When Chi Meets Chakra: A Space-Time Adventure

by jido96

After confronting a mysterious man who had broken into his house, Shujinko Ozuma, a fourteen year-old Chunin, gets thrown into the Avatar universe by accident. There, he will meet Avatar Aang and join his group as they fight against the Fire Nation. But who is this mysterious man? And why does he knows about the Ozuma clan's past? Will Shujinko ever return to his home?

12. Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12: THE SAVIOR, THE CONDEMNER

(Disclaimer: Avatar The Last Airbender belongs to Nickelodeon and Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my OCs)

(PLEASE READ: THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL TO "SHUJINKO: THE FOURTH MEMBER", BUT A DIFFERENT STORY WITH SHUJINKO AS THE MAIN CHARACTER. THIS STORY WILL NOT HAVE ANY EFFECT WHATSOEVER IN "SHUJINKO SHIPPUDEN". I REPEAT, THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL TO SHUJINKO'S ORIGINAL STORY)

Summary: One night, a stranger breaks into Shujinko's house and tries to steal one of the most mystical objects in the history of the Ozuma clan: The Eye of Kazemaru. When Shujinko tries to stop him, the two of them activate an ancient and forgotten power of the gem by accident, which sends them to another dimension where a certain bald-headed monk has to master the four elements in order to defeat the evil Fire Lord. What kind of impact will Shujinko's presence have in the Avatar universe? Who is this stranger and what does he want? Get ready for one wild space-time adventure

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"Shujinko, you came!" Aang exclaimed.

"I sure did, and Toph is here as well," Shujinko replied as he grabbed the monk's hand and pulled him back to his feet, not taking his eyes off of Azula, who was slowly getting up. "My sensei once told me that those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum. I won't ignore his teachings, no matter where I am,"

"Thanks… And hey, a-about what I said earlier… I just want to-"

"Save your words for later, Aang. Trust me, I understand, but we have bigger problems to worry about right now, like this one right here,"

Azula stood up and immediately examined the newcomer who had interrupted her attack. She was surprised to see a teenager wearing Earth Kingdom clothes with brown hair, golden eyes, and slightly tan skin. 'This boy… He foiled my shot by striking from my blind spot. I couldn't even see him approach me. Who is he?' she thought, frowning and rubbing her ribs where the kick had landed. Someone like Azula wasn't used to getting caught off guard, either during a fight or otherwise.

As she stared from a distance, Azula noticed the odd headband the boy was wearing around his forehead. The headband had a metal plate with a strange symbol engraved on it, a swirl with a small triangle at the side. The princess recognized the symbol as the one Lieutenant Kaizu had shown her some time ago back at Gi Yuin Village, and she instantly recalled the conversation she had with him about the strange boy who had fought alongside the Avatar.

'His age, the headband, the way he sneaked up on me… Yes, he fits the description,'

"Judging by that blue fire of yours, you must be Azula," Shujinko said, eyeing the girl from head to toe. She bore a noticeable resemblance to the members of the Uchiha clan with her fair skin and black hair. In fact, she looked like a female version of Sasuke, but with amber eyes instead of black ones. The physical similarity between those two was enough to make Shujinko uncomfortable. "I take it you're the one who's been chasing us this entire time,"

"That's correct, and I take it you're the one who recently joined this band of low-life peasants," Azula responded. "What was your name? Ah, yes, now I remember. Shujinko Ozuma, the so-called shinobi from the Hidden Leaf Village,"

That last sentence made Shujinko's eyes go wide. "How do you know that?"

"According to my men, you made quite a bit of noise in Gi Yuin Village some time ago. You shouldn't be surprised now that your actions have come back to bite you,"

Gi Yuin Village… The princess's words rumbled through Shujinko's mind. Gi Yuin Village was where he met Team Avatar for the first time, the place where his adventures in this freakish part of the world had begun. A brief skirmish with some Fire Nation soldiers concluded with Shujinko joining the gang in an unexpected series of events. At first, Shujinko didn't know what Gi Yuin Village had to do with anything. He hadn't told his name to anyone except to the members of Team Avatar and Mushi…

'Damn it, now I get it!' Shujinko thought. 'I revealed my name to a Fire Nation soldier when I arrived at Gi Yuin Village. I told him I was a shinobi so that he would back off, but I had no idea we weren't in the Land of Fire at the time. That soldier must've told the rest of the troops who I was and where I come from. After all the trouble I went through… Crap, this isn't good,'

Azula smirked as she noticed the frustrated expression on Shujinko's face and decided to twist the knife deeper. "That's right, Shujinko. You exposed your identity to one of my men. And since you've allied yourself with the Avatar, you are now an official enemy of the Fire Nation, which means you'll be hunted down along with the rest of your little friends,"

"If you want to hunt me down, I welcome you to try," the Chunin replied, cracking his knuckles as he took a step forward. "Aang, I want you to gather the others and make sure that they're okay. I'll take care of this,"

The airbender nodded in understanding and promptly left. He didn't like the idea of letting a friend face someone like Azula on his own, but he knew what Shujinko was capable of and he didn't want to start an argument with him now that he had just returned. Besides, Zuko was there as well, and Aang couldn't think of a better way to help Shujinko than by keeping the scarred firebender off his back.

Once the Avatar was out of his sight, Shujinko took a deep breath and got ready to dance. His rusty body assumed a fighting stance as he fixated his gaze on Azula, who had yet to make a move. Despite her beauty and her youth, there was something about the girl in front of him that was off-putting. As someone who was trained to perceive danger and read people's emotions, Shujinko couldn't ignore the cold sensation of malice that emanated from Azula's presence, almost as if the air around her was polluted. He wasn't scared by it, but he was surprised nonetheless.

"Lieutenant Kaizu told me you're a combatant of exceptional prowess. I wonder if there is any truth to that," Azula said before assuming a fighting stance of her own, raising her index and middle finger from her right hand. She wanted to see how dangerous of an opponent Shujinko was, and if the boy proved himself to be an actual threat, she would exterminate him right there and then in order to avoid future problems.

Shujinko didn't bother to reply. Not that he had enough time to do so, for Azula immediately punched the air and released a dual stream of blue fire from her fists. Her flames scorched the ground beneath as they made their way towards the target, leaving behind a huge trail of burnt earth and ashes. The intensity of her attack was enough to blow a hole in the middle of the wall, melting the stones to the point where they were glimmering.

