"There's still one left." Shin muttered to himself. "I was planning to let one of you crawl back as a warning, but if I don't leave you with something to show that scheming bastard, you'll have a hard time explaining things."
He raised a finger and pointed.
A kunai shot forth, as if guided by an unseen force, whistling through the air like a meteor—
"Ahhh...!"
A heart-wrenching scream erupted from not far away.
Shin stepped forward. His figure vanished like a ghost, reappearing in an instant.
"Shin, you can't kill me…"
"We were only following orders to invite you to see Lord Danzo… We didn't mean to harm you…"
"If the Hokage finds out you killed fellow Leaf shinobi, you'll never get away with it…"
The Foundation ninja lying on the ground wore a dog-headed mask, wailing incessantly. His arm had been completely mangled by that seemingly ordinary kunai, blood pouring out in streams.
Panic consumed him.
It was just a kunai. Normally, he could've swatted it aside with ease.
But this one had carried an unfathomable power. In a single instant, it had torn through his arm, pulverizing it completely, with flesh and bone flying.
The man standing before him—he really was just as the intelligence reports had warned.
Utterly terrifying.
No wonder those old folks in Foundation all refused to take this mission.
I was such a fool. I thought I was proving my loyalty to Lord Danzo… Who knew I'd run into this psycho who kills on sight?
"Oh, right, thanks for the reminder," Shin said, feigning a sudden realization. "If Konoha finds out I killed my own comrades, that really would be troublesome."
Though his words spoke of trouble, his face was lit with a cheerful grin.
Foundation ninja froze, his gut twisting with dread.
"If you're kind enough to warn me… then why don't you go join the others?"
Shin smiled shyly.
"No, wait—"
[Hatred Value +5000]
Shin raised his hand, forming the shape of a gun with his fingers.
"Bang."
A beam of eerie light burst from his fingertip.
The terrifying penetrative power of the Six Meridians Divine Sword pierced clean through the Foundation ninja's skull.
[EXP +2000]
Now, how many Foundation shinobi had he killed so far?
He couldn't even remember.
Why hasn't Danzo learned his lesson yet?
But whatever.
Shin smirked. Killing enemies for experience was just too convenient.
Still, this wasn't enough. He needed millions more.
Time to stir up some bigger events.
Or… maybe get to know a few kunoichi?
"Whoosh!"
Just then, two masked figures darted over in a rush.
Shin narrowed his eyes.
Both wore ANBU attire—but from behind their masks, long, flowing violet hair trailed.
That gave him a solid guess as to who they were.
…
"Cough… cough…"
Hayate Gekkō dropped down from the trees, his gaze falling on the four corpses strewn across the forest floor. His heart was gripped by a mix of shock and sorrow.
"What… what happened here?"
Yūgao Uzuki cautiously scanned the surroundings, trying to piece together what had occurred.
After a careful inspection, she said, "These Foundation shinobi… they didn't resist at all. Every one of them was killed in a single blow."
Hayate Gekkō nodded solemnly. "To kill four Jonin this quickly…"
"In Konoha, only the major clans could even field that many Jonin at once."
Yūgao turned her head to look at him.
Hayate blinked. "What? Did I say something wrong?"
Yūgao's expression grew grim, clearly shaken.
"This… it looks like there was only one attacker here," she said, disbelief coloring her tone. "And those Foundation ninja… didn't even leave a mark of resistance."
"They were all killed in the same instant."
"What…? Cough—cough—" Hayate stared in disbelief. "That's impossible…"
"To kill multiple Jonin in a single instant… Only Lord Hokage's Flying Thunder God could do something like that."
They looked at each other, unease rippling through them.
They both knew—the Hokage would never commit such a crime.
So who was it… that had murdered their fellow Leaf shinobi?
They had originally been sent on a mission to monitor Foundation's operations.
It was normal for Foundation and the ANBU to keep an eye on each other—more of a formality than anything serious.
But they had only followed these Foundation operatives for a short while…
And now this?
Shhhff—
A silhouette suddenly dropped onto a nearby tree branch.
Both of them turned sharply, alert.
There stood Shin in sleek black combat gear, his youthful face bright and confident.
His gaze swept past the coughing tubercular ninja and landed on the striking figure with the violet hair.
Even through her mask, Yūgao Uzuki's graceful curves and well-defined form were impossible to miss.
With a figure like that, who even needed to see the face? Full marks, no question.
"You two are… Yūgao and Hayate?" Shin asked with feigned confusion. "What happened here?"
"Huh? Shin?" Yūgao's beautiful eyes widened in surprise.
"Lord Shin!" Hayate Gekkō immediately bowed with utmost respect.
Since he'd guessed their identities, both of them removed their masks—an act of respect toward this living legend.
Shin thought to himself, With features that obvious, those masks were pointless anyway.
His gaze lingered momentarily on Yūgao's face.
Bright eyes, delicate teeth, fair skin and stunning beauty, with that long violet hair adding an extra touch of allure.
No wonder Hayate Gekkō was completely smitten.