Mad Kid

Yue dropped from the sky, not yet having clashed with Yota.

Bang!

A rogue ninja expertly darted behind him in midair and slammed him to the ground with a knee.

One hand pinned Yue's head down as the man sneered. "Too slow... kid."

"Is that so?"

Yue gave an eerie smile.

Suddenly, he grabbed the rogue ninja's arm with his backhand and twisted hard.

The man's expression shifted slightly. He broke free of Yue's counterhold with skill and instantly sprang back.

Looking at the bruises on his arm, shock filled his eyes.

A teenager... where had he gotten such terrifying strength?

Binding Jutsu.

The instant the man jumped away, Yue had already flipped over and rapidly formed hand seals. Before the man could retreat to a safe enough distance, his body froze, unable to move. However, the Binding Jutsu's immobilization only lasted a few seconds. First, Yue was not yet proficient with the technique; second, there was the gap in strength between them.

But a few seconds were already enough for Yue.

He revealed a bloodthirsty grin, abandoning Yota behind him. With a leap, he drove his kunai toward the man's face.

But he still failed.

Before he could reach his target, Yota had already closed in and kicked Yue away.

Yet the rogue ninja broke out in a cold sweat.

Yue landed several meters away, crouched on the ground like a crawling beast.

The moment he landed, two more enemies flashed into existence behind him. One on each side, they swung their weapons, sealing off his escape.

They slashed at his real body.

Only a fluttering Fire Cloud Robe remained where Yue had been, the garment shredded by the blades.

Yue himself had leaped away under the cover of the oversized Fire Cloud Robe.

As the robe tore apart, the two men caught sight of a burning Explosive Tag.

The next second, a deafening explosion erupted, flames shooting into the sky.

"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Before the Explosive Tag's aftershock had faded, Yota saw Yue clinging to a ruined house across from them like a gecko, smoothly forming hand seals.

Flames poured from his mouth, once again covering the area affected by the Explosive Tag and engulfing them within.

And that was not all.

Seizing the opening, Yue shifted his position and formed hand seals again.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

A fierce curtain of wind swept forth. Combined with the fire, it not only carried the might of the Wind Release itself, but also fueled the flames' spread and intensity.

In an instant, not only were the base's gates and walls set ablaze, but the entire street became a raging sea of fire.

This was an abandoned village, overgrown with weeds and filled with old wooden shacks. It was perfectly suited for a fire to spread out of control.

Both techniques were C-rank, but their power depended on the user.

The enemy had the advantage in numbers, so Yue's plan was to first alter the battlefield, obstruct their vision, and make it easier for himself to act.

His smaller build gave him a better chance of hiding.

However, the next second, the firelight was sliced apart.

A wind blade almost impossible to look at directly tore through the air.

It was Wind Style: Wind Slash. Yue recognized the jutsu.

But the speed and range of this technique were astonishing.

The small ruined house beneath his feet was instantly blasted to pieces by the wind blade, and flying debris scraped open his skin. Although he dodged it, the instant he landed, he caught a black shadow lunging at him from behind out of the corner of his eye. Yue had just raised his kunai to block.

His pupils suddenly lost focus.

The world before him began to warp, taking on bizarre changes.

Genjutsu!

Among the enemies was a ninja skilled in genjutsu.

Not good!

One of them had already charged in, while he had fallen under genjutsu. The combination was flawlessly coordinated.

It formed a killing blow.

"Kid... this is the end!"

The incoming man sneered.

From the sound of his voice, it was Yota.

"Genjutsu interferes with the enemy's five senses and disrupts the target's Chakra flow, causing them to fall into an illusion. Any illusion not cast through a dojutsu can be broken by disrupting one's own Chakra flow. Pain can also be used to stimulate the nerves... Though brute strength can break it as well, I clearly can't manage that."

At the critical moment, Yue's advantage as a transmigrator showed itself. Information flashed through his mind instinctively.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, he did both at once—biting his tongue and disrupting the Chakra within his body.

From Yota's perspective, Yue's body, which had seemed ready to resist, suddenly froze in place. His arm drooped unconsciously, and he completely lost the ability to move.

"Ha ha!"

He accurately plunged his kunai into Yue's body, and blood immediately spilled out.

But just as he started laughing—

He froze.

It was not that the feeling was wrong. He had indeed stabbed Yue, but he had struck the wrong spot.

He had aimed for Yue's heart, not his side.

In the instant before the strike landed, Yue had subtly adjusted his posture.

He had deliberately baited him in.

Yota lowered his head and saw Yue's clear eyes, along with bloodshot red pupils caused by the instant of injury and pain.

