A fierce palm wind came rushing in, but Hyuga Rei's gaze did not waver. She thrust out a palm of her own and firmly received Hyuga Tetsu's attack.
"Heh, so weak and powerless. You call this a secret technique? You call this Gentle Fist?" Hyuga Rei snorted mockingly as they remained locked in a stalemate.
"Big words!" Hyuga Tetsu roared, exerting more force and shaking his arm to knock the girl's away.
Gentle Fist Style: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!
Gentle Fist Style: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!
The moment the words fell, blue-green yin-yang Eight Trigrams formations emerged beneath their feet, filling every corner of the training ground in an instant.
The two activated their Byakugan at almost the same time.
"That's amazing... Is this the Hyuga Clan? What terrifying Nintaijutsu!" the watching students exclaimed in shock.
"Not bad, these two little ones..." Orochimaru narrowed his eyes as he watched closely.
"Two Palms!" "Two Palms!"
They shouted in unison, their palm strikes nearly equal in speed. After the first exchange ended without a result—
"Four Palms!" "Four Palms!" The second clash arrived. They grew faster and faster, neither willing to yield as they began confronting each other head-on.
"Eight Palms!" "Eight Palms!" Their speed surged once more, leaving the students watching nearby dumbfounded. They had not expected the two to be so strong—or so dead set on winning.
This time, however, Hyuga Rei's complexion had visibly worsened. As a girl, she was naturally a little weaker in physical strength, and she would certainly suffer in a direct confrontation.
Yet she neither retreated nor dodged. Enduring the stabbing pain in her arm, she struck again.
"Sixteen Palms!" "As you wish! Sixteen Palms!"
Seeing this, Hyuga Tetsu shouted and attacked once more.
The tremendous force slammed into Hyuga Rei's arm. After barely blocking the blow, she finally let out a muffled groan.
"Mm—"
A feeling of blockage spread through her injured left hand, slowing her Chakra circulation.
"You can't hold on anymore, can you? Going head-to-head with me... I didn't expect you to lose your mind like this!" Hyuga Tetsu attacked without pause. Seeing the girl struggling to defend herself, he became completely arrogant.
"I'll finish you right now!" the boy shouted.
Hyuga Rei paid him no heed, her gaze fixed tightly on his chest.
"Thirty-Two Palms!" "Eight Trigrams Empty Strike!" Two entirely different cries rang out. Hyuga Tetsu stared in astonishment at the girl as she retreated.
"What?!"
The next instant, the girl's counterattack arrived. An invisible impact slammed solidly into Hyuga Tetsu's chest. A searing pain erupted, and he tasted blood in his throat.
The next moment, he collapsed to the ground, clutching his chest tightly as he curled into a ball.
"You... you cheated..." Hyuga Tetsu raised his head in fury and demanded hoarsely.
"Are you a child?" Hyuga Rei shot him a contemptuous sideways glance, clutching her swollen left arm as she mocked him.
"Victory goes to Hyuga Rei!" Seeing that the outcome had been decided, Funeno Daikoku immediately announced it.
"Form the reconciliation seal!" At the teacher's urging, Hyuga Rei casually extended her fingers before Hyuga Tetsu.
"Tch." Seeing Hyuga Tetsu still standing there in a daze, the girl clicked her tongue coldly. Only after he reluctantly linked fingers with her to form the reconciliation seal did she swiftly shake him off and walk off the field.
"Hey, Kai-kun, I won!" The girl happily said to Uchiha Kai, looking completely different from before.
"That was impressive, Rei, but is your arm okay?" the boy replied.
"I'm fine. I'll just go to the infirmary later. You need to do your best too!"
"I will. You should get it treated quickly." The boy was about to say more when he suddenly heard Funeno Daikoku's voice.
"Next match: Uchiha Kai versus Mitaraishi Anko."
The boy froze, sensing that something was very wrong.
It's my turn already? My student number isn't even that early, is it?
I just made eye contact with Orochimaru, and now I'm fighting his disciple Anko. Could there really be such a coincidence?
Oh no, did he set his sights on me? Had Orochimaru already begun showing his talent for abducting children at this point...?
