Chapter 5

A/N: Really had fun with this chapter! I don't really have experience writing fight scenes so please tell me how I did. Constructive criticism is always welcome! Any comments, follows, favorites are as well ;) until next time.

The sun isn't even up when Xi the farmer stirs Kakashi from his slumber. Xi looks somewhat apologetic but Kakashi waves him off. He looks at his giant traveling companion and finds the bison fast asleep. A soft smile is hiding behind his face mask. Kakashi adjusts the rice hat on his head and heads out into the field. Xi has him first replace the plants that Shiro accidentally crushed when they landed. The farmer shows him the proper way to dig up a hole for a new crop and make sure that it's planted at the proper depth. The work reminds Kakashi of the D-rank missions back home, where he and his team would have to help civilians with odd jobs like weeding their gardens or working in the fields like this. With his name meaning "scarecrow", Kakashi isn't surprised to find himself liking the menial work of farming.

When the sun finally shows itself, Nori comes out of the house to give him and her husband a glass of water and a bun for breakfast. While they work, Xi decides to make conversation with Kakashi, making small talk to pass the time.

"Where are you from?"

"Oh, here and there."

"What do you do?"

"I'm just a simple traveler, going where the road of life takes me."

"What were you doing in the desert?"

"Afraid I took a wrong turn on my way to my next destination. Lucky we found you, right?"

Kakashi expertly dodges the more personal questions while giving not-answering answers to the inquisitive farmer. Xi doesn't seem to notice or be bothered by Kakashi's replies. Yet the farmer still doesn't stop asking him questions.

He doesn't miss his own chance to ask questions about where he is. Xi answers that they're in the Earth Kingdom, a while south of Ba Sing Se, which doesn't really tell Kakashi anything. He supposes that Ba Sing Se is the closest village to this small farm.

It's around noon when Shiro stomps out of the barn, hay slowly being munched on. Kakashi waves to the bison, to which the animal responds by settling down by the field, content to watch Kakashi repair the damages made by its landing. There's dirt all over him and his clothes and while it's not desert heat, the farm is located on the edge of the drylands. Kakashi really needs a shower.

Nori comes out to feed them again for lunch. This time bringing some kind of meat stew with another glass of water. She explains that they're in the middle of a drought and that the crops haven't been growing well this season. Kakashi tells her not to worry, that her meat stew is good enough for him. She laughs heartily and returns to the house.

When Xi is leading him towards another part of the field to lift bales of hay on to a cart, Kakashi makes sure the man isn't looking as he makes some quick hand seals. With a low amount of chakra, Kakashi forms a funnel in front of his face with one hand. "Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu (Water Bullet)." The usual high-pressured jet of water that could tear down trees becomes a gentle stream that showers the crops with some needed water. A bit of chakra to help these nice people is something that Kakashi thinks is a good exchange.

Shiro's head moves up and watches the stream of water come from Kakashi's hidden mouth. The bison gives a groan and tilts its large head in confusion. When Kakashi's done watering the plants, he finds Shiro watching him curiously. He only raises a finger to his covered lips in response. The bison places its head in its paws but still watches Kakashi closely.

Kakashi follows Xi and starts to help the man roll and lift the large bundles of hay. He's lifting his third roll while Xi is resting, wiping a towel on his face. "You know, for a man who has a whole head of gray hair, you're pretty strong, Kakashi!"

"Haha, thanks," Kakashi laughs, but deep down, he's stewing. Just because he has silver (silver, not gray!) hair doesn't mean he's old.

It's around three in the afternoon when they've finished loading up the cart. Nori brings over some kind of large bird with horse-like characteristics to hook up to the front. Kakashi should really expect weird animals by now.

Kakashi bows once more. "I can't thank you both enough for your hospitality."

Xi waves him off while his wife hands Kakashi a bundle of folded clothes. "Please, you've done your part. Even Bing's son doesn't work this hard. Wish you would stick around, would like to have this kind of work done most days."

