Author's Note: So the previous' chapter review count is pretty similar to the last batch of chapters that came before that. So I'm going to assume that the unusually low number of reviews of the chapter before that was the website malfunctioning and not the quality of my writing slipping. Something my ego deeply appreciates XD
Anyway, here's the conclusion to the Crimson Citadel mini arc. Enjoy:
Chapter 46:
The Crimson Citadel, Part II
or
Hammer Down
In front of the secondary prison blocks, Shisui Uchiha was leading a small squad in order to liberate it, since the prisoners would make for great reinforcements. At least those who were rebels or dissenters. He already had in mind all the criminals that would claim to be political prisoners just for the excuse to be free.
Turns out, despite the attack, no guard had left the secondary blocks unprotected in order to repel the invasion force. Of course, Shisui was going to prove that quality trumped quantity any time of day.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Water Release: Water Gun!"
Shisui breathed a huge fireball at a group of guards, while they countered with a volley of watery projectiles, clashing in the middle, cancelling each other out and creating a cloud of steam. Just as Shisui had expected.
Without giving the guards time to react, Shisui unsheathed his tanto and silently dashed towards his opponents. However, he soon found himself being pelted by shuriken, thrown with impressive aim even in the middle of the cloud of steam.
"What the...?" the one eyed Uchiha asked as he deflected the steel stars with his weapon.
"They must have a sensor among them! Watch out!" one of his ninja warned him.
"If they can sense me, then there's no point in stealth. I'll have to take them head on!" Shisui decided as he charged forward.
As Shisui charged, he also heard a second set of quick steps running parallel towards him, as a shadow blurred through the dispelling steam.
"Another one to your right! Watch out!" an enemy ninja warned.
Shisui smirked. "Found the sensor."
However, said sensor wasn't alone, as two more ninja were protecting the one he deduced was the sensor. One of them unsheathed a katana and lunged at the one eyed Uchiha while the other remained close to him.
"So, that traitorous whore got you of all people to help her with her temper tantrum? The nerve!" the red clad ninja scoffed as he delivered vicious swings at Shisui.
"Why the hate? My squad usually has the lowest body count. Did you lose a loved one to my blade or something?" the Uchiha calmly asked.
"You humiliated us by letting your defeated enemies get away! But you won't insult us any longer!" the Kiri loyalist angrily replied.
"Wait...you're angry over the fact that I spared your comrades? You guys have issues," Shisui replied.
"Dark Mirror Clone Jutsu!"
Suddenly, clones of the Kirigakure loyalists appeared alongside the originals, their skin and clothes having a dark blue tint that set them apart from the originals, which drew their weapons, and attacked them. Some of them were caught by surprise.
"ARGH!"
"What the hell is this?"
Shisui took no time to notice that the jutsu had been cast by a masked rebel kiri wearing a dark blue long cloak. The masked ninja swiftly attacked all the enemies fighting their dark replicas, and Shisui did the same. In no time, the block entrance was secured.
"Alright, entrance cleared, go inside and release all the rebel prisoners!" Shisui ordered. All men under his command nodded, and followed him inside.
"Good work out there. That's quite the jutsu," Shisui praised the masked ninja.
"Thanks. Unfortunately, it only works on small groups," the masked ninja replied.
"Hey, it get the job done. I'm Shisui Uchiha, by the way," Shisui introduced himself.
"Kumori Nashi," the man said. "Let's talk later, we have comrades to free."
…
"Forget about the humans, keep firing on that giant toad!" a Kiri ANBU commanded.
Given the damage it was causing, most of Kiri's forces were concentrating their fire on Gamahiro. While arriving at the barracks didn't prove to be too difficult, taking them was a different endeavor. The building was heavily fortified, as well as defended with several kunai launchers that sprayed the attackers with constant rains of kunai.
The golems kept aiming their flamethrowers at Gamahiro as well, and while the rebel ninjas tired to counter them with their water ninjutsu, the Kiri loyalists targeted them instead, keeping them busy. Other ninjas, having identified Naruto as the one who summoned the creature, decided to take the fight to him directly.
"Wind Release: Wind Wall!"
A tornado surrounded Naruto, which blocked the kunai, shuriken and ninjutsu a trio of Kiri ninja had thrown at him.
"Ouch! Watch out with what you do there, Naruto!" Gamahiro protested.
"Dammit, I forgot I wasn't on the ground. I have to be careful with my attacks or I can hurt Gamahiro!" the blonde thought. "Sorry! Force of habit!"
On the ground, the rest of Team Kurenai and Miyako tried their best to protect Gamahiro from the enemy Kiri ninja and the golems. One of them aimed its hand cannon at her and released a torrent of flames.
"Heavenly Spin!"
Hinata turned herself into a spinning dome of blue chakra, deflecting the stream of fire. Haku took a step forward and made several hand seals.
"Water Release: Water Gun!"
The Ice Ninja expelled multiple watery projectiles at the stream of flames, slowly pushing it back. Miyako rushed forward, seeing it as the perfect opening to attack.
"The mobile parts have to be unarmored, and thus vulnerable to my blade. They have to!" She exclaimed as she leaped into the air, katana above her head. But when she came down and delivered a vertical slash, her hit was parried by another sword. "What?"