The princess of the Fire Nation narrowed her eyes as she tried to see where Shujinko was. Her Firebending was strong enough to burn enemies to a crisp, but despite that, the only remainings she could see were those of the stone wall Shujinko had been standing in front of. For a brief moment, Azula wondered if the fight was at an end, but her instincts were telling her otherwise. Her instincts were proven right when she saw Shujinko in the air, descending towards her with weapons in his hands.

The Ozuma threw several shurikens at Azula, which got embedded into the ground as she gracefully evaded all of them. Once his initial attack was over, Shujinko ran towards her with the intention to engage in hand to hand combat, which most benders seemed to not be very good at. To his surprise, Azula was nimble and fast enough to parry some of his moves, but it soon became evident that she was better at Firebending than she was at martial arts. She kept trying to distance herself in order to use Firebending, but Shujinko's relentless attacks wouldn't allow her any space, and soon enough, a kick to her gut sent Azula tumbling away.

Meanwhile, Zuko and Iroh were hiding inside one of the few houses that remained untouched by the earlier brawl, watching the scene unfold before their widened eyes. Zuko couldn't believe that a random boy whom he had never seen or heard of before was taking on Azula by himself without the use of bending and giving her an actual fight. In fact, he seemed to have the advantage, which was nothing short of astonishing.

'Whoever he is, he must be helping the Avatar if he's fighting against my sister,' Zuko thought with a concerned look on his face. 'This isn't good. Catching the Avatar is already troublesome enough on its own, but if this kid is on his side…'

Similar thoughts were running inside Iroh's head, and although he did a better job hiding it, he was even more impressed than his nephew. He never would've thought the boy he came across in the woods was this skilled in the art of combat. His speed and his strength did not belong to that of a fourteen year-old, and something was telling the old General that Shujinko had yet to display the full extent of his abilities. It made Iroh want to know more about the Ozuma and the place he came from, for his meeting with the boy didn't feel like a coincidence in the slightest.

With an ugly snarl on her otherwise pretty face, Azula quickly got up and created two large fire whips, which she then began to wave and swing around with all her might. Not wanting to get caught by them, the Chunin dived to the side before jumping over to the top of a small building, hopping from one rooftop to another. Azula immediately began to chase after him from the ground, propelling herself through the use of Firebending.

'This girl is good. Her bending abilities are more advanced than I expected,' Shujinko thought as he kept running. 'If the same rules of elemental Ninjutsu are applied to bending, then my Wind Release is at a disadvantage against her Firebending. Taking her out with Taijutsu is the best option I have, but those flames won't make it easy. I need to distract her, catch her off guard, and land a solid strike,'

When Shujinko turned his head around to look back, he spotted Azula reaching the top of the building behind him, ready to unleash a barrage of fire. Before the flames could get him, the Chunin jumped off the edge of the building and landed on a narrow alleyway, where he quickly sneaked into a house through an open window. Once inside, he weaved the Ram, Snake, and Tiger hand signs, ready to outsmart his opponent using a little trick that, although basic by the standard of most ninjas, would serve him quite well right now.

Azula entered the house through the same window Shujinko had used. The room was quiet, but she could tell her enemy was somewhere near, waiting for her to make a mistake. Her eyes darted across the room, examining the old and worn-out furniture until she caught sight of several dusty footprints that led to a wardrobe. Refraining herself from smirking, the princess of the Fire Nation took several steps towards the wardrobe, keeping her hands up while pretending to be clueless.

"I know you're in here," Azula said out loud, keeping a discrete eye on the wardrobe. "If you have a shred of honor, come out and face me instead of hiding like a coward,"

Of course, nothing happened. The boy wasn't going to take the bait so easily, not like she was expecting him to do so. All she needed was to reel him in a little further. After a minute of silence, Azula finally turned her back on the wardrobe and began inspecting the rest of the room, wiggling her fingers in anticipation.

BAAM

The door of the wardrobe was busted open and the figure of Shujinko came running straight towards her. 'How predictable', Azula thought as she jumped back, waving her arms in circular motions. Electricity began to sparkle around her fingers, surrounding her hands, crackling and popping loudly. Before Shujinko could get too close to her, Azula discharged a bolt of lightning at point-blank.

BOOOOOM

The bolt of lightning went right through Shujinko and obliterated the wall behind him, destroying a huge portion of the house and raising clouds of dust everywhere. The lightning also caused the interior of the room to catch fire, filling the place with smoke. Azula's lips twisted into a perverse smirk, savoring the taste of triumph. She had to admit Shujinko had turned out to be a challenging opponent for her, a far more dangerous individual than most of the Fire Nation troops for that matter, but in the end, he was no match for her. The princess of the Fire Nation would never be defeated, especially not by a filthy commoner who had the audacity to stand in her way.

However, as she relished her victory, Azula noticed something odd. Despite her brutal attack had struck Shujinko, his body (or what was left of it) was nowhere to be seen. There was no doubt that he had been annihilated given how no human was able to survive fully-charged lightning thrown at such a short distance, but instead of getting roasted or exploding into pieces, Shujinko seemed to have… vanished, dissipated into thin air.

What happened next were the most baffling five seconds in all of Azula's life. Out of the corner of the eye, she spotted someone jumping over a fallen table that happened to be nearby. That someone was none other than Shujinko, the boy she had struck with lightning just a moment ago and who was supposed to be, by all accounts, dead. The cold, sharp, and calculating mind of Azula couldn't assimilate what was going on, and for the first time since she was capable of reason, the princess of the Fire Nation was left bewildered and unable to react.

By the time her combat instinct warned her to move, it was already too late. Shujinko rushed towards Azula and delivered a nasty right hook, hitting her jaw, cheek, and nose at once.

BAAM

"Aaaack!" The prodigious firebender was sent flying back into the powdery streets of Tu Zin after receiving a vicious punch to the face, courtesy of the Ozuma. For a couple of seconds, Azula lost consciousness and didn't come back to her senses until she was done rolling across the ground, where she then laid still amidst clouds of dirt and dust. Shujinko let out a sigh and skipped over what remained of the house's wall, now little more than a pile of hot rubble.

His strategy had been fairly simple. Upon entering the house, Shujinko created a regular clone using the jutsu that students were taught at the Ninja Academy, hiding it inside the empty wardrobe. Given the severe limitations of a regular clone, Shujinko had to get a little crafty. His clone couldn't interact on its own and its body would fade away at the slightest touch, so the golden-eyed boy tied some wire strings around the wardrobe's handle and pulled them to open the door, making it seem as if he was abandoning his hiding spot in order to attack Azula while her back was turned. It would've been easier to simply use a shadow clone instead, but performing the regular Clone Jutsu required far less chakra and the results would've been practically the same.

