A Counterstroke

"Fire Style: Fireball Technique—that was our clan's Fireball Technique. No, the power was wrong. Why was this guy's ninjutsu so powerful?" Faced with such an astonishing technique, Obito looked utterly stunned. "Impossible. That's impossible."

At that moment, Obito wasn't the only one shocked. One of the ninjas hidden in the shadows was furious with Yang Xing, too.

"Damn it! That brat killed my Summoning beast! I'm going to kill him!"

"Hey, Mai, don't be rash."

Someone finally couldn't hold back. Bursting out of the genjutsu, she appeared on the lake. She leaped up and charged straight toward Yang Xing, who was high in the air ahead of her.

"You brat! You killed my Summoning beast, my partner! You can die too!" She gripped a Kunai in one hand and leaped at him, intending to split Yang Xing in two.

Unfortunately for her, all that awaited her was a simple C-rank ninjutsu.

This was a technique even Genin could use. Yet when Yang Xing performed such a basic technique, its power was astonishing.

"Water Style: Water Wave!"

Pff!

"Ah..."

Staring at the gaping hole in his stomach, the Chunin's eyes trembled. Darkness swallowed his vision. As he fell from the sky, he looked like a man who couldn't rest even in death.

The rain came down in torrents. The Water Wave struck the lake, sending up a column of water. The spray fell back down like rain across the entire lake.

"Damn! That brat's the strongest one here. Quickly, change the Summoning beasts' target! Those other two aren't worth bothering with." Watching Yang Xing stand calmly on the water, the Jonin's face darkened. He gritted his teeth. "We'd better take that brat down first."

"Yes!"

Thud, thud, thud!

Everything had happened so suddenly, and the spectacle was incredible.

Several ninjas emerged from their hiding places. Their sheer numbers shocked Anko and the others.

"So many of them? This can't be happening!" Faced with that dense mass of people, Rin Nohara, Obito, and the others looked grim.

Kakashi and their Jonin teacher had returned, but both looked exhausted. It was obvious their opponents were formidable.

This was more than just a tough fight. There were over a hundred ninjas here.

"Don't let your guard down. Only a handful of them are real; the rest are illusions. But there are probably around ten genuine ninjas from the Land of Earth, including a Jonin." The Jonin woman was in a sorry state, and Kakashi was hardly any better. She was already on edge when she spotted Yang Xing standing alone up ahead, and her expression darkened. "Hey, back up a little! You're too close. These people are dangerous."

Seeing Yang Xing standing alone in front, they all frowned slightly. They were wondering why a kid from the Fourth Hokage's team was acting so cocky when they noticed the boy up ahead was actually smiling.

"Is that so?" Yang Xing smiled as he looked at the countless ninjas clearly coming for him. He rubbed his nose and murmured, "Still, I have to admit I'm a little excited."

"No wonder I got that kind of mission. It's only the second day, so the mission should complete itself by tomorrow." Yang Xing recalled the B-rank mission and muttered to himself.

Just as Yang Xing stood motionless, several ninjas moved. The sight of their real bodies and illusions rushing forward was spectacular.

Just imagine over a hundred people running across the water. It was enough to leave Obito and the others rooted to the spot.

They were so stunned that they couldn't do anything.

"Leave the kid to you. I'll deal with those two. Take the brat out first." The masked Jonin muttered under his breath, leaped up, and charged straight at the exhausted Kakashi and the Jonin woman.

"Summoning Technique!" He formed Hand Seals, and black Summoning symbols appeared on the water. All sorts of sea creatures surged out: giant water snakes, piranhas, and octopuses, all rushing toward the two of them.

This kept Kakashi and the Jonin woman occupied. They could only use Taijutsu and various ninjutsu to kill the countless Summoning beasts.

By then, Yang Xing was surrounded, with several people trying to force their way through to him.

Without a second thought, he immediately used a ninjutsu. "Water Style: Water Clone!"

He went all out and created ten clones.

Unfortunately, none of the ten clones lasted more than a few seconds. Still, they bought Yang Xing enough time to prepare his next technique.

His hands formed Hand Seals at lightning speed, and the technique was ready in an instant.

At the same time, the ninjas facing him had also released their techniques.

"Water Style: Water Dragon Technique!"

"Water Style: Explosive Water Colliding Wave!"

"Water Style: Water Severing Wave!"

"Earth Style: Earth Style: Earth Mausoleum Dumpling!"

Huge clumps of earth and crashing torrents surged in from every direction. It was an incredible spectacle, a tremendous display of power. It was hard to imagine a kid receiving this kind of attention.

But Obito understood. After that Fireball Technique and the ten clones he'd made in an instant without even panting, Yang Xing deserved it.

With Yang Xing standing alone in front of all those ninjas, fighting by himself, Obito could only stare blankly. There was nothing he could do.

"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"

It was a perfectly executed Earth Style technique. A wall rose from the ground, blocking all the ninjutsu.

"Damn that brat!"

The Earth Flow Wall covered such a wide area that it split off a section of the lake, leaving the Earth ninjas furious.

"Hey, you three go around the left. The rest of us will go around the right. Everyone else, keep an eye on the others. Don't let anyone escape."

"Understood."

They split up. Three of them leaped into the air and circled around the left side of the wall.

To the left of the wall.

The Earth ninjas hadn't expected to find someone already waiting on the water before they could even get around behind it.

He stood quietly on the water, alone, looking straight toward them. He showed not the slightest fear, only a faint, inexplicable smile.

Seeing the fearless brat, their expressions shifted. Then, their faces filled with anger as they charged.

"Standing there asking to be killed? You came here to die, didn't you?"

"Water Style: Water Dragon Technique!" One of them unleashed a ninjutsu to cut off Yang Xing's escape route, while the other two strengthened themselves with Earth Style and charged straight at him, clearly intending to finish him with Taijutsu.

"I just wanted to tell you: game over!" Yang Xing didn't flinch or retreat. His eyes changed, blood-red spreading across both irises as the Tomoe in his pupils began to spin.

Seeing those eyes, the ninjas froze. Though they were only Chunin and Genin, hardly among the Land of Earth's strongest, they knew what those eyes meant.

"That's impossible! Don't fall for it! Fall back! He's from the Uchiha Clan, and he's awakened his Sharingan!"

"What?!"