Chapter 11
His blades take on a light blue glow as he holds them up.
Zabuza Sensei gives us the signal to attack.
Haku and I waste no time as we launch our jutsu; a phoenix flame jutsu from me and multiple ice spikes from Haku.
They're completely eradicated by the blinding light Raiga launches from his Kiba blades.
I use an earth wall jutsu to no merit as it gets cut through like it was made of paper and not chakra reinforced earth.
"Forget using earth jutsu, they're weak to lightning release techniques"
Zabuza Sensei says slicing the lightning strike with his blade.
"Support me from the rear, I'm charging in"
And he takes off at full sprint in the direction of Raiga. He casts a water clone jutsu for safety, so if he gets hit, he can substitute in time to save himself.
Haku and I look towards each other and nod. She forms a large barrage of ice senbon behind her and starts shooting them at Raiga from different angles. A more controlled version of her ice spikes that she trained in order to target enemies more precisely.
I cast the phoenix flame jutsu and water bullet jutsu in turns in order to make Raiga's defense even a little harder.
Raiga doesn't take all this lying down. He himself takes on a light blue glow as he uses his own lightning chakra to reinforce his blades. Using them to launch energy strikes towards Haku and I while swinging at Zabuza Sensei, who's already gotten in close.
There's enough space between us that dodging isn't a huge issue, however the strikes eradicate our ranged jutsu. A few of Haku's manage to sneak by due to their small size and large amount, but nothing substantial enough to offer any kind of real threat.
Zabuza Sensei on the other hand appears to be the better of the two at kenjutsu, as Raiga appears to be being pushed back. When their blades clash, the Kubikiribocho seems to be coming out worse though, getting heavily chipped.
They suddenly separate and start to weave hand signs. Zabuza Sensei uses the Great Waterfall Technique and Raiga appears to summon a giant lightning strike from the clouds.
Zabuza Sensei is able to substitute with his water clone to dodge the lightning strike, while Raiga becomes completely obscured by the giant spinning mass of water.
After a few seconds the mass of water splits in two and crashes tremendously into the surrounding landscape.
Raiga emerges, bruised and breathing heavily, his right arm hanging down uselessly at his side.
The Kiba blades have now formed into one singular staff shaped sword with blades at both ends. It's dyed in a bright blue cloak with sparks flying off of it.
Raiga's face contorts when he sees Zabuza Sensei, realizing that he's clearly come off a lot worse from their exchange.
He face lowers and he stabs one side of his sword staff into the ground.
"This will not be allowed Zabuza! You dog! Don't think I'm beaten yet!"
The clouds above us start to rumble loudly and I can tell he's winding up for a big attack. I move in close to Haku and grab her hand, using the other to form the one handed tiger seal.
"Hidden mist jutsu" I say as I expel a large amount of mist from my mouth, encasing everything in a thick fog.
"Stay close" I say to Haku.
"…Yes" She agrees.
"You think I can't see past such a technique?!" Raiga yells furiously.
But I know he can't. We read his file, he's not a sensor type.
He's still a former anbu and highly skilled ninja, but the only information he has right now is where we were before the mist jutsu was used. His nose isn't sharp enough to read our movements, but his ears should be.
Therefore, I use the one-handed Tiger sign to activate the multiple water clone jutsu. Ten clones in total manifest, using up a fair amount of my chakra in the process. I send them in pairs in different directions. I walk with Haku in a different direction.
The odds should be in our favour…
I hear a rumble of thunder as two of my clones poof away. I smile in relief before two more disappear, then two more, then two more. The rumbling from the thunder hasn't stopped yet…
"Haku! Defense!"
She doesn't waste words and quickly forms her ice into a dome above us.
I cancel my hidden mist jutsu, realizing it pointless if he can continually fire off lightning strikes like that…
"There you are, you rats!" He yells maniacally and casts another lightning strike.
