"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
Mizukumo Metsuen tore off his disguise, revealing his true appearance. His Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun slightly as he spat flames that set the trees ablaze.
Hiugo frowned. The difference in Chakra control had become glaringly obvious after only a brief exchange. His opponent was clearly several levels stronger than he was. The Wood Style wouldn't burn away in an instant, but it had lost its original strength and was no longer resilient.
Uchiha Niji widened the distance between them and slowly circled the trees he had just set alight.
"I'll 'kindly' tell you a few things."
"Senju Meima and those two Dark Ninja have been held up. They won't be coming to save you."
Shadow after shadow gathered around Uchiha Niji. There were even more of them than the Senju. In an instant, fire and water clashed once more.
Senju Xiangyang tightened his grip on his Kunai and moved in front of Hiugo, intending to break through and let the people behind him retreat first.
"Xiangyang, just do what you need to do. Don't worry about me."
Hiugo spoke up. His build was very different from Senju Xiangyang's, making it difficult for them to work together effectively. Besides, a shinobi with an obvious weakness could easily be targeted.
Having someone protect him was certainly nice, but when they were ambushed, sticking too close together was actually a bad thing.
Senju Xiangyang turned to look at Hiugo's serious expression. Without further hesitation, he went straight into battle with the nearest enemy.
Hiugo took out the Kunai Tobirama had given him. As Chakra flowed through the Chakra Metal, a layer of water immediately formed along the Kunai's edge, shaping it into a blade.
"Kid, you're a little better than those cowards from inferior clans, but this is as far as you go."
Seeing the elite Jōnin leave the boy's side, Uchiha Yun immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to attack. His katana came down wreathed in flames.
Fire Release: Flame Slash
A glint passed through Hiugo's eyes. He turned aside the blow with the Water Blade in one hand.
Uchiha Yun was slightly surprised. The boy's reflexes and strength were genuinely impressive.
Water Release: Water Severing Wave
Forming Hand Seals with one hand while blocking with the Kunai, Hiugo completed the seals and spat out a blade of water.
The Two-Tomoe in Yun's eyes spun rapidly. Through sheer force of will, he made his body move.
The blade of water flashed past, and a bloodied arm fell to the ground.
Yun was drenched in cold sweat. He had nearly died at the hands of a boy, despite being on the verge of reaching elite Jōnin rank.
"You let your guard down, Yun. No wonder you couldn't become an elite Jōnin. The Two-Tomoe really is too weak."
Uchiha Niji came to Yun's side. The boy was an unusual presence on the battlefield, so he had paid him some attention.
"This kid awakened the Senju Clan's Kekkei Genkai, and he can form Hand Seals with one hand."
"One-handed Hand Seals? The kid can actually do that..."
"All right, Yun, stand down. He's mine. And I suggest you use Fire Release to cauterize your wound, or you might bleed to death."
Uchiha Niji paid his clansman no further attention and looked at Hiugo.
"Don't worry. You won't die until you've told me everything you know..."
Hiugo lowered his head unconsciously, a bead of cold sweat running down his face. This man felt different from the Uchiha he had just fought. Judging by his presence alone, he seemed like an ordinary person, yet somehow he felt extremely dangerous.
The scenery shifted. It was no longer night; morning had come. The flames that had been burning vanished, leaving an empty clearing.
A dense crowd appeared before him: Senju Xiangyang, Senju Meima, the Dark Ninja, Tobirama, Hashirama... and Genma.
Every familiar face held a Kunai. With cold eyes, they walked toward him.
"Tobirama" spat a blade of water and cut off Hiugo's arm, his eyes full of hatred. "You evil Uchiha were born treacherous, yet you disguised yourself as a Senju. We were never brothers."
Hiugo retreated again and again, saying nothing as he stared at his wound. Vines wrapped around his feet, then kept growing until they crushed them.
"Hashirama" looked at him strangely. "Don't blame me. If I kill you, I'll be the clan heir."
Hiugo tried to get up, but his head suddenly felt heavy. His face was pressed against the ground.
"Genma" used the Body Flicker Technique to appear beside Hiugo, then stepped on his head and said coldly, "I have no child like you. Rather than let you live in this world, I'd be better off killing you myself..."
A gleaming white blade came down toward his neck. If it struck, he would surely be decapitated.
Hiugo stared fixedly at their faces. Anger flashed in his eyes, and the Two-Tomoe spun rapidly.
"You pathetic illusions! How could you imitate the real people? Their feelings, their identities—how could they be nothing more than skin and bone?"
Outside, Hiugo stood with his head bowed, motionless, as if he had lost consciousness.
"You thought avoiding these eyes would make you immune to my genjutsu? How foolish."
Uchiha Niji smiled faintly. To him, instantly taking down an opponent with a simple genjutsu felt far more satisfying than using Fire Release.
"Now tell me everything you know, including who you are..."
Hiugo stood there blankly, as if he hadn't heard the command.
Uchiha Niji furrowed his brow. Could the kid be hard of hearing?
How naive. Did he think damaging his ears would keep him from hearing my command? As long as we made eye contact, I could control his mind. What could he do about that?
Uchiha Niji kept moving closer. He grabbed Hiugo by the hair and pulled his head up, only to find himself staring into a pair of keen black eyes.
Their Kunai flashed. One of them turned out to be a log, while the other used the Body Flicker Technique to dodge.
"How did you break the genjutsu?"
Uchiha Niji's eyes were full of confusion. He hadn't used his strongest genjutsu on a Special Jōnin, but based on his experience, this level of opponent should have been no trouble to control.
Unless... he had the Three-Tomoe too.
The thought appeared, then vanished at once. How could a member of the Senju Clan possess the Sharingan?
Hiugo raised his head. In his eyes, the Black Curtain answered his anger, transforming once more into the image of an illusory Nine-Pointed Star Array that overlaid his newly awakened Three-Tomoe.
The illusory pattern began to turn real. The bloodline power from the earlier battlefield, not yet fully absorbed, flowed into his eyes as fuel, as if wringing out his potential.
"Your eyes..."
Uchiha Niji's expression shifted. The pitch-black Nine-Pointed Star Array held an irresistible allure for him, one that surpassed even his fascination with his own eyes.
So beautiful...
These eyes weren't something from his time. They were merely the manifestation of his ocular power after it had been replenished. He couldn't tell what the dōjutsu was called, nor could he fully control it. He could only activate it by instinct.
A tear of blood ran from Hiugo's right eye, blurring his vision. The unknown dōjutsu had activated...
A strange sensation enveloped Uchiha Niji. The next moment, his body began to change.
His shoulders turned to flames and burned fiercely, while his feet crumbled into dust.
Uchiha Niji felt weakness wash over his entire body. His Chakra rushed frantically toward his wounds, but not only did it fail to stop the changes, it sped them up.
Without hesitation, the strange phenomenon made him abandon any thought of fighting. He used the Body Flicker Technique without pause, putting as much distance between them as he could, but the more he used the technique, the stronger the reaction became.
Only after he had completely left Hiugo's sight did the changes stop. Yet his shoulders had burned away, taking his arms with them, and his feet had crumbled into dust and vanished, leaving him sprawled on the ground.
He couldn't accept becoming a cripple. There was only one way to change his fate.
"Izanagi."
One of his Three-Tomoe lost its light. His severed arms reappeared, but his shoulders were still burning.
Uchiha Niji immediately swung his Kunai across his shoulders. Two chunks of flesh fell to the ground, leaving bloody wounds. His dust-like feet stopped disintegrating under the nourishment of his Chakra.
"What in the world is going on with those eyes..."
Before you continue