"So decisive, charging straight in?"
"She's the Hyuga clan's young lady, possessing the Byakugan. My tricks probably won't work. It seems only a strong attack gives me a chance to win!"
Kankuro saw Hyuga Hinata charging like a hunting lioness, without the slightest hesitation, and quickly formed hand signs!
"Click-clack-clack—!"
Beside him, Crow's bandages, wrapped around its entire body, instantly unraveled and scattered. Like a fierce bird imbued with life, it transformed into a purple afterimage, accompanied by the grating sound of its joints, and actively met Hyuga Hinata.
Its poison blades extended from its arms, bringing a fishy풍, one up and one down, piercing Hinata's throat and waist with cunning viciousness!
The speed and the tricky angles elicited gasps from the audience.
However, in Hinata's Byakugan vision, every movement trajectory of Crow, the linkage of its joints, and even the flow of the Chakra threads driving it, were as clear as lines on her palm.
Hinata didn't even attempt to dodge.
Just as the poison blades were about to strike—
Her hands shot out like a graceful butterfly, her movements gentle yet precise to the extreme!
"Thwack!", "Thwack!"
Two crisp explosive sounds.
Her fingertips precisely struck the inner elbow joints of Crow's arms.
Highly condensed Gentle Fist Chakra, like fine needles, instantly pierced in!
"What?!"
Kankuro's fingers trembled violently!
He felt the Chakra threads controlling Crow's arms were instantly severed and disrupted by an overbearing and pure force.
Crow's striking arms drooped limply as if their tendons and bones had been removed. The poison blades were only an inch from Hinata's body but could no longer advance a single hair's breadth.
Hinata's movements did not stop.
She seized Crow's powerless arms, twisted her waist, and a mighty force erupted!
With a "whoosh."
The puppet Crow, weighing dozens of catties, was casually swung in a semicircle and slammed hard onto the ground as if she were throwing trash!
"Boom!"
Shards of stone flew, and the sturdy stone ground was dented with a shallow pit.
The puppet Crow's sturdy body emitted a grating groan, and tiny cracks even appeared at its joints.
Kankuro grunted, his fingers aching, his mind reeling, his eyes filled with horror!
In just one encounter, his most prized puppet was easily dismantled by the opponent's absolute strength and insight.
"Damn it!"
"Hyuga clan's young lady, don't underestimate me."
"The battle isn't over yet—"
Kankuro roared, his fingers flying again.
Crow, slammed to the ground, suddenly opened its mouth, and several poisoned senbon shot towards Hinata's face like venomous bees.
At the same time, the scroll on Kankuro's back suddenly unfurled!
"Black Ant! Come out!"
Another puppet, Black Ant, with a head longer than Crow's, a pair of red, devil-like horns, and six arms, specialized in grappling and restraining, roared out. It opened its massive, serrated pincer claws, coordinating with the senbon attack, and viciously clamped towards Hinata's waist from the flank.
Its intention was to capture her and enclose her within the puppet's body!
Facing the pincer attack, Hinata's gaze remained calm.
She channeled strength to her waist, clapped her hands, and spun, instantly unleashing Byakugan Palm: Heavenly Spin, deflecting all the ambushing, rapidly fired poisoned senbon.
Facing Black Ant's six legs, capable of snapping giant trees and equipped with saw-like blades, Hinata advanced instead of retreating.
She quickly formed hand signs in front of her chest, and highly condensed, pale blue Chakra surged from her palms like flames, instantly condensing and shaping!
"Gentle Fist Art: Twin Lion Fists!"
Two enormous, lifelike blue lion heads, composed of pure Chakra, roared and covered Hinata's fists!
Their lion mouths wide open, fangs bared, they exuded a heart-pounding sense of might and power!
"Roar—!"
The Twin Lion Fists seemed to let out a roar that shook the great plains. Hinata unleashed both fists, her lion-headed fists, with the momentum of splitting mountains and shattering rocks, unadornedly slammed into the Black Ant puppet.
What six legs? One force breaks all techniques!
"Crack! Boom!!!"
The grating sound of metal twisting and breaking, and a dull explosion, erupted simultaneously!
To everyone's horrified gaze, Black Ant's sturdy, metal-clad pincer claws, like fragile glass, instantly twisted, deformed, and shattered inch by inch under the terrifying power of the Twin Lion Fists!
Broken wood splinters and metal fragments scattered like an explosion!
The entire Black Ant puppet was sent flying backward by this irresistible immense force, crashing heavily against the arena wall with a dull thud, then slumped to the ground, completely ruined!
As for Hinata, she maintained her punching posture, the Chakra lion heads covering her fists slowly dissipating. She didn't even take a step back, her breathing still steady and long.
"How—is that—possible—"
"Even Black Ant was easily destroyed?!"
Kankuro looked as if he had been struck hard, his face pale, his body swaying.
He looked at the two nearly ruined puppets on the ground, his eyes filled with unbelievable fear and despair.
This was not a battle; it was a one-sided annihilation!
"It's not over yet!"
Kankuro let out a desperate growl like a cornered beast.
He was unwilling to lose like this. He fiercely drew out his last few poisoned kunai, squeezing out his last bit of Chakra, and charged at Hinata like a mad beast.
He wanted to fight close quarters to the death!
But in front of Hinata's Byakugan, his clumsy charge, scattered Chakra flow, and the trajectory of those few poisoned kunai, were as slow as a crawling snail, full of flaws.
"A puppet master choosing close combat?"
Hinata sighed softly.
She didn't even use Twin Lion Fists.
The moment Kankuro rushed in front of her, just as his kunai was about to strike—Hinata moved!
Her movements were as fast as lightning, yet carried an indescribable elegance and precision!
Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!
This time, the Eight Trigrams Palm was completely different from when she fought Neji!
Faster speed!
Stronger power!
More condensed Chakra!
Each palm strike precisely landed on Kankuro's Chakra points on his weapon-holding arm, shoulder, chest, and abdomen.
"Two Palms!"
"Four Palms!"
"Eight Palms!"
"Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!"
A dense shower of crisp sounds blended into one! So fast it was dazzling!
"Twelve Palms—"
Kankuro felt as if he was being pierced by countless rapidly spinning steel needles!
His arms instantly went numb, and the kunai flew out of his hand.
The Chakra flow throughout his body was completely severed and disrupted.
Waves of gentle yet extremely destructive Chakra rampaged within his body, piercing acupoints and blocking his Chakra pathways.
Kankuro couldn't even scream. He only felt all his strength instantly drained, and his internal organs churning!
With the last palm, Hinata gently pressed on Kankuro's chest, and a gentle pushing force came.
Kankuro, like a kite with a broken string, spat out a small mouthful of blood. He flew backward limply, crashing heavily at the edge of the arena, slumping to the ground as if his bones had been removed. He couldn't even move a finger, only painful gasps and rolling eyes remained.
Pain!
It was too painful!!
He had originally thought he was very strong, and that few of his peers in Konoha were his match. Instead, Hinata gave him a harsh lesson.