It strikes the ice dome, which holds but begins to crumble. Haku's face scrunches up and she holds her last hand sign in order to reinforce the dome with her chakra.
I place a hand on Haku's shoulder and look up as the ice dome becomes more and more cracked from the pressure. I substitute the both of us with the last two water clones I had left. The ice dome finally caves in and the two clones are destroyed by a large column of falling lightning
…I feel like I'm slightly out of my depth here.
I fall to one knee as that thought crosses my brain. I've used far too much chakra. Mostly for a plan that didn't even almost work and attacks that did no damage.
"Saizo!" Haku says with alarm when I drop down. She comes to my side, helping me up with one arm around me.
"I'm alright, just low on chakra" I smile emptily.
Why did I think this would be easy? He's on the same level as Zabuza Sensei…
Speaking of which…
I look up and see Raiga being slashed in half by a giant sword.
Zabuza Sensei is really amazing…
"Aaarrghhh!" The scream from Raiga knocked me out of my reflection.
I see Zabuza Sensei say a few words to Raiga and Raiga says a few words back, coughing out blood and lying on the ground in two pieces.
I can't hear what they were saying, but in this next moment Raiga yells out.
"Lightning! Conduct my funeral!"
He looks into the sky with a mad grin on his face as a giant lightning strike encompasses him, completely obscuring his body from view.
Zabuza Sensei smartly retreated to our position to avoid the suicidal attack.
"Good work Saizo. Good work Haku" He says looking at each of us in turns.
I squint my eyes and look at him, lightning still striking the definitely dead body of Raiga.
"Really?" I asked.
"I didn't really do much…"
Haku and Zabuza Sensei both look at me.
"I wasn't expecting you to be able fight him on equal terms Saizo…your job was to provide a distraction. Which you did well enough that he took his attention away from me long enough to kill him. You fulfilled your role perfectly" Zabuza nods at me in approval.
It certainly didn't feel like that…nothing I did worked at all.
"You are too hard on yourself as always Saizo. The mission was a perfect success. Raiga Kurosuki is dead, none of us are injured and we have recovered the Kiba blades" Haku adds, pointing towards the Kiba blades lying on the ground where Raiga's body used to be.
I nod, a bit unconvinced, but it's true that the mission was a success. I can worry about getting stronger when we get back to the rebellion base.
We go over and pick up the blades, still radiating a bit of lightning chakra.
Zabuza Sensei hands them to me.
"They'll be under your care until we get back to the rebellion base. You should practice with them while you can"
I look at him with my head tilted.
He smirks.
"What? Where you planning on handing them over to the rebellion and then forgetting about them? Practice with them in the time you have and convince your mother to let you keep using them"
My eyes widen when I realize what he's suggesting.
"Is that fine?" I ask.
"Normally no"
…Zabuza Sensei really doesn't hold back.
"But not only are you the son of the rebellion leader, you're the student of another member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. You might have the greatest qualifications out of anyone in the rebellion for ownership of this sword. However, there's a war going on, you need to display enough proficiency with the blades to be entrusted with them"
He hands the blades over to me.
"So, practice. We'll take the long way back"
…and he walks away.
"You could become a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen just like Zabuza Sensei!" Haku looks at me excitedly.
I nod and looks down at the blades in my hands. They're oddly shaped, both sides are bladed unlike the katana I already own and they have a spike of sorts on each side; one high and one low, like a rose stem.
This is a good chance, I need to work hard.
One Week Later
The conclusion? They're normal swords…
Sharper than my katana and with an interesting design, but without lightning chakra like Raiga had, I'm completely unable to bring out the sword's full potential.
I've been attempting to train the lightning chakra nature change under Zabuza Sensei's suggestion…but it's hard…
I now realize how much help having an affinity is when using that chakra nature change. The chakra just…doesn't want to be the way I'm telling it to be.
