The Escort Back to the Village

"I think you're dreaming. You really think we'd be tempted by some crooked scheme like this?"

"Crooked scheme? Do you know how much stronger you'd become by absorbing the power in the altar? I could instantly advance to jonin, do you understand?"

Shen Ye curled his lip. A ninja who needed the altar's power just to become a jonin was utterly useless.

Killer Bee would never grow any stronger for the rest of his life. He wouldn't get another chance to activate the altar.

The five burly men's escape might have been a good thing. Otherwise, they might already have ended up as corpses beneath the altar.

"Enough. Take him back to the village and let the Third decide his fate. What he did crossed the line for any ninja. He deserves to be executed ten thousand times over."

Shen Ye deliberately tried to scare Killer Bee. In truth, he had no idea how the Third would deal with him.

Perhaps once they had gotten the information they wanted from him, Killer Bee would be of no further use and would spend the rest of his life locked up in Konoha's prison.

"But how are we supposed to take him back? None of us can use Sealing Jutsu to suppress his chakra."

"Right. We can't keep him tied down with the Shadow Bind Technique the whole way. We'll need to find another way."

Shen Ye rubbed his chin. He hadn't thought of this earlier, so they'd have to come up with a foolproof plan.

After thinking it over, Shen Ye decided to use the most primitive and brutal method to keep Killer Bee from trying to escape.

Seeing Shen Ye approach with a wicked grin, Killer Bee swallowed, sensing that something bad was about to happen.

Sure enough, Shen Ye raised his fist high. Carefully focusing chakra into it to increase its force, he brought it down squarely on Killer Bee's head.

With a clang, Killer Bee's body slumped against the shadow binding him.

"You can release the jutsu. I doubt this guy will wake up before we reach the Hokage Office. Strength of a Hundred really is a great technique."

Shen Ye shook his fist, admiring it with satisfaction.

Minato looked a little bewildered. Both Shen Ye and Hatake Sakumo seemed terrifying just then—not the sort of people anyone would dare provoke.

At least he was teammates with those two scary guys. If they'd been his enemies, he would have been in serious trouble.

"Let's go!"

"Before we leave, there's one more thing to do. We can't leave that altar behind."

Minato nodded and leaped over to the altar. He stared at its faintly glowing surface, lost in thought and unsure what to do.

"Hatake Sakumo, I'll leave the demolition to you. I don't have much experience with this."

Hatake Sakumo shot Minato a look, picked up a stone at his feet, and tossed it into the altar. It landed right in the center.

A rumbling sound filled the air. The altar's light abruptly went out, and cracks spread visibly from the center.

After dusting off his hands, Hatake Sakumo turned and followed Shen Ye back toward the village. Minato shrugged and followed after them.

They had gone a long way when a tremendous explosion suddenly boomed from the direction of the altar. Hatake Sakumo's lips curled into a slight smile.

"A real man never looks back at an explosion. You must all be in awe of me now."

Shen Ye's mouth twitched. He'd been right about Hatake Sakumo: once they'd gotten familiar with each other, he'd become just like Namikaze Minato.

Still, the mood had lightened considerably. The mission weighing on everyone's minds was finally over, and they'd brought it to an end themselves.

Looking at Killer Bee slung over Shikaku's shoulder, Shen Ye felt a strange emotion rise within him. He had truly become part of this world.

After traveling for a while, they finally made it back to the village.

Aoba Yamashiro was standing at the village entrance. When he saw the kids suddenly appear, he looked surprised, especially since there was a stranger slung over Minato's shoulder.

"Why aren't you kids at the Ninja Academy? What are you doing outside the village?"

"Big Brother Aoba, can't you tell by looking at the guy Minato's carrying? We helped the village complete a very important mission."

Aoba Yamashiro nodded and looked Killer Bee up and down.

He noticed a very obvious dent on Killer Bee's head and couldn't help giving him a surprised look.

Without wasting any more time there, Shen Ye and the others headed straight for the Hokage Office, ready to hand Killer Bee over to the Third.

Several of the village's ninja were gathered in the office. It seemed the Third had called them in for a meeting.

The moment they opened the door, everyone's gaze turned to Shen Ye. He awkwardly scratched his head and stepped aside.

"I'm not the main event today. You should look at this guy instead."

Minato set the unconscious Killer Bee on the floor and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Carrying him all the way back had taken a lot of strength.

"What's going on? Who is this guy?"

"The five burly men who ran off earlier were here because of him. They were his sacrifices."

"Sacrifices?"

The Third furrowed his brow. He hadn't expected things to be this serious. Human sacrifice was something the Ninja World could never tolerate.

Shen Ye nodded and recounted the whole story.

Everyone in the room gave them a thumbs-up, looking at the kids with approval. They were the future of Konoha.

Though they were young, they'd already worked together to take down an enemy many times stronger than themselves. Their futures were limitless.

But the Third's face showed no approval at all. If anything, a hint of reproach filled his eyes.

"Do you understand how dangerous that was? If you'd run into an even stronger enemy, you might not have made it back to the village today. Do you understand?"

"Don't worry, Third. We knew what we were doing. It's an honor to do our part for the village."

"We'll deal with this man. What you did was very risky, but you completed the mission perfectly, so you still deserve a reward."

Minato's eyes lit up. Having already had a taste of a reward, he didn't hesitate this time. He'd already decided what he wanted.

But the Third simply took four scrolls from the corner of the room and handed them to Shen Ye.

"These are four jutsu tailored to each of you. Consider them your reward for this mission. Don't take risks like this again without the village's orders. Understand?"