Disclaimer: "While I may not own Naruto, I'm certain I have owned in it at least three or four separate dreams! Not quite exactly certain, though. I very rarely remember my dreams, and as of right now, I'm not particularly good at getting sleep either! But hey, that's what melatonin is for, am I right!? :D
... (cries in insomnia) (cries in still not owning Naruto)
"H-Hey! We need to get out of here! All of us!" Kazuo shouted.
With their match officially over, Team Anko and Team Misora hurried out of the exam floor as bombs started to rain down coming from the giant bird flying above the stadium. Debris spread throughout as the six genin rushed out to the best of their abilities trying to avoid getting hit. One bomb managed to catch the group off-guard and started to fall directly towards them.
Yūna made five hand signs, ending in the horse seal: "Lightning Style: Lightning Style Wall!"
Bolts of lightning transferred from Yūna's hands directly outward, forming a makeshift barrier between the egg bomb and the genin. The bomb connected with the barrier, causing the lightning to scatter as the bomb continued to fall forward, unfettered.
Before it could connect and blow the six genin to bits, Killer Bee and Yugito jumped forward, channeling their bijū chakra. Octopus tails developed behind Bee's body. One of the tails grabbed onto the egg, catching it and throwing it back into the air directly at its source. The giant bird flew to the right, avoiding the egg just as it exploded in the sky.
"Get out of here kids, it's time that you hid." Bee stated sharply.
The genin nodded their heads as they hurried out of the stadium. With the six able to get away, Bee and Yugito turned their attention towards the flying bird in the sky.
"I have no clue what kind of summoning contract that thing's from, but it needs to get shot down." Yugito said, her eyes narrowing on it.
"Leave that to me! Wind Style: Drift!"
Bee and Yugito turned their attention to the bleachers as they watched Uzumaki Naruto jump directly out of his seat and into the air. Instead of freefalling, however, the blond started to fly up into the air directly at the large bird as he began to channel chakra into his hands, forming a Rasengan. He attempted to slam the orb into the bird's body, but it rapidly ascended further into the sky, avoiding his attack.
'That thing's fast.' Naruto bit his lip as his eyes focused on it. 'I need to shoot that thing out of the sky somehow. Maybe-'
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A large poof of smoke filled the air as a large green chimera-like chameleon with a snake for a tail appeared in the exam stadium. The chameleon opened its mouth, causing its tongue to rush up towards Naruto's right leg. The Uzumaki flew to the left, narrowly avoiding the tongue, before noticing the bird flying directly at him, spinning in a circular fashion. Naruto held out his hands as he managed to catch the bird's drill-like beak before it impaled him, hissing in pain from the shear force as the drill started to cut into his palms. The bird continued to fly downward, however, forcing Naruto back down to the ground.
"What the hell kind of summons are these?" Naruto asked.
"Not certain." Yugito admitted as she held out her hands, claws starting to form on her fingers as she lunged forward: "Let's study this one after we cut it to shreds! Cat Claw!"
As Yugito rushed towards the giant bird, the bird attempted to fly away once more. Naruto, however, tightened his grip on the bird, preventing it from flying away as Yugito slashed at the bird with her claws, ripping it apart.
"One down." She noted before turning to face the chameleon: "Now, the next one-"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
More poof of smoke filled the area as summon-after-summon arrived in the battlefield. A large rhino, a giant centipede, and a giant dog with multiple-heads all formed in the battlefield. The rhino stampeded directly at Yugito with enough speed that it collided against her before she could jump, sending her flying backwards. She hissed slightly in pain just as the chameleon opened its mouth again.
Catching her footing, Yugito jumped away just before the creature could ensnare her as she jumped to Naruto's side. The two were then joined by Bee, who was currently eyeing each of the summons.
"Don't like the way this fight's becoming. Y'all know where these monsters are coming?" Bee asked.
"I…" Naruto closed his eyes for his moments, as he took in the chakra presences around him with his Sage Mode. While there were a lot of different chakra sources all throughout Kumo that made it almost overwhelming to pinpoint a specific one, he noticed a presence hidden inside the stadium: "I think… I think I found it. It's somewhere inside the stadium."
"We have to flush it out." Yugito stated sharply: "We need this summoner dealt with before any higher-up Akatsuki agents show-up."
"Leave that to me."
Naruto, Yugito, and Bee turned their heads as Han appeared in the stadium's battlefield, his furnace emitting extensive amounts of steam.
"I think the summoner's a guy. He's hiding in a boiler room, I think." Naruto noted. A frown then developed on his face: "Although I can sense something… off… about his chakra signature. Be careful, Han-nii."
"I will be." Han nodded his head: "The other jinchūriki should be here shortly. Be prepared and ready for when the enemies strike."
With those words, Han rushed off into the stadium.
Team Nine had been warned by their jōnin-sensei about the 'extent' of the chaos that would come from the invasion, and they listened and believed his words. Nothing, however, compared to seeing what he meant in person.
"Lightning Style: Lightning Signal!"
Shinobi throughout the bleachers engaged in combat with one another. One stray lightning jutsu – an electrical discharge that flew almost like fire – was sent flying into the genin teams' designated seating area. The genin all dodged as the jutsu connected with one of the chairs, creating a massive discharge that spread like a firework. All the genin teams present rushed towards the stairs, hurrying out.
"Things are going to get dangerous really fast." Moegi noted, biting down on her lip.
Katsumi nodded her head: "We need to make a plan together-"
"Plan?" Maitake asked, rolling her eyes: "How about 'every team for themselves' and leave it at that?"
Before anyone could even reply, the Kusagakure genin team, led by Maitake, proceeded to hurry down the stairs ahead of everyone else.
"H-Hey! Wait!" Udon called out, frowning: "You can't just leave us-"
"She's got a point." Kanbatsu, a Suna genin on Team Temari, spoke-up: "We all need to do our own things."
With those words, the Suna genin team hurried off ahead. The Iwa genin team followed behind. Before too long, only Team Naruto, Moegi, and Udon were left behind.
"That makes no sense." Kanji hissed to himself, his hands tightening into fists: "We're all genin. It really would be better for us all to be working together against anyone-"
"Moegi! Udon!"
The Konoha genin all turned their heads as they watched Konohamaru rushing up the stairs towards them, followed behind by Team Anko and Team Misora. They all met on one of the floors connecting to another level of the bleachers.
"You got out of the infirmary just in time." Moegi noted, sighing in relief at the sight of their teammate: "How much have you recovered? Are you ready?"
"Ready as I'll ever be." Konohamaru noted, frowning slightly: "Although I think the Kumo team is still asleep."
"Then that should be our priority for now." Kazuo spoke-up, crossing his arms. "They'll need protection until they wake-up."
Kinosaki nodded his head: "We can keep them safe in case if anyone else comes for them."
"Ah, but who would go out of their way to just for them?"
All twelve genin tensed-up at the sound of the voice as a figure appeared in a flicker directly in the middle, knocking all twelve of them back.
En Oyashiro steadied himself as his eyes moved from genin-to-genin, a grin on his face.
'What the hell? I never saw him approaching us.' Hanabi bit her lip, her Byakugan narrowing on this man: 'He really managed to get over to us that fast that I didn't even notice him?'
'Who is this guy?' Tsunemasa hissed, the kikaichū in his body starting to buzz loudly in anticipation.
"That was a serious question. The Kumo genin team that made it to this exam, to put it bluntly, was basic. Powerless. All three of them are nothing special. No value. Shinobi like them are a single yen a dozen. There's no point to do anything to those brats." Oyashiro noted, adjusting his sunglasses. His gaze finally focused on Terumi Kinosaki as his grin widened: "You, though… Terumi-san, yes? You're not basic, though. You're pretty valuable."
"You want to fight, huh?" Kinosaki stiffened as he began to channel chakra into his hands, causing steam to start forming from his fingers: "I'll be happy to oblige!"
"Get away from them!"
Three Kumogakure shinobi rushed from the bleachers into the inner room, rushing directly at Oyashiro, each wielding swords. As they approached him, the man chuckled as he slowly pulled off his sunglasses, revealing red colored eyes with a pink dash running through his pupil.
'What are those?' Katsumi's eyes widened. 'A dōjutsu?'
'Those eyes…' Yūna's stomach dropped before she immediately turned to face her peers: "Everyone, do NOT make eye contact with that man! If you do, it'll be the last thing you do!"
Yūna's warning came to late for one of the Kumogakure shinobi, who did not recognize the eyes. Upon making eye contact, his eyes started to glow a bright red coloration. The other two Kumo shinobi continued on their approach, attempting to slash at Oyashiro. The man jumped back, avoiding both attacks. The third Kumo shinobi then finally jumped forward, and instead of striking at Oyashiro, impaled one of his comrades in the back.
"Agh!" The man groaned as blood started to pour from his wound and coat the sword.
"Wh-What the hell?" The second Kumo shinobi nearly shouted as he turned to face his comrade: "What are you-"
"Ah, look at all that delicious blood. You spewed so much, I can do something extra fun!" Oyashiro chuckled as he made a hand sign: "Spears of Blood!"
More blood started to pour from the open wound on the first Kumogakure's shinobi chest, causing him to scream louder until he finally died from blood loss. The newly released blood then flew forward at the second Kumogakure shinobi in the form of a spear, piercing his head and killing him instantly.
"What?" Konohamaru's eyes widened in horror as his stomach dropped.
"This man's a member of the Chinoike Clan." Yūna spoke-up: "They were a presumed deceased clan that lived in the Valley of Hell of Yu no Kuni. They possessed a dōjutsu called the Ketsuryūgan, giving them simultaneous control over blood, as well as an affinity for brainwashing genjutsu."
"Got ourselves a brainiac amongst the Konoha brats, huh? I really hate that kind of person." Oyashiro grumbled in reply.
