novelraw Chapter 98 Deliberate Exposure
Chapter 98 Deliberate Exposure
Chapter 98 Deliberate Exposure
The training room next door.
Hyuga Katsuya is shirtless and practicing the Steel Gentle Fist.
His body was covered by a layer of white periosteum, which was the passive defense of the Corpse Bone Vein.
"Victory, hold on a minute."
Sosuke walked in.
Hyuga Katsu stopped practicing.
"Mr. Sosuke, what are your orders?"
"Help me test the knife."
Sousuke raised his right hand, and a blue chakra blade flickered and hummed at the edge of his palm.
Hyuga Katsu activates his Byakugan.
In the Byakugan's vision, the compression and flow of chakra in Sousuke's hand were frighteningly high, like a saw.
"Chakra scalpel?"
Hyuga Katsu recognized the technique.
"Mr. Sosuke, you actually mastered this technique—"
"I can barely manage it." Sosuke didn't explain much. "I want to try and see if it can cut through your bones."
Hyuga Masaru grinned. He wanted to give it a try too.
Since fusing with the Corpse Bone Pulse, he has absolute confidence in the toughness of his body. Ordinary ninja tools simply cannot break through his defenses. Even Might Guy's heavy punch and the serrated Executioner's Blade can only make him feel a slight impact, but cannot hurt him.
"bring it on."
Hyuga Katsu assumed a Gentle Fist stance.
"I also want to know just how hard my bones are."
"Be careful."
Sosuke didn't waste any words.
The left eye, like a snake's pupil, locks in; the right foot pushes off the ground.
Body Flicker Technique!
His figure disappeared from the spot.
The next second, he appeared to Hyuga Katsu's left and slashed Hyuga Katsu's shoulder with a hand chop.
"So fast!"
Hyuga Katsu was startled. Sousuke's speed had already surpassed that of most Chunin.
But his reaction was quick as well. His enhanced nervous system, thanks to the Corpse Bone Pulse, allowed him to keep up with Sousuke's movements.
"Bone Shield!"
Click.
Hyuga Masaru's left shoulder skin split open, and a thick layer of white bone plate instantly covered his shoulder.
This is the defensive instinct of the Kaguya clan.
The blue chakra scalpel slammed into the bone plate.
Sizzle—! !!
The ear-piercing scraping sound was like an electric saw cutting through steel bars.
Sparks flew everywhere.
Hyuga Katsu felt a burning sensation. It was the high temperature generated by the high-frequency cutting of chakra.
But he blocked it.
A deep cut, one centimeter deep, was left on the bone plate, but it was not completely severed.
"hard."
Sousuke breaks off immediately upon contact, strictly adhering to the principle of not staying in one position for too long during battle.
He looked at the scars on Hyuga Katsu's shoulder.
"We can only cut through the surface layer."
"Mr. Sosuke, this is already terrifying."
Hyuga Katsu touched the cut on his shoulder, still feeling lingering fear.
"This is bone formed from the Corpse Bone Vein, with a density more than five times that of ordinary bones, and harder than refined steel. If it were an ordinary kunai, it would have been dulled by that attack."
"and----"
Hyuga Katsu pointed to the area around the incision.
"I feel a stinging sensation in my meridians. Your chakra scalpel is not only cutting through bone, but also disrupting the flow of chakra in the surrounding area."
Sousuke nodded.
This is the characteristic of the Chakra Scalpel: a dual cutting technique combining physical and energy.
"Again."
Sosuke adjusted his breathing.
"This time, I'm going to cut your weak spot."
The battle continues.
Sousuke's figure flickered in the training room. He used the insight of his snake eyes to search for gaps in Hyuga Katsura's skeletal defenses.
Joints, armpits, sides of the neck.
Hyuga Sheng then went all out on defense. Bone spurs kept protruding from his body, like a hedgehog.
Half an hour later.
The two stopped.
Sosuke was panting heavily, having used up most of his chakra.
Hyuga Katsumi had more than a dozen faint red marks on his body, marks left by bone growth. His clothes had been reduced to strips of cloth.
"happy."
Hyuga Katsuyuki recovered his bone spurs, and the red marks were healing rapidly.
