Roar of the Dragon: This has been the chapter I've been waiting for! The big battles! Konoha's best set out to rescue their beloved comrade! Will they be able to defeat the Sound Five!
Review Responses: I'll be using the new review response feature to answer reviews that are well thought out and address issues with the story. I won't reply to simple reviews saying how much you like the story unless you give me suggestions for how to improve it or intelligent questions about a particular detail.
Special fic promotion: Please read Jedi Mistress's 1990's fic Shippo's Feudal Adventure! It's a very nice Naruto/Inuyasha crossover and I helped her write chapter 17's big battle!
Also check out Ricchan's fic Konoha High on this site, it can be found in my favorites list!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto; if I did it would be more like this story! Aki is the property of xAkix, used here with her permission.
Note: Naruto's sword is named Nenshousaiga, Burning Fang, and most of his moves with it are inspired by the game Ninja Gaiden for Xbox and the Rurouni Kenshin manga. Instead of calling Akemi's new weapon a cabled kunai, I'm calling it Tetsugen, Iron String.
Naruto character birthday(s): May 1, Chouji Akimichi, May 15, Kankurou, May 26, Iruka Umino
As the rescue team bounded through the trees of Konoha's forest, Kiba, Akemi, and Akamaru all picked up a scent that Naruto caught a split second later, causing all four to frown. "What's wrong?" asked Shikamaru.
Kiba was the first one to reply as he said, "There's a smell of blood, and close!"
"Six ninja, including Sasuke, they were fighting two other ninja. But the five of them are getting further away from the scent of blood. What's our plan?" asked Akemi
"If they tried to stop them it's likely they're allies… but if we stop to help them we might not catch up to the kidnappers in time," said Shikamaru.
"I can send a Kage Bunshin to check it out," offered Naruto, his hands already forming the cross seal. Shikamaru nodded and a second later a second Naruto bounded off in the direction the two wounded shinobi were in.
(0o0o0)
Shizune glanced up from healing Raido as Naruto leapt into the clearing. The fox boy took one look at the damage caused by the fight between Genma, Raido, and their opponents and cursed. "Damn, if they gave two Jounin this much trouble we'll have our hands full!" muttered Naruto. "Shizune-nee-san, need me to signal for help?" asked Naruto.
"Yes, I need to get these two to the hospital immediately!" said the medic nin as she finally managed to stabilize Raido. The Naruto clone nodded and bit its thumb before flashing through several hand seals.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" yelled the clone as he slammed his hand onto the ground. The typical cloud of smoke made its brief appearance before being blown away by the swaying tails of a white eight tailed kitsune. At the same time, the Naruto clone turned into a chibi version due to chakra loss.
"What does Naruto-sama command?" asked the kitsune.
The chibi Naruto replied, "Take us back to Konoha with all speed, they need urgent medical attention."
"Understood," said the kitsune before she lifted each of the wounded Jounin onto her back and allowed the two remaining Jounin and Chibi Naruto to jump on her. Well, Chibi Naruto found himself stuck in Shizune's arms as she hugged him to her.
(0o0o0)
"Taken care of, but my clone was too far out of range to tell me anything else besides the fact that it was Shizune-nee-san's team before he was cut off. Sorry I couldn't get more info," said Naruto.
"Well, at least we know one thing, our targets will be more alert from here on. We'll most likely be facing lots of traps and ambushes," said Shikamaru. "Right, from now on use your eyes and noses to their full potential, we have to find them before they can ambush us. If you detect suspicious movement, don't just avoid it, analyze it!"
"Don't worry, when we find them I'll tear them apart!" growled Naruto, as his eyes turned red for a second. Hinata shot him a worried glance, but kept quiet.
Kiba and Akemi suddenly yelled, "The stench of the enemy is all over this place!" as they both caught the new scents in the clearing they were approaching.
"Everyone stop!" yelled Shikamaru. The group immediately landed on the next big branch, waiting for the shadow user's directions. "Look closer up there," said Shikamaru as they looked at a small patch of tree trunk barely visible through a gap in the branches. There they were barely able to see an explosive note that had been placed on the trunk.
"I see five more, it's a barrier seal formation," said Neji.
Akemi let out a whistle before saying, "That's some trap. If we had entered the area enclosed by the trap seals the trap would be activated. It could be fire, lightning, or some other jutsu."
"I could always send in a Kage Bunshin to set it off," offered Naruto.
"No, then they'd know for sure that we're following them," countered Ino.
"Damn, we have no choice but to flank it?" asked Kiba with a groan. Akemi patted his arm, which caused him to recover some of his usual energy. The group quickly dropped down to ground level and worked their way around the trap seals.
"Shit, we keep coming up against so many traps!" exclaimed Kiba as he carefully stepped over a trip wire.
"Well, at least the enemy doesn't seem to have much time either, I see lots of rushed work," muttered Shikamaru.
"Careful Naruto-nii-san, there's a tripwire right under your next step!" said Akemi.
"Thanks Imotou-chan," said Naruto as he stepped over the trap.
"Naruto wait!" yelled Shikamaru all of a sudden. Naruto's eyes shot down and he saw a hidden green wire he was about to step on. Naruto suddenly froze as Aki's shadow hand grabbed him, followed by Shikamaru's Kagemane no Jutsu to keep him from moving. Naruto shivered at how close he came to setting off the trap.
"Thanks you two, I don't want to think about what could have happened if I had set that off," said Naruto as Shikamaru carefully maneuvered him to a safe position a few steps back from where he had been.
Aki crouched down and examined the wires with Neji and gave a small sound of approval. "Very clever. They left the obvious wire visible so we wouldn't notice the hidden wire."
"Yes, and it's almost impossible to see with the naked eye," said Neji.
"This is a well made trap for a rushed job," said Akemi. "That means,"
"They are resting. Either they are wounded or they're planning an ambush," finished Neji before nodding to Hinata. The cousins activated their Byakugan, searching for the five Sound ninja. Two pairs of all seeing eyes gazed through the trees until they came to rest on five ninja resting in a clearing with a large barrel in the middle of it.
"Found them!" exclaimed Hinata before kneeling and starting to sketch the area around the clearing with a kunai.
"Okay, give me a moment and as soon as I get down our strategy, we'll engage our target!" said the shadow user as he considered the positions of the enemy while Neji kept watch on them to report any movements.
(0o0o0)
In the clearing, the sound five were resting from their fight with the two Konoha Jounin they had encountered from Shizune's team. Kimimaro was the only one who had not been forced to activate his curse seal to level two and left to scout the route ahead, leaving his comrades to guard the barrel containing Sasuke.
"Damn, we're losing valuable time while we rest when we don't have much time to spare in the first place," muttered Sakon.
"It can't be helped," countered Tayuya from her seat on top of Sasuke's barrel prison. "We lose too much strength when we fight at Curse Seal Level Two."
Jiroubou spoke up next, saying, "What troubles me most is the fact we can't use our bodies."
"There wasn't any other way against two Jounin, if we tried to conserve energy, we may have been defeated," suggested Kidoumaru.
(0o0o0)
"Sasuke is definitely in that barrel," said Hinata as she peered into the clearing from a closer position. While Neji had more range with his Byakugan, Hinata could get clearer views and see through barriers more easily. Thus she was able to see Sasuke's form shuddering as Orochimaru's dark chakra surged through him. "He's still alive." Sighs of relief could be heard from Ino and Aki to her sides.
