Chapter 14: Hosho. Part II.
(Nishinoomote Shipyards. Nishinoomote, Japan.)
…
(12: 45 AM. October 6, 2015)
…
At an underground base, several Akatsuki vehicles and personal regroup there, after they had retreated from Yamamoto Fortress. They are few in number and appear to be undersupplied. Their captain heads to a command room, which appears be inside a bunker. There, there's two men with Akatsuki cloaks. One of them has around Angelo's age, with very long blond hair which is drown into a half ponytail with the rest hanging down freely. It also bang hanging over his left eye. He also has slanted blue eyes and fair skin. The other man has fair skin, greyish brown eyes, short mousy red hair.
They look at a map on the middle of the room when the captain arrive. The soldiers look worried.
"Report." The red haired man says.
"The fortress have fallen to the enemy. The Red Scorpions were there providing close air support. Two Strigons have been shot down." The captain says.
"Hinomoto Oniko increases his reputation daily. We're going to end like the Valahia anytime soon if he keeps taking down our flight leaders… hm" the blond man says.
"By now should be five ace pilots he shot down since this war started. It's going to be unsustainable if his team isn't stopped here now." The red haired man says.
"Master Sasori, we must not forgot our trump cards." The blond man says.
"I know that, Deidara. This will be what will track them to here." The red haired man says, as him and the other one turn to a part of the room with several windows. Below the windows, on a couch, there's a man around Naruto's age, with short, spiky and red hair, fair skin and pale blue-green eyes without pupils or eyebrows. He wears a uniform with insignias similar to Tsunade's.
Beyond the windows, Team Antares and 3's target rests: The Hosho-class carriers, on special shipyards connected by several stairways.
…
(Western road to Nishinoomote.)
…
"Hey guys, shouldn't we stop to ask some intel?" Tenten asks. She and her team head on the road on one of the jeep of Warlock's convoy.
"Tenten, you're lacking discipline." Lee says.
"Sensei, over there!" Neji says as he notices something. Guy looks, and sees a motocross coming in with another jeep. Guy stops and so do the motocross and the other jeep. It's André.
"André-san." Guy says.
"Change of plans?" Lee says.
"Sure. Boss says there can be some scouts and cameras on the way to shipyard. This is the shortest way so we split up." André says.
"I see…" Lee says.
"C'mon, we'll explain on the way."
"Great! Everyone, let's go!"
Not far away from there, on the forest, a camera tracks the moment. The Akatsuki captain monitors it with his men, then heads for Deidara and Sasori.
"Sir. Enemy incoming." He says.
"Who?" Sasori asks.
"Four fair skinned people, all with black hair, and one with light yellow skin. Apparent team leader is also tall and well-built man with thick eyebrows, high cheek-bones and black hair cut in a bowl style." The captain says.
"Hum… I know him… I have a personal business with him… I'll go. His team members, give me the details." An sinister silhouette says, which appears to be wearing the Akatsuki cloak.
"His apparent number two appears to have very thick eyebrows too, round and large black eyes and prominent lower eyelashes. Also has bowl style hair too." The captain says.
"Continue… I want the details."
"Hum… also their number three is a young man with fair skin and long black hair and pupiless white eyes. Number four is a young woman with dark brown eyes and hair with Chinese-style buns on either side of her head with short fringe-bangs falling over her head…" the captain says, starting to get nervous.
"…why did you stopped?" the silhouette says. The captain gets very nervous.
"Escorting them… tall, muscular young man with short, straight black hair and blue eyes, yellowish skin… it has… it has a red scorpion on his shoulder…"
"Ah… the scorpion worries you…. Finally a red scorpion to fight face to face…"
"If there is one, his team must be with my brother's former team. The description matches with Hinomoto Oniko's number two, so… he's obliviously escorting Naruto-kun and his sister. I'll take them. The other team is all yours, Kisame." Another silhouette says.
"Wonderful….! Time for a little vendetta then…" the first silhouette says.
Some time later, Team 3 with André and head towards the north on a deserted area, then…
"Huh?" André says.
"What is it?" Guy asks.
"I think we're being followed."
"Neji."
Suddenly, Neji's eyes change, like a camera changing the focus, while several veins appear around them.
"Behind us!" he says. Suddenly, a column of sand appears behind them. It heads laying on the ground heading towards the group, until it crashes on a nearby tall rock. Everyone jumps out of their vehicles and look at the rock.
