Shinku Yuhi's kunai sliced through the air, its edge aimed squarely at Shisui Aburame's throat. The strike was fast, precise, and lethal—a high-level assassination technique. Against any ordinary insect-user, this fight would already be over.
But Shisui was no ordinary insect-user.
He didn't use a substitution to flee. Instead, he met the attack head-on. A refined kunai appeared in his hand, and the two blades collided, sending a shower of sparks into the damp forest air.
What shocked Shinku the most wasn't just the parry, but the raw strength behind it. Their power was equal—if anything, Shisui seemed to have the slight upper hand.
Shinku had no time to ponder. Shisui's counter-offensive was relentless. His Taijutsu was a bizarre fusion: it possessed the wide, powerful arcs of the Hidden Leaf style, but was laced with the jagged, unpredictable movements of other hidden villages.
With a sudden low sweep, Shisui forced Shinku to leap over a kick aimed at his shins—a leg equipped with a hidden, sharpened roller blade. Shinku's midsection was momentarily exposed.
Shisui smirked and exhaled. A slender senbon needle shot from his mouth. Shinku jerked his head aside, but the needle still grazed his cheek, leaving a thin trail of blood.
Immediately following the needle were four shuriken thrown in rapid succession. Shinku dodged them, but his rhythm was shattered.
He couldn't believe it. He was losing a physical exchange to a member of the Aburame clan.
Before he could reset, Shisui blurred, appearing behind him. Just as the kunai was about to sever Shinku's neck, the Jonin raised his own blade to block and performed a one-handed seal.
Poof!
A log fell to the ground. Shinku had used a Substitution, followed by a high-speed Body Flicker to put distance between them.
His hands blurred through the seals: Dog—Horse—Bird.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Shinku took a deep breath and exhaled a gale-force wind toward Shisui. He knew this jutsu wouldn't deal significant damage to a high-level ninja, but his goal wasn't injury—it was to create space.
He had decided that since he couldn't finish the boy quickly, he would pin him down until reinforcements arrived.
To his horror, the wind didn't blow Shisui away. Instead, it tore his body apart into a swarm of grey insects. The swarm hummed as it scattered, only to reform into a human shape three meters away.
"Bug Replacement," Shinku muttered, his expression darkening. But those aren't the Kikaichu of the Aburame clan.
Shisui closed the distance again, closing the five-meter gap in a heartbeat. The steel kunai clashed once more, but this time Shisui's strength had surged. Shinku groaned as he was forced back, his sandals carving deep ruts into the dirt.
Suddenly, Shisui's form dissolved into a haze.
An Afterimage? An Illusion?
Shinku vanished. He was an elite Jonin; his mastery of stealth and presence suppression was near perfect. He hid in the shadows, waiting for a counter-opening.
However, playing hide-and-seek with an insect-user is a futile exercise.
"Secret Technique: Insect Summoning."
Shisui formed a single seal. The natural insects of the forest began to stir, vibrating in response to his call, acting as a thousand tiny eyes and ears.
"Found you."
Shisui opened his eyes and hurled three kunai toward a seemingly empty patch of air.
Mid-air, Shinku was forced to reveal himself. Even with a Jonin's ability to contort his body in flight, one kunai bit deep into his shoulder.
"I never expected a genius like you to emerge from the Aburame," Shinku said, clutching his bleeding shoulder as he landed. "Specialized bugs, Taijutsu, and Ninjutsu that rival the elite... I don't understand. Why hide your strength for so long, and why defect now?"
Shisui looked at him calmly. "I don't like it here. I don't want to do missions. I want to leave. Is that a crime? I despise the feeling of being watched from the shadows. Those 'eyes' may not hurt me physically, but they make my skin crawl. I can't live comfortably here."
"You mean the Root? Elder Danzo has been overstepping lately, I admit," Shinku said, trying to de-escalate. "But you should trust the Hokage. Come back. With your talent, Lord Hiruzen will surely value you."
"I don't need to be 'valued.' I'd rather be free."
"But the Leaf raised you. Is there really no room for negotiation?"
Shisui's voice turned cold. "You saw the trail I left, didn't you? I've killed several Leaf ninja on my way out. That includes my own teammate. The time is up."
"What?" Shinku asked, confused.
"You thought we were just talking while you caught your breath? No. I was preparing my jutsu."
Shisui's hands moved through six seals. Shinku's vision began to fracture. The single figure of Shisui blurred into three, then five.
"Shinku Yuhi... the village calls you a master of illusions on par with the Uchiha. Some say without the Sharingan, the Uchiha couldn't hold a candle to you. Tell me, have you ever lost an illusion battle to someone outside that clan?"
Shisui finished the final seal. "Genjutsu: Insect Scourge!"
The forest twisted. The trees became grotesque, clawed entities, and the ground split open. Thousands of horrific, alien insects swarmed out of the fissures and down from the sky, blanketed Shinku's body, and began to devour his flesh.
Shinku's feet felt as though they were fused to the earth. The pain was excruciating and vivid.
It's an illusion. It's fake, he told himself.
"Genjutsu... Dissipate!" Shinku roared, forming the release seal.
The world didn't change. The agony didn't fade. The only difference was that the number of insects seemed to decrease by a fraction, only to be replaced by a fresh, hungrier wave.