The clash was fierce.
The moment the mutated tree clones sprang towards Shino, the experienced ninja reacted instantly, sweeping his arms out and unleashing a barrage of Vacuum Swords, razor-sharp blades of compressed air intended to shred the wooden opponents.
However, Madara was ready. He moved with blinding speed, interposing himself between Shino and the charging clones.
A faint purple energy, the Reverse Cloak, shimmered around Madara.
With a dismissive parry, he deflected Shino's air blades, sending them screaming back toward their originator.
"Shit, I forgot about this tool," Shino muttered under his breath, instinctively contorting his body to dodge his own attack.
Before he could recover his balance or draw another weapon, Hashirama and his wood clone were upon him, launching a relentless, coordinated assault of taijutsu.
Shino was sent flying backward by a punishing blow.
He reacted mid-air, drawing a heavy, unadorned sword and plunging the tip into the stone ground, arresting his momentum just short of a disastrous crash.
He strained to pull the blade free, but before he could, Hashirama and his clone hammered him with another volley of rapid-fire kicks.
As the beating continued, Shino's eyes narrowed.
In a desperate surge of strength, he suddenly seized Hashirama's advancing leg and, with a powerful twist, hurled Hashirama straight into Madara.
Simultaneously, he caught the clone by the neck.
The struggle was brief and brutal; a sickening snap followed, and the clone dissipated in a puff of wood dust.
With the immediate pressure relieved, Shino wrenched his sword free from the earth.
He glared at Madara and Hashirama, who were already scrambling back to their feet, and prepared to press his advantage with a renewed offensive.
But a new, unexpected challenger blocked his path: Ishiki. Every movement Shino made, every feint, every powerful swing of his sword, was met with a perfectly timed and executed block.
Ishiki fought with an unsettling precognition, anticipating Shino's strikes seconds before they were delivered.
The tide of battle began to turn decisively.
Madara used Reverse Cloak, bouncing back any Ninjutsu Shino attempted, Hashirama's relentless physical pressure, and Ishiki's flawless defense and prediction.
Shino was slowly, inevitably, overwhelmed.
The fight became a prolonged, brutal struggle for survival. Shino was a veteran Jonin with a vast well of chakra, yet he was visibly tiring, his reserves dangerously low.
His opponents, however, seemed to possess endless energy.
Every so often, the three of them would take a momentary pause to drink from a small bottle, instantly revitalizing themselves with a mysterious, concentrated sustenance.
Distracted by this realization, Shino hesitated for a fraction of a second, a fatal mistake.
Hashirama's foot smashed into his chin with a bone-jarring kick.
Shino was sent flying through the air like a ragdoll, crashing through the brittle wall of a nearby abandoned house and collapsing amidst the splintered debris.
And Masara immediately used his new jutsu Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet at the location shino crashed.
Madara, Hashirama, and Ishiki approached the burning wreckage.
They paused to take one last swig from concentrated food, their stamina fully restored, and then walked toward the crumpled form.
They found Shino struggling to remain upright, kneeling among the rubble.
Blood trickled from a cut on his forehead, staining the dust, and some burnt clothes.
His heavy sword lay beside him, its edge chipped and battered, looking as if one more strike would shatter it.
He looked up at his three conquerors and managed a bloody, defiant laugh.
"You won today," he conceded, the words barely a rasp.
His eyes narrowed, filled not with fear, but with dangerous calculation.
But if the Sarutobi clan learns about this... they will eradicate your entire village.
It looks like my subordinate is already on his way to relay the news to the main compound.
He laughed again, a loud, chilling sound that echoed through the destroyed street.
The three fighters exchanged grim, uneasy glances.
Suddenly, a different sound pierced the air, not the expected footsteps of a retreating subordinate, but the rough, angry clamor of a crowd.
"Is this your subordinate?" a voice boomed from the street.
Everyone turned to the source. It was the villagers, led by the stern-faced village chief, dragging a figure who was badly injured and had clearly been severely beaten.
The villagers bodily threw the man onto the ground in front of Shino.
The injured man, one of Shino's own, cried out in despair.
He cursed his bad luck; he had successfully fled the initial battle only to stumble upon a hidden base.
Thinking he could redeem himself and capture the enemy leaders, he had tried to take them on.
But he was wrong, he wailed, clutching his bruised ribs.
"The villagers... they are determined to fight to the death. I finally lost."
Shino stared at his captured comrade, a momentary flicker of shock giving way to a renewed, steely composure.
"Almost fifteen members of my clan died here today," he stated, his voice firm despite his injuries.
"My clan will definitely know about this, regardless of your actions. You all will die either way."
He paused, his tone shifting to a desperate offer.
"Let me return. I will make sure no harm will come to this village for what has happened."