Clang—
A crisp metallic clash rang out, sparks bursting into the air!
Wen Lan's blade collided head-on with the shadow's kunai!
The impact sent numbness through Wen Lan's hands.
So strong! This is definitely jōnin-level strength!
The Iwagakure ninja looked to be in his early thirties, his face etched with the weathered scars of countless battles. He, too, was clearly surprised that the boy before him had managed to block that strike.
Wen Lan's heart sank slightly. His opponent's strength far exceeded his expectations.
The Iwagakure ninja curled his lips into a cold smile.
"Kid, you've got some skill."
Before the words even faded, he stomped the ground. Cracks spread instantly as a powerful wave of chakra surged outward.
Wen Lan's pupils shrank. He retreated at once—but the Iwagakure ninja followed like a shadow, kunai flashing as it stabbed straight toward him.
At the critical moment, Wen Lan twisted his body aside. His blade swept horizontally, forcing the Iwagakure ninja to pull back for an instant.
They faced each other again, tension thick in the air.
Elsewhere, Sarutobi Ciqian was already entangled with another Iwagakure ninja. The battlefield had descended into chaos—no one had the attention or the time to intervene here.
Even if they noticed, it was already too late.
The Iwagakure ninja took a deep breath. His hand seals suddenly accelerated.
"Earth Release · Tearing Earth Turning Palm!"
He slammed both hands onto the ground. The earth bulged upward and began to apart!
"Inhale—exhale—"
Wen Lan drew in a sharp breath and released it, chakra surging through his body. He gripped his blade with both hands and shook it violently—
Flames erupted from the sword as he charged straight at the Iwagakure ninja!
"Flame Breathing · First Form · Unknowing Fire!"
Before the ground could fully rupture, Wen Lan was already in front of his opponent. The blade light surged like raging fire.
The Iwagakure ninja's pupils contracted. He hurriedly poured chakra into the ground beneath him.
Chunks of earth exploded upward, forming a solid wall in front of him.
He had forcibly converted Tearing Earth Turning Palm—an offensive technique—into a defensive one!
Wen Lan was startled.
Back when he watched the anime, he'd often wondered what would happen if someone got close while hand seals were still being formed.
After all, ninjutsu users in Naruto always seemed to have invincibility frames during seals.
So you could actually do this?
The blade slammed into the earthen wall, sparks bursting violently!
Using the recoil, Wen Lan spun, his sword sweeping sideways as flames swallowed half the wall in an instant.
But the moment the wall was cut apart, his vision was disrupted.
Suddenly, a rock-encased fist smashed straight toward his head!
"Earth Release · Fist Rock Technique!"
Wen Lan's pupils shrank sharply. His body leaned back on instinct—the fist grazed past his nose and crashed into the ground, blasting out a crater!
The Iwagakure ninja rebounded off the impact, launching himself forward like a cannonball.
Wen Lan hastily raised his blade to block.
Boom!
The rock fist slammed into the sword. The immense force drove Wen Lan backward again and again, his footing unstable.
Pressing the advantage, the Iwagakure ninja formed seals once more. A massive fissure split open in the ground, racing toward Wen Lan's feet, trying to swallow him whole.
Wen Lan's eyes hardened.
He stomped down, using the momentum of his retreat to leap into the air. His body arced gracefully through the darkness—his grip on the blade never loosening for a moment.
The Iwagakure ninja's assault was relentless, wave after wave.
But Wen Lan's reactions were no less formidable.
Gritting his teeth, he slashed midair. Flames traced a blazing arc through the sky, incinerating the surging earth and stone head-on.
The instant he landed, he had already adjusted his stance, eyes blazing as they locked onto the Iwagakure ninja.
The battle was far from over.
And he was ready for the next exchange.
"Not bad, kid! Your reactions are sharp!"
The Iwagakure ninja halted his pursuit for once, looking at Wen Lan with a hint of admiration.
"You must be one of Konoha's prodigies, right? Sending someone this young to the battlefield—unbelievable."
Wen Lan didn't respond.
He could sense the probing hidden in those words, but with the fight still ongoing, even a moment of distraction could be fatal.
"What a pity…" The Iwagakure ninja sneered.
"A genius who hasn't grown up yet is no genius at all. Your reactions are good, but your experience is lacking. Now—die!"
As the Iwagakure ninja charged again, Wen Lan flashed a strange grin.
"You're a jōnin, right?" he said lightly.
"After surviving this long in the ninja world, haven't you heard a certain saying?"
The grin sent a chill through the Iwagakure ninja's heart. Years of battlefield experience made his instincts scream in warning.
"When you encounter an Uchiha—run at once in a one-on-one!"
The instant Wen Lan finished speaking, his pitch-black pupils turned crimson.
Two tomoe spun into existence!
The Iwagakure ninja's face changed drastically.
"You're an Uchiha—!"
Before he could finish, he tried to avert his gaze.
Too late.
His body froze instantly. His pupils lost all focus.
Genjutsu.
"Flame Breathing · Fourth Form · Blooming Flame Undulation!"
Wen Lan spun, slashing in a wide arc. Flames roared out like a vortex, scorching waves of heat twisting the surrounding air.
True to his status as a jōnin, the Iwagakure ninja snapped out of the illusion in moments.
With a furious roar, he slammed both palms into the ground. Massive layers of stone surged upward, forming a sturdy barrier.
"Earth Release · Earth-Style Wall!"
The wall had barely formed when the flames crashed into it. Extreme heat instantly melted the stone surface into magma.
Using the wall as cover, the Iwagakure ninja retreated rapidly, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.
Fear crept into his heart.
The Uchiha clan was universally acknowledged as monsters within the ninja world!
Any ninja who awakened the Sharingan was treated as jōnin-level by default.
Their combat talent was simply too terrifying—especially with the Sharingan's ability to read movements and intent, combined with genjutsu that was nearly impossible to guard against.
Throughout the fight, Wen Lan had faced him head-on, never exposing his back. That was why he hadn't seen the Uchiha clan crest until now!
As expected of an Uchiha… even a veteran like me nearly fell for it!
The Iwagakure ninja felt lingering dread.
"Flame Breathing · First Form · Unknowing Fire!"
A childish voice suddenly sounded behind him!
This was Wen Lan's signature tactic.
Whether earlier with the Great Fireball Technique or now—he always used flames to obscure vision, then launched a decisive sneak attack.
It wasn't honorable.
But it was safe.
And it was effective.
On the battlefield, survival was king. Who cared whether it was a sneak attack?
The Iwagakure ninja whipped around, only to see Wen Lan's figure flickering within the flames, the long blade in his hands reflecting firelight with a chilling gleam.
There was no time to form seals.
His body leapt left on pure instinct!
But Wen Lan was faster.
The blade sliced cleanly into his neck.
Heat and the stench of death filled the air. A bitter smile crept onto the Iwagakure ninja's lips.
At last, he understood—
The opponent before him hadn't only inherited the Uchiha clan's terror.
He also wielded a combat style that belonged to no orthodox ninjutsu system at all.