Konoha's Tag-System Ninja

Chapter 117: Chapter 117: A Showdown of Genjutsu with Shisui! [Bonus Chapter!]

Though it takes a long time to explain, with Shūichi Hoshita's rapid thought process, these ideas flashed through his mind in an instant.

He continued to speak to Tsunade, analyzing, "Lady Tsunade, I believe the reason why the Hashirama cell experiments failed is because those cells are dead."

Tsunade frowned, "What do you mean?"

Shūichi smiled, "They lack the mental energy that once controlled them."

"Lady Tsunade, humans are made up of both physical and spiritual components."

"Chakra is formed from the combination of physical strength and spiritual energy."

Tsunade seemed to catch on, "So you're saying that without a strong enough spiritual will to suppress my grandfather's power, it's impossible to succeed?"

Shūichi nodded, "Exactly."

"Alternatively, you could strip away the First Hokage's Yang Release power and only keep the Wood Release."

"But if you do that, the Wood Release would just be an ordinary kekkei genkai. Without the First Hokage's immense Yang Release, it wouldn't have the power to bring peace to an era of chaos."

"Of course, this is all just my theory."

"To prove it, we'd need to conduct experiments, but that's not something we need to focus on right now."

Shūichi refrained from mentioning the Sharingan, even though Tsunade could be trusted to keep such secrets.

Tsunade nodded thoughtfully and said, "The last time we tried, the losses were too great. The old man won't agree to further experiments."

"And besides, it really is dangerous."

Shūichi chuckled, "That's why we should focus on what we actually need."

"Cellular activation!"

"For the S-rank medical ninjutsu we need, I believe the breakthrough lies in enhancing cellular activity!"

"On one hand, we'd raise the activity of cells to the point where they can divide automatically when injured. On the other hand, Yang Release would provide the energy needed for that cell division."

"Of course, this is still just my theory."

"We'll need to conduct cell experiments to see if boosting cellular activity to a certain level works as I've described."

"If it turns out to be true, we'll have a clear direction for developing the technique, and it'll be much easier from there."

Based on the current information and resources, Tsunade couldn't find any flaws in Shūichi's hypothesis. With her decisive nature, she immediately made a decision: "Let's start with that approach tomorrow."

"For now..."

"Let's eat!"

"Shizune, bring out my sake!"

...

After having dinner with Tsunade and Shizune, Shūichi finally returned home.

Nonō was still at Konoha Hospital, so only Asuka was home.

The two chatted for a bit, and then Asuka left for the hospital with a bento, while Shūichi washed up and headed to his study to continue working on the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Thanks to the boost from the Ninjutsu Professor tag, his progress had become much smoother.

Before he knew it, both Nonō and Asuka had returned, and it was nearly 10 p.m.

Reluctantly, Shūichi ended his studies and went to sleep peacefully.

...

In the following days, Shūichi became even busier. Between the experiments with Tsunade, experiments with Orochimaru, the Flying Thunder God technique, genjutsu, and transformation jutsu... luckily, he had his shadow clones.

Even delegating the study of the Flying Thunder God to his clones didn't hinder his progress.

...

Time swiftly moved forward to December of Konoha Year 43.

Just stepping out from Orochimaru's lab, Shūichi paused, a smile blooming on his face as he silently rejoiced, "Finally unlocked!"

[Genjutsu Expert] Activate!

Genjutsu proficiency increased by 100%, mental willpower enhanced by 100%, and the ability to cast genjutsu without hand seals!

Say hello to even stronger mental fortitude!

"Let's see if Shisui's around, I can test my genjutsu resistance."

Shūichi secretly planned as he headed home, all the while contemplating the best use of this year's "Flash of Insight" ability.

The Flying Thunder God Technique was nearly complete.

Even if he didn't use Flying Thunder God, Shūichi was confident he could master it this year.

So, he was reluctant to use his "Flash of Insight" on the Flying Thunder God.

Should he use it on the medical ninjutsu he was developing with Tsunade?

That project was progressing well, but they hadn't yet completed the experiments on cellular activation.

After all, reaching the level of Hashirama's cells wasn't easy.

Or maybe he should use it on Lava Release, the kekkei genkai?

There was also his research on the Eight-Tails. He had made significant strides in all these areas.

Besides that, there were options like sealing techniques or genjutsu... but his preparation in those areas wasn't sufficient yet.

When Shūichi finally returned home, he hadn't made a decision.

A crow flew off toward Shisui's house and quickly returned.

As luck would have it, Shisui was home.

With that, a flock of crows took flight.

Soon, above Konoha, two flocks of crows merged and flew together toward the Forest of Death.

Near the Forest of Death, the two flocks of crows descended, each coalescing into Shūichi and Shisui.

"Shūichi, it seems your genjutsu skills have improved significantly," Shisui said with a smile.

"Just a little," Shūichi responded modestly, "But I'll need you to test just how much."

"In that case, I won't hold back," Shisui said, his smile fading though his demeanor remained warm.

Shūichi's eyes narrowed, "Bring it on!"

"Here I go..."

With that, Shisui's eyes transformed, the three-tomoe Sharingan spinning, red light flashing.

In the next instant, Shisui found himself bound to a tree while Shūichi's body dissolved into a swarm of crows, flying away.

