Previous Translations: Yorokobi - Pleasure/Delight/Joy
Yokubo - Desire/Lust
Kajo - Excess
Shifuku no Kurushimi - Blissful Throes/Blissful Suffering
Tatakainouta - Song of Battle
Zeitakuna Kutsu - Luxurious Torment
Hentai-ryu: Erokenho - Pervert Style: Erotic Fist Art
Konton - Chaos
Kanzen - Perfect
Henka - Change
Harakainokeru - Dispel
Aka-en - Red Flame
Aoi-en - Blue Flame
Kiiro-en - Yellow Flame
Orenji-en - Orange Flame
Tankoshoku-en - Pink Flame
Maho - Magic
Chishiki - Knowledge
Unmei - Fate
Nozomu - Hope
Hoho no Chenja - honestly this one is a mess, but roughly means Changer of Ways
Ryuketsu - Bloodshed
Chikara - Strength
Meiyo - Honor
Budo - Martial Arts
Ikari - Rage
Jumon - Incantation
Himitsu no Sewanin - Secret Caretaker(Keeper of Secrets)
Sento - Combat
Same no On'na - Shark-Woman
Maebure - Harbinger
Shibari no Ashikase - Binding Fetters
Kanpeki - Perfection
Reikan - the closest English word would be Inspiration, but it specifically refers to 'a divine creative impulse'
Sekkyo-sha - Preacher
Aijin - Lover
Kaen Hosha-ki - Flame Radiator (Flamer of Tzeentch)
Himeiwoageru - Which Screams (Screamer of Tzeentch)
Shikkan - Disease
Ai - Love
Zetsubo - Despair
Mi Haito - Undivided/Not Divided
Shibo - Aspiring
Koki - Exalted
Chakra no Bato - Coruscating Chakra/Chakra of Coruscation
Gyokai - Industry
In case someone somehow doesn't know, Hi - Fire
Don'yoku - Greed/Avarice
Yokuatsu - Tyranny/Oppression
Yami no Chichi - Father of Darkness/Dark Father
Raimeiton - Thunder Release, what Naruto has decided to name his mix of wind and lightning chakra
Shuryoju - Hunting Beasts (same word for plural or singular), an alternate name for Fiends of Slaanesh, best word I could find for them
Konton no Omo - Lord of Chaos
Kemonojin - a very jank way of translating Beastmen into Japanese, basically would mean Animal-Human
Gyumao - Ox Demon King
Eiyu - Hero
Gyumahime - Ox Demon Princess
Kajomahime - Excessive Demon Princess
Renkinjutsu - Alchemy
"Well damn brat," Kisame began with a wide grin, "you really did become quite the Kenshi." he remarked, "Got yourself a nice big fancy sword and everything." he continued as the attention of the remaining shinobi of the battlefield fell on the Akatsuki, "I'd say you're being greedy, but you let one of your girlfriends use the Kiba?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm not in the harem!" Tenten protested quickly, blushing slightly. Ino took the distraction to move to help the wounded, her team moving to cover her just in case.
"It's just a loan, my magnificent self was testing out this blade." Naruto retorted with a smirk, taking a stance at Kisame, an action that startled those who didn't know him quite as well as his teammates and Hinata, "Besides, the raito's abilities are wasted against your Samehada, so this blade is perfect!" he declared proudly, "Perfect for my magnificent self to challenge you, Kisame!" he added daringly.
Kakashi overheard that and swore under his breath, but Kisame seemed curious and hopped down to face Naruto at the same elevation level, although he was still much taller, "You really want to match that toothpick of a daikatana up against my Samehada?" he questioned threateningly.
Instead of answering Naruto focused, Maemi had noticed he was getting faster the entire fight prior to this point, with that sword at least. Each swing tore the muscles required to swing and stop the weight of the tungsten blade even with Naruto's strength, but with his Uzumaki physiology this was nothing but a speed bump. Naruto's sword flashed through the air faster than Kisame anticipated, and he was too slow in getting his guard in place as he dodged backwards to lessen to damage to a cut down his chest.
The battlefield was silent for a moment as everyone registered that a genin had just landed a cut on an S rank nukenin, even considering the blonde was considered A rank himself that was an impressive feat. Kisame mentally scolded himself for being taken off guard and stepped in to swing at Naruto. The blonde stepped into the attack with a swift thrust the caught Kisame in the left clavicle, startling the man more was that his Samehada hadn't shaved right through the mantle of lion hide on Naruto's shoulders.
