In Ye Zi's eyes, the hundreds of enemies were mere cannon fodder and posed no real threat. What he had to be cautious about were the individuals with stronger combat abilities.
Kakuzu arrived in the midst of the battle, and Ye Zi immediately sensed his presence. This was not something to be ignored; the chakra level was astonishing—Kakuzu was a formidable opponent.
Shokui, who was enjoying his meal, also noticed Kakuzu. He could clearly sense the pure chakra within Kakuzu's body, the very type of energy he craved.
However... he couldn't indulge himself at the moment.
"Kid Ye Zi, you better keep up. I don't want to miss out on this meal," Shokui said, holding a bloody thigh with sharp teeth that looked like they had been painted with bright lipstick. He glanced towards Kakuzu, hoping Ye Zi would deal with him so he could feast.
Noticing the arrival of a powerful adversary was not a good sign, especially given their current precarious situation.
"It seems we can't hold out any longer," Ye Zi thought silently. If he were to be restrained by the unknown strong opponent, Kotoe and the others would not be able to handle it. At this point, the only option was for Kotoe and the others to evacuate with Moko.
With this thought, he turned and headed toward the carriage. Upon arrival, he saw the corpses on the ground.
He quickly averted his gaze and said, "Get the employer out of here as quickly as possible. Guy, carry the employer."
Ye Zi couldn't explain further, simply giving orders. Moko, hearing his words, showed remarkable courage and, as soon as Ye Zi's voice fell, opened the carriage door and stepped out.
"..."
Ye Zi's gaze fell on the calm Moko, his expression a mix of surprise and curiosity.
"Miss Moko, I apologize," Guy said, though his demeanor was somewhat disjointed. Apologizing, he approached Moko and bent slightly.
Moko didn't speak but cooperated with Guy, who, despite their awkward size difference, easily lifted her onto his back.
"And him?" Moko then looked towards Shin, who was huddled in the corner of the carriage. She could clearly see the suppressed vitality in Gong Cang's eyes.
Ye Zi followed her gaze to Gong Cang. The once aggressive middle-aged man now looked desperate and seemed to have anticipated his dire situation.
This was quite normal, as if it were a routine matter.
Had the master and servant come to Konoha Village?
Don't be ridiculous. With all their companions dead, it was now Shin's turn.
He wasn't foolish and had no delusions of survival, but seeing Miss Moko mentioned him, he felt a glimmer of hope.
Who wants to die? Everyone wants to live, even if it means clinging to life.
"I'm unable to help," Ye Zi's cold words extinguished the spark of hope Shin had just experienced. Shin's hunched body tensed further, trying to merge with the carriage, knowing full well that staying there meant death. He could only wait for Moko to leave before making any move.
Ye Zi cared only for Moko's safety, and he was indifferent to the others.
"Let's go," he instructed Guy and Kurenai.
Guy nodded and rushed into the night, with Kurenai following closely behind.
Moko, lying on Guy's back, pressed her lips together, avoiding looking at Shin's expression.
Kotoe emerged from the shadows and approached Ye Zi.
"Leave their safety to me." Ye Zi knew Kotoe wanted to stay, but it was clearly impractical.
Kotoe looked at Ye Zi, bit his lip, and silently headed towards Guy's direction.
"Now then…"
Ye Zi's gaze shifted through the dense forest, and suddenly, lightning flashed around him, echoing through the dark woods like the sound of a thousand birds chirping.
The downside of Konoha's Little White Fang was his lack of large-scale destructive power, but its advantage was its impressive single-target damage, coupled with the ability to sustain chakra.
Therefore, unless faced with a fatal attack, he wasn't afraid of being surrounded.
He suddenly pointed a finger in a certain direction, and a lightning bolt cut through the night, striking down a shadowy figure.
Bounty hunters who were further away saw the lightning and silently rejoiced, relieved that they had moved away from this killing machine.
Bounty hunters closer to the scene were startled. The appearance of the lightning reminded them that Konoha's Little White Fang was no longer holding back.
Several frightened individuals immediately retreated, heading in the opposite direction.
"Lightning style, huh? Just what I need, a high-quality lightning attribute heart," Kakuzu mused as he watched the dissipating lightning. Although he was thinking this, he had no intention of actively confronting Ye Zi. He first needed to secure the 50 million ryo bounty.
He deliberately kept his distance, but Ye Zi noticed his movements.
Compared to missing a bunch of cannon fodder, this unknown enemy posed a greater threat to Yan Ye and the others.
With this in mind, Ye Zi sent out a shadow clone to deal with the cannon fodder while he, as the original, sought out Kakuzu.
Dividing his chakra in half put him at a disadvantage before the battle even began. Most ninjas would not do this, but Ye Zi was different.
He had means to replenish his chakra. Dividing half of it to the shadow clone strengthened its power. As long as the shadow clone was not defeated, it would be continuously supplied with chakra through the Spirit Transformation technique, keeping its chakra levels high.
At crucial moments, he could dismiss the shadow clone to instantly replenish his chakra, which was a hidden trump card. This was why Ye Zi was not afraid of being overwhelmed.
Soon, Ye Zi arrived in front of Kakuzu. Seeing Ye Zi blocking his path, Kakuzu's expression darkened.
He hadn't sought out Ye Zi; Ye Zi had come looking for him, which directly disrupted his plans. How could he be in a good mood?
Facing Little White Fang, he was not afraid, but losing 50 million ryo was a blow to his love for money.
He looked at Ye Zi, snorted coldly, and said, "You're quite confident. With so many cannon fodder, do you think your companions can hold them off?"
Ye Zi also looked at Kakuzu. He could sense Kakuzu was strong but didn't know who he was. Among the rogue ninjas from Takigakure, who could be this powerful?
"That's not something you need to worry about. Before coming to find you, I already sent out a shadow clone to handle those cannon fodder."
Ye Zi spoke coldly, pointing his Raiga blade at Kakuzu. In ninja battles, revealing unnecessary information was extremely foolish. Mentioning the shadow clone was completely unnecessary.
However, Ye Zi's shadow clone wasn't just a split of half his chakra but something that could be used to replenish his chakra at a critical moment. Based on this, revealing this fact showed a bit of cunning.
Kakuzu, though, wouldn't easily believe such claims. Still, he noticed Ye Zi's chakra seemed to be running low.
Kakuzu said calmly, "It's unfortunate to lose the 50 million ryo bounty, but it's fine. I'll settle for the 100 million ryo bounty instead."
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