So, what do you think about my take on Pain's invasion? Liking it so far? Hope so. With this chapter, we reach the middle point of the arc. Enjoy it:
Chapter 85:
The Akatsuki Invasion, Part III
or
Clash on Earth and Heaven
"We haven't seen each other since you took Rin away from Orochimaru's lair, haven't we?" Obito asked, looking at Kakashi. "Of course, I did get the pleasure to see Rin back in Kumo, when she took Shisui's eye from my face."
"Did you come here to take that eye back?" Kakashi asked. "Or do you want the eye you gave me before becoming an Akatsuki?"
"That eye was a gift, Kakashi, one that I did not regret giving you, even if the circumstances about us changed drastically," Obito said with a smirk. "No, I'm not here for any eyes. You should know that the only thing Konoha has that interests me, besides Rin, are the jinchuriki. We won't leave until we have the two of them."
"Then prepare to be disappointed," Kakashi defiantly replied.
"Why I should? So far, we have captured almost every jinchuriki we got our sights onto," Obito rebutted. "This won't be an exception, especially since Akatsuki is unleashing every resource at its disposal to destory Konoha and capture its jinchuriki."
"No matter how many missing ninja, self-powered automatons or artificial creatures you throw at us, you will never crush this village," Kakashi fired back. "Naruto and Fu are ninjas of this village, and everyone who fights do so not just to stop Akatsuki from claiming a jinchuriki, but to protect two comrades from the enemy."
"Yeah, yeah, the 'Will of Fire' and all that crap..." Obito dismissively said as he rolled his eyes. "You might have grown taller, Kakashi, but deep down you're still a kid. It's kind of ironic that you used to be far less naïve when you were younger."
"Kakashi isn't naïve, Obito. He believes in something greater than himself, like you did one time," Rin interceded, taking a step forward. "Please Obito, stop all this madness. It's not too late."
Obito grimaced a little, more in sadness rather than disgust, as if he was forced to admit that there was some truth in the words of his former crush.
"I can't," he stated. "Not when I'm so close to the end. Not when I invested so much time and resources. Not when a world free of strife and suffering is at hand!"
"You're doing nothing but creating more suffering!" Rin shouted back, her face turning red with anger, until she felt a hand on her shoulder. A hand belonging to Kakashi.
"Enough," the silver haired Jonin calmly said. "Nothing we say can bring Obito from the darkness he was sunk in. All we can do now is fight to drive him and his Akatsuki pals out of the village. It's time to fight, not to speak."
"For once, you said something intelligent, Kakashi," Obito complimented in a mocking tone. "Though I should point out that it is you who is still deep in the darkness of ignorance. My eyes were opened to the light the day Rin died."
"Shut up already!" Kiba roared, as he and Tamaki leaped towards the half-masked Akatsuki, ready to tear him to shreds with their bare hands.
"You never learn, don't you?" Obito laughed, as he was about to activate his Kamui, letting the swipes phase through him. However, something caught his attention: Kakashi was also using Kamui, opening a portal that quickly sucked his third student in. Obito's only visible eye opened wide upon realizing what Kakashi was planning. "SHIT!"
The Uchiha was forced to leap back before Kiba and Tamaki could reach him. However, the two feral ninjas merely leaped at him again, and this time, Obito had to defend himself.
"Guess this shouldn't be a surprise. After Sasuke found my secret, it was a matter of time before Kakashi learned to use his eye to counter mine," Obito bitterly thought, as he unsheathed his katana in order to parry a claw swipe from Kiba.
"By sending one of our own into Obito's pocket dimension, we make sure he won't be able to use his intangibility or teleportation," Kakashi thought, a smirk forming under his mask. "Not unless he wants Shino's bugs to eat him alive. And even if for some reason I can't get him out of there, Shino can escape on his own with the Reverse Summoning Jutsu."
"Thundering Roar!"
Gathering chakra into his throat, Kiba let out a powerful roar in the form of destructive sonic blasts, which hit Obito squarely, sending him flying. Still, Obito showed that there was more to him than a powerful eye ability. He threw a kunai with wire attached to it towards a nearby wall, breaking the momentum of the impact that sent him flying, while finding a solid footing, even if it was a vertical one.
As this happened, Tamaki made a hand seal.
"Feline Secret Art: Speed Burst!"
Tamaki quickly rushed after him, walking on all fours, moving so fast she left a trail of afterimages in her wake, climbing the wall Obito was attached to using chakra control, she began her vicious assault towards him. Even if Tamaki was fast as lightning, Obito's Sharingan was able to follow her movements –if with some difficulty– and keep her pace.
Then, Obito pulled out a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it, but much to Tamaki's confusion, rather than throwing it at her, he stabbed it into the wall, before jumping away. The second he did that, Kiba burst from said wall, in a failed attempt to catch him off guard.
"Kiba! Wait-"
But it was too late. Obito detonated the explosive paper, which send the animal-like ninja tumbling down the ground again. The one eyed Uchiha laughed.
"This is the best you can train your students, Kakashi?" Obito mocked his former teammate.
"Tamaki! Kiba!" Rin shouted, as she rushed towards them, Kakashi following behind.
"Are they hurt?" Kakashi asked.
"Just a little," Rin said, as she started to heal the two of them at once. "It seems their new forms made them far more durable. An explosive tag so close could very much kill any human being. Question is, how did Obito know that Kiba was going to attack from that direction?"
"I don't know, but I plan to find it out," Kakashi said, as he moved his forehead protector, revealing his Sharingan. "Hey Obito, do you know what else is long overdue? You getting a good beating from yours truly. It will be like in the old times."
"Heh, the old times..." Obito chuckled a little. "I bet you look at the past with fondness, right? Before I 'went evil' and Rin and Minato-sensei were alive and well. Too bad Kakashi, things will never be like they used to be. And that also includes the time in which I was unable to do nothing but lose to you!"
Kakashi's hand was coated in electricity, sounding like a thousand birds chirping. "No, things will never be like they used to, but I can fight to make them even better than they were!"
Kakashi and Obito dashed towards each other, ready to clash for the first time in decades.
