A light drizzle had formed above the two figures. One lifted his face to the sky and let the rain cool him.
"It's such a beautiful afternoon." He stated, then faced the other figure. "Please don't make me kill you, Joriu-san."
The other man, Joriu, shifted his weight. "You know the rules of our organization, Judo. We disbanded for a reason. Now that we're here, right now, only one of us can walk away."
Judo let out a sigh. The rain picked up a bit, and his gi was becoming soaked through. He rested his left hand on the sheathe of the katana in his obi.
"If it must come to this…" Judo started.
"It must. I'm sorry, old friend." Joriu responded. He quickly formed three hand seals, shouting out the name of the jutsu as it took its effect.
"Shodan Kousoku!" Judo recognized it as the beginning of Joriu's attack sequence, the First level speed technique. He watched as Joriu sped towards him, as he predicted, and started forming hand seals at lightning speed.
"Kenjutsu Ougi-Battojutsu!" Joriu called as he neared, pooling his charka to his sword and drawing it quickly in a slashing motion. He felt the blade cut effortlessly, piercing the gi and flesh of his friend Judo. As the technique completed, Judo wore an expression of shock, as he felt his torso being separated from hip to shoulder. Joriu felt both angst and relief that such a move had worked on someone so experienced as Judo.
"Dochuu Engyou no Jutsu!" Joriu heard a voice call from nowhere. His brain worked frantically to figure out what had happened, and even as the form of Judo turned into a chunk of wood, a slash across his back made him painfully aware of his error.
"Sangeki Hissatu Waza- Igeki!" Judo's voice sounded as he popped up from the earth, slashing his opponents back with his katana. Joriu reacted to the sudden pain, turning in an attempt to score a slash at Judo's neck. Judo dropped his sword low and backed away slightly, just out of the sword tips reach. Joriu felt himself become overbalanced, and tried to bring his sword back in defense of the coming attack, but it was to late. Judo darted in and grabbed the lapel of Joriu's gi. He sunk his hips in and turned, pulling Joriu over his shoulder effortlessly with one hand. Joriu landed hard, the air blasted from his lungs. As he struggled to defend himself, he felt the blade of Judo's katana slash him from hip to shoulder.
"Sangeki Hissatu Waza-Nigeki." Judo muttered, his technique almost complete. Joriu finally recognized it as the Three-Hit Kill technique, a technique that takes a minute to learn, but a lifetime to master. It was no surprise that Judo would use it to finish his opponent. Joriu laughed despite himself.
"Earth displacement technique combined with the Three-Hit Kill…" Joriu coughed.
"I'm sorry to put you through so much pain, my friend. I wish that you had simply walked away." Judo replied. Joriu couldn't tell if Judo was crying, or if was just the rain.
"No, my friend…I would rather die at your hands, than at the hands of some Jounin that thinks he knows it all. Ninjutsu isn't what it used to be, and I would loathe finding myself perished before someone who was more lucky that skilled." Joriu coughed again. Judo's second cut was deep, and he was finding it increasingly hard to keep air in his lungs.
"My knowledge…is hidden in the country of Fire….in the village of Konoha. Please, my dying wish…is for you to learn what I could not." Joriu spat. Judo felt his heart sink for his friend.
"I will honor your wish, Joriu-sama." Judo said, releasing Joriu's gi and letting him rest on the ground. Judo placed his sword in the third position, readying the killing blow.
"The strongest way…" Joriu started, closing his eyes.
"Sangeki Hissatu Waza-Sangeki!" Judo exclaimed, beheading Joriu. Once he was done, Judo knelt, clutching the bloody corpse of his dearest friend to him.
"…is the Gentle Way." Judo finished the saying. Judo hugged the corpse of Joriu one last time, then stood. With tears in his eyes mixing with the stinging rain, he formed a hand seal.
"Doton: Yomi Numa!" he exclaimed, and the earth around Joriu turned into a swamp. Joriu's body sank slowly, until nothing was left except the rough-formed swamp. Judo cancelled the technique, assuring himself that his long time friend was finally at rest. Judo cleaned the blood off his blade, and headed on the quickest route he knew towards Konoha.
Konoha: 2 months later.
