Alistein was seated on a wooden bench in the middle of nowhere. He was eating sweet dumplings on a stick. Judging by the look on his face, he didn't seem bothered by the fact that the place he was in was...dark. Not dark as in an overcast day, but dark as in black. He and the bench were illuminated, the young man still eating his sweet treat. As he chewed and swallowed, he spoke.

"Delicious," he said to himself.

Of course it was to himself. No one else was nearby. He didn't question how or why he got here, or how he had this dumpling stick either. He just knew he was enjoying himself right now. That's all that mattered at the end of the day, right? And so, he didn't fret over the little things. That is, if you would call being lost in the middle of nowhere 'little'. Lost? Was he lost? Nah, surely he wasn't. He was just taking a break from...doing something here, right? The more he thought about it, the more he started to worry. Just how did he get here? Where is here? Isn't this some sort of park? Does Iwagakure even have parks?

He stopped his dumpling eating to look around himself. Now that he has questioned the 'little' things, it seemed to have hit him fully now. Where was he?  He dropped the dumpling stick, coming to a stand. As he stood, the ground that was once solid had now turned into a liquid. He fell through, the water black.

"W-what's this?!" he questioned as the black water tried to enter him through his mouth.

He tried keeping himself afloat, but alas, he eventually sunk. He didn't drown though, being able to breathe under said water. Strange. Alistein didn't think anything of it as he descended into the darkness. As he did, he raised his head upwards. The bench was still there, like it was stuck to solid ground. The dumplings were also there, hanging out with the bench.

"But," he spoke underwater, "this doesn't make-... This cant make any sense."

Just as he said this, he saw a large eye in the 'sky', if you'd want to call it that. The eye looked familiar, like he had seen it before. Then, a line about showing tricks with a kunai and rope echoed the waters. Where had he heard that before? Kunai and rope tricks...

The answer popped into his mind. Just as it did, he had the sudden urge to want to turn behind himself. As he did, a man with incredibly wrinkled skin threw a kunai past Alistein, making him flinch. The rope attached to the kunai coiled around him somehow. Well, that's not how physics worked. The constriction had gotten tighter, to the point where pain made itself known. Then-...


Alistein sat up in his bed, gasping and panting. He rubbed his eyebrows, closing the lids to his eyes as he did. "Not genjutsu," he said, "Just a nightmare."

515

Ten minutes had gone by, Alistein still in his bed, sweating. The thought that his sensei could literally, to quote him, make him see what he wanted his squad to see, it...was definitely getting to him. While it was true, he knew of genjutsu and what it could do, he didn't think the effects would be all too real. Kind of like a bad movie with cheap effects. He thought he'd be able to point out some errors in the techniques. But, if it was anything like dreams and nightmares were, he wouldn't know if he was in one or not. Also, he'd probably mistake it as being perfectly fine. Alistein put a hand to his head, staring down at his blankets. Could he-...? Could he really do this? I mean, it was one thing to see the threat in front of him, to which he'd run away. No problem. But if the threat is something that's probably out of a fictional movie? Is this really doable?

He groaned, falling onto his back as he stared at the ceiling, his hand still on his head.

"How do you fight against that?" he asked himself.

His mind went back to the squad meeting. He didn't see anything happen to Hitoshi, a member of his squad. There was no sudden movement Shika, his sensei, had done to put Hitoshi under his effects. He just...stood there. Was it eye contact? Was it triggered by smell? And the other member who was next to him... What was his name? That didn't matter. Alistein missed what happened to him, but it must have been quick enough for Shika to move onto him lastly.

That slap... It wasn't an ordinary slap, this much he knew. He took some slaps before, but not one that sent him multiple feet back. And his legs, they were useless. Was there some sort of leg nerve located in humans' jaws that Shika knew? Or was that a genjutsu? Was he even under genjutsu? He didn't see anything if he had been. Alistein's head started to hurt from not having answers. Every time he'd try to think of something, more questions would enter in the one question's place. If not questions, then possibilities. He gave up on trying to solve this mystery, clearly not having enough of the clues to do so.