…
Meanwhile, in the skies above Konoha, Hinata, Hanabi, and Fu continued their fight against the last Otsutsuki unimpeded. It appeared as if Toneri wanted no interruptions to his fight, and commanded the flying puppets he still had to attack other zones of the village. It worked both ways, since the trio of kunoichi wouldn't have to worry about possible interference from the enemy.
"Lightning Release: Thunder Fang!"
Hinata brought her hands together, generating a mass of lightning that was shot at Toneri. The electricity formed the head of a huge lion, ready to sink its teeth into the Otsutsuki's flesh. Toneri, however, made a hand motion, and one of his four Truth Seeking Balls intercepted the attack, nullifying it completely.
"No effect..." Hinata sadly said.
"Come on, we gotta keep trying!" Hanabi insisted. "Hagane was able to beat this guy, and if that bore with a stick up his ass was able to do it, then so can we!"
"Yeah, every jutsu has a weakness," Fu agreed. "And if we can't find it, we'll find a way around it! If I can only get close enough, I think I can end this in one punch!"
"You're awfully confident in yourself, jinchuriki," Toneri stated. "I can't help but feel a bit insulted."
"I already beat an Akatsuki before, so I don't think why this time the result it's going to be different," Fu rebutted, before pointing at Hinata and Hanabi. "Especially since I have a back-up as awesome as this one! Plus, behold the weapon that already beat an Akatsuki!"
Fu unslung her backpack, revealing a large storage scroll. From the scroll, she unsealed a massive tree log, its branches and roots cleanly cut, with the symbols of Konoha and Taki carved at each of its ends.
"That's your mighty weapon? Don't make me laugh-"
However, Toneri was silenced when Fu suddenly vanished and reappeared from behind him. Startled, the Otsutsuki tried to move the Truth Seeking Balls to intercept the attck, but it was too late. While he was able to project a repulsive force field to counter the impact, Fu gave her log way too much momentum to be stopped, and the giant piece of wood slammed into Toneri's chest, sending him flying.
"YES! Way to go, Fu-san!" Hanabi cheered.
"Arbor-chan never disappoints!" Fu said, while resting the log on her shoulder, and patting it like it was alive.
"No time to celebrate! Come on, we need to finish Toneri off before he recovers!" Hinata urged them.
The trio of girls all flew towards the tumbling Toneri, who was trying to regain his balance. They surrounded him, and went for the kill from a different angle. However, the Otsutsuki was far from finished, as he managed to direct three of his Truth Seeking Balls towards one of the girls each.
"Emerald Reincarnation Explosion!"
The Truth Seeking Balls started to glow with a green light, before it exploded all of sudden, catching the Konoha and Taki ninjas off guard, the former two not being able to use their own orbs as a means of protection.
"Just... what the...?" Fu asked as she noticed something off. Much to her shock, her Tailed Beast cloak was gone. "The hell!? What happened to my Tailed Beast chakra?"
"As you could see right now, I have the power to remove other people's chakra," Toneri told the green haired girl. He coughed some blood. "You managed to land one good hit on me, jinchuriki, but don't think you'll be that lucky again. I'm done playing around."
"Bold statement for somebody who does nothing but cower behind his little barriers," Fu taunted back, as she drew more Tailed Beast chakra, restoring her Chakra Cloak, while gripping her log.
"I can do more than just cower," Toneri calmly replied, but still felt like he was addressing the insult. He brought his hands together in a seal. "Watch."
Large pieces of debris from below shot into the sky, stopping around Toneri. He changed the hand seal, and the large pieces of rock and concrete shot forward towards the trio of kunoichi, like a storm of meteors.
"Hanabi-chan, Fu, behind me!" Hinata urged, as her hands started to crackle with electricity. "Lightning Release: Protection of the Eight Trigrams!"
Hinata started to thrust her open palms back and forth, releasing lighting bolts with each thrust. In no time, she created a massive web of electric bolts that reduced the incoming debris to little more than peebles and gravel. Some of the lightning bolts flew all the way to Toneri, but the Otsutsuki merely deflected them with his Truth Seeking Balls.
"Impressive, Byakugan Princess," Toneri complimented. "The last time we met I was sadly unable to check your fighting prowess. It's reassuring to see that it matches your beauty."
"You won't find it so reassuring, once you fight with me a little," Hinata coldly said, her brow furrowing. She made a hand seal, and her two Truth Seeking Balls grew and enlogated until they turned into giant nail-like spears. "Take this!"
The giant nails flew at Toneri, but the Otsutsuki merely used two of his Truth Seeking Balls to form a barrier, which sucessfully stopped the attack. He then commaned the reamaining two to do the same, blocking another pair of nails, which were made by Hanabi.
"You won't be able to blindside me," Toneri boasted. "With the Tenseigan, I can see everything!"
"Let's see what you do without it then!" Fu shouted as she made a hand seal. "Hiding in the Scale Powder Jutsu!"
Fu exhaled from her mouth a cloud of glittery powder, covering the entire zone. Clapping her hands together, the powder started to shine with a bright light. Hinata and Hanabi closed her eyes in time, but Toneri was caught off guard, and his enhanced vision made the pain of the jutsu even stronger.
"MY EYES! Not again!" the Otsutsuki cursed, as he shielded his eyes with his forearm.
"NOW!" Fu yelled.
The jinchuriki and the youngest Hyuga flew towards the Akatsuki, ready to pound him in, however, when they got in close combat range, Toneri's hands shot sideways, gripping the two of them by their necks. The sudden pressure to her neck make Fu drop Arbor-chan, which fell to the ground below. The Otsutsuki's hold was far stronger than his frame suggested.
"Again you try the same trick against me," Toneri stated, sounding mildly angered, his eyes closed shut. "Didn't I tell you that I've been blind all my life, and as such, I'm more than capable of fighting without sight?"
"Y-yeah," Hanabi choked. "But you aren't using your Tenseigan right now."
"Huh?"
"Lightning Release: Thunder Palm!"