From the dust of it, a strange figure appears. It turns out to be a very strange figure: it is a very tall and muscular soldier with shark-like appearance, complete with pale, blue-grey skin, small, round, white eyes, gill-like facial marking under it and unbelievably, real gills on the shoulders. His blue hair is styled in a form of a shark fin. Just like Deidara and Sasori, he wears the Akatsuki cloak and also brown sash across the front and back of his cloak to hold an giant and very strange sword.
"….! You are…" Guy says.
"Do you know him?! Guy-sensei!" Lee asks.
"Who are you?" Guy says and everyone gets feeling dumb.
"Ah, it looks like the "bizarre beast" is as dumb as one as well. Well, at any rate, I'd better refresh your memory…" The figure says before getting his sword. Lee, André and Guy lower their guns and prepare for hand-to-hand combat.
The Akatsuki figure throws his sword on the air, very high, using it as a distraction to when he releases a smoke grenade.
"HERE WE GO!" it yells with joy as he picks his sword again and tries to strike Guy, but André and Lee kick him from behind. André picks his knife and duels with the figure for a minute until he sees a opening and jumps for a kick, hitting the figure's head, at the same time as Neji hits the figure with his palm, right on the chest. The figure is thrown away still on his feet. It grabs his sword and uses it to stop then he notices something coming to him. He raises his sword to shield him when what comes to him turns out to be a grenade, thrown by Tenten.
"Damn… missed." She says.
"Pesky brats… extreme annoyance." The figure says. Before it moves to face Guy.
"Those movements… and that huge sword! You must be…" Guy says.
"It seems like you finally remembered me." The figure says.
"… someone I've met before." Guy says. The figure gets speechless.
"You really have a talent of getting on people's nerves. I suppose I'll toy with you until you remember." The figure says.
Meanwhile, Team 7 with Naruko and Angelo head on an alternate route towards the north.
"Naruto, Naruko… can I ask something?" Sakura asks.
"What is it?" Naruto asks.
"Since when did Akatsuki started targeting you two?"
"…. I don't know." Naruto says.
"…neither I." Naruko says.
"What do you mean targeting, Sakura?" Angelo asks.
"Ah… it's… its nothing." She says, trying to disguise.
"Kakashi." Angelo says, looking serious and angry at Kakashi and Sakura
"A while ago… two of their high officers infiltrated the base, in order to contact the twins. It has been some months since then, and now, here we are. Though I can't quite see the motive behind this." Kakashi says. Angelo looks at him and Sakura for some instants before looking ahead again.
"Why no one told me?" He asks.
"You were off on Martinez Security with André-kun. There was no reason to worry both of you with an incident that was kept under control." Kakashi says.
"Then now they are coming after them. Why?"
"Maybe it was that they couldn't take action, rather than choosing not to. Of course, you here only worsened their efforts."
"Still, I want to know why. What they have of so special? It's me, Minato, what is?"
"It still will take some time to understand everything, Angelo-kun. There some top secret material that even someone like me and you can't reach but…"
"Then when the hell I'll know what the hell is going on?! How the shit I'm supposed to guard them if everyone keeps secrets from me?!"
"Hey… I don't need anyone to guard me… I never needed… I'm still the older brother here. I'll be able to handle them if they come after me, 'ttebayo." Naruto says.
Suddenly, a camera tracks the team's movement and sends it to the shipyard base. The captain heads to Sasori and Deidara.
"Another group coming. Three men, two girls. Two of them are blond-haired twins with blue eyes and whiskers. Boy's hair is unchanged since last view; girl's hair has two chin-length ponytails. Straight fringe parted to the left and straight bangs framing her face."
"It's them… details on their escorts." The remaining silhouette says.
"Remaining girl has pink short and straight hair at the size of her neck and parted bangs on the left, fair skin and green eyes. One of their leaders is a fit and tall man with spiky silver hair, fair skin and dark grey eyes. Last one, tall, fit and muscular man with short and very low spiky black hair, tanned skin and green eyes." The captain says.
"It's him… finally… let's see if he's good as they say." The silhouette says.
Sometime later, as they their heading, Kakashi sees something and gets worried.
"Everyone halt!" he says, as everyone stops. Before them, the last silhouette shows himself. It's a man which has jet-black hair that is pulled back in a low ponytail and his is framed with center-parted bangs that are extended to his chin; and fair skin color with onyx eyes. He wears a Akatsuki cloak.
"…who?" Sakura asks.
"…right from the beginning." Kakashi says.
"He has the Sharingan on his eyes…. Bullets are useless." Angelo wispers.
"Uchiha… Itachi!" Naruto and Naruko says.
