Finding the Right Path
Hey all, haven't had internet connection for the past 5 months, so couldn't really update. I will update two new chapters, one in a few days and one next week.
No pairings for now, but that may change
I do not own Naruto or any other aspect that reference people who could sue me. . .
Chapter 9
Menma, Sasuke and Sakura where standing at the gate waiting for their client, Tazuna, and their Sensei. Tazuna had to do some last minute shopping for the trip home, leaving the Genin to their own devices. The three were standing together discussing their skillset and talking about the upcoming mission. Each had their own idea of how the mission was going to pan out.
"I bet we'll fight some ninja along the way." Menma stated, looking excited.
"Hmph, I don't think it'll be much more than an escort mission." Sasuke intoned, raining on Menma's parade.
"This is going to be fun. Finally, a mission outside of Konoha." Sakura responded, looking out the gates one more time.
Tazuna arrived after the statement, wondering what got these kids so excited. "Still waiting for your Sensei?" Tazuna asked.
"Yeah. He should be here any second." Menma stated. At that moment, Kakashi poofed into existence.
"Well. It seems like we're all ready." Kakashi stated, before walking out the gates.
Naruto was hoping to catch his twin before he left for Nami no Kuni. He wasn't given a break, however, as he just missed him.
He had been living at ANBU HQ, and hadn't been home since that day. He found it easier to live there, in solitude, away from the brightness of the village. Plus, his Sensei always came to visit, either for training, or just to chat. He really liked Anko, and would do anything for her. She had a similar personality to his brother. Exuberant, bubbly, but when she shows her psychotic grin, no more happy-go-lucky Anko. She is replaced with a crazy bitch. Naruto would never call her that to her face though.
Keeping the thoughts to himself, Naruto left on his solo mission. There was no time limit, but he wanted to get this over and done with.
"Hey brat." Anko stated from behind him. She always liked to appear where he couldn't see. "I bought you some items for the road." Here she gave him a few scrolls. Inside one where brand new Shuriken. Another scroll had Kunai in them and the last had food for his enjoyment. "I also got you this." She stated, pulling out another scroll with some Genjutsu in them. "From my friend, don't practice too much when you're on patrol though." She stated before disappearing in a poof of smoke.
Naruto left his room at ANBU HQ and went to the secret exit of Konoha, before disappearing in a quick run. He wanted to get this mission over and done with as soon as possible.
Team 7 were on their way to Nami no Kuni. They had set out at a brisk pace. The three Genin were happy to be away from the village and going on their first C-rank mission. That excitement, however, started to dissipate after a while, and now they walked on in perpetual silence.
"Tazuna." Sakura stated, gaining the attention of those around her. A question was evident on her mind. "How come Nami no Kuni doesn't have any ninja?" She asked, reflecting the thoughts of her teammates.
"Well it's not a big country. We are a fishing and trading country that has no ties to the larger villages. We don't have any Shinobi nor an academy." Tazuna responded, taking a swig of his bottle.
At that moment the team walked past a few puddles on the ground. Kakashi noticed them, but the three Genin where too involved with what Tazuna was saying to be wary of their surroundings. 'We'll have to fix that.' Kakashi thought to himself.
Chains wrapped around his being as he was chopped to pieces. He completed a Replacement Jutsu before that could happen though, as he wanted to see two things. The first was his teams' reaction to what had just happened and the second was the actual target of the enemy Shinobi.
The three Genin looked back to see Kakashi ripped to pieces. "One down, four to go." One of the enemies stated, before charging at the Genin cell.
Menma stood frozen staring at the blood and body parts of Kakashi. Both nin reappeared behind him, ready to give him the same treatment as Kakashi. "Two down." One of the nin exclaimed.
Menma was still stuck in the same place as the enemy nin closed in on him. At that moment, Sasuke sprang into action, pinning the chain to a tree. Sakura was already guarding Tazuna and was slightly surprised when Menma stopped moving.
"What's a matter dobe?" Sasuke asked. He was just as confused as Sakura when he saw that Menma almost got killed.