Coming from below, Hinata's electrified palm slammed into Toneri's chin, sending him flying upwards, while forcing him to release Hanabi and Fu. The jinchuriki then shot upwards as well, caught the Otsutsuki in no time, and broke his momentum by grabbing him by the shoulders.
"Hinata, Hanabi, get ready!" Fu shouted, before putting all her strengh into tossing Toneri down towards the elder Hyuga.
Hinata's whole body started to crackle with electricity, as she started to spin just as Toneri was about to crash into her.
"Lightning Release: Heavenly Thunderstorm!"
Hinata turned into a spinning sphere of lightning just a split second before Toneri crashed into her, resulting into an explosion of chakra and electric bolts that send the Otsutsuki flying again in a different direction, the same direction Hanabi placed herself in, anticipating the trajectory he would take. Hanabi's palms were coated in flames.
"Fire Release: Eight Trigrams, Sixty Four Burning Palms!" Hanabi delivered the Hyuga's strongest combo with utmost precision, each blow releasing a burst of flames for added damage. "Two strikes! Four Strikes! Eight Strikes! Sixteen Strikes! Thirty-two-"
But before Hanabi could finish her combo, she was tackled by Fu, who took her out of close combat range. Hanabi was about to protest and ask why Fu had done that, when suddenly four sharp spikes made out of Truth Seeking Balls skewered the position she was in, piercing nothing but empty air, much to Hanabi's surprise.
"Thanks," the youngest Hyuga said. "You have good reflexes. Not even my Tenseigan caught that."
"Don't sweat it, but try being more careful," Fu advised Hanabi before allowing her to float on her own.
"That was a good team effort," Hinata said, as she studied their foe. Toneri now had a few burns and bruises, and his clothes were severely damaged. He also looked much angrier than before. "We did manage to do him some harm, but we also enraged him."
"I'm afraid to admit you were right, Bykaugan Princess," Toneri snarled, as he wiped some blood trickling from his broken lip with the sleeve of his robe. "You are indeed quite powerful, and so are your sister and the jinchuriki, thus making my job all the harder. Guess it's time I drop the kid gloves if I want to end this."
"Yep, we definitely angered him," Fu observed, sounding almost nonchalant. Two tails of chakra formed on the back of her cloak. "I'll try using some more of Lucky Seven's chakra. We're going to need it."
…
Little by little, most of the civilian population were being escorted to the safety of the underground bunkers while the ninjas continued the fight. That's not to say that all of them managed to safely reach such havens, and some of them tragically died at the hands of the White Zetsu Clones or the Moon Puppets.
Though not only the civilians were in need of a safe refuge to be protected; ninja clans had also vulnerable members such as young children or the elderly that needed to be evacuated.
The Hyuga were one of those clans. Even with all the losses they sustained during the Uchiha Inusrrection, they were still one of Konoha's largest clans, and thus they had quite a lot of elderly and children in need of protection, meaning that they had to dedicate quite a few ninjas to escort them to safety.
And large groups rarely go unnoticed.
"Vacuum Blade Palm!" Hizashi thrust his palm forward, releasing a crescent shaped wave of air that sliced in two a Zetsu that was about to attack one of the Hyuga elders. "Come on, don't stop! We're almost there!"
Even if the Main House/Branch House division was no more, most former Branch House members found themselves carrying the same tasks and roles as in the last time such an event happened in Konoha: protect those most vulnerable while the Main House members faced the threat head on. Not that Hizahsi or anybody else complained. All of them knew that their task was as important as being in the middle of the battle. It was something that felt natural to them, a role they had no trouble keeping up for the sake of the clan.
"It's hard to keep fighting while we move!" a younger Hyuga complained, as he struggled against a White Zetsu Clone.
"Watch out! Something big is coming!" Tokuma warned.
And just like the Hyuga who was often tasked gate duty predicted, a couple of merged Zetsu landed besides them with a loud thud, cracking the ground when their feet landed. The sight of such horrifying creatures magnified the already intense panic the Hyuga escortees were feeling, with many of them screaming in terror and running away.
"Don't panic! Don't panic!" Hizashi shouted, futilely trying to elevate his voice above the cacophony of screams. "If you separate from the group, it will be harder to protect you! Adults, keep the children tight, and don't lose sight of them!"
"Hizashi-san, what should we do?" a female Hyuga asked. "Should we focus on the bigger ones, or should we get rid of the normal ones first?"
Hizashi quickly analyzed the situation, as both the two giant Zetsu and the smaller ones menacingly approached the group. It was indeed a good question: if they focus on the larger ones, the smaller ones could sneak past them unnoticed, even with the Byakugan. But on the other hand, the larger ones could do the more damage.
"Let's get rid of the bigger ones first. Those can make our task even harder than they arelady is," Hizashi said. "I'll try to draw their attention to me. Cover me, and make sure none of the smaller creatures get their hands on our clansmen!"
"Yes, Hizashi-san!" the other Hyuga chorused in unison.
The former head of the Branch house dashed forward towards an intermediate point of the two giant Zetsu clones, before sending his taunt.
"Multiple Vacuum Palms!"
Thrusting his arms in quick sucession, each arm facing a different direction, Hizashi shot several vacuum shells at the larger enemies, which didn't seem to take much damamge, but got the intended effect of drawing the attention to him. Several of the smaller Zetsu who wanted to attack him or go past him were skillfully intercepted by other Hyugas.
"Alright then, get ready to feel the might of the Hyuga Clan!" Hizashi shouted, as he slipped into an offensive fighting stance. "Eight Trigrams, Sixty Four Palms! Two Strikes! Four Srtikes! Eight Strikes! Sixteen Strikes! Thrity Two Strikes! Sixty Four Strikes!"
Despite their size, the giant White Zetsu were slower than the normal White Zetsu, and thus had difficulty dodging the barrage of palm strikes that sealed their tenketsu off. They also tried to use their superior strength to crush Hizashi, but the former Branch House Hyuga dodged their blows with skillful grace.