Nori shoves the package into Kakashi's hands, making sure that he can't deny the gift. "These are some of our son's clothes. He off working as a guard in Ba Sing Se, but they provide him with his needs. The pants might be a bit short, but the rest should fit you just fine. There are a couple of spare crops in there as well."

When Kakashi takes it, Nori leans in to whisper to him. "And I have to thank you for watering the crops as well." He's surprised that she noticed.

Xi looks at her curiously, wondering what the exchange was. Nori places her hand over her nose. "Well, to be honest, Kakashi, do us all a favor and take a bath before you go."

The men blush and the three all have a laugh. They generously lend Kakashi their bath to wash off the grime of the desert and farm. He changes into his new clothes. The shirt is a forest green version of Tenten's outfit, with gold replacing the red highlights. It's fitted for a man, so at least he knows that the couple isn't pranking him by gifting him women's clothes. The pants are similar to his navy cargo pants, baggy and easy to move in. They only reach to his mid-calf.

Kakashi puts on his ninja sandals, spare face mask, and headband. They might make Kakashi stand out in a crowd, but he'll cross that bridge when he gets there. Replacing his kunai pouch against his thigh, he heads out of the house. When he returns to Shiro, Kakashi finds the bison once again snacking on hay. This time he climbs up the side of the bison, not displaying his ninja skills so openly with the farmers. Kakashi waves one last time at the couple. Then the traveling duo is in the sky once more.

There isn't much to do in the sky. Kakashi decides to rest his eyes for a bit. And when he's done with that, he takes in the scenery around him. The desert is still a large part of the ground behind them, but to the north of them is more forest and grassland. To the east is a large body of water and the west has mountains. There aren't many large villages at all. While the major villages in his world are labeled "hidden villages", most weren't all that hidden and would definitely be easy to spot from the sky. Yet, he sees nothing but nature and very small towns.

Shiro lets lose a groan, bringing Kakashi's attention back to the bison. It's getting pretty late, and even with the moon shining above, it's starting to get hard to make out the ground below them. He leans over the front of the saddle. "Going to stop for the night?"

The bison rumbles in agreement and starts to descend closer to the ground. There are trees all around them. Kakashi spots a clearing on top of a cliffside. There's a tall tree that could give them shelter. He points at landing, directing the sky bison down.

There's some kind of stone tunnel that the large tree is growing on top of. It would be a good shelter for the night. Kakashi starts walking inside to peer inside to see if it's empty. Shiro stays outside to munch on some of the grass in front of the entrance.

A screeching squeal sounds from the tunnel followed by some other giant animal charging at Kakashi. It's a wild boar, only it's been enlarged like all the other animals in the world. Its ivory tusks are low to the ground, ready to impale him. He swiftly jumps to the side dodging its charge, but Shiro isn't as fast. The boar plows into Kakashi's travel companion, taking both animals over the edge of the cliff. The two animals roar while they roll down the steep slope.

"Shiro!" Kakashi is quick to follow after the two. He curses himself for his carelessness as he runs down the slope without losing his balance. The animals' rolling draws deep gorges into the ground and bushes.

When they separate, Shiro has thick brown quills puncturing into its fur. The coarse fur of the boar is actually made of giant quills, making it a cross between a wild boar and a porcupine. The two giant animals give their respective war cries and circle around each other.

Kakashi isn't about to let the bison get further injured. He leaps into the air over the spiky animal and throws his shuriken with pinpoint accuracy. They pierce the hard leather of its face, making it shriek in pain. Some overgrown quills that fly in its face deflect his shuriken like steel. Still, it isn't enough to take the boar down.

The moment Kakashi touches the ground between the two animals, the boar throws its head in the air and charges once more. He leads it to one of the tall trees surrounding them. Kakashi easily runs up the trunk without stopping. The giant boar crashes face-first into the bark with enough force to completely destroy the tree. Kakashi hops back to the ground. Shiro stumbles over to him.

