Konoha: Starting with Sage Mode

But that's exactly what she wanted.

Seeing the rapidly approaching fist, she subconsciously channeled the cursed seal chakra within her body into her Sharingan, causing the three tomoe in her Sharingan to spin rapidly and connect together.

In an instant, she noticed that the puppet's fists had slowed down.

Chizuru was very clever. Ever since she discovered that cursed seals could fuse with chakra and natural energy to form cursed seal chakra that could enhance ninjutsu, she secretly searched through some of her family's books related to natural energy and realized that the cursed seal chakra formed by these cursed seals was actually sage chakra.

At the same time, she finally understood that the chakra Kirito injected into her cursed seal was Sage Chakra, and she also discovered that Kirito's Sage Chakra was of much higher quality than the Sage Chakra she formed using her cursed seal.

She was naturally unwilling to accept this and wanted to make her Sage Chakra quality catch up with Kirito's Sage Chakra.

Therefore, Chizuru began to study Cursed Seal Chakra continuously. After nearly a year of hard work, although she was not able to create Sage Chakra on her own, she figured out that she could use the Cursed Seal to create Cursed Seal Chakra without activating the Cursed Seal.

She also discovered that the Sharingan would be continuously strengthened under the long-term nourishment of the cursed seal chakra.

This enhancement is not only reflected in the power of the pupils, but also in the Sharingan's observational abilities.

If the Sharingan is activated using Cursed Seal Chakra, the Sharingan will receive a temporary enhancement.

For example, right now.

Her Sharingan was temporarily enhanced by a large amount of cursed seal chakra, and she was confident that her Sharingan's dynamic vision was no longer comparable to that of the Byakugan, and even surpassed that of ordinary Jonin-level Byakugan ninjas.

She had seen through the enemy's movements.

Next, she needs to improve her neural reaction speed and movement speed.

Spell: Thunderous Secret Technique!

Black lightning suddenly appeared on Chizuru.

Sand Star's puppet's punch finally landed on the afterimage left by Chizuru in the same spot.

"So fast!"

Upon seeing this, Sunabo was greatly shocked, finally realizing that Chizuru's strength was even greater than he had imagined.

Before he could react, the puppet he was controlling was circled by Chizuru, who seemed to transform into a black lightning bolt, and then its head and limbs were all severed, rendering it useless.

Sword Skill: Lightning Flash!

"That's it?"

Chizuru, standing on the puppet's mangled body, stared intently at Sandsei, who was currently swallowing saliva wildly within the chakra shield, and said disdainfully.

The puppet is a testament to the puppeteer's skill. For Sand Star, losing a Jonin-level puppet is equivalent to losing an arm.

Soon, Sand Star was struck by a black, high-temperature fireball and burned to ashes.

Spell: Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!

"too weak."

Chizuru looked at the ashes on the ground ahead and said with dissatisfaction.

Then, her gaze fell on a blond boy on the viewing platform, a provocative look in her eyes.

The blond boy was none other than Minato Namikaze. Now that Chizuru was looking at him like this, he couldn't help but feel a strong fighting spirit rising in his heart.

He had witnessed the entire battle between Chizuru and Suna, and knew that this Uchiha girl, who was on the same team as the monster Kirito, was also a monster, just not as much as Kirito.

However, judging from the battle just now, Uchiha Chizuru's strength has far surpassed that of an ordinary elite Jonin.

"Wow, she's so fast, and her reaction is quick too. I wonder if my Flying Thunder God Technique will be able to successfully ambush her."

Minato Namikaze muttered to himself.

Just as he was about to stand up to accept Chizuru's challenge, Hua Lian stood up beside him. Before he could speak, Hua Lian quickly formed a hand seal and used the Water Instantaneous Body Technique, instantly appearing on the battlefield of the arena.

"Uchiha Chizuru, I, Hyuga Karen, challenge you."

Hua Lian looked at Chizuru, whose face showed dissatisfaction, took a deep breath, then assumed a Gentle Fist stance and said seriously.

As soon as she finished speaking, she activated her Byakugan, and at the same time, a large number of flame-like incantations appeared on Hua Lian's body, causing her aura to rise steadily and her entire appearance to change rapidly.

"I accept your challenge."

Upon seeing this familiar scene, Chizuru's eyes flashed with a deep killing intent, and she said in a cold voice.

Chapter 201: Hua Lian's Counterattack

Flame-like incantations crawled all over Hua Lian's body and then disappeared instantly. At this moment, Hua Lian's appearance had undergone a complete transformation.

Her originally jet-black hair turned completely silver-white, her fair and delicate skin became even paler, and her rosy lips were painted with a touch of purple. The most striking change was undoubtedly her eyes, which turned from white to pale yellow.

In order to fight Chizuru, Karen decisively activated the second stage of Cursed Seal Transformation right from the start, temporarily and greatly enhancing his physical abilities and chakra.

At this moment, Hua Lian gives the impression of being very close to the level of an elite Jonin.

There were many spectators in the arena, including several Jonin.

Many of them had never witnessed the power of the Cursed Seal Transformation before. Now, seeing Hua Lian activate the Cursed Seal Transformation and instantly break through from an elite Chunin to someone almost reaching an elite Jonin, their faces showed surprise, and their eyes couldn't help but gleam with intense longing.

