After blocking Mizuki's shadow clone attack, Uchiha Hui had already begun weaving hand signs. His fingers danced with speed and precision, blurring into an afterimage. His chakra surged — fierce, focused, lethal.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
The roar of flames erupted from Hui's mouth, the fireball swelling into a blazing sphere of heat and fury. The air rippled with searing intensity, distorting the alley's walls as the inferno rushed toward Hyuga Yufumi.
Mizuki's breath caught. The oppressive heat pressed against his skin, and his scalp tingled with dread.
This... this brat is a monster.
Teeth clenched, Mizuki hurriedly formed his own hand signs. If he could strike before Hui finished —
Too late.
The smoke from Mizuki's earlier clone attack swirled — and from that cloud emerged Hui, no longer disguised as a floor tile. He appeared before Mizuki in an instant, his kunai gleaming like a shard of ice.
"W-wait—!"
The blade flashed.
"Thud!"
Steel sliced across Mizuki's hand. Blood sprayed, and before Mizuki could recoil, Hui's knee drove into his stomach with brutal force.
"Ugh!"
Bile surged up Mizuki's throat as his ribs crunched under the impact. His limbs spasmed, his body curling up like a coiled spring.
"Crash!"
Mizuki slammed into the alley wall, a kunai still buried in his wrist. Blood dripped from the blade, leaving crimson trails down his arm.
Meanwhile, the fireball surged forward. Its fiery tendrils licked at the walls, scorching the air. The scent of sulfur filled the alley.
Yufumi's face twisted in terror. His pride as a Hyuga was gone — all that remained was panic.
Too fast… I can't dodge it!
He threw himself to the ground, arms flung over his head. The fireball passed inches above him before smashing into the alley wall.
"Boom!"
Bricks shattered. Debris flew in every direction. Scattered flames spread across the stone path, and burning fragments landed on Yufumi's back.
"Aaaaah!" Yufumi screamed, rolling desperately to extinguish the flames. Smoke stung his eyes, and his hands slapped wildly at the burning patches on his sleeves.
Uchiha Hui wasted no time.
He closed the distance to Mizuki in a heartbeat, kunai still slick with blood. Mizuki groaned, barely conscious, clutching his wounded arm.
"P-please…" Mizuki gasped, voice faint. "D-don't…"
Hui's face remained cold and unreadable. The blade rose.
"Crack!"
The kunai smashed down on Mizuki's wrist, splintering bone.
"Aaaaaah!" Mizuki's screams rang through the alley as his severed hand hit the ground. Blood spattered across the wall.
Still clutching the kunai, Hui stood over him, gaze devoid of emotion. Blood dripped steadily from the blade.
Yufumi, still trembling from the fireball's aftermath, turned his head to see Hui approaching. His face — half-smeared with blood — looked less like that of a student and more like a vengeful spirit.
"D-don't…" Yufumi stammered. "I... I won't… I won't fight you again…"
His voice shook, each word barely escaping his throat. He couldn't tear his eyes away from Hui's blank stare — as if Hui hadn't just maimed a man without flinching.
"Don't show your face in front of me again," Hui said, his voice sharp as a blade. "Or you'll die."
Yufumi's head bobbed frantically. "U-understood… understood…"
Hui turned without another word, stepping over Mizuki's quivering form. Blood dripped from his kunai, leaving a crimson trail as he disappeared into the shadows.
By the time the Konoha garrison arrived, Mizuki was barely conscious, desperately trying to slow the bleeding from his mangled wrist. Yufumi sat against the alley wall, still muttering "understood" like a broken doll.
Mizuki was taken to the Uchiha compound for interrogation. Through the Sharingan's relentless gaze, the truth was dragged from him — his schemes, his alliances, his plans.
His fate? For his family and friends, the explanation was simple:
Mizuki had gone to war.
Sooner or later, word would come that Mizuki had fallen in battle. No one would ever know the truth — that Mizuki's war had ended that day, in a dark alley, at the hands of Uchiha Hui.