A/N: Nearly time for the end of the invasion. Should be real fun and interesting (I hope). Let's get on with it.
Chunin Exams, Invasion, Part 3
Enjoy!
Orochimaru grinned as he knocked Hiruzen across nearly a dozen rooftops with a stiff kick to his stomach. Slowly but surely, the momentum of the clash was shifting into the Snake Sanin's favor. Despite his still-immense power, the ancient Kage was visibly tiring. For the first time in ages, his long, brutal career was beginning to show its effects. After bouncing across a few more rooftops, Hiruzen regained his footing and charged back towards his former pupil. Orochimaru mirrored the action and leapt into the air with two kunai drawn. The pair clashed in mid-air, sending sparks raining down into the street below. Hiruzen then swiped the pale man's left hand aside with his own left hand and cracked him across his jaw with a right-handed punch that sent him crashing onto the rooftop from which he had jumped.
"Exhausted as you clearly are, you still have some snap in those punches. Keep it coming, sensei. I've seldom been so entertained" Orochimaru goaded as he stood to his feet and dusted himself off. He then reared his head back and opened his mouth wide, unhinging his jaw in grotesque fashion. Gradually, a sword emerged from his throat. Once it was half-exposed, Orochimaru seized its hilt and yanked it out, closing his mouth and smirking as he pointed the blade's tip at the ancient Kage.
"So dramatic. How typical of you, Orochimaru" Hiruzen said with a shake of his head. The Hokage then made a hand seal and widened his stance.
"Let me show you a creation of mine! Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" he yelled as a large pair of shuriken appeared in his now outstretched hand. He then launched the projectiles at his former pupil. As the shuriken ripped toward the Snake Sanin, they tripled in number, leaving a horde of six for the pale man to either deflect or evade. Orochimaru opted to attempt to deflect them, managing to knock all six aside in short order.
"Is that all?" he goaded. Hiruzen chuckled and made a yanking motion with his left hand, earning a raised eyebrow from the Sanin. A moment later, Orochimaru was impaled from behind by four of the six shuriken, with one pinning down each of his limbs to the rooftop. The Hokage leapt across the gap between their rooftops, landing right in front of the prone Sanin.
"See underneath the underneath. Day one of ninja philosophy. The basics are the foundation of all skills and all jutsu. Something as simple as an intentionally mis-aimed shuriken can be deadly when applied correctly, as you just learned the hard way" he said as he knelt down before his injured pupil. Orochimaru laughed painfully and then grunted with effort as he forced his chakra into the blades holding him down.
"You never run out of tricks, old man. Always some new lecture to give. So full of disgustingly insightful wisdom. You make me sick in the best possible way" he growled as he rose to his feet, the shuriken having dislodged themselves from his body due to the surge of chakra. The Sanin then walked back a few steps before glancing down over the edge of the roof. His eyes then widened momentarily at the sight of something. He then returned his gaze to his former teacher.
"I feel rude for doing this, but I have something to attend to. I won't be too long. I'll be back in a few minutes" he said, earning a scowl from Hiruzen.
"And what makes you think I'll let you do as you please?" he challenged as he prepared another pair of shuriken to multiply. Orochimaru smirked and made a complicated series of hand seals before slamming his palm down onto the roof. A large cloud of smoke then erupted into the air. When the obstruction cleared away, two coffins stood on either side of Orochimaru.
"You'll have your hands full, sensei. Trust me" he said as he slammed a hand onto both coffins. Hiruzen's eyes widened at the sight as horror crept into his expression.
"You didn't…" he began, shutting his mouth when he realized that the Snake Sanin's immorality knew virtually no bounds. Orochimaru then broke out into a maddened laugh.
"Edo-Tensei. Such a handy technique in situations like this. You'll be contending with two ninja that I've hand picked just for you, sensei. I think you'll recognize them" he said as the coffins creaked open. The Hokage clenches his jaw as the two shinobi exited their respective coffins.
"Hiruzen...I didn't expect to ever meet you again. How unfortunate that this reunion is taking place under such reprehensible circumstances" Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage of Konohagakure said tiredly as he stepped out of his coffin fully. In the opposite coffin laid Hashirama Senju, the very first Hokage. He too emerged from his coffin and gave Hiruzen a look of sympathy as he assumed an ancient taijutsu stance.
"Your sins are even graver than I had first thought, Orochimaru" the third Hokage hissed as the Snake Sanin hopped across to another rooftop. The pale man stopped and glanced back over his shoulder.
