A/N: Well, it's time to begin the final fight of House of Glass. These next few chapters are going to be long, and they're going to be incredibly violent/graphic. This chapter will contain a bit of nicety, but it'll be the last of the fic until the final chapter.
Time for chapter 47
Enjoy!
An ominous wind blew across the desert floor as Kurenai, Hinata, Neji, and Naruto stood before the gates of Sunagakure. It was early morning, and the sun had yet to rise. The pair of guards standing at the entrance to the civilization wore matching looks of reserved apprehension, seemingly well aware of the identities of the Konoha shinobi marching towards them. Preferring not to partake in idle chatter, Kurenai signaled to the pair of Hyuga children. In an instant, Neji and Hinata were behind the two guards with a hand pressed to their spines. The Suna Shinobi promptly fell face first to the ground, completely unconscious.
"That takes care of that. Now, we need to move quickly. Assumption is that Shikamaru is in the Kazekage's Estate. That building is around three miles from where we are now. If we go now, we can be there in fifteen minutes" the jonin said to the group of genin, who all gave a nod of affirmation. The cell then set out down the lengthy canyon that led into Suna.
They traveled in silence for nearly two minutes until buildings became visible at the end of the small canyon. What caused the party halt in their tracks, however, was not the architecture.
"We have company" Kurenai muttered under her breath, her voice only loud enough to be heard by her comrades. Standing at the precipice of the Village Hidden in the Sand was a man wearing a Jonin vest. Half of his face was concealed by a cloth, and he was tall in stature. He assessed the group of ninja before him carefully, weary of any potential trickery.
"Gaara-sama has ordered me to prevent the entry of all but a shinobi by the name of Naruto Uzumaki. If that title belongs to you, scurry along. If not, don't move from your current position" he said solemnly. Neji raised an eyebrow.
"That's some confidence on your end. Are you really so sure that you could keep myself, Hinata-sama, and Kurenai-san out of Suna by yourself? Personally, I don't like your chances" he asked. The sand Jonin's eye twitched, his left hand slowly drifting towards his kunai pouch. A moment later, Kurenai had vanished from sight along with the sand Jonin. The pair reappeared a few feet away straining against one another with drawn blades.
"You three move on ahead. I'll keep this one occupied" she said in a rushed tone. The genin needed no other prompting; they quickly bolted past the jonin into the village. Kurenai then pushed away from her opponent and kicked him in the chest, sending him to the sandy ground.
"You never planned on stopping them, did you?" she asked. The man dusted himself off and chuckled while he rose back to his feet.
"No, not really. Gaara-sama has a specific image in mind for how this little scuffle is supposed to happen, and I intend to help bring it to fruition. It's the least I can do" he said as he prepared himself for battle. The genjutsu mistress raised an eyebrow.
"And what does that image entail?" she asked skeptically. The sand shinobi responded by launching a kunai past her face.
"He thrives in chaos. Those little gremlins of yours are bound to create some if left to roam free in the village. Even if he steals Naruto away to a remote location, the knowledge of the pandemonium back home will fuel him" he explained as he and Kurenai engaged one another in hand-to-hand. After a brief scuffle, the Konoha jonin's head was snapped back by a hard punch, sending her back a few steps. Kurenai rubbed her cheek and grit her teeth.
'This...might take awhile'
Gaara cracked his neck and stood up from his desk. It was nearly time. Long had he waited, and now his patience would be rewarded. He glanced over to the corner of his study, locking onto his gourd and making his way over toward it. He smoothly strapped it over his shoulder and allowed a bit of sand to hover around him. After looking himself over and concluding that his appearance was satisfactory, the redhead turned toward the door.
As he began to take steps toward the exit of his study, the door opened, revealing a frazzled-looking maid. The Jinchuuriki stopped walking and studied the stressed girl, who, upon further inspection, was the very same maid that had run into Gaara in the hallway the day he had slaughtered the council.
"May I help you?" he asked. The girl flinched and snapped to attention, bowing deeply and shaking a bit. After a moment of awkward silence on her end, the maid spoke.
"T-those ninja you warned us of have arrived, G-Gaara-sama. They have entered the village" she reported quickly. Gaara nodded and called his sand back into his gourd.
"Yes, I am well aware. I'm only interested in one of those ninja, but the others will be dealt with. You may want to head home. Things are about to become a bit wild in the estate" he suggested as he straightened the knick knacks on his desk. Much to his surprise, the maid shook her head.
