Both of them rushed forward and were about to collide!
When Neji and Karui fought in the first round, their techniques and movements were completely incomprehensible to most of the spectators.
To the average viewer, it looked like one of them rushed forward and swung a blade, the other reacted and countered, and then—out of nowhere—the kunoichi from Kumogakure suddenly punched herself.
What the hell was that...? This wasn't anything like the flashy, explosive ninja fights they had imagined. It was... boring.
But to the experienced ninja in the audience and the competitors watching the match from the preparation room via electronic screens, the reality was very different. They could clearly analyze the intricate tactics used in the earlier fight.
Neji had first used the Shadow Shuriken Technique to force Karui to adjust how she held her blade. Most people are right-handed, and being forced to change your grip in the heat of battle significantly reduces your power and disrupts fluid movement.
In a ninja battle, even a minor disruption can change the entire tide of combat—or get you killed.
Karui had tried to make a bold move after being forced into that compromised stance. If her strike had landed, the match might've ended on the spot. Even if it hadn't been lethal, it would've paralyzed a large area of Neji's chest muscles, giving her the edge for a finishing blow.
But unfortunately for her, she was up against Hyuga Neji—a prodigy of the Hyuga clan.
The Hyuga are masters of chakra control, capable of emitting chakra from their tenketsu (chakra points) to repel close-range attacks.
In that critical moment, Neji had used chakra to form a protective film across his chest, deflecting most of the Lightning Release paralysis effect.
Now, the two had clashed once again!
This time, only a faint layer of lightning chakra remained on Karui's ninja blade. The rest of her chakra had been rerouted into stimulating her body at the cellular level.
The veins in her body couldn't handle it—tiny capillaries had burst, staining her clothes with blood.
The silver-white blade moved in a flurry of arcs—slicing from every angle toward Neji.
But Neji's hands, glowing faintly with chakra, struck back at the blade repeatedly, targeting the flat or back of the sword each time. With the Byakugan's 360° vision, he was able to both defend and counter simultaneously.
Shoulders, forearms, inner elbows, chest—every time Neji struck, he aimed to block Karui's chakra flow through her tenketsu.
Until finally—Sixty-Four Palms complete.
He raised his right hand palm-up and drove it into Karui's chest!
She flew backward, rolling across the ground three or four meters before coming to a stop.
In the preparation room, Omoi and Samui watched silently from separate chambers. Their fists clenched as they saw their teammate battered and motionless.
Damn it... Karui can't win against him...
As much as they cared for her, there was nothing they could do now.
Neji stood silently, staring down at Karui.
"Do you still want to continue?"
"You've realized the difference in our strength. You can't win."
Karui pushed herself upright again, using her sword as a crutch. Though her arms trembled, her eyes still burned with unyielding will.
"There's a gap, yes. But you're not so far beyond me that I can't catch up."
"The wounds on your arms prove I still have a chance."
And she was right. Neji's hands were covered in shallow cuts—seven or eight of them—left by deflections of Karui's lightning blade. Blood had soaked through the bandages, dripping slowly to the ground.
Superficial wounds, but proof of contact nonetheless.
Neji shook his head slightly.
"A person's fate is decided the moment they're born."
"Without a bloodline, you'll always have to work harder just to catch up."
"But that doesn't mean those of us born with bloodlines don't struggle."
"You think effort is everything. But choices matter more than effort."
"Weakness is the original sin. There's no point in resisting an inevitable outcome."
But Karui didn't flinch. She didn't waver. She didn't look away.
"No need for your damn speeches."
"Even if I'm destined to lose, I'll fight until the very end."
"As long as there's even the slightest chance—I'm not letting it go."
She rose to her feet once more, defiant, as the crowd roared.
From the Land of Lightning:
"Come on! Don't give in to this guy!"
"You're a genius of the village! Don't surrender now!"
At the same time, cheers erupted from the Konoha side:
"Neji! You're the Hyuga clan's rising star!"
"I bet a hundred thousand ryo on you—don't let me down!"
"You're not just a genius—you're a genius who works harder than anyone! Crush this deluded fool!"
The roar of the Leaf's side clearly overpowered the other, but Neji didn't smile or bask in the glory.
He knew that all of this—all the applause, all the recognition—wasn't something he achieved alone.
If he hadn't been rescued from the darkness by that man... if he hadn't been given another path to walk...
That man. Uchiha Hikaru.
And now, with the world watching, Neji would show what he'd forged in the past three years—techniques Hikaru-sama had pioneered for Konoha, tactics Neji had practiced day in and day out.
This was the perfect time.
From his tool pouch, he pulled out a scroll, unrolling it partially to reveal black sealing script.
He placed his hand on the markings—poof—a puff of white smoke erupted.
In his hand now was a strange-looking ninja tool: a pitch-black weapon, long and cylindrical, over ten centimeters in width, with no obvious blade or edge.
Karui looked at it, stunned.
"What the hell is that? You think you're gonna beat me with that thing?"
"You're underestimating me!"
"Lightning Release—"
But before she could finish, Neji calmly raised the weapon and aimed it directly at her chest—deliberately avoiding the heart and major arteries.
He infused chakra into the tool's barrel.
His lips moved.
"Ninjutsu... has evolved."
"What's bloodline compared to this?"
"This is the future. A gift for Lord Hikaru—proof that strength can surpass blood."
Click.
Neji pulled the trigger.
BOOM.
A sharp, thunderous noise rang out.
Karui's body seized up, her eyes wide in shock as something invisible slammed into her.
Pain bloomed in her chest. Her chakra scattered like broken threads.
And then—blackness.
She collapsed, completely unconscious.
In the VIP box above, Uchiha Hikaru's eyes widened.
...A gun...?
Did Neji just... build a fucking chakra gun!?
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Send Power Stones
Bonus Chapter at 150 Power Stone
Second Bonus Chapter - 300 Power Stones
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