The Price of Growth

At this moment, Uchiha Chen looked like he was about to die as he dragged his feet over to draw his number.

For him, every second he could delay was another second gained. After all, once it ended, what awaited him was the fear of death.

He looked at his number. It was Number One.

Then he turned to Mikoto. "Mikoto, what number did you get?"

"I'm Number Three."

"What about Minato?"

"I'm Number Two."

Three people, three different numbers. Whether there had been any rigging, who knew?

Uchiha Chen shook out his Uchiha Brand Windbreaker. He slowly stepped forward, and his heroic figure gradually appeared on the stage.

A handsome face.

A body full of strength.

A flamboyant pose.

The despairing, overwhelming might he displayed in battle.

"Beat that trash Uchiha Chen! Long live the Himeji Cult!" a boy shouted from below the stage.

"Pay me back! Pay me back for my handsome description!" Uchiha Chen instantly flew into a rage, glaring at the person who had shouted.

The crowd below suddenly seemed on the verge of rioting.

That was because Uchiha Chen's opponent turned out to be Hyuga Himeji.

As the top-ranked figures on the "Most Wanted as a Boyfriend" and "Most Wanted as a Girlfriend" lists, their popularity was currently evenly matched.

No! The Himeji Cult probably had slightly more supporters.

After all, Himeji was also a prominent figure on the "Most Wanted as a Girlfriend" list. Many girls liked Hyuga Himeji. There were even rumors that she liked girls.

At this moment, the two camps were practically about to come to blows.

Uchiha Chen observed Hyuga Himeji. She seemed to have mostly recovered.

Her skin was fair, and long light-blue hair hung down her back. Her white pupils were like snow.

But her expression was utterly blank, cold as winter.

"Hyuga Himeji. Please guide me," Hyuga Himeji took the initiative to greet him.

That caught Uchiha Chen by surprise. Yet there was a gravity in her eyes he had never seen before.

"Uchiha Chen. Please guide me as well, senior," Uchiha Chen immediately replied.

This might have been a clash between the two most talented young people at present, as well as a clash between Konoha's two great clans.

Uchiha Chen did not immediately use Genjutsu.

Uchiha Chen had not activated his Sharingan. His Genjutsu attacked the opponent's five senses and brought the Chakra flowing through their brain and nervous system under his control.

Hyuga Himeji possessed the Byakugan, with a 360-degree field of vision. Even the smallest movements would be within her sight.

And if Hyuga Himeji fell under Genjutsu, she could use her extraordinary Chakra control to disrupt its flow.

Hyuga Himeji's Chakra control, enhanced by the Byakugan, was unquestionably superior to Uchiha Chen's.

She was a genius capable of using Rotation. The key to Rotation was controlling Chakra and releasing it from the Chakra points. Hyuga Himeji's mastery over Chakra spoke for itself.

Hyuga Himeji swiftly threw several Shuriken. They flew straight for Uchiha Chen's chest.

But attacks like Shuriken were generally only used for probing.

Sure enough, Hyuga Himeji immediately charged in. She intended to fully exploit the close-range advantage of the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist.

Uchiha Chen took several Kunai from his Ninja Pouch. With a flick of his right hand, he threw several Kunai into the air.

He held another Kunai before his chest in his left hand, then swung it rapidly, precisely blocking every Shuriken that came flying at him.

By then, Hyuga Himeji had already closed in. Uchiha Chen could clearly see her eyelashes.

Her fingers swiftly jabbed toward Uchiha Chen. The Kunai in Uchiha Chen's left hand stabbed toward Hyuga Himeji's arm, but she dodged it.

The two immediately clashed!

It had to be said that the Hyuga Clan, which specialized in Taijutsu, was truly formidable. Uchiha Chen had been concealing his true Taijutsu strength all this time.

But even with the strength and speed he was currently displaying, there were only a few people in the Ninja Academy who could match him.

Hyuga Himeji was one of them.

