Late that night.
A series of crisp notifications suddenly rang out in Xin's mind.
[Ding! Limit Sharingan proficiency maxed out!] [Limit Sharingan advanced to level 5!] [Congratulations to the host for successfully unlocking: Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan!]
Xin's eyes snapped open.
The five-pointed star patterns in his eyes underwent a wondrous change.
More intricate patterns grew along the edges of the stars, while the tomoe at their centers became even deeper.
An unprecedented surge of immense ocular power exploded through his mind.
His vision became incredibly clear, and the soreness caused by using the Mangekyō vanished completely.
He no longer had to worry about going blind from overusing his dōjutsu.
Xin excitedly opened the system interface.
[Host: Uchiha Xin] [Limit Sharingan (level 5): Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan state] [Skill slots: Full]
He noticed a brand-new icon in the skill section.
[New skill: Lightning Release Mastery] [Skill effect: The host can perform all known Lightning Release Ninjutsu in the Naruto world, with greatly enhanced power.]
Xin clenched his fists.
With this skill, his means of attack would become more varied and lethal.
The system panel continued scrolling downward.
[Dōjutsu enhancement notifications:] [Exclusive genjutsu awakened: Tsukuyomi: Illusion World (complete form)] [Effect: Far surpasses ordinary Tsukuyomi.] [The host can exercise absolute control over time, space, and mass within the Illusion World, inflicting irreversible mental destruction on enemies at greatly reduced cost.] [Susanoo enhancement: Complete form unlocked. Defense and destructive power doubled.] [Vision Resonance enhancement: Marking and sharing now ignore distance, with an added danger-trigger mechanism.]
What delighted Xin most was the final notification.
[Congratulations to the host for awakening the space-time dōjutsu: Kamui!] [Effect: When used in conjunction with the Flying Thunder God Technique, its teleportation range far exceeds the original Kamui, enabling instantaneous spatial jumps over extreme distances.]
As he looked at the long, impressive list of skills.
Xin listened to the system's slightly teasing electronic voice.
[It took the host five or six years to advance from no tomoe to the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. Thank you for your hard work.]
Xin grumbled inwardly.
What do you know? Reaching this level in five or six years is already an unprecedented pace in the entire Shinobi World.
Morning sunlight streamed through the window into the room.
Xin stood in the open space outside his apartment, dazzling blue arcs of electricity flashing over his body.
He was testing his newly acquired Lightning Release skill.
He precisely controlled the Lightning Release chakra on the surface of his body, letting the current follow his chakra pathways and stimulate cells throughout his body.
"Lightning Release Nintaijutsu."
Feeling the surging power within him, Xin was very satisfied with this skill.
The cellular stimulation from Lightning Release greatly increased his body's activity.
This could greatly accelerate his training in the Eight Gates Released Formation, allowing his body to withstand the strain of opening higher gates.
Withdrawing his Lightning Release chakra, Xin changed his clothes and headed out the door.
Today was the day the second round of the Chunin Ninja Exams began.
Outside the Forest of Death.
Genin teams from the various villages gathered there in a tense, oppressive atmosphere.
Xin stood at the back of the crowd, watching Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura enter the sinister iron gate.
His gaze did not linger on Team 7 for long, instead quickly sweeping through the crowd.
Soon, he locked onto a ninja wearing a Grass Ninja forehead protector.
The man had a pale face, a long tongue that occasionally licked his lips, and a nauseating chill in his eyes.
It was none other than Orochimaru in disguise.
Watching Orochimaru's retreating figure, Xin felt a private admiration.
This old fellow really does have a knack for disguises. Even his chakra signature has changed.
But he disdained Orochimaru's practice of using Living Corpse Reincarnation to frequently switch into women's bodies.
He's abandoned even the basic limits of being human in his pursuit of immortality.
Xin withdrew his gaze. He knew that during this exam, he would inevitably cross paths with this dangerous fellow.
Just then, Xin keenly sensed several gazes from the woods behind him fixed intently on him.
Danzo's lackeys. They really never leave me alone.
Without betraying anything, Xin turned and walked away from the exam grounds.
He reached a deserted corner.
His hands rapidly formed hand seals, creating a shadow clone.
The shadow clone swaggered on down the street, successfully drawing the watchers' attention.
Xin's real body hid in the shadows.
The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan in his right eye activated instantly.
"Kamui."
The surrounding space twisted into a vortex, instantly sucking Xin's body inside.
The next second.
Xin appeared out of thin air deep within the Forest of Death.
Before the exam began, he had already secretly placed Flying Thunder God Formulas on Hinata, Naruto, and the others.
He closed his eyes, carefully sensing the direction of Hinata's chakra.
After confirming her location, he activated Kamui again.
Xin instantly crossed the vast distance and appeared within the dense crown of a towering tree.
He parted the leaves and watched Hinata's team below from above.
Hinata, Kiba, and Shino were cautiously advancing.
Hinata suddenly stopped and looked up toward the tree where Xin was hiding.
Xin immediately suppressed his presence, blending his body completely into the trunk's shadow.
Hinata looked for a while but found nothing, withdrawing her gaze in some confusion.
"What's wrong, Hinata?"
Kiba asked in a low voice.
"N-nothing. Maybe I sensed it wrong."
Hinata answered quietly.
Shino adjusted his sunglasses, and several black insects flew out from his body.
"Be careful, everyone. I've detected people nearby."
Hearing this, Hinata immediately formed hand seals.
"Byakugan!"
Veins bulged around Hinata's eyes, and her gaze instantly penetrated the bushes ahead.
"There are three ninja fifty meters ahead to the left."
Hinata reported to her teammates.
"They seem to be badly injured. They're lying on the ground, unable to move."
Kiba's eyes immediately lit up at that.
"Badly injured? This is a heaven-sent opportunity!"
Overjoyed, Kiba patted Akamaru on his head.
"Akamaru, let's go!"
Kiba shot forward in a blur.
In less than a minute, several screams came from ahead.
Kiba ran back smugly, holding a Heaven Scroll.
"Hahaha! That was too easy! Those three were completely helpless. I finished them off in just a few moves!"
Kiba showed off the scroll in his hand.
Shino was full of doubts.
"The wounds on those three were extremely clean, as if some sharp weapon had sliced them open in an instant.
"That doesn't look like damage caused by wild beasts."
Shino analyzed calmly.
"Who cares? They must have run into a powerful opponent earlier. We just got lucky!"
Kiba waved dismissively.
Just then, Hinata happened to look up again.
She saw Xin crouching on the trunk of the great tree, smiling and waving at her.