Junsaku's jaw tightened, but the seal on his tongue locked his words. He tried to shape a hand sign, but Ryusei's foot crushed his wrist into the dirt before the seal could form.
"You can't talk, can't explain yourself, can't even beg," Ryusei went on lightly, as if making small talk.
"Root must be such a fun place to live. Owned in body, mind, and even your last words. Tell me, when you close your eyes, do you dream of freedom… or only of Danzo's leash?"
The Yamanaka's face twisted in rage, veins bulging as he struggled uselessly. His eyes burned, but no sound escaped him.
Ryusei crouched, placing a hand on his cheek like he was comforting him, though his smile stayed sharp.
"You nearly fried my brain once. Three times today, in fact. For most people, that would be unforgivable. For me… well, I forgive you. Because I get to kill you myself."
Junsaku thrashed harder, his crossbow construct sputtering one last time.
Ryusei slammed his heel through his thigh, shattering bone, and leaned closer, voice dropping to a whisper.
"Danzo. Hiruzen. And everyone else below you. Don't worry—you'll all line up in turn."
The Yamanaka's eyes widened, pupils trembling, and then the light dimmed as Ryusei's palm surged with chakra and snapped his neck cleanly.
Silence followed. Ryusei stood, brushing off his hands, almost refreshed.
For the first time since he had woken up in this world, he wasn't just running or hiding—he had turned and bitten back.
It felt good. Brutal, simple, honest. Like letting the beast in his chest breathe at last.
His lips curved back into that too-gentle smile as he stepped back toward the chaos of battle, a beast just barely leashed again.
He knew that it was still not over and that he had to deal with the aftermath next.
Ryusei knew the only reason he had survived again was because the enemy had no idea how far his genjutsu defense had grown since that time.
If anything, they probably believed the opposite, that genjutsu was his weak point, something to exploit.
Maybe that was why Danzo sent the same man again, only under different circumstances. Typical of him.
Likely thinking that he could 'brute-force' every problem through sheer aggression.
To them, he was still the boy who nearly collapsed under a single attack months ago.
But in truth, Ryusei had also overestimated himself a little.
He wasn't untouchable in that area, as he had just been reminded.
However, at least he had corrected his mistake early.
He had practiced Yin Release on the side, even just a little, before this.
That, combined with the right mindset in the moment, gave him the flash of inspiration he needed in that split second between life and death.
Without it, he would already be finished.
Junsaku was far stronger than the Yugakure jōnin Ryusei had faced before.
His technique also wasn't just genjutsu; it was also nin-genjutsu.
However, it was way more potent, more deceptive, more versatile.
He could fire multiple shots, adjust them in midair, set layered traps, and chain them with other illusions.
His control on the battlefield was leagues above.
They couldn't even be compared. That Yugakure jōnin was a mere shadow.
This Yamanaka was the real thing.
Barring some of the Uchiha, he might already be the strongest genjutsu user in the world.
Only veterans with three-tomoe Sharingan, while also being specialists who lived and breathed genjutsu, could rival him.
And yet Ryusei had endured. That alone told him something.
The limit of his resistance, he felt, was no longer the average Sharingan genjutsu technique, even if it was done by a Mangekyo user.
Only the rare, special Mangekto abilities like Tsukuyomi itself might still overwhelm him.
Anything less, he believed, he could break.
"Yet if I had the Byakugan, even Mangekyō illusions could probably be expelled…" Ryusei thought, his confidence rising.
His spiritual energy was already stronger than average, and his sensory external and inner perception better than average.
And now he had also forged a powerful Yin Release defense, something that could tank and unravel genjutsu head-on.
That was why he felt so certain.
It was a perfect combination against any genjutsu user. First, it forced them to put in far more effort if they wanted to catch him at all.
Second, even if they did succeed, he was far better at noticing when it hit. And third, once he caught it, he could dispel it far more easily than before.
In truth, before this fight, he couldn't accurately measure the full extent of how far he'd come until now, in that area, which was why there was always the risk of overconfidence.
But after this fight, after enduring something at the absolute pinnacle of genjutsu, he finally could be more certain.
Junsaku hadn't been some ordinary enemy. He was an Elite Jōnin, and not a weak one.
