Ten-Minute Limit Grapple, Rinnegan's Hidden Trump Card

The sharp whistle of the ninja blade slicing through the air exploded in his ears. Su Ye used his Rinne Sharingan to track the trajectory of the blade, his feet slamming into the ground as he propelled himself backward like an arrow released from a bow. Simultaneously, he threw two kunai in a cross pattern, aiming straight for the wrists of the Fox Mask Anbu.

The Fox Mask Anbu's eyes narrowed slightly. With a flick of his wrist, he precisely deflected the kunai with his blade, yet his momentum remained unchecked. Using the inertia of his turn, he swept the blade horizontally toward Su Ye's waist. Su Ye felt a chill—the speed of this strike was nearly thirty percent faster than before; clearly, his opponent was no longer holding back. He didn't attempt to block, instead immediately activating the "Substitution Technique + Kamui" combo. The moment his body dissipated into a puff of smoke, his consciousness shifted into the Kamui dimension, and a second later, he reappeared five meters behind the Fox Mask Anbu.

"Oh? You still have such displacement methods hidden up your sleeve." The Fox Mask Anbu's tone held a hint of surprise, yet he remained unflustered. He stabbed his blade into the ground and rapidly formed hand seals: "Water Style: Water Shockwave!" A surging torrent of water erupted from the ground, sweeping toward Su Ye. Su Ye's pupils constricted as his Rinne Sharingan instantly analyzed the weak points in the flow. He tapped his feet against the ground, weaving flexibly through the gaps in the water, while simultaneously pulling a smoke bomb from his pouch and throwing it to the floor.

The moment the thick smoke filled the air, Su Ye created three clones. Under the cover of the smoke, his true self quietly circled to the side of the Fox Mask Anbu. The three clones simultaneously unleashed the Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique, sending three massive fireballs lunging toward the Fox Mask Anbu. The Fox Mask Anbu let out a cold snort and drew his blade, channeling chakra into the steel. A sharp gust of wind from his slash split the three fireballs in two, but he hadn't anticipated that Su Ye's true self had already activated "Clone + Heavenly Hand Power"—he swapped positions with one of the clones that hadn't been destroyed, appearing instantly before the Fox Mask Anbu with a kunai aimed straight at his throat.

"Interesting." A flicker of approval flashed in the Fox Mask Anbu's eyes. He bent his body backward, narrowly avoiding the kunai, and swept his right leg out to kick at Su Ye's knee. Su Ye reacted with lightning speed, dropping to one knee to dodge the attack while using his kunai to slash at the opponent's calf. The Fox Mask Anbu immediately leaped backward to create distance; five minutes had passed since the start of the assessment.

"Relying only on combo techniques and clones won't be enough to last the remaining five minutes." The Fox Mask Anbu's tone was icy. He formed hand seals again, this time far more complex than before: "Lightning Style: Thunder Fang!" A current of electricity-laced chakra coated his blade, the steel emitting a sizzling hum. With a flash of movement, he transformed into a blurred afterimage and charged toward Su Ye.

Su Ye felt the numbing effect of the Lightning Style chakra and knew he couldn't afford to be touched by the blade. He took a deep breath, and within the red patterns of his Rinne Sharingan, faint purple tomoe began to emerge—this was a power he had deliberately hidden, but to survive this assessment, he had no choice but to use a portion of it. The moment the purple tomoe began to spin, the flow of time around him seemed to slow, and the movements of the Fox Mask Anbu became significantly clearer in his eyes.

Su Ye sidestepped the strike of the Thunder Fang while extending his right hand, concentrating a small amount of chakra at his fingertips: "Banshō Ten'in!" A faint gravitational pull instantly acted upon the Fox Mask Anbu's blade, causing his momentum to stutter for a fraction of a second. Seizing this momentary opening, Su Ye activated Heavenly Hand Power to swap positions with a distant tree, putting significant distance between them.

The Fox Mask Anbu felt the sudden pull of gravity, and his expression finally changed: "A power of the Rinnegan? You actually possess such a trump card!" Su Ye did not respond; he knew that Banshō Ten'in consumed a massive amount of chakra, and that single strike had already drained nearly a quarter of his reserves.

Over the next three minutes, the Fox Mask Anbu's attacks grew increasingly fierce. He alternated between Lightning Style and Water Style, his blade strikes nearly sealing off every one of Su Ye's escape routes. Relying on the dynamic vision of his Rinne Sharingan and the sensory boost provided by the purple tomoe, Su Ye narrowly dodged attack after attack, occasionally using his combo techniques to counter, barely managing to hold his ground.

When only one minute remained in the assessment, the Fox Mask Anbu suddenly unleashed a finishing move—he tossed his blade into the air and formed hand seals: "Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!" A massive water dragon rose from the ground, its jaws wide as it lunged toward Su Ye. Knowing he couldn't dodge it entirely, Su Ye narrowed his eyes and poured his remaining chakra into his Rinne Sharingan, the purple tomoe instantly sharpening: "Kamui!"

He sucked the head of the water dragon into the Kamui dimension. Deprived of its head, the dragon lost its lethal force, and the remaining water merely soaked his clothes. At that exact moment, the ten-minute duration of the assessment concluded.

The Fox Mask Anbu looked at the soaked but unharmed Su Ye, sheathed his blade, and finally allowed a note of recognition into his voice: "Second stage, passed. The third stage will be the final Anbu assessment—'Mission Choice'. Return here at this time tomorrow."

Su Ye let out a sigh of relief, wiped the water from his face, and nodded in response: "I will be here on time." He knew the true test had only just begun.