Two years later.
Explosions rang out without pause in the forest outside Konoha.
Three figures raced through the dense woods.
One was tall and dark-skinned, while the other two were of average build.
All three looked battered. Their clothes were in tatters, they were injured, and their faces were filled with panic.
A golden beam suddenly shot toward them from behind, narrowly missing one of the three.
Though the beam didn't hit them, the explosion it caused sent all three flying.
They adjusted their positions in midair and managed to land on their feet. Without hesitation, they continued running.
"That-that guy's a monster!" one of them gasped. Blood poured from his right hand.
"Don't talk!" the tall man snapped.
"We'll never get away like this," another said, despair creeping into his voice.
His words dealt a heavy blow to the whole group.
The tall ninja leading them steeled himself and made a quick decision.
"We split up!"
The three didn't hesitate or object. They leaped off in different directions.
Just then, a golden slash appeared out of nowhere, cutting the ninja who had run to the right in half.
At the same time, a golden beam shot toward the left, hitting the fleeing ninja squarely in the thigh.
"Ah!" The ninja cried out, clutching his injury as he fell to the ground.
His pupils contracted. The only one who hadn't been attacked—their leader—realized that if he kept running, he would suffer a fatal blow too.
He stopped reluctantly and landed beside his injured comrade, warily watching the area around them.
"If you got away, that'd be a real problem for me!" a sleazy, leering voice called from nearby.
Hearing it, the leader gripped his kunai and tensely stared toward the sound, but he couldn't see anyone.
Silence returned. Still clutching his kunai, the leader felt as if he were about to go mad.
"You monster, come out if you've got the guts! You bastard!" Thinking of the three comrades who had already fallen, the tall ninja shouted in fury and despair.
"You sure sound righteous, considering you're the ones who came to assassinate me!" the voice called again, this time from behind him.
The leader spun around like a cat with its fur standing on end, only to find nothing there either.
"Hey, hey, you're looking the wrong way!" The voice came from behind him again. The leader had just turned around, but now he spun back like a top.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Your comrade seems to be bleeding to death. What a terrifying way to go!"
The voice sounded again, this time from the side, where his teammate lay.
The leader made a quick decision and looked over.
A transparent human figure gradually emerged from the air. Their target—the monster of Konoha, Shimura Kizaru—had appeared.
With one foot planted on the fallen ninja and his hands in his pockets, Kizaru—now 190 centimeters tall—smiled at the ninja before him.
"You monster!" the leader shouted. Lightning flickered around him as he shot toward Kizaru like an arrow.
His kunai drew closer and closer. Seeing that Kizaru didn't move, as if he hadn't even reacted, the leader wore a faintly relieved smile.
"Die!" he roared. The kunai stabbed into his target, only to pass through Kizaru's body as though it were air.
The leader's eyes widened. He stared at Kizaru's smiling face in disbelief.
He stood frozen, the kunai still buried in Kizaru's body, unable to accept what had just happened.
Under the enemy's astonished, confused gaze, Kizaru slowly looked down at the kunai in his chest.
He glanced at the kunai, then looked back at his enemy.
Seeing the despair growing in the enemy's face, kindhearted Kizaru decided to react.
"Ah!"
He clutched his chest and dramatically arched backward, collapsing against the tree behind him.
Sliding down the trunk, Kizaru sat on the ground and stared at his enemy, still clutching his chest.
"Ah! I'm dying!" he said, then tilted his head and closed his eyes.
The kunai fell from the leader's hand. Watching Kizaru sit on the ground with his head tilted and eyes closed, the ninja was completely dumbfounded.
"You-you lunatic! Pervert! Monster! Are you toying with me? You bastard!"
Kizaru opened his eyes and got back to his feet.
"Hey, hey! I could sue you for slander!" he said with a smile, scratching his head.
Knowing he was no match for Kizaru—and that there was no way to escape him—the leader launched a suicidal charge.
Kizaru didn't dodge. He let the enemy pass through his body and slam into a tree.
"You're making this very troublesome for me!" Kizaru turned toward the enemy, who had smashed his head open and was bleeding profusely, and gave him a look of disgust.
"What do you want from me?" The leader turned around, his back against the tree, and shouted at him.
"Put down your weapon and come with me. Confess and you'll be treated leniently; resist and you'll be dealt with severely!" Kizaru said with a smile.
"Impossible!"
Knowing how much trouble he could cause Konoha if he were captured alive, the leader refused outright.
Then, without another moment's hesitation, he glanced at his fallen comrade and raised a hand to plunge it into his own throat.
He moved quickly, but Kizaru was faster!
Kizaru's right foot lit up. He kicked in a crescent, like a razor-sharp blade of light, severing the enemy's right hand.
The ninja clenched his teeth and didn't cry out. Bloodshot eyes fixed on Kizaru.
"Playtime's over!" Kizaru said with a smile, then strode forward and knocked out the enemy with the severed hand.
After laying the enemy on the ground, Kizaru looked at the other one.
He took a step forward and raised his right foot high, placing it over the face of the enemy lying on the ground. Light particles gathered around his shin, shining with a dazzling golden glow.
With his glowing right foot hanging in the air, Kizaru kept his hands in his pockets and said nothing. Instead, he looked into the distance.
"One, two."
"I surrender! Don't kill me!" The ninja had a weaker nerve. Faced with the sword of light poised above his head, he couldn't take it anymore.
"Three!"
"Ah!" At the count of three, the ninja screamed and frantically raised his hands to shield his head.
Tears streamed from his eyes, and liquid trickled from his lower half. His mental defenses had completely crumbled.
Kizaru caught a whiff of urine and shook his head in disgust. As the enemy beneath him shouted and begged, he lowered his leg.
"They're here!"
Keeping his gaze fixed on the distance, Kizaru saw six figures wearing Anbu masks.
"You're right on time!" Kizaru joked, facing the six familiar Anbu.
They landed and looked around. Once they confirmed that two enemies were still alive, the Anbu breathed a sigh of relief.
"Leave it to us," said one of them, an Anbu wearing a fox-shaped mask, stepping forward to address Kizaru.
"Thanks for the trouble!" Kizaru said, then headed back toward the village, walking away from the spot that reeked of urine.
"This kid just keeps getting stronger," Fox Mask said with a heartfelt sigh as he watched Kizaru's retreating figure.
"I heard he defeated Sakumo in a one-on-one match last month!" another Anbu remarked, equally impressed.
"Let's get to work!"
With that, Fox Mask looked away and walked over to the ninja with the severed arm, beginning to treat his injuries.