The students, after searching around, had just found this grove when they saw Neji flying out of the trees like a kite with its string cut.
"Is… is that Neji?"
"How'd he get flung so far?"
"He's not dead, is he?"
The students stood there, jaws dropped, utterly dumbfounded.
This morning, though Sasuke had lost, the details weren't clear, so the impact hadn't hit them too hard. But now, witnessing a genius from the prestigious Hyuga Clan with the Byakugan get blasted out and crash to the ground, uncertain if he was even alive, the shock finally sank in.
Tenten and Lee hurriedly pushed through the crowd and rushed toward Neji.
Propping up Neji from the ground, Tenten asked anxiously, "Neji, are you okay?"
Struggling, Neji managed, "I… I lost…"
Before he could finish, his strength gave out, his vision went black, and he passed out.
Taking a direct hit from 'Chakra Enhanced Strength' without any warning—forget a shinobi academy student like Neji; even a grown shinobi wouldn't have withstood it.
At that moment, Yakumo slowly emerged from the grove.
She hadn't come out of her fight with Neji unscathed, but since Neji had used Gentle Fist, on the surface, she not only looked victorious but completely untouched.
As Yakumo stepped out, the crowd fell silent, the scene quieting instantly. Then, the group parted on its own, clearing a path for her.
Yakumo said nothing, walking straight through the crowd and leaving.
"Neji lost too?!"
"How did Yakumo get this strong?"
"Her presence just now was insane—I almost got scared!"
It wasn't until Yakumo's figure vanished from sight that the murmurs started up again.
Tenten stood and complained, "What are you all standing around for? Hurry up and help get Neji to the hospital!"
The students scrambled into action, lifting Neji and rushing him to the hospital.
At Hidden Leaf Hospital…
Sasuke had already woken up.
But having taken a 'Rasengan' from Naruto earlier and now a 'Chakra Enhanced Strength' punch from Yakumo, his body had endured back-to-back blows. For safety's sake, to avoid any lingering issues, Kakashi had forced him to stay for observation for a day.
"Damn it!"
The thought of being sent flying by Yakumo's punch still made Sasuke's face burn with embarrassment.
The only silver lining was that none of his peers had witnessed their fight—at least he hadn't been humiliated in public!
Bang!
Just then, a huge group of students poured into the ward.
At first, Sasuke thought they were there to see him, and his expression turned a bit awkward. But he quickly realized they were actually bringing Neji to the hospital.
"Neji got beaten too!?"
Sasuke froze.
The hospital doctors rushed over, shooing the students away while starting treatment on Neji.
Moments later, under the healing of medical ninjutsu, Neji slowly came to from his unconscious state.
"Where… am I…"
Neji opened his eyes, looking around in confusion.
From the next bed, Sasuke said awkwardly, "You're in the hospital!"
In an instant, it all came back to Neji. His face darkened, his mood sinking into gloom.
He'd lost—and lost miserably!
The atmosphere in the ward grew heavy.
After a long silence, Sasuke finally couldn't hold back and asked, "You lost too?"
Neji gave a slight nod.
Sasuke pressed, "To that weird strength?"
Neji turned to stare at Sasuke, "You too?"
"Hm!"
Sasuke's face darkened as he nodded.
The ward fell into an eerie silence again. The two proud geniuses didn't continue talking, each lost in their own thoughts.
Neji's mind was straightforward.
He'd always been fixated on stopping the Otsutsuki branch family on the moon from destroying the shinobi world. Yet now, he'd been knocked out cold by a peer at the academy with one punch. The gap was hard for him to swallow.
Sasuke, having been consecutively humbled by Naruto and Yakumo, had more on his mind.
Without a doubt, that 'weird strength' Yakumo used had to be some powerful taijutsu secret technique. Sasuke was absolutely certain it was something Tsunade, one of the 'Sannin,' had taught her.
And then there was Naruto, who'd learned killer moves like the 'Multiple Shadow Clone Technique' and 'Rasengan' under Jiraiya, another of the 'Sannin.'
Amid his frustration, Sasuke also realized the weight behind the 'Sannin' title.
"Why won't those guys teach me!? Is it just because I'm an Uchiha?"
He silently clenched his teeth.
Clearly…
He'd concluded that Naruto and Yakumo—former dead-last students—had transformed entirely because of the Sannin's guidance!
At the training field…
After finishing his spar with Haku, Shinji walked to the sidelines, picking up a towel to wipe his sweat.
Haku handed him a bottle of water and said softly, "I never would've thought even Neji-kun would lose!"
"Yeah!"
Shinji chuckled with a sigh.
When he'd first approached Yakumo, it was partly out of pity for her situation and partly because her dire circumstances gave him an opening to recruit her.
Back then, even he hadn't placed much hope in her.
But who could've predicted that with the birth of the Koryugan and the series of misunderstandings surrounding it, Yakumo would undergo one transformation after another, becoming the super-promising talent she was now—bearing both the Koryugan Bloodline Limit and the 'Wood Release' Bloodline Limit?
In the eyes of the village's higher-ups, Yakumo's potential might now rival, or even surpass, Sasuke's.
Karin, standing nearby, asked, "Shinji, will Yakumo challenge you next?"
Shinji thought for a moment and nodded, "Hm, it's very possible!"
With Sasuke and Neji both defeated now, everyone knew Yakumo's next target would be either Shinji or Kimimaro.
But since Kimimaro was Yakumo's teammate, and many believed Kimimaro was stronger than Shinji in a one-on-one fight, based on Yakumo's pattern of going from easiest to hardest, most figured Shinji was likely her next opponent.
Haku pondered for a bit and suggested, "How about we visit Neji-kun at the hospital tonight?"
Karin chimed in, "Yeah, let's go find out exactly how Yakumo won!"
Shinji shook his head, "Nah, no need for that!"
At the Kurama Clan's main family estate…
Hearing that his daughter had defeated geniuses from the Uchiha and Hyuga Clans in a single day, Kurama Murakumo hadn't stopped smiling.
After watching his daughter finish two big bowls of rice, he asked, "Yakumo, are you going to challenge Uchiha Shinji tomorrow?"
Yakumo said gravely, "No, tomorrow I'm challenging Kimimaro! As for Uchiha Shinji, I'm saving him for last!"