Chapter 27: Partner
" I can't believe Hibiki just left like that! He didn't even say a word!" Suzumi was complaining while they kept moving. The fact that Hibiki made a clone to distract them so that he could go back to didn't mean they could afford to slow down one bit to contemplate on what he had done. Hibiki had already made his move, and if they wasted time on it, they will be putting Lady Kaguya at risk.
" Personally, I'm quite glad he did it, and I'm sure he'll be fine," Hiroshi replied. He was happy Hibiki was motivated enough to head back for Sora. Hiroshi often wondered if Sora and Hibiki shared some sort of awkward comradeship despite their mutual dislike for one another, and this apparently proved to be true. If anything, Hibiki's edge in speed might be able to allow him to rescue Sora and get out of that place immediately.
" He'll get himself killed!" Suzumi objected.
" No, he won't. Have faith in Hibiki. He's much better than you think. After all, if Sora's predictions are correct, he's the best amongst all of us, and he has enough skill to act independently. We'll leave it up to him for now," Hiroshi replied.
" You…don't seem…agitated…?" Suzumi mused, pondering on the correct term to describe Hiroshi.
" Should I be?" he replied. " …Did you know? That he left?"
Makoto merely turned around and looked at Hiroshi, before turning back to the front. " Yeah…it's not my role to stop him anyways…"
Hiroshi flipped around, grabbing a tree branch with his hands and swung himself around, stopping himself as the rest of them stopped in their tracks. " This is as far as I should go. I'll stay here then…" Hiroshi replied firmly.
" Hiroshi?"
" Go. There is no need for all of you to stay here. I'll be more than enough to set up an ambush," Hiroshi answered.
" Hiroshi's right," Ryouta answered. " You guys go on ahead. I'll be more than enough for company…"
Hiroshi spun around in surprise, looking as Ryouta calmly sat down on a tree branch. " Ryouta, what's the meaning of this?!" Hiroshi demanded.
He looked back serenely at him, smiling slightly. " You know, I've given Hibiki's words some thought, and guess what, I believe there is some truth in there. I don't think it's fair to leave our comrades behind, despite the situation. We are human after all, and we have what we call feelings as well," he replied.
Hiroshi scowled in his direction. " Great, you plan on getting yourself killed just to keep me company?!" Hiroshi replied, raising his eyebrows.
" No, I'm staying behind to make sure you don't kill yourself," Ryouta answered.
" Ryouta, but you must…" Makoto started.
" No exceptions. This is an order from your leader. Hiroshi and I will stay behind to set our traps, while the rest of you continue. Instructions are simple: Keep moving till you reach a tall rock wall. Stop there, and light the signal flare, two red flares simultaneously. If the people at the outpost don't see your flare, then I'm too pathetic to call myself a shinobi of Konoha. This is a personal Konoha matter, I don't need you two to further risk your lives for our cause," Ryouta replied, before snapping his fingers and motioning to Hiroshi. Hiroshi dug into his pack, digging through all the equipment, before passing two flares to Suzumi. " After that, just hold your ground. If we are lucky enough, reinforcements would be heading your way."
Hiroshi placed the flares on Suzumi's outstretched hand, but as soon as he made contact, she gripped her hand tightly, not wanting to let go. Hiroshi looked at her worried and scared expression, her head turned slightly as if to avoid his gaze.
Without warning, Hiroshi suddenly pulled Suzumi towards himself, and held her tight. She had a look of utter surprise as she suddenly felt his warm body against her chest, his strong arms holding her tightly. It took her a while, but she slowly broke into tears, crying slightly as he held her tight.
" I'm sorry, I'm going to have to say goodbye for now…" Hiroshi replied. Suzumi returned the hug, holding him with as much strength as she could muster. Hiroshi gently patted her on the head gently, before releasing her. " Go, we can't wait any longer…"
Their team split up once more, with Hiroshi and Ryouta staying behind this time, while the others headed towards safety. Suzumi kept running, trying not to look back, least she was discouraged from continuing forward. Hiroshi watched as the rest of his comrades left with Lady Kaguya in tow.
" Guess it's just the two of us now…" Ryouta replied.
" Yeah…" Hiroshi replied, sounding slightly depressed.
" …You sound dejected…" Ryouta answered cheerily.
" Isn't it always typical for the male lead to die after saying goodbye to his loved ones and leaves to do some shit like what I'm doing now?" Hiroshi replied. " Least, that's the stereotypical stuff that always happens in stories."