"What." Kisame deadpanned as he stepped away from the blonde, "How in the-" he began to protest before he saw the blonde move again and used Samehada to block Naruto's nodachi, "Damn kid, you got fast and strong really fucking fast." he praised angrily, blocking more attempting swings from Naruto as he backed off. The shark-like man was certain he'd recover before blood loss became an issue, but he was humiliated that someone as young as Naruto had matched him in kenjutsu.
Itachi was impressed as he watched Naruto fight with the long and clearly heavy sword, but his Sharingan saw a distinct issue, Naruto's muscle memory was still not quite used to the weight or length of the weapon, although the Uchiha was amazed that whenever Naruto seemed to wear himself out he swiftly recovered with more speed than before, "That's a terrifying potential..." he mused quietly to himself as he watched.
The other two Akatsuki seemed less interested in watching, "This is a chance of a lifetime I was told, so let's grab one of the others while Kisame deals with the brat, yeah?" the blonde young man suggested as he reached his hands into two bags on either side of his hip. Curiously he had an Iwa hitai-ate, a few who noticed wondered when Iwa started hiring their own nukenin as mercenaries.
Kakashi was dumbfounded by Naruto's current speed, and he registered that the blonde was actually getting faster the longer the fight went on. Soon enough Kisame could swear two strikes from opposite sides felt damn near simultaneous before he dodged back, "Not bad with pure kenjutsu, gotta hand that to you, let's see how well you actually keep up with an S rank though." he intoned and the next strike from Naruto turned him into a puddle of water.
"Welp, he lost it." The blonde haired Akatsuki declared as a wave of water swept into town. Naruto's eyes widened in alarm, he tried to think if he knew any ninjutsu that could stop it.
"Doton: Doryuheki!" Aiko proclaimed as she slammed her hands to the earth, raising a wall of dirt to make a makeshift damn, it wasn't perfect but it did the job and she sighed with relief, "I still got genin in there." she muttered so quietly only Naruto heard her.
Kisame landed on the dam, "Oh I'm sorry, I forgot the A rank Shinobigashira-chan was in town." he mocked, lifting Samehada threateningly.
"Everyone move!" Naruto snapped, leaping to try and slow down what was about to happen. An upward arcing swing of his nodachi clashed with Kisame's downward thrust, but Naruto was in the air and his sword only delayed for a moment before the knock back sent him down as the dam was destroyed. Hinata and Maemi followed Neji and Tenten to a rooftop, Kiba leaping to another with Akamaru to meet up with cell ten, while the Kumo nin, Kusa nin, and even some of the remaining Iwa nin were doing the same.
Hinata was struggling to control herself, worried about Naruto and wondering if he'd escaped somehow. As the water leveled out sand rose up, carrying a spluttering Naruto who coughed out a lungful of water, "Thanks for the save, Gaara." he said breathlessly as he dropped into a basic stance against Kisame again.
Sakura however had braced herself and waited for this moment, she leaped and swung her newer, larger axe, intent on driving the full momentum and weight into Kisame. He became a splash of water and she went tumbling with her oversized weapon from the overswing, "Damn amateurs with large weapons is what you kids are." the blue skinned nukenin mocked mirthfully as he rose up out of the water with a group of bunshin, if it was the real him at all.
Itachi raised an eyebrow, "You intend to toy with them?" he asked curiously.
"We got time, and I'm not supposed to use lethal force against this kid." Kisame answered, grumbling the last part with some annoyance. Naruto already knew that, it was part of why he was so confident.
"I wonder," Sasuke muttered as his Disc hovered down towards Itachi slowly, golden flame igniting from the false orb in his left socket, "hm... Nope, not yet." he said to himself, "Oi, you blondie." he said, gesturing the spear his staff still was at the other Akatsuki, "I need to get stronger, be a good stepping stone." he demanded.
Arahashi landed on the rooftop next to Kakashi, the Hatake was on guard for a moment but it seemed he was preparing to help against the silver haired jonin's current opponent, "Your genin are something else over in Konoha, you should help your kids out though." the tokujonin commented, offering to take the man off Kakashi's hands. The Hatake nodded gratefully and turned to leap away, Arahashi stepped to intercept the thrown kunai of the Iwa jonin, tossing it aside before the concealed kibaku fuda could explode.