Uzimaki Naruto stretched as he took in the summer morning air. The sun had barely begun to rise, but he spied Maito Gai and his protégé Rock Lee already doing their morning routine of one hundred laps around the Village of Konoha. He admired their dedication, but laughed at the way they did things. He did have to admit that Rock Lee is a very difficult opponent, even though he can use next to no Ninjutsu. The sound of Maito Gai's cadence reached his ears, and he laughed both at the lyrics and at the real reason he was awake. Ero-sennin had been away for some time, but before he left he promised Naruto that he would treat him to ramen if he passed the Chuunin exams, which had happened last week. Naruto had passed with flying colors, and now it was a matter of making Ero-sennin keep his promise. The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, and he had hatched a plan to corner Jiraya in her office, so that he had no choice but to treat him to ramen. Tsunade-sama had told Naruto that Jiraya usually checks in with information early in the morning, then darts off to go peek at the ladies in the hot springs. Naruto tightened his headband, which proudly displayed the symbol of Konoha village on it. Concentrating charka to his feet, he leap from the roof of his home onto an adjacent rooftop, stopping only to plot his next jump. He bounded his way to the Hokage's Office in the center of Konoha, spotting a single lamp lit in the window, the signal that Jiraya was present. Naruto made his way around to the public entrance, as Jiraya was fond of entering through the window. He landed in the doorway, and crept silently to the door of Tsunade's office. He waited for a moment, eavesdropping on the conversation.
"…which is why it seems that there is not much we can do, Tsunade." He heard Jiraya say. It was unlike Ero-sennin to sound so negative, so Naruto waited on his entrance to listen more. After all, information gathering was one of the basic tenants of being a ninja.
"As much as I hate to admit it, you're right, Jiraya. Between Akatsuki constantly replenishing their ranks, and Sasuke's Snake squad prowling near Konoha looking for any remnants of the Uchiha clan, we're pretty much under house arrest in our own village." Tsunade's voice said.
Sasuke, Naruto thought. The Last of the Uchiha had garnered the reputation of "The Betrayer" among the elite of Konoha, and a large price was on his head. Naruto had encountered him twice since he went rogue, and both times he was unable to finish the job. Even in the form of the Nine-Tailed Fox, he fell just short of capturing Sasuke. His cronies were more a nuisance than a real threat, and now more than ever, Naruto had seen the similarities between Sasuke and Orochimaru, his former master. Sasuke's drive to learn lethal high-level and even forbidden jutsus had pushed him near the brink of sanity, and Naruto wanted more than anyone to bring Sasuke in, and kill him if needs be. Twice Naruto had confronted Sasuke in the manner of friendship, and both times it dissolved into a knock-down, drag-out fight that left both Sasuke and Naruto drained.
"The last mission I sent out was intercepted by two more Akatsuki members, and though they all returned, their mission was basically a failure. There's only three more Jinchuriki left in the world, and one of them resides in this village."
Naruto heard Tsunade's chair creak, and the was either leaning back or standing up.
"Naruto needs training now more than ever, Jiraya. I appreciate what you've done for the village, but the basics that you taught Naruto during his stay with you aren't going to cut it. Kakashi has tried to teach him the ways of the elements, and bless him, he succeeded, but it takes a terrible toll on the boy. He needs you." Tsunade sounded like she was almost begging. Naruto could feel the tension, and decided that now would be a good time to interefere. He burst through the door, smiling widely and surprising both Tsunade and Jiraya.
"Yes, this student needs you to treat him to ramen, because he's a full fledged Chuunin now!" he boasted, posing in front of the door and cutting off any escape for Jiraya.
Jiraya sighed. "Did I really promise that?" he asked, looking around.
"You sure did. You said that since I had to train myself 'cuz you wouldn't be here for the Chuunin exams, that you would treat me to Ramen! Now man up!" Naruto pointed directly at Ero-sennin's face.
"But the ramen shop you like isn't open for another two hours." Jiraya pointed out. Naruto considered this, looking at Tsunade, who was eyeing the both of them.
"Well, then you can train me until then." Naruto said confidently. Jiraya shook his head.
"I still have things to discuss with the Hokage, this time without you eavesdropping." Jiraya added harshly. Naruto buckled for a second, then regained his composure.
"Fine, then I'll go train myself. And I'll meet you at Ichiru Ramen in two hours. Deal?" Naruto asked.
"Fine, fine, deal." Jiraya admitted.
"Bet the frogs?" Naruto inquired. 'Bet the Frogs' was a term that he used on Ero-sennin so make sure he would keep his promise. Jiraya winced every time he used the expression, and this time was no exception.
"Yeah, bet the frogs I'll be there. Maybe a little late." Jiraya promised.
"Deal! See you in two hours, Ero-sennin!" Naruto sprinted from the room, leaving both Jiraya and Tsunade smiling.