Simultaneous Time Travel: What Villain? I'm the Protagonist!

The moonlit night was dark, and two figures raced across the border of the Land of Fire.

The two swiftly traversed the trees, their feet lightly touching the branches, covering dozens of meters in a single leap. The silvery moonlight shone on their foreheads, illuminating the headbands unique to Wuyin.

Yamagishi hoisted Rin onto his shoulder, urging Hata to speed up; the terrifying yellow flash was truly chilling.

"The Land of Bears is just ahead. The Fourth Hokage has already sent someone to inform Hoshikage and ask him to cooperate with us," Bodo couldn't help but laugh when he mentioned Hoshikage.

Yamagishi, carrying Lin, did not reply, but a cold smile appeared on his lips.

The jungle beside them rushed past in the corner of their eyes, and in a short while, they had arrived outside the Star Ninja Village, in front of the log bridge.

Yamagishi gave a wink, and Hata, after a brief greeting, was about to step forward when a childish voice rang out:

"Lord Sandai has ordered me to escort you two onto the ship. Please follow me."

The two looked around but found no one. When Shan An looked up unintentionally, he saw a person floating in mid-air. By the moonlight, he could see that the person was about seven or eight years old and seemed to have a pair of wings on his back, flying towards him.

"The Peacock Technique of the Star Ninja Village?" Yamagishi asked, but he had already made up his mind. However, seeing the man's age, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"Not bad," Sheng Ren said, folding his wings after landing. "Please follow me."

He was preparing to lead the two onto the ship, but Yamagishi and the other man seemed not to hear him and stood there motionless.

Seeing this, Sheng Ren smiled slightly, but did not ask any questions. He just watched them quietly. For a moment, the only sound was the whisper of the night wind.

"Why send a little kid like you? Is there no one else in Hoshigakure?" Ultimately, the situation was urgent, and Bodo couldn't help but ask.

"There's really no one left. This afternoon, Suigetsu Hozuki came to visit, and the rest of the ninjas have been sent out on missions," Sheng Ren said, his tone devoid of any emotion, and the smile on his lips vanished.

Upon hearing this, Yamagishi understood and stepped forward to pat him on the shoulder, indicating that Shengren should lead the way.

After boarding the ship, Yamagishi placed Rin between himself and Hata, facing Morihito who was steering the ship, and frowned in thought.

"Boy, how many ninjas your age are there in Hoshigakure?"

Sheng Ren looked back at the mountainside inside the boat. "Since I'm alone, I'll learn faster."

"Would you like to join Kirigakure?" Yamagishi's words surprised Shengren. "A genius like you is wasting his talent in a small village like Hoshigakure. If I'm not mistaken, you already have strength comparable to a Chunin."

"You flatter me," he said, surprised that Yamagishi wanted to recruit him. "May I ask how I should address you?"

"My name is Yamagishi, a Special Jonin from Kirigakure. This is my subordinate, Hata. If you join us, I can recommend you to the Mizukage. You won't need to take the exam; you can directly become a Chunin."

Yamagishi's words tempted Shengren, but he refused without thinking and looked across at Lin for a while longer.

As a time traveler, he knew very well that the next few years would be a time of great turmoil in Wuyin, where a heartbroken man would torment him greatly.

"What?" Seeing his silence, Bodo's temper flared up: "Who do you think you are?"

"Shut up!" Yamagishi shouted, stopping Bodo who was about to curse, and then turned to look at Shengren.

"Why? You should understand the gap between Hoshigakure and the Five Great Nations. For example, right now, Suigetsu Hozuki alone has made your entire village bow down. If you continue to stay there, your final achievement will at most be slightly better than the Third Hoshikage. But joining Kirigakure will be a completely different story."

"It's hard to leave one's homeland, so I can only appreciate Yamagishi Kōnin's kindness."

Shengren's words seemed absurd to Yamagishi and the other, but they thought he was normal when they saw his age.

A disdainful smile appeared on Bodo's face. Yamagishi shook his head and said no more. He had only given Shengren a chance because of his talent, but he didn't expect him to be so stupid.