"Good," whispered Shikamaru. The teens' eyes shot open as a kunai shot towards them with several explosive notes attached. All four Konoha shinobi leapt away from the blast, but were caught up in the shockwave and tossed through the air, skidding to a stop just a short distance from the remaining members of the Sound Five.
"Eh, what's this? Poked the bush and got four bugs instead. Ugly ones too," said Tayuya, causing Hinata, Aki, and Ino to growl. Jiroubou started to reach towards the ground, only to stop as Shikamaru held his hands up.
"Hold it, we're not here to fight, we're here to negotiate!" exclaimed the shadow user.
"Hmph, then what are these?" demanded Kidoumaru before he grabbed something and gave a powerful tug on what appeared to be an invisible rope. Naruto, Akemi, Neji, Chouji, and Kiba were all pulled into the clearing. Kidoumaru prepared to slam them into the ground, but before he could do so, Kiba and Naruto each hurled a smoke bomb to the ground, masking their landing.
"Hehehehe, what good is a smoke screen? There's no escape from me!" taunted Kidoumaru. "These strings are thinner than wires, but also stronger and harder to detect. I've laid these all over that area."
"Maybe, but can they stand up to my claws?" asked Naruto from inside the smoke screen. Kidoumaru nearly fainted when the strings in his hands grew slack, indicating something had cut the strings.
"Your triple layer traps were amazing, we had no idea such a thing existed," said Shikamaru. "What a blunder, I didn't even expect the second wire was made visible on purpose."
Kidoumaru started to stand up as he said, "You guys are all…." Only to freeze and find he couldn't move. "What? My body?" None of the Sound ninja could move a muscle thanks to Shikamaru's Kagemane no Jutsu.
"Nice job Naruto, Kiba, Shikamaru, Kagemane no Jutsu success!" declared Chouji.
"Well, you fell into our trap, thanks for making this easy," said Shikamaru.
"Heh, you haven't seen the full extent of our abilities," said Sakon. Naruto tried to figure out why the guy looked different, then he realized the head on his back was gone. Before he could say anything, a shuriken shot into the clearing and buried itself in Shikamaru's arm, causing him to drop the Kagemane no Jutsu. Jiroubou immediately slammed his hands into the ground.
"Doton: Kekkai – Doroudoumu (Earth Style Barrier: Dungeon Chamber of Nothingness)!" yelled the fat Sound nin as walls of earth rose up and enclosed the entire group. "I'll take care of these guys, I wanna recover, even if it's only a little bit," said Jiroubou.
"Well, catch up with us as soon as you're done eating, we're gonna head out," said Kidoumaru before he placed the barrel containing Sasuke on his back.
(0o0o0)
Inside the earth prison, Kiba had tried to use his Tsuuga (Piercing Fang) to break through the barrier, only to find the wall was too thick. Everyone stared in surprise as the large crater Kiba made repaired itself.
"This is no ordinary wall," said Neji as he activated his Byakugan, with Hinata doing the same thing. Both Hyuuga gasped at what they saw.
"Our chakra… it's being sucked dry," exclaimed Hinata.
"Kuso, we made a fatal mistake by being captured before we could identify the enemies abilites," said Shikamaru as he punched the wall in a rare show of anger.
"So he wants chakra? I'll give him chakra!" roared Naruto before he released a surge of Youki mixed chakra that everyone could see. The red energy swerved in mid air and slammed into one side of the prison, from which a cry of pain was heard. 'Got you bastard!' "Everyone get ready, we're busting out of here!" exclaimed Naruto as he grabbed his right hand. "Guren Kaina (Arm of Crimson Flame)!" roared Naruto as scarlet flames surged around his hand, which held a red Rasengan. Naruto dashed towards the wall farthest from where his youki had been sucked to and rammed the wall with the scarlet ball of fire. A loud explosion shook the prison and a hole was instantly made. The group hurried to escape as they felt the enemy recovering from Naruto's assault on his chakra circulatory system and preparing to intercept them. But before Chouji and Ino could escape, the rock dome collapsed on them, while their friends looked on in horror as they saw Jiroubou with a grin on his face for crushing the two trapped shinobi by collapsing his jutsu.
"Hehehehe, at least I got two of the flies!" said Jiroubou before he slammed his hands down into the ground. A shockwave swept through the group before an explosion behind them caused them to spin around. Seeing nothing, everyone faced Jiroubou, only to find he had disappeared.
The eyes of Hinata, Neji, Kiba, Naruto, and Akemi suddenly widened as they screamed, "Behind us!" and caused everyone to spin to see Jiroubou holding up a large bolder, one that could easily crush all of them at once.
"Doton: Doryu Dango (Earth Style: Earth mausoleum Dumpling)!" yelled Jiroubou before he hurled the huge boulder at the Konoha group. Everyone started to run, but they knew they wouldn't escape in time.
"Baika no Jutsu (Art of Expansion)!" yelled a voice none of the Konoha shinobi thought they would ever hear again. "Nikudan Sensha (Meat Tank)!" roared Chouji as he crashed through the rubble of the former prison and slammed into the giant rock, which held up for a moment before shattering and being deflected from hitting the rest of the rescue team by Chouji's considerable bulk. The spinning ball of Akimichi wrath slammed into Jiroubou, who managed to remain standing but was pushed back a few feet before he managed to stop Chouji's spin. Chouji came to a stop and glared at Jiroubou as the Sound nin held him.
"Pesky brat," muttered the sound nin before slamming his knee into Chouji with a yell of, "ShouShitsu (Rising Knee)!" that sent Chouji into the air. Jiroubou then shoulder tackled Chouji with a yell of "Tokken (Shoulder Tackle)!" as he sent the plump Genin flying.
"Ino now!" yelled Chouji before the Baika no Jutsu ended due to the pain of hitting the ground. A thick vine shot out of the hole Chouji had made as he burst from the rubble and wrapped around Jiroubou's neck. Ino then appeared out of the hole, keeping the vine taunt. "You guys go after Sasuke, we'll hold him off!" yelled Chouji as he regained his footing and pulled a bag of soldier pills from his supply pouch. "Shikamaru, give these to everyone!"
"Chouji, you've got to be kidding me!" exclaimed Shikamaru.
"No he isn't! We've both been training hard since the Chunnin Exams so we could catch up to you! And we're ready to show what we've got!" declared Ino. "Eeep!" exclaimed the blond girl as Jiroubou grabbed the vine and tried to jerk her towards him. Only a yellow and orange blur passing between them and severing the vine kept her from meeting the Sound nin's fist. "Thanks Naruto!" gasped Ino.
"Shikamaru is right, we can't just leave you two here!" exclaimed Naruto.
"Don't worry, we both have secret weapons for ourselves!" said Chouji with a grin.
"But that's…." whatever Shikamaru wanted to say was cut off by his friend.
"Shikamaru, take everyone else and go! If you guys lose track of Sasuke now you'll never catch them!"
Shikamaru opened the pouch of soldier pills and held them out. "Everyone, eat this, it's a gift from Chouji." The entire group ate a pill each, instantly feeling their chakra recharge.
"Thanks Chouji!" said Naruto. "You and Ino kick his ass!"
"You two better catch up to us later!" declared Shikamaru before the rest of the group leapt away.
"Heh, I'll make quick work of you and them too!" declared Jiroubou as he charged towards his two opponents. Chouji reached into his supply pouch and removed a small case holding three soldier pills, each one a different color, blue, yellow, and red. He popped open the compartment of the blue pill and tossed the pill into his mouth.
