"Hahahaha!"
A wave of raucous laughter rippled through the training grounds.
"Naruto! You moron!"
Sakura Haruno was speechless. It wasn't even a high-level Genjutsu. How could someone be so hopeless that they couldn't even tell if they were trapped in an illusion or not?
Naruto stood there, shell-shocked. Then, indignation took over. "Dammit! I'm tellin' ya, it was weird! How was I supposed to know? Suddenly there were a dozen Yakumos, and I couldn't catch a single one of 'em!"
"Save the excuses," Masahiko interjected with a brilliant, sunny smile. "Copy the chapter on 'Genjutsu Dissipation Theory' fifty times."
"Copying lines... No way! Anything but that!"
Naruto let out a miserable wail, but Masahiko effortlessly tossed him aside with a gentle application of force, clearing the space for the next bout.
Masahiko looked out at the students. "Who else wants to try?"
"Sensei, may I?"
Sasuke Uchiha raised his hand.
Yakumo Kurama hesitated for a split second, then nodded firmly. "I can continue."
"Very well, give it a try." Masahiko nodded.
Sasuke stared intently at Yakumo, his eyes burning with a fierce will to fight. "Sensei, I don't need you to limit her capabilities..."
"Fine. In that case, I won't limit yours, either."
Yakumo paused, then gave a slight nod. "Understood."
Forming the Seal of Confrontation, Sasuke immediately launched his offensive, rushing forward. Yakumo remained unhurried, slowly retreating while her hands wove signs—not particularly fast, but steady.
Then, in the blink of an eye, her speed surged. She blurred backward, putting distance between them instantly.
'Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings Technique?'
Sasuke recognized the hand seals and immediately disrupted his chakra flow to dispel the Genjutsu. But a second later, he realized he hadn't been under a spell at all.
While he was still processing his surprise, the world around him darkened. A murder of crows began to circle him. Within the flock, a figure emerged, clutching a dripping, blood-soaked blade...
'No!'
Sasuke bit his lip, a flash of genuine anger erupting on his face. This imagery struck a nerve.
He channeled chakra into his feet, his speed increasing drastically as he closed the distance to Yakumo. But just as he reached her, Yakumo's hands snapped into a final seal.
Suddenly, tree roots burst forth, binding Sasuke tight.
'Above!'
A kunai thrust out from the canopy, aiming straight for him.
Kai!
'Release!'
Sasuke frantically applied every method of Genjutsu dissipation he had learned. Just as the kunai was about to strike, his vision warped. Yakumo had already thrown the kunai and retreated during that split-second of hesitation.
She wasn't fast, but the confusion was enough to make her impossible to catch.
In the next moment, Yakumo pulled out a canvas and paintbrush. As she backpedaled, she began to paint.
'Painting?'
Sasuke was bewildered, but he didn't drop his guard. He lowered his head and charged again, only to see a phantom shadow flying straight at him. He slashed at it with his kunai.
'It's an illusion!'
But as his blade connected, the sensation of warm blood splashing against his skin felt terrifyingly real...
While Sasuke reeled from the shock, the ground beneath him collapsed. Magma erupted from the fissures in the earth. Stunned, he acted on instinct, firing a wire string to wrap around a nearby piece of exercise equipment, using the tension to swing himself out of the trap.
Mid-air, his hands flew through signs.
Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!
Sasuke controlled the output, keeping it well below his maximum lethality.
However, a towering flood of water materialized in front of Yakumo to intercept it.
'Wrong!'
'This is a Genjutsu World!'
Sasuke immediately bit his tongue, using pain to shatter the illusion. But a second later, he realized the danger was still coming, wave after wave.
Seeing his utter confusion, Yakumo spoke, her voice echoing. "In this domain, I can deceive your spirit. I made your mind believe you had already performed the action of biting your tongue. Therefore... cough... therefore, you cannot break it."
The next instant, reality snapped back to normal.
Sasuke clenched his fists, then slowly unclenched them. A deep sense of powerlessness washed over him.
