While Kakashi and Shisui were intensely engaged with their enemies, Hyūga Shin, after sending the leader flying with a single strike, walked over to Shinichi's side, showing no intention of joining the fray.
The two ninjas Minato sent to assist the Branch Family in protecting Shinichi were clearly very capable. With Hyūga Shin's combat experience and keen perception, he could easily determine the likely outcome of both battlegrounds.
Kakashi was an Anbu elite who had shown unrivaled talent since childhood. Furthermore, he had endured countless battles and setbacks in his development, and now, being an adult, his strength, speed, and experience were on par with his opponent's.
Coupled with the boost from his single Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Kakashi completely controlled the battle. The only reason he hadn't ended the fight was not that he couldn't find an opportunity to kill the enemy, but because he had heard Shinichi's earlier suggestion and intended to capture the opponent alive. Most of the time, capturing an enemy alive is far more difficult than killing them.
On the other side, Shisui appeared to be in a perilous situation under the Cloud ninja's attack, but this was merely a façade deliberately created by Uchiha Shisui. Both Hyūga Shin and Shinichi could clearly see that the enemy's attacks "just missed" Shisui every time.
This seemingly tiny gap was a difference the enemy, no matter how hard they tried, could not bridge. Due to his age, Shisui's strength and speed were slightly inferior to his opponent's, but relying on the power of the Sharingan, the enemy's every move was under Shisui's complete control.
His current retreat and feigned disadvantage were only meant to make the opponent believe they had a chance to win. The more desperate the enemy became, the easier it was for them to make a mistake. With just one error, Shisui could instantly turn the tide.
With both battlefields under control, Hyūga Shinichi's gaze now settled on the last remaining Cloud ninja in the courtyard.
From the enemies' previous conversation, Shinichi knew what the man busy laying out scrolls was doing. In the brief period while Kakashi and Shisui were engaging the enemy, the ninja had already laid out twelve long scrolls in the courtyard. A complex rune seal was now smoothly taking shape.
"The Heavenly Transfer Technique (Tensō no Jutsu)..."
"Though also a Space-Time Ninjutsu, its transfer characteristics are vastly different from the Flying Thunder God."
"Its weaknesses and strengths are very obvious. It's a technique worth investigating!"
Hyūga Shinichi watched as the Cloud ninja meticulously arranged the complex seals. Just as the man stood up, intending to assess the battle situation, a faint tearing sound suddenly rang out by his ear.
Hyūga Shinichi swung his arm, and a kunai shot out from his hand. The surface of the kunai was enveloped in Lightning Release chakra, giving it a launch speed far exceeding that of a kunai thrown by an ordinary ninja.
The Cloud ninja heard the sound and instinctively tilted his head. His extensive combat experience had given him excellent battlefield reflexes.
The kunai barely grazed his cheek before plunging into the ground behind him. His gaze subconsciously followed the flying kunai, yet he completely failed to notice that the child who had been standing behind Hyūga Shin was no longer on the veranda.
"Dong!!!"
The kunai landed with a muffled thud. In the Cloud ninja's sight, the kunai was fully buried in the earth, right up to its hilt.
The added Lightning Release chakra had greatly enhanced the kunai's piercing power, demonstrating the superb effect of applying chakra nature transformation to ninja tool throwing.
"..."
The Cloud ninja, who had barely escaped the attack, broke out in a cold sweat. As he turned his head, a quick glimpse showed a small, slender figure standing beside him. Before he could make out who the person was, the Cloud ninja suddenly felt a powerful impact in his abdomen. The next moment, his mind went completely blank.
"Bang!!!"
Hyūga Shinichi had activated the Flying Thunder God Technique the instant his thrown kunai reached the enemy's side.
As the kunai landed, he appeared beside the enemy and delivered a direct palm strike to the opponent's abdomen.
Shinichi had no intention of killing the man; the strike was only meant to seal the opponent's chakra points and impede chakra flow.
However, despite his young age, Shinichi's palm strike carried considerable force, immediately knocking the Cloud ninja Jōnin unconscious as he crashed to the ground.
With the Cloud ninja flying backward and losing consciousness, Shinichi slowly walked over to the completed Heavenly Transfer Technique seal array and began to examine it closely. No ninja would object to possessing more Ninjutsu.
Shinichi was quite interested in the Heavenly Transfer Technique. This technique was widely used on the battlefield. Utilizing directional Space-Time Ninjutsu to transport supplies could significantly reduce logistical pressure.
The Cloud Village's military prowess was strongly linked to its powerful logistical capability. While the Flying Thunder God could achieve similar effects, it couldn't perform ultra-long-distance transfers because the prerequisite was the caster's ability to sense their Flying Thunder God marker, and the caster's sensory range was limited.
"My word...."
"He has already grown to this extent?"
Hyūga Shinichi's sudden move surprised Hyūga Shin. He only noticed Shinichi's departure after the boy had flashed to the enemy's side and launched his attack. Seeing Shinichi swiftly defeat the Cloud ninja, Hyūga Shin's eyes lit up, and he praised him with a smile.
Although Hyūga Shin paid close attention to Shinichi's daily training and had a good grasp of his strength, he had never truly known Shinichi's true combat capability. Having survived the brutality of wartime, Shin firmly believed the battlefield was the best place to temper a ninja.
Therefore, while appreciating Shinichi's talent, he had been eager to find opportunities for Shinichi to fight foreign ninjas.
Although that opportunity had been slow to arrive, Shinichi's demonstration of his skills in real combat today allowed Hyūga Shin to glimpse a portion of his true power.
In Hyūga Shin's view, with Shinichi's current skill, he would likely make a name for himself on the battlefield in no time.
The Flying Thunder God, combined with the Hyūga Clan's Gentle Fist—in the scenarios Hyūga Shin could envision, Shinichi had the potential to defeat any level of powerful opponent. This potential was truly terrifying.
Shinichi's sudden action surprised everyone. His clean and decisive victory also shocked the two Cloud ninjas still engaged with Kakashi and Shisui.
They realized that one of their mission targets was actually such a powerful ninja! With another powerful guard nearby, they knew the mission had zero chance of success.
The massive shift in their mental state immediately compromised their fighting moves. Shisui, who had been constantly on the defensive, was the first to seize the opportunity.
The moment he met the enemy's gaze, he launched a Sharingan Genjutsu. In the opponent's momentary "paralysis," Shisui closed the distance and quickly bound the enemy with thin wires.
Kakashi ended his battle almost simultaneously. While a Shadow Clone distracted the enemy, Kakashi's main body used the Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu to pull the opponent completely underground, leaving only his head above the surface.
The Cloud ninja likely wouldn't have fallen for this trick previously, but his anxious mind had robbed him of a ninja's crucial judgment, leading to his swift defeat.
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