Naruto was on the defensive, Sakura was trying to be aggressive but Genkei ended up swatted away by a watery copy of Samehada. The pink haired kunoichi was glad she was only getting hit by bunshin with one tenth the power of the original, but was irritated that she couldn't even touch one of them while Naruto fended off four of them. Sand slowly rose to help but each time it did the mizu bunshin re-positioned, Sakuira charging in and Naruto following to back her up.
The blonde haired Akatsuki member looked livid with Sasuke's attitude, "Calm down, Deidara, he's just putting on a brave face to hide his fear." Itachi spoke up.
Sasuke shrugged, "Whatever the reason you won't attack me while I'm fighting another and you don't consider me enough of a threat to fight back seriously even if I attack you with my strongest jutsu." the younger Uchiha explained calmly, "Whatever your reasons, I'll use that to my advantage and make you regret your arrogance." he added before his Disc flew at Deidara, Itachi was pretty sure he hadn't actually done the things Sasuke was suggesting so he was confused by the precognitive ability the younger Uchiha just casually displayed.
The final nukenin turned and launched senbon from under his balaclava, but Sasuke hopped past them to intercept Deidara's counterattack, thrusting his spear into the chest of the blonde nukenin. The youngest Uchiha seemed completely unsurprised by the odd clay bunshin and disappeared in a flash of purple flames before it could explode. Itachi and the fourth Akatsuki member hopped back, wondering just how much of that had been planned before the Disc of Tzeentch flew unscathed from the explosion at the fourth remaining member.
A large metal scorpion tail emerged from under the cloak of the fourth member and slammed the Disc into, and through, the roof they stood on, "Awfully sturdy for something he called with Kuchiyose." the man recognized in a gravelly voice.
Naruto thought the fourth member of Akatsuki sounded distorted, and he was pretty sure it wasn't a distance thing, but he focused on trying to deal with Kisame's bunshin while keeping an eye out for the man himself. Mist was rising from the flooded ground as Kakashi landed to plunge a kunai into one of the mizu bunshin, "You really shouldn't go challenging S rank shinobi." he scolded dryly, although most of his venom was sapped by how impressed he was with his students for lasting as long as they were.
Itachi's eyes widened, "Sasori move-!" he tried to warn before a ball of kibaku fuda whistled through the air and exploded against the fourth member, drawing everyone's attention to the fact Fu was carrying Tenten a good distance away and very high up.
Deidara wasn't sure where Sasuke had gone but he hopped up into the sky and unleashed a clay bird, "Even if his puppet wasn't really destroyed, Sasori no Danna is gonna be annoyed about that." he remarked, his clay construct growing to carry him and flying towards the two airborne genin.
Sasuke appeared in another flash of purple flames to intercept the blonde nukenin, although he looked singed and exhausted he activated his Sharingan and thrust his spear through both flesh rider and clay mount before flapped his wings with a burst of chakra, putting some distance as Deidara pulled the same trick as before and the sky ignited with a large explosion.
From surrounding buildings clay pigeons flew at Tenten and Fu, the Taki kunoichi taking evasive maneuvers as the Konoha kunoichi desperately swung the raito Naruto had loaned her, the Raiton chakra from the blades likely saved her life as it seemed to deactivate the clay bombs.
Deidara's voice came from the buildings below them, "Damn, here I thought I found a kindred shinobi of explosives I was forced to kill, I feel less bad about this since you ruined my art." he announced, but the large clay golem's velocity towards the two kunoichi was halted by a wave of sand, "Where is that eyebrowless little shit!?" the nukenin snapped, despite using a rather similar tactic himself.
Kakashi noticed Itachi was in fact not doing much, and noticed he was watching a fight between Rock Lee and a very heavily armored and alarmingly fast opponent. Gai finally managed to move to assist right as Lee opened his Hachimon to the fourth gate and knocked the older taijutsu specialist through a wall. Although the genin was clearly exhausted, there were few remaining Iwa nin to capitalize on it, Iwa's attempted attack was failing despite how heavily they'd stacked the battle in their favor.
There was still the issue of the Akatsuki though, Kakashi could tell all he could get away with was attacking mizu bunshin since Naruto had already challenged the S rank nukenin, but what startled him was Naruto's growth in the middle of a fight. The blonde took a stance as three of Kisame's mizu bunshin swung their Samehada copies, Kakashi's eyes widened as he tried to comprehend what his Sharingan saw.