"Oh, hush. I'm simply giving a taste of your own medicine. Now face your past, just as I faced you"
Orochimaru grinned to himself as he stood atop the roof of the stadium seating area. Everything had fallen into place nearly perfectly. Naruto and Gaara were engaged in a bloody, traumatic war of wills, with the redhead clearly holding the advantage, and Konoha as a whole had been thrown into a state of chaos now that the news of the invasion had spread throughout every sector. Beyond the chaos and warring Jinchuuriki, something else had fallen right into the palm of the Snake Sanin's hand. The very thing that had prompted Orochimaru to leave Hiruzen to combat the previous Kage of Konoha stood in the stands watching her potentially estranged teammate battle against Gaara.
'I suppose I can't fault the poor girl too much. She doesn't even know I'm here. Doesn't matter either way. I'll be taking back what's mine' the pale man thought to himself as he swung himself down into the seating area. He then began his leisurely stroll across the stadium, slowly but surely stalking his metaphorical prey. Before he could even make it halfway to the sector of the stands in which Hinata stood, Orochimaru was called to by a male voice.
"Orochimaru the Snake Sanin. To what occasion do I owe the honor?" Hiashi, who was leaning against the back wall of the seating area, asked sarcastically. The pale man chuckled and turned to face the Hyuga man.
"Nothing formal. There's something I've come to retrieve. It shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Stand aside, and you won't get hurt" he replied. Hiashi chuckled and took a few steps forward.
"Skipping straight to threats are we? How rude" he said before launching himself forward at the Sanin. Orochimaru sighed and side-stepped the blitz while kicking out the Hyuga clan head's legs. Hiashi tumbled to the floor. He attempted to rise to his feet quickly, but was knocked unconscious by a chop to the back of his neck.
'At least you went quietly' Orochimaru thought to himself as he resumed his walk towards Hinata, who had still not detected him. After another two minutes of silent walking, the pale man found himself twenty feet from the heiress' back, her curse-mark visible. It was at this moment that Orochimaru decided to make his presence known.
"You really should pay better attention" he said as he cleared his throat. Hinata immediately whirled around, her eyes widening to saucers when she caught sight of the Sanin. She clenched her jaw and took a step back.
"What do you want?" she demanded, her tone suggesting that she likely knew the answer to her fearful question. Orochimaru chuckled and bared his fangs.
"Let's just say that your time as my pet project has expired" he said vaguely as he walked her backwards slowly. Hinata glanced back over her shoulder down into the arena, where Naruto and Gaara were tearing each other apart.
"That's right. You're all alone. Nobody is going to save you this time, little Hyuga. Even if your beloved Naruto were available right now, there are no guarantees that he would help you at all" Orochimaru sneered as Hinata's back touched the railing.
"Don't speak to me as though your hands are clean, you vile wretch" the heiress snapped in a falsely defiant tone that seldom masked her fear. The Snake Sanin chuckled and seized Hinata by the front of her jacket.
"I have more blood on my hands and fangs than you could possibly comprehend. Thousands, literally thousands of people have died in my wake. When judged using societal norms and such, I'm completely irredimible. But, the thing is, I know what I am. You don't seem to yet. Hypocrisy is a poor habit to develop at such a young age" he said as he hoisted her into the air. Hinata closed her eyes and struggled against his grip momentarily, but soon found it to be futile.
"I'll make you a deal. If you can survive the removal process for that seal on your neck, I won't damage you any further. Does that sound reasonable?" Orochimaru asked. When the Hyuga girl did not respond, the Sanin grinned and sunk his teeth into her neck, eliciting a sharp cry of pain from Hinata. The explosion of discomfort prompted the heiress to fight back fiercely for a few moments, but soon found herself exhausted as her chakra was drained by the pale man's fangs.
Alongside the girl's natural chakra, the seal on her neck slowly began to fade away as well. After nearly a full minute of drainage, Orochimaru pulled his fangs from her neck and studied her.
'Still alive, if barely. Quite resilient' he thought to himself as he suspended Hinata in the air. The Sanin's thought process was then rudely derailed by a savage roar from down below. Orochimaru glanced down into the arena and smirked when he spotted Naruto staring at him with unrestrained anger.
"Ah, so the fox brat has spotted us. Here that, little girl? Your future rape victim still cares for you, if his tone of voice is any indication" he mocked. He then stepped forward and began to dangle Hinata's barely-conscious body over the edge of the railing.
