We're going after a little girl?"
Their leader didn't even blink at the incredulous question. "She's likely the last of the Yuki Clan of Kirigakure, Kisame. She will be useful."
Kisame didn't bother suppressing his disbelief. "But she's seven years old! What kind of fighting would she be able to participate in without dying? A kid brawl?"
"Kisame," his partner intoned, "Leader-sama wants us to retrieve her because we will be the ones training her."
Kisame blanched. "I — we have to teach a bratty little girl?"
The leader seemed to sigh. "If you remain disbelieving of her potential, I think you should know that she is Momochi Zabuza's goddaughter."
Kisame seemed to choke on air, eyes bugging before he said in an oddly strangled voice, "Z-Zabuza? That brat who wields Kubikiribocho? The one who's ego inflated tremendously after slaughtering everyone at the academy?"
"He's only three years younger than you," Itachi muttered. Usually, he wouldn't point that out, but he felt a headache coming on. "Yes, that Zabuza."
"Zabuza is a godfather?!"
"Yes," Pein confirmed. "Zabuza likely assumes she is dead. She has previous knowledge of stealth and kenjutsu from Zabuza, and knows how to use her Kekkei Genkai, but that's pretty much it. She isn't of any threat. And she is most certainly not a… bratty little girl."
Kisame let out a sigh, defeated, as he tried to figure out why anyone in their right mind would make that crazy psychopath a godfather. "Where is she?"
"Thirty minutes south from here," Pein replied. "Bring her back alive."
Kisame nodded. "Will do."
"Alright. Your Sharingan seems to be fine, no matter how drastic Naruto's method was, and your body's quickly adjusting to it's skills." Kakashi was up and walking again, though he was told by Tsunami half a dozen times not to push himself.
Not that he really listened; Tsunami was estimating the body limits of a civilian, not one of a seasoned shinobi.
Sasuke nodded, though for once, his mind wasn't focused on the prospect of growing stronger. Of course, he hadn't been focusing on that much anymore anyway, but it had always been there. For the first time in years, though, that thought was completely disregarded.
"Kakashi-sensei, I want to ask you a question."
Kakashi's one visible eye remained as disinterested as ever as the jounin lazily turned a page in the obnoxious, orange covered book. Sasuke's eye twitched; how long does he make a book last?!
"Yeah?"
"Naruto… Why does she have two other chakras within her?"
Kakashi's book snapped closed, but Sasuke didn't even flinch, his onyx eyes narrowed at his sensei.
For his part, Kakashi had completely forgotten. Naruto's skills were still an enigma to him; she had shown the barest of her unique skills to satisfy his curiosity, but she didn't reveal anything else. For example, he didn't know why she knew the forbidden technique of Tajuu Kage Bunshin, or how she managed to figure out how to conserve more chakra while powering her fan techniques (though he had a sneaking suspicion that the Nara Clan Head had something to do with it), or why she suddenly had an urge to develop a hybrid seal to keep her fans attached to her (again, he had a feeling…).
However, he did know enough to realize that Naruto, despite being strong, was strong with her own skills. She didn't need the tenant within her to power her constant strikes; no, the chakra used was completely and wholly hers.
Thus, over time, his wariness of her chakra levels lessened and he had forgotten that the quiet girl even had a demon within her. Her soft-spoken words, quick thinking mind, and generally nice personality had made him forget.
Which was why he had forgotten that Sasuke's Sharingan showed everything in that girl.
"I cannot answer that, Sasuke," he answered truthfully. Seeing his eyes narrow, he added, "You can always ask her yourself. If she trusts you enough, she'll speak."
"...Alright." Kakashi raised an eyebrow as Sasuke looked away; he hadn't expected Sasuke to give in so easily.
Naruto was doing a lot of good for him, and Sasuke didn't even realize it. Those two were really quite similar…
"Hokage-sama. Did you hold me back because you wanted to know what I thought of them?"
"Of course, Kakashi-kun. Tell me."
"From what I've seen, Naruto and Sasuke can work together well, but Sakura will only hold them back. It's not going to work out, Hokage-sama."
Kakashi's one visible eye closed briefly as he stowed his book away.
"What do you think, Kakashi?"
"They're brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. Sasuke isn't hell bent on revenge and power — excuse the language — anymore, whereas Naruto has finally began to open up. Hinata is meek and shy, which will have to change, but overall…
"I can't ask for a better team."
"I'm going to go rest; it's the fourth day, and tomorrow, we have to start protecting the bridge. My time for recovering is running out."
Sasuke gave a jerk of a nod as Kakashi walked back into the house, his analytical eyes noting how his stride was strained and his muscles were jerky.
"Trust, huh?"
"Sasuke-san?"
"You heard everything, right?"
Hinata nodded. "I just… When you ask Naruto-chan, don't sound so demanding, or she'll become defensive."
"I won't. I'll talk to her later." He paused briefly before muttering in a genuine tone, "Thank you, Hinata."
The Hyuuga nodded. "Sasuke-san, do you want to test your doujutsu against mine?"
The Uchiha smirked, his eyes bleeding red.
Kakashi froze right after he slipped onto the futon.
Did Sasuke say two other chakra? As in she has three different chakra in her?
Haku hesitantly waited on the sidelines, watching as one tree after another was demolished. He had wandered back to where she trained without even realizing it, and he didn't know what to do now.
She made the choice for him as she snapped her fans shut. "Haku-san?"
His mind shut down as he blurted out, "I spoke to Zabuza-sama, and that girl you talked about…"
"Yes?"
"I think… She's the heiress of my clan."
He proceeded to explain everything Zabuza told him, and by the end of it, his voice was raspy and Naruto was nodding.
"Why do you know her?"
Naruto paused for a moment before her hand moved over her face, lifting the spiky bangs out of the way.
Haku's eyes widened as they followed the intertwining light blue and white tendrils down her face and neck.
"She… Gave you a Mark?"
"What does it do?" Naruto inquired. "From what I've seen, all it does it keep me warm."