"No, if things are going to go down the drain, then I'll have lots to clean up. I think I'll stay" she said firmly. Gaara raised an eyebrow and looked to the girl quizzically, prompting her to freeze up once more.
"What's your name?" he asked. The maid fumbled over her own tongue for an embarrassing length of time before finally rediscovering her voice.
"M-Maizono Hiyama, sir" she said, bowing once more. The Jinchuuriki then shuffled through his desk drawer for a moment before producing a checkbook and scribbling on one of the bank statements. He then ripped it out of the book and offered it to Maizono. The girl shakily took the slip and looked it over, her eyes widening to saucers as she did so.
"This is...what is this for, Gaara-sama?" she asked in a dumbfounded tone. The redhead shrugged and slowly walked past her towards the door.
"Your loyal service. Consider it a backroom bonus" he said as he stepped out into the hallway. Maizono stumbled out into the hallway after him and called out.
"Gaara-sama!" she exclaimed, catching his attention and earning an over-the-shoulder glance from her superior.
"Yes?" he asked. Maizono smiled and bowed for the third time in five minutes, the check now tucked into her maid's dress.
"Good luck" she said meekly. The Jinchuuriki shook his head and turned his gaze back to the corridor before him to continue his trek.
"I appreciate the thought, but my luck has very much run out, Maizono-san"
Naruto wore a scowl as he and the pair of Hyuga ran towards the Kazekage Estate. Despite having never seen the building before, it was clearly identifiable by the large symbol for 'Sand Shadow' on its front. As they approached the brooding mansion, the already-eerie silence of the streets grew even more defined. Neji in particular seemed bothered by the lack of activity and sound.
"You could hear a pin drop. From what my eyes are showing me, the general populace has retreated into their homes. It seems they've been expecting us. Possibly for quite some time" he reported. Hinata nodded in agreement and remained vigilant as they journeyed on. The closer they drew to the Estate, the more the air seemed to deaden around them.
"Gaara is nearby. No other chakra can bring the ecosystem to a standstill like this" the heiress muttered to her comrades. Naruto, clearly keyed in on that fact, stopped running and held out an arm. Neji and Hinata ceased running behind him and gave him questioning looks. Before either one could as the obvious question, it was answered for them.
"Sharp senses, Naruto. Not that I made this little game of hide-and-seek difficult for you"
The Hyuga children both flinched and turned their attention upwards to the roof of the Kazekage Estate, where Gaara of the Desert stood. His eyes were fixed on his fellow Jinchuuriki down below and nothing else. Reading into his body language facial expression revealed a disturbingly simplistic emotion. Hunger
Hinata shuddered as her teammate and most reliable confidant stared at Gaara. Suddenly, both Neji and herself felt very, very small. The scale of the two powers before them was abundantly clear. After another stretch of unbearable silence, the elevated redhead spoke.
"Let's take this somewhere a bit more private, Naruto. I'd like to avoid any risk of peasantry distraction. I know just the place to host this fine spectacle" he called out to the blonde. He vanished from sight, reappearing in front of Naruto and seizing his wrist. Before any of the Konoha genin could react, the pair of Jinchuuriki disappeared into a puff of smoke.
Once they had regained their bearings, Neji and Hinata activated their dojutsu and searched the area for their comrade and Gaara, with the elder of the two Hyuga finding them at the edge of his visual range.
"They're around a mile away, just outside the southern border of the village" he said. The heiress pursed her lips and glanced back at the Estate.
"Follow them, Neji-san. Should Naruto-kun fall in battle, deposit him somewhere and pick up where he left off" she ordered. The Hyuga boy furrowed his eyebrows and gave his cousin a skeptical look.
"Understood, but what will you do in the meantime?" he asked. Hinata took a deep breath and began a slow walk towards the daunting building before them.
"I'm going to retrieve Nara-san" she said simply. Neji raised an eyebrow and turned the vision of his Byakugan towards the building.
"The Estate is largely empty, but three fairly distinct signatures still remain. One of them is clearly Nara-san, and the other two-" he began.
"-are Temari and Kankuro. Yes, I am aware" Hinata cut in as she stepped onto the welcome mat of the large dwelling. Her cousin studied her for a moment.
"Is this calm you're exuding born of confidence, or of resignation?" he asked pointedly. The heiress gave a rare chuckle and opened the front door.
"Oh, I am quite confident, and I have a bone to pick with the girl who kidnapped Nara-san. She's the reason we're here at all" she said in a low growl.
As she entered the Estate, a small strand of electricity sparked from the hand that hung at her side.
