Chapter Eighteen: Taking The Lead!
Previously~!
Yuka clenched her fists tightly in anticipation. Hajime grinned. Tamatsu simply smirked as he removed himself from the tree was against to join his comrades.
"Not a chance." Said Sakura standing up, gathering her composer.
"What the hell do you think I put myself through all this training for?" Said Naruto following suit.
"I didn't train like this for him, but for the sake of my comrades. Naruto and Sakura will need all the help they get to bring him back. So I'm game!" Said Yuka.
"I second that! We're here to bring Sasuke back and kick ass while doing so!" Exclaimed Hajime. Tamatsu gave a nod of quiet approval.
"Good." Said Kakashi, "The rules are the same as they were that first day. I don't care how you do it, but get these bells away from Kiyomi and I. And remember." Said Kakashi.
"If we're not ready to kill ya." Started Naruto.
"We won't get the bells. We remember." Finished Sakura.
"Exactly." Said Kiyomi. Yuka stared at the bells as they dangled from Kiyomi's hand, tempting anyone to grab at them.
"Show no mercy if you ever want to get these bells. You all have until sun rise tomorrow." Explained Kiyomi.
"It's a whole new ball game and I think we better get serious, Kiyomi." Said Kakashi, pulling up his headband revealing the Sharingan underneath.
"Going that far, eh Kakashi? Well, it time to pull off the training wheels on these kids finally." Mused Kiyomi stretching her arms high above her head.
"What is that supposed to mean, eh Kiyomi-nii?" Said Yuka pulling out her gloves from her waist pouch.
"Exactly how it sounds. She saying that all the training spars we had with her was a walk in the park to her." Said Hajime as he pulled out his gloves from his left cargo pocket.
"Well I guess we just have to prove ourselves to her that we are not those bratty little genin anymore, eh Hajime. Yuka?" Said Tamatsu.
"Then what are we waiting for!" Shouted Naruto dashing at Kakashi and Kiyomi.
"Naruto!" Called Yuka
"So what are we waiting for!" Shouted Naruto dashing at Kakashi throwing several shuriken at him.
Kiyomi leapt away from Kakashi as he dropped to the ground to avoid the shuriken, retaliating by throwing several shuriken back at Naruto. Naruto leaping high into the air to avoid the attack and Kakashi sent a second wave of shuriken at Naruto.
"Kage Bushin No Jutsu!(Shadow Clone Jutsu!)" Said Naruto creating his hand sign and his clone quickly appear just in time to pull him out of the shuriken's path.
"Not bad." Muttered Kiyomi as Naruto landed and Kakashi dashed at him.
"Henge!(Transform!)" Called Naruto and the clone transformed into a large shuriken.
Just as Naruto twisted to launch the over sized weapon at Kakashi, his Jōnin sensei seized his weapon wielding hand and clamp his other hand on top of Naruto's head making Naruto stop in his tracks.
"That'll be enough of that, don't you agree, Naruto?" Said Kakashi.
As the dust swirled and started to settle around the two, Kiyomi's eyes widened from surprise. Naruto had already created a clone and had substituted it to place a kunai pointed at Kakashi's back.
"My my my. Kakashi looks like Naruto got the jump on you there for a minute, maybe those guys are a lot more mature than we thought they were." Mused Kiyomi.
Kakashi nodded, "I wouldn't say he's beaten me yet, Kiyomi. He still has a long way to go. It's obvious he is impatient as ever. He attacked before I even had the chance to say start yet." Said Kakashi.
"Just like old times." Giggled Yuka, Hajime agree.
"Can you blame us? We're just itching to teach you two a lesson about underestimating us." Said Tamatsu crossing his arms.
"A lesson, huh? You hear this, Kakashi? They're going to teach us this round." Said Kiyomi as a smirk lined her lips.
"Well, I guess we just have to start this properly then. The old fashion way." Said Kakashi.
A thick silence hung in the air among the seven shinobi. A few birds and rustling wind blowing threw the trees dared to try and break the quiet stillness of the moment.
"Ready..." Said Kakashi, his voice pricing through the minds of the excited young shinobi.
"Start!" Said Kiyomi and on cue Kakashi and her dissappear in a large cloud of white swirling smoke.
The five left behind students gasped in shock that their senseis had vanished right after Kiyomi spoke. Naruto looked around, "Aw come on! I can't believe he tricked me again!" Said Naruto surprised Kakashi had slipped away with a Kage bushin jutsu.
"Agh! You big dummy!" Called Sakura.
