So here it is, Chapter 2!
Rates and reviews always appreciated... I want to know if I am doing this right.
The trees rushed by in a blur of green and brown. The wind pierced her skin and whistled through her ears.
Yumi was well known for her speed and she was going so fast that if she lost concentration for even a split second, she would have missed a tree branch and fallen.
She thought about her mission; a peace treaty between the Kazekage, Gaara and the Hokag,e Tsunade.
Yumi smiled at the prospect of seeing the sand siblings again.
She hadn't seen the legendary Sand nin since he was kidnapped by the Akatsuki.
Yumi had been sent after Team Guy and Team Kakashi when things had gotten drastic and had been devastated to find Gaara killed.
She had met the boy at the chunnin exams and despite his ominous demeanor, she had, much like Naruto, recognized the potential for good in him.
During Naruto's three year absence from the village, Yumi had gone on multiple missions with the gennin and jounin teams to the Village Hidden in the Sand.
Yumi had even been present at Gaara's Kazekage ceremony.
Over the years it could be said that she had befriended the sand siblings.
They looked upon each other fondly.
"DUCK!"
Yumi snapped out of her trance when Hibiki yelled out a warning.
A large tree branch appeared out of nowhere and the white haired kunoichi ran straight into it.
"Oof."
Well that's what I get for letting my mind wander..
As she fell, she hit several other limbs and was smacked in the face by numerous leafy branches
Hibiki fluttered down to the forest floor and waited for her to reach the bottom.
Yumi groaned from above him and he chuckled when he saw that she had landed on a tree branch and cushioned the fall with her stomach.
The girls arms and legs now pointed towards the ground as the tree under her belly supported her weight.
Hibiki would have looked amused if his owlish face could accomplish it.
Slumping to the ground, Yumi grasped her bruising stomach and scowled.
"Yumi Kusakabe. S-rank Jounin, never been scratched in battle, never gets sick and never gets caught… Death by tree...
I hate gravity..."
The snow white feathers on Hibiki's body shook as he laughed. Only Yumi could be attacked by a tree and lose the battle.
Sighing, the girl with mismatched eyes glanced around.
They were near the border of The Village Hidden in the Rain.
Grass in this area grew high due to the copious amount of rain in the village nearby.
Good kindling for a fire.
Her mood brightened slightly at the prospect of warmth, Yumi began hacking at grass to clear an area to set up camp.
Hibiki flew up to a nearby branch and clipped small sticks off with his sharp beak.
They worked in harmony to clear the area and gather kindling and logs for the fire.
In no time Yumi and Hibiki were basking in the warmth and light that nature provided.
A shadow gazed over the strange city before him.
The buildings rose haphazardly out of the ground and pipes of all shapes and sizes wove around them like vines.
Small canals ran through the city like veins and collected the water the sky constantly cried, whilst the citizens littered the streets donning umbrellas and raincoats.
This city lay deep in the country of Rain.
He stood in the tallest tower in Amegakure and gazed into the sky as the rain poured down over them.
A black robe adorned his shoulders decorated with red clouds.
Clouds that once symbolized the blood that poured like rain during the civil war that killed so many.
The war that made the sky weep.
The war that killed his parents and stole his childhood.
During those times, the child, Nagato, died and was reborn as Pein.
The ruler of those dreadful days would never again bring war to The Village Hidden in the Rain.
Hanzo the Salamander was dead. Killed by his hand and conquered by his organization: The Akatsuki.
Never again would blood spill from the bodies of innocents, never again would this village be surrounded by death and destruction.
Pein was a God.
The rain that fell now was not a weary tormented weep.
It was a pure rain that washed away the sorrows of the past.
He controlled the rain now.
From this downpour, Pein was able to hear and see everything that occurred in the village he had adopted.
Outsiders were strictly forbidden, for outsiders brought with them the troubles of the outside world.
So secretive was the village that most of the other shinobi nations had no idea that the civil war was over and that Hanzo the Salamander lay dead in the shallow earth his body was unceremoniously dumped in.
Yes.
Pein was careful.
So when he gazed out to the southeast and saw the flickering light of a fire on the borders of his land, he returned to the inside of his abode and to the blue haired woman who resided with him.
"Konan, I am entrusting the village to you for a few hours. I will be taking Deva Pain.
Look after the village."
The blue haired woman, Konan, nodded but did not reply, knowing that nothing need be said to the God of Amegakure.
Pein stepped back outside into the rain.
Using his technique: Universal pull, he literally flew towards the area from which the fire came.
The rain pounded in his ears as he gained speed his dojutsu allowed him
It would take a full 5 minutes before he was able to use this technique again but he wasnt worried.
His taijutsu skills far surpassed anyone he had ever encountered and not once in his entire life…
Had Pein ever lost a fight.
Yumi jumped from her roll-out futon at the sound of rustling tree branches.
Hibiki perked up and without a moments notice, flew up and out of the small clearing.
