AN:

Now we get to the battle with Zabuza, which will be a tad shorter than the one with Haku. We'll also check back in with Naruto, and learn the identity of the third and final member of Zabuza's crew!

Please Review and I hope you enjoy!

XOXOXOX

THE NINE TAILS INCARNATE

ARC 02: FU OF WATERFALL

CHAPTER 11: EXECUTIONER'S BLADE

XOXOXOX

LAST TIME ON THE NINE TAILS INCARNATE:

Sasuke nodded and looked to Sai, whom was already picking up Haku and putting her over his shoulder. Sakura scowled and she got a good look at some of the wounds on the Uchiha's exposed arms. "Hey Sasuke-kun?"

"Yeah, Sakura-chan?" Sasuke answered, turning to his pink-haired teammate. "What did you ne-MMPTH!"

The raven haired boy's words were cut off as Sakura captured him in a kiss. She held him there for a few seconds, kissing him passionately, an act which Sasuke did nothing to resist or stop. When Sakura finally released the now-panting boy, he could do nothing but stare at her dumbfounded.

"Don't ever keep me out of a fight like that again!" Sakura scolded, her bright red blush betraying her angry tone.

Sasuke just nodded dumbly, and Haku, whom was jostled awake when Sai picked her up, watched the scene with a small blush. "Some girls have all the luck..." she whispered to herself. Sai raised an eyebrow, but before he could comment, Haku was already back in unconsciousness.

XOXOXOX

Kakashi ran as fast as he could through the mist-coated forest, heading towards the part where the mist was at its thickest. Navigating the place was becoming harder by the moment, as the chakra-filled mist blocked his vision and even his sense of smell was becoming clouded by the odour of damp wood. After a few moments, the sound of metal clashing against metal reached the Copy Ninja's ears and he ran towards the source of the sound. When he arrived, he felt his blood run cold.

Yugao was lying against a tree, her hands clasped over a deep wound on her abdomen; her katana snapped in two at her side, while not far from her was Hayate, whom was barely holding off Zabuza with his own blade, which was only staying in one piece thanks to the Tokubetsu Jonin's Chakra. Kakashi saw Hayate was slowly giving way to Zabuza, so he threw a lightning-charged Kunai at Zabuza, forcing the bandaged man to grumble and back away; retreating back into the mist.

"Are you alright?" Kakashi asked, noticing some cuts and bruises where Hayate's Flak Jacket had taken a few hits.

"I've been better. I was made a Tokubetsu Jonin because of my skill with a sword, but facing off with one of the Legendary Seven Mist Swordsmen is a whole other level." Hayate replied, his breathing laboured. "I haven't scored a single hit on him, and that was before this damned mist rolled in! I'm guessing this was Ameyuri's work?"

Kakashi nodded. "Anko and I took her captive, but the mist isn't subsiding. I figure Zabuza must be maintaining it."

At that comment, an echoed laugh rolled through the forest, seemingly coming from everywhere. "Ha! You think I'm maintaining this? I didn't need the mist to deal with those two. Its a shame; they're good swordsmen, but they'll never beat me if they aren't willing to kill me!" Zabuza laughed, hiding carefully in the mist. He was telling the truth about the Mist, he really wasn't maintaining it, "Those two that went after the kids must be giving my associate a hard time, if he's willing to keep the mist up… though with Kakashi here now, I might need it as well..." he thought.

Kakashi signalled for Hayate to move and protect the injured Yugao while he did the brunt of the fighting, but the Copy Ninja had a feeling this wasn't really going to be a fight; this would be a game of cat and mouse, and the first one to be caught would be taken out; either by capture, or death. The silver haired Jonin sighed; after the fight with Ameyuri, he was pushing his limits with the Sharingan and his chakra was suffering because of it… too many jutsus, even simple ones, and he'd be dead without Zabuza having to lay a finger on him.

"Welp, guess it's time for Plan K..." Kakashi grumbled. Yugao and Hayate heard and both grimaced. Plan K was a very rarely used and very unpopular one among the Ninja of the Hidden Leaf, due to it being both painful and dangerous, but it was also a shot to the pride of any Leaf Shinobi that loathed to use another's power.

"Ooh, Plan K? Did Ameyuri exhaust Plans A through J? You Leaf Ninja do too much thinking on the battlefield, it leaves you wide open!" Zabuza's voice came echoing through the mist and before anyone could blink, he was plunging down on Kakashi from above, aiming to cleave off the man's arm. After all, if he killed the Copy Ninja, all chances of negotiating with the Nine Tails would go up in smoke.