"Mr. Sousuke, if you had used this knife on another ninja, you probably would have lost a hand or a leg."
"My bones are too unique to be used as a reference standard."
Sousuke dispersed the chakra in his hands.
"really."
He was somewhat exhausted. Maintaining the chakra scalpel while using the Body Flicker Technique was a huge test of both physical strength and chakra.
"However, it's not fast enough."
Sousuke recounts the battle that just took place.
"It takes 0.5 seconds to condense the blade. That 0.5 seconds is enough for a master to react."
"It must be instantaneous."
"or----"
Sosuke thought of the wire, which he was good at.
"Is it possible to attach the properties of a chakra scalpel to a steel wire?"
If steel wire could also possess this cutting power—
That was a true inescapable net.
But that's an advanced application of chakra nature transformation—chakra flow.
He can't do that yet.
Let's take it one step at a time.
3
Sosuke wiped his sweat.
In the afternoon, Ryoma Aburame arrived.
He was wearing a high-necked trench coat, sunglasses that covered his eyes, and a military pack on his back.
During this period, he was sent to the border to carry out a reconnaissance mission targeting the Iwagakure Explosives Unit.
That was a hellish mission. Of the small squad he led, only he returned alive.
Now, he must continue his mission of protecting and monitoring Sosuke.
Longma pushed open the door.
The bluestone slabs on the courtyard ground were cracked, which were traces of recent repairs.
"You're back, Ryoma Chunin."
A voice came from the second-floor balcony.
The dragon-horse raises its head.
Sosuke was sitting on the balcony, holding a cup of tea, watching him.
Welcome home.
"Takaya Jonin"
Longma bowed slightly.
"I'm back to protect you."
"No need for protection, go and rest."
"Your room has been kept. Also, your bugs seem hungry, and there's some freshly bought sugar in the kitchen."
Ryoma was stunned for a moment.
The insects of the Oil Woman tribe do indeed love high-calorie sugar.
He never expected that this profit-driven businessman would remember such a trivial matter.
Thank you.
Longma entered the house.
Several people were sitting in the hall.
The serrated man held the enormous cleaver across his knees and carefully polished it with a piece of deerskin.
Seeing Longma enter, Juchi grinned, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth.
"Oh, so this is the one who plays with bugs?"
That was a provocation, but also a greeting.
"Ryoma Chunin, this is the new bodyguard of the Takaya Trading Company, Sawtooth. Sawtooth, this is Aburame Ryoma, an elite of the Aburame clan."
Sosuke came down and introduced them to each other.
However, Longma's attention was not on the saw teeth.
A man sat in the shadows of the corner.
Hyuga Katsumi.
He was resting with his eyes closed.
As Longma passed by him, the parasites inside his body suddenly became restless and emitted sharp cries.
That was fear. The insects were afraid of the man.
"This is... the paralyzed Hyuga branch family member?"
Longma was greatly shocked.
Just two weeks ago, this person was bedridden.
Now, sitting there, he was like a radiant source of intense heat. Beneath his skin, something harder than steel seemed to flow.
"This feeling—"
Longma withdrew his gaze and strode into his room.
Sousuke watched his retreating figure and smiled slightly. He wasn't worried that Ryoma would report this to Mitokado Homura.
As long as Hyuga Katsu continues to live in the village, sooner or later the other ninjas will notice something amiss.
Now that Ryoma has passed this on to Homura Mitokado, it might not be a bad thing.
This matter requires us to talk about the Hyuga clan itself.
The Hyuga clan's power and influence are so great that they even surpass the Uchiha clan, making them arguably the most powerful clan in Konoha today.
However, Hyuga has always kept his distance from the Hokage lineage and has not been particularly enthusiastic about it.
Therefore, the Third Hokage, the two advisors, and Danzo had all long sought an opportunity to weaken the Hyuga clan's strength.
As is well known, the Hyuga branch family has long suffered oppression, or even enslavement, from the main family.
Now, when they learn that a member of the Hyuga branch family may have undergone some interesting changes—the Hokage lineage would only be happy to see this happen, and might even help cover for him.
If Hyuga Katsuyoshi becomes strong enough to break free of the Caged Bird Seal and weaken the main branch of the Hokage clan, that would be the most welcome sight for the Hokage lineage.