Qifeng was probably after Li Tong! Li Tong had betrayed Rain, and every ninja village would eliminate a traitor. WWW COM
He was a Chunin, and judging by his reputation, he was fairly ordinary even among Chunins.
It was the busiest time of day, right around noon. The long main street was packed with people. Li Tong followed Qifeng for more than ten minutes. Since he wasn't using any tracking techniques, he was inevitably noticed. Qifeng had even stopped and glanced back once.
After crossing most of the street, Qifeng suddenly turned and entered an alley.
Li Tong followed him in!
Hidden nearby, Chen He and three other Anbu Ninjas followed close behind Li Tong. Chen He was puzzled. What was this kid up to? He could tell Li Tong was tailing the man ahead, but he wasn't using any tracking techniques at all. The man had noticed him ages ago.
As for Qifeng, Chen He hadn't noticed anything suspicious.
He was just a young samurai, and from the way he walked, he didn't seem particularly strong.
But Chen He immediately thought of one possibility.
A Rain Ninja spy?!
That was the only explanation Chen He could think of. Why else would Li Tong follow someone for no reason? Was he planning to meet a Rain Ninja spy? Chen He didn't suspect an assassin because Li Tong was the one doing the following, not the other way around.
The alley grew more and more deserted. At its end lay a forest.
"Damn brat!" Qifeng, walking ahead, curled his lips into a barely concealed sneer. He knew who Li Tong was. Since Li Tong was following him, he planned to lead him somewhere far from the residential area, where no one was around. That way, he could kill Li Tong without anyone finding out.
Li Tong kept following, considering how to kill his opponent as quickly as possible!
He wasn't worried about being killed himself, since the Anbu Ninjas were watching from the shadows. All he was thinking about now was how to take his opponent out as quickly as possible, preferably before the Anbu Ninjas could intervene.
Deep in the forest.
Qifeng kept walking forward, but Li Tong suddenly stopped, turned, and darted into a thicket at the side. Then he broke into a full sprint. Run! This was a story about who would kill whom, who would lure whom, and who would draw whom in!
Qifeng spun around. When he saw Li Tong running, his expression changed, and he immediately gave chase!
He already had orders to kill Li Tong. Now Li Tong had followed him to such a remote place, only to run away. This was clearly a chance to carry out his mission!
"You'd better not interfere!" Li Tong grumbled to himself. He didn't want the Anbu Ninjas to suddenly show up and interfere.
Watching from the shadows, Chen He signaled to the other three Anbu Ninjas to hold back and wait to see what happened. The situation was too strange. Chen He couldn't figure out what Li Tong was trying to do.
After a while, Qifeng drew closer and closer to Li Tong.
A wild lake appeared ahead of Li Tong!
Li Tong charged onto the lake as if he'd gone mad, running across the surface of the water while rapidly forming Hand Seals. The instant he finished, he abruptly turned around!
"Water Style: Hidden Mist Technique!"
Whoosh! A dense mist erupted, spreading like a burst of smoke and covering an area twenty meters across. Li Tong had suddenly decided to run because he wanted to reach this spot and use the Hidden Mist Technique. The technique required a body of water!
The thick fog didn't just block Qifeng's vision; it also obstructed Chen He and the others, who had been watching from a hundred meters away!
"Not good!" Chen He's heart sank. He immediately revealed himself and raced toward them!
Qifeng was less than twenty meters from Li Tong. When the mist appeared, he didn't hesitate. He flung three Kunai into the fog, then drew his sword and charged in!
Li Tong had cast the technique, so the fog didn't affect his vision.
After using the Hidden Mist Technique, Li Tong rapidly formed Hand Seals again. Three Kunai shot toward him. He leaned sharply backward, dodging them as he finished forming the Seals!
"Sealing Jutsu: Binding Thorn Curse Seal!"
A Sealing Jutsu!
A curse-seal chain shaped like thorny vines shot from between Li Tong's hands and struck the surface of the water in front of him. The curse seal spread out into a trap pattern! It was actually a very basic Sealing Jutsu. The trap seal was right in front of Li Tong and would normally be easy to spot.
But in the thick fog, Qifeng couldn't see it!
He charged into the mist without hesitation, relying on the chakra fluctuations coming from Li Tong. First, he used Kunai to distract him, then he would close in for the kill! He wanted to kill Li Tong as quickly as possible. He knew how strong Li Tong was, so he didn't think he could fail!
Splash!
Qifeng stepped on the trap seal in the water. Several black thorns burst from it and wrapped around his legs, pinning him in place. His expression changed drastically!