The sun had begun to rise by the time Naruto and Gaara stared at each other from across a small desert plain. There were no obstructions to divert the wind, and the wind was high, allowing for a chilling cold to set in over the desert. The sun peaking over the horizon created shadows of both Jinchuuriki, which crossed over one another symmetrically.
"What an atmosphere this is. Silent, but oh so tense. Just perfect" the redhead commented. Naruto narrowed his eyes and assumed a taijutsu stance.
"You talk too much" he said in an irritated tone. Gaara chuckled a bit and called his sand to action. The sediment leaked out of his gourd and swirled around him as he closed his eyes. When the sadistic demon container reopened his eyes, they were a deep gold color that Naruto knew all too well.
"In that case, we'll skip the formalities. Don't even think about concealing the fox from me this time. I'll kill you and those two ants you brought along if you do" he said menacingly. Needing no further encouragement, Naruto unleashed a shockwave of burning chakra from his body that manifested itself in a translucent coating of chakra. A split-second later, his fist was buried in Gaara's stomach.
"You're going to regret giving me that advice" he growled in his adversary's ear. Before the redhead could even open his mouth to reply, Naruto removed his fist from his abdomen and used the hand to pull his head down into the point of his knee. Gaara stumbled back a step and attempted to regain his bearings, but was cracked across the right side of his jaw by a hooking left-handed punch from the blonde that took away his legs.
Naruto caught him by the front of his shirt just before his back could touch the ground, pulling him back into an upright position. Gaara's vertical positioning only lasted a second or two, as he was quickly launched backwards by a kick to his upper chest. The blonde blitzed after him, his figure blurring due to his own raw speed. As he loaded up to strike Gaara, whom he was now behind, the sand beneath his feet shifted and knocked him off balance. As a result of this disruption, the sand shinobi flew past him and flipped in the air.
Gaara smoothly landed on his feet and dusted himself off, an easy smile on his face as Naruto struggled to regain his footing in the suddenly-animated sand he was standing on.
"I hope you got that out of your system, because I'm not giving you any more free shots" he said as he made subtle motions with his hand to shift the sand underneath his foe. Quickly growing irritated by his lack of firm footing, Naruto grunted and sent the sand around him up into the air with a pulse of the fox's energy. With his feet now firmly planted on uncontrolled sand, the Jinchuuriki of the Leaf pushed off the ground and threw himself at Gaara.
Unlike before, however, the redhead's sand was nimble enough to intercept him before he could strike the sediment's master. Naruto's fist slammed into a solid wall of particalized earth, and despite a herculean effort, he couldn't break through it.
"What the hell is this stuff?" he demanded as he struggled to pull his arm out of the cloud of sand, which had wrapped itself around his wrist. Gaara grinned and whipped the blonde up into the air by his arm.
"I added some ground-down gold to this mixture. An old trick my father used to use against me" he explained. A moment later, he slammed a pillar of compressed sand into Naruto's back. The impact of the sand knocked all of the wind out of the Konoha genin's lungs and stunned him. Taking advantage of his enemy's momentarily compromised state, Gaara unraveled the pillar of sand and wrapped it around Naruto's ankle.
The blonde was promptly slammed face-first into the desert floor, with the impact sending vibrations through the surrounding environment. Gaara then released Naruto from his sand's grip. His fellow Jinchuuriki was lying in a small sand crater, unmoving and silent. For a decent stretch of time, no noise came from the crater.
'There's no way that killed him. He can take more punishment. I know he can' Gaara thought to himself, his eyes narrowed and focused on the location of his opponent. Eventually, a stirring sound came from the crater. A moment after the small sound, a roar of defiance erupted from the hole in the ground. Naruto then leapt out of the crater, his body aflame with burning red chakra. The fox's energy mended his wounds as he sailed down to the ground, earning a smirk from Gaara.
"Oh good, I was just beginning to think I may have killed you before either one of us could begin to put in any semblance of effort" the redhead said with a mocking applause. Naruto responded by crossing his arms in front of himself and clenching his jaw.
"First Gate: Gate of Opening, open!" he yelled. A powerful wind then flew across the battlefield. Seeming to ride the gust of air, Naruto instantly crossed the distance between himself and Gaara to clatter his temple with a right-handed punch. The strike turned the sand shinobi's head away from the blonde, prompting him to slash his exposed cheek with his left hand's claws. The cutting motion sent a spray of blood from the redhead's cheek, painting his face to match his hair.