Yuka groaned, Hajime smacked his forehead in response of Naruto. Yuka looked over to Tamatsu, who currently took to the initiative to try to trace either one's charka. Tamatsu held up the hand sign for Dragon, "I can not get a trace on them, Yuka. So you're up." He said.
"Sakura." Said Yuka, Sakura nodded to her.
Both glanced around, "Anything, Sakura?" Asked Yuka.
"No. You?" Responded Sakura.
"Negative," Said Yuka looking straight up into the air, "So if they aren't above-."
The two girls stood next to each other as they face out towards the opening of the training grounds, "Then they are...BELOW!" Yelled both kunoichi in union, striking the ground hard.
The ground erupted as if a earthquake had just came through tearing the ground apart. Dusting and bits of earth settled and then Kiyomi bolted out of the ground, Hajime quickly formed hand seals, "Hitsuji, Uma, Tora, U, Mi! Doton: Devouring Earth! (Ram, Horse, Tiger, Rabbit, Snake. Earth Release: Devouring Earth!)" Called Hajime and in the crushed earth that Kiyomi had removed herself from a mouth of earth rose up like a dragon's head ready to make her a snack, but once the 'jaws' of the earth came down, a cloud of white smoke appeared.
"Kakashi-sensei. Found you both, didn't we?" Mocked Sakura.
Kakashi blinked and got himself out of the ground where he once hid. Kiyomi appeared in a swirl of wind and petals next to him, "Best we stop trying to pull lame tricks on them, they just might get the bells." Whispered Kiyomi.
"I just want to play with them some more to see exactly how far they want to go to get their comrade back." Said Kakashi with bold determination in his eye.
Kiyomi sighed, "Just do get caught blindsided. Seems Lady Hokage has turned Sakura-chan into a very skilled iryō-nin(medical-nin)." She said and vanished.
"That she has." Said Kakashi.
Yuka, Hajime, and Tamatsu took to the forest just before Kakashi vanished. Naruto and Sakura followed suit.
Kiyomi and Kakashi separated from each other to take on their students. Kiyomi sat in a tree watching Naruto take on Kakashi one on one. She looked around noting where her students were. She kept an eye on their chakra as she watched Naruto and Sakura take on Kakashi.
"Now where to find the real one." Said Kakashi.
"Right over here! Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu Ōgi: Sennen Goroshi! (Konohagakure's Most Secret and Sacred Technique: One Thousand Years of Death!)" Said Naruto as he jumped out of a bush and made a mad dash at Kakashi.
Kiyomi's eyes widened, "You mean to tell me Naruto learn that stupid damn jutsu just so he could get payback at Kakashi for what he did to the boy. Geez!" Said Kiyomi smacking herself in the face.
Right when she smacked her forehead a burst of wind came through, "Huh?" She said and jumped away in time when slices of wind cut through the tree. Kiyomi dodge each of slice of wind and jumped away from branch to branch. Kiyomi landed on the ground and a hand shot out grabbing her roughly by her right ankle, "Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu! (Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique!)" Said Hajime pulling his sensei into the ground up to her neck.
Hajime emerged from the ground, Yuka and Tamatsu landed next to him, "Got you, sensei!" Cheered Yuka.
Kiyomi giggled, "Mmmmaybe." She said and vanish in a puff of smoke.
Yuka and her comrades jumped in shock, "Where is she?" Said Hajime looking around.
"Raijū Hashiri no Jutsu!(Lightning Beast Running Technique!)" Said Kiyomi and a beast of white lighting dash at high speed towards them.
"Yuka!" Called Hajime.
Yuka grabbed a kunai from her pouch and sliced her palm open, forming her hand seals quickly, "Now you get to see just how far I've come, Onee-chan! Ran Clan technique!" She said.
A pool of blood quickly came out forming itself in her hand, "Hurry Yuka! Take care of it while we follow the trail!" Said Hajime.
"Phoenix Blood Blade!" Yelled Yuka.
Kiyomi froze, "She's advance this much?" She said surprised as the blood become a short katana with a feathering side.
Yuka made quick work of the jutsu by slicing through it. Tamatsu and Hajime had followed the lightning trail and tried attack Kiyomi again. The battle went on and on. Kiyomi was starting to wear down. She rested against the base of a tree, hiding herself from her students. Trying to take deep breathes to slow down her heart rate and breathing, along with calming herself, her thoughts emerged through.
"They really have come really far. If they push this any longer and catch me just because I'm tired, I really will have to throw myself into some serious training." Said Kiyomi.
"How can we beat someone like Kiyomi-sensei?" Asked Hajime looking to his comrades.
