"I know! You really do love to nag. Your old-woman way of going on and on leaves me speechless. Fine, I'm leaving!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled, patted Mingye on the shoulder, then turned and left. Mingye looked at the half-pot of sake still remaining and poured himself a cup.
"Twice already, huh?"
About thirty kilometers outside Sunagakure in the Land of Wind stood a dilapidated temple. A middle-aged monk swept the dust from beneath the Buddha statue, then raised his head to look at the golden sunlight outside the door.
"What lovely weather! It's quite astonishing that there isn't even any wind, isn't it?"
A sudden voice sounded behind the middle-aged monk. He spun around sharply toward its source and saw a man sitting cross-legged on a cushion, his palms pressed together as he bowed before the Buddha statue. Bunpuku's expression tightened. This man had completely exceeded his expectations—he had entered the temple without Bunpuku sensing him at all. He was undoubtedly a Kage-level powerhouse.
"May I ask whether you have come to worship Buddha or seek lodging, sir?"
Though his words sounded calm, they carried a faint tremor—nervous, yet seemingly composed as usual. Mingye rose to his feet, shook his head, and smiled at him.
"Neither. Bunpuku, I've been looking for you for nearly thirty years."
That familiar chakra caused the One-Tail within Bunpuku's body to suddenly go berserk and curse aloud.
"That's impossible! How could that bastard still be alive?!"
Bunpuku was bewildered, completely unaware of why the One-Tail had suddenly gone berserk.
"Who is he?"
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"
"You...!"
Boom!
The One-Tail did not answer Bunpuku's question and only continued cursing. Mingye, however, instantly closed in on Bunpuku, catching him off guard. With one punch, Bunpuku turned into yellow sand and scattered across the ground.