In a desperate bid to defend himself, Gaara lowered his levels, planted his feet, and swung back with a clubbing counter to the left side of Naruto's jaw that connected utterly flush. The gambit paid off beautifully, as the Konoha genin was forced to take a step back due to the unexpected impact. This allotted Gaara just enough time to erect a sand barrier and scamper backwards to recreate distance. Naruto predictably pursued him with another forward charge, but Gaara had set a nasty trap for him.
"Some variation might help you!" he yelled, slamming a hand into his side of the sand barrier. The Nine-Tails Jinchuuriki was then intercepted by a wall of sedimentary spikes, much like he had been during their first encounter. The serrated protrusions missed his face by inches, and only failed to impale him by virtue of the blonde's heightened reaction time allowing him to stop himself in the knick of time. Realizing that he was in grave danger, Naruto leapt backwards nearly twenty feet and landed just outside of the spikes' range, which had extended after him when he had jumped.
The Ninja studied one another intently in a mutual search for weaknesses and deficiencies. When no new answers to the problems before them were found, they began to circle one another in a battle for positional advantage. Once again, they stalemated. Despite their differences on every personal front, they functioned identically as combatants. Constantly calculating, always probing. Never a moment's rest. Then, something that even Naruto hadn't considered happened.
For the first time since Naruto had initially encountered Gaara, the sadistic Jinchuuriki began to weave hand seals
Shikamaru snapped awake at the sound of splintering wood. Due to the lack of windows in his sleeping quarters, he was not afforded the luxury of using the sky as reference for time. Luckily, the shadow user had cultivated a keen internal clock during his time as a hostage. According to his estimation, it was roughly six in the morning, just thirty minutes before his general wake-up time. As he rubbed his eyes, a loud banging sound came from what sounded like the base floor.
The Nara immediately jumped to his feet and rushed out of his room. As he surged down the hallway, he noticed something else odd. There were no service workers. The corridor was entirely empty and silent.
'Okay, something is very wrong here' he thought to himself frantically. After a brief run, he reached the dining hall. Much to his relief, Temari and Kankuro were standing in the center of it. Their postures were telling, with both of them rigidly staring down the eastern hall. His rapid footsteps caught their attention and turned their heads.
"Look who's finally awake" Kankuro said sarcastically. Shikamaru bounded over to the siblings and joined them in looking into the east hall.
"What's going on?" he asked seriously. The puppeteer pursed his lips and flinched as another loud crashing sound echoed into the dining room.
"I think your friends are here to take you home" he said tensely. The shadow user felt a wave of unexpectedly mixed emotions wash over him. After taking a moment to gather himself, Shikamaru spoke.
"If that's the case, then Gaara has likely engaged Naruto not too far from here. God, I should wake up earlier" he muttered. Temari then opened her mouth for the first time since his arrival.
"It sounds like hell downstairs. There's gotta be at least three Konoha ninja in the building" she said, a twinge of nervousness creeping into her voice. Shikamaru shook his head.
"If Gaara and Naruto are fighting, then I'm going to assume that at least one of the four people they sent to get me are with him as backup. There are two people tops" he corrected. Kankuro sighed.
"Why are we even discussing this? All we need to do is hand you over and this is done" he pointed out. The lazy genin nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, so let's cut down on the property damage. One of you needs to show me the way to the lobby, because Gaara never let me leave the upper level" he said. Kankuro then motioned for Shikamaru to follow him, a silent order that the shadow user followed. Before either he or the brother of Gaara could walk five steps, Temari took hold of his wrist.
"No, we aren't just going to croak and hand him over. I hate that idea" she said firmly. Kankuro scowled and glared at his sister.
"What? He isn't even our ninja. We have no right to have him in our home to begin with, not to mention that it's illegal. We aren't 'croaking'. We're keeping up our end of the deal, which was that if Naruto showed up and gave Gaara the fight he wanted, we would let this loser leave" he said impatiently. The fan wielder opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a guard stumbling into the dining hall from the east hall.
The man was battered, and appeared to be on his last legs. He collapsed roughly five feet from the group, prompting Kankuro to rush to his side.
"What's the situation down there? Give me all the detail you can without straining yourself" he asked quickly. The guard coughed painfully, but eventually found his voice.
"S-some girl wearing a leaf headband showed up. W-we tried to ask her questions, but s-she just started attacking us. We had fifteen men at the start, I think we're down to n-nine now" he said through ragged breaths. Shikamaru's eyes widened.
'Hinata? Why is she here? If it was going to be anybody, I expected Lee or Neji' he thought to himself. The shadow user knelt down beside the injured guard.
"Is she alone, or is she being assisted?" he asked. The guard propped himself up on his elbows and glanced down the hall.
