Dragons and Shinobi Chapter 24: To Know Fear
Yami could feel his lungs screaming for air as he darted forward. The unmistakable sound of gunshots echoed in his ears and rumbled through the warehouse walls. The sound pushed him to go faster, despite the fire spreading across his muscles, causing the panicked beating of his heart to accelerate even faster. Yugi manifested next to him, his own fear and panic radiating off of him like heat. His eyes were bugging out of his head as he turned to look at the Pharaoh. Tears were building and his voice was quaking as he spoke, you don't think? Yugi couldn't finish the thought, the idea was too much for him to handle, to even exercise.
The great pharaoh didn't answer, instead he willed his body to go faster. He bit down on his bottom lip, so hard that it began to bleed. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw a door and he ran towards it. Not able to stop his body in time, he slammed against the door, feeling it shake on its hinges. He gripped tightly on the cold steel handle and gave it a hard pull, but it didn't budge. "Come on," the pharaoh growled, pulling harder, hoping by some miracle that it would open, but it didn't budge. "Damn it," Yami yelled punching the door with his hand and felt a sick sort of relief as the dull slowly made its way up his arm.
We need to find another way out and now! Yugi urged, looking around. But Yami felt himself just sink. He could feel his own frustration and stress growing, and with Yugi also in a manic panic, there was no way of pulling himself out of it. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself, but as before, the attempt was in vain. The darkness looked like it was closing in around him, making him feel claustrophobic. Yami brought his knees up to his chest and placed his head in his hands, grabbing onto chunks of his hair and pulling, hoping that the pain would help him snap out of this stupor.
Partner? Yugi's concerned voice came into his mind but Yami pushed it away.
Yami slowly opened his eyes, taking another look around the warehouse. The maze of boxes stood silently before him and surely, there had to be a way out at the end, but in the dark, that would take ages, and his friends were running out of time. Suddenly, the millennium puzzle around his neck began to glow, as if sensing his growing frustration and desperation.
What are you doing? Yugi squeaked, backing up as a purple aura began to surround the pharaoh.
Carefully, Yami pushed himself off the ground, feeling a growing power and a reckless feeling that he hadn't felt since Yugi had first completed the puzzle. He could feel his mind slipping, the rationality that usually controlled his movements were stepping aside to allow instincts to take control. A golden eye symbol began to glow on his forehead and his body was turning into a long shadow. Suddenly, in a burst of brilliant light, Yami's body was swallowed and then shot through the door, heading towards the warzone.
Kakashi shot forward, his eyes locked on his opponent. Kabuto launched one of his kunai knives at Kakashi, who easily dodged it. It whizzed past him and, thankfully, past Kaiba, barely missing his ear. Kakashi, once he was close enough, attempted to punch Kabuto but the sound ninja jumped backwards and then launched the second kunai at the jonin. Jumping to the right, he was able to avoid being hit by the sharp metallic knife but he wasn't able to stop the incoming kick from Kabuto. It caught Kakashi harshly on his side, sending a harsh dull pain through his body and sent him flying towards one of the warehouses.
Catching himself with one of his right arm, he was able to get himself to roll, and land in a kneeling position. Kakashi gave himself a moment to just focus on controlling his shallow breathing, trying to get it back to a nice full breath, but his lungs felt constricted and tight, not only from the blow but from his own exhaustion.
A smirk was painted across Kabuto's smug face. He darted forward, his hands forming a bunch of hand signs, which Kakashi's Sharingan easily picked up. Kakashi, forced himself to stand, grunting from the sharp protesting of his muscles, and quickly started a series of hand signs of his own.
Dark ocean water began to rise around the pier, forming into dangerous large spears that were then hurled towards Kakashi. The jonin jumped backwards, dodging the first one and then summoning a water dragon of his own from the water left behind from the first spear. The chakra infused water dragon gave a tremendous roar shaking the ground before it launched itself at the remaining spears, sacrificing its body to permanently sheath them in its watery flesh. As the jutsus collided, water was sprayed everywhere, causing the others to get wet.
Joey gave a squeak and jumped, his mouth falling open and his eyes growing as large as saucers. Tea just shook, placing her hands near her mouth, fighting the need to nervously bite her knuckles. Never before had they seen power like this nor had they felt two people thirst for blood like these two.
Kabuto laughed, grabbing Kakashi's attention away from the rest of the gang. "I am surprised you still have chakra left, especially considering the running around your student caused you to do and the fact that you have been using your Sharingan for a considerable amount of time. Then again, they don't have you in the bingo books for nothing."
