Trade, Battle Conference

A figure clad in a black cloak, his face covered by an unmistakably iconic Fox Mask.

He sat in a relaxed posture, as though he had been there for quite some time, leisurely enjoying everyone's astonishment.

Almost instinctively, a chorus of sharp intakes of breath rang out harshly through the silent conference hall.

Countless pupils contracted sharply, hearts pounding like drums in their chests. Just who was this man?

When had he infiltrated the place, and by what means? He had even brazenly seated himself behind them?! Most of those present had gone blank with shock, having failed to detect even the slightest sign of his movements.

Seemingly sensing dozens of piercing gazes converging on him, the Collector lazily waved at the crowd and greeted them in a teasing manner.

The upturned mouth on the Fox Mask seemed to bloom into a faint, eerie smile amid the interplay of light and shadow.

The shock in Jiraiya's and Shisui Uchiha's eyes swiftly settled into an almost tangible wariness.

Jiraiya and Shisui Uchiha stared at the figure, their eyes filled with deep vigilance. The two of them had reacted, but the other man's speed was truly extraordinary, nearly on par with the Fourth Raikage!

Jiraiya's gaze narrowed, fixed firmly upon that unsettling Fox Mask.

Clenching his teeth, he forced out each word through the gaps, his low voice carrying barely restrained fury. "It's you!"

The Fourth Minato Namikaze's grave account instantly flashed through his mind.

It had been this mysterious man before them who, during the Nine-Tails Incident, when the village had been at its most vulnerable, infiltrated Konoha, silently entered the location of the Scroll of Seals, and stole that vital knowledge.

"That's right. It was me." A calm, unruffled reply came from beneath the mask, carrying a hint of casual