Hinata's remark was laced with sharp sarcasm. Actually, under the Petrification Ability, her tremendous strength was expected—not just physically stronger, but also much faster than before.
"This kind of battle is exactly what I want!"
Muyue's eyes burned like flames. He took a deep breath, then Lightning Release chakra erupted from his body. In an instant, he lunged at Hinata and slashed.
The Lightning Release chakra stimulated Muyue's cells, significantly enhancing his speed and agility. Without any flashy techniques, he simply swung his blade in a straightforward strike aimed straight at Hinata's head.
She ducked and immediately retaliated in one fluid movement. Just as the blade passed over her head, she struck back—her petrified palm crashing into Muyue's body.
[Eight Trigrams: Two Palms!] [Four Palms!] [Eight Palms!] [Sixteen Palms!] [Thirty-Two Palms!] [Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms!]
Her trained Gentle Fist strikes flew like lightning. Before Muyue could react, a complete set of attacks had already landed. Lightning chakra surged through his tenketsu (energy nodes), erupting from within and forcing a cry of pain out of him.
"Boom!"
Muyue was sent flying backward by Hinata's Eight Trigrams Palm strike, slamming into the arena wall. Everyone let out a collective gasp. Was the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist always this powerful? She'd sent someone soaring through the air purely with brute force—and judging by the spiderweb-like cracks on the wall, it was clear how much strength she'd used.
"This Gentle Fist... somehow feels off," Hiashi Hyuga voiced his opinion. The Hyuga Gentle Fist usually damaged opponents by directing chakra into their tenketsu points. But why did this move from Hinata feel so different—as if filled with raw, blunt-force punches?
"Well, at least its name still fits as 'Gentle Fist,' right? As for exactly how it was executed, maybe that's not so important!" Sakura laughed uncomfortably. Admittedly, Hinata did use the Gentle Fist, but she had also mercilessly unleashed immense physical force onto Muyue. If you wanted to get technical, maybe it was a mix of both—the soft and the hard.
"Pu!"
Embedded in the wall, Muyue spat out a mouthful of blood the moment he opened his mouth. It felt as if every bone in his body was on the verge of shattering. His muscles were screaming with pain, as though needles were stabbing him from within. Even moving slightly now was extremely difficult.
"Hurts, doesn't it?" Hinata approached Muyue and slapped his shoulder—a casual motion that sent another spurt of blood flying from his mouth. With a meaningful gaze, she said, "Here's some advice—next time in battle, don't go swinging your sword around like there's no brain behind your eyes. You're supposed to be a ninja, after all! Not even using ninjutsu—you're truly giving all ninjas a bad name!"
"Pu!"
Another spray of blood burst from Muyue's mouth as Hinata's slap landed. Yet as he listened to her words, his heart only burned with more rage.
Muyue wasn't unfamiliar with ninjutsu, nor did he dislike using it. It was just that his main cultivation path focused on sword techniques—he relied entirely on his blade. He wasn't very skilled in ninjutsu and had rarely ever used it in battle. But who could've predicted that his opponent Hinata possessed the Petrification Ability? No matter how refined his swordplay was, if he couldn't even break through her defense, what good was it?
Muyue had thought their fight would be an intense showdown. But who knew that after just a few moves, he'd already been defeated? At this moment, the only feeling left in Muyue's heart was frustration.
"Don't make that face. Getting angry all the time isn't good for your health!" Seeing Muyue's furious expression, Hinata suddenly smiled, as if she'd just figured something out. "Oh, and don't move around randomly either—I think I might've accidentally hit your kidneys when I struck those pressure points. You really should go to the hospital for a thorough checkup."
"Kidneys?! Kidneys?" Muyue froze completely, a chill rushing up his spine. "You're joking, right?"
"Why would I joke about something like this? I just accidentally pressed a few points on your kidneys. It shouldn't affect your future life at all!"
Hinata laughed happily, while Muyue's heart sank further and further.
Just imagining his kidneys being struck by the Gentle Fist made Muyue feel like the sky was collapsing. Especially when a vague pain spread from his waist, making him feel like he'd fallen into icy cold abyss.
[Chapter 207: Zabuza's Ancestral Healing Jutsu]
"You don't need to be discouraged. Even though your kidney might be hurt, you're still young—you'll bounce back in time!" Seeing Muyue's world-shattering expression, Hinata kindly tried to comfort him.
However, Hinata's silence would've been better. After hearing her words, Muyue only felt even more despair.
"My kidneys..."
"The winner of this match is Hinata Hyuga from Konoha!" Hayate Gekko stepped forward to announce the result. However, the look he gave Muyue was full of sympathy. What a shame for such a strong and healthy guy—to now bear the reputation of being weakened in health.
"Examiner Hayate, why are you covering your kidney area with your hand?" Hinata noticed Hayate subtly shielding his own kidneys and immediately raised her eyebrows, her eyes turning somewhat displeased.
"Eh? N-no reason..." Hayate stammered. Could he possibly say it was because after hearing Muyue's lament, he—a fellow man—felt a sense of empathy?
"A few broken ribs, some cracked vertebrae, bone fractures in the limbs, slight dislocation of the cervical spine, internal organs displaced to varying degrees, along with some trauma and torn muscles. Well, overall, it's not too serious. At least you won't die from it." Haku casually checked Muyue's injuries then patted his shoulder reassuringly, making him wince in pain.
"Oh, and one more thing—you need to take good care of your kidneys from now on. Among all your internal organs, your kidneys have suffered the most damage. They've actually ruptured!"
"Boom!"
Haku's words were like a thunderclap striking straight onto Muyue's head. In an instant, his non-pretty-boy skin turned much paler—an absolutely bloodless pallor.
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