"Be careful!"
Naruto looked at Hinata with concern.
Hinata's cheeks flushed slightly as she nodded.
"Yes, Naruto-kun... You be careful too."
Naruto smiled.
"I will."
"Let's go!"
Sasuke, Might Guy, Neji, Rock Lee, Tenten, and the others nodded before continuing their pursuit.
Naruto glanced back one last time.
"Hinata... stay safe."
Hinata smiled gently as she watched him disappear into the distance.
"I will."
---
Sasori of the Red Sand made no move to stop them.
He simply watched the scene unfold with cold indifference.
"Are you finished with your little farewell?"
He looked at Chiyo.
"Old woman... you know I hate waiting."
"So..."
"Isn't it time for you to die?"
Grandmother Chiyo untied the ribbon holding her hair, letting it fall freely over her shoulders.
Slowly, she raised both hands.
Dozens of kunai and shuriken shot through the air.
"Come, Sasori!"
Manipulated Attack Blades!
The barrage of ninja tools attacked Kuroari from every direction.
Sasori snorted.
Kuroari's massive mechanical tail swept through the air, knocking every kunai aside with flawless precision.
However...
Chiyo wasn't controlling ordinary weapons.
Every blade was connected to her by Chakra Threads.
The instant they were deflected, they changed direction and attacked again.
One side fought with long-range Chakra Threads.
The other controlled a human puppet in close combat.
It was a battle unlike any other—a clash between the two greatest Puppet Masters in the ninja world.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Metal collided endlessly.
Though this was merely the opening exchange, the battle was already breathtaking.
Hinata watched every movement without blinking.
"Amazing..."
Ordinary shinobi would have struggled to follow the battle.
But Hinata possessed the Byakugan.
Its extraordinary vision allowed her to see every attack, every defense, and every Chakra Thread.
Then...
Her gaze suddenly sharpened.
"Hm?"
"All of Sasori's Chakra Threads..."
"They're connected to a single core."
"So that's it..."
"The puppet's heart is his true weak point."
Unlike everyone else, Hinata could clearly see through Kuroari's layers.
With the Byakugan's penetrating vision, she discovered the core hidden inside the human puppet.
That was Sasori's true body.
His lifeline.
The terrifying strength of the Byakugan lay in exactly this.
No disguise.
No concealment.
No deception.
Nothing could escape its sight.
Everything else was merely an outer shell.
All they needed to do...
Was break through those layers.
"Grandmother Chiyo!"
"His true weakness is the heart inside the human puppet hidden within Kuroari!"
"Everything else is just armor!"
Chiyo's eyes widened.
"The heart... inside the puppet?"
She quickly understood what Hinata meant.
As one of the greatest Puppet Masters alive, she immediately grasped the significance of that information.
Sasori, meanwhile, was genuinely shocked.
"The Byakugan..."
"It can actually see that far?"
"Can those eyes really see through everything?"
For the first time...
He felt a sense of danger.
Without hesitation, he activated Kuroari's mechanisms.
"Kuroari!"
Needle Eight Waves!
Kuroari's jaw opened wide.
Countless poisoned senbon needles erupted from its mechanical mouth.
The sky filled with glittering silver needles.
They poured forward like a deadly rainstorm.
"Be careful, Hinata!"
Chiyo shouted urgently.
"Every one of those senbon is coated with a deadly poison!"
"Even the smallest scratch will be fatal!"
Hinata nodded calmly.
"I understand."
Because Chiyo was familiar with Sasori's attack patterns, avoiding the barrage wasn't difficult.
Her only concern...
Was Hinata.
However...
Hinata possessed both the Byakugan's supreme perception and an absolute defensive technique.
An attack like this couldn't threaten her.
"Protective Gentle Fist!"
Eight Trigrams Palm Guard!
In an instant...
Hinata's palms released incredibly refined streams of chakra.
Guided by the Byakugan's perfect vision, every movement was flawless.
Each poisoned needle was precisely deflected before it could reach her.