'First, the Blue Houren-gan (Houren Pill)!' thought Chouji as he bit down on the pill. Chouji's arms snapped out and though he was pushed backwards he managed to keep Jiroubou from passing him and getting to his friends. "Everyone go!" yelled the Akimichi heir. "Ino, I could use some help here!"
Ino reached into her supply pouch and pulled out a rose, preparing to use a jutsu her mother had taught her after the Chunnin Exams. While it wasn't widely known, Ino's mother had been a refuge from Hidden Grass and she was the one to raise all the flowers sold in the family flower shop. Ino flicked the rose, which lengthened considerably as she cried, "Rose Whip!" the newly created whip shot out and wrapped around Jiroubou's arms, pinning them to the Sound ninja's side.
Chouji grinned and used Jiroubou's lack of grip to flip the older ninja over his shoulder and toss him away as Ino yanked hard on her whip to make it release Jiroubou and add more force to his spin as he hit the ground and skidded across it before slamming into a tree. The chubby Konoha ninja grunted as he felt the blue pill affecting his system. 'Damn, it hurts this much with one pill!' he thought before pushing the pain aside and pulling out a string of kunai that he looped around himself. "Baika no Jutsu!" yelled Chouji as he once again expanded his body. "Nikudan Hari Sensha (Spiked Meat Tank)!" The Akimichi boy spun out again, tearing up the ground with the kunai that now stuck out of his extended body as he raced towards Jiroubou.
The Sound nin slammed his hands into the ground, causing a slab of earth to flip up in front of him. "Doton: Doroku Gaeshi (Earth Style: Earth Shore Return)!" yelled the fat sound nin. The thick earth wall was not enough to stop Chouji and he blasted through it, the kunai strapped to his body gouging Jiroubou's body. However Chouji once again slowed to a stop and he looked down to see strange triangle markings spreading over Jiroubou's body. "HouShou (Demolishing Palm)!" yelled Jiroubou as he landed a palm strike to Chouji's chest that sent him crashing back and dispelled the Baika no Jutsu once again. However, before Jiroubou could make a move, Ino appeared in front of him with her rose whip prepared to strike.
"Kagon Retsuzanshi (Elegant, Harsh Limb-Severing Attack)!" yelled Ino as she lashed out with the whip, numerous wounds appearing all over Jiroubou's body. The Sound nin grunted from the pain and smacked Ino towards the slowly standing Chouji, who barely managed to catch her in time.
"Hmph, let me tell you something! Whenever you gather people together, there's always a loser in the bunch. Those losers are always considered as trash, and are always used as a decoy when the situation gets desperate," said Jiroubou, "just like you two!" Memories of being teased for his weight flashed through Chouji's mind. Ino had all her rejections of love from Sasuke played through her mind. Seeing the slightly depressed look on the duo's faces, Jiroubou continued, "Hah, seems like I was right, Konoha must really be short on people, to add trash like you two to their pursuer team!"
"Ino, let's show this guy you don't bad mouth Konoha! And especially not our friends!" snarled Chouji as he opened the yellow pill's compartment. "Shikamaru believes in us…" yelled the chubby ninja as he chewed the yellow pill.
"That's why he left us here…." continued Ino as she gathered her chakra.
"That's why he let us handle this!" yelled the two in unison as chakra flared around them.
"Quite a bit of chakra, but not enough to fight me!" declared Jiroubou
"Let's go Fat Ass!" taunted Chouji as he gathered his chakra into his right arm.
"That title better suits you!" retorted Jiroubou as he charged the duo.
"Bubun Baika no Jutsu (Partial Multi Size Technique) Arm!" yelled Chouji as he enlarged his arm and brought it down on Jiroubou's back, pushing the sound nin into the ground. But the Sound nin managed to shove the giant hand off his back and slug Chouji in the chin, sending him into the air. Chouji grinned through the pain as he formed a seal and yelled, "Eat This! Mega Baika no Jutsu!" A giant Chouji did a massive belly flop onto Jiroubou, while Ino grinned from the tree line. She had been running as soon as Chouji made his move, knowing what he had planned if he needed the chakra the yellow pill would have given him. Both Genin suddenly stared in shock as Chouji's massive body rose into the air slightly.
"What a waste, I had to use Level Two on such trash," said Jiroubou. "ShouGekiShou (Rising Impact Palm)!" Chouji's massive body was tossed into the air and came crashing down.
"Chouji!" screamed Ino. "You bastard!" the purple clad Kunoichi yelled as she charged Jiroubou, her rose whip snapping out to grab him, only to be caught in mid air as Chouji landed and turned back to normal. Both Genin gasped as they saw the new change that came over their opponent. Jirobou's skin was now red, his hair was longer, and strange bumps were present on his upper arms and forehead.
"Hehehehe, this is the end for you two, no enemy stands a chance against my level two seal which gives me more that ten times my original strength!" declared the Sound nin. He suddenly yanked hard on Ino's Rose Whip, pulling her to him, and grabbed her neck. "You're the first to die little bitch!" he hissed.
"Go.. to.. Hell!" gasped Ino as she kicked him in the stomach, only to feel like she was kicking rock.
Chouji was struggling to stand, fighting against the after affects of the two pills he'd taken so far. 'I should've known that the side effects of the curry pill were this bad, I can's move with this pain. The last one I have left is the red pepper pill, but if I use that, I might die!' Chouji was brought out of his thoughts at Ino's gasp as he looked up to see her grabbing Jiroubou's arms in an attempt to keep him from strangling her. Chouji's eyes widened as he saw Jiroubou wasn't strangling her, but draining her chakra. 'I don't care if I die, I won't let her and the others down!' thought Chouji as he grabbed the case holding the red pill. Ino felt her world starting to go black, when a yell of, "Chobaika no Jutsu (Butterfly Multi Size Technique)!" caused Jiroubou to loosen his grip on her and she fell to the ground. Gasping in air, she saw Chouji with massive butterfly wings made of pure chakra radiating from his back.
'He'll only have one shot with that jutsu, I have to help him!' thought Ino as she spat a bit of blood at the silver arm bracelet she wore. The blood hit the vine shaped bracelet, which instantly started to grow. "Matatabi (Silver Vine)!" whispered Ino as the silver vine shot down her arm, towards Jiroubou, and up his leg.
"What the?" he yelled, before he saw Ino placing her thumbs and first fingers together to form a rectangle between both her hands.
"Shinranshin (Mind/Body Disturbance) no Jutsu!" yelled Ino as her spirit shot into Jiroubou and froze him. "Now Chouji!" yelled Ino from her own body, since this more advanced version of her family's technique allowed her to control her opponents but not leave her body.
Chouji had seen Ino preparing to give him an opening and had transferred all his chakra to his left hand. "We won't let our village, our team mates, or our friends down!" roared Chouji before he charged forward. "This is for belittling our village!" he roared as he slammed his right hand into Jiroubou while Ino released her jutsu. Jiroubou went skidding across the ground, landing facing the sky. Chouji leapt into the air, bringing his foot down on Jiroubou's chest. "That is for insulting our best friend!" Chouji pulled back his left arm and brought it down with a yell of, "And this is for trying to kill the girl I love! Chodan Bakugeki (Bullet Butterfly Bombing)!" Chouji's fist crashed down into Jiroubou's chest, crushing his heart and lungs. Jiroubou's mouth opened as he jerked, before his eyes rolled back and blood leaked out of his mouth. The curse seal receded, leaving him in his original appearance.
