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"Hinata, is Teacher Kurenai alright?"
After merging the five white orbs of light, Ryūsei approached Hinata and Shino, glancing at the unconscious Kurenai lying on the ground.
Hinata, while performing a healing technique on Kurenai, replied, "Teacher is fine. She was just knocked out by the electricity."
"That's good." Ryūsei nodded, though his mood was somewhat heavy.
Kurenai's condition served as a wake-up call for him.
In terms of lethality, Ryūsei, having developed the Water Vortex Spear, already possessed the ability to kill enemies above his level.
After all, aside from the Fourth Raikage, who excelled in ninja taijutsu, the physical constitutions of the other Kage were no different from ordinary people.
If struck by his water spear, death was certain.
The same applied to Ryūsei himself.
With few exceptions, most shinobi in the world of Naruto were high-offense, low-defense glass cannons.
Kurenai had only taken a direct hit from a lightning orb and was instantly electrocuted into unconsciousness.
Ryūsei doubted he would fare much better against such an attack.
Before his Sage Body fully matured—granting him the ability for instantaneous healing—or before he awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan, allowing him to use the absolute defense of Susanoo, his current weaknesses were defense and speed.
If he encountered an enemy with astonishing defense or someone whose body-flicker speed surpassed his, Ryūsei—despite his high lethality—would be at a severe disadvantage.
With this realization, Ryūsei knew exactly what he needed to improve next.
"Ryūsei-kun, Teacher is waking up!"
Just then, Hinata's delighted voice reached his ears.
Turning his head, he saw Kurenai slowly opening her crimson eyes—the same shade as his own—her gaze dazed, as if she had just woken from a deep sleep.
"Teacher, are you alright?"
Ryūsei's voice snapped Kurenai back to reality.
Upon seeing Ryūsei, the rocky cliffs behind him, and the sky above, Kurenai jolted upright, scanning her surroundings warily. "Ryūsei, is everyone okay?"
Before Ryūsei and the others could respond, Kurenai—who had stood up too quickly—suddenly felt dizzy, her vision darkening as she lost balance and swayed toward Ryūsei.
Ryūsei, who was only a few centimeters shorter than her, immediately reached out to steady her. "Don't worry, Teacher. Raiga is already dead."
"What?!"
Kurenai froze in shock, her eyes widening. "Raiga is dead?"
Before Ryūsei could nod, Shino spoke up. "Ryūsei killed him with a new jutsu. His body is over there."
Following Shino's finger, Kurenai saw the corpse of one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist—Raiga Kurosuki.
A complex mix of emotions surged through Kurenai.
Pride and admiration for her student, but also deep shame for herself.
As a teacher, she had not only failed to protect her students but had instead been protected by them. She was utterly pathetic!
At that moment, Kurenai recognized her own weakness and rediscovered a motivation she had long lost.
No more drowning herself in alcohol and slacking off. If she didn't train seriously, she would truly become the laughingstock of the Jonin instructors.
Thus, Kurenai patted Ryūsei's shoulder with a smile. "Ryūsei, you did brilliantly!"
Noticing the sudden shift in Kurenai's demeanor, Ryūsei was puzzled but maintained a respectful façade. "It was all thanks to the Genjutsu you taught me, Teacher. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to exploit his opening and kill him."
So that was it!
Kurenai and Shino both understood now.
Kurenai realized how Ryūsei had killed Raiga, while Shino finally grasped why Raiga hadn't dodged—instead standing still as Ryūsei's attack struck him.
He had assumed the rain had obscured Raiga's vision, but it turned out Ryūsei had immobilized him with the Genjutsu.
"Raiga Kurosuki is a missing-nin from Kirigakure and one of the original Seven Ninja Swordsmen. Since he defected with Kirigakure's Lightning Blade: Kiba, his bounty on the black market is extremely high—but only if the swords are turned in alongside his body."
Having recovered, Kurenai walked over to Raiga's corpse and quickly spotted the Lightning Blade: Kiba lying nearby.
