Well, there will be an unpleasant surprise at the end of this chapter. For you. Oh, and notice, this story only has Naru/Saku implications, not the actual thing. You'll have to wait for the next story, which I am looking forward to writing, to actually see some Naru/Saku and Jona/Tenten.
Chapter 21: War
"I don't believe it."
"I know… They've become bolder."
Jonaza and the Sandaime Mizukage were looking at a scroll. It read:
'To the Mizukage of Kirigakure Village:
We, the undersigned, have a need that we cannot meet. So, unto these orders, you shall obey, and thus avert war. You will deliver 2 million in unmarked bills to the point mentioned below, to be delivered by the leader of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, Mesike Jonaza. Mesike is to come alone and unarmed.
If you do not follow the commands, you will be attacked and destroyed by the villages of the undersigned.
Tsuchikage of Hidden stone
Raikage of Hidden Cloud
Leader of Hidden Waterfall
Leader of Hidden Sound
Leader of Hidden Rain
He shall carry the money to a bridge in The Rice Field Country on the 20th of august.'
Jonaza looked at a certain part of the letter and grinned.
"I'm going to do it."
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Four days later, above mentioned bridge.
Jonaza was waiting on the top spire of the bridge, his sharp eyes scanning the area for life. There wasn't even a bird or a rabbit. A quick search of the area told him there was a collapsed cave nearby. A special medical technique to scan for life, taught to him by Kira, showed there was only a small amount of blood, but no human beings. Jonaza grinned, reached into his pack, and pulled out a rope. He began to work.
The next day
"Damn it, he should be here by now."
The man swore, a nice long elaborate swear. He was black, tall, sinewy, and covered with battle scars. He had a massive battle hammer n his back.
"Be patient." This one, a man with a black cloak with six piercings by his nose, was ginger haired and small. "He will come."
There were three other people there. One was dressed in a sleeveless blue shirt with a katana on his back and the symbol for lightning engraved upon the hilt. This was the Raikage of Hidden Cloud. The tall man was the Tsuchikage of the Hidden Stone. There was a man in white robes with a downwards arrow on his forehead protector. Then, finally, there was Orochimaru.
"Am I late?"
Jonaza was walking towards the strange five with a bulging bag over his shoulder. The tall man sneered unpleasantly.
"Very." He held out his hand. "Give us the money."
Jonaza raised an eyebrow.
"Well, jeez, aren't we impatient." He handed the bag to the man, and then turned away. The Raikage showed life for the first time.
"I'm afraid we can't let you leave." His voice was surprisingly soft and quiet, almost as if he had barely used it. Jonaza raised an eyebrow again.
"Why not?"
Orochimaru grinned in his snakelike way. "Well, why else would we have you come unarmed?"
Jonaza considered this. "Oh. Well, in that case I guess I'll have to get ugly." He made a seal.
The bag exploded. The Tsuchikage was blown backwards into a row of trees. Orochimaru had leapt away from the blast. The Raikage didn't get it too bad, but he had a burn mark on his arm. When Jonaza looked at the leader of hidden waterfall, he had a shock.
The man was completely shielded by a sphere of water. Jonaza threw a kunai, recently conjured, at it to no avail. It bounced off as if it had hit brick. Jonaza smiled.
"Well, Kontan, seems you'll be getting some blood after all…"
There was a huge burst of smoke, and the blade appeared in Jonaza's arms. He held it up into his favored battle position. There was a deep, throaty chuckle.
"So… you think you can take all of us on and triumph?"
"All of you? Only if I am very misfortunate. A few of you will suffice."
And so he leapt at the five.
"Earth Style: Avalanche technique!"
Several huge boulders fell out of the sky towards Jonaza, who easily leapt out of the way and started his own technique.
"Wind Style: Gale Force technique!"
The pleasant breeze that had been blowing suddenly turned into winds that could be a hurricane's. Four of the six people were blown apart, all to different sections of the forest. Jonaza and the Tsuchikage alone were left. He looked around nervously, then, asserting that he was alone, pulled out his hammer and charged. Jonaza leapt over the first blow, but the second collided with his head with enough force to start an avalanche.
Poof. Bits of wood fell all around as the log that Jonaza had taken place with were shattered. The Tsuchikage looked around, dumbstruck. Then a kunai wished past him, cutting a small mark on his ear. He whirled around.
"Jeez, is that all you have? A simple substitution was enough for that to be avoided. Come on, be a challenge."
The Tsuchikage glared at him, then suddenly smirked. He dropped the hammer and made a seal. A second later, a giant stone fist smashed the tree Jonaza was in.
"Summoning technique: golem of the dead!"
A giant man, made of earth, rock, and sand, rose and towered at least 100 feet above the forest. Jonaza whistled.
"Big." He charged towards the thing with his sword out. He started to run up the monster. It noticed him, and slammed its fist into its chest, making a crater. As it roared in pain, Jonaza kept dodging its fist. When he reached the head, he slammed the sword into its head, and made several seals. He raised his hand, surrounded by flames, and plunged it into the golem's head. He moved his arm around for a while, and then pulled it out.
