Ryosuke's anger was not just because of Rei's mother's death.
To put it bluntly, they only met once, just spent three days together on the ship. It couldn't be said that there was any particularly deep bond.
Ryosuke chose to act because of two main reasons.
From a rational standpoint, after killing the six ninja, Ryosuke found the recent "shipping orders" in the office, which showed that two of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had gone to deliver and pick up goods respectively.
Which meant, currently stationed in Mist Village, there was only one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen remaining.
In a one-on-one situation, Ryosuke had a chance to take the other down and earn a large number of soul fragments.
He didn't want to miss this opportunity.
And from an emotional standpoint... this kind of thing, was something not even a human would do.
Locking people in cages so small they couldn't straighten their backs, using fear and hunger to erase human dignity, treating people as toys to be violated and tortured...
If Ryosuke had just patted his butt, pretended he didn't see anything, and turned to leave, then he wouldn't be Ryosuke.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Ryosuke's heart beat with a steady, powerful rhythm. As if in response to his resolve, Star Platinum, standing behind him, grew even more solid and vivid, like a descending god.
Ryosuke raised his hand and pointed.
"Smash it."
Ora!
Star Platinum tore open the cages with both hands like ripping apart noodles.
Ora! Ora! Ora!
In less than ten seconds, all the prison cages were shattered.
"You're free," Ryosuke said.
Over four hundred abducted and imprisoned people looked at each other. The desire for freedom and the fear of the Mist Village ninja wrestled in their hearts.
Finally, someone trembled and took the first step forward...
"Let's see who dares to come out today!"
A roar came from above.
Crash!
The skylight shattered. A tall figure descended from the sky.
The newcomer had wild orange hair, green tattoos painted on his face, bandages wrapped around his neck, shark-like sharp teeth, and a massive blade, wrapped in bandages, on his back.
Fuguki Suikazan.
He was the Seven Ninja Swordsmen member stationed in Mist Village, the wielder of the blade Samehada, a top-tier warrior famed for bloodshed on the battlefield.
Fuguki Suikazan raised his hand and threw a kunai at the prisoner who had summoned the courage to take the first step.
Don't be fooled by Fuguki's brutish appearance. To rise this far, he had to be a ruthless and cunning man. He clearly intended to make an example out of one person, to kill the chicken to scare the monkeys. Use one life to strike terror into the rest.
Otherwise, if 400+ people all rushed out like mad dogs, no matter how strong Fuguki was, he couldn't capture them all.
A hand appeared, firmly catching the flying kunai.
Ryosuke had saved the man.
However, in the eyes of the 400+ prisoners, their desire for freedom slowly faded.
They recognized the "Lord" standing before them.
They went silent. Despair quietly bloomed deep within their hearts.
The prisoners shrank back into their cages, knelt down, lowered their heads, and dared not make eye contact with Fuguki Suikazan, as if doing so would keep them safe and free from further torment.
But at that moment...
"Stand up. Don't kneel."
A voice imbued with Ripple energy reached into the hearts of all 400+ prisoners.
They lifted their heads and looked at Ryosuke's thin back as he alone walked toward Fuguki Suikazan.
Rei muttered in confusion, "Is there really... still hope?"
Besides Fuguki Suikazan, four more ninja leapt in through the skylight's gap.
They had been drinking nearby with him. Sensing the deaths in the factory, they rushed over.
Looking at the destroyed cages, the four Mist ninjas broke out in cold sweat.
If the "cargo" really escaped, Lord Fuguki might still live, but the rest of them would absolutely face punishment from the Fourth Mizukage.
'Certain death.'
Thinking of this, the four looked at Ryosuke with eyes full of killing intent.
"I didn't think someone would really dare barge in here, and even more foolishly, try to let people go."
Fuguki stood tall on a platform. His large frame loomed. With half-lowered eyes and an indifferent tone, his voice carried authority.
"Whose ninja are you? So clueless?"
"You think you're the only smart one? That no one else acted because they didn't realize?"
Politics.
Power plays.
Balancing interests.
And… profit and loss.
"Tell me who your master is. Be obedient, and I'll let your boss send someone to collect your corpse. At least… your name can still be engraved on your village's memorial stone."
Incredible arrogance. But neither the four Mist ninjas nor the caged prisoners found anything wrong with Fuguki's words.
To them, this man was the embodiment of invincibility.
All eyes turned to Ryosuke, waiting for his answer.
Language is what separates humans from animals.
Ryosuke liked using language to negotiate, to reach agreements.
But today was an exception. He didn't want to speak.
Ryosuke's eyes were calm, like a dark river of the underworld, reflecting Fuguki Suikazan and the four Mist ninjas.
Because, they didn't even deserve to be called "human."
Ryosuke stepped forward.
His steps were light and steady. Golden lightning-like flickers flashed beneath his feet.
