Just Do It (Seeking Collection, Recommendations, Monthly Votes)

He had dealt with the Iwa Jonin.

Qifeng stood still, not moving.

He was savoring the battle that had taken place in less than a minute just now.

To be honest, even he hadn't expected to finish the fight in such a short time. The role of genjutsu in actual combat was indeed overwhelmingly powerful.

Moreover, to put it bluntly, Qifeng, while using this Experience Card, was even stronger than the ninja the card itself was based on—significantly so.

This was because that Konoha Jonin was a Genjutsu-type Jonin, with genjutsu as his forte. While his taijutsu and ninjutsu weren't weak, they weren't outstanding among Jonin.

Qifeng's taijutsu, however, had always been his strength, and it became even more so after activating Shikotsumyaku. With a small amount of compatible stacking, his taijutsu became quite remarkable among Jonin.

Combined with the powerful genjutsu from the excellent Experience Card, it was like having a well-rounded Jonin who combined control and strong offense. If his ninjutsu had also met the standard at this point, he wouldn't be a Jonin—he'd be an Elite Jonin.

Thus, the Iwa-nin's defeat was inevitable.

With genjutsu control paired with the offensive-defensive integration of Shikotsumyaku, the only shortcoming was a slight lack of speed. Otherwise, his Harvesting ability on the battlefield wouldn't be much weaker than the future Body Flicker Shisui.

This was a brand-new experience.

Before, when using Experience Cards, Qifeng had relied entirely on the abilities and enhancements granted by the card.

But this time, he used the card to compensate for his own weaknesses—or rather, to greatly strengthen those weaknesses—and then integrated them.

"Genjutsu... so this is how powerful it is," Qifeng murmured to himself.

There weren't many Genjutsu-type ninja in the ninja world, and true masters among them were even rarer. In Qifeng's memory, the only ones whose genjutsu was strong enough to dominate the ninja world were probably Uchiha Shisui and Itachi Uchiha, that pair of close friends.

Because using genjutsu heavily tested the caster's intelligence. A ninja without high intelligence might not even be able to wield it effectively.

Using genjutsu wasn't just about mastering Hand Seals, Chakra flow, and mental coverage and influence. It also required grasping timing, rhythm, and the setup of the illusion.

The goal was to make it hard for the opponent to tell reality from illusion in an instant, seizing that fleeting gap to strike them down.

Otherwise, if the genjutsu was too abrupt and the target immediately realized they were caught in it, the effectiveness of the genjutsu would be halved.

Of course, the Sharingan's genjutsu was a different story.

Take this battle, for example. The Iwa-nin had been hit by the "Bringer-of-Darkness Technique" at the start and immediately understood he was under genjutsu. He quickly used Earth Release to protect himself and tried to break the illusion.

If not for Qifeng's Shikotsumyaku playing an unexpected role, it would have been hard to say how the battle would have turned out.

The second time he cast genjutsu, Qifeng promptly corrected that mistake.

The "Hell Viewing Technique" caused the opponent to panic briefly, allowing him to land a decisive blow.

Genjutsu required highly sophisticated techniques.

"Bringer-of-Darkness Technique, Hell Viewing Technique."

Qifeng memorized the hand seals and Chakra flow patterns of these two techniques, but he estimated that after the Experience Card expired, it would be unrealistic for him to cast them again with his current genjutsu ability.

Still, there might be a chance to use them later.

Remembering these two techniques was Qifeng's limit.

After all, whether for genjutsu or ninjutsu, hand seals were only a superficial part. The key lay in the Chakra flow, which was a very intricate process. Even the slightest mistake could cause the technique to fail or lead to unexpected danger.

If it were just the hand seals, remembering them wouldn't be hard.

Otherwise, the Sharingan's copying ability wouldn't have become famous across the ninja world. Any ninja with decent memory could memorize those seals.

