Ryoma didn't speak — he merely nodded.
From beginning to end, Urashiki Ōtsutsuki remained motionless, even though Ryoma's back was turned as he tended to Sako's injuries.
Ever since Ryoma had appeared, Urashiki could feel a powerful chakra pressure locked onto him — a killing intent so sharp he dared not move carelessly.
"Everyone, fall back."
At Ryoma's quiet command, the surrounding shinobi immediately retreated to a safe distance.
Yet Urashiki still didn't move, his Rinnegan fixed on Ryoma.
Only when the others had completely cleared the area did Ryoma speak again.
"You're not running away?"
Urashiki's expression darkened. His voice was cold and contemptuous.
"Don't get cocky. You think sneaking up on me once means you can defeat me?"
He pulled out a small white flask, poured a pill into his mouth, and swallowed it. In an instant, his missing left arm regenerated — fresh, pale skin forming rapidly.
Ryoma raised a brow.
"Oh? Impressive regeneration. Seems your elixirs are quite effective."
Before Urashiki could respond, a violent gust of wind surged toward him.
"Boom!"
His body shattered into thousands of paper cranes, scattering in all directions before reforming several hundred meters away. His chest heaved as he glared at Ryoma, disbelief in his pale face.
In Ryoma's hand was the very same pill bottle Urashiki had used seconds ago.
He was holding it, examining it casually.
How… how fast is he?
Urashiki had fought many high-speed opponents before — even Sako's lightning-fast taijutsu. But Ryoma's movements were on an entirely different level. He couldn't even perceive the man's trajectory; one instant Ryoma was gone, the next, he was everywhere — like a ghost.
And Ryoma hadn't formed a single hand seal.
That meant it wasn't ninjutsu. It was pure taijutsu — speed so absolute it mimicked space-time ninjutsu. To Urashiki, it was terrifying.
"This belongs to me."
Ryoma pocketed the elixir and vanished again.
Urashiki's instincts screamed.
"You can't possibly maintain that instantaneous movement forever!"
A voice like the whisper of death sounded behind him — cold, sharp, and close enough to freeze his breath.
Urashiki's muscles locked. He didn't even dare to turn around. He knew he couldn't react in time. Not even with his Paper Crane Technique.
"Return to the past!"
The world distorted — reality itself rewound by a second. Urashiki rolled forward just as a slashing wave of energy tore through the space he'd been standing in.
"Oh? You actually dodged."
Ryoma raised an eyebrow, mildly surprised. He attacked again — several times in quick succession — yet Urashiki narrowly evaded each strike.
After a few exchanges, Ryoma frowned. Something was off.
Urashiki seemed to know what he would do before he did it. His movements shifted unnaturally, as if guided by foresight.
Ryoma's Rinnegan flared faintly, infused with the power of the Six Paths. And then he saw it — the subtle spatial ripple each time Urashiki used his eye power.
Not time stop… if it were, he wouldn't be this desperate. It's more like… time reversal.
A plan formed instantly. Ryoma flicked several shuriken forward.
"Feint?"
Urashiki barely tilted his head to avoid them — and then Ryoma was upon him again, closing the distance in a flash of thunder.
"Flying Thunder God Technique!"
"Oh, it's useless!" Urashiki sneered.
The world twisted once more — and suddenly, he was back to the moment when Ryoma had just thrown his shuriken.
But then Ryoma's calm voice echoed:
"So, you really can reverse time."
Urashiki froze, stunned. "How… how do you know?"
"Your clothes."
Urashiki looked down — and his left sleeve was torn.
"When…?"
His mind raced. The shuriken earlier — the ones he thought were feints!
He aimed precisely at my sleeve. Even knowing I'd dodge slightly… he planned for me to go back in time, leaving the cut as proof.
A chill ran through Urashiki.
This man forced me to reveal my ability just to confirm his theory. What a terrifying opponent.
He clenched his teeth and growled, "So what if you know? The outcome won't change! Every move you make is already visible to me!"
Ryoma ignored him. His breathing slowed; nature's energy flowed into his body.
When he opened his eyes again, they bore crimson pigmentation — the mark of sagehood.
"Sage Mode."
A calm declaration — and the air itself trembled.
Natural energy fused with chakra, amplifying his strength, perception, and endurance beyond human limits. His every movement radiated overwhelming pressure.
Urashiki's eyes widened. For the first time, he hesitated.
Ryoma smiled faintly.
"Let's see if time can save you from this."
Through the fusion of the First Hokage's abilities, Ryoma had long since mastered Senjutsu — the art of Sage Mode.
