Ino couldn't find the so-called 359-degree blind spot, and since her Chakra was abundant, she didn't bother to figure it out.
Neji's Chakra was nearly depleted less than five minutes into the match, as he had to fully maintain his Kaiten.
The spectators outside the arena grew increasingly quiet.
Many people, including Shikamaru and Choji, knew about Ino fighting three Hidden Mist Ninja by herself.
However, that was just hearsay; without experiencing it firsthand, they had no real understanding.
Ino also frequently said, "The three of them ganged up on me," so everyone's perception of her strength had always been vague. Now, seeing her use numerous Ninjutsu to overwhelm Hyuga Neji, they finally had a clearer understanding.
Fast hand seals, abundant Chakra, powerful Ninjutsu, and a grasp of combat timing far exceeding that of ordinary Ninja—Ino's cannon-style fighting once again refreshed everyone's impression.
The Genin, including the two from Sunagakure besides Gaara, all asked their Jonin leaders what they should do if they encountered such an enemy.
The Jonin's answers were similar: either attack forcefully, risking injury to defeat the opponent, or run as far as possible. There were only these two choices.
Hyuga Neji couldn't run; he could only fight!
Under Tenten's slightly worried gaze, he quickened the pace of his Kaiten's advance.
He swayed to the left, deflecting two Wind Release blades, then circled halfway to the right, crossing his hands to block an Earth Release spear shot from the side.
Hakke. Kaiten was like a giant blue top, rapidly rushing towards Ino's direction.
He was attempting a final charge.
"You lose."
Three Ino performed the same hand seals.
Three surging Water Dragon Bullet rose from the ground, from the left, center, and right, firmly holding back the advancing Hakke. Kaiten, like three dragons playing with a pearl.
The three Ino used Kosuke's Water Dragon Bullet technique, holding the final "Tiger" hand seal without releasing it. Each time a Water Dragon Bullet passed over the outer wall of Hakke. Kaiten, it would absorb a small portion of Neji's Chakra.
Kosuke's Chakra couldn't compare to the Second Hokage's, nor to Ino's, whose "Spirit" stat was 8 points, on par with Tsunade. He focused on weakening the enemy, and this technique of using Water Dragon Bullet to absorb enemy Chakra was his brilliant idea.
Hyuga Neji's Chakra was already low. Maintaining Kaiten for a long time, and now facing absorption from three Water Dragon Bullet, his Chakra rapidly depleted. Eventually, a flaw appeared in his Kaiten, and the three Water Dragon Bullet surged in together, then intertwined, forming a tornado that lifted Hyuga Neji high into the air. After spinning for over ten seconds, he was slammed heavily onto the ground.
Neji lay on the ground, spitting blood repeatedly. His body was covered in over thirty dense lacerations from the Water Dragon Bullet. He clenched his fists, struggling for a long time but unable to stand up.
"Neji, that's enough." Might Guy was truly a good teacher. Worried that Ino would continue her attack, he immediately stood in front of his disciple without a word.
"I haven't lost..." Neji's stamina and mental energy were completely depleted, his vision was blurry, and his Chakra was almost gone. At this point, let alone Kaiten, even clenching his fist was difficult.
Might Guy gently patted his shoulder: "It's okay. You've proven yourself. You haven't shamed your efforts. We can only achieve success through failure."
Might Guy's motivational speech was useless. Neji wanted to say more, but he was too exhausted and no longer had the strength to speak.
The arena was quite quiet. Ino released her Shadow Clone Technique. She wasn't surprised by this outcome. Neji's strength was definitely that of a Chunin, but what about her? She was now a standard Special Jonin, and there was a considerable gap between them.
Gaara's sand was almost invincible during the Chunin Exams, but when facing Might Guy, with just a wave of his hand, the sand was shattered. The gap between Gaara and elite Jonin like Teacher Guy was clear.
The Sound Four also seemed strong, but they fought four against two, activated their Cursed Seals, and struggled desperately together to barely defeat Shiranui Genma and Namikaze Raidō.
Excluding cheats like Naruto and Sasuke, the difference in strength between Chunin, Special Jonin, and Jonin was actually quite significant.
In just five short minutes, Ino used over thirty Ninjutsu of various types: Water Release, Earth Release, and Wind Release.
Isn't it normal for a mage to keep their distance and defeat a warrior with a shield wall?
After waiting a moment, she coughed and waved to the outside of the arena.
Gekkō Hayate was startled, then quickly ran over.
He looked around. The once flat arena had been thoroughly scoured three times by Water Release, Earth Release, Wind Release, and Hakke. Kaiten. The ground was now riddled with craters, making it almost impossible to find a place to stand.
He and Ino were quite familiar, so he immediately complained: "You've ruined the arena like this. Are you going to pay the compensation directly, or defer payment?"
Ino exploded upon hearing this. Asking her for money? Did she cause this destruction? Don't slander good people!
She pointed at the large crater on the ground and began to shift the blame: "This was clearly caused by Neji's spinning technique—"
Gekkō Hayate coughed, reminding her: "...Hakke. Kaiten."
Ino punched her left palm with her right fist, feigning sudden realization: "Right, Hakke. Kaiten! All this damage was caused by his Kaiten spinning."
She frantically shifted the blame, pointing at the wall: "We might be familiar, but you can't defame me. Look at these marks; they appear to be from my Ninjutsu, but in reality? They were all deflected by Kaiten! If you put a stone in front of your house, and a child throws that stone and breaks Yūgao's window, can you say you broke the window?"
Gekkō Hayate was speechless. Out of nowhere, why bring up his girlfriend? And why break her window? However, after that explanation, it seemed to make some sense.
Since he and Ino were acquaintances, after hearing the window-breaking theory, he subconsciously looked towards Hyuga Neji.
Under Might Guy's passionate encouragement, the Hyuga Clan genius was trying to stand up. Upon hearing such shameless words, he was so enraged that he spat out a mouthful of blood and completely fainted.
Ino spread her hands, looking at Gekkō Hayate, implying, "See? I know you're deliberately stalling for time, chattering with me here, just to let him stand up gracefully and concede, but I gave him the chance, and he's useless!"
Ino forcefully shirked responsibility, also attributing half of the blame to Hyuga Neji.
Adding that to the blame she had previously shifted from Temari and Da Li Shi, she now had two points of blame.
Ino stood waiting in the cratered arena.
Gekkō Hayate coughed loudly: "Ahem—!"
Noticing that Might Guy remained motionless, looking around as if waiting for the Medical Corps Ninja, he coughed again.
Finally, he had to remind him: "Might Guy, this is the Chunin Exams preliminary round!"
The incredibly passionate Might Guy realized that his presence here was indeed inappropriate.
He nodded, bowed, then ran back to the spectator stands like a gust of wind.
Gekkō Hayate raised a hand and loudly declared: "Ino wins!"
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