"That's because those of the Yuki Clan are immune to cold," Haku replied. "Our chakra, when quicker, burns more energy and produces heat. Yuki chakra doesn't need that natural cause; they are unique. When she gave you that Mark, you gained a characteristic of the Yuki Clan." He paused. "Every Mark has their own properties; my Mark would be different from her's. Every Mark essentially means that Yuki had blessed you, but I don't know what it'll do. I'm sorry."
Naruto shrugged, brushing off his apology. "Haku-san, will you be able to convince Zabuza not to fight us?"
Haku bowed his head. As he spoke with Naruto, as he spent time with her, he found himself more and more unwilling to hurt her. But… "I don't know. Zabuza-sama doesn't…"
"What if he finds out his goddaughter is alive?"
Haku's head jerked upwards, his mind racing. Currently, only he and Naruto knew about the fact that she was still alive. Zabuza assumed she was dead, but perhaps, if he knew she was alive…
Maybe he would quit the job Gatou gave him?
"I don't know," Haku repeated, admitting it grimly. Zabuza could very well not believe him, or worse, think that he was betraying him. He stood up, glancing at the sky. "It's about time for me to go."
"Haku-san… If you can't find a way to convince him not to fight, we can try again when he fights us."
Haku nodded, hesitating before muttering, "Thank you, Naruto," and disappearing, snatching up his basket of herbs as he went.
"Kakashi-sensei, are you going to be fine by tomorrow?"
Kakashi nodded at Hinata. "I've healed; my body's just trying to adjust to being able to move again. I'm just a bit stiff, that's all. But never mind that; how have your training been coming along? I know Sasuke activated his Sharingan, but that's it."
"I've been sparring with Sasuke-san," Hinata replied first, "to strengthen his doujutsu and my own taijutsu style. However… Kakashi-sensei, I have a small problem with my taijutsu style."
Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "The Juuken? What's wrong with it?"
"The Juuken… Doesn't feel right," Hinata admitted, balling up her fists between her thighs as she ducked her head. "It feels too rough and rigid."
Kakashi frowned slightly as he tried to remember what he had been told about the Juuken. "The Juuken… If I remember correctly, it's defined as a Hyūga Clan systematic taijutsu style that incorporates chakra… I don't see why —"
Sasuke's head jerked up at the word "chakra". "Kakashi-sensei, I have an idea."
"Yes, Sasuke?"
"The Foukasuken, the Uchiha's traditional taijutsu style, it oriented around two things — the Sharingan and the focus of the chakra, which is where it got its name. The Uchiha Clan was almost all primarily Hi-natured, and our taijutsu style was developed to reflect that. Perhaps the Juuken has the same requirement?"
Kakashi's eyes widened slightly. "That's very possible. The Hyuuga's taijutsu style could orient around the Byakugan and a particular nature of chakra. If Hinata has a different nature, that would explain why she has difficulties using it. Of course, she can use it; it just won't be as efficient or powerful as it can be."
"Then what should I do, Kakashi-sensei?" Hinata inquired.
Kakashi let out a grunt. "Sometime today, the backup teams from Konohagakure should arrive. Among one of the teams is Konoha's taijutsu specialist; he himself has a Hyuuga on his team. He can probably help — Hinata? What's wrong?"
Naruto reached out and shook the rapidly paling Hinata. "Hinata-san?"
Hinata took a deep breath. "I-Is the taijutsu specialist, by any chance, M-Maito Gai-san?"
Kakashi's eyebrows shot up. "You know Gai?"
"Th-The Hyuuga on his t-team is m-my cousin," Hinata whispered. Kakashi frowned quizzically, whereas Sasuke and Naruto both raised an eyebrow. Hinata had been pretty much stutter-free for days now, so they found it odd she was back to her old, scared self.
"Is there something wrong with that?" Kakashi asked gently.
"N-Neji-niisan h-hates me," Hinata admitted. "H-He hates th-the entire M-Main Family, b-because he's a B-Branch member…"
Kakashi blinked before he remembered — Hyuuga Neji was the one Gai said had the most problems despite being the most skilled. "I see…"
"Hinata, don't worry," Naruto assured her. "We won't let him hurt you, and we'll smack sense into him if he's rude towards you."
Hinata stared in surprise before a small smile lit up her face. "Th-Thank you, Naruto-chan…"
"Hn. No Hyuuga's going to hurt my teammate," Sasuke muttered, looking away from his teammates when Naruto's mouth twitched.
Hinata's smile grew. "Thank you, Sasuke-san."
Kakashi couldn't help but smile at his team. They really were too awesome.
"Well, I've heard about what Hinata's been up to, and I know what Sasuke's been doing. What about you, Naruto?"
Naruto paused. "I've been working on my fans," she replied. "I don't think I can get my attacks any quicker at my current level, but the seal has almost been completed."
His interest spiked, Kakashi asked, "Can I see?"
Naruto handed him her fans in reply, and Kakashi turned it to gaze at the lightweight metal guards. The almost completed seal was stuck to it, and Kakashi pulled it off, setting down the fans and lifting the seal closer to his face to observe it.
Like most seals, the design was in a circle, the simplest way to unify the parts of a seal. At the very center was the symbol for Kaze, which Kakashi understood immediately; by synchronizing the type of chakra used in the seal with the type the object used, it multiplied the speed of the seal.
He had to squint to see the smaller kanji swirling around the symbol Kaze, but when he did see them, his heart nearly stopped.
Those seals…
His mind raced. He didn't know whether Naruto knew or not, but those seals were of another seal, not the basic Shunshin-based seal, but one that was very, very well known by name but not by eye.
A seal that few recognized by eye and only one knew how to make.
"Kakashi-sensei?"
Naruto's slightly confused voice snapped him out of his dazed thoughts, and his eye crinkled in a smile at Naruto before it went back to stare at the seal.
He knew Naruto was skilled, but even without the realization of the other seal incorporated, that hybrid seal was complicated, and extremely so. Every part had another branch, and every branch had another link. It multiplied and every multiplied piece multiplied, forming a complex system in the black ink.
