After washing up, Seimei stepped outside, intending to head to the mess hall for a hearty meal.
Just then, a sudden explosion sounded from outside the base. Although not very loud, Seimei caught it.
He paused, closed his eyes, and focused his hearing intently.
More explosions could be heard in the distance.
Opening his eyes, Seimei muttered, "No mistake, that's the sound of exploding tags. Is Mist Village launching another attack?"
With that thought, he reached into his ninja pouch, took out a few soldier pills, and chewed on them with a satisfying crunch.
Soon, a sense of fullness settled in.
Without further hesitation, Seimei made a series of hand signs and used his jutsu—*Wind Release: Wings of Wind,* soaring into the sky and heading toward the explosions.
Seconds later, he arrived above the western part of the base, overlooking a dense forest.
Below, two groups were locked in fierce battle: one was Mist ninjas, the other Leaf ninjas.
Compared to the lone Leaf squad, the Mist side had the advantage in numbers, with three squads totaling twelve ninja.
The explosions from earlier were caused by the Leaf squad, which, realizing they were outmatched, used exploding tags to create a large disturbance. This both alerted the base and called for reinforcements.
Their strategy paid off. Seimei had come.
Activating his Sharingan, he quickly scanned the battlefield. Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on NoveI-Fire.ɴet
It was clear there weren't too many Mist ninjas within visible range, though faint sounds of combat could be heard elsewhere. Evidently, Mist's attack targeted more than just this Leaf reconnaissance team. As Seimei anticipated, after a day of rest, they were attacking once again.
But there was no need for him to worry about those other areas; the base would handle defense.
Seimei's gaze zeroed in on the Mist ninjas below, his eyes gleaming with a hungry intensity, like a wolf spotting prey.
His reaction wasn't unwarranted—he urgently needed chakra.
To achieve greater control over Earth-nature chakra, he had to increase his proficiency with three Earth Release jutsu.
The *Earth Release: Hardening Technique* was progressing well; despite allocating 20,000 chakra points to his *Fire Release: Pure Burning Technique* earlier, he could still invest 50,000 chakra points in it daily, which provided 500 points of proficiency daily.
But his *Earth Release: Rock Spear* and *Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall* were different. Since learning them, he hadn't allocated any extra chakra to them—a situation that needed to change.
So, he needed external chakra to fuel their growth.
The three Mist squads below were perfect for this purpose.
Except for the squad leader—a Special Jonin—the other Mist ninjas were all Chunin-level, precisely the sort of challenge Seimei preferred.
Wasting no time, he flapped his wings and descended.
But he didn't land immediately. Instead, he made hand signs and launched his jutsu—*Fire Release: Great Dragon Flame Technique!*
A stream of fire burst from his mouth, transforming into three fiery dragons that hurtled toward the Mist ninjas below.
Sensing the intense heat, the Mist ninjas scattered, giving the Leaf ninjas a brief respite.
They looked up at Seimei in the sky, their eyes alight with hope.
Seimei noticed them and used *Mind Link Technique* to instruct them to focus on the Mist Special Jonin.
As for the others, he'd handle them.
Without hesitation, the four Leaf ninjas launched an assault on the Mist Special Jonin.
Seeing this, the remaining Mist Chunin tried to interfere.
But Seimei had his sights on them and wouldn't let them act freely.
He targeted the fastest runner, made quick hand signs, and used *Fire Release: Pure Burning Technique!*
Thanks to his Sharingan's superior insight, his accuracy far surpassed that of regular ANBU or Root ninjas.
The Mist Chunin felt a sudden pain as flames ignited on his body, swiftly engulfing him.
He screamed in agony, desperately trying to shed his clothes and extinguish the fire by rolling on the ground.
But the flames, sustained by Seimei's chakra, weren't easily put out.
Seeing their comrade's distress, two nearby Mist Chunin quickly performed hand signs and used *Water Release: Wild Water Wave* on him.
Two streams of water appeared, dousing the flames.
Seeing that the ninja had nearly lost combat capability, Seimei cut off his chakra supply, allowing the flames to die out.
The two Mist Chunin who had helped were now in dire straits themselves, as Seimei focused on them.
*Swish, swish, swish!*
He launched several shuriken.
Unable to dodge completely, the two took minor injuries as some shuriken hit them.
Although not life-threatening, the wounds slowed them down.
Seizing the moment, Seimei used *Fire Release: Great Dragon Flame Technique* again, directing three fiery dragons toward the two and another Mist Chunin who was attempting to aid the Mist Special Jonin.
The three were forced into a chaotic retreat as the massive dragons pursued them.
Activating his Sharingan's three-tomoe form to the fullest, Seimei locked onto one of them, tracking his movements, and used *Wind Release: Blade of Wind!*
His *Wind Release: Blade of Wind* had reached the perfect mastery of level 7 (0/0), and with his control, it was nearly undetectable to all but the most perceptive ninja.
The targeted Mist Chunin kept running, only to feel his legs sliced through by an invisible blade.
His upper body continued forward briefly before collapsing onto the ground.
Only then did the pain register, and he let out a howl.
As blood gushed from his legs, Seimei, worried he might bleed out, swooped down near him.
Without delay, he used *Shadow Clone Technique*.
With a burst of chakra smoke, four clones appeared on the battlefield.
They needed no commands. Instantly, they launched themselves at the remaining nine Mist Chunin.
He immediately began absorbing chakra from the near-dead Chunin and the one he had scorched with *Fire Release: Pure Burning Technique.*
Seeing Seimei approach, Keiji Ando's heart filled with terror. Enduring the pain in his legs, he flung a kunai.
But his efforts were futile. Seimei tilted his head, easily dodging the weapon.
In a flash, he appeared before the Chunin, gripping his throat as he activated *Chakra Absorption Technique.*
In an instant, a torrent of chakra flowed into him, causing the Chunin's life force to fade rapidly.