After waving to the children inside the cave, a flying dagger slid from Li Anshi's sleeve into his hand.
In an instant, his perception was magnified to its limit. Everything within a hundred-meter radius was within his senses.
The trajectories of countless flying daggers appeared in his mind.
These trajectories were both straight and curved.
The curved paths could even change their arc at his will.
Numerous trajectories intertwined, allowing him to simulate the new paths the daggers would take after a collision.
At the end of these trajectories were the various animals of the forest.
Li Anshi did not throw the dagger in his hand.
Although there were many animals nearby, they were mostly birds, snakes, and rodents.
Hunting them for food would be difficult, and they wouldn't be enough to feed all the children.
Rather than waste time on these small creatures, it was better to find something large and get it all done in one go!
…
"Finally back."
Looking at the familiar gates of Konoha, Li Anshi let out a sigh of relief.
This period of looking after more than thirty children had been quite exhausting.
Fortunately, the situation had improved greatly after he had brought the children to the first town.
On one hand, he could spend money to eat in town.
On the other, he was able to contact Konoha's ninjas and hand over the task of escorting the children back to them.
Only then did Li Anshi return to Konoha alone.
Although it had only been ten days from his departure to his return, for Li Anshi, it had been more arduous than the year he had spent on the front lines a few years ago.
Li Anshi understood the reason for this difference.
Three years ago, he had not felt much of a connection to Konoha. Coupled with the fact that he had already mastered the Little Li's Flying Dagger, he believed that in the vast ninja world, he could find a place for himself anywhere.
Three years later, he had two bonds in Konoha: Sakumo Hatake and Tsunade.
If Li Anshi's heart was a kite flying in the sky, then Sakumo and Tsunade were the two strings that connected him to the ground.
Home is where the heart is at peace!
It was precisely because his heart was tied down that returning to Konoha and seeing familiar people and sights moved him so deeply.
Inexplicably, Li Anshi felt that his understanding of his "freedom" ninja way had deepened. This was reflected in the quality of his chakra, which had improved to a certain degree.
Taking out his leave-of-village permit from his pocket, Li Anshi was about to hand it to the guards at the gate, but then he suddenly remembered something.
A slight smile appeared on his lips. He casually tossed the permit into the air and flicked his right hand—
Swoosh—
Thud...
The permit was pinned to the gatepost of Konoha's main gate by a flying dagger, three and seven-tenths of an inch long.
This was something Li Anshi had wanted to do for a long time.
In his previous life, when watching anime, he had always thought that the ninjas returning to the village, who, before the guards could even stop them to check their records, would casually pin their permits to the gatepost with a kunai and leap over the two guards into the village, looked incredibly cool.
Only after transmigrating to the ninja world did Li Anshi learn that not just anyone could be a gate guard.
Countless ninjas, civilians, and merchants entered and exited the village every day.
Among them were legitimate merchants, nobles out for leisure, civilians coming to post missions, and spies from other villages...
As the first gateway to Konoha, the most important quality for a guard was "observation."
They had to observe everyone entering the village, record anyone who might be a threat, and hand the information over to the village, which would then assign ninjas to monitor these suspicious individuals.
Secondly, they needed a certain level of strength.
When a spy from another village or a criminal tried to escape, they had to have the ability to hold them back for a moment, buying time for the pursuing ninjas.
Therefore, the ninjas guarding Konoha's main gate were the strongest group of ninjas below the rank of Jonin.
Yes, the "Elite Chunin."
A step above them were the "Special Jonin."
Daring to pin one's permit to the gatepost in front of two Konoha guards was a "privilege" reserved for Jonin.
If an ordinary ninja tried it, would the two guards give them any face and let them in after such a stunt?
More likely, they would accuse you of attacking a guard, apprehend you, and send you to the military police's prison to cool off for a few days.
"Wow, so cool!"
As Li Anshi had expected, after he made this move and leaped over the gate into the village, ignoring the guards, some of the children who witnessed the scene couldn't help but gasp, their voices filled with the deepest admiration they had ever felt.
"One day, I want to be like that lord, and pin my permit right in front of that stuck-up guard who looks down on me, to show him what it means when today you ignore me, but tomorrow you won't be able to reach me!"
"The tables will turn in thirty years, don't look down on a poor young man!"
