"Eight Trigrams Palms: Revolving Heaven!"
Light-blue chakra erupted from every tenketsu across Hizashi's body.
He began spinning.
The released chakra transformed into a rapidly rotating dome, covering him from every direction just as Ren's massive fireball reached his position.
Fire struck chakra.
Boom!
A deafening explosion tore across the training ground.
The collision produced a blinding flash, followed by a wave of scorching air that swept outward in every direction. Dust, gravel, and fallen leaves were ripped from the earth and hurled across the field.
The flames spread around the rotating barrier but could not penetrate it. Instead, they twisted into a blazing vortex, circling Hizashi while the Revolving Heaven shredded the outer layers of the fireball.
Ren was still in the air when the shockwave reached him.
He crossed both arms in front of his face, allowed the pressure to carry him backward, and completed a controlled flip. His sandals struck the ground, slid half a meter, and stopped.
Ren lowered his arms.
His gaze remained fixed on the flames.
Strictly speaking, the Great Fireball Jutsu was not enough to guarantee victory against an experienced Chūnin. Even if the technique could inflict serious burns, a shinobi at Hizashi's level possessed the speed and judgment to evade it.
The real danger had come from surprise.
Hizashi had expected to test the Three Basic Jutsu of an academy student. He had not expected Ren to suddenly launch a C-rank Fire Release technique at close range.
Ren had deliberately aimed the fireball slightly away from Hizashi's center mass. The adjustment gave the Hyūga enough room to escape with the Body Flicker Technique if necessary.
Ren wanted to demonstrate his strength, not send Neji's future father to the hospital.
What he had not expected was for Hizashi to confront the attack directly with the Hyūga clan's absolute defense.
The Revolving Heaven continued for several seconds.
Flames broke apart beneath the rotating chakra and scattered across the dirt. Most burned out immediately, though several patches of grass continued smoldering.
When the rotation finally slowed, thick smoke swallowed Hizashi's figure.
Ren remained alert.
His chakra reserves were nearly depleted, but he still had enough strength for one more Substitution Jutsu. If Hizashi emerged from the smoke and continued the battle, Ren would need to create distance immediately.
Ten seconds passed.
The smoke began to thin.
Hizashi stood at the center of a shallow circular depression. The rotation had carved a smooth ring into the earth around him.
He no longer looked as composed as he had at the start of the spar.
Half of one sleeve had been burned away before the Revolving Heaven fully formed. Several strands of hair were scorched, and a dark mark covered one shoulder.
His injuries were superficial.
His expression was not.
The veins around his Byakugan remained raised as he stared at Ren. Wariness, disbelief, and intense curiosity flickered through those pale eyes.
"You…"
Ren raised both hands before Hizashi could continue.
"I surrender."
Hizashi blinked.
"That was every combat ninjutsu I know," Ren explained. "My chakra is almost exhausted, and you're still standing. An experienced Chūnin really is beyond my current level."
It was not the complete truth.
Ren still possessed several methods he had not displayed, but using them would turn a friendly spar into a genuine battle. He had already shown enough to prove that his victory over Homon had not been an accident.
There was no reason to continue.
Hizashi remained silent for several seconds.
Then his gaze sharpened.
"How did you disappear from my Byakugan?"
Ren had expected that question.
"Homon and I are classmates," he answered. "I've watched him train many times. Based on his reactions and the way he adjusts his position, I concluded that the Byakugan's vision probably isn't a perfect sphere."
Hizashi's face became unreadable.
Ren continued carefully.
"I guessed there was a tiny blind spot near the upper back. When I used the Transformation Technique, I timed my movement so that I would pass through that area."
The explanation was only half true.
Ren had indeed watched Homon fight, but he had learned about the Byakugan's blind spot from his memories of the original story. The flaw was extremely small, positioned behind the user near the upper thoracic vertebra.
Discovering it through observation alone would be extraordinarily difficult.
But it was not impossible.
