"Hidden Mist Technique."
A technique not even recorded in Konoha.
The intruder's identity was already obvious: a Kirigakure ninja.
The one who'd used the technique was no ordinary shinobi. The range it covered made that clear.
But why target him, of all people?
It made no sense, whether you looked at politics, talent, or bloodline.
He drew his short blade again and immediately activated Mist of Vitality.
The two similar techniques blended together seamlessly.
Mo Jingxian heightened his senses, but there was no sign of an enemy within the technique's range.
"Heart, brain, kidneys, throat. Where do you think I should attack?"
The cheerful voice drifted from one direction to another, seeming to come from everywhere at once. It was impossible to pinpoint.
Mo Jingxian wasn't affected. His hand holding the blade remained perfectly still.
The two mists mingled, but the enemy hadn't entered the range of Mist of Vitality.
He took the opportunity to study the differences between the two techniques.
By comparison, his own technique was still incomplete. It was only Chakra dispersing on its own; the water element around him hadn't been properly brought together.
No wonder the panel hadn't recorded it.
The enemy seemed to have had enough. Seeing that the taunts had no effect, he attacked outright.
The mist barely stirred, and the long sword moved incredibly fast.
He only heard the faint sound of it slicing through the air after he'd dodged.
It had broken the sound barrier!
He'd sensed the sword as soon as it entered the range of Mist of Vitality.
Mo Jingjing did his best to dodge, but it still tore open a gash in his shoulder.
His body couldn't keep up with his thoughts.
The sword came and went in a flash, vanishing again in the blink of an eye.
Perhaps "sword" wasn't the right word for the weapon. It was more like an oversized needle.
At last, the intruder's identity was confirmed.
One of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, wielding the long sword Nuibari.
Kushimaru Kuriarare!
But why was he in Konoha?
He abandoned the question at once. There was no point worrying about it now.
"Well, what have we here? Are you a little brat from the Hozuki clan?"
The enemy seemed to be toying with a mouse. So far, he'd only attacked once.
Beneath the slashed fabric, Mo Jingxian's body turned to water and began to heal.
He hoped the other man would keep talking. Maybe he could hold out until someone noticed the commotion.
"Yes. My name's Hozuki Getsumei. We're on the same side."
Silence hung for several seconds. Then the enemy, hidden in the darkness, suddenly flew into a rage.
"No, that isn't Hydrification Technique! You dare to fool me!"
Mo Jingxian glanced at the little bit of emotion value Kushimaru Kuriarare had provided and felt a pang of regret.
His little trick had been seen through. He didn't know Hydrification Technique at all. He'd only wrapped his body in water element, making it look similar.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Three rapid attacks followed. Thanks to his advantage in knowing what was coming, Mo Jingxian dodged them all.
The fight had gone on this long, and he still hadn't seen the enemy. Yet he was in greater danger by the moment.
His clothes were torn, and two spots were already stained with blood.
This opponent was too difficult to handle. Mo Jingxian knew he couldn't keep this up.
He had to find a way to turn the tide fast, or he'd be meeting his great-grandmother before reinforcements arrived.
"Modified Water Python Technique!"
He formed the hand seals. A water python appeared in front of him, then broke into countless little snakes that slithered in every direction.
"That's an interesting technique, but do you think those things can find me? Don't be naive!"
Being toyed with like this was unbearable. Xian actively blocked out Kushimaru Kuriarare's taunts.
The needle came again.
It pierced through his chest without a sound.
The figure left behind turned into a puddle of water. Mo Jingxian appeared ten meters away.
He'd used Water Substitution to evade the attack. Just then, one of the little water snakes crawled beyond the range of the Hidden Mist Technique.
Now!
Without a moment's hesitation, he surged forward, following his connection to the water element.
"Bang!"
The next moment, Mo Jingxian was sent flying backward.
His body turned into splashing water in midair, and his true form appeared where he'd been standing moments before, his face pale.
He had almost no Chakra left.
For a moment, Kushimaru Kuriarare seemed to lose interest in speaking. The thick mist grew terrifyingly quiet.
The pressure suddenly intensified.
"Haah—hiss!"
Apart from his breathing, he could hear his heartbeat pounding like thunder in his heightened senses.
Cold sweat clung to the ends of his hair, about to drip into his eyes, but he didn't dare wipe it away.
A gaze full of malice was hidden somewhere beyond his sight, staring straight at him.
One second, two seconds...
Suddenly!
The reputation information refreshed again.
Several reputation points from the Uchiha appeared on the panel.
His reputation score reached 998.
His eyes lit up. He was two points short. Maybe there was still a chance.
"Kushimaru, stop playing. It's about time."
There was someone else!
The moment the other man spoke, Mo Jingxian's heart skipped a beat.
Anyone working alongside one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had to be another of the Seven.
He didn't know who it was, but there was no need to find out.
Against two elite High Ninja, his chances of survival were practically zero.
"Boring. I wanted to play a little longer. It's rare to find such an interesting little bug."
"Thud!"
A long sword pierced through his shoulder. Raiga Kurosuki had landed a sneak attack.
Damn it!
Mo Jingxian had finally learned just how devious the shinobi of the Ninja World could be. Even with an overwhelming advantage, they still chose to attack by surprise.
Kushimaru Kuriarare's attack followed right after, the two of them working together seamlessly.
In an instant, three more holes pierced clean through Mo Jingxian's body.
If he hadn't twisted himself around to avoid his vital spots, he would have died in the thick mist.
The two elite Mist Ninja used their long swords to pin him in place.