Much to her shock, a blade had appeared on the golem's left hand, blocking the blue haired kunoichi's strike, before she was pushed backwards by the mechanical beast.
"Ice Release: Thousand Needles of Death!"
Multiple icicles rained from above over the golem, thought not randomly, as they embedded themselves into the articulations and other unarmored spots. The golem started to shake erratically as it tried and failed to move. Sparks of chakra started to jump from its body as it malfunctioned.
"Good work, Haku! This should put it down!" Miyako said as she tossed a bunch of kunai with explosive notes attached to them. Several explosions later, the golem was down.
"Good one. Let's see if we can repeat the process with the other golems," Kurenai said.
However, a new information about the enemy was about be known, much to a certain kunoichi's concern.
"Hey, somebody just told me that Mei-sama's group is facing the warden who is nobody but Jinin Akebino himself!" a Kiri ninja shouted out loud.
"WHAT!?" Miyako replied just as louder. Then, she turned at Kurenai. "Kurenai-san, I'm sorry, but if that's true, I need to go there!"
"I know you're an aspiring swordsman, but isn't somebody like Jinin a bit too much for you?" Kurenai questioned.
"Me alone, sure. But I won't be alone. I need to take part in that fight so when we have his sword in our power, Mei-sama will deem me worthy of inheriting it," Miyako replied.
"So you're putting your own ambition over the success of the mission?" Kurenai disapprovingly asked.
"If you think that my presence here will make a difference, or I can do something nobody else can, then I'll stay," the blue haired girl replied.
Kurenai was forced to admit that, truth be told, the Kiri kunoichi leaving wouldn't change the course of the battle too much.
"Alright then, I guess we'll manage without you. Good luck," Kurenai told her.
Miyako smiled at her. "Good luck to you two, and take care!"
And thus, the blue haired rebel dashed towards the entrance of the main prison block.
…
And in the aforementioned main prison block, the three Swordsmen of the Mist were about to begin their private duel.
"Let's get rid of the distraction first! You're in, kid!" Jinin shouted as he dashed towards Chojuro, Helmet Splitter in hand.
Chojuro yelped and held his sword in a defensive position. Zabuza's eyes shot open upon realizing what the blue haired teen was planning to do.
"Watch out, brat! That sword is not like the others! Don't-!"
But it was too late. The moment the axe half of the Helmet Splitter came down, Chojuro raised the Hiramekarei to parry it. Jinin smirked, and used the hammer half of his weapon to slam into the backside of the axe, overpowering Chojuro's defenses. It didn't break Hiramekarei, but it managed to blow it out of Chojuro's hands, and cause him some damage in the forearms.
"My sword can break through any defenses! Blocking or parrying is useless!" Jinin boasted, as he prepared to attack the downed Chojuro. "Now die, traitor!"
Fortunately for Chojuro, his death was delayed when Zabuza tossed the Executioner's Blade at the older swordsman, which forced him to parry it. In a second, Zabuza closed the gap and retrieved his sword, which he used to deliver a series of swipes, which Jinin dodged as he jumped backwards, but much to his chagrin, the size of Zabuza's sword gave it a lot of range.
"Your sword might be the ultimate offense, but it lacks in defense!" Zabuza said as he continued attacking. "Brat, kill him now that he's wide open!"
"R-Right!" Chojuro stammered as he recovered the Hiramekarei and rushed towards the struggling Jinin. Gripping the two handles of his blade, Chojuro delivered an horizontal slash that cut the senior swordsman in two. "Yes! What?"
Unfortunately, Jinin disappeared in a cloud of smoke, leaving a cleaved log behind.
"Not bad, definitely not bad," Jinin said from behind them. "It's about time for you to see what you're up against! Bluntsword Ninja Art: Earth Breaker!"
Jinin slammed the hammer half of the Helmet Splitter into the ground, shattering it, creating multiple quakes and sending a wave of rock and pebbles against the rebel swordsmen. Chojuro quickly stepped in front of Zabuza, raising his sword in a defensive position.
"Hiramekarei: Release!"
Chojuro's sword was engulfed by a cloak of glowing blue chakra, which expanded and took the shape of a shield. Said shield managed to absorb the impact of the rocks and pebbles aimed at them.
Zabuza smirked under his mask. "Not bad, kid. Seems that you're at least aware of some of your sword's abilities, even if you're ignorant of the others."
"Uhhh...thanks?" the bespectacled ninja asked, a bit confused.
Zabuza suddenly grabbed Chojuro by the shoulder and pushed him aside, while he himself jumped in the opposite direction, narrowly avoiding Jinin's swing.
"God damn it brat, one compliment, and you get so distracted he almost kills you!" Zabuza angrily groaned. "This is why I never say nice things!"
Meanwhile, not far from there, Mei spared a glance to check how their duel was going on, and worry spread through her face as she saw that Jinin was proving to be a hard nut to crack. She was tempted to lend them a hand, but in the end, it wouldn't be a good idea. If she, a non-swordsman, disrupted their duel, then the enemy would aid Jinin in return, making the task of taking him down much harder.
There was also the fact that the Seven Swordsmen had a reputation to uphold. If she had to babysit them all the time, it would erode their prestige, and that would be seen as a disservice to Kirigakure's culture. No, she had to let them, and hope that they would come out on top.
