Transformation

Hyuga Kagami felt a little proud of his performance just now, but he would not let such a watered-down victory go to his head.

Objectively speaking.

After Zabuza had clashed head-on with Guy, both his fighting spirit and stamina had been greatly depleted. More importantly, he had broken several ribs.

Though the injury was not visible on the surface, it had a major impact on combat, especially Taijutsu.

That was also one of the main reasons Zabuza had chosen to force Hyuga Kagami back, then abandon his sword and form hand seals to use Ninjutsu. With injured ribs, he would undoubtedly be at a disadvantage in a Taijutsu fight.

That meant Hyuga Kagami had not only taken advantage of his opponent's injuries, but had also caught him off guard and seized the initiative. Added to that was the unparalleled insight granted by the Tenseigan.

All those factors combined had produced such a swift victory.

Of course, from another perspective, it also showed that Hyuga Kagami was changing. The once mediocre and unremarkable him was fading away, replaced by a decisive, sharp, rising powerhouse who excelled at seizing opportunities.

Guy asked curiously, "Kagami, you don't seem afraid of those Kirigakure ninja at all, but shouldn't they all be Jonin?"

"They should only be Special Jonin," Hyuga Kagami replied.

Although Special Jonin were considered Jonin, they were still somewhat different from true Jonin. Jonin was an extremely broad category that hid many monsters, including no shortage of Kage-level experts.

Special Jonin, on the other hand, were a very clearly defined tier. Those with greater strength often advanced to Jonin quickly, so ninja who remained at the Special Jonin level were generally a notch below ordinary Jonin. The odds of a Kage-level expert being among them were extremely low.

Second, Hyuga Kagami's attitude toward Kirigakure just now had also been partly an act.

In truth, he had begun acting the moment he encountered the Kirigakure Assassination Squad confronting his village's Anbu.

He wanted to overturn his former image as someone mediocre and unremarkable, but he could not overdo it or rush things. Thus, choosing the right opponent was especially important. Zabuza, whose strength had reached Special Jonin but whose experience was not especially seasoned, was undoubtedly an excellent stepping stone.

As for his arrogant attitude, that too had been deliberate.

For one thing, children of powerful bloodline clans were more or less arrogant. Such an attitude was actually the most normal thing.

For another, arrogance meant being difficult to provoke. When faced with an arrogant and cold-blooded person, many people would think carefully before plotting against them. Invisibly, that would save Hyuga Kagami a great deal of trouble.

However, there was another reason that had truly prompted Hyuga Kagami to begin establishing a new image so quickly.

Yesterday, he had learned from Rin that, due to the severe shortage of manpower in the village, the higher-ups had decided to select a batch of Special Jonin from among the Chunin.

Hyuga Kagami was determined to win this promotion opportunity.

Once he became a Special Jonin, his status and position would undergo earth-shaking changes. After all, his current rank was that of a Chunin mass-promoted during wartime. In terms of standing, he was inferior to Chunin who had been promoted through the normal review process.

So if he became a Special Jonin, it would be equivalent to leaping two ranks at once. He would immediately rise above all Chunin, completely escape the fate of cannon fodder, and become one of the village's high-level combat forces.

Moreover, after becoming a Special Jonin, he could submit requests to the village to learn advanced Ninjutsu or even Forbidden Techniques by accumulating merit.

Back then, the Fourth Hokage had exchanged his military achievements on the battlefield for the opportunity to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique, thereby laying the foundation for his rise to Kage-level.

After tracking them for several hours, Hyuga Kagami and Guy finally found the group of rogue ninja.

There were five of them, all dressed like Kirigakure ninja. Their leader wore his hair in a topknot and had a vermilion dot above each eyebrow. He seemed to be from the fairly renowned Kaguya Clan of Kirigakure.

Hyuga Kagami whispered, "They seem to be from the Kaguya Clan with the Shikotsumyaku. Be careful!"

Guy nodded solemnly.

Famous bloodline clans were almost never easy to deal with. Guy, who had experienced war, knew that well. Kirigakure's Kaguya Clan was notorious for being powerful and insane, baleful stars that everyone on the battlefield avoided.

The Kaguya Clan ninja across from them laughed loudly. "Konoha sent just two little brats to hunt us down?"

The other rogue ninja also burst into laughter. One of them mocked, "I heard Konoha's Hokage was killed in his own village not long ago. Looks like Konoha really is finished."

Hyuga Kagami swept the surroundings with his Tenseigan. After confirming that there was no one else nearby, he formed a plan.

The Kaguya Clan's Shikotsumyaku, combined with their superb Taijutsu, made them nearly perfect in both offense and defense. Ordinary Taijutsu and weapons were ineffective against them. Even the Gentle Fist might not be able to penetrate the Shikotsumyaku bone armor. Thus, the Kaguya Clan greatly countered Taijutsu-type ninja, and unfortunately, both Hyuga Kagami and Guy were Taijutsu-type ninja.

For that reason, Hyuga Kagami decisively chose to launch a surprise attack with Rotation, pulling the leading Kaguya Clan ninja toward him and swiftly sealing his chakra with the Gentle Fist so he could not use the Shikotsumyaku.

Having made up his mind, Hyuga Kagami deliberately showed weakness. "This is the Land of Fire. Leave immediately!"

Upon hearing that, the rogue ninja across from them laughed even more recklessly. One of them even took out the flask at his waist and began drinking as if no one else were around.

Hyuga Kagami took several more steps forward, putting on a fierce but inwardly weak appearance as he shouted, "If you don't leave, don't blame Konoha for being rude!"

The Kaguya Clan ninja also took a few steps toward Hyuga Kagami and laughed. "Brat, do you know who I am—"

Before he could finish speaking, the Kaguya Clan ninja suddenly felt an immense pulling force seize his body and drag him toward Hyuga Kagami.

At the same time, Hyuga Kagami leaped into the air and charged at him like a ferocious tiger!

The two sides had only been a little over ten meters apart to begin with, so in the blink of an eye, they collided.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Amid a series of dull palm strikes, the Kaguya Clan ninja had not even had time to activate his bloodline before every major chakra point in his body was sealed by Hyuga Kagami's Gentle Fist. He crashed to the ground like a sandbag.

Sealing his chakra points was not enough. Hyuga Kagami then unleashed a set of Eight Trigrams Palms on his utterly defenseless opponent, every strike aimed at vital points. In an instant, he killed him and destroyed his brain.

This group consisted of rogue ninja and were the mission targets, unlike Zabuza before. There would be no mercy.

At the same time Hyuga Kagami made his move, Guy also rushed forward and held back the other four rogue ninja.

Other than the leading Kaguya Clan ninja, the remaining four rogue ninja were all insignificant. Before Hyuga Kagami could even arrive to assist, Guy had dealt with all of them by himself.

After sealing the Kaguya Clan ninja's corpse into the mission Scroll, Hyuga Kagami and Guy did not delay and immediately returned to the village.

On the way, Guy could not help asking in confusion again, "Kagami, what happened just now?"

Hyuga Kagami smiled. "You didn't think you were the only one with a Forbidden Technique, did you? That move just now was mine."