"How... how is this possible?"
The Root shinobi's expression turned to one of pure terror as he touched the signal flare that should have already been fired into the sky.
He stared at Uchiha Shinji, who was walking toward him. "You... did you cast a genjutsu on me?"
Shinji replied calmly, "You've finally noticed?"
"I underestimated you!"
In a panic, the Root shinobi decisively bit his tongue, sending a wave of sharp pain through his body. The jolt of agony cleared his foggy mind, helping him regain focus.
He immediately averted his gaze from Shinji's eyes and quickly pulled out the signal flare, firing it into the sky.
Whoosh...
Boom.
Shinji glanced up at the sky, where the flare exploded in the night.
Seeing the signal flare successfully sent, the Root shinobi sighed in relief. "I never thought a brat like you could possess such powerful dojutsu. But as long as I don't meet your gaze, your Sharingan won't be able to control me!"
Shinji smiled softly, "Is that so...?"
"What are you laughing at?!"
The Root shinobi shouted, but despite his certainty that he had broken free of Shinji's genjutsu, his hand instinctively reached for his waist again.
Suddenly, he felt the familiar touch of the signal flare at his belt.
He looked down in shock and saw the flare was still hanging there, completely untouched.
"How... how is this possible?" he yelled, his voice trembling in fear. "Damn it! When did you trap me in a genjutsu again?"
Shinji's voice remained calm. "What made you think you ever escaped my genjutsu in the first place?"
"You..."
The Root shinobi started to say something but froze in horror. The black cloak he had torn off earlier was still draped over his shoulders.
A wave of dread washed over him. He finally realized that from the moment he had landed, he had fallen into Shinji's carefully laid genjutsu.
Everything—tearing off his cloak, firing the signal flare, biting his tongue—was all part of the illusion. He had been trapped in Shinji's dreamlike genjutsu from the very beginning.
Understanding this, his fear grew uncontrollably.
At that moment, he no longer saw Shinji as just a child. In fact, he didn't even care about his mission to kill Shinji anymore. The only thing on his mind was escaping.
He quickly formed hand seals and shouted, "Release!"
He opened his eyes and looked around.
But nothing had changed.
"Did I break free? No... this can't be right. What kind of genjutsu is this?!"
The Root shinobi began to doubt everything around him. After being toyed with multiple times, he could no longer distinguish between reality and illusion.
Outside the genjutsu, Shinji stood leaning against a tree, waiting patiently for his eyes to stop their turbulent surge of chakra.
Nearby, the Root shinobi stood with his head hanging low, a vacant look on his face.
There was no doubt. The moment the Root shinobi had landed, he had been caught in Shinji's dreamscape genjutsu. Now, he was lost in an illusion so real it was indistinguishable from the truth.
Shinji's genjutsu was nearly flawless. The only way to escape was for the target to realize they were trapped in a dream and summon the willpower to awaken themselves.
But most people couldn't even recognize they were in a dream, let alone break free from it.
The Root shinobi, despite his experience, had fallen prey to his own assumptions. He believed Shinji had used a basic Sharingan genjutsu, so he never realized the true depth of the illusion.
Moments later, the turbulence in Shinji's eyes subsided completely.
He felt a surge in his dojutsu power, not only in terms of quantity but also in quality. His Yin Release chakra had grown colder and more menacing.
Glancing at the still-trapped Root shinobi, Shinji flicked his wrist, unraveling the chakra threads coiled around it. Infusing them with chakra, he lashed the threads toward the Root shinobi.
In an instant, the threads coiled around the Root shinobi's neck, tightening with each wrap.
Without a word, Shinji gave the threads a sharp tug...
...
Elsewhere in the forest.
Clang, clang!
Metal clashed violently in the darkness, sending sparks flying as Asuma exchanged blows with a masked figure.
Asuma's expression was grim.
The masked shinobi was strong, strong enough that despite Asuma being aware of the signal flare fired by the convoy, he couldn't break away from the fight to provide support.
