The trees were veiled in the densest of mists, their trunks only shadows beyond the airborne water. The lake had vanished, much like Zabuza and Kakashi, and though Akira's eyes couldn't be any wider, she could barely see her brother standing right beside her. It was silent, but the beating of her own heart was loud in her ears, and Akira focused hard on the sensation of leather handles in her hands, trying very hard to grasp at any aspect of tangibility remaining in the mist. But it was slipping, as was her mind, conjuring up old memories that needn't be remembered. If this continued for much longer, Akira would lose her mind.
But an explosion ahead brought her away from the mind-numbing silence. As a shadow approached through the mist, Akira readied her swords, but it was only Kakashi, slowly clearing the mist. This would have assuaged everyone's fears under any normal circumstances, but the fear was still very tangible. No one's nerves had been settled at all, and it didn't help that Kakashi looked as if he were ready to murder. That look scared Akira far more than she'd ever admit. With the Sharingan nearly glowing in Kakashi's eye, she couldn't help but be reminded of Itachi.
"Akira!" Kakashi suddenly yelled.
Her eyes had somehow gone out of focus, mind wandering towards memories of murder. When she heard her voice through the recollections, her blue eyes focused back on Kakashi, whose hands were raised in surrender. Akira was a few feet ahead of the others, the tips of her blades at Kakashi's neck.
"Calm down," he continued in a softer voice. "I'll protect you with my life. All of you."
Akira looked up at Kakashi's face, gaze flickering towards the Sharingan for a moment, then let out a shaky breath. Slowly, her swords lowered themselves from Kakashi's neck and gently touched the ground.
"Trust me," Kakashi said, looking between the Genin. "I will not allow my comrades to die."
Every one of them nodded stiffly. And though their fears were not assuaged, Akira knew that Kakashi would keep his word.
A light gust of wind blew towards them, and they knew Zabuza was still there. Akira went to rejoin the formation, but upon turning around, her eyes were met with the sight of gleaming metal. She raised her tachi on instinct, blocking Zabuza's broadsword at the very last second. Akira stared into Zabuza's dark eyes, terrified, but determined. As the others began wrapping their heads around what was happening, Akira took a risk and dropped one of her swords. She fell to her knees under the weight of Zabuza's attack but managed to perform a simple one-handed seal that she connected with her other hand.
"Lightning Blade Jutsu!" Akira yelled.
Akira's sword suddenly became lit with intense electricity. It travelled from the hilt of her sword, all the way up into Zabuza's blade. But instead of shocking Zabuza, he melted into water—it was just a clone.
"You've got a feisty student, Copy Ninja," Zabuza growled, suddenly behind Kakashi. "Terrified out of her wits, but feisty. Maybe I should take her out first instead of you? Play with my food a little."
Zabuza swung his broadsword and seemingly cut Kakashi in half. However, as Kakashi fell, he turned into water. Moments later, it was Kakashi who snuck up on Zabuza, pulling a kunai to his throat.
"Don't move," Kakashi ordered. "It's over. You're finished."
Naruto and Sakura cheered, but they were cut short when Zabuza let out a low and dangerous laugh.
"Finished?" Zabuza said, sounding amused. "You really don't get it, do you? Your technique is nothing but a crass imitation. I'll never be defeated by a copycat ninja like you! You are full of surprises, though. You'd already made you Water Clone Jutsu when you made your little speech. You had your clone say those things to draw my attention, while you hid in the mist, waiting for me to make my move. Nice try..."
Yet another Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi, who swerved in time to pierce the clone through the heart. As it melted into a puddle of water, Kakashi turned again to dodge a swing from Zabuza's broadsword. He swung so hard that it lodged itself deep in the earth when the sword hit the ground. Zabuza pushed against it and kicked Kakashi so hard that he went flying into the lake. The blade dislodged itself as Zabuza stood, and he dashed towards the lake after Kakashi.
Naruto uselessly cried out as Kakashi's head emerged from the water. Zabuza had already been weaving hand signs, and the second he reached Kakashi, he trapped him in a sphere of water as strong as steel. All the colour drained from the Genins' faces—they'd have to get Kakashi out of there, and that meant fighting Zabuza.
"I'll deal with you later," Zabuza told Kakashi. "But first, I have to eliminate your little friends."
Zabuza made a one-handed sign and produced a water clone of himself that rose slowly and ominously out of the water.
"You think wearing a headband makes you a ninja?" he said, gazing threateningly at the Genin. "When you've hovered between life and death so many times it doesn't phase you, then you may be called a ninja. When you've become so deadly that your profile is in my bingo book, then you may earn the title of ninja. But to call upstarts like you, ninjas... is a joke!"
The mist slowly began to creep back in, and after a few moments, Zabuza had disappeared within it. Akira took a deep but shaky breath, trying to focus on the sounds around her and not the panic rising in her chest. She needed to stifle it and fast. This wasn't the same panic she got when sparring with Kai or Kiba. It was dangerous, life-threatening to her comrades if she and the others didn't snap out of it.