The mist churned. Perhaps his enemies were so confident in their techniques that they hadn't taken his seriously.
Mist of Vitality surged back. Mo Jingxian emptied his Chakra in one go, and a giant water python swallowed all three of them.
The technique was a fusion of Water Binding Technique and Water Prison Technique, combining the effects of both.
It trapped enemies even more effectively than Water Prison Technique.
Kushimaru Kuriarare and Raiga Kurosuki looked like insects caught in amber, their faces still frozen in shock.
Who would've thought that two elite High Ninja would be done in by a mere boy?
Out in the wild, they had plenty of ways to escape. It would only cost them some time.
But this was Konoha Village. If they were surrounded, the consequences went without saying. They'd be lucky to die.
Raiga Kurosuki was decisive, too.
"Funeral of Lightning: Banquet of Lightning!"
A dazzling white light suddenly flared. Almost at the same time, Mo Jingxian felt a sharp pain all over his body.
The water scattered completely, breaking the Water Python Technique.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
He coughed again and again.
Water conducted electricity. The effect of releasing a huge current from inside the water python was easy to imagine.
Though he'd successfully taken down his enemies, Kushimaru Kuriarare and Raiga Kurosuki were in bad shape, too.
White smoke rose from their heads. Their clothes were in tatters, and the faint smell of scorched protein hung in the air.
The outcome left no room for further play. Raiga Kurosuki raised his long sword and swung it down.
Just then, as the Lightning Release surged through his body, Raiga Kurosuki had given him two reputation points, bringing his total to exactly 1,000.
Mo Jingxian felt his eyelids weigh a thousand pounds. So heavy. So very heavy.
In his haze, he seemed to see a balance. Driven by his instinct to survive, he placed his life on it without hesitation.
"One-minute trial card: Uzumaki Kushina at her peak, with 10 additional life points. Redeem?"
"Special notice: After redemption, the host will have only one year left to live."
The Lightning Release scattered the thick mist. Raiga Kurosuki's raised lightning blade reflected a blinding light.
Mo Jingxian instinctively narrowed his eyes.
"Redeem!"
The lightning blade came crashing down.
"Boom!"
Chakra, as blazing as flames and blood, surged into the sky. Mo Jingxian slowly floated upward.
Slowly, little by little, he straightened up.
Red Nine-Tails Chakra—no, it was Chakra on a completely different scale. He released it at once.
"So this is the Nine-Tails' power? It's incredible."
Mo Jingxian clenched his fist and glanced at the two stunned men.
"My turn. Are you ready?"
"Run!"
Kushimaru Kuriarare and Raiga Kurosuki fled in opposite directions, without even leaving behind a threat.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
Eight golden chains burst from Mo Jingxian's back, pierced both men through the collarbones, and dragged them back in an instant.
"Who are you? No, this can't be. It can't!"
Kushimaru Kuriarare cried out, his features twisted. He was terrified by the sight he couldn't understand.
"Such tremendous Chakra. It's even warped space! Hahaha... I can't begrudge losing to you."
People had all kinds of faces. Whatever the two men's reactions, Mo Jingxian wasn't about to let his enemies off easily.
He landed punch after punch, first breaking both their arms, then taking his time with the rest.
His reputation score surged, about to break the 50-point mark.
He no longer cared to keep track. He'd wagered decades of his life, and now he needed to vent.
"Four Symbols Seal!"
"Eight Trigrams Seal!"
"Five Elements Seal!"
He unleashed one sealing technique after another until the two captives' skin was covered in markings.
Curses, pleas, demands to be killed, numb silence—no matter how they begged, Mo Jingxian remained unmoved.
In less than half a minute, the two men experienced treatment straight out of hell.
Then Mo Jingxian undid the seals one by one, leaving them bewildered.
"Get lost!"
He let them go.
The two men looked at each other, neither daring to move.
"You want to die? Fine! I'll grant your wish."
He made a move as if to attack again.
"No, I won't. I'm leaving—no, I'm getting out of here! We'll leave right now!"
Kushimaru Kuriarare and Raiga Kurosuki shuffled a few steps, looked back, then shuffled a few more.
Neither man believed the other would really let them go.
Of course Mo Jingxian wanted to kill the two scumbags. But what then? He wouldn't be able to explain it.
Even if he blasted the two of them to smithereens, the Konoha High Command would still cling to the Nine-Tails Chakra.
He might as well pin the blame on them.
Suppressing his murderous intent, he saw that the two were still dragging their feet and punched them.
The next moment,
Kushimaru Kuriarare and Raiga Kurosuki demonstrated the Body Flicker Technique of elite High Ninja to the fullest, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
A few breaths later,
The energy faded, and pain once again surged through his mind.
Through the haze, he seemed to see seven or eight figures rushing toward him from every direction.
His vision went black,
and then he knew nothing more.
Summer, Year 47 of Konoha.
The Land of Wind's Sunagakure brazenly launched a war, claiming that Konoha had assassinated the Third Kazekage.
That very day, Sand Ninja spies attacked Konoha's supply depot.
For some reason, spies from the other hidden villages also sprang into action, joining the Sand Ninja in causing all kinds of trouble in Konoha.
After quelling the unrest, Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned the village's leadership, clan heads, and High Ninja for an overnight meeting to discuss how to respond.
The next day, just as dawn was breaking,
the Konoha Gate slowly opened, and a thousand-strong ninja unit marched out, bound for the Land of Rivers, 300 kilometers away, to reinforce its defenses.
Mo Jingxian slept for three days.
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