Ino scrambled to her feet as she saw Chouji start to fall backwards, running towards her falling friend she barely managed to slide to a stop in time to catch him and set his head in her lap. "You big idiot, why didn't you tell me?" she whispered as she reached into her supply pouch and pulled out an energy bar that she quickly broke into bits to feed him. She marveled at how the red pill had burned up all of Chouji's excess fat, leaving him dangerously thin.
"You… were always… focused… on Sasuke," whispered Chouji as he slowly chewed the bits of energy bar and swallowed them.
"I gave up on him after seeing how close he was to Haku-chan… I'm so sorry I never noticed you liked me," whispered Ino as she finally found a food pill and bit it before leaning over and kissing Chouji to push it into his mouth with her tongue. The formerly fat boy returned the kiss gently. Looking up he smiled as he caught sight of a distant arrow marking the way to follow the rest of the team.
"Come on, they're counting on us," said Chouji as he struggled to stand up. Ino immediately helped him to his feet and wrapped on of his arms around her shoulder.
"We'll catch up to them one step at a time," she said before they slowly started walking towards the arrow and then following its path towards their friends.
(0o0o0)
Shikamaru glanced down as a flash of color appeared below him and saw a large butterfly landing on a female boar. The wild pig didn't react, just calmly sat there. He glanced behind him, where numerous arrows marked on the trees showed the way for his two friends to come to rejoin them. For a moment he felt a stab of fear in his heart, but then the shadow user pushed that aside. 'They won't let us down!' he thought before turning his attention back to the task at hand.
"Don't worry Shikamaru, they'll be okay," said Naruto as if he read his fellow Chunnin's thoughts.
"Yeah, I know."
"We're getting close!" exclaimed Akemi.
"Odd that we haven't encountered any traps, what do you think Shikamaru?" asked Aki.
"They're underestimating us. They think only the big guy will be following them. No one would set traps against their comrades," replied the shadow user.
"That does seem accurate, we're certainly being underestimated. But, this gives us a chance," said Neji.
"Yeah, let's get them while they're vulnerable!" declared Shikamaru.
(0o0o0)
The three remaining members of the Sound Five, Kimimaro was still investigating the route up to the border of Fire country, were making their way towards the border between the Fire and Sound countries. "Jiroubou, he's late," said Sakon as he glanced back behind the group in the direction they had come.
"Nah, he's already here," countered Kidoumaru as the fat Sound nin leapt out of the trees and fell into place behind the six armed shinobi.
"What took you so long?" asked Sakon.
"The flies took some time to squash," muttered Jiroubou.
"You fatty, don't be so slow!" exclaimed Tayuya. "Hurry up and carry that coffin, that's your job you inferior dick head!"
"Yeah," replied Jiroubou, causing all three of his team mates to look back at him.
"Hey Jiroubou, you're so obedient today," said Kidoumaru.
"What?" asked the fat Sound nin.
"I'm saying I can't let you carry this coffin, since you're not Jiroubou!" exclaimed the spider nin as he spun around to face the exposed imposter, who pulled out a kunai. "Sakon, Tayuya, let me handle this, you guys go on ahead!" The imposter tried to stab Kidoumaru, only to have his upper pair of arms catch and block the blow. "Jiroubou always warns Tayuya for her usage of words," said the spider nin.
"Hmph, I see," muttered Shikamaru as he dropped the henge.
"Kumo Shibari (Spider Bind)!" yelled Kidoumaru as he spat a net of webbing from his mouth that pinned the shadow user to a nearby tree. Kidoumaru landed on a tree branch and smirked at Shikamaru, before suddenly dropping off the branch into mid air before twisting to face Naruto, Akemi, Aki, and several Naruto clones as they attempted to ambush him from behind. "Don't underestimate me!" exclaimed the spider nin before he gathered a ball of webbing in his hand and shot it at the ambushers with a cry of "Kumo Sokai (Spider Web Unfold)!" The ball of webbing opened to become a massive web that captured all of the Konoha shinobi, leaving them trapped.
With a cry of "Gatsuuga (Double Piercing Fang)!" two tornadoes suddenly burst out of the trees, heading right for Kidoumaru in midair. The spider ninja suddenly pulled on previously unseen strands of webbing and avoided the attacks, which dispersed into Kiba and Akamaru in their feral human modes. "Heh, like we'll let you get away!" yelled Kiba as he prepared to attack again.
"Heh, my words exactly, look at your feet," said the Sound nin. Kiba looked down as saw webbing covering the branch and his legs, pinning him down, which caused him to say some words his mother would not have liked hearing.
"Damn you, you think that you've caught us with this little thing?" demanded Kiba.
"Loser, keep on whining," said Kidoumaru, unaware of two white eyed shinobi silently leaping towards his exposed back with their palms ready to deliver fatal Jyuuken strikes. The spider nin's danger sense suddenly went off as he saw Kiba smirk and he barely managed to release his held web strands to drop below Neji and Hinata's attacks just before they would have connected with his back. The spider nin spun and released another Kumo Sokai that trapped the Hyuuga cousins in mid air. "I'm going to cocoon you here!" declared the six armed shinobi as he spun his webbing around the cousins and trapped them in separate cocoons.
"Damn it!" cursed one of the Naruto clones as it used its free arm to grab a kunai and attempt to cut the webbing, only to find the webbing would not fall to the sharp blade. "What's with this web?" yelled the boy.
"Heh, my web is unbreakable," said Kidoumaru as he relaxed slightly while hanging from several strands of webbing. "It can even support two elephants." The Sound nin then realized that all of the Naruto clones were stuck in the web and not illusions. "Heh, isn't that interesting, Kage Bunshin… you'll be lots of fun to play with!" Kidoumaru took a deep breath before pulling six thick strands of golden webbing from his mouth that formed into curved throwing blades before hardening. "Let's play guess the real body game, shall we? I'll let your two little friends live to see you die, then kill them. If you last long enough, you'll die with them. Kidoumaru rapidly hurled his throwing blades, turning them into spinning disks of death that homed in on one Naruto after another, revealing the first three were shadow clones. "Damn, you're lucky kid, you made it to the end. But now all three of you will die!" With that, Kidoumaru hurled his remaining three blades and impaled Aki, Akemi, and Naruto. His smirk of victory turned into a look of confusion as all three turned into smoke. 'What the?' flashed through Kidoumaru's head before he spun around to block a punch from Naruto and Akemi as they leapt out of the trees while a Miniature Fuuma shuriken almost hit his neck . The spider nin shot towards the ground from the force of the punches, but used some more of his web strands to stop his fall and lasso both kitsune siblings and Aki, who had leapt out behind them to attempt to disable him from a distance with the shuriken. "You pawns are very good at hiding until you have an opportunity to attack, to think you could think so far ahead," said the Sound shinobi before he pulled on his lasso. "But when you run out of ideas, you die!" Naruto, Akemi, and Aki were jerked down towards the Sound nin. All three braced for impact, only to have the web strands severed by Hinata and Neji as they caught their friends and leapt back to where the now free Shikamaru, Kiba, and Akamaru were standing.
"Thanks for delaying him and buying us time Naruto," said Neji as he set Aki down on the branch.
"You brats! How did you?" demanded the Sound nin.