Meanwhile, the other members of Team Avatar were taking cover behind a wall in an alleyway, watching the scene unfold with their eyes wide open. Shujinko had singlehandedly bested Azula, the girl who had caused them so much trouble, in just a matter of minutes. They already knew their friend could handle himself against benders and non-benders alike, but this was something else. "Man, that looked like it hurt," Sokka said in awe. "Shujinko certainly doesn't try to pull his punches, even when she's fighting a girl,"

This earned him a questioning stare from Katara. "Why would he try to pull his punches just because he's fighting a girl?"

"Well, on average, girls tend to be more fragile and delicate than us boys. Its pure biology," Sokka replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "Honestly, I wouldn't feel good hitting someone other than a man. I know Azula is our enemy and she's a girl, but at the same time, I'd prefer not to hurt-"

Sokka's rant was cut short when Toph stomped on his foot on purpose, making him yelp in pain. "I'd be more careful with who you go around calling fragile and delicate, Sokka,"

"What? I said on average! Sheesh!"

Hidden on the other side of the town were Zuko and Iroh, who had also witnessed the beatdown from afar. "I… I don't believe this," Zuko whispered, his jaw hanging slightly open as he watched his sister groveling on the ground. "That boy just defeated Azula by himself. How did he do it? Who is he?"

The stupefaction of the young firebender was more than justified. Despite being born as the prince of the Fire Nation and the heir to his father's crown, Zuko had spent his life living under the shadow of his younger sibling, a genuine prodigy in every sense of the word. The differences between him and Azula were already noticeable by the time they were kids, and their father had never missed a single chance to point them out, constantly reminding Zuko how much of a failure he was compared to his sister. In terms of Firebending skills alone, Azula was the most talented person in all of the Fire Nation, surpassed only by her father and her uncle.

And now, all of a sudden, this mysterious boy came out of nowhere and gave Azula a beating using just martial arts and a few throwing weapons, humiliating her as if it was child's play. It was ridiculous, preposterous even, and yet he had just seen it happen with his own eyes.

The princess of the Fire Nation got on her hands and knees, wheezing and groaning. Her jaw was shaking from the pain and her sight was slightly blurry. However, it wasn't nearly as blurry as her mind was. Azula's impeccable memory kept showing her what had happened, but even her brilliant intellect couldn't find an explanation for what she saw before she got hit, and being unable to understand something was a foreign sensation that Azula had never experienced before.

Shujinko should've been eliminated. There was no other way around it. No one could survive getting blasted by her lightning at point-blank, and Azula had seen her attack go through his enemy's body. Was she hallucinating? Had Shujinko pulled some kind of trick on her? How the hell had he managed to dodge her lighting at the last second and appear somewhere else? For the first time in her life, not a single answer came to her, only conclusions with no logic whatsoever.

Suddenly, Azula noticed an unfamiliar taste inside her mouth. A viscous fluid was dribbling down her chin, and when she wiped it off with the back of her hand, she saw stains of a red liquid smearing her skin. It took her a few seconds to realize it was her blood. At that moment, her befuddlement was replaced by a black rage that took over Azula. Her pristine mask of perfection fell off and her most inner demons began to roar. This petty commoner had the audacity to draw blood from her. From her!

"It's over. Don't make a single move," Shujinko warned in a menacing tone while pointing at Azula with a kunai, standing only a few meters away from her. "I don't want to kill you, but if you attack me one more time, this thing that I'm holding here will find its way to your neck before you even know it,"

"You… You wretched, insignificant little maggot!" Azula bellowed with scalding anger in her eyes. Such was her fury that she dug her nails into the ground, scratching the earth like a maniac. "Do you not know who I am!? I am Azula, the princess of the Fire Nation! You will pay with your life for this. I will make you regret ever being born, you dirty plebeian!"

The Chunin remained silent, tightening his grip on the kunai's handle. The girl in front of her clearly had some issues as well as an overly inflated ego, but what caught his attention the most was how she claimed to be the princess of the Fire Nation.

If this was true, then killing her wasn't the best choice. It would be much more beneficial to keep her alive as a hostage and get as much information out of her through interrogations. If Azula refused to reveal any secrets, then at least she would serve as leverage against the Fire Nation. Aside from that, he really didn't want to kill someone in front of his friends unless he absolutely had to. Even though they were fighting a war, they weren't ninjas like him, and Shujinko wanted to spare them the sight of something they weren't quite ready to see.

"In that case, you're coming with us. You're more useful to us alive, so stand down and don't try anything funny. No harm will come to you if-"

"SHUJINKO, WATCH OUT!" Aang shouted all of a sudden.

SWOOSH

Out of sheer shinobi instinct, Shujinko dived to the side, sliding across the battlefield with his chest against the ground. Once he stopped, the Ozuma rolled back to his feet and raised his kunai in a state of alert, only to see a spear embedded into the place where he was standing just a few seconds ago. With his heart beating like a drum, Shujinko scanned his surroundings in search of the one who had thrown the weapon at him.

"You ought to be more careful, young one. A little later and you would've been done for,"

Shujinko looked up at the destroyed rooftop of a small building where the voice had come from. An individual was standing there, wearing a black medium-sleeved shirt with a grey obi around his waist, and a pair of matching pants with bandages covering his shins. A worn-out hooded cape hung from his shoulders while the lower half of his face was covered with a cloth face mask that was almost identical to Kakashi's. The hood and the mask made it impossible to tell what the man looked like, exposing nothing but a pair of bright eyes that seemed to gleam at Shujinko.

'Who the hell is this guy? How did I not notice his presence before?' Shujinko thought as he swallowed saliva. Was he an ally of Azula from the Fire Nation? He glanced at Azula, and judging by the look on the princess's face, the man's intervention was just as unexpected for her as it was for Shujinko.

The hooded man spoke again, not taking his eyes off the Chunin. "Those are Earth Kingdom clothes you're wearing. It appears that you've had little trouble adjusting to this place, but why would you bother to keep that ridiculous headband on? Surely you've realized by now that we are not anywhere near the Hidden Leaf Village or the Five Great Shinobi Nations for that matter,"

Shujinko gasped, feeling as if a ton of bricks had fallen on his head. His eyes went wide and he nearly dropped the kunai he was holding. 'He… He knows about my village and the Five Great Shinobi Nations? But that can only mean…' "Yo-You're a ninja?"