Though he grumbled inwardly, the boy's feet did not slow in the slightest. He had already reached the center of the field and faced off against the girl in "black stockings."
Whispers rose from below the field.
"Mitaraishi Anko? I heard Lord Orochimaru has already accepted her as his disciple."
"What? Lord Orochimaru accepted her as his disciple? Really? My theory grades are bad, don't lie to me!"
"Of course it's true. At least half the reason Lord Orochimaru came to watch our exam was because of her. I heard that after graduation, she won't even be assigned to a team—she'll directly stay by Lord Orochimaru's side."
"That's incredible! Then Lord Orochimaru will personally teach her. Who do you think will win between them?"
"Hard to say. Her opponent is Uchiha Kai, after all. That guy isn't simple either."
"True. He's a ninja from a major clan. I think it'll be hard for Mitaraishi Anko to win..."
Hearing the voices from below, Mitaraishi Anko snorted coldly.
"Hmph, they think highly of you. Is the arrogant Uchiha Clan truly as strong as the rumors say?" Her first words were full of gunpowder.
"Ah, don't jump to conclusions based on groundless rumors. Though I really am strong—the legendary Sannin's dis-ci-ple." The boy deliberately dragged out the word "disciple," returning her earlier jab.
"You don't need to tell me that! As Lord Orochimaru's disciple, I will never lose to you! I'll show you big-clan ninjas that us commoners are strong too!" Mitaraishi Anko declared passionately, as if she were facing some great villain.
"Hey, hey, hey, you're making it sound like I've done something to you... Explain yourself. I didn't say anything!" Uchiha Kai immediately panicked and hurried to explain.
"Begin!" However, Funeno Daikoku gave him no chance, declaring the start of the battle.
"Sigh..." With no other choice, the boy returned her Opposing Seals.
The next instant, Uchiha Kai's expression completely changed, his eyes overflowing with sharpness and edge.
Mitaraishi Anko's expression tightened. With a flick of her hand, several Shuriken shot out at tremendous speed, aimed directly at Uchiha Kai's vital points.
Watching the rapidly approaching attack, the boy remained calm. With a turn of his hand, he drew several Shuriken of his own and threw them forcefully, tracing several strange arcs through the air.
Clang!
The sound of weapons colliding rang out. Anko inwardly lamented her bad luck and prepared to end the probing exchange, but the boy threw several more Shuriken.
The Shuriken Uchiha Kai had thrown collided in midair, yet instead of falling straight down, they strangely collided with one another again.
The next instant, two of them changed direction and flew swiftly toward Anko.
"What?!" Startled, Anko hurriedly shifted aside to dodge. Though she was not struck directly, her left arm was still cut in her haste, a thin wound slowly seeping blood.
"Uchiha Shurikenjutsu... Kai has applied it quite well." Watching the boy's composed movements, Funeno Daikoku sincerely praised him.
"So amazing... Is this the Uchiha Clan?" "Terrifying..." The usual fodder dialogue came from below the field.
"Go, Kai-kun!" "Knock her flat, Kai!" Hyuga Rei and Morino Kei cheered for the boy without holding back.
"Don't get so cocky! I'm Lord Orochimaru's disciple! Looking down on me comes at a price!" Anko suddenly shouted.
"Who exactly is looking down on you...? Could you stop putting words in other people's mouths?" Uchiha Kai suddenly felt a headache coming on.
"You won't even draw your sword! Isn't that looking down on me?!" Anko shouted as she flung several Senbon Needles again.
"Oh, you mean this? It's too sharp. You might get hurt." Uchiha Kai spoke with an innocent expression. At some point, he had drawn a Kunai and deflected every attack.
"Damn Uchiha! Are you saying you're humiliating me?"
Listening to the girl's endless chatter, the boy seemed to grow annoyed. He spun the Kunai in his hand and completely discarded his calm expression.
He said:
"If I interpret it according to your logic, then yes, I am humiliating you." He paused, only now revealing the expression an Uchiha ought to have.
Uchiha Kai raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth curling high in mockery.
"You're not worthy of making me draw my sword."
The arrogant Uchiha spoke calmly.
Before you continue