"You… Didn't I hit you with my genjutsu?"
The Iwa chūnin stared, dumbfounded.
He was absolutely certain he'd injected Yin Release chakra into Kiyohara's body and triggered the illusion.
How was he walking around like nothing happened?
Instant break?
No… he hadn't even seen Kiyohara attempt to disrupt his chakra flow. His chakra was completely stable.
"You've got a lot to learn."
Rogue Kiyohara, controlling the body, gave a faint smirk.
In the next instant, he pulled a kunai from the pouch and shot forward at blinding speed.
The Iwa chūnin didn't even have time to react.
A thin red line slashed across his neck.His eyes locked onto Kiyohara's face—filled with disbelief.
How could a genin-level shinobi kill me in one move?
Was he some elite jōnin fishing for prey in disguise?
Before he could figure it out, his vision dimmed from blood loss.He collapsed—dead before he hit the ground.
Body Flicker Technique.
"What a fast Body Flicker…" Kurenai murmured, wide-eyed.
He had moved so fast, it seemed like he vanished and reappeared—an illusion created purely by speed.
"Kurenai, use your genjutsu to deal with the other chūnin," Kiyohara said, now back in control of his own body.
He crouched low, dragging the fresh corpse into the nearby brush.The blood hadn't spread far yet—there was still time to act.
He needed to take out the second chūnin before the two genin nearby could react.
"Got it."Kurenai nodded and moved into position alongside him.
Thanks to the swift takedown, the second Iwa chūnin hadn't noticed anything yet.
By the time he realized something was off, he was staring straight into the crimson eyes of a black-haired kunoichi—
And the genjutsu was already cast.
"Demonic Illusion: Descent Into Hell Technique!"
Kurenai's hands formed seals with elegant precision, weaving her signature technique.
"Ahhhhhh!!"
The scar-faced Iwa chūnin screamed in horror.
In his mind's eye, he saw his teammate slaughtered right before him—And he was powerless to stop it.
He could do nothing.Change nothing.His bonds—gone forever.
It was the single biggest trauma of his life.
"Got him. He's under the illusion."
Kurenai let out a relieved sigh.
This technique targeted the deepest fear within a person's heart, driving them to irrational paralysis.
Seeing the man frozen in terror, Kiyohara didn't hesitate.
He flicked a shuriken forward—
Shk.
The blade pierced cleanly through the man's throat, sending a burst of blood into the air.
'When you kill someone, you survive.'
That's how it was.
If Kiyohara didn't kill them, they'd kill him.
This squad had been tasked with punching through the Land of Grass and invading the Land of Fire.In other words: invaders.
He had no reason to show mercy.
And after all this time in the ninja world, Kiyohara had grown used to it.
"Enemy attack! Commander Hikari and Commander Tachi are dead!"
The two remaining genin finally realized what was happening.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"
One of them formed hand seals, conjuring a long spear of mud from the ground and hurling it at Kiyohara.
The other genin mirrored him—same jutsu, two earthen spears flying fast.
"Lightning Release: Ground Surge!"
Kiyohara's seals flashed, and a blast of blue electricity arced across the ground.
Crackle!
The lightning tore through the two mud spears with ease, vaporizing them midair.
"Shit—he's a Lightning Release user!"
Otanikawa Teruya grimaced.
Chakra natures had inherent strengths and weaknesses.
And Earth was weak against Lightning.
From the start, they were at a disadvantage.
"Illusion—!"
Kurenai was already preparing her next genjutsu.
"Retreat!"
Teruya yelled to his companion, and both turned tail and fled into the bamboo forest without looking back.
"Kurenai, don't chase."
Kiyohara raised a hand to stop her.
"You're letting them go?" Kurenai asked, confused.
He still had chakra. Why didn't he go for the kill?And why stop her?
"Our goal is to draw Iwagakure's attention—not wipe them out."
Kiyohara explained.
Even if they killed a couple more enemies, it wouldn't change the strategic situation.
Better to let them escape and report back.
That way, more Iwa forces would be drawn here—and their diversion mission would succeed.
And with Rogue Kiyohara watching from the spirit realm, he didn't fear surprise attacks.
He was beginning to realize just how overpowered Spiritual Transformation Technique really was.
An invisible soul-body, capable of stealth and instant information gathering.Unless the original body was left defenseless like Kato Dan's, it had almost no weaknesses.
But in his case?
Kiyohara could just let Rogue Kiyohara roam freely—without risk.
"I see," Kurenai nodded thoughtfully.
As expected of their team leader.
He hadn't lost himself in the heat of battle.He knew exactly when to stop.
"Alright, let's div—uh, take inventory," Kiyohara said smoothly.
This was a proper outpost.They'd stored a decent supply of rations here, though that wasn't something they could carry.
Their sealing scrolls had limited capacity.
But ninja tools, armor, equipment—those were fair game.Lightweight and valuable.
Moments later, Genma emerged from the treeline.
The enemies had run in the opposite direction.None passed his watch point.
"Come on out, Genma. I just didn't want to risk letting a chūnin slip through.Since they were only genin that ran, it's fine now."
Kiyohara casually peeled back his jacket and pulled out a sealing scroll, starting to pack things away.
"Don't be shy—take what you want."
"...Uh."Genma blinked.
Only now did he realize—Kiyohara had planned for him to take out a chūnin from the start!?
"You brought a sealing scroll, Kiyohara?" Kurenai asked, surprised.
Most shinobi didn't bother.
Their tool pouches already had what they needed.And sealing scrolls added bulk, reducing mobility.
After all, ninja vests and light chainmail were designed for speed—not the heavy armor of the Warring States era.
"If you don't bring a scroll, all this stuff goes to waste," Kiyohara replied matter-of-factly.
He was still in debt.
A solid seventy thousand ryo.
Ten thousand had gone to Tsunade.Sixty thousand more had been spent mostly on rare medicinal ingredients.
What little remained had gone toward essential tools, forbidden drug lab materials…
…and this one sealing scroll.