The whirring sound of flying shuriken snapped her back from her admittedly brief trance. Gracefully, the rebel leader dodged the steel stars aimed at her, and faced the ones who tossed them, a group of elite ANBU.
"Look at that. The most wanted criminal in the Land of Water, coming right into our prison. That's what one would call irony," one ANBU mentioned.
Mei smirked at him. "Oh, trust me, I didn't come here to become a permanent resident. Pretty much the opposite."
"You have a 'Kill on Sight' order placed on you, miss. Spending your last days on a cold, damp cell is a comfort you won't experience," another ANBU replied as he unsheathed his katana, an action mimicked by his partners.
"Kill on sight? Wow, I'm flattered! My rebellion must be really more of a threat than what Yagura lets on, if he's so desperate to have me dead, don't you think?" Mei squealed in fake joy.
Under their masks, the ANBU growled. "Let's silence this whore already," one of them seethed.
Mei stopped smiling, and frowned. "Whore? Now that's being rude. It seems that not only ninjas under the Blood Mist lack compassion and empathy, but also basic decency. Guess I'll have to teach you some myself."
"The dead can't teach anything! Water Release: Water Shuriken!"
The ANBU created several water shuriken from thin air and made them fly at the rebel leader. Mei smiled as she made hand seals in quick succession, before slamming her hands into the ground. "Amateurish. Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!"
A wall of stone erected from the ground between Mei and her enemies, absorbing the water shuriken. However, while she was doing that, other two ANBU had flanked her, and were ready to slash her from two different angles. Mei, however, was unfazed.
"Not bad," Mei admitted as he made several hand seals. "But as you are going to find out, bloodlust isn't a good replacement for genuine skill and power. Water Release: Water Whip!"
Mei generated a whip made of water, and she twirled it around herself, expertly parrying and blocking the quick strikes of the enemy ANBU. Their fight was interrupted when a chakra golem tore down the wall, startling her a bit.
"Let's see what your ninjutsu can do against this!" an ANBU standing on the golem's shoulder taunted.
Mei smirked once again, as she started to make more hand seals. "You'll see it shortly. Water Release: All Devouring Maelstrom!"
Water appeared out of nowhere and started to spin around the golem, quickly forming a water tornado. The ninja riding the golem let out a loud laugh.
"You idiot! No matter how big you make your jutsu, the golem can absorb it!" the ANBU taunted.
"I know the golem can do that, but can you?" Mei asked, shooting him a condescending smile.
The ANBU stopped laughing. "Shit..."
When the water tornado formed, while the golem was left unharmed, the ANBU was sent flying high into the air.
"Thought so," Mei nonchalantly said. She saw the golem stomping towards her with predictable intentions. "Well, let's see what can I do with you, big guy..."
…
While Kiba, Shino and Tamaki went to deal with the enemy Kiri ninja spawning shadow clones to bolster their numbers, Kakashi and Rin were holding the rest in line. Most of the enemy forces focused on Kakashi, whom was deemed as the biggest threat, while Rin covered his back. Soon the Kiri ninja noticed that trying to take Rin out was just as hard as Kakashi.
As the brown haired girl clashed with the Kiri ninja, she started to notice something about her body. It was much more resilient and resistant. Despite all the time she had been fighting, she didn't feel tired in the slightest. She moved faster, hit harder, and her reflexes were much sharper. She wondered how she never noticed this earlier, but then she realized this was the first real fight she had been since her resurrection.
"What? How a little girl can be this strong?" a Kiri ninja incredulously asked, as he struggled with the medic-nin in a kunai lock.
"I work out a lot," Rin lied before pushing the enemy ninja backwards.
"Keep your act together! They're just two, even if one of them is the Copy Ninja!" an ANBU captain angrily exclaimed.
"They might be just two, but they're quite strong, and their defense is too solid!" a lesser ranked ANBU complained.
"You whiny cowards! And you call yourselves ninja of the Blood Mist?" the captain yelled before making a hand seal. "Show them what we're made of! Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
Soon, a dense mist covered the area, hiding the enemies of the Konoha duo. Kakashi tensed up, and tightly held a kunai in a defensive position.
"Rin, be careful! Stay back to back!" Kakashi told her.
"Alright," the medic-nin complied with Kakashi's requests, as she expected the enemy to make their move any moment. Then, a realization dawned upon her. "Wait a minute, this mist...I think I can use it to my advantage," she thought, before making several hand seals.
As the group of Kiri ninja slowly approached from all directions, ready to bathe their weapons in the blood of the invading Konoha trash. Little did they know that the only blood spilled today would be theirs.
As they slowly approached, they noticed that walking was becoming more and more difficult. It took them no time to notice that tall grass was growing around them.
"Grass? But how can...?" A Kiri ANBU wondered, puzzled.
But it was too late. The moment they stepped on the grass, Rin located their position, and marked them for death. Soon, multiple vines grew from under their feet, wrapped around their bodies, and were strangled to death. Rin was careful to target their throats as well so they couldn't shout or warn the others about her power.
Nobody could know. At least not yet.
Time passed, and the attack never came. Kakashi was growing antsy, and so was the ANBU captain. Unable to shake a bad feeling, he decided to dispel the mist. The image that appeared before his eyes surprised him to say the least, as he saw the bodies of his subordinates lying on the ground, motionless.
