Don't own Naruto, just the Egawashi characters.
Kakashi catches up to the others just in time to hear Shizune giving Gai orders as he moves Genma around so the unconscious man is laying against Gai's back. "You need to be careful with him Gai. Sakura managed to stem the bleeding but throwing Genma over your shoulder could reopen the wounds."
"Yes Shizune!" Gai responds enthusiastically. "I will carry Genma upon my back with the upmost care and speed straight to the Konoha hospital!"
"Great idea Gai-sensei!" exclaims Lee. "Perhaps I can do the same with Neji," he says looking hopefully at his teammate. Neji glares at bushy brows and shakes his head no, causing Lee to look hopefully at Naruto.
"No way!" exclaims the blond. "And anyways, Genma-san weighs more than me. You should really ask Kakashi or Raidou."
"Great idea Naruto-kun!" exclaims Gai. "Lee get Kakashi and you and I will race back to Konoha. This will be a great training exercise!"
'Why me?' Kakashi thinks to himself.
"No!" scream Sakura and Shizune, causing even the ANBU to jump. Gai stumbles back as both kunoichi move toward him. Raidou and Kakashi rush forward and take Genma away from Gai.
"Of all the idiotic things to do," growls Shizune. "I told you that you had to be careful with Genma."
"I'm not having a baka-sensei like you reopen those wounds!" Sakura yells as she rushes forward and punches Gai. "Anyone else have a problem!?!" she asks looking around at the others who visibly cringe under her glare.
"Oh no, Sakura-chan," Kakashi says nicely. "We're fine."
The ANBU stop their work and watch the proceedings. "Glad I don't have to deal with that," one of them mumbles to his teammate.
Sakura appears in front of the masked shinobi. "Don't have to deal with what?" she growls.
The man backs up from the enraged kunoichi, well aware that she has been trained by the hokage. "Noth…Nothing," he stammers as his friends snicker quietly behind their masks. Sakura turns to glare at them.
"Uh, Sakura-chan," begins Raidou. "Genma's not breathing."
"What!?!" Sakura exclaims as she whirls around. "Put him back down on the ground." The three ANBU operatives breath a collective sigh of relief as the girl moves away.
Shizune rushes over o Genma's side. "He's not getting enough oxygen through his trachea. We'll have to do emergency surgery."
Sakura shakes her head as she kneels down next to Genma and lays out her instruments. Gai stumbles out of the trees, and rejoins his companions.
"Gai," says Shizune. "I want you and your genin to head back to Konoha." she orders. Taking a scroll out of one of her pockets, she writes a few things on it before handing it to Gai. "Give this to the Hokage. It lists what needs to be prepared at the hospital for Genma's arrival."
"Yes Shizune-san," Gai mumbles out of a very bruised mouth.
Shizune turns to Kakashi, Raidou and Naruto. "I need you three to gather some supplies and make a stretcher," she orders. The three nod and move off as Shizune goes back over to Genma to aid Sakura.
Kabuto and his companion watch as the ANBU resume their work. "Any regrets?" the boy asks.
"Regrets!" the man says as he begins to laugh. "They deserved every bit of it."
"Oh? Really?"
"They allowed my most precious item to be stolen from me," the man says as he stands up. "But if I had known of Garuda's hand in that, I would have crushed his skull myself."
"How did you manage to escape the Konoha shinobi?" Kabuto inquires.
The man steps out of the shadows. "The Shikon no jutsu was very handy," he replies as he leans over the boy.
Kabuto gulps and moves back. "You used that jutsu Kuro-sensei? If Orochimaru-sama gets blamed for this, he'll be very unhappy."
"I don't follow your master boy," Kuro growls.
"You no longer have your brothers either. How do you expect to stand against Orochimaru?"
"Insolent whelp!" exclaims Kuro as he backhands Kabuto suddenly, knocking the boy to the ground. Kabuto calmly fixes his glasses as he kneels in front of the large man.
"If I may, Kuro-sensei, how did you manage to escape when your brothers did not?"
Kuro grins cruelly down at the boy. "Five months ago I killed Kedan and sealed his body in a scroll. One of my own shadow clones used a henge to replace him, something those fools I called brothers didn't even pick up on."
"All that time," muses Kabuto.
"You yourself had told me of the blonde's volatile temper," Kuro continues. "After egging him on, I had the clone use a paper bomb kunai with a smoke bomb hidden on it so I could place Kedan's body in it's spot."
Kabuto shakes his head. 'Good plan, with so little information. Kuro was a great teacher, but the Shikon no jutsu is something the Konoha shinobi recognize as something I specialize in,' Kabuto thinks to himself. He looks up at Kuro as the man gloats. 'Our techniques are virtually indistinguishable. Orochimaru-sama may have liked Kuro before, but now my old sensei's life will be forfeit.'
Kuro gazes out at the ANBU. "It was amazing to find a man with my build in this village," he says suddenly. "That's when I used the Shikon no jutsu that Orochimaru asked me to teach you. Though I did lose some of my most favorite pieces of clothing in this," he says with a frown.
Kabuto looks down, 'Of course, he isn't wearing his favorite sandals.' "Orochimaru-sama did send me with a gift, Kuro-sensei."
Kuro looks down at the boy as he pulls a large box out of a pack on his back. "A gift," Kuro says quietly. He takes the box and opens it, immediately grinning as he takes off the black sandals he's wearing. Kabuto makes a face as the man pulls a ruby red high heeled sandal out of the box and straps it on. Soon Kuro stands in front of him with both sandals on his feet. "He remembered," Kuro says sweetly. "You can thank your master for me."
Kabuto sighs and looks back out at the ANBU. They have finished their job of securing Kuro's double and Kedan's body, as well as destroying the corpses of the others. "Time for me to report back, Kuro-sensei," Kabuto says. 'I'm sure we'll meet again soon when Orochimaru-sama orders your execution," he thinks to himself with a grin.
Kuro continues to watch as the ANBU follow his Genma and the others back to Konoha. "Soon…soon I'll get you back," he muses to himself, completely ignoring Kabuto as the boy turns and leaves.
Gai and his team finally reach the main gate, Ten-ten and Neji both out of breath.
"Gai!" exclaims Izumo. "Welcome back!"
"Where are the others?" Kotetsu asks curiously.
"They…they'll be along shortly," Ten-ten says breathlessly as Gai and Lee decide to race each other to the Hokage's office with the scroll Shizune asked to be delivered.
She groans as she and Neji take off to catch up with the other two, leaving Kotetsu and Izumo snickering back at the gate.
"Hokage-sama!" Gai exclaims as he throws open the office door.
Tsunade looks up and glares at the man. "This better be good news Gai."
Gai strides confidently forward and hands the woman he scroll. Tsunade unrolls it and begins reading. "We managed to take down the Egawashis', though Genma was gravely injured."
The hokage nods as she rolls the scroll back up. "What happened to your face?" she asks looking up at the man.
"That…well it's …I," Gai stammers.
"Genma-san was the boy that had been rescued from the Egawashis," Neji says, coming to his sensei's aid.
"What!?!" Tsunade cries. "But how…why…? Never mind you four. Go ahead and head home or to the hospital if you need to." Tsunade moves quickly past them and out the door.
One more chapter left, hopefully I'll be able to start and finish it before Monday, but if you don't see it then, I won't have it up until next Saturday.