Oo yea… chapter for April up! oh, and I finally managed to get kanji titles, so enjoy, ne? This sure took me and age to do… Hopefully, my next chapter will up soon, I have an exam next month… so probably end of May… sorry…
This chapter is dedicated to Animelove101 because you told me it was your birthday last chapter… so this is for you! Happy belated birthday!
Oh, and love you guys for all the reviews!
Enjoy the chapter!
N
Chapter 20- Strength
にじゅう－強く
Sakura crouched on a branch, well hidden from the view of all the Akatsuki members. She wasn't worried about Hakujo's Byakugan – Neji, Hinata and Tenten were keeping him extremely busy at the moment.
Kisame was facing Sai, Gaara, Lee and Kiba, Shikamaru and Ino well-hidden behind several bushes and attempting to destabilize the shark-faced man.
The rest of Team 7 were confronting Itachi. Sakura forced herself to look away – she knew that she wouldn't be able to resist jumping in to intervene once she saw Sasuke fighting Itachi,
'They're distracted… I better do it now…' she thought, leaping nimbly onto a higher branch to get a better view. A small frown creased her brow as she contemplated the best way to trap all three Akatsuki members at once, in her genjutsu. Finding a satisfactory position, the pink-haired kunoichi sat down upon the branch, centering her chakra and concentrating.
"Kurenai-sensei, I have an idea," Sakura looked up suddenly from the book she was flipping through.
"Let's hear it," the crimson-eyed woman strode over, sitting beside the kunoichi.
"Most of our genjutsu techniques involve making a person see something out of the ordinary, such as the Nemuri Genjutsu produces floating feathers, so on and so forth," Sakura started, gesturing with a hand. "But those kinds won't fool people with the Byakugan and Sharingan easily – because they know, at an early stage, exactly what we are attempting, and they are usually able to do the reverse procedures in time,"
Kurenai nodded. "I see your point. But both bloodlines have always prided themselves in this sort of thing – not to be fooled by illusions,"
"Yes, precisely," Sakura grinned, an unusual characteristic for her. "Imagine a scene where you're facing someone with either of those two bloodlines, and instead of doing the basic genjutsus, you create an illusion entirely similar to the surroundings, only revealing the true nature of the illusion once your opponent is completely trapped and unable to use 'kai' easily,"
The older woman looked thoughtful. "Yes, Sakura, that's a good base to start off with, but you have to remember that imitating something that already exists, and doing it without imperfections visible to the trained eye of those with the Byakugan and Sharingan – it's not an easy task,"
Sakura tilted her head to one side, smiling. "When have I been one to give up a challenge, sensei?"
Kurenai smirked. "Well, since you put it that way… I challenge you to develop this technique within a week and fool both Kakashi and Hyuuga Neji with it,"
"That's a deal, sensei!"
Sakura opened her eyes and straightened, a small smile adorning her lips at the memory. Quickly calculating he genjutsu coverage, the cherry blossom leapt down onto a lower branch, preparing to execute her handseals.
'Wish me luck, Kurenai-sensei…'
N (Back in Konoha…)
A certain crimson-eyed Jounin crept stealthily along the dusty corridor in the old weapons shop Shizune had mentioned, her cat mask and ANBU uniform in place. Behind her, another well-built man with messy, spiky black hair followed, his eyes sharp and alert.
The corridor they were traveling along branched into two. Signaling to her partner; Kurenai took the left branch.
"Five minutes only, Kotetsu," she said softly. "You know the warning signal,"
He nodded.
They split.
N
The 'Sakeya' had once been extremely popular, as Genma remembered. Dressed as ANBU, he, Iruka and Izumo silently entered, walking softly as each examined a section of the room they were in.
Rows of dusty bottles lined the wooden cupboards along the walls, most of them still full. Quite obviously, the owner had been in a hurry to pack up and leave for some reason, Genma thought, as he noted that almost all of the sake left were the expensive kinds. He suddenly had a fleeting vision of the Hokage getting drunk alone in this particular abandoned shop.
"Tsunade-sama would go psycho if she could see all this sake right now," the Jounin muttered audibly under his breath.
"Yeah," Izumo agreed, his usual mop of hair covering one eye. "But this place looks a little too small to be a pub, don'tcha think?"
Genma and Iruka looked around them. Doing a rough calculation, Iruka gauged that the room they were standing in was only as big as the average study – definitely not enough to serve as a pub.
"You've got a point," Iruka agreed, walking around cautiously as not to make any sound. "They must've rigged it somehow…"
It was then that something caught his eye.