921

Walking out of his bedroom sluggishly, Alistein yawned. His red collared plaid shirt was wrinkled, and drenched in sweat. He needed a shower. But, he wasn't the type of person to take a shower on an empty stomach. While it may have sounded strange to some, he felt that if one were to get a shower before eating, they would get dirty again if they spill their breakfast. Same for brushing his teeth. If he brushed his teeth before eating, the flavors of the meal gets dull. That, and he's scrubbing in the sugars and whatnot. And so, he walked over to his kitchen, opening the fridge to see a gallon of whole milk. He took it, undoing the colored cap, and held the jug in a pouring position.

"H-huh?" he stared at...his counter. He looked around as if someone had taken something from him. Huh. He could have sworn he took out a bowl for his cereal. Guess that was in his head.

Putting the milk down onto the counter, he went over to open a cabinet for a bowl. Well, he did get one. Two. Five. Ten. They all came tumbling out from the cabinet, landing on top of his brown hair. Luckily, they were all plastic. No serious damage was received. He took the time to pick up nine of the ten bowls, putting them into his sink, making a mental note to wash them later. The last bowl, a  pink plastic one, was rinsed with water before having milk poured into it. Alistein stopped halfway during the pouring.

"I should've put cereal in it first," he complained, knowing he'll have more milk than grains now. It's the little things that always made Alistein's mornings awful.

With milk in the bowl, he now poured the cereal in. It was an incredibly sugary cereal named 'Admiral Crispy's Berry Blast'. On the cover was a large jolly pirate with a red and purple color scheme going on. This cereal was usually popular among the kids of Iwagakure, but Alistein found himself liking it himself as well. And so, he poured, soft splashing coming from the bowl instead of the noisy clanking. It's a positive change for his ears, Alistein felt, but...it didn't feel like the same cheery morning vibe he'd get. With his 'reversed cereal' in hand, he started towards the living room, but stopped.

"No spoon," he said, going to grab one quickly from the silverware drawer.

1343

With a spoon now, he took a seat onto his couch, turning on the television. It wasn't anything big, just a thirty inch. He balanced the bowl of cereal on his lap while he used the TV remote to navigate his viewing pleasure for this morning. As he flipped through the channels, he noticed a show's name. 'Third Strike Reika'. He immediately chose that to watch, placing the remote next to him. There was a commercial about insurance, and how all ninjas should invest in it. Yeah, maybe he'd have to look into that later on down the line.

"Please note that you must be over the age of thirty to apply," said the quick voice at the end.

Well that put a hole in his plan. He looked down at his cereal bowl, grabbing the spoon. Get scooped up some of the multicolored orbs of grains, ready to chow down. But then, drops of milk fell down into the greater pool. The white ripples triggered something in his mind to go back to the dream he had earlier. He watched a small blue particle, which had come off of a blue cereal piece, drown into the white liquid. Then, his mind did the rest of the work, the replaying of the dream taking a white shade instead of black. She shook his head free of the nightmare.

"There's got to be a way," he told himself, take in the spoonful of breakfast. He chewed, swallowed, and then spoke again. "I can probably cover my eyes. B-but how will I see?" He tossed his head from side to side. "I could probably-... I could probably turn my head? But how would I know if the users are doing it or not?" He was like a statue, looking down at his cereal. Again, he shook his head, taking another spoonful of cereal. The rest of the conversation was said in his head, Alistein again failing to come up with a solution to such a technique.

While it was true, he could go in with all senses blocked, save for touching and smelling, that would greatly limit his ability as being a ninja. He needs his eyes to see the coming thread. He needs his ears to hear said threat closing in. He needs his-... He needs his-... Does he really need his nose? And taste, he doesn't really need that for a ninja mission. Does touching count also? Maybe with his sense of touch, he'll know if he's hurt. Yeah, that makes sense.

Just as he was going to think longer about this,

"Privacy is key, Winston!" spoke the red bandanna man.

The show had started, Alistein's attention going to the television.

