"Everyone here is a bounty ninja, right? Since you've discovered the leader of the Craft Ninja Village, why not take action directly instead of just monitoring him?"
Hearing Qingming's question, several bounty ninjas exchanged glances before one of them scoffed, "What we do is none of your business."
"Though that eye of yours would fetch quite a price in the black market!"
"Brothers, let's get him!"
Suddenly, the bounty ninja shouted.
At this, the others immediately charged at Qingming.
Seeing this, Qingming let out a soft sigh. "Ah! Heaven has a path you refuse to take, and hell has no door, yet you insist on barging in!"
"Fine then, I just got a good sword; let's use you to try it out!"
With that, he swiftly unsheathed the long knife at his waist, and his aura changed in an instant.
Suddenly, a chilling, murderous intent enveloped the area.
Feeling this ominous pressure, the bounty ninjas who had just been shouting to attack halted in their tracks.
Having long navigated the dark underbelly, they understood very well who they could provoke and who they couldn't.
Someone like Qingming, who exuded a 'scent of blood', was definitely someone they should avoid at all costs.
An inexplicable sense of retreat arose within them.
At that moment, Qingming's Transformation Technique faltered, revealing his true appearance.
"A kid?"
"A child?"
"..."
The bounty ninjas exclaimed upon seeing Qingming's true form.
Simultaneously, their initial trepidation dissipated considerably.
Seizing this opportunity, the leader of the bounty ninjas immediately ordered, "Kill him!"
Instantly, everyone raised their weapons toward Qingming.
However, in the face of this onslaught, Qingming remained eerily calm, merely waving his long knife to block the attacks, not attempting to counter.
Clang, clang, clang~ The sharp sounds of metal colliding echoed through the forest.
Amidst the firelight, Qingming moved like a fish in water, skillfully weaving between the attackers.
He continually wielded his long knife, accurately deflecting any assaults aimed at him, his movements exuding an effortless grace.
In stark contrast, his assailants, despite using all their strength, could not subdue him.
Gradually, a sense of frustration began to rise within them, causing their movements to become more erratic.
Yet the more they floundered, the more openings they exposed under Qingming's watchful Sharingan.
If it weren't for Qingming wanting to familiarize himself with the long knife, he would have finished them off long ago.
······
Time passed slowly.
After what felt like an eternity, a bounty ninja who had been closely watching Qingming suddenly exclaimed, "Y-You're the Ghost Blade Qingming?"
"What?"
"Ghost Blade Qingming?"
"Impossible!"
Voices erupted in confusion, and the bounty ninjas all abandoned their assault, backing away while staring intently at Qingming.
Noticing their reaction, Qingming set his long knife down and looked at the one who had recognized him with interest, saying, "Oh! You know me?"
Before the person could respond, the others, seeing that he did not deny it, collectively gasped and instinctively retreated a step.
Hearing Qingming's question, the first ninja stammered, "The bounty of 17 million ryo for the Ghost Blade Qingming, who wouldn't know?"
Though he said "who wouldn't know," the majority of bounty ninjas truly did not recognize Qingming.
This was because over eighty percent of bounty ninjas dwelled at the bottom of the black market.
For these lower-tier bounty hunters, a 17 million ryo bounty was something they could only dream of.
Therefore, they usually just skimmed over such information and did not pay it much heed.
As a result, most bounty ninjas, even if they saw him, wouldn't necessarily recognize him at a glance.
Just like the bounty ninja before him, who had not identified him at first but finally recognized him after prolonged combat.
However, Qingming thought, "Seventeen million ryo? Seems a bit low, doesn't it?"
After all, even Sarutobi Asuma, later on, had a bounty of 35 million ryo, and Qingming's strength clearly surpassed his.
Even considering Asuma's "son of the Hokage" status, he shouldn't be worth so much more.
'Perhaps my reputation isn't sufficient yet!'
This thought briefly crossed Qingming's mind, and he decided to stop holding back. He raised his long knife and charged at the nearest bounty ninja.
He could tell that ever since they recognized his identity, they had started contemplating an escape. If he continued to hold back, they might just scatter.
To ensure that his identity information wouldn't leak, he had to resolve this quickly.
Swish~ The sound of a blade slicing through flesh echoed.
Qingming's movement was so swift that the bounty ninja in front of him hadn't even reacted before his throat was slit by the long knife.
"Huh-huh-huh~"
The bounty ninja clutched his throat, making a series of strange sounds before staggering back and collapsing to the ground.
Seeing this, the others finally came to their senses.
The leader of the bounty ninjas immediately shouted, "Everyone, split up and run!"
However, before he could finish his sentence, Qingming's gaze locked onto him, and at the moment their eyes met, Qingming activated the hypnotic ability of his Sharingan.
In an instant, the leader froze in place.
Yet Qingming didn't rush to kill him; instead, he quickly closed the distance and knocked him out.
As for the others, they hadn't gotten far before Qingming systematically took them down one by one.
With their level of strength, Qingming didn't need to resort to any powerful ninjutsu. Just using his Body Flicker Technique in conjunction with his swordsmanship and Sharingan was enough to effortlessly eliminate them.
Returning to the leader of the bounty ninjas, Qingming gave him a few slaps to wake him up.
Without waiting for him to plead for mercy, he asked again, "Now tell me, why did you only monitor the leader of Craft Ninja Village instead of capturing him?"
"I, we…"
The leader of the bounty ninjas stuttered for a long time, his eyes darting around, but he couldn't articulate a coherent answer.
Seeing his demeanor, Qingming didn't waste any more words. He immediately raised his hands, focusing his mental energy, and fully activated the "Genjutsu: Sharingan" to read the leader's memories.
Seeing this, the leader of the bounty ninjas thought Qingming intended to attack him. He quickly shouted, "No! No! Don't! I'll talk, I'll talk!"
"W-We…"
However, Qingming paid him no mind and directly unleashed "Genjutsu: Sharingan."
Rather than dilly-dallying and wasting time with the man, Qingming preferred to expend a bit of chakra to directly search his memories.
As Qingming's genjutsu took effect, the leader's voice was abruptly cut off, and his consciousness sank into the illusion.
Qingming carefully discerned and confirmed that the leader wasn't putting on an act before guiding the illusion to change, compelling him to display relevant memories.
Soon, the entire sequence of events became clear to him.
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