The One That Got Away-Shark

The rogue ninja had already been blasted half-conscious by the lightning, and even those who survived had barely any strength left to fight.

Now that they had been hit by three Fire Release techniques in succession, there was no chance they could survive.

They were all rogue ninja, but unlike the S-rank missing-nin from the Five Great Shinobi Villages, most rogue ninja from smaller villages weren't particularly strong.

Some were only Genin, and they had all sorts of reasons for defecting.

"Ding! System notification: Hunting mission complete. Reward obtained: Water Release: Water Formation Wall.

Bonus reward triggered: Body Flicker Technique Lv. 1 and Flash Step Lv. 1."

Water Formation Wall had been the mission reward all along, but Chen was surprised by the Body Flicker Technique and Flash Step he'd received afterward.

The Body Flicker Technique was one of the basic skills of jonin in the Naruto World, while Flash Step came from the Bleach World.

"System, have you finally grown a conscience?"

The two unexpected abilities were a pleasant surprise. They had somewhat similar effects, but having them was better than not.

"What? You don't want them?

If you don't, I can take them back."

"Of course I want them!"

Chen obviously wasn't about to give up something he'd already gotten. He had already missed out on the Flying Thunder God once; this time, he didn't want to miss anything.

After learning Flash Step and the Body Flicker Technique, Chen also discovered the differences between them.

Flash Step was more precise, but its range was relatively short. It also consumed less chakra.

The Body Flicker Technique wasn't as precise, but it could take him anywhere within sight. The farther he moved, the more chakra it consumed.

If Chen had to judge, Flash Step was better suited for combat, while the Body Flicker Technique was better for launching surprise attacks.

"I wonder how my Body Flicker Technique compares to Shisui's?"

"Keep dreaming. Shisui is known as Body Flicker Shisui. You may have a Lv. 1 Body Flicker Technique, but you're nowhere near his level.

"If we had to rate it, Shisui's Body Flicker Technique would probably be around Lv. 7."

Hearing Chen mutter to himself, the system promptly poured cold water on him.

Chen didn't mind. After all, the Body Flicker Technique was something practically every jonin knew. Even Guy, a Taijutsu fanatic who barely knew any ninjutsu, could use it.

But across the entire Naruto World, only Shisui was famous for it.

After collecting the rogue ninja's heads, Chen prepared to leave, but just then, he sensed someone approaching.

"Could there be another one who got away?

"Forget it. I might as well finish this, since they're all worth money."

Chen decided not to leave. He was going to deal with whoever was coming, too.

But the moment he saw the other person, a stampede of a thousand wild horses seemed to thunder through his mind.

Silver hair, an Anbu mask, and, most importantly, a Ninja Blade strapped to his back.

"No way.

"Am I really running into Kakashi here?"

That's right. The person who'd arrived wasn't a rogue ninja, but Hatake Kakashi of Konoha's Anbu.

Kakashi was also taken aback when he saw Chen. His mission this time had been to eliminate the rogue ninja gathered along the border of the Land of Fire.

Before he could get close, he'd spotted that strange bolt of lightning. Curious, he'd hurried over—and found Chen.

"Who are you, and why are you here?"

Kakashi looked ready for a fight, as if he might attack at any moment.

"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm just a bounty hunter, not one of the rogue ninja here.

"I doubt Konoha's Anbu would stop a bounty hunter from being here, would they?"

Chen knew he wasn't as strong as Kakashi. Unless Kakashi used his special power, perhaps the two of them could fight to a draw.

But honestly, Chen didn't want to fight Kakashi in the first place.

"Were you after the rogue ninja here?"

"That's right.

"We bounty hunters don't have a village supporting us like you do. We have to earn our living with our own two hands.

"So, Anbu of Konoha, would you mind letting me leave?

"It's not like I've done anything to threaten Konoha. In fact, I helped Konoha get rid of some potential trouble."

Kakashi didn't respond. Instead, he warily checked his surroundings.

"Was that lightning earlier your technique?"

"No. How could I use a technique that powerful? I just used a little trick to guide the lightning down from the sky."

"In that case, you can leave. Just don't do anything to threaten Konoha."

Bounty hunting was a gray area, and every shinobi village tacitly allowed bounty hunters to operate.

More importantly, Kakashi had judged that the other man had come to kill the rogue ninja, not threaten Konoha.

There was no need to pick a fight with him.

"Ding! System notification: Challenge mission triggered. Challenge Hatake Kakashi.

"Rewards will be calculated based on mission completion.

"Mission failure penalty: permanent ownership of Kakashi's Icha Icha Paradise."

Chen was puzzled by the system's notification, especially since the penalty was so strange.

Before he could react, a book appeared in his hand—and it was Icha Icha Paradise.

Kakashi noticed something strange, too. He felt someone had tampered with his ninja pouch, and then he saw Icha Icha Paradise in Chen's hand.

At once, Kakashi went on high alert.

From Kakashi's perspective, Chen had clearly done this. And stealing something from his ninja pouch without him noticing was no simple feat.

"Would you believe me if I said I didn't do it?"

Chen was at a loss. The system was way too much of a nuisance.

He was only a Genin. Was it really a good idea to provoke Kakashi like this?

Icha Icha Paradise was practically always in Kakashi's hands. It was like his wife.

Chen was touching someone else's wife now. It would be strange if Kakashi didn't fly into a rage.

"Enough talk!"

"Lightning Release: Earth Flash!"

Kakashi attacked first, and he was already taking the fight seriously.

There was no helping it. Because of Icha Icha Paradise, Kakashi had decided Chen was strong—perhaps even stronger than himself.

"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"

Since there was no way to talk his way out of it, Chen wouldn't just sit there and take it. He formed hand seals and used a technique, all while thinking of a countermeasure.

The next moment, a Shadow Clone appeared, and Chen and his clone formed hand seals together.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Two enormous fireballs appeared, and Kakashi was stunned.

The Great Fireball Technique wasn't exclusive to the Uchiha, but it was practically standard Uchiha fare.

Now that Uchiha techniques had appeared in the hands of an unknown person, Kakashi grew even more wary.

"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"

Kakashi tried to defend himself with Water Release, but when the two techniques collided, he looked shocked once again.

"How is this possible?!"