1803

Third Strike Reika... It was one of Alistein's favorite shows to watch. It was most likely seen as a 'kids show', but there were deep subject matters hidden within. Why, if it wasn't for this very same show, he would never have known how to increase his learning speed. It was an episode about pattern memorization or something, where the main character was fighting against an opponent who was psychic. That was a good one. This one, however, he had forgotten what happened in it. He's seen it, sure, but it's been a while.

The opening played, the red bandanna man's robot flying through clouds of smoke and fire. His name is never revealed. Probably because it's some sort of plot point. Who knows. Alistein just calls him Reika, since there isn't a character named that yet. With the song out of the way, the red robot poses with it's beam sword as the sun rose in the background. The mountains were blue, and cherry blossom petals flew past. Then, the screen went dark.


A snake robot was coiling around Red Bandanna Man's robot, who was grunting in agony. With a his, the snake spoke.

"Give up, Bandanna! My venom has weakened you to the point of immobility!" Laughter came, which just sounded like more hissing.

Ceasing his grunting, Red Bandanna man spoke. "Your words are meaningless! As long as I have heart!"

"Heart?" the snake repeated. "Then I will find your heart, and devour it whole in front of you!"

More hissing laughter came from the bot.

"No ! ! !"screamed the bandanna man's machine, an echo replaying the same 'no' three times as usual.

Suddenly, a burst of wind and an extremely bright light came from it, the source unknown. The force caused the snake's body to unwrap him. Red Bandanna Man's red robot had turned golden.

"I will not allow such devious acts to go on!" he screamed, withdrawing his beam sword.

The hiss coming from the snake was that of annoyance. "You have no say. Your body, despite this sudden power boost, is still under the influence of my venom! You're still weak!"

With that said, the snake lunged forward, jaws wide and fangs ready. There was another sudden burst of force from Bandanna Man's robot. Then, everything slowed.

Alistein, knowing what happens now, leaned forward with a smile. "Here it is," he said to himself.

Dramatic music had started to play.

"For people like you, I am your judge, jury, and executioner!"

Red Bandanna Man's pupils vanished, his eyes now almost demonically wide. With a scream that sent chills down Alistein's spine, he began to slash back and forth as the snake continued rushing forward.

"Million slashes of justice!" cried out Bandanna.

When the tail passed by the Bandanna Man's robot, the snake suddenly exploded into smaller pieces. Then, each smaller piece had exploded. Together, they created a bright enough flash, darkening the golden robot's appearance from the front. The scene darkened, Alistein missing his mouth as he tried to feed himself more cereal. He had seen this part a million times, but still, it's one of the best 'MSOJ', as he calls it, scenes in this season.

"Crud," he sighed, milk spilling onto himself.

2360

As he wiped the milk away, Alistein noticed the episode continuing. Bandanna man had left the robot, now walking the city. He clenched at his chest, his eyes squinted.

"D-damn," he said, voice strained, "I-... I really pushed myself. The poison is-..."

His walking stopped, soon collapsing to the ground.

"I-... I guess this is where I-..."

Alistein knew this wasn't the end for him, since there's another season out right now. That, and about three video games. He had to admit though, the first time he saw this, he recalled being three inches away from the TV screen near tears.

"It's," the Bandanna man spoke, "It's getting dark."

Alistein sighed with a smile. He knew the show was doing a good job if he still felt tears forming even though he's seen this before. Shows true character development, he thought at least. He was now watching the black screen on his television set, waiting for it to reveal the hospital setting.

The screen revealed just that, a pale green wall showing first. The camera changed to another, showing the room Bandanna Man was in.

"Where?" he asked, rising from his bed.

He turned to see, seated next to him, another man with green hair, and slit eyes like a snake's.

"Y-you?! What are you doing here?!" asked Red Bandanna Man.

"I'm here because your heart touched mine," the snake man responded.

The camera focused on Bandanna Man's face.

"But I-...!"

The screen flashed white, an instant replay of the scene not too long ago. The snake robot was being slashed into multiple segments.

Alistein, loving this show, always wondered why they showed scenes that just happened a few minutes ago. Then again, he remembered this was for kids. Kind of.

