Many thanks to the people who are reading and reviewing my story, especially adngo714 by pointing out a mistake I made in chapter 1. I want to ask you guys to tell me if you see any more mistakes, because my first language isn't english, so I may miss some :s

Thanks in advance!

Chapter 3 - Gaara's Weapon

"I've found them, Chojuro! This time they're over here!" Akatsuchi shouted as he found a pair of wooden sticks stuck in the middle of the snow.

"From the direction of the markings, it looks like Ao went this way." Chojuro concluded, after checking the small branches of the sticks.

"We'd better hurry then. Ao will need our help." Mifune remembered.

"Hai!" The two samurais, the Mist Swordsmen and the Iwagakure bodyguard all agreed.

"Wait for us!" All five stopped as they heard a familiar voice. Kankuro just landed by their side, followed by Temari, Shi and a Konoha shinobi. "Do you know where they're headed?"

"Yeah." Mifune answered, while pointing towards the sticks. "Who's this young man?"

"A Konoha Jounin who was travelling to the summit along with Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan and the Kyuubi Jinchuriki." Shi reported.

"You can just call me Yamato." The ANBU told them.

"Yamato is it? Can we trust him?" Mifune asked, surprising Yamato. "Being a Konoha shinobi, there's always the chance that he's under Danzo's orders."

"Not likely, but if you're worried about it, Sunagakure will take full responsability in case he tries something." Temari quickly countered, but Mifune wasn't totally convinced.

"Okay, fine..." The leader of the samurais relutanctly accepted Yamato in the search team with a sigh. "Aren't you missing one?"

"Not anymore. We can proceed." Darui said as he joined the others.

"Darui...can't blame him for being so sensitive in the Jinchuriki matter, especially since his father was the former Hachibi's host." Shi thought as he saw Darui looking behind a last time before they left the area. "Nor do I have the moral to do so, as I'm quite sensitive about it too...as the brother of the last Nibi's host..."

"Ugh! Damn it!" Fu cursed as he couldn't get rid of the tags that were covering Ao's right eye. As he tried to take off Ao's Byakugan, the tags that served as earrings immediately acted as a shield to stop Fu from stealing it. Not even with a kunai, the Root ANBU was able to break through the defense. "It's no use..."

"Don't bother...That's a barrier jutsu that only the Kiri ANBU Hunter-nins can break. This is the only Byakugan Kirigakure has in its possession...You won't get your hands on it that easily." Ao thought as he kept watching the scene from the puppet's point of view.

"So it's automatically invoked when the eyes are in danger, eh? Seems like the sort of jutsu you undertakers would come up with." Fu commented, much to Ao's surprise. It seemed that Fu could still hear the thoughts of whoever he trapped in his puppets. "I never thought of this as being easy...If I gouge out your eye, it will crush my own as well...You realize what I mean, don't you?"

"Did Danzo order this? Is that all he thinks of his underlings?" Ao asked in desbelief.

"One of my eyes is a small price to pay to strike such a major blow at Kirigakure, even though I can't do anything with this barrier protecting your eye...but there are ways of getting around it." Fu stated as he ripped off the remaining kama from the puppet's body and tied it up to the closest tree's branch.

"What are you plotting?" Ao suspiciously asked as he saw Fu climbing the tree on his body.

"I'm going to jump down and cut off your head." Fu explained as he tied Ao's hands together. "If I can't take your eye, I'll just have to take your whole head back to Konoha."

"Are you going to kill yourself?" Ao asked in a surprisingly calm tone.

"No, I'll leave your body the moment your neck is cut. Anyway, you'll die...and I'll return to my own body. I'll come back later for your head." Fu explained.

"Whatever. You'd better be careful though...You don't want to make a mistake." Ao advised.

"What do you mean?" The confused Fu asked.

"If you get scared and leave my body too soon, I'll block the blade! And if I don't die, our positions will be reversed when you return for my head!" Ao explained, leaving Fu speechless for awhile.

