Scent

Meanwhile, Qi Shuang hid in the dense fog, doing his best to conceal his presence and avoid a direct confrontation with the Konoha Chunin.

I'll stall for as long as I can, he thought. One minute at a time.

After all, the gap between a Chunin and a Genin was significant.

If that Konoha ninja hadn't been so careless earlier, and if he hadn't launched a surprise attack, he never would have been able to kill him.

Now, he had already used Ice Release three times, Water Clone twice, and Substitution Technique once.

Even though the water source gave him an advantage and saved him some effort, his current physical condition meant that these five jutsu had nearly depleted his chakra.

He estimated that he only had enough chakra left for one more ninjutsu.

Therefore, he had to be extremely careful, using Kamiya Ki's dense fog to maneuver around his opponent and waiting for the opportune moment to strike, ensuring his final ninjutsu would be a killing blow.

Otherwise, if he carelessly wasted his remaining chakra, he would become a lamb to the slaughter.

Kamimura and Natsuki were prime examples of this.

BOOM!

A piercing explosion echoed from the dense fog ahead and to his left.

The crimson flames pierced the thick mist, clearly visible to Qi Shuang even from seven or eight meters away.

Immediately after the explosion, an enraged shout came from that direction.

"Damn you!"

"You little brat, I'll skin you alive once I catch you!"

Hearing this, Qi Shuang allowed a hint of a smug smile to surface. So, not all Konoha ninjas are on the same level as Naruto and Sasuke's generation, he mused.

They even fall for such a simple bait trap!

Still, this dense fog is so damp, it's actually a bit cold!

As he thought this, he couldn't help but exhale a puff of warm air into his palms and rub his bare arms, exposed in the mist.

Just as he parted ways with Kamiya Ki, he had taken off his jacket, propped it up with a branch, and set up a simple trigger trap using an Explosive Tag.

Anyone who touched the clothing would set off the explosion.

In an open, flat area, anyone could see through such a simple trap, but they were currently in dense fog, and their vision was severely limited, except for Kamiya Ki, the jutsu user.

Furthermore, his opponent was a Chunin, while he was a Genin, a significant difference in strength.

Given this, his opponent surely wouldn't take him seriously and would be eager to finish him off quickly.

Impatient, careless, and with obstructed vision, in this dense fog, if they vaguely saw his "figure," they would undoubtedly rush forward to deliver a decisive blow.

The chance of falling into the trap was nearly ninety-nine percent.

However, judging by the man's booming curses, he seemed unharmed, having only suffered a minor setback.

He needed to wait a little longer before making his move.

While thinking and retreating, he soon found himself back on the river.

He couldn't use the Silent Killing Technique, so he couldn't mask the sound of his movements.

Therefore, he needed to use the rushing sound of the river to cover his actions.

He would be safer on the river.

"This time, it's not a trap, is it? Kid!"

A sinister voice, laced with killing intent, appeared behind Qi Shuang.

Not good!

Without time to think, he instinctively fell and rolled.

A flash of silver light swept past the back of his head.

"Oh? It seems you're not quite like those two brats!" Seeing Qi Shuang narrowly evade the surprise attack from behind, the newcomer sounded surprised.

However, confident in his Chunin strength and his chances of victory, he didn't press the attack.

Instead, he curiously sized up the young boy as he cautiously got back to his feet.

"How did you find me in such a short amount of time?" Qi Shuang asked with a grave expression, slowly backing away, trying to re-enter the mist.

Unfortunately, the other party seemed to have seen through his intentions, following closely and maintaining a fixed distance.

Although they couldn't see each other clearly, Qi Shuang could still vaguely track the opponent's movements.

The man replied playfully, "If you hadn't been so clever and set that trap, it would have taken me a bit longer to find you in this dense fog!"

"But now, even if you hide in the mist again, it's useless!"

"Because your tracks can't escape my sense of smell!"

As he spoke, he wiped his nose with great pride.

"Sense of smell?"

On the other side, Qi Shuang's brows furrowed upon hearing this. After a moment's thought, the surname of a prominent Konoha clan came to mind.

"You're from the Konoha Inuzuka Clan?" he exclaimed in surprise.

Since the other party had used their sense of smell to track his movements, there was no doubt they possessed exceptional olfactory skills.

And when it came to ninja skilled in smell, only two clans in Konoha were involved in this path.

One was the Aburame Clan, and the other was the Inuzuka Clan.

The former used the Kikaichū's sense of smell to search for enemies, while the latter amplified their own sense of smell to search for enemies.

Not only did their methods of olfactory tracking differ, but their combat styles were also vastly different.

The Aburame Clan relied on insects to perform Ninjutsu attacks, whereas the Inuzuka Clan typically used Taijutsu attacks in conjunction with their Ninja Hound partners.

Although he hadn't seen the opponent's Ninja Hound partner, he also hadn't seen them use insect Ninjutsu.

Furthermore, given the Aburame Clan's combat style, they would absolutely not use Taijutsu if they could avoid it.

Coupled with the triangular facial markings he had seen on the opponent's face earlier, he was more inclined to believe the person came from the Inuzuka Clan, not the Aburame Clan.

From this, the reason the opponent had found him so quickly became clear.

It was because when he had set up the trap earlier, he had used his own jacket, sending his freshest scent source into the opponent's hands.

Although he had gained a small advantage, the opponent had also obtained a clue to track him.

Without that, it would undoubtedly have taken the opponent much longer to accurately distinguish his scent in the thick fog and find him!

Indeed, everything has two sides.

The goddess of fortune would not always favor him.

"You do have some knowledge!"

The person opposite him put away the short sword in his hand and said, "Since you know I'm from the Inuzuka Clan, you should understand that there's no possibility of you escaping my pursuit!"

"Just accept your fate honestly and stand there quietly, and I'll snap your neck!"

"That way, I'll mercifully give you a quick end, without torturing you!"

As he spoke, he immediately crouched forward, his hands spread out, resting on the river's surface, like a beast preparing to pounce, staring intently at the Mist Ninja child not far away.

"Beast Mimicry Ninjutsu: Four Legs Technique!"

Immediately after, his aura seemed to gain a wilder quality, and even his fingernails grew an inch longer.

"Your life is mine, brat!"

A scornful voice came from his mouth. The man grinned, revealing four bone-white fangs, looking exactly like a real beast.

Before the words even finished, his figure flashed, and he was already in front of Qi Shuang, opening his five sharp-clawed fingers and grabbing directly at him.