"I know what you did to my machine," the snake man spoke, "but even as your fate was sealed, and even after I had hidden your dog's chew toy from you, you still didn't give up. I admire your tenacity." There was a pause. "I admire your will to go on." There was another pause. "I admire...your courage."

And there it was. Every episode, there'd be at least one person saying something about the courage of Bandanna Man. Alistein, wanting to look for his own courage, always tuned into each episode to see what causes Bandanna Man, Or Reika as he calls him, to risk his life for others. After all, it was just a chew toy.

"Ponlo's chew toy! Where is-?!"

"It's right here in my pocket." The snake man revealed a tiny rubber bone toy. He laid it onto the thighs of Bandanna man.

Bandanna man...took the toy, and squeezed it. The sound of a dog barking played as the camera panned closer to his teary eyes. He pressed the toy to his forehead as he sobbed, the snake man rubbing his back. Then, the screen went black, credits scrolling upwards.

"Yup," said Alistein, standing from his couch now. He took this moment to drink the milk in the bowl, and then made his way to the kitchen.

The tenth bowl was reunited with the others, now needing to be washed also.

2902

Alistein had moved back to his bedroom. He ignored the closet, wanting to go to the bathroom inside said bedroom. Inside the bathroom, he went over to the shower and ran the hot water. He left it alone, now going to his closet. The clothes he wore to the squad meeting were there, needing to be washed. So instead, he grabbed a black shirt, and a pair of blue jeans. He made a mental note of taking the clothes out of the closet to be washed. He must have been in such a state that he would place dirty clothes with clean. Sheesh.

With the jeans and shirt in hand, he made his way over to the dresser, opening the top-left drawer to reveal rolled up underwear. He took a blue one, and then went into the bathroom which had steam leaving now. He closed the door behind him. He placed the clothes on top of the toilet's tank, and began to undress. The red plaid shirt was first, unbuttoning it and then sliding it off. As he reached for his shorts though, a memory came fluttering back to his head.

"He-..." Alistein looked to the side. "He...wasn't really hitting on us, was he?"

Deciding he, being his sensei, wasn't, he began to slide the shorts down. But then, he remembered the little tidbit about being a 'master of disguises' or something along those lines.

From outside the bathroom, the door crept open. Peeking out was Alistein, looking around the bedroom for someone. He saw no one, so he closed the door.

"I'm losing it," he said, shaking his head. As he said this, one more thought entered his head.

Shika was able to use genjutsu, he knew this. But...did genjutsu always need to be offensive? Like an attack? Or could the technique be used as a way to fool someone they were at home? Maybe he never went home. Maybe he's currently undressing in front of his squad. Maybe they're all gathering in front of him, taking the image of a sink, a toiler, and a shower! Maybe-!

"Stop," he told himself, shaking his head. And with that said, he pulled down his shorts with great confidence.

Well, he didn't lie, he thought something would've happened. A sudden burst of laughter, or his home suddenly disappearing due to truly being a genjutsu. But there he was, just standing in his bathroom near naked. Huh. Genjutsu really is a powerful ninja tool to effect him even after battle. Maybe he was just inexperienced, and there truly was a way to tell if he was in such a technique's world. Maybe.

3354

Inside the shower, his head was tilted back. The water droplets crashed against his body, which even he had to admit wasn't anything impressive, compared to the men of, say, the ANBU. Then again, they've had years of experience. Alistein shrugged it off. He did want to be stronger and more physically capable, but he didn't want to look like the incredible bulk from the Marvelous comics. He'll need tons of blue dye to cover his body with if that was the case.

The water from the shower continued to grace him, trailing from his face to his chest, and then down to his hips and legs. The way water felt to Alistein had always been a pleasure. He didn't know why, but if the water was warm like this, it felt blissful. And ah, when the cool air wraps around him like nature's towel, that's the icing on the cake for him. Naturally, the water bill would be high. Though, to him, it was worth the extra ryo.


The shower stopped. Light splashes were made as he moved out of the shower. He grabbed the black shirt, and the blue underwear, sliding the top on first of the two. Then, he grabbed the blue jeans, putting them on as well. He opened the bathroom door, ready for the cool air to greet him. And oh, did it. His hair was dripping, but he didn't care. He liked the water. Oddly enough, he would never catch a cold from being like this.

