Rapid Killing!

Qifeng was very likely targeting Li Tong! Li Tong had betrayed the Rain Village, and eliminating a traitor was something every ninja village would do.

This was a Chunin, and judging by his reputation, his strength was quite average among Chunin.

It was exactly noon, the busiest time of day, and the long main street was surging with crowds. Li Tong had followed Qifeng for over ten minutes; because he hadn't used any tracking techniques, he was inevitably discovered. Qifeng had even stopped and glanced back slightly.

After crossing most of the street, Qifeng suddenly turned and entered an alleyway on the side.

Li Tong followed him in!

In the shadows, Chen He and three other Anbu ninjas were tailing Li Tong. Chen He was very confused—what was this brat Li Tong doing? With his experience, he could naturally see that Li Tong was tracking the guy in front, but without a shred of tracking skill, he had long since been spotted by his target.

As for Qifeng, Chen He didn't see anything wrong.

He was just a young samurai, and judging by his gait, he didn't possess much strength.

However, a possibility immediately occurred to Chen He.

A Rain Village spy?!

Chen He could only think this way; otherwise, why would Li Tong track someone for no reason? Could it be that Li Tong was meeting up with a Rain Village spy? The reason Chen He didn't suspect an assassination attempt was because it was Li Tong who had initiated the pursuit, not the other way around.

In the alley, the path became increasingly remote, and upon exiting, they found themselves in front of a forest.

Damn brat! Qifeng, walking in front, curled his lips into a hidden, savage grin. He naturally knew who Li Tong was. Since Li Tong was following him, he planned to lure him to a deserted area far from the residential district so that he could kill him without anyone knowing.

Li Tong kept following, his mind calculating how to kill the opponent quickly!

He wasn't worried about being counter-killed at all because the Anbu ninjas were in the shadows. Therefore, what he was thinking about now was how to finish the opponent off at the fastest speed, preferably before the Anbu ninjas could intervene.

Deep in the forest.

Qifeng was still walking forward, but Li Tong suddenly stopped, turned, and darted into the bushes to the side, breaking into a full sprint. Run! This was a story of who wanted to kill whom and who was luring whom!

Qifeng spun around abruptly. Seeing Li Tong running, his expression changed, and he immediately gave chase!

He already had a mission to kill Li Tong, and the fact that Li Tong had followed him to such a remote place only to run away was clearly an opportunity for him to complete his mission!

Damn it, you guys better not interfere! Li Tong muttered to himself. He didn't want the Anbu ninjas to suddenly jump out and meddle in this affair!

Chen He watched from the shadows and signaled the other three Anbu ninjas to stay put and observe the situation first! The situation was too bizarre; Chen He couldn't figure out what Li Tong was actually trying to do.

After a burst of sprinting, Qifeng, who was chasing from behind, drew closer and closer to Li Tong.

And in front of Li Tong, a wild lake appeared!

Li Tong rushed onto the surface of the lake like a madman, his feet stepping on the water as he performed rapid hand seals. The moment he finished, he spun around!

"Water Style: Hidden Mist Technique!"

Whoosh! A thick fog rose, the dense white mist spreading out like an exploding cloud of smoke, shrouding a twenty-meter radius. The reason Li Tong had suddenly decided to run was to reach this spot to cast the Hidden Mist Technique, as the prerequisite for the technique was a water environment!

The thick fog not only obscured Qifeng's vision but also hindered Chen He and the others who were monitoring from a hundred meters away!

"Not good!" Chen He's heart sank, and he decisively revealed himself, darting forward!

Qifeng was less than twenty meters from Li Tong. Seeing the thick fog rise, he didn't hesitate, flicking his wrist to fire three kunai into the mist before drawing his sword and charging in!

Since Li Tong was the one who cast the technique, the mist did not affect his vision.

After Li Tong completed the Hidden Mist Technique, he immediately performed more hand seals. As the three kunai whistled toward him, he leaned back sharply to dodge the attack while simultaneously finishing his seals!

"Sealing Technique: Binding Thorn Curse Seal!"

It was a sealing technique!

A chain of curse seals shaped like thorny vines shot out from between Li Tong's hands, striking the water surface in front of him. The curse seal coiled, forming a trap pattern! In truth, this was a very low-level sealing technique; the trap was right in front of Li Tong and could normally be seen at a glance.

But in the environment of 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 using kunai to disrupt him before closing in for the kill! He only wanted to kill Li Tong as quickly as possible; he knew Li Tong's strength and therefore didn't believe he would miss!

Splash!

Qifeng, rushing forward, stepped onto the curse seal trap on the water. Several black thorns immediately erupted from the seal, binding his legs. He was instantly immobilized, his expression changing drastically!