He was only a meter away from Li Tong!
Li Tong closed in, his hand flashing forward like lightning. His finger struck Qifeng's shoulder!
"Gentle Fist: Tenketsu Strike!"
Li Tong hadn't even activated the Byakugan. He relied entirely on instinct! The locations of the body's pressure points were fixed, so it wasn't impossible to hit one by feel. But with an attack like the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, he'd definitely miss without the Byakugan, since it involved striking a series of pressure points. But Lu Han only had to land a single strike this time! He wouldn't miss!
It all seemed complicated, but in reality, it happened in just a few seconds.
After striking Qifeng's pressure point, Li Tong snatched the katana from his hand and slashed backhanded!
Splurt!
Blood sprayed into the air. Qifeng's head shot upward, and his headless body spurted blood. A flash of light burst out, and five cards flew from his corpse...
"Wind Release—"
A fierce gale blew in from the shore, scattering the mist over the lake. Li Tong held up the bloodied katana. The headless corpse was still standing in front of him, spurting blood, while its head continued to rise into the air.
This was the first sight Chen He and the other Anbu Ninjas saw when they reached the lakeside and blew away the fog!
It had happened too fast!
Li Tong had planned out his battle strategy in advance, so he'd ended the fight before the Anbu Ninjas could get there!
Thud! Splash!
The headless body fell and gradually sank beneath the water. Its head dropped into the lake as well. Li Tong casually lifted a hand and stowed the five cards, which only he could see, in his game inventory.
"You—" Chen He began, eyes wide.
"He was an assassin from Rain. I remembered some fragments of my past and recognized him, so I followed him and looked for a chance to kill him." Li Tong cut Chen He off, offering an explanation. Then he took a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped the specks of blood from his face.
His fastidiousness made him dislike the smell of blood. Having it splattered on his face made him feel even more disgusted.
A little later.
Li Tong stood on the grassy shore, wiping the katana he'd just used to kill someone. Nearby, Chen He and the other Anbu Ninjas had pulled Qifeng's headless body and head from the lake.
They were examining the body!
There was only one fatal wound: the slash. The corpse's shoulder seemed to have taken a heavy blow; the skin had turned bluish purple, but Chen He couldn't tell that it was caused by a Gentle Fist: Tenketsu Strike. The corpse's legs had also been restrained by a Sealing Jutsu, but the restraint had left no marks. When Qifeng died, the triggered curse-seal trap lost its target and disappeared.
In short, Qifeng had been killed by a direct slash!
He wasn't from Konoha; that much was obvious from his face. He was a ninja, but he'd disguised himself as a samurai. Along with the many distinctive old scars on his body, his build, the material of his clothes, the calluses on his hands, and other details, it was enough for Chen He and the others to determine that he was an outsider, a ninja spy. But whether he was an assassin or from Rain was uncertain!
He wasn't one of Konoha's people!
He had actively hunted Li Tong!
Those two facts alone proved that Li Tong had done nothing wrong!
"You recognized him?" Chen He turned to Li Tong with a frown.
"A little. When I saw his face, I vaguely remembered something." Li Tong made up an excuse. "And you know I came from Rain. Rain Ninjas just give me a special feeling. I can tell that assassins have certain things in common."
"Then why did you kill him outright?" Chen He furrowed his brow. "You should have told us. We could have captured him!"
Li Tong fell silent for a moment, then curled the corner of his mouth and said, "Why should I tell you? Even if you captured him, you wouldn't be able to force useful information out of a ninja like him. He was here to kill me. That was his mission; everyone knows that... And for me, killing them is a way to prove myself! To prove that I truly intend to join Konoha. I know you're following me both to protect me and to keep an eye on me. I believe that one day I'll earn your full trust!"
Li Tong was making it all up. He wasn't trying to earn anyone's trust. He just wanted to kill people and get cards! He needed to grow stronger quickly!
Chen He narrowed his eyes slightly. He had to admit Li Tong had a point, but finding an outsider spy and killing him outright wasn't how the Anbu operated.
"Can you find any other spies from Rain?" Chen He asked.
"I should be able to. But if I find them, I won't tell you. I'll kill them myself! I'll prove that I'm a Konoha Ninja!" Li Tong declared.
Chen He's eyelid twitched.
"Well done!" A voice of approval suddenly came from behind Li Tong.
A tall ninja with a deep, powerful presence appeared out of nowhere. He'd heard Li Tong's words and wholeheartedly agreed!
It was White Fang, who had come after hearing the news!
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