He broke free?

His companion's genjutsu had been undone in an instant?

This brat!

Yota let out a muffled groan.

He had stabbed Yue, but Yue had stabbed him too.

The difference was that Yue's kunai had pierced through his throat.

Yota had been certain that Yue was doomed, and Yue had fallen into an illusion, so... when he closed in, he had let down his guard.

More than anything, he had never imagined Yue could break free of the genjutsu in such a short instant.

"You really aren't suited for Akatsuki... too weak." Yue looked at the disbelieving Yota, blood running from the corner of his mouth. "Judging someone's strength by their appearance and age, blindly deciding their threat level—that's a major taboo."

"I told you, didn't I... I'd cut off your head."

Staring directly into Yota's dying eyes, Yue gave a sinister smile.

His raised hand slowly turned.

Compared to a blade, a sharp weapon like a kunai was not suited for cutting.

Yet with brute force, he forcibly tore through Yota's neck.

Yota's eyes bulged. Even on the verge of death, he retained a trace of awareness.

From his expression, he seemed able to feel the pain of his neck being torn apart.

"This is so fun... that look on your face is kind of enjoyable..."

The boy before him spoke like a madman, his tone sickeningly deranged.

As if he were claiming the spoils he deserved.

But they were still in the middle of battle. Only Yota had been killed.

Before Yue could cut off Yota's head, an enemy lunged in to assassinate him.

Although Yue quickly drew another kunai with his other hand to block, he was still sent flying, and the kunai flew from his grip.

But what made the newcomer's scalp go numb was that... in the instant Yue was sent flying, he grabbed Yota's hair and used the momentum to rip away his not-yet-severed head.

He saw the scene clearly.

Yue's body rolled across the ground several times, covered in dust.

He staggered to his feet.

One hand held Yota's head.

Because he had bitten his tongue, his mouth was full of blood.

Several figures flashed into view.

The remaining enemies appeared one after another.

Aside from one whose ninja uniform had been burned and who had suffered a few superficial injuries, the other four were completely unharmed.

This was within Yue's expectations. Not only did the other side have superior numbers, they were all experienced, and in terms of rank, every one of them was stronger than him.

The five did not immediately finish Yue off.

To be honest, all five of them had been startled by Yue's performance.

At first, they had not taken Yue seriously. They had thought they could finish him in a single exchange.

But now... they understood that this kid was different.

Very dangerous!

Although his strength was still nothing special, his deranged personality and the bloodlust radiating from within made them wary.

"This is nothing like what Yota said. A kid who just graduated wouldn't have such abnormal battle instincts and awareness... Even if he was born with them, it would still be impossible! Without training and accumulated experience, no one could reach this level."

"He cast two C-rank jutsu in a row and still seems to have strength left... His Chakra reserves and the speed at which he mobilizes it are not something someone his age should possess."

"A brat like this appearing in a place like Kusagakure... If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I'd find it hard to believe."

The men stared at Yue and discussed him.

"Hey..."

Yue flipped out a scroll in his hand. After opening it, he gripped a sealed longsword.

He called out.

After stroking Yota's face, frozen in a death stare, he tossed the head aside.

He stuck out his blood-soaked tongue, his voice crazed and sinister. "Seniors... the game isn't over yet. Why have you stopped?"

"..."

The men exchanged glances.

Finally, the strongest among the five spoke. "Kid... you're not one of Akatsuki. There's no need to fight this desperately. I've changed my mind... I rather like you. What do you say? Want to join us?"

"Honestly, you've surprised us, but you should understand that if this continues, you'll end up just like Yota."

"We did underestimate you... but next, we won't hold back."

"Trying to turn me?"

Yue laughed.

"Did you get something wrong?"

"I'm fighting you... purely because I want to... It has nothing to do with Akatsuki or any matter between you people."

With that, Yue stopped wasting words and charged forward.

He struck first.

But the moment he moved—

One of the enemies slammed a palm against the ground. Massive stone pillars erupted from the earth, seeking to ram into him.

Though Yue dodged in time, they still precisely sealed him in like a cage.

At the same time, another man came at him with a sword.

As he closed in, the man's figure gradually blurred, seeming almost insubstantial.

Yue found it difficult to track him with his eyes.

Yue's heart stirred. The jutsu he knew were only a fraction of the ninja world shown in the original story, understood through the perspectives of the various characters. They did not encompass the entire world. Ninjutsu came in countless varieties... His memories from his previous life gave him an advantage, but not an absolute one.

For example, he did not recognize the jutsu before him, which blurred the user's body.