Yuka paused then as if lightning struck her, "I got it!" She exclaimed.
Hajime and Tamatsu looked to her, "Got what?" Asked Tamatsu.
"Remember when Kiyomi-sensei gave me some special training back then?" Said Yuka with a giggle.
"Yeah yeah. You gain a lot from that training as we trained with you after she left remember?" Said Hajime in a bored, but annoyed manner.
Tamatsu thought for a moment, "What did you learn about Kiyomi-sensei, Yuka?" He asked.
Yuka smiled, "When she taught me how to use my blood blade I found out that our blades are equal. Dragon verses Phoenix will always come out as a tie." She said.
"So what? What does that have to deal with what we are doing now?" Asked Hajime impatiently.
"Everything, you ass. So shut up!" Snapped Yuka.
Tamatsu groaned, "Yuka, continue please." He asked.
"Anyway, every time Kiyomi-sensei and I fought, we just exhausted ourselves to a point where we couldn't make sense of anything. When Kakashi-sensei appeared out of nowhere, she was caught completely off guard! He even said he just walked up to her and she didn't even sense his chakra!" She explained.
"So if we keep pushing sensei harder and harder to that point we might just get the bells?" Said Hajime.
Tamatsu smirked, "That might just work. But Yuka, when we have a opening to grab the bells, use your blade as a guard so you'll be able to snag them." He said.
"Why Yuka is the one that can grab them?" Asked Hajime.
"Because you and I will be distracting our confused sensei with a jutsu she can easily deflect while Yuka uses one just like it, but it can hit home pretty hard, plus if Kiyomi-sensei caught on to it Yuka might be close enough to cut the bells off." He explained.
Hajime nodded, "Alright. Let's find her first." He said.
"On it." Said Tamatsu forming the hand seal from before to track their hiding sensei, "Alright, I got a trace on her. It's faint, but it's there. Let's finish this." Said Tamatsu. Hajime and Yuka agreed.
Kiyomi glanced around looking for them and currently trying to find Kakashi's chakra to see if he is alright, "Damn it. I can't get a trace of his chakra. He's too far away...or that I've beginning really push myself to my limit." She cursed at herself.
"Doton: Doryūsō! (Earth Release: Rising Stone Spears!)" Called Hajime and five earth spears shot up and Kiyomi jumped high into the air.
"Red Dragon Blood Blade!" Yelled Kiyomi as a she allowed one of the spears to slice her left wrist. A red colored daitō blade shot out from her wrist, she sliced through the earthy spears that came at her to impale her.
"Fūton: Kazekiri! (Wind Release: Wind Cutter!)" Yelled Tamatsu sending blades of wind at his sensei.
Kiyomi tried blocking both assaults, but she decided she would best to run. Jumping branch to branch trying to distance herself from the two attack students, she jumped down and pinned herself against a tree to hide.
Breathing at a high rate, her eyes flickering around, and her head spinning, "Oi! Kiyomi-hime!" Said a familiar, but unwanted and annoying voice.
Kiyomi's eyes turned to see a waving and approaching Maito Gai, "Go away, Gai! We're in a serious training session!" She hissed as he came closer.
Gai stopped, "Training session? Hmfpt! You call this training? This is a walk in the park!" He boasted quite loudly stopping right next to her.
"Go. Away." She growled.
Then Gai disappeared in a large cloud of smoke, Kiyomi blinked, "Crap! A clone!" She cursed as a burst of chains were thrown at her. Deflecting the chains with her blade, she jumped away landing a few yards slamming herself into a hard body.
Kiyomi twisted around readying herself for a attack thinking it might be one of her students, but instead there stood Kakashi in the shadows. She put her blade up, "You're just another clone." She hissed.
"Ki..." Said Kakashi swaying slightly.
Kiyomi froze, her thoughts coursing through her brain. 'If it was a clone, wouldn't I set it off and it disburse?' She thought.
"If you're really Kakashi, tell me something only I would know." She said.
Kakashi stumbled forward, "You still wear Obito's Ran bell around your neck." He said as he walked out into the moon's light.
Kiyomi gasped at the sight of him, covered in cuts and his own blood. Kiyomi rushed forward, her blade retracting, and grabbed hold of him, "What happened Kakashi?" She demanded.
"The Akatsuki attacked us. Caught me off guard, grabbed Naruto, I couldn't get to him in time." He said.
Kiyomi looked around, "Yuka! Hajime! Tamatsu! Training is over with! Come help me now, we have a injured shinobi!" She called, but nothing.
"I hope they didn't get caught in the jutsu like Sakura did." He said.