Uchiha Chen suddenly withdrew his Kunai and kicked out.

Hyuga Himeji blocked the kick, but she was still caught somewhat off guard and was driven backward by it. Uchiha Chen immediately put distance between them.

The Kunai Uchiha Chen had thrown into the air earlier collided with one another, then swept in a wide arc and fiercely shot toward Hyuga Himeji.

That Kunai-throwing skill alone was terrifying.

"It's here!" Nawaki shouted from below the stage. He immediately transformed into a starry-eyed fanboy. He had coveted that cool throwing style for a long time.

The Kunai rapidly approached Hyuga Himeji, but there was not the slightest trace of panic on her face.

Within the Byakugan's field of vision, she had discovered those Kunai long ago.

"Before these Byakugan eyes of mine, any movement you make is useless," Hyuga Himeji said softly.

"..."

Isn't that supposed to be my Sharingan's signature line?

When the Kunai reached Hyuga Himeji, Himeji likewise swiftly raised a Kunai to block them.

Clang!

Uchiha Chen's attack seemed to have had no effect.

"What?!"

Hyuga Himeji was startled inwardly. Her body suddenly went numb. Lightning clung to Uchiha Chen's Kunai and traveled up through the Kunai into her body.

At some point, Uchiha Chen had coated the Kunai in Lightning Release.

Just as Hyuga Himeji was paralyzed by the Lightning Release, an exaggerated Fire Release attack rushed toward her face.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu."

The Uchiha Clan's inherited Fire Release. Deliberately filled with Chakra, an absurdly massive fireball came roaring at her.

Hyuga Himeji felt the blazing heat of the Great Fireball. With her body paralyzed, she no longer had time to form Hand Seals and use the Substitution Jutsu.

"Then... Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven."

Streams of Chakra burst out from her Chakra points. The Chakra spun, blocking the Great Fireball.

"As expected of the technique that Fire Release can never hit," Uchiha Chen quipped.

There had never been a time when this Ninjutsu actually hit anyone.

After Rotation ended, Hyuga Himeji was already breathing somewhat heavily.

Using a Ninjutsu like Rotation twice in a single day was an enormous burden even for her.

Uchiha Chen stared at Hyuga Himeji across from him. Hyuga Himeji had always been working hard to prove something.

But carrying such feelings in the ninja world would not allow one to survive.

People always had to change. At some point, they had to make a clean break with their former selves. That was growth.

Before that, they might end up battered and bloodied.

Hyuga Himeji was now on the path of growth.

So Uchiha Chen decided to use his true strength to defeat her. That was his respect for her, and it would also make her wake up completely.

"Hyuga Himeji, how far can your Byakugan see? I'm looking forward to finding out."

A light dust rose from the ground, and several Uchiha Chens appeared on the stage.

Hyuga Himeji looked with her Byakugan, but she could not tell which was the real body and which was a clone.

Uchiha Chen vanished from where he stood.

Whoosh!

It was an ultra-high-speed movement akin to teleportation. When Orochimaru saw it, his face filled with disbelief.

Because he had once seen this move used by someone else—Uchiha Kagami.

Uchiha Chen had learned this move from his father's Scroll.

Since she could not tell which was real, she would defeat them one by one. Hyuga Himeji struck at the Uchiha Chen who had suddenly closed in, but her fist passed through his body.

"Is this... an afterimage?"

But the Uchiha Chen Hyuga Himeji had taken for an afterimage punched her squarely.

Hyuga Himeji was violently knocked back by the sudden force!

It was not over yet. As Hyuga Himeji retreated, another Uchiha Chen came at her from behind.

Hyuga Himeji threw a Shuriken, but it once again passed through Uchiha Chen's body.

Then Uchiha Chen leaped up, drew back his right leg, and struck Hyuga Himeji's abdomen again with a kick.

Hyuga Himeji was completely unable to resist at this point!

"I am both real and not real," Uchiha Chen's voice slowly drifted over.