"Things made from chakra, will be destroyed by simply putting chakra into them. They're meaningless in front of our Jyuuken!" declared Hinata. "Only Neji-ni-san and I can handle him, the rest of you go ahead!"
"No Hinata-sama, you must go with them! If he gets away from me you will be needed to free the others! Plus, you and Naruto are the only ones who can bring Sasuke out of the darkness he is trapped in. If you don't go now you'll lose this chance! I'll catch up with you guys later!"
The team glanced at one another, before they leapt away, all except for Aki. "Neji-san, this one is a long range fighter. You'll need some long range back up," said the quiet girl. Neji nodded, accepting the fact that Aki was staying. He had learned that when she had her mind made up about something she could be incredibly stubborn thanks to a year of trying to bargain with her on prices for kunai and shuriken at her family's store. He also knew Aki was very smart, the smartest of the kunoichi from their class, and was second only to Tenten in throwing weapons. He could trust her to watch his back.
Both shinobi suddenly tensed as Kidoumaru suddenly flung long thick strands of webbing towards their escaping friends. Neji intercepted the attack, his hands glowing blue with chakra before he spun around, shredding the strands. The escaping Konoha shinobi glanced back at the surge of chakra and saw how close they had come to being captured. Kidoumaru stared in surprise, then quickly leapt over a small swarm of kunai that Aki threw at him. The spider nin spat out a swarm of webs that Aki barely avoided, while Neji managed to dodge the first few only to be captured and pinned to a tree. "Kuso!" muttered the Hyuuga genius.
"You're talented in the use of chakra, and you have sharp eyes. You emit needle like chakra from the Tenketsu (Opening points) in your hands and cut through the thinnest part of my webs with amazing precision. But with your annoying arms out of the way, there won't be any cutting being done!" declared Kidoumaru as he leapt towards Neji.
However, a giant shadow fist smashed into the spider shinobi and sent him crashing into a nearby tree. "You forget one of the most basic rules of the shinobi, never take your eyes off an opponent unless you know they're dead," said Aki as her shadow fist returned to her. Any comment Kidoumaru would have made was interrupted by a flare of chakra as Neji blasted chakra through all of his Tenketsu and destroyed the webbing holding him to the tree. The Hyuuga boy darted forward before crouching in front of the stunned Kidoumaru.
"I'll let you in on a little secret. It's not just my hands, I can emit chakra from every Tenketsu of my body. And by the way," here Neji slipped into a stance feared by any who had witnessed it before and lived to tell the tale, "It's game over! Hakke Rokujuu Yonshou (Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms)!" Neji's hands became blurs as they jabbed at Kidoumaru's Tenketsu, driving the Sound nin back towards the tree trunk of the branch they were standing on. Neji's final blow sent Kidoumaru crashing through the thick trunk and down to the ground below. Neji and Aki both leapt down, ready to finish their opponent off, but gasped in disbelief when they saw the shadowy form of Kidoumaru standing within the smoke caused by his landing. As the smoke cleared they saw he was covered in golden armor made from the material that he had used for his throwing spikes. The armor fell off; revealing Kidoumaru was undamaged from the whole attack.
"So it's not just your mouth that emits that weird gold stuff," said Aki as she reached for some more shuriken.
"Correct, my Kumo-Nenkin (Golden Spider Thread) is a form of metal that instantly solidifies once it touches the air, blocking all chakra. Also, I can emit it not just from my mouth, but also from every sweat gland of my body."
"God, I'd hate to see his zits," muttered Aki, which caused Neji to smirk.
Kidoumaru suddenly leapt into the trees, causing Neji to start to scan for him, only to have the Hyuuga boy leap back as a kunai hit the ground by his feet. Neji's eyes widened and he suddenly lunged for Aki, grabbed her in a hug, and yelled, "Hakke Shou Kaiten!" Aki had the weird experience of being inside the chakra sphere as it deflected numerous throwing spikes that had come at them from every angle. Slightly dizzy from the rapid spin, Aki leaned against Neji to regain her bearings. Neji suddenly turned and hurled a kunai into the trees, the veins of his activated Byakugan cluing Aki into what he was doing. But before she could follow his example and launch her own attack, Kidoumaru leapt out of the trees looking down on them as he hung from some web strands. Both teens became worried as they noticed the vine like pattern spreading across his body, remembering Sasuke's actions in the Forest of Death and how much stronger he had became after the Curse Seal activated.
"I must admit this game is pretty difficult to beat. I'll play seriously now," said the spider nin. 'The boy has both a wide field of vision and penetrating vision, plus he has that jutsu that deflected all my attacks. The girl seems to specialize in throwing weapons, with a few shadow related jutsu for close range fighting…. The boy is the more powerful one, so I'll have to take him out first!' Kidoumaru bit his thumb while forming a web between his middle hands and slammed his hand into the web with a cry of "Kuchiyose (Summoning) no Jutsu!" Instantly, a large spider on a giant web appeared above Neji and Aki, which promptly disgorged a giant egg sack that Kidoumaru split open with one of his golden spikes to send a rain of large spiders down on the two Konoha genin.
Neji immediately grabbed Aki and performed Kaiten, only to find the spreads the smaller spiders were emitting were being twisted by the spinning chakra and binding him down. 'Shit, if he catches both of us we're an easy target!' "Sorry about this," said Neji.
"What are you sayieeeeeeeeeennnnnnngggg!" Aki's question turned into a squeal of surprise as Neji tossed her up over his head while he temporarily stopped emitting chakra from his head, leaving an opening in the Kaiten and allowing Aki to soar high into the air. Neji immediately resumed emitting chakra from his head, destroying some spiders that got caught in the reforming chakra above him. However, the delay had cost Neji and the next second he found he couldn't move due to the spider webs binding him.
"Die!" yelled Kidoumaru as he hurled a throwing spike at Neji, only to see it deflected by a kunai thrown by Aki. "Damn, she deflected it, she's good to aim on the fly like that," muttered Kidoumaru.
"Aki-san, don't let them catch you or we're both sitting ducks!" yelled Neji as he severed the web strands holding him down, though the number of spiders meant that they could easily tie him down again. 'If I can't use Kaiten, I'll simply dodge them one by one.' Aki meanwhile had vanished into the treetops, though Neji could see her moving around with his Byakugan.
Kidoumaru leapt into the tree tops and quickly unleashed another barrage of his golden throwing spikes that Neji leapt over. His Byakugan revealed another barrage of spikes aimed higher than the first group and Neji used a quick burst of chakra from his hand to spin beneath the attack. As Neji landed, a swarm of spiders leapt towards him. Neji immediately assumed the stance for Hakke Rokujuu Yonshou before launching jabs at each spider, destroying them with a burst of chakra. However, their numbers overwhelmed Neji and he found himself trapped in spider threads again. Another barrage of daggers shot towards Neji's back, only for the Hyuuga genius to destroy the threads holding him and flip over the attack, only taking a small wound on the shoulder. Neji was panting, but he knew he had to buy Aki time to find a place to ambush Kidoumaru from. Neji winced as he felt the dagger lodged in his back, it wasn't fatal but it would hinder his movement. Another swarm of spiders and daggers was mostly dodged, but two daggers got through Neji's guard while the string holding his hair in a ponytail was snapped by another. Kidoumaru's voice echoed through the clearing as he taunted Neji, "What are you struggling for? The game is already finished! A scrub in an easy game is meant to be defeated quickly. You can never beat me!"
