In the woods, the fierce battle had raged for more than ten minutes.
"Izumi, restrain Maya. I'll go finish them off."
The moment he finished speaking, Kyosuke charged at the enemy with his short sword in hand.
Ten minutes earlier, the squad had successfully intercepted the enemy team.
Lacking sufficient long-range firepower, they could only open with Uchiha Izumi's Fire Release, then have Kyosuke lead Maya into close quarters to inflict damage.
This time, however, he had run into some tough opponents.
The enemy team fielded a complete Ino-Shika-Cho formation, and their coordination was exceptionally good.
The Akimichi Clan's Chunin used the Multi-Size Technique to forcefully disrupt their charge, while the crafty Yamanaka took the opportunity to seize control of Uchiha Maya's body.
By the time Kyosuke risked using the Body Flicker Technique to forcibly kill the enemy before him, Maya stood in front of him with a kunai pressed against her own throat.
[System notification: Killed an Akimichi Clan Chunin. Gained 280 points.]
"Surrender, or this woman dies."
Surrender?
That was no different from killing himself on the spot. If he fell into the Three Clans' hands, Kyosuke would most likely learn what it meant to suffer a fate worse than death.
"Maya!" Uchiha Izumi's voice was like that of a blood-drenched demon from purgatory, filled with despair and hatred that threatened to devour everything.
Only then did he realize that his two subordinates shared a special bond.
"I can surrender..." The moment he spoke, "Maya" turned her gaze toward him.
When "she" met those eerie Sharingan eyes, her heart lurched, and she silently cursed.
As a unique being formed from the fusion of two souls, Kyosuke possessed an exceptionally strong foundation of spiritual power.
Without anyone teaching him, he had grasped the Sharingan's most basic-and also exceptionally powerful-ocular genjutsu.
Genjutsu: Sharingan!
His consciousness plunged into Maya's body, and his blood-red eyes instantly enveloped the enemy's spiritual form.
As his ocular power erupted, the enemy was instantly kicked out of his subordinate's body, leading to the scene at the beginning.
Drawing his coldly gleaming short sword, Kyosuke rushed toward the Yamanaka Clan ninja as swiftly as the wind.
He knew that the Nara directing the battle would do everything possible to come to the rescue.
Sure enough, Kyosuke had barely taken a few steps when a black shadow shot toward him across the ground.
Whatever else might be said about them, the friendship between the Three Clans was truly touching. So he decided that, no matter what, he would send them to the Pure Land together today.
His hands formed a simple set of hand seals, and before the Nara's suddenly widening eyes, he became a blur and hurtled forward.
Whoosh!
His short sword swept through the air, blood sprayed, and a head flew skyward.
[System notification: Killed a Nara Clan Chunin. Gained 310 points.]
"Shit." The moment Kyosuke stopped, muscles throughout his body began to spasm.
Lying on the ground, he could only watch helplessly as Uchiha Izumi ran over and stole his kill.
"Damn it, I'm not done with you." His mouth twitched a few times before his head lolled to the side and he passed out.
Using the difficult Body Flicker Technique twice in such a short span of time meant he was forcing himself to fight at the expense of his future health.
Fortunately, the total of 590 points at least made up for Kyosuke's wounded body and soul.
"Oh no, my lord has passed out." Struggling to her feet, Maya staggered to his side, pulled medical supplies from her ninja tool pouch, and began treating him.
Behind her, Uchiha Izumi kept her head lowered, as though she still had not escaped the despair of moments earlier.
Tears pattered down, one drop after another, as Maya choked out, "He didn't abandon me. Lord Madara was right. Kyosuke is someone worth following."
There was something else she left unsaid. As a medical ninja, Maya knew all too well the consequences of forcing oneself to use the Body Flicker Technique.
Kyosuke was only eight years old, yet he was fighting by pushing his body beyond its limits. For a moment, gratitude and guilt filled her heart.
Only at that moment did these two subordinates transferred from Madara Uchiha truly belong to Kyosuke, body and soul.
After rambling on for quite a while, Maya suddenly realized that her girlfriend had not responded to her at all.
Curious, she turned her head and immediately noticed those blood-red eyes.
Within them, three jet-black tomoe slowly revolved.
A full day and night passed before Kyosuke woke from his coma.
"An unfamiliar ceiling~"
He did not even need to look to know that he must have been wrapped in bandages from head to toe.
To others, pushing his body beyond its limits seemed incredibly foolish, but Kyosuke himself did not particularly care.
The system shop stocked potions capable of completely restoring his body.
For just 5,000 points, he could gradually heal every injury and hidden ailment he had suffered.
Higher-grade potions could even restore him to perfect health in a very short time, but the price...
Ugh, better not think about it.
His willingness to risk his life was bound to move his two promising subordinates.
Until he won their complete loyalty, Kyosuke always felt a little awkward relying on them.
With difficulty, he turned his head. Uchiha Maya was fast asleep beside his pillow.
In the past, she would never have been so unguarded in front of Kyosuke. The significance of it made the corners of his mouth lift slightly.
It worked!
"Sigh, risking my life like this every time is bound to cause problems." While recuperating, Kyosuke considered this issue for the first time.
As things stood, his safety was assured for the time being.
Both subordinates were now completely loyal, and Uchiha Izumi in particular had successfully awakened her Three-Tomoe Sharingan after the previous incident.
In terms of combat strength, when she went all out, she now had the ability to take on a Jonin.
Their future missions would be considerably safer. The problem was that she would probably find it even easier to steal his kills.
"No, I have to limit when she fights. As for the reason... I'll just say I need actual combat experience."
A week later, Kyosuke was successfully discharged.
Considering the efficiency of his point gathering, he decided to slow down for now and strengthen himself first.
Rather than learning ninjutsu, he planned to ask Uchiha Maya to teach him about genjutsu.
It would help make up for his lack of mid-range options.
He could hardly force himself to use the Body Flicker Technique at the risk of serious injury every time something unexpected happened.
Factoring in the time spent recovering from injuries, that approach seriously hampered his efficiency in earning points.
After a period of systematic study, Kyosuke finally mastered several basic genjutsu.
The squad set out again and began relentlessly hunting the Three Clans' ninja.
Over time, he gradually regained his fearsome reputation as the "Evil-Faced Rakshasa."
To lessen the impact of his age, Kyosuke habitually wore the Demon Mask even after returning to camp.
There was danger, of course. On several occasions, the Three Clans surrounded him in coordinated attacks.
If not for Uchiha Izumi's exceptional strength and her desperate efforts to protect him as he escaped, the Rakshasa's soul would probably have long since returned to the Netherworld.
And so, a year passed in the blink of an eye.
Kyosuke finally accumulated enough points.
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