With Ootani Yuuto's decision, the two students who had been called off the field were both somewhat dissatisfied. They had been about to fight, only to be forcibly called back like this. But the moment they saw that it was Mingxi of the Uchiha, the displeasure vanished from their faces. They were children from civilian families; neither their influence nor their strength could compare to Mingxi's. They could only swallow their resentment and leave...
"...Hyuga Yuzuru versus Uchiha Akari!"
After hearing Ootani Yuuto's announcement, Mingxi immediately gave Yuzuru a smug look, then entered the marked training ground and waited for him to come over.
"Yuzuru, good luck!"
As Yuzuru left, Hanakei Kaede spoke to him expectantly, her voice sweet and her smile adorable.
"She's just a childish brat."
Yuzuru shook his head slightly. By the time his voice reached Hanakei Kaede's ears, he had already used the Body Flicker Technique to arrive in front of Mingxi.
The scoring teachers exchanged glances with Ootani Yuuto, then repeated the earlier instruction.
"Form the Seal of Confrontation first!"
Upon hearing this, Mingxi formed the Seal of Confrontation toward Yuzuru and said with utter seriousness, "Hyuga Yuzuru, let me see just how large the gap between us still is!"
Mingxi knew she was no match for Yuzuru, but if she did not even know how far behind him she was, how could she ever catch up to him?
"Want to catch up to me?"
As Yuzuru completed the Seal of Confrontation, he looked into Mingxi's intensely serious eyes and suddenly spoke. Then he continued, "Then let me see whether you have the potential..."
"The match begins!"
At the scoring teacher's command, Mingxi immediately activated her two-tomoe Sharingan. She stared at Yuzuru with complete focus and assumed a defensive stance.
Yuzuru paid no mind to Mingxi's cautious defense. He simply strolled toward her with an easy, relaxed air, looking less like he was fighting and more like he was taking a walk.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Unable to find any opening in Yuzuru, Mingxi switched from defense to offense and immediately formed hand seals to launch a Fire Release technique.
A massive fireball burst from Mingxi's mouth and shot straight toward Yuzuru. Its terrifying heat swept across the entire training ground in rolling waves, shrouding the field in scorching air...
"Everyone, get back!"
Seeing Mingxi use a C-rank ninjutsu, Ootani Yuuto and several teachers shouted at the students in alarm. They could not endure the power of such a destructive technique; even its residual force could inflict serious injuries!
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
As the students scattered and retreated, Ootani Yuuto shouted in a low voice. A fan-shaped wall of water rose before the students, blocking the heat waves sweeping across the training ground...
"You should know that the same move won't work on me."
As Yuzuru's voice rang out on the field, he had not only used the Body Flicker Technique to evade Mingxi's Fire Release, but had also closed in on her position almost instantly.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Mingxi did not refute Yuzuru's words. Instead, she fired several shuriken from her hand, sending them raining down on him like scattered petals.
Yuzuru used the Body Flicker Technique again to evade them gracefully, then took the opportunity to ambush Mingxi from behind, preparing to finish her with a single blow.
The next second, Yuzuru's right foot slammed into Mingxi's backside, kicking her to the ground. Then, just like on that night a month ago, he sat heavily on her back and pinned her firmly beneath him.
Crackle...
At that moment, something unexpected happened. "Mingxi's" body suddenly turned into a mass of violent electricity, paralyzing Yuzuru's body.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Net!"
Then, as a sharp cry suddenly rang out, one of the shuriken embedded in the ground transformed into Mingxi...
"What terrifying talent for ninjutsu!"
After safely leading the students away, Ootani Yuuto and the scoring teachers were instantly shocked by the sight.
In that instant of battle, Mingxi had first used the Great Fireball Technique as a probing attack, using it to obscure Yuzuru's vision. Since Yuzuru had not activated his Byakugan, he could not see that Mingxi had used the Lightning Clone Technique, much less realize that her real body had used the Transformation Technique to become a shuriken and been thrown out by the Lightning Clone, hiding safely somewhere on the training ground.
Even more astonishingly, the tails of the shuriken Mingxi had thrown were connected to iron wires soaked in a special solution, making them impossible to see under the reflection of sunlight.
At that moment, Mingxi used the wires attached to the shuriken to unleash Lightning Release, combining it with the Lightning Release power that erupted when the Lightning Clone exploded to form a net of lightning covering more than half the training ground!
On top of that, Yuzuru had sat on Mingxi's Lightning Clone earlier. By now, he had long been paralyzed by the Lightning Release and was temporarily unable to move. This allowed Mingxi's second Lightning Release attack to strike Yuzuru with perfect accuracy, dealing him another heavy blow.
"Huff... huff..."
"Hyuga Yuzuru, you lost!"
Seeing Yuzuru lying stiffly on the ground, Mingxi, breathing heavily, immediately declared her victory smugly. This was the price of underestimating the Uchiha!
She had first used the Great Fireball Technique, then consecutively used the Lightning Clone Technique and Transformation Technique, and finally squeezed out every last bit of her Chakra to use Lightning Release: Lightning Net. For a mere six-year-old girl, that was already her absolute limit. The fact that she had not fainted from Chakra depletion was only because her unyielding will was barely holding her up...
"Is this the Uchiha genius?"
A Chunin teacher who had only recently joined the Ninja Academy spoke again in shock at the sight. He would have found this impressive even if it had been performed by a Chunin of the same rank, let alone by a first-year Ninja Academy student—especially one who was only six years old!
Her combat awareness, meticulous control of ninjutsu, and grasp and prediction of her opponent's psychology all meshed together flawlessly, without the slightest opening to be found!
"Lost? That word isn't in my dictionary!"
Suddenly, "Yuzuru," who had been lying stiffly on the ground, exploded into a puff of white smoke. Clearly, the "Yuzuru" who had been struck was not his real body either, but one of his Shadow Clones!
"How is that possible?"
Mingxi spoke in disbelief. She had already used every method at her disposal, yet the one she had subdued was only one of Yuzuru's Shadow Clones.
"Earth Release: Headhunter Technique!"
A crack suddenly appeared beneath Mingxi's feet. Then, a pair of hands reached out from the fissure and grabbed her legs, dragging her underground until only her head remained above the surface. Her fair face and long, straight black hair were immediately smeared with dust, and dry grass was caught in her mouth, leaving her in a thoroughly bedraggled state.
"Pah, pah, pah..."
Mingxi spat out the grass in her mouth, then raised her head with an embarrassed, indignant expression. That hateful guy was squatting right in front of her, looking at her with an icy face. There was no pride or arrogance at defeating an Uchiha in those Byakugan eyes; they were calm as a still pool...
"Hyuga Yuzuru wins!"
Ootani Yuuto hurried onto the training ground, crossing the area scorched by Fire Release to reach Yuzuru and Mingxi, and announced the result.
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