He had a beautiful manuscript, drawn with inks of blue, green, red and white. There was a small box with writing in what looked like blood. The golem suddenly stopped flailing its arms, the collapsed to the ground. Jonaza walked calmly off the mound of earth.
"Who did you get to make this? I thought all the golem makers were dead long ago."
The Tsuchikage stared in wide eyed amazement. He had killed his last golem in less than a minute. The last person who could do that was… it didn't bear thinking about. Besides, he was seventeen years dead. While he was doing this, Jonaza easily walked up to him and knocked him unconscious with a blow to head with the flat of his blade.
"Hardheaded."
Jonaza turned to see the Raikage standing behind him, sword out but hanging loosely at his side.
"Wow, they really yet young people become Kages now, don't they? Or is it just that the Cloud is running short on ninja?"
The Raikage moved his feet a little. "I will show you how I became Raikage." He blurred away. Jonaza laughed.
"By running away?"
A small cut appeared in his arm. He turned, to see the Raikage behind him again.
"My speed is such that I can kill an opponent in less than a second."
"True, but much has room for improvement."
Jonaza leapt into the air, and a black sphere surrounded him. The Raikage looked closer, then his eyes widened and he started to leap away.
Thousands of kunai and shuriken were hurtling from the giant sphere. The Raikage tried to knock them away, but he couldn't possibly get them all. He was forced to hide behind a tree. The sphere dispersed, leaving Jonaza hovering in the air. He made another seal and uttered a few inaudible words. A giant… spike made of what can only be described as human resource (no, not that) came out and the tree was split in two. An abnormally large splinter hit the Raikage on the head, and fell, out cold. Jonaza whistled.
"Two unconscious and none dead? Must be a record for me." He turned and walked away from the clearing.
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Konoha, 9 am the morning before
"Five more minutes…"
Naruto was sleeping on the sofa in the hotel room, on his back with his arms in the air, a look of happiness on his face. No one knows what he was dreaming…
Kira's face appeared over the back of the couch, an evil grin on her face. She held a little horn up to her mouth… and blew.
There was a large amount of cursing, chasing, wishing to cause severe harm, and throwing of furniture. Once Haku and Zabuza had restored order, Naruto settled down to breakfast. He soon discovered the beetles in his cereal.
2 hours later
Naruto still hadn't calmed down.
3 hours after that
Almost. Hang in there.
1 hour after after that.
We appreciate your patience. Naruto had finally calmed down, at least enough to only glare at Kira, who merely laughed.
"Oops. That was a bit mean of me, wasn't it? Isn't it time for lunch?"
They found it was, and so went to their favorite restaurants in Konoha. Zabuza was disappointed in the lack of sushi. His big brother had made him absolutely love it. He owed that girl something…
Naruto was, of course, at Ichiraku.
Kira wandered into a high class restaurant, ate her fill, then left without paying the bill. The manager was looking for a short man with a rather large nose, not a rather short girl. They all had good lunches, paid for or no.
They were meeting back at the hotel, when they saw the dove. It was of a perfect gray color, with a white band down its leg. Kirigakure's mail system. Haku read the message out loud.
'To my five swordsmen: war is upon us. Jonaza has left to 'negotiate' with the leaders of the assault, though I fear that he might not be able to stand up to the job. I want you to report to the below location and see what you can do. If there is nothing there, then report back to Kirigakure. I fear that we may have to make alliances. Good luck, we will need it.
Mizukage of Kirigakure.'
The Mizukage left a copy of the letter proclaiming war. Naruto grinned.
"Some action. Finally. This place has been becoming so damned boring."
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The spot where Jonaza fought the village leaders
The five swordsmen members were looking around. There wasn't much that they found, but Kira called them with the shrill whistle that was their emergency calling. They found her with her hands on Jonaza's chest, trying to close a massive gash. There were several other wounds upon his body, including one nasty looking cut that went from the middle of his eye to his chin. Kira sighed.
"With this many wounds, there is little we can do here but close some of the worse ones and heal a few of the less dangerous but still potentially fatal wounds." Zabuza nodded, and then made a few seals. A man made of water appeared.
"Tell the Mizukage that we may need some help, and to prepare a immediate healing circle." The water man nodded, then started to run southwards, then melted into water.
Zabuza turned back to the group.
"Do you remember how to do the long distance mirrors, Haku…?"
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Kirigakure, the next day
"We have a report on Mesike, Mizukage-sama."
"Yes?"
The chief medic bowed and produced a scroll from within his uniform.
"There seems to be a massive blood loss, as well as several serious injuries. Whatever he fought was able to do massive damage. The strange thing is, all the wounds seem to have been made within five or so minutes of each other, and not by a shower of kunai or other such things. Whatever cut him up was a sword, or something like it. It is also incredibly fast. We have managed to heal most of the wounds, but a few, such as the one over his eye, was tainted with a poison that prevents the wounds from closing. There was also a large amount of strange runes on his body that we think might have been a major part of the wounds, as there was a huge gash inside the main part of the lettering. All in all, he will survive, but there will be some scarring, and we need a skilled poison remover beyond that of even Kira-sama."