Itachi and Sasuke both turned their attention down in time to see Naruto cut down the three bunshin, in what almost seemed like one movement they watched three distinct cuts take out three mizu bunshin. There was another lull in the fighting after the real Kisame appeared and Sakura took out one of his surprised bunshin, "Itachi, you see that?" he called out in askance.
"I'm not sure." Itachi confessed, surprising those who weren't trying to figure out what their own Sharingan had seen, "I'm guessing those three mizu bunshin were dispelled simultaneously, but I couldn't tell you how he accomplished that. Naruto Uzumaki just cut three times in a single breath, are you that fast with a less hefty sword?" he questioned.
Kisame chuckled, "You know, I have no idea, I've had Samehada for a long time." he answered before taking a defensive stance, "Alright kid, you beat three tenths of me with that, now let's try the real thing." he dared, charging. Sasuke activated his yellow flame from his golden eye to gauge just how fast the blonde was going, it was still subsonic and Kisame was able to use Samehada as a shield, but shallow cuts from the length of the blade coming at the nukenin from different angles appeared in threes.
Itachi and Kakashi were both surprised that their Sharingan could barely keep up, and Sasuke was pretty sure that even being able to see the future wasn't a guaranteed defense against that speed. If Naruto was moving any faster the only defense would be to not be in range of him, and given his speed the blonde had a very large threat radius without even going into shunshin.
Ino felt terrible, she'd tried to save Fu's teammates but one had been fatally wounded while the other had been mortally wounded for too long before help could arrive. Choji was breathing heavily, but Asuma had shown up to finish off a pair of chunin threatening his exhausted cell. Neji found the hidden Deidara with his Byakugan and moved to flush him out into the open, landing a pair of surprise attacks that sealed two tenketsu in the left arm of the nukenin before he was forced to back off or be blown to pieces, narrowly escaping a secondary blast by using kawarimi and taking cover as sand from Gaara chased after the revealed S rank explosive user.
Sakura turned her glare up at Itachi as Sasuke flapped his wings to attack Deidara again while the young man was trying to escape Gaara, but the Uchiha halted at what he heard, "Sasuke-kun wants you dead, so I'll take your skull!" Sakura exclaimed her challenge before readying her larger axe and leaping, Itachi activated his Mangekyo and black flames engulfed the pink haired kunoichi.
"Sakura!" Sasuke shouted in alarm, but his, Naruto's, and Kakashi's panic were halted as the screaming girl hit the water and got back up with steam rising up as the black flames slowly died down. Sasuke wasn't sure that was normal, they seemed to be flash boiling the water around the girl, and her brass skin seemed glowing by the time the fire completely died down.
"Did that girl just absorb the flames of hell?" Itachi asked bluntly, not giving away how surprising that was.
"That hurt!" Sakura shouted, her brass choker and skin both still glowing and giving off a slight heat haze.
Sasuke and Kakashi both doubted that was entirely the choker, but before they could consider further she leaped again. This time Itachi attempted Tsukuyomi, but found the Haruno oddly immune to this as well. So instead the befuddled Uchiha dodged her wild swing, kicked her axe through the roof, and kicked the kunoichi in the face to both disarm the girl and knock her through the wall of a different building.
Itachi noticed he felt the heat still on the bottom of his sandal despite the short contact time and inspected the axe she was using, he was no metallurgist but from what he could tell it was good quality steel or similar but the design seemed strange. It was definitely exotic, but it seemed built for someone far larger than a natural human, he wondered if it was forged for a giant or a real oni.
Fu and Tenten landed next to Asuma and his genin, the Taki kunoichi looking sad about her team while the Konoha kunoichi was watching Lee take a stance against the heaviest armored shinobi on the battlefield. Then she saw the other surviving Iwa shinobi gather to him, the man who had been fighting Kakashi and the lava wielder joining Han to help against Gai it seemed. Tenten was surprised to find she could hear them speaking across the distance, discussing whether they should retreat or not.
"I don't want to be here either, Roshi," Han said to the lava wielder quietly, "but we haven't taken down a single primary target." he pointed out. Naruto was too preoccupied with Kisame to overhear it so Tenten's new hearing was the only one who heard them, she wondered who the primary targets were and she supposed obvious ones would Kusa's Shinobigashira, Kakashi, Gai, Asuma, probably Sasuke since he was the last Uchiha. The bun haired kunoichi did wonder what those red cloud guys wanted with Naruto though.