It was not simple invisibility, nor was it an advanced technique like Transparent Release... Combined with such frightening speed, its power was bound to be terrifying.

And that was indeed the case.

An invisible arc of blade light slashed directly across Yue's body.

Only after the blade cut into his skin and he felt the pain did he react quickly.

He had his training in the world of Bleach to thank for this instinctive reaction that bypassed conscious thought.

But while he could react to one strike, he could not guarantee that he would evade every blade that struck him.

And that kind of reaction came at the cost of injury.

Blood sprayed from the wound across his abdomen.

Yue only had time to use the Clone Technique, hoping to use clones to offset his disadvantage, but such a low-level technique was practically useless in this situation.

He was facing more than one opponent.

That was the most fatal part.

In a brief exchange, several deep wounds had already opened across Yue's body.

As he continued struggling, a chain shot out from the darkness and instantly wrapped around his waist. It spread to his limbs, locking his hands and feet.

Then it hoisted his entire body into the air.

It all seemed to take a long time, but from Yue's first move to the moment he was trapped, less than half a minute had actually passed.

Reaching this point was already Yue's limit.

These five were not comparable to people like Masada or Muramasa. Most importantly, they had spent years active on battlefields, and anyone who became a rogue ninja was ruthless. Yue should be grateful to the Akatsuki members stationed in the village. Even with Yota, the traitor, setting up the trap, several Akatsuki members had likely killed some opponents, undoubtedly including stronger ones.

Otherwise, if he had faced more people or even stronger enemies... Yue would not have lasted until now.

Seriously wounded and utterly exhausted.

A dead end...

Everything was over.

But... Yue smiled.

The swordsman finally came into clear view, rushing at him with a cold expression, ready to end his life.

"Let's die together."

Yue suddenly said.

From the beginning, he had never believed he could take down all six of them.

That was unrealistic.

But... he had his own way.

He would enter the game himself and use his body as bait.

Explosive Tags were a good thing. As long as there were enough of them, their power could become terrifying.

In less than a minute, Yue had never stopped analyzing the battle.

He had already predicted his own fate. When one of them used Earth Style in an attempt to trap him, Yue had come up with the best possible battle plan.

A cramped battlefield... with limited space, the power of the Explosive Tags would become even more concentrated.

The enemies had gotten serious... but they had still made a mistake.

They said they would not underestimate him, yet deep down, they still carried the arrogance of those who believed themselves superior.

That was hard to change.

Their attention had been focused on killing him, while he had been using his blood to conceal the locations of the Explosive Tags.

It should be mentioned that there were many kinds of Explosive Tags.

There were standard Explosive Tags, more powerful square paper Explosive Tags, and Oil Paper Explosive Tags that were not affected by blood, among others.

The more special the Explosive Tags, the greater their power—and the higher their price.

This was not something ordinary ninja could afford to use up.

But Fuma Ryoma, Yue's father, had spent nearly all of his earnings on ninja tools and Explosive Tags ever since settling down in Kusagakure. It was obvious from the supplies stored in the family warehouse. There was only one reason he had been so dedicated.

To raise Yue.

Even Fuma Ryoma himself had been reluctant to use special Explosive Tags.

For an ordinary ninja, especially one from a place like Kusagakure, with the ninja world now in turmoil, Fuma Ryoma knew only too well how difficult it was for a child to survive—and how much effort it took to raise him into someone capable.

For ordinary ninja to turn their lives around and establish themselves in a village... it was impossible without resources.

This was the only thing he could do for Yue.

This time, knowing that the mission would take him to the Land of Rain, Yue had taken everything from the warehouse out of caution toward the situation here.

There were not many of them, but they should have been enough to blow up several people who were not monstrously strong.

After hearing the youth crazily say those words, "Let's die together," the swordsman immediately realized what was happening.

"You!"

He cursed aloud.

Faint sparks had already begun leaking from several spots around him.

Explosive Tags—and not ordinary ones at that.

It was already too late!

The swordsman gained a new understanding of Yue's madness. He intended to take them all down with him!

He had made a miscalculation.

An Explosive Tag was expensive, let alone a special one.

How could a brat who had just graduated possibly have that kind of money?

But he had no way to dwell on that question anymore.

Because... the next second—

The flames swallowed everything.

Every stone pillar shattered...

"3."

"2."

"1."

Yue kept counting in his heart. The moment he reached one, he immediately closed his eyes.

Naturally, he had no intention of throwing his life away for nothing.

He had one ultimate trump card.

It was also the bug that came with being a transmigrator.

The only key method capable of turning the situation around.

This... was his true killing move!