Clink~
The sharp sound of metal clashing rang out.
With a swift slash, Qingming knocked the kunai out of Yamada Shinichi's hand.
Without any pause, he quickly twisted his wrist, and with a horizontal swipe of his blade, a long wound appeared on Yamada Shinichi's chest.
"Ugh~"
The searing pain made Yamada Shinichi grunt in discomfort, and he instinctively stepped back several times to create some distance between himself and Qingming.
Just as he was about to catch his breath and pull out another kunai, Qingming had already closed the gap.
Whoosh~
The blade gleamed with cold light as Qingming struck again, aiming directly for Yamada Shinichi's neck.
At that moment, Yamada Shinichi had no strength left to dodge.
At the critical moment, a kunai shot toward Qingming from the side.
A chill ran up his spine.
Qingming caught a glimpse of the kunai in his peripheral vision. He realized that if he continued his attack, he would certainly be struck by the incoming kunai.
If that happened, even if he didn't die, he would still suffer serious injuries.
Clearly, the person had timed their attack perfectly.
"Hmph!"
Qingming snorted coldly and chose to give up on his offensive for the moment. His body tilted slightly as he swung his sword to deflect the kunai.
This allowed Yamada Shinichi to narrowly escape.
Without hesitation, he immediately leapt back several steps, increasing the distance between himself and Qingming.
Qingming, however, did not pursue him. He merely gave him a brief glance before turning his attention elsewhere.
Over the course of their previous exchange, Qingming had already analyzed Yamada Shinichi's tactics. He knew that creating a similar opportunity to land a killing blow would not be difficult.
Moreover, the slash he had landed on Yamada Shinichi's chest earlier, although not fatal, had greatly diminished his combat power. He estimated that Yamada Shinichi's remaining strength was probably less than half of his peak ability.
There was no need to keep pursuing him.
The more pressing matter was dealing with the two Mist ninjas who were approaching him.
Qingming turned his head, noticing two Mist Jonin—one on each side—walking toward him. Behind them, a Konoha Jonin lay dead on the ground, his throat slit, with no sign of life.
In this support team from Konoha, there were six Jonin, while the Mist had ten. Qingming had already tied up three of the Mist Jonin by himself, leaving seven more to deal with.
Out of the six Konoha Jonin, five were engaged in one-on-one combat with the Mist Jonin, but this particular Konoha Jonin had been caught between two Mist Jonin.
Thus, it was no surprise that he had been killed.
After all, not every Jonin possessed the strength to fight multiple opponents simultaneously and win.
In fact, apart from a few exceptional talents, most Jonin are essentially ordinary ninjas, with combat abilities that don't differ greatly from one another.
In one-on-one battles, as long as there isn't a huge strategic advantage, the chances of winning are usually about 50-50.
At worst, it might be 60-40.
And that small difference is often negligible in the chaos of battle.
As for Jonin who clearly outperform others, they are the elite Jonin—the very best of their class.
The Konoha Jonin who had been killed was clearly not an elite Jonin.
Therefore, facing two similarly skilled opponents, it was completely normal for him to lose.
Moreover, the two Mist Jonin may not even be his equals.
Qingming's gaze shifted toward the Mist Jonin on the right. Using his Sharingan, he could see that the chakra within this ninja was far beyond that of an average Jonin.
Moreover, there was a chakra that remained constantly active within him, seemingly maintaining some kind of ninjutsu.
Compared to the fallen Konoha Jonin, this Mist Jonin seemed to have the potential of an elite Jonin.
However, it was only after engaging in battle that Qingming would truly know for sure.
With that thought, Qingming's body glowed with a faint blue light as he activated his "Instant Sword Art."
In an instant, his speed reached its peak, and in the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the Mist Jonin.
The two locked eyes, and Qingming was about to cast his "Genjutsu: Sharingan" when his opponent's reaction speed proved to be quick. Sensing danger, the Mist Jonin shut his eyes just as Qingming activated his Sharingan.
