https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-362-A-Beating-for-the-Root-s-Anbu-Ninja/12558480/
Chapter 363: Is Mu Yue the Strongest of the Younger Generation?
Chapter 363: Is Mu Yue the Strongest of the Younger Generation?
"Hyouton, Ice Storm!"
Just as a blaring warning bell went off in Sarutobi Shinji's mind, a giant ice bird burst out of the lingering smoke.
The ice bird packed a powerful punch and carried with it a chilling cold, catching a ninja off guard as they tried to dodge and counter with taijutsu. They were sent flying and instantly frozen solid.
Caught unprepared, five ninjas found themselves entrapped in ice.
The unaffected ninjas secretly breathed a sigh of relief, having narrowly escaped the ice bird's grasp as soon as the flames disappeared. It was a truly unexpected move.
"He actually possesses the Hyouton bloodline limit!" Sarutobi Shinji exclaimed in astonishment at the sight of the frozen ninjas.
Although he had never witnessed a Hyouton ninja using ice-style ninjutsu himself, there was no doubt that this was the effect of the bloodline limit.
Sarutobi Shinji was perplexed. Logically, Mu Yue was not some unknown rookie, and the distinct nature of bloodline limit jutsu should have made it easily recognizable, yet he had no recollection of Mu Yue possessing such abilities.
Sarutobi Shinji couldn't help but admire Mu Yue's skill in concealing his true capabilities, even keeping his own village in the dark, let alone his enemies.
"To be able to use such advanced ice-style ninjutsu right after acquiring the Hyouton affinity," Sarutobi Hiruzen, observing through the crystal ball, expressed his approval of Mu Yue's ice jutsu.
Mu Yue had only recently gained the Hyouton affinity during his trip to the Land of Snow, and his current proficiency in such a short time was a testament to his innate talent for ninjutsu.
The rest of the ninjas also wore looks of shock as they watched Mu Yue, the sudden emergence of his ice affinity taking them completely by surprise.
However, they soon had no time to ponder this turn of events, as Mu Yue launched into another round of attacks.
Whoosh!
Mu Yue's main body flashed behind a Root ninja and delivered a swift Spinning Tempest Kick.
The Root ninja's vision blurred, and the world around him started spinning uncontrollably.
"Hyouton, Freeze Ray!"
At that moment, one of Mu Yue's shadow clones raised its hand, shooting a beam of icy coldness that instantly froze the kicked ninja solid.
In the blink of an eye, the student team lost another member.
"He's so strong, we're not even on the same level," muttered Toad Oil, perspiration forming on his forehead as he watched Mu Yue wreak havoc among their ranks.
Despite being outnumbered thirty to one, Mu Yue was dominating the battle.
Toad Oil took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. Although Mu Yue was their upcoming training instructor, it was embarrassing that their team of elite Root and Anbu ninjas couldn't even pose a slight challenge.
Aside from defeating Mu Yue, which seemed unlikely, they at least wanted to make him break a sweat, rather than having him effortlessly take them all down without so much as a stain on his clothes.
The other Anbu and Root ninjas shared similar thoughts, and under the intense pressure Mu Yue exerted, their teamwork became more seamless and coordinated.
Soon, thanks to the concerted efforts of over twenty elite ninjas, they successfully dispersed two of Mu Yue's shadow clones.
Of course, this was all according to Mu Yue's plan.
If even his shadow clones could easily overpower Root and Anbu ninjas, he would be showing off too much strength, which wasn't his intention.
"Secret Jutsu: Insect Tornado!"
"Futon, Wind Cutter!"
The ninjas unleashed their techniques, aiming to keep Mu Yue pinned down.
At that moment, Toad Oil also brought out his specialty ninjutsu.
"Raiton, Four Pillar Binding!"
As Toad Oil swiftly formed the required hand seals, four massive stone pillars suddenly appeared around Mu Yue, connected by a dazzling web of electricity, forming an impregnable cage.
"Doton, Mud Shower!"
Another ninja followed up with an earth-style jutsu, summoning a deluge of mud from above the cage, intending to seal Mu Yue within.
However, they had once again underestimated Mu Yue's taijutsu prowess.
"Golden Horizon!"
Mu Yue extended two fingers of his right hand, concentrating his Stone Breath and entering the Transparent World state.
He then brought his right hand to his waist, slightly bent his left leg, and, with a burst of chakra, lunged forward, slashing at the pillar in front of him.
Boom!
