"Dance of the Crescent Moon!"
Moonlight Hayate summoned two Shadow Clones, and three identical sword-wielding figures simultaneously attacked Chishimo from three directions.
Their speed was so great that it only added to Chishimo's already weary defense.
After just a few exchanges, Chishimo's arms were already wounded.
One Moonlight Hayate was already overwhelming for Chishimo; now, with three, it wasn't simply a matter of adding them together.
The coordination between the three had reached a point where three working together was greater than three individually, making a head-on defense virtually impossible for Chishimo.
"Shadow Clone Technique!" Realizing that he alone was insufficient to withstand Moonlight Hayate's attacks, Chishimo also summoned his own Shadow Clones.
Three Shadow Clones rushed forward, attempting to block Moonlight Hayate's advance, but in just one encounter, the three Shadow Clones were struck down, turning into a puff of smoke, as if they had never appeared at all.
Moonlight Hayate and his Shadow Clones, holding Ninja blades, continued their assault without losing momentum.
Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi saw the distance between Moonlight Hayate and Chishimo rapidly shrinking.
Asuma Sarutobi sighed helplessly, as if he had already foreseen the defeat, while Kurenai Yuhi nervously covered her eyes, not daring to look at the scene before her.
Anyone could see that if Moonlight Hayate got close to Chishimo at this moment, even ten of him wouldn't be enough for the opponent to handle.
Chishimo naturally understood this very well; although his previous Shadow Clones shattered upon contact like moths to a flame, they successfully bought Chishimo enough time.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Release Song Technique!" Four scorching, brilliant fire dragons spewed from Chishimo's mouth, sweeping towards Moonlight Hayate from all four directions—up, down, left, and right—giving him no space to evade.
Asuma and Yuhi, watching the scene that was about to turn the tide, were filled with shock.
Asuma Sarutobi unconsciously clenched his fists, his burning gaze filled with a longing for immense power, while Kurenai Yuhi had, at some point, removed the hand covering her eyes, staring in disbelief at the fire dragons spewed by Chishimo.
Moonlight Hayate was also astonished by the brilliant spectacle before him.
He certainly hadn't expected an eight-year-old child to be able to use a Ninjutsu of this caliber.
But astonishment aside, he knew that if he rushed forward recklessly, he might get injured, not to mention that his two Shadow Clones by his side would very likely be defeated, making it not worth the effort.
Therefore, after weighing his options, he chose to retreat.
Moonlight Hayate quickly distanced himself from Chishimo.
Before the fire dragons reached him, the three figures simultaneously formed hand signs, "Water Release: Water Wall!"
A water wall, astonishingly tens of meters wide, rose up, as if to completely separate the two sides of the World.
But the ferocious fire dragons paid no mind to this, and the four fire dragons charged fearlessly towards the Water Wall.
The next second, a thick cloud of steam rose up.
Aside from Chishimo, who had the advantage of clear vision, the other three people and two Shadow Clones all found that the objects before them were indistinct, and everything in their sight was hazy.
However, a Jonin is still a Jonin.
Although Moonlight Hayate's vision was restricted, his perception was still astonishing.
With just a slight sense, he once again locked onto Chishimo, and the three figures once again darted out at an extremely fast speed.
Although using Ninjutsu gave him some advantage, Chishimo's situation at this time was not optimistic.
He had already consumed most of his Chakra in the Taijutsu battle, and then supported the recent Fire Release, so now Chishimo's Chakra inside his body was almost depleted.
But Moonlight Hayate had no intention of giving Chishimo another chance.
Sharp blade-light cut through the smoke, slashed through the void, and mercilessly struck towards Chishimo.
Even though Chishimo was nearly exhausted, he still mustered all his strength to raise the Kunai in his hand, attempting to hold on for a little longer.
But the next moment, two more cold glints attacked from both sides, instantly leaving two deep, bone-visible wounds on Chishimo's wide-open flanks.
At this moment, Chishimo was bleeding all over, with two clearly visible wounds on his sides, but he still knelt on the ground, forcing his body to stay up, not letting himself fall.
"Uchiha Chishimo, to be able to fight me to this extent at your age, I acknowledge your strength.
I am willing to cancel the condition in the bet, but this battle ends here!
Your injuries need immediate treatment." Moonlight Hayate did not attack again, but instead looked at Chishimo's still standing figure with an admiring expression.
"Hehe!" It was only at this moment that a brilliant smile appeared on Chishimo's face, which had remained unmoved even when injured, but in Moonlight Hayate's eyes, this smile seemed strangely ominous.
Chishimo, with strength from who knows where, suddenly straightened his hands that were propped on the ground, and even his lowered head lifted up, revealing a pair of scarlet eyes, "Don't underestimate the Uchiha!"
It was only at this moment that Moonlight Hayate seemed to understand something, but it was clearly too late.
As soon as he heard a piercing thunder, he lost contact with his two Shadow Clones simultaneously.
Moonlight Hayate no longer paid attention to the bleeding Chishimo in front of him.
Sensing the danger behind him, he turned, drew his sword, and slashed—three actions completed in one fluid motion.
The blade and his own aura were perfectly integrated, and both speed and power had reached an extremely high realm.
But even such an attack was easily defeated the next second.
Before Moonlight Hayate, another perfectly intact Chishimo appeared.
On his right hand, countless lightning bolts, dense like spider legs, were gathered, clearly the Chidori that Chishimo had diligently studied and made some progress on in the past few days.
Facing Moonlight Hayate's unstoppable slash, Chishimo extended his right palm.
The destructive lightning, carrying an overwhelming aura, met the Ninja blade.
A piercing cutting sound was heard.
Chishimo actually split Moonlight Hayate's Ninja blade in two with his bare hand.
The Chidori continued its momentum, stabbing directly towards Moonlight Hayate's head.
Although Moonlight Hayate was shocked by the power of Chishimo's Lightning Release Ninjutsu, at the crucial moment, the qualities of a powerful Ninja were demonstrated.
He immediately leaned his upper body back, narrowly dodging Chishimo's thrust, then used the momentum to kick out his right foot.
Chishimo was unable to dodge in time and could only raise his left arm to block.
Chishimo's body involuntarily retreated backward, plowing several meters into the ground before stopping.
Feeling a burning pain from his already wounded left arm, Chishimo gritted his teeth, preventing himself from crying out in pain.
Moonlight Hayate finally had time to examine his sword.
Only half of the blade remained, the other half resting quietly on the ground.
He touched the remaining blade with a hint of guilt, as if he felt sorry for his old companion.
Moonlight Hayate carefully reinserted the broken sword into its sheath, then looked up to meet Chishimo's gaze.
At this moment, a good deal of the steam generated by the collision of water and fire had dissipated.
Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi, who had been anxiously searching for the two figures in the mist, saw Chishimo still standing there unharmed and finally let out a heavy sigh of relief.
Moonlight Hayate's gaze swept over, just catching sight of the hourglass with all its sand run out.
His foot, about to step forward, paused, and he looked at Chishimo again, his gaze now containing not only the previous admiration but also a complex mix of emotions.
He sighed, "Time's up.
A bet is a bet; you won!"