Whoosh!
A gust of wind burst forth. Ryosuke suddenly appeared before one of the Mist ninjas.
Ripple Breathing activated at full strength. His heartbeat, like a war drum, echoed in the ninja's ears. A single hand chop slashed across the ninja's throat.
Blood sprayed.
Only then did the others react, both ninja and prisoners, staring in disbelief at Ryosuke.
He struck. He really struck.
Without a trace of hesitation.
"Bastard!"
The Mist ninjas roared.
Fuguki Suikazan's eyes bulged as he raised his massive sword, "Brat! I gave you a chance!"
He leapt high, and the bandages around his blade unraveled, revealing the savage weapon Samehada. He chopped down toward Ryosuke with crushing force.
The blade roared through the air, if it hit Ryosuke, even if he didn't die, he'd be skinned.
Ryosuke stood still, frozen like a fool.
The Mist ninjas grinned viciously, eager to see Ryosuke turned into minced meat.
The prisoners closed their eyes, unable to watch. Their hearts sank into despair.
Fuguki's lips curled into a grin, revealing his shark-like teeth.
"Die!"
Just as his blade was about to land, he and Ryosuke made eye contact for a fraction of a second.
Fuguki saw no fear in Ryosuke's eyes, not calm acceptance of death, either. What he saw was… Rage and stillness.
Two opposing emotions, impossibly mingled.
It puzzled Fuguki. But he didn't have time to think. He poured even more power into his blade.
BOOM!
Samehada felt like it had struck a wall.
No, a wall could be split open by his strength.
This felt like smashing a blade into a mountain. The edge stopped just a step from Ryosuke, no matter how hard Fuguki pushed, it would not budge.
Under the immense strain, the living blade Samehada let out a pained cry.
Crack... Crack...
Cracks spread across the blade's edge, like an invisible hand was gripping it tightly, about to crush it.
'What… what the hell is this power? Genjutsu?'
Fuguki tried channeling chakra into his eyes to break any illusion, and then he saw it, a towering evil spirit.
"You said you gave me a chance?"
Ryosuke locked eyes with him at point-blank range.
"Too bad. I don't believe in returning the favor."
He raised his right hand and pointed. A golden glint deep in his eyes grew brighter.
"I don't intend to give you a chance."
Star Platinum tore away Samehada, yanked Fuguki forward, grabbed his throat with one hand, and raised the other high, each finger curling slowly into a fist.
Ora!
One punch, Fuguki's face twisted.
The three remaining Mist ninjas stood frozen, minds blank.
The prisoners, who had closed their eyes in despair, opened them one by one, mouths agape.
The godlike Fuguki Suikazan was losing?
In the past, they wouldn't have dared imagine it.
But Ryosuke had shown them, no one is invincible.
And… the real fight had only just begun.
"I won't take advantage."
"There are four people here who suffered your abuse."
"For each one, I'll punch you once. If you're still alive after that..."
"I'll walk away."
Ryosuke's tone was calm, but that calmness burned Fuguki like salt on a wound. Blood filled his eyes.
"Don't underestimate me! I'm Fuguki Suikazan!"
His orange hair suddenly lengthened, spiking like a porcupine, stabbing toward Ryosuke.
Fuguki planned to force Ryosuke back, then decide whether to fight or flee.
Too bad.
"Ora! Ora! Ora!"
Star Platinum unleashed a flurry of blows, smashing the spikes midair.
Then it wrapped both hands around the hair and tore.
Riiiiip!!
A sound that made scalps go numb.
Fuguki's entire head of hair was ripped off.
Red scalp exposed, faint skull visible beneath.
"AAAAAARGH!" Fuguki screamed in agony.
"Hurts when it's your own body?" Ryosuke asked.
"I'LL KILL YOU!"
Fuguki quickly formed hand seals to unleash a Water Release jutsu.
Star Platinum clamped his mouth shut, forcing him to swallow it back.
Then it took a deep breath, gathering strength.
And...
"Ora! Ora! Ora!"
"Ora! Ora! Ora!"
"Ora! Ora! Ora!"
A total of four punches landed in just seconds, blasting into Fuguki.
And in that moment, he remembered.
He remembered where he'd seen that same calm, angry look in Ryosuke's eyes before.
The Third Great Ninja War.
That lunatic named Might Duy, surrounded by red-hot aura, when he swung at them with fists ablaze.
Back then, Fuguki dodged it, survived, carrying fear in his heart all the way to today.
Now, ten years later, that punch had finally landed.
"Ora!"
Star Platinum threw the final punch into the unrecognizable face of Fuguki Suikazan, sending him flying, crashing into a wall, leaving a man-shaped crater.
He was embedded in the wall, like a mural.
[Slain Fuguki Suikazan. Acquired 450 Soul Fragments]
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