"What the...?" the ANBU captain stammered in shock.
"Good job taking care of those, Kakashi," Rin told her former teammate.
The Copy Ninja looked at her with some concern. "It wasn't me who took them out."
"Really? Oh. Well, guess that somebody helped us out, and then decided to leave," Rin said with a shrug.
"You know, you were never the best liar, Rin," Kakashi sternly said. "But now you're being ridiculous."
She had to admit that trying to fool Kakashi maybe wasn't the best of her ideas.
"Can we talk about it later? We have a mission to finish," Rin replied, weariness seeping into her voice.
Kakashi, nodded and the two of them pressed forward.
…
Meanwhile, on another side of the island prison, the division Kurenai's Assault Squad was part of had successfully taken over the barracks, and were quickly securing the building. Most of the enemy Kiri ninja had retreated towards the main prison block.
"I took quite a beating from those golems. I hate to leave given that the fight is far from over, but I don't think I can be of much more help," Gamahiro apologized.
"Hey, it's okay, you were awesome! We wouldn't have taken over the barracks so easily without you," Naruto complimented the giant toad.
"Thank you. Good luck for what's left!" Gamahiro said before vanishing in a cloud of smoke.
"Alright, now that the barracks are ours, we can establish a proper infirmary and move all our wounded here," Kurenai mentioned.
"Should we help the other divisions?" Haku asked.
Kurenai shook her head. "Our orders were clear. Capture and protect the barracks. Unless we're given new orders, our duty is to stay here."
"Alright then. Can I send a few clones to see how the others are doing? They might be in a position that stops them from sending a request for help," Naruto suggested.
Kurenai pondered the blonde's petition for a few moments, before deciding that there was no harm in doing such a thing. "Alright then. Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Several Naruto clones popped into existence, and run away into different directions.
"Soon we should have pretty good intel on what's happening on the rest of the isle," Naruto proudly said.
"Zabuza-sama and Tenten-chan were on the main division. I hope they're doing right," Haku mused.
…
"Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu!"
Using the nearby water, Zabuza summoned a gigantic dragon-shaped construct that dived at the older swordsman. Jinin looked unimpressed, and started to swing the hammer half of his weapon at an incredible speed.
"Bluntsword Ninja Art: Hurricane Hammer!"
The swinging hammer created a strong whirlwind around Jinin, and when the water dragon reached its target, it crashed and dissolved against a barrier of gale force winds, much to Zabuza's chagrin. And it wasn't going to end there.
"Take this!" Jinin shouted as he swung the hammer forward, sending the tornado at Zabuza.
At first, Zabuza was lost on how to survive against such attack, but then he quickly remembered how a past opponent managed to withstand one of his water jutsu, and decided to give the idea a try. He then stabbed the sword into the ground, and channeled chakra through his fingers in order to stick them to the sword's handle.
When the tornado came, it violently tried to send him flying, but Zabuza was anchored to the ground, and thus wasn't moved.
"Not bad, definitely not bad," Jinin complimented. "But will it be good enough to beat me? I find that doubtful."
"I already killed a Swordsman of the Mist before. You're nothing special," Zabuza snarled.
"Ah, yes, I know how you killed Biwo-san and acquired his blade. Did you best him in single combat, or did you attack him during a moment of vulnerability?"
"Does it matter? The fact that I managed to kill him shows that he wasn't worthy of wielding the Executioner's Blade and belonging to our select group anymore," Zabuza retorted. "I surpassed Biwo-sensei and every sensei, and thus his sword deserved to be mine!"
"While there is some truth to your words, you won't be able to catch all your opponents off guard for an easy kill, as I myself am proving right now," Jinin replied, as he swung the half axe of his weapon at Zabuza, who was smart enough to dodge and not parry it. "Doesn't change the fact that you're a traitorous disgrace that needs to be put down. When the two of you are dealt with, I'll make sure Mizkage-sama gives your swords to loyal ninja of the Mist!"
"Zabuza-senpai is the product of the regime you're defending so ardently!" Chojuro blurted out, his words came with a surprising lack of stammer.
"You have no idea what are you talking about, kid," Jinin condescendingly said.
"Maybe I'm too young. But I know the history of my village. I know how Zabuza-senpai came to be. It was the Blood Mist customs' that drove him to the path he ended up taking, as it did the same to many others who also became missing-nin, some former Swordsmen amongst them! The Blood Mist will end up tearing itself apart!" Chojuro shouted, as he swung the Hiramekarei at Jinin, who easily parried it.
"There will always be people unhappy with a government. But it's impossible to please everybody. Our duty as ninjas is to maintain order and stability," Jinin replied. "Don't try to shift the blame of this war on my side, kid. It was your side who started!"
"We HAD a reason to start this!" Chojuro said as he jumped at Jinin, his sword over his head, which started to glow with a blue light. "Hiramekarei: Release!"
The cloak of chakra covering the giant sword took the shape of a giant hammer, which the bespectacled young man swung at Jinin. Knowing there was no way to block such an attack, he opted to avoid it by jumping back, even if he knew that it would leave him wide open, something Zabuza took no time capitalize on, as he appeared behind the bearded swordsman,
"Your sword might carry a lot of destructive power, but your defense is non-existent!" Zabuza taunted, ready to cleave Jinin.
