The night wind stilled, and the moon's shadow sank.
Two pitch-black Root ANBU figures stood silently in the courtyard, cloaks covering their bodies and masks concealing their faces, leaving not a trace of their features exposed.
Their chakra was completely suppressed, their presence deathly still-a perfect demonstration of Root ninja's supreme stealth and concealment.
Had Lin Chen not just refined the power of the Heavenly Dao's laws, raising his perception far beyond mortal limits, an ordinary Genin would never have noticed anything amiss, even standing right before them.
"To think a mere academy student could see through the Root Stealth Technique."
The Anbu on the left spoke slowly, his chakra-altered voice hoarse and cold, without the slightest fluctuation of emotion.
Both men were already inwardly shaken.
They possessed Konoha's finest secret stealth techniques and had spent years executing classified missions in the shadows. Even against elite Chunin, they could close in and launch surprise attacks without a sound.
Yet now, a twelve-year-old who had once been Konoha's worst student had exposed their whereabouts outright.
"Lord Hokage has ordered us to test your strength."
The Anbu on the right spoke indifferently, without a trace of hostility, yet with an unquestionable air of official authority. "There's no need to panic. This is merely a routine assessment. We'll stop short of hurting you."
Despite those words, their taut muscles and the subtle chakra circulating through their bodies showed they were ready to strike at any moment.
They kept the Third's instructions firmly in mind: no serious injuries, no exposure of their identities, but they were to thoroughly determine the limits of Lin Chen's combat strength and his strange abilities.
Lin Chen stood before the wooden house, his expression relaxed, without the slightest panic. Instead, a faint smile touched his lips.
A routine test?
Konoha High Command was merely wary and wanted to probe the depths of an anomaly like him.
But to him, this was undoubtedly an opportunity delivered to his door.
Root Anbu's assassination techniques, secret stealth arts, and covert chakra-control methods were all exclusive skills among Konoha's finest, beyond the reach of ordinary ninja for their entire lives.
[Ding! Combat triggered!] [Targets identified as elite ANBU of Konoha's Root, with extensive technique foundations and mature mastery of Secret Techniques!] [Plunderable talents: supreme stealth, Silent Assassination, chakra presence suppression!] [Combat against official probing personnel has triggered a fairness critical multiplier: eightfold!]
The system notifications rang out crisply. A faint gleam flashed in Lin Chen's eyes, and a hint of fighting spirit stirred within him.
"Since this is a test, go ahead and attack."
Lin Chen raised a hand slightly, his bearing composed and unhurried, displaying absolute confidence. "I'll let you strike first."
At his words, the presence surrounding the two Anbu abruptly grew heavy.
Arrogant.
That was the only thought in either man's mind.
Even the village's renowned genius Genin could only defend cautiously and act with restraint when facing two elite Root Anbu.
No one had ever dared to be so presumptuous as to offer them the first move.
"Since you insist, don't blame us for being discourteous."
Before the words had faded, both Anbu blurred simultaneously!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The two black figures vanished from their positions in an instant. There was no sound of a leap, not the slightest ripple of chakra. Relying purely on explosive physical power and secret stealth techniques pushed to their limits, they melted into the deep night.
Supreme Root Stealth Technique-soundless, invisible, and traceless!
To an ordinary observer, the courtyard was empty, as though no one had ever come.
But in Lin Chen's eyes, nothing could hide.
His supreme perception, tempered by the Heavenly Dao's laws, combined with the extraordinary motion perception unlocked after plundering Sasuke's ocular power, revealed both Anbu's movement paths, the details of their muscular exertion, and the routes of their circulating chakra with perfect clarity.
The man on the left circled behind for a surprise attack, his palm strike tightly focused, concealing Konoha assassination taijutsu aimed specifically at the body's vital points; the man on the right feinted head-on, hiding a shuriken ambush, making it difficult to distinguish the real attack from the false one.
Their coordination was flawless, their offense and defense meshing seamlessly-a top-tier tactic honed through Root's years of deadly combat!
Very fast. Their concealment techniques are at the pinnacle.
Lin Chen silently assessed them, yet his body remained as steady as a mountain.
Only when the two lethal gusts were about to reach him did he suddenly move.
No dazzling ninjutsu, no wasted motions-just a single sidestep that precisely evaded the lethal pincer attack from front and rear.
At the same time, his palms shot out with lightning speed and pinpoint accuracy!
Thud! Thud!
Two dull, sharp impacts sounded almost simultaneously.
The two Anbu rushing him at high speed did not even see the trajectory of Lin Chen's strikes. They only felt an immense, overwhelming, irresistible force hit their wrists, shoulders, and necks at once.
Precise, domineering, impossible to counter!
Both men stiffened. The chakra circulating inside them was instantly shaken into disorder and brought to a halt, their stealth stances shattered outright.
Whoosh!
