Enhanced Ninjutsu

"Damn, this kid's Substitution Technique is too weird."

"Obviously, those ninjas had been ready to ambush Yang Xing when he dodged. Who could've guessed that Yang Xing, who should've been within five meters, would suddenly cover more than ten meters, flashing from the patch of land in midair to the top of that towering tree?"

That left the Land of Earth Genin, who had prepared to perform their Ninjutsu, both furious and frustrated.

Standing on the branch, Yang Xing glanced toward where Kakashi and the others had vanished from sight, then turned to face the ninjas. He used a simple Ninjutsu. "Oh, they've gotten pretty far away. Good. Now then... Water Style: Water Clone Technique."

"Attack! Take out the brat. And don't let those guys up ahead get away, either." The ninjas had been stunned that a kid had toyed with them. As elite fighters, how could they accept defeat? Their anger flared, and they charged at Yang Xing in a tight encirclement.

"Water Style: Water Clone Technique." Yang Xing, who had originally had three clones, used the technique again.

The clones made more clones, until there were twelve of them.

"What's this kid up to? He actually thinks he can fight us with a technique like that? Is he trying to get himself killed?"

It was common knowledge that a clone divided the user's chakra evenly among itself and the other clones, reducing the chakra available to each one.

As the furious ninjas charged toward him, Yang Xing hid among his clones and counted them, murmuring as if he didn't even notice the murderous ninjas ahead. "Twelve clones is a bit much, but it'll do! I've just enough chakra, too."

"What the hell are you talking about? You're not getting out of here. I don't know how you learned that technique, but I'll tell you this: you're dying here today, brat!" He slammed his fist into a clone and took it out. As a Special Chunin of the Land of Earth, he was furious. If he could, he would've torn the brat in front of him limb from limb.

The five ninjas showed no mercy. They took out three clones in an instant and pressed onward, only to see several clones shift their positions at once and make a hand sign. The ninjas paused in surprise.

"Fire Release!"

Surrounded on all sides, the clones formed Hand Seals and unleashed a powerful Fire Release technique at such close range.

"Huh? What are you doing? Have you lost your mind? Are you trying to get yourself killed?" A Chunin laughed, his grin wide. His hands formed the seals with practiced ease. "Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

As several towering walls rose from the ground, the sword-shaped flames from Yang Xing's mouth transformed into a massive fireball and hurtled toward them.

"This kid's just wasting his chakra." Hearing an explosion and seeing the sturdy earthen walls sealed all around them, a Chunin from the Land of Earth smirked. His mocking grin grew wider. Without even checking the walls, he raised a hand toward the three Genin. "As soon as the flames stop exploding, I'll charge out first and take the brat down. Don't hang back. Chase after those three up ahead right away. We absolutely can't let them get back to Konoha."

"Yes, sir." The three Genin nodded.

They braced themselves, waiting for the explosions to stop so they could rush out and tear Yang Xing limb from limb.

Unfortunately, one man's face had gone pale. His expression shifted, and the others' faces changed with it.

"Hey, Xiao, what's wrong?" His companion looked at the Special Chunin who had used Earth Flow Wall, just as puzzled. "You don't look right."

Looking as though he were terrified, the Chunin was already sweating profusely. "There's something strange about this kid's Ninjutsu. It feels like my technique can't hold up."

The other man froze and couldn't help exclaiming, "That's impossible! Even Lord Tsuchikage praised your Earth Flow Wall. It's a perfect technique on par with an Elite Jonin's!"

"No, it really can't hold! There's something wrong with this kid. Something very wrong." The pale-faced man's lips began to tremble, and his body swayed unsteadily. He suddenly stood up, as if he'd sensed something. His expression changed, and he shouted at his companions, "Wait! Don't stand here. Run!"

"What?"

Boom! Crash!

Before the others could react, the massive wall of Earth Flow Wall was blown apart.

And what appeared before them—

What the hell kind of Great Fireball was that? This was an S-rank Ninjutsu!

An ordinary Great Fireball was only the size of a house. This thing was nearly twice that size, and several clones were unleashing these terrifying techniques one after another. This was an S-rank Ninjutsu!

The fireballs unleashed by the clones had filled the entire hundred-meter area.

This was completely absurd!

The ninjas nearly cursed, but they didn't even get the chance.

Boom!

The earth-shaking explosion ended with countless birds flying out of the forest.

Then came a soft notification in Yang Xing's ear.

Successfully killed an Iwagakure Genin. Acquired the Land of Earth Genin title, an ordinary title.

Successfully killed an Iwagakure Special Chunin. Acquired the Land of Earth Special Investigation Department Chunin title, a unique title.

"Whew, that took a lot out of me. I'm out of chakra." Looking at the rubble ahead and the empty patch of ground where everything had been reduced to ashes, Yang Xing wiped the sweat from his forehead. Then he turned and leaped away without a hint of hesitation.

He really wanted to check the attributes of the titles he'd earned, but he clearly couldn't stay here. More comrades might show up. If even one more Genin came along, he'd have no chakra left and might not even be able to escape.

Among the trees, the young men and women raced onward, their expressions varied.

"Hey, Kakashi, are we really going to keep running? Are we really going to leave him behind?" Obito's face was twisted with anguish. Furious that he couldn't go back, he cried out, "That guy, he..."

"Shut up. Once we get past this stretch, we'll be safe. Keep your eyes on the path ahead." Kakashi's cold words silenced Obito.

Rin Nohara's face was gloomy, too. She glanced behind them, guilt filling her wide eyes. "This is all because of me. Yang Xing only..."

"He'll be fine. You saw it yourselves. Even the Fourth Hokage acknowledged him. There's no way he'll be in trouble." Kakashi gritted his teeth as he spoke, as if trying to convince himself. When he landed on a branch ahead, he kept his eyes fixed behind them. "All right, this is far enough. You should be safe now. I'm going back to check on him. Don't follow me. If I haven't returned in half an hour, get out of here."

"No, I..."

"Rin, Yang Xing did this for you."

"What do you mean?"

Without another word, Kakashi left, leaving Rin Nohara standing there, stunned.