The boar leaps over the downed tree and strikes Shiro's unprotected tail. It's sharp teeth tear into the white fur, dyeing it red. The bison cries out in pain, swinging its body with full force to throw the boar off. The animal doesn't release its jaw, making bright red streaks in Shiro's tail.

Even as it lands harshly on its side, the boar gets up once more, pawing at the ground while snarling.

"Damn it," Kakashi growls. He takes a quick glance to see that the flying bison is wavering on its feet, the damage to its tail easily seen in the moonlight. Shiro's in no condition to fight, let alone fly away.

The boar gives a loud squeal and attacks the two. Kakashi makes a split-second decision. The hide is too thick to pierce with a kunai. He has to finish the animal off before its able to get to the injured bison.

The hand seals he knows by heart. Lightning crackles in his palm as he gathers his chakra. The sound of chirping birds fills the air. The boar isn't deterred, still charging straight forward. Kakashi runs to meet it halfway, right arm extended. "Chidori!"

His hand easily pierces through the chest of the boar, its thick hide nothing beneath his palm. It releases one last squeal in pain before falling limp. Kakashi pulls out his hand from the charred meat and moves back over to the bison.

The mammal's fur is dirtied brown and red, mused in different directions. The quills are stuck all over Shiro's right side, some puncturing so deep that streams of red leak from them. The largest injury was the tail. The white fur is torn out in chunks, revealing bleeding skin underneath. Kakashi tries to stem the bleeding a little bit but the wound is bigger than both of his hands.

"Shit." Kakashi runs to the front of the bison, its eyes already drooping. "Shiro, c'mon. You need to get into the cave. Who knows what other animals are out here." He doesn't want the bison bleeding out in the open. If there were more predators like the boar, it would mean bad news.

So the two slowly make their way back to the cave. The slope is hard to climb for Shiro, it's steep and slippery, but even act of flapping its tail makes the bison roar in pain. Still, they manage to make it to the tunnel. Kakashi has his hands ready, but no other animal comes from the darkness to attack them. Shiro stumbles past him and collapses onto its stomach, breathing heavily. Kakashi grabs his sack of supplies and takes his out the large blanket he had bought from the merchants. He doesn't have anything to disinfect the wound but at least he can keep it covered from the elements. He tucks the cloth under the tail and grabs one end to wrap it around. Shiro growls in pain.

"Sorry, but I have to wrap this. It's going to hurt," Kakashi warns. There's no answer. He takes that as a go-ahead and tightens the blanket around the tail. Shiro's roar shakes the forest. Kakashi works quickly, wrapping it tightly enough to keep some pressure on the wound and tying the corners of the blanket to each other. The navy blue has already turned a dark purple.

Kakashi curses under his breath as he looks at the poor state of the bison. The next step would be to take care of the quills. But if they're anything like porcupine quills, they won't come out without a lot of discomfort. He checks on the bison, finding that its fallen unconscious. Kakashi can't tell if that's good or bad at this stage. He gets to work on pulling out the giant pins in the bison.

Even when resting, Shiro twitches when Kakashi yanks out the quills one by one. There's a small pile of bloody quills when he's finished removing them. Kakashi keeps watch over the injured bison the whole night. When morning rolls around, the bison still doesn't wake up. He places some of the crops Nori gifted them in front of Shiro's nose, but there's no movement. Kakashi doesn't move from his post nor does he sleep.

It's bad enough that he's failed his family back in Konoha but now he's failed in this world as well.

Days and nights pass without fanfare. Sometimes it rains. Other times it's humid. Shiro doesn't wake at all, but still breaths steadily. Kakashi eats the remaining crops and water until there's none left. Still, he doesn't leave the bison's side. The days blur into each other.