No book in the library on fuuinjutsu could have possibly taught her even half of this much.
"Naruto. Where did you learn all of this?"
"What do you mean?"
She's cautious. "This hybrid seal contains things no book in Konohagakure would have offered you. Where did you learn them?"
Naruto let out a small sigh. "I have the world's most complex seal on my body and have had it since my first day in this world. Do you really think I have to rely on books in the library to gain knowledge about fuuinjutsu?"
Kakashi paled. Naruto reached over, taking back the fans and the seal. "Is this satisfactory for your inquiring?"
Snapping out of his daze, he nodded.
Sasuke looked from Kakashi to Naruto before he said, "I have a question."
Both turned to look at him.
"Naruto, why—"
"DYNAMIC ENTRY!"
All three genin instinctively jumped into battle position — Sasuke reaching for his shuriken, Naruto for her fans, and Hinata slipping into the Juuken stance.
Kakashi let out a sigh as he relaxed. "Calm down, it's just —"
"HELLO, KAKASHI! YOU'RE NOT LOOKING YOUTHFUL AT ALL TODAY!"
"Maito Gai," Kakashi finished.
"Kakashi! Is this your genin team?"
Hinata appeared to have gone into shock at the view of the green spandex; it was clear it was her first time specifically meeting Maito Gai. Sasuke, however, with nowhere as much tact as Hinata, didn't, and stated his disbelief quite bluntly. "This is Konoha's taijutsu specialist?"
"Lessen on the disbelief," Kakashi reprimanded lightly. No matter how much I agree with you sometimes.
"You must be Uchiha Sasuke!" Sasuke unwillingly took a step back as another green spandex wearing male jumped in front of him. "My name is Rock Lee, Konoha's Handsome Devil, and you, Uchiha Sasuke, are my youthful eternal rival!"
Sasuke felt goosebumps riding on his skin. Naruto noted that, but she was more concerned with something else —
Like that male in the back with his face contorted in anger.
"Sasuke," she whispered urgently, and Sasuke snapped to attention.
He didn't even need to ask what was wrong. He could feel the angry gaze on him, and he could see the area Hinata appeared to be desperately not looking at.
Gai, apparently, also saw that, and so he beamed a huge, blinding smile as he dragged his remaining two genin to the front. The female wore an expression of exasperation, whereas the Hyuuga was still angrily glaring at Hinata.
"I am Maito Gai, Konoha's Noble Green Beast! These are my students. Rock Lee has introduced himself, and this is Higurashi TenTen and Hyuuga Neji."
Naruto's head jerked. "Higurashi?"
TenTen blinked. "Um… Yes? Why? Is there something wrong—"
She blinked in surprise as Naruto dipped her head gratefully. "Please pass my thanks to your father, TenTen-san."
TenTen remained confused, but she was never one to refuse praise, "Uh… Sure?"
Neji's cold gaze never left Hinata, and Hinata never looked into said gaze. Naruto let out a small sigh before she nudged Hinata gently, giving her a pointed look.
"H-Hello, Neji-niisan," she offered timidly, and she shrunk back as Neji's glare intensified.
"Hinata-sama." His voice was like ice.
"Troublesome…"
Naruto's eyes widened at the familiar tone as she leaned to the side, gazing around Gai's team. "Shikamaru? I didn't know you were coming too!"
"Hello, Naruto," the Nara muttered. "You alright?"
"I'm fine," Naruto assured him. "What about you? You look exhausted."
"We ran the entire day," Shikamaru began, "because—"
"Because those spandex weirdos insisted on a race!" the female of Team Ten spat. Naruto blinked as she recognized the platinum blonde — Yamanaka Ino.
"Don't be mean, Ino," the final genin of lectured, though the effect was lost as he stuffed chip after chip in his mouth.
Ino let out a huff, and the jounin sensei for Team Ten let out a sheepish chuckle.
"Kakashi, you doing fine?"
"Better. I might've died if it wasn't for my genin," Kakashi admitted, slightly embarrassed.
Team Ten's sensei snorted in amusement before he turned to Team Seven. "My name's Sarutobi Asuma. I'm the jounin sensei for Team Ten — the one eating chips is Chouji, the female Ino, and finally, Shikamaru. It's nice to meet Kakashi's team."
"My name's Hyuuga Hinata. It's nice to meet you," she stated, bowing slightly, polite as ever. Naruto simply dipped her head, and Sasuke didn't bother doing even that.
"I'm Uzumaki Naruto."
"Uchiha Sasuke." Abruptly, the onyx eyed male turned to Naruto. "We should continue training before it becomes too dark for that."
Naruto's eyes seemed to lit up. "Oh… True. Hinata, are you coming? I wanted to ask you for help in something."
Hinata nodded quickly, practically vaulting herself out the door. Sasuke shot a glare at the still glaring Hyuuga male before following her out. Naruto glanced briefly at Neji, then at Shikamaru, and then headed out as well.
Lee remained quiet for a moment before turning to Neji. "Neji, did you have to glare at Hinata-san the whole time? She clearly doesn't want to hurt you in any way, and if anything, she appears scared of you."
"What she has done is not something that can be forgiven," Neji snarled.
Gai let out a small sigh, unnoticed by none but Kakashi and Asuma.
"Gai-sensei, can I fight Sasuke?" Lee asked eargerly.
"Later this evening," Gai suggested, "we can have a tournament of sorts, taijutsu-only."
"That sounds nice," Asuma agreed.
Kakashi didn't say anything; if his team refused, they refused. He wouldn't force them into fighting when he knew they were capable of it.
For a moment, all was silent. Then, Rock Lee shouted,
"NEJI! I CHALLENGE YOU TO A MATCH!"
"The chakra runs downwards," Hinata told Naruto as her eyes tracked the movement of the chakra blade.
"So it's not solid. Not entirely. It's not a big difference, but I'm losing a little of my chakra every time I attack." Naruto let out a small sigh. "Hinata, do you have any tips?"
Hinata bit her lip as she tried to think. "Right now, you release chakra into the fan, using the fan to direct the chakra, right? Maybe you can move the fan differently when you swing it."