He touched his right hand on the third Kumogakure shinobi's head: the one he was currently brainwashing. With his left hand, he pulled out a kunai and stabbed the man's shoulder, creating an open, bleeding wound. Oyashiro's hand then moved down the man's body until he reached the open wound before he pulled his hand away.
A trail of blood started to slowly pour of Kumogakure shinobi. The man continued to stand still with no reaction as his blood was slowly drained until he finally fell to the ground, having died of blood loss. Despite his death, however, the last bit of traces of blood continued to pour out until all of it surrounded Oyashiro's body, forming multiple rings of blood around his body.
"Oh… my god…" Udon felt his stomach churning as he inched away.
'This guy… we're clearly out of his league…' Kanji bit down on his lip. 'Naruto-sensei advised us to steer clear of guys like this… but the hell are we supposed to do if one just up and confronts us like this?'
"I'll confess, I don't like killing kids much, so in the spirit of fair business, how about I cut you brats a deal?" Oyashiro offered. He pointed towards Kinosaki for a moment before pointing at Hanabi: "I'm in the business of kekkei genkai. The Terumi and the Hyūga are going to come with me, and if they come without a fight, the rest of you get to leave here with your lives. Sound fair?"
"The fuck kind of deal is that?" Katsumi nearly spat out as she reached for her sword. "Hell no! You're not touching Hanabi or Terumi-san! Fuck no!"
"Sh-She's right." One of the Kiri shinobi – a kunoichi named Ika – shook her head. "Back off! Kinosaki-kun isn't going with you!"
"I mean, I'm taking them regardless. Was just trying to give the rest of you an-out." Oyashiro sighed: "But that 'no' was pretty immediate. Guess none of you kids are good for business, huh? Although that's maybe cause you're all young and dumb." He made a hand sign as one of the rings of blood started to move forward slightly, forming a whip-like appearance. "Maybe if I kill one of you, you'll all understand to back off! Piercing Blood!"
The blood rushed forward directly at Konohamaru. The Sarutobi's eyes widened in response, but he had no time to block the attack.
Before it could connect, however, Kawada Misora jumped down in the inner level of the stadium and swung her scythe at the blood, splitting it in half and preventing it from striking at Konohamaru.
"Hmm?" Oyashiro frowned in response.
"Misora-sensei!" Kinosaki called out, alongside his two teammates.
"Got here in time, thank the gods." Misora sighed in relief before she shook her head. She gripped her scythe tightly as she adjusted her body, facing Oyashiro. "You all need to retreat. Leave this man to me."
"Kawada-san, you need to be careful." Yūna called out: "He's a member of the Chinoike Clan."
"I'm aware." Misora nodded her head before gesturing to her right: "Now, get out of here already!"
The four genin teams hurried off without another word. Oyashiro's eyes watched the fleeing shinobi leave, his frown growing deeper, before he turned to face Misora.
"You realize that you stalling me isn't going to stop me from finding them, right?" He noted. "The most you did was add another five minutes, tops, before I get over to them."
"Rather overconfident I see, En Oyashiro." Misora stated sharply, her eyes narrowing slightly.
Immediately, the frown on Oyashiro's face morphed into a smirk: "Oh, you recognize me?"
"I'm very familiar with you. After all, during our country's most tumultuous time, you would snipe some our disenfranchised kekkei genkai users to be apart of your war mongering business." Misora replied.
Oyashiro shrugged his shoulders: "As far as I'm concerned, I prevented some of them from dying in your little civil war, but if that's how you want to interpret history, then there's nothing I can do about that."
Misora's only response was to tighten her grip on her scythe. Oyashiro, meanwhile, leaned back slightly as the blood rings around his body started to spin even faster.
The invasion on Kumo was unlike anything Hinata had ever seen before. Comparing it to the invasions on Konoha and Taki was impossible, as she had not expected those attacks from coming, skewing her perspective on both events. The invasion on Kiri, meanwhile, was one she participated from the opposite end, and considering her role in targeting the Mizukage's Mansion, she did not experience how the invasion looked properly.
Nothing compared to the shear knowledge of what was coming, followed by enemy shinobi rushing from the shadows, disguised in shinobi uniforms of various backgrounds, attacking any shinobi and village they came across.
She and her father had been waiting in Kumo's residential district, near the apartments that she and the rest of the Konoha shinobi had been staying in. She had been biding her time, waiting for the first sign of enemy action. The moment the attacks began, she was ready, her bow out and an arrow notched in it.
"Water Style: Never Ending Arrow Downpour!"
Hinata launched an arrow into the sky that quickly fell back down to the earth, accompanied by hundreds of water arrows. The arrows rained down on a group of five missing ninja, causing them to shout as the arrows impaled them. Three of them fell to the ground while the other two charged forward at her.
Both enemy shinobi quickly closed the distance, both holding kunai in their hands. They attempted to stab at her, but Hinata jumped back, avoiding the attack. One of the enemy shinobi brought his hands together before opening his mouth just as Hiashi jumped in front of his daughter, extending his palms forward.
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
"Eight Trigrams Mountain Crusher!"
As the Akatsuki affiliate breathed out a massive fire stream from his mouth, Hiashi released a massive burst of chakra from his palms directly forward at the two enemies. Hiashi's chakra wave extinguished the flames upon impact and immediately collided into both shinobi before they could jump away.
The force of Hiashi's 'mountain crusher' hit the fire-release user head-on, crushing his head instantly killing him. The second shinobi, while not killed, was knocked back heavily with bruises forming all over his body. Hinata took the opportunity to fire another arrow directly at the enemy, hitting him directly in the temple, killing him.
"That's your Mountain Crusher, father?" Hinata asked, her Byakugan focusing on her father. "I don't think I've ever seen it deal that much damage."
"You must know we've never actually fought all-out, Hinata." Hiashi noted. "While you're probably stronger than me as a whole, I hope my skills with the Hyūga Clan techniques are worthy of at least some respect."
"They are-"
"NUE!"
Hinata's eyes widened in horror at the familiar scream echoed throughout her mind. Then, a large sensation of negative emotions began to radiate through the business district, a few kilometers from her position. She turned her head in time to see the large chimera, Nue, fall from the sky onto a large building, crushing it instantly and creating a fire.
"What the devil is that creature?" Hiashi nearly shouted. "The chakra it's emitting feels almost toxic!"
"N-Nue…" Hinata mumbled, her hands tightening into fists: 'Those ROOT agents really are here, huh…' She shook her head: "Father, we need to find that monster's summoner. He's a man named Shigaraki Tanuki and that monster is stronger as long as he's able to control his movements. We need to find and kill him."
"Understood." Hiashi nodded his head: "We need to move-"
"Ninja Art: Blinding Light!"
Before Hinata and Hiashi could start moving, a bright shining light enveloped the area around them.
"AGH!" Both father-and-daughter hissed as the light overwhelmed their vision, forcing them to close their eyes.
Hinata and Hiashi tried their best to overcome the blinding sensation from the jutsu. As they opened their eyes, the light now completely obfuscated mostly everything around them; they could no longer see into the distance, to the point where they could not even see the giant Nue in the distance. The only things either shinobi could see were their immediate surroundings and a silhouette of a man approaching both of them, wielding a sword, rushing at Hiashi.
"Father!" Hinata called out.
Hiashi immediately spun around in a circular fashion: "Rotation!"
The Hyūga Clan head expelled a large amount of chakra from his palms, forming a barrier that blocked the oncoming sword. The assailant was knocked back by the force of the rotation, and in addition, the blinding light around the battlefield was dispelled, giving immediate relief to both Hinata and Hiashi.
They were also able to see the form of their attacker: ANBU Operative 'Dragon' and former ROOT researcher, Tsumiki Kido.
"You're the ROOT operative that managed to escape from Naruto-kun and Fū-san." Hinata noted, her eyes narrowing.
"And you're the shinobi who managed to force Tanuki to flee." Kido replied, a small smirk on his face: "You were unable to kill him, though. That was a rather misfortunate blunder on your part. Now that monstrosity was dropped on this village as a result of that mistake."
Hinata's eyes focused back on Nue. She could see the chimera swinging its tail around, toppling more buildings. Despite the distance, she could hear the vague sounds of screaming as shinobi-after-shinobi tried to confront it.
Her eyes quickly turned back to Kido, narrowing on him: "Get out of our way!"
"And waste this opportunity to fight against someone who managed to best Tanuki? Not happening." Kido said, chuckling: "Besides, you're in no way able to make demands of me, Hyūga." He then clapped his hands: "Ninja Art: Blinding Light!"
Another flash of light emitted from Kido's hands. The blinding sensation returned to both Hinata and Hiashi, causing them to flinch and lose their focus on the area around them once more.
"You…" Hiashi grit his teeth in response as he tried to focus on Kido's position.
"Irritated, Hiashi-san? Strange. You never struck me as a person with visible emotions. Suppose that could change on a battlefield when you're outmatched." Kido spoke-up with a chuckle. "After all, this jutsu isn't particularly kind on your Byakugan, hmm?"
"Rotation!" Hiashi called out once again as he rotated in a swirling pattern, creating a burst of chakra that propelled the blinding light away, revealing Kido had not even moved from his position.
"I suppose you could say that rotation 'counters' my counter for you. Shame, though, that you're certainly wasting more chakra than I am simply doing this." Kido smirked as he clapped his hands together, creating another light sensation.
'He's right. Blinding-based jutsus are a strong counter to the Byakugan. And if we have to waste our chakra dispelling the light over-and-over again…' Hinata frowned at the thought, as she recalled Fū's own 'scaled sneak jutsu'. 'I never did find a way to counter that-' Her eyes proceeded to widen as a thought entered her mind, of her training with the White Snake Sage: 'That's it! I wasn't hoping to enter Sage Mode this early into the invasion and potentially exhaust myself from it, but this seems like it'll be necessary here.'