"Hmph..." Fu grunted, before jumping towards the exposed blade of the kama.

"Baki-sama! Baki-sama!" Two girls barged into Baki's office, while shouting loudly.

"What is it with you two, Sari, Matsuri?" Baki asked, visibly annoyed by her loud voices.

"The Silent Wasteland, a large amount of its sand disappeared!" Matsuri explained, causing Baki's eyes to open slightly.

"And some rooms covered in snow and rubble appeared in its place. What's going on, Baki-sama?" Sari asked.

"It must have been in the area of the Space-Time Battlefield Swap. So that means..." Baki suddenly stood, frightening Sari and Matsuri in the process. "Gaara must be in a fight right now. And a big one..."

"This was a summoning through a scroll, so the portion of chakra used was meaningless. Gaara's ready to fight all out now. That means..." Madara shifted the focus of his right eye from Gaara to Ë. "I'll go after you first!"

"Behind..." Gaara whispered seconds after Madara warped. Indeed, when Ë turned, he managed to grab Madara by his left wrist as he was about to stab him with a kunai.

"What's wrong? Can't warp without touching yourself?" Ë asked in a mocking tone, with lightning once again enveloping him. As he pulled his own head behind to prepare a headbutt, Madara used his free hand to grab Ë by the throat.

"Now you're mine!" Madara shouted as his right eye slightly glew. The effects of Mugen Tsukuyomi would take place shortly.

"THE FUCK I AM!" Ë roared as he still moved his head forward. The shocked Madara managed to avoid his opponent's first attack, but his left arm got exposed to the second coming of Ë's forehead. "Headbutt"

"How is this possible?" Madara thought as he backed away. Not even a grunt of pain was unleashed, but the fact was that Madara's left arm was in Ë's possession.

"Hey, lost something old man? Maybe I'll use it to replace mine!" Ë suggested as he waved the limb he held in his hand. Strangely, a white mucus-like substance seemed to be leaking from the place where Madara's arm was dettached. "What is this? Seems like the guy from earlier..."

"How can someone resist Mugen Tsukuyomi? This Raikage...what a powerhouse, both physically and mentally." Madara silently admitted, just before the sand below him started to swirl. Madara passed his right hand by his face and warped to a safe distance. The founder of the Uchiha clan saw the Fourth Raikage tossing away the arm, something that made him furious.

"Behind..." Before he could do something about Ë, Madara heard Gaara's whisper once again. "You've become quite slower, haven't you?"

"What are you talking about, Gaara?" Madara answered without turning to face the Kazekage.

"Haven't you noticed? You're warping speed has decreased to the point even I can keep with you. Plus, that intagebility technique you use isn't taking effect as fast is it was, considering that the Raikage managed to grab you. By summoning this desert, the advantage I gained wasn't having more sand to dispose of. It was limiting your movements."

"My movements?" Madara asked, before looking around the battlefield with his Sharingan. Then, it became clear. "I see now...The barrier is still in effect."

"So, you understand...Space-time ninjutsu doesn't work as well when its user his inside a barrier." Gaara remembered the more experienced Madara. "The first part of my summoning consists in placing the same barrier I placed in the area I'm about to summon. After the summoning, both barriers stay in place in case I wan't to swap the battlefields again."

"As it wasn't enough, this sand gives you sensor abilities, doesn't it? When I warp, my chakra disappears, but when I return and touch the sand, you immediately know where I am. Isn't it sensory sand?" Madara asked as he turned to his opponent, with Gaara's answer coming in the form of a smirk. "But what if my chakra doesn't return?"

"What do you mean?" Gaara asked but got no verbal answer. Madara passed his right hand through his face and warped once more.

"Tsk, why did that idiot let him warp? He can attack from anywhere now." Ë thought as he assumed a more defensive stance. Gaara simply lifted his hand, causing the sand around him to move a bit. Then, Ë understood Madara's intentions. The Akatsuki leader had just reappeared in midair, out of the reach of Gaara's sensory trap. Suddenly, what seemed to be the arm of Shukaku erupted from behind Gaara, stretching upwards and towards Madara, who just barely managed to dodge it.

