Naruto: Trinity of Bloodlines

The surrounding forest was dark and dense, barely allowing the moonlight to filter through the tangled branches. The howling wind rustled through the trees, adding another layer of tension to the battlefield. The ground was damp, a mix of mud and patches of blood, while fallen leaves bore the stains of the brutal clash that had taken place. In the background, the distant roars of nocturnal beasts echoed, as if they were watching silently, waiting for the battle to end.

---

Escalation of the Fight

After hearing Hyoujin's words, Renji and Ayame regained their focus. Renji cautiously stepped forward, gripping his sword tightly, while Ayame supported him with Wind Release, using her ability to analyze enemy movements through the air.

As for Hyoujin, he was staring at the furious jōnin, who met his gaze with murderous intent. There was no room for carelessness anymore—his opponent was no longer the overconfident man he had deceived earlier, but a hunter watching his prey with unwavering focus.

Suddenly, Hyoujin felt an eerie chill run down his spine, as if something was warning him of imminent danger. Without hesitation, he activated the Substitution Jutsu!

Fwoosh!

In the blink of an eye, his body was replaced by a tree log, which was cleanly sliced in half as if it were butter under a hot blade. His eyes widened in shock—he hadn't expected such a sudden attack! He quickly looked down from the tree he had landed on, only to realize that the man he had been speaking to was merely a clone.

"Impossible...!"

Before he could react further, the real jōnin appeared before him, gripping a kunai that pulsed with lethal chakra. Just by looking at him, Hyoujin understood—this was no ordinary jōnin. This was an elite warrior, someone who had survived countless battles drenched in blood.

"I'm impressed, kid. I didn't expect you to dodge that, but..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Hyoujin felt another surge of danger, but this time, it was too close to avoid! He moved, but not fast enough—he felt a sharp sting in his shoulder. He glanced down, seeing a clean cut, blood slowly seeping from the wound.

"He's much faster than me..."

But there was no time to analyze the situation further—suddenly, a barrage of rocks was hurled toward him with terrifying speed. Without thinking, he quickly formed hand seals and launched a Water Release: Water Sphere to counter the incoming attack. However, the sheer force of the impact pushed him several steps back.

"Ninjutsu won't work against him. The gap in skill is too big!"

Realizing he couldn't rely on jutsu alone, he tightened his grip on his kunai, preparing for close combat.

---

Close Combat—A Living Nightmare

Within minutes, Hyoujin was exhausted. His breaths were heavy, his muscles tense, and yet, he couldn't find an opening. The jōnin wasn't aiming to kill him outright, but he wasn't giving him any chance to escape either.

"He's toying with me... He wants me to suffer!"

He quickly glanced at Renji and Ayame to check their condition—but that was a fatal mistake.

"Oh? Thinking about your friends in the middle of a fight?"

Before he could process what was happening, a barrage of stone projectiles rained down on him. Simultaneously, the ground beneath him turned into a swamp of mud, trapping his movements completely!

"This is bad...!"

Without hesitation, he used Substitution Jutsu again, escaping the deadly trap at the last second.

---

"You little brat, do you think you can just ignore me and look at your allies?" The jōnin sneered. "It seems I've been too soft on you!"

There was no time to argue. Hyoujin wasn't concerned about them—he just needed to know when they would come to help. But after taking another quick glance, he was hit with a grim realization.

Renji was covered in wounds and bruises, barely standing. Ayame's arm was visibly broken.

"This is worse than I thought..."

And then, the situation took a turn for the worse.

The jōnin suddenly appeared behind Ayame, pressing a kunai against her throat.

"Stop resisting, or I'll kill her right now."

Everyone froze.

Renji, enraged, shouted, "Let her go, you bastard!" and lunged forward recklessly. But the jōnin had been waiting for this—he struck with a powerful kick to Renji's chest, sending him tumbling across the ground.

Hyoujin rushed to his side, only to be horrified by how bad his condition was up close. Blood covered his body, and his breathing was labored.

Hyoujin forced himself to stay calm. Slowly, he stood up, his sharp gaze locking onto the jōnin.

"Oh, now that's the look I wanted to see, kid. Tell me—what's your name?"

Suppressing his fury, Hyoujin spoke in a low, cold voice:

"Uchiha Hyoujin."

Upon hearing that name, the jōnin's smirk widened slightly. He stared directly into Hyoujin's eyes as if searching for something. Then, after a brief pause, he scoffed.

"Hah... So you're an Uchiha. That brings back some unpleasant memories. But I see you haven't awakened your eyes yet."

"He knows about the Sharingan..."

But that wasn't important right now. Hyoujin wasn't interested in exchanging words—he needed a way out of this.

Taking a deep breath, he pointed at the two unconscious genin behind him and said:

"Enough pointless talk. Tell us what you want in exchange for releasing our comrade. We can offer you my injured teammates. It's a fair trade—two for one."

Renji was about to protest, but he quickly realized Hyoujin's intent and fell silent.

The jōnin laughed mockingly. "Who cares about those weaklings? You Konoha ninja value your comrades, don't you? You can't just abandon her, can you?"

At first, Hyoujin didn't understand why the jōnin hadn't killed them already, despite being more than capable. But after thinking for a moment, he reached the only logical conclusion:

"He wants something from us... something he can't get by just killing us!"

Lifting his head, Hyoujin spoke coldly:

"Then tell me—what do you want? Don't tell me you've wasted all this time just to play some petty intimidation game."

The jōnin smirked, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

"Oh? It seems you're not just some naive brat. Very well, I'll tell you what I want."

He paused for a moment, then finally said:

"I want you all to..."