NOVEL NEXT Chapter 50
Ninja (忍者).
You might say, “What kind of ninja appears in a Cyberpunk world?” But let’s be real, ninjas sneak in there like they’re on a schedule.
Thinking back to what I knew before diving into this game world, it’s actually not that surprising.
There’s a theory that this whole Cyberpunk scenario sprang from the fear that Japan in the ’80s would conquer the world during its bubble economy.
And fitting right into that theory, you could occasionally spot a geisha with white makeup on a city billboard in this world.
So, ninjas existing in a Cyberpunk world? Totally not weird at all.
Of course, what they call “ninjas” probably aren’t real ninjas.
It’s more accurate to view them as specialized employees of the Japanese company “Kojaka.”
Unlike in some novels or comics, they don’t come in saying, “Do-mo!”
For reference, this part is mentioned in the Kojiki as well.
But just because they’re not real ninjas doesn’t mean they’re not frightening.
Just like the ninjas in comics can breathe fire, these Cyberpunk ninjas can use Cyberware Implants to pull off similar tricks.
In some ways, they might even be scarier than real ninjas.
Honestly, it’s my first time witnessing a “ninja” in action.
Ninja units were solely operated by Kojaka.
I couldn’t just ask to see one; they only show themselves if you’re not their enemy.
How could I, seeing a ninja for the first time, spot them instantly?
The answer was clear just from their appearance.
They wore Oni-shaped masks and covered their bodies in black outfits and tights.
The man standing in the center drew his katana.
As his fingers lightly traced the blade, a yellow heated reaction ignited from where he touched.
Romanticism has truly gone insane.
It was on a whole different level compared to Julia’s heated katana I had seen before.
That was a fake katana made via magic, while theirs was the real “heated katana.”
I cautiously raised my hand.
“…Excuse me, teachers.”
“No need for words (問答無用)!”
With the help of the Neural Computer Chip translation module, I understood their Japanese.
I mean, who else would say something like that except Japanese people?
That’s a classic Japanese saying!
We naturally prepared for a fight.
But just as they said that, one of the three ninjas turned and started to flee.
…Huh?
I immediately shouted.
“Catherine! We need to catch that fleeing dude!”
Without asking why, Catherine dashed forward.
In the narrow sewage path, to catch the fleeing ninja meant inevitably having to blast through the other two ninjas head-on.
Two ninjas welcomed Catherine as she sprinted at an incredible speed.
The heated katana sliced through the air.
As its trajectory drew a yellow line, it split the surroundings without stopping.
The noise of the katana hitting the wall was hard to believe.
Ka-kaang!
Dust erupted from the space between the ninja and the wall, where the heated katana had passed.
It didn’t stop after just one cut.
The trajectory of the heated katana spread into multiple paths, slicing through shadows and smoke.
Yellow trails zipped past the ceiling, walls, and floor.
Even amidst the ongoing attacks from the ninjas, Catherine’s running steps never faltered.
After a bit of time passed, the dust clouds began to settle.
The two ninjas standing in the passage looked puzzled as they stared at the path Catherine was sprinting down, where her fleeing comrade had gone.
Golden hair floated behind them.
Catherine had already drifted far into the shadows.
A brief silence followed.
Then, in the odd atmosphere, Kojaka William nudged my side.
“…Why did we send a meteor?”
I continued watching for threats ahead while I kindly explained to my employer.
“As you know, the whole area is currently jammed for radio waves.”
“Hmm.”
“So, they’ll need to find another way to call for support.”
Kojaka William nodded, looking like he understood.
The one we just let escape could come back as ten later.
“I see… Are we all right, then?”
“What do you—ah.”
I cut off my sentence.
I figured out his intention.
The ninjas, who had been dumbfounded, turned their gaze back to us at my words.
I realized then that their goal was the Vice President’s life.
Even if they couldn’t call for support, they could still assassinate the Vice President here without any issue.
I stated bluntly,
“We’re in big trouble.”
“…What?”
Kojaka William replied with a baffled tone to my voice.
But what could I do? It was the truth.
I thought about it.
Facing off against ‘cyber ninjas’ decked out in high-tech Cyberware harnessing Kojaka’s superior technology, my chances of winning in close combat were nearly zero.
Even with Eve’s help, it would still be the same.
It’s quite different than when I fought with Maya.
[Hacking signal is not reachable. It requires a closer distance than basic performance, I explain.]
Eve also said she couldn’t help either.
As we stood still, the ninjas slowly approached us at a leisurely pace.
They were clearly being cautious.
The reason they weren’t rushing us was likely due to the appearance of unfamiliar figures.
And one of those figures dodged two ninja attacks without a scratch.
Finally, not knowing the identity of the glowing orb above my shoulder was also a factor.
The ninjas drew closer.
Kojaka William spoke to me in a hurried tone.
“…You claimed to be the unique wizard, so then we have to find another way.”
“…Well, it’s not like there’s absolutely no method.”
As I said that, Kojaka William regained a bit of his energy. His voice got a bit louder.
