Ryoma shook his head and walked toward the front of the train.
He pushed the carriage door—locked. As expected, the earlier disturbance had alerted the driver's cabin.
Train cabs were often designed this way: once locked from the inside, no gentle method could force them open.
"Let's push a little harder."
Ryoma placed his palm on the metal door. A wave of controlled repulsive force condensed toward the center. Under the stunned gazes of Izumaru and Miura, the door twisted inward as if crushed by an invisible giant hand. It shrank, compressed, and finally collapsed into a palm-sized iron sphere that clanged onto the ground.
Inside, Izumaru was holding Miura hostage.
When his eyes met Ryoma's, Izumaru's expression contorted with fear, shock, and anger—an unreadable mix of emotions.
He opened his mouth, as if wanting to shout something, but a moment later dizziness overtook him. His legs buckled, and he collapsed.
Ryoma had no interest in listening to cliché villain speeches. Whether Izumaru had grievances or some tragic past didn't matter to him.
He stepped past the unconscious man and approached Miura.
"How's the situation?" he asked.
"The… the man cut the brakes," Miura whispered miserably. "The train can't stop anymore…"
The final station was in the capital of Oni no Province—a major transport hub surrounded by a dense commercial district. If an uncontrolled train barreled into that area, the casualties would be unimaginable.
"How far from the terminal?"
Modern technology had advanced significantly, but because most people now relied on Space Gates, old-era transport like diesel trains had become rare. Their speed wasn't high… stopping one wasn't difficult—normally.
"It's already too late… less than a kilometer…"
Miura pointed ahead with a trembling hand.
A massive cluster of buildings loomed in the distance—dangerously close.
"Enough."
The moment the word left Ryoma's mouth, he had already used Yomotsu Hirasaka to teleport outside the moving train.
His intention was to stop the train without harming a single person.
To do that, every fragment of force needed perfect precision.
Shinra Tensei (repulsion) and Banshō Ten'in (gravity) were opposites—but with Ryoma's complete mastery and computational power far beyond human capability, he could manipulate both with microscopic accuracy.
Hovering high in the sky, he extended his hand toward the train.
In the next instant, the entire locomotive lifted off the tracks.
Passengers felt the shift immediately as the scenery outside rose.
"The train is… flying!?"
"That's Lord Ryoma!"
This wasn't like reading legends about him online.
This time, they were witnessing his overwhelming power firsthand.
Awe surged through them.
Ryoma separated the engine from the rest of the train. With its power source removed, only inertia remained. He guided the airborne train through two wide arcs, dissipating all remaining momentum, and brought it to a gentle halt.
People on the commercial streets and near the terminal finally noticed the sight.
Phones lifted everywhere—dozens recording Ryoma floating in the air and the massive train suspended beneath him.
After several seconds, he guided the train back down and slid it neatly into its original lane.
The next day, "The Train Hijacking Incident" dominated every newspaper's front page, and Ryoma once again swept across the internet.
But he showed no interest in the media frenzy.
His focus was elsewhere—on the resistance forces that had grown increasingly active.
Konoha — Hokage Building
Inside the office, Nara Shikaku and Sasori were briefing Ryoma on recent developments.
Ryoma rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Did you find anything about the attack by those thugs?"
Nara Shikaku nodded. "Yes. Haichi has already sent me the information."
Two days ago, the twenty captured thugs had been handed over to Yamanaka Haichi.
Members of the Yamanaka clan could enter a target's mind to extract intelligence through memory reading.
Even for shinobi, extracting intelligence was routine work.
For ordinary civilians, it was even easier.
Through the Yamanaka clan's secret techniques, every useful fragment of memory had already been stripped from the captured men.
Nara Shikaku removed a document from the file pouch and handed it to Ryoma.
"Those people are of no further value," Ryoma said calmly while flipping through the pages at an astonishing speed. "Dispose of them later."
"Understood."
Shikaku responded without hesitation. He had served under Ryoma for many years. The man's terrifying learning speed and analytical ability no longer surprised him.
He continued his report.
"This group of thugs is connected to a rebel faction from ten years ago. They are now affiliated with the organization Sasori investigated some time ago—the so-called 'Dawn.'"
"So it's the same group."
Sasori's eyes narrowed slightly.
Noticing his reaction, Shikaku explained, "The reason I previously requested that you eradicate Dawn was because their activities have grown increasingly aggressive recently."
He paused before continuing.
"Does my lord remember the rebellion you personally suppressed many years ago?"
Ryoma's gaze sharpened slightly.
"That was during the time of Chiyo and Musashi."
After that uprising, Ryoma had taken the opportunity to purge numerous overt and covert resistance forces. However, back then Konoha's intelligence network had not yet reached its current level of perfection. Even after crushing the main rebellion, it had been impossible to eliminate every last survivor.
There would always be fish that slipped through the net.
"And this Dawn organization is connected to those remnants?" Ryoma asked.
"Yes, my lord."
Shikaku placed another document on the desk.
"This man's name is Kazuma. He was formerly one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja of the Fire Temple and leader of the anti-shinobi radical faction."
(Kazuma — the extremist who sought to overthrow the shinobi system.)
"Recent investigations also confirm he had dealings with Chiyo and Musashi in the past."
"Over the years, he remained a wanted man. While fleeing, he established Dawn. The organization's members are mostly ordinary civilians. Individually, they possess little combat power—but they excel at stirring unrest from the shadows."
Shikaku's expression grew more serious.
"What's unusual is this: despite several consecutive extermination campaigns, Dawn has repeatedly managed to evade capture and rebuild."
He looked directly at Ryoma.
"I suspect there is an unknown force supporting them from behind the scenes."
The room fell silent.
Sasori's gaze turned thoughtful.
Ryoma closed the file slowly.
If a civilian-based organization could repeatedly slip through Konoha's net, then someone with real capability was backing them.
And that meant this was no longer a minor disturbance.
It was the beginning of something larger.
(End of Chapter)
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