Kakashi's eyes narrowed and he allowed a growl to come from his throat before he ran forward. Kabuto jumped back and the two became locked in a series of well placed punches and kicks. The deadly series of parries and blocks lasted for what seemed like ages to the rest of the group, but Kakashi's movements were starting to lose momentum. It became increasingly harder to keep up with Kabuto's speed.
"Seto," Mokuba quivered as he spoke. "We have to help him," he squeaked the last part before tearing his eyes away from the fight to look at his big brother.
Kaiba knew his brother was right, Kakashi wouldn't last much longer. But what could he do? If he fire his gun, then he ran the risk of hitting Kakashi, and there was no way he could take on Kabuto physically, that much was blatantly clear. The CEO of Kaiba corp gritted his teeth and increased the grip on his gun, feeling the metal digging into his palm.
The sound of Kabuto's fist smacking into Kakashi's face echoed over the empty pier and sent Kakashi stumbling sideways. Kabuto took Kakashi's unbalance as an open invitation and he kicked him backwards. The jonin landed right in front of Joey.
"Are you alright?" Joey and Tea asked simultaneously.
Kakashi could only cough in response.
Kaiba watched as Kabuto began to walk slowly towards him. "Now, hand over Sasuke and then beating can end, unless you want me to continue, that is." A wicked grin pulled at his narrow face.
Kaiba took this as his chance. He aimed his gun at Kabuto's head and fired, sending a bullet screaming through the air towards Kabuto. The ninja was faster though, for he quickly moved out of the way, leaving the bullet to go spiraling towards the ocean.
"Now. Now. Now, are we getting jealous?" Kabuto's voice whispered in Kaiba's ear. Fear sent a cold hand down Kaiba's spine, leaving behind chills and causing his hair on his neck to stand up.
Kaiba then felt his vision leave him as pain shot through his back as he was kicked forward. Skidding across the asphalt, he could feel ground tearing at his clothing and skin. The front half of his body burned from the scrapes and his back felt numb.
"Seto!" Mokuba screamed and then quickly retreated as Kabuto turned his attention to the younger Kaiba brother.
"Oh no you don't," Joey yelled, placing Sasuke quickly on the ground before darting forward. He brought his fist back and clenched his teeth. Kabuto looked at Joey just as the blonde's fist hit the ninja's face, throwing his glasses to the ground. The glasses shatter as they hit the concrete, the sound of scattering glass sounded like rain. Kabuto took a step side-wards, shock lighting up his grey eyes.
Joey nursed his sore hand as he mouthed ouch. His jaw is unnaturally hard, Joey groaned inwardly. He suddenly froze though, as Kabuto's eyes fell on his back. The hatred that was shooting from his eyes and stabbing through his back caused Joey to shake. "You are going to die," Kabuto hissed as he drew another Kunai.
Joey braced himself, knowing full well he couldn't keep up with Kabuto's speed. Though, the blow never came. Instead, Kakashi had moved swiftly between them, placing a well aimed kick under Kabuto's chin, sending him flying into the air, just as he had seen Sasuke and Lee do during the chunin exams. Then with a series of hand signs, Kakashi took a deep breath in and then released a fireball in Kabuto's direction.
A loud screaming rang through the air as Kabuto's skin became seared by the fire. The ocean rose up again though and part of it wrapped itself around Kabuto, allowing him to escape the fire. He hit the ground and then slowly forced himself to sit up.
Joey slowly back away, "you guys...you aren't human," he said quivering.
"Don't interfere," Kakashi warned, looking back at both of them. "Kabuto won't hesitate to kill you."
"You don't have to tell me twice," Joey answered as he rejoined Tea, who was now on knees, keeping her slender arms protectively wrapped around Sasuke.
Mokuba looked towards his brother. He bit his lip as he watched his brother struggle to pull himself to his feet. "Seto..." Mokuba whispered, wishing that he would wake up from this nightmare. Though he knew this wasn't a dream.
Kabuto, once he had regained his breath, rushed towards Kakashi. The jonin held his ground, lowering himself into a squat as he prepared to counter Kabuto's attack, but at the last moment, Kabuto switched directions. Horror spread across Kakashi's face as he realized who his new target was, Tea and Sasuke.
"No!" Kakashi yelled, moving to stop him but before he could a bright flash of light appeared before Kabuto, shooting him backwards. Kakashi had to sidestep in order to avoid getting hit by Kabuto's body flying through the air.
Kakashi looked back to see what hit him and noticed, a shadow standing in front of Tea and Sasuke. A bright golden eye was on the forehead and the two actual eyes of the being were just a blinding white.