Jumping back, Hizashi scanned the large aberrations with his Byakugan to check the result of his attack: if it was a single enemy, it would be unable to continue fighting. Unfortunately, not only did he have to split the attack between two foes, but they possessed far more tenketsu than a normal human being, meaning that they could still use chakra. Though, on the bright side, it wasn't that the attack didn't cause any harm, far from it
"Come on, finish them off while they're weakened!" Hizashi cried, as he led a group of his clansmen towards the mass of White Zetsu.
While Hizashi and the Hyuga who stayed behind finsihed off the White Zetsu clones, the other half of their ninja clansmen took the opportunity to make a run for the underground bunkers.
"Come on, just a little more!" Natsu encouraged, as she scanned the area with her own Byakugan. "I'm seeing one of the refuges! We're almost there!"
The news had a balsamic effect on the escortees, who started to cheer and even run at a greater pace. Unfortunately, their joy was doomed to be short lived, as a few golden chakra blasts rained upon them, cutting them off.
"Everybody, stand back! These things are way more dangerous than the green haired weirdoes!" Natsu warned the others, as she and her fellow Hyuga ninja placed between the two puppets and the group of elderly and children. "Hinata-sama and Neji-san told me about these things. They're as strong as one of our Jonin, don't feel pain, and can use powerful ninjutsu. And since they're mechanical, the Gentle Fist won't work on them."
"Just great," an older Hyuga groaned. "Did they tell you how to defeat them?"
"Use more brute force than skill, and aim for the head," Natsu told the others.
The second group of Hyuga reluctanctly engaged the puppets, but soon they found that, just like Natsu said, they proved to be more formidable enemies than the White Zetsu clones. Their speed was almost unmatched, and their blows packed a lot of power behind them. Not to mention the sheer destructive power of the golden chakra blasts.
"Force them away from the non-combatants!" Natsu cried.
None of Natsu's warnings were of any use, as it were the puppets, not the Hyugas, who were dictating the pace of the fight, forcing the Hyuga into the defensive. The number of Hyuga defenders started to whittle down, until only Natsu and a couple others remained, with the terrified non-combatants watching with fear-filled eyes.
"Hizashi-san, we need your help!" Natsu cried, before one of the puppets tossed her into the ground with a powerful punch to the jaw. "H-help...!"
Natsu watched helplessly as one of the puppets prepared a golden chakra orb to finish her off. Then, her eyes caught a blur crossing her field of vision, and the golden orb quickly dissipated. And much to her confusion, the puppet fell down to pieces, as if somebody cut it down multiple times.
"What...?" Natsu asked. She then turned around when her Byakugan caught the second puppet, a golden chakra sword in its hand, leaping at her, ready to cut her down. However, the puppet was then caught by a giant, ghostly skeletal hand, and was held firmly in its grip.
The Hyuga saw the hand was connected to an equally ghostly ribcage. And inside said ribcage, was no other than Itachi Uchiha.
"One of my team's sensors detected a large group incoming, and I decided to come here to help just in case you run into trouble," Itachi replied, as the giant ghostly hand squeezed the puppet, crunching it into an useless and unrecognizable form, before his strange jutsu disappeared. "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yes," Natsu said, as she got back on her feet. "Thanks a lot for your help. Not only you saved my life, but those of my clansmen as well."
Itachi took a look at the dead Hyuga that littered the streets. "Sadly, not all of them. And unfortunately, there's no time to mourn their loss. We need to take this group to the shelters. Um..."
"Natsu. Natsu Hyuga," the young woman said, making a slight bow, while smiling a little.
"Itachi Uchiha," he replied. "Now, let me help you escort this group to safety."
"Yes, let's," Natsu agreed with a nod.
Even if it happened many years ago, the Uchiha Insurrection, and its effect on the Hyuga Clan was still in the young woman's mind. While she didn't blame the surviving members for all the lives that were lost that day, she didn't feel any sympathy for them either, and often tried her best not to associate with them. Which was all the more surprising when this Uchiha not only happened to be close, but decided to help them.
"Neji-san would say that fate has strange designs," Natsu thought, before looking at Itachi, and smiled again. "Or a very ironic sense of humor."
…
Hinata, Hanabi and Fu's fight against Toneri wasn't the only clash that was happening above the skies of Konoha. Or at least, it wouldn't be for long.
"Yeah, how about this!"
Riding on his clay dragon, Deidara laughed maniacally as he dropped his explosives to the fighters below. Some of his explosions also caught the White Zetsu clones and Toneri's puppets, but not that he cared. Those creatures were expendable in his eyes –though he did make sure no other Akatsuki member was near when he dropped his load, he knew he could get into trouble if he did that–.
That's why he avoided all the zones with Akatsuki on it, even that meant not taking active part in the jinchuriki hunt –the blond had already two sucessful captures and wasn't afraid of using them as a shield, nevermind that he had just as many failures, the last one being still recent–, though that doesn't mean he wasn't contributing; by killing Konoha ninja, he would weaken the village and thus make the jinchuriki capture all the easier.
So now, Deidara just forgot about the mission, Akatsuki, and everything else, and enjoyed the rare ocassion of being able to display his art in all its glory over a major village. He only did that once, in Iwa, shortly before defecting as a "parting gift" so to speak, and he was quickly chased away by the Tsuchikage himself, who, like Deidara, could fly –though unlike Deidara, he could fly on his own–. Though here, nobody would be able to stop his rampage.
"Ice Release: Thousand Ice Neeldes of Death!"
Or at least, that was what the blond thought at first, as ice needles started to form around him, before diving at him. Maneuvering his dragon, he was able to dodge most of them, though a few nailed his clay flying mount. Not that it mattered, since the dragon wasn't really alive.
Frowning, the blond Akatsuki looked around, and saw the source of his troubles: two Konoha ninjas riding large birds that were made of ice, leaving a trail of frost behind. Their appearances ringed a bell, and after a few seconds of digging through his memories, Deidara remembered.
"Hey, I know you two!" Deidara said in realization. "You two were part of the group who tried to rescue the Kazekage's son, didn't you? Yes, I remember you. The Ice Release user. And the other one who could use genjutsu."
"So, you remember us?" Kurenai asked. "Should we be flattered?"
