.
He curiously released his sensory perception, wanting to know the operating logic of this sand.
According to his original understanding of this jutsu, the reason it could form was because the will of Gaara's mother, Karura, resided in the sand, automatically protecting her child. As a "viewer," that explanation was fine. But now, as a transmigrator and a ninjutsu researcher, he naturally had to figure out the principles.
For example, what was this will? Was it a form of chakra fused with the sand, or was her will residing in Gaara's body, using his chakra to control the sand?
He soon discovered it was the latter.
A stream of chakra that clearly did not belong to Gaara was flowing freely in his body, instinctively controlling the sand. This was the truth of the jutsu.
Interesting...
He stroked his chin, a look of interest on his face.
He had previously created the Illusion-Breaking Seal, with the aim of allowing his body to automatically break free from genjutsu. To achieve this, he had at first relied on sealing jutsu, and later, by sealing a part of his spirit using the Mind-Mirror Image to act as a fuse.
Now, it seemed Gaara's Shield of Sand had a similar logic. It was just that what was sealed in his body was a part of his mother's chakra. Did this mean that he could actually split off even more of his spiritual power to form an independently operating chakra, or even a ninjutsu control unit, and let them run automatically within his body?
As he was thinking, the battle between Lee and Gaara had reached a white-hot stage.
After discovering that his speed and strength could not break through the shield, Lee stood on a high platform and removed his weights.
After dropping at least two hundred pounds of weight, his speed increased dramatically. He could now break through the sand's instinctive defense with his speed and strength. He finally kicked Gaara in the head.
And this also brought their battle to its climax.
Gaara transformed his Shield of Sand into Armor of Sand, which was to say, he made the sand adhere to his body as armor for better protection.
Lee tried to attack him once. Although he succeeded, it only made Gaara switch from passive defense to active offense.
Faced with a large-area-of-effect attack, Lee had no choice but to open the Eight Gates, opening them all the way to the Fourth Gate.
At this time, he, in a rare move, went to Guy's side and spoke to him directly. "Lord Guy, you should stop him early. A momentary bloom is just a fleeting moment. Even if a ninja fights with the resolve to die, it should be in a situation where they are protecting their comrades."
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