"Thank you for your help. I… I am neither a qualified father nor a qualified clan head."
Kurama Murakumo sighed heavily.
Masahiko dispelled his Shadow Clone, a perfectly measured smile on his face. "Not at all. We are family, after all. However..."
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "More importantly, did you notice Yakumo's condition just now?"
"Yes, I observed it."
Murakumo's eyes darkened with worry. "As you said, her mental state is... unsettling."
"It is merely a bit extreme at the moment. If she were provoked again, the consequences would be unpredictable. Fortunately, you've made the right choice. A change of environment, away from the noise and pressure—she may yet recover," Masahiko said calmly.
Murakumo nodded. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke, "I certainly hope so."
Then, remembering his manners, he added, "I almost forgot. Please, come inside and sit. I'll prepare some tea..."
"There is no need. Once Yakumo comes down, we must head to the Academy for class," Masahiko declined with a smile.
Murakumo nodded helplessly. "Once we are settled in our new home, I would like to invite you for a casual meal. I hope you won't refuse."
"Very well. Until then."
Masahiko didn't push back; he accepted the invitation frankly.
At that moment, Kurama Yakumo came downstairs. Upon seeing Masahiko, she stuck out her tongue slightly, her gaze darting away in nervous anticipation.
Masahiko knew exactly what she was thinking, but he merely smiled and said nothing.
After she waved goodbye to her father, Masahiko walked her out of the clan grounds before finally speaking.
"Power itself has no inherent right or wrong. As long as it is used to protect those important to you, and remains within the rules, then it is correct."
Yakumo breathed a sigh of relief, seeing that her teacher wasn't blaming her. The anxiety on her face vanished, replaced by curiosity.
"Within the rules?"
"The village's rules and regulations dictate what can and cannot be done," Masahiko reminded her in a low, meaningful voice. "But to protect one's family... sometimes, one must be flexible."
Village regulations. Flexible changes.
Yakumo nodded thoughtfully, a fire lighting in her eyes as she made a silent resolution:
I'm going to read the village regulations from cover to cover today!
At the Academy Gate.
Uchiha Shisui held Sasuke back, preventing him from rushing inside.
"Don't be in such a hurry."
"Class is about to start!" Sasuke protested silently, eyeing his cousin with suspicion. "You said you were classmates with Masahiko-sensei. Do you not even recognize him?"
"Uh, well, I graduated when I was seven. We were all very young back then. It's been ten years since we've met," Shisui explained, looking down at Sasuke. "In ten years, do you think you'll be able to recognize everyone in your current class?"
That... probably not.
Sasuke was momentarily stumped, but he retorted helplessly, "But the first period today isn't Taijutsu. Masahiko-sensei might not even come."
"Hmm, that is a problem."
Shisui pondered this, scanning the crowd. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as a face triggered a faint memory. "Is that him?"
Sasuke looked up.
Along the perimeter wall of the school, the tall, handsome figure of Yagyu Masahiko was slowly approaching, accompanied by a pale-looking Kurama Yakumo.
Sasuke let out a breath and nodded. "Yes. Well then, I'll..."
"Students should help each other, right? Shouldn't you help your teacher bring that girl inside?" Shisui glanced at him, a playful smile on his lips.
Sasuke was speechless. Resigned, he ran forward and bowed politely. "Masahiko-sensei."
"Ah, Sasuke. And that over there... is that Shisui?"
Masahiko looked over and recognized him instantly.
It was unavoidable. Shisui's hairstyle and nose were far too iconic; he looked almost exactly as he did in the memories of Masahiko's previous life.
Sasuke nodded slightly, whispering, "He was afraid he wouldn't recognize you, yet you recognized him immediately..."
"Haha, he was a huge celebrity in our grade back then. Who wouldn't know him?"
Masahiko laughed, then turned to Yakumo. "Why don't you go in with Sasuke?"
"Okay. Today... thank you, Sensei."
Yakumo bowed gently.
Masahiko waved his hand. "A small matter. Go on, don't be late."
"Yes!"
The two students walked side-by-side toward the school building.