"She was all alone. She's making people keel over just by touching their midsection" he recalled shakily. Shikamaru nodded and gently pushed the man's back flat to the floor.
"That's definitely Hinata. Just about the last person I expected to be coming after me" he said to the siblings. Temari prickled at the revelation.
"Oh? In that case, even more reason to resist letting her have you" she said rigidly. Her words reignited the debate that had been previously interrupted.
"What's gotten into you? Why are you so hellbent on making this harder than it has to be? From the sounds of it, this chick is killing our guards. We don't need to take any unnecessary losses" Kankuro snapped. Shikamaru sighed.
"Look, I don't know what your reasoning is, but it can't possibly justify the damage Hinata will cause if you aggravate her further" he said, a tad more gently than Kankuro had. The fan wielder opened and began to respond, but was once again interrupted before she could speak. This time, instead of an injured guard literally appearing, a scream of pain ripped through the hallway. The noise prompted Kankuro to draw a kunai.
"You know what? Screw this argument. I'm going to go save our guards. When you finally come to your senses, bring him out to the lobby" he said. At that, he sprinted down the hallway and rounded the corner to the stairwell. Shikamaru gritted his teeth and stepped forward to follow him, but was once again grabbed by the wrist.
"Now is not the time, Temari. Don't push my patience" he growled. The sand kunoichi tightened her grip on him.
"Stay in here. I'm going to go help him. Just don't move, okay?" she requested as she grabbed her fan off the table and prepared to leave.
"And why shouldn't I? I'm with Kankuro on this. Why are you bent on trying to fight Hinata rather than just letting me leave and ending this mess?" he demanded. Temari flinched, but maintained her composure.
"I'll explain it to you once this is all over" she said, turning to leave as she spoke. This time, Shikamaru seized her wrist and spun her around.
"No, we aren't playing the waiting game. Spill it. What's your motive? What could you possibly have to gain from this? You aren't this stupid, I know you aren't" he asked. The sand kunoichi gazed at him for a few moments before sighing defeatedly and relaxing.
"It's even more idiotic than the reason why I brought you to Suna. Well, it relates to it, but it's still worse" she said. The shadow user nodded and urged her to continue. After a brief pause, she did just that.
"I've gotten used to having you around here. I've gotten used to arguing with you, glaring at you, the works. But, more than that, I really don't feel like giving up my first positive relationship of the last decade. Even under circumstances like this" she admitted shamefully. Shikamaru gave her an odd look.
"Would you really call our dynamic 'positive'?" he asked skeptically. Much to his embarrassment and surprise, Temari gently laid a hand on the back of his head and delicately pulled him forward until they were forehead-to-forehead.
"To me, absolutely. Whether you've meant to or not, you've given me more peace than I've ever had the luxury of having. You're a great distraction from the whirlwind of stress that is my day-to-day life. That hug you gave me after Gaara choked you half to death made me feel safer than I'd care to admit" she said warmly, a rare smile on her face. The Nara lowered his eyes to the ground.
"Well, I'm glad you feel that way, you deserve to be happy, but I can't stay here. You know that as well as I do" he said. Temari released his head from her grip and backed up a step.
"I know, believe me, I know. I don't want to imprison you here. You don't deserve to be confined. But, I...don't think I'm ready to let you leave just yet" she said, her face a tad red. Shikamaru tensed at the sound of Kankuro crying out in pain from the lower floor.
"I don't mean to be harsh, but you not being ready doesn't really play into how this goes down" he said bluntly. The fan wielder nodded and stepped forward once more.
"I'll make you a deal. Your teammate will probably have mopped the floor with Kankuro by the time I make it down stairs, so I'll be facing her alone. If she can put me down, you're free to go. If I manage to fight her off, I get to keep you here for just a little longer. In Suna, not the Estate. You'd be free to roam" she explained. Shikamaru weighed his options for a moment
'My guess is that she'll probably win that fight. She knows it too, but me staying of my own accord might help repair village relations in the long run' he pondered. After a quick internal debate, he found his answer.
"Deal" he said simply, holding out a hand to his captor. Temari nodded and shook the hand. She then turned around and sprinted towards the stairwell leading to the lobby. The shadow user waited until her footsteps were no longer audible before letting out a heavy sigh.
'It isn't even seven in the morning and today already sucks'
A/N: Yes, this chapter was very long and a lot of things happened. Next chapter will be much the same, but only focused on two things instead of, like, five. Tell me what you thought of this one in a review!
See you next chapter! Read and Review!