"A ninja? Well, perhaps I used to be one, a long time ago. When I realized the true purpose of my existence, I stopped being a simple ninja and became something bigger than that. I am a seeker, and you are a seeker as well, even if you don't know it yet,"

The other members of Team Avatar stared at each other in utter shock. They couldn't believe what was happening. Another ninja from Shujinko's lands was right there in front of them, and whatever his intentions were, it was clear that a fight was about to ensue. Spirits, he had almost gotten Shujinko with his spear, and if that spear had been thrown at anyone other than him, it would've undoubtedly killed whoever happened to be at the receiving end of it.

As he assessed the situation, Shujinko placed almost all of his attention on the hooded man and nearly forgot about Azula. It was a reckless thing to do, but he couldn't help it. The stranger in front of him was a shinobi, which made him a much bigger threat than the princess of the Fire Nation, both for him and for Team Avatar. He was expecting the hooded man to attack at any given moment, and if he was too slow to react, Shujinko knew very well what would happen to him.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not seeking anything other than a way to return to my village. That's all I care about. I don't want to fight you. In fact, I don't even know who you are, and you can say the same as me," And yet, for some reason that escaped the brown-haired teenager, there was something oddly familiar about the guy. It definitely had nothing to do with the way he looked, given how Shujinko couldn't remember ever coming across someone with his appearance, but his voice… His voice rang a faint bell.

To his surprise, the hooded man let out a sardonic laugh. "You must have the memory or the wit of a fish to say that. Don't tell me you've forgotten how we both arrived here. I admit I underestimated you the first time, but I assure you I won't make the same mistake twice," Before Shujinko had time to process what he had just heard, the hooded man jumped from the rooftop and landed next to his spear, pulling it out of the ground. The spear had three curved blades shaped like claws, which he pointed at Azula. "This is the part where you leave, young lady. You've had your fun with this one, but now it's my turn. I won't hesitate to kill you if you dare interrupt our fight,"

Under normal circumstances, Azula would've punished whoever had the nerve to speak to her in such a way. However, Azula was anything but an idiot. She was surrounded by enemies on all sides, and two of them seemed to possess abilities she had never seen before. Staying here would be akin to suicide, and as a staunch survivalist, Azula had to preserve her life by any means if she wanted to accomplish her goal. Much to her chagrin, and with her pride torn to shreds, the princess of the Fire Nation fled the scene to regroup with Mai and Ty Lee.

"Smart girl," the hooded man commented before setting his eyes on Shujinko. "Now we may proceed without any pesky distractions,"

"Who the hell are you!?" Shujinko barked. "Just what do you mean we both arrived here!? Explain yourself right now!"

"If you wish for answers, you'll have to defeat me first. I've been itching to test your strength against mine. Just keep in mind that should I kill you here and now, I'll pry the Eye of Kazemaru from your dead hands,"

And just like that, the hooded man threw himself at Shujinko, wielding his three-pronged spear. The Chunin jumped over him, and as he turned around in midair, he grabbed a couple of shurikens with his left hand and threw them at him. His opponent casually deflected them with a single swing of his weapon before charging a second time. Shujinko quickly dived to the side and began to hop away from his attacks, making sure to keep his distance.

Shujinko waited until the hooded man swung his spear horizontally. He ducked down, allowing the curved blades to pass before thrusting his kunai forward. The masked individual used his left hand to grab Shujinko's wrist, stopping the attack with insulting ease. Then, he squeezed his wrist to the point where Shujinko dropped his weapon, and once this happened, he sent Shujinko away with a kick to the chest. The brown-haired teen staggered backwards and nearly lost his footing, regaining control over his body just in time to see his enemy weaving hand signs.

"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!" A compressed gale of wind struck Shujinko right in the solar plexus, sending him rolling across the ground like a miserable ragdoll.

Once he stopped moving, the Chunin half-opened his eyes and saw the hooded man descending from above, ready to stab him upon landing. Shujinko immediately weaved a couple of hand signs and pointed his open palms at him. "Wind Style: Gale Palm!"

His jutsu wasn't sufficiently strong to push the hooded man away, but it did slow down his fall, which gave Shujinko enough time to respond. Just before the spear's blades got buried into the ground, the Ozuma rolled on to his side while reaching for his back pouch, grabbing an explosive tag that he placed next to him. Then, he jumped out of the way using his arms and performed a single hand sign that ignited the tag.

BOOOOOM

The detonation shook the streets of Tu Zin as waves of dust quickly expanded throughout the vicinity. Zuko, Iroh, and the members of Team Avatar fell to their knees, completely caught off guard by the blast. "W-What… What happened just now?" Aang asked between coughs, using Airbending to push the dust away from his friends. They all slowly stood up with their legs trembling, feeling a tad bit disoriented. "Where did that explosion came from?"

His question fell on deft ears as the waves of dust gradually faded away, revealing the aftermath of the explosion. The surface of the ground was covered in huge cracks and a smoking crater stood at the epicenter where they last saw Shujinko and the hooded man. They were struck by the sudden realization that their friend was nowhere to be seen, and for a brief moment, they were taken over by panic. "Shujinko!" Katara shouted as she went looking for the Chunin, ignoring her brother's cries of warning.

"Katara, stop! Don't come any closer!"

The waterbender stopped dead in her tracks, shocked to hear the sound of Shujinko's voice. A blowing wind removed what remained of the dust in the air, and once it drifted away, Team Avatar saw Shujinko standing on a chimney with his knees slightly bent, gasping and puffing. With the exception of his green flak jacket, all of his clothes were tattered and covered in dirt. Meanwhile, the masked shinobi was in front of him, casually sitting on the corner of the rooftop of the house from across the street.

"Good, very good. That last trick you pulled almost got me," the hooded man said. "A ninja who hesitates to take risks during a battle is no ninja at all. However, I know for a fact that you're not showing me the full extent of your abilities. Go on, stop wasting my time and unleash your power before it's too late,"

'Damn it, that was too close. This lunatic is really going for the kill,' Shujinko thought, breathing heavily through his nose. He had hoped his maneuver would've at least dealt some damage to his opponent, but the guy didn't even have a scratch on him. To make matters worse, he was exceptionally skilled at wielding that spear, which gave him the advantage in terms of close-range combat. 'A direct attack is pointless, but a fast counter with the Kazekiri might do the job. I don't see what other choice I have,'

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Aang, Toph, and Sokka joining Katara, assuming fighting stances and getting ready to jump into action. "What do you think you're doing?" Shujinko asked, alarmed at the thought of his friends getting hurt. "Stay back and don't butt in, this is not an enemy that you can handle!"