"I never forget the face of an enemy I don't defeat, bitch," Deidara snarled. "This is the last time you two get in my way!"
Deidara angrily shoved his hand into his clay pouch, and feed some clay to his mouth hand. Said mouth chewed the clay giving it the shape of a small bird, which Deidara threw at them, before making a hand seal. In a poof of smoke, the clay bird multiplied into dozens of them, splitting into two groups, one aiming for Haku, the other going for Kurenai.
"Now taste my art!" Deidara shouted.
Of course, neither the Ice Ninja nor the genjutsu mistress were going to let Deidara blow them to bits.
"Ice Release: Breath of Winter!"
"Wind Release: Great Breaktrhough!"
Haku breathed a massive gust of freezing air, which was magnified by Kurenai's own gale of wind, quickly engulfing the incoming explosive birds, covering them in frost, and making them too heavy to fly, thus they fell to the ground below.
"Your art wasn't that impressive," Kurenai deadpanned.
"That was just a warm up! You want to see what I'm capable of? Fine, I'll skip directly towards the heavy hitters!" Deidara said, his hand mouths already working on another jutsu. Once they were finished chewing, they both spat each a blot of clay at Kurenai and Haku, while Deidara quickly made several hand seals. "Explosion Release: Explosive Clay Twin Hive Queens!"
The two shapeless blobs of clay burst into smoke, increasing their size and taking the shape of a large insect similar to a bee, with a bloated, oversized abdomen, in the likehood of an egg sack.
"I used this jutsu to put down the jinchuriki of the One Tail! Let' see how well you do against it, hn!" Deidara said, as he made a single hand seals.
Each of the Hive Queens spat multiple balls of clay at the genjutsu mistress and her student, albeit from opposing directions, so they couldn't combine their attacks again. Still, both Haku and Kurenai managed to counter this attack the same way they did before. Just like Deidara was expecting.
"Huh?" Haku looked up, noticing a large shadow flying above him, and saw that while he was preocupied with the Hive Queen, the blond Akatsuki had dropped more of his bombs from above.
"Die!" Deidara shouted, making a hand seal.
Haku franctically maneuvered his ice bird as he tried to dodge the chain of explosions as best as his skill allowed him to. Unfrotunately, an explosion hit far too close, and his frost steed was shattered into thousands of tiny bits of ice, making the Land of Water native pummel to the ground below.
"HAKU!" Kurenai screamed, as she made her own bird dive in order to save the falling ninja.
Fortunately, her intervention wouldn't be needed, as while he fell, Haku kept calm and made another chain of hand seals as fast as his hands allowed him to.
"Ice Release: Crystal Bird!"
Using the very same shards of ice as raw matter, Haku quickly created another ice bird below him, breaking his fall just in time. Kurenai sighed in relief.
"His strategy is to divide us and then go for the kill when we are vulnerable," Kurenai told Haku. "We can't let him to dictate the pace of the fight, we need to attack!"
"Agreed," Haku said with a nod. "Any ideas?"
"I think one of us should take care of those clay insects, while the other deals with Deidara," Kurenai suggested. "Your ice is pretty good at shutting down his explosives, and my genjutsu would only work on him alone, so I think I should be the one to face him while you cover my back."
"Understood, Kurenai-sensei," Haku agreed again.
Deidara, however, wasn't impressed in the slightest, and merely laughed at Kurenai and Haku's plan.
"You think that you can stand against me and my art?" Deidara mocked, as he prepared more explosives. "Very well! If you want to become part of it, I'll be happy to oblige!"
…
Meanwhile, not far from there, another of Kurenai's students continued her fight against another aerial Akasuki both of them flying above the village of Konoha.
"Time to end this," Toneri said, as he cast one hand forward. "Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
All of Toneri's Truth Seeking Balls merged into a single orb of silvery chakra, which exploded into a conical tornado that quickly sucked all the flying Kunoichi in. Hinata and Hanabi, being familiar with the jutsu, thought that they could counter or escape it, but they soon found out that its potency was far greater than what they could produce.
"Pull yourselves towards me!" Fu shouted, extending her arms at each sister. "We need to stay together!"
Hinata and Hanabi nodded, and used her kinetic powers, the two Hyuga sisters pulled themselves towards Fu's position, the mint haired girl's hands quickly gripping their own with great strength, bringing them closer.
"Now, let's move towards the eye of the hurricane!" Hinata told them.
Joining their forces, the three of them were able to resist the tornado until it ceased.
"Are you okay?" Fu asked.
"I think so," Hinata breathed.
"I've been better," Hanabi complained.
That moment, a Truth Seeking Ball slowly descended upon them, taking place in an intermediate space between the three kunoichi, much to their confusion.
"Uh guys? Is this thing from any of you?" Fu asked.
The Truth Seeking Ball started to glow with an emerald light, and all three instantly knew the answer, much to their shock. They tried to break apart and fly away in opposite directions, but the orb exploded before they could, and all four of them were engulfed with the explosion. Hinata and Hanabi had their own Truth Seeking Balls to absorb part of the blast, but Fu wasn't so lucky. Besides damaging her whole body, it turned her wings into dust, and thus, the green haired jinchuriki pummeled to the ground, landing with a loud thud.
"FU!" Hinata screamed, as she dived towards her. Unfortunately, she was forced to alter her course in order to dodge a barrage of green chakra blasts.
"Not so fast, my princess," Toneri interjected with a confident smirk. "Don't concern yourself with the jinchuriki, not when you have me to deal with."
Through her Tensiegan, Hinata saw that Fu was well enough to stand back on her feet, much to her relief. But her relief was short lived as she saw a threesome of puppets dogpiling her. Normally, the Taki kunoichi would get them out of her back as if they were nothing, but the explosion made a number on her body, and nothing but a fraction of her usual energy remained.
"Fu..." she whispered, greeting her teeth.
"Now, you'll have the honor to be the first one to witness the true extent of my power," Toneri said, his grin widening, as he cast his hand forward, his four Truth Seeking Balls merging into a single orb of golden chakra.
Upon seeing that, Hanabi paled. "Nee-chan! I've seen that jutsu before! It has enough power to level the entire village!"