Naruto took a deep breath before she lifted the fan, swiping it horizontally in front of her. The horizontal blade wedged into the tree, nearly cutting right through it, before it disappeared.
"I lost power…"
"That won't work," Sasuke muttered, his Sharingan activated. "Your chakra's even more uncontrolled when you swing horizontally."
Naruto let out a small growl when a voice offered from behind her,
"Have you tried forming a blade by conjoining two?"
Naruto turned, surprised for the second time by the same person in the same hour. "Shikamaru?"
"Yo," he greeted, tipping a wave to Sasuke, who had tensed considerably, and Hinata, who nodded back.
Sasuke ground out, "What are you doing here, Shikamaru?"
"Ino was being troublesome, so I left them," the Nara heir replied. "I sensed Naruto's chakra spike, so I decided to follow her trail."
Hinata hastily turned the conversation to another topic, sensing Sasuke's growing agitation, even if she didn't know why. "What did you mean, conjoin two, Shikamaru-san?"
"Like you said, Naruto forms those blades by releasing chakra through her fans," Shikamaru began, leaning against a tree. "Because she used those fans as a base, she can only focus on the part of the blade that first exits the fan, which is how she creates that slicing effect. But if she used two bases, she might be able to control the formulation of the chakra blade."
Naruto blinked slightly as she took in that theory before she lifted both fans. In seconds, the blade had formed, and with two simultaneous flicks, it was sent flying, cutting through the trees like they were butter.
"There was no lag," Hinata observed.
"But it takes more time and energy," Naruto muttered. "At that rate, I might as well just keep losing a bit of chakra every time I strike." Inwardly, she groaned — another problem with her fighting style to deal with.
Shikamaru shrugged. "Nothing good comes without a price."
Naruto let out a sigh before she stowed her fans away. "Did you hear about what happened on this mission?"
"Of course; we came here, didn't we?" Shikamaru frowned slightly. "I don't understand why Momochi Zabuza is here performing dirty work for a business pig, but I do know that it means there's going to be a fight, so here we are. Team Nine and Ten at your service."
Sasuke let out a small huff before he stood up. "I don't see why Team Ten was ordered to come here. You're just a bunch of rookies consisting of a useless fangirl, a fatass, and a lazyass. The useless one's probably going to scream the moment she sees blood."
Shikamaru, for the first time Naruto had ever seen, shot a murderous glare at Sasuke. "Look, Uchiha, I don't see why you have a problem with me, but Team Ten is not useless. We might be rookies, but so are you. Ino isn't one of your fangirls and hasn't been for years, Chouji is an essential part of the Ino-Shika-Cho formation and his weight is a standard part of every Akimichi, and while I admit that I am lazy, I am also perfectly capable of taking you down. My mind is more strategic than yours will ever be."
Sasuke smirked. "You? Take me down? Dream on, lazyass. You can't take me down."
"Watch your mouth, Uchiha," Shikamaru spat.
"Sasuke, stop it! Shikamaru, I'm sorry." Shooting a glare at Sasuke, the Uchiha backed down, and Naruto continued, "I don't know what it is with you two! You've talked maybe… Twice?... and you're acting like long-time enemies!"
Sasuke let out a small huff before turning away.
"Sorry," Shikamaru apologized, though he was still glaring daggers at Sasuke. "I don't let others insult my team and get away with it so easily."
"He's sorry," Naruto stated. "Right, Sasuke?"
"Hn."
Deciphering it as a "Whatever", Naruto let out a sigh. "I'm going to head back. The day's half over."
Hinata followed Naruto, and Shikamaru followed Hinata seconds later. Sasuke didn't, staring instead at the sky before growling and slamming a fist into the tree in front of him.
That Nara… How dare he act like that? All buddy-buddy with Naruto…
He gritted his teeth as his inner voice chasted,
Sasuke, Sasuke. Uchiha do not get jealous so easily!
"A taijutsu-only match? Doesn't this give Team Nine the clear advantage?"
Kakashi shrugged in response to Shikamaru's deadpan, accurate inquiry. "Gai was the one who wanted this tournament; he set the rules."
"If it's taijutsu-only, I'm not interested," Shikamaru grunted. Like I'm just gonna sit around and get my ass kicked by Team Ten...
"How about this — a team fight, anything allowed?"
Asuma raised an eyebrow. "Kakashi, my team is the Ino-Shika-Cho formation. Do you really think they'll lose in a fight of teamwork?"
Kakashi let out a snort, burying his nose further into his book. "I have faith in my team."
Gai suddenly let out a scream, "YES! KAKASHI HAS HIS YOUTHFUL SPARK BACK! WE SHALL ENGAGE IN FIGHTS OF TEAMWORK!"
"A three-way beat-down? I like it." Sasuke's eyes seemed to glitter in anticipation.
TenTen chuckled as she lifted a kunai. "This is my realm of expertise — multiple opponents!"
"When do we start?" Ino asked.
"Now."
The blunt statement from Kakashi took a few seconds to settle in, but as soon as it did, all three genin teams jumped up and back, creating distance. Chouji, Neji, and Hinata stood in the front of their respective teams, each one with muscles tense.
"Naruto," Sasuke muttered out of the side of his mouth. "Are your clones in place?"
Naruto nodded slightly. "They are; two behind each of the teams. I'll create more regularly as to not raise Neji's suspicion too quickly."
"Good. Shikamaru and Neji are both too cautious to attack first, so we'll take the initiative. Aim for Rock Lee."
Hinata frowned slightly, muttering out of the corner of her mouth, "Why him?"
"He's a taijutsu specialist, right? My Sharingan will be the most ineffective against him, so we should take him out first." Sasuke paused. "You haven't mastered your defense either, so you won't be able to block his strikes."
"Glad to see you're actually thinking, Sasuke," Naruto muttered quietly, causing the raven haired male to shoot an indignant glare at her. "But alright. Watch for the wind."
Neji frowned as he observed Team Seven. "They're plotting something."
