Chang Rui's Surprise

The girl smiled at him, batting her big eyes. "Don't forget, I have the Byakugan. There's no way I could miss the enormous amount of chakra in your body. Hehe."

Xia Xueqing left with a playful smile, leaving Su Bai standing there, dumbfounded.

How... how could I forget about that?

The Byakugan could see through the human body, revealing its network of chakra pathways and the amount of chakra within. He'd overlooked this most basic fact all along...

The four-way matches began in the arena. Wen Yuanyuan's team was first up, facing classmates from her own school.

"Your Noble School really is something else. You've taken all four spots in the semifinals!"

In the resting area, Su Bai watched their opponents—also students from the Noble School—and sighed.

Chang Rui and Xia Xueqing nodded, unsurprised.

The Yang City Campus Tournament had been much the same in previous years.

Children from ordinary families lacked the resources to train. If they could master the Three Body Technique before the college entrance exams, they were doing well. Few had enough chakra to reach the minimum standard for a Genin: one card.

The Noble School was different. None of its students lacked training resources. Under their parents' guidance, they began cultivating chakra and learning ninjutsu at an early age. They'd already gotten a head start.

"Those three aren't a match for Wen Yuanyuan, but they might force her to show a bit of her real strength. Su Bai, watch closely," Xia Xueqing said pointedly.

Su Bai nodded and watched attentively.

In the arena, Wen Yuanyuan smiled at the girl among her three opponents. "Qingqing, I didn't expect you to be my opponent."

"Hehe, Yuanyuan, go easy on me, okay? I'm no match for you," the girl named Qingqing said with a giggle. The two seemed to get along well.

Wen Yuanyuan gave a helpless smile. "I'd like to, but you're no pushover. If I hold back, you'll beat me."

She knew her three classmates' abilities. They each had around four or five cards of chakra and had mastered at least one C-rank ninjutsu. They were not to be underestimated.

Yan Zheng's opponent was another Fire Release user, while Yang Liu faced a Wind Release user. Both wore calm expressions.

Wen Yuanyuan's opponent, Qingqing, was an Earth Release user and the strongest of the three, with five cards of chakra.

"Begin!" At the referee's command, the two teams sprang into action!

Yan Zheng struck first. He formed hand seals, launching a Great Fireball seven or eight meters across toward Qingqing's team. Its heat distorted the air.

Qingqing calmly formed hand seals and slapped one hand against the ground.

"Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!"

Boom!

A wall of earth more than ten meters tall sprang up in front of her and her two teammates, blocking Yan Zheng's Great Fireball.

"Don't forget to watch your backs." Just as the three of them began to relax, Wen Yuanyuan's voice rang out. A bubble of water, two meters across, appeared and instantly trapped Qingqing inside.

It was the Water Release Ninjutsu, Water Prison Technique!

The Water Prison Technique restrained its target. Once trapped, the victim couldn't escape on their own unless there was a vast difference in strength.

However, the technique had one drawback: the user had to keep one hand inside the bubble to maintain control.

"Qingqing!"

"We have to save her!"

Seeing the situation turn against them, Qingqing's two teammates immediately began using ninjutsu.

But before they could act, Yang Liu had already climbed onto the Earth Style Wall and begun performing a technique.

"Ice Release: Ice Pillar Technique!"

Boom!

Two enormous pillars of ice appeared out of nowhere, encasing the two boys and leaving them unable to move!

That was the power of a Kekkei Genkai. By combining two chakra nature transformations, it produced an absurdly powerful technique that ordinary ninja simply couldn't withstand.

The spectators gasped as the battle ended so quickly.

"He's an Ice Release user? You don't see many of those."

"Yeah, and he's still in his senior year of high school. He's got a bright future."

"What's his connection to Yang Long? There can't be many Ice Release users in Yang City, can there?"

"Heh, I know that kid. He's Yang Long's son. Like father, like son!"

The crowd showered them with praise. After watching a whole day of "joke" matches, they'd finally seen a battle worth their attention.

"Xueqing, do you think you can handle Yang Liu?" Chang Rui asked worriedly in the resting area.

She'd already thought highly of Kekkei Genkai, but Yang Liu's strength had still surpassed her expectations.

Xia Xueqing shook her head. "If one of his techniques hits me, I won't be able to escape. But if I get close, he won't be able to withstand my Taijutsu attacks either."

She couldn't yet learn the long-range ninjutsu available to Byakugan users. All she knew was the most basic Gentle Fist.

That was also why Xia Xueqing's Taijutsu was so formidable. Combined with the Byakugan's incredible insight, it let her easily strike her opponents' weak points.

But there was one condition: she had to get close to them...

Watching Yang Liu use Ice Release made Su Bai even more eager to awaken a Kekkei Genkai.

I wonder when my Sharingan will awaken...

Even if it's only one tomoe, my strength will change dramatically!

Chapter 28: Chang Rui's Surprise

In a room at the very top of the Combat Gym, two middle-aged men stood by the window, watching the battle in the arena. The square-faced man turned to his companion and asked, "Old Xia, what do you think? My son's pretty good, isn't he?"

He was Yang Liu's father, Yang Long, a famous Ice Release ninja in Yang City Base City. He was an Elite Chunin, making him one of the top fighters in Yang City.

"Not bad," said the middle-aged man Old Xia, dressed all in black. His shiny bald head made him stand out.

But that wasn't what made him most striking. His eyes drew everyone's attention: his irises were entirely devoid of black, just like Xia Xueqing's. He had the Byakugan!

He was Xia Xueqing's uncle, Xia Ling, the Xia Family's second-in-command and one of the few Jonin in Yang City!

