11th Nin - The Bakugo File...

11th Nin - The Bakugo File... is the eleventh episode of Hero Retold: Kamen Rider Shinobi. It is also the second character story episode, focusing on some of the elements surrounding Johnny Yoo's mysterious past, as well as his connection to the Konjo Group.

Plot
Johnny Yoo fights a random ninja on a rooftop one night, gloating how he’ll use his abilities to defeat him. The two engage in battle, with Johnny ultimately defeating the ninja. A director yells CUT! showing that the fight is once again staged and the production team cheers on the successful take. Johnny thanks the people before trying to help the ninja actor, only to reveal itself as a Nin-Ju striking him down and tossing him off the roof. Johnny lands down on the familiar alleyway where his mother was killed, and he is slowly approached by the same brownish Nin-Ju. Johnny tries to transform but he suddenly can’t find his Hyoutan with him, before the Nin-Ju reverts into his father, blaming him for both of their deaths. Horrified, Johnny falls back as his “father” transforms back into a Nin-Ju and strikes him. Immediately, Johnny wakes up from his nightmare and looks at his phone. He looks at his Clay Hyoutan at a distance before going back to sleep; the crack suddenly gets bigger.

Early morning, Isamichi goes into a conference call with the rest of the Konjo Group’s board, discussing how to recover from the net losses suffered due to the multiple Nin-Ju attacks to the Group. In this, Isamichi vehemently opposes the offers of bringing the ninja-only policy back, as well as training non-ninjas to becoming one, as these violate the choices and rights of most of their employees. When one executive calls Isamichi out for this, asking about growth and finances, Noboshige finally steps in and reminds everyone that going “full-shinobi” would risk their credibility with the government’s Revised Ninja Act. He adjourns the conference, saying that they should focus on the Event’s post-mortem and investigate their list of clients willing to invest in their group.

When the father and son are left alone, Noboshige tries to commend his son for doing well with the company, only for Isamichi to get frustrated and laments over the past events of the quarter. He tries to tell off his father about them not being the same, only for a small commotion to happen in the building as employees gush over Johnny entering the offices, irking Isamichi even further. Icchy scolds Johnny, also a board member, for being late to their meetings, only for the actor to hand him a secured document, giving the Konjo Group a share of his entertainment management. Johnny says that the merger may help the Group PR-wise, in exchange for detailed information about the Niji no Hebi. When Isamichi asks why Johnny was so obsessed with the clan, Johnny pulls out a small journal, saying that his father was also investigating the group before his death. Johnny speculates that the group may have a connection with his tragic past, as he looks on to the notebook.

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Rekka looks into Johnny Yoo’s files more closely, before comparing them with the case file that Chief Takajo handed to her prior about the Niji no Hebi Group. Hayase arrives to accompany her and says she’s still working hard despite on guard duty. Rekka flatly says that it’s what she’s trained to do, only to be confused about how long the clan’s tenure has been, even predating the day she’s born. Hayase also gets some of Rekka’s case files before informing her of a Nin-Ju attack last night, only for the beast to mysteriously vanish. As the two of them browse through Johnny’s case file, Hayase finds something interesting about his father, James Yoo.

That afternoon, Ayame also hands Isamichi the same file about James Yoo’s background. A professional boxer that went under the radar for half a decade, he only resurfaced as one of the victims of a double murder which include his wife, with Johnny the only one surviving. Isamichi also notes about Johnny’s mother Mary Arma, a name that momentarily surprises Ayame.

That night, Johnny shoots a stunt scene for a movie, with him fighting a ninja on a rooftop. Johnny gloats that he can use his abilities to defeat him, which triggers a déjà vu in him. Suddenly, the ninja fights him seriously and uses a bunch of tricks to gain an advantage over him. This snaps Johnny back and eventually beats the ninja stuntman. The director yells CUT at the scene, saying that the adlib was perfect and engaging, earning the two applause, which creeps Johnny out. He then tries to help his fellow actor back up, but the ninja pulls out a kunai and attacks Johnny for real, scaring away the rest of the film crew. The ninja takes off his costume, saying that he’s been waiting for this all his life, as the red moon becomes visible. The stuntman transforms into another Brown Nin-Ju, trying to attack the scared director, before Johnny protects him and tries to fight off the Nin-Ju, however, he gets overpowered and thrown off the roof. This time, however, Johnny finds his Hyoutan and transforms into Kamen Rider Bakugo, dragging the Nin-Ju down with him using his Band Wraps. At an alley, Bakugo fights off the Nin-Ju and gets the upper hand initially. However, the Nin-Ju shows some sense of self-awareness and begins to outmaneuver Bakugo with its ninjutsu abilities. Their fight suddenly takes them out of the alley into a more open area, where the Rider and the Nin-Ju fight evenly. Bakugo fights off the Nin-Ju with boxing techniques, but he gets outpaced with the Nin-Ju’s sentient ninjutsu techniques.

Fortunately, Isamichi arrives and pushes the beast back, before transforming into Kamen Rider Hattari. He proves to be a much better match to the Nin-Ju as he uses Surprise Ninpo to conjure dummies to distract the Nin-Ju, giving him the opening to hit it with a Fantastic Ninpo Rider Slash. As the Nin-Ju goes down, Hattari proceeds to perform the Sanzu Sealing Arts Technique, only to be stopped by the Yaminin’s sneak attack and steals the Gold Hyoutan, reverting his transformation. As the Yaminin brags and monologues about outsmarting Isamichi, the Niji no Hebi leader suddenly gets pulled in with the Band Wraps by Bakugo and hits him with the Solid Ninpo Rider Punch, blasting the Yaminin away and securing the gourd bottle back. However, the Nin-Ju recovers and attacks Bakugo before escaping. Johnny cancels his transformation and hands the Golden Hyoutan back to Isamichi, which the former accepts. Johnny tries to walk away but Isamichi calls him back, saying that they need to discuss some information they found; specifically, about his mother, Mary Arma. This surprises Johnny as he clutches his Hyoutan hard, with the cracks growing larger and forming all over.

Fan Casting

 * Johnny Yoo: Chansung
 * Isamichi Konjo: Takuma Zaiki
 * Rekka Ayano: Kazusa Okuyama
 * Ayame Suzumiya: Kana Oya
 * Akira Hayase: Yukihiro Takiguchi
 * Nobushige Konjo: Kenichi Endo
 * Yaminin: Masashi Ebara (voice)

Guest Cast

 * Johnny's Father: Ryohei Otani
 * Ninja Stuntman
 * Konjo Group Board of Directors: Tomohisa Yuge (cameo), Mayuko, Ryoji Nakamura, Sho Aoyagi

Suit Actors

 * Kamen Rider Bakugo: Yuya Nawata
 * Kamen Rider Hattari: Shogo Teramoto
 * Yaminin: Yasuhiko Imai


 * Brown Nin-Ju: Naoki Ofuji