Kakashi only stirs from his listless staring when he hears movement near the cliffside. He jumps to his feet, ready to attack. A girl appears over the edge. Her face is decorated with white and red face paint, looking like an ANBU mask. A golden headpiece keeps her short brown hair from falling into her eyes. She doesn't see him crouching on the dark ceiling of the cave.

The girl gasps seeing the injured bison, whispering to herself. She pulls herself over the cliff with ease, even though she's covered by a green long dress. Kakashi tenses as she wanders closer and closer to the sleeping bison. And when she reaches out to touch his injured traveling companion, Kakashi makes his move.

He stops the chakra flow to his feet and lands soundlessly behind her. He whips out a kunai to hook around her neck. "Step away from the bison."

Instead of freezing like a civilian, the girl springs into action. She grabs a golden stick attached to her left bracer, opening it to reveal a fan. She swiftly maneuvers it to block his kunai from pressing closer to her neck. Sparks fly as the two weapons slide against each other. Kakashi curses himself for underestimating her. The girl twirls out of reach, now standing in a ready pose between him and Shiro.

The girl narrows her eyes at him. "What have you done to Appa?" she asks angrily.

Kakashi moves his kunai to protect his face. "Who's Appa?"

His answer only seems to anger her. She charges at him, swinging the razor edge of her fan at Kakashi. He swiftly dodges underneath, grabbing her outstretched arm in one motion. The girl is good, but not good enough for someone like Kakashi. He twists her arm, making the girl drop the fan, before lifting her off her feet and slamming her to the ground behind him. Kakashi still doesn't let go, twisting her arm behind her back and pressing his knee into her shoulder blade. She struggles for a bit, making Kakashi tug at her arm. She yelps in pain and stops moving.

"Now, explain to me who's Appa and why you think I've done something to him." Kakashi hasn't seen anyone else in the forest.

The girl glares at the ground. "Appa is the bison you've stolen. And when the Avatar finds out that you've taken his bison, he'll come for you."

"Ah." He somewhat forgot that Shiro wasn't the bison's original name. "Sorry to say, but I've been the one taking care of him." 'And doing a pretty shitty job at that.'Kakashi doesn't add the last part.

"What do you mean?"

"I rescued the bison from some people in the desert trying to sell him off. He's been carrying me around trying to find his owner." Kakashi relaxes his hold on her arm. "If I let you up, can you not attack me?"

The girl thinks about it for a second before nodding. He releases her fully and the two straighten, standing across from each other. He can see her scanning over his body, eyes pausing on his hidden face and silver hair. "Who are you?" she asks, relaxing her stance but still keeps her fan open.

It's good enough for Kakashi, so he places his blade back into its pouch. He returns to his normal relax posture and gives her an eye smile. "Isn't it polite to introduce yourself first?"

She narrows her eyes at him. If glares could hurt, Kakashi would've been in serious pain. "Suki." She glances at the resting bison and her eyes soften. "What happened?"

"Kakashi." He makes a motion to the bison, reminding himself to call him 'Appa'. "We ran into some giant boar when we landed here and had to fight it off. I tried to take care of Appa, but he hasn't woken up since that night."

"That explains the boar-q-pine we found in the forest." If Suki spotted the hole in the boar's chest, she didn't show it. "How bad is he?"

"He had a lot of quills in him, but I've gotten most of them. But his tail is pretty bad. I didn't have anything to put on it other than the cloth."

Suki moves into the cave, heading towards the wrapped tail. She peels back some of the cloth to reveal the raw skin. "He needs ointment to disinfect it. And there are probably smaller quills under his fur that are still stuck in there.

"Do you have it?" Kakashi asks.

"Not at the moment. We have some back at camp. Hopefully, it should be enough to cover his tail." Suki turns back to face Kakashi. "I'll return a bit later with some other Kyoshi Warriors to bring over some supplies. Just stay here."

Kakashi cocks an eyebrow at her command but agrees to it for the time being.

