Unfamiliar Power

Zhou Yang had knocked the two of them apart, leaving himself positioned between them. Yet he was not the least bit flustered by this formation, because their Earth Release ninja had already lost his ability to fight. With that ninja out of commission, the other side had completely lost the advantage provided by ninja techniques. This was the tactic Zhou Yang had devised while loosening up his body. But how had he known that ninja possessed an earth attribute?

It was because of his build. Those with earth attributes were generally more muscular due to the nature of their Chakra. That was also why Earth Release techniques had such strong defensive capabilities.

Even Hanzo, watching from the side, could not help but praise him. "Apart from Nara Shikaku of Konoha, no one among his peers can match this kid's combat instincts and tactical awareness."

Rain and Yushi, Hanzo's trusted subordinates, were startled by their leader's words. "My god, what kind of evaluation is that? Does Lord Hanzo mean...?" They did not dare think any further and could only focus their gazes on the battlefield, pretending they had heard nothing.

The three men on the battlefield remained locked in a standoff. Zhou Yang did not charge because he was considering which opponent would be easier to break through. As for the other two, they were still shaken by his thunderous methods from earlier. More importantly, they had discovered that, at their current level of taijutsu, they were actually no match for him. They could hardly believe it—a Lower Ninja felt inferior to an ordinary person in taijutsu. It was truly bizarre.

But the two had been teammates for years, so they understood each other's thoughts with a single glance. Their simplest and most practical method now was to trade injury for victory.

In truth, the strongest member of their three-man squad was not either of the two who had mocked Zhou Yang earlier, but the one who had remained silent. Besides being born with water-attribute Chakra, he also possessed lightning-attribute Chakra. With such an attribute, Hanzo naturally had not been stingy in nurturing him. Thus, despite being a Lower Ninja, he was unusually capable of using several ninja techniques, including two Lightning Release techniques. Even Uchiha Sasuke in the original story, at this age, had only known how to throw Shuriken. And if he combined his water-attribute Chakra with Water Release, the power of his Lightning Release would become even greater.

However, the conditions were not right for that at the moment, but that did not stop him from becoming the key to this battle.

After exchanging looks, Taunt Bro, the one who remained, charged at Zhou Yang. Watching this incredibly skinny Lower Ninja rush at him, Zhou Yang curled his lip. After what happened just now, this kid still dares charge in like that? Is his brain broken? Or is he just a decoy, and that guy is the real objective? Zhou Yang glanced at the other ninja from the corner of his eye and found that he had not moved at all, which puzzled him. But the situation did not allow him time to think, because Taunt Bro had already reached him.

Since he had come charging in to be beaten, Zhou Yang would beat him. In an instant, the two became entangled in close combat.

Although Taunt Bro's physique was far inferior to Zhou Yang's, he had Chakra. Moreover, Zhou Yang had barely used his true strength before, so he had not yet adapted to his various abilities. Because of those two factors, the two actually fought to a standstill in the early stages of their clash.

Taunt Bro naturally noticed this during the fight. Though this kid's body was like that of a monster, he seemed unfamiliar with his own strength. Combined with his terrible combat experience, Taunt Bro immediately felt that the kid was not actually that strong. They had merely been frightened by that shocking blow at the beginning and had severely overestimated their opponent's strength. Besides, they had received systematic taijutsu training and had even been guided by Hanzo, the Demi-God. After fighting for a while, Taunt Bro gradually took the initiative.

Zhou Yang also noticed something was wrong during their exchange. With every punch and kick, he was badly misjudging the speed of his own strikes. For example, when he read his opponent's movements and knew a certain body part would be in a particular position a few seconds later, he would throw a punch at that spot. But his punches were faster than he anticipated, so whenever a strike should have landed, it would arrive too early and miss. Every missed punch meant one less hand available for defense, and he would be struck in return. Over time, even with his excellent physique, he could not hold on. After several minutes of fighting, Zhou Yang's body was covered in bruises.

Seeing how poor Zhou Yang's taijutsu was, Taunt Bro swelled with confidence again. As he traded blows with him, he mocked, "Hey, kid, weren't you pretty good at fighting? Is this all you've got? We've been fighting for so long, and you still haven't managed to hurt me once. That must have been hard for you. Well, I can't blame you. You're just some self-taught wildling, after all." At that moment, he seized an opening and kicked Zhou Yang away. He then retreated to his teammate's side and said, "Qianbai, looks like you won't need to step in. This kid is no match for me at all."

Qianbai, who had remained silent while observing from the edge, nodded. "The kid has a decent physique, but he has never received systematic training or real combat experience, so he is still lacking when it comes to actual fighting. Even so, don't let your guard down. He did take down Bass, after all."

"Heh, I know what you mean. Aren't you just telling me not to go easy on him and avenge our teammate? Why put it so tactfully?" As teammates, the three of them naturally shared a deep bond. Now that they had a chance to avenge their companion, they certainly would not let it pass.

Rain and Yushi felt a trace of pity for Zhou Yang. "What a shame. This is the sorrow of ordinary people. Without proper training, he naturally cannot compare to those who received it. If he had received the same training, the outcome would be entirely different." Yushi then glanced at Hanzo, who was seated in front of them, and saw no reaction from him. He began to wonder whether he had said something wrong. After all, Hanzo had thought very highly of Zhou Yang just moments ago.

Rain yawned beside him. "This match is finally about to end. It's making me sleepy." To them, this kind of contest was no different from children fighting and held no interest at all. If Hanzo had not assigned them the task of rescuing the fighters if necessary, they would have left long ago. Perhaps Zhou Yang's opening move had been the only surprise, but it could not change the outcome.

Zhou Yang, who had been knocked to the ground, slowly climbed back up. With his head lowered, he rubbed the injured spots on his body. Seeing this, Taunt Bro found another opening to mock him.

"Kid, that hurts, doesn't it? Are you thinking about running home, hugging your mother's leg, and bawling? Ah! The outside world is too scary! Ah! I want to go home!" He mimicked Zhou Yang's tone, then abruptly changed direction. "Oh, right, I forgot. You don't have a mother."

Sizzle. Sizzle, sizzle. Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle. The three sounds suddenly rang out in the silent room.

"Huh? What's that sound?" Taunt Bro asked in confusion.

"Kid, didn't your teammates ever tell you that you talk too much? Or did you become a ninja relying on that mouth of yours?" Zhou Yang's voice no longer sounded so listless. Instead, it carried a faint static, as though he were gritting his teeth.