"Who's there? Show yourself!"
Upon seeing that five of his subordinates had been killed or injured in an instant, the leading Mist Ninja's face darkened. He yelled sharply, while at the same time unleashing a jutsu aimed directly at the area where Qingming was hiding in the forest.
'Water Release: Exploding Water Collision Wave~'
At this moment, he stopped trying to conceal himself and immediately used a high-level jutsu, with the sole intent of flushing out Qingming.
He leapt backwards, landing atop a tree, and from his mouth, a torrent of water shot out, transforming into a massive wave upon hitting the ground. The wave surged forward, rushing toward the dense forest, sweeping away everything in its path—flowers, trees, and even the dirt and rocks.
In the forest, Qingming was not alarmed but rather pleased upon seeing this.
The reason was simple: for a while now, he had been hoping to learn this very jutsu.
The clearing effect of this technique was quite similar to his own "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough," and it even created a lake full of water vapor, enhancing subsequent Water Release techniques—making it extremely practical.
Even more so, this jutsu could be upgraded to the "Water Release: Great Exploding Water Collision Wave," a rare A-rank jutsu. Qingming was naturally very eager to learn it.
Unfortunately, he had never had the chance to study it until now.
Now, with his opponent performing the technique right in front of him, he knew he couldn't miss this golden opportunity.
Without hesitation, as the Mist Ninja began casting the jutsu, Qingming immediately activated the copying ability of his Sharingan.
Moreover, he utilized his Byakugan to observe the precise chakra flow within the Mist Ninja's body, aiding the Sharingan in copying the jutsu.
Thanks to the synergy of these two ocular abilities, as soon as the technique was executed, Qingming had already learned it.
On his skill panel, a new technique appeared: Water Release: Exploding Water Collision Wave: lv1 (1/200).
'I wonder if the Mist Ninja will be furious when he realizes this,' Qingming mused, while his hands continued to move rapidly.
Without missing a beat, he quickly formed the necessary seals and, before the wave could reach him, cast his own jutsu—Wind Release: Wind Wings.
Whoosh~
A pair of pale blue chakra wings sprouted from his back. Qingming flapped the wings, instantly rising off the ground and soaring into the air, away from the dense forest below.
The massive water wave surged through the forest, sweeping everything in its path but passing harmlessly beneath Qingming.
Upon seeing Qingming hovering above them, the Mist Ninja leader's expression changed drastically.
However, it wasn't because he was afraid of Qingming or angry that his jutsu had missed—he had expected this. His sole purpose had been to flush out the hidden enemy, and now that goal had been achieved.
What troubled him was the possibility of the mission failing.
Despite knowing from earlier—after Qingming had used the Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique—that they couldn't sneak up on the Black Stone Base without drawing attention, he still hoped that the Konoha ninjas at the base wouldn't react too quickly.
That way, they would still have a chance to carry out their mission.
But now, Qingming was flying above them.
If Qingming decided not to engage and simply relayed the information to the Black Stone Base, their mission would be doomed.
Moreover, if Qingming brought more reinforcements, they would likely not even have a chance to escape.
This simple reality dawned on the Mist Ninjas, causing a sense of despair to settle in.
At once, some of them moved to take action, intending to hold Qingming back.
However, to their surprise, Qingming didn't attempt to leave but instead flew directly toward them.
"Hm? A great opportunity!"
Seeing this, the Mist Ninjas' eyes lit up, realizing that this was their chance to salvage the situation.
If they could defeat Qingming, their mission still had a slim chance of succeeding.
At the very least, even if they failed afterward, eliminating a future Konoha star would deal a heavy blow to the morale of the enemy.
With this thought in mind, almost all the Mist Ninjas launched an attack.
Although Qingming's Byakugan was not yet powerful enough to read their minds, the accelerated flow of chakra in their bodies told him their intent.
And that was exactly what Qingming needed.
From the beginning, he had never planned to relay information to the base.
Not to mention how long it would take for reinforcements to arrive, if these Mist Ninjas scattered in fear, it would be a waste of chakra.
That's right—Qingming had already considered these ninjas as nothing more than a source of chakra for him to harvest.
