In a heavily reinforced cavern within the secret base, Kyosuke, his dōjutsu power now fully restored, was engaged in a fierce battle with Saori. This was no mere sparring match; they were both fighting at their full strength.
"Hah!"
With a sharp cry, Saori unleashed a storm of palm strikes, each one aimed at Kyosuke's vital points. The power of a Kage-level Hyuga was a terrifying thing to behold. Each of her strikes carried the force of her previous full-powered blows, and they came in a relentless, high-speed barrage. Even the current Kyosuke did not dare to face her head-on.
He used the Flying Thunder God to teleport to a distant marker and immediately launched a ferocious fire dragon at her.
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
But the once-mighty ninjutsu was now little more than a diversion. Saori's hands were a blur as she struck the same point four times in rapid succession. The resulting shockwave not only dissipated the fire dragon but continued on toward Kyosuke.
"Eight Trigrams: Four Heavens Palm!"
"BOOM!"
An arch-shaped wall of wood erupted from the ground, blocking the attack.
"Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall."
"...Wood Release is such a convenient ability," Saori said, a hint of envy in her voice. "Especially for defense. It's so much stronger than Earth Release."
At her current level of Sage Body, she could barely summon a few small saplings. A ninjutsu of this scale was far beyond her.
"Is it really a good idea to be distracted right now?"
Kyosuke's voice, laced with killing intent, suddenly appeared behind her, followed by the sound of his Kusanagi Sword cutting through the air.
This was a serious battle. He would not hold back.
Against an attack of this speed, her only option was to meet it head-on.
But just as Kyosuke was about to claim victory, something unexpected happened.
Saori's eyes narrowed, and an invisible wave of pressure radiated from her.
"Byakugan: Pressure!"
It was as if gravity had suddenly increased tenfold. A tangible, crushing force pressed down on Kyosuke, momentarily stunning him, his thoughts slowing to a crawl. He didn't even have time to use the Flying Thunder God.
Seizing the opportunity, Saori spun around and unleashed a powerful counterattack.
"Gentle Fist Art: Dragon Shattering Strike!"
"ROAR!"
A dragon-shaped mass of chakra, accompanied by a sound like a dragon's roar, slammed into the violet-red skeleton that had just appeared around Kyosuke.
He had managed to activate his Susanoo at the last second, but the attack's immense piercing power shattered the initial-stage construct and struck him directly, sending him crashing into the cavern wall.
"Cough, cough." He pulled himself from the rubble, his voice filled with a mixture of pain and curiosity. "What was that strange pressure just now?"
"Oh, that?" Saori said, pointing to her Byakugan. "It's a new ability I've recently awakened. Simply put, I can use my dōjutsu power to restrict an opponent's movement. Against a weaker opponent, I can even knock them unconscious."
She stood there, a triumphant, teasing look on her face.
But Kyosuke simply smiled and pointed behind her.
A bad feeling washed over her. She turned and saw an exploding tag stuck to her back.
Damn it! The joy of her victory vanished in an instant, replaced by a surge of frustration.
Seeing her crestfallen expression, Kyosuke walked over, a hand on his still-aching chest. He looked at her Byakugan, which she had not yet deactivated. "It seems my theory was correct. The Sage Body can indeed enhance the Byakugan's power, and even awaken new abilities."
His words distracted her from her disappointment. "I've searched the clan's archives, but I've never found any mention of such an ability. It seems this is the first time it has ever appeared. Now, I'm even more excited for this 'Tenseigan' you've been talking about."
"Be patient. At our current level, it will still take a long time to evolve our dōjutsu. I'll think of a way to speed up the process."
"It's alright. I can wait," she said with a smile.
The two of them returned to the laboratory and began a series of detailed tests on her Byakugan.
They discovered that her Byakugan was indeed in the process of evolving, but the process was incredibly slow. Without some form of external intervention, it would take at least ten years for her to awaken the Tenseigan.
Ten years was too long. But Kyosuke already had a few ideas on how to accelerate the process. For now, the priority was the Hyuga clan.
Only six months left. I need to speed up the preparations, he thought, then asked, "How is the recruitment going?"
"...What's wrong?" she asked, a puzzled look on her face. "I've been testing and observing potential candidates. At the moment, I don't have many firm supporters. Do you want me to speed things up?"
"Yes," he said, his voice firm. "In six months, I need you to be able to guarantee a successful seizure of power in the Hyuga clan."
"Six months... what's going on? He's hiding something from me," she thought, but she didn't ask. She simply nodded in acceptance.
Seeing that she understood the gravity of the situation, Kyosuke took her hand and, with a surge of chakra, the two of them vanished from the laboratory.
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