Grind is My Ninja Way

"Faster! Even faster!" 

Yuhua pushed herself to the limit, ignoring her injuries and chakra depletion, as she sprinted through the forest using the Body Flicker Technique. 

She glanced back nervously, as if terrified Seimei would catch up. 

But what she feared most came true. Within seconds, she saw a ghostly figure behind her—Seimei. 

At first glance, he was far away. By the next blink, he was less than ten meters away. 

At this rate, it wouldn't take long for him to catch up. 

Completely rattled, Yuhua didn't dare face Seimei directly. Determined, she immediately performed the Shadow Clone Jutsu, splitting herself into three identical figures, each fleeing in a different direction. 

Seimei frowned slightly. 

Under normal circumstances, using the Shadow Clone Jutsu wasn't a big deal. Even if Yuhua's mastery of the technique was inferior to his, it would cost her no more than 10% of her chakra. 

But now, amidst a high-intensity chase and the inevitable battle ahead, the chakra drain from shadow clones would escalate exponentially. 

By then, the chakra consumed wouldn't just be 10%. 

This is why the Shadow Clone Jutsu is more often used for reconnaissance than combat. 

Generally, unless absolutely necessary, no shinobi would use shadow clones this way—it's a waste of chakra for only a slight delay. 

Yuhua's choice dropped her chances of success by at least 30%, though she had little chance to begin with. 

Seimei wasn't concerned with how foolish her tactics were—he was more annoyed by the waste of chakra. 

The more chakra she burned, the less he could absorb when he captured her. This irritated him. 

With this in mind, Seimei hesitated no further and accelerated toward one of the fleeing figures. 

He quickly caught up. 

Without giving her a chance to react, he hurled a flurry of shuriken. They collided mid-air, scattering like flower petals before targeting Yuhua from all directions. 

Faced with the barrage, Yuhua had no choice but to turn and deflect with her kunai. 

Clang! Clang! Clang! 

A series of metallic clashes echoed, sparks flying as she parried the shuriken. They ricocheted harmlessly to the sides. 

Seeing her fend off the attack, Yuhua prepared to escape again. 

But at that moment, a sharp whoosh pierced the air. 

Out of the corner of her eye, Yuhua saw Seimei fire a kunai, accelerated by his Wind Style: Gale Palm. The weapon moved so fast, she couldn't react in time. 

Instinctively, she twisted her body. 

Whoosh! 

The kunai grazed her, missing its mark. 

However, Seimei, his body glowing faintly with green chakra, followed immediately behind the kunai, closing the gap in an instant. 

Swish! 

He swung his blade. 

Yuhua raised her kunai to block, but Seimei employed Illusion Sword Technique, causing her to misjudge the attack and defend against nothing. 

The next moment, his blade struck her body— 

Poof! 

A puff of chakra smoke dispersed. 

It was just another shadow clone. 

"Figures," Seimei muttered, unimpressed. 

Fortunately, his maneuvers hadn't wasted much time. The remaining two clones were still within range of his Byakugan. 

Locking onto their positions, Seimei resumed his pursuit without delay. 

He could have used his own Shadow Clone Jutsu to chase multiple targets simultaneously, but he chose not to. 

It wasn't because he lacked the ability. 

His Shadow Clone Jutsu mastery was at level six, allowing him to create up to 30 clones. While many were deployed elsewhere for reconnaissance and relaying information, sparing a few would have been easy. 

He refrained for two reasons. 

First, it wasn't necessary. 

The clones were close enough for him to eliminate individually. At best, he'd find the real Yuhua in three attempts. At worst, the last target would still be caught quickly. 

Second, he wanted to conserve chakra. 

As mentioned earlier, Yuhua's tactic was wasteful. Although his mastery was superior, intense activity would still drain his reserves. 

Since he intended to absorb her chakra, he wanted to minimize his own consumption. 

Thus, he opted for the simplest approach—chasing each one personally. 

Time passed. 

Before long, Seimei caught up to the second clone. 

After a brief skirmish, it was dispelled as well. 

"Just my luck," he grumbled, his expression darkening as he pursued the final figure. 

Roughly three minutes later— 

Whoosh! 

Seimei appeared in front of the real Yuhua. 

Focused on checking behind her, Yuhua hadn't anticipated Seimei blocking her path ahead. 

Startled, she instinctively raised her hands, preparing to use the Shadow Clone Jutsu again. 

Despite her dwindling chakra, she seemed fixated on escaping, regardless of how futile it was. 

But Seimei wasn't interested in prolonging the chase or witnessing more wasted chakra. 

With a burst of chakra-enhanced speed from Lightning Style: Lightning Body Flicker, he closed the distance in an instant, lightning crackling faintly around him. 

In a blink, Seimei was in front of her, seeing the terror on her face. 

Without hesitation, he struck, his finger glowing with chakra as it hit her chest. 

The impact disrupted the largest chakra point in her body, blocking her flow and halting her Shadow Clone Jutsu. Yuhua's face paled, and she nearly coughed up blood. 

But Seimei didn't stop there. 

Moving like a phantom, he delivered a series of precise strikes, sealing her key chakra points and immobilizing her entirely. 

Sharp pain coursed through her body as Yuhua realized she couldn't muster her chakra—it felt impossibly heavy and unresponsive. 

Defeated, she finally accepted her fate. 

Composed, she looked into Seimei's eyes. Seeing the Sharingan, she asked curiously, "Was that acupoint striking? Isn't that a Hyuga technique? Can the Sharingan see chakra points too?" 

Indeed, Seimei had used a Hyuga-style acupoint technique, but it was thanks to the Byakugan in his brow, not the Sharingan. 

Uninterested in clarifying, Seimei coldly prepared his next move. 

He formed seals, activating Chakra Absorption Jutsu. Grabbing Yuhua by the neck, he began draining her chakra. 

Streams of chakra flowed from her into Seimei like a rushing river. 

Within moments, her reserves were exhausted. 

Disappointed by the meager harvest, Seimei sighed but continued extracting her spiritual and physical energies, converting them into his own chakra. 

A few seconds later, Yuhua's lifeless body fell to the ground. 

Poof! 

Seimei incinerated her corpse with Fire Style: Scorching Burn Jutsu, leaving no trace behind. 

Satisfied, he finally turned his attention to assessing the spoils of his victory. 

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