Through his eyes, Yumi could see the trespasser, an orange haired man in a dark cloak.
She gasped as he suddenly jumped down in front of her and attempted to hit her with a series of fly kicks.
Okay… Guess we wont be discussing this…
Swinging her body around, Yumi jumped in the air and managed to land a sharp kick to the mans neck.
Seemingly unperturbed by this, he jumped out of the shadows to counterattack.
It was only then that Yumi noticed the pattern on his cloak, a black background decorated in red and white clouds.
Her eyes widened with realization, Akatsuki! Here!
Dodging and blocking his violent kicks and punches, Yumi tried to get a better look at his face.
She was thoroughly familiar with criminals in the Bingo Book.
All of the known Akatsuki members had their profiles displayed on their own customized page along with their strengths, weaknesses and mug shots.
But despite feeling a sense of recognition, this man was not somebody she remembered from the Bingo Book.
Squinting her eyes and tilting her head as she back flipped away from a series of shuriken, Yumi tried to pick where she had seen this man before.
After a kunai thunked into the tree next to her, narrowly missed her head, she growled and thought, to hell with it.
She could figure out who he was after she knocked him out.
Feigning a duck, Yumi placed both her hands on the ground in a handstand, flexed out her legs into the splits and rapidly spun in circles.
She heard and felt a satisfying crack.
Ceasing her attack, Yumi ricocheted off a tree trunk and stood before the now quite angry man.
A small grin came to her face when she saw a tear on the sleeve of his cloak and a few droplets of red seeping through.
As her gaze wandered to his face, Yumi froze in shock.
The man's entire face was covered in piercings, even the bridge of his nose wasn't spared.
But no amount of piercings would render him so unrecognizable that Yumi wouldn't know who he was.
The way he held himself, his spiky orange hair…
His eyes looked different and he had grown taller but there was no doubt about it…
This was…
"Yahiko?"
Yumi watched his face carefully for any reaction or sign that he recognized her.
There was none.
Face not betraying a single emotion, the man rushed towards her in another attempt at attack.
Feeling stupid, Yumi resumed attacking and blocking.
Obviously she had made a mistake. Yahiko would never attack her.
Suddenly furious with herself, Yumi delivered a punch so severe that she was surprised his head didn't fly away from his body.
As it was, he flew backwards, hit a tree and slumped to the ground.
Heaving slightly, Yumi wiped away a single tear before turning to pack her things and go.
She didn't want to stay a second longer.
Pein lay on the ground, feigning unconsciousness.
Had the girl been smart, she would have checked him for signs of life.
Either way, that was quite a hit.
Pein had been puzzled by the girls outburst.
She seemed to recognize Yahiko's body and yet Pein couldn't place where he knew her from.
If he displayed emotion he would have rolled his eyes.
Clearly it was a misunderstanding. It wasn't possible that she could know who Yahiko was.
It was completely possibly that he had heard her wrong.
Whatever the case, he felt his Universal Pull return to him.
It had been 5 minutes.
Out of the corner of his eye, Pein watched as she doused the fire and stood to leave.
Not going to happen.
Pushing his arms under himself, Pein leapt to his feet and ran towards her.
The white haired kunoichi turned in shock and surprise.
Before she could dodge Pein smashed his fist into her face.
The woman, though making a quick recovery, no longer had any chance of winning the battle.
Gazing her over quickly, he decided that he would reanimate her corpse to use as his Animal Path, the likes of which were destroyed by his former sensei, Jiraiya.
Pein moved around her, forcing the woman to circle around to keep away from him.
When she was directly in front of a tree, the orange haired shinobi smirked and used the power of Deva Pain.
His Universal Push threw her back with a force so hard that she was unconscious almost before she hit the trunk.
Cracking a knuckle and observing his torn robe, Pein inwardly furrowed his brow irritably.
He would have to send it to Kakuzu to be fixed.
A white owl caught his attention as it flew down to land on top of the woman.
If animals could show facial expressions, Pein would be sure this one was glaring.
He walked towards the white haired kunoichi's body only to be stopped when the owl flew and swooped him.
Another Universal Push was enough to render the owl unconscious before it could cause too much trouble.
Pein grabbed the womans hair and pulled her head towards him to study his new body.
She did look familiar…
Gazing over her thoughtfully, he tried to remember where he could have possibly seen her.
He had never been close enough to someone to really call them a friend, other than Jiraiya sensei, Konan, Yahiko and….
Frowning suddenly, Pein pulled her closer and with one hand, lifted up an eyelid.
A glazed over blue iris greeted him.
Swapping hands, Pein prepared himself to lift the other lid.
He paused silently.
Perhaps there was a chance… A small possibility… A tiny glimmer of hope…
He shook his head to rid himself of thoughts and memories from the past.
This eye would be blue, just like the other, and he would return to Amegakure to reanimate her corpse
Mind made up and without hesitation, he lifted up her eyelid.
And froze...