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"Pfft!!!" The sleeve of Miao’s left arm was torn by the katana, and blood splattered from his skin. "Damn it! My body can’t keep up with the speed," Miao thought inwardly, but his reaction was quick. He threw his kunai toward the dark-clad ninja’s face with his right hand.

The ninja’s expression changed but didn’t panic. Tilting his head slightly, he narrowly avoided the kunai. Taking advantage of the moment, Miao quickly retreated while simultaneously forming seals at an astonishing rate of five per second: (Siyin), (Weiyin), (Shen), (Hai), (Wushi), (Yin). In roughly a second, the seals were complete. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!!!"

"Boom!!!!" A massive fireball erupted from Miao’s mouth as he retreated, hurtling toward the dark-clad ninja.

"Water Release: Water Bullet Technique!!!" The dark-clad ninja was no slouch. As the fireball approached, moisture in the air rapidly condensed into a massive water bullet before him. It spun forward, colliding with the fireball.

"Boom!!!!!" The collision caused an explosion, filling the snowy landscape with thick white mist, obscuring vision. But this posed no problem for Miao.

The three tomoe of Miao’s Sharingan glowed eerily in the mist, appearing and disappearing. While the Sharingan lacked the penetrating ability of the Byakugan, its reconnaissance capabilities were unmatched, even by the Mangekyō Sharingan. Like the Byakugan, the Sharingan could detect chakra within others. The mist wasn’t an illusionary technique—it couldn’t conceal the opponent’s chakra.

A faint sound of air slicing through the air came from behind. Though subtle, Miao instantly detected it.

"Behind me!!!" Miao’s expression remained unchanged. The tomoe in his Sharingan rotated as chakra condensed in his palm. A blue orb formed in an instant.

Without turning to look, Miao swiftly turned around. Simultaneously, his Spiral Barrage struck the source of the sound. "Boom!!!" The Spiral Barrage hit the dark-clad ninja, who cried out in pain as his eyes rolled back.

"Huh?" Miao’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Wait—this isn’t real!" The mist ninja dissolved into a puddle of water on the ground.

"Water Clone Technique!!!" Miao exclaimed in alarm. "Pfft!!!" Blood sprayed as a katana pierced his chest. "Wha—what!!!" Miao stared blankly at the katana protruding from his chest.

The mist began to distort, revealing the dark-clad ninja’s form. Smirking, he mocked Miao contemptuously: "Brats are brats. You fell for it the moment I showed a weakness. Time to join the underworld!" As he spoke, he twisted the katana, attempting to crush Miao’s heart.

Just then, Miao, who had been motionless, suddenly laughed coldly at the ninja. "You’re the foolish one!" "What!!!" Seeing Miao’s reaction, the ninja felt a chill.

The ninja’s body began fading into the air, the katana and blood on the ground vanishing as if they had never existed.

"This is an illusion!!!" the ninja realized too late. "Pfft!!!" A sharp kunai pierced his heart from behind.

The ninja’s eyes lost focus, his body collapsing to the ground. Blood flowed freely, staining the pristine snow once more.

But Miao was in no better condition. Half-kneeling on the ground, he panted heavily. His chakra reserves were nearly depleted. He had used two Spiral Barrages, two Great Fireball Techniques, two Shadow Clones, and continuously maintained the Sharingan while casting illusions. Even with the bloodline of the Uzumaki clan, he was struggling. At nine years old, he had exceeded the average chuunin and approached the level of a jounin.

"Damn it!!!" Gasping for breath, Miao gritted his teeth. Now wasn’t the time to rest. If his chakra ran out, he wouldn’t even have the strength to escape, let alone fight. That would only burden his father.

"I need to restore chakra immediately!!!" Thinking this, Miao sat down and began channeling chakra. He didn’t aim for full restoration—just enough to defend himself.

Suddenly, an explosion rang out. Miao turned sharply toward the commotion. Smoke billowed as flames from the explosion shot into the sky. The two dark-clad ninjas were now heavily wounded, barely kneeling on the ground, nearly incapacitated.

Meanwhile, Hayato, Miao’s father, had no color left in his face. Blood trickled from his lips, and his Sharingan had shut down. His body swayed precariously, clearly exhausted.

Seeing his father’s state, Miao’s expression darkened. He had known his father’s health was poor and couldn’t sustain prolonged combat, but he hadn’t expected it to be this severe. "How badly injured was he back then?"

"Cough!!!" Hayato’s face contorted, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood, collapsing to his knees. Panting heavily, he winced in pain.

"Damn it! I haven’t fought in so long that I can’t keep up with this pace anymore. My chakra is running out, and my injuries are surfacing. Time to retreat!" Hayato wiped the blood from his lips, trembling.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past. Sensing the disturbance, both Miao and Hayato tensed. From the direction of the village, more than a dozen shadowy figures were rapidly approaching.

"Trouble!!!"