"Hey… Genma… Izumo… look at that," he pointed to a section of the shelves on the wall facing the entrance. "Is it just me, or does that section look… cleaner than the rest?"
Genma stepped forward to investigate, but suddenly glanced sharply at his partners.
Footsteps. Someone was approaching – from the other side of the shelves!
The three men moved in sync to their perfectly organized plan – Iruka darted out to warn Kurenai and Kotetsu with a bird call, while Genma and Izumo sprang apart, hiding themselves.
The shelves moved slowly but smoothly, and both hidden shinobis watched with bated breaths, instinctively knowing the person behind those shelves.
The concealed door opened fully, and out stepped Danzou.
N
Kotetsu cautiously pushed open the door at the end of the corridor – only to e met by a disappointing sight : it was empty.
'Looks like a dead end,' the Jounin thought glumly, quietly shutting the door. Then he perked up. There it was – a quick succession of shrill falcon calls. Iruka's signal.
Swiftly, Kotetsu ran lightly down the length of the corridor, back to the fork where he and Kurenai had split. The crimson-eyed woman wasn't there, and he could hear footsteps coming from the direction they had entered. Deciding that he should worry later, Kotetsu spotted the loose ceiling panel overhead, and leapt up, pushing it open and drawing himself in, then replacing the panel, leaving a small gap to watch the goings-on beneath him.
Not a moment too soon. The stately leader of the ANBU Root division walked past, right under him just as the panel was put back in place.
N
Kurenai was only two feet away from the door at the end of the corridor when she heard Iruka's signal. As if on cue, footsteps sounded from beyond the closed door – and another pair of footsteps were headed in her direction from the other end of the corridor.
With a splilt second to make her decision, Kurenai swiftly performed several genjutsu handseals, and merged into the wall.
The door opened, and out stepped a rather familiar figure.
Kurenai's eyes widened as she barely stifled a gasp.
Deidara?
N (Somewhere in the forest…)
Sasuke was impatient, Kakashi could tell that much. The way in which he moved without contemplation, or strategy before attacking, was a mirror image of Naruto's younger self.
'You killed hundreds without flinching, Sasuke, and now, when you're facing the person you want to kill, you're losing yourself,' Kakashi thought grimly. Without warning, the Jounin grabbed his ex-student and leapt away, dragging Sasuke along.
"Kakashi what – " Sasuke growled.
"Stop it,"
"Stop what?"
"You're fighting a losing battle, and you know it," Kakashi gave him a sidelong glare after checking that Naruto was holding up. "Stop it. You're just letting him get to you!"
"So what's your problem with it?" the raven-haired teen shot back, angry at being treated like a kid after five years of having his own way at Orochimaru's.
Kakashi turned to him, his expression serious. "Listen. Sakura's trying to do something, I can't tell exactly what, but you – and all of us – have to keep all three of those Akatsuki distracted for as long as it takes for Sakura to do whatever she's attempting. So don't get defeated now just because you're too angry to think straight," he warned.
"I don't need her to – "
"You can't do this alone, Sasuke!" the Copy-nin's voice rose rapidly. "You know that – so stop being a smartass and get serious, because this isn't about killing Itachi for revenge! Not anymore! It's about getting all of us out of this – alive!"
The silence seemed infinite between them as the impact of Kakashi's words sunk in.
He continued, in a quieter tone. "You don't want to lose Naruto and Sakura again, do you?" His eyes watched the young man intently, waiting for the answer he already knew.
There was no response, Sasuke's gaze was averted to the ground.
"Sasuke,"
Reluctantly, the raven-haired boy muttered a "No,"
"Then you should know what to do," Kakashi turned and made a move to head back to the battlefield, but he suddenly paused. Without turning around, the silver-haired Jounin spoke again.
"I'm not asking for any promises, Sasuke, but remember that both Naruto and Sakura never gave up on you – don't give up on yourself now,"
With that, Kakashi leapt out of sight to rejoin the jinchuuriki in battle.
N
"You're an idiot, Hinata," Hakujo snarled, lunging at her. "Freeing the Branch members – what good will it do you?"
The Hyuuga heir sidestepped him. "I think that would be none of your concern, uncle," she said evenly. "It'll probably take off a year or two of my life, but that's just me, trying to defy destiny," she mocked lightly, hardly aware that she was doing it. There was a reckless desire within her to just let loose for once.
