Chapter 1: ...he didn't even understand it before he died

When this kunai was less than a centimeter from Mizunuki Ryosuke’s throat, he decided he would stop pretending; he was going to show his hand.

In the close-quarters melee, Mizunuki Ryosuke could clearly see the murderous intent overflowing from his opponent’s savage face, and even in those eyes, which were like a beast’s, there was now nothing left but the desire to tear him to pieces.

Mizunuki Ryosuke wore a look of helplessness. He couldn't understand why a Stone Village Jonin would appear so close to the Mist Village.

It was supposed to be a routine reconnaissance mission, yet he had encountered a Jonin from a hostile village.

There is no smoke without fire; there must be a deeper reason behind this.

But since it had come to this, Mizunuki Ryosuke had no choice but to reveal some of his trump cards.

He hadn't wanted it to be this way; fighting and killing were so unpleasant.

Wouldn't it be better if everyone just went through the motions and pretended to fight?

Why go to such lengths?

But reality is cruel; in this world of ninjas, there is only endless slaughter.

If you don't want to kill, you will be killed!

Since that was the case—

A cold, icy glint flashed in Mizunuki Ryosuke’s eyes.

"Puchi!"

As the kunai completely sliced through Mizunuki Ryosuke’s neck, a flicker of satisfaction crossed the Stone ninja’s eyes.

But in the very next second, everything turned into terror.

Mizunuki Ryosuke, who should have been killed, had turned into a puddle of scattered water.

"What?!! A Water Clone? When?!"

The Stone ninja was shocked. It turned out that the person he had been tangling with all this time was just a Water Clone!

The next second.

A large head soared into the sky. Gazing at the blue sky, the last thought flashed through the Stone ninja’s mind.

"So fast."

Then, the round head rolled on the ground twice before landing at Mizunuki Ryosuke’s feet.

Instant kill!

The last image the Stone ninja saw before his consciousness faded into silence was Mizunuki Ryosuke’s cold, chiseled profile and those eyes as deep as the ocean.

With this man’s terrifying strength, he could have killed him instantly from the start. Why had he tangled with him for so long?

The Stone ninja died without ever understanding what had happened.

Suishi Tatsuo, a rising star of the Stone Village, had fallen just like that.

Using a "Water Clone" to lure the enemy into a trap, then using a secret technique to decapitate the enemy with lightning speed.

Even that was not enough.

The cold light in Mizunuki Ryosuke’s eyes had not yet faded.

Because he knew very well: in the vast ninja world, what kind of strange techniques didn't exist?

Even after death, they could pull you out of your coffin with Reanimation.

So, even if the head was severed, what if this guy had some way to avoid death?

If he wasn't dead-dead, and he had such a deep grudge, what if he called a group of "friends and family" to seek revenge later?

Since he had decided to act, he would eliminate all future trouble.

Mizunuki Ryosuke performed a single-handed seal, then spat a slender ice needle from his mouth!

Ice Style: Senbon Technique.

"Puchi!"

The ice needle entered through the Stone ninja’s eye, and the next moment, the Stone ninja’s brain was completely frozen and then pulverized.

Now, even if this person had some heaven-defying secret technique, he likely wouldn't be able to use it.

"Sigh."

Mizunuki Ryosuke let out a deep sigh.

Looking at the Stone ninja’s corpse, head separated from the body, a trace of helplessness flashed in his eyes.

For certain reasons, Mizunuki Ryosuke could not completely dispose of the body, so he had to use this method.

"Troublesome."

Mizunuki Ryosuke looked around; there was only him and the Stone ninja’s corpse. No matter how he explained it, he was the only one who could have killed this Stone ninja.

Thus, he moved quickly around the area, rapidly forging a battlefield of "desperate struggle," and the surroundings were suddenly left in a mess.

"Hoo."

"Now, one last step."

A moment later, Mizunuki Ryosuke seemed to have made a decision.

The next second, his right arm suddenly began to bulge, the once slender arm instantly swelling with strong, terrifying muscles.

"Bang!"

An unexpected thing happened: Mizunuki Ryosuke punched his own chest.

Under the terrifying force, Mizunuki Ryosuke immediately spat out a large mouthful of blood, and his aura instantly became withered.

"Cough, cough."

"Damn, used too much strength."

"The Second Hokage’s Water Arm Technique is truly well-deserved."

"But this is fine too."

After whispering to himself, a look of satisfaction flashed in Mizunuki Ryosuke’s eyes, and then he collapsed heavily to the ground, losing consciousness.

The Water Arm Technique was a secret technique of the Hozuki clan from the original story, capable of granting the individual an extremely strong physical boost for a short time.

Of course, this "loss of consciousness" was just a disguise.

With Mizunuki Ryosuke’s "cautious and steady" personality, he would certainly not let himself truly lose consciousness in the wilderness.

After Ryosuke had been "unconscious" for a long time, a middle-aged ninja of medium build and fair skin finally arrived late.

"Ryosuke!!!"

"This kid..."

The middle-aged man was shocked to see the messy scene, the unconscious Ryosuke on the ground, and the decapitated Stone ninja.

"Whoosh!"

The man used a Body Flicker Technique to flash to Mizunuki Ryosuke’s side and checked his condition.

It was clear that the man was travel-worn, his white clothes stained with blood and dust.

He must have just gone through a bloody battle.

Kuroshima Morita, a veteran Jonin of the Mist Village, and a Jonin who was well-acquainted with Mizunuki Ryosuke.

Seeing this, Mizunuki Ryosuke nodded inwardly; it seemed at least one of the three Genin in the team had successfully escaped back to the village to bring reinforcements.

After confirming that Mizunuki Ryosuke was not in any serious danger, Kuroshima Morita stood up to look at the Stone ninja’s corpse.

"This is..."

"Suishi Tatsuo?"