The enemy nin disconnected the chain. One was heading straight for Sakura and Tazuna, whilst the other went for Menma once more. Sasuke moved in front of Sakura and waited in a defensive stance for the enemy to attack.
At the last second, Kakashi took both of the enemies out. He appeared out of thin air. "Good work Sakura, Sasuke." He stated looking at the two. He looked at Menma last, seeing the downtrodden look that he had. "Don't worry, it happens to the best of us." Kakashi stated, before walking past and tying the two nin to a tree.
Menma looked down at his bleeding hand. "Better take care of that, they may have used poison on their equipment." Kakashi intoned. Menma pulled out his kunai and stabbed where the wound was.
"Never again will I freeze, nor take a backward step." Menma exclaimed, as he watched the blood drip from his open wound.
"Are you okay?" Sakura asked in a small voice. She looked really concerned for her teammate.
"Yeah I'm fine." Menma responded, scratching the back of his head with his good hand.
"Let me." She stated, reaching for Menma's hand. When she took it, Menma had a little blush on his cheek. Sakura cleaned the wound and bandaged it. "All better." She stated, looking up at Menma.
"Thanks." Menma responded. Feeling better than he had a few minutes prior.
"So Tazuna. Care to tell me what's really going on?" Kakashi asked, having finished interrogating the enemy Shinobi.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Tazuna responded, paling ever so slightly.
"Come now. They were good enough to tell the truth. Why can't you." Kakashi stated, indicating the enemy Shinobi. Tazuna thought a second longer before telling his story.
Naruto had just arrived at the border and was scoping the place out when he felt his twin in distress. He lost his step and fell to the forest floor. He could feel his twin's strong emotions. It was fear, nothing but pure fear.
After a few minutes it passed, and Naruto felt better. "Supposed to be a C-rank." He stated to himself, thinking of the mission Menma was on.
Anko took note of the fall and was about to approach her apprentice to find out what had happened, but remembered the Hokage's words. "Damn brat." She whispered, before hiding her presence completely.
Naruto got off the ground and continued on his path.
"That is a touching story. But I'm afraid that we must turn back. This is a C-rank, had you been straight with the Hokage, this would have been a B-rank, even an A-rank mission, with Shinobi better equipped to deal with it." Kakashi stated, ready to make his way home.
"But they will kill my family. I have a daughter and a grandson. They will blame you for not assisting." Tazuna exclaimed, trying to gain sympathy from his travelling companions.
Kakashi turned and started making his way towards Konoha. He stopped and turned, seeing his team in deep thought.
"We should complete the mission." Menma stated looking from Tazuna to Kakashi. Tazuna took on a hopeful look at the words.
"I think we should too. It would leave a bad taste in my mouth otherwise." Sasuke stated, backing his teammate up.
"Bu-but. I guess we should too." Sakura stated after a few seconds.
Kakashi looked at the determined faces on his team, his lone eye hard and focussed, he stated. "The next enemies won't be Genin or Chunin. It will most likely be Jounin rank Shinobi." He exclaimed, hoping to get them to understand how dangerous this mission would be.
"We should complete the mission." Menma stated once more.
"We're almost there." Tazuna added, hoping to sway Kakashi.
"Fine. We'll complete the mission." Kakashi stated. Sasuke smirked, whilst Sakura laughed in semi-delight, semi-fear. Menma only smiled.
Naruto had set his base in a small cave. He set traps around the place and found a secondary entrance. He also searched for other places suitable as a base and set a variety of traps in them. His plan was to change his camp every night.
Anko kept observing her student, acknowledging the wisdom with his thought processes. "Clever brat." She stated to herself. It was oh so amusing to her.
"Now for the first shift." Naruto stated, before traversing a set distance away and observing Ame no Kuni. This was going to be one long, boring mission.
Team 7 and Tazuna arrived at the shores of Hi no Kuni. There the team were introduced to one of Tazuna's friend, and the person who would be taking them to Nami no Kuni via boat.
"All aboard, I guess." Kakashi stated with very little enthusiasm.
