Four Jonin

The battlefield resembled a field of smoke and fire.

In the blink of an eye, Firelight had already spent over a month on this battlefield in Kirigakure.

Swish, swish—!

Roar—!

His fists wrapped in a fire dragon, he smashed the ground to pieces with a single punch. The earth failed to contain those scorching flames, which surged out from all around, and the mist ninja were instantly routed by the exploding fire.

Bzz, bzz, bzz—!

After a spell of burning, the mist ninja were beaten to shreds by the attacks.

Fire Dragon's Iron Fist.

"Firelight Goenji."

That was the dying murmur left behind by the mist ninja.

Swish!

Firelight executed a flip in mid-air and landed on the ground. He looked at the dead mist ninja, stretched out a large hand, and the flames instantly vanished.

Very good, the Fire Dragon's Iron Fist has reached the optimal release stage for the current phase, and I can continue to develop other ninjutsu.

He looked at his own fist, thought of the power of the ninjutsu just now, and a smug smile appeared on his face.

The so-called reaching the optimal release stage for a ninjutsu meant that it was the best he could manage, a stage where he could complete leverage operations in a short period of time.

Because performing leverage operations on ninjutsu required making many adjustments to the shape transformation of the ninjutsu—which normally took a certain amount of time—he could now complete it in a short time.

As for the power, it went without saying. Although his current chakra control ability could only achieve simple leverage operations, the power had already increased tremendously.

Whether it was the Great Fireball or other Fire Release ninjutsu, he had already completed the development of their optimal stages.

The power had been tremendously enhanced.

Coupled with the growth of his body and the increase in spiritual energy over these days, his chakra was also getting stronger and stronger, allowing him to perform more operations.

The fault tolerance rate in battle had improved significantly.

He could now be said to be an elite among Konoha Jonin.

Whether it was combat experience, basic physical strength and qualities, or the analysis of the battle situation, he had already achieved what an elite could do.

The next step is the development of Fire Release nature transformation, as well as the combination of Fire Release and swordsmanship.

Since he had reached his limit in terms of shape transformation at the current stage, he had to change his research direction and move toward other avenues to enhance his strength.

Nature transformation was something he had always been developing, while the combination of swordsmanship and Fire Release had been inspired by Shisui, from whom he had stealthily learned a technique called Flame Leap.

It was extremely useful.

This was a nintaijutsu that combined Fire Release with the Body Flicker Technique.

Firelight had stolen and learned it without any obstruction.

Moreover, he already had ideas for the subsequent development.

Now that he was a Jonin, the offensive power of ordinary ninjutsu was already sufficient.

His mobility skills, as well as the defensive skill Fire Ring Repulsion, were also complete; now he needed to develop more targeted skills.

With his current combat experience and the Uchiha Sharingan, he was already an outstanding figure among Jonin and did not need to be overly targeted.

Yet he still had to develop even stronger means.

Being an outstanding figure did not mean he was invincible at this stage. After all, his body was just a mortal body that would die if killed, and he would die if he were carelessly struck by a kunai.

If someone targeted him, there were still plenty of ways to kill him.

Poisoning, sealing, assassination, traps, encirclements, targeted strikes...

Anyway, ninjas didn't kill people solely through frontal assaults.

Besides, his strength was probably still not quite enough when facing ninjas of Minato Namikaze's caliber.

"Captain, your Fire Release is getting more and more impressive!"

"Of course! Otherwise, the title of Firelight wouldn't fall to the captain, hahaha!"

Aburame Fuzei and the others walked up and laughed at Firelight.

Looking at the corpses on the ground, they felt no surprise.

In a month's time, Firelight had carved out a big reputation for himself on the Kirigakure battlefield.

Firelight Goenji.

Just like ninjas such as the Yellow Flash and Body Flicker Shisui, he had acquired a nickname of his own that struck terror into the hearts of the people of Kirigakure.

He earned it because his powerful Fire Release ninjutsu made the mist ninja—who excelled at Water Release, which countered Fire Release—feel quite tricky and hard to deal with.

As his teammates, they shared in the glory.

Firelight said, "All right, check if there is any important intelligence. We need to go and support the others."

"Yes, captain."

Firelight's gaze was profound. After such a long time, did Kirigakure really have no designs on geniuses of the Uchiha like them?

In a whole month, there hadn't been any operations specifically targeting him.

On the contrary, Shisui Uchiha had already been targeted by Kirigakure multiple times.

However, Shisui's abilities were far too comprehensive, belonging to the all-rounder type of ninja. Coupled with his outstanding Body Flicker Technique, Shisui had always managed to escape and counterattack.

Yet in his own case, it seemed there were no means directed specifically at him.

The crucial point was that Kirigakure had even saddled him with the moniker of Firelight Goenji; it shouldn't just pass by like this.

According to past intelligence, every famous ninja would be targeted by the enemy, though most managed to run away and only a few were killed on the battlefield.

Then that famous ninja would stop being famous.

This was the normal state of affairs for a ninja: as long as you were alive, you were very famous.

If you died, even if you were the Kage of various villages, people could only offer a few more flattering words for you when they spoke of history.

The reality was that there were many geniuses on the battlefield, but because of their fame, they were always targeted and eliminated by the enemy.

"Captain, the check is complete. There is no important intelligence."

"Mhm, let's go."

Not long after Firelight and the others left, four figures appeared at the spot.

"What a terrifying Fire Release."

Munashi Jinpachi shouldered the Exploding Blade Shibuki and looked at the surrounding environment.

The place was already battered beyond recognition, and everywhere were traces left by Fire Release attacks. Within a radius of dozens of meters, not a single spot remained intact, and numerous ashes fell into the dust.

"Heh, but I wonder how his Fire Release compares to the bloodline limit of my Kaguya clan. Can it break through my defense? Even if it breaks through, I can still take his life." A person with painted face patterns, wearing special clothing and a thick rope bound around his waist, spoke with arrogant pride.

Munashi Jinpachi said, "Hoshi, you mustn't be careless. Someone who can carve out a reputation on the battlefield is no small fry. Don't you agree, Fubuki?"

He looked toward another companion.

That person had a Kirigakure forehead protector tied around his arm, a scarf wrapped tightly around his neck, and hair as white as snow.

Fubuki Shiro gently exhaled, spitting out an icy stream of air: "Judging from the environment at the scene, the opponent's Fire Release truly lives up to someone born from the Uchiha; his mastery of Fire Release is indeed exceptional. Longyue, can you handle it?"

"You're underestimating my Hozuki clan. The Hozuki clan's Water Release will absolutely not lose to the Uchiha's Fire Release. You guys just need to seize the opportunity to finish him off," Hozuki Longyue chuckled and said.

"If four Jonin still can't finish off a single Uchiha, it really would be a laughingstock to the Shinobi World," Munashi Jinpachi muttered mockingly.

This time, their Kirigakure had investigated the intelligence for a month and dispatched four Jonin, including himself—one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. If they still couldn't take down the opponent...

That really would be too laughable.

[I wish everyone a happy New Year today, and may all you majesties have smooth sailing and prosperous fortunes in the new year.]