"If that's the case, then use Truth Seeking Balls as protection won't be enough. I can't let the village to be damaged any further! I need to counter that jutsu with one of my own!" Hinata thought, as she also cast one hand forward, her two Truth Seeking Balls merging into a purple colored orb of chakra.
"I see you remember it well, girl," Toneri nodded, pleased. "But even if what you said is true, I'm confident in my bride's strength to survive it. Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
The energy contained in the golden orb exploded in the form of a huge beam of golden chakra, fired directly at Hinata. That moment, Hinata her move.
"Amethyst Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
Hinata's own orb exploded into a storm of purple colored lightning bolts. Both attacks clashed, but Toneri's jutsu packed more power than Hinata's, and it easily pushed it backwards.
"And admirable effort, my love, but useless!" Toneri said with almost sadistic glee.
"Leave my sister alone!" Hanabi screamed, as she flew towards them, holding a teal orb of chakra between her hands, before motioning it forward. "Turquiose Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
Hanabi's orb exploded in the form of a stream of bluish-green flames, which joined Hinata's lightning bolts against Toneri's beam of light. Even if it slowed it down considerably, it failed to stop it completely.
"Ugh..." Hanabi groaned, as she tried to pour as much chakra as possible into her attack. "Hinata! He's... too strong!"
"D-Don't give up, Hanabi-chan!" Hinata encouraged her little sister. "We must... win... at all costs!"
"You can't," Toneri simply said, as he floated forward, pushing his beam of light further on them. "You and I are bound to be together, my princess. You can't win, not because you're fighting against a strong enemy, but because you're fighting against fate itself. Your arrival and awakening of the Tensiegan was foretold ages ago, my princess, as so was our union. Don't you see that it's futile?"
"Fate, you say?" Hinata asked, and, even in her current situation, found herself chuckling. "You aren't the only one to use that word to put me down. All my life... I was told that things are the way they are because of fate. My apparent weakness. How I wouldn't amount to anything. How my clan would forever remain divided. And guess what? I proved them wrong. I proved all of them wrong! And I shall prove you wrong too!"
"Resolve without power is meaningless," Toneri countered, as he pushed his attack even further.
"Resolve is everything! Resolve, willpower and never giving up! Plenty of people have power, either born with it or acquiring it on their own! Everything I achieved, everything I am... I didn't manage to do it by just giving up and accepting it as 'fate'!" Hinata replied, her voice booming louder. Even Hanabi couldn't help but feel in awe. "Hanabi-chan, we can't let this man win! Fight with everything you have!"
Hanabi nodded, and smirked, her confidence renewed. "You got it!"
The two Hyuga sisters let out a shout, as they started to draw every little bit of power remaining in their body, trying to make their attack as strong as possible. And much to their joy and Toneri's shock, they started to push back.
"What? How can they...?" Toneri asked in surprise. Through his Tensiegan, he could see that the chakra of Hinata and Hanabi, which threatened to dim any moment, shone with renewed light, so bright it was like looking directly into the sun. "Can this be...?"
Hinata and Hanabi's basic Chakra Cloak also started to glow with more intensity, until it took the shape of a cloak of flames, not different from Toneri's own Chakra Cloak. Soon, their combined power started to push Toneri's attack even faster.
"They unlocked the next level of the Tenseigan Chakra Cloak!?" Toneri asked in shock. "This was unexpected..."
Toneri put even more chakra into his attack, forcing the two attacks into a stalemate, pushing each other a little back and forth, but for the most part, not moving at all. Eventually, all the gathered energy reached a critical point, and was released in the form of a massive, blazing white explosion.
"N-Nee-chan..." Hanabi said, just as her Chakra Cloak suddenly petered out, and faded into unconsciousness.
"Hanabi-chan!" Hinata screamed, as he caught her little sister before she could fall, and, summoning more Truth Seeking Balls –much to her surprise, she could summon up to four now– she morphed them into a sphere encasing both she and her sister, just in time before the explosion.
Hinata then lowered the hollow sphere to ground level, as it slowly dissolved back into the four Truth Seeking Orbs that composed it. She gently placed Hanabi's body on the ground. Even if Hanabi's chakra was completely drained, there was nothing a good night of sleep followed by a copious meal wouldn't fix.
"Rest for the time being, Hanabi-chan," Hinata cooed. "You've done enough already."
"Hey!"
Hinata turned around, and saw Fu walking towards her, limping a bit. She was carrying the arm of a puppet in one of her hands.
"Fu-san! I'm so glad to see that you're okay!" Hinata said with a smile.
"Hehe, yeah! You need something more than a bunch of stupid marionettes to beat yours truly," Fu boasted, though Hinata could see that her body hurt far more than she let her on. "Man, I could use some healing. Do you mind- EEEEEEEEEEEEAAAACK!"
"Fu!"
Fu was suddenly yanked by an unseen force. Following her direction, Hinata saw Toneri with his hand outstretched, its fingers closing around Fu's neck once she was close enough.
"Now, let's make sure you don't fly away," Toneri said, as one of his Truth Seeking Balls moved away from him, started to glow and expanded, taking the shape of a golden cage with its door open. Toneri threw Fu inside, and the door closed on its own with a loud clang. "That should be enough. Now, Hinata-hime, I'd hate to force you into a cage like a mere animal, but I will if you don't-"
"Hey, dumbass!"
Toneri didn't turn around, as his Tenseigan already saw the newcomer from a distance. Said newcomer must have known this, hence why he didn't bother with a sneak attack.
"... I'm the only one allowed to call Hinata 'princess', you got that?" Naruto snarled in fury.
"Naruto-kun!" Hinata squeed in joy.
"You've done a good job here, Hime. Let me finish this," Naruto praised his girlfriend. Hinata tried to protest, but Naruto spoke before she could. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Trust me, this guy doesn't know what's coming. Come on, go and find your sister a safe plce to rest. I'll take care of both Fu and this creep."
Reluctanctly, Hinata nodded, and did as she was told. Toneri felt the need to stop her, but he knew he couldn't do that unless he got rid of Naruto first. Oh well, Hinata could wait. After all, the main obstacle to his princess' affections was standing in front of him.
