"Thank you for your help, I... I am not a qualified father, nor a qualified Clan Leader."
Kurama Murakumo sighed softly.
Masahiko dispersed his clones, a fitting smile on his face: "Not at all, we are family after all, it's just..."
He stepped closer and whispered, "More importantly, did you notice Yakumo's condition just now?"
"Yes, I observed it."
Kurama Murakumo's eyes held a hidden worry, "As you said, her mental state... is disturbing."
"It's only slightly extreme now, but if she's stimulated further, the consequences will be unpredictable. Fortunately, you've made a choice. By changing her environment and staying away from the noise, she might get better."
Masahiko said.
Kurama Murakumo nodded, and after a few seconds of silence, said, "I hope so!"
Then, he finally remembered—
"I almost forgot, please come in and sit, I'll brew some tea for you..."
"No need, once Yakumo comes down, we have to head to class."
Masahiko smiled.
Hearing this, Kurama Murakumo could only nod and say, "Once we've settled into the new home, I'd like to invite you for a simple meal. I hope you won't refuse."
"Alright, I'll see you then."
Masahiko did not refuse and accepted the invitation frankly.
At this time, Kurama Yakumo also came down from upstairs. Seeing Masahiko, she stuck out her tongue, her eyes darting around with a hint of nervousness.
Masahiko knew what she was thinking, but he just smiled and didn't say much.
After she waved goodbye and they walked out of the clan grounds, he said, "Power itself is never right or wrong. As long as it's used to protect important people and stays within the rules, then it is right."
Seeing that her teacher didn't blame her, Kurama Yakumo immediately breathed a sigh of relief, her nervous expression dissipating.
Immediately, she became curious: "Within the rules?"
"The Village's rules and regulations determine that some things can be done and some cannot. But to protect family, sometimes they can be applied flexibly."
Masahiko reminded her in a low voice.
Village Rules, flexible application.
Kurama Yakumo nodded thoughtfully, deciding in her heart—
She would study the Village Rules several times today!
...At the school gate, Shisui was holding Sasuke back, not letting him in.
"Don't be in such a hurry."
"Class is about to start!"
Sasuke was speechless and couldn't help but question suspiciously, "Aren't you classmates with Masahiko-sensei? How can you still not recognize him?"
"Uh, I graduated when I was just over seven years old. We were both very young back then. Calculating it, it's been ten years since we last met."
Shisui looked at Sasuke and said in a low voice, "Can you recognize everyone in your class ten years from now?"
It seemed... he couldn't.
Sasuke was suddenly at a loss for words, but felt helpless: "But the first period today isn't Taijutsu class, Masahiko-sensei might not even come."
"Hmm, that is a problem."
Shisui pondered, then observed the surroundings. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as he vaguely remembered the face, "Is that him?"
Sasuke looked up.
By the school wall, the tall and handsome Yagyu Masahiko was slowly walking over with a pale-faced Kurama Yakumo.
He breathed a sigh of relief and nodded slightly: "Yes, then I'll..."
"Classmates should help each other. Shouldn't you help the teacher by taking that girl inside?"
Shisui glanced over with a smile.
Sasuke was speechless and had to run forward to salute: "Masahiko-sensei."
"It's Sasuke. And that person is... Shisui, right?"
Masahiko looked over and recognized him at a glance.
It couldn't be helped.
Shisui's hairstyle and nose were iconic enough, and his face had barely changed from the memories of Masahiko's predecessor.
Sasuke nodded slightly and whispered, "He was afraid he wouldn't recognize you, yet you still recognize him..."
"Haha, he was a big celebrity in our year back then. Who wouldn't recognize him?"
Masahiko smiled and looked at Yakumo, "Will you go in with Sasuke?"
"Okay. Today... thank you, teacher."
Kurama Yakumo bowed slightly.
Masahiko waved his hand: "It's a small matter. Go on in, don't be late."
"Yes!"
The two walked toward the school side by side.
