My Kekkei Genkai Is Kinda Weird?!

Rin hadn't vanished.

She had dropped low—so low that her knees slammed into the gravel-strewn path—and used the momentum of her sprint to slide forward.

Her knees scraped violently against the rough terrain. The fabric tore in an instant, and raw pain flared as flesh met stone. But she didn't flinch.

From the bandits' point of view, the girl simply disappeared from their line of sight.

"Where'd she go?!"

Whoosh!

The very next second, Rin's short blade swept upward from below, slicing cleanly across the abdomen of the nearest bandit. Warm blood erupted in a high arc, spraying across her face.

She felt, unmistakably, the sickening texture of intestines slipping against her weapon.

There was no time to recoil.

She kept moving—her momentum propelling her forward—her right hand gripping a kunai in reverse. As she slid past another enemy, she slashed horizontally across his Achilles tendon.

The man screamed, collapsing to his knees in agony—

Only to meet Rin's sharply rising knee—

Crack!

His nasal bone shattered with a gruesome snap.

Using the recoil from her strike, Rin spun like a top. Her left-hand blade drew a cold arc through the air—

Slash!

The third bandit's throat split open in a red line. He stumbled, clutching his neck, but the blood poured faster than he could stop it.

Rin's slide finally came to a halt.

She knelt on one knee, blades crossed protectively in front of her. Blood dripped steadily from her weapons, pooling at her feet in a dark, gleaming puddle.

Her breath came fast and shallow, her chest heaving.

But her eyes—her eyes were cold.

Focused. Unflinching.

Behind her, three bandits fell like dominos.

One writhed on the ground, blood gushing through the cracks between his fingers.

Another howled in pain, grasping his mangled leg.

The third simply lay still in a pool of blood, eyes wide open in frozen terror.

Rin slowly rose to her feet, flicking blood from her blades. Her knees burned with pain—flesh torn and caked with dirt and blood—but it barely registered.

What haunted her more…

Was the sticky, clinging sensation on her hands—blood mixed with earth.

"There are more…" she muttered, lifting her eyes toward the remaining bandits still surrounding Obito and Rin.

—

Hidden in the shadows, Minato Namikaze frowned.

Against three low-level bandits, Rin had more efficient, safer options. A long-range attack with shuriken. A feint using shadow clones. She could have immobilized or eliminated them from a distance.

Instead, she chose this: a flashy, reckless technique that tore up her knees.

Why?

Minato narrowed his eyes.

She knows better. So why this?

Rin's fingertips trembled slightly. The performance was beginning.

She looked down at her bloodied knees, where flesh mixed with gravel and dirt in a pulpy mess. The sting was sharp—but beneath it, oddly comforting.

It proved she was still alive.

The dying gazes of those men still hovered in her mind—

Terror. Desperation. Pain.

They were people too. Not monsters.

Just… men with blood, faces, and fear.

"What am I even doing…" she whispered.

Her right hand clenched tightly around her blade, the knuckles bone-white.

She could've waited for backup. Could've used clones. Could've attacked from a distance.

But she hadn't.

She chose close combat. She chose pain.

She traded injury for victory.

"Again," she hissed through clenched teeth.

She forced herself forward—toward the next group.

And deliberately—

She didn't use her clones.

She met every opponent up close. And every time her blade sank into flesh, she allowed herself to get hurt too—

A shallow cut to her arm. A grazing blow across her shoulder. Her shin torn by broken stone.

Blood streamed down her limbs.

But it was as if she couldn't feel it anymore.

"This is how it should be…" she murmured.

"If you take a life… you should pay a price."

From the shadows, Minato's expression darkened.

Every one of Rin's movements was deliberate—but off.

Dodges that could've been perfect were mistimed by just enough to let the blade graze her.

Strikes that could've ended fights instantly were drawn out, forcing her into danger.

"She's punishing herself…"

Minato finally understood. His blue eyes softened with sorrow.

—

When the final bandit collapsed beneath her kunai, Rin's arm bore a new, deep gash—so deep the bone was faintly visible.

Blood dripped steadily from her fingertips.

But she barely noticed. She gave her arm a casual flick and turned back toward Obito and Rin, who had just been rescued.

"Rin! Are you okay?!"

Nohara Rin rushed toward her, the medical ninja in her instantly noticing the state of her friend.

Rin's knees were a ruin of blood and torn flesh.

Her arms and shoulders were slashed open.

Even her cheek bore a thin, bloody cut.

"W-What the hell?!" Obito's eyes widened in horror. "They were just a bunch of bandits! How did you end up like this?! Even we didn't get this beat up!"

Rin forced a shaky smile.

"I'm… fine. Just not strong enough, I guess…"

Just then, Kakashi arrived with the rescued children. His silver hair was dusted with dirt from the prison cell.

But when his eyes landed on Rin—

His pupils constricted sharply.

"You—"

"Enough."

A golden blur appeared beside her.

Minato reached out and grabbed Rin's wrist—so tightly her kunai nearly slipped from her grasp.

His voice was quiet but firm.

Undeniable.

"This ends now."

Rin looked up, meeting his sea-blue gaze.

There was no pride there. No anger.

Only concern.

And pain.

"I… I just…" Rin's lips trembled.

And suddenly, it felt like all her strength had drained from her body.

Minato sighed softly. He gently placed a hand on her bleeding shoulder and began bandaging it.

His chakra, warm and soothing, eased the worst of the pain.

"Everyone feels this the first time," he whispered, low enough that only she could hear.

"But hurting yourself to atone… is the most foolish path you can choose."

Rin's eyes widened.

Kakashi, watching silently, stepped forward.

"Oi. Idiot. Take the kids down the mountain."

"Huh? Oh—okay!" Obito blinked, still confused, but obediently began leading the rescued children away.

Over his shoulder, he muttered indignantly, "And I'm not an idiot!"

Nohara Rin gave one last, worried glance at the little Rin before hurrying to follow the others.

Now only Minato, Kakashi, and Rin remained.

Kakashi's voice was blunt, as always.

"Why?"

His gaze was sharp enough to cut.

"With your skills, there's no way you'd get injured fighting these guys."

Rin's throat tightened.

She stared at her blood-soaked hands.

The faces of the dying men still swam before her.

"I… killed someone…" she whispered.

So quietly, it was almost lost in the wind.

Minato didn't move his hand from her shoulder.

His chakra continued to heal.

"As a ninja," he said gently, "this is something we must face eventually. But remember—

Taking a life is not something you repay by hurting yourself."

Kakashi was silent for a beat—

Then, unexpectedly, he raised a hand and ruffled her hair.

"Idiot."

The word made her freeze.

He sounded as cold as ever, but the edge was gone. His tone was softer now.

"Listen up," Kakashi muttered.

"Those bandits had killed dozens of innocent people.

You saved lives today.

Do you understand that?"

Rin's mind flashed with images of the terrified children they'd rescued—

Their trembling hands, their tear-streaked faces.

Minato stepped back, offering her a gentle smile.

"There. That should hold for now. Let Nohara Rin take a proper look once we return."

He paused.

Then added, quietly:

"Hokage-sama is still waiting for our mission report."

---