Konoha: From the moment I was adopted by Tsunade

Chapter 296 Hinata Hyuga's Victory

"Gaara".

Just as Gaara was about to leave the field, Temari called him back.

He was a little puzzled.

Hinata Hyuga is the Hokage's apprentice.

Temari cautioned, "You can beat her, but don't kill her."

The Gaara of the past, who was always so argumentative and defiant, wouldn't have listened to this, but now he understands the pros and cons.

He nodded and walked calmly into the center of the venue.

Compared to the confidence of Sunagakure, Konoha Village seemed rather ordinary.

They knew Gaara was the Jinchūriki of the One-Tailed Beast, and had already assumed that Hinata Hyuga couldn't defeat him.

"Hinata, just do your best."

Ino Yamanaka patted Hinata Hyuga on the shoulder and said, "You've done very well."

"yes."

Nara Shikamaru said lazily, "The Chunin Exams are all about earning the title of Chunin anyway."

"This guy can be handled by Naruto."

Kiba nudged Naruto Uzumaki with his elbow and said.

"no problem!"

Naruto Uzumaki immediately laughed and said, "We definitely won't let him get first place, right, Sasuke?"

Sasuke Uchiha nodded calmly and said, "He's just a defeated opponent of mine."

He fought Gaara because he temporarily joined Kakashi Hatake's team on a mission.

With the Mangekyou Sharingan and Susanoo, he naturally won.

So this guy really wasn't exaggerating.

"I will try my best."

Hinata Hyuga nodded vigorously and left the viewing platform.

She could understand what her friends were saying.

Gaara's previous performance was indeed very brutal, and he was also a Jinchūriki.

Participating in the Chunin Exams is really a form of bullying.

Just like Naruto Uzumaki.

However, Hinata Hyuga has been using Gentle Fist since the start of the competition.

The demon-slaying bow that Natsume gave her, and the empty fist technique that Kaguya Otsutsuki taught her, were never used.

She felt she might be able to put up a fight.

Having been trained by Natsume for so long, it's impossible that I, Gaara, would choose to give up just because he's a Jinchūriki.

Besides, she's not that kind of person.

Natsume touched his chin from a short distance away.

I should have gotten my hands on the Tenseigan first.

At this point, it's really hard to say who will win.

Of course, unlike the one-sided view held by Sunagakure, Natsume felt it was somewhere in between, a 50/50 chance.

He was ready and had a clear idea of ​​what to do before making his move.

Needless to say, he would never let Hinata Hyuga get hurt.

Gaara is a Jinchūriki, so if something happens to him, it will be troublesome.

The two people stand in the center of the field, forming opposing hand seals, which signifies the official start of the competition.

Gaara remained calm.

He has a great advantage against taijutsu ninjas.

In particular, it comes with a built-in defensive shield, which is jokingly referred to as Mazono.

Ordinary genin taijutsu ninjas pose little threat to him.

Unless it's someone like Xiao Li.

After opening the Eight Gates, the speed was so fast that Gaara's defensive shield couldn't react.

But the Hyuga clan is alright.

They're not known for their speed, but the trouble lies in their eye-rolling and acupressure techniques.

If you are hit, it will affect your chakra and eventually make you unable to move.

But Gaara is not afraid of pressure point techniques.

Because his skin has a shield.

Hinata Hyuga, looking tense, assumed a Gentle Fist stance.

Gaara raised his hand upon seeing this.

Sand bound coffin!

The yellow sand flew up and quickly coalesced, enveloping Hinata Hyuga like a tornado.

Instantaneous movement technique.

Hinata Hyuga had seen this move before, so she had always been on guard.

With a swift movement, he avoided the yellow sand.

She instantly projected more than a dozen kunai in mid-air.

But as soon as he got close, a wall of sand formed in front of Gaara.

The kunai got stuck in it and couldn't achieve any effect.

Hinata Hyuga landed.

Looking up, I saw countless sand clumps falling from the sky, like a torrential rain.

Sand Rain!

At the same time, two clumps of yellow sand rose from the ground and entangled Hinata Hyuga's feet.

With a bang.

Hinata Hyuga turned into smoke.

It's a clone.

Gaara's eyes darted around.

A large pile of sand behind them quickly solidified, forming a giant hand.

Hinata Hyuga had barely gotten close when Hinata was forced to retreat before she could even unleash her Gentle Fist.

On the viewing platform.

"This guy is such a pain."

Yamanaka Ino crossed her arms and frowned as she spoke.

Gaara only needed to lift a finger to chase Hinata Hyuga all over the place.

"Hinata can't win with Gentle Fist alone."

Sasuke Uchiha said calmly, "I can't get close enough to break through Gaara's defenses."

"Hey, Neji."

Kiba Inuzuka couldn't help but ask, "Besides Gentle Fist, does your Hyuga clan have anything else?"

"If it's Hinata, then maybe it's not so certain."