Picking it up, she turned to Ryūsei. "Ryūsei, since you killed Raiga, his head and this sword are your spoils of war. Do you want the sword, or would you prefer the bounty?"
"Teacher, I want the sword," Ryūsei answered without hesitation.
Having already decided on his next area of improvement, he needed the sword's abilities to supplement his training.
"Alright, the sword is yours."
Kurenai handed Kiba to Ryūsei. "Feel free to use it. I'll report it to the Hokage when we return to the village."
After speaking, she took out a storage scroll from her pouch, preparing to seal Raiga's body.
Since Raiga's brain remained intact, his corpse held significant value for Konoha—especially given the Yamanaka clan's mind-reading techniques.
By handing the body over to the village, even if Kirigakure demanded the return of Kiba through diplomatic pressure, Konoha would have leverage to refuse.
Watching Kurenai handle the corpse, Ryūsei suddenly remembered something, his expression darkening.
"Teacher, could you let me handle the body instead?" he asked urgently.
Kurenai paused, then turned to look at Ryūsei's serious expression.
A few seconds later, she smiled and pulled out an explosive tag, sticking it onto Raiga's head.
"Get back!"
As the tag ignited, Team 8 immediately vanished with a shunshin.
BOOM!
With a deafening explosion, Raiga and the boy hidden inside his raincoat were blown to pieces.
After ensuring the destruction of the evidence, Kurenai clapped her hands. "Alright, let's head back to the village."
Ryūsei couldn't help but ask, "Teacher, aren't you going to ask why?"
"No need. Everyone has secrets they'd rather keep hidden."
Kurenai patted his shoulder again. "You can use Kiba without worry. As for Raiga's body, I'll explain to the Hokage that we destroyed it completely with explosives."
Touched by Kurenai's unwavering loyalty—choosing her student over village protocol—Ryūsei felt a surge of warmth in his chest. "Thank you, Teacher."
At the same time, he couldn't help but shudder at how close he had come to exposure.
When he saw Kurenai handling the body, he suddenly remembered Kakuzu from the Akatsuki—and the Yamanaka clan's Mind Reading Jutsu.
This technique required no tools to extract thoughts and memories, even from the dead.
The jutsu Ryūsei had used to immobilize Raiga wasn't just any Genjutsu at all—it was the Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes from his Sharingan.
Ryūsei didn't know if Raiga's brain had been sealed by Kirigakure, but he wasn't willing to gamble.
If Konoha's leadership discovered he possessed the Sharingan, he could already imagine the fallout.
From now on, he would remember this lesson:
Even the dead can't keep secrets. Total annihilation is the only way.
Thus, Ryūsei took out his own storage scroll and collected the scattered remains of Raiga and the boy.
Team 8 watched silently, refraining from questioning him.
However, curiosity burned in their hearts.
Clearly, Ryūsei's method of killing Raiga wasn't as simple as it seemed.
Was it a secret technique? Or a bloodline limit?
Once Ryūsei finished cleaning up, Team 8 began their journey home.
Unlike the five-day trek to the Land of Rivers, their return trip—using shunshin—took less than half a day.
By the time they arrived at Konoha, the sun was setting.
"I'll report our mission to the Hokage. You three go home and rest."
Just inside the village gates, Kurenai dismissed them. "Take three days off. Recover properly."
"Yes, Teacher."
Exhausted, Ryūsei and the others nodded.
After disbanding, Ryūsei parted ways with Hinata and Shino, not inviting Hinata over for dinner.
Right now, all three of them were drained—physically and mentally.
All Ryūsei wanted was a hot bath, a simple meal, and a long, deep sleep.
Just as he was about to head to the market for fresh ingredients, he brushed past someone.
Pausing mid-step, Ryūsei turned to look at the figure behind him, his eyes flashing with recognition.
It was an elderly man wearing a straw hat, carrying a wooden crate and a bottle of sake.
Though this was his first time seeing the man in person, Ryūsei recognized him instantly.
After all, in the twelve years he had spent organizing the main plot and key events of this world, this man was always the first to come to mind.
The bridge builder from the Land of Waves—Tazuna.