"Are you crazy, Shujinko? We're not gonna leave you to fight this guy on your own, you need our help!" Katara replied, opening the leather pouch where she kept water stored.

"I SAID STAY BACK, DAMN IT!" Shujinko shouted at the top of his lungs, even spatting a few drops of saliva with his yell. "You don't understand. This man is a shinobi, which means that only I can face him. You'll just be getting in the way, and if you interfere, he'll kill every single one of you! So for the last time, do what I'm telling you to do and keep yourselves out of this fight, is that clear!?"

It took Shujinko a few seconds to calm down, and when he did, he was at the receiving end of four flabbergasted stares. Team Avatar had never seen Shujinko lose his temper like that. Even when he was feeling angry or annoyed, the Ozuma had never lost his composure in front of them, keeping a cool head during stressful situations. Shujinko knew his words had been harsh and that they were just trying to help him out, but he simply didn't want them to die at the hands of a ninja who was only interested in him. If any of his friends got killed because of him, Shujinko would never be able to forgive himself.

That was why he was going to fight with everything he had. Clasping his hands together, Shujinko activated his Kekkei Genkai and got ready to brawl. "Karura Tensei!" he shouted, entering Hawk Sage Mode at once. Shujinko then drew a kunai and clamped the handle between his teeth before taking out a scroll from one of his vest's pockets.

POOF POOF

Two clouds of smoke appeared out of nowhere, and once they vanished, Team Avatar saw Shujinko wielding a pair of large, four-bladed weapons that resembled the shape of a star. "Demon Wind Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows," the Ozuma muttered as he unfolded the blades of both weapons, bending his knees until he assumed a crouching posture. The look on the faces of those who were watching this were all worthy of photographs, although their amazement came from various reasons.

Aang was surprised by the sudden change in Shujinko's appearance, for his friend looked different from before, with his eyes surrounded by golden lines that went below his ears and enlarged pupils. Toph was unable to witness Shujinko's physical transformation, but she managed to detect the two weapons that had magically appeared thanks to the shift in the earth's vibrations, and the earthbender couldn't figure out how Shujinko had done something like that. As for Sokka, he was impressed by these two things, but he was also in awe just by how overwhelmingly cool Shujinko looked right now.

Katara was shocked as well, but not by Shujinko's physical transformation or the weapons that had appeared in his hands. No, she was shocked by something else: His eyes. Those golden eyes that she had always found to be exotic and friendly were now violent and filled with killing intent. It felt as though she was staring at a completely different person, and Katara found herself involuntarily taking a step back.

"So, you've finally decided to take this battle seriously," the hooded man said as he stood up and brandished his spear, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. "About time. Show me what you're capable of, young shinobi, and should I find your efforts to be lacking, I'll make sure to take my frustration out on your little friends,"

"I won't let you lay a finger on them! I'll bite them off your hands if I have to, you bastard!"

The hooded man let out a chuckle. "That's the spirit. Well then, what are we waiting for?"

…

ZIP

In the blink of an eye, Shujinko left the chimney and jumped high into the air, almost as if he was floating. Once his fall began, the brown-haired teen pulled his arm back and threw one of the Demon Wind Shuriken at the hooded man, who instead of dodging the weapon, simply knocked it out of the way with a precise swing of his spear. The sound of metal clashing against metal was heard all over Tu Zin.

As soon as Shujinko landed on the ground, he immediately threw his other Demon Wind Shuriken. This time, the hooded man jumped upwards and allowed the weapon to follow its trajectory. 'Child's play,' the hooded man thought with a smirk hidden beneath his face mask.

CLICK CLICK CLICK CLICK

What the hooded man hadn't expected was the clanking noise he heard behind him, along with the wire stretched below his feet. Shujinko pulled the wire back and the blades of the Demon Wind Shuriken detached themselves. 'A rigged shuriken!'

SWOOSH

All four disassembled blades of the Demon Wind Shuriken were now coming towards him, promising to make mincemeat out of his body. The masked individual had no other choice but to turn around and perform a quick Wind Style jutsu, which blew the blades away from him but forced him to turn his back on his enemy, something extremely dangerous when dealing with a shinobi. By the time he turned around to set his eyes back on Shujinko, the Chunin had already jumped off the ground, throwing his kunai from his mouth to the palm of his hand.

CLAAANG

The hooded man barely managed to raise his weapon to block Shujinko's attack. Sparks flickered as Shujinko clashed his kunai against the blades of the clawed spear. The hooded man clenched his jaw, surprised by the strength and the ingenuity of the boy he was fighting. Before he could counter him, the young Ozuma used his free hand to grasp the spear shaft and pulled his knees to his chest, delivering a solid dropkick to the man's gut that sent him staggering backwards.

Once he regained his footing, the hooded man didn't retaliate immediately, and instead chose to adopt a defensive posture. "That was a smart move. It's been a while since I last had to defend myself like this. However, that's not enough to take down the likes of me,"

"That's what they all say," Shujinko replied as he started to focus wind chakra into his kunai, sharpening the weapon's blade.

With the power of the Karura Tensei, Shujinko could now react to his opponent's movements far more accurately than before, as Sage Mode provided him with a kinetic sensory boost that made him aware of almost everything that moved around him, as well as the chakra signature of the man in front of him. However, he could only maintain this form for a couple of minutes before it naturally shut itself off, and the longer he used it, the longer the cooldown time before he could activate it again.

'Still, I shouldn't try to use the Kazekiri right off the bat. I gotta wear him down first, see what else he's capable of, and then end him,' Shujinko thought before breaking into a sprint, his blood galloping through his veins.

The hooded man charged as well, and the large rooftop became the stage where the two opponents engaged in combat like the artists of death that they were. Shujinko mustered all of his speed and agility to attack and defend himself from the ferocious strikes of his enemy, who handled his spear as though it were another limb, displaying the proficiency of a master. The whistling noises of metal slashing through the air increased as the pair of ninjas blocked, parried, and countered each other's' blows relentlessly.

The rest of Team Avatar could only stare in bewilderment at the spectacle taking place. For the first time, they were watching their friend fighting someone without holding back, and it truly was a sight to behold. Shujinko was almost like a human whirlwind with the way he moved, and the hooded man was responding with the same intensity, making it impossible to tell which one of them had the upper hand. They could see now why he had told them to stay out of the fight.