He pulled his thoughts together, glanced at the Iwa-nin's corpse on the ground, and grinned.

"Jonin aren't so hard to kill after all."

He looked delightedly at the fallen Iwa-nin, adding another Yellow Corpse to his collection.

War, though dangerous, was truly a paradise for a Corpse Collector.

Meanwhile.

The battle between the Iwa-nin and Konoha was finally nearing its end.

And the one leading the battle to its conclusion was none other than Orochimaru.

Orochimaru had been entangled by five Iwa-nin and couldn't break free for a time. As the Iwa-nin's advantage grew, Orochimaru went all out.

He completely abandoned his defense, relying on his nearly abnormal body and recovery ability to launch a fierce assault on Tu He, the commander of the Iwa Advance Force, ignoring the interference of the other four Iwa-nin.

He relentlessly beat Tu He to the brink of defeat, forcing him to use Earth Release to flee the battlefield.

Tu He, as both the commander and the strongest Iwa-nin in the Advance Force, his departure left the Iwa-nin without a backbone.

More importantly, without Tu He, the other four Iwa-nin could no longer hold Orochimaru back.

How terrifying was a fully unleashed Orochimaru?

Just ask every Iwa-nin on the field.

He almost single-handedly turned the entire situation around, driving the Iwa-nin back step by step.

Without their commander, the Iwa Advance Force began retreating almost purely on instinct. Konoha naturally wouldn't let these Iwa-nin, who had killed countless of their comrades, get away.

This was the role a Kage-level powerhouse could play on the battlefield.

When it can no longer be restricted, that is when it begins to reap the battlefield.

Orochimaru said that Tu He and the others were no match, that Ōnoki himself would barely suffice—this was no baseless claim, for he indeed possessed such confidence and ability.

Ōnoki, clinging to his title as Tsuchikage, refused to come.

Very well, then Orochimaru would fight until he did!

Meanwhile.

Tu He, having fled the battlefield, was filled with frustration and reluctance.

It wasn't that he feared death, nor that he was unwilling to fight Orochimaru to the bitter end—it was simply that his identity forbade him from doing so.

As the leader of the Advance Force, Tu He held no low status in Iwagakure.

Correspondingly, he knew much about Iwagakure's battle arrangements, including no small amount of classified information.

If he were captured by Konoha, or if his corpse were taken, Konoha—home to the Yamanaka Clan and various Secret Technique families—would surely extract a wealth of intelligence from him.

Even if it were only scraps of information, at this moment when the two sides were about to clash head-on, it would be exceptionally critical.

His identity did not permit this.

Thus, even when they saw him flee, the Iwa-nin said nothing, for they too understood the stakes.

This was merely a skirmish between advance forces, a probing clash before the full-scale war—it would not affect the greater battle.

If he were captured, it could severely impact the entire Iwa-nin deployment.

Tu He emerged from underground, gazing at Orochimaru as he began to wreak havoc among the Iwa-nin. Clutching the wound on his chest, his eyes were filled with struggle.

Watching his comrades fall one after another was unbearable, but he could only grit his teeth and swallow the pain.

Clenching his jaw, he turned to leave.

But just as he turned, his bloodshot eyes widened, flashing with disbelief.

At the same time.

Qifeng, standing opposite him, was equally dumbfounded.

This...

"What a coincidence."

Tu He caught sight of the Iwa Jonin's corpse lying on the ground, and anger swept across his face.

Though he didn't know this Qifeng, the dead Iwa-nin on the ground said it all.

In an instant, rage shattered the last line of defense in his mind.

But before he could act, Qifeng struck first.

If Tu He were at full strength, Qifeng would have turned and fled without hesitation.

But now—Tu He, drenched in blood, burning with fury, on the verge of losing his reason—

In his eyes, he was a walking treasure chest.

On top of that, having just easily taken down an Iwa Jonin, the effect of the Experience Card was still active.

Go for it!

That was all there was to it!