Hyuga Neji said in a deep voice.

The group looked at him with some surprise.

But before any questions could be asked, the battle inside the arena took another turn.

Hinata Hyuga took out the Demon-Slaying Bow.

Hyuga Neji's eyes narrowed instantly.

He had seen this bow several times and it left a deep impression on him.

But for others, it was the first time they had ever seen it.

"When did the Hyuga clan learn to use bows?"

Mei Terumi muttered a couple of things to herself.

She remembered that Hinata Hyuga was Natsume's apprentice. Could it be that he arranged this?

After all, no Hyuga clan ninja had ever used a bow before.

Or rather, other weapons.

The Hyuga clan is most famous for its fists.

Gaara was somewhat surprised, but didn't react much.

Hinata Hyuga's expression was solemn as she drew her bow and nocked an arrow.

She had already grasped the key from the previous battles.

Gaara's Sand Shield is an automatic defensive ability.

You need to be fast enough to hit him.

Although her soft fist technique was fast, its attack power was insufficient.

Even a moment's delay will result in being attacked by the manipulated sand, forcing an unavoidable interruption.

But the Demon-Slaying Bow is sufficient.

It was crafted by Kaguya Otsutsuki.

Its true form is actually the Box of Bliss.

Later, it absorbed the power of the demon.

In terms of chakra alone, it is actually only slightly inferior to the tailed beasts.

But the power is more concentrated.

If Hinata Hyuga's opponent were Naruto Uzumaki, she might not be able to defeat him.

After all, he already possessed the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

But Gaara is different.

His relationship with Shukaku was very bad.

In the later stages, without Shukaku, his strength actually increased by leaps and bounds.

This means that Gaara cannot properly use the power of the Tailed Beasts.

Translucent arrow feathers form.

Gaara didn't wait in place either, but raised his hand.

The yellow sand quickly transformed into a giant hand, rushing towards Hinata Hyuga.

Just then, the arrow left the bowstring.

Judging from its size alone, the arrow fletching in front of the yellow sand looks like an ant.

But after the two came into contact, the yellow sand quickly collapsed.

An immense sense of crisis swept over us.

Gaara launched a defense without hesitation.

Desert wave!

Surrounded by countless swathes of yellow sand, a thick eggshell quickly formed around him, enveloping him completely.

In the original work, Sasuke Uchiha's Lightning Blade only barely broke through his defenses.

But at that moment, it was instantly pierced by the arrow.

With a loud bang.

The eggshell cracked, and Gaara was sent flying backward.

"How is that possible?!"

Temari stood up abruptly, looking completely incredulous.

Kankuro next to him had the same expression.

They know how strong Gaara's defense is.

Even ordinary Jonin would find it difficult to harm him in the slightest.

How could an ordinary-looking arrow have such great power?

The people of Konoha Village on the other side, after their initial shock, all showed expressions of joy.

However, since the outcome is still uncertain, I'm not that happy.

Gaara slowly rose to his feet.

Blood appeared on his chest.

Yellow sand flows out from inside.

Gaara frowned, a hint of murderous intent flashing across his face.

But it's much better than before.

After all, he had been beaten even worse by Natsume.

Gaara snapped out of his reverie, his gaze falling on the bow.

Its power exceeded his imagination.

This competition may not be so easy.

Hinata Hyuga frowned.

She hadn't expected Gaara to have another layer of defense.

That arrow was almost at the limit of the Demon-Slaying Bow.

It should be said that she has reached the limit of her current strength.

The Demon-Slaying Bow has a high potential, but to fully utilize its power depends on the user's skill.

Hinata Hyuga suddenly put away her bow.

Her actions left almost everyone puzzled.

What are you doing?

Have you given up?

Anyone with eyes can see that if a few more arrows come, Gaara might not be able to withstand it.

Even Gaara was taken aback when he saw this.

But Hinata Hyuga had already adopted the Gentle Fist stance.

Gaara frowned.

What's going on?

If he can't figure it out, he stops thinking about it.

The arrow he had just encountered made him serious.

A thought suddenly occurred to him.

The gourd behind her opened, and countless yellow sands swept towards Hinata Hyuga.

For taijutsu ninjas, this kind of long-range attack is undoubtedly the most effective.

Unless you can instantly break through to Gaara's side.

But this is obviously impossible.

Sixty-four strikes with bare fists!

Hinata Hyuga's expression hardened as she suddenly threw a punch.

A massive amount of chakra condensed in his palms.

In an instant, sixty-four blows were delivered.

The entire space seemed to be trembling.

Gaara suddenly opened his eyes wide.

The yellow sand was originally clumped together, like a blanket.

But at this point, the blanket had sixty-four holes in it.

Moreover, the chakra shockwave continued its relentless attack on him.

Gaara's mind stirred.

Strands of yellow sand gathered in front of him.

But in the blink of an eye, it was breached and landed on the automatically defending Sand Shield.

