82. Annoying Uchiha

"Heh... don't worry. I'm the Hokage of this village. Do you really think I'd make arrangements that would harm it?"

Adjusting the fire-symbol hat on his head, the Third Hokage chuckled heartily and took a sip of his tea.

"Mmm~ this tea isn't bad."

There was always risk—just like that disciple he once trained...

Lowering his gaze, the Third sighed inwardly. In any case, Hiashi had clearly voiced his stance. If things went wrong because of a decision the Hokage made, the Hyuga Clan would no longer bear responsibility.

But still... if one were to reject future potential just to avoid hypothetical dangers, that would be the very definition of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Hiashi might only be a clan head—but he, Hiruzen, was the Hokage of all of Konoha.

Since Hiashi's initial decision to give up on Hinata had proven to be a mistake… then perhaps it was time for him to correct it.

---

The Sharingan's power was undeniable, but it lacked the Byakugan's wide-area x-ray capabilities. That meant... it was about time for Sasuke to make his move.

With another quick motion, Hinata hurled two more kunai wrapped with explosive tags. But her hand hesitated slightly—she was down to just four kunai now. Still, it was clear to see: after her relentless bombardment, Sasuke had been left battered and exposed. The trees that were supposed to aid him only hampered his Sharingan's effectiveness. His plan to lure and trap Hinata had backfired badly.

At this point, he really should have admitted defeat. But on the other side stood a Hyuga—and he, an Uchiha. That lingering pride pushed Sasuke to grit his teeth and keep going, even knowing his chances were slim.

Ninja tools were limited, after all. Too many would weigh a shinobi down. Aside from weapon scroll-rich weirdos like Tenten, most carried only a standard loadout.

Hinata's small pouch only held enough space for ten kunai and ten shuriken. But since she wasn't skilled with shuriken, she went all-in on twenty kunai. And since explosive tags needed kunai to be effective from a distance, Sasuke figured she was down to just four.

"Now!!"

Catching the hesitation in Hinata's attack rhythm, Sasuke immediately flared his chakra. Lightning chakra surged through his Holy Fist gloves, converting into visible electricity crawling over his skin. That electric tension sharpened his body into a state of near-stimulation—he'd discovered this effect after acquiring the gloves: lightning chakra gave him speed.

Drawing eight shuriken—four in each hand—from his thigh pouches, Sasuke spun once, and the projectiles shot out from the forest in perfect arcs, flying straight toward Hinata!

"What?!"

Hinata was genuinely startled. She had changed positions after every throw specifically to avoid being tracked. But Sasuke had even accounted for her movement intervals and accurately predicted where she'd be!

The eight lightning-charged shuriken screamed through the air.

Compared to Hinata's throwing technique, Sasuke's was clearly superior—each shuriken had a unique curve and spin rate, making them highly unpredictable.

Worse, if even one grazed her, the lightning chakra would cause temporary paralysis—giving Sasuke the perfect opening to press his attack.

Impressive. Truly worthy of the name Uchiha Sasuke. But—

Hinata smirked savagely. She abandoned all thoughts of dodging or parrying. Sasuke had timed this throw precisely—it was too late to fully evade, and who knew how the projectiles would behave mid-flight. So she...

"RAH!!"

With a sharp cry, Hinata's right palm sliced downward like a blade, driving straight into the ground. A fiery burst erupted as she used her strength to violently heave upward—stones, dirt, and rubble surged like an improvised earth wall. It wasn't as solid as an actual Earth Style jutsu, but it was more than enough to block standard shuriken.

The shuriken clanged off the barrier, deflected harmlessly. Their tricky trajectories weren't enough to pierce raw force.

But that didn't mean she was safe.

"Fūma Shuriken!!"

Sasuke's shout echoed through the clearing as a massive shuriken, nearly half as tall as a person, roared straight at her!

Of course. He'd anticipated her standing her ground—and used a heavier weapon to follow up!

Hinata instantly realized her defense was predictable. Last time she fought Sasuke, she hadn't blocked his shuriken either—he remembered. Clearly, Sasuke was the type to learn and adapt with frightening speed. Very few shinobi their age could analyze and apply that knowledge so quickly.

