Little Ghost, What's Your Name

Ling Xuan's gaze locked onto the top of the Water Prison, fixed on an energy node invisible to the naked eye but crystal clear within his field of vision.

"Brat, do you think you can challenge me alone? How naive!" Zabuza Momochi's Water Clone sneered, accelerating as he charged forward.

Ling Xuan ignored him, instead saying to Sasuke behind him, "Sasuke, use your strongest Fire Style to attack the Water Clone and create steam."

Sasuke was taken aback. Though he didn't understand the intent, he trusted Ling Xuan's judgment and began weaving hand signs without hesitation.

Facing the charging Water Clone, Ling Xuan did not retreat but advanced to meet him. He used no ninjutsu, relying solely on taijutsu optimized to the extreme to entangle the clone.

His movements were clean and decisive; every dodge was perfectly timed, and every block deflected the majority of the force. While it appeared he was struggling to hold on, he was actually buying time for Sasuke to weave his signs while simultaneously luring the clone into his pre-determined position.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

Sasuke's shout rang out, and a massive fireball roared forth, lunging straight at the Water Clone!

The Water Clone was startled and tried to dodge, but he found Ling Xuan's entanglement like a spiderweb, preventing him from breaking away in time. He had no choice but to take the Fireball Jutsu head-on!

BOOM—

The Water Clone evaporated within the flames, turning into a puddle of water while generating a massive amount of scorching steam. In an instant, the already thick mist became even more chaotic, rendering visibility absolute zero.

Now!

The moment the steam erupted and everyone's vision was obscured, Ling Xuan moved.

His figure flashed through the steam, his target not Zabuza's true body, but the massive Water Prison!

He pressed his right index and middle fingers together. At his fingertips, a fist-sized energy sphere—composed of pale cyan wind blades and orange-red flames spiraling at high speed—suddenly took shape!

Wind-Flame Spiral!

Having been optimized countless times, this original ninjutsu of Ling Xuan's had its energy compressed to the limit, radiating a heart-stopping aura of destruction.

"Found it!"

Ling Xuan's figure appeared diagonally above the Water Prison, and he slammed the Wind-Flame Spiral, which contained terrifying piercing and explosive power, directly into the energy node at the top of the prison he had already locked onto!

SHIIII!!!

There was no earth-shattering explosion.

The moment the Wind-Flame Spiral touched the Water Prison, it emitted a piercing sound like a hot knife slicing through butter.

The high-speed rotating wind blades tore through the chakra defense on the surface of the Water Prison, while the internal flame energy injected wildly, triggering a violent reaction with the water-attribute chakra!

Crack... crack-crack...

Centered on Ling Xuan's point of impact, visible energy cracks spread like a spiderweb, instantly covering the entire surface of the water sphere!

"No!" Zabuza, who was maintaining the Water Prison, saw his expression change drastically. He felt an irresistible destructive force surging from the very core of his technique; he tried to forcibly stabilize it, but it was already beyond saving.

The next second.

RUMBLE!!!

The Water Prison, its structure forcibly destroyed by the Wind-Flame Spiral, exploded violently. The raging water surged in all directions, washing the forest floor into a muddy mess.

Kakashi performed a few backflips, landing lightly on a thick tree branch. He was soaked through, water dripping from his hair, looking somewhat disheveled, but his scarlet three-tomoe Sharingan glowed with startling intensity.

He stared at Ling Xuan, who had also been pushed back by the water, his eyes filled with a shock he hadn't even realized himself.

As a Genin, he had used an unheard-of, self-created composite ninjutsu to forcibly destroy an elite Jonin's A-rank control ninjutsu from the level of its energy structure!

This could no longer be described by the word "genius." The combat intelligence and depth of understanding of ninjutsu possessed by this boy named Ling Xuan were like those of an old monster who had lived for decades.

On the other side, Zabuza Momochi's expression was grim. He gripped the Kubikiribōchō tightly, the veins on his arms bulging, revealing the extreme turmoil in his heart.

The breaking of the Water Prison not only cost him his greatest advantage but also brought him unprecedented humiliation.

Since he started his career, he had carried out countless assassination missions and faced all kinds of powerful enemies, yet never before had he been thwarted like this—by an unknown brat using a method he couldn't even begin to comprehend.

"Brat..." Zabuza's gaze moved past Kakashi and locked firmly onto Ling Xuan, his hoarse voice filled with chilling killing intent. "What is your name?"

Ling Xuan did not answer, simply retreating calmly a few steps to regroup with Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, reforming a defensive formation centered around Tazuna.

Now was not the time for a direct dialogue with Zabuza. His mission was to assist, to observe, and to find the only "optimal solution" that would allow Kakashi to win in one strike.

"It seems your students are much more interesting than I imagined, Kakashi." Zabuza shifted his gaze back to Kakashi, his killing intent even more intense than before. "In that case, the warm-up ends here!"

He quickly wove hand signs again. The surrounding mist did not dissipate due to the destruction of the Water Prison; instead, it became even thicker and more viscous.

"Kakashi-sensei." Ling Xuan's voice quietly entered Kakashi's mind through Mental Resonance. "His chakra is beginning to concentrate highly. The hand signs are the prelude to a high-level Water Style; it's the Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique."

Almost the instant Ling Xuan's voice fell, Zabuza's hand signs were completed in sync!

"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"

A massive torrent of water was created out of thin air, like a heavenly river pouring backward, transforming into a monstrous wave that slammed toward Kakashi with the force of a landslide!

However, at the very moment Zabuza wove his signs, Kakashi's hands also danced at a speed difficult for the naked eye to track! His speed in weaving signs was even a fraction faster than Zabuza himself, who was famous for his Water Style!

"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"

Kakashi also let out a low shout, and the same surging waves generated out of thin air before him, meeting Zabuza's attack head-on!

BOOM—

The two massive waterfalls collided violently in mid-air, erupting with a deafening roar!

The powerful shockwave transformed into a visible blast of air that spread outward, blowing the surrounding trees until they swayed wildly. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were directly swept away by this blast, rolling several times on the ground before they could barely stabilize themselves.

They stared, dumbfounded, at the scene before them, which looked like the wrath of gods, their minds blank.

Is this... the level of a Jonin's battle? With just a wave of their hands, they could alter the terrain and create such a cataclysmic scene!

"How... is this possible!" Zabuza looked at Kakashi, who had performed the exact same ninjutsu as him, his shock beyond measure. "You... you actually... completed the hand signs before me?"