" What makes you think you are good enough to become a hero, and this isn't a story, or some fairy tale. This is a mission in which we are partaking in, and there will be no epic heroic end for us," Ryouta answered.
" …No shit, you and I are going to be screwed," Hiroshi replied. " Hey, Ryouta?"
" Hmm?"
" I appreciate you being here…"
-
The water of the river made a big splash as the two bodies hit the water at an extreme speed. A shock wave was emitted, and Sora winced and covered her face as she was suddenly showered in water. There was some silence, before something broke the surface of the water, sending up more jets of water, but only this time the water was mixed with blood, a lot of it.
" Hibiki!" Sora exclaimed in fear, before coughing even more. Shouting did little to improve her injuries.
There was a loud roar as Hibiki broke the surface of the river, a shinobi skewered at the end of his spear. There was a look of shock on his face, with Hibiki probably killing him in an instant. Hibiki yanked out his spear, letting the shinobi sink back into the river. Two more shinobis rose from the surface of the water, previously knocked aside by Hibiki so he could take on the other one he just killed without any distractions.
" You're hurt!" Sora exclaimed, seeing the serious gash on his right arm, which unfortunately was his dominant arm. His attacks will now lack an edge with his right arm slightly disabled.
" Quiet there! Not only are you being overly obvious, but you are being a noisy distraction as well. I don't need a girl shouting at every damn thing that happens in a fight," Hibiki replied, scowled. " Could you just sit down and keep quiet for once? Please, for just two minutes, I beg you…"
" I'm concerned, you…ack…" Sora tried to reply, only to cough some more blood.
" Don't distract me, bitch," Hibiki shot back.
" …Dipshit!" Sora replied while coughing.
Both enemy shinobis charged at him, and the chakra Hibiki had been collecting at his feet exploded, propelling him forward. The two shinobis tried to flank him, moving to his left and right respectively, but Hibiki was still much swifter than them, as he disappeared all of a sudden, before appearing behind the person on his right. He spun around, dropping slightly to avoid the spear that came in by his side, but Hibiki quickly shifted his weight, and slammed the side of the spear on his shoulder, knocking into the water.
Hibiki twisted his head aside as a kunai was suddenly flung at his direction, just before something hit his stomach and sent him splashing back into the water. He instantly flicked his elbow around, slamming into the head of the shinobi who had tackled him and sent him into the water. The shinobi freed him when he was hit, and Hibiki kicked his legs furiously, breaking through the water's surface, before taking deep gulps of air.
As he got back up, something moved at the corner of his eye. In an instant, he threw his body aside just as a wind jutsu came flying in his direction. He rolled aside upon the water's surface, his chakra control still steady enough to keep him afloat. However, just as he came to a stop, something grabbed his legs and dragged him under.
He tried to kick furiously, but his legs seem to be stuck somehow, and he frantically tried to break himself free, but to no avail. He tried to calm himself, before trying to look at what was grabbing his feet, hoping to spear the idiot in the process. However, nobody was there, nothing but water beneath his feet.
Oh shit, he's using a water jutsu…Hibiki thought frantically.
He started to kick with all his might, but he was stuck underwater. He wasn't sure what jutsu was used to trap him underwater, but he was too much in a state of panic to think it carefully. His lungs were already straining to take in oxygen, which he was being deprived off. His lungs were ready to burst, and after what felt like an antagonizing hour, he opened his mouth and inhaled deeply.
He figured it was strange that he was inhaling cool, crisp air. Trying to get his bearings straight, he suddenly found out that he had somehow managed to break the surface of the water somehow. Looking ahead of him, he could see why.
Sora had somehow managed to dive into the water despite her condition, and tackled the shinobi who was using the water jutsu on Hibiki. Right now, he could see her dragging him out of the water, holding him tightly by wrapping her arms around his neck.
" …Damn you, bitch…" the shinobi snarled.
" …Go to hell…" Sora replied, before twisting her arm slightly, breaking his neck in a split second. The shinobi's neck was bent in an unnatural angle, and his body lost its strength, and he fell down. All of a sudden, she released him and started to cough violently again, her recent exertion of strength in the river making her condition worse.
She looked up, only to see the remaining shinobi rush up to her, kunai in arm. She gasped in surprise, trying to move backwards, before sensing her legs failing her as she fell backwards on her rear end. The shinobi threw his hand down on her, only to hit Hibiki's shoulder as he came flying through the air to take the blow for her.