Then much to Zabuza's surprise, rather than trying to avoid or block his swing, Jinin instead swung the axe half of his weapon at Zabuza's neck. Zabuza released one of his hands from his sword's handle, and used it to grab Jinin's wrist, stopping the attack. But in doing so, he robbed his own swing of much of his power, and Jinin easily blocked it with the hammer half of his weapon.
"You know what they say, the best defense is a good offense. And no offense is better than the Helmet Splitter!" Jini shouted as he kicked Zabuza in the chest, pushing him back, before lunging at him again.
But once again, Jinin was forced to jump backwards as several kunai rained upon him, a few of them dangerously close to find its mark. Angry and startled, he looked around to see how had ambushed him, and saw a tall and slender girl with long blue hair that hid one of her eyes landing near Zabuza. Her uniform identified her as a rebel.
"Who the hell are you?" Jinin angrily asked.
The newcomer smirked. "My name is Miyako Kiui, Special Jonin of the Kirigakure Liberation Movement, as well as an aspiring member of the Seven Swordsmen."
"Get lost, little girl, this is a fight between actual Swordsmen, not pretenders," Jinin dissed her.
Miyako crossed her arms. "What, am I too much for you to handle, big guy?"
"Quite the opposite, I'm not going to deal with such an opponent that's below me, so leave if you value your life," Jinin warned her.
Miyako replied by unsheathing her katana. "The most common way to become a Swordsman is to kill the previous wielder of a sword and claim it as your own. And that's why I'm planning to do."
This seems to hit a nerve on Jinin, who dangerously scowled at her. "Alright girl, you got your wish. I'd be more than happy to put you in your place. Bluntsword Ninja Art: Underground Fissure!"
Jinin raised the axe half of his weapon above his head, whose edge started to glow with a dim blue light, before slamming it into the ground, sending an underground shockwave that shook the earth, and left a deep crack in the ground behind it.
"Oh shit!" Miyako shouted as she jumped aside multiple times in order to avoid the widespread destruction.
"Don't get too cocky, girl. This man is a veteran of the Third Ninja War, and possibly the strongest Swordsman loyal to Yagura," Zabuza pointed out.
"You should listen to your sempai, little girl. You're way over your head," Jinin added before raising the hammer half this time. "Bluntsword Ninja Art: Earth breaker!"
Jinin brought the hammer down once more, creating a massive quake that send the two swordsmen and the one aspiring swordsman flying with an incredible force.
"You can bring as many pretenders who want to get their dirty hands onto our swords, yet it won't be enough. Do you know why? Because we fight for a higher cause. We fight for peace, order and stability. You're fighting for the delusions of a mad woman consumed by her lust of power, and you yourselves are nothing but naïve children throwing temper tantrums just because things aren't the way you want," Jinin harshly told them. "That's why you're destined to lose!"
Zabuza managed to land on his feet, and raised his sword in a defensive pose as he slowly advanced towards his foe.
"You see us as children throwing a temper tantrum. Do you know how do we see you? As an old man who desperately clings to the old times because he's too afraid to face the fact that the world has changed., and realize that he's the last of the few relics of a past time. Now go to the place you belong, relic!" Zabuza shouted as he tossed his sword at the older swordsman once again.
"Not falling for that one again, boy," Jinin replied as he also tossed the hammer half of his weapon at the flying sword. Both weapons clashed with a loud clang. Zabuza's sword was sent spinning aside, while Jinin merely tugged the leather link bounding both weapons, and returned the hammer to his hand. "And now it's when either you or one of your allies ambush me from behind, right?"
And true to his words, he turned around and saw Chojuro ready to cut him in two, Hiramekarei already moving to strike. Chojuro yelped upon seeing that Jinin had seen him coming. Jinin smirked, and parried the blow with the axe half, while smashing Chojuro's arm with the hammer.
"AAAAAAAARRRGGGHH!" the young swordsman yelled, dropping his weapon to the ground, as he himself fell on his knees.
"Does it hurt? Well, that's what happens when you get into a war. People either die, or get horribly maimed for life. And while I doubt that injury might be permanent, you won't live to receive medical attention," Jinin said as he prepared to finish the job.
"Leave him alone, you asshole!" Miyako shouted as she charged at Jinin.
Even if the yell was an obvious alert, Jinin was already expecting either of them to try to save their comrade, and was unsurprised that his guessing of the girl turned out to be correct. Jinin's axe clashed against Miyako's katana, resulting in a shower of sparks.
"At the very least, two of the lost swords will go back to their legitimate owner," Jinin said as he effortlessly pushed Miyako back, who made several hand seals.
"Water Release: Water Shuriken!"
Shuriken made of water formed in front of the blue haired kunoichi, as they flew towards Jinin. But the older swordsman merely swung his hammer, and easily destroyed them.
"Nothing you can throw at me will have any kind of effect, girl. Give up already," Jinin dismissively said. "Even if by some miracle you manage to win here, Mizukage-sama is already aware of what you did! Then you'll have no option but face Kirigakure in the open, and you will be crushed!"
"Do you take us for idiots? The island is surrounded by our forces, ready to intercept any bird messenger that tries to fly into the mainland. Yagura will be none the wiser when we storm the village, just like we did with this prison!" Miyako countered, as she delivered fast swipes with her katana at Jinin.