Therefore, he would not allow them to escape.
It was actually perfect that they decided to attack him now.
High in the air, as Qingming saw a flurry of shuriken and kunai flying toward him, he didn't hesitate and immediately performed a jutsu—Earth Release: Hardening Technique!
A faint glow enveloped his body, which appeared to remain unchanged on the surface, but in reality, his skin had become incredibly hard.
If someone with the Byakugan looked at him now, they would see that his skin was surrounded by a layer of solid Earth Release chakra, far stronger than steel.
This was the result of Earth Release: Hardening Technique being perfected.
Not only did this jutsu not alter his appearance, but it also remained discreet while providing him with immense defensive power.
At his current level, his defense could withstand most ninja tools' attacks. Even if someone used Wind Release to enhance the sharpness of their weapons, it wouldn't work.
With this defense active, unless an enemy used Lightning Release—a natural counter to Earth techniques—physical attacks would be nearly ineffective against him.
As such, Qingming charged forward, taking on a barrage of kunai and shuriken, closing the gap between himself and the Mist Ninja team to within four or five meters.
Before the Mist Ninjas could react, Qingming raised his hands and, with lightning speed, cast a C-rank jutsu—Lightning Release: Lightning Strike!
Crack~
Two lightning bolts erupted from his palms, striking two Mist Ninjas with precision.
In the blink of an eye, these two were struck with powerful electrical energy, their bodies blackened, and they collapsed to the ground. While still alive, they were no longer a threat.
"Damn!"
Seeing this, a Special Jōnin among the Mist Ninjas cursed under his breath, quickly forming seals and casting a jutsu that Qingming was very familiar with.
A water dragon shot out from the lake beneath him, its tremendous force propelling it toward Qingming, who was still floating in the air.
Yes, it was the B-rank technique—Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!
It was clear that the Mist Ninja had mastered this technique to a high degree—likely around level 6 or close to level 7 on the skill panel.
Their timing was impeccable.
Just as Qingming had launched an attack, he had planned to retreat, flapping his wings to escape the range of the oncoming water dragon.
But just then, his Byakugan caught a movement behind him—the Mist Ninja leader, who had completed his seals, raised his right hand.
His index finger extended, and his thumb was raised high while the other three fingers curled inward into a position resembling someone preparing to shoot a gun.
This familiar gesture immediately reminded Qingming of his previous encounter with a Mist Ninja from the Hozuki clan—Hozuki Zangetsu!
Though Zangetsu wielded a short sword, he had also performed several secret Hozuki clan jutsus, including the Water Release: Water Iron Cannon Technique, a move marked by the same signature gesture as the one now being performed by the Mist Ninja leader.
"Ah, so it's a Hozuki clan Jōnin."
Qingming muttered to himself as his mind raced.
Noticing the angle at which the jutsu was being launched, and recalling the power and speed of the technique, Qingming quickly decided to halt his retreat.
With that decision, his wings stopped flapping midair.
In the next instant, a water droplet shot past him like a bullet, leaving a trail of mist in the air.
Qingming had made the right choice, narrowly dodging the deadly attack.
However, the Mist Ninja leader was left with a look of regret, mixed with confusion. He couldn't understand how Qingming had noticed the attack. Despite all his efforts to hide his move, Qingming had dodged it with ease.
But Qingming wasn't interested in explaining. He still had another problem to deal with.
Because of the Hozuki clan Jōnin's interference, he had missed the perfect moment to escape, and now he had no choice but to face the incoming water dragon head-on.
"Ugh, troublesome!"
Qingming snorted coldly, silently cursing his bad luck. He quickly raised his hands and, almost in the blink of an eye, cast another jutsu—Water Release: Great Shark Bomb Technique!
A massive shark-shaped projectile of water shot forth from his hands, and as it formed, it devoured the incoming water dragon as if it were nothing more than noodles.
However, due to the close proximity, it almost seemed as though the water dragon had willingly dived into the shark's mouth.
As this unfolded, the Mist Ninjas below watched in shock, their expressions shifting from excitement to bewilderment.
Before they could even process what was happening, Qingming, now controlling the enlarged shark, sent it crashing down toward them.
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