The Seven People of Self-Doubt

"I am no ninja of the Leaf, merely a passing Kamen Rider." Genye hurriedly distanced himself from the identity.

"I don't care who you are, go to hell!"

Kuriarare Kushimaru and Munashi Jinpachi were already fuming with rage, looking for a place to vent their anger.

He drew his Longsword: Sewing Needle, appeared before Genye in a flash, and thrust the blade viciously toward Genye's heart.

"Watch out, Kamen Rider!" Might Dai exclaimed.

The hearts of Ebisu and his two companions leaped into their throats, and they broke into a cold sweat for Genye.

"Hmph, courting death!" Seeing it was Kuriarare Kushimaru, Genye let out a cold snort, his own temper flaring.

Two years, seven months, and eleven days ago, he had been forced into a pathetic retreat by Kuriarare Kushimaru; he had kept that grudge firmly in mind!

"Gentle..."

In the instant he raised his hand to strike, a joke flashed through Genye's mind.

Enemy: Which village are you a ninja from?

Guy: I won't tell you, Konoha Hurricane!

Enemy: So you're a ninja from Hurricane Village!

I laughed like an idiot back then, damn, I'm the real idiot!

"Gentle... Gentle-as-water-flowing-long-stream-heartless-fist!"

Time was tight; Genye scrambled the words in his mind, improvised a move, and shouted it out in a rush as he threw his punch.

Boom!

Watching the incoming punch, Kuriarare Kushimaru suddenly felt a sense of familiarity.

The spirit of this move...

"You... you are...!"

Kuriarare Kushimaru's pupils contracted sharply. He voluntarily retracted his sword, abandoned his attack, stepped back half a body length, and opened his mouth to shout.

First you charge at me, and now you want to expose my identity... Little brother, if you don't die, who will?

Genye silently switched from "Gentle Fist: Collapse" to "Gentle Fist: Blast."

Whoosh!

A terrifying fist intent erupted suddenly, pouring down like a surging mountain torrent, completely engulfing Kuriarare Kushimaru's figure from half a meter away.

Bang!

Clouds of blood mist exploded outward. Kuriarare Kushimaru remained in his open-mouthed posture, his body frozen in place.

Half a second later, his body instantly shattered into fine chunks of flesh, scattered everywhere by the terrifying force.

"What a, what a poetic name!"

Might Dai's reaction was a beat slow; it wasn't until Kuriarare Kushimaru exploded that he realized what happened, and he excitedly gave Genye a thumbs-up.

Ebisu: "???"

Looking at the rain of blood and flesh filling the sky, Ebisu couldn't find a shred of poetry; he only wanted to... Ugh!

Σ_(꒪ཀ꒪"∠) Alright, he'd already thrown up.

"So... so strong!" Shiranui Genma was so shocked his jaw dropped, and the toothpick in his mouth fell to the ground.

Guy didn't speak; he stared silently at Genye's back, lost in thought.

On the giant boulder.

The Seven Ninja Swordsmen, who had been chatting and laughing just moments ago, could no longer smile; their calm and breezy expressions froze instantly on their faces.

"Are... are you kidding me?!"

Munashi Jinpachi growled, "Kushimaru was actually blown to pieces by a single punch from some guy who popped out of nowhere?!"

Just a moment ago, he had been bickering with Kuriarare Kushimaru, and now the man had been blown to bits—it was hard for him to accept!

"Could it be..."

After carefully sizing Genye up, Juzo Biwa, standing to the side, seemed to realize something, and a look of horror appeared on his face.

Genye's figure in his mind began to overlap with the figure of the brat who had defeated him back then, until they aligned perfectly!

This, this was impossible!

That brat had only been a match for him at best back then; if not for his own carelessness at the end, the outcome would have been uncertain.

But now, the other party had blown up Kuriarare Kushimaru, who was at the same level as him, with a single punch!

What kind of hellish growth rate was this?!

Noticing Juzo Biwa's expression, Genye sighed with a sense of melancholy.

ε=(ο｀*))) Sigh.

He had disguised himself so thoroughly, so why, one after another, were they still able to recognize him?

"You're that person from back then..."

"You know too much!"

Juzo Biwa had barely finished speaking when he felt a fierce gust of wind strike from behind. Breaking into a cold sweat, he used a Body Flicker technique to dodge to the side.

However, before he could even catch his breath, that gust of wind followed him like a shadow, appearing directly in front of him this time and smashing ruthlessly toward his heart!

Juzo Biwa hurriedly raised Kubikiribocho to block in front of him.

Crack!

The next instant, before his despairing eyes!

The supposedly indestructible Kubikiribocho shattered once again, like a brittle walnut, failing to even cause the slightest hesitation in his opponent's movements.

Boom!

The terrifying force of the punch tore through him. Juzo Biwa's chest exploded, spraying fragments of organs and shattered bone that stained the fallen leaves on the ground red.

