"Hmph!"
A soft scoff came from beneath the mask, seemingly mocking everyone present.
"Is that all you've got?" Shuying's knees were slightly bent, maintaining the opening stance of the Gentle Fist. Her taunting voice echoed, "Is this really the best you can do? This isn't nearly enough to entertain me."
"Dammit…" Tsunade's eyes blazed with fury as she glared at Shuying, a dark cloud forming on her face. Shuying had truly given her a massive "surprise."
The Rotation was a secret technique that could only be learned by the main branch of the Hyuga clan. However, this was not an absolute rule. A member of the branch family with enough talent could still master it on their own, as Neji Hyuga had done.
But this did not mean that someone from outside the Hyuga clan could learn it. To master the Rotation, one had to systematically study the Hyuga clan's principles of chakra manipulation and, crucially, possess the Byakugan. These were the fundamental requirements.
The Hyuga clan's principles of chakra manipulation were an absolute secret, never to be shared with outsiders. And it was even more impossible for the Byakugan to fall into the hands of others.
It was precisely because Tsunade understood this that she was so utterly shocked to see Shuying use the Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven.
"Byakugan!"
Among the Jonin surrounding Shuying, a ninja possessing the Byakugan activated his eyes and looked toward her, attempting to see through to her true face.
"H-how… How can this be?!" The Hyuga clan ninja was struck with such profound shock that he stammered, unable to form a complete sentence.
"What do you see, Tokuma?" Tsunade demanded immediately. Whether it was the Rotation or the Byakugan, these were matters that had to be treated with the utmost seriousness.
"She… she has no chakra pathway system," Tokuma said, swallowing hard. "Her entire body is… it's made of chakra."
"Made of chakra?!" Tsunade was stunned. As far as she knew, the only beings made of pure chakra were the Tailed Beasts. Could she be a jinchuriki?!
"Oh, my." Shuying relaxed her Gentle Fist stance with a look of feigned helplessness, shaking her head. "It seems I missed one. A big brother from the Hyuga clan."
"What… what in the world are you?" Tsunade asked, her face cold as ice.
"To describe me as a 'thing'… isn't that a bit rude of you, Lady Hokage?" Shuying shrugged, her hands spread wide.
"Hmph. And was it polite of you to wreak havoc on my village?"
Tsunade didn't attack immediately. The girl before her was too strange. She had to gather as much intelligence as she could from her words.
Honestly, at this point, Tsunade was no longer confident she could even capture Shuying.
Everything about Shuying screamed of the bizarre. No one knew how many trump cards she still held. Just based on the abilities she had already displayed, she was incredibly difficult to deal with. If she had other powers… it was likely…
For now, gathering intelligence was the priority.
"Don't you think it's ridiculous to speak of politeness to an enemy, Lady Hokage?" Shuying paused, then once again assumed the opening stance of the Gentle Fist.
"I've suddenly lost the desire to play." Shuying's voice grew cold.
Seeing this, Tsunade knew she couldn't wait any longer.
"Everyone, spread out!"
Receiving the order, the Jonin immediately dispersed to the sides, providing support for the Hokage.
Tsunade clenched her fists, her knees bent slightly. The ground beneath her feet cracked like a spiderweb, and in the next instant, she vanished, lunging toward Shuying with the force of a thunderbolt.
"Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms!"
Facing the charging Tsunade, Shuying showed no fear, her body beginning to move.
Tokuma was instantly alarmed and shouted a warning, "Lady Hokage, be careful!"
But in such a critical moment, a warning was useless.
The Gentle Fist and the Strong Fist collided in an instant. The rooftop terrace could no longer withstand the immense pressure. The ground collapsed layer by layer, forcing everyone to retreat further back.
The shockwave from the impact continued to spread. The Hokage Tower, unable to bear the terrifying force, began to crumble like a line of dominoes until it was nothing but a pile of rubble.
Hm? This is…!!!
Tsunade's heart was shaken once again. It wasn't until their fists met that she understood.
She wasn't using the Gentle Fist at all. It was the same Strong Fist as her own.
Her stance, her form—it was all a bluff. The force behind her strike was that of the Strong Fist.
Dammit, I was played. To guard against the Gentle Fist's pressure point strikes, Tsunade had held back some of her power. Now, because of that, she had suffered a hidden loss.
Wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, Tsunade calmed the roiling qi and blood in her chest. She looked at Shuying with sharp eyes, a cold smile touching her lips. "Not bad. You fooled us all."
Shuying stood amidst the ruins and shook her hand, her voice indifferent. "This feeling is quite nostalgic."
"You… what did you say?" Tsunade was taken aback by Shuying's words. "What do you mean by that? Have we fought before?"
Shuying's voice remained flat, her tone as cold as ever. "Heh… that has nothing to do with you."
With that, Shuying lunged at Tsunade without any warning. The ground shattered under the immense force of her step.
With a muffled thud, Tsunade, distracted by her words, was too slow to block the sudden attack.
"Tsunade!"
"Lady Fifth!"
Seeing this, the Jonin swarmed forward to attack Shuying. Jiraiya, who had been observing the fight, leaped to catch Tsunade as she was sent flying.
Shuying let out a cold snort at the attacking Jonin and engaged them in battle.
If they had all been ninja of Jiraiya's caliber, Shuying would have turned and fled without a second thought. But unfortunately for them, she didn't care how many ordinary Jonin came at her.
Consider this a warm-up for the great battle to come, Shuying thought as she weaved through the Jonin.
"Are you alright, Tsunade?" Jiraiya asked, helping her to a sitting position.
"I'm fine." Tsunade wiped the blood from her mouth and used medical ninjutsu to heal the spot where she had been hit.
"This Shuying… it's possible we've fought her before," Tsunade said to Jiraiya.
"What are you talking about? That… how is that possible?" Jiraiya hadn't heard Shuying's quiet muttering.
"Ah~ it's definitely a possibility." Tsunade repeated what Shuying had said to herself, then analyzed, "Think about it. From the moment you met her, hasn't she seemed very familiar with you?"
"Is that so?" Jiraiya lowered his eyes in deep thought. After a moment, he said uncertainly, "It does seem that way. She called me by name right away and knew my ninjutsu. I had that feeling at the time, but I thought it was just my imagination."
"I'm afraid it wasn't your imagination," Tsunade said. "She's not only familiar with us, but she seems to be familiar with the village as well. The barrier team never reported an intruder until she launched her attack."
"But I don't remember meeting anyone like that in the last two years, especially not a woman," Jiraiya said, his expression grave. "And if it was from further back, it's even less likely. She probably wasn't even born then."
"You can't just judge by her physique. She hasn't taken off her mask, so we have no way of knowing her true age," Tsunade analyzed.
"Is that so…" Jiraiya fell silent. Then he smiled. "Forget it. If we can't figure it out, we'll just have to capture her. Leave it to me. Heheh, your style isn't suited for capturing people. Professional matters should be left to the professionals."
"I'm counting on you, then." Tsunade didn't insist. Her fighting style really wasn't suited for captures. Right now, she needed to check on the people who had been injured by Shuying's Rotation.
It seems Kakashi was knocked out too. How embarrassing.