Chapter 90

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Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! More than ten Root ninja clad in black cloaks and wearing masks swiftly moved through the forest.

Konoha, was initially established in an endless, dense forest. Despite many years of development, there were still vast forests within Konoha's boundaries.

This led to the division of numerous training grounds and the establishment of several highly confidential, hidden institutions in the forests.

One such institution was the infamous Root base.

The Root ninja, currently navigating the forest, were acting on orders from Danzo to capture Sōsuke and those close to Suzumebachi, including Suzumebachi's son, colleagues, friends, and mentors.

However, before they could split into two teams to capture their targets, a figure appeared in their sight.

"One person detected, identified as Sōsuke, refusal to comply with a 90% probability. Initiate capture plan immediately."

Having identified their primary target for the mission, the Root ninja wasted no time and immediately moved to capture.

"Wind Release..."

The foremost Root ninja began to perform his most proficient Wind Release technique.

Suddenly, a gust of wind surged.

Before he could react, a hand clasped his neck.

"Too slow."

He heard this just before his neck was snapped with a crack. As his body fell and his eyes closed for the last time, his final sight was of his comrades being effortlessly slaughtered by the man who was supposed to be Sōsuke.

"He definitely isn't Sōsuke!"

With these lingering doubts and worries, the Root ninja finally closed his eyes.

He wasn't alone in his thoughts. Many of his comrades shared the same confusion in their dying moments.

Before departing, they had reviewed Sōsuke's personal information. By all accounts, he was a medical ninja who spent most of his time in the Konoha hospital. Even though he had recently gained some renown, it was for his medical expertise.

Nothing suggested he was the ruthless killer before them.

Initially, the Root ninja had confidence in their ability to capture the target. But now, seeing their comrades unable to last more than one round against Sōsuke, they realized the intruder's strength far exceeded their expectations.

Although the remaining Root ninja weren't afraid to die, they decided against futile resistance and turned to flee.

Hot blood splattered through the air, some landing on the thick trees, standing out vividly.

Gensou, casually discarding the blood-stained kunai, glanced at the retreating backs of the surviving Root ninja. He chose not to chase them immediately but instead trailed them at a moderate distance.

Yamanaka Kaze was among the fleeing group.

Having narrowly escaped death, Kaze remained calm and analytical, thinking, "The person posing as Sōsuke is using us to find the Root base."

His comrade coldly replied, "We must not let the enemy succeed."

"I understand," Kaze nodded. "I'll try to hold him off. No matter what happens, you all should run in the other direction. Reinforcements from Root will arrive soon."

With the new plan quickly decided, one Root ninja used himself as bait to distract Sōsuke.

During this brief respite, Kaze set traps and entrusted his body to a teammate, while the rest changed their course, moving away from the Root base.

Meanwhile, having dealt with the distracting Root ninja, Gensou noticed the fleeing direction of the remaining ninjas and narrowed his eyes.

"They figured out my plan and changed direction, huh?"

Although Hanare had copied many aspects of Konoha's layout from Yamanaka Inoichi, it did not include the location of the Root base. As the deepest, darkest part of Konoha, the Root's location was not known even to high-ranking officials like Inoichi.

Of course, even if he had the ability, someone as cautious as Inoichi wouldn't pry into Root matters.

"It seems I'll have to find out myself."

Regretting his earlier haste, Gensou increased his speed, no longer intending to toy with the remaining Root ninjas.

Boom!

Passing by a tree, a concealed explosive tag trap detonated.

Through the thick smoke, Gensou emerged unscathed, maintaining his speed.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Kunai flew at him from all directions.

Gensou effortlessly deflected them and, without looking, flung a kunai back, pinning something to a tree behind him.

"Got him!"

The object pinned was Kaze's cursed puppet, designed to trap the enemy's soul.

Kaze, his spirit within the puppet, momentarily felt elation.

"Mind Transfer Puppet Curse Technique!"

This Yamanaka clan technique allowed the user to switch places with the target's soul through the cursed puppet. If the puppet was attacked, the target's soul would be sealed within, and the user's soul would transfer to the enemy's body.

Kaze was about to force Gensou's body into self-destruction, even at the cost of his own life.

But in the next moment, he froze.

"Why isn't it working?"

He found his soul still within the puppet.

"Sōsuke" turned to look at him calmly and said, "I have experienced life and death, my soul tempered in the afterlife and back to the living world. Do you think your technique could pull it out?"

Had it been a Mangekyo-level genjutsu, it might have affected his fragmented soul. But a direct pull of his soul was a futile effort.

"Life and death? The afterlife? You're Hagoromo Gensou?!"

Realizing the truth, Kaze's eyes widened in horror. If it was true, both Root and Lord Danzo were in grave danger!

"You—"

Kaze wanted to say more but couldn't.

As the puppet crumbled, his soul dissipated.

The powerful soul-swapping technique, once failed, resulted in severe backlash. Without Gensou doing anything, the unsuccessful attempt had already killed Yamanaka Kaze.

Gensou glanced at the lifeless body and continued after the remaining ninjas.

(End of Chapter)