"Come on, Akira," Akira whispered to herself. "Get a grip... get a grip..."
"You're just brats!" Zabuza shouted, and just then, Naruto went flying backwards into the mist.
"Naruto!" Sakura shouted desperately.
"Listen! Get the bridge builder and run!" Kakashi said, his voice distorted by the water prison. "You can't win this fight. He's using all his power to keep me in this prison, so he can only fight you with his water clone. But the clone can't go far from his real body. If you get away from him, he can't follow. Now, run!"
"ARGH, GET A GRIP!"
The shout that came from Akira took everyone by surprise. It was angry but determined at the same time, and the way Akira's stance solidified as she shouted reassured at least Sasuke. The Uchiha twins were as pale as paper, but their gazes were hot with rage.
With a shaky, but burning confidence, Akira and Sasuke erected a plan in their minds. The latter ran forwards, throwing shuriken after shuriken at Zabuza before attacking him from above. Zabuza pushed him back with ease, and as Sasuke landed back on his feet, Naruto came rushing forwards out of the mist.
"What are you doing!? Run!" Kakashi shouted. "The fight was over the moment I got caught!"
"Shut up, Kakashi-sensei," Akira called back. "If you're willing to protect us with your life, we're doing the same!"
Kakashi's eyes widened in a mixture of fear and admiration as Akira spoke, but the admiration vanished as soon as Zabuza hit Sasuke again. He stomped on his stomach, pinning him to the ground, and the boy coughed up a sizeable amount of blood. Naruto shouted some profanities and produced several Shadow Clones, but Akira could barely hear him. Every fibre of her being was focused on the blood coming out of her brother's mouth.
Just then, the mist and the forest seemed to be habitated by a swarm of insects. A loud buzzing filled the air, and the mist began to glow a soft silver colour. Akira's arms were bursting with what looked like thousands of white fireflies, electricity crackling over her skin. As Naruto and his clones ran forwards, the electricity travelled down to her tachi and lit them up like lightning rods.
Naruto and his clones attacked Zabuza head-on, and, as expected, the Water Clone pushed them all back with a single swipe of his broadsword. However, Naruto had managed to dislodge the giant shuriken attached to Zabuza's back, and he threw it back towards Sasuke, who caught it easily.
"I think I know where you're going with this," Sasuke called to Naruto and Akira. "Demon Wind Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows!"
"You'll never get me with that," the Zabuza cloned cackled.
Sasuke jumped high into the air and threw the shuriken back at the clone, but it deviated at the last second, heading for the real Zabuza at the back of the clearing. As it arrived, he caught it and laughed, but the look of surprise on his face when he saw the second shuriken coming was priceless. There had been two shurikens all along, one hidden in the shadow of the other, and as it flew across the glade, Akira swung her tachi at it, charging the shuriken with white electricity.
As it was about to hit him, Zabuza jumped over it. To his shock, the shuriken vanished the second it got over the water, shifting itself into Akira, blades charged. A stream of electricity flew towards Zabuza, and he hesitated a moment before removing his hand from the water prison in order to dodge it. The bolt of lightning shot right past his face, searing his skin as it went, then continued towards the water clone, destroying it instantly.
Zabuza turned around, anger terrifyingly present in his eyes. He began to spin the giant shuriken in his hands, staring directly at the girl slowly falling towards the water he was so adept at using. But, with Kakashi finally free, the shuriken never made it far. As Zabuza tossed it towards Akira, Kakashi stopped it with the back of his hand, blade embedding itself into his skin.
Akira landed in the water and didn't stop herself from going beneath the surface. The cool water soothed the burns on her arms, where the electricity had burned too long, and it cleansed her from the fear she was experiencing. Upon returning to the surface, hair now untied and messy, Akira gazed at the edge of the lake. Kakashi was staring murderously at Zabuza, his Sharingan analyzing every micro-movement he made.
"All of you, that was an excellent plan," Kakashi said. "You've really grown, haven't you?"
"Honestly, I didn't know what was going on until Akira, told me," Naruto laughed. "But we've grown—believe it!"
"Don't gloat," Sasuke said with a smirk. "You just lucked out."
"So, your whole thing was a fluke!?" Tazuna shouted.
"You can call it a fluke if you want, but their teamwork was flawless," Sakura said with a smile. "Akira and Sasuke knew what to do without even talking about it—and Naruto's the only one gutsy enough to dog-pile an enemy like that!"
"I got distracted and lost my grip on the water prison," Zabuza scoffed.
"Aw, are you pouting?" Akira laughed. "You were forced to let get, Zabuza, don't flatter yourself."
Zabuza glared at Akira, but Kakashi pushed the shuriken closer to Zabuza to distract him.
"Your technique worked on me once, it won't work again," Kakashi said. "So, what's it gonna be?"
