Okay, so I kind of wrote this all this morning, I'm afraid to admit. And its a pain in the butt to reread the manga and type at the same time because they change battles EVERY OTHER PAGE. But I guess that's one of the bad things about writing a story with this plot. (shrug)
What makes me REALLY happy is that the number of reviews are slowly increasing! That really makes me want to sing even though I can't sing worth crap! XD Thank you, kind reviewers! And all you kind readers who read but don't review, please review!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
"Kiba!" Kyoko shouted as the Inuzuka, dog, and Sound Nin tumbled down the cliff.
"Hold on!" Nami started running then dove off the edge, dropping down instantly.
"She just jumped off a cliff!" Kyoko gaped. "She…"
"Nami, he—!" Shikamaru exclaimed. Then he shook his head in frustration. "That girl...doesn't listen to a word I say…How troublesome."
"You son of a…!" Tayuya shot towards them.
"The other one's coming!" Shikamaru exclaimed. He turned to Naruto and Kyoko and said, "Yo two take the barrel and go ahead! I'll do something about her!"
"But—" Naruto began.
"Hurry!" Shikamaru ordered.
Suddenly, something caught Tayuya's attention. "What…why did you…?" she gasped. "…Kimimaro!"
A figure startled the trio. A second later, the barrel containing Sasuke had disappeared.
"What the—!" Kyoko exclaimed.
"You're too late, Tayuya," Kimimaro said.
Kimimaro… Kyoko thought. I remember something…What is it? She narrowed her eyes, trying to remember. Then Lee and Gaara's faces flashed through her mind. Kimimaro…
A loud voice trumpeted through her thoughts, shattering the visions and bringing Kyoko back to reality. Naruto had thrown himself towards Kimimaro and Tauya, arm outstretched. Shikamaru called to him, but his attempt was useless. As soon as Naruto was about to punch Kimimaro, Tayuya flew in front of him and swiftly knocked him backwards with her own fist.
Shikamaru retrieved Naruto before he could sustain any more injuries. "Calm down, Naruto," he ordered.
Kyoko looked over to see that Tayuya had taken out a flute. She turned her attention back to Shikamaru as he started to speak.
"Naruto, Kyoko," he said seriously. "From now on, follow my orders according to what I tell you." He started to explain the plan, and as soon as he was done, Kyoko spoke.
"What about Nami?" Kyoko asked. "She's still down there with Kiba."
"They'll be okay," Shikamaru said. "I'm sure that fall wouldn't kill either of them, and together they'll be able to overpower that one man. So, then…" He stood up straight and turned towards Tayuya, poised to attack, kunai in hand. "It's three on one! We've got the advantage on our side! It's inevitable! Let's go!"
The three of them jumped off the branch they were on and came at the cocky Tayuya.
"Ha! You pieces of trash won't make a difference no matter how many there are!"
"Don't underestimate us!" Shikamaru shouted.
"Here we go!" Naruto exclaimed.
"Come on!" Tayuya challenged.
Shikamaru clashed his kunai against Tayuya's flute and called, "Naruto! Kyoko! Now!"
"Now its time for our super-awesome-mega-deluxe-double move!" Kyoko declared.
"Eat this!"
Tayuya stood ready, her eyes glued on the two genin. In front…Over…Be…hind? She looked over her shoulder.
"Not!" Naruto and Kyoko chimed in unison, mocking Tayuya in their own special ways. Then the two took off, leaving the female Sound Nin to Shikamaru.
Now it's just me and Naruto, Kyoko thought as she glanced over at the blond boy. She tensed when she saw Naruto's features become fiercer. His chakra's starting to boil…
They soon came to a vast field of grass stretching from the forest to who-knows-where. Kimimaro was standing only a few ways away with the barrel.
"Hey!" Naruto growled as he and Kyoko landed.
"…How will I cook you two?" Kimimaro said emotionlessly.
Naruto growled angrily. "What does Orochimaru want with Sasuke?!"
"Orochimaru-sama has already completed the jutsu of immortality," Kimimaro answered. "In order to acquire all jutsu in the entire world he needs time."
"And what does that have to do with Sasuke?!"
"Immortality doesn't necessarily indicate the immortality of his body. He must replace his body with a newer and stronger one before his current one succumbs."
"That's what Sasuke's for?!"
"Yes. Exactly."
"Y…You…!"
"Naruto!" Kyoko shouted. "Get a hold of yourself, man!"
"I won't let you do such a thing!" Naruto roared.
---
"Yahoo!" Kiba shouted as he headed for Sakon. "Hit 'em from the back, Nami!"
"Got it!" Nami came dropping down from the sky and was about to land a kick on Sakon's back when the head on his back moved. "What the—!" Nami was thrown backwards, tumbling into the rocks.
