Kazeo was also about to shout in joy when a line from his previous life echoed in his mind: "If you think you've defeated Itachi, it means you're already trapped in his genjutsu."
His eyes narrowed. He quickly formed a hand sign and muttered, "Release."
The scenery around him flickered and shattered like glass. In the blink of an eye, everything changed. Itachi was now calmly standing beside a tree, watching them. Daichi stood nearby, still cheering with his claw raised high in the air, while Ren panted with a surprisd expression, facing Daichi.
Then he heard Itachi's voice, steady and composed, "You broke the genjutsu. Good. I was about to release you all. Go ahead, free the others."
Kazeo nodded silently and stood up, walking toward his teammates with a frown. Good, my ass, he thought bitterly. I didn't even realize when I got caught. I'm supposed to have some resistance to genjutsu… so what happened? I don't even remember him activating his Sharingan. Looks like... I need more training.
Still lost in thought, he released both of his teammates from the genjutsu and quickly explained the situation to them.
Ren's face scrunched in confusion before shifting to a brief flicker of joy that he masked almost instantly. "So... the whole fight was a genjutsu? As expected of Itachi-sa— I mean, sensei."
Daichi blinked as clarity returned to his eyes. His expression twisted into one of embarrassment. "Wait… so all that fighting, and even the celebration, was just genjutsu? We even—"
Ren cut him off, "Celebration? You were the only one celebrating. I knew there was no way Itachi-sensei would lose."
Daichi shot back immediately, "As if! You think no one saw your face when sensei surrendered? You looked like you were about to faint! Kazeo and sensei are both witnesses!"
Their argument continued until Itachi stepped forward and clapped once, drawing their attention. The two instantly fell silent while Kazeo blinked, snapping out of his thoughts.
Itachi spoke in his usual calm tone, "You have ten minutes. Sit down quietly and reflect on our little spar. I'll ask a few questions afterward, and I expect proper answers."
Kazeo nodded and sat down, beginning to analyze the fight step by step. Ren and Daichi followed suit, though they kept shooting glares at each other.
While analyzing, all three had the same thought: a Jounin was far beyond their current level. But only Kazeo truly understood the difference. With the Mangekyō Sharingan, Itachi wasn't just a regular Jounin—he was already in the realm of elite Jounin, and once fully mastered like in the original series, he would be an S-rank shinobi.
After ten minutes, Itachi asked, "So, when do you think I placed you under genjutsu?"
Kazeo raised his hand and replied, "Most likely either at the very start of the spar, or when I tried to grab your leg from underground. But… what confuses me is, I didn't even see you activate your Sharingan."
Daichi, who had been silently thinking, added, "Yeah, I don't remember you using genjutsu during the actual fight. It must've been cast even before it began."
Ren also asked, "But Sensei, why didn't I sense that I was under a genjutsu? My Sharingan was activated the whole time."
Seeing, no one had more questions, Itachi replied calmly, "When exactly I put you under genjutsu—that's for you to figure out. What I can tell you is this: just because I have a Sharingan doesn't mean I'll always rely on it to cast genjutsu. I can use normal methods like any other shinobi. As for why your Sharingan didn't pick up on it—it's because you only have a one-tomoe Sharingan, and the genjutsu was high-level. If it had been cast by an amateur or a chunin, there's a good chance you might have spotted a flaw."
Itachi said that, but in his mind, something entirely different was going on.
The real reason he had placed them under genjutsu was because he still struggled to control his senses—senses honed solely for killing during his time in the ANBU. Their movements were full of openings, flaws that kept triggering his instincts. If he hadn't interfered, his body might have acted on its own. So, he had no choice but to put them under genjutsu.
Though it may have looked effortless, it wasn't easy.
Ren and Daichi were relatively simpler. He had trapped them in genjutsu without even activating his Sharingan. His capabilities with genjutsu—especially yin chakra control, chakra quantity, and its precision—had all grown significantly since awakening his Mangekyō Sharingan.
But Kazeo… Kazeo was different.
Even with his refined control, Itachi found it difficult to keep Kazeo under the illusion. Eventually, he was forced to activate his three-tomoe Sharingan to pull him deeper into the illusion. Yet even that wasn't enough to stabilize the genjutsu, there was still some resistance. He felt his control would slip after some minutes. So for the first time ever—he used his Mangekyō Sharingan on a genin.
Only then did the genjutsu fully stabilize.
The realization unsettled Itachi. 'He's changed... He's grown stronger since we last met. Was I right, does he really possess some kind of bloodline that helps resist genjutsu? If that's the case, it should be worth it to develop that further during training. It would benefit both him and the team. And I… I need to train myself as well. I need to tame this bloodlust, or I won't be able to guide them without risking harm.'
While he wrestled with his thoughts, the three genin stood silently, each lost in their own mind, trying to pinpoint the moment they had fallen under genjutsu.
Breaking the silence, Itachi spoke, his tone sharp and composed, "Alright, that's enough thinking. Now tell me—why did you lose, and what could you have done better? Daichi, you go first. Then Ren, and Kazeo last."