“Then do something!”
“It could get my clothes a bit messy, though.”
“?”
[…….]
I continued explaining nonchalantly.
“Even though this looks expensive, I’ve been debating if the smell would ever fade just from wandering around the garbage dump, but if I get splashed with sewage too—”
“I’ll buy as many of those clothes as you want! Just fix this quickly!”
Now that’s a personality coming through.
But within that, I caught a glimmer of what I wanted to hear.
[…Maybe.]*
Eve seemed about to say something but quickly went back to silence.
…Well, if I’m going to work, I might as well get some free clothes out of it.
It’s a custom-made outfit from the Kojaka Group maker.
I’m already excited.
At that moment, the approaching ninjas halted.
They scanned the surroundings, sensing something unusual.
“…!”
The previously rushing sewage suddenly became calm.
“Water—.”
“Endure it (忍).”
Their answer was “Nin”?
The concept seems to be pushing it a bit.
Unlike one who was quite flustered, the other remained unfazed, readying his stance while still keeping a watchful eye on me.
Well, their unease doesn’t matter to me.
I had gathered plenty of mana walking this far.
Thanks to them being cautious, I also prepared enough “water” by blocking the waterway.
Creating water from scratch takes a surprising amount of mana,
But controlling existing water requires much less.
I opened the waterway I’d blocked with mana.
—Kwaaa!
Polluted water erupted from the sewage like a geyser.
The fierce current appeared strong enough to resemble a waterfall bursting sideways.
While I dodged water droplets raining down on me, I redirected the current towards them.
“Ugh!”
With a short battle cry, the ninjas took their stances to avoid being swept away by the water.
In the midst of it all, one ninja attempted to leap over the water and charge at me, but I redirected the current once again and sent him tumbling mid-air.
Be it long or short,
the waterfall of polluted water gradually dwindled.
Ninja faces covered in filthy pollutants looked somewhat annoyed.
Well, of course, it would be strange if someone didn’t get angry after getting splattered with sewage.
But my magic didn’t end there.
If I were just spraying water onto them, I wouldn’t need to redirect the waterway so dramatically.
I made a playful gesture, drawing signs with my fingers. Mimicking something I saw in a cartoon without much effort.
“Ninfa.”
“…?”
Kojaka William looked at me like I was crazy.
I purposely decided not to worry about that.
Romanticism must be met with romanticism.
“Lightning Bolt!”
Actually, this was just a normal electric spell.
There was no special name for it, nor was it an actual ‘ninja technique!’ But—
──!!
The impact was no joke.
The high voltage shock was an unavoidable attack for them in a soaking wet state.
The ninjas twitched and collapsed on the spot.
Thin white smoke wafted up from the fallen ninjas.
If I had launched a surprise attack right in front of them when there were only two of us left, this wouldn’t have happened.
But granting the wizard time was their last mistake.
I turned to Kojaka William standing behind me.
“Let’s move forward again.”
“Hmm, but wait a moment.”
Kojaka William pointed a finger toward the downed ninjas.
“Can you use that electric spell one more time?”
“…Do you really need to confirm kill?”
This time, I looked at him like he was the crazy one.
So he’s that cruel…
Is this how you climb up to the position of a Megacorp Vice President?
“…No, what do you see us as? It’s just that Kojaka’s ninja unit colleague has implanted self-resurrection technology inside.”
“…Is that a thing?”
Ninjas that can come back from the dead?
What on earth is the ninja in Cyberpunk?
It wouldn’t hurt to be careful as he suggested.
I gathered mana briefly and fired another electric blast at the downed ninjas.
I couldn’t be sure if they could stand back up again,
But looking at the twitching ninjas, I felt a pang of guilt.
Kicking a corpse is something even fighting games prohibit….
But just then.
Footsteps echoed from beyond the dark corridor.
Initially, I thought it was Catherine,
But the owner of the footsteps was not just one.
I hurriedly began preparing to gather mana.
Whether it’s a vagabond or a ninja,
It was certain that nobody coming to us would be our ally.
…We’re in big trouble.
I had just used magic multiple times in a row, and would need a bit of time to recover before casting again.
Back then, I joked about being in trouble, but now, I genuinely felt like a disaster was looming.
Slowly cutting through the shadows,
two figures walked toward us.
One was enormous,
and the other had red hair and pointy ears—
…
It was Drake and Andrea.
“What? How did you find us and show up here?”
I raised my hand and shouted.
“Yo!”
Upon seeing me, they both wore smiles on their faces.
“Oh, Siwoon!”
I have no idea how they managed to track us down, but they were the most reliable allies in this situation.
*
I said,
“…I couldn’t reach Nana or Catherine, so I ended up circling the entire sewage area heading to Neon City, taking out all the weird things popping up in front of me. Since we’re in area E, though… the scale of that creature was no joke.”
Andrea and Drake replied.
“The lizard with eight legs was quite the tough one.”
“I’d vote for the giant robot with saw blades.”
I quietly fell silent.
“…….”
Seems they had a rough time, but they made it here.