Still, Sasuke wouldn't think a single Fūma Shuriken would be enough to defeat her. This was just another test to provoke a reaction—and exploit it.

The shuriken flew parallel to the ground at a low angle. That meant Hinata had to either dodge to the side or jump, both of which would expose her to further attacks. With his double tomoe Sharingan, Sasuke wouldn't miss a beat in countering her movement.

The other option was to block it head-on—but dealing with a weapon of that size would require serious effort, leaving her open afterward.

In that case...

"Nanto Fist: Dark Sweep."

Calmly muttering the name, fire burst to life along Hinata's left arm. With a clean sweeping motion, she sent a wave of flame low across the ground like a slithering serpent. Though it had no physical mass, the chakra-infused fire collided with the Fūma Shuriken and exploded on impact—shattering the giant weapon into scattered fragments.

Huh?!

But just then, Hinata's senses screamed a warning. Sasuke hadn't attacked further—he was staring at her intently, those two spinning tomoe in his eyes rotating eerily fast.

Don't tell me—!

A chill ran down her spine. She remembered the most broken ability of the Sharingan… and right on cue, Sasuke smirked. Raising his right hand, he mirrored her earlier motion—electricity sparked and surged forward from his palm, snaking along the ground toward her just like her own Dark Sweep.

You cheating copy-paste bastard!!

Hinata's face went cold. With a swift movement, she fired off another Dark Sweep. The two attacks collided mid-air, exploding in a dazzling burst of sparks.

No doubt now—this had been Sasuke's goal all along.

Dark Sweep was a personal secret technique Hinata never intended to teach either Sasuke or Naruto. Naruto had gotten lucky with the burned remains of the Sonic Blade scroll—thanks to "White Hinata" slipping it to him in secret.

But Sasuke had chosen the bolder path: using his Sharingan to steal the technique directly from Hinata's own movements.

Though Dark Sweep wasn't a ninjutsu, it still required chakra coordination—precise muscle control, chakra flow through the meridians, and extensive training. It was essentially a chakra-enhanced taijutsu move.

Even for Hinata, mastering it had taken serious time and effort. Yet Sasuke, with his Sharingan, had dissected the mechanics instantly and copied it on the spot.

Just like how he once learned in half a month what took Lee nearly a year to master.

"Tch… the Uchiha really are annoying for a reason."

Hinata relaxed her stance and let out a mocking laugh, though her eyes glinted with fierce appreciation. "Not bad~ Now that's more like it. Compared to Naruto's dumb luck… I like you a little better."

"Hmph. You scared me for a second there. You've gotten even tougher since last time."

Sasuke grinned proudly. Having achieved what he came for, his voice was tinged with arrogance. "Even though I lost before, I'm still an Uchiha. Sure, I can't make as much money as you… but as a ninja, I'll definitely catch up—and surpass you!"

"Is that so?"

Hinata's eyes narrowed. With a swift motion, she fired another Dark Sweep at Sasuke—then followed it up with five more in rapid succession!

"It's useless~! Before these eyes, your every move is like a reflection in glass!"

Boasting loudly, Sasuke mirrored her movements, responding blow-for-blow. His attacks were lightning instead of fire, but the gestures were identical.

Flames and lightning danced across the battlefield like crashing waves. But suddenly, Sasuke's face stiffened—pain contorting his features.

"What…? My hands…"

Looking down in disbelief, he realized his arms were numb—completely unresponsive, as if shocked into paralysis.

"Looks like you figured it out. Pushing large volumes of lightning chakra through your hands over a short time—your body's not used to it, right?"

Hinata raised her own unscathed hands, her white eyes laced with open ridicule. "How long do you think I trained Dark Sweep? I've constantly flooded my arms with fire chakra in every battle. But you? Aside from Chidori, when have your hands ever handled this much lightning chakra?"

Exactly. Sasuke may have copied the move instantly—but he forgot one critical detail:

Physical compatibility.