According to legend, Hashirama Senju was a man who could enter Sage Mode instantly, without preparation.
Now, Ryoma demonstrated that same mastery.
From his earlier exchanges, Ryoma had already discerned the flaw in Urashiki Ōtsutsuki's time-reversal ability.
While Urashiki could rewind time itself, his body did not rewind with it.
That meant his chakra, stamina, and even injuries remained the same — he could turn back the clock, but not undo the damage he had already taken.
With the power of Sage Mode enhancing his taijutsu, Ryoma was confident he could overwhelm Urashiki before the Ōtsutsuki could even activate his dōjutsu.
The sudden surge of energy from Ryoma made Urashiki's expression tighten.
The pressure radiating from him wasn't like any ninjutsu Urashiki knew — this chakra felt primal, dangerous, and divine.
"It doesn't matter," Urashiki sneered. "Even if he attacks me, I can just go back in time."
But two seconds later, his body trembled, and his eyes widened in disbelief.
"You noticed it, didn't you?"
Ryoma's lips curled faintly. He had seen enough. Urashiki's reaction alone told him everything — the Ōtsutsuki had once again used time reversal.
Ryoma's next move wasn't a flashy jutsu or complex technique. It was simple — a single, straightforward punch.
He dashed forward, closing the distance with terrifying speed. If the opponent dodged, fine. If not, the blow would land.
The simplicity made it more dangerous — it left no pattern, no tell.
It was like warning a man that he would be shot in one second — if his body couldn't move fast enough, knowledge alone wouldn't save him.
Urashiki's pupils dilated as the fist drew near. Instinctively, he chose to go back again — twice as fast as before.
But Ryoma's mind processed the situation faster than thought — in less than half a second, he disappeared.
The air didn't even have time to explode under the pressure of his movement. He had surpassed the speed of sound.
A thunderous crack split the silence.
Ryoma appeared in front of Urashiki, whose eyes widened in pure shock. His hands twitched up to defend, but too late.
In Ryoma's perception, he could see the ripple of Urashiki's Rinnegan start to form — the telltale sign of time reversal.
"You're trying to activate your Rinnegan again," Ryoma murmured coldly. "But this time… you're half a beat too slow."
His fist slammed into Urashiki's chest.
"Boom!"
The impact detonated like a cannon.
The entire street shattered — glass exploded from every building, and shockwaves ripped through the air, kicking up a storm of dust and debris.
Urashiki's body cracked audibly before being launched backwards, spinning like a broken doll before smashing into a rock formation over ten kilometers away.
"Urgh—!"
Urashiki spat out a mouthful of blood. Looking down, he saw a massive crater punched clean through his chest. Flesh, bone, lungs — all obliterated. The heat from the friction had even cauterized the wound.
He had never suffered such an injury in his entire existence.
"Damn… you…" he rasped, his voice trembling with rage.
He raised a shaking hand, forming a chakra vessel — a red gourd-like container, used to absorb and store chakra stolen from others.
Without hesitation, he swallowed it whole.
Within moments, the gaping hole in his chest began to regenerate, muscle and skin knitting together until the injury vanished completely.
But his face twisted in fury.
"Damn it… to recover from this, I had to use up everything I've stored all these years…"
Urashiki gritted his teeth. The vast reserves of chakra he'd stolen across countless dimensions — gone in an instant.
"Ryoma! I'll never forgive you!"
With a roar, he tore open a Dimensional Rift — the Amenominaka, space itself bending at his command. Without another word, Urashiki vanished into it and escaped.
Ryoma lowered his fist, exhaling faintly. He could no longer sense Urashiki's chakra.
"So he ran," Ryoma said flatly. "He's not strong — just fast at running away."
He scanned the surroundings one more time, then gestured to the ANBU waiting in the distance.
"Bring Orochimaru here."
Moments later, Orochimaru arrived, his expression cold and clearly displeased.
"You interrupted my research again, Ryoma. This had better be worth it."
Ryoma pointed to the scattered blood droplets staining the ground.
"Collect these samples first. I'll explain later. Make sure you preserve their activity — they're not ordinary blood."
Orochimaru's golden eyes narrowed with interest. Without another word, he crouched down and began collecting the samples with delicate precision.
As he worked, he muttered to himself,
"If he's wasting my time, I won't come next time…"
Ryoma didn't answer. His gaze was distant — watching the last trace of Urashiki's chakra fade away into the void.
Not long ago, during the Five Kage Summit, Ryoma had killed the other four Kage. Their bodies — along with the corpses of many elite jōnin from the Great Villages — had all been sent to Orochimaru's laboratory.