He remembered now. The Kurama Clan's Five Senses Manipulation. It possessed the terrifying ability to turn illusion into reality. With a Kekkei Genkai like that, it was no wonder the Sensei had insisted on restricting her before.
'I wonder if the Sharingan could see through this...'
Unwillingness gnawed at Sasuke's heart, but he knew he had lost.
Yakumo stood there panting, unable to hide her excitement.
She won!
Even if it wasn't a fair fight, she had proven she possessed combat capability. She wasn't just a sitting duck anymore.
'If I can further optimize the puppet... maybe one day, I can become a ninja like Father, Mother, Kurenai-sensei... or Masahiko-sensei!'
Yakumo's heart swelled with hope.
"Sasuke... actually lost?"
Sakura stared at Yakumo, completely dumbfounded. She had never imagined that the frail, pale girl in their class possessed such terrifying power.
In that moment, Ino's warnings flashed through her mind.
'Become stronger...'
She looked at Sasuke's ashen face, and for the first time, the desire to become strong felt urgent, not just a vague goal.
Yakumo bowed deeply. "I apologize. I was actually using a ninja tool created by Sensei. If I had relied solely on my own strength, I would not have been your match."
She rolled up her sleeves, revealing the puppet exoskeleton strapped tightly to her limbs.
Sasuke took a deep breath, composing himself. "I'm not so petty that I can't accept a loss."
He walked silently back into the crowd.
'The Sharingan!'
Without the Sharingan, he could barely contend with Yakumo's Genjutsu, let alone stand a chance against that man's illusions.
'I'm not strong enough. I haven't worked hard enough!'
After the adrenaline faded, Yakumo felt the familiar wave of weakness return. She bowed to the class in thanks and obediently went to the sidelines to rest.
Only then did the rest of the students recover from their shock.
So, Yakumo could fight today because of that special ninja tool. And that tool...
'It was created by Masahiko-sensei!'
Looks of awe and adoration filled their faces as they turned toward him.
"Alright, everyone continue your own training," Masahiko said calmly, acting as if he hadn't done anything particularly groundbreaking. He glanced at the two boys. "Naruto, remember to copy your lines after class. Sasuke... come with me."
"Yes!"
Sasuke followed silently.
Once they were far enough away from the group, Masahiko turned around. "Are you thinking that if you had the Sharingan, you would have won?"
"..."
Sasuke remained silent.
"With the Sharingan, you indeed would have had a high probability of winning," Masahiko admitted. "But what if your opponent also possesses the Sharingan? Furthermore... Itachi's Genjutsu is far stronger than you can imagine!"
"Sensei, what should I do?"
Sasuke lowered his head, his voice laced with powerlessness.
Masahiko's voice turned steel-hard. "Train! If you don't understand Genjutsu, how can you hope to break it?"
He paused for effect, then softened his tone slightly. "From now on, I will train you specifically in Genjutsu. I will also teach you how to counter it, and how to dismantle Itachi's tactics."
"Sensei..."
Sasuke choked up, bowing deeply at a perfect ninety-degree angle. "Thank you!"
Hokage's Office.
Hiruzen Sarutobi deactivated the Telescope Technique, the image in the crystal ball fading. He let out a long, slow breath.
'It seems the results are promising.'
Although Yakumo was visibly pale after two battles, her condition was leagues better than it had ever been.
And this was only the crudest, most preliminary prototype. If they could continue to improve and iterate upon the design—combining it with Yakumo's own cultivation and her Kekkei Genkai—she would sooner or later become an exceptional shinobi.
'All thanks to Masahiko!'
He had saved a genius from fading away!
More importantly, there were many other ninja and children in the village with similar physical limitations. If they could all gain access to this kind of ninja tool...
Hiruzen didn't dare imagine the scale of it.
Masahiko's "little puppet modification" held a value to the village that was simply immeasurable.
But at the same time, Hiruzen faced a difficult decision.
He lit his pipe, calming the excitement in his chest. With his other hand, he picked up a document from his desk.
It was the service record of a ninja named Maruboshi Kosuke.