A determined observer could notice that a Hyūga repeatedly adjusted his posture to compensate for the same narrow angle. If Ren insisted that this was how he had discovered the weakness, there was no way to prove otherwise.
Hizashi studied him as though attempting to see through more than his body.
The Byakugan could examine chakra pathways.
It could not read thoughts.
Eventually, Hizashi deactivated his dōjutsu. The veins around his temples receded as he released a slow breath.
"I understand why Homon lost to you."
Ren lowered his hands.
"Your ninjutsu is unusual," Hizashi continued. "More importantly, you know how to create opportunities for it. Your observation and tactical judgment are exceptional for someone your age."
The praise lasted only a moment.
"Your taijutsu, however, is a weakness."
Ren's expression became serious.
Hizashi stepped out of the scorched circle.
"Your movements are fast, but they are unrefined. You rely too heavily on the Substitution Jutsu to escape whenever an exchange turns unfavorable."
He walked to a relatively undamaged section of the training ground and assumed a neutral stance.
"That works against opponents who do not understand your technique. Once someone reads your movement pattern or denies you a suitable exchange target, you will be trapped at close range."
Ren did not argue.
Hizashi was correct.
His improved Physique gave him better speed, strength, and stamina than most academy students. His system also allowed him to develop techniques at an extraordinary rate.
But physical ability was not the same as skill.
Ren lacked a complete taijutsu system. Most of his close-combat experience came from academy drills, personal experimentation, and copying useful movements from other students.
Against Homon, superior tactics had been enough.
Against Hizashi, the flaws had become obvious.
"When you retreated after your first surprise attack, you leaned your center of gravity too far backward," Hizashi explained. "That gave you additional distance, but it delayed your next movement."
He demonstrated the retreat.
His lead foot slid back while his torso remained balanced above his hips. The motion was smaller than Ren's, yet Hizashi could immediately move in any direction after completing it.
"If I had pressed forward at that moment, you would not have recovered in time to block."
Hizashi repeated Ren's original movement, deliberately exaggerating the backward lean. His rear foot required an additional adjustment before he could attack again.
That tiny delay could decide a real battle.
"The correct method is to keep your center beneath you," Hizashi said. "Create distance with your footwork, not by throwing your upper body backward."
He shifted smoothly into another stance.
"Now watch the transition from evasion to counterattack."
Hizashi demonstrated the movement slowly.
He turned his shoulder to allow an imaginary punch to pass, redirected the attacker's arm with his palm, and stepped into the opening. His second hand stopped where an opponent's chest would have been.
The entire sequence contained no wasted motion.
"Do not retreat from every attack," he said. "Sometimes the safest position is closer to your opponent, not farther away."
Ren watched intently.
Hizashi moved through several more examples, covering foot placement, parrying angles, balance recovery, and the transfer of power from the legs through the hips.
The principles were basic.
That made them even more valuable.
Advanced techniques were built upon movements like these. A poor stance weakened every attack performed from it, while proper balance allowed even a simple punch to carry the strength of the entire body.
Ren had read books about taijutsu.
None could compare to watching an experienced fighter demonstrate the details in person.
Hizashi corrected the angle of Ren's shoulders, repositioned his rear foot, and showed him how to keep his guard from blocking his own vision.
"When you strike, do not move the arm alone," Hizashi instructed. "Power begins at the ground. The foot anchors you, the leg drives, the hips rotate, and the shoulder guides the force into the hand."
He delivered a palm strike into the air.
The movement looked almost gentle.
A sharp crack echoed through the training ground.
Ren repeated it.
His first attempt was stiff.
Hizashi corrected him.
"Your front knee is locking. Relax it."
Ren tried again.
"Better. Now shorten the motion. An opponent will not give you time to draw your arm back."
The lesson continued for nearly twenty minutes.
Hizashi explained how to evade without losing balance, how to parry without meeting force directly, and how to recognize when an opponent's weight prevented them from changing direction.
Ren committed every detail to memory.
He asked questions whenever Hizashi paused. Some concerned the movements themselves, while others focused on applying them against taller, heavier, or faster opponents.