"Should we attack first, Neji-san?" Lee questioned.
"No. Wait and see… I think Team Seven's claimed the first move."
And that they did.
Seconds later the last word left his mouth, he jumped to the side, avoiding a speedy, light chakra blade. His Byakugan narrowed as he strained to analyze the attack as Lee jumped out of the way of another.
"LEE! GET OUT OF THE WAY!"
"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!"
The blade exploded, and Lee backflipped out of the smoke, looking none for wear other than the fact his clothing was dirtied, his eyes narrowed dangerously. "That was Uchiha Sasuke, wasn't it?"
"TenTen!"
TenTen didn't need Neji to explain further as she whipped out a string thread along kunai and shuriken. Yanking the string out, she sent the dozen weapons flying, cancelling out the dozen shuriken that flew their way.
"Kage Mane no Jutsu!"
Neji jumped as Shikamaru's shadow missed him. His Byakugan straining to see the soul that escaped Ino's body, he shouted, "Lee!"
"On it!"
In one swift motion, Lee had grabbed Neji's leg, pulling him down and away from the Yamanaka technique. Ino's body slumped, Shikamaru's shadow retreated, and Chouji let out a huff.
"Why are we the ones targeted?" TenTen whined as she continued deflecting the weapons. There weren't anything special about the weapons, so she assumed it was Naruto; Hinata didn't seem to use weapons if she fought with any resemblance to Neji and Sasuke, as an Uchiha, should be much more diverse and complicated with his weapon based attacks.
"Because you have a year of experience on us," a low, masculine voice muttered from behind her.
Neji's eyes widened — he had been too preoccupied with Team Ten.
"TENTEN! DUCK!"
The kunoichi ducked without even thinking at her teammate's warning, and good thing she did, because she narrowly missed getting hit on the head. Though incapable of defending herself in her resulting position, she didn't need to; by the time the first strike had hit, Lee had made it to her position and engaged Sasuke.
"This is over for you, Uchiha!"
To his surprise, Sasuke didn't even bother dodging. His eyes registered a poof somewhere, but he moved into position nonetheless, entirely focused on Sasuke's chakra points.
Needless to say, he was surprised when he struck orange instead.
He jumped backwards, watching as Naruto fell to the ground. His eyes narrowed — it didn't make sense Naruto would put herself out of commission so quickly —
She let out a small "oh!" and poofed into smoke.
Neji's eyes widened in shock. That was a solid Bunshin, one capable of confusing his Byakugan! Narrowing his eyes, he strained his Kekkei Genkai further —
Sure enough, there were numerous other chakra signatures littered around them.
"Lee, TenTen, regroup."
Lee looked confused, but he obeyed anyway, planting a solid kick to Sasuke's gut. He sent the replaced log flying before he jumped closer to Neji, keeping an eye on the slower TenTen. Team Ten eyed the three in confusion, but they wisely jumped back as well, Ino having recovered from her failed technique by now.
"Listen to me," Neji said clearly, aware that Team Ten was shamelessly listening in as well. "We're surrounded by numerous Bunshin."
TenTen let out a snort. "What? Why are you worried about the simple Bunshin? Your Byakugan can't be fooled by it."
"They're not regular Bunshin," Neji said sharply. "It's a technique… A jounin level technique from what I have been told that forms a solid Bunshin, one capable of fooling the Byakugan."
Lee raised an eyebrow. "Who managed this youthful technique?"
"Uzumaki Naruto," Neji said coldly, causing his team and Team Ten to glance over at the hoodied girl. "Second, Uchiha Sasuke is clearly proficient in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and weapons. He has shown that he works well with Naruto, and if you noticed their only straightforward ninjutsu attack clearly, it was aimed at you, Lee. They know you'll be the biggest threat to them, so they've been trying to take you out first."
"Why is Lee the biggest threat?" TenTen questioned.
"He is a taijutsu specialist, one that does not rely on chakra. It makes the fight much harder for a Sharingan user with a lesser knowledge of taijutsu. Isn't that right, Uchiha?"
"On the dot," he grunted. "You're not bad, Hyuuga."
Neji smirked. "Of course; you are nothing compared to me."
"Zabuza's going to be ready to fight tomorrow, Setsumi. Have you still not found out where he is?"
Her light blue eyes narrowed in annoyance. "I'm trying! It's not my fault that Gatou has half a million different headquarters."
Kisame was about to provoke her further when Itachi appeared in a swirl of black feathers. "Kakashi has backup."
Kisame raised an eyebrow. "Backup?"
"Team Nine and Ten of Konohagakure. The jounin sensei of each team are Maito Gai and Sarutobi Asuma respectively."
"And the whiny brats?"
Itachi resisted an urge to roll his eyes. "Team Nine is a team that's on their second year, consisting of Rock Lee, Higurashi TenTen, and Hyuuga Neji. Team Ten is a rookie team, just like Team Seven, and consists of Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Chouji, and Nara Shikamaru."
"So an offense team and the newest Ino-Shika-Cho formation?" Setsumi muttered.
Itachi nodded. "Have you found him?"
Setsumi's eyes closed briefly before she stood up. "Yes."
Itachi's eyes dimmed; they always did when he was about to actively partake in a mission. "Where?"
"Two miles south from the entrance of the incomplete bridge, there's a small island, too small for a civilization. On there is a cave entrance that leads underwater. That's where Gatou's headquarters is."
"That greedy man actually set up base underwater?" Kisame snorted. "No wonder nobody's found him and chopped off his head yet. And why Setsumi, our main tracker, took ages to find him."
Setsumi glared at him. "It did not take ages."
"It took you much longer than usual," Kisame retorted.
Setsumi turned away. "Whatever. Can we go now?"
"That would be best," Itachi stated. "Setsumi, you lead."
The white haired female nodded before she turned and disappeared. Itachi and Kisame followed without hesitation, vanishing from their spots.
"You're sure I'll be fine to fight by tomorrow?"
Haku nodded. "But, Zabuza-sama, if you want to be at full strength, you'll need an extra two days."
