Chapter 19
Hyuga Chinano straightened her slightly messy blue-black short hair, placing one hand in front and the other behind, assuming a fighting stance once again. The Eight Trigrams diagram appeared instantly beneath her feet. Her serious expression made it clear—she wasn't taking Uzumaki Zixu lightly. She was in her strongest stance right from the start. If it weren't for the insane chakra drain of keeping her Byakugan activated, she would've turned it on immediately. Facing Zixu head-on would've been the safer bet.
Seeing Chinano ready for battle, Zixu decided to get serious as well. At the very least, he had to use some of his strength. They all knew how strong Zixu really was, but throwing the match too obviously would be disrespectful.
"Alright, come at me." Zixu stretched his muscles, rolling his shoulders as he got into a serious fighting stance. A light breeze ruffled the edges of his clothes. He glanced up at the sky—it was getting darker, but there was still time before the sun fully set.
The wind carried a few fallen leaves between them. As soon as the last leaf hit the ground, both fighters moved at the exact same time, launching toward each other with unspoken understanding.
"Wait—wait, you guys just started without me calling it? Ugh, whatever..." Aburame Hatsuizumi pouted, puffing her cheeks in frustration as she sat down, watching the fight unfold.
Chinano struck first. She remained firmly planted, the Eight Trigrams diagram shifting beneath her as she gathered chakra into her palms. Her stance was solid, her arms moving with precision as she unleashed a barrage of invisible chakra blasts.
"Eight Trigrams Palm!"
The energy from the technique was invisible to the naked eye. Only those with dojutsu like the Sharingan or Byakugan could track the attacks properly. But Zixu didn't need a bloodline limit—his heightened senses were enough. He could feel the air tremble as the chakra waves shot toward him.
He considered taking the hits head-on but decided against it. With a swift step, he shifted his footing, pushing off with his back leg to dodge mid-air, evading the chakra-infused strikes entirely.
Without missing a beat, Zixu closed the gap, sprinting toward Chinano to engage in close combat—the domain where he excelled.
However, as he approached, the Eight Trigrams diagram beneath Chinano's feet expanded, slowly wrapping around him.