However, Shūichi didn't reappear from the tree trunk; he completely vanished from Shisui's sight.

"As expected, this is so you, Shūichi," Shisui remarked, not overly surprised.

As Shūichi's former comrade, Shisui knew that Shūichi was highly skilled in both chakra nature and shape manipulation, enabling him to master techniques quickly and streamline hand seals. Once fully mastered, Shūichi could often perform jutsu without any seals at all.

This secret was known only to close comrades; anyone else who knew had likely already perished.

Demonic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Change!

Shisui activated his Sharingan genjutsu.

The technique binding him vanished instantly, but to his surprise, it didn't rebound onto Shūichi.

Moreover, Shisui realized he was still trapped within a genjutsu.

The red glow in Shisui's eyes intensified, and the surrounding space-time began to tear apart like a curtain under his power, revealing the true world once again.

Shūichi reappeared in Shisui's sight, floating in mid-air.

At the same time, numerous black feathers began to drift down from the sky.

Shisui's vision immediately began to blur.

Temple of Nirvana Technique!

The tomoe in Shisui's eyes spun, and he used Mirror Heaven and Earth Change once more.

The black feathers vanished, and Shūichi's form in the air seemed to be torn apart, transforming into a flock of crows that swooped down, enveloping Shisui.

"Shūichi's genjutsu skills haven't just increased; his resistance to genjutsu has grown as well..."

After using Mirror Heaven and Earth Change twice, Shisui was now certain of Shūichi's formidable resistance to genjutsu.

The red glow in Shisui's eyes flickered as the attacking crows dispersed one by one.

This too was a genjutsu, not Shūichi's crow clones.

Shisui turned around, and through his Sharingan vision, Shūichi's figure appeared, distorted.

Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!

Just after casting his Bringer of Darkness Technique, Shūichi was instantly immobilized!

"You didn't even use your Sharingan..."

Shūichi was caught without making eye contact with Shisui, and Shisui hadn't open his Mangekyō Sharingan either.

However, it wasn't a rule that the Uchiha clan always had to use their Sharingan to cast genjutsu.

Even when genjutsu was cast through the Sharingan, direct eye contact wasn't always required.

For instance, with Demonic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Change.

"Wait a minute..."

Suddenly, a thought struck Shūichi. Looking at Shisui, who had lost his vision and was enveloped in darkness, Shūichi smiled and asked, "Shisui, did you cast this genjutsu on me from the very beginning?"

Blind and shrouded in darkness, Shisui smiled, "You're sharp!"

"So, Shūichi, don't get complacent just because this is a sparring match."

With that, Shisui formed a seal and dispelled Shūichi's Bringer of Darkness Technique.

This technique was especially effective against the Uchiha clan, particularly those who heavily relied on their Sharingan.

But once freed from the Bringer of Darkness, Shisui immediately noticed that Shūichi had also broken free from the Shackling Stakes Technique.

This time, Shisui was genuinely astonished.

When cast with the Sharingan, this technique was incredibly powerful.

Even fellow Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan struggled to break free in such a short time.

"Incredible!"

Shisui couldn't help but be moved.

Shūichi, however, shook his head. "In a real battle, that time would have been more than enough to kill me several times over."

Shisui smiled, "But in the shinobi world, genjutsu of such potency is extremely rare."

He spoke with absolute confidence!

And Shūichi found it completely justified.

Even without the Sharingan, Shisui's genjutsu abilities were already remarkable.

Shūichi could tell just from the training notes Shisui had given him.

The fact that Shūichi had been able to avoid having Shisui's Mirror Heaven and Earth Change reflect genjutsu back onto him was not just because of his own resistance and talent in genjutsu, but also due to Shisui's training.

It had given him a deeper understanding of genjutsu.

In a way, Shisui had become his genjutsu teacher.

After an unassuming exchange of genjutsu, Shūichi had truly witnessed Shisui's immense skill in this area.

Had it not been a test, he would have been defeated instantly at the start.

Being able to use the Sharingan to silently perform the transcription seal is truly amazing!

And in this sparring match, Shisui had been mostly defensive, only launching one real attack toward the end.

The test was over.

The two sat cross-legged on the ground, discussing their insights into genjutsu.

In truth, it was mostly Shūichi asking questions, with Shisui providing answers.

With his recently enhanced talent, Shūichi quickly grasped the concepts and mastered them almost instantly.

---

Elsewhere, back home.

Shūichi used a summoning technique to call forth the white tiger from the Forest of Death.

The once small and adorable white tiger had grown significantly, now possessing the aura of a true king of the forest.

However, in front of Shūichi, it was still just a big cat.

After playing with it for a while, Shūichi fed the white tiger a special medicine, then infused it with chakra.

But unlike before, where he had used chakra without any elemental nature, this time he infused it with Wind Release chakra.

This was something Shūichi had started doing back in April of this year.

Around that time, the white tiger had naturally developed its own chakra, becoming a true ninja beast.

As the saying goes, "Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger." Shūichi believed that Wind Release would be a perfect match for Shiro.

After sending the tiger back to the Forest of Death, Shūichi returned to his study.

There, his shadow clone was still working on mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Shūichi didn't bother with that, instead pulling out a different scroll.

It was the incomplete technique related to natural energy from the Totsuka Blade.

(End of Chapter)

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