Ryan Li had just returned to the lavish Takeda estate when chaos broke loose again.
Inside, Sora was already clinging to his arm.
"My hero!" she whispered in his ear, voice trembling with adoration.
Ryan gave her a quick nod, then turned toward the bedroom. The girl clutched at the blankets, practically melting into them. Meanwhile, halfway across the world—
—
At the presidential war room of the Eagle Nation, a white-haired man stared at a tablet screen, expression locked in suspicion.
"Mr. President," his aide urged, "this video… you need to see it."
The old man frowned. "What now? Another Hollywood blockbuster?"
"It's not a movie, sir. This… is real footage. Taken live from Lac Thanh."
The president squinted, tapping play. What followed silenced even his most cynical instincts.
Eight thousand Japanese troops. On their knees. Before one man.
"That's… not special effects?"
"No, sir. And he isn't an actor. We believe he may have escaped from our Area 52 genetic enhancement facility."
The president's pupils shrank.
"Area 52?" he snapped. "You mean Falcon-tier clearance? Jesus, did one of the experiments breach?"
"We're still checking. But his capabilities suggest a Subject-Class anomaly. Potentially even—"
"SHUT UP!" the president barked. "That's Falcon-class intelligence! You want to get us both erased?!"
The aide swallowed hard. "Apologies, sir…"
The room fell into stunned silence.
"Track him. Now. If he's ours, we retrieve him. If he's not…" The president didn't finish that sentence.
—
In Daidai Empire's secret cabinet chamber, top officials gathered under a dim crystal dome.
"This Ryan Li… he may look like an Eagle Nation citizen, but his body harbors a threat to our genetic future," one minister growled.
"He must not be allowed to destabilize our superiority!"
"Should we dispatch an elite kill squad?"
"No," said the Defense Minister coldly. "Send the ninja unit."
Whispers rippled through the room.
"The imperial shinobi…?"
"Correct. The righteous ninja clan. Their blades whisper like air, and death follows unseen."
Every cabinet member nodded with grim approval.
Far away, at the imperial dojo, the royal advisor bowed before his king.
"Your Majesty, the order is given. The target is Ryan Li."
A black-clad ninja appeared behind him in an instant—no footsteps, no breath.
"We go," the assassin hissed. "For Daidai's honor… and his genes."
—
Meanwhile, at 37,000 feet, a passenger jet was en route to Lac Thanh.
Seated in first class, wearing a hooded cloak, a young shinobi woman named Tachibana Jun rested with a katana tucked beside her leg.
This was no ordinary mission.
Jun's mission was not just to kill Ryan Li.
She had been ordered to harvest his DNA.
To bring back a sample.
To clone his power.
—
That night, back in Beverly Hills, inside the Taylor estate…
Ryan stood in the dressing room, choosing his outfit.
But his eyes narrowed.
Something's off.
His breath slowed. His ears caught the faintest disturbance—a whisper of air, softer than silk.
Too quiet for a cop. Too skilled for a burglar.
His hand inched toward his belt, fingers already curling around the grip of a hidden weapon.
Could it be… a ninja?
In the shadows behind him, Jun had already drawn her blade.
Each footstep she took made no sound, each breath barely stirred the air.
Ten centimeters…
Five…
One…
Just as the blade sliced through the final inch, poised to sever the vertebrae in Ryan's neck—
CLINK!
The steel froze.
Time stalled.
Jun's eyes widened in panic.
"What…?"
Before she could react, Ryan spun in one smooth motion, catching the blade between two fingers.
"Wrong room, little shadow," he said coolly.
Jun's breath caught. She had trained since childhood, survived blood-soaked trials, outdueled killers across continents…
But nothing had prepared her for this.
"Impossible…" she whispered.
Ryan cracked his knuckles. "Now. Let's talk about where you came from."