A watcher in the darkness

Qingyun frowned deeply. Hatake Sakumo was far stronger than he was, yet even he hadn't noticed anyone watching them. Had Qingyun sensed it wrong?

At that thought, Qingyun shook his head and continued his task, cutting off the bandits' heads one by one and placing them in the Seal Scroll.

Before long, all hundred-odd bandits had been beheaded. Qingyun and the other two gathered the bodies together. Once that was done, Qingyun swiftly formed hand seals. "Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"

As Qingyun formed the hand seals, a dragon made of White Flame charged toward the bodies.

Whoosh!

The instant the dragon struck the bodies, it blasted a deep crater into the ground, and White Flame burned fiercely over the corpses.

With everything finished, Qingyun turned and left with Minato Namikaze and Kushina.

Qingyun claimed the mission reward in his mind: a Pusiqu Snake gallbladder that could increase his physical strength and internal force.

Watching Qingyun's practiced movements, Hatake Sakumo nodded in satisfaction. "Compassionate, but not indiscriminate with his kindness. At such a young age, he can already see to the heart of things.

"When killing enemies, he's cold and ruthless, yet he handles everything methodically. With his exceptional talent as well, he's sure to become a ninja renowned far and wide."

Qingyun and the other two silently followed Hatake Sakumo away from that blood-soaked place.

Suddenly, Qingyun's step faltered. No, that feeling of being watched is back. Is someone really keeping an eye on me? But why hasn't Hatake Sakumo noticed? Could this watcher be another test he arranged for us?

Qingyun kept walking without betraying anything, pondering what the person watching him from the shadows wanted.

After considering it for a while, Qingyun shook his head. This probably wasn't a test Hatake Sakumo had arranged. They were