To Zabuza's surprise, Kakashi easily sidestepped the blow without even looking, before slapping the sword out of Zabuza's hand and then punching the bandaged man several feet into the woods; causing him to crash through multiple trees. The shock wave of this act alone was enough to clear away the mist directly around Kakashi, his comrades and his opponent (though the Mist was still present). Kakashi panted hard and resisted the urge to get on all fours like an Inuzuka as Zabuza pulled himself from the wreckage of the trees that had cushioned his short flight. Zabuza glared with wide, furious eyes; his body pierced by many chunks of wood, though luckily none were lethal or serious; only painful.

"What in the hell was that! And what the hell is wrong with you!?" Zabuza roared, glaring at Kakashi. "I know you have the Sharingan, but that doesn't explain those freaky eyes!"

Just as Zabuza said, Kakashi's eyes had indeed changed. His normal eye was now as red as the Sharingan one, and both his pupils were turned into slits. "This is Plan K, also known as Plan Kyubi." Kakashi stated, holding up a tiny, empty pouch that was covered in seals, along with the kanji for "Kyubi".

"Wait, so you're harnessing the Nine Tails' power!? How!?" Zabuza yelled.

"Through special pills, made by a concoction of medicines and Naruto's blood and Chakra. When eaten, the user enters a Pseudo-Jinchuriki form which enhances our senses and strength, plus a nice boost to Chakra. On the downside, it does have some nasty after-effects; once it wears off, which won't be long, I'll have the worst hang-over you can imagine, not to mention I won't even be able to move for a week… Plan K is a last resort for Leaf Ninja, and everyone of Chunin level or higher carries one of these pills." Kakashi explained, leaving out that the pills also caused the user to develop fox-like tendencies for a while after consumption.

Zabuza frowned. So that was how Kakashi was able to smack him around so easily… "Wait a minute, if all of you Leaf Ninja carry these things, why didn't those two use them?" he asked, pointing to Yugao and Hayate while trying to subtly edge his way over to his sword.

Yugao and Hayate both shuddered. "We've used them before when missions went bad… we'd rather not do it again. The power is amazing, but it isn't worth the drawbacks! Plus if it wears off before you've finished the mission and when no allies are around, you're screwed." Hayate explained.

The swordsman gulped. No normal Ninja would be so cavalier about giving away the secrets of their techniques and tools; meaning Kakashi and his comrades were either really stupid, or completely confident Zabuza wouldn't be getting away. "The sword isn't going to be enough here...time to relocate." he thought, before quickly grabbing his blade and running for it; heading towards a lake he had scouted out previously. If his blade wasn't going to be enough, then he'd combine it with his Water Style!

Of course, Kakashi wasn't going to just let him escape and in a blur of movement that not even the trained eyes of an ANBU could keep up with, the Copy Ninja slammed into Zabuza's back with a hard kick, again sending him flying through the trees. Luckily for Zabuza, the kick was enough to send him all the way to the lake he had planned on running to (he even skipped like a stone across its surface a few times) and he was able to pull himself to his feet right near the centre of the lake. With Kakashi only moments away, Zabuza flew through Handsigns and the water began to form together into a large, serpentine dragon.

"WATER STYLE: SUPER WATER DRAGON JUTSU!" he roared. Kakashi reached the lake in time to hear the roar, momentarily wondering what the "Super" was for, at least until the jutsu fully formed.

"Oh...Oh crap." he muttered, as the entire lake drained and formed a massive Water Dragon that could easily encircle the Hidden Waterfall and even a good portion of the Hidden Leaf. Submerged in the head of the dragon was Zabuza, whom was emitting his famed "Demon Aura" and spinning his blade, ready to slice Kakashi to pieces, Naruto's feelings be damned. Kakashi whistled; quietly impressed by the jutsu, for not only was it a bigger, more powerful Water Dragon, but if he got caught in its jaws, Zabuza's sword would make the whole thing like being thrust into a blender.

Needless to say, this was one dragon Kakashi would rather avoid.

