Bonus chapters at 100 Power Stones!
"Normal Dialogue"
'Inner thoughts'
[Year X786]
~ With Shisui, one day later ~
Shisui walked along the path, making his way back to Crocus. His shoulders slacked slightly with disappointnt as the Vulcan he had been contracted to subdue had fallen to a single well-placed strike, hardly worth the journey. The mission had felt more like an errand than the test of abilities he had been hoping for in this strange new world.
"What a waste," he sighed, kicking a stray pebble from his path. The stone skipped along the dirt before disappearing into the underbrush.
As he thought about his current situation, a dejected chuckle escaped from his lips. 'Back in Konoha, even a C-rank mission would have provided more challenge than this.'
He had spent years honing his skills as one of the Uchiha clan's finest and ANBU elites, only to find himself hunting oversized forest apes that could not even detect his presence until his kunai was already embedded in the ground beside them. The Vulcan had roared, of course, but a simple Body Flicker technique and a simple strike to its central nervous system had ended the confrontation before it could even begin.
The completed mission form weighed lightly in his pocket, ready to be submitted to the mission hall staff in Crocus. His first successful mission, a rather laclustre and simple assignnt.
As he was lost in thought, he felt sothing change. The air felt different, charged, disturbed. Shisui halted mid-step, his senses imdiately heightening. During the past weeks, he had been training himself to detect the flow of Ethernano.
His perception, already sharp from years as an elite shinobi, caught the subtle disruption. He felt the flow of Ethernano being disrupted ahead, scattered in chaotic patterns that spoke of recent magical combat.
Seeing a bend in the path ahead, Shisui concluded. 'Sothing happened just beyond this bend.'
Shisui quickened his pace. His footsteps made no sound against the forest floor as he approached the source of the disturbance. He had not activated his Sharingan yet, seeing no need to reveal his abilities until he could analyze the situation. But his hand had instinctively moved closer to his kunai pouch.
The scene that greeted him as he rounded the corner stopped him cold.
Bodies laid scattered across the path and into the adjacent clearing. Ten of them, all clad in the distinctive white and blue armor of the Rune Knights. Shisui recognized them imdiately from his research on Fiore's power structures.
These were the Magic Council's enforcers, the official peacekeepers of the realm. Most wore identical armor with simplistic designs, but two among them bore a slightly more elaborate protective gear with additional silver filigree and ceremonial patterning. Squad leaders, if Shisui's understanding of their hierarchy was correct.
None of them appeared to be moving, yet he could discern that they were all still alive, just rely unconscious.
Standing amidst the fallen knights were two won, seemingly unbothered by the carnage around them. The older one stood with a full confidence, her long dark purple hair flowing down her back. Beside her, a younger woman with bright pink hair knelt next to one of the fallen knights, apparently checking for signs of life.
Neither appeared injured. Both radiated magical power that Shisui could sense disturbing the Ethernano around them.
'Ten magical enforcers down, two uninjured won remaining'. He had already taken stock of the situation and the conclusion ford instantly.
These won were either incredibly powerful mages or they had significant backup that had since departed. Either way, they had taken down official representatives of this world's governnt, which ant that they were likely enemies of the kingdom.
'Danger!' As if sensing his presence, the dark-haired woman looked up, her brown eyes locking with his across the distance.
A mont of silent assessnt passed between them. Predator recognizing predator. Shisui saw the subtle shift in her stance, the almost imperceptible tensing of her muscles that indicated combat readiness.
Taking her reaction as a hostile act towards him, he did not hesitate. He had already decided. These won were threats, and in this world as in his own, threats must be neutralized before they can cause further harm.
In the space between heartbeats, Shisui disappeared from where he stood, body flickering with a speed that left only disturbed dust as evidence of his movent.
Shisui reappeared behind the purple-haired woman, hand poised for a quick chop towards her nape. A simple, clean knockout. Yet in the millisecond before impact, sothing impossible happened.
She moved.
Not just any movent, but a deliberate shift, her elbow coming up in a defensive motion that deflected his strike with surprising ease.
"What—" The word escaped him involuntarily as she pivoted, her eyes widening not with surprise but with confirmation, as though she had expected such an attack from him.
Her counter-strike ca imdiately, a fist aid at his solar plexus with enough force behind it to send him backward. Shisui managed to deflect most of the impact, but still slid back several feet, his sandals leaving trails in the dirt.
His mind raced to process what just happened. Even without enhancing the Body Flicker with genjutsu, his speed should have been sufficient to remain unseen to most opponents. Yet she had not only detected him but reacted with perfect timing.
Before he could analyze any further, a flash of pink in his peripheral vision warned of another attack. The younger woman had extended her arm, and five glowing bands of magenta light shot toward him like seeking arrows. Instinct took over, and Shisui flickered once again, returning to his original position along the path.