A man whose technique could have crippled almost anyone, layered correctly, even a Kage might fall if struck unawares.
And yet Ryusei not only resisted him but killed him.
He hadn't won by chance.
He had crushed him because his genjutsu defense was simply the perfect counter.
The rest, his speed, his raw strength in close range, was just the finishing touch.
Ryusei stood in the middle of the chaos, mind sharpening even as the battlefield roared around him.
The body of Junsaku was still warm behind him, but he already knew what this meant. Killing a Root division leader was no small matter.
The masks were off now, the game no longer hidden under veils.
For Danzo and Hiruzen's faction, his survival until now could still be explained away as chance, or overlooked as tolerable.
But the moment word reached them that he had not only killed a high-ranking Root officer, but one as skilled as Junsaku, it would no longer be something that could be ignored.
And worse, they would now know he had a genjutsu defense that even an Elite Jōnin couldn't break. That fact alone would make the Hokage's circle uneasy.
Ryusei exhaled slowly, forcing calm into his chest. He knew what was coming next. Another storm. The only question was when and how.
Run? The thought crossed his mind, but he dismissed it.
Not unless he had no other choice.
If he abandoned Konoha now, he would lose the opportunities that came from still being inside the system.
Besides, the Hokage's hand could reach beyond borders. Running wouldn't guarantee survival; it would only make him easier to cut off without witnesses.
Then what?
This was only part of the reason Ryusei now pulled out the special sealing scroll he had purchased before, one large enough to store a human body. He sealed the corpse away without hesitation, thinking it might prove useful later in one way or another anyway.
His eyes narrowed as his sensory net spread wider.
Around him, Root operatives were momentarily confused, shaken by Junsaku's sudden death.
But, the Kusagakure shinobi that had been under Yamanaka control now stirred awake, clashing against them.
No one had time to notice Ryusei standing still in the middle of it all.
His thoughts turned razor-sharp.
Was this Danzo's scheme alone, hidden even from Hiruzen?
Or did the Hokage know as well?
The chances that Danzo acted without approval were slim.
Too many "rogue" actions over the years turned out to be whispered orders from above.
Ryusei didn't dare gamble on that possibility.
So, what shield could he create right now?
The answer came clearly. Merit.
If he displayed his strength openly here, contributed visibly, and earned undeniable credit, he would force Hiruzen's hand.
There were too many witnesses this time who would transmit the information further into the village forces; ANBU not directly under the Hokage's private leash, four regular Konoha jonin shinobi also outside Root, and even Choza Akimichi himself, whose loyalty was known but who couldn't easily lie about what he saw.
Hiruzen couldn't silence them all without looking like a tyrant.
If Ryusei died later in the village, after making great meritorious deeds during the defense of this garrison, who would some minds in Konoha blame? Who has the power to allow that?
Hiruzen was already facing an unpopular war; the last thing he could afford was whispers that he executed his own meritocratic soldiers literally for no reason before the war.
How would that motivate the other shinobi sent to war right now?
Ryusei smirked faintly to himself. That was the leverage. That was the shield.
His chakra flared. Shadow clones burst into existence, sliding into position with perfect coordination.
His sensory field wove them together like extensions of his body, clones darting forward in formation.
He joined the Root shinobi in suppressing Kusagakure's assault, his clones breaking the lines and scattering their ranks.
This time, no one moved to hinder him.
Junsaku's death had silenced that.
For the operatives nearby, the main mission objective was clear: defending the garrison came first.
Ryusei Nishida had only ever been the secondary target, his death was more so Junsuke's personal responsibility.
The defense of the garrison was the longer-term true priority they were working on for months.
Ryusei's execution order was meanwhile sudden.
If they failed to hold it, the punishment would be far worse than simply missing the chance to eliminate Ryusei.
Not to mention that even If they wanted to and wasted strength fighting Ryusei, the Kusagakure force would sneer at them, not allow that, and carve them apart there.
The battlefield thundered around him, steel against steel, flames flashing in the dusk, chakra pressure clashing like waves.
But Ryusei's mind was cold and clear.
He fought hard, driving the enemy back step by step, but his gaze was already searching ahead.
Where on this battlefield could he make the greatest merit?
Where could he strike so deep that Hiruzen himself would choke on the thought of erasing him and find his next shield?