"What caused the sand to move when you raised your arm wasn't that giant claw...The chakra was different! What was it?" The furious Madara demanded for an answer.

"The Silent Wasteland has that name because there isn't a sound in there, which means there's no wind. So, why is there a breeze all of a sudden?" Gaara wondered. "Like you called my sand sensory sand, you could call this sensory wind."

"Which means he can know my location anytime he wants...This kid is quite good. I guess it's time to stop playing games." Madara upsetly admitted. "The trick is in getting rid of the barrier so...Mizukage! Tsuchikage! Destroy the barrier!"

"Can they?" Gaara asked as he pointed to his left. To Madara's shock, both Kages were encased in sand. "That's Sand Style: Sand Coffin."

"The kid did a good job but there's a big flaw on his plan. Hope Madara doesn't realize..." Ë thought to himself, but to his surprise Madara started to laugh. "Tsk, he already did."

"You said it yourself Gaara, the barrier limits my movements, but it doesn't stop them. I can still warp to the outside of the barrier!" Madara stated, before he did so. The Akatsuki leader landed on top of the barrier, seeming like he was floating like Onoki. Then, he waved his right hand and a giant fan was summoned into it.

"A gunbai?" Gaara wondered as Madara started to wave his weapon, creating strong winds that were starting to change the color of the sky. "What is he plotting now?"

"I won't just destroy the barrier, I'll destroy you along with it!" The furious Madara shouted as he stopped waving the fan. Dark clouds were filling the entire sky. Then, a swirl pattern extended from the hole in his mask, bringing back Sasuke and Karin to this dimension. "Did you do what I told you?"

"Y-yes, I...Aaaaah!" Karin loudly screamed as she realized they were standing in the middle of the sky.

"Then, move." Madara ordered just before he backslapped Karin, sending her flying some meters away. "It seems she failed to heal you completely."

"This body has been put through a lot of strain today. Each time it recovers from injuries, the healing effects last much less." Sasuke explained with a strange tone of voice. "What do you want me to do? Is it about the arm you seem to have lost?"

"I can bear the pain, but I've wasted a considerable amount of chakra already. I was thinking about using your powers to break this barrier." Madara thoughtfully said. "I think it's time for you to show me that jutsu you told me about after the fight against Itachi."

"I don't know if this body can withstand it at this point, but since you already created the necessary conditions, I'll at least try." Sasuke formed a Chidori on his left hand and then lifted his arm into the sky.

"One more thing. After breaking through the barrier, I want you to finish up Susanoo." Madara said in a ordering tone, to which Sasuke only nodded.

"It was a huge mistake of your part to let him go, Kazekage." Ë reprimended Gaara who didn't seem to be worried at all.

"Madara's plan is to use us Kages to achieve his demented goals. At this point, I consider more important foiling his plans than actually capture him or kill him. I don't even know if we would be able to do the last two." Gaara explained his motives. "As long as we are inside the barrier, we'll be safe. As for those two, we'll find a way to break the genjutsu later."

"That all sounds nice, but you heard him. What will you do if they break the barrier?" Ë asked, as he looked from the immobilized Mei and Onoki to the airborne Madara and Sasuke.

"Sasuke...has he enough strength to do something like that?" Gaara wondered as he saw Sasuke with a Chidori in hand. "This barrier is quite resistant. To break it, you'll need a wide and powerful impact force jutsu. Madara must have something like that but he can't wave hand seals. It all depends in Sasuke's chakra reserves."

"No, it doesn't..." Ë mumbled as he saw what was happening. Sasuke was drawing lightning directly from the dark clouds, filling the sky with bolts. The younger Uchiha then shaped and guided the lightning, forming a huge chimera. "Manipulating natural lightning...that's the most dangerous way of using Lightning chakra."

