Who Are You?

Just as everyone's attention was focused on the house, a mysterious figure watched the children quietly from the shadows in the distance.

"Those fools came here again. They ruined my plans and nearly took my sacrifice away."

The words seemed to have been forced through clenched teeth, making the speaker's deep hatred unmistakable.

Unaware of what was going on, Shen Ye and the others widened their search and decided to look around the area.

"Shen Ye, I found something!"

Minato leaped onto a treetop and waved toward the others.

Hearing Minato call out, the others turned and ran over. Before long, they had gathered together again.

Looking at the altar surrounded by countless bushes, Shen Ye furrowed his brow.

If they hadn't been searching the area indiscriminately at that moment, they never would have found the altar. That showed just how well hidden it was.

"Since it's hidden here, whoever made it clearly doesn't want anyone to find it. Maybe those five people were just tools."

"I've studied altars a little. Let me take a closer look."

Hatake Sakumo slowly crouched down, gathering chakra in his palm before gently pressing it against the altar.

The altar gave off a faint glow. A pull appeared at its center, and Minato and Shikaku stumbled, nearly getting sucked in.

But Shen Ye didn't feel a thing. Only a gentle breeze brushed past his ears.

Hatake Sakumo hurriedly stopped what he was doing and turned to look at Shen Ye.

From the expression on his face, Shen Ye knew trouble was coming. The altar was far beyond anything they could understand.

"An altar that uses five sacrifices to increase someone's strength isn't allowed in Konoha. The entire shinobi world would condemn it."

"We should hurry back to the village and report this to Lord Third. We can't handle this with our current abilities."

"I'm afraid you won't be leaving. Now that you've discovered this secret, you might as well stay and become sacrifices. Four little ones will do just fine."

The figure hiding in the shadows couldn't bear to see his altar exposed any longer. He took a few steps out of the darkness and appeared before them.

Shen Ye shook his head helplessly. They would have to fight after all. As expected, this mission wasn't going to be simple.

"You'll have to prove you can keep us here. You're alone, and there are four of us!"

"Four little brats who aren't even Genin think they can fight me? Did I just hear the biggest joke of my life?"

Shen Ye folded his arms, his thoughts unreadable.

Minato stepped forward to confront the man, but Shen Ye grabbed him and pulled him behind himself.

Shen Ye walked a few steps ahead of the others, raised his head, and moved his lips.

"Who are you?"

"Who am I? I'm the enemy of Konoha, the god of death who'll end your lives today, little brats."

"I asked for your name. That way, we can give you a grave after you die."

"Killer Bee."

Shen Ye scratched his head. The name meant nothing to him.

Whether in the original story or after coming to this world, Killer Bee was a complete stranger to him.

Since he didn't know this enemy, Shen Ye didn't attack right away. He had no idea how strong the man was and needed to test him first.

But Killer Bee was in a hurry. He planted his foot against the ground and charged straight at Shen Ye.

"Shen Ye, watch out!"

Minato rushed toward him, but he was too late. Killer Bee had already stopped in front of Shen Ye.

His hand shot out like a pair of pincers toward Shen Ye's throat, aiming to end the fight in one move. He hadn't expected Shen Ye to evade simply by tilting his head.

Killer Bee was a little surprised. How could a mere child have such quick reflexes?

By then, Minato had reached Shen Ye's side. He clenched his fists and threw a flurry of punches at Killer Bee.

With no choice, Killer Bee retreated, dodging Minato's attacks.

Minato's fists struck only air. Shen Ye patted him on the shoulder, then gave Shikaku and Hatake a look.

Though Hatake Sakumo had only recently joined the team, he understood what Shen Ye meant. He and Shikaku spread out and moved to surround Killer Bee.

The four of them encircled Killer Bee, which only made him happier.

If the four brats had stayed together, taking them all down might have been difficult. But spread apart like this, he could defeat them one by one.

"Earth Release: Earth Collapse Technique!"

Killer Bee stood still and began forming Hand Seals. The ground around them started to tremble, then suddenly split open into a huge chasm.

The ground beneath Shen Ye and the others slowly rose into the air, drawing together.

"Strength of a Hundred!"

Shen Ye swung his fist and smashed it into the dirt beneath his feet. Tremendous force spread out from the point where his fist met the ground.

With a rumble, the rocks broke apart into countless small stones. Shen Ye flipped through the air and landed on the ground.

The other three couldn't control their strength as precisely as Shen Ye, so they leaped clear of the rocks instead.

"Hmph!"

Killer Bee snorted and moved his hands faster.

The rocks crashed together, but instead of making the enormous noise he'd expected, they formed an even larger boulder that hurtled toward Shen Ye.

From watching them in secret, he'd already identified Shen Ye as the leader. And, as the saying went, capture the leader first.

Shen Ye pursed his lips. So this man had been targeting him all along; everything he'd done had just been a setup.

The boulder was so huge that even Strength of a Hundred and the Partial Multi-Size Technique couldn't stop it. Shen Ye could only avoid its force and dodge.

"Minato!"

"Got it!"

Minato answered and casually threw a marked chakra seal in one direction.

"Flying Thunder God Technique!"

Before the shuriken had even come to a stop, Shen Ye vanished from where he stood and appeared in midair. He grabbed the shuriken Minato had thrown and landed on the ground.

The huge boulder slammed into the ground, making the surrounding earth tremble.

"I didn't expect you to be so quick on your feet, kid. But you won't be so lucky next time. You're the ones who took my sacrifice, aren't you?"