Then, Tianzang and Xia Li exchanged a few quiet words before disappearing into the darkness. Xia Li soon began to move as well.
Not long after, Xia Li led back several horses that had previously scattered, while Tianzang constructed a number of simple wooden carts. The chunin stood there in a daze—where had all of this come from? And how had it been done so quickly?
The rest of the journey was actually quite smooth—almost too smooth. After all, a Kirigakure jonin had already been deployed here. There was no reason to send more manpower.
Still, Xia Li suspected that the other side had already received news about the real meteorite. If so, then the truth was already clear.
The meteorite wasn't here at all.
This had merely been a decoy.
Seen from that perspective, it was no wonder those so-called "samurai" had been so weak. The real elites had never been here in the first place. They had deceived both the Kirigakure shinobi and Konoha alike…
"Hopefully that's the case," Xia Li said with a faint smile. "If it is, those people are in real trouble. The Kirigakure ninja will definitely vent all their anger on them."
Xia Li didn't like those people either.
This was the price of deception.
"Brother Moying! Come see me more often! I'll definitely forge you the strongest weapons!"
In the Land of Iron, as they parted ways, Che Zhi waved enthusiastically at Xia Li, his voice full of reluctance.
"How old are you?" Xia Li suddenly asked.
"Twelve. Why?" Jiang Xinche asked in confusion.
"Then don't call me 'brother.' I'm younger than you," Xia Li replied calmly.
The three members of Team Tianzang instinctively turned their heads.
If that were true… didn't that mean Xia Li wasn't even twelve yet?
This was starting to feel increasingly unreal.
Even the sharp-minded Tie Ye was stunned. Xia Li's handsome appearance and strong physique had made him subconsciously assume Xia Li was older—but in the end…
He was actually younger?
Still, some things had nothing to do with age.
Ingenuity shook his head and said seriously, "Then I'll call you Boss! That works too!"
"…Fine," Xia Li said with a smile. "Then I'll look forward to you forging the strongest weapons for me."
"Deal!" Tōtō nodded vigorously, pumping his fist. "Goodbye, Boss!"
"Goodbye," Xia Li replied, waving without turning back.
Seeing this, the master craftsman also smiled.
For Xiao Che, forming a good relationship with a ninja like this was no loss at all—it was mutual benefit.
Once they were free of civilian constraints, Tianzang and his team quickly returned to Konoha, dispersing upon arrival.
Xia Li headed straight to the ANBU merit exchange and chose kenjutsu.
Sword techniques weren't expensive—at least, far cheaper than ninjutsu—so Xia Li spent very little merit to obtain what he wanted.
From basic sword fundamentals to more advanced techniques, everything was available. Unfortunately, there were no truly high-level styles—but it would be enough for him to train for quite some time.
Rather than leaving immediately, Xia Li stayed with the team, completing missions while practicing swordsmanship and integrating it more deeply with ninjutsu.
He had to admit—as his sword skills improved, his use of the ninja blade became increasingly fluid and natural.
Eventually, Xia Li finally brought up his intention to leave.
This made Tianzang and the others reluctant to part. They had always known Xia Li wouldn't remain on the team for long—but they hadn't expected it to be this soon.
Only half a year.
Still, no one tried to stop him.
They all understood that keeping someone like Xia Li here would be nothing but a waste of talent.
"You probably know what I'm going to say," Hyena said with a grin, patting his partner, Gray Fang. "You're from the Inuzuka clan—if you ever get the chance, come visit my place."
"And if you need anything in the future," Fox added, "you can buy it from me. Or go to the Medical Headquarters—just mention Team Tenzo."
"Thank you…" Xia Li nodded, then turned to Tianzang.
Tianzang sighed softly. "I won't say much. My entire life is tied to ANBU—but if you ever run into something you can't handle, come find me."
"Alright. Captain… Hyena-senpai, Fox-senpai," Xia Li said sincerely. "I'm leaving."
He bowed slightly, then turned and walked away from the team that had occupied such a long chapter of his life.
After all—
He was only ten years old.
Team Tianzang watched his retreating figure in silence, each of them filled with regret and awe.
They felt as though they had truly witnessed the rise of a genius.
Chapter 98 Konoha's Little White Fang, the Bloody Black Shadow!
Before long, Xia Li stood before a door and pushed it open.
"He's here."
Inside the empty room, a man in white robes and a mask sat behind a desk, staring at Xia Li as he spoke emotionlessly.
"You still have a chance to regret this. You should understand—this path is extremely dangerous. I advise you to train with Tianzang a bit longer before coming back."
"Since I'm here, I have no intention of turning back," Xia Li replied without hesitation.
He already knew who this man was.
The highest authority within ANBU—
The ANBU Commander.
"Very well," the commander nodded without hesitation. "By order of the Third Hokage, starting today, you will take missions directly from me."
He tossed a scroll to Xia Li.
"I heard from the Merit Department that you've been researching swordsmanship lately. This manual was left behind by one of ANBU's outstanding shinobi. We've looked it over—nothing special. But we believe it's more than it appears. See what you can gain from it."
