Three black shadows slipped out of the trees, landing around Uchiha Jinzō in a neat triangle.Classic formation — protect someone important… or box someone in.
They wore dark ANBU-style uniforms, white masks painted with odd patterns. The only way to tell them apart was hair: one tall with bright orange hair, one slender woman with straight black, and another short-haired guy.
Jinzō's hands were already full of kunai, eyes sharp. ANBU blocking him in the Forest of Death? Yeah, nothing about this screamed "friendly."
"Uchiha Jinzō. The Hokage-sama requests your presence." The orange-haired man's voice was sharp, commanding.
Jinzō snorted. "Right. Because the Hokage just loves sending three masked weirdos to drag kids out of the woods. Try harder."Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi really wanted him, he'd send Jiraiya. They still trusted each other, no matter how much they bickered. Which meant these guys weren't the Hokage's dogs.
They were someone else's.Danzo.
The orange-haired one stiffened at Jinzō's stance. "Are you planning to defy the Hokage's orders?"
Before Jinzō could quip back, something flickered in the corner of his eye. He vanished with Body Flicker, reappearing on a branch. The three masked shinobi matched his speed, surrounding him again.
The woman tilted her head. "Fast. Impressive taijutsu."
"Yeah? Impressive for ANBU to pick a fight mid-sentence," Jinzō shot back, scanning for an escape route.
The orange-haired man snapped, "Do you intend to rebel against the village, Uchiha Jinzō!?"
Wow. Slapping the "traitor" label on already. Jinzō smirked. "Funny. You attack your own villagers without warning, and I'm the rebel? Cute." He lowered his kunai just enough to sound cocky. "Tell me your names, and I'll go see the Hokage myself tomorrow."
The silence that followed told him everything: talking time was over.
The short-haired one spread his arms. Black dots swarmed out from his sleeves, writhing together.Aburame clan.The bugs cascaded like a living tide, rushing at Jinzō.
He kicked off, reappearing at the top of a tall tree just as the ground below disappeared under crawling black.
The kunoichi flashed in front of him, hands blurring. "Suiton — Water Blade Technique!"
Water surged along her kunai, shimmering like a buzzsaw. Jinzō had no footing midair — no time for another flicker. He crossed his blades instead: right-hand kunai to block, left-hand kunai stabbing straight for her temple. If she pressed, she'd die first.
She pressed. Her water-knife shredded his kunai to pieces, but his other blade was already at her head. A trade — her life for a scratch on him.
Except her skull burst into spray. Her whole body collapsed into a puddle.
"Water Clone!?"
The sea of insects below spiraled upward, closing in. Jinzō inhaled deep, his hands flying."Katon — Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A fireball roared down, exploding in a wave of heat and wind. The blast shoved him upward, letting him land on a higher branch and bolt.
Of course, the kunoichi popped back up ahead, waiting. They clashed again, steel against streaming water, sparks flying.
"You really are a genius Uchiha," she said with an infuriating smile. "This strong, and you haven't even awakened your Sharingan yet."
Jinzō gritted his teeth. Every kunai he raised shattered against her water blade. Bugs swarmed below. He couldn't keep this up.
And worse — he couldn't drain her chakra. Something in her body sealed it off. No leaks. Which meant his trump card, Chakra Theft, was useless.
"You can't run," she purred, eyes gleaming.
From the corner of his vision, Jinzō spotted the orange-haired one leaping closer, fingers already forming a jutsu.Yamanaka clan. Damn it.
No way he could take on Aburame bugs, a water-nin taijutsu expert, and a Yamanaka mind-hacker. He broke downward instead, iron wire snapping from his sleeve and hooking a distant branch. He swung hard, skimming just above the insect tide.
Insect clones burst out of the swarm, racing up after him. Jinzō flung shuriken in a ricochet pattern, knocking them back——only for the bugs to form a shield, eating the steel alive.
"Tch." No time. He flicked spirit pills between his fingers. "Spirit Art — Twin Strikes!"Twin beams of spiritual energy pierced the clones' skulls. They burst apart into clouds of bugs.
Jinzō used the gap to scramble higher, out of sight. For a moment, just a moment, he thought he'd lost them.
But when he peeked around the trunk, kunai reflection showed them all moving in sync, tracking him.
He dashed again, wounds knitting, burned bug husks crumbling off his skin. But the kunoichi was already in front of him, her mask tilted in a mockery of a smile.
"Where do you think you're going?"
He stopped, chest heaving. Overusing Flicker and spirit pills had shredded his stamina. Behind him, the others closed in. Below was nothing but a crawling sea of insects.
No way out.
Why hasn't Orochimaru noticed yet? If he didn't intervene, Jinzō was screwed. Danzo's men wouldn't spare an Uchiha — Sharingan or no Sharingan.
The kunoichi's voice was silky. "You can't escape, little brother."
Jinzō's smirk came back sharp. "Save the pet names for the bedroom."
She laughed. "If you're still in one piece, maybe I will."
"Pass. Even with the mask on, you're ugly enough to make me puke."
Her smile snapped into fury. "You'll regret that. I'll make sure you do."
Jinzō just looked at her with pure disdain. That was all it took to send her into a rage. She raised her blade—
And Jinzō leapt. Straight into the sea of insects.