Lin Fan couldn't help letting a disdainful smile tug at his lips.
Old schemer Danzo wanted to invite me to Root as a guest?
I bet he was planning to catch me off guard, give me a little heart-to-heart, then covet my Sharingan!
He wants my body.
He's shameless.
Lin Fan didn't hold back. He immediately shot back at the Root members.
He knew all about the shady dealings old schemer Danzo had pulled from the original story.
He'd conspired with Hanzo the Salamander to plot against the Akatsuki, leading to Yahiko's death and Nagato's complete fall to darkness.
He'd ambushed Shisui and threatened Itachi, leading to the Uchiha clan's massacre—and had more than an armful of eyeballs dug out.
During Pain's invasion, he'd killed the Contact Toad and refused to send a single soldier, plunging Konoha into a desperate battle, all so he could wait for his chance to claim the Hokage Position.
Though he kept saying he was devoted to Konoha, nearly everything he'd done had directly or indirectly nurtured powerful enemies capable of bringing the village to ruin.
His hypocrisy was plain for all to see.
"Bullshit! You're a Genin who just graduated from the Ninja Academy, and you dare stand there spouting nonsense and slandering our leader?
"You're no longer protected by any Elite Jonin, while we have one Jonin and two Chunin here.
"Lin Fan, you're as good as ours. Not even Jesus can save you!"
The cat-masked ninja in the lead spoke coldly.
After Danzo ordered them to bring Lin Fan to the Root base, the three had been following him and monitoring his every move since morning.
They'd been wary of Might Guy, an Elite Jonin, while they were in the forest that morning, so they hadn't made a move.
But they hadn't expected Lin Fan to come to the quiet Senju Compound on his own that afternoon. It was a godsend opportunity to capture him.
Lin Fan gave a scornful chuckle.
"Heh. What do you know? In Konoha, Genin are the ones you should never mess with."
"I'll teach you a lesson, you little brat who doesn't know your place.
"Then you'll see just how formidable a Chunin and a Jonin can be."
As the cat-masked ninja finished speaking, he gripped the hilt of the long sword on his back.
The blade slid slightly from its sheath, catching the light with a cold gleam.
Lin Fan calmly pulled a Kunai from his waist and waited for the fight to begin.
The cat-masked ninja swiftly drew his sword and lunged toward Lin Fan's blind spot.
"Konoha Style: Vacuum Sword!" he shouted.
His clenched sword swept rapidly through the air.
Several silent, razor-sharp, transparent blades of chakra sliced straight through Lin Fan from his blind spot.
"Heh. Is that it? The so-called genius Genin from the Ninja Academy is nothing special."
Poof.
Just as the cat-masked ninja was congratulating himself, a cloud of smoke appeared before him.
Lin Fan's body had turned into three short pieces of wood.
"Substitution Technique?"
The three Root ninja stared at the scene, their pupils contracting.
To switch places with a nearby object so quickly that none of them could even see it—that meant Lin Fan was definitely stronger than a Genin.
On a branch behind them.
The Root member in the lead was a Konoha Jonin, and his powers of observation were naturally sharp.
The other two heard the sound and quickly turned. One brought his hands together and began forming the opening Hand Seals for Fire Style.
"Rat—Tiger—Dog—Rabbit—Tiger."
At that moment, Lin Fan's scarlet Sharingan appeared on the branch, its tomoe spinning rapidly.
After successfully copying the ninjutsu, he immediately spent skill points to upgrade it.
[ Ding! Congratulations, host! You have upgraded Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique to LvMAX. Reward: Fire Release Ninjutsu affinity increased by 10% (current total increase: 30%). ]
Lin Fan's hands flashed through the Hand Seals at three times the normal speed.
Several enormous fireballs, shaped like phoenix flower fruits, shot from his mouth.
The two of them used Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique at nearly the same time.
But Lin Fan's fireballs were several times larger than his opponent's.
The Root Chunin who had used the technique stared at the enormous fireballs before him as though he'd seen a ghost.
What the hell!
Lin Fan's Phoenix Sage Fire Technique was not only faster but also much bigger.
How the hell was he supposed to fight that?
Horrified, he didn't even care whether his own technique had hit Lin Fan. All he could think about was escaping the terrifying fireballs chasing him.
Soon, the fireballs died down. He slumped against the stone monument at the Senju Compound, finally breathing a sigh of relief.
But then a sharp rush of wind came right after them.
There were dozens of Shuriken hidden inside the fireballs!
Clang, clang, clang!
The Chunin among the three Root members didn't have time to escape. Shuriken pinned him to the stone monument, and he passed out.
Lin Fan grinned. "One down. I'm killing all three today!"
Then the chakra inside him surged, and he clapped his hands together.
The Tobirama's Ninjutsu he'd just learned from the scroll and upgraded sprang into action.
"Water Style: Water Shockwave!"
In an instant, a rapidly spinning column of water surged upward like a tornado.
It quickly enveloped Lin Fan.
The other two Root members were dumbfounded.
How could he use such a massive Water Release technique inside the Senju Compound, where there wasn't a drop of water? What kind of monster was Lin Fan?
Soon, torrents of water spread like a waterfall.
Then they surged toward the two men with tremendous force.
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"
The remaining Root Chunin hurriedly formed Hand Seals, barely managing to block the rush of water.
But the raging Water Shockwave demolished most of the Earth Wall.
In the next instant, Lin Fan used the Body Flicker Technique from the branch, appearing in front of the wall.
Zzzzt!
A dazzling blue sphere of chakra suddenly appeared in his right hand, crackling with lightning.
Using the Sharingan to track their chakra, Lin Fan confirmed that both men were hiding in the same spot behind the Earth Wall.
"Chidori!"
His fully upgraded Chidori punched straight through the Earth Wall, already half-destroyed by the Water Shockwave.
A bolt of lightning struck directly toward their hearts.
Pfft, pfft!
The two clearly hadn't expected Lin Fan to know a Lightning Release technique that completely countered Earth Style.
The Chidori struck them, and both spat out blood as they were hurled away.
The Earth Wall soon crumbled.
Lin Fan had no interest in checking whether the three men were dead or alive.
He brushed the dirt that had splattered onto him from the Earth Wall off his clothes and calmly left the Senju Compound.
Several hours later.
The Third Hokage arrived at the Senju Compound, puffing on his pipe.
"Hiruzen, you stood by and did nothing while someone attacked and badly injured three of my men. What exactly are your intentions? You'd better give me an explanation today."
Danzo's single eye flashed with menace as he spoke viciously.
The Third Hokage blew out a smoke ring and drawled, "Tape? That's easy. I've got plenty in my office. Take as much as you like."
Just as Danzo was about to retort, the Third Hokage grabbed him by the collar.
His eyes turned cold as ice.
"Danzo, I'm warning you not to go after Lin Fan again. Have you already forgotten Itachi's threat?"
... You are reading Naruto: Starting with Infinite Skill Points by Shenqi Xiao Sima.