Sasuke landed next to Tenten as Hinata landed behind Lee, "Lend me Naruto's swords, I'll return them in a moment." he promised quickly as Maemi leaped from Hinata to Lee and pressed her hands to his back.
"Zeitakuna Kutsu!" The Imp declared loudly, any jutsu Naruto could do, she could do, but it generally wasn't worth the effort and Hinata felt the drain on her chakra through the bond she and Maemi hadn't yet broken since Naruto's mission to Kaminari no Kuni. The former heiress swayed, struggling to maintain her balance from a sudden light headed feeling as Lee's chakra spiked and the boy crossed the distance between himself and Han.
Arahashi appeared with a shunshin to intercept the man he'd tried to take off Kakashi's hands once already, "Slippery bastard!" he praised in a manic tone as he engaged the yet unnamed Iwa jonin in taijutsu. Gai leaped to intercept Roshi, wincing even as he knocked the other man away with a kick from the heat of the Yoton chakra cloak.
Kakashi was trying to think of a way to deal with Itachi, he vaguely recalled Gai mentioning watching the feet of an opponent with Sharingan rather than the midsection but he had no practice with that and he knew that Gai was the better with pure taijutsu. The jonin saw Kiba and Akamaru going at the Uchiha nukenin with their Gatsuga and his eyes widened in alarm as he leaped to try saving them, he wasn't in time to stop Itachi grabbing them out of the air and tossing them aside but he did thrust a kunai the kinslayer blocked with a kunai of his own before the young man could finish off either Kiba or Akamaru at least.
The Hatake had assumed Kiba and Shino had taken cover, but the insects gathering around Itachi and Kakashi told otherwise, unfortunately Kakashi realized he was already in a genjutsu and broke it in time to see burning kikaichu falling to the ground and turned to see Itachi lifting Shino from behind some fallen rubble by the throat, "I acknowledge your clan in dangerous, and you have become far more dangerous." the Uchiha said before he placed a kunai in the chest of the Aburame, almost lazily and without effort before he tossed the before aside to the still flooded ground.
Kurenai was there and Kakashi saw her fall under genjutsu even as she furiously tried to thrust a kunai at the Uchiha, he formed a Raikiri in his right hand and tried himself, closing his normal eye to focus entirely on the clarity granted by the Sharingan. Asuma saw what happened and leaped in to grab Kurenai and pull her away from Itachi, recalling Gai's words about focusing on the feet.
Kisame laughed, "Damn kid, your jonin are all struggling with Itachi but you're actually matching me in kenjutsu at least, and you're smart enough not to waste chakra against my Samehada, plus that Uzumaki stamina I've heard about makes you probably my best fight in years!" he praised, clearly pleased to have such an opponent despite the age difference between the two, "I don't know if it's because you're yokai, hanyou, or just a jinchuriki, this is great!" he laughed merrily.
Naruto was confused by the last statement, yokai was a fairly common term he'd come to think applied to him but he didn't actually know what a jinchuriki was, "What's a jinchuriki?" he asked plainly after his smile dropped into a confused expression, "My magnificent self may be yokai, but that term is new. Not sure how hanyou applies either actually, they related terms?" he continued as he dodged and parried Kisame's attacks.
Tenten was hesitant, but reluctantly handed over the Kiba to Sasuke, he was Naruto's teammate she supposed. Then the youngest Uchiha leaped at Deidara and attacked with the raito, Gaara helping to corner the young man and the electrical blades nullifying Deidara's explosives.
Kakashi was surprised his attack seemed to actually work, catching Itachi in the chest, then he saw the crows and pulsed his chakra, swiftly turning as the mist thinned around them. He saw Naruto still clashing blades with Kisame and Kurenai leaping out of Asuma's arms to check on her mortally wounded student. To her surprise he still had a pulse and the mask had acted as a rebreather for the brief moment he'd been under water. The kunoichi checked and was surprised to find that his heart had actually been moved, so while the kunai would have been fatal to most the boy had survived. He still needed medical treatment, so she took him with Asuma to where the remaining Kusa iryonin had gathered around Asuma's cell.
"Well kid, a jinchuriki is what you are, with that Chakra no Bakemono locked in you." Kisame said, catching the attention of Tenten's hearing, "I just guessed hanyou, you look like either that or a yokai." he explained, "Still, not bad to match me even if I am currently like this." he finished, confusing Naruto even more before the blonde managed to thrust his nodachi into the neck of the nukenin, only for his face to change into someone else and the Samehada to become a boat oar.