"Father, can you keep him distracted? I need to be still for a moment." Hinata requested as she immediately brought her hands together and remained still, focusing on channeling nature energy.
Hiashi turned to face his daughter's silhouette for a moment before nodding his head: "Leave that to me."
"Leave 'what' exactly?" Kido asked with a snort as he rushed over towards Hinata, gripping his sword: "I believe a distraction works best when it's not publicly announced like that!"
Before his sword could connect, Hiashi rushed between the two, extending a palm forward: "Eight Trigrams Vacuum Wall Palm!"
Hiashi released a wave of chakra from his palm that rushed forward at Kido. Despite the close-range, the ROOT researcher jumped into the air, effortlessly avoiding the blast as he flicked his wrist: "Lightning Style: Scattering Drops!"
Sparks of lightning rushed from Kido's fingers, bouncing on the ground and flying directly at both Hiashi and Hinata. The bouncing lightning fragments caused the light to burn even brighter in Hiashi's eyes, preventing him from even seeing where Hinata or Kido were. He proceeded to jump back towards where he remembered Hinata's position was and started to spin in a circle.
Using the rotation once more, Hiashi was able to expel the blinding light and the lightning fragments before they could connect with his body. The lightning proceeded to scatter to the ground, bouncing on the ground for a moment until Hiashi finally finished his spinning. With the rotation finally over, the lightning returned on track, flying directly towards Hiashi before he could get away.
"Ugh!" He growled in pain.
Kido chuckled as he watched Hiashi fall to a knee, burn marks from the lightning starting to form on his body.
"You're like your father, are you aware of that?" Kido asked.
"How… so?" Hiashi hissed in response.
The ROOT researcher only chuckled in response: "If you have to ask, then it's not worth the point in explaining. Anyway, I'm curious to see how long it takes before you and, by proxy, your daughter, are left defenseless." He then brought his hands together: "Consider this trial four of this little experiment. Ninja Art: Blinding Light!"
Once again, another blinding light filled Hiashi's vision. This time, the light was so blinding that it did not even need Kido's lightning fragments; he could genuinely not see anything.
'Entirely blind, huh? Over time, this blinding light jutsu is really doing a damage to my Byakugan.' Hiashi took in a deep breath as he focused on sensing Hinata's chakra presence by his side, alongside Kido's.
'The comparison to my father… I suppose I do know where he's coming from. Just like Yoshikane, I too spent too much time focusing on my Byakugan and my gentle fist. I am unaccustomed to fighting against someone who is able to effortlessly combat my main abilities.' Hiashi took in a deep breath as he brought his hands together and closed his eyes: 'Very well. Let's see if I can handle this in an unorthodox manner for now.'
Hiashi took in a deep breath as he focused on where he assumed Kido's position would be. 'He implied I would be his first target. He must be going after Hinata again.' He made five hand signs before he slammed his foot directly on the ground: "Earth Style: Stalagmite!"
As Hiashi predicted, Kido had charged directly at Hinata, gripping his sword tightly. Before he could reach her, though, the ground underneath his feet opened up into a large stalagmite, forcing Kido to jump into the air to avoid the attack. Hiashi then threw shuriken upward in the direction he launched his stalagmite, aiming directly at Kido. The ROOT agent quickly deflected with his sword.
"Is that really the best you can do in this situation?" Kido asked, frowning: "Rather disappointing for an elite Clan Head, wouldn't you say?"
With a flicker, Hiashi disappeared, using the substitution jutsu to switch places with the shuriken he threw. Now directly next to Kido in the air, he brought his hands together.
"It would be if that's all I could do. And while you may make my gentle fist more difficult to use properly, you don't fully counter it." He declared sharply as he started to attack with his fingers, striking at Kido's tenketsu: "Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms! Two palms! Four palms! Eight-"
As Hiashi began to strike at Kido's body, the ROOT agent adjusted his left hand and grabbed Hiashi's right hand by the wrist before he could continue his jutsu. A scowl developed on the Hyūga Clan head's face as he tried to break free.
"Lightning Style: Blast Shock!"
"Gentle Fist Technique: Body Blow!"
Kido immediately sent a bolt of electricity straight from his fingers into Hiashi's body. The lightning quickly spread through his body, causing him to shout in pain. Before the lightning could spread, however, a burst of chakra was released from all of his tenketsu, forcing the lightning out as chakra from his body. In addition, the tenketsu in Hiashi's wrist was sent directly into Kido's hand. The ROOT agent hissed in pain as he let go of the Hyūga Clan head.
"Perhaps you have a little more ingenuity compared to your father after all." Kido noted as he cracked his knuckles: "But not by much. It's time this experiment ends-"
Before he could attack Hiashi, a cyan-colored chakra-snake appeared and grabbed onto Kido's arm. He hissed as he struggled to free himself as he turned his attention towards Hinata, who had now entered Sage mode. She took in a deep breath as she focused her eyes, which while still having the Byakugan activated, had now changed coloration to yellow.
"Thanks Father." Hinata said, nodding her head as she gestured towards Nue. "I'll take on Kido. You need to go find Tanuki and help put in an end to that creature."
"Understood." Hiashi nodded his head as he started to rush towards Kumo's Business District – towards Nue: "Stay safe, Hinata."
Hinata briefly watched her father rush off away from their position before turning her full attention to Kido. The ROOT agent finally pulled back with enough force to free himself from Hinata's chakra-snake grip. He briefly turned his head towards Hiashi's fleeing figure before turning back to Hinata with a curious look.
"You don't seem too worried that my father will stop your partner." Hinata noted. "You aren't going to stop him?"
"From that brief trial I just ran, I doubt he has the capabilities to kill Tanuki. No reason to be concerned. Besides, you're the bigger priority target. Killing you will make things easier." Kido's eyes moved from Hinata's body to the cyan-colored chakra aura around her body: "That's Sage Mode, hmm?"
"And if it is?" Hinata asked, tensing-up slightly.
"Tanuki's Negative Emotions-based research and techniques, from my understanding, produce results comparable to Sage Mode. I think this is the prime opportunity to compare my own research to his, using you as a test subject." Kido replied with a grin as he quickly revealed a vial in his jacket pocket.
The ROOT agent was quick, ingesting the vial's contents before Hinata could even react. Within seconds, the man's skin started to darken in coloration as he entered his own Bijū Version Two form.
"Allow me to study the full effects of my new-and-improved Tailed Beast Drug on you!" He exclaimed proudly as he opened his mouth, channeling chakra into an orb-shape: "Bijūdama!"
"About time this shit started." Ē stated as he cracked his knuckles: "Let's get down to work."
"You all go where you're needed." Gaara replied as he clapped his hands together. Sand from his gourd shot out, forming a small platform him that started to rise into the air: "I'll join my fellow jinchūriki and wait."
The other Kage nodded their heads as Gaara flew down to the stadium's arena, starting to attack at some of the other large summons that were filling the arena. With him gone, the group turned their attention towards a separate large creature.
"NUE!"
Even from their position in the middle of the Dengō Raigō stadium, the four could see the giant chimera in the distance, towering over Kumogakure's business district. Ē's hands tightened into fists as he glared at it.
"First objective is going to be containing that thing and preventing it from destroying the village." Ē declared.
"The report I got from Tsunade and Kakashi implied that thing was designed almost exclusively from Senju Hashirama's cells, so it can use both Wood Release and has incredible regeneration." Jiraiya stated. "We'll have to be careful with how we approach taking it on."
Kurotsuchi nodded her head: "Well, let's go-"
"Mizukage-sama!"
Before the four Kage could rush off, a Kirigakure shinobi jumped up to the Kage box. Mei's eyes narrowed on the man.
"Report-" Her focus went to the man's eyes, noticing the red glow present in them. She stiffened as she began to channel chakra: "So, Oyashiro's made a move here, huh?"
"He has, but I'm not under his control." The Kirigakure shinobi shook his head, speaking with a dull, dark-tone to his voice: "I'm under the influence of one of his precious 'bodyguards', the last legitimate descendant of the Chinoike Clan. En Oyashiro has made his move here, yes, and he's currently trying to run-off with the Terumi Clan boy and the Hyūga Clan girl."
Jiraiya's eyes widened, a scowl forming on his face: 'Leave it to that coward. He saw an opportunity to run-off with more kekkei genkai.'
"I'd suggest you confront him before he gets away." The brainwashed Kiri shinobi stated.
"And I can trust your word?" Mei asked, her eyes narrowing on the man: "Who's to say that you're not under Oyashiro's control himself, leading me into a trap? I would have been more likely to trust you."
"I wouldn't take that risk. I have my own objective, and I can assure you, it's not to fight." The man replied. "As for trusting me, you have to make that call. I can assure you, if you go after him, I'll free this man from my control."
Mei was quiet for a moment as she closed her eyes in thought.
"Mei." Jiraiya spoke-up. Mei did not turn to him, but he could tell she was listening: "If there's even a possibility this is true, you should take this lead. All of the Elemental Nations will be in a better place if Oyashiro dies."
"We'll be fine without you." Kurotsuchi added. "So go out."
"Just make a decision already." Ē stated sharply as he turned his attention to both Jiraiya and Kurotsuchi: "We have an objective!"
With those words, the Raikage rushed off into the village, with both Kurotsuchi and Jiraiya following right behind. Mei stood still in the Kage's viewing box for a moment before she opened her eyes, narrowing intently on the brainwashed Kiri shinobi.
"Aō." She stated sharply. In an instant, the Kirigakure shinobi joined her, bowing slightly: "Help me find Oyashiro."
The brainwashed shinobi grinned in response: "Good answer. Best of luck in taking down Oyashiro, Mizukage-sama."
As Ē, Jiraiya, and Kurotsuchi made their way towards the Business District, the three Kage noticed a three-dimensional cube of chakra appeared directly over the residential district, expanding until it covered an inn.
"Wh-What the hell?" Ē's eyes widened.
