Meeting the Third Generation

"Ye!" Itachi Uchiha's sudden shout rang out.

Ye Yuexin shouted back, "Over here!" The two had been separated since the fighting began, and judging by the distance, they seemed quite far apart.

Before long, Itachi Uchiha appeared before Ye Yuexin. Although he wasn't as covered in grime as Ye Yuexin, his clothes looked more like a standard beggar's outfit.

There were quite a few wounds still oozing blood, though the rain washed the blood away as soon as it flowed out.

The sky remained thick with dark clouds, but the thunder had ceased. It seemed this rain was nearing its end.

Itachi Uchiha had been mentally prepared when he came over, and upon hearing Ye Yuexin's reply, he knew that Ye Yuexin was still safe.

As the distance closed, he was surprised to hear no sounds of combat. A faint suspicion had already formed in his mind.

But when he truly saw Lin Mu's corpse, his mindset shifted entirely.

His eyes widened suddenly, bulging like walnuts.

"You took care of this??" he asked subconsciously, though he realized immediately after that he had asked an obvious question.

"I knew you were stronger than me, but I didn't expect you to be this much stronger." Beyond the shock, his tone carried a hint of dejection.

Ye Yuexin was taken aback.

He suddenly wondered if what he had done had been too much of a blow to the prideful Itachi Uchiha.

Damn, he wouldn't be so discouraged by me that he loses his drive, would he?

Ye Yuexin was about to offer some words of encouragement, but Itachi Uchiha interrupted him, "I just didn't expect you to have come so far. But this is the kind of you that is worthy of being chased by me, Itachi Uchiha."

"Ye, remember this: I, Itachi Uchiha, will definitely surpass you."

As expected, Itachi wouldn't be discouraged so easily.

"That's a given. You're the top student of the Konoha Academy, the genius of the Uchiha clan," Ye Yuexin said, feeling as though they were starting to flatter each other.

He then looked at the still-dazed Itachi Uchiha and added, "We must leave immediately. I don't know if those rogue ninjas will make a move on us. Your sealing jutsu is better than mine. You seal their bodies; I'll go keep watch for those rogue ninjas."

Sealing jutsu ranged from high-level to low-level. For instance, the one Itachi Uchiha was using now was a low-level technique, the kind taught at the Ninja Academy.

Much like Tenten in the original series, students could skillfully seal objects and ninja tools into scrolls by the time they graduated.

Once everything was finished and they were on the road back, Ye Yuexin's heart finally settled.

The group of rogue ninjas hadn't made a move. Otherwise, given their current state, even a genin could have finished them off.

Of course, he meant a Konoha genin.

"I didn't expect this mission to turn out this way; you two have truly worked hard. You performed excellently. I am upgrading this mission to an A-rank."

"The Uchiha have already reported the issues you encountered, but looking at the two of you, it seems you didn't manage to rendezvous with the rescue squad I sent," the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, said with an apologetic look as he looked at the two standing before his desk.

"You are truly the strongest genin of this generation in Konoha. I have been keeping an eye on you both for a long time. This mission will be recorded in your files. Konoha thanks you for your contribution."

Ye Yuexin and Itachi Uchiha stood respectfully before the desk, listening to the Third Hokage's words.

The Third was indeed a capable leader. As the head of the village, he thanked them with such warmth.

If not for the inside information he knew about him, Ye Yuexin might have been moved, feeling a stronger sense of belonging to the village.

"Very well. You may go submit your mission report now. The Anbu will notify you of any subsequent changes." Seeing the two listening intently, the Third nodded with a smile.

Hearing this, Ye Yuexin and Itachi Uchiha immediately said, "Yes, Your Excellency Hokage. We shall take our leave."

It took Ye Yuexin and Itachi a full day of limping to reach Konoha, arriving just within the mission deadline.

However, they didn't go to submit the mission immediately. They had learned in the Academy that if a major change occurred during a mission, one must report to the Hokage first.

After Ye Yuexin and Itachi left, the Third Hokage's expression suddenly turned grave. He spoke to the empty air in front of him, "Notify the three elders to come for a meeting immediately."

Judging by the intelligence brought back by Ye Yuexin and the others, it seemed the Rock Village intended to start operations in the rear. This had to be taken seriously.

Because no one could guess how many people the enemy had dispatched. A slight mistake could lead to massive losses.

"Yes, Third Lord." No one appeared, but a voice echoed. This was the elusive Anbu.

Just as the Third was about to leave the room for the meeting hall, he added, "Once the autopsy of the corpses is complete, send them to the meeting hall immediately."

"Yes, Third Lord." Another voice replied. One could never know how many Anbu were hidden within that small office.

Ye Yuexin and Itachi went to the mission hall to turn in their mission before heading home. When they submitted it, they still processed it as the original C-rank.

But the Anbu would handle the rest later. There were many things that could not be disclosed casually.

He hadn't been home for three days. Upon entering, a wave of exhaustion hit him like a wild beast. Still, Ye Yuexin relied on his willpower to take a shower first.

After taking off his pants, Ye Yuexin discovered his legs were bruised blue. No wonder they had hurt the entire way back.

It seemed he needed to find some body-tempering ninjutsu. In his past life's memories, the Hidden Cloud Village possessed such secret techniques.

Moreover, their defensive power was incredibly formidable. The Third Raikage from the original series had relied on such defense to go head-to-head against the Rock Village's army of three thousand.

But how could he obtain it? For now, he could only dream about it.

Don't even talk about creating his own. Ninjutsu that acted directly on the flesh couldn't be tested with shadow clones. As someone as afraid of death as he was, how could he bear to electrocute himself?

After thinking about it, it seemed he would have to start by training like Might Guy from the original series. Ye Yuexin estimated that as long as his physical strength reached the level of opening the Third Gate, he could fully adapt to the damage caused by this footwork.

As for body-tempering techniques, I'll just have to deal with those whenever I get the chance later.

There was another way to avoid injury, and that was to perfect his footwork until he reached the realm of "painting the wind."

That way, there wouldn't be any lingering side effects. Because for now, Ye Yuexin still relied mostly on his physical body to boost his speed, which caused significant damage to his muscles.

Take it slow. I'll cultivate both, Ye Yuexin thought to himself.

His body was too exhausted. After a shower, he quickly drifted off to sleep.

[New book is out... I suggest adding it to your library first... let it fatten up before you slaughter it. I need your support... Thank you, everyone.]