Just as Qifeng breathed a sigh of relief, his expression suddenly shifted, and he glanced into the distance.
"They're late."
He sensed several ninjas rapidly approaching. With that number, they should be Konoha Ninja.
Letting one Kaguya Senjin slip through already meant the ninjas Hiruzen Sarutobi had assigned to watch over the area had seriously neglected their duties. If they could let a group of Mist Ninja through as well, then either those people were truly useless, or the Mist Ninja had launched a large-scale attack.
But neither was possible.
He hurriedly put away Kaguya Senjin's battered corpse and used Chakra to swiftly smooth over the ground.
He ran to Imai Kuriyama's side, shielding her with his body. A trickle of blood slowly dripped from the corner of his mouth. He clutched his Ninja Tool Pouch tightly, rolled his eyes back, and fainted.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Three Konoha Anbu Ninja appeared.
One of them landed beside Qifeng and Imai Kuriyama, sensed their condition briefly, and said in a deep voice, "They're still alive."
"Where is Kaguya Senjin?"
The leading Anbu looked around but found no sign of Kaguya Senjin.
The last man crouched down, pinched up a small handful of dirt, examined it, then sniffed it through his mask.
"The ground has obvious signs of having been turned over, mixed with a faint smell of blood. It's highly likely Kaguya Senjin's."
"Dead?"
The Anbu Ninja exchanged looks, each seeing surprise and disbelief in the others' eyes.
Kaguya Senjin was a Jonin of the Kaguya Clan who had been famous for years. He had some renown throughout the Shinobi World. Even they could not guarantee victory against him, yet he had simply died like this?
"From the time we sensed the disturbance to the time we arrived, it couldn't have been more than fifteen minutes. Who could take down a Jonin so quickly?"
"The two kids are still alive, which means whoever did this bears no hostility toward Konoha. They might even be one of Konoha's experts."
None of them considered Qifeng and Imai Kuriyama.
Even a genius like Kakashi could not instantly kill Kaguya Senjin at that age. Though those two were a little older than Kakashi, it was not by much.
Even if someone wanted to suspect them, they would probably be treated as an idiot.
"It was an expert skilled in Earth Release."
"Could it have been a Hot Water Ninja?"
They were currently within the Land of Hot Water. Other than Konoha and the Mist Ninja, the only ones likely to appear here were Hot Water Ninja.
After hesitating, one Anbu said, "Do the Hot Water Ninja have an expert that strong?"
"In any case, record this matter and report it to Lord Orochimaru and Lord Hokage," the leader said.
"Yes!" the other two answered.
They walked over to Qifeng and Imai Kuriyama. Seeing their positions, then seeing the Ninja Tool Pouch Qifeng clutched tightly in his hand, they nodded approvingly and praised him.
"Facing a powerful enemy, he neither abandoned his companion nor gave up the mission. This kid is pretty good."
"According to the intelligence, he should be Maruyama Qifeng, the corpse collector, right?"
"A corpse collector is still a ninja. Maybe one day, we'll end up in his hands too."
After being ninjas for so long, they had seen far too much life and death. They were already used to it.
"Kurenai, immediately take these two kids and the intelligence back. We'll go check on Kakashi's side."
"Yes!"
Yūhi Kurenai slung Qifeng over his shoulder, gently carried Imai Kuriyama in his arms, and hurried toward the Land of Fire.
Kurenai was his Anbu codename.
Being tossed around like that, Qifeng nearly cursed out loud.
You bastard!
Is this really how differently you treat people?
You casually throw a guy over your shoulder, but carefully carry a girl in your arms? Are you really favoring girls over boys?!
You're finished. I'll definitely help Asuma win over your daughter! Otherwise, I'll take your surname!
Qifeng cursed inwardly.
Yūhi Kurenai was extremely fast and soon crossed the Land of Fire's border.
After entering the Land of Fire, the danger level clearly dropped by quite a bit, so he slowed down somewhat.
Qifeng simply dozed off on his shoulder and saw the system notification at the same time.