"Dust Release…" Kurotsuchi mumbled to herself, her hands tightening: 'Gramps…'
'Kabuto must have brought back Ōnoki as an Edo Tensei.' Jiraiya realized, biting down his lip. 'A smart choice for a candidate, but one that really makes things more complicated.'
Before they could respond, the 'Dust Release' jutsu was activated, creating a mass of smoke inside the cube before revealing the entire building had been completely disintegrated.
Kurotsuchi's eyes immediately turned her attention to Ē and Jiraiya as she shook her head: "Dust Release is the most effective counter to Dust Release. I know how to use it. I need to confront him."
"Of course." Ē nodded his head in understanding, his eyes narrowing towards the residential district: "Just defeat him, and prevent any more damage."
Kurotsuchi nodded her head as she started to rush over towards the residential district.
"Raikage-sama!"
Before Jiraiya and Ē could continue hurrying off, Mabui rushed over towards them, visible shuriken wounds on her body.
"Report!" Ē demanded.
"It as you feared, Raikage-sama. They brought back the Sandaime." Mabui stated.
Ē's eyes immediately narrowed: "Where?"
"There's no mistaking his presence; he's at the village gates. He broke the gates down effortlessly and is engaging any shinobi he comes across." Mabui explained, shaking her head.
"If my father gets momentum, he could wipe out the whole village…" Ē's hands tightened even further before glancing back to Jiraiya: "I need to take care of him. I'm one of the few people who can match him. You're better equipped to taking on that chimera anyway."
"Understood." Jiraiya nodded his head: "Go, Ē. Stop your father before it's too late."
Ē did not reply, only rushing off. On cue with his emotions, his body was surrounded by lightning, causing him to move even faster towards the village gates.
'… Enough grave matters that we needed to divide all the Kage, huh?' Jiraiya noted, his eyes focusing back on Nue: '… They're all doing their own parts. I have to do mine. If Tsunade could take that creature on alone for the most part, then so can I!'
With that thought in mind, Jiraiya rushed over towards Nue.
Upon using his Dust Release jutsu for the first time, Sasori was brought to the ground by Deidara with the clay dragon they had been riding remaining airborne. The two artists took a few seconds to admire the complete destruction of Sasori's first target, not even seeing a speck of rubble of the inn. It appeared as if it – alongside anyone inside the building – had never even existed.
"Well, you pulled it off correctly, hmm." Deidara said with a smirk: "Gotta say, Sasori no Danna, you definitely got a taste of the kind of art I always aspire for. It's a bit more subdued variation of my explosions, but I can't ignore the quality of its effectiveness and brutality. How do you feel?"
"Dust Release takes too much chakra. This isn't something I'll indulge in often." Sasori noted: "However, it did feel exhilarating."
"Right, right?" Deidara's smirk widened into a grin: "We have to celebrate this artistic epiphany of yours!"
The Iwa missing ninja made a hand sign, causing the dragon to open its mouth and release clay orbs that rolled out of its mouth and continued until they rolled at the sides of three separate homes. Deidara then brought his hands together, causing the clay orbs to start to glow.
"Ninja Art: Holy Barricade!"
As the clay orbs exploded, the houses were surrounded in a bright, golden light. Smoke and debris from the road surrounded the area; once it was cleared, it was revealed that the houses were still intact, without even a sign of burn marks.
"Oi, who the fuck did that?" Deidara hissed as his eyes started to look around the area. "Who interfered with my art?"
Sasori's eyes narrowed around as he started to focus on the area around him.
Kumo's residential district was targeted heavily by En Oyashiro's agents; he could see his 'bodyguards' destroying buildings and attacking any of the shinobi they saw along the way. Sasori could also hear the gleeful shouts of Hidan in the distance as he cut through more-and-more victims. He could see a few Kumo shinobi – around six total – running towards them, preparing to strike, but no body appeared to be emitting the same golden-like chakra that had surrounded the buildings.
"Was it you? Was it any of you?" Deidara turned to face the Kumo shinobi rushing them. He scowled as he made a hand sign, revealing a few clay spiders in the ground that crawled onto their bodies: "Die!"
The clay spiders started to ignite. Before they could explode, however, the same golden light started to surround the bodies of the Kumo shinobi. Deidara's eyes narrowed as he dropped his stance, causing the spiders to stop glowing before they could detonate. He watched as the shinobi all did their best to brush off their shinobi, with four of them being successful, before continuing to rush towards them. As they finally reached up to Sasori's and Deidara's position, the glow finally faded.
'Hmmm, whoever is using that jutsu can't keep it active for long. No doubt because of a chakra drain.' Deidara noted as he made a hand sign: 'I'll exploit that, dammit!'
The two remaining spiders on the two Kumo shinobi ignited, creating massive explosions that caused their bodies to rupture. The resulting explosions were heavy enough that it staggered the remaining four Kumo shinobi. Sasori proceeded to swing the tail of Hiruko at them, which managed to pierce through the heart of one of the shinobi before it continued onto the next. Within seconds, all four were skewered by the tail, all dead.
"Whichever shinobi is using that damn light technique is wasting their time." Deidara said sharply: "We'll kill everyone regardless!"
'The question remains; who is using it? And where are they?' Sasori questioned. His eyes then moved towards one of the homes that Deidara had attempted to blow-up, narrowing in suspicion: 'I wonder. Were you using that jutsu out of some altruism to keep those buildings safe? Or was that use more for self-preservation?'
Sasori opened his mouth, launching senbon forward into one of the houses, completely shattering the windows. His tail then launched forward, bursting the door down before it started to attack haphazardly at the structure, causing it to fall apart. He then turned his head attention towards the second house. Before he could strike again, a shadow started to rush forward. Sasori immediately jumped back, narrowly avoiding getting capture.
"Ah, a Nara. That explains it. The 'light' technique must be an application of Yin Release." Sasori noted.
"So you're the asshole who tried to ruin my art!" Deidara nearly snarled as he made a sweeping gesture with his right hand, causing a clay bird to rush forward from his palm: "This time, my explosions will work! DIE!"
As the clay bird flew into the building and started to light-up, Shikamaru jumped out of the house just in time before it exploded. The Nara landed on his feet, creating a small pile of slime on the ground upon stepping foot. He looked up and made eye contact with both Akatsuki members, revealing his golden eyes.
'Hmm? Is that Sage Mode?' Deidara asked himself, his scowl starting to fade slightly: 'Maybe this one will be fun to fight after all.'
Sasori immediately swung his tail forward. Shikamaru quickly side-stepped as he landed on the ground, creating another skid-mark of slime.
"Where the hell did you get that?" He demanded to Sasori as he pointed to the puppet Ōnoki.
"I have no reason to answer any of your questions." Sasori replied as he opened his own mouth, launching a series of senbon.
Again, Shikamaru started to dodge the senbon. As he started to slowly maneuver his way forward, the ground underneath his feet started to open, revealing more clay spiders. Shikamaru's eyes widened as he made the monkey hand sign. His body was surrounded by a bright light that shielded him from the explosions. A few seconds passed by before the light finally subsided. Instantly, Sasori's tail swung at him once more. This time, however, the tail connected with his shoulder, skewering it instantly. He was forced into the air by Sasori as the puppeteer took a step closer to him.
"That light technique does seem rather interesting, but in the end, it means very little. A Barrier jutsu is only useful for as long as you can keep it up." He stated sharpy. "And now, you're dead."
"Not going to happen." Shikamaru said, gritting his teeth as he shook his head: "I can tell you laced your tail with poison, but it's not going to be enough to kill me."
"Oh?" Sasori tilted his head slightly: "I wouldn't underestimate my poison, boy."
"And I wouldn't underestimate the potency of the Slug Clan's senjutsu to filter out your poisons." Shikamaru replied back as he made a new hand sign: "Shadow Possession Jutsu!"
Before Sasori could release Shikamaru, he became ensnared by the boy's shadow. Immediately, Shikamaru reached upwards, a motion that Sasori mimicked, as the Nara pulled the tail out of his shoulder.
"It won't take me long to overpower your shadow paralysis technique, you know? Even if you are using senjutsu, you don't have the chakra to overpower me." Sasori said sharply as he started to apply force.
As the Akatsuki member stated, he started to move slightly, despite Shikamaru's jutsu. Sweat started to form on the Nara's head, however a grin developed on his face.
"I don't need to hold you down for very long." Shikamaru said sharply as he turned his head upward: "That little bit was all we needed to kill you!"
"Dust Style: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
Before Sasori could respond, a three-dimensional cube of chakra formed around his body. The cube detonated, creating an explosion inside, filling it with smoke. Immediately, Ōnoki's puppet-body fell to the ground.
"Wh-Whoa!" Deidara's eyes widened in response as he turned his head upward.
Standing on top of a nearby house was the Godaime Tsuchikage, Kurotsuchi. The girl jumped down to the streets, standing side-by-side with Shikamaru, her eyes intently focused on the puppet-form of her grandfather.
'Gramps…' Her lip started to quiver slightly as tears formed in her eyes: 'What did they do to you? I'm so sorry…'
"Oh? Is that you, Kurotsuchi?" Deidara spoke-up. The Tsuchikage did not react, but Deidara grinned as he crossed his arms: "Been a while, hmm? I heard you took the old fuck's hat. Looks better on someone that's not an old blowhard-"
"Don't you fucking dare talk about my grandfather like that, Deidara!" Kurotsuchi hissed, turning to face him: "I was worried about fighting his Edo Tensei, but in the end, it's something even more gross. You Akatsuki bastards have defiled his body in a more disgusting way than I could have ever imagined!"
Deidara shrugged his shoulders: "At least his body is actually doing something as opposed to just rotting in a grave, hmm."
"Let a dead man rest in peace." Shikamaru stated, glaring at Deidara.
"Why exactly are you mad?"
