The Shift in Battle
"Hm?"
Hanzo's eyes flickered as Saigoji Youmu spoke.
His words snapped Hanzo out of his daze.
"What do you mean by that?" Hanzo asked cautiously.
Saigoji Youmu did not answer immediately.
Instead—
He released his left hand from the hilt of his western sword.
The heavy pressure that had been weighing down on Hanzo suddenly lifted.
But rather than feeling relieved—
Hanzo's wariness only grew sharper.
Because he knew—
Youmu would never do something meaningless in the middle of battle.
And then—
A small, pure ice dagger formed in Youmu's left hand.
"If you cannot use ninjutsu," Youmu said coldly, "how much of a 'demigod' are you really?"
Hanzo's grip tightened on his weapon.
SWISH!
Youmu lunged forward, the ice dagger flashing in his grasp.
Hanzo slammed his foot against the ground and leaped back.
WHOOSH!
The ice dagger passed just millimeters from his nose.
A cold shiver ran down Hanzo's spine.
A Warrior's Decision
Hanzo clenched his jaw.
He wanted to argue.
To refute Youmu's words.
But—
He couldn't.
Because it was true.
Saigoji Youmu had completely suppressed his ability to use ninjutsu.
Hanzo was left with only his taijutsu and kenjutsu—
And in that battlefield, he had already lost.
Saigoji Youmu sighed, as if losing interest.
"I've seen enough. Let's stop here."
He casually flicked the ice dagger toward Hanzo.
Hanzo dodged it effortlessly.
But his body tensed, expecting another attack.
Instead—
Youmu stood still.
Hanzo frowned.
"What are you playing at?"
Youmu turned his back to him.
"Our battle ends here."
For the first time—
Hanzo was stunned.
And then—
A wave of anger surged in his chest.
"You fight when you feel like it, and stop when you feel like it?" Hanzo growled.
He felt an unprecedented insult to his pride.
But—
Youmu simply shrugged.
"Did you not do the same with Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru?"
Hanzo's expression froze.
"Besides," Youmu continued, "you know as well as I do… if this fight goes on, you will lose."
Hanzo clenched his fists.
His lock-sickle chain tightened—
Then loosened.
Then tightened again.
But in the end—
He let it go.
His gaze flickered to the frozen battlefield.
The ice walls.
The countless ice shards scattered across the ground.
The sheer power Youmu had yet to fully unleash.
And then—
He understood.
If Youmu had gone all out, the battle would have ended long ago.
Now Hanzo knew exactly how Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru had felt when facing him.
A bitter chuckle escaped his lips.
"At least tell me your name."
Youmu did not stop walking.
But his voice drifted through the rain.
"Saigoji Youmu."
Hanzo watched as the young swordsman disappeared into the storm.
He repeated the name under his breath—
"Saigoji… Youmu."
After the Battle
Saigoji Youmu approached Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru.
As soon as he arrived—
He noticed their expressions.
They looked at him strangely.
Almost as if he were a—
Monster.
"Why are you all looking at me like that?" Youmu frowned.
"It's nothing," Tsunade muttered.
She hesitated.
Then shook her head.
"I just… don't know how to describe it."
Jiraiya opened his mouth.
Then closed it.
Orochimaru, however, asked directly:
"Why didn't you kill Hanzo?"
Youmu smirked.
"There was no need."
His goal had never been to kill Hanzo.
He simply wanted to test himself—
And to make a name for himself in the ninja world.
Now that he had accomplished that—
What point was there in continuing?
Hanzo still had a role to play in the world's events.
"I see." Orochimaru did not argue.
He understood.
This was Youmu's decision—
And no one had the right to question it.
"Uh… Youmu?"
Jiraiya raised a finger.
"How do we get out of here?"
He gestured toward the towering ice walls surrounding them.
Saigoji Youmu chuckled.
"Don't worry. That's a small problem."
He walked forward.
Placed his palm against the ice.
And then—
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Tiny fractures spread from his touch.
And with a final—
SHATTER!
The ice walls crumbled, revealing the open path ahead.