The wind off the river carried the smell of wet earth and iron.
Shinji stood still in the middle of the narrow forest road, crimson eyes locked forward. Fifty meters behind him, the three genin crouched among the trees exactly where he had ordered them.
No one spoke.
Across the clearing, the massive blade resting over a man's shoulder caught the dim afternoon light.
The weapon was unmistakable.
Kubikiribōchō
Even buried beneath nicks, rust stains, and old blood, the shape of the sword was legendary.
The man holding it grinned.
Jūzō Biwa tilted his head slightly, studying the boy standing in the road.
"Sent the kids away," he said, voice rough like gravel scraping metal. "Smart."
Shinji didn't move.
His Sharingan spun slowly.
"Against someone like you," Shinji said calmly, "they'd only get in the way."
Juwo chuckled.
"That so?"
The swordsman slid Kubikiribōchō down from his shoulder and planted the tip into the dirt.
The ground cracked slightly from the weight.
"Funny thing," Juwo continued. "I heard rumors about a red-eyed brat from the Leaf killing half a dozen missing-nin by himself."
His grin widened.
"Didn't think the brat would actually be you."
Shinji said nothing.
The wind shifted.
Leaves rustled above them.
Juwo pulled the sword free from the dirt with a slow scrape.
"Tell me something before we start," he said. "You Uchiha?"
A faint pause.
Shinji answered simply.
"Yes."
The grin sharpened.
"Good."
In the next instant Juwo vanished.
The sword came down like a falling building.
Shinji's Sharingan flared.
He stepped sideways just as Kubikiribōchō slammed into the earth where he had been standing.
The impact exploded the ground.
Dirt and stone blasted outward.
Shinji leapt back through the debris, hands already forming seals.
"Fire Style—"
His lungs expanded.
"Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
A barrage of blazing fireballs tore across the clearing.
Each one whistled through the air like a burning arrow.
Juwo didn't dodge.
He swung the sword.
The massive blade carved through the fireballs with brutal force.
Flames scattered around him like sparks off an anvil.
Juwo laughed.
"That's cute!"
He kicked off the ground and charged.
Shinji's eyes tracked every movement.
Fast.
Much faster than most swordsmen.
Juwo closed the distance in two steps, the giant sword already sweeping sideways.
Shinji ducked beneath the blade.
The edge screamed past his head.
He countered instantly.
Steel flashed as Shinji's tanto slashed toward Juwo's ribs.
Juwo twisted.
CLANG.
Kubikiribōchō intercepted the strike with ridiculous speed.
The shock traveled up Shinji's arm.
Heavy.
Way heavier than it should be.
Juwo shoved forward with brute strength.
Shinji slid backward several feet, boots carving trenches in the dirt.
Juwo smirked.
"Strong eyes."
He lifted the sword again.
"But you're still a kid."
He swung.
Shinji dodged.
The sword struck a tree behind him.
The trunk exploded into splinters.
Shinji moved again before the blade even finished its arc.
His hands blurred through seals.
"Fire Style—Great Fireball!"
A massive sphere of flame roared forward.
Juwo planted Kubikiribōchō in front of him like a shield.
The fireball detonated against the blade.
Flames engulfed the swordsman.
Smoke filled the clearing.
For a moment everything went quiet.
Then the smoke split apart.
Juwo stepped out.
Unburned.
The sword's metal surface glowed faintly red where it had absorbed the heat.
He tapped the flat of the blade with one finger.
"Big sword," he said. "Useful too."
Shinji exhaled slowly.
So brute force and durability.
Exactly what he expected.
Behind him, the genin watched through the trees with wide eyes.
The swordsman rolled his shoulder.
"You're better than the usual fodder," Juwo admitted. "But if that's all you've got…"
His grin widened again.
"…this'll end quick."
He blurred forward.
Shinji didn't retreat this time.
Instead he stepped in.
Their weapons collided again.
CLANG.
Kubikiribōchō crushed down with monstrous strength.
Shinji angled his blade, redirecting the strike just enough for it to miss his shoulder.
The sword tore a crater in the ground.
Shinji spun.
His heel slammed into Juwo's ribs.