"Wha—!" Kiba exclaimed as he jumped away from Sakon. Why'd Nami go flying like that?! What hit her? "Okay, Akamaru! Let's try Gatsuuga on both sides!"
Akamaru transformed into a clone of his master and started to run. Kiba ran the other way then they both simultaneously let loose their attacks. "Gatsuuga!"
Nami narrowed her eyes as debris flew everywhere from the explosion. What happened? "Kiba?! Kiba!"
The smoke cleared and Nami was able to see the outcome. Kiba and Akamaru had both been stopped by not only Sakon, but a 'twin body' attached to him as well.
Nami took off, her katana slipping from her sleeve and into her hands. Once she got to the mutant, she swung.
---
"I won't let you take Sasuke!"
He's totally out of control! Kyoko thought urgently. "Na-Naruto!"
"Stay out of this, Kyoko!" Naruto ordered, glaring at her with monstrous eyes. "I'm gonna kill this guy and take Sasuke back!"
Kyoko was someone who valued her life, and she wasn't about to step in a stark-raging-mad Naruto. Or, in this case, Narutos. Millions of Naruto clones were surrounding Kimimaro, and among them was the real one standing right next to her.
"Interesting," was all Kimimaro said. He lifted his hand slightly and sharp-like bones grew from his palms. "Come."
"I'll crush you!"
Kyoko felt bursts of chakra fill the air radiating from the Narutos. All at once, they charged.
---
Nami watched in horror as the head gazed at her hungrily. The fist connected to Sakon's back tightened its grip on her wrists and held her up. Nami struggled to break free. She thrust her leg forward, but her foot was stopped by a leg morphing out of Sakon's back.
Kiba scowled.
"Trying an attack from behind, are you, little girl?" Sakon said. "It won't work. My older brother and I are very good brothers. He usually stays asleep inside of me, but wakes up to help me out during battle. Ukon can extend his hands and legs from any part of my body and can both strike and defend."
The hands threw Nami roughly to the side then disappeared into Sakon's body. A fist emerged in Sakon's head then punched Kiba in the face. "Like this!"
Akamaru immediately began running towards the two.
"Ta-Ren-Kyaku!"
Both dog and master were kicked several yards away, raising dust as they skidded across the area.
"A kick that is three times as powerful hurts pretty badly, huh? Let's see what's next…"
"We don't have much time left, Sakon," Ukon warned. "Kill quickly! Activate Level Two!" Sakon and Ukon's forms grew even more gruesome. Horns sprouted from their heads and their skin turned a different color. Their teeth turned into fangs and their chins became pointed. Together, they looked like some kind of Gemini demon.
A gasp escaped Nami's mouth. Disgusting…
"Yeah, yeah, you're too hasty, brother," Sakon said.
Kiba looked over at Akamaru, then Nami. "You guys…those horns aren't just for show."
"Of course not," Nami said, staring at the brothers. "They're even more powerful than before…"
"So how do you want them cooked, brother?"
"Let's chop them into pieces…"
Akamaru barked loudly, gaining Kiba's attention.
"What? You want me to use that?!" Kiba exclaimed. "No, Akamaru! It's too dangerous! You know that if we use it, we'll end up with most of our chakra gone. If we miss this chance, we're dead dogs. Ow!"
Akamaru had bitten Kiba's hand, growling.
"Akamaru…"
"What jutsu, Kiba?" Nami demanded, crawling towards them. "Let me help!" Nami could tell Kiba was thinking hard about something. "Kiba!"
"Nami, can you stop them?"
"Huh?"
"Keep them in one place," Kiba explained. "Can you keep them still for me?"
"All right." Nami stood up. "You can count on me." She took off running, shouting a battle cry, katana outstretched. Before she reached the brothers, she stabbed the sword into the ground and leapt out them, foot first. Sakon grabbed her leg and she pulled out her katana. With a heavy thrust, she shoved the blade into the arm holding onto her leg, sticking him to the wall behind.
Sakon cried out in pain. "You little—"
"Move, Nami! Now Akamaru!"
Nami drew out the blade and flipped backwards.
Sakon started to caress his wounded arm when strangely yellow liquid fell from the sky. He shouted in disgust. "What the…dog piss?!"
"It's all set!" Kiba announced as he shot into the air with Akamaru who landed on his shoulders. The Inuzuka made a seal and smoke billowed everywhere.
Nami landed on the ground and looked up, eyes wide as the smoke cleared. "Whoa."
In the place of Kiba and Akamaru stood a huge, white, two-headed dog. One head growled, liquid escaping its mouth hungrily.
However, Sakon and Ukon weren't impressed. "Hmph…all this tension for a bunch of drooling dogs…"
Suddenly, the dog leapt into the air and started to spin. The transformed Kiba and Akamaru careened down towards the brothers like a speeding bullet. "Eat this!"