"Then what makes you think that the Branch will be grateful to you for freeing them?" Hakujo snarled, aiming a punch at Hinata. "They'll be killing off all the Main House members next-"
She blocked his fist with a chakra wall. "What have you ever done to deserve gratitude from them, Hakujo? And if they killed off the Main House, we'd deserve it – after all the agony we've put them through, for all these years!"
Neji took the chance to attack Hakujo while Hinata and Tenten distracted him, but the older Hyuuga managed to block his attack. Just seeing Hinata's furious face made the prodigy remember what he'd said to his father about her on her third birthday.
"Chichioya, isn't she cute?" the younger boy asked, looking up at his father with a big smile on his childish face.
'Well, she's not cute, anymore, chichioya… but she has grown…' Neji thought with an unseen smile.
Tenten shook her teammate by the shoulder, a puzzled look on her face. He gave her a slight nod to indicate that he was okay, and the weapons mistress tossed him an explosive, pulling out a few more of her own explosive tags, already attached to handle-less kunais.
Understanding her gesture, the opaque-eyed boy pulled out several of his own, as well, and leapt out of sight following Tenten.
Hakujo was getting angrier by the second at Hinata defying his words. In the Hyuuga household, the elders were never contradicted by those younger than them – it was a tradition long upheld, and a tradition that Hinata was breaking. He managed to hit one of her vital points and several minor ones, but the girl refused to give in – even though she hadn't managed to land a single blow on him.
"So you insist on continuing this ridiculous notion of yours?" Hakujo demanded, whirling back to avoid a kick from Hinata.
"Yes,"
"You'll never become head of the Hyuuga clan," her uncle whispered harshly. "I'll make sure of that – because you'll be dead by the time I'm finished here,"
"You're wasting your time, Hakujo," Hinata stood still, suddenly calm. The exiled Hyuuga was moving towards her at top speed, wanting to deal a killing blow. "My sister supports me fully on this matter, so even if you kill me…"
Hinata was fading away from view. In a moment, two hand grenades and about a dozen kunai with explosive tags attached came raining down on the lone man.
Hakujo, who had been too arrogant to activate his Byakugan before, assumed that it was genjutsu, judging by the way Hinata had disappeared.
And by the time he realized that the hand grenades and explosive tags lodged onto his cloak were real enough – it was already too late.
N
Sai felt frustration building within him as Kisame's sword effectively blocked and absorbed every single inked animal he used. None of the others were faring very well, either; Gaara's sand could only manage to keep the Sameheda out of the way for about half a minute, but not much damage could be done within that time limit.
Lee's taijutsu was practically useless against the sword, only his speed gave him some point of advantage in landing blows, but Kisame wasn't an Akatsuki member for nothing. Kiba and Akamaru couldn't even lay a scratch on the shark-faced man.
"Guys! Retreat!"
Shikamaru's yell resounded from his post in the trees, after he and Ino had agreed on the strategy. The team glanced at each other. Retreating – whatever way you chose to put it in – was still running away.
They didn't have much time to debate that point, staying alive was the key factor right now. All four shinobis and the ninja dog darted back to their leader, their expressions difficult to read.
"Hey, come back out here, you wimps," Kisame mocked, watching them but not bothering to move from his spot. Kiba flared up at once.
"Who are you calling wimp, you-"
"Shut up, Kiba!" Shikamaru hissed. "We're getting that darned sword out of his hands for once and for all, so just listen here!"
No one objected.
N
"Oi, I'm getting bored here…" Kisame said loudly, yawning while resting his sword on the ground. 'Those twerps… what do they think they're doing, stalling their deaths?'
Within the short span of Kisame's attention lapse, the shinobis vanished. Kisame started, immediately alert.
All at once, four shinobis and one white ninja dog came bearing down from above. Solid sand crawled up his sword, immobilizing his right hand; a large black tiger clawed onto his left art; two green, spandex-clad arms wrapped around his neck in a strong hold while someone grabbed his left foot, and sharp fangs dug into his right leg.
Before the surprised man had any time to react, Shikamaru started on his signature jutsu.
"Kagemane no Jutsu!"
His black shadow snaked upon the earthen ground, trapping the shark-faced man. "Ino!" the Nara genius signalled sharply.
Already the blonde girl was standing before him, her handseals in place. Her electric blue eyes reflected a spark of determination seldom seen in her.
"Ninpou: Shitenshin no Jutsu!"
At that very moment, Kisame's right hand and sword forcefully came free of their sand prison, and he swiftly lifted it before him to block the path of Ino's soul possession. The large sword suddenly vibrated.
Ino's body remained limp at Shikamaru's feet, but suddenly coughed up blood. As much as he wanted to check on her, Shikamaru knew that he had to keep his jutsu's hold on Kisame for as long as possible.
