"Stab it straight in?"
Shino Aburame was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected Hikari to make such a request!
These were his bugs!
He didn't want to risk losing even one.
Right now, holding these bugs felt like holding precious treasures—he couldn't bear to let them go.
"Why aren't you doing it yet?" Hikari frowned, watching Shino hesitate, and couldn't help but urge him.
Shino was being too slow.
"Hikari, why don't you just explain the beetles' traits to me? I'll listen!" Shino said with a wry smile. Looking at such perfect little creatures, he really couldn't bring himself to harm them.
The thing was, these bugs would all be his in the future. Thinking about that, he felt even more reluctant.
To people like them, who studied insects, these bugs were nothing short of perfect works of art.
"You can't fully understand a bug's limits by just listening. Testing is crucial for your future battles!" Hikari said irritably, giving Shino a sharp glance before continuing. "Hurry up and act. I still have several other bugs to introduce to you!"
For someone like Hikari, who valued time so highly, Shino's hesitation was wasting her time and slowing down her research.
No one could get away with this except Master Genya, not even her own teacher, Toshi.
Genya just watched quietly. Even Hikari's short temper didn't faze him this time.
After all, testing was necessary. Knowing the limits of one's abilities was essential for protecting oneself and maximizing combat effectiveness.
Shino's reluctance, feeling sorry for his bugs, was a common problem.
"All right… I'll test it right away!" Shino nodded, finally understanding.
Besides, these bugs were practically immortal—they could recover quickly even if they were injured.
He slowly raised the kunai in his hand, aiming at the beetle shield.
"Use your full strength!" Hikari reminded from the side.
"Yes!" Shino nodded, concentrating chakra into his right hand that held the kunai.
He closed his eyes.
And stabbed straight down.
There was no expected sound of kunai piercing through the swarm of insects.
It seemed as if his kunai had struck a steel plate.
Ding!
A crisp metallic sound rang out, like metal clashing against metal.
He couldn't help but open his eyes and look down.
"What—"
He saw that the shield-shaped iron beetle remained intact, completely unharmed.
This armored beetle had actually blocked his full-strength attack!
Its armor was perfect.
Clatter, clatter—
At that moment, while Shino Aburame was still in shock, the iron beetles that had curled up into a shield-like formation began to move.
The insects next to the sharp edge of the kunai started crawling up along it, and the others followed closely behind.
As they climbed, they even began gnawing at the sharp kunai.
"They can attack too?" Shino Aburame saw the insects crawling onto his kunai, nearly reaching his arm, and reflexively dropped it, stepping back several paces.
"You don't need to be so afraid. These insects are yours—you should try to control them," Hikari reminded him when she saw him retreat.
Her words made Shino blush.
As she said, these were his insects. He could try to control them.
But seeing such ferocious armored beetles had frightened him into dropping his kunai.
"Hikari… these insects have changed a lot. Shino will need time to get used to them. Keep introducing their abilities and traits," Genya said to Hikari, then turned his gaze to the iron beetles, now calm after finishing gnawing the kunai.
He was curious about these insects too, especially their biting strength, which was far stronger than the inferior ones Hikari had mentioned.
"Oh—" Hikari nodded reluctantly, then turned back to the beetles to continue her explanation.
"The armor of these beetles is stronger than special refined steel. If you strike them with a regular kunai, even if the kunai chips, it cannot pierce them."
"Also, after testing, their fire resistance has improved significantly. They can even withstand a Fireball Jutsu, but they cannot stay in fire for long."
Hikari explained the beetles' abilities carefully, and Shino's eyes shone with interest.
Seeing this, Hikari continued, "If you have enough of these beetles, you could form an armored shell that can block most ninjutsu attacks."
"Unfortunately… you're not able to do that yet."
Shino initially felt happy hearing her words, but as Hikari continued, reality started to sting.
He still didn't have the strength to cover his entire body with all the insects, which was a bit of a shame.
But at least he could see hope. He would get stronger. He would get stronger.
"Also… the bite force of this iron beetle is still 2.78 times that of a defective model, combining offense and defense!" Hikari listed the last advantage clearly.
The more she spoke, the more excited Yamanaka Shino became, practically bouncing with anticipation.
He was already itching to control this iron beetle. Even if he couldn't cover his whole body yet, he could at least shield his vital points.
He was practically bursting with excitement.
Even when he looked at Hikari, his eyes were full of admiration.
"Next," Hikari said, turning her gaze to another petri dish, a trace of pride on her face. "This insect is called the Giant Devourer Beetle."
"Giant Devourer Beetle?"
Shino was taken aback but followed Hikari's gaze to the third dish. There were fewer insects than in the iron beetle dish, but… the teeth of these bugs seemed sharper, and their bodies had the same armored features as the iron beetles.
Just from appearance alone, he couldn't see much difference.
But if Hikari emphasized it so much, the insect's abilities must be extraordinary. Its traits were definitely on par with the iron beetle—maybe even superior.
"Yes, it's the Giant Devourer Beetle!" Hikari said, smiling at Shino. "This insect has a terrifying bite force, though its defense is a little weaker than the iron beetle's."
While introducing the insects, a look of satisfaction showed on her face.
It was obvious she was proud of the evolution of her bugs.
"Is its ability just for attack?" Shino blinked, his innocent eyes seeking an understandable answer. It wasn't that he didn't want to grasp it—it was that every evolutionary direction Hikari revealed exceeded his expectations.
"Lord Genya…" Hikari didn't look at Shino, but instead turned to Genya. "Could you fetch a few pigs for me?"
****
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