Sakon dodged as quickly as he could, part of his body getting sliced by the attack. As he landed once more, he found himself slipping. Saliva?!
"What're you doing, Sakon?!" Ukon demanded. "Look out!"
Once again, the whirlwind descended, this time drilling right into the target. Garouga!
"Bull's-eye," Nami smiled.
The giant twin-headed dog screeched to a stop, leaving a line of destruction in its path, the two brothers included. The dog heads smirked victoriously and one of them spoke, "How was that? Garouga is a move where we spin so fast that we can't even keep track of our vision, a super spin. Even if it doesn't hit, its shockwaves slice the enemy. If you get nailed head on, you're gonna be in pieces."
"That was wick—huh?!" Nami gasped as the Sound Nin started to rise.
The place where the body had been cut off seemed to start to split in half. A ghastly arm and leg formed from Sakon's body, and next to him was another being. Sakon scoffed. "Hah…we were just thinking about splitting up anyway."
Right out of a horror movie… Nami thought nervously.
"True…if we got nailed as one, it would've been quite bad…however…The real fighting begins…now."
"Garouga!" The canine spun towards the two once more.
The twins darted to the sides and disappeared from sight.
I get it now…It's useless for them to hide, Nami thought. They've already been marked.
Suddenly, she felt a tremor underneath her. Looking around, she spotted a large wall-like object rising from the ground. A crash from Kiba and Akamaru followed as they collided into the wall.
"Kiba! Akamaru!" Nami called as the dog fell limply downwards. She cursed under her breath and dashed off. When she came closer, she noticed Sakon passing her, covering his eyes. A strong smell wafted from the older ninja as he ran past and Nami wrinkled her nose. It was then she heard the faint sound of impact and a scream. She whirled around and gasped. "Kiba!"
Kiba was there, but something was merged to the back of his shoulder. It was Ukon. A kunai was held in Kiba's hand, stabbing inwards into a vital point in his stomach.
"Kiba!" Nami called again as she appeared by his side. "You…" She looked at Akamaru who was lying close by, unconscious. Then she turned her gaze to Ukon. "Kiba, don't do anything more drastic! I'll get rid of this dirt bag!" She pulled out a kunai and was about to stab Ukon when he unattached himself from Kiba.
Kiba coughed and blood spurted out of his mouth.
Ukon was doing no better. Blood gushed out of his wound identical to Kiba's, and he seemed to be in much pain.
We gotta get out of here, Nami thought as she pulled several smoke bombs from her back pouch and tossed them. Instantly, smoke filled the air, covering the two genin and Akamaru.
Ukon stood up shakily and looked around. The smoke was clearing and a small body was in sight. He smirked and started walking over. "Heh…they left the mutt behind. It's a wise decision…he's even more heartless than…myself." Then he stopped.
Akamaru started to smoke. He expanded and swelled until he finally burst, kunai shooting out of the decoy.
Meanwhile, Kiba and Nami were just getting out of the water, dripping wet. Kiba sat up against a rock and Nami looked around alertly, standing guard. Nami glanced at the Inuzuka who was caressing his dog. She noticed his wound was fatal, and that he was still bleeding badly.
"Yo, Kiba."
Kiba looked up at Nami questioningly.
"I'm gonna go back," Nami said. "If I can stop that mutant from coming any farther, you won't have to get any more injuries."
"You can't take him by yourself!" Kiba argued. "We barely got out of there on our own!"
"I know," Nami said. "And that's why you and Akamaru are so injured. You guys just lay low, okay? You don't have any chakra left, so don't try to kid yourself! Me…I'm just getting started."
Kiba looked away. And she's telling me not to kid myself… He was about to argue more, but by the time he looked back, she was gone.
The scenery passed by quickly as Nami retraced her steps back to where they last left Ukon. Her feet splashed on the water with each step she took.
"And the rats begin to scurry back."
Nami stopped in mid-step and turned her head to see one of the twins (she figured Sakon since he had no wound) standing a distance away.
"Tell me. Where is your fleabag of a teammate?" Sakon asked. "My brother and I have some unfinished business with him."
"I don't know," Nami said as she drew her katana. "But maybe if you beat me, I'll tell you."
"Do it quickly, brother," Ukon hissed quietly. "I want the other one."
"Go back to sleep, I'll be done in a few seconds," Sakon assured him as he smirked at the girl. "Come and get it."
Nami shot off, spraying water around her. "Die!" She bounded into the air and cut downwards.
Sakon darted back several steps, then disappeared.
He's fast! Nami thought as she began to turn around only to be greeted by Sakon's fist. Nami fell backwards several yards, skidding across the water. As she got up shakily, she wiped blood from her mouth with her fist.