The two black figures reeled backward several meters and landed heavily, their once perfectly concealed bodies fully exposed beneath the moonlight.
The quiet courtyard instantly fell into deathly silence.
The two Root Anbu stood where they had landed, their bodies trembling slightly, their eyes beneath their masks filled with utter shock and disbelief.
Their joint surprise attack, employing supreme stealth assassination techniques, had actually been broken in an instant by a student, who had even turned the tables and suppressed them!
"Taijutsu precision, reaction speed, motion perception-all beyond the Jonin threshold!"
One Anbu spoke in a low, trembling voice, his tone filled with horror.
As Root elites, they had spent years fighting rogue ninja and assassins, and had faced countless Jonin, yet they had never seen such outrageous close-combat strength.
Without ninjutsu enhancement or a burst of Kekkei Genkai power, he had overwhelmed two elite Anbu through physical ability and reactions alone!
"No wonder Sasuke suffered such a crushing defeat. Talent alone could never bridge this gap in strength."
The other man spoke gravely. His contempt had completely vanished, replaced by deep wariness.
No further probing was needed. In a single brief exchange, they had determined that Lin Chen's true combat strength far exceeded that of an ordinary Genin and even rivaled elite Jonin!
"That's enough!"
Both Anbu immediately stopped, intending to end the probe and return to the Hokage Building at once to report their findings.
But now that Lin Chen had acted, how could he let them leave empty-handed?
"Is it over?"
Lin Chen slowly stepped forward, a dark gleam flickering in his eyes. His voice was calm, yet carried absolute control. "My test has only just begun."
[Ding! High-quality plunderable targets detected!] [Eightfold critical plunder activated!] [Plundering: Root's supreme stealth talent, Silent Assassination taijutsu, advanced chakra presence-suppression Secret Technique!] [Stripping away the combat foundations and stealth instincts cultivated by the two Anbu over years of arduous training!]
An invisible devouring force abruptly enveloped the entire courtyard, silently winding around the two Anbu's bodies.
A chill instantly swept through both men. Their minds felt suddenly hollow as the stealth perception, assassination instincts, and presence-suppression skills they had painstakingly cultivated over many years rapidly drained away.
The supreme Secret Techniques once engraved into their muscle memory became unfamiliar and difficult within mere seconds, completely losing their former fluency.
"What is this?!"
Both Anbu's expressions changed drastically as utter panic surged within them.
This power was far too bizarre. It neither injured them nor damaged their bodies, yet directly plundered a ninja's accumulated training and innate talents. It was simply inconceivable!
They wanted to resist, to form hand seals and break free, but invisible shackles seemed to bind their bodies, leaving them unable to mobilize any additional chakra.
Several breaths later, the devouring force slowly dissipated.
[Ding! Eightfold critical plunder completed successfully!] [Host has perfectly mastered: Root Max-Level Stealth Technique, Silent Assassination's profound principles, absolute presence-suppression control!] [Host's concealment ability has reached maximum capacity. No one at the same level can detect the host, and even Jonin will find it extremely difficult to sense the host's movements!] [Target Anbu's stealth talents have sharply declined, Secret Technique proficiency reset to zero, combat strength halved!]
A vast flood of pure combat experience and insights into Secret Techniques instantly poured into Lin Chen's mind, integrating completely and becoming his own.
He closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, his presence abruptly vanished.
Though he stood plainly beneath the moonlight, he seemed to have merged completely with the night. His chakra, presence, and figure were all concealed, leaving no trace to be found.
Supreme stealth, perfect control!
By contrast, the two Anbu opposite him had unsteady presences and blank eyes. The supreme Secret Techniques on which they had relied were utterly ruined, and their combat strength had plunged by more than half.
Now, they struggled to reach even an ordinary Chunin's level of stealth.
"You... what did you do to us?!"
One Anbu stared fixedly at Lin Chen, his voice trembling with absolute terror.
Only at that moment did they finally understand, profoundly, what the Third had meant by "an unknown variable capable of overturning Konoha."
The boy before them was no genius!
He was a monster, an anomaly, an existence beyond the common understanding of the Shinobi World!
Lin Chen slowly reined in his presence, light and shadow reappearing around him as he spoke calmly:
"Go back and tell the Third."
"I'm not a variable that will bring chaos to Konoha. But if someone insists on probing me and deliberately targeting me..."
"Then the rules governing Konoha may not be beyond my power to break."
His words were calm, yet every syllable rang firm, carrying the resolve to defy destiny and face the Heavenly Dao without fear.
Both Anbu shuddered violently. Not daring to say another word, they gave Lin Chen a long look before turning and leaving in disarray, their hearts filled with shock and terror.
Their probe that night had not uncovered the full extent of Lin Chen's abilities. Instead, they had personally carried the most terrifying truth back to Konoha High Command.
Before you continue