Who Am I? Where Am I? Where Is My Brother?
Art of the Fire Escape – Great Fireball Technique.
Although it is an expert-level ninjutsu of the Uchiha clan, at best, it is only classified as a C-rank technique.
Even in the hands of a genius like Uchiha Itachi, the fireball's diameter would not exceed five meters.
However, with a casual flick, Xu Fan expanded the fireball's diameter to over 20 meters.
Had he not stopped in time at the critical moment, Sasuke might have suffered severe burns and been sent straight to the hospital.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was observing the scene through his telescope technique, couldn't help but take a deep breath.
Judging by Xu Fan's hand seals, it was evident that he was not familiar with this technique. There were no signs of prior practice.
It was as if he had simply witnessed Sasuke releasing the giant fireball and then imitated it on the spot.
And yet… he wasn't the only one with such an enormous chakra reserve.
Uzumaki Naruto also possessed far more chakra than an average shinobi.
But Naruto had no talent for technique mastery—he couldn't even perform a proper Clone Jutsu.
"For a ninja, having an immense chakra reserve is not enough... But the ability to master ninjutsu at a glance? Now that... is truly terrifying."
Sarutobi Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, staring at Xu Fan through the crystal ball. Another person involuntarily surfaced in his mind—
A man renowned for his ability to copy techniques.
Hatake Kakashi.
"Because of his Sharingan, Kakashi can instantly copy enemy ninjutsu and make them his own. But such a fighting style puts a heavy burden on his chakra."
"For Senju Xu Fan, though his copying speed isn't as instantaneous as Kakashi's, he doesn't suffer from the same drawback…"
And the most important part—
Xu Fan could effortlessly enhance the enemy's technique, doubling its effectiveness.
That was the truly frightening part.
It was no exaggeration to say that, just now, Xu Fan had used his own chakra to elevate a C-rank technique—the Great Fireball—to at least a B-rank level.
"Wait a minute…"
At that moment, a far more terrifying possibility dawned on Sarutobi Hiruzen.
This was merely a sparring session in the Ninja Academy. It wasn't a battle against an enemy.
Xu Fan was simply trying to make Sasuke recognize the gap between them—to force him to concede.
"He wasn't even using his full power?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen gasped.
If Xu Fan unleashed his chakra without restraint, how large could his fireball become?
Thirty meters?
Fifty meters?
Even more?
The little brat from the Senju clan… truly terrifying.
"Speaking of which, how many chakra natures does he possess?"
Suddenly, Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes widened as an even more shocking thought struck him.
"Senju… could he possibly use Wood Release?"
---
Meanwhile, back on the academy training field—
Xu Fan watched Sasuke, who had collapsed on the ground, his face pale with fear. With a casual motion, Xu Fan released his ninjutsu.
Whoosh!
The enormous fireball disintegrated midair, vanishing without a trace.
The spectators were left dumbfounded, as if they had seen a ghost.
For the longest time, they had believed Sasuke's Fireball Technique was already impressive.
But Xu Fan's display had shattered their expectations.
"You call that ninjutsu?"
"Tch, that's not ninjutsu—you're clearly an immortal!"
Even the academy instructors, Mizuki and Iruka, were stunned. As Chūnin, they understood Xu Fan's overwhelming prowess better than anyone.
This wasn't just genius-level talent.
This was pure monstrosity.
An unreasonable, terrifying monster.
At that moment, Iruka even forgot about instructing the students to perform the Seal of Reconciliation. His mind was still reeling in shock.
Did Xu Fan… really need to attend the Ninja Academy?
"Iruka-sensei, are we done?" Xu Fan turned toward Iruka, his voice calm and unbothered. "Uchiha-san doesn't seem like he wants to continue."
Continue?
Continue what?
If I were Uchiha Sasuke, I'd be pissing my pants right now!
The other students exchanged glances, their eyes filled with sympathy for Sasuke.
How much psychological trauma had he just suffered?
"Uh…" Iruka snapped back to reality at the sound of Xu Fan's voice. He glanced at the evaluation sheet before nodding hesitantly.
"Ah… yes, the practical training is over… Senju… Senju-kun, please perform the Seal of Reconciliation."
"Alright." Xu Fan nodded and walked up to Sasuke, extending a hand.
Sasuke looked up at Xu Fan, then down at his outstretched hand. His mind was completely blank.
But he refused to accept Xu Fan's gesture of goodwill. Instead, he tried to stand up on his own.
Failed.
Tried again.
Failed.
On his third attempt, he finally managed to stand—though his body trembled.
Sasuke had been utterly crushed by Xu Fan's Fireball Technique.
He couldn't even find the words to speak.
With a stiff, mechanical motion, he performed the Seal of Reconciliation with Xu Fan.
"Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?"
"What just happened?"
"Where is my brother?"
Mizuki stood frozen, staring at the scene.
He had expected to feel jealous of Xu Fan's talent.
But after witnessing this firsthand, he found himself questioning reality.
"Am I really a Chūnin?"
"Is Xu Fan truly a first-day student at the academy?"
"Is this world even real?"
"What even is ninjutsu?"
"What even is a ninja?"
"Unbelievable…" Iruka took a deep breath before muttering in disbelief.
"Senju-kun's Great Fireball was ridiculously overpowered. You must have spent the past five years practicing it at home, right?"
In Iruka's mind, this was the only explanation for how Xu Fan could perform such a devastating technique.
Uchiha Sasuke… had simply been unlucky to face an opponent whose best skill was fire release.
Yes… only this reasoning could bring Iruka peace of mind.
But then, Xu Fan simply shook his head.
"No, that was my first time using it."
"I just saw Uchiha-kun perform the hand seals, so I thought I'd try it out. Didn't expect it to work so well."
"…What?!"
Iruka and Mizuki's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Their brains buzzed as if they had short-circuited.
"First time… using ninjutsu?"
"Come again? What does 'first time' even mean in this context?!"
Xu Fan wasn't being humble.
It was literally his first attempt at the technique.
"Ah, must be thanks to the reward from my sign-in system."
Xu Fan suddenly realized something.
His proficiency from sign-in rewards… was on a whole different level.
For low-level ninjutsu, simply watching someone perform it was enough to learn it instantly.
"Does that mean, in the future, I just have to watch a jutsu once…?"
Just as Xu Fan was pondering this newfound ability, a system prompt echoed in his mind—
"Proficiency does not mean absolute mastery. Please check the detailed description."