Both Shikamaru and Kurotsuchi stiffened in response at the voice. The smoke from Kurotsuchi's Dust Release finally dissipated, revealing the figure of Sasori – the real Sasori. He scowled deeply at Kurotsuchi as his eyes briefly glanced around his body.
'My jutsu should have killed him… I landed it perfectly! How the fuck did he live?' She asked herself, her hands tightening.
"You completely destroyed Hiruko." Sasori spat-out, gritting his teeth: "Not a single part of it is left. It can't be rebuilt at all." His hands went to his side, reaching for a set of scrolls: "How dare you!"
"How… dare…" Kurotsuchi repeated the words for a moment as her shock left her body, being replaced with her unbridled anger: "How dare you! How dare you turn my grandfather into one of your fucking puppets!"
"And why should that piss you off? Your precious grandfather can now live forever." Sasori snorted as he gestured with his pinkie fingers, forming chakra strings that reattached to Ōnoki's puppet. The puppet picked itself up once again and started to float side-by-side Sasori. "He will be immortalized forever this way. His very existence can live on through his puppet with no end in sight."
"That's really how you see it, huh?" Shikamaru shook his head, frowning: "Suppose that makes sense for someone like you, Akasuna no Sasori. Even before you turned on Suna, your village always described you as emotionally distant and sociopathic."
"I'm not in the mood to get lectured on morality by a Konoha shinobi of all people." Sasori's scowl deepened as he briefly glanced over at his partner: "Deidara, we have a job to get back to."
"Right, right." Deidara nodded his head as he jumped backwards, landing on top of his clay dragon. The dragon started to ascend slightly: "We'll kill these bastards then get right back to destroying this whole village!"
As Shikamaru and Kurotsuchi both stiffened, getting ready to fight, Sasori reached into his robe and pulled out four scrolls. He then unsealed them all, revealing four new puppets, which now stood side by side with puppet Ōnoki.
Ryōtenbin no Ōnoki's puppet was connected by strings on Sasori's pinkie fingers.
Shirakawa, the Sandaime Kazekage and the progenitor of the Iron Sand techniques, was connected by strings to Sasori's ring fingers.
Pakura, a famous Sunagakure jōnin renowned for her use of Scorch Release, was attached to the strings on Sasori's middle fingers.
Kaguya Kimimaro, former disciple of Orochimaru and last living wielder of the Shikotsumyaku, was connected to Sasori's index fingers.
And finally, Kitsuchi, son of Ryōtenbin no Ōnoki and a head jōnin of Iwagakure, known for his complete mastery of Earth Release ninjutsu, was connected to Sasori's thumbs.
"You… You have Kitsuchi's body too…" Shikamaru mumbled.
"For the time being. I'll probably shuffle him out once I get a puppet with a more inherently unique ability than basic Earth Release. However, his proficiency with it is at another level." Sasori's scowl finally shifted upwards into a grin: "At the very least, that makes his puppet stand out.
"Father…." Kurotsuchi's eyes focused on the image of Kitsuchi for a moment as more tears started to fall. Her eyes narrowed as they continued to fall from her face before she turned to face Sasori: "Sasori and Deidara… you two goddamn monsters… both of you are dying by our hands! Even if it's the last thing I do, both of you are going to fucking die!"
The twelve genin teams – Team Six, Eight and Nine of Konoha, and Team Misora of Kiri – hurried back to the Dengō Raigō Infirmary. Upon arrival, they noticed the three Kumogakure genin, Urusai, Tarinai, and Nibui, still asleep with no signs of waking up. Kanji's eyes narrowed on their bodies.
"I know that that Kusa team wanted to win with little effort, but why did they knock them out like this for so long knowing that the invasion was about to happen?" The Yamanaka asked: "It's irresponsible."
"I don't think that one girl cares about it at all." Udon noted, rubbing his nose slightly: "Kono Maitake… she separated from all of us the second she could. I don't think she cares if any of us die. She just wants to make sure she and her team are fine."
"Bitch." Katsumi muttered, gritting her teeth slightly: 'Wish we could have gotten to fight them.' Her eyes briefly glanced back to Konohamaru before shaking her head: 'If he needed to get his ass kicked a little, then she needs a full-on beatdown to humble herself.'
"Well, good news is that nothing's happened here yet." Kinosaki spoke-up, rubbing his chin: "We just need to be ready for-"
"Guys, something's coming!" Hanabi called out.
The twelve genin stiffened in response as the floor of the infirmary opened-up as humanoid figures started to rise-up. Within a few seconds, the whole room was covered by dozens of men in yellow tracksuits, wearing rebreathers over their mouths and a sash around their heads, concealing their eyes. All the men looked nearly identical with the exception of the hair; some had spiky brown hair, another had similar spiky brown hair, but shorter than the main one, and the final one had a bandana over their heads, covering their hair.
"What the hell are those things?" Konohamaru hissed in response.
"Kill." The figures all spoke in unison with as breathy, raspy voice, each pulling out kunai.
"Kill the brats." Another set of figures hissed as they took steps closer towards them.
"Start with the sleepers, then kill the awake ones." Another added.
"Alright, I've heard enough of these creepy guys!" Konohamaru hissed as he ran through hand signs.
Hanabi shook her head: "Konohamaru-kun, don't-"
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
Konohamaru breathed out a series of fireballs from his mouth that flew at the figures, creating holes in their bodies and causing them to fall apart into separate chunks. Instead of being dissipated, however, the body parts reformed, creating even more clones that started to walk forward.
"What?" Moegi's eyes widened: "What kind of things are these?"
"Some weird ninjutsu-genjutsu hybrid." Hanabi noted, shaking her head. "None of those clones are reveal. They don't have any form to them. We can't kill them-"
Her words were cut short as all of the clones threw kunai at the genin teams. The twelve all did their best to dodge, but Konohamaru was unable to get away and a kunai connected with his cheek, scratching him and drawing blood. He hissed in pain as a finger ran down the wound.
"Konohamaru-san, are you alright?" Kazuo asked.
"I'm fine… just a scratch." Konohamaru grumbled: 'I must still be tired after that fight…' He shook his head before turning back to Hanabi: "Even if those things aren't real, those kunai are real."
"We can't kill them, but they can kill us." Tsunemasa noted, scowling. His kikaichū buzzed angrily: "We need to find their real selves and dispel this nonsense."
Another wave of kunai was tossed from the clones, this time at the sleeping Kumo genin. The Kiri genin team jumped backwards, blocking the weapons with kunai of their own.
"Just saying, if we all leave, we're going to get these three killed." Kinosaki noted with a scowl.
"So only some of us should leave, then." Udon noted as he turned to face Team Nine: "Hanabi-san, can you see where the real ones are?"
"I should be able to find them." She nodded her head: "They're not in the immediate area that I'm noticing them, but they have to be somewhere nearby in order to be using such a complex genjutsu."
"Then you all should be the ones to go find them." Yūna spoke-up, crossing her arms: "You all go find the assholes using this genjutsu. In the meantime, we'll keep these freaky clones away from the Kumo genin."
"Do you really think we're going to let you brats get away so easily?" One of the clones spoke-up with a chuckle.
"You're all going to stay here." Another hissed.
"You're all going to die here." The rest chorused as they all reached for kunai.
"You all don't really have a choice in that. We'll bust out of here." Katsumi declared as she jumped to Hanabi's side, placing her hand on her right shoulder. Kanji then jumped towards them, placing his hand on Hanabi's left shoulder.
"Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"
The three genin of Team Nine sank into the ground just in time before a volley of kunai could hit them, connecting with the floor instead. The clones were still for a moment before a chuckle escaped from one of them.
"How cute. They know the Headhunter Jutsu. There's some Earth Release adepts amongst them, huh?" He stated. "That won't do anything for them, though. Just they wait until they actually find us, huh Oboro?"
Another clone chuckled: "If they can even do that. But for now, let's return back to the objective." It then turned its attention back to the genin teams: "Killing a bunch of bratty kids before it's too late!"
Kinosaki tensed-up: "Here they come again!"
'Hanabi, Katsumi, Kanji… you all better defeat the originals fast.' Konohamaru realized as he brought his hands together.
The three eight genin all had the same hopes as they entered into a fight with no end in sight.
'This… this feels like just then…' Masakado told himself, trying to control his breathing. 'All those years ago…'
Masakado's eyes moved back-and-forth as he watched missing ninja, disguised in the uniforms of various shinobi villages, slaughter Kumo shinobi after Kumo shinobi as they made their way further into the village. He watched the gates of the village crack bit-by-bit and nearby building falling apart, alongside the sounds of the screams of dying shinobi.
'It… It's just like… that day…' His hand shook heavily as he closed his eyes for a moment.
"Sir, the seal failed! Uzushiogakure's been breached!"
"Sandaime-sama, help!"
"Save us!"
"M-My family… Sandaime-sama, please… avenge us…"
Masakado could not help it; in this moment, he no longer saw the image of Kumogakure, one of the villages who attacked his homeland. In its place, he saw the image of Uzushiogakure on fire with the screams and cries of his people, his clansmen, his friends, his family…
"Not again… gods, not again…" Masakado's hands went together as he shook his head.
"SANDAIME-SAMA!"
"Please stop…" He bit down on his lip, starting to draw blood.
"Masakado, I can't find our kids! Where's Ichirō and Katachi?"
"STOP IT!" He shouted.
Masakado's breathing grew heavier and heavier as his eyes focused on the gate to Kumogakure. The yellow gates finally fell and wood and metal was sent flying everywhere as a single man drove through, killing shinobi-after-shinobi in his wake. He was a tall, muscular shinobi with dark-toned skin with long white, wavy white hair that reached his lower back and a long white beard. He wore a standard Kumogakure shinobi uniform with a red rope tied around his waist. He also had the kanji for 'lightning' tattooed onto his right shoulder.