"Uchiha Itachi…. You're his brother." Angelo says.
"Th.. this person is… Uchiha Itachi!" Sakura thinks.
"You know my brother. And I know you, Scorpion Demon. It has been a while… Kakashi-san, Naruto-kun, Naruko-chan." Itachi says, for Angelo's anger. "Tell me, scorpion. What do you know about me." He adds.
"That by going after him and her knowing I'm with then, you're a dead sonnuvabitch and don't know nothing about what I can do." Angelo says enraged.
"You bastard… Not just me, but even Gaara! I'LL BEAT YOU ALL DOWN!" Naruto says, also enraged.
"Kakashi… what do you think?" Angelo says.
"Your previous use of the technology of the Sharingan should speak for himself. Besides, Itachi is one of the best I ever met." Kakashi says.
"If he's good… then I'm better."
"You remember of the tactics, do you?"
"One of one, surely free. Two on one, take the rear. Sharingan have an immense blind spot compared to the Byakugan. Still…. Smoke plus Sharingan…"
"Genjutsu maneuver."
"We'll kindly ask both of you to come with us now… Naruto-kun, Naruko-chan." Itachi, says, angering Naruto and Naruko. Suddenly.
"Not with me here, bastard!" Angelo says as him runs to Itachi, and Kakashi follows him. Itachi suddenly throws an incendiary grenade, making a big fireball, but then he sees Angelo making a double twist jump just above the fireball. Angelo lands spinning against Itachi, and does a front flip as Itachi does a evasive backflip. Kakashi tries to hit Itachi, but Itachi blocks him and throws a smoke grenade as Angelo tries to hit him from behind with a spin kick. Itachi suddenly leaves the smoke running to Naruto and Naruko, but the twins get the initiative and try to punch him on the stomach, before he jumps high and Angelo appears from behind, with his knife on the hand. Itachi turns around, detonating a second smoke grenade while Angelo looks at him on the eye, which glows when he does so.
Meanwhile, André and Team 3 continue fighting the Akatsuki figure, known as Kisame. André and Guy charge at him and manage to throw his sword away.
"Now!" Guy says, as his team appears from the sky and jumps on Kisame. However, for the surprise, he uses a blue smoke grenade and jumps high and spinning with a knife on his hand. He makes cuts on Neji, Lee and Tenten, which all three fall incapacitated.
"Lee! Neji! Tenten!" Guy says worried.
"God dammit…!" André says.
"You brats. I'm surprised, you were more resourceful than I thought…. Now, without anything getting in the way, I can take you two out!" Kisame says. he then picks up his sword. "This great blade, 'Samehada' acknowledges none but me." He adds. André gets his knive on the back of his vest while Guy picks up his own.
At the same time, Angelo lands and looks around to see everyone laying on the ground, to suddenly raise up and shapeshift to Itachi. Of the shapeshifted, only two clones are made, while everyone else disappears. After a moment quiet, Angelo throws small knives from his pocket to the clones and one to Itachi. While the clones are taken out, Itachi picks up the knive thrown at him, but gets distracted and doesn't notice another thrown at him, who hits his chest. Before he falls on the ground, his body, surprisingly, dissipates on a cloud of crows, all flying towards Angelo, which suddenly jumps on a backflip as the crows pass below him, then he lands while the crows make a column of them above him. Angelo looks unsurprised and looks above as one of the crows shapeshifts onto Itachi, which lands before Angelo.
"Someone who isn't surprised… wonderful." Itachi says.
"You're gonna need more than UV light and gas to make me have fear. I know how that thing works." Angelo says.
"Hum… You're really more than I thought… but is still far enough from me…. Now, just drop off to sleep." Itachi says.
"Hum… not today." Angelo says, as Itachi sends his crows to strike him. The crows's beak is sharp and razor as they come near Angelo.
"Nothing… but… a dream." He thinks, as the crows pass by him. Their beak cut his clothes and skin. A bleeding and large cut is made on his right cheek. More others are made over his body and he breaths heavily. Suddenly, the skin on his right side and his clothes start to flick, and fly, but no blood or gore is left by it.
He then gets shocked by what he sees on the left side of his body: His hair becomes red as the an upper part of an old knight helmet appears, together with wings on the back of it. The upper part is the only part of the helmet that appears, as his eyes suddenly becomes red as well his skin becomes pale as a paper.
Below, the only clothes are a red piece of clothing tied like an apron on his waist and ends on the ground; armored black boots with golden trims becomes his shoe, covered by the red cloth. On his top, there's nothing as the skin becomes pale as well.