" …Hibiki!" she muttered.
" Tch, I said I could deal with these idiots by myself!" Hibiki replied smugly, grabbing the shinobi's arm that held the kunai that had embedded itself into his shoulder, before raising his spear with his other hand, ignoring the pain and blood that was flowing down his arm.
-
" I better get to work then," Hiroshi replied. He jumped down on the floor, before reaching for his pack, and digging out as many scrolls as he could find. " Pfft, I can't believe that I'm down to my last few weapon scrolls. We must have used up a lot of stuff, huh?"
" I agree," Ryouta replied.
Hiroshi bit his thumb, allowing blood to flow out, before running them along the weapon scrolls, unsealing them in the process. Ryouta watched as Hiroshi took out all the weapons he had left: metal wires, kunais, shurikens, multiple sets of tools which Ryouta could not distinguish. He instantly, leaped up a tree, carrying a spool of metal wire and some kunais with him, trying them into place, setting up his traps.
" I'm always impressed at the way you set your traps. You seem to know where to put them without wasting any time," Ryouta replied.
" Kinda comes naturally, like painting a picture. I know what's in my mind, and I just have to apply myself," Hiroshi answered, setting his kunais in place. It didn't take him more than several seconds. " Well, it's to be expected after all. I'm just too much of a pro."
" …If you are so much of a pro, why is the trap you are setting very obvious?" Ryouta noted. He could see the kunai's despite Hiroshi's attempts to conceal them behind the tree leaves. " I asked you to set up as many as you can, but having rushed work is no good."
" …Tsk, tsk, tsk, I'm insulted, and hurt, by your words…" Hiroshi replied, making a face.
" …Am I mistaken?" Ryouta asked, sounding confused.
" No, you are not mistaken, but more like you don't know me that well," Hiroshi replied.
Ryouta thought for a while, before slapping his head. " This is why I have no skill in setting traps. Of course, you made this trap obvious, so you can set a secondary one which is hidden from view, tricking our enemies into thinking that they have to avoid the first trap," he replied.
" Bingo! Trickery is everything! You are sometimes too straight…" Hiroshi replied.
" Traps aren't my thing…" Ryouta answered.
" Well, each to his own," Hiroshi answered.
Ryouta merely observed Hiroshi as he took out several spools of wire, sprinkling them with some sort of dust, before laying them out at specific points all over the place. Hiroshi worked with utmost precision, placing everything carefully at where they belong. After several minutes, a number of Hiroshi's traps were already in place, and Ryouta could not even remember where half of them were. Hiroshi barely finished setting something up, before looking up at the distance.
" Are they coming already?" he asked, having a gut feeling their enemies would be arriving anytime soon.
Ryouta merely narrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the distance. " I assume they are," he answered, tensing his muscles. " Let's do this…"
-
It only took Hibiki one try as he stabbed the unfortunate shinobi with his spear. The sharp end entered the shinobi's neck, puncturing a large hole in his throat, before the blade pierced through sinew and bones, emerging from the back of the shinobi's neck. There was an expression of utter shock on his face as blood spurted out from his wounds, drenching Hibiki in crimson. Hibiki merely gave a satisfied smile as the shinobi dropped to the ground, his body twitching periodically.
Hibiki yanked out his spear, the sound of metal tearing through flesh singing loudly in his ears, before he turned his attention towards his shoulder. The kunai was still lodged within his shoulder, and now that he took notice of it, it seemed to hurt more than ever. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the hilt of the kunai and yanked it out, trying not to yell in pain. Sitting himself down, he ripped part of his pants off to bandage his wound, attempting not to faint from bleeding out.
" …I've got some spare bandages, you know," Sora replied, producing a small white roll and twirling it in her hands.
" Typical…you just needed to do that after I tear my pants," Hibiki sighed, quickly bandaging himself. He took a deep breath to allow his body to calm down from the recent fight, and after a while, he could only feel a dull ache on his shoulder. " …Are you sure you didn't do that on purpose?"
" …Enough, I'm killing myself trying to talk to you," Sora muttered, sounding irritated as she leaned back on the tree where she had propped herself on. " The most I'll…"
She was unable to complete her sentence because she started to cough all of a sudden, and rather violently too. Out came copious amounts of blood from her mouth, and it started to drip down her chin.