It's late afternoon when she arrives with a large bowl in her hands and other girls dressed in similar garments all holding various medical supplies. Kakashi waves to them from his position leaning against the rock tunnel. Most of the members pause at the sight of him but Suki leads them over.

The Kyoshi Warriors work quickly and efficiently. Some move to dig through Appa's fur to find the short quills that Kakashi had missed and others bring bowls of water to wash the matted fur. The largest group pull back the makeshift bandage and wince at the bleeding wound. Luckily, it doesn't look infected.

Suki stands next to him as they overlook the sleeping bison. "How'd you find him anyways?"

"I was stranded in the desert and found a merchant camp to buy food from. Some bandits came in with Appa dragged along, so I freed him. I was just there at the right moment."

She hugs her arms to her chest. "I just met up with Aang a few days ago. He seemed really upset about losing Appa." Aang must be the Avatar and the bison's owner. Kakashi commits the name to memory. "He was heading to Ba Sing Se, so you could meet up with him there."

Kakashi looks at her from the corner of his eye, surprised. "You'd trust me with the Avatar's bison?"

"I can't abandon the other Kyoshi Warriors." Suki motions to the girls. "And your story checks out with finding Appa in the desert. Also, after seeing that boar-q-pine, I think you can protect him pretty well." So she did see the killing strike that Kakashi dealt.

Suki waits for an explanation, but Kakashi doesn't give it to her.

Back at Wan Shi Tong's library, Kakashi had read all about the benders, hoping that it was just a codeword for shinobi. He was wrong. Benders can only control one element unless they were the all-important Avatar, master of all four elements. It's so unlike shinobi, which the truly skilled can learn two or three of the five elements. Kakashi had at least one jutsu in each element.

He decides to keep his ninjutsu to a minimum around others, if anything, sticking to one element. Best they don't confuse him for the Avatar.

Still, apparently lightning is a form of firebending, which isn't all that welcome in the Earth Kingdom. So, Kakashi keeps his mouth shut about how he killed the boar.

Before Suki actually asks him directly, the Kyoshi Warriors let out some yells. The two turn back to see Appa stirring, moving erratically in the tight tunnel.

"Girls, get out of there!" Suki calls to them. She doesn't want them getting crushed between the wall and Appa's body. They immediately come running out while Suki and Kakashi approach.

"Appa, please! We're trying to help you!" Her begging doesn't do anything to stop the bison from rubbing against the stone walls.

"Excuse me." Kakashi snatches an apple from one of the girls. "Oi!" he shouts to the bison, loud enough that Appa should hear him over the bison's own groaning. There's a brief pause and Kakashi takes the opening. He launches the apple straight at Appa's face, making the girls yell at his aggressive action.

The apple bounces off the large nose and gets the effect that Kakashi wants. The bison blinks in shock, not expecting the fruit to hit his face. Kakashi grins under his mask as Appa focuses on the apple that dropped on the ground. He approaches the bison, now munching on the apple. Kakashi puts a hand out that Appa meets with his nose. "Glad to have you back."

Appa licks Kakashi with his giant tongue in agreement.

"Great…" He wipes the slobber off his face mask. "Apparently, you've met them before." He points his thumb behind him at the Kyoshi Warriors, who seemed stunned at the one-sided conversation.

Suki snaps out of it first and steps forward. "Appa, we're here to help. We want to put some salve and bandages on your tail and finish cleaning you up."

Appa tilts his head before exiting the tunnel, allowing the girls to surround him. They continue to pamper the bison back to nearly perfect condition.

Kakashi helps wrap a large ribbon of cloth around the bison's tail after they finish putting ointment on it.

"The salve should prevent infection and keep the injury numb, so it doesn't irritate Appa when he flies." Suki rubs a hand into Appa's soft fur, getting a wet lick in return. In fact, the bison had done that to all of the Kyoshi Warriors who took care of him.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it. I bet the Avatar will as well," Kakashi replies.