"Ah, Naruto Uzumaki. While I never welcome your presence, in this case I will," Toneri said, turning around, and waving at the captive Fu with one hand. "As you can see, I already captured one of the jinchuriki. So polite of you to both saving me the effort of having to track you and giving me the pleasure of ending you myself."
"Yeah, like hell that's gonna happen," Naruto seethed, making a single clone. While Naruto powered up a Rasengan, said clone started to pour wind chakra into it.
"Ah, that jutsu of yours. I remember it," Toneri said, as his three remaining Truth Seeking Balls floated in front of him. "Back in our earlier clash, I didn't have the means to counter it, but things have changed now."
"Oh, you don't have the means to counter it, you just haven't realized it," Naruto said, as he raised the shuriken of wind chakra above his head, the clone disappearing once his work was done. "Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!"
Naruto threw the wind shuriken forward, which flew towards Toneri, making a loud, whirring sound in its wake.
"Like I said, useless," Toneri boredly said, as he merged two of his three black orbs into a large shield that covered him completely, and smirked. "I know what you're planing. You want me to focus my attention on this attack while you ambush me from another side. However, you are the one who's going to be ambushed," The Otsutsuki thought as he discreetely moved his remaining orb to his back.
The Rasenshuriken hit the barrier, and Toneri expected the real attack to happen at any moment. But said attack never came.
CRACK!
"What...?"
And much to his shock, the barrier started to break.
"What? No!" Toneri cried, as seeing how the crack expanded more and more. "No, not again! This can't be possible! The Truth Seeking Balls shouldn't be able to be pierced by mere ninjutsu! What kind of trickery is this!?"
"Katsuyu-san was right," Fukasaku said, still clung to Naruto's back. "Senjutsu is key to beat those things!"
The barrier was shattered completely, just as the Rasenshuriken exploded in a dome of chakra and razor-wind currents. Toneri tried to fly away, but he was caught in the explosion. Would Toneri get caught inside that explosion, he would have been done for. Even then, if the explosion only hit him when it expanded, it made a number on him. The powerful wind shredded his clothes and left several deep cuts in his body, while violently hurling him into the sky.
Toneri let out a scream before he disappeared into the vast blue yonder.
To confirm Naruto's victory over Toneri, the golden cage holding Fu quickly vanished, dropping the harm jinchuriki to the floor.
"Ouch!"
"Fu!" Naruto said, rushing towards her. "Are you alright?"
"I'll survive," the green haired girl said, making a weak smile. "Though I don't think I can keep fighting if I don't see a medic first."
"Hinata could patch you up in an instant," Naruto confidently said, as he helped his fellow jinchuriki back on her feet. "Come on, let's find her, she shouldn't be too far away."
"Let's hope," Fu said, as she rested her body on Naruto's to help herself walk. "Good job with that weirdo. Too bad you didn't finish him for good."
"Eh, don't worry, I'll get him next time," Naruto said with a confident grin.
"However, he raised a valid point," Fu replied. "Truth Seeking Balls nullify all ninjutsu. How were you able to bypass that?"
"Senjutsu," was Naruto's answer. Fukasaku nodded. "Hagane was also able to break his defense when they fought during the mission to rescue Roshi. He wasn't sure how he did it, but he thought it had to be the nature energy his Bloodline Limit allows him to gather freely. And turns out he was actually right. Heh, that kid might not have Kaida's raw power, but he's far smarter than she and I together."
Fu nodded, and smiled as well. "That's good to know. Besides, once we finish our Sage training, we won't have to rely on you the next time that guy... uhhh, Naruto?" Fu asked, noticing the blond had turned pale and his eyes widened. "Are you okay?"
"I... I don't know..." Naruto said. "I feel something... terribly wrong..."
The two of them a massive burst of smoke many streets away. But it was what came out of the smoke what left him speechless.
…
As the same time as Hinata, Hanabi and Fu fought against Toneri, Kakashi's Animal Squad plus Rin were fighting against Obito Uchiha. Or better said, Kakashi and Obito fought while Rin healed Kiba and Tamaki.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Obito breathed a massive fireball aimed at Kakashi, lined in a way with Rin, Tamaki and Kiba, so Kakahsi wouldn't be able to dodge unless he wanted his students to die –Obito was confident Rin could survive that blast–.
Kakashi got the hint, and his hands blurred through hand seals before slamming his palm into the ground.
"Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!"
The Copy Ninja erected a rock barrier between himself and Obito. The fireball crashed against the wall, creating an explosion that cracked the barrier and blew a few chunks of it, but overall was unable to take it down. Kakashi's Sharingan caught some flicker of movement coming from the resulting cloud of ash and dust, and his hand crackled with electricity.
"Lightning Blade!"
Kakashi's electrified hand thrust towards the cloud of smoke coming from the right side, just in time as a surpised Obito emerged from it. Kakashi's attack pierced the Uchiha's heart. But the Uchiha merely smirked before disappearing in a poof of smoke, revealing itself to be a clone.
"A clone? Dammit...!" Kakashi cursed under his breath as he turned around.
"Too late!" Obito shouted, as he gleefully thurst his own katana into Kakashi's body.
The silver haired Jonin grabbed the blade of the katana with his gloved hand in order to stop it. Blood started to seep from his palm as a wave of pain coursed through his hand, but it was a small sacrifice to pay in order to avoid a worse injury. Kakashi generated electricity from said hand, shocking Obito, and forcing him to drop the sword, which his opponent grabbed with his other hand.
"Not bad, Kakashi," Obito admitted, as he started to make hand seals. "But can you stand before THIS? Wood Release: Great Spear Tree!"
The ground started to shake as wooden roots emerged from the ground, and lunged at Kakashi tried to impale him with their sharp and pointy ends. Kakashi, however, wasn't intimitaed, and gripping the stolen katana in one hand, and channeling lightning chakra into the other, he started to move as fast as possible, cutting down the razor roots as soon as they emerged, while moving towards Obito.