Experience ended! As no learning synchronization was achieved, you received additional attribute bonuses: Spirit +1; Ninjutsu +2
His heart bled.
Last time, with the Jonin Experience Card, he had seized every second to learn and gained a total of five attribute points. This time, it had been a Quasi-Kage Experience Card, yet because he had not properly adapted and absorbed it, he had only gained three attribute points in the end.
What a huge loss!
If he had done what he did last time, he might have gained six, seven, even eight or nine attribute points.
This was a devastating loss.
And sleeping on someone's shoulder was genuinely miserable. He was jolted around the whole way. If he had not truly been unable to endure it any longer, he probably could have slept all the way to Konoha.
Feeling Qifeng wake up on his shoulder, Yūhi Kurenai put him down.
"Awake? Can you still travel?" Yūhi Kurenai had already removed his mask.
Qifeng kneaded his swollen arm. The intense pain made him suck in a breath. Once the Experience Card ended, all the injuries in his body hit him again at once.
Still, he gritted his teeth and nodded. "I can."
The two continued onward.
Perhaps Yūhi Kurenai had spent too long as an Anbu without anyone to talk to, or perhaps he simply appreciated Qifeng. Once he removed his mask, his true nature was suddenly unleashed.
"Not bad, kid. You knew to protect your female companion. That's what a man should do. When I was young, I was the same way. I attracted who knows how many—"
"Urgh—" Qifeng could not help stopping and bending over.
After dry-heaving for a long while, he raised his head and found Yūhi Kurenai looking at him oddly. He wiped the corner of his mouth and explained, "I took a punch and suffered serious internal injuries. I couldn't hold it back."
Hearing that, Yūhi Kurenai visibly relaxed. "Should I carry you instead?"
"No, no, no, thank you." Qifeng waved his hands repeatedly.
Thanks to your whole family.
"When I used to—"
"Urgh—"
The scene became incredibly awkward for a while.
"...Let me recover for a moment."
As he spoke, he pulled out a slightly crushed pack of cigarettes, took out one that was still mostly intact, and placed it between his lips. With a flick of his fingers, a small flame lit it.
Fire Release ninjas were quite useful at times like this.
He took a deep drag. As the smoke filled his lungs, which had been aching and tight, he felt much more alert.
Yūhi Kurenai frowned. "You're still young. Smoking is harmful to your health. Ninjas need to learn how to cherish their bodies."
As he spoke, he snatched the cigarette from Qifeng's mouth. Under Qifeng's gaze, he put it into his own mouth, took a deep drag, then slowly exhaled, shrouding himself in smoke.
"..."
What a fine example of "harmful to your health."
So, a man's mouth was a lying ghost.
Qifeng could only take out another cigarette and light it again.
Neither of them spoke anymore. Taking one puff each, they were remarkably quiet. Neither paid any attention to the unconscious Imai Kuriyama, whose brow unknowingly furrowed.
They said a bond between men came from carrying guns together, going to school together, and smoking together.
That was indeed true.
Yūhi Kurenai found Qifeng increasingly pleasing to the eye.
He protected his companions, completed missions, endured pain, and even smoked.
For a moment, Qifeng wondered whether Kurenai Yuhi would later fall for Asuma because Asuma smoked and had "bribed" Yūhi Kurenai.
After finishing their cigarettes.
"Senior Kurenai, I'm more or less recovered. Should we hurry on?" Qifeng had regained his energy. His body still hurt, but the nicotine had numbed much of it.
"You know me?" Yūhi Kurenai was somewhat surprised.
Qifeng lowered his head and rubbed his chin. "Asuma and I are friends. Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi are friends, so..."
"Asuma?" Yūhi Kurenai frowned.
With a father's intuition, he vaguely sensed that the word "friend" Qifeng had used carried a deeper meaning.
Qifeng could only mourn for Asuma in his heart for three minutes.
Who told your father to make things difficult for me?
I'm a corpse collector. I never let a grudge sit overnight!
Before you continue