Lately, even though Shiba Seika had been stirring up trouble in Cat Country and fanning the flames of Konoha's infighting, he hadn't slacked off on his own training for a single moment.
With constant practice, he quickly absorbed the insights the system had given him, integrated them, and turned them into strength of his own.
During this process, Shiba Seika gradually discovered that he had quite a talent for Genjutsu.
What was more, his approach to using Genjutsu was different from that of most ninja.
He never insisted that Genjutsu had to injure or weaken an enemy. In his view, deception itself was the goal!
There were many ways to kill an enemy; there was no need to rely on Genjutsu. But when it came to deceiving enemies and manipulating emotions, Genjutsu was the best tool!
He was especially good at combining Genjutsu with reality, blending truth and illusion until no one could tell them apart.
Take the situation now, for example. Karasuba and Masuda Ikki really were using the Uchiha Clan's ninjutsu. Shiba Seika had even specifically told them not to use any of the techniques they had known before.
That foundation in reality had become the perfect assist, steadily crushing the Root Ninja's defenses.
The relentless, urgent calls of "Great Fireball Technique," the familiar flames, the searing heat, and the faint glimpse of Red Eye finally snapped the Root Ninja's nerves.
He roared, prepared to die.
"You evil Uchiha! You'll never defeat Lord Danzo!
Lord Ryōma will have his bugs eat your bodies! Wu and Po's Fire Release is far superior to yours; they'll burn you to death! Lord Luo will gouge out your eyes and stuff your bodies into stone pillars!"
The Root Ninja was convinced there was no way out. The Uchiha's Sharingan had a reputation for being invincible in one-on-one combat.
So, under the influence of the Genjutsu, he went completely mad, shouting out every vicious curse he'd never dared to say before.
Just as he was about to keep cursing and trace the Uchiha family tree back to its roots to strike another blow, a sharp sting shot up from his tongue and quickly spread across his entire jaw.
The pain brought him to his senses. At last, everything before his eyes returned to normal. The night beneath the moon was still and quiet. There was no Red-Eyed Uchiha anywhere.
"What—"
He tried to speak, but the sting had already turned to numbness and nothingness.
He felt his tongue, and even his entire throat, rapidly rotting away and disappearing.
On the outside, countless black, tadpole-like Sealing Technique symbols spilled from his mouth and quickly spread toward his neck.
Shiba Seika raised an eyebrow, feeling a little regretful.
Seeing this, he didn't hesitate any longer. He used the Body Flicker Technique to appear in front of the Root Ninja and plunged his blade into the man's heart.
But death did not stop the tadpole-like symbols. They continued spreading across the corpse, only now crawling upward until they soon covered the Root Ninja's entire face and head.
Ajisai and the others caught up moments later. Seeing the scene, they all drew in a sharp breath.
"What is that? It looks so eerie and terrifying," Ajisai asked, still shaken.
Shiba Seika pulled out his blade and calmly explained, "It's the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, a secret technique of Konoha's Root."
"So these are the Root you've been talking about all this time."
Only then did Ajisai and the others confirm their enemies' identity.
Masuda Ikki said regretfully, "What a shame. If that strange secret technique hadn't activated, he could probably have given us more information."
Everyone nodded in agreement, looking at Shiba Seika with a trace of awe.
Compared with the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, Shiba Seika's Genjutsu was no less eerie or frightening!
He had effortlessly manipulated his enemy's emotions, toyed with an experienced Anbu Ninja, and extracted quite a bit of information.
Shiba Seika, however, didn't think much of it.
He'd known all along that Root had measures in place to keep its secrets.
Besides, the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal activating proved that the information the enemy had revealed before his death was all true.
In a way, it had actually helped Shiba Seika, providing a powerful guarantee of the information's authenticity.
"It's fine. We've already gained a lot from this. We've confirmed that the enemy's leader is Yūno Ryōma, and that the team includes two experts in Fire Release and a brutal ninja skilled in Earth Release."
After a pause, Shiba Seika added, "And judging by how the enemy refused to retreat and the surveillance over the past few days, this Root squad probably won't receive any reinforcements."
Although all this information was certainly useful, no one looked any more optimistic.
"They're still very strong even so. I think I heard about that Yūno Ryōma a few years ago. He made a name for himself during the Second Shinobi World War," Masuda Ikki said ruefully.
As Root's highest-ranking commander, Yūno Ryōma was normally permitted to use his real name instead of a code name, so he had some renown in the Shinobi World.
Hearing his name made everyone's morale sink even further.
They'd set out full of confidence, but only after conducting actual reconnaissance had they truly felt the gap in resources between a great ninja village and the Rain ninja.
Every one of the twelve Root members was exceptionally capable.
The cannon fodder they'd just dealt with was a soft target they'd spent three days watching before finally catching him alone.
Now, learning that their enemy also had a powerful, well-known commander made their fighting spirit sink even lower.
But Shiba Seika smiled faintly, his expression cold and uncanny in the moonlight.
Then he dropped a bombshell. "No. I've already thought of a way to deal with them."
Everyone turned to him at once, their faces full of shock.
"Team Leader Seika, you've already come up with a plan? That fast?"
"What should we do?"
Shiba Seika still wore his gentle smile as he calmly uttered a few words.
At that moment, everyone felt the moonlight turn cold. A chill seeped into their bodies, making them all shudder.
Shiba Seika said, "We set the mountain on fire."
Then, to be kind, Shiba Seika explained the brilliance of the plan.
"Based on the information we have, the enemy team lacks Water Release users. The Aburame Clan's bugs have a huge advantage in the woods, but a forest fire can completely negate that advantage."
But that wasn't what the others were focused on.
Kenjiro stammered, "Team Leader Seika, isn't that... too cruel?
There's a village at the foot of the mountain. Even if no one gets caught in the fire, those villagers depend on the animals in the mountains to make it through the winter. And if the fire gets out of control, the consequences would be unthinkable."
Ajisai pouted and muttered succinctly, "It's a sin against nature."
Shiba Seika merely spread his hands slightly. One sentence was enough to sink everyone's spirits.
"Did you only meet me today? When have I, Shiba Seika, ever cared about committing a sin against nature?"
A sin against nature, a sin against humanity—it didn't matter, as long as it didn't hurt Seika.
At last, he declared firmly, "I don't want to lose a single person. I just want Root dead!"
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