Xia Li was startled, then nodded and accepted the scroll respectfully.
"Now then," the commander continued, "there's a mission suited for you. Are you willing to take it?"
"Of course!" Xia Li's eyes lit up.
The commander tossed him another scroll. "Pick up the items that prove your identity and then head out. This mission can be completed within ten days—but the sooner, the better. I'll assign further missions based on your performance."
In short—
A performance mission.
Xia Li nodded. "Understood."
With that, he left the room, leaving the commander behind with a quiet sigh.
There was already too much to handle—and now one more burden. But when the Third Hokage gave an order, refusal was not an option.
Xia Li quickly returned home with his identification and the two scrolls.
Despite the commander's urging, he wasn't in a rush. Instead, he carefully examined the sword manual first.
To be honest, Xia Li didn't have high expectations.
After all, Konoha wasn't exactly known for producing exceptional swordsmen.
Soon, he frowned.
Just as the commander had said—it was ordinary. Even inferior to the sword techniques Xia Li had faced in battle.
Still…
The commander had emphasized something, hadn't he?
Xia Li took a deep breath, entered a state of absolute focus, and reviewed the scroll again from beginning to end—calculating, simulating, replaying each movement in his mind.
The improvement seemed minimal.
Just basic swordsmanship.
And yet—
Weak shinobi often leave behind profound techniques…
Xia Li pondered the identity of this ANBU swordsman. ANBU. Swordsmanship. "Outstanding."
Based on hazy memories from his previous life, one name surfaced.
…Hatake Sakumo?
Xia Li froze.
A spark flashed through his mind.
That wasn't impossible.
He reread the scroll once more—and this time, he admitted his mistake.
The swordsmanship looked plain.
But if combined with ninja combat?
Minimalism. Efficiency.
No flashy movements—only endurance and the perfect union of assassination and blade.
Xia Li inhaled sharply, eyes shining.
He had struck gold.
A huge jackpot.
Still, there were performance missions to complete. Now wasn't the time to practice.
Suppressing the urge to test it immediately, Xia Li stored the scroll away, prepared healing potions, antidotes, and soldier pills—and set out alone.
Yes.
This mission would be carried out solo.
Most ninja preferred teamwork.
Xia Li did not.
With the Flying Thunder God, he had no need to rely on others. Worse—teammates would only restrict his mobility.
This was the path he had chosen.
One man was a whole team.
Ten days to complete the mission?
Heh.
One day would be enough.
In a dim forest, two Konoha shinobi crouched behind a massive tree, gasping for breath.
"Did you call for support?" one of them asked urgently. "How long until they arrive? We can't hold on much longer!"
As he spoke, he couldn't help glancing outward.
These rogue ninja were insane—bloodthirsty lunatics who actually dared to intercept Konoha supply routes.
There were too many of them.
At least a dozen at chunin level—and one whose strength was impossible to gauge. Possibly even above chunin.
"How did so many of them gather in one place?!" the hot-tempered ninja cursed.
"They might not be a real group," the calmer one replied. "Probably bounty hunters who caught wind of the situation and temporarily joined forces. They're chasing us to silence us—but they don't want Konoha to notice."
"Then what do we do? We're still far from the village. Reinforcements will take—"
His voice faltered.
"Not necessarily," the calm ninja said through clenched teeth. "The signal's already out. If the one responding is that adult… he might make it in time."
The hot-headed ninja froze, then his eyes widened.
"You mean… that lord?"
"Yes," the other nodded. "I heard he's operating nearby. If he sees the signal—"
Before he could finish, his expression changed.
He yanked his partner back—
Several shuriken slammed into the spot they'd been standing moments earlier.
"Heh. Nice reaction… but that's all."
More than a dozen figures landed on nearby branches, staring down at them with cruel smiles.
"To be honest," the furious ninja demanded, "you already got the supplies—why are you still chasing us?!"
The leader laughed, licking blood from his lips.
"We want the supplies—and your jutsu."
Learning ninjutsu was nearly impossible for wandering ninja. Given a chance like this, how could they let it slip?
Finish the job—then vanish.
"The end of the road," the leader said mockingly.
Was this it?
The calm ninja's grip tightened on his kunai, sweat trickling down his forehead.
Then—
He heard thunder.
Before he could understand what it meant, the leader was suddenly pinned to a tree behind him—
A kunai embedded straight through his heart.
The smile was still frozen on the man's face.
No one saw what happened.
The rogue ninja stared in disbelief.
How…?
The next instant, a figure appeared, pulled the kunai free, and flicked the blood away with visible annoyance—almost as if displeased by the notch in the blade.
It seemed he had expected to pierce cleanly through.
Instead, the enemy's heart had resistance.
Silence fell.
Cold sweat streamed down foreheads as a lone, sword-bearing boy—no older than fourteen—stood calmly in the clearing.
The calm Konoha ninja stared at him, then burst into ecstatic relief.
"We're… saved!"
"Run!"
The rogue ninja scattered in terror.
"Run?" the boy laughed softly. "Where do you think you're going?"
And then—
He vanished.
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