"Who!"
Shichikon and Yako's movements froze. They jerked their heads up—right above them, a figure stood upside down among the jagged rocks, leisurely watching them from below.
"To think I'd be discovered by you guys, what sharp perception." Mamoru said with a face full of sarcasm, deliberately emphasizing the word 'sharp'.
He had actually been standing up there for quite a while. If he hadn't spoken up, these two probably wouldn't have noticed him even if they walked out of the cave.
Shichikon first cast a wary glance below the stone platform, his subordinates clearly hadn't noticed the abnormality here yet.
Then he turned a questioning gaze toward Yako, his brow furrowed tightly.
Facing Shichikon's questioning eyes, Yako looked very innocent.
As a sensor-type ninja, he hadn't sensed any sign of an outsider approaching. There was only one possibility: the newcomer was an expert at hiding their presence.
"Kid, who are you?"
Shichikon knew now wasn't the time to shift blame, the urgent matter was to find out the origin of this uninvited guest.
"That's a good question.'
Mamoru released the Chakra from the soles of his feet, letting his body fall freely. He nimbly flipped his body in mid-air, adjusted his landing posture, and finally landed steadily on the sandalwood table in what he considered a cool superhero landing—one knee down, one hand bracing the table.
"I am the one trusted by all the villagers of Konoha... Ugh—"
Before he could finish, an indescribably pungent smell rushed into his nasal cavity. Mamoru couldn't help but dry heave.
"Holy crap! My nose... what is this smell? Who crapped their pants? It stinks so much..."
He covered his nose and mouth, scrambling off the table and fleeing all the way to the edge of the stone platform before stopping.
"Brat, what are you talking about? Where does it stink?" Yako was instantly displeased, hands on his hips as he glared at him with narrowed eyes.
"A... ladyboy? So the source of the chemical weapon is you."
This was Mamoru's first time seeing a ladyboy in real life.
"What are you saying? Who's a ladyboy?"
Yako puffed out his cheeks, pointing a finger at Mamoru and protesting in a pinched voice, "I'm a girl!"
Mamoru's lips twisted in disgust.
WTF! Today he had truly seen it all.
"Enough! Yako, don't let others make a joke out of you."
Shichikon really couldn't watch any longer and spoke to stop him. He didn't want this farce to continue.
Then, he shifted his gaze, staring at the youth standing at the edge of the stone platform, his mind undecided.
Although the opponent looked young and immature, the fact that he could sneak in here silently and dare to reveal himself so grandly was enough to prove that this boy was by no means simple.
Of course, it wasn't ruled out that the other party was a fool who came to die for nothing.
"Hmph!"
Hearing Shichikon's words, Yako let out a reluctant huff and turned his head away.
"Don't worry. For the sake of you being such a freak, I'll kill you first later."
Mamoru pointed at Yako, raising an eyebrow flippantly before turning his gaze to the leader of these bandits—Shichikon.
However, when he saw Shichikon's appearance clearly, he couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Hehehe... how interesting."
One ladyboy, and one who looks even less like a human. This combination is a perfect match.
"Brat, what are you laughing at?"
Shichikon clearly felt the malice in that laughter was directed at him, and anger began to rise in his heart.
However, Mamoru didn't answer. He just looked back and forth between Shichikon and Yako, the look of wonder in his eyes growing stronger, as if he were admiring some rare and bizarre spectacle.
The sight of the two men made Mamoru click his tongue in wonder.
Even someone as worldly as he was, raised on the bizarre late-night clips of his past life, had to admit today was an eye-opener.
The pairing was simply too grotesque: one face twisted like a demon, the other painted like a fiend.
While Mamoru savored the spectacle, Shichikon and Yako exchanged a knowing glance.
Shichikon narrowed his vicious eyes, flicked a subtle signal, and together their gazes locked onto Mamoru like twin vipers.
Without hesitation, Yako's crimson-nailed fingers flashed through three after-images.
Ninja Art: Dream of the Phantom Butterflies!
The drag-queen opposite Mamoru split into an ugly, ear-to-ear grin.
In the next second, Yako's body shattered like a broken mirror, scattering into countless iridescent butterflies. Their wings glowed with unnatural phosphorescence inside the gloomy cave, the patterns on them resembling eerie, unblinking eyes.
The world flipped upside-down in a heartbeat.
The cold, damp cavern vanished, replaced by a fairy-tale paradise of birdsong and blossoms.
Sickly-sweet floral perfume filled the air, distant birds trilled and warm sunlight caressed the skin—so real it was terrifying.
Swarms of painted butterflies fluttered around Mamoru, settled, and clung to his body, dusting him with fine phosphor as their wings quivered.
As Mamoru raised a hand, one butterfly alighted delicately on his fingertip, and he studied it with idle curiosity.
Its colors were familiar, almost identical to the gaudy insect he'd noticed earlier.
He arched an eyebrow, understanding at last how their stalker had trailed Miki's Konoha squad, that butterfly had been a spy all along.
Had he bothered to activate the Six Eyes then, he would have spotted the anomaly.
But he hadn't, because meddling was too much effort.
Now his limbs refused to answer. Not even a finger would budge, as if bound by invisible wire.
"Can't move, can you?" A shrill voice echoed from thin air inside the paradise.
Mamoru recognized the drag-queen's tone. He kept his lazy smile. "Pretty place, exactly the opposite of your face."
"Brat! You'll stop joking when you're dead!" The voice cracked with rage and the scenery trembled. "Soon you'll be begging to smile!"
"It's only genjutsu, spare me." Mamoru snorted.
If Tsukuyomi couldn't faze him, this parlor trick was a joke.
"Yes, genjutsu. Here I am god, and no one defies me!" The voice shrieked higher.
The ground shuddered and countless roots burst forth like green snakes, coiling up Mamoru's legs, writhing over torso and neck.
Just as they were about to tighten, Mamoru curved his lips in contempt. "Then you're the most pathetic god I've met."
Everything shattered in an instant.
A single casual sentence, and the paradise fractured like glass.
Mamoru's once-black eyes now blazed mystic blue, skies swirling within them. Naturally, every illusion evaporated before him.
"Impossible!" Yako gasped, thick powder failing to hide his bloodless face.
When had his genjutsu become so fragile?
Undone by a boy with a shrug?
Shichikon felt a storm inside his chest.
He knew better than anyone how troublesome Yako's Genjutsu were—why he tolerated the man's antics.
Yet this youngster had dispelled them effortlessly.
"Nothing's impossible." Mamoru said, rolling his neck and shoulders. "If it couldn't hold me, it was just too weak."
"Shichikon!"
Panic flared across Yako's painted face as he looked to his partner for a new plan.
That genjutsu was his only technique, its failure left him helpless.
Seeing Mamoru still at ease, he lost all composure.