A flash of golden light streaked across, leaving a black line on the thick stone pillar. As Mu Yue took a step forward, the two massive pillars crumbled, and the electric web dissipated.
And just like that, Mu Yue strode out of the lightning cage, the mud shower becoming a mere backdrop to his graceful exit.
"How is this possible? He broke out of my Four Pillar Binding with sheer taijutsu!" Toad Oil exclaimed, his expression reflecting his utter astonishment.
His Raiton: Four Pillar Binding was a combination of earth-style barrier jutsu, renowned for its sturdiness and resistance to even powerful ninjutsu. Yet, Mu Yue had effortlessly shattered it from within using only taijutsu.
Hiruzen was well-versed in the ninjutsu of Konoha, including the Raiton: Four Pillar Binding, and he understood its characteristics well.
While it lacked the grandeur of the Wind Release and Fire Release combination jutsu Mu Yue had used earlier, Hiruzen knew that Golden Horizon was far more dangerous.
If this were a battlefield and Mu Yue an enemy of Root and the Anbu, his Golden Horizon could instantly take down most of the ninjas at the start of the battle.
Facing the increasingly formidable Mu Yue, some ninjas felt a sense of bewilderment in their hearts. Despite their best efforts, they couldn't seem to affect Mu Yue in any way.
After showcasing his abilities, Mu Yue began to defeat the Anbu and Root ninjas one by one with speed and precision.
Their genjutsu had no effect on him, their combined ninjutsu was no match for his own, and their taijutsu was completely outclassed. Soon, none of the ninjas could remain standing in the face of Mu Yue's seriousness.
Due to their injuries, Mu Yue did not require them to stand, and the thirty ninjas sat together.
Some ninjas lowered their heads in embarrassment. The Anbu and Root were elite ninjas of Konoha, and yet, thirty of their best had been easily defeated by Mu Yue alone.
Mu Yue created a shadow clone to treat the injured ninjas. Although he had controlled his strength, injuries were inevitable in battle, and he needed to heal them promptly to ensure their training wouldn't be affected.
"I have a good understanding of your strengths now. You are indeed more exceptional than ninjas of the same age, but if you were to become Anbu members, there would still be room for improvement," Mu Yue said as he treated their wounds.
"First and foremost, you must never underestimate your enemies. I allowed you to attack me with full force, and yet you hesitated to do so immediately."
Kenji Tobita's expression turned awkward. He truly felt that this wasn't their fault. Who could have imagined that a nineteen-year-old like Mu Yue would possess such terrifying power?
Mu Yue's most remarkable feat was assisting Jiraiya in repelling a jinchuriki, but the report in the Konoha newspaper did not reveal the extent of his strength.
Although he had never witnessed Minato Namikaze in action, Kenji felt that Mu Yue's abilities were comparable to those of the most celebrated young ninja in Konoha, Minato.
Compared to Mu Yue, Minato had achieved more, with one of his most impressive feats being his solo stalemate against the new AB combination in the Land of Hot Water, instantly skyrocketing his fame throughout the ninja world.
While Kira A wasn't particularly noteworthy yet, the Fourth Hokage, Minato, was acknowledged as a powerful ninja in the ninja world, having defeated many renowned strong opponents and earning his reputation.
Kenji mentally compared the two, and he felt that Mu Yue was even more frightening. Given a decade, Mu Yue would undoubtedly reach the level of the Sannin.
Mu Yue pointed out every mistake each ninja had made during the battle, his precision astonishing each one of them.
"He even had the energy to remember these details during the fight," thought Sarutobi Shinji, feeling that Mu Yue was even more unfathomable than he'd imagined.
After this battle, all thirty ninjas were in awe of Mu Yue's strength and teaching abilities. It was rare to find such an incredibly powerful teacher.
On the first day, Mu Yue didn't formally begin the lessons. Instead, he used the earlier battle as a teaching moment and elaborated on it.
Firstly, the ninjas needed time to recover from their injuries, and strenuous activity wouldn't be advisable. Secondly, the earlier activity had taken up a significant portion of the day, and Mu Yue suspected that he wouldn't be able to trigger the lesson reward system, so he decided to leave it for the next day.
With Mu Yue's treatment and the ninjas' own resilience as Root and Anbu members, a day of rest would be sufficient.
Danzo Shimura did not know the Telescope Jutsu, so he directly ordered the Root members who had received Mu Yue's instruction to report to him afterward.