" Shit! Sora, are you alright?!" Hibiki exclaimed, jumping up and rushing towards her side. Sora still did not stop coughing, and it seemed to get worse and worse. Since he was not a medic-nin, Hibiki was not sure what he could do about Sora's condition. Whatever that was affecting her was something internal, and this was something only Suzumi or Hiroshi could fix.
The coughing subsided after a while, and Sora merely looked in a dazed manner at him. She didn't look too well, as she looked really sickly, especially with blood running from her mouth. It was like she was wasting away somehow, and Hibiki was powerless to help.
" …Do I look alright, dipshit?" Sora snarled. Hibiki was suddenly reminded of Hiroshi's statement from before: if she can still insult you, she's in perfect health. Sora started to breathe in short, pained breaths, as if she was unable to breathe properly. " …Fuck…"
" …Shit, you need help…damn it…" Hibiki muttered in panic. He considered his options. Should he track back and find the rest of them? It will take him quite a while, since he was unfamiliar with the terrain and he had broken off from the rest of the group. But it was obvious he needed to get help, because he could not help Sora, not at this state.
His attention was shifted all of a sudden when he felt Sora grip him hard on his wrists, squeezing them as she did so. Hibiki was quite surprised she still had so much strength left, despite her situation. He looked down on her, and she merely gave him a crooked smile, blood still dripping from her chin.
" …Calm down, you useless moron…I'll be…fine…mostly…" she replied, before drifting into unconsciousness.
-
" Alright, I've set everything in order. Ryouta, I've given you my instructions, so if you follow them precisely, we should be able to deal the maximum damage we can possibly inflict," Hiroshi replied, holding a few kunais in his hands, along with several strands of wire attached to his traps that he had kept hidden all over the place. " Alright, partner, let's do this."
" You bet," Ryouta answered, and both of them slapped their hands together, before moving into place to strike. Hiroshi hid himself within a tree, doing his best to blend in within the surroundings, while Ryouta moved into place, standing near the base of one of the trees.
Their enemies were drawing closer, but still, waiting for those few seconds was antagonizing. Nothing like wanting to wait for death to arrive on your doorsteps. A large bead of sweat dropped from Hiroshi's forehead as he waited, the humid climate of the forest not helping in keeping him comfortable.
However, the sound of rustling leaves told him they were close. He held the kunais in his hands tightly, while preparing the wires he was holding. All that was of utmost importance was timing.
The first few shinobis that came rushing into their area came upon Hiroshi's trap. One of them set off one of Hiroshi's wires, and his trap sprang to life, as a shower of kunais suddenly fell upon them. However, they were somehow aware of it, and in an instant, split up and headed to the lower branches for cover, only to see Ryouta right below them, his seals ready and in place, taking a deep breath.
A roar of fire suddenly shot out from Ryouta's mouth, and the intense heat started to burn everything in its path. Two shinobis were incinerated by his flames, but the others got away, but not for long. One of them quickly avoided Ryouta's attack by jumping aside, to only trip on one of Hiroshi's wires. Something zipped through the air, and all of a sudden, he was decapitated by a well placed strike from a windmill shuriken.
Ryouta immediately rushed towards the left. Hiroshi had already given him directions in where to run to avoid his traps, least he accidentally set them off. Several smoke bombs went off at once, courtesy of Hiroshi. Ryouta used the confusion to attack two shinobis, striking them in the chest, killing them instantly.
So far, so good. Hiroshi's plan was going smoothly. Most of the shinobis were being stalled by his traps, and with Ryouta's help, stalling them was being too easy. Hiroshi figured they would need to fall back in about a minute, after he had run out of traps. He gave one of his wires a pull, setting off a trap some distance away, netting a shinobi in a large wire net.
" Oh, pretty good. I wasn't informed of a trap specialist in your team," a voice suddenly spun around.
Hiroshi spun around in alarm, only to feel something clamp upon his neck, crushing his windpipe, before lifting him up. The powerful force slammed his against a tree, forcing him to expel all the air in his lungs. The figure merely glared at him, his dark red eyes glaring at him in glee.
" You shinobi of Konoha had stalled us for long enough. Today, we will finish you all off completely," the man said, while Hiroshi started to suffocate from the lack of oxygen being supplied to his brain. He tried to pry the fingers open, but he found that the man's strength was oppressive, and he didn't have the tenacity to fight back. " Die, brat!"
