Winning Against an Elite Jonin

Ninja usually released their ninjutsu directly in front of themselves.

So Itachi Uchiha chose to dart to the side and attack.

At their current distance, Yemu couldn't dodge.

But not instantly.

Just as Itachi's Kunai was about to reach Yemu's neck, Yemu finally completed his jutsu.

The surroundings didn't change in the slightest.

But Itachi was astonished to find that when his Kunai struck Yemu's neck, it sparked without piercing him at all.

It was just like stabbing a sheet of iron.

And while Itachi was stunned, the experienced Yemu wasn't about to let such an opportunity pass.

He suddenly jerked his arm.

Itachi was sent flying like a basketball, rolling until he hit a tree stump five meters away.

Yemu's strength was immense, as if reinforced by ninjutsu.

Itachi couldn't hold back and spat out a mouthful of blood. It felt as though his internal organs had taken a beating.

Pain began to spread throughout his body, but he forced it down with sheer willpower.

One moment of carelessness, and he'd suffered such a serious injury. He still lacked experience.

Like Ye Yuexin, Itachi was the sort who dealt tremendous damage but had pitifully weak defenses.

That blow had already restricted Itachi's movements.

"This is the down payment for my cooperation with Lord Lin Mu: Petrification Technique. What do you think of this jutsu? You're the first person to experience it."

"Pay for my brother's life!" he shouted, charging at Itachi again.

After witnessing how powerful the jutsu was, Itachi was even less inclined to engage in close combat.

Yemu's entire body had turned a brownish yellow, like rock. His skin was covered in many raised, grainy bumps. He looked just like a piece of irregular granite found in nature.

Itachi retreated while forming Hand Seals. "Fire Release: Fire Phoenix Sage Technique!" Several concentrated fireballs shot toward Yemu.

Yemu seemed so confident in his jutsu that he didn't even consider dodging.

He charged at Itachi without hesitation, as if he wouldn't stop until he smashed him to pieces.

This Rock Transformation Technique was incredibly powerful. Itachi's concentrated fireballs exploded against Yemu's chest, and the moment flames swallowed him, he charged right back out.

He had clearly taken Itachi's fireballs head-on, yet he still looked unstoppable. Only the clothes on his upper body had instantly turned to ash.

The jutsu seemed incredibly powerful, but Itachi noticed that Yemu's movements were growing sluggish. It seemed this jutsu required a great deal of chakra to maintain.

It looked like he'd have to drag this fight out.

From the looks of it, Yemu wouldn't be able to keep this up for long. Just then, Itachi happened to glance at the sky.

During a fight, he absolutely couldn't afford to lose focus. Only now, as he fled and dodged, did Itachi notice that it looked like it was about to rain.

A new battle plan began to take shape in Itachi's mind, slowly coming together.

After vaulting over a branch, Itachi began forming Hand Seals again.

Facing Yemu, who was now like a bulldozer, Itachi felt that his Fire Release was too limited. When he returned to the village, he'd have to learn more powerful Fire Release techniques.

The tree trunk he had just jumped over was smashed apart by Yemu, who came charging in from nowhere. Yemu rushed toward Itachi again.

But Itachi had finished forming his Hand Seals. Flames began to pour from his mouth once more.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" The flames engulfed Yemu again. Yemu was still maintaining his jutsu, so his body could withstand the flames, but his eyes couldn't. And after being roasted by the Great Fireball, the scorching air he breathed into his lungs burned them as well.

He roared in agony inside the fireball.

But in just a short time, Yemu charged back out. He was completely naked, and his ponytail had been burned off, leaving him bald.

Even the dense nest of black hair between his legs had been burned away.

Yemu's entire body radiated an unnatural orange hue. It seemed the intense heat had caused it.

After escaping the flames, Yemu began to stagger.

Itachi felt that he could win without even needing help from the people waiting below.

Just then, several rumbles of thunder rolled across the sky, and rain suddenly began to fall.

It looked like a thunderstorm. It wouldn't last long, but the raindrops were large.

Just as Itachi had expected, the raindrops hitting Yemu's body hissed like water dripping onto red-hot iron and evaporated at once. But as the rain kept falling, white steam filled the air around him.

The surface of his body began to crack as it expanded and contracted with the heat.

It looked like Itachi wouldn't even need to attack.

The instant Yemu's skin cracked and his jutsu broke, he toppled to the ground.

Itachi's victory had been confusingly easy. He felt he'd made the problem seem too simple.

Yemu's greatest failure was still his lack of chakra. He needed it to maintain the defensive power of the Rock Transformation Technique.

When distributing his chakra, Yemu had reduced the amount allocated to his legs, leaving him slower.

That was why Yemu hadn't dodged Itachi's jutsu. He knew he couldn't, so he'd decided to take the opportunity to close in.

But it seemed he had overestimated himself and underestimated Itachi.

The battle on Ye Yuexin's side was even more intense.

His opponent wasn't some wandering ninja who didn't know any ninjutsu.

After Ye Yuexin kicked Lin Mu away, he immediately sensed that something was wrong. The impact had hurt. It felt like he'd kicked a rock.

Ye Yuexin's leg had started to go numb.

Almost instantly, Lin Mu charged out of the trees again.

Aside from some scuffing on his clothes, he was completely unharmed.

Ye Yuexin's strange movements had indeed caught him off guard.

Although he couldn't dodge, he wasn't entirely helpless. He had promptly used the Rock Transformation Technique to block Ye Yuexin's powerful roundhouse kick.

The battle continued.

When Ye Yuexin saw his opponent emerge completely unharmed, he charged forward again.

But Lin Mu wasn't like the wandering ninja Yemu, who could only meet attacks head-on.

He quickly formed Hand Seals. Before Ye Yuexin could reach him, he shouted, "Earth Release: Earth Collapse!" Ye Yuexin immediately felt the earth in front of him split into two slabs of dirt that came together to crush him.

A sense of mortal danger seized him.

The moment he noticed, Ye Yuexin leaped into the air to dodge the slabs.

But Lin Mu, an elite jonin, seemed to have anticipated that. He completed his Hand Seals in an instant. "Earth Release: Earth Rock Lid!"

[New book out! Consider bookmarking it and letting it build up before reading. Your support is needed. Thank you, everyone!] The next chapter is even more exciting.