Perhaps stimulated by Li Anshi's actions, a group of four or five-year-old children started shouting at the two guards.
To these little kids, the village guards were the great demons who stood in the way of their exploration of the wider world outside.
Therefore, upon seeing these two get shown up, the children's courage surged, and they began to taunt the guards relentlessly.
"Heh heh, heh heh..."
Hearing the children's words, veins in the shape of a "#" popped on the foreheads of the two guards, and a terrifying laugh escaped their lips.
What a joke!
As Konoha's gatekeepers, the most important thing was "judgment"!
That lord was someone even the Hokage had to treat with special care.
Compared to him, they were like mayflies before the blue sky.
But, if they couldn't express their dissatisfaction with that lord, did that mean they couldn't deal with these little brats who hadn't even grown up yet?
At that moment, under the astonished gazes of the surrounding villagers, the two guards raised their sinful fists at the children.
"Ignore you, is it?"
Thump, thump, thump...
"Can't reach me, is it?"
Thump, thump, thump...
"Aaaah..."
"Tables will turn, is it?"
"Aaaah, I won't do it again..."
"Poor young man, is it?"
"Help, I'll never do it again..."
Seeing the children getting a beating, the surrounding villagers watched with smiles.
Among them were many of the children's own parents.
Clearly, they knew their children's temperaments.
In fact, some of them had grown up in the very same way.
Konoha was backed by a large mountain, and the other three sides, apart from the Hokage Rock, were surrounded by forests.
In the forests were numerous wild animals, and possibly even "ninja beasts" with chakra.
Even a Genin entering the forest alone could encounter considerable danger.
Let alone these children, who were not even students at the Ninja Academy yet.
If they were allowed to leave the village and enter the forest, the snakes, insects, rats, and ants within could give them a world of trouble.
But alas, for four and five-year-old children, besides playing ninja games, exploring the wilderness was also a favorite pastime.
To prevent these children from sneaking out of the village, the guards would teach them a lesson every time they were caught.
Even if the parents found out, they would laugh and say, "Good job," or "Hit them harder next time, so they'll remember."
The children didn't know any better, but the adults understood the situation very well.
Even an ordinary adult wanting to leave the village to find herbs, chop wood, fish, or hunt had to hire a ninja for protection.
Otherwise, encountering a large beast or a ninja beast with chakra would be life-threatening.
Allowing the children to run out of the village was the real harm to them.
Li Anshi had no idea that his actions had ignited the wild ambitions in the hearts of several young boys.
And that, before these ambitions could be realized, they had already received the kind guidance of an Elite Chunin, increasing their resistance to blows and their lung capacity, laying a solid foundation for their future diligent training.
Without going to the Hokage's office to report, Li Anshi walked directly towards his woodcarving shop.
For him, his mission had ended the moment he handed the Uzumaki children over to the other ninjas for escort.
If Konoha couldn't even protect thirty-odd Uzumaki children, it would be unworthy of its title as the number one great ninja village.
Furthermore, the four great ninja villages were currently focused on the Land of Whirlpools. Until they destroyed it and obtained its sealing jutsus, they would not act against these children, lest they anger Konoha and force it to personally intervene.
Ten days ago, the news of Li Anshi's solo charge into the Land of Whirlpools was no longer a secret.
The entire ninja world had a new understanding of the terror of Little Li's Flying Dagger.
At this time, it seemed everyone had only just remembered that when Li Anshi had made his name, he was only fifteen years old.
For ninjas, the thirteen years between the ages of twelve and twenty-five were the period of their fastest growth.
Many ninjas of average talent reached their peak after the age of twenty-five. After their prime at thirty, if they couldn't achieve a higher level of mastery in ninjutsu, their strength would begin to decline.
Most ninjas, even by the age of twenty-five, could not complete the training for chakra nature transformation and would remain at the Chunin level.
Geniuses, on the other hand, would advance by leaps and bounds during this period, completing the training for two chakra nature transformations and raising their strength to the Jonin level.
Even more monstrous existences would, on top of this, practice their own ninja way, undergo a spiritual transformation, and join the ranks of the "Kage."
Li Anshi had debuted at a peak that other ninjas could not reach in their entire lives. Therefore, most ninjas seemed to have forgotten his age.