He was only a meter away from Li Tong!

Li Tong lunged forward, his strike as fast as lightning, his fingers slamming into Qifeng's shoulder!

"Gentle Fist: Tenketsu Strike!"

Li Tong didn't even activate his Byakugan, relying entirely on instinct! The positions of human acupuncture points were fixed, so it wasn't impossible to hit them by feel. However, if he were using something like the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, he would certainly miss without the Byakugan since it required continuous strikes to the points. But this was just a single strike! He wouldn't miss!

Everything sounds complicated, but it actually happened in a very short time—a matter of seconds.

After Li Tong struck the tenketsu, he reached out, snatched the katana from Qifeng's hand, and slashed backhand!

Squelch!

Blood sprayed as Qifeng's head flew into the air. The headless corpse spurted blood wildly, a light burst forth, and five cards flew out from Qifeng's body...

"Wind Style—"

A fierce gust of wind blew from the shore, dispersing the thick fog on the lake. Li Tong stood there with the blood-stained katana in his hand, the headless corpse still standing before him spraying blood, and the head still flying through the air.

This was the first scene Chen He and the other Anbu ninjas saw when they reached the lake and the fog cleared!

It was too fast!

Li Tong had already devised his combat strategy in his mind, which was why he finished the battle before the Anbu ninjas could arrive!

Thump! Splash!

The headless corpse collapsed, gradually sinking into the water, and his head also fell into the lake. Li Tong looked as if he were merely raising his hand casually, but he had already collected the five cards that only he could see into his game inventory.

"You—" Chen He stared with wide eyes, trying to speak.

"This is an assassin from Amegakure. I recalled some memory fragments and remembered him, which is why I followed him to find a way to kill him," Li Tong interrupted Chen He to explain, then pulled a handkerchief from his robe to wipe the blood spots off his face.

His mysophobia made him dislike the smell of blood; having it splattered on his face made him feel quite nauseated.

Not long after.

Li Tong stood on the grassy bank of the lake, using his handkerchief to wipe the katana he had just used to kill. Nearby, Chen He and the other Anbu ninjas had already fished the headless corpse and the head of Qifeng out of the lake.

They were examining the body!

There was only one fatal wound: a slash. The corpse's shoulder appeared to have suffered a heavy blow, with the skin turning a bruised purple, but Chen He could not discern that it had been caused by a Gentle Fist: Tenketsu Strike. Furthermore, the corpse's legs had been bound by a sealing jutsu, but that binding left no marks; once Qifeng died, the triggered curse seal trap lost its target and vanished.

In summary, Qifeng had been killed by a direct slash!

This was not a Konoha ninja—one look at his face confirmed that. Moreover, he was a ninja who had disguised himself as a samurai. Combined with the many peculiar, old scars on his body, his posture, the fabric of his clothing, and the calluses on his hands, Chen He and the others could analyze that he was an outside ninja spy. However, whether he was an assassin or if he truly came from Amegakure remained uncertain!

He did not kill a person from Konoha!

This man had taken the initiative to hunt down Li Tong!

Based on these two points alone, it could be determined that Li Tong was not at fault in the slightest!

"You remember him?" Chen He turned back to look at Li Tong, frowning.

"A little. When I saw his face, I vaguely recalled a bit," Li Tong spouted nonsense. "Besides, as you know, I come from Amegakure. I have an innate, special feeling toward Amegakure ninjas. I can tell that assassins share certain commonalities."

"Then why did you kill him directly?" Chen He furrowed his brows. "You should have told us; we could have captured him!"

Li Tong fell silent for a moment, curling his lip slightly before saying, "Why should I tell you? Even if you captured him, it would be difficult to force useful intelligence out of such a ninja. They were here to kill me—that was their mission, everyone knows that... And for me, killing them is a form of proof! Proof that I have truly defected to Konoha. I know that you following me is both to protect me and to monitor me. I believe that one day, I will fully earn your trust!"

Li Tong was just spouting nonsense. As for earning trust, in reality, he just wanted to kill people to farm cards! He needed to improve his strength rapidly!

Chen He narrowed his eyes slightly. He had to admit that what Li Tong said made sense, but killing an outside spy on sight did not conform to Anbu's operational protocols.

"Can you find other Amegakure spies?" Chen He asked again.

"I should be able to, but even if I find them, I won't tell you. I will kill them with my own hands! I want to prove that I am a Konoha ninja!" Li Tong declared.

Chen He's eyelids twitched.

"Well done!" A voice of approval suddenly rang out from behind Li Tong.

A tall ninja with a profound aura appeared out of thin air. Upon hearing Li Tong's words, he was in complete agreement!

It was White Fang, who had received the news and arrived!