The Water Dragon gave off a roar before diving down on top of Kakashi, whom was able to leap away with ease thanks to the Fox Chakra currently flowing through him, but he knew the supply was running out and when it did, he'd be dead. A single Lightning Jutsu, empowered by the Fox Chakra would more than likely take Zabuza out in an instant if it landed close enough to the dragon's head, but if he missed or if Zabuza wasn't knocked out, Kakashi wouldn't have enough chakra left to try again and he'd be dead. "So, keep dodging until my chakra depletes and I die, or gamble it all on one last attack… Heh, kind of an obvious choice!" Kakashi thought to himself as he charged up his chakra and directed it to his legs and his right hand.

Lightning began to crackle around Kakashi's wrist as he prepared a Lightning Blade, but when he focused the Tailed Beast Chakra he had left into it, the colour of the lightning became a shining gold which reminded Kakashi of Naruto's (and his father's) hair. With all the chakra in his legs, Kakashi leapt high above the water dragon and shot himself towards Zabuza. The bandaged ninja grinned and swung his blade to meet Kakashi, using the remains of his own chakra to manipulate the water inside the Water Dragon to further propel his swing.

"WATER DRAGON'S DEMONIC FANG!"

"NINE TAILS LIGHTNING BLADE!"

Kakashi's powered up Lightning Blade slammed into the edge of Zabuza's powered up sword swing, sending sparks and water everywhere and turning the sight of their clash into the eye of a massive Thunderstorm, which rained down Lightning and Torrential Rain on the forest, starting fires and then smothering them before they could rage out of control. And all the while, Kakashi and Zabuza were still pushing against each other, trying to out last the other. Both were Elite Jonin with similar reserves of chakra and both were almost exhausted from using such big techniques. After a few moments, Kakashi's power won out and Zabuza's Executioner's Blade shattered into innumerable pieces, leaving the Mist Ninja holding just a hilt with barely an inch of blade left on it. Kakashi smirked behind his mask, but then recoiled when Zabuza threw the remains of his blade at him, causing it to cut into his side. With his own momentum broken by the shattering of Zabuza's blade and the small wound he sustained, Kakashi was unable to plunge the Lightning Blade into Zabuza, so instead, he reformed the lightning into a pulse which shot out and hit Zabuza at point blank range.

Zabuza roared in pain as the force of the lightning was empowered by the water of the Water Dragon, which imploded as Zabuza lost control of his muscles. Both Ninja, with their chakra drained, plummeted into the ground below, landing in the shallow remains of the lake.

For several minutes, Kakashi lied in the mud of the lake bed, trying to process the flood of awful feelings that came with the Plan K Pill. His head felt ready to burst and his stomach lurched as all his muscles felt like they had been liquefied. "Huff-huff, at least...at least I won..." he muttered, as he saw Zabuza's still form lying a few feet away.

"D-Don't be so sure! Kakashi of the Sharingan!" Zabuza grumbled, panting hard as he repeatedly tried and failed to sit up. "My body maybe fucked, but at least I can take you out! We're dying together!"

Kakashi's blood ran cold as Zabuza finally sat up and rolled himself over, crawling on hands and knees to reach the paralysed Leaf Jonin; a kunai in one hand. Zabuza's bandages had been torn by the clash and burnt by the Lightning, leaving his shark-like teeth on full display, shaped into a painful grimace as the Mist Ninja approached, hell-bent on killing Kakashi. "For the sake of my village, we need those Jinchuriki, and if I need to kill you to get them, then DIE!"

Zabuza swung his arm up, ready to stab Kakashi, whom tried with all his might to escape, even though he couldn't lift a finger thanks to the pill. "Sorry, but neither of you are dying today!" came a familiar voice. Zabuza scowled as his kunai was knocked away by a Chokuto blade and he felt two pairs of feet slam into his back while two pairs of arms grabbed his arms. Kakashi smiled to himself as he saw Zabuza thrown to the ground; Sai and Sakura holding his back down with their feet, Yugao and Hayate holding his arms while holding their blades (or remains of them, in Yugao's case) at his throat, and Sasuke holding his head against the ground with his own blade at the ready.

"Good job everyone. You got here just in time." Kakashi smiled, acting as if they had arrived in time for training, as opposed to saving his life. "I take it you defeated Haku?" he asked.

Sasuke nodded. "Sai is using an Ink Clone to guard her and Ameyuri back at our meeting point. Anko went ahead to help Yamato-sensei and Aoba."

"Damn it! You beat Haku too!? If you've hurt her, I swear I'll gut you like a fish!" Zabuza roared, unleashing as much killing intent as he could.