Zabuza let out a snarl. "And your estimation of Kakashi's recovery?"
"Around the same time as you. He likely won't expect a full out fight until the seventh day of recovery."
Zabuza let out a grunt. "Then we'll strike tomorrow. Kakashi's Sharingan will be rendered useless with the information that you gave me, but I'll still have access to my most powerful weapons. We can't lose."
"Yes, Zabuza-sama," Haku mumbled, ducking his head to ground the herbs more rigorously in order to hide his worried face; Zabuza, after all, refused to let him wear his hunter-nin mask around him.
"I'm going to rest for the remainder of today, stretch a bit tomorrow morning to loosen my muscles, and then we'll strike at the bridge—"
BOOM.
Haku twirled around, the ground herbs falling to the ground along with the bowl, senbon slipping between his knuckles immediately. Zabuza tensed, his hand reaching for the nearest weapon.
"Ah. Found them."
Haku paled when the one who had spoken stepped into the room; nobody from Kirigakure would not recognize the shark-like man.
"Hoshigaki Kisame!"
"Kisame!" Zabuza snarled, sounding just as shocked as Haku, recognizing the man immediately. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Still got quite a mouth on you, I see." Kisame's face broke out into a large smirk. "And you're still dragging that kid around — though I never knew he was a Yuki."
Haku tensed as Zabuza's eyes narrowed. Nobody knew that Haku was a Yuki — they were thought to be a wiped out clan, after all — until he himself revealed his Kekkei Genkai, so why…?
"Kisame. I thought she told you not to break down the doors."
Zabuza frowned further as somebody wearing the same cloak as Kisame stepped in. Was that black cloak with the red clouds the latest fashion trend or something?
"Itachi-san, the door was locked; of course I had to break it down. What else was I going to do? Knock and wait for them to open the door to welcome me with a basket of cookies?"
"Break the lock, perhaps?"
"It was a knob. I don't have the precise skill that you have to break that kind of lock."
"Then you should have waited."
"Waited while they could have gotten away? Nah."
Itachi let out a small sigh as he closed his eyes. "Whatever. If Setsumi gets mad, you'll be the one taking the brunt of it."
Haku's blood froze. Setsumi?
A loud clang rang through the room; Zabuza had dropped the kunai in his hand. "S-Setsumi? Did you just say Setsumi?"
Kisame glanced at him curiously before snapping his fingers almost mockingly, as though as he had just remembered something when he had clearly expected the reaction. "Oh, yeah. You're her godfather, right? I can't believe you never actively searched for her."
Zabuza snarled. "I did search for her! I searched for weeks until I gave up… She's dead!"
"Dead?"
The female voice swept through the room, arresting Zabuza and Haku to their spots.
"I am most certainly not dead, thank you very much."
His eyes took in her white flowing hair, her light blue eyes, the simple light blue shirt and skirt…
The thin black sweater she left unzipped, a single red cloud above her heart.
"It… It can't be…"
"Zabuza-san…"
Zabuza glanced at his goddaughter; despite every attempt to get her to not address him so formally — it made his skin crawl uncomfortably — but his goddaughter still addressed him in that way.
"Yes?"
"I have a question."
Zabuza frowned before he straightened, turning around to face her entirely. It was rare she would ask a question — she had done so often a couple of years ago, but not anymore.
"What's wrong?"
"What would you do if I'm not part of your life anymore?"
His blood ran cold, but he replied evenly,
"I don't know. But it won't be good."
She closed her eyes. "I see."
Two days later, she was gone.
"Setsumi?..."
"Lee, do your best to keep the Uchiha engaged. If both he and his team are working to take you down, it means that you're the biggest threat to them. Hinata-sama," he spat the name as though as it was poison, "is too weak-boned to do anything, and Naruto appears to be acting as backup. The Uchiha's the only threat."
Lee nodded, his usually cheerful face set in stone. "Got it."
Naruto's lips twitched into a small smirk. It was true they were working to take Lee out to benefit Sasuke the most, but that didn't mean he was the only threat. She was there, and the role of support never lasts long when she's the one handling it.
And that Hyuuga had no clue how wrong he was about Hinata.
"Sasuke—"
The Uchiha nodded, cutting her off. Hinata mirrored him, both dashing into the fray.
Shikamaru was about to move when Naruto appeared in front of the three, a small smirk on her face. "My apologies, Shika, but I'm afraid you cannot interfere."
The Nara raised an eyebrow. Did she really think she could take on the Ino-Shika-Cho trio alone?
In a poof of smoke, two clones were next to her.
Well… Shit.
He didn't have time to think as each Naruto held up two fans, launching himself off the floor.
Meanwhile, Sasuke had engaged both Lee and Neji at the same time with the aid of two Naruto clones. The clones were constantly being replaced as they took hits whenever Sasuke wasn't able to avoid them in time.
That left TenTen with Hinata.
TenTen knew that Neji was rude to anyone he disliked or deemed weak. Thus, she was not surprised that Hinata was not weak; Neji just simply disliked her.
She was, however, surprised by how strong she was.
She already knew that Sasuke was strong, labelled as a prodigy in his year of graduates. The fact that he and a couple of those odd solid Naruto Bunshin were capable of fighting Neji and Lee was enough of a signal that he was skilled.
Naruto was a mystery. She had to have some skill if she was capable of creating Bunshin that could fool Neji's eyes, and she seemed to have a connection with her adoptive father, and to top it all off, she was keeping Team Ten at bay all by herself. Well, herself and a couple of her clones.
After what Neji had said so often, TenTen believed Hinata wasn't a problem. She knew she likely was skilled in some way…
But she didn't expect to be losing.
TenTen let out a cry of pain as her arm burned. Hinata withdrew her palm, sending the other forward, effectively freezing her other arm.
"I am sorry for this, TenTen-san," Hinata mumbled as she turned her body sideways.
TenTen looked up hazily, making out her blurry form, the area around her littered with weapons.
She coughed out blood as chakra shot through her solar plexus, and she crumbled, laying on the ground in pain.