There was something unsettlingly familiar about the masked shinobi's movements. Though he didn't want to believe it, his instincts told him this enemy might be a Hidden Leaf shinobi.
Finding a brief opening, Asuma shouted, "Who are you? Why are you attacking us?"
The Root shinobi gave no response.
In truth, he was growing frustrated as well. According to the plan, his comrades should have completed their mission and sent a signal by now.
Yet all he could hear were the sounds of battle coming from the convoy.
"They can't even handle a bunch of kids? Idiots!"
He silently cursed his teammates while fending off Asuma's relentless assault.
Back at the convoy...
The remaining Chunin from Asuma's squad was fighting desperately alongside the guards from the Land of Demons, struggling to fend off another Root shinobi.
The ground was littered with the bodies of fallen guards, and even those still fighting were all wounded.
Another Root shinobi was being surrounded and attacked by Kimimaro, Sasuke, and Neji.
Yes, surrounded.
The Root shinobi was strong, but he had underestimated Kimimaro. After a few exchanges, Kimimaro's bone blade slashed across the shinobi's ribs, forcing him on the defensive.
Though only ten years old, Kimimaro was an exceptional talent, even among the fearsome Kaguya clan, known for producing monsters. His power far exceeded his age.
In the original timeline, Kimimaro had assisted Orochimaru in his assassination of the Fourth Kazekage at just fourteen or fifteen. Even at that age, he could hold his own in Kage-level battles.
Later, despite being terminally ill, Kimimaro nearly killed Gaara, who had already become the Fifth Kazekage.
This demonstrated that even when severely weakened, Kimimaro was still a true Kage-level shinobi.
Now, at ten years old, Kimimaro wasn't quite at the Kage level, but he was far from easy to defeat.
The Root shinobi had assumed Kimimaro was just a notable student from the academy and had not taken him seriously. By the time he realized his mistake, it was too late—he was already wounded.
"We need to end this quickly! Kimimaro, Neji, cover me!"
Unable to bear the sight of the remaining guards from the Land of Demons falling one by one, Sasuke charged toward the Root shinobi, eager to finish the fight.
Neji shouted, "Be careful!"
Kimimaro was also taken aback by Sasuke's rashness.
The Root shinobi smirked, sensing an opportunity.
He had been humiliated by being overpowered by three kids and getting injured in the process. He purposefully exposed a weakness, hoping to lure one of them in.
Unexpectedly, Sasuke took the bait instead of Kimimaro.
But for the shinobi, it didn't matter who fell for the trap. As long as he could take out one of them, his situation would improve.
In a flash, Sasuke closed the distance, launching two kunai before lunging forward with another in hand.
The Root shinobi quickly formed hand seals. "Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Boom.
An earthen wall erupted from the ground, blocking the kunai Sasuke had thrown.
But the wall collapsed just as quickly, revealing the Root shinobi bursting through, grabbing Sasuke by the throat.
"Got you, brat!"
The shinobi chuckled darkly.
He had noticed the steel wire attached to Sasuke's kunai and used his Earth Release to prevent any tricks with thrown weapons. Then, under the cover of the wall, he had seized Sasuke.
"Damn it!"
Neji gasped, rushing forward with a palm strike to rescue Sasuke.
On the other side, Kimimaro drew another bone blade, thrusting it toward the Root shinobi.
Seeing them both coming, the shinobi sidestepped Neji's Gentle Fist and used Sasuke as a shield to block Kimimaro's bone blade.
Neji's strike missed its target, and Kimimaro had no choice but to stop his attack to avoid stabbing Sasuke, retreating a few steps.
The Root shinobi sneered. "Why not go through with it? You could kill this brat and injure me in the process."
Kimimaro kept his expression cold and said nothing.
Neji shouted, "Let Sasuke go, you bastard!"
The shinobi laughed. "You kids are so naive. Let me show you how cruel the shinobi world really is!"
Before the Root shinobi could finish his taunt, Sasuke, still in his grasp, suddenly latched onto him.
"What the—?!"
The shinobi was caught off guard.
