Wood Style And Sharingan

"Retreat!"

Brother Ji roared, rallying his men. They split into several smaller groups and fled through the exits on both sides of the ruined building.

Outside, Smith and Hong Feng were monitoring the situation from a rooftop when they saw Brother Ji and his gang burst out and scatter in all directions.

Huang Lang immediately activated his puppets, sending three of them in pursuit. Black Snake rode atop his massive pet serpent and gave chase at high speed. Mingyun and White Bear also sprang into action, but with the enemy splitting up so suddenly, even the experienced team couldn't stop them all at once.

"Blood Moon, let's stop those four!" Hong Feng shouted, her eyes locking onto Brother Ji and three of his followers heading in their direction.

"Got it."

Smith nodded and jumped down from the roof alongside her.

Thud!

Their sudden appearance made Brother Ji and his group come to a screeching halt.

"Damn it, there's an ambush here too?!" one of the lackeys shouted in surprise.

"Don't panic!" Brother Ji growled. "One of them is only third-stage intermediate, and the other is second-stage advanced. We've got the edge. Take them down!"

"Kill them!"

"Go!"

One of the men rushed forward. With practiced ease, he formed a seal with both hands and shouted, "Deadly Flame!" A stream of red fire burst from his palms, morphing into a blazing wave of flames that surged toward Smith.

But what he didn't know was that every single motion, every hand seal, every flick of chakra, had already been captured by Smith's Sharingan.

"Deadly Flame!"

Smith's hands moved in perfect synchronization with his attacker's. He copied the same seals and released an identical wave of crimson fire.

Boom!

The two fire attacks collided mid-air, exploding and canceling each other out in a plume of smoke and sparks.

"What… the hell?" the enemy muttered in shock.

His fire technique was one specifically developed in Huangshi City. How could someone from Huaihai's Executive Department know it—let alone replicate it with equal power?

"Step aside. He's a fire user, let me handle him!" said another one of Brother Ji's men.

This one stepped forward, gathered chakra in his palms, and shouted, "Wolf of Holy Water!" Jets of water surged from the ground, forming snarling wolves that sprinted toward Smith.

Water conquers fire—flawless strategy.

But again, Smith's Sharingan spun. His hands moved effortlessly.

"Wolf of Holy Water!"

With identical precision, another pack of water wolves burst forward. The two attacks collided and neutralized each other in a spray of mist.

"No way… He copied me too?!" the water user gasped.

"Wait… could it be… he's copying our abilities?!" the men muttered among themselves, panic rising in their voices.

"What nonsense are you spouting? Copy this, then!" Brother Ji finally stepped in, fed up with his underlings' incompetence.

With a roar, he charged forward. When he was less than ten meters away from Smith, he suddenly leapt into the air.

His body began to transform—arms stretching into massive feathered wings, his mouth forming into a sharp, curved beak, and his entire body taking on a grotesque hybrid shape.

He was half-human, half-beast.

The transformation reminded Smith of a certain barnyard animal.

Beast Transformation: Demonic Chicken!

"Now do you understand where my name comes from?! If you dare, copy this!"

Brother Ji dived toward Smith, wings slicing through the air like blades.

"I can't really copy that..." Smith muttered.

It would be hard to replicate a transformation like that. Especially one that looked so... absurd.

"Divine Water Binding!"

Just before the oversized beak could pierce him, several massive chains made of water shot forward and wrapped around Brother Ji mid-air, halting his charge.

It was Hong Feng.

She wasn't just there for support—she was a combatant through and through.

Smith took advantage of the opportunity. He drew the dagger from behind his waist and dashed forward. In one swift motion, he slashed across Brother Ji's chest. Blood burst into the air as the beast-man cried out in pain.

"Sweeping Torrent!" Hong Feng followed up quickly. She formed a series of hand seals, and three massive dark-blue tornadoes, each about five meters tall, spun to life and surged toward the remaining enemies.

To their credit, Brother Ji's men were no pushovers. They leapt aside with impressive agility, avoiding the destructive whirlwinds.

One of them barely landed when Smith reappeared in front of him.

Behind the mask were two glowing, scarlet eyes.

The man only caught a brief glance—just one look.

It was enough.

Genjutsu: Sharingan!

The moment their eyes met, the man froze. His mind fell into disarray, his movements dulled, and confusion clouded his senses.

Smith didn't hesitate. With a swift motion, he struck the man down and turned to face the next target—the fire user from earlier.

Seeing his ally fall to an unknown illusion, the fire user hesitated. Fear crept into his heart.

"Flaming Serpents!"

He unleashed a barrage of writhing fire snakes toward Smith, their burning forms lighting up the air.

Smith didn't dodge.

"Wolf of Holy Water!"

This time, instead of copying, he used the water technique he had already replicated. The watery wolves surged forth again and snuffed out the fire snakes with ease.

"Damn it!" the fire user cursed under his breath.

Then, to his horror, Smith raised his hand again and released a wave of flaming serpents—his own technique!

"Flaming Serpents!"

Panicked, the man copied himself, casting the same ability to counter Smith's version.

He was spiraling into despair.

How is this even possible?! Smith was using every one of their moves. It was like fighting a mirror—except the reflection was stronger, faster, and smarter.

"This is cheating! Total cheating!"

But his rant ended abruptly.

"Four-Directional Wind Blades!"

Hong Feng struck from behind, sending several dark green wind blades slicing through the air. Before the fire user could react, he was cleaved in half, ending the fight.

Only one man remained now—the original water user.

He trembled as he looked around. His teammates were all gone. Beaten, burned, or sliced to pieces.

Just a few minutes ago, he had been so confident.

Third-stage intermediate vs. second-stage advanced? We've got this.

Now?

He was alone. And he wanted out.

"Nope! I'm done!"

He turned and ran, abandoning all pride.

But the moment he took his first step—

CHOMP!

A massive bloody maw swallowed him whole—the mouth of the enormous black snake, Black Snake's pet.

From its head, Black Snake and Huang Lang descended, while Mingyun and White Bear returned, their own battles finished.

"All done?" Mingyun asked calmly.

"Yes," Hong Feng replied as she approached, controlling a chain of water that dragged a heavily wounded Brother Ji behind her.

"He's not dead yet?"

"Nope. Smith got him in the chest. Clean slice, but he'll live," Hong Feng confirmed.

Beast-type users had incredibly strong bodies, especially when transformed. The cut looked nasty, but his enhanced resilience kept him alive.

Still, just in case, she had already applied basic healing.

"Smith," Mingyun said, turning toward him. "Torture is a skill every Executive Department member needs to learn. Here's your chance to practice. Get some answers out of him."

"Oh… okay."

Smith nodded, stepped forward, and crouched beside the weakened Brother Ji.

Under the red glow of his mask, the Sharingan activated once more, spinning with hypnotic intensity.

Caught off guard, Brother Ji was immediately pulled into the illusion.

Smith's voice cut through the haze.

"Why are you targeting freshmen? Who gave you the orders?"

Øóffer going on for diamond tier

pàtreøn (Gk31)