Not a single one slipped through.
Her defense was perfect.
Chiyo stared in disbelief.
"What incredible technique..."
Sasori frowned.
"Absolute defense..."
"So..."
"Try this instead!"
"Kuroari!"
Gishu Senbon!
This time, numerous giant syringes shot out from Kuroari's arms.
They rose into the air.
Then exploded.
Thousands of poisoned senbon rained down from above.
Like flowers scattering from the heavens.
Every possible escape route was sealed.
There was nowhere to dodge.
Yet...
Hinata remained perfectly calm.
She pushed her Gentle Fist technique to its absolute limit.
Her hands danced gracefully through the air.
Crossing.
Turning.
Flowing.
Like butterflies fluttering among flowers.
Every movement formed an impenetrable wall.
Not a single poisoned needle reached her.
Her long hair fluttered behind her.
Her palms moved so quickly they seemed to multiply.
For a moment...
She resembled a thousand-armed Bodhisattva, standing upon a lotus throne, surrounded by sacred light.
Untouched by poison.
Untouched by disaster.
While defending herself, Chiyo couldn't help watching Hinata's movements.
She was deeply impressed.
"What an incredible young girl..."
"I thought she only stayed behind to encourage me."
"I never imagined she was this powerful."
"Konoha truly produces extraordinary talent."
"Not only Naruto..."
"But this girl as well..."
"She's a monster."
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The syringes fell harmlessly to the ground.
Thousands of silver needles lay scattered across the battlefield.
Not one had pierced Hinata's defense.
Silence filled the battlefield.
Even Sasori's expression darkened.
"Damn brat..."
"What kind of technique is that?"
Hinata breathed lightly from the effort but answered honestly.
"It's my own creation."
Protective Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Palm Guard.
After developing the technique, she had continued refining it.
Under Naruto's guidance and through constant sparring with Neji, it had become many times stronger than before.
This...
Was Hinata's own absolute defense.
Sasori was both shocked and furious.
He had never imagined that one of his greatest trump cards would be completely neutralized by such a young girl.
"Kuroari!"
Thousand-Armed Manipulation Scroll!
This was Kuroari's strongest technique.
Countless gigantic mechanical arms burst from its body.
Like ancient trees stretching toward the heavens, they descended with overwhelming force.
"Hinata!"
"Watch out!"
Chiyo cried out.
Even the Gentle Fist couldn't simply block such overwhelming power.
As the enormous arms came crashing down...
Hinata slowly raised her head.
She took a deep breath.
Then...
She unleashed her own trump card.
"Hyuga..."
Celestial Light Palm!
With a fierce shout, Hinata combined the elegance of the Gentle Fist with the monstrous strength she had inherited from Tsunade's teachings.
Softness and power.
Yin and Yang.
Perfectly united.
Brilliant white light erupted from her palms.
It shone like a miniature sun.
The air trembled beneath its overwhelming force.
BOOM!
The strike exploded outward.
In an instant...
Every mechanical arm of the Thousand-Armed Manipulation Scroll shattered into countless fragments.
Wooden debris scattered across the battlefield.
The terrifying impact didn't stop there.
Kuroari itself was blasted backward.
The massive puppet slammed violently into the enormous rock behind it.
But something even more frightening happened.
Sasori suddenly felt that devastating force racing through the Chakra Threads connected to Kuroari.
It was heading directly toward his true core.
His instincts screamed in warning.
Without hesitation...
He severed every Chakra Thread connecting him to the puppet.
Only then did he avoid the attack.
Even so...
Cold sweat ran down his back.
Had he reacted even a moment slower...
Hinata's Celestial Light Palm would have traveled through the Chakra Threads and struck his core directly.
A single blow...
Might have seriously injured him.
Or even killed him.
For the first time...
Sasori no longer dared underestimate the young girl before him.
"So this..."
"Is the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist..."
"But combined with Lady Tsunade's overwhelming strength..."
"What terrifying talent..."
________________________________________
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