"Sensory-type mages," he mumbled under his breath, reassessing his evaluation of the two woman ahead of him. Sothing about their abilities allowed them to track his movents despite his speed.
The clearing fell silent. The three stood in a perfect triangular formation. The fallen Rune Knights remained motionless around them, a reminder for Shisui of what these won were capable of.
The pink-haired woman's expression betrayed concern, her eyes darting between her companion and Shisui. She had not seen his movent. That much was clear from the lingering shock in her eyes. She mouthed sothing to the older woman that Shisui could not quite catch.
The purple-haired woman, however, maintained perfect composure. Only the slight furrow between her brows indicated her surprise at the encounter. She was analyzing him just as intently as he was analyzing her, determining feasible threats and possibilities. Her stance shifted subtly into sothing more defensive, and Shisui noted how she positioned herself slightly forward of her companion.
'Space-ti magic,' the thought flashed across her face so clearly that Shisui could almost read it, though her expression remained carefully controlled.
'So instinct had warned her of my attack… Perhaps it could be the sa sense that allow to detect disturbances in chakra flow, but applied to Ethernano instead?' Shisui wondered. Though that thought would be left for so other ti. For now, he had other matters to attend to.
The silence lingered, heavy with unspoken threats, until the purple-haired woman finally broke it.
"Why did you attack ?" Her voice carried a cultured authority, each word precisely chosen and delivered with utmost confidence.
Shisui gestured to the fallen knights with a tilt of his head. "Ten Rune Knights on the ground. Two of you standing. The conclusion seed obvious."
"An understandable mistake," she replied smoothly, her posture relaxing slightly though her eyes remain sharp. "But we are the victims here. These knights attacked us without provocation while we were simply traveling. We defended ourselves."
"We did not want to hurt them," the pink-haired woman added quickly, her voice younger, more earnest. "But they just would not stop."
Shisui listened to their explanation with the expression of soone who had heard countless half-truths and outright lies during interrogations. He waited until they finished, noting the explicit way they were maintaining eye contact. A common tactic among those attempting to appear truthful.
"That is an interesting story," he said finally, his tone conversational. "I might have believed it, if not for a few small details."
The purple-haired woman's expression did not change, but sothing shifted in her eyes. A tightening, a calculation being adjusted. "What details would those be?"
"Rune Knights do not randomly attack travelers without cause. They operate under strict procedures." Shisui took a casual step forward, noting how both won tensed at the movent.
A subtle twitch from the pink-haired woman confird his suspicion.
"Most importantly," Shisui continued, offering a small smile, "if you were truly innocent travelers unjustly attacked, then surely you would not have a problem accompanying to the Rune Knight branch in Crocus to sort this out, yes?"
The suggestion hung in the air between them. Both won exchanged a quick glance, their hesitation revealing everything Shisui needs to know.
"That's what I thought." His smile turned knowing. "Care to try again with the truth this ti?"
The purple-haired woman's expression hardens, the pretense of civility falling away like a discarded cloak.
"You're more perceptive than most," she acknowledged coolly. "But that does not make you our concern. Leave now, and we can forget this encounter ever happened."
"I'm afraid I can not do that." Shisui's voice remained pleasant, but his stance shifted subtly. "Not when ten governnt officials are lying unconscious around us."
Sothing in his deanor must have signalled his resolve, because the older woman's expression changed to one of resignation. She turned slightly to her companion, never taking her eyes fully off Shisui.
"Stay back," she instructed the younger woman. "This is not a battle you should engage in directly."
The pink-haired woman began to protest, but the older woman cut her off with a sharp gesture. "Support only. I will handle this."
Shisui watched this exchange with interest. The purple-haired woman had correctly assessed that this would be a high-level confrontation, one that might endanger her younger companion if she participated directly. It spoke volus of her experience and leadership.
It also ant she recognized the threat he posed.
"I should warn you," Shisui said, "The kid gloves will be taken off from this point onwards."
With those words, he allowed chakra to flow to his eyes, feeling the familiar sensation as his ordinary vision sharpened, colours intensifying, and the world seed to slow around him.
The distinct three tomoe pattern of his fully matured Sharingan manifested, turning his dark eyes crimson.
The won noticed the change imdiately, both taking involuntary steps backward at the sight of his transford eyes.
"What is that?" the pink-haired woman whispered, but her companion offered no answer, already shifting into a battle stance.
"The real fight", Shisui started, "begins now".
~ End of Chapter 10 ~
Ultear and redy makes their appearance! Unfortunately for them, Shisui's been itching for a fight, but they won't be beaten up too badly, probably? maybe? (Who am I kidding, they're about to get clapped)
You can now gain access to advanced chapters on [email protected]/The_Editor982
Reviews
All reviews (0)