Compared with the threats and intimidation from the man he had knocked off his horse, Ling Feng's words made everyone gasp, leaving them utterly stunned.
Anyone with eyes could see how lavish the man's clothes were. Judging by their style, he might only have been a guard, but anyone who wore clothes made from such fine material was certainly no ordinary person.
The man rose to his feet, his expression dark and his gaze icy.
Only when he stood did everyone realize how powerfully built he was. He took two steps forward, casting an intimidating shadow over Ling Feng.
Behind Ling Feng, Kakashi and the others had all gone pale.
Even if Kakashi was hailed as Konoha's genius, he was still just a child at heart.
Only Ling Feng remained unfazed, his expression perfectly calm.
Having lived two lives, Ling Feng was long used to situations like this.
"Brat, what did you just say? Were you serious?"
"Do you know who I am?"
"Kiryū Sanki, captain of the Inner Cabinet's First Guard Squad!"
The man towered over Ling Feng and shouted down at him.
At those words, everyone around them widened their eyes in shock.
"It's Kiryū Sanki!"
"The legendary greatest swordsman in the Land of Fire!"
"That's right! He became captain of the First Guard Squad at such a young age, and he's already reached the level of an Elite Jonin!"
"Exactly. Whenever the Land of Fire's senior officials travel, he's practically always there. Not a single incident has ever happened with him around!"
As they listened to the surrounding chatter, Kakashi and the others grew even paler.
An opponent of this caliber was far beyond anything they could handle.
Rin Nohara could no longer hold back her tears. They rolled down her cheeks in great drops as she cried helplessly.
"Ling Feng, I'm sorry. I never thought this would become so much trouble. Please leave. This was my mistake. It has nothing to do with you."
Hearing Rin Nohara's choked sobs, Ling Feng spoke calmly without even turning around. "I'm the one who hit him. Why are you getting involved?"
"Besides, neither of us did anything wrong. He's the one at fault. He saw how crowded the street was and still deliberately rode that fast."
"So I'm going to make him answer for it!"
His words sent an uproar through the crowd.
"The kid isn't wrong, but there's a time and a place!"
"Exactly! He's trying way too hard to play the hero!"
"He's facing someone at the Elite Jonin level! At his age, isn't he still attending the Ninja Academy?"
Ling Feng rarely appeared in public. He spent most of his time either training or going on missions.
As a result, the passersby didn't recognize him. They seemed to have forgotten the huge stir he had caused at the Ninja Academy.
Still, thinking back, more than three months had passed since then-not a particularly long time, but not a short one either.
Probably only the children who had been there still remembered.
Rin Nohara was deeply touched, but she didn't want Ling Feng to get hurt because of her, so she tried to say something more.
Before she could speak, however, Ling Feng raised a hand to stop her.
"Kakashi, Guy, please look after Rin. Just leave this to me."
By now, the veins on Kiryū Sanki's forehead were throbbing.
"What sickeningly pure friendship. You still dare to act tough in front of me? Clearly, the world hasn't beaten any sense into you yet."
"I have to say, you're the first person who's ever dared to stop my horse!"
"Even if you're just a brat, you deserve a beating when you do something wrong!"
With that, Kiryū Sanki drew the sword at his waist.
At the sight, Ling Feng narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists.
An Elite Jonin?
That should put him at the level of the Konoha Sannin, though in an actual fight, he would definitely fall a little short of them.
Ling Feng had grown much stronger since before. He was confident he could take Kiryū Sanki on.
He immediately exchanged 100 points for an intermediate Tachi in the System Shop.
A basic one cost 10 points, while an advanced one cost 1,000. Ling Feng didn't have enough points left for that, so he could only get an intermediate Tachi.
Hopefully, I can earn back the cost after this fight with Kiryū Sanki.
An advanced Tachi would have been the best choice, because Ling Feng could tell at a glance that Kiryū Sanki's Tachi was no ordinary weapon.
Someone hailed as the Land of Fire's greatest swordsman naturally had something special about him.
Sure enough, when Kiryū Sanki saw Ling Feng draw a Tachi of his own, he burst out laughing.
"How amusing. You intend to fight me with that piece of scrap metal?"
"Honestly, that lousy sword isn't even worth drawing my blade for!"
"But you've made me very angry. If you kneel, kowtow, and apologize right now, I'll spare your life!"
Kiryū Sanki's voice was cold.
Ling Feng merely flicked his Tachi and replied calmly, "I told you, you're the one at fault here. So you're the one who should apologize!"
"Hmph! You wretched brat! You're asking to die!"
A cold glint flashed in Kiryū Sanki's eyes as he raised his sword and thrust it at Ling Feng.
Ling Feng raised an eyebrow. Well, damn. Going straight for a vital spot right from the start!
In that case, I won't hold back either!
Even if you're the captain of the Inner Cabinet's guard squad, I'm still going to squeeze every point I can out of you!
Body Flicker Technique!
Whoosh!
Ling Feng vanished from the spot, flashed behind Kiryū Sanki, then unleashed Chidori.
Crackling arcs of electricity flashed as Ling Feng slashed. Just as his blade was about to strike Kiryū Sanki's back, his opponent reacted.
Clang!
Boom!
An explosion rang out, and both of them fell back, separating.
When the dust settled, patches of black scorch marks were visible around Kiryū Sanki's cuffs.
Although the Chidori slash hadn't struck Kiryū Sanki, its flashing arcs had instantly set his clothes alight. He had quickly extinguished the flames, but the scorched fabric bore witness to everything that had happened in that split second!
For a moment, the scene fell utterly silent.
Inside Ling Feng's mind, however, system notifications kept ringing out.
"Ding! Gained 160 points!" "Ding! Gained 100 points!" "Ding! Gained 80 points!"
Although Ling Feng knew he hadn't injured his opponent at all, the scorched sleeves made the onlookers believe he had won that exchange!
Even Kiryū Sanki was deeply shocked. He recognized Chidori, but he hadn't expected a child barely over five like Ling Feng to use it so proficiently!
That single move had earned Ling Feng 340 points.
Ling Feng felt a little excited. He was sure defeating Kiryū Sanki would earn him a huge number of points, because there were so many people watching.
"You wretched brat! Don't think you can defeat me with tricks like that!"
"I'm telling you, even if the Hokage comes this time, he won't be able to save you!"
"A mere Genin-die!"
Kiryū Sanki roared in fury and charged, swinging his sword.
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