Only then did Shisui approach, speaking frankly. "Apologies, Masahiko-kun. Though, seeing you now, I actually recognized you at a glance."
"It's nothing." Masahiko shook his head, looking toward the school. "You personally escorted Sasuke to school today. Were you looking for me?"
"I heard from Sasuke about your understanding of the Body Flicker Technique (Shunshin) and the Clone Technique. I happen to have done some research in this area myself, so I came to exchange pointers with you," Shisui explained.
Masahiko paused for a moment, then nodded. "Shall we move to a different location?"
"Lets."
Before the word fully left his lips, Shisui vanished.
A split second later, Shisui looked back—
He saw Masahiko following closely behind. Without activating his Sharingan, all he could see was a blur.
As expected!
Shisui accelerated.
Moments later, the two arrived in the dense forest near the Ninja Academy.
The instant they entered the cover of the trees, both launched their attacks simultaneously.
No swords, no Sharingan—just a collision of pure Taijutsu, executed at breakneck speeds.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
In a mere second, they exchanged blows and shifted positions multiple times, their speed fast enough to leave an observer speechless.
Clones appeared around the perimeter and vanished just as quickly.
Shisui possessed the Sharingan, so he had never truly considered how a ninja without ocular powers could utilize such high-speed movement techniques effectively.
Now, Masahiko was giving him the answer.
Shisui couldn't suppress his excitement. "I see. Because you lack the Sharingan, you cannot perfectly control linear high speed, so you utilize 'Variable Speed Shunshin' to compensate."
"It's just a trick," Masahiko said calmly, his breathing steady. "If I had a Kekkei Genkai like yours, I wouldn't need to go through such trouble."
He formed hand seals, spewing a stream of water that coalesced into three Water Clones around him.
"You use Genjutsu principles to perfect your Clone Technique?"
"Correct."
Shisui nodded. Watching Masahiko's movements, he fell into thought. "Water Clones... Shadow Clones?"
Shisui paused, then enlightenment dawned on him.
Without strong Genjutsu, one has to use physical clones as a supplement to confuse the enemy's judgment further.
He immediately understood the advantage of this method. Combining the tangible with the intangible, making it impossible to distinguish the real from the fake—it utilized the Shadow Clone concept to its absolute limit.
Brilliant!
Compared to his own reliance on Genjutsu, Masahiko had spent far more thought perfecting this technique.
Shisui couldn't help but admire him. "If I were in your shoes, I don't think I could have researched it to this level."
"The research of Ninjutsu is born from necessity. If I had the Sharingan, I wouldn't need to research these things either."
Masahiko dispelled all the clones.
"In fact, I considered Genjutsu. But Genjutsu without a Sharingan is too weak... If I could create a Sound Genjutsu, that might be a viable path."
"Sound Genjutsu..." Shisui shook his head slightly. "Sound-based illusions are certainly strong, but for the Body Flicker Technique, Light and Shadow Genjutsu are actually superior."
"Light and Shadow Genjutsu?"
Masahiko paused, and suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck his mind.
Konoha-Style: Yagyu (Willow)!
Maruboshi Kosuke's sword technique.
That technique likely used movement, light, and shadow to create an illusionary effect.
If I could integrate that into the Dance of the Crescent Moon...
Unaware of Masahiko's internal monologue, Shisui continued, "When an enemy is guarding against visual Jutsu, I use movement and light manipulation. Like this—"
Shisui formed seals. Several clones appeared, and then, they all drew their swords in unison.
The blades reflected the sunlight, causing a dazzling glare to flash across Masahiko's eyes.
In that instant, his consciousness wavered...
Genjutsu: Release!
The illusion receded.
But...
In a real battle, that split second would have determined life or death.
The inspiration in Masahiko's mind grew stronger.
That's it. I don't need an overly complex Genjutsu. I just need to make the opponent lose focus for a single instant!
A Shunshin assassination doesn't require a perfect illusion!
Shisui smiled. "Sure enough, discussing things with others is the only way to spark new ideas. I see a direction for my next improvement as well."