Shinju's figure flickered, easily dodging the kunai carried by the high-pressure soundwave.
At this moment, the trio from Otogakure had begun to build clear pressure against Shinju's six-man team.
Their bizarre attack methods left the other five—aside from Shinju—completely overwhelmed.
But after witnessing Zaku's strange technique, Shinju's eyes narrowed.
Modified human?
There were vents embedded into the palms of this guy's hands. His arms must have pipes implanted inside, allowing him to channel air and ultrasonic vibrations through some sort of internal device, turning them into weapons.
It looked pretty intimidating at first glance.
But if both his hands were disabled, then this guy would be nothing.
No matter how weird the tricks, without solid strength it was useless!
The next instant, Shinju forced his way through Dosu's soundwave assault, hands flashing through seals!
Dosu, Zaku, and Kin exchanged smug, mocking looks the moment they saw this.
Ninjutsu seals always required setup time.
Normally, shinobi made sure to form seals out of their enemy's line of sight. Yet this red-haired brat was brazenly doing it right in front of them.
It was no different than exposing one's weakest point in the middle of battle!
The three exchanged a glance, and Kin—the only kunoichi among them—hurled several kunai straight at him.
"Swish, swish, swish!"
And Shinju… kept forming seals!
Most shinobi, back in the Academy, trained extensively with ninja tools.
Kunai thrown by a shinobi carried deadly force.
At close range, they could even pierce straight through a normal person's body!
If Shinju took those kunai head-on without any defense, best case he'd be seriously injured. Worst case, a heart strike could kill him instantly.
"Shinju, look out!"
As Kin loosed her kunai, Naruto shouted a warning and reached out, trying to shield Shinju.
But at that very moment, Shinju completed his seals!!
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!!"
The moment the last seal fell into place, Shinju's body dropped low, dodging the kunai aimed at his chest with precision.
At the same time, he slammed his hands onto the ground, sending chakra into the earth to raise a stone wall.
"Boom!!"
The instant his palms touched dirt—
A massive earthen wall erupted upward, a meter thick, ten meters high, and twenty meters wide!
The Sound trio hadn't expected Shinju to weave seals that fast!
From start to cast, a mid-level Earth Style in under a second!
Terrifying speed!
Though startled, the three reacted quickly, springing back to avoid being crushed by the rising wall beneath their feet.
But Shinju seemed to have predicted this perfectly—his hands stayed pressed to the earth.
He flicked a glance toward Naruto, giving a quick wink.
❛‿˂̵✧
The next moment—
"Boom! Boom! Boom!!!"
Three more earth walls erupted in rapid succession!
They rose too fast for anyone to react!
The Sound trio were no exception.
Caught off guard, one of the walls smashed into them, sending them sprawling!
The violent impact stunned them for a split second.
At the same time, Naruto—already waiting for Shinju's signal—snatched a kunai from his pouch.
"Swish!" He hurled it, aiming directly for Dosu's strange sound weapon.
Though his body was hunched and wrapped in bandages, Dosu's reflexes were sharp.
He raised a hand, ready to deflect the kunai.
But the instant his weapon met Naruto's kunai—
Shinju's palms snapped together. His body vanished.
Flying Thunder God activated!
Dosu's eyes glinted smugly as Shinju suddenly appeared in front of him.
Their mission was to assassinate Sasuke, and of course they had researched Shinju's team.
Shinju's use of the Flying Thunder God wasn't exactly a secret, so when he saw Naruto throw the kunai, he had already braced for Shinju's sudden teleportation.
But the moment Shinju appeared, Zaku raised his hands—air slashes whistling forth from the vents in his palms.
"Air Cutter!"
Shinju only grinned.
Dosu's eyes widened—because the redhead was already mid-seal.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!!"
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
A flurry of fireballs burst from Shinju's mouth like a shower of meteors, raining down on the airborne Sound trio!
Caught midair, they couldn't dodge in time—flames seared across their bodies!
And under Shinju's deliberate control, the fireballs struck squarely at Dosu's sound amplifier, smashing it to pieces!
Before Zaku's Air Cutter could hit him, Shinju flickered away with Flying Thunder God, reappearing at Naruto's side.
His hands blurred into seals again, slamming into the ground.
"Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld!" (name Shinju just made up)
"Splooosh!!"
The clearing ahead melted into a sucking mire of mud.
The Sound trio, burned and battered, fell from the sky at that exact moment—right into the swamp.
Trapped, unable to escape!
Everyone around was dumbstruck.
In the span of mere breaths, Shinju had unleashed three different jutsu, crushing the Sound trio with overwhelming dominance and control!
"That was amazing!"
Naruto couldn't help blurting it out.
They all ate together, slept together—so how was Shinju so smooth with ninjutsu, while Naruto still couldn't even form the Rasengan Shinju had tried teaching him?!
Even Sasuke was stunned.
So Shinju didn't just wield Water, Fire, and Flying Thunder God—his Earth Style was this sharp as well.
The Grass ninja trio, who had promised to support Shinju, hung their heads awkwardly.
They had hoped to show off in this fight, but once again, it was Shinju who had to step in and save them.
"This red-haired kid's scary strong," Grass ninja A muttered.
"Yeah… that Earth Wall he cast? And then he chained it like that? Not many chunin could pull off something like that!"
"You think that's his most impressive trick?" Grass ninja B cut in.
"Did you see that Earth Swamp? He predicted exactly where the Sound trio would fall, then shrank the swamp just enough to catch them perfectly. His chakra control is insane!"
Ninja B's eyes were wide.
And in the back of his mind, he regretted not paying off Shinju when he'd cheated during the first exam.
If only he'd made nice with him then—having such a powerful ally would make surviving the Forest of Death child's play!
...
Meanwhile, Shinju studied the trapped Sound trio, struggling helplessly in his swamp.
He could have finished them easily. One big fireball would've blown them to pieces.
But, well—he told himself Heaven cherishes life. And he was just a grade-schooler who'd never actually killed before. Better to let them go this time.
...
Inside the swamp, Zaku and Kin flailed desperately.
Dosu, however, remained calm, his voice cold.
"Don't struggle. The harder you fight, the faster you sink."
"Then what are we supposed to do—wait here to die?!" Kin snapped.
"That red-haired brat's too strong! Damn it, I thought he only had Flying Thunder God! Who knew he had Fire and Earth Style too?!"
Zaku clenched his teeth, fear rising in his chest.
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