Now, another otherworldly specimen had joined the list.
And Ryoma already had plans for it.
It was said that Orochimaru hadn't rested properly in days. The dark circles under his eyes made him look more like a reanimated corpse than one of Konoha's foremost scientists. He was in the middle of a critical experiment when Ryoma summoned him — and that was the only reason he showed up at all.
Meanwhile, Sako was whispering to Rin in the corner.
"Sensei, is that the legendary 'Snake Aunt' you told me about?"
Rin glanced nervously at Orochimaru and nodded. "Keep your voice down. He's much stronger at this point in time."
Sako blinked, studying Orochimaru curiously like a child observing a mythical beast.
Ryoma overheard their hushed conversation and couldn't help but chuckle.
By then, Orochimaru had already finished collecting the traces of Urashiki Ōtsutsuki's blood. Standing up, he fixed his tired but sharp eyes on Ryoma.
"All right, Hokage-sama," he said. "Now can you tell me what kind of blood this is supposed to be? What Bloodline Limit does it contain?"
Ryoma replied simply, "It's from a very powerful individual — possibly a being beyond this world. His bloodline is… extraordinary. It may even relate to the manipulation of time and space."
Orochimaru's brow furrowed.
"Time and space?" He stared at the vial, then back at Ryoma with open disbelief. "Are you trying to tell me fairy tales now?"
Ryoma sighed. "You'll believe it once you start your analysis. Trust me, Orochimaru — this sample will be worth more to your research than the corpses of the Four Kage combined."
Orochimaru's golden eyes gleamed faintly. "Really?"
"Yes. You can study it alongside your current projects. I've given you enough assistants, haven't I?"
He gave Ryoma a look — half suspicion, half irritation. "Is that all? If so, I'll return. My other experiments are at a crucial point."
Ryoma raised a brow, curious. "Oh? Have you made any breakthroughs?"
Orochimaru hesitated, glancing around. Ryoma noticed and waved dismissively. "It's fine. They're all trusted people."
The ANBU standing nearby were visibly moved by his words.
One of them immediately stepped forward.
"Naruto-sama, Orochimaru-sama — this concerns Konoha's classified research. We shouldn't hear any of this. We'll withdraw at once."
The others quickly followed.
"Yes, Naruto-sama."
"We'll leave you to it."
Within moments, the ANBU operatives vanished into the shadows, leaving only Ryoma, Orochimaru, Rin, and Sako in the room.
"They're gone," Ryoma said. "Now speak freely."
Orochimaru shrugged slightly.
"We've made progress. We've already identified the Bloodline Limit Factor. If we can successfully extract it, we might be able to create an entirely new kekkei genkai — one that doesn't originate from any clan."
Sako frowned. "That's it?"
Orochimaru turned to her with an unimpressed stare. "And what exactly do you understand about genetic extraction, girl?"
He studied her more closely — her chakra felt familiar, her Sharingan active, yet he didn't recognize her face. Two mysterious women at Ryoma's side, both strong… and one of them with the Uchiha's eyes.
Interesting, he thought. Very interesting.
"I—" Sako began, but Rin quickly covered her mouth.
Rin smiled awkwardly. "Pay no attention to her, Lord Orochimaru. She tends to speak before she thinks."
Orochimaru clicked his tongue. "Hmph. Strange girl."
And with that, he turned on his heel and left — disappearing back into his laboratory as quietly as he came.
The moment the door closed, Rin glared at Sako.
"Really, Sako? You can't just interrupt Orochimaru's research like that! What if he takes offense?!"
Sako puffed her cheeks. "I was just saying what everyone was thinking…"
Ryoma, still amused, asked curiously, "So… in your time, the Bloodline Limit Factor was already being researched?"
Rin hesitated, then shook her head. "It's… complicated. Even in our era, that research was never completed. Orochimaru kept pursuing it, but the results were always incomplete."
Sako crossed her arms and muttered, "Yeah, Aunt Snake always said she was 'close to uncovering the truth' — but she's been saying that since I was little. I don't think she ever found it."
Ryoma sighed softly. "So even in the future, this research remains unfinished… Seems the mystery runs deep."
Just as the atmosphere began to settle, a clear and familiar voice rang out behind him.
"Ryoma."
The tone was calm — almost too calm.
Ryoma's entire body stiffened. A bead of sweat slid down his temple. A deep, instinctive sense of danger prickled down his spine.
He turned slowly.
Standing behind him, arms crossed and eyes blazing like molten fire, was none other than Kushina Uzumaki.
And from the look on her face — Ryoma knew he was in trouble.
...
TN:
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