Just as that last dying enemy had realized in his final moment—this battle had been decided the instant Hagumi Genshin successfully assassinated the opposing commander.
Everything that came after was merely garbage time.
Not because Genshin was overconfident in his own strength, but because he understood his limits.
By fully exploiting White Zetsu's abilities—using forethought against carelessness—the odds of killing the enemy's strongest fighter had always been high.
As long as he didn't act foolishly, and as long as the enemy remained ignorant of White Zetsu's power, failure was nearly impossible.
People often glorified flashy ninjutsu battles, but at its core, the essence of a shinobi was silent assassination.
And in that domain, the Mayfly Technique was a god-tier ability.
Judged by results alone, Genshin had achieved his goal—five enemies slain.
But the process? Sloppy.
He'd been forced into direct combat, and even got injured in the process.
In the ideal outcome, he would have silently eliminated all five without ever being seen.
Unfortunately, he wasn't there yet.
Perhaps it was his imagination, but comparing everything he'd seen since arriving in this world, Genshin couldn't help feeling that while this era's shinobi were more brutal, their average quality lagged behind those of the later Hidden Village age—
—setting aside a few monstrous exceptions, of course.
Neither their integration of ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, nor their squad coordination or kill efficiency, could compare to the later generations.
On second thought, that made perfect sense.
Everything evolves.
And Genshin firmly believed in the principle of "the latter surpasses the former."
Whether in organizational systems, ninjutsu theory, education, or methods of warfare—everything improves with time.
He shook his head. His thoughts were drifting too far.
In the end, though the process wasn't perfect, the result was satisfactory—perhaps even impressive.
After all, he'd only just become this so-called "White Zetsu-man."
He didn't even fully understand why his body had changed, let alone how to properly control these new powers.
Given that, his performance on the battlefield was more than commendable.
Without stopping to clean up the aftermath, Genshin immediately set off toward the other skirmish sites.
Despite having fought already, his chakra reserves were still in good shape.
That last battle hadn't involved much ninjutsu exchange, so he had plenty left for what was to come.
To give his two fellow "decoy" clanmates the best chance of survival, Genshin once again used the Mayfly Technique to travel quickly, cutting down his transit time.
He already had a clear plan:
Stick to what works—assassination.
If efficiency was the goal, then he'd see it through to the end.
Back when he killed the enemy commander, even in that fleeting instant of contact, Genshin had managed to steal a sample of the man's chakra.
It wasn't enough to sustain combat, but it was enough to power one of White Zetsu's greatest talents—the Perfect Transformation Technique.
With even a trace of chakra as reference, White Zetsu could disguise himself with absolute precision—so perfectly that detection was virtually impossible unless his behavior or personality slipped.
No other shinobi in history possessed transformation abilities on that level.
And Genshin only needed the disguise for a short time, in a simple context—impersonating the commander in the chaos of battle.
The chance of exposure was minimal.
On the other side of the forest, the situation was unfolding as planned.
As per Genshin's prior orders, Isagawa, one of the decoys, had been focused solely on evasion rather than direct combat.
That had bought them valuable time.
When Genshin arrived near that battlefield, he didn't charge in immediately.
Instead, he perched atop a tree, silently observing.
Five enemy shinobi were encircling Isagawa.
The latter was darting left and right, hurling Fire Release techniques to create obstacles and walls of smoke—making pursuit difficult and the battlefield chaotic.
"So it really is just another cat-and-mouse game," Genshin thought to himself.
He transformed into the image of the enemy commander and activated Mayfly once more, closing in on the enemy formation from behind.
When Isagawa unleashed another large fire technique, sending up a burst of sound and flame, Genshin struck.
He appeared behind one of the enemy ninja—
A clean slice across the throat.
A perfect one-shot kill.
The body was still warm when he laid it silently upon the ground.
No sound. No trace.
Lesson learned—this time, Genshin's execution was cleaner, calmer.
And as expected, the remaining enemies hadn't yet realized a comrade was missing.
They were too busy cornering Isagawa.
Luck favored him again: the enemy sensory ninja wasn't among these five. He'd gone with the third squad.
The four remaining shinobi were standing a bit too close together, though.
Genshin weighed his options, then chose the safer route—direct deception.
He deliberately rustled some branches as he approached, ensuring they noticed him.
"Captain!"
"Sir, did you finish on your side?"
The moment they saw his "face," all tension melted away.
Expressionless—better a cold mask than a smile that might betray him—Genshin nodded curtly.
"It's done. I rushed here as soon as possible. The others are following behind… What's the situation here?"
The sub-leader quickly replied, eager not to disappoint.
"It's a bit troublesome, sir. The target refuses to fight back—just keeps running and wasting chakra. It's slowed us down, but we've got him cornered now."
Genshin, still in character as the commander, frowned in visible irritation.
"Enough. Stop circling. You—come with me."
He charged forward first, and the four subordinates immediately followed.
They closed the distance to Isagawa fast.
Just as they prepared to attack, "the captain" suddenly stopped mid-stride.
He didn't have much time—sooner or later, they'd notice their missing man.
Turning sharply, he widened his eyes in feigned surprise.
"Clan leader? Why are you here—?"
Like naive fans admiring their mentor's performance, all four turned their heads in the direction he was looking.
And in that same instant, cold light flashed.
Steel sang.
Three throats opened before a sound could be made.
Only one enemy survived—purely because he had been trailing a few steps behind.
His small eyes widened, full of confusion.
Why… Why had the captain just slaughtered his own men?
Had his comrades been impostors all along?
Was he an impostor too?
"Two against one," Genshin said calmly. "Now it's our turn to do the hunting."
As the man stared in disbelief, the illusion faded.
The false commander's features dissolved.
Hagumi Genshin's true face emerged—his chakra signature shifting in an instant.