Meanwhile, Zuko was getting ready to make his move. With no small effort, he diverted his eyes away from the ninjas and focused on the Avatar. He and his friends were so busy witnessing the fight that they had left themselves wide open for an attack, something that Zuko was more than willing to take advantage of.

"This is my chance," he muttered, but just as the banished prince was getting up to leave his hiding spot, he was grabbed and forced to stay down by his uncle.

"Prince Zuko, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to capture the Avatar once and for all," Zuko said impatiently. "I won't let him get away, not this time,"

To his surprise, Iroh tightened his grip on him and gave him a stern look, one that rarely appeared on his uncle's face. "Don't be hasty, my nephew. Trying to go after the Avatar in this precise moment could be disastrous for you. We must remain hidden and leave as soon as we can,"

"And waste the perfect opportunity to do what I came here to do? Are you crazy?" Zuko retorted, glaring angrily at Iroh. "Azula is gone, and the Avatar and his friends are distracted by those two fighting over there. Do you really expect me to sit here and do nothing?"

"For your own sake, yes,"

The scarred firebender furrowed his brow, confused by his uncle's words and attitude. "Just what do you mean by that?"

"Look at what is happening. Look at what those two are doing," Iroh responded as he gestured at the rooftop where the ninjas were having their confrontation. "It's clear that they are not normal individuals. They possess abilities the likes of which I've never seen before, not to mention the strange but deadly weapons they are wielding. I don't know who they are, but I can tell you this much: They are dangerous, prince Zuko, far too dangerous for either of us,"

In spite of himself, Zuko resisted the urge to act and thought about what his uncle was saying. As brash and hotheaded as he could be, Zuko was no fool. Those two, whoever or whatever they were, couldn't possibly be from around here. One of them had pummeled Azula like it was nothing, and judging by the tone of the fight, it was more than likely that the guy with the spear could've done the same. At that moment, the firebender understood what his uncle was getting at.

If he went after the Avatar now, it was possible that the brown-haired boy would stop fighting and go help the airbender. The hooded man made it clear that he would kill whoever interrupted them, and that most certainly included him. If those two were powerful enough to take on Azula, the probabilities of Zuko standing victorious against either of them were close to none, as much as it infuriated the prince.

With that in mind, Zuko ended up biting his tongue before standing down, just in time to watch the pair of warriors jumping off the building to continue fighting in midair, defying the laws of gravity in a way that Zuko had never thought possible.

CLANG CLANG CLANG

The two ninjas landed in the middle of the dusty street, both of them huffing and puffing. Shujinko let out a quiet but prolonged grunt of pain as his right hand trembled, barely able to still hold the kunai after parrying so many attacks. His agility and his sharpened senses were allowing him to keep up with the hooded man, but they weren't enough to land a strike on him, and it was only a matter of time before the Karura Tensei faded away.

'That's not all,' Shujinko thought, rubbing his aching wrist. 'He has probably recognized most of my fighting pattern by now. I can sense him anticipating my moves little by little. This is going to be risky, but if I want to throw him off, I have to switch things up. Thank Kami I still have most of my chakra,'

"What's the matter, young one? Can't think of a way to beat me?" the hooded man taunted him.

"Don't get it twisted. I already know I'm going to beat you, I just had a hard time deciding how to humiliate you first," Shujinko retorted, not being one to shy away from trash talk. Backing up his words, however, was going to be much more challenging. With his kunai held in a reverse grip, Shujinko raised the index and middle fingers of his hands and made a cross sign with them. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

POOF POOF

Two copies of Shujinko appeared next to him, and just like the original, the clones were also in Sage Mode. This time, the jaws of Zuko and Iroh hit the ground as they witnessed something so, so far beyond all comprehension. What the hell kind of magic was that? What in the name of the Spirits was the meaning of this?

"Shadow clones? Oh please, I've already seen this little trick of yours before. You might've caught me off guard the first time, but it won't work twice,"

The words of the hooded man caused Shujinko to frown deeply. He was talking as if the two of them had fought each other in the past, and although there was something strangely familiar about the hooded man, Shujinko thought he would remember someone like him if they had ever stumbled upon each other. The Chunin shook his head and reminded himself not to get distracted, for he was fighting for his life right now. Answers would have to wait, no matter how much he wanted them.

After taking a deep breath, Shujinko concentrated a small amount of chakra in his feet and darted towards the hooded man as fast as he could, with his shadow clones following him from behind. The hooded man charged as well and swung his spear in a horizontal fashion. To his surprise, Shujinko dropped to his knees and slid himself forward, bending his back just enough to allow the blades of the spear to pass over his head. Once he got past his opponent, the golden-eyed boy continued to slide on his knees before throwing a smoke bomb at the ground, disappearing out of everyone's sight.

The hooded man was slightly confused by this action, but he had no time to dwell on it as the brat's shadow clones were coming at him, wielding kunais of their own. The clones combined their efforts to deliver a barrage of attacks that forced the hooded man onto the defensive, evading his spear with swift and fluid movements while aiming at critical body points.

Suddenly, one of the shadow clones ducked down and grabbed a handful of sand and dirt from the ground, which he then threw at the hooded man's face. Some of the mixture got into his eyes, blinding the spearmaster for a few seconds and making him grunt in discomfort. Those few seconds were all the clones needed to connect a vicious punch each, burying their fists deep into the man's gut and knocking the wind out of him. The clones then restrained him by holding his arms and kicking his legs until the hooded man was brought to his knees.

That was when the original Shujinko came out of his hiding spot with another Demon Wind Shuriken in his hands. The Ozuma climbed up the wall of a house and jumped high into the air, intending to finish the fight once and for all.

'So this was his plan all along. He needed his clones to hold me down in one place before he could attempt a final strike. Not bad, but not good enough,' the hooded man thought.

"This ends now!" Shujinko roared as he descended upon him.

"Only for you, it does!" The hooded man rose to his feet and got a hold of the shadow clones that were subduing him. Making use of his superior strength, he grabbed the clones by the skull and slammed their faces together as hard as he could, turning them into clouds of smoke.

With no one to restrain his body, the hooded man lifted his weapon from the ground, waited for his enemy to come closer, and then drove his spear into him, piercing through his belly with a single thrust.

…

TWACK

There were no words to describe what followed next. Team Avatar watched in absolute horror as the body of their friend hung limp in the air, being held by the spear of the hooded man. It was so unexpected, so brutal and haunting, that it simply didn't make any sense. For a brief moment, the world around them stood still, and it wasn't until Katara screamed that the terrible reality came rushing in on them, striking the teenagers like a swing of a sword.