The swordsman slid back half a step.
His grin vanished for the first time.
Shinji didn't press the attack.
Instead he stepped back and bit his thumb.
Blood welled instantly.
He slammed his hand onto the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Smoke exploded across the battlefield.
Juwo's eyebrows lifted slightly.
"Well now…"
From the smoke came the heavy thud of landing feet.
A large figure emerged.
A broad-shouldered monkey nearly Shinji's height stood beside him, gripping a long iron staff.
Its fur was dark charcoal, eyes sharp and intelligent.
The monkey rolled its shoulders and looked at Juwo.
"…That's the idiot with the oversized kitchen knife?"
Shinji nodded slightly.
"Yes."
The monkey sighed.
"Great. I just woke up."
Juwo barked out a laugh.
"A talking monkey."
He lifted Kubikiribōchō.
"Today keeps getting better."
The monkey rested the staff across its shoulders.
"Kid," it muttered to Shinji, "you pick the weirdest fights."
Shinji's Sharingan spun calmly.
"Can you handle the sword?"
The monkey grinned.
"Watch me."
Juwo charged again.
This time he aimed for the summon.
Kubikiribōchō descended like a guillotine.
The monkey met the strike head-on.
CLANG.
Staff and sword collided.
Shockwaves rippled across the clearing.
Juwo's eyes widened slightly.
The monkey slid back a foot but didn't fall.
It smirked.
"Heavy," it said. "But not that heavy."
Juwo swung again.
The monkey spun the staff, deflecting the blade sideways.
At the same moment Shinji moved.
His hands flashed through seals.
"Fire Style—Dragon Flame!"
A narrow torrent of fire shot forward.
Juwo twisted to dodge.
The flames grazed his shoulder.
His coat ignited instantly.
Juwo leapt backward, ripping the burning fabric off and throwing it aside.
His grin returned slowly.
"Alright…"
He cracked his neck.
"Now we're having fun."
The monkey twirled the staff once.
Shinji stepped forward beside it.
Sharingan blazing.
Juwo raised Kubikiribōchō again.
Three fighters faced each other in the clearing.
The wind died completely.
And then—
They all moved at once.
The moment the three of them moved, the clearing erupted.
Jūzō Biwa lunged forward with brutal speed, the massive edge of Kubikiribōchō tearing through the air like a falling slab of iron.
The monkey summon met him head-on.
Its staff spun once—
CLANG.
The impact cracked the ground beneath their feet.
Shockwaves rippled through the dirt.
Leaves exploded off nearby trees as the two weapons locked together.
Juwo's grin widened.
"Well I'll be damned," he growled. "You're stronger than you look, monkey."
The summon bared its teeth.
"And you swing like a drunk lumberjack."
Juwo barked out a laugh and shoved forward with monstrous strength.
The monkey slid back two steps, heels digging trenches into the earth.
Behind him, Shinji moved.
His Sharingan spun, every twitch of Juwo's muscles reflected in the crimson tomoe.
He read the opening instantly.
Shinji burst forward.
Steel flashed.
His tanto streaked toward Juwo's exposed side.
Juwo twisted with shocking reflexes for someone carrying a sword that large.
Kubikiribōchō swung backward.
CLANG.
Shinji's blade deflected off the thick spine of the sword.
The sheer weight forced Shinji to disengage, flipping backward to avoid the follow-up swing that carved a deep gouge through the ground.
Dirt exploded upward.
Juwo planted the sword against his shoulder again.
"Not bad," he admitted.
Then his eyes flicked toward Shinji's summon.
"But two on one?"
The monkey rested the staff across its shoulders lazily.
"Complain louder."
Juwo's grin returned.
Then he vanished.
Shinji's Sharingan flared.
Left.
Kubikiribōchō screamed through the air toward the monkey's head.
The summon reacted instantly.
The staff snapped upward—
CLANG.
The impact rattled the forest.
Juwo twisted the sword mid-swing, redirecting the enormous blade toward Shinji.
Too fast for a normal shinobi to react.
But Shinji wasn't normal.
His eyes had already predicted the movement.
He ducked beneath the arc.
His hands blurred through seals.