Upon hearing that Mu Yue had single-handedly used a combination jutsu with his shadow clone to repel the attacks of thirty Root and Anbu ninjas, Danzo's face betrayed his surprise.
He was already aware of Mu Yue's ninjutsu prowess from the previous demonstration at Hiruzen Sarutobi's home, but an actual battle demonstration carried far more weight than an empty field test.
There was a significant difference between a ninja killing thirty opponents and using ninjutsu to overpower the techniques of thirty ninjas, especially when those thirty ninjas were members of Root and the Anbu.
Now, Mu Yue not only skillfully wields the five nature transformations but has also mastered combination ninjutsu. Danzo could almost see the younger Hiruzen in him.
"It's a pity that no matter how hard you try, Hushu Mu Yue is still a member of my Root." Danzo couldn't help but smile at the thought.
The fact that Hiruzen was inadvertently strengthening Root while trying to curb its growth brought him immense pleasure.
"He even used a bloodline limit, Hyouton!" Danzo was even more astonished to learn that Mu Yue possessed the Ice Release.
As far as he knew, neither Mu Yue's parents nor his grandparents had a bloodline limit. How did Mu Yue suddenly manifest Ice Release? Danzo was perplexed but didn't suspect anything. After all, Mu Yue was a true-born Konoha shinobi, and his parents were Konoha ninjas who had died in battle. Moreover, Mu Yue had always behaved normally.
If Mu Yue were an orphan who had come to Konoha from elsewhere, Danzo might suspect him of being a spy sent by Kirigakure. As for whether it would be foolish to send such a talented spy, Danzo didn't care; an investigation would reveal the truth.
"Perhaps there was an Ice Release user in his ancestry, or maybe he was just lucky and managed to unlock it himself?" Danzo speculated briefly before dismissing the matter.
While bloodline limits were rare, their value varied. Ice Release, for example, was not particularly strong, paling in comparison to the Byakugan.
In Danzo's opinion, even the Byakugan was not that impressive. Its strategic value was high, but in terms of enhancing one's strength, it fell short of the Sharingan. In Danzo's eyes, the strongest bloodline limit was Wood Release, which he believed to be invincible.
Danzo's confidence stemmed from the fact that he had a young, unrefined Wood Release user under his command. He was certain that once this ninja was fully trained, they would clear any obstacles in Konoha's path.
After the Root ninja finished his report, Danzo made a rough estimate of Mu Yue's strength in his mind.
"In a one-on-one battle, he might not be able to defeat Namikaze Minato, but his abilities are more diverse. I'd say he's on par with a young Hiruzen."
Although Mu Yue had Ice Release and exceptional taijutsu, Hiruzen's combination ninjutsu was stronger, and he also had a formidable summon. Danzo believed that Mu Yue's strength was comparable to that of a young Hiruzen.
This couldn't help but spark some pleasant fantasies in Danzo's mind. With a Wood Release user and a genius like Mu Yue, who was as talented as a young Hiruzen, perhaps he could make a play for that position once they were fully grown...
...
The next day, they returned to the same training ground, although Mu Yue had changed the location slightly due to the damage caused during yesterday's battle.
It was the same training session and the same group of people, but the atmosphere was different. All thirty ninjas were eager to see how Mu Yue would enhance their strength.
"Speed is crucial in battle. Faster speed allows you to dodge more attacks and gain the upper hand."
"Today, I'll teach you a Body Flicker Technique that I developed myself. Although it puts a lot of strain on the legs, it's faster." Mu Yue began his lesson.
After all, these were Konoha's elite ninjas, and he had to teach them something substantial. After much thought, Mu Yue decided to teach them a weakened version of the Hiraishin no Jutsu.
The essence of Hiraishin lay in the technique of amplifying and layering chakra bursts. Mu Yue modified the technique to reduce the burst and greatly lower the upper limit of amplification.
Of course, even in its weakened state, Mu Yue's modified Hiraishin was still much faster than a regular Body Flicker Technique, and it remained an excellent technique. Mu Yue had mainly controlled its upper limit.
After explaining this, Mu Yue demonstrated the speed of his modified Hiraishin.
The ninjas felt a sense of familiarity as they watched. This was how Mu Yue had been dashing around and beating them up the day before.
This exceeded the ninjas' expectations. They hadn't anticipated that Mu Yue would directly teach them a technique he had created himself, and they had assumed that the training would focus more on skill enhancement.
PS: Take care of yourselves during the cold weather. The author has been feeling under the weather and was still struggling in the bathroom before releasing this chapter...
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
