It Was All an Accident

"Fifth match, Hashimoto Asuka of Kirigakure versus Liumu of Konoha!"

As a die-hard straight guy, even after living two lives, Liumu still hated extremely feminine guys like his opponent most of all.

Wearing makeup was one thing, but he even dared to insult both of Liumu's favorite young ladies with his name.

"Begin!"

At the command, Asuka pulled several black pellets from behind his back and threw them straight at Liumu's feet.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

After a series of explosions, the pellets released black smoke that completely engulfed Liumu.

Then Asuka formed hand seals and shouted, "Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"

As the ninjutsu was completed, Asuka stepped up into the air and released an enormous ball of water, sending it crashing straight into the black smoke.

"Such speed!"

Below the platform, Kakashi repeatedly praised the speed of Asuka's hand seals.

He had released black smoke at the start of the fight to block Liumu's vision, then quickly formed hand seals to attack his opponent from above. Not only could he check whether Liumu had escaped, but he could also look down on every possible hiding place below.

"He's smart!" Kakashi immediately concluded.

"Did I... win?"

Asuka frowned, his eyes fixed on the motionless black smoke not far away.

"Watch out!"

Just then, another Kirigakure ninja beside Han below the platform suddenly called out a warning.

Hearing him, Asuka instinctively twisted aside to dodge, but he had not expected that Liumu, who had been in the black smoke, was already behind him, and was even planning to...

"Aw, Thousand Years of Death failed."

Liumu muttered as Asuka lost his balance in front of him and toppled onto his crouching body. Unable to dodge in time, he fell into a heap with his opponent.

A moment later, Liumu dazedly tightened his fingertips, and a soft sensation immediately followed.

"What is this?"

Bewildered, Liumu felt around again, even giving it a few gentle squeezes with his fingers.

"You! You!"

Asuka cried out shrilly and immediately sprang up, folding his arms over his chest. Seeing his opponent's flushed cheeks and fierce expression, Liumu looked at his own hand, then glanced back at Asuka...

"You... you... you're a girl?"

"You bastard!"

Asuka cursed angrily and immediately unleashed Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique!

In an instant, mist enveloped the stone chamber, so thick that no one could see their own fingers. They could only hear Asuka shout again.

"Water Release: Senbon!"

Everyone saw the droplets of mist filling the arena immediately form countless senbon in midair. Their needle points aimed at Liumu, they radiated a chilling sharpness.

Damn, is that really necessary? I only touched her once. Is she trying to silence me for good?

Liumu looked at his opponent's tear-filled eyes. Although he felt somewhat apologetic, he thought that everything that had just happened was only an accident. He had not done it on purpose.

Besides, although Hashimoto Asuka was a girl, her bearing and clothing were no different from a boy's.

It was understandable that I got it wrong!

"Die! (Shine!)"

Asuka slowly raised her right hand, then swept it down toward Liumu, her expression icy.

Almost instantly, as though responding to her command, the senbon in the air shot straight toward Liumu's body like lightning.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft...

The icy mist burst with a series of cracks, scattering countless shards of ice.

As everyone watched the corner shrouded in shattered ice, Liumu suddenly appeared on the stone chamber's ceiling, dozens of meters above.

His five fingers were embedded in the stone ceiling, keeping him firmly suspended in midair.

That crazy woman really is trying to kill me!

Although he felt apologetic, Liumu was now growing somewhat angry.

Releasing his fingers, Liumu dropped from the ceiling and landed heavily with a dull thud that sent a hum reverberating through the stone chamber.

Asuka frowned deeply as she watched Liumu descend from the ceiling, because she had not seen how he had dodged her Senbon technique at all.

Seeing him walk straight toward her with a cold expression, Asuka immediately formed hand seals, preparing to trap Liumu with the Water Prison Technique.

But...

Before she could finish the seals, Liumu's feet had already appeared before her eyes.

Before Asuka could fully react, Liumu grabbed her wrist and gave it a slight twist, restraining her from behind.

Then he gripped her neck and forcefully pressed her to the ground.

"Let me go!"

Asuka's left hand was pinned beneath her body, and Liumu held her right. Unable to turn over, she could only threaten him verbally.

But not only did Liumu refuse to let go, he even planted himself on her back.

"Do you surrender?"

Liumu asked Asuka beneath him.

"No!"

Asuka stubbornly refused, struggling hard to turn over, but getting nowhere.

Seeing her pinned beneath Liumu in such a humiliating manner, even Han below the platform finally frowned.

Under the match rules, unless someone passed out or voluntarily surrendered, the final result could not be announced while the contestant remained conscious.

Liumu did not want to hurt her badly, so he could only look at the referee beside them.

"I'll give you ten seconds. If you can't break out of his hold, I'll have to declare you defeated!"

The Iwagakure referee told Asuka, then immediately began the countdown.

"10"

"9"

"8"

As the countdown drew closer to its end, Asuka still could not escape Liumu's grasp.

In the end, once the countdown finished, Liumu was declared the winner.

"Just you wait. Han will get revenge for me."

Asuka glared fiercely at Liumu, gave a cold snort, and jumped off the platform.

As for Liumu, he shrugged indifferently and returned to his team.

Submission holds were a form of Taijutsu that used the limits of the human body's joints to restrict an enemy's movements.

The hold Liumu had just used on Asuka was precisely the "Mountain Shaker."

However, someone caught in a real Mountain Shaker would not have had it as easy as Asuka.

That was because a real Mountain Shaker involved pressing a knee against the enemy's fourth and fifth vertebrae. If the enemy dared to struggle forcefully, the immense pressure could very well snap their spine, leaving them paralyzed.

Liumu knew these techniques entirely because of his former interests. He had secretly learned a move or two online in his spare time, but he had never expected to use them on a girl.

"Are you okay?"

After he left the platform, Suiguang immediately ran over to check on him.

"I'm fine. Fit as a fiddle."

As Liumu spoke, he returned to his seat at the side. Looking up toward the Kirigakure team, he happened to meet Han's gaze.

"I think he's hiding his strength!"

Asuka, who had just finished fighting Liumu, told Han, "That lord taught me the Senbon technique. And with such a huge area covered, he still dodged it in an instant. His strength definitely isn't limited to what he just showed."