Seeing this, Qingming had no choice but to abandon his genjutsu plan.
But that didn't mean he would stop attacking.
Whoosh~
The blade gleamed once again.
Qingming swung his sword, aiming directly for the Mist Jonin's neck.
Clink~
The sharp sound of metal clashing echoed as the Mist Jonin raised his short sword to precisely block Qingming's attack.
Before Qingming could change his move, the Mist Jonin pressed forward.
With a swift motion, he turned his body sideways, dodging Qingming's blade while the short sword brushed against Qingming's long sword and immediately thrust toward his neck.
Screech~~~
The sound of metal grinding filled the air as sparks flew between the two weapons.
Qingming's eyes lit up. Even though it was just one move, he had already learned a lot.
For example, this Jonin's swordsmanship was quite impressive.
This discovery pleased Qingming greatly.
Having mastered both the "Leaf Style Swordsmanship" and "Uchiha Style Swordsmanship," and after fusing the two styles into a perfected "Swordsmanship," along with the development of "Instant Sword Art" and "Genjutsu Sword Art," most ninjas who fought with blades were no longer a match for him.
Now, encountering an opponent whose swordsmanship was worthy of his attention, he was eager to test his skills.
With this thought, Qingming tilted his body back just in time to narrowly avoid the Mist Jonin's short sword.
Without holding back, he immediately activated his perfected swordsmanship and engaged in a fierce duel.
The sound of swords clashing filled the air.
Qingming's instincts had been right. The Mist Jonin's swordsmanship was indeed impressive.
If this had been any other Jonin with a more average skill level, this kind of close-quarters fight would have ended with them being overpowered and killed within minutes.
The Konoha Jonin who had died earlier was a perfect example of this.
But now, Qingming was fighting someone of a much higher caliber.
Whether in terms of pure swordsmanship or overall combat prowess, Qingming was not an ordinary Jonin, and his opponent was quickly realizing this.
After several rounds of combat, Qingming finally found a gap in the Mist Jonin's swordsmanship and struck.
His blade cut across the Jonin's neck.
However, to his surprise, there was no sound of blade sinking into flesh, nor any gush of blood.
Qingming's sword had indeed struck the Jonin's neck.
But just as the blade was about to make contact, the Mist Jonin's neck and part of his body suddenly transformed into water.
"Water Transformation Secret Technique?!"
With a single glance, Qingming recognized the technique.
This ability to turn one's body into liquid was a secret art exclusive to the Kirigakure's "Ghost Lamp Clan"—the Water Transformation Technique.
Qingming had not expected that his opponent was a member of the Ghost Lamp Clan, and judging by the situation, he seemed to be a core member.
Otherwise, he would not have been able to master this secret technique.
It was only now that Qingming realized the ninjutsu his Sharingan had detected earlier—the constantly active chakra—was the Ghost Lamp Clan's "Water Transformation Technique."
It turned out that this was a semi-passive ability.
Thinking back, Qingming realized that without this ability, it would have been impossible for the Mist Jonin to turn his body into water at the exact moment of an attack.
The technique was likely a countermeasure for incoming attacks, rather than something to be preemptively used.
Qingming couldn't help but wonder, "Can I learn it?"
But soon, he shook his head. The "Water Transformation Technique" was not something that could be learned just by gathering chakra.
There were many steps involved before one could even begin the practice.
And that, Qingming believed, was the most critical aspect.
Even if he were to defeat this ninja, he highly doubted he could gain the knowledge of this technique from his mind, as it was likely protected by seals.
Therefore, relying on his Sharingan's copying ability to learn it was not a viable option.
As for reverse-engineering it…
That was something only Orochimaru would do. Qingming had no interest in that.
With that time, he'd rather focus on improving his "Mind Reflective Technique" proficiency!
After all, how could a mere "Water Transformation Technique" compare to the might of his "Heavenly Art?"
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