Ice Release

"Begin!"

At Zixiao's command, the three quickly left the open clearing, hid in the shadows, and began setting traps while thinking up a strategy.

That Body Flicker Technique was too fast. If he could maintain that speed for long, let alone stealing the bells, even getting close to him would be wishful thinking... Duke racked his brain, considering his options.

Judging from the enemy's Body Flicker Technique, close-range taijutsu would get completely crushed, and ninjutsu would be easily dodged, only wasting chakra. As for Illusion Techniques, Kurenai was skilled in them, but their opponent was an experienced Jonin. Unless they had the Uchiha's powerful Dōjutsu, but there were no Uchiha in the team... This was truly difficult.

"Just one Body Flicker Technique from a Jonin has already left me helpless. I have to find a way to restrict his movements. How? Traps... I can only give that a try."

"You've both concealed your presence and hidden yourselves well. You've reached Genin standards." Zixiao closed his eyes and sensed the chakra fluctuations coming from the forest, deeply satisfied. Their foundations were solid, and they were not lacking in brains either. As rookie ninja, they understood that they should hide and set traps when facing a powerful enemy. That was rare. Many loudmouthed brats chose to charge head-on at the first opportunity. Those were the ones who died fastest on the battlefield.

"But simply waiting won't complete the mission. And when facing a Jonin, splitting up will only lead to death!"

Zixiao strode toward Kurenai's hiding place, intending to end things quickly and defeat them one by one.

Dozens of shuriken flew out from the grass, but Zixiao easily dodged them. Knowing she was outmatched, Kurenai quickly retreated. The traps she had set failed to stop him, and Zixiao soon caught up to her. With nowhere to run, Kurenai gripped her kunai tightly, ready to gamble everything.

"Genjutsu: Falling Cherry Blossoms..."

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Not far away, Asuma saw Kurenai in danger and hurriedly leaped out to cover her, using Konoha's signature ninjutsu and the Uchiha clan's favorite technique. The power of the Great Fireball Technique depended on the caster's chakra strength. Though it was only a C-rank ninjutsu, in the hands of a powerful ninja, it could still possess destructive power comparable to an A-rank technique. It was just that its record in the original story was rather embarrassing—it was fine for bullying weak opponents, but against strong enemies, it was always easily neutralized.

The highly concentrated fireball carried surging heat waves and expanded with the wind, turning into a massive ball of flame in midair. Using the flames as cover, Asuma jumped to Kurenai's side, grabbed her, and fled at full speed. Both knew that a Jonin could only be outwitted. Facing one head-on would only mean courting death. That was not bravery, but recklessness.

Zixiao dodged the Great Fireball and stood atop a branch, watching Asuma and Kurenai flee side by side without pursuing them. If he wanted to, he could eliminate the two instantly, but that was not what he wanted. The bells were merely a pretense. It did not matter whether they got them or not, because no one would be eliminated. The claim that they would return to the academy and repeat their studies was meant to make the three display their true abilities under pressure, while also teaching them how real ninja should fight.

"Asuma, thank you!" Kurenai said gratefully after they had hidden themselves.

"Haha! It's nothing. Aren't we teammates?" Asuma scratched his head and laughed foolishly.

"Sensei is so strong. He saw through the traps I set at a glance." Kurenai looked troubled. Snatching the bells was far too difficult.

"He really is strong. With just the two of us... Come to think of it, where's Duke?" Asuma had wanted to say that the three of them might stand a chance together, only to suddenly realize that one member of their three-man team was missing.

In the middle of the river, Duke and Zixiao stood facing each other. Without saying a word, Duke rapidly threw shuriken with both hands. Zixiao dodged as he asked, "Aren't you going to find your companions? I won't hold back this time. You have no chance alone."

"Uncle Zixiao is too fast. Even if all three of us gathered together, it wouldn't change anything." Duke formed hand seals, drew upon the chakra inside him, and created two Shadow Clones, forming a triangle around Zixiao.

"While carrying out a mission, I am your squad leader. That is our one and only relationship. You may call me Captain, or Sensei Zixiao." Mitarashi Shixiao corrected him.

"Fine. With Sensei's speed, if you got serious, we wouldn't have any ability to fight back. Stealing the bells would be complete nonsense. A difference in quality cannot be made up for with numbers."

"Then why not surrender?" Zixiao asked in confusion.

"Isn't this exactly what Sensei wants? For us to show our abilities."

"You saw through it?" Zixiao stroked his chin. "You're still so clever. That's exactly what I hate about you. It would be better if you were a little dumber. You've left me with no sense of accomplishment."

There was an opening!

The two Shadow Clones closed in, their fists swinging at incredible speed and producing booming blasts as they unleashed Gabumon's signature move—Machine Gun Combo Punch. With the clones' assistance, the Machine Gun Combo Punch covered a wider area. Zixiao dodged the fists dancing through the air with interest, occasionally raising a hand to block.

"Is this a self-created taijutsu? I've never seen you use it before."

Duke's original body rapidly formed hand seals. With the two Shadow Clones buying time, he successfully completed the seals and unleashed his ninjutsu.

"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"

After two years, Duke had become increasingly proficient with the Water Dragon Bullet Technique. Aside from its complicated hand seals taking too much time, this ninjutsu was nearly perfect, with tremendous destructive power and impact.