He left his bedroom, heading for the linen closet in the hallway connecting his living room to his bedroom. Inside, he took a purple towel, and started drying his head. First was his face, and then was his hair. When he was done, the brown hair was sticking in all directions. He saw this when he entered the living room, seeing himself inside the tiny mirror he had on the wall. Nothing a little water can't fix. He went over to the sink in the kitchen, using the water to 'flatten' his hair. One more check in the mirror, and he decided he was good to go. Alistein went over to the couch and sat down for a moment, watching some other show on now besides Reika. It was about some boy dressed...weirdly...with some red rat on his shoulder, screaming it's name over and over again. He always found the show to be annoying, but the games were neat. At least, he thought so when he was a child.

Oh! Speaking of games, Alistein just remembered that the new Reika game's demo should be out! He immediately got off the couch, jogging into his bedroom.

3814

Coming back from the bedroom, in his hand, was a nindo 3. Confusing, since nindo may also mean 'ninja way'. This one is a handheld game system with two screens. The rectangle opens up, the top having a screen, and the bottom having one as well. From the back of the nindo 3, Alistein removed what looked to be a plastic stylus in the shape of a small kunai. He poked at the bottom screen. It had touch support, which was always handy. He had no clue how someone would be able to navigate the many screens on this thing without touching the screen. But, there were some people out there who were capable. Alistein...didn't judge really.

The screen darkened after the 'shop' menu was pressed, and then brightened shortly after. The screen was white. Then, a little tiny cartoon character peeked their head from the left side of the screen. It was a little ninja girl with silver hair, wearing an intricate green outfit. She had cartoon anatomy, mostly commonly called 'chibi' by the masses.  She slowly walked to the center of the screen, bowed, and then extended an arm to the right side of the screen. Suddenly, a menu slid from the right, ending up behind the girl. She then moved to the left, a text bubble appearing above her, explaining what the currently selected item is and what it did. Alistein had no use for a program called 'photo filter' or whatever, so he moved to the game section. In the game section, he spotted it at the top.

"'Third Strike Reika: Alligence demo'. Okay," Alisten nodded, poking the large picture, obviously advertising the new demo.

A new menu popped up, this one black with dark pink acting as its secondary color. This one was dedicated more to the game, obviously. The description of said game faded into existence, in bright grey font. It pretty much explained that this new game was to tell a side story involving Reika and his robot. However, there was one piece of text that caught Alistein's eyes. This new enemy had the ability to create illusions. It was apparently up to the player to find out what was real and what wasn't.

"Sounds like something I need to learn," he nodded, pressing the download button.

The ninja girl bowed as shurikens of different colors were dorpped inside of a ninja bag. And now, the most painful part of this process had arrived. Waiting.

4230

The download finished. And so, Alistein started the game. The menu, being a demo, wasn't anything special. Just black with the TV show's title on the front. Third strike was in silver letters, while 'Reika' was a red to yellow gradient, red being at the top, and yellow being at the bottom. The letters for Reika looked like they were slashed open, most likely by the Red Bandanna Man's beam sword, while the silver lettering looked like a normal font. Bellow 'Reika' was 'Alligence', similar to the silver lettering, but was green, and in italics. Again, it was nothing special. Alistein pressed start.

A message box popped up just as he did, explaining there is only two levels, and one 'boss', or a very powerful enemy if you will. To demonstrate how the enemy faction with the illusion abilities worked, they've decided to make the demo's boss one of the important plot characters of the game. Interesting. Alistein pressed start again to show that he understood. Then, another message box popped up, asking what difficulty he wanted to play on. There was 'easy', and then there was 'normal'. Well, he didn't want the experience to be watered down, so he picked 'normal'.

The screen was no black, but then revealed an open forest area. Alistein, having had played the previous games, knew how to play this one. There were two modes, depending on what part of the game the player was at. One mode was the standard, while the other was used for dramatic segments, sort of like a chase scene in a movie. For the 'chase' segments, the camera was above, Reika being like a little fighter plane. It could shoot projectiles, and slash its beam sword like it could in the second mode. The ground moved past quickly, to simulate the feeling of speed. This was where the game demo started.

