"I didn't expect you back so soon."
The dark figure said, "
I'll let you go today. Next time we meet, you won't be so lucky."
With that, the dark figure turned into a wisp of black smoke and vanished into the woods.
Kawaki Aoba rushed to his clone and helped him up. "How are you? Are you hurt?"
The clone shook his head. "I'm fine. He just absorbed some of my Chakra.
There's something strange about that man. His jutsu and Chakra are both unusual, and he's incredibly strong."
Kawaki Aoba frowned as he stared in the direction the figure had vanished, worry filling his heart.
That figure was no ordinary enemy. He might pose an even greater threat to Konoha in the future.
"Looks like Konoha has another enemy to watch out for."
Kawaki Aoba murmured, "
But whoever he is, I'll protect Konoha. I won't let him hurt a single person here."
Mud splattered across the grass, mixing with dust and the lingering smoke of the explosion. A damp, acrid smell rose from it.
The Shadow Clone frowned and was about to form Hand Seals to give chase when his original's voice came from behind him. "Don't chase him. Save your strength for the other two."
Kawaki Aoba emerged slowly from the haze. Flecks of dirt clung to his black Konoha vest, and the wind stirred the hair across his forehead, revealing eyes as still as deep water.
His gaze swept over the slowly spreading puddle of mud. His voice was calm, but carried unmistakable authority. "You took a direct hit from me and still used a secret jutsu to escape with that kind of precision. You're no ordinary intelligence brokers."
The man with the Kunai had helped his scroll-bearing companion retreat beneath a tree ten meters