"You killed sensei, Obito," Kakashi coldly said, as he continued mowing down the growing roots. "Him and Kushina-san. Why? How could you become so rotten as to cause the dead of a man that was like the father you never had, among countless others!?"
"Don't get all sentimental on me, Kakashi. Sensei was a powerful ninja, but a failure of a teacher and protector," Obito seethed, as he summoned a Fuuma Shuriken from a sealing scroll. "He lost not one but two students! I don't mind that he wasn't there to help me, but I can't forgive him for letting Rin be captured to begin with!"
"Don't blame sensei for other people's failures!" Kakashi shouted, as he closed the gap with his former friend.
"And he proved me true once again when he failed to protect his wife and son from me!" Obito said, tossing the shuriken at Kakashi, before his hands flew through hand seals. "Fire Release: Flaming Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!"
The Fuma Shuriken was covered in a coat of flames, before a dozen or so other identical flaming starts appeared before the original, all flying at Kakashi. The silver haired ninja tossed the katana away, as he weaved seals as fast as his hands allowed him.
"Water Release: Water Wall!"
Kakashi expelled a massive stream of water from his mouth –which weirdly enough, bypassed his mask without breaking it– stopping the shuriken and putting the fire out. Or at least, most of them, as some others flew past him, and headed towards Kiba, Tamaki and Rin.
"Guys, watch out!" Kakashi warned.
But when turned around, he saw that his students and other teammate were not there anymore, much to his relief, and a little confusion.
"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Jutsu!"
The ground started to shake again, and from under Obito's feet, a serpentine dragon made of wood emerged, its jaws wide open trying to bite the Akatsuki. Obito jumped backwards, just as he turned around, and grabbed Tamaki by the wrists before the cat kunoichi could slash him with his claw.
"You can't catch me off guard, you should know that by now," Obito told the brown haired girl.
Tamaki, however, smirked. "Think so?"
Obito then realized that Tamaki was holding something in one of her hands, before opening it and letting it fall. He knew what it was but it was too late do anything about it. The moment the flash grenades touched the ground, they exploded, engulfing the entire area in a bright white light.
"AAAAAAHHHH! MY EYES!" Obito screamed, as he pushed Tamaki away.
"Kiba, now!" Tamaki called.
Both Kiba and Tamaki kept their eyes closed and relied exclusively on their enhanced sense of smell in order to track the Akatsuki. The Inuzuka clan heir moved first, as he ran towards Obito, his feet burning with blue light of chakra.
"Crescent Moon Kick!"
Upon reaching close combat range, Kiba made an impressive backflip, hitting Obito's chin with his feet, creating an arc of chakra, and sending the Akatsuki flying upwards.
"Your turn, Tamaki!" Kiba said, as he put his hands together.
Tamaki jumped into Kiba's hands, and the werewolf gave the cat kunoichi a mighty heave upwards, with such force, Tamaki easily surpassed Obito's altitude. Once she was high enough, she prepared her move.
"Here I come!" Tamaki said, as her whole body started to flare blue with chakra. "Feline Aerial Bomber!"
As she fell towards Obito, Tamaki smashed her posterior into Obito's face, making a craking noise as the hit shattered forehead protector. Obito fell to the ground, while Tamaki landed gracefully on all fours.
"Good job, guys!" Rin praised the duo.
"Thanks," Kiba said, giving her a friendly smirk –which in his current form was more of a terrifying snarl–, before turning at Obito. "Not so thought without your Kamui, are you?"
Despite the brutal combo he was victim off, Hashirama's regeneration soon kicked in, and Obito's injuries started to heal, allowing the former Konoha ninja to stand back on his feet. He shot his enemies a look of hatred. Rin gasped a little when he saw the other side of his face.
"You were right, Kakashi-sensei," Tamaki said. "He had a Byakugan all along."
"No wonder there was no way we could catch him off guard," Kiba agreed. "Good thing he didn't notice the flash grenades, and the fact that we don't need our eyes to orient ourselves."
"Congratulations, you managed to land a few good hits," Obito said, as he wiped some blood from his mouth, and smeared it on his palm. He started to make five hand seals that all of them recognized, but only Rin could see their magnitude. "Let's see if your little tricks can stand against THIS!"
Rin panicked, and rushed forward. "Quickly, stop him before-"
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Obito slammed his palm against the ground, producing a massive burst of smoke, followed by an incredilby strong wind, forcing the Konoha ninjas to fall back a few meters. The smoke took no time to dispel, revealing what Obito had summoned. Kakashi, Tamaki and Kiba looked in horror, while Rin had a look of worry in her face. A giant fox with maroon fur and nine tails.
"Sixteen years ago, I released the Nine Tails in order to destroy Konoha. Today, he will finish the job!" Obito shouted, while standing on top of the Nine Tails' head. "Now, kill them!"
The Nine Tails' Sharingan eyes focused on the Konoha ninjas below, and raised one of its massive paws in order to smash them into pulp...
Author's Note: Yep, given that Obito appeared the previous chapter, you should have expected the other Nine Tails being summoned to cause even more destruction. What will the good guys do against this new threat? Will they attempt to seal it inside Naruto, merging both halves? Though if they do that, Naruto won't be able to help Jiraiya against Pain...
Speaking of Naruto, after much buildup, he finally put Toneri in his place (even if he will live to fight another day), thanks to Hagane's discovery of Senjutsu chakra bypassing the Truth Seeking balls. I hope you found it cathartic. That makes two Akatsuki that have been defeated and driven away from the battle so far. Still, the worse hasn't come to pass, not just because of the aforementioned Nine Tails, but because Deidara has stepped to fill their spot with his unusual brand of art. Still, just like how Kisame's fight left Gai unable to fight anymore, Hinata, Hanabi and Fu won't be able to contribute to the battle any further. Still, the girls earned some rest.
Thanks to Ookami88 for betareading this chapter.
Now that one of the three "important" fights have been solved, the next chapter will focus on the other two: Pain and Konan, and Obito and The Nine Tails.
So, what do you think about the chapter, and the arc so far? Share your thoughts with me in a review! Reviews make me really, really, really happy!