"I know that I said your time as my pet project was over and done with, but I'd like to play with you one last time. We're going to see where your teammate's priorities lie"
Naruto heaved deep, rabid breaths as he stared up at Orochimaru, who was spitefully hanging Hinata over the edge of the seating area, threatening to drop her nearly one-hundred and fifty feet. The blonde was nearly out of energy by this point, as his battle with Gaara had been fought at a torrid pace for the entirety of its latter half. Despite his exhaustion, the moment he had spotted the life of his teammate being endangered, a burning desire to tear Orochimaru in half had overtaken him. Gaara, who had also noticed the new turn of events, chuckled a bit.
"A game of hangman in the middle of battle? How mistimed and unthoughtful" he jeered at both Naruto and the Snake Sanin. What he said next only served to fuel Naruto's already-intense levels of anger.
"Not that it would be a strenuously difficult game. 'Rapist' isn't a particularly daunting word to spell. She'd be all in one piece as she plummeted towards the earth below" he said coldly, earning a hard glare from the konoha genin.
"Shut your mouth before I shut it for you!" he yelled angrily. Gaara gave him a coy look and smirked confidently.
"I was under the impression that you were planning to do so regardless" he said. Naruto growled, but kept himself under control as he weighed his options.
'I don't know what to do. Gaara isn't even breathing heavy, and I'm almost out of gas. Orochimaru is way too much even if I were fresh, but...I can't just leave her to die. If he drops her in here, she'll be crushed by Gaara's sand before I can get to her, and there's no telling what Orochimaru will do to her if I just ignore him' he pondered desperately. After a moment of careful-but-rushed consideration, the blonde came to a decision. He turned away from Gaara and took a step towards Orochimaru. Before he could go any further, his foe called out to him.
"Let me ask you a serious question, Naruto. Why on earth would you choose to save her? Especially in this situation?" he asked skeptically. Naruto turned back towards him and scowled.
"What do you mean?" he asked. Gaara gestured to the drained heiress, who's eyes were now a crack open and fixed on Naruto.
"Think about this logically. You have absolutely no chance against Orochimaru. None whatsoever. The chances of you surviving an encounter with him are exactly zero percent. And for what? To save the whore who planned to incinerate your dignity and lather her naked body in its ashes? You won't beat me here today, but you at least have a fighting chance to die with your pride intact. You will be left with nothing should you choose to follow through with your current plan of action" he reasoned, a hint of irritation creeping into his voice. Naruto stared at the redhead for a moment before turning around again.
"Then I guess I'll die a prideless loser" he said before leaping upwards and bounding up the wall. Once he reached Hinata, he snatched her away from the Snake Sanin and leapt to the other side of the stadium. Once he had firmly landed in the seating area, he gently laid Hinata down on her back.
"Naruto-kun..." she whimpered as she struggled to stay conscious. Naruto shook his head and gently brushed a strand of hair of her eyes.
"We'll talk later. Now stay here and wait for me. I have to go cut off a snake's head" he said before jumping across the stadium again, managing to land perfectly in front of Orochimaru. The Snake Sanin grinned once the boy was facing him.
"That was quite the act of heroism, Naruto. Admirable, if a bit confusing. Now what do you say we take this somewhere more...open? I'm just dying to see what the Nine-Tails Jinchuuriki can do" he said. Naruto glared at him angrily, but nodded. The two ninja then vanished into a puff of smoke, leaving Gaara seemingly alone in the arena.
"What a letdown. Just as things were beginning to heat up, he leaves. Typical" the redhead complained to nobody in particular.
"Perhaps I can fill the void?"
Gaara raised an eyebrow and glanced up into the stands, eventually spotting Neji, who had just returned from investigating the hallway system. The sand shinobi allowed a smile to creep onto his face as the Hyuga boy leapt down from the seating area and landed twenty feet from him.
"You did say that we would inevitably face one another. This isn't quite the context I had imagined, but it's as good a time as any, if you ask me" Neji said as Gaara silently assessed him. The redhead then allowed his eyes to return to their natural blue color.
"I suppose I'm game. I highly doubt you'll be as enticing a foe as Naruto, but I can make due" he said while calling his sand to action. The Hyuga boy nodded and assumed his family's taijutsu stance.
"I wouldn't be so nonchalant if I were you. Such unadulterated confidence could get you hurt"
A/N: I know this chapter was a little shorter, but I had limited time and really wanted to update today. Hope you all enjoyed either way! Tell me what you thought in a review!
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