"As... as expected, it's you." Juzo Biwa looked at the figure in black before him, whispering in a voice barely audible.

Thud.

Genye silently retracted his fist, kicked Juzo Biwa to the ground, and turned to look at the five people on the boulder.

!!!

A chill ran through the five of them. Under Genye's gaze, they experienced the emotion of "fear," a feeling they hadn't known in a long time.

...They were clearly the ones who usually created and spread fear!

"Did you guys see his movement just now?" Kurosuki Raiga didn't realize his voice was trembling.

"No!" Akebino Jinin replied irritably. "That kind of instantaneous movement—even Konoha's Yellow Flash couldn't pull that off!"

The other three remained silent, their expressions graver than ever before.

Just now, before they could even react to offer assistance, Juzo Biwa had already died. What a shocking speed!

This guy's strength was far above theirs!

...He had punched two of their members to death; could it be that the opponent was the Hokage in disguise?

"Heh."

Hearing their discussion, the corners of Genye's mouth curled up slightly.

Beyond five kilometers, the Flying Thunder God was strong; within five kilometers, he was strong!

Ebisu and the others, who were watching from behind, felt dizzy, as if they were in a dream.

Just a moment ago, they were in a life-or-death situation, but now!

The invincible, powerful enemies they feared had been casually punched to death by someone!

"Can you not make it look so easy? It gives me the illusion that I could do it too!" Ebisu muttered.

"Life is short, don't even think about taking shortcuts." Shiranui Genma rolled his eyes, already in the mood to tease his companion.

Might Guy: (☉_☉)

"Let's attack together, otherwise none of us are getting out of here today!" Akebino Jinin raised the Blunt Sword: Kabutowari in his hand, his expression grim.

There was no need for Akebino Jinin to remind them; the five of them gripped their respective ninja swords as if facing an abyss, leaped down from the boulder, and slowly surrounded Genye.

Perhaps we should consider taking a hostage? The group exchanged glances, communicating tactics with their eyes.

"Kamen Rider-san, please allow me to lend you a hand!"

Might Dai's reaction was a beat slow. Seeing Genye surrounded by the five, he hurried over.

"Bastard!" Akebino Jinin was furious. He raised the hammer at the end of the Blunt Sword: Kabutowari and swung it fiercely toward the approaching Might Dai.

The mysterious powerhouse before them was one thing, but a senile old man dared to join the fray? Did they really think the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were that easy to bully...!

Thud!

Might Dai kicked over his head in mid-air, striking Akebino Jinin squarely in the face and snapping his head back behind his body.

Dai: Back in those days, I walked with my hands in my pockets, not knowing what an opponent was.

"Could it be that we, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, are really that weak?"

With his head dangling behind his neck, Akebino Jinin couldn't help but feel a sense of doubt as he faced death.

"Why is it that any two random guys who pop up can... can..."

Thump.

Akebino Jinin stumbled to the ground, losing his breath while still filled with questions.

The remaining four were struck with terror.

One Genye was already more than they could handle, and now another freak had appeared—how were they supposed to fight this?!

"Run!"

Among the four, it was unclear who shouted first, but Kurosuki Raiga was the first to bolt.

The remaining three were unwilling to fall behind, each pulling out all the stops as they turned and fled.

Staying behind meant certain death, but if they ran, there might still be a glimmer of hope!

BOOM!

To respect history, Genye casually struck down the slowest one, letting the remaining three escape.

"I believe that once they return, they will understand the principle that one should never judge a book by its cover."

Genye did not pursue, and Might Dai naturally had no reason to chase after them either.

He had come here solely to protect his son, not to risk his life fighting others.

"Masked Rid... huh? Where did he go?"

After confirming the enemies had left, Might Dai turned around, intending to thank Genye, only to find that the other party had already vanished.

"Old man, you've been hiding your strength so well! I never expected you to be this powerful!"

At this moment, Ebisu ran over, pushed up his small glasses, and spoke with an excited expression.

"Where did that man in black go? How did he suddenly disappear?"

Shiranui Genma also walked over, chewing on a toothpick he had picked up from the ground, looking around in confusion.

"Ah, he must be a powerful expert who does good deeds without seeking reward. After helping us resolve the crisis, he simply left."

Might Dai said, pausing to pat his son on the head before continuing with a meaningful tone.

"Guy, if you ever run into him again, you must remember to thank him properly."

"I understand, Father." Guy nodded, responding thoughtfully.

"Haha, Zabuza, your blade is gone!"

On the other side, Genye was carrying the hilt of the Kubikiribocho, heading back toward Konoha.

Since the blade could self-repair, he had smashed the remaining parts to pieces to make it easier to carry back to Konoha as a collection.

Kubikiribocho: 6.

"Sigh, another busy day~~~"