Then, as the final act, a big humpback appears on his back just to break itself on a bat-like wing with a wingspan twice as his size. All those events happens only on his right side; his left side is untouched.
Just as his wing appears, he puts his arms down; take a deep breath before yelling at his front and raising his head slightly. As his head raises, his yell becomes more like a roar until his head is completely facing the sky.
In an instant, he's back to the real world like nothing has happened. Naruko, with a similar cut on her cheek and Sakura hold him. On his front, Kakashi and Naruto jump and stop close to him. Naruto holds his left arm, wounded, and he has a cut on his cheek too.
"Are you allright, Angelo-san?!" Naruto asks worried.
"I'm fine. Just… removing the safety lock or something." Angelo answers.
"Right, time for the final clash. Put your all into it, everyone!" Kakashi says.
Meanwhile, Kisame strikes his sword onto André and Guy. Guy holds it enough for André to jump, and hold him and Kisame. André spins, freeing Guy, but Kisame holds André and kicks him away. Kisame throws Guy on the ground holding his neck, and Guy spits blood.
"Time for the paycheck!" Kisame says.
"This or nothing…!" Guy thinks before crossing his arms, concentrating and thrusting his legs onto Kisame, throwing him on the air. André comes from behind and jumps, kicking Kisame on the back, before Guy jumps and do a spin attack, hitting Kisame on the head. Kisame is thrown away on a very far distance, and doesn't move himself. André and Guy helps the rest of Team 3 to get on their feet as they hear a noise coming in. They turn around and a Hind helicopter comes towards them.
"Don't. We're not in condition for such a thing." Guy says, as his team moves towards the chopper. The chopper lands close to Kisame and some soldiers bring him to inside, before the helicopter lifts off.
"I think were finished here." André says.
"Guy-sensei, did you knew him?" Lee asks.
"I have only one thing for certain… I never saw him before…" Guy says.
…
"Payback." Angelo says.
"I'll show you kids how to do it." Kakashi says. Itachi then picks up his grenades and throws at Kakashi and Angelo. Three explosions in line make a trail on the way to Team 7. Naruto, his sister and Sakura jump away as the fireballs collapse. Itachi looks around and both Angelo and Kakashi disappeared. From the smoke of the first explosion, Kakashi appears and gives a right hook on Itachi's chin. Itachi moves for a punch, but Angelo covers Kakashi, making both be below Itachi's fist. Angelo lifts up turning to Itachi and he looks at Angelo's angry red eyes while Angelo looks at Itachi's Sharingan.
"Not this time." Angelo says.
"Show your demons." Itachi says. Angelo moves his leg up for a kick, but Itachi grabs it. Angelo holds Itachi's neck and shoulder as Itachi tries to throw him away. They spin on the air horizontally, before landing some seconds later, where Itachi thrust his legs on Angelo the same way Guy did, but Angelo holds him tight and both do a 360 spin, before Angelo releases Itachi, and Kakashi moves for a kick. Itachi evades, but then Naruto and Naruko move in and both score a punch on Itachi's stomach. Itachi falls on the ground, unconscious. Suddenly, the same noise Team 3 had heard is heard by Team 7. Angelo moves his ears trying to know the source.
"It's a Hind… c'mon everyone! Take cover!" he says, as the noise comes louder and the helicopter appears. Everyone takes shelter on nearby trees as the chopper lands and picks up Itachi.
"It's gone now." Angelo says as the noise starts to fade.
"Yoshi! We're running out of time! Let's go, 'ttebayo!" Naruto says.
"Yokai!" Naruko says. Angelo looks at Kakashi and both of them nodes to each other.
On the chopper, Itachi's eye suddenly opens. He then moves himself as if the hits were minor injuries.
"Had fun?" Kisame asks.
"Their 'bodyguard' is fun to play with. He's what my little brother isn't."
"Very nice… so… it's right to the mainland now, eh?"
"Uhum… our job here is done. Let's hope the others do theirs."
...
"Antares, to Vega. Do you copy?" Angelo says through a radio.
"Vega here, I copy. Had some fun too?" André answers.
"Yep… We found the punk's big brother… looks like it's on the family."
"Aw come on…" Sakura says.
"Am I lying?" Angelo says.
"Right… well… let's say we found a daddy shark way pissed off maybe because of last night's dinner."
"You're kidding?"
"I'm tellin'ya, brother."
"Right, so Warlock should be there waiting for us. Let's set up the pace."
"Got it, homie. Vega out."
(Continues on the next part.)