Masakado's eyes lit-up in recognition: 'That's… that's him…' His hands tightened as his breathing grew harder: 'It's the goddamn Sandaime Raikage…'
While Masakado had never encountered the man directly, he was very familiar with him. As the leader of Kumo when they sent an army to attack Uzushio, Masakado knew everything about Abunai, also known as the third Ē, and his capabilities.
The revived Raikage, while surrounded in lightning, charged straight into a group of Kumogakure shinobi. He swung his hands around at every shinobi he rushed by, piercing their bodies entirely and sending them flying away. Each shinobi they dared to approach him died almost instantaneously.
'He was revived with Edo Tensei, huh? He'll destroy his whole village at this rate. Very few shinobi out there could probably take him on.' Masakado took in as he swallowed hard.
Once again, the image of Kumo was replaced with the image of destroyed Uzushio. As quickly as the image returned, reality reverted back to normal once again. Masakado's eyes narrowed intently on the Sandaime Raikage as his hand reached to his back.
'My goal in this invasion is to seal away those Edo Tensei summons anyway…' Masakado pulled out his bronze shield and gripped it tightly in his right hand while he pulled out an ink pen with his left finger. 'Even if it is Kumo, I won't less this monster destroy another village!'
Masakado ran forward towards the Edo Tensei and made a brush stroke directly on his shield: "Uzumaki Fūinjutsu: Unstoppable Offense!"
With his single brush stroke, Masakado created four golden spears that he launched directly at Abunai. The Edo Tensei turned his head in time and side-stepped, narrowly avoiding the first two spears. The last two, however, managed to stab at his body, sending him flying back with enough force into a watch tower that was set-up by the gate. The spears pierced his skin, keeping him still.
"Who landed a hit on me? I appreciate you for being able to briefly stop my rampage-" The Sandaime Raikage's words died on his lips as he noticed Masakado rushing him. His eyes widened: "Uzumaki Masakado? Are… Did Kumo manage to acquire Edo Tensei as well? To send you of all men to fight against me?"
"I'm not an Edo Tensei like you, bastard!" Masakado growled out. "I never died!"
"You… You are serious? The Uzukage alone survived the invasion, huh?" Abunai noted, closing his eyes in thought for a moment before shaking his head: "That is a most unfortunate fate. I would have wished for death if I were you. You have my sincerest condolences."
"You are the last person I'd want them from, Abunai!" Masakado hissed as he snapped his finger. The two spears that had missed prior were sent flying back once again, skewering the Third Ē's body more: "Regardless, I'm here to put a stop to you before your burn your own village!"
"You… came to the aid of Kumo?" The Sandaime Raikage asked, his eyes widening further: "Why would you-" His words died on his lips as he felt his body starting to channel chakra. He bit down on his lip as his arms started to move involuntarily, struggling against the spears holding him down: "I hope these spears are more durable than I'm anticipating."
A few seconds passed by before Abunai swung his firsts forward, sending the spears out of his body as electricity continued to radiate from his body. He then charged forward at Masakado, almost effortlessly closing the distance.
'Shit!' Masakado shook his head as he quickly made a second brush stroke on his shield just as Abunai was about to strike: 'Uzumaki Fūinjutsu-'
"Guillotine Drop!"
Before either the Sandaime Raikage's attack nor Masakado's jutsu could activate, the fourth Ē jumped down from the sky, his body coated in electricity and slammed his foot down onto the ground where his father was. The Edo Tensei turned his body around in time and caught the third Ē's foot before it connected.
The shockwave of their separate lightning armors colliding with another created a massive discharge that sent electricity flying all around, striking at buildings. The force was enough to cause Masakado to wince slightly, but he did his best to remain in place.
Abunai's eyes widened even further than before: "Tsuyoi, is that you?"
"Heh. 'Tsuyoi', huh? Haven't heard that name in a while." The fourth Ē chuckled for a moment before looking at the Edo Tensei with a smile that did not reach his eyes fully: "Hey, Dad."
"Your demeanor… I see. So Kumo did appoint you as my successor, as intended." Abunai noted, nodding his head: "I can see you've grown strong. Strong enough to withstand this onslaught." He felt his body tensing-up as his grip on his son's feet tightened: "Please, Tsuyoi… No, please Ē. Stop me before I destroy our village."
"Trust me, I will. I'll keep this village that you and I both love safe, no matter what!" The Yondaime Raikage replied as he started to channel chakra into his feet.
Within a moment, a burst of lightning shot forward from his foot directly into Abunai, sending the Edo Tensei backwards slightly. The Yondaime Raikage jumped backwards slightly, standing side-by-side with Masakado.
"You considered yourself a Kage, right? Then prove it by fighting back against my father." Ē declared sharply. "I'm going to need a Seal Master's help sealing him away, anyway!"
The Uzumaki snorted in response: "Don't need your permission. I was planning on kicking his ass. You'll just be the extra help I need."
'To think I'd see an Uzumaki – Uzumaki Masakado at that! – fighting alongside my son, protecting Kumo. History must have gotten rather interesting since I passed.' Abunai noted for a moment before he felt his body starting to channel chakra once more: "I hope you both are ready, because here I come!"
With that warning, the Sandaime Raikage charged forward once again.
Hidan could not recall the last time he had felt such an extreme feeling of joy. The air throughout the whole village was filled with the smell of blood. He could not even recall the last time had seen so much death all in one place.
He did not particularly like Pain, nor appreciate his sacrilege of considering himself a god, but he would always appreciate him for bringing Hidan to experience such a joyous day of slaughter. It would be a debt that he would never be able to pay off.
"Praise be to Jashin-sama!" He exclaimed loudly as he pulled his scythe out a Suna shinobi's body. He brought the scythe to his tongue, taking a lick of the blood. A frown developed on his lips: 'Blood isn't good. Damn. Thought this one would make a good-'
"Cloud Style: Flame Slice!"
Hidan turned his head in time to see an arc of fire rushing towards his body. He side-stepped, avoiding the fire, only for the fire to redirect itself. Unable to get away, Hidan hissed as the fire burned into his skin, only for a blond-haired man to rush towards him, wielding a sword that was covered in flames.
"The hell-"
Hidan's words were cut-off as the flame-sword connected with his head, severing his head straight from his body.
"Heh, take a look at this hotshot!" Atsui exclaimed as he swung his sword in a circular fashion, extinguishing the fire from his sword. He then turned his head towards Omoi, Karui, and Samui, who were all rushing over towards him with their swords: "Taking out an Akatsuki all by myself, in one hit! Am I good, or what?"
"The Raikage warned about that one, didn't he?" Omoi asked, his eyes narrowing on the limp body of Hidan: "I think that's one supposed to be immortal."
"'Immortal' even to getting his fucking head cut off?" Atsui snorted in response: "Nah, he's done. Let's move on-" His words died on his lips as he felt something bite his leg: "Agh!"
"You alright?" Karui stiffened in response as she and the others rushed over to his side.
Atsui turned his head down to see that Hidan's severed head had rolled all the way to his body and had managed to bite his leg. Atsui hissed as he proceeded to kick the head with his other foot, pulling it off. He then sliced the head in half with his sword.
"Fuck you!" He growled out. "Let's see what your 'immortal ass' does after that?"
On cue with his words, the two halves of Hidan's severed head rolled back into one another, reforming his head. The head then flew through the air back to the rest of his body, dripping blood in a circular fashion around before it connected with his head once more.
"Hope you know, that hurt like a bitch though." Hidan stated sharply as his skin started to turn black with white markings forming on it. He then grinned at the Kumo shinobi, revealing his teeth coated with Atsui's blood: "But I'll admit I'm surprised you even beheaded me like that so easily, so for interesting me, and for having some delicious tasting blood, I'm gonna make sure your last living moments on this earth rewarding!"
Atsui's eyes narrowed: "The fuck do you mean-"
"Everyone! Get that man out of that circle!" Samui shouted out as she brought her hands together into a single seal: "Earth Style: Great Mud River!"
The street underneath Hidan's body turned into mud, forming a river that tried to drag him away from his position. Hidan, however, remained still in his spot, not phased by the response. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a spike.
"Not working… not cool…" Samui grit her teeth before turning to her partners: "Omoi, Karui; immobilize him!"
"Understood!" They both stated as they sheathed their swords before they ran through the same four hand signs: "Lightning Style: Lightning Rope Technique!"
Lightning shot forward from both Omoi's and Karui's hands, forming a rope that quickly ensnared Hidan's body. He grit his teeth in response as Atsui yelped slightly, his body stiffening as burn marks started to develop on his body.
"What's happening?" He hissed.
"I heard that sealing circle he's standing in curses whatever enemy this man has drawn blood from." Samui said, her eyes moving towards her brother sympathetically: "Forgive me, Atsui, but we need to take precautions to prevent him from killing you."
"Take precautions, you say?" Hidan snorted in response as he struggled against the lightning ropes. To Karui's and Omoi's surprise, he quickly pulled his hands back, overpowering the lightning and causing it to discharge around the battlefield: "I'm a loyal priest to Jashin-sama! Your chains cannot bind me!"
"Shit!" Karui hissed, her eyes widening as she stared at Hidan in horror.
"No, don't…" Omoi quickly shook his head as he ran through the same hand signs: "Lightning Style-"
Hidan proceeded to toss his scythe forward directly at Omoi, causing him to yelp as he dodged. Hidan then swung the cable attached to the scythe, swinging in a circular formation directly at Karui, who jumped up to avoid. The scythe then attempted to cut into both Atsui and Samui, but the two siblings jumped back, avoiding the attack.
The Jashinite then pulled on the cable, returning the scythe back to his body. The three-bladed scythe connected with his face, splitting his head open and causing blood to pour.
Atsui's eyes widened as pain raced through his body: "AGH-"
The painful scream ceased as quickly as it came as his head was split in half, matching Hidan's 'injury'. The Kumogakure chūnin's body fell to the ground, dead.