Suki's eyebrows furrow in worry. "When you find Aang, you have to be careful, Kakashi. He'll think that you took Appa from him and attack you."

"Ma, ma, don't worry about little old me." He waves her concern away. "I can handle myself just fine."

As if the world wants to test him, Kakashi hears the roar of fire before he sees it. "Get down!" he shouts at the Warriors as he tackles Suki to the ground. A wave of brilliant blue hits the trees behind them. Appa roars in panic. The flames cut through one of the trees, cutting off their quick escape route. The Kyoshi Warriors create a defensive line in front of the air bison. Kakashi and Suki stand at the front.

Kakashi turns to their attackers to find three girls riding on top of giant lizards. They're all dressed in red, marking them as Fire Nation. The girl in the middle holds a patch of Appa's white fur in her hand. The way that she looks marks her as the leader of the group. Kakashi can tell she's the most dangerous of the group.

The middle one taunts them. "My, my, you're easy to find. It's really astounding that my brother hasn't captured you yet."

She whips out her fan as well as a seamless shield that springs from her hand. The others do the same. Kakashi grabs a kunai from his pouch. Suki speaks from behind her shield. "What do you want with us?"

"Who are you? The Avatar's fangirls?" Her amber eyes flicker to Kakashi, the odd one out in the group.

The girl with a long, braided ponytail on the left lets out a short laugh after a moment. "Oh, I get it. Good one, Azula!"

Kakashi stands in a seemingly relaxed pose, slightly slouching yet still perfectly balanced. "Ah, that was a good one. I'm afraid the Avatar isn't here though."

The girl on the right sighs into her palm, a bored expression on her face. "I knew this was a waste of time."

"No Avatar, huh?" Azula shrugs her shoulders. "That's alright. Any friend of the Avatar is an enemy of mine!" With that, she leaps off her lizard, spinning before firing a stream of blue fire at the group.

Kakashi dodges out of the way, but the Kyoshi Warriors stand their ground in front of Appa. They use their shields to protect the bison.

The other girls join the fight, the one who laughed at the bad joke cartwheeling towards Kakashi. She does some short jabs at him, all of which he dodges by slightly leaning away. He narrows his eye when he realizes where's she's aiming at. 'She's trying to hit my tenketsu, like a Hyūga without a Byakugan.'It's pretty impressive.

She obviously doesn't expect someone who's able to avoid all of her jabs, a look of concentration appearing on his face. Her tongue even sticks out of her mouth. While the girl's not bad at taijutsu, Kakashi regularly competes with Gai, an entirely different level. He spots the other girl holding throwing knives in her palm. She throws them at one of the Kyoshi, who isn't prepared to dodge or block. While Kakashi is still dodging his own opponent's fists, he grabs several shuriken and launches them at the same time as the girl throws her knives. The metal clangs against each other in mid-air. Some of the girls paused, astonished at such a feat. The girl who threw the knives glances back at him before launching some hidden arrows from her sleeve. The two Kyoshi Warriors block with their shields and they resume their fight.

"Wow! That was crazy! You block all of Mai's knives." The girl starts talking to him as she follows his steps backward, keeping the distance tight. "My name's Ty Lee. What's yours?"

Kakashi decides to humor her. He gives her an eye-smile as he grabs her fist. "It's Kakashi. Nice to meet you, Ty Lee." And with that, tosses her away over his back.

Ty Lee easily lands on her hands and backflips back to her feet, jabbing at a girl that steps too close. The Kyoshi Warrior goes limp, falling to the ground without control of her muscles. He spots some other girls pinned to trees, unable to get free. Their numbers are dwindling. Kakashi spots Suki struggling to block the blue fire from hitting Appa. He makes his way towards them.

The girl named Mai flings some more knives at him, which Kakashi swiftly rolls under. Ty Lee stands ready to stop him, but he doesn't have time to dance again. Kakashi moves around her first jab. "Sorry, afraid I'll have to play with you another time," he apologizes before taking her down with a chop to the neck.

