Disclaimer:
I do not own any of the characters from this story, they are owned by the creators of the hit Manga and Anime Series, Naruto.
Chapter 4 – The Protector's Price
The team could feel the rain begin to his their face as they came closer and closer to the village. "Be on your guard," yelled Kakashi as the village came into view. "We don't know what we're up against." 'But if it's enough to defeat one of the legendary sannin, we've got a lot to be worried about.'
They landed in the village prepared to fight. "We're going to have to split up," ordered Kakashi. "Yamato, you and Sai take the-"
"There will be no need for that," said a deep voice. "I believe have found you."
The team looked up and saw two figures high up on top of a building. The figures were wearing black cloaks we red clouds on them. They could tell the voice was coming from the one with many piercings. The other was a female with blue hair.
"I take it you're the leader of the Akatsuki?" replied Kakashi.
"Awe, Kakashi Hatake," replied the red haired man, "your reputation precedes you." He looked over to the seemingly unsettled blonde. 'That's…'
The blonde was already beginning to get annoyed by the snide banter from the red haired man. "Grrr… Enough!! Where's Ero-sennin!?" hollered Naruto.
"Finally, the Kyuubi of Konoha," replied Pain. "If you are talking about Jiraiya-sensei, he's here, but barely living I'm afraid. If you want him back, why don't you come up here and get him."
Naurto was now becoming extremely angry. Every one of them could tell, but it was Kakashi who brought him back to his senses. "Don't worry Naruto," he said never taking his eyes off of his enemy, "We'll get him back."
Yamato was in the same state of mind as Kakashi. "There's two of them Kakashi," he said. "We should move to Plan B."
"Right. Naruto, Sakura, you two are with me. Sai, you're with Yamato."
"Understood," replied the three teens in unison.
Pain turned to Konan. "Take the black haired boy and the brown haired man. I'll deal with the Kyuubi and the other two."
"Understood Pain," replied Konan.
The two Akatsuki members dropped down from the rooftop and the battle began. Yamato immediately clapped his hands together and wood sprouted up from the ground, catching the blue haired woman in mid-air. Sai drew three birds with his ink.
"Ninga Art: Great Beast Paintings," he said calmly. Instantly, the three birds flew off the scroll and made their way toward Konan. However, Konan had nothing to fear. She gave a smirk and separated herself into many different pieces of paper, dodging the oncoming attack from the three birds.
The pieces of paper began to swirl around Sai. Yamato looked at the spectacle if front of him. 'A genjutsu?' he thought. His ideas of it being a genjutsu were quickly put to rest as one of the pieces of paper folded up into an origami shuriken grazed his arm and sliced it open. He gripped his arm and looked at the wound. 'It's minor. It shouldn't affect me to much.' He looked back over at Sai, who was being sliced up by the many origami shuriken. 'I have to give Sai time to prepare but how?' He had to act quickly. He clapped his hands again.
"Wood Element: Four Pillar Prison Jutsu!!" Suddenly, Sai was protected by a wooden box. He understood what the captain was trying to do and began to draw as fast as possible. On the outside, the origami shuriken began to change their target and swirled around Yamato. One by one the shuriken attacked him, but he held his ground and held his jutsu. 'Hurry up Sai,' he thought.
Back in the inside of the wooden box, Sai was just about done drawing. 'This should be enough to take her on,' he thought. He put his hand up to his face. Outside, Yamato felt the small surge of chakra from the box, and dispelled the jutsu to reveal Sai with his longest scroll he had ever seen him use. "Ninja Art: 1000 Humming Bird Paintings!!" Instantly, the 1000 humming birds came flying off of the page, and charged the many different pieces of origami.
The many pieces of paper that were Konan tried to react, but were ripped and pecked at by the many birds. When she finally reassimilated herself, a heaving Konan was battered and bloody from the many pecks from the birds.
Pain blocked another kick from Kakashi as Sakura came in from behind with another chakra punch. Naruto came in with a kunai in hand, leaping over Kakashi. Without even looking at either Naruto or Sakura, Pain ducked out of the way leaving Sakura's Chakra punch to collide with Naruto's face.
Naruto skidded across the floor until it vanish into a puff of smoke in front of the real Naruto who had two other clones next to him, helping him make the Razenshuriken. 'Damn it! Come on!' he thought. 'I have to make this thing faster!'
Kakashi withdrew alittle, as Sakura slid across the floor next to him. "We have to try a different approach," ordered Kakashi. "We have to get him off balance some how." Kakashi bit his thumb and pulled out a scroll and slammed his palm into. "Earth Tracking Fang Jutsu!"
Pain looked around for the attack, but couldn't find it until he felt the earth shake underneath him. Instantly he jumped up just in the nick of time to dodge the dogs that came up from under the ground. "Now Sakura!!" yelled Kakashi, which caught Pain off guard and caused him to look up and his eyes widen. What he failed to realize earlier was Sakura jumping up into the air and now coming down to connect her chakra filled fist with his head.
He tried to duck her fist but it connected head on. Pain was sent hurling to the ground. Once the smoke had cleared, Sakura looked at her handy work only to find a split log. 'A Substitution Jutsu!' she thought but she had not time think as Pain had already started his counter attack.
He appeared behind Kakashi without either of them knowing and made a couple of hand signs. "Wind Style: Cyclone Blow Jutsu!!" Kakashi was hurled off the ground and sent right into a now blocking Sakura and knocked her down. Kakashi, still in the air, hit the wall with incredible force. The many cracks and broken pieces of the wall followed as his limp, unconscious body fell to the floor with a sick thud.
Sakura slowly got to her knees. She looked up and saw Pain doing a couple more hand signs and then saw the chakra begin to overflow like a river in his right hand. "This should finish you off," he taunted and began his charge.
Sakura knelt on the floor, paralyzed with fear as she saw Pain come closer and closer. She could feel the pain from the attack that had not yet hit her. Instantly he was in front of her. As Pain's attack came down for the kill, Sakura ducked her head and tried to shield herself from the fatal blow.
"SAKURA-CHAN!!" she heard. Then the attack made contact. She felt no pain. She opened her eyes and looked at herself. She saw that she was covered in blood that was not her own. She saw blood dripping onto the floor. Shocked and scared, she looked up.
There stood Naruto between her and the attack that had went clean through Naruto's chest and back. He looked back at her and weakly smiled as the blood began to seep out of his mouth. "Sakura-Chan," he whispered. Tears started to roll down her face as she began to realize what had happened.
"NARUTO!!," she screamed in horror.