The Mizukage sighed.
"Bring Zabuza here. With Jonaza incapacitated, he is effectively the leader of the Six Swordsmen of the Mist."
The medic bowed, and exited the room. Zabuza entered seconds later.
"Yes, Mizukage-sama?"
"Prepare a convoy to the Leaf Village. We need the talents of the Hokage to heal Jonaza. I will be coming with it, so tell Niru to watch the village while I'm gone."
"You're coming?"
The Mizukage's eyes glinted.
"Oh yes. I have something that might convince the Hokage in our favor."
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Nineteen days later, Hokage Tower
"Hokage-sama, a band of shinobi approaches, bearing a white flag. We do not know their affiliation or their purpose. Do you propose to let them in?"
Tsunade ground her teeth. A band of ninja, probably an ambush, at this time… Oh well.
"Let me see them and talk to them."
"Of course, Hokage-sama."
Tsunade got ready to meet the band at the gates.
Five minutes later, Konoha gates
"Well? What do you want?"
The leader of the party waved to her.
"We need to talk, Hokage-san. We have many problems that may concern you."
Tsunade sighed. "All right, meet me up here."
"That is out of the question. We have a very injured man who will die if you do not treat him, and is already disfigured for the rest of his life."
Tsunade was interested now.
"Alright, I will come down there with a few ANBU teams and talk with you. Bring this man."
"Agreed."
Tsunade came down.
"Now, where is this man?"
Zabuza came with Haku bearing a stretcher with Jonaza on it. Tsunade gasped.
"You lied to me. He cannot be a man to have survived these wounds."
"He is an exceptionally powerful shinobi."
Tsunade circled him. "It seems there were more wounds, but either shoddily or hastily healed."
"He was healed quickly so he could be transported to our village for more treatment."
"I will see what I can do for him. Is there anything else?"
"Yes." The Mizukage gave Tsunade a copy of the letter. She gasped.
"The man you see before is Mesike Jonaza, the last survivor of his race. He is one of our most valued assets, and he obtained these wounds trying to kill these threats to the shinobi world. He needs treatment badly."
Tsunade replied, "Why should I help him? He's an evil man, as bad as Orochimaru, if not worse. I am furious that the Mist would take him on."
"Does he really deserve an S-class rank in a bingo book for trying to get what he needs to destroy one of the greatest threats that this world has ever seen?"
"He has done more than that."
"True. And imagine if he did a fraction of that to our enemies!"
Tsunade peered at him. "Your voice is very familiar…"
The Mizukage sighed. "I had hoped not for this." He removed the hat that designated him a Kage. Tsunade drew a sharp intake of breath.
"Sarutobi?"
The Mizukage smiled. "That is half of my name. I was born Giru Sarutobi, the younger and infinitely inferior brother to the wonderful Gichu Sarutobi. He was top of every class. I was the class clown, so close to failing you wouldn't believe it. I eventually managed to pass, by which time young thirteen-year old Gichu was already a Jonin. I loved him though. He was blood, and I could not hate him. I admired him, he helped me, and eventually I became a Chunin. But that was my greatest loss. My love for Gichu. One time, during a mission, an incredibly skilled shinobi mimicked him, and approached us. He managed to kill most of my squad, and when the rest saw me stab the one I knew was not Gichu, but they did not, they brought me in for treason. Gichu's influence managed to get me out of death, and I was instead banished. The men realized I did not kill him, but thought I would have. I was identical to him, though three years younger. I was immensely saddened by his death."
Tsunade sighed. "So much trouble is caused by foolish noble people in this world."
"Aye." The Mizukage suddenly grinned. "Well? Will you aid us, and be our allies?"
Tsunade nodded. "I will, but do not expect me to be nice to Mesike."
"That would be beyond asking." He held out his hand. Tsunade took it.
"That's settled then."
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From within the Village Hidden by Thorns, a maniacal laughter was pervading the village.
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Here's the bad news. But good for me.
The book, The Pain of a Traitor, is now officially finished!
However, I shall be starting the new one, Hope for the Bleak, very soon.
I would like to give thanks to all those people who reviewed. I also have a little something extra. This will not affect the next stories, except for as little. I want you to vote on your favorite OCs. This will mean a lot to me. The choices are:
Syrnon: A maniacal figure who has a mysterious master for whom he is 'cleansing' the world.
Jonaza: A deeply strange figure with more secrets in his past than someone three times his age. He is one of the main characters.
Lyrinian: The newest member of the Six swordsmen, he is the Mizukage's adopted son.
Kira: The weird and short medic of Kirigakure. She has a major part left to play in the story.
Look at this: Þ. I learned how to do that a few days ago. Kewl, isn't it? Ttfn, ta ta for now!