The ride was very quiet with naught but the sound of the engine buzzing over the waves. Menma was astonished, this was the first time he had seen the ocean, and he couldn't believe it. He had heard about and read about the ocean, but seeing how vast it is, was something entirely different.
At that instant, the engine stopped, and their driver, started paddling them across the open sea.
"Why have you stopped the engine?" Sakura asked, looking around at their driver.
"Gatou's men patrol these waters. The mist is good, so they may not see us. But this engine is loud, and they will definitely hear us." He replied, concentrating heavily on his work.
Sakura nodded her head in approval, thankful for the answer. As they approached the shore, they took notice of a massive form through the mist. As they got closer, they could make out the cement bridge, beginning from Nami no Kuni and ending in the middle of the sea.
"Wow." Sakura exclaimed, whilst Menma was astonished to see such a sight. Sasuke seemed unfazed, but even he had to admit that it was an awesome sight to behold.
Naruto was still in the same place observing the border when he had a brilliant idea. With no other thought in mind, he created eight shadow clones. When they were created, each sprang into action and disappeared through the dense foliage. The original, well Anko hoped it was, stayed in the same place, keeping an eye on the border.
Anko continued watching Naruto, only to witness something extraordinary. The figure of Naruto disappearing and was replaced with leaves and branches. Anko was confused and was about to approach the position that Naruto had hid. She stopped in silence however, as she felt the presence of other Shinobi.
She hid in wait until they came closer. She was surprised to find two figures walking from Ame no Kuni into Hi no Kuni. They were both dressed in black and had a straw hat covering their facial features. One was tall and had something huge wrapped in bandages on his back, the other was shorter, and carried himself with confidence.
The large Shinobi was talking non-stop, trying to get a rise out of his companion. They were close to Naruto's position, when the short one looked up at the tree where Naruto hid.
Naruto felt the Shinobi's presence long before he saw them. He knew that he had to stay hidden, so he chose to camouflage himself as a tree branch with leaves.
The shorter shinobi looked up for a brief second. His eyes and that of Naruto's connected. Naruto saw the red eyes with the three tomoe, before it morphed into something else. He knew that his hiding place was found out, and was waiting for the eminent attack.
It came an instant later, when he found himself in some type of sewers, a large cage to one side of the sewers, and the enemy Shinobi on the other.
"The Kyuubi. How… interesting." The figure stated, looking through the cage. The Kyuubi opened his eyes and snarled at Naruto's opponent.
"Damn Uchiha and your filthy eyes." The Kyuubi exclaimed, rising to his full height.
"So you must be, let me see. One of the twins, not Menma, maybe Naruto yes?" The nin spoke, this time directing his gaze at Naruto. His ANBU mask slipped away in that instant, revealing his cerulean coloured eyes.
"Who are you?" Naruto asked, slightly on edge. This stranger knew who he was and his connection to the Kyuubi.
"Ah. I think you already know who I am. You're trying to bide time, wait for some type of help. I'll let you in on a secret. By the time we're finished here, only a second will have passed by in the real world. My colleague and I will continue on our travels whilst you, and the Kunoichi, can do nothing about it."
At this statement, Naruto eyes widened slightly. He had a feeling he was being followed, but chalked it up to being his first solo mission. Now he had confirmation, and there was really only one Kunoichi he could think of that would take on the mission of babysitting him.
"So what now, Itachi?" Naruto asked, watching the smirk on Itachi's face form.
"This is your mind, but it is my world. I control it." At his words, the surrounding sewer disappeared and was replaced with a harsh desert. The sky was black and, what appeared to be the sun, was made of the Uchiha's eyes. "Now we don't have much time, so how about we get down to business." Itachi stated, just as Naruto found himself strapped to a wooden stake.
Team 7 arrived in Nami no Kuni. They thanked their chauffer and continued travelling on foot. They walked for a half hour, stopping suddenly, when Menma threw a Kunai into the bush. Sasuke and Sakura were on high alert, and approached the bush with apprehension. Sakura lifted the bush, only to sigh as a white hare scampered away from her.
