Combining Ninjutsu

"Let's eat!"

Akimichi Choza clasped his hands together and reverently gazed at the food before him. Then he launched into a full-on feeding frenzy.

In just a few breaths, the delicious food on the table dwindled at a visible rate.

Seeing this, Shen Ye didn't hesitate. He snatched up the chicken leg nearest him and shoved it into his mouth, afraid that if he waited even a moment, there'd be nothing left to eat.

Shikaku and Minato were no different. Only the two girls, Yue Xing and Meishang, leisurely picked up a few things and chewed them slowly.

"Well, what a coincidence, running into you kids here."

A shinobi wearing a forehead protector from another village appeared in front of them. Shen Ye looked up at him, and memories surfaced in his mind.

He was a shinobi from Kumogakure. Shen Ye remembered him because, in the original story, these were the men who kidnapped Kushina Uzumaki.

For these guys to suddenly show up here, they definitely had ulterior motives.

"We don't even know each other. What coincidence?"

"Our boss wants to take Miss Meishang with him for a while, so you'd better not get in the way."

Namikaze Minato frowned and immediately stood up, positioning himself between Meishang and the Kumogakure shinobi.

"Do you even know you're on Konoha's turf? How dare you talk so big?"

"Why are you brats yapping away? You're getting on my nerves."

The Kumogakure shinobi reached out without warning, intending to shove Minato aside, while his other hand grabbed for Meishang.

Shen Ye gave a cold snort and instantly moved in front of the Kumogakure shinobi, gathering his chakra into his fist.

"Partial Multi-Size Technique and Strength of a Hundred!"

With several successive thuds, Shen Ye's arm swelled to the thickness of a tree trunk, its immense force slamming into the Kumogakure shinobi's stomach.

Boom! The man was blasted straight out of the building. He tumbled across the ground several times before coming to a stop.

The tremendous commotion immediately drew the Konoha shinobi on patrol nearby. Three or five of them surrounded the man, while another Konoha shinobi appeared beside Shen Ye.

"Did you hit him?"

"Who else? You saw it yourself, so why are you asking me?"

The shinobi looked Shen Ye up and down. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he'd never have believed that such a small body could produce such tremendous strength.

Akimichi Choza was just as stunned, a chicken leg still dangling from his mouth. He hadn't mistaken the Partial Multi-Size Technique he'd just seen. It was the Akimichi Clan's exclusive ninjutsu.

Before he could ask Shen Ye about it, the patrol shinobi escorted them all to the Hokage Office.

The Third Hokage, whom they'd parted with not long ago, sat behind his desk, studying the group before him. He could hardly believe these kids had caused such a commotion.

"Third Hokage, don't you think you should explain Meishang's situation to us properly? That guy came right up and tried to take her away."

Shen Ye paid no mind to showing the Third Hokage respect. He braced both hands on the desk and met Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze without backing down.

"Heh. Meishang is from Kumogakure, but if she stayed there, she would have suffered inhuman treatment. That's why we brought her back to the village to protect her."

Shen Ye thought carefully about Sarutobi Hiruzen's words. There was a deeper meaning to them.

On the one hand, he claimed the village was protecting Meishang. On the other, he hinted that she was worth studying—not just to Kumogakure.

As for what Konoha would ultimately decide, that would depend on how Meishang developed in the future.

Shen Ye turned to look at Meishang. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't see any hidden beast or threat in her face.

"I hope the village really is protecting her, and not treating her like a lab rat."

The Third Hokage showed no sign of being bothered by Shen Ye's doubts, but Minato was panicking beside him. Several times, he tried to stop Ye Xuan.

Whatever the case, Sarutobi Hiruzen was the current Third Hokage. Showing him so little respect was unacceptable anywhere in the village.

"I'm curious how you managed to use that ninjutsu today. Was it a combination of natural superhuman strength and the Akimichi Clan's secret technique?"

Shen Ye cursed inwardly. They'd still taken notice of his unique way of using ninjutsu. Before he could even protect Meishang, he might end up as a lab rat himself.

His eyes darted around. Shen Ye quickly jumped back two steps, landing beside Akimichi Choza.

"Big Sis Tsunade taught me how to control my chakra for Strength of a Hundred. As for the Partial Multi-Size Technique, of course Choza taught me."

As he spoke, Shen Ye winked at Choza. Though Choza could be a little slow on the uptake, he immediately understood what Shen Ye meant.

"That's right. I taught Shen Ye the hand signs for it at the Ninja Academy. I just didn't expect him to master it so quickly."

The Third Hokage smiled faintly, but didn't expose their lie.

"Today's incident was thanks to you kids, so tell me: what kind of reward would you like?"

"We were only doing what we should for the village. If there's nothing else, we'll be going now."

Minato hurriedly led Shen Ye and the others out of the room, leaving the Hokage Office without pausing.

The Third Hokage rose and walked to the window. Looking down at the kids running below, he fixed his gaze on Shen Ye.

Only after they had all disappeared from view did the Third Hokage return to his chair.

They hadn't stopped once along the way, and Akimichi Choza was now completely out of breath. Even after stopping Minato, he leaned against a nearby tree and panted heavily.

"Why didn't we take a reward? We just missed a great chance to train."

"There'll be plenty of chances like that in the future. Something felt off in the office today."

"I felt it too. We should all be careful lately."

Shen Ye left them with a warning, then turned and headed home. Yue Xing glanced at the others and hurried after him, planning to walk home with him.

Shikaku and Minato exchanged a glance and shrugged. They discussed walking Meishang home before heading to their own homes, but Meishang turned them down.

"You two don't need to worry about me. Choza needs you more right now. I'll be fine on my own."

They went their separate ways. Shen Ye opened the door, went straight to his bed, and slowly closed his eyes.

He thought over Sarutobi Hiruzen's behavior in the office that day. His instincts told him that some kind of scheme was waiting for him.

Only now did Shen Ye realize that this world wasn't as simple as he'd imagined.