"It will fade soon," Hinata assured her before she turned, running to assist Naruto, whose attention was divided between helping Sasuke and keeping Team Ten away.
At least, that was the plan.
Kakashi jolted.
The movement was so irregular, so uncommon, that everyone turned to stare at the jounin. The words that left his mouth froze their blood.
"Zabuza's at the bridge."
In seconds, they were running for the bridge, TenTen with the aid of Hinata's medicinal cream and Lee, Kakashi explaining along the way,
"The two Kage Bunshin I sent to keep an eye on the bridge… One of them dispelled. Zabuza's at the bridge — we were right about his accomplice — but he's not attacking any of the Nami no Kuni people—" Kakashi's body tensed as information rushed into his head once again.
"What?" Asuma questioned.
Kakashi took a deep breath. "Hoshigaki Kisame was spotted by my clone at the bridge."
"Setsumi? Where have you been all these years? Why did you leave?!"
Zabuza's focus was split, half of it on the emotionless face of his goddaughter, the other half on dodging Kisame's lazy swipes. It was clear his fellow missing-nin wasn't trying.
With any other opponent in any other situation, he would be furious, but currently, he was more concerned about Setsumi.
"Setsumi! Answer me!"
"Kisame, stop."
Samehada froze immediately,and with a wide grin, Kisame obeyed, stepping back to join Itachi. The Uchiha was entirely focused on Zabuza's accomplice, keeping him arrested to the spot with his piercing eyes.
"Zabuza-san…"
Zabuza flinched.
"Why I left was simple. I hated Kirigakure. Because I was hidden all the time, I couldn't polish my skills. I left because I needed to grow stronger."
"You could have trained with me, Setsumi! And besides that, it makes no sense for your current position. Why did you join a criminal organization? You're not somebody to work under others!"
"I longed for a family again, so I decided to stay."
"Setsumi, I want to ask you something."
The white haired girl didn't look away from the window. "Yes, Itachi?"
"Why did you decide to stay? You were captured and forced here… So why did you end up cooperating?"
Her eyes closed. "Do you know what I miss from that village?"
"From Kirigakure? No."
"A family. I miss my Yuki family. I miss my godfather." She turned, smiling slightly. "But Akatsuki gave me another option. If I stayed here, I would be working under somebody. But at the same time, I would grow stronger and I would have a family again.
"And that, for me, was more important."
"Then why are you still with them now? I watched you for years since you were born! I'm your only family now! How could you—"
Itachi finally spoke, "We are her family."
"Itachi-san, can I come in?"
Itachi blinked. Only one person in the organization called him Itachi-san, and her voice was a dead giveaway. Quickly slipping a shirt over his bare chest, he called, "Yes."
Sure enough, when the door creaked open, it was Setsumi who stepped in. Itachi raised an eyebrow at the nervous look on her face.
He didn't know the young Yuki for long, but he knew the new recruit (forced in, actually) was a fairly serious person; in fact, she reminded him of himself.
Thus, the fact she was allowing a sensitive emotion like nervousness show on her face was surprising.
"Setsumi? What's wrong?"
Her eyes looked everywhere but at him. "I heard about… Why you were recruited into Akatsuki."
His body stiffened.
"And… About the others. But all of you are genuine missing-nin… Prodigies, if you will. And… I'm not sure why the Leader would bother you and Kisame-san with the task of getting me here when I'm not like that."
Itachi blinked, his body relaxing. He had expected some sort of lecture or disbelief at what he did, not her own hesitation about her skills.
"Setsumi, look at me."
She did so hesitantly, and once she did, Itachi's onyx orbs arrested her to the spot.
"I won't lie to you. The Leader first eyed you because of your Kekkei Genkai. Then, he decided you would be helpful if properly trained; after all, you didn't, you couldn't participate in the academy."
Setsumi let out a small wince.
"But our Leader does not take in random people who just have the potential to be strong with training. No, he takes in those he realizes already possess strength. You are a prodigy, Setsumi, and if you weren't, he would have never bothered to get you."
Emotions flickered in her eyes. She was, of course, glad she wasn't useless, but at the same time, Itachi had just explained to her she was being used.
Itachi inwardly sighed. She was younger than everyone that had been recruited; it was no surprise she was confused.
"Setsumi, remember this. Nobody is in Akatsuki just to serve the Leader. We all have different purposes."
She closed her eyes. "Okay."
"We took care of her. We taught her how to defend herself from the evils of the world — rapists, murderers, abusers. We told her how to tell truth from false, right from wrong. What right do you have to say that you are her only family?"
Kisame raised an eyebrow. It was rare for Itachi to say so much at one point to enemies, and even rarer for him to say so in defense of another.
He inwardly smirked.
"You closed off her emotions!" Zabuza spat angrily. "Setsumi was never like this! She was scared and confused over the loss of her clan, but even so, she had emotions! She's never…"
His voice broke.
"She's never been so dispassionate before…"
Kisame decided to get the topic back to their mission. "Look, Zabuza, are you going to join us or not?"
Zabuza's glare practically pierced through his skull. "Of course not. What will happen to Haku if I do that?"
Kisame's smirk widened. "Then you die."
BAM!
Naruto's stride only momentarily, but her team knew her well enough that the brief pause made a huge difference. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, whereas Hinata gave her an inquiring look.
Naruto shook her head slightly, though inwardly, she was still extremely disturbed.
Yuki's Mark was glowing.
She didn't know why. Of course, the mark glowing was no oddity. Every time she touched it, it glowed. When she used Kurama's chakra, it glowed, since it was intertwined with it.
But it had never glowed randomly on her own before.
Sasuke and Hinata, on either side of her, gradually joined her on the same limbs she was jumping from.
The raven haired male spoke first. "I know something is wrong."
Naruto ducked her head slightly. "It's nothing. You don't know about it."
Sasuke frowned.
I still haven't asked her…
Why does she have two other chakra?
Hinata bit her lip. Her Byakugan had noticed two primary chakra — Naruto's and the demon in her. She also, however, noticed that the demon's chakra was not entirely one; it appeared to have another mixed into it. She just never thought much of it.