Even the Sand Shield, which was touted as an absolute defense, shattered instantly.

Gaara flew out again.

But this time he couldn't get up.

The intense pain drove him to the brink of madness.

However, when he subconsciously tried to use Shukaku's power, he found that he could not mobilize it.

He was stunned. What was going on?

Shukaku used to get very excited and want to run out whenever he saw him injured.

But today is different from usual.

Gaara suddenly realized something.

Shukaku knows that Hinata Hyuga is Natsume's apprentice.

It was afraid.

They dared not make a move.

Because Natsume was in the stands not far away.

I love Luo and was speechless.

He glanced at Hinata Hyuga, then suddenly raised his hand and said, "I surrender."

In reality, he didn't have that strong a desire to fight.

His original plan was to easily defeat Hinata Hyuga.

After all, if things go too far, not only he will suffer, but also the Sand Village.

Now that Shukaku is unwilling to come out, continuing the fight will only bring suffering upon ourselves.

Therefore, giving up is the best option.

"Gaara, you've grown up."

After a few seconds of silence, Temari spoke.

"If it were before, he would definitely have used the power of the One-Tailed Beast without hesitation."

Kankuro remarked with emotion, "If the Kazekage-sama were to see this, he would probably be very pleased."

Temari sighed.

Rasa originally intended to come in person, but Natsume refused.

Natsume's thought was that he and the Mizukage were flirting, so why were you getting involved?

However, such a rejection was interpreted as contempt in Sunagakure.

If the Kazekage were present, theoretically he would be on equal footing with the Hokage and Mizukage, sitting side by side.

But this means that Luo Sha is not qualified.

This caused great dissatisfaction throughout Sunagakure.

There's nothing we can do about it.

Compared to Gaara, Hinata Hyuga has generated far more discussion.

"Is that Soft Fist?"

"Impossible, Gentle Fist isn't like that."

"What kind of fist technique is this? It has such great power."

"As expected of the Hyuga clan, they've come up with a new ninjutsu."

Various sounds continued to rise.

Neji Hyuga also attracted a lot of attention.

He smiled wryly and said, "I really don't know, it must have been the Hokage who taught me."

As far as he knew, the Hyuga clan only had the Hinata Hyuga Association.

"So it's the Hokage."

Kiba and the others immediately realized what was going on.

If it's Natsume, then there's nothing wrong with it.

This is a reputation that has been built up over a long period of time.

"The winner is Hinata Hyuga."

The referee was Qing.

He glanced at Hinata Hyuga with surprise.

Because he was standing close by, he could feel it more clearly.

Hinata Hyuga's new style of fist and Gentle Fist should be from the same lineage.

If this wasn't developed by the Hyuga clan, then it means this woman has amazing talent.

Hinata Hyuga breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

We finally won; we didn't lose face.

She subconsciously looked towards the high platform.

Suddenly, a soft "Eh" was heard.

Before she activated her Byakugan, she thought Uzuki Yugao was Natsume.

But after opening my eyes, I realized that wasn't the case.

Because the chakra levels don't match.

To be more precise, her white eye was because she couldn't see through Natsume.

The fact that you can see through it now means it's not him.

Where did Natsume's brother go?

The excitement Hinata Hyuga felt after defeating Gaara gradually faded.

She originally intended to make a good impression on Natsume.

But now they're all gone.

"Are you alright?"

Temari and Kankuro appeared beside Gaara.

The two men lifted him up.

Seeing the wounds on his body, everyone was somewhat frightened.

Gaara's body is covered with a layer of sand armor.

Ordinary methods cannot break through this barrier.

But now it's riddled with holes.

Fortunately, Jinchūriki have strong vitality, and Hinata Hyuga held back, so there wasn't much of a problem.

"fine."

Gaara shook his head and said.

Temari and Kankuro breathed a sigh of relief.

The three returned to the viewing platform, where medical ninjas immediately came forward to treat them.

Hinata Hyuga, seeing this, also returned to her seat.

But her seat had already been taken.

"Natsume-nii-san?"

Hinata Hyuga immediately showed a look of surprise.

"Well done!"

Natsume smiled and praised.

Hinata Hyuga immediately felt a little embarrassed.

"Teacher, it's our turn next!"

Naruto Uzumaki said excitedly.

Uchiha Sasuke gave a soft snort, but his eyes were filled with eager anticipation.

"You two should stop now."

Natsume thought for a moment and said, "This is Kirigakure. If we go too far, it will make Konoha appear rude."

Sasuke Uchiha activates Susanoo, and Naruto Uzumaki activates Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

After the battle, Kirigakure will have to be rebuilt.

Mei Terumi will kill Natsume then.

Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha were both somewhat disappointed upon hearing this.

But one has no choice but to listen to what Natsume says.

"If you want to fight, there will be plenty of opportunities."

Natsume waved his hand and said, "Go down."

Four thousand characters.

(End of this chapter)