Lightning chakra is supposed to feel sharp and static. I can hold that feeling for a moment, but not long enough to actually use it. I think I'd need several months of training in order to properly master it, maybe even a year.
Which is a problem…as Zabuza Sensei said, we're in a war and if someone can use these swords better than I can, then the Kiba blades will go to them. Which even I have to admit is completely undeniable at this point. Anybody who can use lightning release is a better fit for these swords than I am.
This leads me to the other way to enhance the swords. Zabuza Sensei pointed out that Raiga didn't just enhance the blades with his own chakra, he used chakra from an actual lightning strike to empower the swords.
Which…didn't make a lot of sense to me…
How does an actual bolt of lightning have chakra? Wasn't that just a jutsu Raiga used?
Zabuza Sensei says no, it was an actual bolt of lightning. The chakra felt different he said…
So now I'm sitting here meditating, trying to feel for any leftover lightning chakra in the blades to try and solve this puzzle in the next two to three weeks when we'll arrive back at the rebellion base.
…
…
…
Nothing…
I know something's there! So why can't I sense anything!
Okay, let's think…
…
If actual lightning has lightning chakra, does actual water have water chakra? Does actual fire have fire chakra? Does the actual earth have earth chakra?
I look at the ground and then a nearby pond. Worth a try I guess.
I walk over and sit in the middle of the pond and meditate.
What am I looking for? I'm looking for something that feels like chakra but it's a bit different…
Hmm…
One Week Later
Hmm…
OH! What's that?
It feels like chakra, but it isn't…like the essence of the water itself.
I walk back on land and meditate on the earth. I feel something similar, like chakra, but not chakra. The essence of the earth.
Hmm…
I take the Kiba swords into my hands. They've been harnessed to my back this entire time.
I feel into the blades for a similar feeling…
…
…
…It's faint, but I think there's something there…
The chakra feels like lightning chakra, but again it's slightly different.
The swords are circulating this chakra naturally, like a person's chakra system. Yet, none of it is leaked, the chakra is maintained fully as if it belongs within the swords.
I can also feel the swords are being empowered by the chakra. Only slightly due to the small amount, but enough for the swords to become sharper than normal.
What's the next step then…this much won't win me the swords.
If I can get more of the chakra into these swords…that might be enough.
But in order to do that, I need to wait for a thunder storm.
One Week Later
We're only a few days away from arriving back at the base now and I was beginning to get nervous.
But finally!
I grin at the dark clouds and the rumbling in the distance.
"Is this safe?" Haku asks concernedly from beside me. She insisted on helping when I told her and Zabuza Sensei what my plan was.
"…Maybe?" I respond and look over at her.
She frowns.
"If it isn't safe, then you should stop this at once"
"This is the only chance I have of becoming one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen like Zabuza Sensei! If I can do this, then it should be enough"
She continues to frown to express her disapproval.
I sigh.
"I'll just leave the swords in the ground like a lightning rod. That should be a lot safer. Okay?" I smile at her.
She squints and nods slowly.
I place the swords in the ground and then look on in the distance with Haku, watching several lightning bolts strike the swords over the course of a few hours.
At first the swords had a bright blue glow, but after a few hours, the glow died down completely and I picked up the swords with Haku watching on nervously.
Woah!
I drop the swords in shock at the powerful feeling they were giving off.
"Saizo!" Haku yells worriedly and runs over to my side.
I smile at her.
"I'm alright Haku. I was just surprised" I pick the swords back up under Haku's watchful glare.
Unlike the weak feeling from earlier, the Kiba swords are now radiating the unusual lightning chakra. However, like before the chakra is contained and circulating like a person's chakra system would. It's just far more powerful…
If I can just use this...
With that feeling, I swing the sword and a massive amount of the chakra radiates out in a giant slash of energy. It slashes through the trees in its way, going much further than I thought it would and completely destroying the small forest.
The chakra in the swords fell by almost half, but that was incredible.
I might just be able to keep these swords after all.