The older swordsman merely smirked. "Ah, yes, the birds. We found out later than what would have been desirable that that's how you've been gaining intel on us. But that tactic won't work with you anymore."
Miyako wanted to believe it was just a bluff to get her upset, but he couldn't feel that her foe wasn't lying.
"What are you talking about?" the blue haired kunoichi shouted.
"Do you have anybody checking underwater?" Jinin mysteriously asked.
"Underwater? Why would...?" she asked, confused, before a realization hit her like a sledgehammer. "No way...!"
"Yes. Upon noticing that you were intercepting our messenger birds, we decided to take advantage of the sea, and used sea animals to carry messages underwater instead. Several couriers were sent away to Kirigakure a few minutes after your invasion started, detailing, among other things, that little sneaking you did in order to disable our defenses and open the dock gates. Mizukage-sama knows everything. You have no way to defeat him."
Miyako was left stunned. Secrecy has always been the rebellion's greatest weapon, and now, they could no longer count on it. Even if Yagura didn't plan to hunt them down, he'll expect them to attack to village anytime, and would reinforce its defenses. Mei had stressed how important Yagura not knowing about them was. There would be no way to take over the village now. They had already lost.
"No...it can't end like this..." a still stunned and shocked Miyako said, almost in a whisper.
"It can," Jinin said. "But Mizukage-sama won't have to end your revolt personally. That honor will belong to ME!"
Jinin was about to cut Miyako in two with his axe, before Zabuza suddenly appeared between him and his potential victim, deflecting the axe blow to the side.
"Goddamit girl, snap out of it!" Zabuza angrily shouted, as he pushed Jinin back. "This isn't the end! I refuse to let it end here after how long I've been walking this path!"
"Didn't you hear what he said? Yagura knows about this attack now! He will be expecting us! All our efforts from these past years are now wasted! We can't win!"
"So what? Things didn't go as planned. When do they do? I did meet my fair share of failures, and here I am, ready to take Kirigakure away from Yagura's hands!" Zabuza shouted.
Zabuza sounded so sure. Did the rebels still have a chance to win? He certainly think so. And what he said is true. He failed in his initial coup. He was captured by Konoha when he helped the Uchiha Clan with their failed attempt at seizing Konoha. Yet the man didn't let discouraging odds to put him down, and persevered.
Yes, he was right. They couldn't give up. Every problem has a solution, and they'd find a solution for this one. Besides, this was far from the first setback the rebellion had faced. Wiping the stunned expression from her face, Miyako gripped her katana tightly, and prepared to rejoin the face.
"Sorry, I don't know what came over me," Miyako told him.
"Be sure it doesn't happen again. I can't waste my time babysitting you all the time!" Zabuza snarled, as he charged at Jinin once again.
Zabuza and Jinin engaged in a fight once, more, loud clangs rang through the air as their weapons clashed. In no time, it became obvious that Zabuza was gaining the upper hand. Still, that was nowhere near enough to make Jinin consider defeat.
"Just like I said, your defense is pretty poor. Your sword might provide you a formidable offense, but it will be for naught if I simply don't let you attack," Zabuza told him as he pressed on.
"And you think I'm going to let you?" Jinin replied as he parried a blow with the axe half of his weapon, while trying to smash Zabuza with the hammer.
Zabuza, however, disengaged in time to duck the mighty hit., and landed a punch on Jinin's stomach. Still, the bearded man didn't bend over. As the two kept fighting, Miyako decided that the best course of action would be supporting Zabuza from afar. She positioned herself behind Jinin, and made several hand seals.
"Water Release: Water Shuriken!"
Once again, multiple water shuriken formed in front of her, and she directed them towards Jinin, being careful not to hit Zabuza with them. However, as if Jinin had eyes on his back (or a Byakugan), the swordsman swung his hammer in an spinning motion, deflecting all the shuriken, while all the same time using the axe to parry Zabuza's sword.
"You think I'm such an amateur to not to notice how many enemies I'm fighting against? Trying to catch me off guard is-URK!" Jinin choked, as he spat blood.
It took the presents a couple seconds to notice that Chojuro had appeared behind him, and struck his side with Hiramekarei, whom he was holding with his only good arm. He was unable to put much force into the swing, but it was enough to make a grievous wound.
"Y-You...!?" Jinin asked in disbelief.
"I'm...I'm not dead yet, I can still fight!" Chojuro shouted, though he couldn't suppress his stutter.
Then, Miyako appeared besides them, and impaled Jinin with her katana for a good measure. The older swordsman dropped his weapon, and fell to his knees.
"You're right..." Jinin said, coughing more blood. "To think that I of all people made such a rookie mistake...you have guts, kid, I'll give you that."
Zabuza walked towards him, and raised his sword. "Any last words, Jinin-san?"
"Yes. Do know that I don't regret my actions or loyalties, and die as a loyal swordsman. And since I'm sure you're going to give my sword to somebody else, make sure it's somebody worthy of it," Jinin asked.
Zabuza nodded. "I promise you the next bearer of the Helmet Splitter will be a swordsman worthy of your praise."
And then, the aptly named Executioner's Blade descended upon Jinin, separating his head from the rest of his body, ending his life.
Across the battlefield, all the chakra golems suddenly stopped fighting and were rendered inactive, with the seals slapped across their plating losing their glow.