Hearing a Jonin from the Xia Family praise his son, Yang Long looked pleased.

"That brat may not be fast at cultivating chakra, but he inherited my Ice Release Kekkei Genkai at such a young age. He'll definitely go further than I have."

"Mm. The earlier a Kekkei Genkai awakens, the better," Xia Ling replied with a nod.

As a Jonin with the Byakugan, he knew a great deal about Kekkei Genkai.

The earlier one awakened, the sooner one could combine chakra nature transformations. Those transformations would gradually alter a ninja's physical abilities.

The stronger a ninja's body, the faster they could cultivate chakra and the more chakra they'd have. That gave them an early foundation for becoming powerful in the future.

Yang Long watched his son leave the arena and Xia Xueqing's team take his place, a smile tugging at his lips.

"Old Xia, looks like your girl's out of the running for the championship in this year's Yang City Campus Tournament."

As an Elite Chunin, he could easily see the difference between Xia Xueqing's teammates and Yang Liu's. A quick comparison told him how things would turn out.

Xia Xueqing's Taijutsu was impressive, but she didn't know any long-range ninjutsu, so she posed no threat to his son.

Chang Rui and Wen Yuanyuan were evenly matched. Even if Chang Rui won, it would be a hard-fought victory—and that was the best-case scenario.

As for Yan Zheng and Su Bai, there was no comparison... Yan Zheng had more chakra and had mastered the C-rank Great Fireball, while Su Bai had little chakra and knew only one D-rank technique.

So Yang Long was sure his son's team would win.

"Heh. Not so fast."

"Oh? You think your girl will win?"

"It's too early to say. Let's wait and see." Xia Ling's gaze lingered on Su Bai for a moment, and he smiled mysteriously.

Yang Long wasn't a sensory ninja, and the arena was more than two hundred meters away, so he couldn't see Su Bai's true strength.

Xia Ling, however, was different. He had sensory abilities, and the Byakugan was a Kekkei Genkai with exceptional insight. He could see Su Bai's strength at a glance, which piqued his curiosity.

That brat dared to tease Xueqing, but he has neither connections nor talent. How did he cultivate so much chakra? He's got even more than Xueqing.

The speed at which a person cultivated chakra depended on the network of pathways in their body, and the Byakugan could see those pathways.

Xia Ling could tell at a glance that Su Bai's physical condition was average, if not poor. By rights, he shouldn't have had such a vast amount of chakra...

Could it be that he has such fine control over chakra that he can cultivate it faster? Xia Ling wondered.

Su Bai had no idea he'd surprised Xia Xueqing's uncle, the second-in-command of the Xia Family. It was his turn to compete now.

The second semifinal began. Su Bai, Xia Xueqing, and Chang Rui stepped into the arena, joined by three boys from the Noble School.

"All three have around four cards of chakra. They're no match for Xueqing or me. When the match starts, watch yourself so we don't hit you by mistake," Chang Rui said calmly, her gaze fixed on their opponents.

Su Bai froze. He hadn't expected the girl who was always picking on him to say something like that...

Heh, Xueqing was right. She's all bark and no bite.

Su Bai looked at Chang Rui, dressed in a black leather jacket and pants, her appearance brisk and no-nonsense. He shook his head with a smile. "Just fight as hard as you like. Don't worry about me."

He wasn't going to hide his strength anymore.

Their three opponents were no pushovers. If he didn't step up, the two girls would have a hard time winning on their own.

And if they used too much chakra, they'd be at a disadvantage in the next match against Wen Yuanyuan's team.

Xia Xueqing knew what Su Bai could do. She turned to Chang Rui. "Sister Rui, Su Bai's going to surprise you."

"What do you mean?" Chang Rui glanced at Xueqing, who was speaking in riddles, and looked puzzled.

But her confusion didn't last long. It quickly turned to shock!

"Begin!"

At the referee's command, Su Bai immediately began forming hand seals.

"What's he doing? Is he going to use ninjutsu from this far away?"

The three opponents watched Su Bai forming hand seals in confusion. They were three hundred meters apart.

"Don't let him scare you. The Double Suicide Decapitation Technique can't reach us from that distance!" one of the boys said. His two teammates immediately nodded.

"Su Bai, you..." Chang Rui sensed the enormous amount of chakra pouring out of him. Her mouth fell open in amazement.

Su Bai held the final hand seal. His technique was ready, and he could unleash it at any moment.

"Xueqing, Chang Rui, I'll take the boy in the middle. You two handle the other two!"

"Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu!"

Whoosh!

Su Bai sank into the ground!

"What?!"

The boy in the middle suddenly felt something grab his right foot. Before he could look down and see what it was, his whole body was pulled underground, with only his head left above the surface!

His two teammates froze in shock. Su Bai had caught them completely off guard!

They'd never imagined he could cross a distance of three hundred meters!

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

"Gentle Fist!"

Two sharp cries rang out. Chang Rui and Xia Xueqing had already closed in while their opponents were stunned!

Boom!

Chang Rui blew a powerful gust from her mouth, sending the two boys staggering.

Her Wind Release: Great Breakthrough wasn't very damaging, but it restricted their movement and created an opening for Xia Xueqing to get close.

Xia Xueqing didn't disappoint. Once she was in range, she used her fingers to strike the two boys repeatedly. They immediately felt their chakra slipping out of their control, as if their chakra points had been blocked.

This was the Gentle Fist Style's point-blocking technique, which could temporarily deprive an opponent of control over their chakra.

In the blink of an eye, Su Bai had buried one opponent underground, while Xia Xueqing had blocked the other two boys' chakra points.