"SHUJINKOOO!" the waterbender yelled at the top of her lungs, feeling her heart tearing itself apart. Overwhelmed by pain and shocked out of her mind, Katara fell to her knees and began to cry, sobbing loudly and with excruciating agony. Tears dribbled down her cheeks like a rainstorm, and a pit growing inside her stomach wasn't letting her breathe.

Sokka's reaction was the complete opposite of Katara's, yet no less suffocating for him. "No… This, this can't be…" he mumbled, dropping his weapons without even realizing it. An extreme feeling of dizziness got a hold of him and he could no longer think straight. Sokka tried to move, yet found himself unable to, for his eyes were firmly fixated on the gruesome sight in front of them, torturing him.

Toph was the only member of the group who had retained a level of composure. Instead of being struck by anguish or disbelief like the Water Tribe siblings, the earthbender had an expectant look on her face, waiting for something else to happen. Once again, her deep connection to the Earth had allowed Toph to notice what others could not, and what she noticed during that last exchange of blows was…

"How unfortunate," the hooded man said, smirking behind his mask. "He was too hasty and couldn't wait to play his cards. That is what led him to his death,"

His mocking of Shujinko, whose body was still being stabbed by him, came to a halt when he noticed the slight tremor beneath his feet, as well as the bristling wind coming from behind. The hooded man looked over his shoulder to check the source of the sudden change, only to see one of the brat's friends acting up in a rather noticeable fashion. His arrow tattoos, which were once of a light shade of blue, were now glowing with the intensity of the sun along with his eyes, covered in white energy that irradiated raw power.

Aang was entering the Avatar State, consumed by some of the darkest emotions the young monk had ever experienced in his life. Witnessing the death of Shujinko, his comrade, his friend, the one who had helped and whom they had promised to help in return, caused something inside of him to snap. His pain turned into anger, his anger turned into rage, and his rage triggered the Avatar State without Aang even becoming aware of it. Concepts such as reason and rationality lost all their meaning, leaving Aang with nothing but a thirst, a desire to punish the one responsible for all of this.

Distracted by what was going on, the hooded man lost focus for a moment, and that was when two things happened at once: The body of the slain Chunin burst into a cloud of smoke, and so did the Demon Wind Shuriken that laid on the ground next to him.

"What the-"

"Kazekiri!"

Before the hooded man could fully grasp what had happened, the Demon Wind Shuriken transformed into Shujinko, who weaved a couple of hand signs as quickly as possible and then dived towards his enemy. The Kazekiri, or Wind Blade, was the most lethal jutsu in Shujinko's arsenal, and the brown-haired boy used it in conjunction with the Karura Tensei to finish his opponents off when they least expected it. A silvery blade of wind, which started at Shujinko's forearm and extended past his fingertips, finally sentenced the outcome of the fight.

SWOOOSH

By the time the hooded man tried to protect himself, the young shinobi had already gotten past him, and both the fight and his life had concluded. The hooded man fell to the ground, victim of Shujinko's Kazekiri, which remained active in the boy's arm as he panted in exhaustion. Once again, nobody made a move or a sound, as they were impacted not only by the man's death, but mostly by the fact the Ozuma was somehow still alive.

Using what little was left of his nature energy, Shujinko searched for his enemy's chakra signature in order to make sure that he was dead. When he couldn't find it, he let out a sigh and closed his eyes, allowing the Kazekiri to fade away on its own. 'It's over… I did it…' And just like that, Shujinko deactivated the Karura Tensei and fell to the side, too tired to remain standing.

"Shujinko!" Katara cried out as she went to help him, her cheeks still stained with fresh tears. Once she arrived at his side, the waterbender knelt next to Shujinko, who hadn't lost consciousness despite his weary state. Overjoyed with relief and unable to control herself any longer, Katara pulled Shujinko into a hug so tight that it nearly made the Chunin's face go purple due to lack of oxygen. "You're alive! You're alive! I-I thought that I… That we had lost you!"

"… Katara… I… You're not… Can't breathe,"

Katara simply ignored his mumbled words and hugged him even harder as they were approached by Sokka and Toph. The blind earthbender warned Katara that unless she wanted Shujinko to really die this time, she would have to loosen up her embrace and let the boy catch his breath. Katara begrudgingly did so, but still held Shujinko close to her as Sokka checked up on him, refusing to leave his side for anything in the world at that precise moment.

"Are you okay? Can you hear me? How many fingers do you see?" Sokka asked as he raised three of his fingers in front of Shujinko's face. The brown-haired boy merely grumbled in response, which didn't stop Sokka's eyes from brightening with excitement. "Man, that was the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my entire life! You were all like woosh, baam, and kapow! Oh, and you have to teach me how to throw one of those giant shuriken things. I had no idea you ninjas used such cool weapons!"

"I don't know what you guys are talking about. This whole thing wasn't that big of a deal," Toph said in a casual tone, but with a smile on her face that betrayed the sarcasm of her words. "Took you long enough to beat that guy, huh?" In reality, Toph knew all along that Shujinko was going to win. Not because of a feeling or a premonition, but because the Chunin had trusted her to fight her own battles in the past, so displaying the same amount of trust towards him was the least Toph could do.

"Shujinko?"

Everyone turned around to see Aang slowly walking towards them with a stunned look on his face, his tattoos no longer glowing. Just before he could go on a mindless rampage in the Avatar State, the voices of his friends reached his consciousness, especially the voice of Katara. Hearing the waterbender claim that Shujinko was alive caused Aang to stop and actually pay attention to what was going on, and to his utter shock, he saw that Katara was right. He had no idea how or why and neither did he care. All that mattered to him was that Shujinko wasn't dead, and knowing that he wasn't dead was enough to calm him down and regain control of his emotions.

Shujinko exhaled and sat on the ground with his elbows resting on his knees. His strategy had worked, albeit at the expense of a considerable portion of his chakra. The two shadow clones that he first created had been necessary to keep the hooded man on his toes. While he was hiding, Shujinko created a third shadow clone meant to fool the hooded man into thinking that it was him, followed by a Transformation Jutsu that turned the Ozuma into the Demon Wind Shuriken that the shadow clone was wielding. Then there was the Kazekiri, the jutsu that allowed Shujinko to get the drop on the spearmaster.

The combined chakra cost that derived from performing all those techniques had reduced his chakra to dangerously low levels. He could faint at any given moment, and it would take him days or maybe even weeks to get his strength back. In spite of that, he was still alive, which was more than what could be said about the hooded man, who got his throat slit by Shujinko's last jutsu. His body lay inert some meters away from them, and though it was practically inevitable, Shujinko hoped none of his friends would turn around to see it.