"Fire Style—"
He inhaled sharply.
"Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A massive sphere of flame erupted from his mouth.
Juwo's grin vanished as the fireball filled his vision.
He swung Kubikiribōchō like a shield.
The explosion rocked the clearing.
Flames swallowed the swordsman.
Heat rolled through the trees.
For a moment, nothing moved.
Then the flames split apart.
Juwo stepped out again.
Smoke rose from his coat and shoulder, but he was far from finished.
"Alright…" he muttered.
His grip tightened on the sword.
"You're starting to piss me off."
He rushed again.
This time he didn't slow down.
Kubikiribōchō came down in a brutal overhead strike.
The monkey blocked again.
CLANG.
The ground shattered beneath them.
Juwo forced downward with terrifying strength.
The summon's staff bent slightly under the pressure.
"Kid!" the monkey barked.
"I'm getting tired of this idiot!"
Shinji moved instantly.
He flashed behind Juwo.
His Sharingan locked onto the swordsman's eyes.
For a split second—
Their gazes met.
The world distorted.
Juwo froze.
Not for long.
Just a heartbeat.
But it was enough.
The monkey slammed its staff sideways.
CRACK.
The blow smashed into Juwo's ribs and launched him across the clearing.
The swordsman skidded through the dirt before crashing into a tree hard enough to splinter the trunk.
Silence fell.
Juwo coughed once.
Then he started laughing again.
"You little—"
He stood slowly.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
His grin returned wider than before.
"Genjutsu too?"
Shinji said nothing.
He simply stepped forward again.
The monkey twirled its staff.
"Round three?" it asked.
Juwo spat blood into the dirt.
"Yeah," he said.
"This time I'm cutting that monkey in half."
He rushed forward again with explosive speed.
Kubikiribōchō came in low this time.
A sweeping horizontal slash designed to cleave both opponents apart.
The monkey vaulted over the blade.
Shinji slid underneath it.
They crossed paths behind Juwo in perfect coordination.
The summon struck first.
The staff hammered downward toward Juwo's shoulder.
Juwo twisted.
The staff clipped him instead of crushing him.
But the impact staggered him.
Shinji appeared in front of him instantly.
His hands blurred through seals.
"Fire Style—"
A narrow jet of flame erupted forward.
"Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
The blast slammed into Juwo's chest at point-blank range.
The explosion hurled him backward.
Fire rolled across the clearing.
Juwo crashed into the ground and rolled several times before skidding to a stop.
For the first time since the battle began—
He didn't stand up immediately.
Smoke curled from his armor.
His breathing had grown heavier.
Across the battlefield, Shinji stood calmly.
Not untouched.
But controlled.
Measured.
The monkey summon rested its staff against its shoulder again.
"Told you," it said.
Juwo pushed himself up slowly.
He looked at Shinji for a long moment.
Then he laughed again.
"Damn," he admitted.
"You're stronger than I expected."
He lifted Kubikiribōchō again, but this time his stance had changed.
Less reckless.
More cautious.
Shinji's Sharingan watched every detail.
The swordsman wiped blood from his chin.
"I came out here looking for easy prey," Juwo said.
His grin returned.
"Looks like I found something else."
He rested the blade against his shoulder.
"But this isn't over."
The wind shifted again.
Leaves rustled above them.
Juwo slowly stepped backward.
"Next time," he said, eyes still locked on Shinji, "I'll bring your head back to the Mist."
Then he vanished into the trees.
The forest grew quiet again.
Behind Shinji, the genin slowly stepped out from the brush, eyes wide.
The monkey summon exhaled and stretched.
"Well," it muttered.
"That guy was annoying."
Shinji's Sharingan faded.
He stared toward the forest where Juwo had disappeared.
The swordsman had retreated.
But the fight wasn't finished.
Not yet.
Shinji turned back toward the genin.
"Stay alert," he said calmly.
"He'll be back."
The monkey snorted.
"Good."
It spun the staff once and rested it on its shoulder.
"I didn't even break a sweat."
The wind rustled through the clearing again.
And somewhere deep in the forest—
Jūzō Biwa grinned through blood-stained teeth as he retreated.
The next battle would decide everything.