"Heh, even if you kill us and attack our friends from behind, Naruto would beat you in a second with all the chakra you've been forced to use against me!" replied Neji. There was a moment of silence, then the giant spider dropped down towards Neji, intent on crushing him.
"Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" yelled Aki's voice. "Hariten Atemi (Thousand Needle Point Strike)!" A huge swarm of shuriken slammed into the giant spider, only instead of sticking in the giant summon's body they cut right through it. One hit the ground near Neji and he saw the edge was razor sharp with a coating of thin chakra that made the blades capable of cutting through anything. The wounded spider fell back first towards Neji, who slammed his hand into its back with a blast of chakra that destroyed the monstrous beast. However, the swarm of daggers that followed the giant spider couldn't be dodged in time and many buried themselves in his back.
Kidoumaru grinned evilly as his curse seal spread across his entire body, turning his skin an even darker brown. His hair grew longer while a third eye opened on his forehead. The spider nin then formed a deadly war bow with his golden web metal and produced a giant arrow that he aimed at Neji's back. As he released the arrow, he grinned in anticipation of seeing Neji's heart pierced by the giant projectile. A huge dust cloud covered the point of impact, which blew away to reveal Neji leaning against a tree trunk while clutching the large hole passing clean through his upper left arm. 'He deflected it with chakra, so I'll have to control the arrow's path…' Kidoumaru quickly followed his thoughts and formed another arrow, only this one had a web strand attached to its back that lead back to his mouth and gave him control of the arrow in mid air. The spider archer used the web strand to guide the arrow, only to have it miss due to Neji's knee giving out slightly and causing the arrow to land in the tree trunk an inch from Neji's head while giving him a scratch on his cheek. 'This time I'll add a spiral to the arrow; even if it hits the tree it'll drill on through and not change its course.'
Neji slumped, only to hear a slight chirping from his right. He easily recognized the basic bird speak they had learned in the Academy and fought to keep from grinning. "I give up, there is no chance of me dodging it now anyways."
"Hehehe, better make sure he's dead!" muttered Kidoumaru before he fired the spiral arrow. As the weapon bore down on the exhausted Neji, Aki suddenly appeared in its path with a black shield on her arm.
"Kage no Tate (Shield of Shadow)!" yelled the girl as she raised the shield to block the attack, only to gasp as the arrow veered around the shield and slammed into her body and through it to pierce Neji's lower right body. Neji's hand glowed blue with chakra as his arm shot around Aki and grabbed the web strand in front of her body. Chakra shot up the web strand, hitting Kidoumaru's head with the force of a sledgehammer.
'He channeled his chakra into the string before he died?' Kidoumaru yelled inside his head before the shock to his system became too much and he fell from the branch he was perched on.
'He's still alive,' thought Neji before chakra flared around his fingers that he used to slice the web strand passing through Aki and his bodies. Aki fell forward, rolling out of Neji's way as he charged towards Kidoumaru as the Sound nin fell from the trees. Neji's palm slammed into Kidoumaru's chest, causing the spider ninja to crash to the ground.
"How… that should have killed you instantly, why are you still alive?" stammered Kidoumaru as his curse seal receded and he returned to normal.
"I knew I couldn't dodge it completely, so I was prepared to take it. Also, I knew my own weakness better than you did. As you figured out, the Byakugan has a blind angle, but if I knew your attacks where coming from there I could concentrate chakra into my blind spot and deflect the attack. It's not so difficult then, to dodge a few centimeters from the intended target. Although I might be fatally injured, at least I can avoid an instant death."
"So you took the strike huh? Either way, you're going to die, you can only do so much."
"You're the strongest foe we've faced yet. But we have a reason why we can't lose to you," said Aki as she staggered forward to lean over Neji's shoulder.
"Our friends trusted us, and we're fighting for them!" declared Neji.
"Heh, it's hopeless, you can't stop the tides anymore. Sasuke-sama will become a part of the shadow!" declared Kidoumaru.
"No, there is someone who can find Sasuke through the darkness and bring him back to the light, the future Rokudaime, Uzumaki Naruto!" gasped Neji before he coughed up a mouthful of blood and started to collapse.
"Neji-kun!" gasped Aki as she grabbed at her supply pouch for some bandages. While her wound was large, it had not pierced any vital organs and she could see Neji had lost more blood that she had.
'Bluffing until the end,' thought Kidoumaru before he mimicked Neji's actions. 'Damn, I haven't been this close to death since my last sparring match with Kimimaro. Dammit.' With that, Kidoumaru collapsed and sank into the embrace of death.
"Naruto… everyone… I'm counting on you," whispered Neji. "Hinata-sama, change the clan for me."
"Stop talking like you're about to die!" yelled Aki as she pressed some cloth over the wound by Neji's left arm before wrapping bandages around his body to hold it in place.
"Heh, I'm almost out of chakra and I can feel myself growing weaker with each passing moment," said Neji.
"Shut up! Are you going to give up on your dreams so easily? What happened to the Hyuuga Neji I knew and admired for so long who never gave up and was the number one rookie of our year?"
"Aki-san…" Neji started to say, only to be interrupted by Aki's lips closing on his.
"Damn it if you die I'm going to use a kunai to kill myself and come after you!" yelled Aki with tears in her eyes. "You're the only guy who would treat me like a normal girl and not as a shy dark weirdo! You didn't expect great things from me and encouraged me when I was down!"
Neji simply stared at Aki, not knowing what to say. He had always thought highly of Aki because she wasn't one of his fan girls or after Sasuke, but he didn't know she felt anything for him besides friendship. 'And people say I'm the Hyuuga genius,' he thought. "Aki-chan…"
"Well it's about time she admitted it!" exclaimed a voice on the edge of the clearing. Aki looked up to see Ino supporting a much thinner Chouji as they walked out of the trees. "Shit, he looks bad! Chouji, you got any blood replenishing pills on you?" The Akimichi boy nodded and pulled out a bag of small red pills that he tossed to Aki, who quickly popped one into Neji's mouth before taking one herself. Chouji and Ino immediately started basic first aid on their friends, using herbs and some of Hinata's medical cream to treat the wounds they had suffered from Kidoumaru's arrows. It wasn't much, but at least the two were not in danger of dying of blood loss. As they were finishing up, they suddenly heard the branches above them creak with the sound of impact before four figures leapt out of the trees to surround them.
(0o0o0)
Kiba, Akemi, Shikamaru, Naruto, and Hinata leapt through the trees in pursuit of the two Sound shinobi. "They're close!" yelled Kiba while Akamaru gave a bark of agreement.
"We've got two more enemies, and there are five of us, so it's five vs. two. If we play our hand right, we may be able to finish it in the next encounter!" declared Shikamaru.
"Let's do it!" yelled Naruto.
"No, it's six versus two," said Akemi as she pointed at Akamaru nestled in Kiba's jacket. The white ninken (Ninja dog) let out several barks at this acknowledgement.
"Sorry, it's six on two, my mistake," said Shikamaru with a smirk.
"This time we'll finish it quick with our new techniques!" declared Kiba with a grin.
"Just tell me where you want them and I'll fill the forest with Kage Bunshin!" promised Naruto.
"I'm ready," was all Hinata said as she activated her Byakugan.
"That's good, but strategy comes first," said Shikamaru.
(0o0o0)
"It's nearing dusk, it seems they've got their hands full," said Sakon.