"Even without my full strength, I'll be able to beat you," Sakon mocked. "Easy."
"Don't underestimate me!" Nami shouted as she made several hand seals and held her katana upwards. "Fire Blade!"
Instantly, the blade of her katana burst into flames, the light bouncing off the water brightly. Nami thrust the sword horizontally and fire was let loose from the sharp edge. She took off, following the wave of fire.
Sakon's eyes narrowed as he jumped, front-flipping in midair. The flames passed underneath him, barely skimming his hair as he flipped over them. As he landed on the ground, he threw his arm to the side to attack Nami. Nami quickly dodged in the opposite direction and tried another swing at him.
Sakon darted to the right, avoiding the fiery blade. He sunk his knee into Nami's stomach swiftly, shoving her into a group of rough rocks. Nami gripped her katana as she stood up once more, feeling the pain in her back. She glared at Sakon and said, "If you think that's all I have, you're wrong!" Tossing the katana high into the air, she made a set of hand signs and touched the ground with one hand, catching the katana surely with the other. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
Smoke appeared, blocking Sakon's view. Sakon narrowed his eyes and thought, a summoning jutsu…
Whence the smoke cleared, Nami stood there, a average-sized orange fox with a white chest and Konoha forehead protector hanging from its neck appeared. Its eyes were a dark shade of brown, and its right ear was pierced several times.
"Who are you?" Nami demanded. "I wanted Noriko!"
"You expect to summon the queen on so little chakra, girlie?" the fox said in disbelief. "You're lucky you even summoned me."
"Who are you?" Nami repeated with more emphasis.
"The name's Mimamoru," the fox said. "And who are you?"
"Kawa Nami," Nami answered.
"Well then," Mimamoru said, looking over at Sakon. "I suppose this is the creature you want me to aid you in fighting with?"
"Well…yeah…"
"I'm at your command, master," Mimamrou said, bowing the way only foxes could bow.
"Then follow my lead!" Nami ordered as she outstretched her arm and started off for the umpteenth time, but this time with Mimamoru at her side. "Go, Mimamoru!"
Mimamoru bounded in front of Nami and went straight at Sakon biting his transformed arm.
"Get this thing off me!" Sakon shouted as he started shaking his arm wildly.
"Take this!" Nami brought her katana down, aiming to cut off Sakon's arm.
However, Sakon had other plans. He backed up one step then threw his arm in Nami's direction. As a result, Mimamoru knocked into Nami, forcing her down and letting go of Sakon's arm.
"Forgive me, Nami-san," Mimamoru apologized as he started to stand.
"It's not important," Nami said, standing up shakily. "But we have to beat this guy." Her sword inflamed again and she charged, aiming a kick at Sakon. Sakon dodged then punched as she expected. She quickly darted to the side then drove her katana behind, feeling an impact.
"You annoying…" Sakon muttered as he felt blood seeping from his side. "It's nothing!" He disappeared then reappeared to the left of Nami, striking her with his arm.
Nami took the blow, but stood her ground this time. Mimamoru jumped from behind and rammed Sakon in the back of the legs.
Sakon cursed as he fell forward. Ukon's still sleeping! I can't let this girl hold me off any longer! He heavily beat Mimamoru as he tried to attack again, sending him a few yards away.
"Mimamoru!" Nami called. "You—!"
"You're attempts are futile," Sakon said as he grabbed Nami's wrist that held the katana.
Nami used her other hand to throw a punch at his head, missing and having her other hand blocked. She winced as she felt Sakon's grip tighten and turn. Sakon smirked.
CRACK!
Nami cried out in pain as Sakon released her. She sunk to her knees and clutched her wrist, the other hand lying limp disgustingly. Her katana had ceased fire and had been thrown to the side out of her reach.
"And now to end this…!" Sakon shouted.
Nami squeezed her eyes shut as she felt the brutal contact of fist to face. Nami plummeted through the air for what seemed like a long while. Her five seconds of flight ended with a loud 'SPLASH!' in the cold, dark water.
GASP. CLIFFIE. Hope this wasn't too...meh for you. That's my word for it. MEH.
Why is Naruto's words suddenly in bold? Most of you probably figured out that its sort of a Kyuubi-fied Naruto speaking. I don't know, really. It just seemed more dramatic to me...or maybe caps lock would've been better? I suppose it doesn't matter all that much and I'm just taking up space so I'll just stop on the subject right...now.
Anyway, on the bright side, SUMMER HAS ARRIVED! WOOT! I almost thought today was Saturday, but it isn't. It's Friday. For my time zone, that is. Yep. Friday. Not Saturday. I'm gonna stop talking.
R&R please!
-HM