"ATSUI!" Omoi screamed.
"D-Dammit…" Karui shook her head, her hands tightening and her eyes starting to redden.
Samui was quiet for a moment, staring at Atsui's corpse in stunned silence. Tears started to roll down her face almost instantly as she stared at the wound on his face, unable to process the world around her.
"All Hail Jashin-sama: Rebirth of a Lost Soul!"
Attention was brought briefly back to Hidan, whose head had returned to normal, as chakra quickly surrounded his body before visibly flowing from his body to Atsui's corpse. A few seconds passed by before the chakra flow finally stopped. Immediately after, the body of Atsui rose once more. Samui's, Omoi's, and Karui's eyes widened in horror as they stared at the lifeless body of the blond standing tall, his head still split in half and barely staying attached to his body, blood dripping from his open wounds.
"What… the fuck did you to him?" Karui asked quietly.
"I told him I'd make his last moments 'rewarding'; what's more rewarding then being converted into a member of Jashin-sama's undead worshippers?" Hidan asked.
On cue with his question, the undead body of Atsui gripped its sword tightly, fire starting to form around the blade. He quickly rushed at the nearest being next to him: Samui.
The blonde-haired jōnin pulled out her sword, locking blades with the revenant. Atsui's body let out a shriek of sword as it pushed back, causing sparks from the fire on his sword to extend from his blade and try to burn her skin. Samui did not hiss from the pain, however, as her mind was too focused on the creature standing in front of her that used to be her brother.
'Atsui… ATSUI…' Her tears started to fall even harder as she pushed back, forcing the creature back. Her eyes turned back to Hidan: "I will kill you for this-"
Her words were cut short by the image of the triple-bladed scythe flying directly at her face.
"Partial Expansion Jutsu!"
Before it could connect, however, a large, extended fist grabbed onto the cable of the scythe, preventing it from reaching her face. Hidan's eyes widened as his scythe was pulled from his hand as the giant hand swung his scythe far away.
"My scythe… my tool for Jashin-sama…" He mumbled to himself, his hands tightening into fists.
Chōji, Ino, and Shino jumped into the streets, standing alongside Samui, Karui, and Omoi. Chōji's fist returned to normal as he turned his attention towards Samui.
"That was close. Are you okay?" He asked.
"Atsui…" She mumbled the name slightly.
The former members of Team Ten turned their heads upward as they stared at the lifeless body of Atsui. Their eyes widened as they stared at the revenant. Its skin was starting to become more-and-more coated with the blood dripping from its face wound, making it appear even more inhuman than before, but the resemblance was still there; they knew exactly who that was.
"That's that guy…" Ino mumbled, shaking her head in disgust.
"We… Thank you... we're going to need all the help we can get…" Karui said, shaking her head as she gripped her sword tightly: "That man is not only immortal, but if he manages to land even a single hit on us, he'll curse us and kill us."
"No matter how many times we attack him, he's going to live. And all it takes for him is one good to hit to kill us…" Omoi muttered to himself, shaking his head: "How the fuck are we supposed to beat him?"
"You're not 'supposed' to!" Hidan hissed in response as he finally turned back to face his six opponents: "You're all going to die. Everyone in this wretched village will. All of you will be joining Jashin-sama's eternal mausoleum!" He clapped his hands together: "You took my scythe away for now, but I'm not going to waste the time getting it and risk you fuckers running away. No, I'll kill all of you without it!"
"NUE!"
'And there's that behemoth once again.' Jiraiya sighed as he arrived in Kumo's business district.
If Nue seemed 'gigantic' from afar, getting this close to the monster revealed the extent of how towering he was. The creature seemed even taller than before, its head extending well above the clouds of Kumo. Other than its size, though, the chimera still contained its other general physical appearance, and seemingly, its abilities.
Kumo, Kiri, Suna, and Iwa shinobi all attempted to attack the creature with various weapons and jutsu, with the Kumo shinobi leading the charge, but no attacks seemed to properly phase the creature. Nue appeared entirely unphased as he proceeded to slam its legs into the ground, causing tree trunks to rise from the ground, knocking multiple attacking shinobi up into the air.
Nue roared as it launched air bullets from its mouth directly at the airborne shinobi. While a majority of the Kumo and Suna shinobi were able to dodge, the Iwa and Kiri shinobi that attacked were blasted by the bullets, cracking their skulls upon impact, and sending their bodies flying off into the distance.
"Hokage-sama, thank god you're here!"
Jiraiya turned his attention to see Shizune and Chōza rush over to his side. A sigh escaped his lips as he looked at the two shinobi.
"Shizune, where's Tsunade?" Jiraiya asked.
"Amongst the Edo Tensei that were summoned, Hanzō was summoned." Shizune replied. "She went to go fight him right away."
'Hanzō's here…' Jiraiya's fist tightened in response before he shook his head: 'Tsunade can take care of him. I have faith that nowadays, she'll be the one who can take him down. In the meantime…' He cleared his throat: "Shizune, assist with medical attention here. A lot of the shinobi are going to need it. If you can support, provide it as needed. I trust your judgement."
The medical shinobi nodded her head as she rushed over towards the nearest injured shinobi.
Jiraiya then turned his attention to Chōza: "You chose to engage this thing. I assume I know what you're planning, right?"
The Akimichi Clan Head nodded his head as he clapped his hands together: "Super Expansion Jutsu!"
In an instant, Chōza's body magnified in size, reaching close to the size-and-height of Nue. The red-haired man took in a deep breath as he pulled out his staff and swung it around, preparing to strike at the chimera.
Jiraiya, meanwhile, bit down on his thumb before running through hand signs: "Summoning Jutsu!"
A poof of smoke filled the area as Gamabunta appeared in Kumo, standing directly underneath Jiraiya, bringing the Hokage to the same height as both Chōza and Nue.
"Jiraiya, what the hell is that thing?" Gamabunta asked as he reached for his tantō.
"Your next wallet, that's what." Jiraiya replied as his eyes narrowed on the creature: 'Alright, you disgusting beast. Let's do this!'
"NUE!"
Both Chōza and Gamabunta charged forward at Nue, who growled in response as it prepared to attack back.
Heavy amounts of steam were released from Han's armor as the man ran through the stadium's inner rooms. The man moved as fast as he could, looking for the boiler that Naruto had mentioned.
It did not take long for him to find the room, where he came face-to-face with a man with long orange hair tied in a ponytail and many piercings on his face, wielding the Rinnegan and wearing the cloak of the Akatsuki.
'The Rinnegan… this must be Pain.' Han's eyes narrowed as he charged forward.
The orange-haired man, appearing nonplussed at the Gobi jinchūriki's presence, slammed an open palm into the ground: "Summoning Jutsu!"
As smoke filled the boiler room, a giant ox appeared just as Han reached the man. The ox blocked back against Han's attack on its summoner with its horns before getting locked into a stalemate with the man.
"Urggh…" Han groaned as he pushed back, starting to make ground against the ox: "Think you have me outmatched-"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Smoke filled the room once more as three large red bats with spikes piercing their necks appeared. The first bat grabbed onto Pain's body, pulling him into the air while the remaining two started to fly around Han's position.
The bats opened their mouths, letting a large screech that formed a sonic blast that rushed into Han's and the ox's body. The ox continued pushing forward, seemingly unphased, while Han's grip against the beast's horns was starting to lighten, his ears starting to bleed.
'Dammit… I need to start channeling now…' Han grit his teeth as he started to channel Kokuō's chakra. Reddish chakra formed around his body before it started to reddish-black, merging with his skin and armor. He took in a deep breath as he felt his grip tighten back against the ox and it became easier to ignore the pain from the bat's screeches: 'More like it! Now-'
Han's thoughts died on his lips as he noticed Pain's body, floating next to pipes in the room. A grin developed on Han's face as more-and-more steam was released from his furnace, floating through the room towards the various pipes in the room.
'The idea should have been instant. I'm rarely in an environment like this; might as well take advantage of it.'Han told himself as he let one of his hand's go from the ox's horns.
The summon immediately began to overpower him, sticking the horn directly into Han's chest. The Gobi jinchūriki winced in response, but his grin seemingly widened as he clapped his hands together.
"Ah." Pain finally spoke for the first time as his eyes focused on the pipes he was nearby.
The orange-haired man placed his right hand on the bat that had grabbed him. The bat immediately started to fly upwards towards the ceiling of the room, flying at with enough force that it broke through the ceiling and created an opening for it to move.
"You're not getting away from me that easily!" Han declared: "Boil Style: Overheat Explosion!"
Instantly, the pipes in the room exploded as steam surged throughout the room, creating a massive explosion that melted the giant ox and the two bats instantly upon impact. A massive firestorm was sent flying throughout the room, heading upwards through the opening that Pain had created.
The impact of the explosion sent Han's body flying upwards, rocketing him upwards through another newly-created opening in the ceiling.
'That won't kill him, but that surely flushed him out.' Han's fists tightened: 'No hiding, Pain. You're going to be facing all of us!'
The remaining jinchūriki – Gaara, Yagura, Rōshi, Utakata, and Fū – had arrived at the stadium at the time of a massive explosion underneath the battlefield, creating a shockwave that staggered both the jinchūriki and the monstrous summoned animals. A hole was created in the ground and a bat, still carrying 'Pain', flew out of it just in time as fire rushed from the opening.
"That's the summoner!" Yugito's eyes narrowed on the orange-haired man. "Is that…"
Another hole in the ground opened up as Han, still in his Version Two cloak, jumped out of the ground and landed next to his fellow jinchūriki. His eyes briefly glanced around the battlefield, noticing steam starting to rise from the ground, before he turned his attention back to 'Pain'.
"That man has the Rinnegan." Han stated sharply. "He is Pain."
Pain's response to Han's statement was to clap his hands together: "Summoning Jutsu!"