The team watched with bated breaths. Kisame was still.
Then, a tired voice spoke. "It's alright… I'm in his body now…"
With a sigh of relief, all the shinobis released their grasp on the Akatsuki member. Shikamaru dispelled his jutsu.
And regretted that decision.
N
A malicious grin broke out upon Kisame's face as he suddenly darted forward and grabbed Ino by her collar. The blonde girl was slowly regaining consciousness, still coughing up bouts of blood.
Everyone stared in disbelief. Kisame –
"Just a little play acting and you fell for it like the idiots you are…" the blue-skinned man smirked. "Especially you, self-proclaimed genius," he sneered at Shikamaru. "So… this one's your girlfriend, eh? Not bad for a lazy ass like you…"
No one said anything – no one knew what to say. They couldn't risk attacking, Ino's life was on the line.
Inwardly, the Nara genius seethed with anger at his own stupidity. An inexplicable feeling was eating him up from the inside, something so unbearably painful that his mind was wiped blank of thought of any form of strategy, save for that one, loud, resounding thought.
'Ino…'
N
"You fight rather… gallantly for your life, Uzumaki, just like all your jinchuuriki friends," Itachi said emotionlessly, easily sidestepping a punch from Naruto. "But I doubt it will help you, really, and you're just wasting my time,"
Naruto said nothing, even though he was dying to rip that stoic expression off the Uchiha's face. His blue eyes darted to a side as he spotted Kakashi and Sasuke headed towards them, and vaguely wondered exactly what his sensei had told his stubborn teammate.
Itachi caught sight of them, too, and moved backwards, so that he was facing all three of them at once. Red clashed with red as they stared at each other, their gazes never wavering.
"I'd like to know… how much you would sacrifice for those you call friends," the older Uchiha directed his question at Sasuke.
Wordlessly, the real battle began, each dodging, swerving and delivering blows expertly. Kakashi and Itachi's faces remained passive throughout, but Naruto and Sasuke clearly displayed every ounce of anger and hatred felt.
'Both of you still have a lot to learn about a true shinobi battle…' Kakashi thought grimly as he threw several kunai at his opponent. His eyes subconsciously flickered upwards, searching for any sign of the pink-haired kunoichi. 'Sakura… you better hurry, whatever you're doing… I'm not sure if these two hotheads can keep it up,'
N
Sakura checked if she could remember every variation of the handseals required. If she missed out even one, her plan was entirely doomed.
Somehow, her heart was beating unbelievably fast. Kurenai had told her that this technique would wear her down immensely due to the amount of concentration it took to create and maintain it, and she wasn't exactly sure if she could do it.
The cherry blossom had deliberately placed her self at a spot where she had a clear view of her teammates battling their rival. Even though she knew it only served as a distraction.
'Here goes…' Sakura took a deep breath, starting on her handseals.
"Genjutsu: Fushi no gen'ei!" (1)
She could feel it. A wonderful, floating sensation rushed through her body, even though she was still standing firmly on the branch. She felt light, as if she had suddenly become weightless, and the feeling of total control had filled her, brushing away all her doubts.
The genjutsu was working. Ever so slowly, the forest was changing, the lush, green leaves gradually dissolving, leaving only barren branches as a bout of cold wind whipped through the air.
Sakura was just experiencing a sense of elation at having successfully executed her genjutsu when she happened to look downwards, to where Team 7 and Itachi were still battling it out, oblivious to the sudden change.
Sasuke had whirled around to avoid several senbon, and was turning back to face Itachi, his katana poised. Somehow, from the look on Itachi's usually blank face alone, Sakura could tell – he'd activated his Mangekyou Sharingan.
Completely forgetting her own halfway-complete genjutsu, and reacting to a sudden impulse, Sakura leapt down from the branch without thinking, and landed right between the Uchiha brothers, facing Itachi.
When her emerald eyes met Itachi's red, unforgiving Mangekyou Sharingan, Sakura froze, unable to move.
She knew, at that moment – that she'd just made the biggest mistake of her life.
N
YEAH!!!!!! 20th chapter finished!!!! dances crazily was that a cliff or what?
Anyway, here's the jutsu I invented, for Sakura's genjutsu:
(1) Genjutsu: Fushi no gen'ei- Illusionary technique: Immortal illusion.
I can explain it if you guys don't understand, just tell me in your review and I'll PM you. Okay?
Now… tell me what you guys think, okay? I'll be waiting!
See you guys next chapter!
-Raven Ariana-