Daichi stood up and said, "If I ignore the genjutsu and assume everything was real, then I'd say I lost in close combat. You outmatched me in taijutsu, and you barely had to pay attention to me. You were just too fast."
Itachi gave a small nod and turned his gaze to Ren.
Ren stood up and added, "Same for me, sensei. Your taijutsu and speed were overwhelming. Even without genjutsu, our teamwork wasn't strong enough to make a difference. And with the way you used the Body Flicker, you could've taken us out one by one before we reacted."
Itachi's eyes shifted to Kazeo. "The Fireball and Headhunter combo—whose idea was it? When did you guys come up with that?"
Kazeo stood calmly and replied, "It was my idea, sensei. We discussed it during the break, after feeding and washing the dogs. As for how we could've done better... if we had trained more in genjutsu resistance and polished our teamwork a bit more, we could've at least put up a stronger fight."
Itachi gave a slow nod, analyzing their responses.
'Daichi is bold but lacks tactical thinking. Ren already accepts defeat before fighting—his mindset needs fixing. Kazeo, though… he adapts well in sudden or high-pressure situations, but he struggles in close combat. Even with his better stamina, he needs to train in close-range fighting. But his use of wires... that's something worth building on.'
"That's enough for today," he said, his voice steady. "Go home and rest. Tomorrow at 7 a.m., don't be late. You'll have a new task—write down your full daily routine and bring it to me."
His gaze settled on Kazeo.
"Kazeo, stay here. Ren, Daichi—you're dismissed."
Both of them glanced at Kazeo but didn't say anything and left. Kazeo, a little confused, wondered why he was the only one asked to stay back. As Ren and Daichi disappeared from view, Itachi stepped toward him and said, "You requested Hokage-sama to teach you Sunagakure's chakra string technique? Why?"
Surprised by the sudden question, Kazeo replied, "Yes, I did ask him, but he refused. He said the village doesn't have access to that method. As you've seen, I'm trying to use wires as my main weapon, but I can't control more than two—one in each hand. I've tried managing four, but I can't guide them along separate paths. Though, I did manage a bit with three."
Itachi nodded slightly and asked, "So, what approach did you take to control the wires with both hands? I assume you can't move multiple wires independently unless you trained both your hands and your mind."
"Yes, I trained… but my methods were pretty basic. I just practiced a lot. To control both hands differently, I had to start using my left hand too. I'm naturally right-handed, so I forced myself to do everyday tasks—brushing, writing, combing my hair, eating—with my left hand. After that, it was just about repetition and building coordination."
Then, tilting his head slightly, he added, "But why are you asking me this, sensei? Are you planning to teach me that technique?" His voice was neutral, with no real hope behind the question, it was just a passing thought. After all, the Hokage had already refused. Surely, Itachi wouldn't go against that.
Itachi was quietly impressed—this was indeed how the basic chakra thread training began. He said, "Not bad. I didn't expect you to have already gone through the fundamentals. As for why I'm asking—Hokage-sama has instructed me to train you in the chakra string technique."
He paused before continuing, "In Sunagakure, children usually start their training around the age of three or four. By the time they're ten or twelve, they can control ten wires—depending on their talent. Since you're starting late, you'll have to work harder. But… you have the Shadow Clone Jutsu. That makes things easier. If you train seriously, you might reach their level in a year or two—three at most."
He then added, "Our regular team training will begin at 7 a.m., but since you want to make wires your main weapon, you'll report to me an hour earlier. You'll also need to continue your training at home."
Kazeo stood stunned. Not only had the Hokage approved a technique he had previously denied in front of everyone, but he had also entrusted Itachi to teach it. 'Wait… he even knows Suna's techniques? Just what doesn't this guy know at age of thirteen? He's a walking cheat code.'
But what truly shook him was Itachi casually mentioning his Shadow Clone Jutsu—something only Hokage, Kazeo himself, and Shisui knew. And with Shisui gone… the only one who could've told Itachi was the Hokage. But why?
Lost in thought, Kazeo didn't even notice when Itachi vanished using Body Flicker.
With no way to get answers now, he turned and headed home, muttering to himself, "I'll ask him when I go to collect my money."
--------
In the evening, Kazeo was heading toward the academy basement. He was just about to reach it when he heard someone call out to him.
"Oh, Kazeo! There you are. I was just talking about you today."
He turned and spotted Okabe, his homeroom teacher, standing a few steps away. He gave a slight bow.
"Ah, good evening, sensei. Sorry, I didn't notice you. Do you need something?"
Okabe gave a small nod, noticing the tired look on Kazeo's face. "I see you're still training hard. That's good. Actually, the reason I stopped you… I've been thinking about the request you made a while back—about learning Kenjutsu."
He paused for a moment, then asked, "Do you still want to learn it?"
Kazeo blinked, momentarily caught off guard.
'Why is he bringing that up now? That was over a year ago…'
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