"She's fine." Sasuke said simply. "We healed her wounds but she won't be fighting for a while."

Zabuza just scowled and looked to Kakashi, "So, your brats are as good as that green weirdo's? Well you beat me fair and square, though it pisses me off to admit it. But I've got to warn you; the guy with those Jinchuriki brats will go for the kill without hesitation. He'd enslave all the Jinchuriki to the Mist if he could. He only cares about following our orders no matter what it takes. He's one sick son of a bitch."

Kakashi exchanged worried looks with the others. "Who is he? One of your Mist Swordsmen?"

"Yeah...his name is-"

[With Naruto and Fu]

Naruto had never been a hateful person; years of listening to Kakashi and the Hokage warning him of the dangers of hatred had made him wary of the dreadful emotion, but ever since the beginning of this mission, the young shinobi was having trouble keeping the feeling of hatred at bay… Hatred for the Hidden Waterfall which had abused Fu and Hatred for Kisuke Haruno whom had abused Sakura. But now, he was discovering a new, lesser hatred.

Hatred for being treated like a piece of luggage!

The cloaked member of Zabuza's gang had been running for only a short time, but he was much less gentle than Zabuza when it came to the Jinchuriki he was carrying. Naruto looked over to Fu and saw she was wincing a bit at the rough ride, but their carrier didn't seem to care.

"Hey, big guy! Can you be a little more gentle? We aren't travel bags you know!" Naruto yelled, growing irritated. His Fox-like senses had already detected Yamato and Aoba slowly catching up with them, and he could hear the distant sounds of battle.

"Kid, I'm not slowing down just so you can meet up with your friends. You and the Jinchuriki are supposed to be Ninja, so stop whining." the Tall Man replied snidely, seemingly running even more wildly to further annoy Naruto.

"Jeez, you're a real jerk! You do know that you need us, right?" Fu grumbled.

At that, the hooded man gave a sinister laugh. "Zabuza and his little brat, along with Ameyuri are all disgraces! They go around pampering you little shits to try and make you work with us. Well to hell with that! I have my own way of doing things, and if I have to torture the pair of you into obeying me, then so be it. I'll be sure to enjoy it."

Naruto scowled. "So, Chomei was right. You're different than the others… you're a traitor aren't you?"

The man laughed again, "I can't betray someone I was never sided with." he said, before coming to a sudden stop and landing in a small clearing. The area was different from the rest of the forest, to the point where Naruto felt "Jungle" would be a better word for it. The area was damp and the smell of rot was thick in the air. Naruto and Fu looked at each other desperately and their eyes grew wide when they saw the skull of a giant, long dead reptile jutting out of the ground not far from them.

This wasn't the Land of Earth…

"Where are we?" Naruto asked.

"This is the Ryuchi Execution Grounds… The Snake Summons used to kill and dump their prisoners here! It's forbidden for anyone to come here!" Fu exclaimed. She had always been warned to never set foot here, as it was a grave insult to the Snakes, and they weren't a Summon Tribe to be trifled with! The Tall Man roughly dropped Fu and Naruto to the ground, where they landed with a loud thump.

"Why did you bring us here!? Who are you really working for? Kaguya?" Naruto demanded.

The man cocked his head to the side at the name, but he didn't seem to recognise it, at least as far as Naruto could tell. "My real bosses are coming here to pick up you two. You see, I have a funny little story to tell you two." he said snidely as he knelt down in front of Naruto and Fu, whom were struggling to sit up with their bindings.

"You see, Zabuza and his little friends think we're working for the Rebellion. He's never been able to contact them directly, but I was able to trick him, with some help from my Genjutsu using comrade, into working for us. I pretend to be his contact with the Rebellion and lead the idiot on missions to aid our cause! And since my employers are sided with Yagura, Zabuza has been secretly sabotaging the very Rebellion he supports! Isn't that hilarious!?" the man cackled. "And the best part? All three of them are wanted ninja with huge bounties from both the Rebellion AND the Hidden Mist! No matter what happens, they'll be hunted for the rest of their lives!"

Fu went pale and Naruto growled. He had been bracing himself for the worst, but it still angered him to hear this bastard's betrayal. At least it confirmed Naruto's suspicions that despite their actions, Zabuza, Haku and Ameyuri weren't bad people, just misled by this man. The Lanky Ninja looked at Naruto's expression and smiled beneath his hood.