"That doesn't matter, what matters is Orochimaru-sama. We've only accomplished one-third of the plan in half a day," replied Tayuya, who was carrying the barrel containing Sasuke.
"Yeah, this is not looking good," said Sakon. "Even if all goes well we're not even sure if we can make it."
Tayuya suddenly glanced down at her burden as she heard shifting inside of it. "Hey, wait a second!" Both sound shinobi landed on the next branch they came to, allowing Tayuya to set down the barrel.
"Is it starting?" asked Sakon.
"No, it should take a bit longer but…" Tayuya was cut off as Sakon's head jerked around and she followed her gaze to see Naruto, Hinata, Akemi, Kiba, and Shikamaru standing in their way. "Dammit, what were those idiots Jiroubou and Kidoumaru doing?" yelled the female sound nin.
"Give us back Sasuke!" growled Naruto.
"Yeah yeah, I'll kill them all within seconds!" roared Sakon as he lunged towards the quintet. Naruto hurled a kunai at the Sound nin, who dodged it while forming hand seals. "Tarenken (Multiple Connecting Punches)!" yelled Sakon before his arm seemed to blur as he prepared to pummel the group into submission. Kiba and Shikamaru leapt forward to block the attack while Naruto formed a Rasengan and the two girls leapt past Sakon to engage Tayuya in taijutsu. Kiba and Shikamaru flew back from the force of Sakon's punches, only to disappear in clouds of smoke. Tayuya managed to slip inside Hinata's guard and land a lucky shot to her chest, revealing that she too, was a shadow clone. Tayuya dispelled the fake Akemi with a kick and spun around to see Sakon Grab Naruto's arm to prevent him from using Rasengan.
Sakon's smirk of victory turned to a look of dismay as Kiba blasted through the Naruto Kage Bunshin with a cry of, "Tsuuga (Piercing Fang)!" Sakon barely managed to duck in time to avoid the attack, only to see Kiba was heading for Tayuya and the barrel containing Sasuke.
"Tayuya, move!" yelled Sakon as he leapt towards her. The Sound kunoichi tried to leap away from the attack, only to find she couldn't move at all. A quick glance to the side revealed Shikamaru had her in his Kagemane no Jutsu again. Kiba suddenly broke out of his spin to grab the barrel containing Sasuke and Sakon let out a yell of anger as he hurtled towards the two of them. "Tayuya, what are you doing?" The two Sound shinobi collided with one another while Kiba landed on a tree and tossed the barrel to Naruto and Akemi, who easily caught it. Shikamaru had released his Kagemane, allowing the two Sound nin to end up in a tangle of limbs and the three Konoha shinobi raced off, leaping from tree to tree. Sakon stood up and leapt after the three boys, his blotch shaped curse seal spreading across his body. "You're not getting away!" he howled.
Akemi and Hinata leapt out of the trees to join the boys while hurling several shuriken and kunai at Sakon, forcing him to dodge to the side and lose some momentum, allowing the Konoha forces to gain some more ground. Kiba glanced down when he reached a certain clump of leaves and called out, "Akamaru, hurry up when you're done setting the trap!" The ninken let out a bark of agreement and leapt towards his friends after placing a powerful explosive seal on a nearby branch, only to trip on a branch and fall. Kiba saw Sakon bearing down on his partner and rebounded off a tree to grab Akamaru just before the explosive note went off.
"Kiba-kun, Akamaru!" screamed Akemi as she spun around after hearing Akamaru's cry of distress after tripping. The whole group spun to see Kiba and Akamaru get tossed out of the edge of the forest with Sakon, right over a deep ravine that had a deep river running through it.
"Oh helllllll!" screamed Kiba as he saw the huge drop approaching.
Akemi leapt towards the partners, pushing off of Tayuya's head to give herself more speed, and launched her Tetsugen at the ravine wall. The fox girl swung down on the iron cable, grabbing Kiba and Akamaru with her tails and free arm. For a moment, it looked like they would safely swing up high enough for Kiba to leap to the ravine's side and climb up, only for the kunai that anchored the cable to the wall came loose and Akemi joined Kiba and Akamaru as they plunged into the ravine with Sakon.
"Damn, you two take Sasuke, I'll handle the last one!" Shikamaru yelled to Naruto and Hinata. Before any of the three remaining Konoha shinobi could do anything, Tayuya landed on a branch far from them and stopped while staring behind them.
"Kimimaro," she whispered, just before a gray and black blur shot between the rescuers, grabbed the barrel, and leapt back, trapping the Konoha team between the two remaining members of the Sound Five.
"Kuso, I forgot there was a fifth one according to Haku-chan!" muttered Shikamaru.
"Tayuya, where are the others?" asked Kimimaro. "This is delaying Orochimaru-sama's dream." Here Kimimaro rested his hand on the barrel holding Sasuke. "This 'vessel' is important for that dream, but you were too late. Kabuto san sent word that Orochimaru-sama has been forced to transfer bodies already."
"Damnit, stop babbling and give us back Sasuke!" roared Naruto as he lunged towards Kimimaro. Tayuya appeared in his way, aiming a punch for Naruto's head, only for him to grab her arm, spin in mid-air, and toss her towards the ground while using the force of his spin to launch himself after Kimimaro, only to have Tayuya repeat his maneuver against him and toss him back towards Hinata and Shikamaru with an added kick. Shikamaru leapt up and caught Naruto, landing beside Hinata. Tayuya had landed on a lower branch and Kimimaro dropped down beside her.
"Tayuya, the only reason you're still alive is you still have a mission to complete by staying alive. Please take out those three pieces of trash!" With that order, Kimimaro leapt back to the barrel and resumed the journey to the border between Fire country and Sound Country. Tayuya pulled a flute from her supply pouch and prepared to face the three Konoha shinobi.
"Naruto, Hinata, listen up. From now on move according to how I tell you," said the shadow user.
"Heh, I'll take you out in seconds!" boasted Tayuya. 'The blond's dangerous, but he's only got the Rasengan and those shadow clones plus that sword. The other guy's a shadow user and can disable enemies from mid range and is a clever team leader. The girl is a Hyuuga, got to be careful about her.'
"Ready?" asked Shikamaru. Naruto and Hinata both nodded and the shadow user drew a kunai before the trio leapt towards Tayuya. "We've got the advantage of numbers, let's take her down!"
"Hah, you pieces of trash won't make a difference, no matter how many there are!" yelled Tayuya.
"Don't underestimate us!" yelled Naruto as Shikamaru went low to attack with the kunai, a Rasengan spinning in his hand while Hinata prepared a Jyuuken strike.
Tayuya countered Shikamaru's kunai with her flute, only to hear the shadow user cry, "Naruto, Hinata, now!"
'Shit, a trap!' thought Tayuya. Naruto and Hinata both prepared to strike Tayuya, who cringed in anticipation, only to watch as the couple soared over her head and pursued Kimimaro. "Shit, you tricked me! What kind of teamwork is that you dumb bastards?" shrieked Tayuya before she saw Shikamaru's shadow shooting towards her. The Sound kunoichi leapt clear of the shadow, facing off with Shikamaru.
"Heh, it's over, Naruto and Hinata are an unbeatable team! They'll get Sasuke back!" declared Shikamaru.
"I highly doubt that! Kimimaro is the best of us, and he's fresh too! Those two will never be able to beat him!" countered Tayuya.