"Could this ninjutsu have been developed by Lord Orochimaru?"

A young Chunin who recognized Hana as a member of Orochimaru's team asked the Jonin leading the group beside him.

This kind of ninjutsu that can temporarily and drastically enhance one's strength is truly astonishing.

As a ninja whose strength also reached the level of elite Chunin, he desperately wanted to obtain this ninjutsu, even though it was the kind of ninjutsu that temporarily boosted strength and might have serious side effects.

If he could obtain it, he wouldn't mind paying the price of his loyalty.

The reason is simple: the battlefield is too dangerous. If he can master this ninjutsu, his chances of survival on the battlefield will definitely increase greatly, and gaining merit in battle will no longer be just a dream.

"..."

The Jonin leading the team remained silent upon hearing his subordinate's words.

He had no idea that Orochimaru possessed this kind of ninjutsu, but as a Jonin, he couldn't be as reckless as his subordinates and reveal any information about Orochimaru, a Kage-level ninja of Konoha, in public.

Even though the arena is full of Konoha ninja, this is still the case.

"Humph."

The Jonin leading the team didn't say anything, but a young ninja nearby let out a disdainful snort.

Upon hearing the hum, the young Chunin immediately turned around and looked in the direction of the sound, whereupon he saw a boy wearing a Jonin vest.

He recognized the person; the other person was someone who had recently been promoted to Jonin after completing several A-rank missions. This person was named Shiranui Takeshi, and was the same age as Kirito.

When Shiranui Takeshi saw the young Chunin looking over, he only gave him a cold look before turning his gaze back to the battlefield below.

The young Chunin's question and Shiranui Takeru's humming attracted the attention of many nearby ninjas, who all wore thoughtful expressions.

This minor incident did not affect the battle between Chizuru and Karen.

"Is that all you've got?"

Chizuru looked at Hana's change and said with little interest, but her Sharingan eyes revealed a cold killing intent.

She now clearly understood that Hua Lian, like her, possessed a cursed seal given to her by Kirito, and that the seal's level was not low.

For a moment, her mood turned very bad.

As soon as she finished speaking, she prepared to end the fight quickly.

Sharingan - Genjutsu!

A mere Chunin who only managed to reach Jonin level through a cursed seal is not worthy of her taking a serious stance. Moreover, he dared to stare directly at her during the match, showing utter ignorance of his own limitations.

Do you really think she can't use illusion magic?

"ended."

Chizuru looked at Hana's unfocused and dull eyes and sneered.

But the next moment, her eyes widened, and the three tomoe in her eyes began to spin rapidly.

Because the Karen in front of her had broken free from her Sharingan genjutsu, and like Kirito, had completed the hand seals for some kind of ninjutsu by clapping her hands together.

A thick fog quickly appeared on the battlefield, enveloping Hua Lian completely.

Water Release: Mist Concealment Technique!

"here we go."

In the stands, Minato Namikaze's face twitched slightly as he saw the thick fog appear, and he said with a hint of lingering fear.

As Hua Lian's teammate who had gone through life and death with him for more than a year, and also Hua Lian's usual practice partner, he was very clear about Hua Lian's strength. Although his apparent strength was that of an elite Chunin, his true strength was already that of a Jonin.

Karen's greatest strength lies in chakra manipulation, a skill possessed by every member of the Hyuga clan who is proficient in Gentle Fist. However, Karen's chakra manipulation far surpasses that of ordinary Hyuga Jonin.

This can be seen from the fact that she can easily break the genjutsu of the three-tomoe Sharingan and release various ninjutsu without hand seals.

Karen is not a ninja who only practices Gentle Fist, a type of taijutsu. She is also a ninja who is proficient in Water Release and Wind Release, and has mastered a variety of Water Release and Wind Release ninjutsu, most of which can be released without hand seals.

Hua Lian's combat system is very simple: it is to make the most of the Byakugan, a bloodline limit.

Her fighting style revolves around the Byakugan.

If the Byakugan is the core of Hana-Ren's combat system, then the Hidden Mist Technique is the finishing touch.

With the Hidden Mist Technique, Hana and Rei's Byakugan will become a nightmare for ninjas who don't know Wind Release ninjutsu. If the enemy cannot dispel the dense fog and has super strong sensory abilities, then they will become live targets for Hana and Rei's ninjutsu and be played to death.

The scariest thing is that Hua Lian can also fly.

"Troublesome stuff."

Looking at the thick fog in front of her, Chizuru instantly understood Hua Lian's intention and frowned slightly as she spoke.

The Hidden Mist Technique and the Byakugan are indeed an excellent combination.

Her Sharingan has strong observational abilities, but it lacks the powerful X-ray vision of the Byakugan, making it impossible for her to spot Hana and Rei in the thick fog. Furthermore, she doesn't know any Wind Release ninjutsu, so it's fair to say that most of her Sharingan abilities are wasted.

However, she did not panic.

The Sharingan is only one part of her strength. Even without the Sharingan, she could still defeat this somewhat annoying Byakugan woman.

Even without the Sharingan, she can still find the Byakugan woman in another way.

Natural energy perception.

This is the ability she gained after cultivating natural energy with the help of the cursed seal.

Unfortunately, she had no talent for cultivating natural energy. After more than a year of hard work, her natural energy perception only expanded to about fifty meters, which was incomparable to that bastard's perception range.