"Aw, does that make you angry, little fox? Too bad. It really is a shame though; with those powerful ninja you brought with you from the Leaf, my tools will likely be broken now. Not that it matters really; I was going to have to kill them after this mission anyway, so thanks kid, you're friends saved me the trouble."

"You bastard! What the hell do you gain from all this!?" Naruto yelled, resisting the urge to flare his chakra. He needed to make this guy think he was still a prisoner until Yamato and Aoba caught up.

"Cold hard cash, on top of the pure enjoyment of it. I get paid well, and I can kill as much as I want without having to follow a bunch of damned rules! So long as I bring you both back to the boss alive and in one piece, I can do whatever I want! And that includes taking a few limbs off you, or having some fun with your little friend there." the man turned towards Fu, whom shuddered and edged herself away. He laughed at her reaction and gave her an additional leer to make her flinch, before getting up and pacing around the area, checking on things neither of the Genin could see. Naruto's glare intensified and he felt his control over his beast instincts slipping.

Naruto had never been a hateful person… but he knew that no matter how hard he tried, he absolutely despised this man. The Fox boy gritted his teeth and clenched his fists so tightly that his nails cut into his palms; how could people ever call him a Demon when people like this man existed? It was absurd! This man was evil to the core!

Fu felt Chomei's chakra flaring inside her as she looked at Naruto, but that feeling was quashed by an overwhelming amount guilt. "I'm sorry, Naruto… I thought by doing this, we could achieve both our dreams. That I could find a place where I can live happily, and you can unite the Tailed Beasts… I was stupid and rash, and now we're both trapped..." she half-whispered, unable to meet Naruto's eye. "It's all my fault..."

Naruto snapped his head towards Fu and gave her a determined smile. "Fu, I swear, before the sun rises, you will be free, and I'll take you to a place you can live happily. Both our dreams are going to be coming true, and this bastard can't do anything to stop us!"

The Hooded man, whom had been half-listening ever since he got up to check the area, smirked to himself and was about to respond when the tree he was standing next to suddenly came to life and attacked him. Branches and roots surged from the tree and tried to ensnare him, but he leapt back just in time, before drawing a strange weapon from inside his cloak and using it to knock away two kunai that shot out of the darkness surrounding the clearing. The weapon was a sword, but incredibly thin and with no edge, and at the pommel was a small hole with Ninja Wire attached. It was like a giant Sewing Needle!

Naruto grinned and moved himself between Fu and their captor, ready to surprise them both by joining the fight; now that one of his senseis was here! Yamato and Aoba appeared from the trees, with Yamato literally emerging from the tree that had been attacking the Tall Man. "Naruto, are you and Fu alright?" Yamato asked upon seeing them.

"We're fine. Listen, this bastard has been tricking Zabuza and his crew into committing crimes by claiming they were orders from the Rebellion in the Mist! He's the real enemy!" Naruto yelled.

Yamato nodded and turned to Aoba. "Do you recognise this one, Aoba?"

Aoba nodded. "I can't see his face, but that isn't unusual for this guy. Luckily, the sword gives it away. That's the Nuibari, one of the Seven Swords of the Mist, and this guy is its wielder; Kushimaru Kuriarare!"

The hooded man chuckled darkly and idly removed his cloak to reveal himself. He wore a white ANBU Mask with the Mist Symbol on the forehead, which had been scratched out, and a sleeveless black shirt, matching pants, and the same strange grey wrist and leg guards as Zabuza. Aside from his gangly stature, the only other identifying feature of Kushimaru was his bushy, straw-coloured hair. "Well done, you got it right. As a fellow Swordsmen of the Mist, those idiots Zabuza and Ameyuri never suspected me! You'd think they'd be more cautious after both the previous Samehada Wielders turned out to be traitors." he mocked, his voice a little less muffled now.

Yamato and Aoba readied themselves for battle, and Naruto did too, but before anyone could move, Naruto froze up. A sinking dread filled him as his eyes landed on the symbol on the back of Kushimaru's shirt.

It was a Blood Red Cloud.

XOXOXOX

AN:

Dun Dun DUUUUUN!

So, the identity of the Final Boss of the Arc is revealed, and his true allegiances are alluded to, but what other secrets does Kushimaru have?

Next chapter will probably be the longest one of the Arc and will be the final battle of the Arc as well. After that, we'll have some cool down as the fates of Zabuza's crew are decided, the CRA is enacted and Kisuke Haruno gets his reckoning!