Central Tower Arena
"What's going on? Did Hinata hit him?" Naruto asked, unfamiliar with the Gentle Fist fighting style. Hinata's strikes on Neji seemed so light.
"That's the Hyuga clan's secret tradition, the Gentle Fist," Lee, who had appeared beside Sakura at some point, explained to Naruto.
Sakura, seeing Lee next to her, subtly shifted away, fearing another heartfelt confession.
"Gentle Fist?" Naruto was confused.
"Yes, the Gentle Fist is..." Lee, considering Neji his greatest rival, was extremely knowledgeable about Neji's ninjutsu. "At first glance, it might not seem like much... but the effects will gradually become apparent..."
Sakura listened to Lee explaining the characteristics of the Gentle Fist. She observed that Hinata had already landed several Gentle Fist strikes on Neji. Just as Hinata and Neji simultaneously struck each other's chests, it was Hinata who coughed up blood.
"Is this all the Main House is capable of?" Neji said disdainfully, looking at Hinata.
"..." Hinata, enduring the pain throughout her body, raised her left arm to strike at Neji. Neji dodged backward, avoiding Hinata's attack, then grabbed her outstretched hand with his left hand and struck points on her arm with his right.
Hinata immediately felt her chakra flow become restricted...
Neji pulled back Hinata's sleeve, revealing her arm covered in dark spots.
"N-no way... could it be... you were aiming for this from the start..." Hinata said, shocked.
"What's that?" Naruto asked, seeing the dark spots on Hinata's arm.
"Pressure points," Kakashi explained to Naruto this time. "..."
These weren't exactly Hyuga secrets, and it wouldn't hurt for his students to learn more. Plus, it might help them prepare if they faced a Hyuga in the third exam.
On the arena floor, Neji sent Hinata flying with a palm strike. "Hinata-sama... this is the insurmountable gap in our abilities... the difference between an elite and a failure!" Neji said expressionlessly, as if stating a fact.
"Such facts cannot be changed... The moment you decided to fight me, you already regretted it. Now, that hope is completely shattered... Give up," Neji continued in the same flat tone.
"I..." Hinata's chakra was in disarray, her internal organs severely damaged. Enduring the pain throughout her body, she struggled to stand and said, "I... I have something to say... T-this... is also my ninja way!"
Naruto, on the viewing platform, saw Hinata stand up, heard her words, and saw her look at him. He fell silent.
"Naruto, Hinata has always looked up to you as her goal. She... she's always paid attention to you!" Sakura said to the silent Naruto.
"Naruto... I've always watched you. Just by seeing you... I regain my courage. I feel that through hard work... I too can feel... that my existence has meaning!"
Hinata's mind was racing, but her hands didn't slow down. She continued to attack Neji, but due to her injuries, she made a mistake and was once again sent flying.
"Give up, Hinata-sama... You're just struggling in vain... Your chakra flow has been completely blocked," Neji said to the struggling Hinata, who was once again getting to her feet.
"I... I... I won't give up... huff... huff..." Hinata gasped.
Seeing that Hinata refused to fall, Neji finally rushed forward to strike her, a blow that would prevent her from standing again.
Hinata took the heavy blow and collapsed. As expected, she didn't get up for a long time.
"Why don't you understand... This is fate... You can't change your fate of losing..." Neji's tone softened slightly.
Just as Neji turned to leave, Hinata, incredibly, struggled to her feet again. "I... huff... I... I haven't lost yet..."
Sakura, witnessing this scene, could only silently keep her complex emotions to herself. She couldn't interfere. This was Hinata's battle. In front of Naruto, Hinata didn't want to embarrass herself. Even severely injured, she didn't want to give up.
Sakura recalled that this match was likely the first time Naruto had truly paid attention to Hinata. Previously, he had probably just considered her a strange girl who liked to stare at him. Hinata wasn't particularly outstanding in personality. Thinking back, the only other time Naruto might have noticed Hinata was when Sakura had tied up the other rookies to celebrate Naruto's birthday. Although Sakura had left for three years afterward, she doubted that Naruto would have paid much attention to Hinata, given Hinata's personality.
This was the first time Hinata had been truly noticed by Naruto, and she didn't want to appear weak. Although the physical pain was intense, stimulating her nerves, Hinata's heart... was probably happy...
While Sakura was lost in thought, Hinata said something to Neji that made him charge at her, his body radiating killing intent.
"Neji-san! The match is over!" Hayate Gekko, seeing Neji intending to kill, rushed to stop him.
In the blink of an eye, besides Hayate, Kakashi, Kurenai, and Guy all appeared around Neji, preventing him from delivering a fatal blow to Hinata.
"Even the other Jonin intervened! Is this the special treatment reserved for the Main House?" Neji said, his anger seemingly gone, replaced by a resigned acceptance.
Sakura didn't want to admit it, but Neji was right. Even though Hinata wasn't being groomed as the Hyuga heir, she was still the daughter of the Main House. It was no surprise that the Jonin intervened. If a member of the Main House died at the hands of a Branch House member, it would severely impact the Hyuga Main House, and the discontented Branch House members might revolt.
Although it would be an internal Hyuga affair, not directly affecting Konoha, it would significantly weaken the Hyuga clan, indirectly weakening Konoha itself. Konoha couldn't afford any more turmoil.
The Uchiha massacre a few years prior had already attracted the attention of hostile neighboring forces. If the Hyuga clan were to have problems, it could very well trigger another war, especially considering the Sand Village's suspicious actions in sending a jinchuriki to participate in the exams.
While the Byakugan wasn't as useful as the Sharingan for increasing combat strength, it was unparalleled in reconnaissance. If the Hyuga clan were to fall into disarray at this critical juncture, other forces would undoubtedly seize the opportunity. It was no wonder the Jonin were so tense.
At this point, Hinata could no longer hold on. After the Jonin intervened to stop the match, Hinata's reason for persevering was gone. She coughed up blood and collapsed.
"Are you alright, Hinata...?" Naruto jumped down from the stands and ran to Hinata's side.
"N-Naruto... I... Did I... change... even a little...?" Hinata thought, looking at Naruto beside her just before closing her eyes.
"You idiot, get out of the way! How could she be alright in this state? Don't get in my way," Sakura snapped, irritated by Naruto's cluelessness. Couldn't he say a few comforting words instead of asking such a stupid question?
Sakura used the chakra she had just recovered to heal Hinata's injuries. Most of Hinata's injuries were internal. So this is the Gentle Fist.
Seeing the faint smile on the unconscious Hinata's face, Sakura felt a strong urge to punch Naruto.
"Hey! Failure!" Neji, who hadn't left, called out to Naruto, who had been cheering for Hinata earlier.
"I have two pieces of advice for you... If you're a ninja, don't do foolish things like cheering someone on... And... a failure is a failure... That can't be changed!"
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