Chapter 27: Genjutsu
"A customer?"
So the man was a merchant. That explained the strange ninja coming and going.
But in these chaotic times, a "merchant" hiding in some obscure corner of the ninja world always gave off an unpleasant vibe.
The kind of business being conducted here was unlikely to be legitimate.
"What can I get from you?" Hajime asked, feigning curiosity.
"My clients fall into two categories: sellers and buyers."
"Could you elaborate?"
"If you're looking to sell, I mainly deal in human trafficking… My research requires a lot of ninja assistance.
In today's chaotic shinobi world, most defeated ninja are simply executed. Such waste—it's a shame. After all, ninjas are valuable resources.
So, if you want to make the most of them, you can hand over any captives you've taken in battle. I'll pay a fair price."
Vocal.
Did he just openly admit to black-market slave trading?
Hajime had just heard…
Good news.
He clenched his fist slightly in secret. Never mind what this man was doing with enslaved ninja—if this was the kind of business he ran, then it was very likely that the distress signal from his clansmen had come from this place.
If there was anyone who might've gathered people from all over the ninja world, it'd be someone like this.
So yes—it was good news. He'd found the right place.
"Quite the profitable trade," Hajime said calmly. "Unfortunately, I wasn't aware beforehand, so I didn't bring the kind of merchandise you're looking for."
"Ah… so those two ninja are dead. What a pity," the voice replied.
So he had noticed the battle in the marsh earlier.
If I told him those two didn't even die by my hand, would he believe me? Hajime thought dryly.
"And if I were buying instead? What could I get?"
"Items that rapidly enhance a ninja's combat capability. For example—secret drugs that temporarily boost chakra output, or massive summoning beasts bred for absolute loyalty."
Absolute loyalty?
Hajime thought of the unfortunate soul who had just been torn apart by his own summoned creature.
"Could I see the summoning beasts? That's what interests me most."
"Of course. So long as the principle of fair trade is upheld, anyone may become my client. Please, come in. The merchandise is inside."
As soon as the voice faded, one corner of the courtyard suddenly collapsed, revealing a slanted stairway leading underground.
Hajime hesitated for a moment, then stepped toward it.
As he descended the dim stairwell, his guard went up. His right arm, hidden under his cloak, began to shift—its color turning a pale, bone-white.
He had no choice. The underground structure screamed trap, and he needed to be ready to escape at a moment's notice.
Just as he began the partial transformation into a White Zetsu form, his vision abruptly shifted.
At first, all he'd seen were basic underground halls—but now, the space around him had changed.
Iron cages lined both sides of the passage.
On the left: bound and shackled ninja.
On the right: grotesque, feral beasts.
Genjutsu? When did that happen?
The sudden change in scenery meant he'd been under some sort of illusion the entire time. But the real problem was—he had no clue when he got caught in it.
No clue at all.
And stranger still—why had activating his White Zetsu arm caused the illusion to break?
Does the transformation restore my chakra flow enough to interfere with genjutsu?
This wasn't the time for theory-crafting. Hajime feigned ignorance and continued down the corridor.
At the end stood an open room.
Hajime carefully withdrew his transformation and saw what appeared to be a finely furnished chamber.
A long table stood opposite the entrance, behind which sat a cloaked figure whose face was hidden—like a proper merchant waiting for a deal.
Then he reactivated his Zetsu arm.
The illusion shattered.
What he saw now was a prison cell filled with all manner of grotesque torture instruments.
He studied the space inside. Then, without hesitation, stepped in.
"Welcome, my guest," the voice echoed again. "Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Tushi—a devoted breeder of summoning beasts."
Breeder? More like someone obsessed with "assembling" monsters.
Hajime didn't have time to respond—
The cell door slammed shut behind him.
Now that he was the trapped prey, the cloaked voice no longer bothered pretending.
A sinister chuckle echoed through the underground space.
"You'll make excellent research material."
"Not long ago, someone tried to send out a distress signal. I was confident in my security and dismissed it as an illusion. But imagine my surprise… someone actually walked right in."
"Don't worry. I'll extract your brain and heart, then transplant them into the finest beast I can find. You won't die… but you'll be reborn in a very different form."
Stalling for time.
Hajime could feel it—his chakra was being drained. He glanced toward the walls of the iron cage.
Earth Style…?
He narrowed his eyes.
"I think I remember an Earth jutsu that absorbs chakra… what was it again… 'Earth Prison: Dome of Magnificent Nothingness'?"
Silence.
The previously smug voice suddenly turned hysterical. "How do you know my secret jutsu?!"
Hajime offered no explanation. He smiled.
"That attitude isn't very scientific. As a researcher, shouldn't you remain calm and rational—no matter the situation?"
Celebrating too early—classic amateur mistake.
"Once your chakra is fully drained, you'll be—"
Before he could finish, Hajime's pale-white palm pressed against the stone wall.
A surge.
Instead of his chakra being drained, the flow reversed—he was now absorbing it.
In moments, the energy from the jutsu-embedded walls was completely drained.
Without chakra to maintain them, the walls collapsed.
A hidden chamber lay behind.
"Found you. Hiding pretty deep, weren't you?"
Just as he'd suspected—people who relied on traps and deception rarely had much power in direct combat.
To be fair, chakra absorption could be a deadly trump card…
But unfortunately for this guy, Hajime was even better at it.
Anyone else might've been dead by now.
There were chakra absorption techniques in the ninja world, but they weren't exactly common. Anyone who thought a single trick like that made them invincible…
Would meet a bad end.
This "Tushi" had made the classic mistake of overestimating his trump card.
"You… can see me? Wait, when did you break the illusion?"
"I was hoping you could tell me that."
Hajime formed a quick set of hand signs.
Water Style: Water Severing Wave.
The iron bars shattered instantly under the pressurized slice.
Tushi tried to escape.
Too slow.
Hajime followed with a second jutsu.
Water Style: Surging Break.
In the confined underground chamber, the flooding torrent was unstoppable.
This wasn't an open battlefield—there was no space to dodge or defend.
Hajime, meanwhile, merged into the rock using his Mayfly technique, traveling swiftly through the stone.
In an instant, he reappeared behind Tushi, who was still thrashing in the flood.
With a single motion, he brought his hand down hard on the man's neck.
Crack.
A clean dislocation.
Between the drowning and the blow, Tushi was instantly knocked unconscious.
"That's it? So fragile?"
The guy went down way easier than Hajime expected.
This weakling calls himself a "researcher"?
Real inventors in the ninja world?
They had to be Kage-level at least.
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