"What?" Asked Kiyomi.
"Itachi's jutsu." He said.
Kiyomi growled, "YUKA!" She screamed.
Right when she screamed, Kiyomi heard a crack, "What the? Kakashi did you hear-? WHAT?" Said Kiyomi and looked to her injured comrade to see that Kakashi had turned into a statute and was breaking apart.
Dropping the Kakashi statute, Kiyomi looked around, but it was to late, "Doton: Tsuchi Kairō! (Earth Release: Earth Corridor!)" Yelled Hajime and quickly as he did a dome of earth went up and trapping Kiyomi in.
Kiyomi growled, "Now I'm really pissed off." She snarled.
Kiyomi beginning to fold her hands, "Ushi, U, Saru! (Ox, Rabbit, Monkey!)" She said and then clapped her hands together, "Lightning Cutter Wave!"
A surge of lightning appear in her right hand much like a Lightning blade would. Kiyomi reared back, "Grahh!" She yelled and punched as hard as she could at the wall of earth with her lightning filled hand.
When her hand came in contact with the wall, the lightning rushed through creating veins through the earth and the dome started to crack and break, "HN!" Yelled Kiyomi and did a second punch again into the wall.
The dome then started to collapsed, but instead of breaking from top, it crumbled and didn't give Kiyomi any opening to get out and fell on top of her. Once the dome finally finished falling, Kiyomi begin to dig herself out. As she crawled out, but then she felt a tug on her ankle, "Got you Kiyomi-sensei! Yuka now!" Called Hajime from under the rubble.
Yuka dashed out of the bushes with her blade at the ready, "Got 'em now! Those bells are good as ours!" She said as she rushed Kiyomi.
"Not just yet!" Yelled Kiyomi and then started to pull hard on her leg, taking Hajime with her, but Tamatsu intervened by attacking her head on. Kiyomi diverted and before she had a chance to retaliate, Tamatsu and Yuka disappeared in a cloud of white smoke.
"What the?" Said Kiyomi, then a two more hands clasped on her leg and with a hard tug she heard three voices say, "Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu! (Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique!)" Yelled the three younger shinobi in unison.
"DAMN IT!" Yelled Kiyomi as she was pulled up to her neck in earth.
Yuka, Tamatsu, and Hajime appeared out of the ground before their captured sensei. The sound of bells came to Kiyomi's ears, she narrowed her eyes, "How did you grab them?" She said.
Hajime laughed, "With the Kakashi clone!" He boasted.
"We knew you would be push pretty far by now and using Kakashi as bait would be perfect!" Said Yuka.
Tamatsu dusted off the dirt that still clung to him and spoke, "We just had to figure out how far you were before we use that route or we wouldn't be able to get the bells. Simple as that." He said.
"So it was bells or bust." Said Yuka.
"Kai! (Release!)" Said Hajime releasing their teacher.
Kiyomi climbed out, "Well, I guess you guys passed. Let's see if the others are finished." She groaned.
Yuka, Hajime, and Tamatsu grinned at each other, they finally beat their sensei.
~*~o~*~
"So you got defeated by your own book?" Said Kiyomi as she listened in on the conversation between Kakashi and his students.
"Yup. Seems so." Said Kakashi.
"Heheh. Bad part of it is that I couldn't spoil it for you." Said Naruto.
Kakashi's eye went wide, "Wha-wha-WHAT?" Said Kakashi in shock.
Everyone around him laugh, "Poor Kakashi-sensei." Said Yuka.
"Got tricked by the knuckle head. Wow." Said Tamatsu.
"How lame is that!" Laugh Hajime.
Tsunade and Shizune walked up to the group and congratulated them. Kiyomi walked over to Kakashi and spoke to him in hush tones.
"They tricked me with you." She said.
Kakashi looked at her, "With me? How?" He asked.
"A badly wounded you with a Akatsuki attack on top of it and a kidnaped Naruto. Had my head spinning. I need more training. If the enemy ever finds out I was open like that, I and everyone else around me will be killed." She said looking at her students with serious eyes.
"Kiyomi..." Said Kakashi. She looked to him with hard eyes, pain flickered beneath them.
"Kakashi! Kiyomi!" Snapped Tsunade.
"Yes Lady Hokage!" Said the two distracted Jōnin.
"Explain this exercise to your younger comrades." Ordered Tsunade.
"Yes Lady Hokage." Said Kiyomi stepping forward getting all eyes on her, "The point of this exercise is to see where your placement would land you." She explained.
"Placement?" Asked Yuka.