Only then did Shisui walk over and say frankly, "Sorry, Masahiko-kun, but when I actually saw you, I recognized you instantly."
"It's nothing."
Masahiko shook his head, then looked inside the school, "You specifically sent Sasuke to school today, are you here to see me?"
"I heard about your understanding of the Body Flicker Technique and Clone Jutsu from Sasuke. It happens that I've also done some research in this area, so I came to discuss it with you."
Shisui explained.
Masahiko was slightly startled, then nodded slightly: "Then, shall we change locations?"
"Alright."
Before his voice finished echoing, he disappeared with a Body Flicker.
A second later, Shisui looked back—
He saw Masahiko following closely behind. Without activating the Sharingan, one could only see an afterimage.
As expected!
He increased his speed.
Before long, the two arrived together at the woods near the Ninja Academy.
Once in the woods, the two launched attacks simultaneously.
They didn't use blades or the Sharingan, just a clash of Taijutsu, but their speed was incredibly fast.
Bang, bang, bang!
In a brief One Second, the two exchanged blows and swapped positions at a staggering speed.
Clones appeared one after another in the surroundings, then quickly vanished.
Shisui possessed the Sharingan, so he had never considered how a Ninja without the Sharingan could utilize this kind of Body Flicker Technique.
Now, Masahiko had given him the answer.
He couldn't contain his excitement:
"I see. You don't have the Sharingan, so you can't perfectly control your speed. Therefore, you adopt a method of variable speed during the Body Flicker."
"It's just a clever trick."
Masahiko said frankly, his breathing steady, "If I had a Bloodline Limit like yours, I naturally wouldn't need to go through such trouble."
Afterward, his hands formed seals, and he spat out a stream of water, which condensed into three Water Clones around them.
"You use Genjutsu to perfect the Clone Jutsu?"
"Yes."
Shisui nodded.
He watched Masahiko's movements, thoughtfully saying, "Water Clones, Shadow Clones?"
Shisui was startled for a moment, then realized.
Without Genjutsu, one could only use physical clones as a supplement to further confuse the enemy's judgment.
At the same time, he understood the benefits of this method.
Combining the virtual and the real, making it hard to distinguish truth from falsehood, it pushed the utility of the Shadow Clone to its limit.
Wonderful!
Compared to his Genjutsu, Masahiko had spent much more thought to perfect this technique.
He couldn't help but say admiringly, "If I were you, I wouldn't have been able to research to this extent."
"The original intention of Ninjutsu research is born from necessity. If I had the Sharingan, I wouldn't need to research these things either."
Masahiko dispelled all his clones.
"In fact, I've considered Genjutsu, but Genjutsu without the Sharingan is too weak... if I could create a Sound Genjutsu, that would be a good path."
"Sound Genjutsu..."
Shisui shook his head slightly, "While Sound Genjutsu is strong, for the Body Flicker Technique, Light and Shadow Genjutsu is actually better."
"Light and Shadow Genjutsu?"
Masahiko was slightly startled, and then a flash of inspiration crossed his mind—
Konoha Style: Willow!
Maruboshi Kosuke's swordsmanship.
The other's swordsmanship likely used movement, light, and shadow to create a Genjutsu effect.
If it could be integrated into the Dance of the Crescent Moon... Unaware of his thoughts, Shisui continued: "When the enemy is guarded against ocular techniques, I use movement and Light and Shadow Genjutsu. For example—"
He formed seals, clones appeared one after another, and then they all drew their swords together.
The swords reflected the sunlight, causing Masahiko's vision to flicker.
In the next instant, his consciousness wavered... Genjutsu: Release!
The illusion receded.
But.
In actual combat, a single moment is enough to decide life and death.
The inspiration in Masahiko's mind became even more abundant.
"That's it, I don't need a very sophisticated Genjutsu; I just need to make the opponent lose focus for a single moment!"
Body Flicker assassinations don't require perfect Genjutsu!
Shisui smiled: "As expected, discussing with others is the best way to spark inspiration. I also have a direction for my next improvements."