"Vanish with the roar of thunder! Kirin" Sasuke intoned and waved his hand, bringing the huge lightning blast down. Madara, who had picked up the unconscious Karin, came by Sasuke's side and warped him away along with himself. The jutsu clashed against Gaara's barrier and, after a short while, broke through it.

"We're fucked!" Ë shouted while his body immediately got enveloped in lightning, much more than the used in the usual Lightning Armor. Gaara stretched his arms to each side of his body, getting ready to use his sand as a defense.

"You'll have to stall it long enough for me to get rid of it!"

"You're a fool! You think you can stop something like that!" Ë shouted as he stared into the huge blast. "But it will be impossible to avoid it...Fuck! There's no choice...Lightning Style: Great Exploding Current Jutsu"

The jutsu used by the Raikage released so much lightning chakra that it immediately forced the sand below and around him away, creating a sort of crater. As it was released from his body, the lightning chakra created a huge explosion and expanded in a dome formation. Gaara was forced to create a Sand Shield to protect himself of Ë's jutsu. With a wave of his right hand, the encased Kages were sucked underground so they could remain unharmed. Then, both jutsus clashed, lightning against lightning.

"Damn it! Whatever you want to do, do it now!" Ë shouted as he was clearly losing. Kirin continued to push the lightning dome down, causing the desperate Raikage to thrust his right hand forward, releasing another huge amount of lightning chakra to support the jutsu.

"I'm not sure if this will work..The control I have over the sand isn't perfect yet. I..." Gaara then saw Ë falling on his right knee, but still struggling to hold on. Another burst of chakra left his right hand towards the clashing zone. "No! I'll have to do it. If the four of us die in here, it will be the same as Madara having us under his control. Our villages will be at his hand..."

"Darn it! I can't hold on!" Ë shouted as he fell on both his knees, unable to maintain his arm stretched any longer. His control over the jutsu was about to end.

"First I'll raise a platform. Then...Sand Tsunami" Gaara created the small platform that allowed him to move through the air and then raised four giant waves of sand, one for each cardinal point. For the sand to raise into the waves, it opened the center of the battlefield where Ë was positioned.

"What is...this?" Ë mumbled as he was encased in a Sand Coffin, before being sucked into the sand that formed the West wave. The Raikage's jutsu fell, allowing Kirin to move through the "hole" created by Gaara. Raikage's jutsu remained active long enough for Gaara to move above, to the place where Madara and Sasuke were standing earlier.

"Wind Style: Drilling Air Bullet" Gaara spat the huge wind sphere and clapped his hands together, forcing the four sand waves that had been rising in height to come down on both wind and lightning jutsus. The waves joined together, reforming the battlefield created earlier by Gaara's summoning. The young Kazekage's urge to finish things was so great that the platform dissolved before he was at a safe landing distance. Getting up from the harsh landing, Gaara slammed both palms into the sand, first dragging out the encased Kages and then releasing a large amount of chakra into it. "Sand Style: Giant Sand Burial" The powerful shockwaves created by Gaara compressed the sand, forcing both jutsus to contact eachother, causing a huge underground explosing that caused a massive earthquake.

"Are you okay, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked as the earthquake stopped. As soon as the barrier was destructed, Naruto and Kakashi fell of the wall they were climbing, forcing Naruto to summon Gamabunta who served as a cushion and held them during the initial shockwaves caused by the clash of jutsus and during the earthquake.

"I'm fine." Kakashi answered before looking back to their destination. The walls of the building fell during the earthquake, leaving only a huge mount of sand for them to climb. "We should hurry."

"It seems a huge battle is going on. I'll be going by now, but summon me if you need, Naruto." Gamabunta told to the toad summoner.

"Sure, Toad Chief. Thanks, for helping." Naruto and Kakashi jumped towards the mount of sand, while Gamabunta disappeared in a puff of smoke. "What's going on here?"