As Kakashi approaches, Azula sweeps a leg towards him, firing blue flames. He jumps over it, undeterred. Kakashi tries to close the distance to take her out, but Azula sees through his plan and keeps distance while shooting her fire. Kakashi maneuvers himself so that he's beside Suki and in front of Appa.

"You need to get out of here with Appa," she says while using her shield to push away blue flames.

"Not yet." Kakashi throws another shuriken which Azula dodges. She responds with a stream of fire. He moves under it, but it sets the downed tree on fire. Appa panics at the appearance of the blaze. Those pinned to trees ripping themselves free and carrying their limp teammates. They gather around Kakashi and Suki.

"You've fought well. Maybe your heads will make a good present for my father." Azula gathers a ball of fire in her hand and lashes it out. It expands into a giant wave of flames speeding towards them.

Kakashi doesn't hesitate, quickly deciding which water jutsu would do best. "Get behind me!" he commands the Kyoshi Warriors while his hands blur together. He places a hand in front of his mask. "Suiton: Suijinheki (Water Formation Wall)!"

A stream of water fires out of his cupped hand aimed at the ground. It suddenly expands into a wall of water, like a wave frozen in time. The blue fire crashes against it, creating steam. Kakashi doesn't pause, unlike the rest of the fighters, who stare at the sudden creation of water with amazement and disbelief.

He fires a kunai at Azula, who catches herself at the last moment and dodges. Still, a thin line of crimson appears on her face. She dabs a hand against the wound and looks at the blood. A sudden rage overtakes her face. "How dare you?!" Before, her attacks were made with lethal precision. Now, the girl sends wave after wave of flames, all extinguished by the wall of water. Some are shot so wide that it catches on the trees around them, trapping them in a burning arena.

Appa roars in fear at the flames surrounding them. Suki turns to Kakashi, who's still powering the wall from the stream of water coming from his mouth. "You need to go! Now!"

The sky bison can't carry all of them out of the forest fire and the blaze would swallow the Kyoshi Warriors whole. Kakashi gives an eye-smile at Suki, cutting of his jutsu and allowing the water wall to come down. He starts another series of hand seals, double-checking his chakra reserves. Azula sees her opening and fires another large blast of azure flames.

At the moment before the flames reach them, Kakashi turns to Suki. "I don't abandon my comrades." He brings a closed fist to his hidden mouth once more. "Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu (Great Waterfall)!"

A thin circle of water appears before him. It speeds up and expands, swirling faster and faster with more and more water. A giant water vortex uproots the trees around them. Twisting with enough force of a crashing waterfall, it douses the flames. The Fire Nation girls don't stand a chance, screaming as they're swept away in the attack.

Kakashi stops the jutsu when the red-clad girls flushed are out of sight. He turns to the girls, finding them giving him awed looks.

"You never said you were a master waterbender!" one of them shouts.

Kakashi rubs the back of his hair, musing his silver strands. "Well… you never asked."

At that, the girls seemed to face-fault but quickly recovered. "They won't stop hunting you and Appa now," Suki explains solemnly.

"That's my choice," he responds. He climbs up Appa's side into the saddle. "We'll lead them away from you. That way you can escape."

"No!" she exclaims, running to the bison's side. "Aang needs Appa now more than ever. You have to get to him safely." Suki peers at the white coat before grabbing a fistful. She carefully removes her hand, only taking a clump of shed fur. "We'll lead them away with this. You have to get going."

The other Kyoshi Warriors nod, also taking the loose fur from Appa. Kakashi admires their bravery. They remind him of the kunoichi of Konoha. "Fine, good luck and stay safe."

"You too." Suki then turns to place a hand on Appa's nose. "You'll find Aang, I promise. Get going, yip yip."

Kakashi is about to ask what that means, but Appa immediately kicks off into the night sky.