Kill!

Screech...

A streak of silver flashed through the pitch-black night sky.

A sharp sound tore through the air as a blade sliced past at high speed. The middle-aged ninja, who had ducked sharply to evade it, revealed a look of shock.

"So fast!"

Supporting himself with one hand, he swiftly pulled back and looked at Samu Kokaze's small body with faint wariness.

The strength Samu Kokaze had displayed was already enough to pose some threat to him, especially when this body was only a clone.

His real body was still fighting that Anbu. Though he was somewhat stronger than the Anbu, the other man was focused entirely on stalling him, making it impossible to kill him in a short time.

And if this clone was destroyed, he would have no choice but to flee Konoha immediately. Otherwise, if these brats went out and told someone, once Konoha learned of it, he would certainly die. The consequences of being captured were even more unthinkable.

"Did you dodge it?"

A chill flashed through Samu Kokaze's eyes as he gripped his carving knife. He frowned slightly at the figure opposite him. Even a surprise attack had failed to finish him in one blow, and the time he could maintain his current state was limited.

"No choice. I'll have to try it first!" Gritting his teeth, he watched the figure opposite him subtly move both hands, preparing to form hand seals. He said softly, "Combat Assistance System, activate."

As his words fell, Samu Kokaze's face instantly turned icy, as though every human emotion had vanished from him.

Faintly illusory data appeared in his silver-glinting eyes, calculating every movement the figure before him might make in the next few seconds based on the opponent's muscle movements.

Taking a deep breath, he dug his toes into the ground and kicked off hard. The solid earth caved in and shattered beneath him as his figure vanished from where he stood. His right hand, holding the carving knife, viciously stabbed toward the man's eye.

The middle-aged ninja jerked his head aside, trying to avoid the attack. But Samu Kokaze had already calculated his possible movements. His thrusting arm suddenly swept downward, slashing once more toward the man's throat.

"Not good!"

Seeing the attack follow the direction of his dodge, the middle-aged ninja's pupils suddenly contracted. He threw himself backward onto the ground, rolled several times, then sprang back to his feet and stared ahead in horror.

"Can someone tell me how the hell this is supposed to be an ordinary little kid?!"

Looking at Samu Kokaze's icy expression and utterly emotionless eyes, the middle-aged ninja could not help cursing the employer who had provided the intelligence.

How was this an ordinary child? Every strike targeted his vital points, and those eyes were completely devoid of emotion. If ordinary children were all this strong, what was the point of ninjas like them? They might as well go home and farm!

But it was too late for regrets. Since he had accepted the mission and even killed a Konoha Anbu, he could only see it through to the bitter end. If he completed the mission, he might survive under his employer's protection. Otherwise, he would undoubtedly die without a burial place in Konoha.

"Gulp..."

Watching Samu Kokaze display such overwhelming might ahead of them, the others kept swallowing nervously.

"Is... is that really Feng?" Naruto could not help asking the people beside him as he watched the two fight at speeds he could barely see.

"Probably?" Shikamaru answered uncertainly, staring at the figures constantly flashing ahead.

"I knew it, I knew Feng would have a way!" Watching Samu Kokaze batter his opponent into a miserable retreat a hundred meters away, stars practically sparkled in Ino's eyes. Since she had met Samu Kokaze, he had never let her down. This time was no different.

"Feng! Go!" Ino shouted loudly from behind, her cheeks flushed red.

"Damn it!"

After avoiding another of Samu Kokaze's attacks, the middle-aged ninja cursed under his breath. He was clearly much stronger than this brat, but because he was a clone and would vanish if struck, he was restrained at every turn. Watching his opponent use moves that traded injury for injury, he was filled with frustration. Then, hearing the cheers behind him, he suddenly gave a sinister laugh.

"Haha! Brat! Let's see if you can ignore your friends being killed!"

The middle-aged ninja shouted, forced Samu Kokaze back, then lunged toward Ino and the others.

Seeing the middle-aged ninja charge toward Ino, a cold glint flashed through Samu Kokaze's eyes. He pushed off hard, producing an explosive crack in the air, and hurled the carving knife from his hand. It shot toward the man's back at terrifying speed.

"Hmph!"

Sensing the urgent sound of air tearing behind him, the middle-aged ninja snorted. He shifted slightly and instantly evaded the attack from behind. However, this slowed him down a little, allowing Samu Kokaze to close the distance.

The group, who had been standing still and cheering for Samu Kokaze, watched the enemy rush toward them and immediately turned tense. Naruto suddenly shouted, grabbed Ino and Sakura, and pulled them behind him. He clenched his fists and stared nervously at the incoming attack.

"Naruto!" The two girls cried out after being suddenly dragged away.

"Heh!" Naruto turned and grinned. "Feng told me to protect you before. Until I die, none of you are allowed to die!"

Watching Naruto step forward despite trembling so hard his legs were shaking, Shikamaru clenched his teeth. Cold sweat covered his body, but he still took two steps forward and stood beside Naruto.

"I can't let you be the only hero!"

"That's right!" Choji, his body fat jiggling all over, somehow appeared nearby as well.

"You little brats think this is some game of house? Then all of you can die!"

Looking at the children before him, cruelty flashed through the middle-aged ninja's eyes. He swung his arm and charged at them at high speed.

"Not good!"

The icy eyes of Samu Kokaze, who was chasing from behind, rippled as he saw the middle-aged ninja attack ahead.

With absolute control over his body, he concentrated all his strength into his feet. A tremendous force instantly surged into them. His shoes exploded apart, veins bulged wildly across his feet, and tiny sprays of Bloody Mist even burst from his pores. His already incredible speed increased by more than thirty percent, and he abruptly appeared before Naruto and the others just as they were about to be struck.

Seeing the brat suddenly appear before him, the middle-aged ninja instead curled his lips into a smile. He accelerated his swing once more, and a black kunai without the slightest reflection instantly pierced Samu Kokaze's left chest.

Screech...

The sharp kunai sank in without any resistance, and the middle-aged ninja burst into laughter.

"Feng!" Everyone cried out from behind. Naruto even grabbed a rock and charged forward, madness appearing on his face.

"My friend! How could my friend die here?! How could he die here?!"

Perhaps Naruto's extreme fury stirred something within him. Faint red chakra rose from his body, his pupils narrowed into something resembling a fox's, and an incomparably dangerous aura radiated from him.

Just as the middle-aged ninja laughed wildly, Samu Kokaze—whose heart had been stabbed and who should have been incapable of resisting—suddenly moved his right hand. A silver-white spike blade abruptly emerged from his palm and stabbed fiercely forward.

"You!"

Looking at the wound on his body, the middle-aged ninja's dark face filled with shock. He only had time to utter one word before his figure instantly turned into smoke and dispersed.

"Looks like... I... won... the bet... after all!"

As he watched the figure vanish into smoke, the coldness on Samu Kokaze's face instantly disappeared, replaced by a smile. Coughing up blood, he spoke in broken fragments.

"Feng!" Ino had already rushed forward without hesitation the moment she saw Samu Kokaze take the blow to the chest. Seeing him stagger as though he was about to fall, she quickly supported him. Her cute face was now covered in tears and regret. As she touched the wound in his chest, where blood was still seeping out, tears streamed down her face.

"It's gone?" Naruto, who had run over and was about to attack, cried out in surprise when he saw the figure disappear. As his emotions calmed, the red chakra around his body gradually faded, and all the strange features on him vanished as well.