"Is it over?" Ë asked to himself, before forcing his way out of the Sand Coffin. As he stood, he saw Gaara with his arms hanged and having a hard time breathing. "He stopped that jutsu. Unbelievable...The desert really is his weapon."

"The jutsu failed." Madara stated as he and Sasuke appeared in front of Gaara. As soon as they warped back, Madara dropped the unconscious Karin to the ground.

"Sasuke's Kirin was bigger than this one. At least the barrier is now broken." The person who was posing as Sasuke remembered. "I'll proceed with Susanoo."

"Tsk, not this now..." Gaara mumbled as the spiritual humanoid being appeared and surrounded Sasuke. Suddenly, the large three-handed skeleton changed into a more demonic and evil-looking form, covered with a layer of armor and helding a bow on one of his hands. As Sasuke walked towards Gaara, so did Susanoo. As it was about to reach Gaara, it disappeared. "What happened?"

"Did it happen already?" Madara seemed to be surprised about what happened as well. Sasuke had fallen on his knees and was screaming desperately.

"Sasuke! Sasuke what's wrong?" Gaara asked as he kneeled by Sasuke's side. He had both hands covering his eyes and, from time to time, puked a weird black substance into the sand. Before Gaara could do something about it, the substance literally ran away from them, reverting back to a human shape when it reached a safe distance. As soon as it did, Sasuke lost consciousness. "I knew it! Things were being too weird...That thing was controlling Sasuke's body from the inside!"

"That Susanoo was a complete one. Zetsu's body structure must have accelerated the rythm of its development. That must mean Sasuke is ready..." Madara chuckled before warping away once more. To Gaara's shock, Madara appeared just in front of him. "It seems my warping speed returned to normal. Not much you can do at this point, right? What you're holding belongs to me, young Kazekage. You'll release him, one way or another."

"Sasuke! Gaara!" Naruto shouted as he reached the top of the sand mount along with Kakashi. Gaara was kneeled by the side of a fallen Sasuke, but did nothing to prevent Madara from lifting his fellow Uchiha by the collar of his shirt and putting him over his shoulder. "Gaara! What are you doing? Why are you letting him take Sasuke?"

"It's not that he's letting him. He doesn't have a say in the matter." Ë explained as he reached both Konoha shinobi. His state shocked both, as he was missing an arm and many portions of his skin were burned from the electricity generated by his last jutsu. Naruto looked back to Gaara and saw him standing and turning towards them. "He's being controlled by that eye, by Madara Uchiha's eye."

Next Chapter - Roots and Weeds

-Nawirama13

-NawiramaWikia-

1. Jutsu:

1.1 Barrier Jutsu: Space-Time Battlefield Swap - The barrier jutsu used by Gaara to prepare his Sand Style Summonings. The user places this barrier around a certain area, so that he can later force a space-time transfer between what is inside the barrier and the area caught by the new barrier. Both barriers remain active after the summoning, in case the user wants to revert the battlefield transfer. The barriers have the shape of a closed box. According to Madara, this barrier can be used to transfer pre-made traps or even entire troops.

1.2 Wind Style: Raising Air Currents - by waving his gunbai, Madara is able to create powerful air currents that change the weather, like turning a blue clean sky into a dark stormy one.

1.3 Lightning Style: Great Exploding Current Jutsu - Simply a huge explosion of lightning chakra that expands in a dome formation. It covers a very long range and it causes devastating effects. It consumes a huge amount of chakra and also puts quite some strain into the user's body. If by some reason the dome is delayed by some other jutsu and remains too close to the user, it will cause burnings to him due to the close distance between his body and the compressed lightning.

2. Characters:

2.1 Shi and Darui - Shi is Yugito's younger brother. In this story, his name will be Shi Nii. Darui is the son of the former Jinchuriki of the Eight Tails that appeared in the manga, the one with hair half blond and half black.

2.2 Madara Uchiha - Madara isn't, at least until this moment, able of using Wind Style jutsus by himself. His gunbai is the one that naturally generates wind chakra.

-Nawirama13