It wasn't that he was ungrateful, but even the best resources had to be obtained by someone who was alive. In Shengren's eyes, Yamagishi and the other two were already dead bones. Once Obito inherited everything from Madara Uchiha, their actions would undoubtedly lead to their deaths.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but worry about himself. Better safe than sorry. Love makes you crazy. What if he got involved in this?

Sheng Ren was filled with thoughts and suddenly felt a headache coming on.

The oars stirred the lake water, and the waves propelled the boat forward. The bright moonlight shone on the lake, and the people on the boat lost their appetite for conversation.

They walked in silence until they disappeared into the mist.

"Stop pretending," Yamagishi patted Rin, signaling her to walk by herself. Shengren and Bodo, who were standing next to her, were not surprised. How could Rin, as a ninja, be so fragile?

Lin had already woken up, when Yamagishi was persuading Shengren to join the Wuyin. However, she had been looking for an opportunity, and being caught between the two of them made it difficult for her to get away. She could only wait until the moment she disembarked. Little did she know that Yamagishi had already seen through everything.

"When did you find out?" Lin's voice was very gentle.

"I knew it when I talked to that brat. You hid it well, but you couldn't escape my eyes." Looking at Rin's unwilling eyes, Yamagishi had no pity for her.

"Bodo, you take her and go ahead. I'll follow behind. Make sure nothing goes wrong before we meet the Fourth Hokage."

"yes,"

Seeing that it was all over, Sheng Ren was about to leave when a hand pressed down on his right shoulder, and Yamagishi's voice suddenly came:

"You can't leave."

Why?

"To prevent leaks, you'll need to stay here for at least two days. I'll make the arrangements."

Listening to his emotionless words, Shengren felt a surge of admiration. Yamagishi was meticulous and thorough in his work, what a pity...

Unfortunately, Yamagishi didn't understand that this whole thing was a huge leak from the start. No matter how meticulously he executed it, someone, or rather, someone, would always leak it out.

Yamagishi didn't know why Rin was kidnapped, but Morihito knew better than anyone else: the purpose of kidnapping Rin was to kill her, to make Obito witness Rin's death firsthand, so that he would despair of the ninja world.

No one could stop this. Kakashi couldn't, he wasn't strong enough. Minato Namikaze couldn't, no matter how fast he was, he was powerless to intervene. Obito Uchiha couldn't, as a pawn, how could he turn the tide?

Sheng Ren, who was deep in thought, was startled by a sudden murderous intent. He looked up at Yamagishi's cold gaze and felt Yamagishi's hand pressing on his right shoulder. He couldn't help but laugh at himself. He couldn't even protect himself, yet he was thinking about others.

Not strong enough!

As the mountain bank disappeared into the mist, the night air was unusually cold. Sheng Ren tightened his clothes and hurried through the deserted streets, finally stopping in front of a two-story stone house.

"You'll stay here for the next two days and don't even think about running away. There's a sensory barrier here, and the Star Ninja Village..." Yamagishi didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.

Sheng Ren immediately put on a forced smile and agreed.

Yamagishi seemed quite satisfied with his compliance, closed the door and left, the door slamming shut with a particularly crisp sound in the night.

He walked to the window and watched the two of them leave with Lin. At that moment, he felt the same way. Without power, one can only be manipulated by others.

The moonlight outside the window was gradually shrouded by clouds, and mist gradually filled the room.

The room was very simple. Sheng Ren lay down on the stone bed, his mind constantly searching for a way out. Unexpectedly, under the combined attack of exhaustion and anxiety, a wave of drowsiness washed over him.

In the twilight between sleep and wakefulness, he suddenly felt a small black dot in his field of vision. The dot kept growing larger until it completely enveloped him.

Sheng Ren's consciousness cleared instantly, but he was surrounded by a black mist.

Suddenly, a figure emerged from the black mist. Sheng Ren looked over and froze. He would never forget that handsome face—it was his own face from his past life!