Saya's eerie puppet manipulation had sunk deep into Shira's heart like an icy, venomous barb.
The helplessness of having his consciousness stripped away and his body reduced to a plaything frightened him far more than any physical blow.
Whenever he thought about someone taking control of his body without him even realizing it, Shira couldn't help shuddering.
He knew full well that in the world of shinobi, Genjutsu and mental attacks were deadly weapons far harder to guard against than Taijutsu or Ninjutsu.
A single glance from Uchiha Itachi could leave Kakashi incapacitated for days, while the Yamanaka Clan's Mind Body Switch Technique could take over a body without a sound.
If he couldn't find a way to counter them, all his Taijutsu training would be useless before a true Genjutsu master.
Burdened by this heavy worry, Shira returned to Granny Chiyo's secluded courtyard.
He pushed open the courtyard gate to find Chiyo sitting beneath the veranda, leisurely mixing some kind of ointment. A pungent, acrid smell filled the air.
Without looking up, she grunted. "Little Shira, what are you doing here again?"
Shira bowed respectfully and got straight to the point. "Granny, I'd like to ask you how to counter Genjutsu."
"Genjutsu?" Chiyo's hands paused, and she raised her eyes, a flicker of surprise passing through their clouded depths. "You can't even control your Chakra properly, kid. Why are you suddenly asking about that? Run into trouble?"
Shira held nothing back. He briefly recounted the conflict with Saya and her sister at the training ground and how the eerie puppet had taken control of his body, emphasizing the terrifying experience of being fully conscious yet utterly unable to control his body.
When Chiyo finished listening, the puzzlement on her face gradually faded, replaced by the gravity of someone who had weathered life's hardships. She put down her pestle and clapped the medicinal powder from her hands.
"That little girl from the Sakai Family used the few ancestral tricks she knows with cursed puppets to prank a classmate? Hahaha, if this old woman had that ability, I'd want to try it too."
She laughed it off at first, then fixed her gaze on Shira again. "It's good that you understand how serious this is. Genjutsu, especially the kind that directly attacks the mind and manipulates consciousness, really is a nightmare for the vast majority of Taijutsu specialists."
She narrowed her eyes slightly, as though lost in distant memories. "Back in my day, I saw even more frightening things on the battlefield."
Her voice grew somewhat lower. "Those evil eyes of the Uchiha Clan need only meet yours once to plunge you into an endless nightmare. You can be killed countless times in an illusion, while your body in the real world can't even move a finger. They can even make you kill your own comrades with your own hands, without you noticing a thing."
Shira's heart tightened. He knew Chiyo was referring to the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan Genjutsu.
"Then what can you do against Genjutsu that can't be countered with ordinary Chakra?" Shira pressed urgently.
Chiyo glanced at him and said slowly, "There are ways, but every one of them comes with tremendous risk or pain. Ultimately, countering Genjutsu comes down to mental strength, resilience of will, and absolute control over your own body."
"The first way, and the ideal situation, is to be like that old fellow from Kumogakure, the Third Raikage, or certain Jinchūriki, and possess mental energy and willpower strong enough to ignore most Genjutsu."
"Overwhelming strength defeats all tricks. Genjutsu is basically useless against them! But that requires a special constitution or talent. As you are now, you have neither." Chiyo poured cold water on Shira's hopes and continued, "The second way..."