Alcohol dulls the nerves and slows reaction times, so few shinobi drink. If they do, it's never during a mission, let alone right before a fight.
But this Kohinata Mukai drank right before the match.
And the Konoha's side not only didn't mind, they looked confident of victory. Some of the younger ones cheered excitedly for Mukai, their faces saying they'd already won.
Even the Third Hokage smiled.
'Could he be a drunken fist genius like Lee?'
Ryuji wondered.
"Are you both ready?"
Minato looked at both participants.
Gin gave a slight nod.
Mukai chuckled lightly, tipped his head back, and downed the remaining liquor in the bottle, then tossed it aside.
He wiped his mouth and said cheerfully, "Ready."
Minato nodded. "Then, the duel begins now."
The moment his words fell, the ground, which is freshly repaired by Earth Release, shattered underfoot. Gin shot forward, closing the distance in an instant. Her fist, wrapped in dense Chakra, aimed straight for Mukai's face.
Mukai had a lazy, drunken expression, his body swaying as if he might topple over at any moment, making the watching Sunagakure's Shinobi nervous for him.
After all, Gin's fist was no joke. A direct hit would send you straight to the afterlife, or at least its doorstep.
Whoosh~
The force of the punch whipped Mukai's hair back. His entire field of vision was filled by the incoming fist.
Seeing she was about to punch a man to death, Gin remembered her master's instructions and reduced the Chakra output at the last moment.
However, in that split second, the laziness vanished from Mukai's eyes, replaced by sharp intensity. His left hand, which no one saw move, came up and slapped Gin's fist aside, leaving her wide open.
"You shouldn't make such a basic mistake, miss!"
Mukai murmured softly. His right hand, formed into a palm, was already pressed against Gin's abdomen.
Thud!
A palm strike that seemed to lack force delivered a penetrating impact. The force passed through Gin's body, emerging from her lower back. Her entire torso folded inward, and she was sent flying backward.
"Gentle Fist!"
Watching Gin clutch her stomach and retch violently, Ryuji exclaimed in surprise.
"I'm surprised you've heard of the Gentle Fist."
Hearing the exclamation beside him, Hiruzen explained proudly. "Kohinata Mukai's great-grandmother was from the Hyuga Clan. She left the branch house's Gentle Fist secret scroll for the Kohinata Family, so Mukai knows some of it."
"So that's how it is." Ryuji's eyes widened in understanding.
He had initially thought the surname 'Kohinata' was similar to 'Hyuga', but since Mukai lacked the Byakugan, he hadn't dwelled on it. He hadn't expected this connection. (T/N: The Kanji of Kohinata and Hyuga is somewhat similar.)
Mukai likely didn't have the Byakugan because, after several generations, the Hyuga blood within him had become too diluted.
"I've heard the Gentle Fist is the Hyuga Clan's secret Taijutsu. Its techniques are so refined that few, if any, styles in the Shinobi World can compare." Ryuji then adopted an amused expression. "Hokage-dono, you came prepared."
"What could I do? This Ninja, Gin, is too exceptional. She left a deep impression even on Minato. Without preparation, Konoha likely had no one who could face her." Hiruzen replied with a serene smile, giving Ryuji no room to argue.
Ryuji could only curse inwardly: 'Old fox.'
However, thinking of Gin's nature, a smile returned to Ryuji's face. "I didn't realize Hokage-dono held Gin in such high regard. However, your preparations might be slightly off the mark."
"Oh?"
Hiruzen stared intently at Ryuji. Seeing no trace of pretense on his face, he turned his gaze back to the arena.
Gin was still clutching her stomach, retching.
Mukai... perhaps thinking victory was assured, didn't press the attack. He stood with impeccable demeanor, took a cigarette and lighter from his pocket, and leisurely lit it.
'I don't see any problem.'
Hiruzen's brow furrowed.
The Gentle Fist could bypass external defenses to damage internal organs directly. It could also block Chakra Flow by striking Tenketsu Points. Even its pure striking techniques were among the world's finest. It perfectly countered Gin.
Although Mukai only knew a portion of the Gentle Fist from his great-grandmother's scroll, he had mastered it to a sublime level, surpassing even some within the main house of Hyuga Clan.
That's why Hiruzen had chosen Mukai over Minato.
After all,
Minato was fast, but his offensive options were limited.
It was uncertain if his Rasengan could even breach Gin's full-body hardening. The limited arena size also greatly restricted his speed advantage.
If Gin hardened her entire body and indiscriminately destroyed the terrain, she'd be nearly untouchable and unapproachable, perfectly countering Minato.
But the participant was Mukai, not Minato.
'Why he Ryuji so confident?'
'Clearly hard-countered, having carelessly taken a hit at the start, now at an absolute disadvantage... Why this confidence?'
After the previous round's performance, Hiruzen refused to believe this was mere bluffing. But no matter how he thought, he couldn't see Gin's path to victory.
This feeling of knowing something was off but being unable to see it was maddening. And today, it had happened twice.
…
Stubbing out his cigarette, Mukai looked across the arena. The girl was still retching. He scratched his head in annoyance.
Then, he sighed deeply. "Hey, shouldn't you surrender about now?"
Gin ignored him, still clutching her stomach.
Mukai sighed again, helpless. "Even though you held back your Chakra at the last moment, the outcome wouldn't have changed if you hadn't. I only know a fragment of the Gentle Fist, but mastering that fragment to its peak allows me to deflect even mountain-splitting force."
"Besides, I held back too. I didn't rupture your stomach. But if you can't recover quickly, you'll just stay like that."
"Stomach?"
Gin paused slightly, then retched again, though nothing came out.
Mukai didn't pay much mind, assuming she had already emptied her stomach long ago.
But a glance at the ground revealed... there was nothing there.
Gin hadn't vomited anything at all from the start.
Mukai's eyes widened. He stared at Gin in disbelief. "Hey... what's wrong with your body?"
Gin didn't answer. She retched even more forcefully.
Seeing this, Mukai felt exasperated.
He turned to Minato, signaling him to announce the result.
Just then, the retching stopped.
Mukai looked back. Gin was standing up, an expression of profound relief on her face.
"Hey, hey, what's with that look like you just... finished?" Mukai couldn't help but comment.
Gin took a deep breath, then fixed a cold stare on Mukai. "You didn't need to hold back. I don't have a stomach. Even if you hadn't, it wouldn't have mattered."
"And, you could have attacked then."
"Because... you cannot inflict effective damage on me."