Kabuto rose slowly, his eyes narrowing. "What is this?"
The darkness suddenly dissipated leaving behind Yami, whose eyes held an anger that was unparalleled. The area around Yami began to grow darker and Kakashi could have sworn he saw creatures roaming in the darkness. "If you take another step forward, make sure you are prepared for a shadow game," Yami said, his voice dark and rumbling deep within his chest.
"Yugi," Tea cried happily, squeezing onto Sasuke, as if she was trying to comfort the unconscious boy.
Kabuto looked at Yami and then looked back at Kakashi, the jonin was as lost as he was. "I am not sure how you ended up here, but I must say, your timing is impeccable. I was just about to kill your foolsih friends, and now you can watch."
Yami's eyes narrowed into slits but he said nothing. He cupped his Millennium puzzle in his hands, feeling the growing darkness around him. These powers, which had lain dormant in his puzzle for so long, were now awakening, and the shadows were hungry.
"Kabuto," an icy voice cut through the air.
The group turned to face the closest warehouse on their right, where Orochimaru sat. His purple eyes were just tiny slits and lips were pressed in a firm line. "That is enough..."
"But," Kabuto began to argue.
Orochimaru shook his head, an eerie laugh coming from him, "the damage has already been done. Besides, we learned all that we needed to know."
Kakashi clenched his fists and he could feel his muscles tensing up, and his stomach churning with disgust. "Orochimaur," he growled.
Orochimaru ignored Kakashi as he looked at the timer on the pier. "I would say this little game is over, wouldn't you, Pharaoh?" The sanin turned his reptile eyes on Yami, who only scowled back at him. Orochimaru laughed as he reached his arm out. His arm morphed into a giant snake which shot towards the clock counting down. It struck it hard, causing the support beams to burst and the clock to tumble towards the ocean. It hit the great body of water with a mighty crash, sending large waves to wash over the pier.
Kabuto appeared beside Orochimaru, with his broken glasses in his hand.
"Hey!" Joey yelled pointing at the both of them. "You get back here, you fashion-less freaks! I will beat those smirks right off of your faces!"
"Brainless, isn't he," Kabuto commented before the pair disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"Why did you pull me back," Kabuto demanded as he and Orochimaru made their way through the warehouse to Marik's hiding spot.
Orochimaru didn't answer, instead he just entered a room, in which Marik was facing a wall, his back to them. "I didn't want you to kill his pathetic friends, at least not yet anyways…" Marik began, "that wouldn't be part of our deal."
"Our deal, was just to get the Millennium Puzzle for you, that is all," Kabuto began. Impatience laced itself in his voice, causing it to come out a bit higher than he intended.
"Shut up," Orochimaru ordered giving an aggravated sigh. "He needs more than the millennium puzzle to do his work. Besides, if Marik hadn't told me to step in, you would have found yourself stuck in a world of torture." Orochimaru glared at his right hand man and Kabuto slowly backed away, feeling a bit intimidated under his master's stare.
Kabuto blinked confused. He placed his broken glasses on his face, looking through the cracked lenses. "What do you mean?"
"Do you remember the shadow realm? Well, the Pharaoh was calling upon the powers of his Millennium Puzzle. If things were to go much farther, you wouldn't be here, you fool," Marik growled, "but, on the bright side, we did accomplish one thing. We learned that the Pharaoh has a dangerous power, one which I am sure he doesn't know how to control, that could prove useful."
Orochimaru smiled, the skin on the side of his face pulling, allowing the hard bones along his jaw and his cheeks to become more prominent. "And Sasuke and Kakashi will have a rough time healing. Once you win this childish tournament, you can send Kakashi to the shadow realm for us, and we will be able to take Sasuke with no problem."
Kabuto frowned, "so we are just going to sit and wait?"
"No," Orochimaru smiled. "We are going to have fun driving a wedge between Sasuke and Kakshi, and then destroying the friendship between those air headed fools will also be fun. If we can destroy those relationships, then their whole system will fall, permanently."
(Hello fellow readers and writers! Thank you so much for the continued support of Dragons and Shinobi, and not getting to fed up with my slowness in updating. I promise I am going to finish this fanfiction but it might be a slow process. Being in college and having to balance two majors is a difficult feat, but I am hoping to use Spring Break to hash out another couple of chapters. So thank you again!
Please leave any comments, concerns, questions, or suggestions in the comments below. As always, I value you input and look forward to hearing from you guys!
Alright, Okamidragon out!)