(0o0o0)
Kimimaro leapt out of the forest into a large clearing big enough to hold the three boss summons of the Sannin and still have a good amount of space left over. He spun around as he sensed two chakra signatures approaching him quickly. 'That Tayuya, I'll kill her when I get back.'
Naruto and Hinata leapt out so the sun was at their backs and landed in their battle stances facing Kimimaro. "Why the hell does that snake bastard want Sasuke anyways?" demanded Naruto.
"Orochimaru-sama has already completed the jutsu of immortality. In order to acquire all the jutsu of the world he requires more time. Immortality does not necessarily mean immortality of the body. He must replace his body with a newer and stronger one before his current one succumbs to death."
"That's why he wants Sasuke?" hissed Hinata, disgust showing in her tone.
"Yes, exactly," said Kimimaro as a white spike slid out of his palm.
"Kaguya, I didn't think any of your clan was left alive after they attempted the coup against the Mizukage," Naruto said before he sniffed the air. His eyes widened and he started to growl, his blue pupils turning into fox slits while the whisker marks on his cheek thickened. "You're the one who almost killed Haku-ne-san!" growled Naruto before he blurred forward and Nenshousaiga clashed against Kimimaro's bone sword. The two blades flashed and Naruto was driven back by a sudden kick to the stomach. However, this was just the opening Hinata needed to dart in under Naruto and use her family's taijutsu to the fullest. Hinata's palm shot towards Kimimaro's heart, only for him to block with a second bone sword from his other arm. Naruto reentered the fight with a swarm of clones, each bearing Nenshousaiga.
"Yanagi no Mai (Dance of the Willow)!" said Kimimaro before he started jabbing rapidly spinning, leaping, thrusting, and kicking. Bones shot out from his elbows and knees, skewering clones with each movement. Naruto and Hinata fell back, each one having barely avoided being skewered by the attack. Kimimaro stood up and retracted the bones back into his body before removing his shirt to reveal a curse seal between his two collar bones. The skin of the bone manipulator's left shoulder suddenly cracked open and a bone pushed through the muscle, causing Naruto and Hinata to both flinch. Kimimaro pulled the bone out, revealing he had removed his upper arm bone and the sharp bone he had previously used and turning them into an effective sword. "These bones are hardened to maximum density, meaning they are as solid as steel! I've mastered the five dances, don't assume you know all my powers just by looking at them. Behold, Tsubaki no Mai (Dance of the Camellia)!" Naruto created another batch of clones that charged in to provide cover for the real Naruto and Hinata's attempt to grab the barrel and flee, only to be taken out by Kimimaro's sword. This time Kimimaro managed to slice Naruto across his chest, causing the couple to jump back and regroup. It was at this point that the barrel containing Sasuke seemed to glow with a dark aura. "It's almost time, the first step of Orochimaru-sama's ambition!" The barrel exploded in a huge cloud of smoke, causing Hinata to gasp and activate her Byakugan.
The smoke cleared away to reveal Sasuke, only it wasn't the Sasuke Naruto and Hinata knew since childhood, though they could only see his back. This Sasuke had dark brown skin, long white hair, and an evil aura that caused Naruto to growl and the hair on Hinata's back to stand up as her newly discovered miko powers reacted to the evil in the air. The dark skin started to break up and revealed is was a level two curse seal that slowly receded, while Sasuke's hair shrank and resumed its normal raven color. "Sasuke, help us kick this bastard's ass and then we can go home!" yelled Naruto. Instead of moving to help Naruto and Hinata, Sasuke started laughing madly. "Dammit, can't you hear me?" yelled Naruto.
Sasuke didn't answer and leapt away, heading towards Hidden Sound. "Sasuke!" yelled Hinata, darting towards her escaping friend with Naruto, only to gasp as Kimimaro appeared behind them.
"Useless. Die!" declared the bone manipulator as he prepared to slash them in half. Naruto shoved Hinata out of the way, but couldn't get himself clear as the blade moved closer and closer to his throat.
"Ookami Konoha Senpuuken (Wolf Leaf Spinning Wind)!" yelled a voice as a green and black blur shot past Naruto to crash into Kimimaro, sending him skidding back. The blur landed and resolved itself into Rock Lee, who Naruto and Hinata had not seen since his operation. Lee's hair was now shaggy like when he first graduated from the academy while two black wolf ears and a black tail sticking out of the back of his green spandex suit showed that the operation to infuse him with Kurotsume's blood had been a success. Lee breathed deeply and assumed his usual battle stance with one arm behind him and the other raised in front of his body.
"And you are?" asked Kimimaro.
"Konoha's beautiful green beast has been reincarnated! I am Rock Lee!" declared the wolf hanyou with a grin that showed off his enlarged canines.
"Man Fuzzy Brows, you look good!" declared Naruto.
"Naruto-kun, Hinata, you have to get Sasuke! Leave this guy to us!" declared Lee, not taking his eyes off Kimimaro.
"Us?" asked Hinata, only to see the ground crack as a geyser of water broke the surface and fell down to reveal Haku dressed in her kunoichi outfit and clutching her father's fang.
"Haku-san informed me that your opponents all had curse seals, so we came after you with Sakura-chan and Tenten. They're taking care of Chouji, Ino, Neji-kun, and Aki-san," said Lee.
"You owe me a rematch Kaguya, and this time I'm taking you down!" snarled Haku.
"I promise that we'll defeat this guy!" declared Lee with a thumbs up. Naruto and Hinata nodded before running off to catch up to Sasuke.
"Awaken Korrimizusaiga (Ice Water Fang)! Koorimizuryuutsume (Ice water dragon fang)!" yelled Haku. Water formed around the fang, making it the hilt of a large curved blade that looked like a giant version of the fang Haku held made out of water with an icy covering. "Let's do this Lee!"
(0o0o0)
The border between Sound Country and Fire Country was the Valley of the end. On the Fire Country's side of the valley was a statue of the Third Hokage, while opposite stood the statue of a ninja whose name had been lost to history. Naruto and Hinata leapt onto the Shodai Hokage's head, finding Sasuke standing on the head across the valley from them. "Sasuke!" yelled Naruto. The Uchiha turned to face his team mates and Naruto instantly started to growl. "You're not Sasuke!"
"Kukukukukukukukukukuku, Indeed I'm not fox boy. I'm the darkness he had buried deep inside him. Thanks to Orochimaru-sama I'm now free to gain the power I need to destroy my brother," declared Akuma (Devil) Sasuke.
"Then we'll just have to free the real Sasuke-kun!" declared Hinata, activating her Byakugan and stifling a gasp as she saw the black and purple aura Akuma Sasuke was producing. Naruto's eyes once again became blue slits and Hinata could see flickers of red youki appearing around him.
"Kukukukukukukukukuku, I'd like to see you try," declared Akuma Sasuke as he turned and started walking towards hidden Sound, only to see a kunai hit the ground in front of him and for Naruto to suddenly appear on top of it before slugging him in the face.
"I made a promise of a lifetime to Haku-ne-san that I'd bring you back Sasuke, and I intend to keep it!" yelled Naruto.
And that's it. Next chapter we'll finish up the rescue mission and you'll learn if it succeeds or fails. I know you all hate me right now, but finals are coming up and I rushed to get this typed up before they started. Fanime is coming up so I'll get tons of inspiration there, then I start working two part time jobs in the summer. I'll try to write as much as possible and I plan to have this story done by the time classes start again!