Minoru's eyes went wide. That was the first time in nearly two decades that he unleashed an attack anywhere close to what he learned from the Monks of the Sacred Fist, and all it did was push this thing back!

"...not good."

He was immediately on the defensive, up on the balls of his feet as the next round of blows came. The droid was fast, faster than most ninja. And it learned his fighting style faster than an eternal mangekyo sharingan! Thankfully, Minoru was also fast. He dodged all of the armored punches... Until that last one.

He'd just contorted his body around the previous punch, to the inside instead of out. Before he could flip, he felt it connect right against his back.

He pushed chakra to the scales surrounding the impact, strengthening his armor, but it still knocked him right up off his feet. When time slowed down, he knew he was in serious trouble. It was a situation he'd found himself in more than once, if he was honest about it. It was teleport back to Ryuuchi Cave or die.

He managed to get a hand to his wrist, tracing around the tattoo. The shock on his face when nothing happened was unprecedented.

"..."