Almost effortlessly, Alistein moved the robot from side to side, shooting down similar machines. Some would glow red, signaling to him that they were going to home in. He pressed another button, which caused him to  draw his beam sword, and slash them away. Funny. He had started the game with three lives, and now, he racked up seven by scoring massive points. Maybe he played the previous games too much? Nah.

The screen went black after he had taken down what looked like a large metal beetle. It was too easy that he didn't think it was a boss, but there it was.

Wait...

The demo description said there was one boss. Was that it? No, it couldn't be. There was a second stage, right? Right.

4678

The screen revealed the second mode presented in the demo. The camera was behind Reika, just above. This was Alistein's favorite mode, able to control Reika to their fullest potential. He pressed the up arrow on the nindo 3, commanding the bot to move forward. As he did, the only door in the metallic room he was in was covered in red lasers. Enemy robots started to revel themselves.

Again, with ease, the red robot slashed through enemies using its beam sword. It then pointed an arm towards an enemy, firing rounds of ammunition towards it. The bullets caused the enemy robot to rise in altitude, allowing Reika to extend the sword combo further. The robot, jumping, rolling, and dashing thanks to its rocket boots, displayed how mobile it was. One moment it was slashing its sword on the ground, the next, it zipped into the air, only the crash down while slashing vertically. For fun, he'd activate 'Burst Mode', which, like the show, transformed Reika from Red to Gold. In this mode, the slashes were faster and more damaging. The voice that came from the robot with every slash sounded like there was a close echo, as if two were screaming at one. Alistein wasted such a powerful ability because he knew he'd be able to build it back by doing a large string of combos.

When all of the enemies were done away with, the door that was covered in red lasers became available for entry, the lasers deactivating. This was the pattern for almost every three or four rooms he enters, red lasers being replaced by blue lasers sometimes. The blue lasers signified that these were puzzle rooms. They took some work, and some thinking power, Alistein had to admit. However, it was nothing too mind blowing, like in the other games. Then again, this was just a demo. They probably didn't want to scare anyone off this early.

Finally, Alistein made it to the boss. There wasn't dialogue between the two, it being a demo. It just showed Reika looking surprised, staggering back, and the boss looking extremely confident. With arms crossed, the purple robot in white bandages grew closer, levitating towards the red robot. Reika drew the beam sword, preparing for the boss fight ahead. Alistein examined the purple robot, holding the left arrow on his Nindo 3. This allowed Reika to move while locked onto the mysterious enemy, guard up. He hadn't seen this character in the show before. Then again, this game was supposed to be a story on its own. At least, he thought. That didn't matter though, since the demo's boss was here in front of him.

5132

Seven lives.

Alistein had seven lives to win this fight. He was pretty confident, so he rushed forward. Right as he slashed the boss named 'Album', as spelled right above its health bar, the screen flashed white. The red robot, Reika, was now in the middle of a desert. Alistein recognized this place from the previous game, so he wasn't worried. Confused though, he wandered around in search for Album. He gasped when the screen flashed, and he was back in the metallic facility. Reika...slowly fell to the knees, exploding. The screen went dark, reloading the boss fight.

"W-what the? Where was he?" Alistein question.

The screen revealed the boss fight at the start again, Alistein at full health this time. He ran forward again, this time shooting Album. The screen flashed once more. This time, it was raining, and he was in the middle of a forest. He knew this place from the TV show. Only it lacked the frog character in the corresponding episode. Then, it happened again. Reika fell to the knees again, exploding. Alistein scratched his head, taking note he had five lives now.

"What am I meant to do here?" he asked, as if the game would tell him. The Reika series were never that kind. Thanks Dapcom, the company publishing the series, you're outstandingly generous.

The fight restarted, Alistein running forward, but this time not attacking at all. He stood, guarding. Album spoke,

"Take a journey with me."