A large poof of smoke filled the area as all nine jinchūriki prepared for the next onslaught of summoned beasts.
Instead, they were greeted by more figures in Akatsuki cloaks. 'Pain' fell to the ground, joining five other orange-haired men and one large bulky bald man with spikes on the top of his head. All six had the Rinnegan and had identical expressions on their faces; the only differences in their appearances were the style of their hair and the location of their face piercings.
"The hell? They all have the Rinnegan?" Fū asked, her eyes narrowing in confusion.
"That should be impossible." Yagura shook his head, scowling: "The Rinnegan is such a rare ability that it's considered myth rather than fact; the idea that there would be six people, all alive and all working together, with that specific dōjutsu should be impossible!"
"You speak like you know the capabilities of the Rinnegan." One of the orange-haired men, one with spiky hair and his piercings only on his nose and ears, noted as he took a step forward: "I would be curious to hear more of your thoughts on the matter, Karatachi Yagura."
Naruto's, Utakata's, and Bee's eyes widened in response while Yagura remained still, closing his eyes as he processed his words. The remaining five jinchūriki, however, blinked in response as they stared at the man in confusion.
"Karatachi Yagura's dead." Rōshi stated: "Kamui, the new Sanbi jinchūriki, is nothing like that monster."
"He hasn't told you, has he?" Pain asked, blinking in response.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Another poof of smoke filled the air as the six Rinnegan-wielders were joined by Yakushi Kabuto, Konan, Tobi, and Hoshigaki Kisame. Kisame took a step forward, scowling at the face of 'Kamui'.
"So, that's the mask you've been wearing since the invasion, huh?" Kisame asked, shaking his head: "Pretty disgusting. The Yagura I always knew was many shitty things, but I never considered him a liar. Looks like you finally became one."
"Suppose I am, but it is preferrable to living like the monster your leader made me into." The Sanbi jinchūriki replied as he brought a hand to his chest.
In an instant, he dispelled the 'henge' he had become accustomed to. For the first time in three years, the real 'Karatachi Yagura' revealed himself to the world.
"What… the hell?" Yugito's eyes widened as she stared at the man.
"Kamui-san… y-you're actually…" Fū mumbled.
"No different than who he was on the island." Naruto said, shaking his head as the other jinchūriki briefly turned his head towards him. "We all met with the 'real Yagura' this whole time." Naruto's eyes narrowed on Tobi for a moment, his fists tightening: "The 'Yagura' you all think was a monster was created by that monster, who brainwashed him into nearly destroying Mizu no Kuni!"
"Brainwashed?" Rōshi repeated the word with a frown.
"He's correct." Utakata nodded his head, drawing attention towards him. The Rokubi jinchūriki stiffened as he reached for his pipe. "The one responsibility for the destruction of Mizu no Kuni and the bloody civil war in Kirigakure is that man in the mask."
"Who, me?" Tobi asked before chuckling: "Well, I suppose I did have a reason for wanting to hurt Kirigakure. Perhaps I did something like that for my own petty justice." He then shrugged his shoulders: "Or perhaps I didn't?"
"Oh no, you definitely did!" Naruto snarled, his eyes starting to turn red: "You fucking ruin everything you touch, just like how you killed my parents, you-"
"Naruto, save your anger for the fight." Kurama's voice echoed in his head. "Don't let it cloud your mind so easily. Channel it into your energy, but don't let it consume you."
Naruto bit his lip in response to the Kyūbi's words, but did as he was told and remained quiet. Tobi proceeded to laugh loudly in response as he brought his hands together.
"I suppose that all sorts of secrets are getting exposed right now, huh?" He stated as his eyes narrowed, the Mangekyō Sharingan visible from the eyeholes on his mask: "With that in mind, are you all aware you are facing off against Uchiha Madara, alongside some of Akatsuki's top agents and the Six Paths of Pain?"
"We were aware of your identity, Madara." Gaara said calmly as he crossed his arms and began channeling chakra. "That's why we all prepared for this."
In an instant, Gaara activated his Bijū Mode, surrounding himself in his chakra shroud.
"Gaara's right." Yugito nodded her head. Her eyes briefly glanced back to Yagura for a moment before shaking her head: "We're not going to be distracted by any bullshit, nor are we intimidated by any of you." She, too, channeled her own chakra shroud, entering Bijū Mode alongside the Kazekage: "We're simply going to kill you; kill all of you."
"Big words." Kisame snorted in response as he pulled out Samehada, pointing it in Yugito's direction before quickly changing direction, impaling himself with the sword and absorbing it. His body proceeded to change shape once-more, becoming more shark-like as he started to laugh loudly: "But let's see if you all have what it takes to back it up."
"We do." Yagura spoke-up, gritting his teeth as he channeled his own Bijū Mode and creating his own chakra shroud. His eyes focused briefly on Kisame before narrowing on 'Madara': "This is for Kirigakure. I am going to fucking destroy you!"
"There's more to that story, but I'll have to wait until this all said and done until I can ask about it." Rōshi noted before turning to face Kabuto. A glare developed on his face as he channeled his own Bijū Form. He grabbed the staff that formed alongside his cloak and gripped it tightly: "After all, I got someone I'd like to kill as well; some graverobbing asshole who played a part in Ōnoki's death!"
"Hmm. I suppose I did play some role in that, huh?" Kabuto noted, adjusting his glasses as he started to channel chakra, his body becoming surrounded by a thick exoskeleton: "And you think you'll be able to avenge him?"
"He will." Han spoke softly before his Bijū Version Two form faded away, replaced with his own chakra shroud. More-and-more steam poured from his body as he cracked his knuckles: "We have been training for this long enough. I would not underestimate any of us."
"The mission details were compromised. This was known, and we still chose to attack. Have you ever considered why?" Konan spoke as her legs started to break apart, turning into the paper. The paper quickly reattached to her back, forming wings as she started to rise-up: "You're facing the will of a god."
"There is no such thing." Utakata shook his head in response as his body was surrounded by his chakra shroud. Acid started to drip from his feet as he glare at Konan's floating figure: "Even if there was one, I'd certainly not recognize any of you as a god."
"Damn right!" Fū nodded her head as her chakra shroud began to take-shape. She took a deep breath as she opened her wings, taking flight: "We'll stop you all, right here. Right now."
"You all thought you could take us on, then let's face off; brawn versus brawn!" Bee exclaimed as Bijū Cloak took shape over his body: "You're facing off against the elite! Us nine jinchūriki can't be beat!"
"Your plan was to hunt us down. That's failed every time you tried." Naruto stated sharply as he cracked his knuckles as he channeled his Bijū Mode.
His chakra shroud started to form around his body, and combined with the Sage Mode that he was channeling. Instead of the form simply merging with his skin, Naruto now appeared like he was wearing a haori made of the golden-fires with the same black markings that ran down his skin. Naruto's pupils dilated and his whiskers became thicker and the black markings on his body and his haori expanded further.
"You all failed when you tried to take Han-nii back at Tenchi Bridge. You failed trying to take Yagura after the Kirigakure Civil War. You failed trying to take Fū during the Taki invasion. Every time, your organization has failed." Naruto stated sharply: "Your organization has been nothing but a failure, and still, you all act like you're gods?"
"Conversation is pointless." Pain spoke as he held out a hand: "Our end goal is in sight. Setbacks in the past do not matter; all that matters is defeating you all right now."
"And the only thing that matters to us is making sure all of you die right now!" Naruto replied, crossing his arms.
As both Pain and Naruto stated, words finally stopped; the battle between the Akatsuki and jinchūriki had finally begun.
Quick Notes:
1: Hey, quick question, why exactly do people never think about using Team Oboro for anything Amegakure related outside of the Konoha Chūnin Exams? I mean, I kinda already know the answer: the three are genin that are dealt with in the exams, never made an appearance after the fact other than a filler arc (in Part 1 Naruto, no less), and they were also introduced and got ridden of prior to Pain's reveal and establishment of Amegakure as a village in general. So yeah, relatively fair reasons to ignore them entirely. But hey, I kinda always thought they had potential... which gave birth to plans. I will not confess to particularly being attached to Team Oboro, but I did find their design and psychological warfare style of techniques rather interesting. And as such, I wanted to give them a chance to shine in at least one fanfic outside of their obligatory appearance in the Chūnin Exams! :P
2: As I already briefly joked about in the last chapter, 'Tsuyoi' is the name established for the Yondaime Raikage. It fits the naming conventions of Kumogakure (aka, naming after adjectives), and I thought it suited him and how focused he is on his outward portrayal and 'seeming strong'. Now, having said that, he'll still be referring to him as Ē from now on. And the Sandaime Raikage will be referred to as Abunai (the name I have given him) in order to distinguish between him and his son. Just wanted to address that!
Author's Note: Hey everyone, chapter 122 is here! And thus, my invasion begins! SOMUCHFUCKINGHYPE!
There's obviously a lot of moving parts going on and a lot of fights going on. I'll be doing my best to cut between everything and make everything feel fluid, organic, and natural. And I also intend on showing more than just these fights presented on screen. There's still more players involved in Kumo at the moment, after all! But I thought it important to really establish the groundwork for the most important of the fights that are going to be presented, after all.
Obviously, this invasion is getting split up into parts (because fucking duh lol), but I did figure out appropriate spots to separate the chapters! So I'm hoping that you'll be satisfied with everything as the chapters come out :)
Um... this chapter was actually a ton of fun writing, so I'm hoping that means the next ones will be equally fast as well! Look forward to chapter 123 soon as well, provided I get the time. Work, I will confess, has been kicking my ass though, so hopefully I can get shit together for a little bit so I can focus on working on the next chapter.
In the meantime, I guess I'll sign off here. And now that it's... oh. It's 1:51 A.M right now in my timezone as of writing this. Fuck. Alright, going to sleep, cutting this sort, see you all when 123 is up! Until then :)