The surging water dragon leaped into the air, roared from on high, then plunged down and opened its jaws, seeking to swallow Zixiao whole. Its sharp teeth, formed from water, hissed through the air. No one would dare question its destructive power. Zixiao did not dare take it head-on. He jumped onto the dragon's back and, relying on his swift and agile taijutsu, flipped and spun across it. The water dragon roared furiously, unable to do anything.

"It's useless. Your Water Attribute chakra has neither nature transformation nor shape transformation. You can't hurt me."

"Water Release: Water Stream Whip!"

The two Shadow Clones had not been idle either. They swung out four water whips condensed with chakra, lashing toward Zixiao in midair. Zixiao, who came from a gymnastics family, completed two consecutive midair twists and a straight-body leap before stepping on the water dragon's head and launching himself into the air. The water dragon surged up to meet him, its massive jaws open as it waited for Minato to fall right into its mouth.

"Wind Release: Wind Blade!"

Zixiao remained calm in the face of danger, gathering a Wind Blade formed from raging winds in one hand. The instant it touched the dragon's head, it tore the entire water dragon into fragments.

"Sensei, you were too careless."

The two clones leaped from the spray thrown up by the water dragon and swung their water whips, wrapping Zixiao into a tightly bound bundle.

"What a shame I can't use Lightning Release. It would've been thrilling to combine it with the Water Stream Whip right now," the two clones said regretfully.

"Poof!"

The captured Zixiao turned into smoke.

A Shadow Clone! When had he formed the seals? The two startled clones were torn apart by Zixiao, who sprang from the water, and vanished into smoke.

"To be honest, I'm very satisfied with your mastery of Water Release." Zixiao wiped the water from his face and praised, "Natsuki is more suited to be your teacher than I am."

"My Wind Release is quite good too. Did you forget?" Seeing Zixiao soaked from head to toe, Duke smiled. Those consecutive ninjutsu weren't wasted after all.

"Is that so? How terrifying!" Zixiao praised him again. "Compared to others your age, you're far too outstanding."

"Then, Sensei, try my Wind Release!"

Duke pressed his hands together, took a deep breath, and puffed up his chest like a bellows.

No, this wasn't Wind Release! Zixiao hurriedly used the Shadow Clone Jutsu, leaving a substitute in place as he moved away. Years of experience had allowed him to spot at a glance that something was strange about this technique.

"Ice Release: Blizzard!"

Duke opened his mouth and expelled a hurricane. The violent winds carried snowflakes, and wherever they passed, the temperature plummeted. A large stretch of river quickly froze into ice. This was a new ninjutsu created by combining the Ice Release Bloodline with Articuno's Ultimate Move, integrating the abilities of two worlds. Its destructive power was immense and could inflict irreversible, crippling injuries upon the human body.

"This is... Ice Release!?" Zixiao leaped several meters away, avoiding it from afar. He had become proficient in using Ice Release after just one night? This could no longer be described as mere talent...

"So dangerous. I almost died. You really went all out!" Zixiao stomped hard on the ice, leaving several cracks. The ice layer was thick. If that Ice Release attack had struck head-on, death would have been unavoidable. Even being grazed by its aftermath might have cost him his limbs.

"Ice Release: Low Temperature!"

Duke formed a seal with one hand, and waves of chill spread from his body. His limbs, hair, and face became covered in frost, while his rosy lips gave off a bluish glow, making him look like a corpse from a freezer.

Facing the charging Duke, Zixiao no longer held back. He drew a kunai and engaged Duke in close combat. With every clash between them, the water on Zixiao's clothes froze under the Cold Qi. The chill affected his movements, and his speed gradually slowed.

Unless it was a fatal attack, Duke rarely dodged. He relentlessly attacked Zixiao with fists and kicks. Even when the kunai left wounds on him, the bloody marks quickly froze over. The situation seemed to be developing in Duke's favor.

"Ice Release: Freezing Fist!"

The fist wind carried bone-piercing cold. Zixiao dodged, and the punch smashed heavily into the ice, erupting in huge shards and pillars of ice. It was hard to imagine whether the fragile human body could withstand such intensely penetrating cold if struck. Zixiao estimated that if he did not defend himself, being hit once would freeze all the blood in his body into icy sludge within a second.

"Hōzuki's Bloodline is truly terrifying!" Zixiao leaped far away and brushed the ice fragments from his body. His expression became solemn. "It seems you truly intend to kill me. In that case, I'll have to get serious too. I didn't bring my sword today, so I can only use taijutsu. What a miscalculation."

Duke faced a great enemy, rapidly forming hand seals. His seal speed was commendable compared to ordinary ninja, but against Zixiao, who was proficient in Wind Body Flicker ninjutsu, there was no difference between one seal per second and ten. Duke saw only a blur flash past, felt numbness at the back of his neck, and lost consciousness.

"That was close. I almost couldn't keep it under control!" Zixiao shuddered as he supported the unconscious Duke.

A moment later, Duke opened his eyes while rubbing the aching back of his neck. Nearby, Zixiao and the others were sitting together and chatting. Both Asuma and Kurenai wore excited smiles.

"Are all Jonin this fast? Then wouldn't the Yellow Flash be unbelievably fast... Still, the back of the neck is dangerous. If things had gone wrong, I could've died just now." Duke rubbed the back of his neck as green light emerged from his palm, treating the wounds left by the kunai.