Come Here (Seeking Collection, Recommendations, Monthly Votes)

"Experienced Chunin."

Looking at the system's changed evaluation and the severe imbalance in his taijutsu stats...

Based on Qifeng's usual comparisons, an experienced Chunin from the system's evaluation, combined with the unexpected Shikotsumyaku and Sharingan, should be able to hold his own against some Special Jonin—provided the opponent wasn't a Special Jonin who countered him.

For example, a Special Jonin skilled in genjutsu would be his bane.

Special Jonin was a very awkward power level.

It was a rank specifically designated for Chunin whose overall strength was at the Chunin level but who excelled in certain areas, even rivaling Jonin, to distinguish them from ordinary Chunin.

If a Special Jonin fought a Jonin with a similar specialty, they could briefly match a Jonin to some extent.

For instance, a Special Jonin specializing in taijutsu could temporarily hold their own against a Jonin who wasn't particularly proficient in either genjutsu or taijutsu.

But if someone like Qifeng now—with taijutsu severely skewed and genjutsu pitifully weak—ran into a Jonin with decent genjutsu, he'd just get beaten down.

Even if he encountered a Chunin with decent genjutsu, the fight would be painfully awkward.

So, the situation for a Special Jonin was: against a suitable opponent, they could rival a Jonin; against a countering opponent, they were equal to a Chunin.

That was exactly Qifeng's case.

Having used up all his attempts at once, he no longer hoped to get anything else from the corpses as a trump card.

He glanced at the night outside the window.

Before he knew it, time had already reached evening.

"Wait."

Immersed in the pleasant "exchange" with the corpses, Qifeng suddenly snapped to attention. According to the ninja code of conduct while on duty, the two Chunin assigned to defense and perception had to rendezvous at least once every hour to exchange intelligence and verify codes and signals.

But during the time he'd spent dealing with his strength, an hour had already passed.

The other two should have known he was in the command room and come to find him on their own.

A faint sense of unease rose in his heart.

But he didn't dare act rashly, nor did he dare leave the command room.

The command room was fairly spacious with a clear view, but outside were all cramped corridors—too easy to run into danger or get ambushed.

When he'd first entered the outpost, he'd seen plenty of corpses lying in those hallways.

But staying inside, if it was a large-scale Iwa-nin attack, it wouldn't be much different from waiting to die.

He sat on the ground and thought for a moment.

He fished a cigarette out of his pocket, not caring if it was disrespectful to the dead, and lit it with a snap of his fingers.

He took a deep drag.

"Damn it! Can't be that unlucky, right?"

He tossed the cigarette to the ground and crushed it out, then frantically pulled Explosive Tags from the system one after another.

He wasn't good at setting traps, but he knew the basics.

He strung the Explosive Tags together with special wire and plastered them densely on the walls and door.

"Whoever comes dies!"

His eyes closed and opened, black pupils replaced by a crimson hue, a single tomoe spinning unhurriedly.

His gaze swept the surroundings.

His hand rested lightly on the longsword at his waist.

He sat still, unmoving, silently waiting—like a farmer waiting for a rabbit to crash into a tree stump.

He didn't know how long he stared.

Suddenly, the handle of the command room door twitched slightly.

Qifeng narrowed his eyes, pupils contracting.

"Who?!"

The door was locked.

"It's me."

From outside the door came a somewhat familiar voice, seemingly one of the two Chunin left on guard.

But Qifeng's expression didn't relax at all. He only asked in a low voice, "Code word!"

"..."

A second of silence. Qifeng didn't hesitate. He let go of the sword hilt and formed a hand seal.

Ssssss—

One by one, the Explosive Tags began to burn at the same time, accompanied by faint sounds, like fuses being triggered rapidly.

Then—

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Explosions rang out one after another, the entire building shuddering violently with each blast.

Still, he had to admit the construction team that built these checkpoints was impressive—despite such frequent and large-scale explosions, the outpost held firm.

Only the walls and corridor outside the command room were completely destroyed.

Qifeng didn't let his guard down. He simply activated his Sharingan and silently watched the chaotic pile of rubble.

"With that many Explosive Tags, it seems Konoha's pretty determined."

Suddenly, a light, airy voice drifted from the rubble.

A figure stood up from the debris, looking somewhat battered, with tattered clothes hanging over his bulging muscles.

Tsuchi, Iwagakure Jonin!

If he hadn't sensed something wrong at the last moment and dodged while reinforcing himself with Earth Release, that dense cluster of Explosive Tags would have been enough to blow him to pieces five or six times over.

But unfortunately for Qifeng, that one second of hesitation gave Tsuchi enough time to react.

Qifeng furrowed his brow, his right hand resting on the hilt of the blade at his waist. His temples throbbed violently as his Sharingan spun rapidly.

With just one look, he judged that the opponent's strength was definitely not that of a Chunin—most likely a Jonin, or even a Special Jonin.

Tsuchi watched Qifeng's wary posture, noticed his crimson eyes, and let out a light chuckle. "Lucky me, an Uchiha brat. Too bad it's just a Single Tomoe Sharingan. If it were Three Tomoe, this plan might not have succeeded."

Plan?

Qifeng's heart tightened.

Then he roughly understood.

The traces at Mount Nagao were deliberately left by the Iwa-nin. Their goal was to lure away Konoha's reinforcements so they could calmly kill the guards left behind at the outpost.

They were besieging the outpost to ambush the relief force.

But weren't they underestimating Orochimaru?

Suppressing the tension in his heart, Qifeng grinned and asked, "Konoha's resolve is far greater than you think. I doubt you even know who's leading this mission."

"Oh? Who?" Tsuchi raised an eyebrow.

Qifeng sneered, his lips parting slightly as he calmly uttered the name that could shake the ninja world.

"Orochimaru."

Sure enough, at the name, Tsuchi's eyes narrowed, and a flicker of fear flashed across his face.

"Lord Orochimaru is leading the team personally. I'd say the ninja you ambushed at Mount Nagao aren't having a good time," Qifeng continued.

Tsuchi's face darkened. "Even if it's Orochimaru, he won't leave easily without paying a price this time. As for you, are you ready to die?"

In his eyes, Qifeng was at most a Chunin. The Sharingan might be powerful, but with just one tomoe, it posed no threat to him.

Qifeng smiled calmly and beckoned him with a finger. "Come at me, then."

This smile wasn't an act. He had confirmed one thing.

The enemy didn't know Orochimaru was leading the team, so they definitely hadn't prepared thoroughly.

If that was the case, given Orochimaru's strength, he'd probably be back soon. When that happened, this Jonin would die.

And if worst came to worst, couldn't he just run?

Tsuchi froze for a moment, then snapped out of it, irritation rising in his chest.

He'd actually been intimidated by a brat.

Clenching his fists in anger, he didn't bother with flashy jutsu. His body was his best weapon and his best offense.

"Rock Fist!"

Crack, crack, crack—

His fist, already the size of a sandbag, was quickly covered in rock. In the blink of an eye, he closed in on Qifeng, the punch carrying a gust of wind that stung Qifeng's face.

The Sharingan locked onto the opponent tightly.

Under its powerful dynamic visual capture, Tsuchi's attack was fully visible to him.

But seeing it didn't mean he could block it.

Trouble.

Not only was the opponent a Jonin, but one of the best among them.

And worse, Qifeng had no Experience Cards left to use.