Hiss...
Suddenly, the sound of igniting explosive tags echoed from Sasuke's clothes.
The Root shinobi's eyes widened in shock. He tried to throw Sasuke away, but it was too late. With a loud explosion, both Sasuke and the shinobi were blown away.
"Sasuke..." Neji gasped, surprised. He never expected Sasuke to choose to go down together with the enemy.
At that moment, a voice came from behind them, "Hey, you didn't think I'd actually die from that, did you?"
Neji spun around, only to see Sasuke standing there, hands in his pockets, completely unharmed.
Confused, Neji asked, "What just...?"
Kimimaro answered from the side, "Shadow Clone Jutsu, I assume?"
Sasuke nodded slightly, "It was originally meant for you guys, but I guess this guy wasn't so lucky and ran into me, Uchiha Sasuke!"
Not even the Root shinobi knew that Sasuke had already mastered the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Neji and Kimimaro, who had been with him all this time, were also unaware. Sasuke's trump card, meant for training, had accidentally helped him eliminate a powerful foe.
Meanwhile, another Root shinobi had just killed the last Chunin from Asuma's squad.
Noticing his comrade had been taken down by three kids, the Root shinobi was filled with rage and disbelief. He knew that in the Root, failure was not tolerated. Even those who succeeded in their missions were at risk of being silenced, as seen with Nonō Yakushi and Kabuto.
Fearing Danzo's wrath, the Root shinobi wasted no time. Using Body Flicker Technique, he suddenly appeared in front of Sasuke.
Still basking in the glory of defeating his opponent, Sasuke was completely caught off guard. Before he could react, the Root shinobi punched him hard, sending him flying like a rag doll into a tree.
The Root shinobi ignored Neji and Kimimaro, grabbed the dazed Sasuke, and attempted to flee.
Just as he lifted Sasuke and prepared to escape, a figure blocked his path.
"Uchiha Shinji!?" The Root shinobi immediately recognized the figure standing before him. Shinji was one of their mission targets. At the same time, he realized that the teammate he had sent to kill Shinji must have failed.
Confused by his teammate's failure, the shinobi knew he still had to complete the mission. Holding onto Sasuke, he hurled a kunai at Shinji with the other hand.
For the Root shinobi, the mission was everything. No matter the situation, he had to complete it.
Shinji easily dodged the incoming kunai with a slight tilt of his head. In the next instant, he spun around and delivered a powerful kick, sending the Root shinobi flying.
The shinobi lost his grip on Sasuke, and his body was flung into the air.
Kimimaro seized the opportunity, moving swiftly. His bone blade flashed in an elegant arc, piercing the Root shinobi's heart from behind.
Slash.
Kimimaro withdrew his bone blade and flicked it lightly, shaking off the blood that had stained it.
The Root shinobi fell to his knees, clutching his chest.
Even in his final moments, his face was filled with shock. He hadn't expected an eight-year-old academy student to have such deadly taijutsu. Shinji's movements—from dodging to counterattacking—were so fluid that the shinobi had no chance to react.
He also hadn't anticipated Kimimaro's lightning-fast reflexes. He was unable to adjust his posture before Kimimaro's bone blade pierced his heart.
"Damn... brats..." the shinobi sputtered, blood foaming at his lips. His gaze was filled with hatred as he glared at Shinji and the others. In his final act of defiance, he triggered the explosive tags strapped to his body.
Kimimaro, sensing danger, immediately retreated.
Shinji grabbed the still-dazed Sasuke and leaped backward.
Neji ducked behind a nearby tree for cover.
Boom!
The explosion was deafening. The Root shinobi, whose heart had been pierced by Kimimaro, was obliterated in the blast. His body vanished without a trace.
After the dust settled, Shinji and the others emerged from their cover.
Neji glanced at Shinji, asking, "Are you alright? What happened to that masked guy who was chasing you?"
Shinji smiled, "I took care of him."
Sasuke rubbed the spot where the Root shinobi had punched him, muttering, "I also took care of one!"