Hizashi answered each one without impatience.
He had arrived to test Ren's ability, but once the spar ended, he honored his promise completely.
Eventually, Hizashi stepped back.
"That is enough for today."
He brushed dirt from his clothes and glanced at his burned sleeve.
"Remember this: taijutsu is the foundation that allows every other skill to function. Powerful ninjutsu means little if an enemy breaks your balance before you can complete the hand seals."
Ren bowed.
"Thank you for the guidance."
The benefits of the spar had exceeded his expectations.
He had tested his upgraded techniques against a Chūnin, witnessed the Revolving Heaven at close range, and received a private taijutsu lesson from a member of the Hyūga clan.
Hizashi nodded.
"Practice what I showed you. The next time we meet, I expect your movements to be less careless."
With that, he turned toward the forest.
A few swift leaps carried him into the trees. His pale clothing disappeared between the branches, leaving Ren alone on the damaged training ground.
Hizashi maintained his pace until the clearing was no longer visible.
Then he slowed.
He landed on a thick branch and glanced back in the direction he had come.
His original purpose had been simple.
Homon claimed that a civilian academy student had defeated the Byakugan using only the Three Basic Jutsu. Hizashi wanted to examine those techniques himself and determine what had actually happened.
He had obtained an answer.
Unfortunately, that answer had created even more questions.
The ordinary Substitution Jutsu relied on exceptional timing, rapid movement, a replacement object, and misdirection. It was most effective when a skilled shinobi used it against a less experienced opponent.
Against someone of equal ability, the opportunity was difficult to create. Even when successful, the technique usually avoided a single decisive strike before the opponent adjusted.
Ren used it differently.
He incorporated the Substitution Jutsu into combinations.
Attack, exchange, reposition, attack again.
Every transition occurred smoothly, with no visible hand seals, preparation, or meaningful delay. Ren did not use the technique like an emergency escape.
He fought as though substitution itself were his natural state.
That was difficult enough to understand.
The Transformation Technique was even more troubling.
The Byakugan's field of vision did contain a tiny blind spot, but exploiting it required extraordinary accuracy. Ren had not only entered that narrow angle—he had concealed his movement well enough that Hizashi failed to reacquire him immediately.
A standard Transformation Technique could change the user's outward form, but the Byakugan should still perceive the chakra pathway system and internal flow.
Ren's chakra presence had seemed to disappear.
An academy student should not have been capable of either feat.
Yet Hizashi had witnessed both with his own eyes.
"What a strange junior," he murmured.
He remained on the branch for another moment before shaking his head and continuing toward the Hyūga compound.
Back on the training ground, Ren did not move immediately.
He closed his eyes and reviewed Hizashi's lesson from the beginning. Every stance, adjustment, and transition replayed inside his mind.
Only after he had organized the new information did he release a long breath.
Then he opened the system interface.
Several notifications had appeared during the battle, but he had ignored them while facing Hizashi.
Now he examined the log.
[Ding! High-quality potential affinity target detected: Gentle Fist.]
Ren's eyes brightened.
The next line appeared.
[Prerequisites not satisfied. Unable to establish an encounter.]
The excitement faded slightly.
Another message followed.
[External taijutsu knowledge and practical combat experience detected.]
[Your foundational understanding of taijutsu has increased.]
Ren read the messages twice.
The result confirmed something important.
Not every technique could immediately become an affinity target. The Gentle Fist depended on the Byakugan's ability to perceive the chakra pathway system and accurately strike tenketsu.
Without the Byakugan, Ren did not meet the technique's fundamental requirements.
However, the system had still detected it.
That meant the Gentle Fist was not completely inaccessible.
The conditions might be severe. He might need an alternative sensory ability, a way to perceive chakra points, or a modified version of the technique compatible with ordinary vision.
Whatever the answer was, the possibility existed.
Ren continued scrolling through the battle log.
The system had not said the Gentle Fist was impossible to obtain—only that Ren was not ready for it yet.