Chapter 20

You can find advanced or extra chapters on

patreon.com/idontsleep

Thank you for the support.

All to earn some bread.

Chapter 20: One Year

Whizzing—

Two black shadows collided and clashed continuously on the flat ground of the Hyuga clan's training ground, the air filled with the sound of their rapid movements.

"Eight Trigrams Thirty- Two Palms!"

Two different voices rang out as the confrontation began.

As the voices fell, Ryosuke and Hyuga Hiashi formed the last seal.

Their white eyes locked on each other, and chakra surged throughout their bodies, flowing freely in the meridians along with the movements of their bodies, finally gathering in the palms of their hands and condensing into shape!

"Four Palms."

Same moves, same techniques, but their fighting styles differed, and the order of their attacks varied.

Every attack launched against each other was resolved and counterattacked.

But because both of them were too familiar with the Gentle Fist, they remained in a stalemate for a long time. After nearly 500 moves, they were unable to press any acupoints in each other's body and cut off the flow of chakra.

The Hyuga clan's secret technique—the Eight Trigrams Palm in the Gentle Fist method—has a total of sixty-four palms, and each palm represents an acupuncture point on the human body.

Chakras flow through the meridians in the body, and acupoints serve as important hubs connecting the meridians.

By hitting different acupoints with the Gentle Fist, the flow of chakra in the human body can be blocked, and various negative states of the human body can be induced, such as dizziness, short-term loss of consciousness, inability to move, and more.

Ryosuke focused his full attention on this battle, which was unlike any other ninja battle he had experienced.

There was no strategy to kill the enemy; it was just a simple head-on battle.

But this battle made him feel more excited and enjoyed it more, but at the same time, his mind was unusually calm. He dodged and parried Hiashi's attacks, constantly looking for opportunities to counterattack.

Both he and Hiashi knew that with both being so proficient in the Gentle Fist, as long as either side relaxed a little, the other would likely seize the opportunity and secure victory in one blow.

"Eight Palms... Sixty-Four Palms!"

After a serious fight, Ryosuke, who had remained expressionless from beginning to end, narrowed his eyes and suddenly tried to change his tactics, altering his fighting style during the battle.

While changing, he directly performed the complete Eight Trigrams Palm without any reservations.

With his Byakugan activated and the fight being so intense, Ryosuke was at a huge disadvantage.

Although his physical fitness, based on his ancestral bloodline, was far superior to that of his peers, it was still far behind Hiashi's.

If his physical fitness didn't keep up, then his chakra amount would certainly be insufficient.

The battle had been going on for such a long time, but Ryosuke still could not defeat Hiashi. Although Ryosuke was not anxious at all, if the fight continued without making any changes, it would be tantamount to admitting defeat.

"It's a bold idea."

Hiashi quickly felt the change in Ryosuke's movements and praised him appreciatively.

However, his movements did not slacken at all after he spoke. Instead, he became even more alert.

"There's a flaw!"

Changing one's fighting style during a battle also means that during this process, the Eight Trigrams Palm performed by Ryosuke might have errors in its execution.

In less than ten moves, Hiashi found one of his loopholes. A fierce look flashed in his eyes, and he aimed a strike at an acupuncture point on Ryosuke's body.

As long as this palm landed, the chakra mixed in Hiashi's hand would block the flow of chakra in Ryosuke's meridians, slowing his movements and deciding the outcome.

But just as his palm was about to hit Ryosuke, the chakra in Ryosuke's body suddenly surged in Hiashi's eyes.

"Rotation!"

The disordered moves suddenly changed, and the remaining chakra gushed out from the acupuncture points all over Ryosuke's body, forming a spiral chakra cyclone that wrapped him tightly inside.

Hiashi, who had already observed this scene through his Byakugan, had already given up the palm attack and stepped back several steps to avoid the Rotation's counterattack.

Ordinary ninjas can only transfer chakra through certain parts of their body, such as their hands, mouth, or feet.

But the Hyuga clan possesses the Byakugan, knows all the major acupoints in the body, and can transfer chakra from any acupoint in the body at will.

Rotation is a secret technique passed down orally by the Hyuga clan. It uses the characteristics of the Byakugan to make chakra instantly gush out of acupoints all over the body, forming a spiral cyclone around the body. It can resist the enemy's attack while rebounding part of the attack.

"That's enough. You don't have enough chakra to fight me. You lose."

Hiashi deactivated his Byakugan, put his hands behind his back, and looked at Ryosuke, who was breathing heavily in front of him.

"Indeed, I no longer have the ability to fight."

Ryosuke also smiled, deactivated his Byakugan, and put away his fighting stance. "I never thought I could beat you, at least not at the moment."

A year had passed since Ryosuke reached the physical fitness standard and started formally practicing Gentle Fist.

During this year, Ryosuke had learned all the secret techniques of the Hyuga clan and had mastered them.

However, based on his physical fitness, chakra amount, and chakra control level, he was still far behind Hiashi. In actual combat, he had not had the opportunity to go all out.

"It's good that you can see your own strength clearly. Let's stop here today." Hiashi nodded and turned to leave.

But after walking a few steps, he paused again. "You and Hinata will be preparing for school tomorrow, so you two should get some rest early."

After saying this, he slowly left the training ground, appearing extremely calm.

At this time, Hinata, who had been standing at the edge of the training ground, silently observing the battle, came trotting over to Ryosuke with some water and handed it to him.

"You are so awesome, Ryosuke. You can fight on par with father." She looked at Ryosuke excitedly, her tone full of envy.

"You think too highly of me. There is still a big gap between me and my father."

Ryosuke took the water with a smile and gulped down a big mouthful. "Now it's your turn to practice. Are you familiar with the method of running the Gentle Fist chakra that I told you yesterday?"

Although after the conversation, Hinata had given up such an unrealistic goal, she still had to work harder. Without damaging her body or affecting her development, she completed the physical training one and a half years faster than expected.

However, Ryosuke also helped her and pointed out the reasons why she practiced.

"Already... almost done."

In response to Ryosuke's question, Hinata whispered, "If you can guide me a few more times, I should be able to remember it."

Chuckling softly, Ryosuke looked at her helplessly. "I told you to use paper and pen to draw it several times so that your mind will remember it first."

"It would be easier for me to get familiar with it if you were there to supervise me personally and guide me with your fingers." Hinata looked at him eagerly.

Compared to repeatedly depicting it in a picture, she felt that letting Ryosuke slide his fingers over her body to guide her during the circulation of chakra would make her feel more confident.

"Okay, okay, but I need to rest for a while. My current chakra level is so low that it's hard for me to even maintain my Byakugan." Ryosuke looked at her lovingly and sat down cross-legged.

His shortcomings are obvious, but it will take time to make up for them.

Cultivation is not a one-time thing, but requires accumulation over time. Whether it is physical fitness, chakra amount, or chakra control, although it seems basic and easy to get started, the ends of these roads are very far away, and each improvement process is not easy.

(End of this chapter)

[ Motivation and consistency is difficult when things are not going right, but don't give up because one day the sun will shine on you, it may take years but surely it'll shine ]

More chapters on

patreon.com/idontsleep