But now…
Maybe it was something important, after all.
"Fine. But I will get answers after this mission."
Sasuke split away from his two female teammates, and Naruto let out a small sigh.
"Naruto-chan, he's just trying to look out for you."
"I know," she replied softly.
Hinata nodded slightly, knowing she wanted time to think, and she gradually distanced herself again, back in formation.
Kakashi, in the front, didn't even have to look back; he felt everything they did.
Asuma and Gai, who brought up the very rear, both glanced at each other questioningly.
The other genin, other than Neji and Shikamaru, didn't even notice the short but meaningful exchange.
I'm dead.
The thought, which had not arisen since he met Zabuza and followed him, was now pounding fiercely in his brain. Unwillingly, he shut his eyes as he saw Kisame... A freaking Mizu Bunshin of Kisame, raise his odd sword over his head.
I couldn't even defeat a clone of him. I'm sorry, Zabuza-sama...
The blow never came.
Haku opened his eyes to stare into pale blue eyes. His eyes widened as he realized —
It was his clan's heiress.
"Haku-san."
"Setsumi-sama."
Despite the fact he was angry at the girl for participating in an action against him and Zabuza-sama, he was still morally obliged to be polite — This was, after all, his clan's heiress —
Well, technically the Head now, if it weren't for legal issues and common sense issues — like the fact almost nobody knew she existed.
"I am sorry for this."
His eyes flickered from emotion to emotion. How was he supposed to respond to that? Show his fury? Accept it despite knowing he was mad?
Luckily, she spoke before he made a choice. "I know you met Naruto. How is she?"
His head jerked up. "You gave her your Mark, right? She's doing well. A bit secluded, I'd say, but she's quite smart, skilled, and above all, polite."
He noticeably saw tension seep out of her shoulders. "Really? That's good."
"Why do you care so much about her?"
"She had a bad childhood," she offered. "A bad childhood that reminded me of mine."
"How?"
"She has something… Everyone views as the devil himself." She smiled, though the smile was more dark than genuine. "You are like that as well… But you found somebody who loved the very thing people hated you for. Naruto and I were not that lucky."
She turned away. "I don't want to see the possible only other Yuki die, Haku-san. Please, leave. I cannot save my godfather… But I want to at least save you."
Haku's eyes widened as his mind registered what he said.
A scream tore through the bridge.
"ZABUZA-SAMA!"
"Who could have…"
Hinata gulped, and Ino threw up. Chouji for once couldn't eat, Shikamaru had an odd, contemplating look on his face and the rest of the genin looked mildly uncomfortable at worst.
A few, such as Sasuke and Naruto, didn't even twitch.
Zabuza was clearly dead, the red, practically brown drying streaks plastered on the bridge. He wasn't bisected, though what really happened must have made the man wish he was bisected.
His flesh was shredded, as though as something had drilled a hole into his flesh, pulled it out, and replaced it with a larger drill. It was a slow, painful death, and shed much more blood than a simple bisection.
"Whoever did this is clearly a skilled murderer," Asuma mumbled, kneeling next to the dead man, his eyes running over the death blow. "He knew that this area, the stomach area, wouldn't kill the man quickly — stomach wounds were typically slow to bleed out. He then lowered it slightly so that it scraped the bone — since bony areas hurt more than fleshy areas."
Gai closed his eyes. "His hipbone and part of his femur is literally shattered. It's almost as though as I went and focused my taijutsu on that bone."
Kakashi's one visible eye narrowed. Gai's taijutsu power was, simply put, extremely high, easily making up for his lack in other areas. If he went full power, bones would become dust.
Whoever did this was powerful.
Asuma frowned suddenly. "Kakashi, look at this."
Kakashi stepped a little closer, gingerly trying to avoid the pools of blood that had yet to dry as he crouched near the man. Asuma pointed at an area of the jagged mess.
"Look."
Kakashi had to squint his eye to see it — he didn't know how Asuma noticed it so quickly — but nevertheless, he quickly realized it was not something that should be in a human body.
Taking out a kunai, Kakashi carefully removed the object, causing Ino to throw up again. He lifted it closer to his face.
"Is that a fish scale?"
Asuma shrugged at his question. "I don't see what else it can be, but why would a fish scale be in Zabuza's body? I know he's a Kirigakure missing-nin, but he can't possibly be part fish."
Gai frowned. "There's a residue of chakra on that."
Both jounin stared at him. Gai, having only one technique that could utilize chakra, was the most sensitive to chakra traces. "This scale has chakra in it?"
Gai nodded.
Kakashi frowned, but he took out a scroll and sealed the kunai, scale still on it, away. "We'll have to give that to Hokage-sama."
Asuma nodded. "Well, now that Zabuza is out of the equation, what —"
"I see… the self-proclaimed demon was just a little baby after all."
Gatou originally had extremely high self-esteem with a hundred bandit mercenaries behind him, but it quickly faded when twelve annoyed gazes of shinobi locked onto him.
He couldn't even scream when his head was taken off.
Kisame stayed quiet as Itachi stared at Setsumi, the three of them heading for the nearest Akatsuki base, where the Akatsuki would meet up in person for the first time that month.
"You didn't kill the boy."
"He got away."
Itachi closed his eyes. He didn't have to say it.
Both he and Kisame knew that was a lie.
It's been a while since I last updated, huh? Well, this chapter is much longer than the previous ones, so consider that as repayment.
This chapter isn't as good as I want it to be, maneuvering so many characters around. I made Itachi and Setsumi bypass the Konoha ninja simply because it'll be more fun that way. Thus, do keep in mind that Naruto still refers to Setsumi as Yuki; I myself might interchange between those two names. It might happen in the story depending on the situation.
I really wanted to add more Shikamaru and Naruto time in this, but alas, I set the pace much faster than I originally expected. Once they're in Konoha, though, things will happen, and time shall stretch. :)
Ja ne, everyone. I'm still here, writing and updating, so don't count me out yet!