"Menma." She exclaimed before hearing her Sensei shout 'Down'. With no further thought, she hit the deck. She looked up to find a large Shinobi standing on a large sword.
"Hehehe. Copy-Cat Kakashi. Took on a team in your old age yeah?" The large man asked, smirking at the Genin in question.
"Momochi Zabuza, Demon of the Bloody Mist." Kakashi replied, looking at his foe. He looked at his team and nodded. With the signal, the three Genin got into a protective position around their charge.
"Why must we play at being Shinobi?" Zabuza asked. "Just hand over the old man, I'll make sure it's a clean death." He smirked, eyeing the aged bridge builder.
"You know we can't do that." Kakashi stated, lifting his covered eye, to reveal a fully developed Sharingan.
"What, Sensei, how did you get that eye?" Sasuke asked, tensing slightly with the revelation.
"A long story, one I will share. However, now is not the time." Kakashi replied.
"The Sharingan straight up. How privileged I must be." Zabuza exclaimed, before grabbing his large sword and disappearing from sight. He appeared on a small lake, hand in air, releasing Chakra and radiating Killing Intent.
Mist started to form around his being, before descending throughout the area. It took a few seconds for the mist to become thick enough that the members of Team 7 lost sight of Zabuza.
"Kidney, heart, throat, spinal column, lungs, liver, jugular vein, subclavian vein." Zabuza stated, relishing at the thought of killing. "So many to choose from!" Zabuza exclaimed, readying himself for the attack.
Sasuke was shaking slightly, eyes wide, as he felt the strength radiate off of Zabuza. Kakashi felt the presence of the Genin change and decided to break the intensity. "Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to my comrades." He exclaimed, watching as Sasuke got his nerves under control.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Zabuza stated from behind Tazuna, right in the middle of the Genin's set up. He swung his large sword, but felt his ribs get pierced. Looking up, he was surprised to see Kakashi standing in front of him.
He smirked, before turning into water. Another Zabuza appeared and swung his sword at Kakashi, watching as he too broke into water. The real Kakashi appeared behind Zabuza, Sharingan eye spinning. "It's over." Kakashi exclaimed, only to hear Zabuza speak again.
"Oh I wouldn't be so sure." He exclaimed, as Kakashi sliced the throat of the Zabuza in front of him. It turned into water as the real Zabuza appeared and swung his sword at Kakashi. Kakashi moved, but felt a hard hit to his stomach, winding him and sending him flying.
Kakashi landed in the water, but couldn't use chakra to stand atop it. It was at this moment that he knew he lost, as Zabuza appeared behind him, forming a prison of water around Kakashi's entire being.
"You almost had me, but in the end you failed." Zabuza exclaimed as he stuck his hand in the prison. "Time for your Genin to die." Zabuza continued, creating a Water Clone to do his bidding.
Menma looked towards Kakashi, then at his teammates. Sakura looked on in slight shock and Sasuke's face morphed into a sneer.
"Take Tazuna and run. That is an order." Kakashi stated, much to the shock of Menma. He was about to turn when he remembered the promise he made to himself. He steeled his resolve, ready to attack at any second.
A movement to the left caused him to look in that direction. He was surprised when he found the two nin that their Sensei had dealt with, blocking their path to freedom.
"Hehehe, I forgot to tell you. My apprentices' are in that direction." Zabuza intoned, causing Kakashi's eyes to widen once more.
Sasuke and Sakura turned to face off against the two Chunin level Shinobi, whilst Menma focused his attention on Zabuza.
"This may not work out so well for us." Menma stated, smiling slightly.
"I still have a mission, so I will not die today." Sasuke responded, readying himself. He activated his eyes, and noticed the slight hesitation on his enemy's faces.
"Sakura, watch Tazuna." Sasuke exclaimed, readying his attack.
"Don't die… either of you." Sakura stated, as she took a guarding stance in front of Tazuna.