"Sakura, Naruto, you know what to do," Sasuke said.
While Akira was in the water and Kakashi was having a silent stand-off with Zabuza, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke went back into formation around Tazuna. It was another few moments of silence before Zabuza made another move. He pushed the shuriken further into Kakashi's hand, and they made off to the open waters behind Akira. While Zabuza was adept in water-style, Kakashi's Sharingan would prove to be a least a nuisance.
As Zabuza began making several intricate hand seals, Kakashi copied them at the same level of precision and speed as Zabuza. Then, from the water slithered two immense water dragons, intertwining and attacking each other. Akira screamed as a large wave swept her off into the water, and she struggled to swim through the thick chakra-laden waters. When she was just about to break the surface, another wave crashed down on her and sent her deeper into the water, but as if powered by unknown energies within, Akira pushed herself through the lake and broke the surface. Sputtering and coughing, she pulled herself out of the water and onto the sand.
Another wave threatened to drag Akira back into the water as Kakashi's dragon crashed on top of Zabuza, but Sasuke ran over and pulled his sister away from the shore just as the wave reached the sand. With it, Zabuza appeared, washed up and semi-conscious.
"Now it's over," Kakashi said. He looked over at his students. "Are you all okay?"
"C-Cold, b-but alive," Akira confirmed, raising a shaky thumbs-up.
"Come here," Sasuke said lazily, and he threw his arm around her shoulders.
"This is the only time I'll ever regret not being a fire nature-type," Akira mumbled, hugging her brother to steal an optimal amount of heat.
"Don't get too comfy," he said, sounding annoyed. "This is a one-time deal."
Akira stuck out her tongue at Sasuke and didn't let go until she was all warmed up, at which point Sasuke nearly kicked her off of him.
"How?" Zabuza said, his voice strained.
"This is your last battle... ever."
Just as Kakashi went to finish Zabuza off, two sharp needles flew out of nowhere and stabbed Zabuza in the neck. After a few moments, Zabuza went still, and a small figure emerged from the forest. They were wearing a mask similar to what the ANBU wore, but the colours were different, and the symbol of the Hidden Mist village was etched in the centre of its forehead.
"You were right," the figure said. "It was his last fight."
Kakashi went over to Zabuza and pressed two fingers to his neck, checking his pulse.
"No vital signs," he sighed, then looked over at the masked figure.
"Thank you," they said with a bow. "I've been tracking Zabuza for a long time, waiting for the chance to finally take him down."
"From your mask, I assume you're a tracker ninja from the Village Hidden in the Mist."
"You are well informed."
"A tracker ninja!" Naruto said, taking a fighting stance.
"Naruto, you don't even know what that is!" Sakura complained. "You missed the lesson on it, as usual. Tracker ninjas have a special role. Try coming to class sometimes."
Akira couldn't help but snort.
"When a rogue ninja breaks away from his village, he carries all sorts of secrets with him," Akira continued. "Trackers are specially trained to hunt down these ninjas and eliminate them. That way, the secrets of their people remain secret."
"That's correct," the masked ninja said. "I'm a member of the elite tracking unit from the Village Hidden in the Mist. It was my duty to track Zabuza."
"What is this? Who do you think you are?" Naruto yelled. The figure said nothing. "Did you hear me?"
"Easy Naruto," Kakashi warned. "He's not our enemy."
"That's not the point! Did you see what he did, just like that? Zabuza was huge and powerful, like some kind of monster! And this kid, who's no bigger than me, he brought down Zabuza with one move! Like it was nothing! I mean... what does that make us? We're just fumbling around. We don't know anything! How can I accept that!?"
"Well, even if you don't accept it... Still, it did happen, Naruto," Kakashi said, and he dropped his hand on Naruto's head. "In this world, there are kids that are younger than you, and yet... stronger than me."
Akira frowned at the tracker ninja who approached Zabuza, but paid him no more attention once her tachi washed up on shore. She left Sasuke's side and retrieved them, flicking the water off before attaching them to her armbands.
"Your struggle is over for now," the ninja said, lifting Zabuza up with ease. "I must deal with the remains. There are many secrets in this body, and they must not be allowed to fall into the wrong hands. Please excuse me."
The Hidden Mist tracker then suddenly disappeared in a gust of wind, leaving Akira confused. Unlike Naruto, Akira hadn't missed the classes about special units, and she found it strange that the tracker didn't dispose of Zabuza's remains then and there. However, her concerns were put aside as Naruto began throwing a fit, hitting the ground in frustration. With a sigh, Akira went over and gently grabbed his hands.
"Let it go, Naruto," she said softly. Naruto looked up at her. "Save your anger for the next fight, okay? Let's get Tazuna home."
Naruto groaned but nodded in agreement despite his wishes. He stood and held his hand out to Akira, but instead, she ran straight for Kakashi who was falling to the ground.