Fang Over Fang

It turned out that Ye Fan's little Ninja Hound was fully capable of testing Kiba Inuzuka.

Next came the main event.

Although Kiba Inuzuka's Ninja Hound, Akamaru, had just been frightened, it would not affect the upcoming test.

"Akamaru, this time we'll fight side by side. Brother Ye Fan knows his limits, so don't be nervous."

As he soothed Akamaru, Kiba Inuzuka also calculated the tactics he would use next.

A test was different from a battle. There was no need to consider victory or defeat. Kiba Inuzuka simply wanted to display all his strength.

"Are you ready?"

Ye Fan looked calmly at Kiba Inuzuka.

At his feet, Dark Shadow wagged his tail, looking as though he were saying: Great, I finally get to bully another dog.

Kiba Inuzuka took a deep breath and entered a fighting stance.

He bent forward slightly, turned his arms outward, spread his fingers to reveal sharp nails, and glared with eyes that shone like a beast's.

At the same time,

Akamaru, standing atop Kiba Inuzuka's head, began gathering chakra as well.

"Brother Ye Fan, I'm ready!"

Kiba Inuzuka's voice was low as his gaze locked firmly onto his opponent—Dark Shadow.

"In that case... let's begin!"

As Ye Fan's words fell, Dark Shadow actually launched the first attack, opening with his signature move, Single Heaven Charge.

Whoosh!

Unlike his earlier stillness, the tiny figure now shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow, tearing through the air with a piercing whistle.

"So fast!"

Hinata Hyuga, watching from the side, was still deeply shocked even though this was the second time she had seen Dark Shadow's speed.

She believed that even if she could clearly see Dark Shadow's movements, her body would be unable to react in time.

Only at that moment did she understand why her younger sister Hanabi had lost.

Experiencing Dark Shadow's speed firsthand, Kiba Inuzuka was startled as well. However, he had been prepared. He stomped hard with his right foot and shifted sharply to the left, narrowly avoiding Dark Shadow's frontal charge.

"He dodged it!"

Hinata Hyuga nervously clasped her hands together.

At that moment, she unconsciously imagined Kiba Inuzuka in the field as her younger sister Hanabi.

If it were Hanabi, how would she defend against such an attack?

Could Hanabi's Thirty-Two Palms of the Eight Trigrams stop Dark Shadow?

As Hinata Hyuga's thoughts began to drift, a dull thud pulled her back to the present.

She looked toward the sound.

Kiba Inuzuka had crossed his arms before his chest and forcibly blocked Dark Shadow's impact, though his feet had carved two several-meter-long tracks across the ground.

"Now it's my turn to strike back—Fang Over Fang!"

With a loud shout, Kiba Inuzuka and his Ninja Hound Akamaru unleashed their signature taijutsu—Fang Over Fang!

He had used this move against Hinata Hyuga earlier, but compared to then, this was his true strength.

Both its speed and ferocity had risen to a whole new level.

The two figures came from the left and right like massive hammers, smashing ruthlessly toward Dark Shadow's position.

Boom!

The thunderous impact sent dust flying, as though two giant hammers had struck the ground at once. The earth itself trembled slightly.

"The attack's power is passable, but it has too few variations. An opponent can dodge it easily."

Ye Fan's voice drifted over, offering his assessment of Kiba Inuzuka's Fang Over Fang.

Hearing this during the fight, Kiba Inuzuka was somewhat unconvinced.

After all, Fang Over Fang was currently his best taijutsu. Ye Fan had even guided him when he was learning it. Now it was being called "easy for an opponent to dodge," so naturally he wanted to prove otherwise.

"Fang Over Fang!"

Kiba Inuzuka used it again, attacking in the direction Dark Shadow had dodged toward.

Dark Shadow was small and agile, easily finding a gap in the pincer attack and dodging away once more.

"Fang Over Fang!"

"Fang Over Fang!"

As if he had become stubbornly fixated, Kiba Inuzuka unleashed the technique repeatedly, leaving pits of all sizes scattered across the ground.

Ye Fan frowned slightly.

He had discovered a fatal weakness in Kiba Inuzuka—impulsiveness!

If this weakness could not be eliminated, teaching him powerful taijutsu would instead place him in even greater danger.

Ye Fan could already foresee that once Kiba Inuzuka became impulsive, even if he knew the enemy had laid a trap, he would likely rely on his strength and charge straight into it.

That clearly went against Ye Fan's original intention.

He was guiding Kiba Inuzuka because he wanted this younger brother to have more means of protecting his life, not to send him into more dangerous situations.

"Fang Over Fang!"

Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru continued unleashing their combined taijutsu, looking as if they would not stop until they struck their target.

At that moment, Ye Fan narrowed his eyes. Just as Kiba Inuzuka used the technique and spun rapidly through the air, he issued an order to Dark Shadow.

Dark Shadow immediately acted upon receiving the command.

Chakra surged wildly from his body as he flickered in an eerie movement, circling around behind Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru.

Immediately afterward,

Dark Shadow unleashed the Heaven Charge Barrage, applying force to Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru separately. It was as if two little boats drifting downstream had suddenly become weightless and plunged over a waterfall.

Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru were in exactly that situation.

Because of the force Dark Shadow applied, neither could control his balance. They slammed heavily into the ground in an awkward posture, then continued sliding forward until they crashed into tree trunks and came to a stop.

Watching this scene, the corners of Ye Fan's mouth curved upward.

He had just said that Fang Over Fang was too simplistic in its attack pattern, making it easy for others to grasp its flaws and rhythm.

Kiba Inuzuka, with his tough skin and sturdy body, had not suffered any serious injuries. He climbed up from the ground, looking ready to fight to the death.

"Are you still going to use Fang Over Fang?"

Ye Fan's voice drifted over like a bucket of cold water, instantly calming Kiba Inuzuka down considerably.

Since taijutsu would not work, then he would use ninjutsu.

Thinking this, Kiba Inuzuka formed a hand seal and shouted:

"Four-Legged Technique!"

The Four-Legged Technique was a commonly used ninjutsu of the Inuzuka Clan. It gathered chakra in the user's limbs, giving them the form of a beast and increasing their grip, traction, and attacking power.

Dark Shadow did not attack immediately, deliberately giving Kiba Inuzuka time to gather chakra.

"Akamaru, let's go!"

The next moment, Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru ran at high speed around Dark Shadow from opposite sides, kicking up thick clouds of dust.

Beneath the cover of the dust, Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru's figures flickered in and out of sight.

With a thud,

Dark Shadow was sent flying backward out of the dust, followed by Kiba Inuzuka's laughter.

"Haha! Haha! How was that?"

"Compared to before, you've indeed improved quite a bit."

Ye Fan smiled faintly, then abruptly changed his tone and exposed the trick. "You use the dust to conceal your movements, then gather chakra in your nose to gain a sense of smell tens of thousands of times sharper, allowing you to track Dark Shadow's position by scent. Am I right?"

"Brother Ye Fan, how did you figure that out?" Kiba Inuzuka's voice came from within the dust.

To his surprise, Ye Fan's voice suddenly turned stern. "Kiba, from now on, you are not allowed to fight enemies this way!"

"Why?"