"Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu!"
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Seeing Uchiha Chen escape the five-man encirclement so easily, everyone was taken aback.
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But at the Masked Man's command, the five quickly lined up again. In an instant, five enormous fireballs hurtled toward Uchiha Chen.
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"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
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Uchiha Chen's hands blurred as he formed Hand Seals at a speed almost impossible to follow with the naked eye.
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Then, all around Uchiha Chen's feet, a cylindrical column of water rose from the ground, spinning as it shot skyward and swallowed the fireballs the five had unleashed.
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"To use Water Release on such a massive scale in a place this dry is truly unexpected!"
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The Masked Man marveled at the enormous column of water. Most members of the Uchiha Clan were skilled in Fire Release, while few knew Water Release.
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Inside the column of water, Uchiha Chen couldn't help but smile. The original owner of his body had only known a few basic Water Release and Fire Release techniques, and Water Formation Wall was one of them.
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Just as he was about to use Water Formation Wall, a familiar voice sounded in his mind:
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[You have gained a deep understanding of Water Formation Wall. You have experienced an epiphany and mastered Water Formation Wall (Advanced Version).]
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There was no time to celebrate. In that instant, Uchiha Chen switched to the advanced version of Water Formation Wall, and the results were just as good as he'd expected.
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Yet that was far from the end. The voice in Uchiha Chen's mind continued:
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[You have gained a deep understanding of Water Formation Wall (Advanced Version). You have experienced an epiphany. From now on, you need only one hand seal to use Water Formation Wall (Advanced Version).]
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[After carefully observing Water Formation Wall (Advanced Version), you have experienced another epiphany. From now on, you can use Water Formation Wall (Advanced Version) without hand seals.]
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[Your understanding of Water Release Ninjutsu has improved further. You have experienced an epiphany, deduced and mastered other standard Water Release Ninjutsu (Advanced Version)—excluding Kekkei Genkai—and can use them without hand seals.]
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Uchiha Chen: !!!
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Good grief, Max-Level Comprehension really was absurd. He'd used a technique just once, and already he'd gained so much!
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He'd only mastered other standard Water Release techniques, not forbidden or secret techniques, but that was already astonishing.
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"Now that I've learned a new technique, why keep it to myself?"
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Uchiha Chen grinned. He looked like the very picture of a sunny, cheerful young man.
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"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
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With a thought, Uchiha Chen instantly launched the advanced version of Water Dragon Bullet Technique. The column of water around him divided into five spiraling streams, which then took the shape of five lifelike water dragons.
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The five stared at the scene, dumbfounded. Only when the dragons had fully formed and they felt the terrifying pressure radiating from them did they finally snap out of it.
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"Gulp..."
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The five swallowed nervously.
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When the water dragons dove toward them, the five were so terrified that their legs went weak. They had never imagined Uchiha Chen could be this powerful.
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The five water dragons were terrifying. If they took a direct hit, they'd be lucky to escape with their lives.
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"Not good! Run!"
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The man in the lead let out a desperate shout and stumbled away.
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But would Uchiha Chen really let them escape?
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The five water dragons surged forward with a roar.
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"BOOM!!"
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Several deafening crashes rang out, followed by cries of pain.
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Five figures were hurled into the air, tracing perfect arcs before crashing heavily to the ground.
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As the masks on their faces shattered, all five spat out blood almost simultaneously. Their spirits visibly flagged, and they had clearly lost the ability to fight back.
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The Masked Man in the lead endured the excruciating pain wracking his body and looked at Uchiha Chen.
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Uchiha Chen flicked one of the Kunai they'd thrown earlier into the air with his foot. Wearing a faint smile, he walked toward them at an unhurried pace.
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The Masked Man's pupils contracted sharply. Sensing the killing intent radiating from Uchiha Chen, he hurriedly begged for mercy.
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"Uchiha Chen, don't... don't kill us! We're on the same side!"
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"On the same side?"
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Uchiha Chen scoffed, clearly unconvinced.
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"We really are! We're all members of the Uchiha Clan. My name is Uchiha Inabi, and I'm with the Konoha Police Force. This is Uchiha Dayong, and he's..."
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Seeing Uchiha Chen's reaction, Uchiha Inabi hurriedly pulled off his cloak, revealing the unmistakable Uchiha Clan crest on its back.
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"Look, this is the Uchiha Clan crest!"
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Seeing the crest—a table tennis paddle—on the back of Uchiha Inabi's clothes, Uchiha Chen's eye twitched. Good grief, they really were members of the Uchiha Clan.
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But then Uchiha Chen's expression turned fierce, and a cold smile tugged at his lips.
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"So what if you're all Uchiha? You tried to hurt me. Why would I let you live?"
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"No, no, that's not it! We didn't mean to harm you. We were just following the clan leader's orders to bring you to meet him!"
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Uchiha Inabi hurriedly waved his hands as he explained, afraid Uchiha Chen would kill them.
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"Then why did you attack me? Was that the clan leader's order, too?"
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Uchiha Chen frowned.
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Uchiha Fugaku wanted to see me?
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This couldn't be good. He'd only wanted to lie low and grow stronger without attracting anyone's attention, but now things seemed to be heading in the opposite direction.
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"Cough, well... that was our own decision. Yesterday, Lady Tsunade and Lord Jiraiya fought over you, and it was quite a spectacle.
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"And today, the clan leader specifically summoned you, so we wanted to test your strength..."
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Uchiha Inabi lowered his head as he explained.
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Of course, he wasn't about to admit they'd attacked out of jealousy.
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Uchiha Chen gave Uchiha Inabi a cold look. He didn't care at all about what the man had said.
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He didn't particularly want to meet Uchiha Fugaku.
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Should he kill these men to silence them?
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Then pretend he'd never met them?
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At Uchiha Chen's cold stare, Uchiha Inabi and the others felt a chill rise from deep within. They quickly dropped to their knees.
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"Lord Chen, we know we were wrong. We won't do it again. Please spare us!"
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Looking at Uchiha Inabi and the others, their noses running and faces streaked with tears, Uchiha Chen sighed. Things had already come to this. Killing them would accomplish nothing; Uchiha Fugaku or the Uchiha Clan's higher-ups would come looking for him sooner or later.
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"Hmph. If the clan leader wants to see me, then lead the way."
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Uchiha Chen left them with that and headed toward the village on his own.