Sasuke ran towards his opponent's, going through hand signs at the same time. A large fireball was sent towards his enemies, splitting them up and causing them to dodge to the side. Sasuke read their movements and followed one of the enemies, Kunai in hand. He appeared as the enemy was distracted, and slammed his Kunai into the enemy's skull.
"Gozu!" The other nin screamed, rushing towards Sasuke with anger-filled eyes. Sasuke was on the defence as his opponent assaulted his being. There was little to no room for error, as each swipe from his enemy would cause him damage.
Sakura looked on quietly. It had happened in a matter of seconds. First Sasuke was near, then he disappeared and executed a Grand Fire Ball Jutsu. Then he killed his opponent as if it was nothing. Now Sasuke was dodging each of his other opponent's strikes.
She looked over her shoulder for a split second, just as Menma started his attack.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu." Creating six clones, before running headlong into his opponent. Zabuza actually smirked.
"What type of fool runs straight at their opponent?" He asked looking at the scene. "What have you been teaching these fools Kakashi?" Zabuza continued, looking sideways at Kakashi.
Each of the Menma pulled out a Kunai and through it at the Zabuza clone. The clone dodged each Kunai, smirking slightly. "Is this all you got?" It taunted, only for Menma to smirk. Each Kunai thrown, turned into clones. All of them throwing further Kunai at the Zabuza clone. Zabuza turned in time to parry the attacks, only to break into water, as the original Menma appeared behind him, sticking a Kunai into his back.
Zabuza smirked at Kakashi as his Water Clone disappeared. "So you have taught them to become true Shinobi." He stated, as he created three more Water Clones and sent them towards Menma.
Sakura was on edge, as each battle was intense. Sasuke continued to dodge his quarry, whilst Menma was up against three clones, instead of one.
Sasuke saw it, for a split second, at the corner of his eyes, he saw it. The Senbon flew from the bush straight at his pink haired teammate. It hit her in the neck, killing her instantly.
Sasuke stilled at that moment, not believing his eyes. His opponent took that moment to press his attack, slicing Sasuke across the chest, drawing some blood.
"Now." Zabuza stated then, watching as another Senbon made its way into the Bridge Builders neck. At the same moment, the original Zabuza let go of the water prison and disappeared. He appeared in front of the prone Tazuna, taking his head clean off with a swing of his sword.
"Meizu. It is done." Zabuza stated to his apprentice. The nin stilled in his movements, obeying his Sensei.
Menma turned around at that moment, stilling in his movements as he saw Sakura lying dead on the ground. The clones he had been fighting disappeared, leaving him to stare at the original, standing over Sakura's body.
In that moment, Menma saw red. Red Chakra started swirling around him as his eyes changed colour. His claws extended and he rushed straight at Zabuza. Zabuza was surprised by the foul Chakra and remained in the same position standing over the dead body of Tazuna.
Sasuke took that moment of distraction to kill his second opponent. His Sharingan had morphed as tears dropped from his eyes.
The fourth nin appeared out of the shrubs, running straight towards the Kyuubi induced Menma. He put up an ice mirror quickly, only to jump back as it shattered in front of him. Menma kept attacking, his hand stopped just before it plunged into the Hunter Nin's chest.
Kakashi had acted quickly. Knowing what was happening he made a quick dash towards Menma, stopping him from taking another life. "Enough Menma. Our mission is over. There is no need for further bloodshed." He exclaimed, looking Menma in the eye.
Menma snapped out of his daze as the Red Chakra left him. He fell to the ground beside Sakura's prone body, tears falling from his eyes.
"You could have just handed the old fool over." Zabuza exclaimed.
"Better leave now, before it's too late." Kakashi replied, looking Zabuza in the eyes.
"At least be relieved. Your student took two of mine, whilst mine took one of yours." Zabuza intoned, disappearing from site.
Sasuke walked up to his fallen comrade, eyes now back to their original form. He knelt beside Naruto, looking down at his dead teammate. Kakashi covered his eye, knowing how much this was going to devastate his team.
He looked up for a second, before dropping to the ground. The stress of the Sharingan along with the stress of losing a comrade too much for his being.