And with that, there was the same damned flash! Alistein turned the camera, looking for any signs or clues as to what to do. He was in the middle of a blizzard it seemed. He didn't recognize this spot. There were no audio cues besides the whistling of the blizzard winds. Then, he saw something. It was faint, but he saw it. There was some sort of rippling projectile coming towards him. Right when it made contact with him, he was back in the metallic lab, exploding to his knees again.

"I see it now," Alistein nodded, "I see it."

Four more lives. Alistein, again, ran up to the boss, and slashed him, confident in his discovery. He was 'teleported' to the desert scene again. He moved Reika around, keeping an eye out for the invisible projectile. He saw it, and rolled out of the way. As he did this, he was back in the metallic lab, this time not exploding. Album stood there, looking surprised. Reika rushed forward, slashing the boss again. This time, damage was sustain, the health bar depleting by a large amount. And then, the flash came again. Just like before, he dodged the invisible projectile traveling through the forest during the rain. And then, he went over to slash the boss again.

This process repeated until half of the boss' health was gone, Alistein smiling as he was winning. Interestingly to note, during one of the slashes, he had activated his golden form. The illusion immediately dispelled. Odd. Then,

"Welcome your bliss to permanence," spoke Album.

5642

The metallic area grew dark, soon being replaced by the desert scene. No problem. Alistein repeated the same tactic, but was surprised when...the screen flashed again. Now, he was in a raining desert with forest-like trees growing? He didn't see Album anywhere, but was surprised when the screen went dark.

"You are lost to your ignorance," spoke Album's voice, the camera zooming out from the pupils of the pilot of 'Album'. Or was this man Album?

Either way, the screen went black. The words 'bad ending' showed up, with the following description:

"Now the Reika has been lost to the illusion of darkness.

That which the dark hand provides is simply that.

In such a blissful land, it is impossible to wake the trapped. They are now stuck for eternity.

A promised paradise from the darkness is as hollow as a wooden home with termites.

Thus, I tell three, tread lightly."

The bottom of this passage had Album's name written out. He must have been the one to say these words. Was this a hint on how to defeat him? Alistein was ready to try again. However, he was taken back to the menu.

"W-what?!" he shouted. "I have like two more lives left!"

The word of the 'bad ending' came to mind. '...impossible to wake...' Did this mean Reika was forever trapped in illusions? If that was the case, then that would explain why he couldn't retry.

"Ugh, that's so-..." Alistein sighed, closing the Nindo 3.

Oddly enough, he did come away with something. Even in illusions, there could be a way to pick out details that just don't belong. Kind of like thirty-second date in a month.

"I'll just have to pay attention then," he nodded, "I'll have to be on my toes whenever a genjutsu user comes."

Still sitting on his couch, he crossed his arms. His mind went back to him eating the dumpling on the bench. He was so carefree in a place he had no clue of the location. Can genjutsu get rid of your rational thinking? Would he even care to look for holes in the illusion? Care... Ddid he care against the boss just a few minutes ago? Maybe he should have, and chose to wait a bit before recklessly charging in during the final illusion against Album.

"If it's true that genjutsu can get rid of your desire to leave," Alistein tapped his chin, "then...what other ways is there to go?"

He sat in silence. Then, he thought of the golden form. When he activated it, the illusion fell apart on its own. Well, that's good, but if only Alistein had some sort of 'golden form' himself. bored, the young man flipped open the Nindo 3, reading the game's manual for fun. Then, he saw something that may be the key. In regard to the golden form, a little flavor text mentioned 'pain'.

"The power is brought upon by great...pain," Alistein repeated.

Finally, he was reminded of one more way to escape a genjutsu.

"But surely there's another way other than causing pain to yourself," Alistein sighed. He would ponder this for the rest of the day. But regardless, it would seem that he no longer feared genjutsu as much as he did earlier today.

"Almost all genjutsus have a fault," he told himself. "I think."

[Exit]

6,215

Doton C -> B 2000/2000

Speed D-2 -> D-3 450/450
Endurance D -> D-1 325/325
Perception E -> D-2 1475/1475
Reaction D -> D-3 1175/1175

(790 remaining)