Zabuza then grabbed his head, and raised it above his own.
"Attention everybody! Jinin Akebino of the Bluntsword is dead! The warden of this prison has died! Now give up, unless you want to follow a similar fate!" Zabuza shouted.
The fights around him immediately stopped. The effect of seeing their hero's severed head was immediate for the red-clad Kiri ninja. Some were disheartened, others enraged, but no one was left different.
"Jinin-sama is dead!?" a loyalist Kiri ninja asked in shock.
"Maybe we should surrender..." another one suggested. "The golems were bound to his will, and since he's no longer alive, there's nobody to make them fight..."
"Never! We're the Blood Mist! We don't have mercy, and we shall accept none!" another one shouted.
"Yes! We will go down fighting!" another Kiri ninja replied.
"Don't be such an idiot! Do you value your lives so poorly?" Mei asked.
"As if you don't plan to execute all of us, you traitorous whore!" the same ninja replied.
Trying to contain her anger at such crude insult, Mei breathed deeply. "No. I promise you that no harm won't befall on those who surrender peacefully. You will be treated as fairly as possible by my forces, and you will have the chance to return to active duty once Yagura has been deposed. No more blood needs to be spilled today."
Mei's words seems to have some effect on the enemy ninja, who dropped their weapons and walked towards the blue clad rebels, who quickly grabbed them.
"No! What are you doing, you idiots! Keep fighting!" an ANBU yelled as he lunged at a random rebel ninja, and many others followed his example.
The fight continued for a bit longer, but without Jinin, the golems, and a good chunk of the prison guards surrendering, those who refused to do so were quickly killed.
The effect was the same in the rest of the island. They realized that the golems' sudden deactivation meant that their leader was dead, and thus they were without two of the biggest assets they had. Around half of the prison guards choose to throw their weapons and hope the rebels would have mercy on them. The rest decided to go down fighting.
And as soon as the battle was over, all the rebels celebrated their victory with loud cheers and shouts of joy.
"We're not done here. Come on, we need to release all our allies, and lock up the prisoners!" Mei commanded. "And look for Ao! Finding him is of utmost importance!"
Miyako then walked towards Mei, her face reflecting worry.
"Mei-sama, before he died, Jinin-sempai said something you should know," Miyako told her leader. "Turns out, they did manage to send a message to the village. Apparently they use sea creatures that travel underwater as couriers now."
"That is grave news, indeed. Then again, it was a good thing that Jinin told us that. Otherwise, the invasion of Kiri might have turned into a disaster. Even if that means we can no longer use our original strategy," Mei replied. "I knew that part of your heart was still in the right place, Jinin-san."
"Are we going to continue with the invasion?" Miyako asked.
Mei nodded. "Yes. Now that Yagura knows of this, we can't fall back, even if he will be waiting for us."
…
Turns out, the man named Ao was locked in a secret underground cell which couldn't have been found without a sensor's help.
"Ao. We finally found you," Mei said, as the blue haired man came out of his confinement. "It's good to see you again."
"It's good to be free again, indeed. I was afraid I would never see you again, Mei-sama. I'm glad that I was wrong," Ao said as he made a small bow.
"How are you? Did they torture you?" Mei asked, a bit concerned.
"They did, and with a lot of enthusiasm. But they couldn't crack my will nor my mind," Ao proudly replied.
Mei smiled in return. "I see. What about your Byakugan? Do you still have it? Your seals are still in place, so I presume the answer is yes."
"Still in place," Ao said as he tapped his eye patch. "And as you said, they were unable to undo the protective seals. Not without killing me first, which they wouldn't do until they made me talk."
"Then it's a good thing that everything turned out as we had planned," Mei replied, then she turned at the group of ninja behind her. "Somebody please find Ao some proper clothes to wear in place of that hideous prison attire."
"Right away, ma'am!" two ninja said before leaving.
"Now that the island is under our control, let's check how the rest of the fights went, and how many losses we suffered," Mei said.
…
A few hours later, the sun started to rise in the horizon. Most of the clean-up had already been complete, and the island was fully under the rebel's control.
The guards that had surrendered had been locked inside the very same cells they used to watch, while the prisoners, at least those who could be identified as war prisoners, were released, given ninja uniforms and weapons, and reenlisted in the rebel army. Other criminals remained there.
Mei also called one of her hidden divisions into the island so they could man the prison while the bulk of her forces took a well deserved rest. Said reinforcements also brought food, clothes, weapons, medicine, and other supplies that the battle had drained from the rebel leader's main army, as well as their Konoha allies.
Some of said allies, namely Kurenai's Assault Squad, were inspecting one of the deactivated chakra golems, which was laying on the floor, motionless. Earlier, in an underground basement, they had discovered some sort of machine powered by the chakra of multiple ninja that actually supplied the golems with energy. It was decided that it wouldn't be destroyed, but kept for analysis instead.
And while their next orders arrived, Kurenai's team was studying one of those golems. Or better said, Naruto studied it while his teammates and sensei watched.
"I didn't want to believe it, but it's true. These seals were made by my clan," Naruto concluded. "I don't get it. Mom and Dad told me that neither Kiri nor Kumo got anything from the invasion of Uzushiogakure," Naruto protested.