"Uzumaki Naruto! Haruno Sakura!" Said Tsunade.
"Yes mam'!" Said the two in unison.
"You two are a team again, along with your old sensei. From this day on you will be known as Team Kakashi." Ordered Tsunade, then turned to Kiyomi's group, "Then same applies to the four of you, Team Kiyomi."
"We're a team again!" Exclaimed Yuka.
"What do you mean by that, Lady Hokage?" Asked Tamatsu.
"It means we all are no longer sensei and student. We are peers on equal ground." Said Kakashi.
With cheers and laughter, they groups left the training grounds. Talking of past and new, Naruto and everyone spoke of their missions and the things they've learn. Kakashi and Kiyomi walked next to each other with the group of young ones listening to their chatter.
"You guys have gotten stronger, that's for sure." Said Kakashi, his nose deep in his book, "I would never dreamed of you guys snagging those bells."
"Well, what can I say maybe I final surpassed you, Kakashi-sensei!" Boasted Naruto.
"Yeah right, like that would ever happen." Said Sakura shooting Naruto down.
Kakashi laughed, "I'm not over the hill quite just yet. In fact, just the other day I developed an unbelievable jutsu. Let me tell you, you guys wouldn't-" Said Kakashi then was loudly interrupted by Naruto's and Yuka's growling stomachs.
"Well Kakashi. I'll see you back your apartment tonight. Later!" Said Kiyomi and left with her team.
"Hey Kiyomi-sensei! We're hungry. Where do you wanna-" Started Yuka.
Kiyomi smiled, "My treat, guys. Pick a place to eat." Said Kiyomi.
Hajime pondered, "How about that new one down the road? It has an awesome oden, yakitori, and other great dishes." He suggested.
Kiyomi nodded, "Then lead on!" She said.
The group sat down at a table and took in the luxious set up, "Huh. Reminds me of a tea house down the Tea Country." Said Kiyomi glancing around.
A waitress walked up to their table, "What would you like to drink?" She asked politely.
Then out of no where, Kakashi sat down roughly next to Kiyomi, "This one here will have only tea. Please make it spring tea. The others can order what they like." He said pointing to Kiyomi when he mentioned 'this one.' The others ordered the same.
Kiyomi glared at Kakashi, "I'm treating my team, why are you here, Kakashi?" She asked in a hiss.
"Making sure you stay out of trouble." He responded.
"I'm sure my imouto-chan has my back and the bottle when she knows I had enough." Said Kiyomi bitterly.
"Now now, Kiyomi. Just trying to help you in making the right choice. After all, we are Jōnin that should set an example." Mocked Kakashi.
"To those that are either our rank or well enough close to it?" She retorted.
Kakashi stared at her, "Okay okay. You got a point." He said throwing his hands up.
The waitress came back with two pots of tea and five cups. Kiyomi reached for her cup and then out of no where, it abruptly cracked down it's side. Kiyomi froze, "An omen." She said in a whisper.
Yuka and everyone stared at the heavily cracked cup, "Something bad is going to happen. I'm going home." Said Tamatsu and stood up quickly, leaving the restaurant without a moment's notice.
"What was that about?" Asked Kakashi.
"Eh? Oh. Tamatsu has this thing about omens since his mom is a big superstitious person." Explained Yuka.
"Okay. But why?" Kakashi asked again.
"Well, you see, Tamatsu has had a lot of troubling things in his life that he thought he could have controlled if he watched out for omens, like his mother instructed. I really don't know much about it since his mother and himself don't like talking about their misfortunes. His father on the other hand was quite descriptive." Explained Kiyomi.
"Like that time in the ravine when he fell in that manure hole." Said Yuka.
"Or that time where my horse threw a shoe and hit him off his, which his horse got spooked and ran away. Poor guy had to ride double with Kiyomi-sensei." Said Hajime, then ordered his meal.
"So it's mainly a bunch of small things that build up?" Said Kakashi.
"Some, but not most. The one that effected the two most was when his grandparents died. Something about killing a spider in the morning." Said Kiyomi.
Yuka and Hajime shrugged. They four ate their meal and departed, "I'll see you guys at the Hokage office bright and early!" Called Kiyomi to them, "Don't forget to get Tamatsu!" The two waved bye and went home. Kiyomi and Kakashi went back to his apartment and fell asleep in their usual sleeping spots.
FINALLY! I'm back everyone! I'm SOOOO sorry for such the long wait. Things are been CRAZY! Between work, life, bills, computer going nuts, and other things I just haven't gotten the time to sit down. Anyway enjoy and r&r!