"Hey, kid! Hurry up and hand over everything you've got!"
After stopping Yun Xi, the three rogue ninja came straight up to him.
They surrounded him from three directions to keep him from escaping.
"Get lost!"
Seeing that these three rogue ninja had actually dared to stop him, Yun Xi was utterly exasperated. He hadn't expected to run into trouble right after leaving Konoha.
"Kid, you're asking for it!"
Seeing how brazen Yun Xi was, the three rogue ninja attacked at once!
"Clone Technique."
"Shuriken Technique."
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique."
In an instant, the three rogue ninja unleashed their signature techniques.
The one using the Clone Technique was responsible for keeping Yun Xi occupied, while the other Genin provided support.
The rogue ninja using Fire Style was meant to finish him off.
This was the trio's most frequently used battle tactic.
Based on their past experience, even an ordinary Chunin couldn't escape it.
Let alone the kid in front of them, who was only a Genin...
"Go check if that kid's dead."
After the attack ended, the spot where Yun Xi had been standing was shrouded in smoke left behind by the Fire Style technique.
The Chunin naturally assumed that his Fire Style had killed Yun Xi.
"Yes, boss!"
The other two Genin didn't hesitate after receiving the order.
They hurried toward the target's location, but when they reached the spot where Yun Xi had been, looks of terror appeared on their faces!
"Boss... he's gone..."
"What?!"
The Chunin looked incredulous when he heard his subordinates' report.
He might have been an ordinary Chunin, but years of fighting had given him plenty of experience.
There was no reason his Fire Style shouldn't have killed that brat.
"Remember, next time make sure you've got your target in sight before you attack..."
Suddenly, a voice tinged with bloodlust came from behind them.
The Chunin instinctively turned around, but there was no one behind him.
When he turned back, he saw a sharp shuriken flying toward him...
A spray of blood burst forth...
"When did you..."
Even as he died, the Chunin couldn't understand how he'd met such an inexplicable end.
"If you're weak, don't go around robbing people."
After retrieving the shuriken he'd flung earlier,
Yun Xi slowly walked toward the two remaining Genin, his expression blank.
In the ninja world, showing mercy to your enemies was the greatest irresponsibility toward yourself.
Yun Xi would never let them go just because they were only Genin.
A moment of weakness could leave him with a huge threat down the line.
"Sir... please spare us..."
As Yun Xi approached like a harbinger of death, the two Genin began to crumble inside.
They didn't even think of resisting. They simply dropped to their knees,
begging Yun Xi to let them go...
"If I weren't this strong, I'd be the one dead!"
Faced with enemies begging for their lives, Yun Xi didn't hesitate. He used his incredible speed to kill them both...
"What a pain. They wasted my time."
After killing the three men, Yun Xi looked at the few thousand ryo in his hand with a helpless expression.
He looked utterly disgusted. The time they'd wasted was worth far more than a few thousand ryo!
Still, even a mosquito's leg was meat. He stowed the money and continued toward the Land of Whirlpools.
To make sure this didn't happen again, Yun Xi stopped hiding his strength.
He let his full aura blaze forth.
The Land of Whirlpools was near Konoha. Unless something unexpected happened, it usually took less than half a day to reach.
With Yun Xi pushing himself to move as fast as he could, he finally arrived at the ruins of the former Land of Whirlpools three hours later.
"So this is the Land of Whirlpools?"
Looking at a battered signpost, Yun Xi couldn't help feeling a little regretful.
Ten years ago, the Land of Whirlpools had been an extremely prosperous country.
It had very few ninja, but it possessed a powerful tradition of Sealing Jutsu.
Unfortunately, other ninja villages had feared it and destroyed it...
Only a handful of ninja had survived, and Karin, whom Yun Xi was looking for, was one of them.
"There's a little smoke rising in the distance. Let's check it out!"
After searching through the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools, Yun Xi spotted smoke rising from a forest not far away.
He felt a little excited.
Smoke meant that people lived nearby.
Karin should be about his age at this point.
If no one had taken her away, she must be living somewhere near the Land of Whirlpools!
With that, Yun Xi headed straight for the forest. To make his search for Karin easier, he activated his Mangekyō Sharingan.
With his dynamic vision enhanced, he soon spotted a child in the forest.
He also spotted the shadows of a group of adults...
"Who are those adults?"
Yun Xi wasn't surprised to see a child. He was certain it was Karin.
But the group of adults left him puzzled.
The Land of Whirlpools had been destroyed, leaving nothing but ruins.
Under ordinary circumstances, outsiders would never come here on their own.
"Could they be the people who took Karin back to the Land of Grass?"
The thought came to Yun Xi, and he saw that the adults were steadily closing in on the child.
Their actions only confirmed his suspicions about who they were and who the child was!
"Good thing I'm not too late!"
Once he'd figured out what was going on, Yun Xi wasted no more time and hurried toward the child.
The towering forest might have posed an obstacle for ordinary people.
But it was no trouble at all for Yun Xi.
The two groups weren't far apart, and Yun Xi found Karin before the others arrived!
"So it really is you..."
After seeing that the little girl was Karin, Yun Xi let out a long sigh.
He was relieved that the three foolish bandits at the start hadn't delayed his plan.
Otherwise, Yun Xi would have been furious...
"Little girl, would you like me to help you?"
When Yun Xi saw Karin fishing alone beside a forest pond, he stepped out of the bushes.
To make her trust him more, he even dispelled his Transformation Jutsu.
He returned to his original appearance.
"Wow, he's so handsome!" Karin thought when Yun Xi suddenly appeared.
But, out of caution, she still asked carefully, "Big brother, who are you?"
As she spoke, she set down her fishing rod and put her left hand behind her back.
"This Karin..." Yun Xi wasn't surprised to see her acting this way.
After all, several years had passed since the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed. If she hadn't learned to be cautious,
she'd probably be dead already...
"Do you want to go somewhere with plenty of food and drink, where you'll be safe?"
Seeing that Karin was still wary, Yun Xi didn't approach her.
Instead, he stayed where he was and began his first plan to spirit away a little girl...
Yun Xi: "I swear on my life, I'm definitely not a lolicon! Definitely not!"
[Author's Note]: I'm still running a fever today... I'm really sorry, everyone. There'll be more updates later, so please don't worry.
Before you continue