"Or they did, but decided to pretend that it wasn't the case so their enemies wouldn't suspect anything," Kurenai wisely pointed out. "And it worked, given how off-guard these machines caught us."
"If this prison had these golems as reinforcements, then Kirigakure has them too. And possibly in a much bigger quantity," Haku observed. "It won't be an easy battle."
"No, but we already had experience fighting them. And despite their strength and abilities, they aren't invincible," Naruto pointed out.
"That power generator we found out underground suggest that the golems cannot be deployed far away from them, which means that they can only be used for defensive purposes. If we could lure the enemy into fighting outside the village..." Hinata pointed out, with a small glint of hope.
Kurenai, however, shook her head. "That won't happen. Yagura won't deploy his troops in mass outside the safety of the village's walls. This war won't end until we take over Kirigakure," Kurenai stated.
"Then we'll need a way to counter this golems. Naruto-kun, do you think you can create a seal that can disable them?" Haku asked his blond teammate.
Naruto looked pensive, but dubious. He placed two fingers under his chin. "I don't know. I can try, but the sealing matrix that makes the golems work is way more complex than anything I've studied."
"Whatever you do, no matter how little, it will be welcomed," Haku said in an almost pleading voice.
"Alright, I'll try to work on something," Naruto replied, much to the Ice Ninja's joy.
…
Meanwhile, in the prison's morgue, Mei and her swordsmen were around the table in which Jinin's body, covered by a sheet, was lying.
"His death was a tragedy. He was a good man, I just wish his loyalty wasn't so misplaced," a sorrowful Mei said. "Once the war ends, Jinin will be buried alongside all the previous swordsmen, with all the honors he deserves."
There was a moment of silence.
"Uh...even if it's too soon to ask...what's going to be of his sword?" Suigetsu asked. "Is any of us going to get it?"
Mei nodded, but shot Suigetsu a glare. "I was planning to talk about this later and not in front of Jinin's dead body, but given that you so tactfully brought up the issue..." Mei then looked at Miyako. "Miyako, I know you assisted Zabuza-kun and Chojuro with the fight, so I think you should be the one to inherit Jinin's sword."
"Zabuza-kun!?" the Swordsman Captain protested. "Well, it's not as bad as Zabuza-chan, but still..."
"Really?" Miyako gasped in excitement. "Thanks a lot, Mei-sama! I'll make both you and every past owner of the Helmet Splitter proud!"
"Oh come on! You need a lot of upper strength body to use that sword! Upper strength I have!" Suigetsu protested.
"Do you dare question the decisions of our leader?" Miyako asked, raising an eyebrow.
Suigetsu merely sighed in defeat.
"Chojuro, what about your arm? Does it feel better?" Mei asked the bespectacled swordsman.
"It does, Mei-sama. Konoha has some truly amazing medic-nin. I still need some time before it's fully healed, but it will be recovered by the time the invasion of Kirigakure begins," Chojuro replied with unusual enthusiasm.
Mei smiled. "Good to know that. But don't try to overdo it. Nobody will force you to fight until you're completely healed. Anyway, we should get some rest. The battle has been exhausting, and we only just begun."
…
Kirigakure, Mizukage's Palace
Yagura Karatachi, the Fourth Mizukage, was in a meeting with some his advisors. Like usual, the topic they were debating was how to deal with the ongoing rebellion. More specifically, how to make them come out of hiding. It turns out, however, that such problem was about to solve itself pretty soon, albeit at a very high cost.
"Mizukage-sama!" a couple ANBU burst into the meeting room, drawing everybody's attention. "We carry grave news! The rebels have taken over the Crimson Citadel!"
While Yagura remained silent and pensive, all the councilors started to shout and argue among themselves. The Mizukage raised a hand while releasing killing intent, silencing everybody in the room.
"So Mei has finally made her move. I have to admit it was sooner than any of us were expecting," Yagura commented.
"That's not all. There were Konoha ninja among her ranks. It seems she hired them or struck an alliance with Konoha," the ANBU continued.
"I see. That explains how she was able to launch such an attack," Yagura said, keeping his cool. "The loss of the prison is unfortunate, especially since we had the rebel head of intelligence there, as well as plenty of other rebel war prisoners. She will feel emboldened by this victory, and will move to invade the village next," Yagura deduced.
"Aren't you worried, Mizukage-sama?" one of his councilors asked. "With Konoha helping her, even if we defeat her, she could cause a lot of harm to the village, leaving us vulnerable to foreign enemies."
Yagura turned around, and shot him a small smile.
"Not in the slightest. I was already counting on this to happen, and thus, I made the necessary preparations for the rebels' arrival," Yagura told them.
Author's Note: Well, there you have it, the Crimson Citadel mini arc comes to an end. I hope you liked it. You can consider it a prelude of what the invasion of Kirigakure is going to be. Hopefully Jinin Akebino was a suitable opponent, and worthy of the title of Swordsman of the Mist. One go, other two more to take down. And that's not counting the "final boss", Yagura himself.
And as expected, Akatsuki plans to join the fray. How will their interference pay out? Will they fail to capture Yagura, or will they be succesful? And how will that affect the outcome of the invasion as a whole?
Thanks a lot to gio08 for betareading this chapter.
Next time, prelude to the invasion. In the meantime, don't forget to review! Reviews make me really, really, really happy!