"What now?" Shujinko asked in a drowsy voice.

"We're getting out of here, that's what we're doing. Sis, give me a hand," Sokka said as he grabbed Shujinko's arm and placed it around his shoulders, with Katara doing the same. "Aang, use that whistle to call Appa. I know he's still exhausted, but we don't need to get very far this time. Toph, how about you-"

"So you are indeed the one the prophecy spoke of, after all,"

Shujinko's heart jumped into his throat the moment he heard that voice. Everyone turned around to see what the hell was going on, and to their befuddlement, the hooded man was standing on top of a building, staring at Shujinko like a predator ready to jump down on its prey.

"But… How is this possible?" Shujinko asked, feeling like he was about to drop if Sokka and Katara stopped holding him. "I-I killed… You're supposed to be-"

"Dead?" the hooded man interrupted. "You might want to take a closer look, young one," The Ozuma redirected his gaze to where the hooded man's body fell after attacking him with the Kazekiri. The corpse was turning into a pile of shapeless mud decomposing on the ground while the spear was nowhere to be seen. "That right there was a Mud Clone, a variation from the Shadow Clone Jutsu that you're so adept at. I created it in order to test your skills, and I must say, you did not disappoint me,"

The revelation struck Shujinko like a punch in the gut from the Fifth Hokage. All of this time, he'd been fighting against a clone of his enemy, spending tons of chakra while doing so. A freezing shiver ran down his spine as the Chunin realized how sorely he'd been made a fool of, and in his current state, there was no way he could put up another fight and come out on top. He was out of ideas, and a ninja who was out of ideas was as defenseless as a deer in front of a pack of wolves.

"Seeing the look on your face is almost as amusing as it was for me to watch you fight. If it makes you feel any better, I transferred roughly about four-fifths of my chakra and my overall strength into that clone, so it's not like you defeated an empty shell of mine. I had my doubts about you at first, but now, I'm more convinced than ever that you're my counterpart, my fated opponent,"

"You know what? I've had it with this guy," Toph said all of a sudden. She pointed a finger at the hooded man and gave him a defiant glare, much to Shujinko's distress. "Who are you? Why are you after Shujinko and why do you talk like a deranged crackpot?"

"Mind your tongue before you lose it, child. The reason why I'm here has nothing to do with any of you except for him. As for who am I, there's no need to reveal my name. However, I am known as the Savior, which in turn makes your friend here the Condemner. Two opposite forces bringing forth two different futures, wrestling tirelessly until one of them perishes at the hands of the other. That is what we are,"

Savior? Condemner? Shujinko had no idea what he meant by that, and he certainly didn't know why he was being labeled a condemner of some kind. Whatever the reason was, this self-proclaimed 'savior' mentioned a prophecy that somehow involved the two of them. Once again, the Chunin was at a loss, and he felt he was being fed a bunch of poppycock spewed by a lunatic.

Lunatic or not, the hooded man knew things he wasn't supposed to, such as the Eye of Kazemaru that Shujinko carried inside his backpack. No one outside of the Ozuma clan could possibly have that kind of knowledge, and since the Ozuma were almost extinct, it made even less sense for the hooded man to possess such information. Shujinko had so many questions to ask him, but his body and his mind were running on fumes at this point, struggling just to stay awake.

The hooded man spoke once again. "This won't be the last time we'll see each other. Even though I could kill you right now, I'll reserve the pleasure for a later date. Before I leave, let me give you one final piece of advice: The sooner you open your eyes, the sooner you'll realize what are we doing here and what our destinies have in store for us. I'll be eagerly waiting for our next meeting,"

"Wait!" Aang shouted, but it was too late. The hooded man performed a backward summersault and landed on the back of a huge hawk that came gliding down from the sky, taking him away and flying off into the sunset.

The thousands of questions that were popping up inside the Avatar's head were interrupted by a grunt that escaped from Shujinko's mouth. The Chunin looked fatigued while his chin bobbed up and down, on the verge of passing out. Even his knees were shaking despite Sokka and Katara being there to help him stay on his feet. Aang didn't hesitate to grab his whistle and call for Appa so that they could get out of there at once.

"Shujinko, you have to be strong right now," Katara said in a worried tone of voice, trying to get Shujinko to meet her gaze. "Appa is on his way here, we'll take you somewhere safe. Please, hold on a little longer,"

"I'm fine… I'm fine…" Shujinko managed to mumble. "Used too much chakra… Just need to… rest up for a bit…" In an attempt to reassure his friends, the Ozuma gently pushed the Water Tribe sibling aside and took a few steps forward, proving to them that his condition wasn't as bad as it looked.

His idea failed spectacularly, however, when he tried to take another step and almost ended up breaking his nose after falling to the ground. His vision became a blurry mess and all he could hear were the distorted voices of his friends calling his name in distress. Shujinko tried to get up, but his body wouldn't respond to him.

The last thing that reached his mind was the image of Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph sitting by his side, trying to get him to snap out of it. Then, everything turned black, and the Chunin drifted off into unconsciousness.

Aaaaand that was chapter 12. Hope you all enjoyed it.

Boom, there you have it, the chapter you were all waiting for. I wanted to write this since I began this story, and boy am I glad it's finally here.

So far, this is easily the most challenging chapter that I've ever written for this story. I had to give it my all in order to create and develop two fight scenes in a row, making sure that both of them were believable and entertaining to read. What I aimed for was that raw feeling that was present in OG Naruto whenever there was a fight, mixing strategy with fast-paced action. Please let me know your honest thoughts about it.

The hooded man has finally presented himself once again. I'm sorry for repeatedly referring to him as 'the hooded man', but since his real name remains a mystery, I didn't have a lot of room in that regard. As for his identity, his motives, and his origins, well, you'll just have to wait and see. Like the Savior said, this certainly won't be his last appearance.

Also, did you enjoy reading the reactions of Iroh and Zuko? The pair of them had their minds blown by Shujinko and the hooded man. Since they have never seen a fight between two ninjas before, I figured I had to include their thoughts and reactions, and even though it was difficult, I have to admit it was darn fun to write.

Sadly, I don't think I'll be able to get the next chapter done until February, as I am currently quite busy studying for my exams and whatnot. I finished this chapter as fast as I could because you guys deserved it after waiting for so long, but now, I have to take care of other stuff. Thanks to all of you for your support.

Don't forget to Review, Favorite & Follow

Peace!