"What kind of bunshin is this?" Kakashi wondered, realizing that they weren't even fighting the full power of the Akatsuki, explaining why Tenten had been able to take out that Sasori so quickly and why Sasuke was currently finishing off Deidara, only to be surprised as he removed his blades from the corpse of someone who was distinctly not Deidara.
Sakura groaned as she pulled herself out of the building she'd been kicked into, looking around for Itachi as she rubbed her aching head. Kiba gave a similar groan of pain and Akamaru growled before the hound became a feral form of his master yet again, showing rather impressive stamina for his age. The Inuzuka himself pulled out a kunai instead of getting feral and joined Sakura in looking for what hit him.
Han was surprised the young genin had been given such a second wind by the grey skinned oni, but he saw the Akatsuki more surprisingly losing, "Roshi, we should pull back and report this." he decided.
Roshi scoffed as he blocked a kick from Gai and delivered one in turn, the bowl cut jonin barely avoiding critical damage and forced to pull away with a wince, "That's what I said, but you complained we didn't get a critical target!" he argued right before Lee's foot slammed into his face at high speed, sending the bearded man through a wall, "I retract my previous argument." he said as he saw the Shinobigashira moving to assist the Konoha shinobi while getting back up.
Roshi spat a wad of lava as he leaped to meet Han, dropping his lava cloak as the more heavily armored man grabbed him and leaped away with a burst of steam. Aiko avoided the lava but couldn't keep up with Han's speed, "Wait! Lee!" Gai tried to order but the genin was already leaping after the two high threat Iwa nin, but a wall of stone blocked his path. Arahashi captured the man who did that in a pin, annoyed with the slippery Iwa jonin by now.
Lee smashed through the wall but his second wind was wearing off and he started to fall, Gai made it in time to stop him falling off the wall and took him to where the remaining Kusa nin, including the remaining genin, had gathered around Konoha's cell ten. Kumo and Taki there as well, although Shibuki looked injured he was alive. Kakashi noticed Itachi seemed to have left, strangely enough, and joined the others as Gaara appeared in a suna shunshin, his own team moving to join them.
"Surprisingly, I think Iwa is actually sieging this place." Gai informed, "I saw tents in the distance where those two Iwa shinobi were retreating to." he explained.
Aiko sighed, "All that and they still prepared for us to fight them off? Who planned this attack?" she wondered.
"Someone smart, with years of battle experience." Shikamaru guessed idly, he vaguely recalled that the Sandaime Tsuchikage was still the most recent Tsuchikage.
Sasuke arrived to return the Kiba blades at the same moment Naruto decided to join them, and Kakashi took note of both of their new additions, Sasuke's new horns emerged from the top of his head and had a waving design to their growth while Naruto had grown a tail that Kakashi was pretty sure a serpentine tail tipped with a scorpion stinger. The two glanced at each other and the Uchiha handed over the blades to their owner, "I heard super bushy brows mention a siege, let Tenten-chan hold onto them for now, my magnificent self has almost perfected a new kenjutsu with this." the blonde bragged, brandishing his tungsten nodachi proudly.
The newly horned Uchiha was concerned about the fact Naruto considered what he'd been doing 'almost perfect' but handed the blades back to Tenten, who looked all too eager to have them again. She wondered how long the loan would extend.
Kiba and Sakura joined the group once they found no more Iwa shinobi to fight, Akamaru returning to his natural form after they landed, "So, we won?" the Inuzuka asked curiously as Sakura looked around for her Imp, as he'd been carrying her shield and one handed axe.
"A close fight, but they were fought off, seems even their strange bunshin are worth boons." Shikamaru answered dryly, gesturing to Naruto and Sasuke.
"My hearing got really good, I heard that guy with the steam mention primary targets." Tenten spoke up, figuring that was worth reporting.
Shibuki stood up, "This isn't just a skirmish, this was a declaration of war." he said somberly, "I need to get Fu back to Takigakure and get my jonin ready for battle." he said.
Aiko groaned, "We're being sieged you inexperienced brat," she scolded, sounding a little older than she looked with that statement, "If you try that, they'll probably pick you off. Shinobigashira like us are primary targets, try to get a message there by courier or bird." she lectured.
"They'll probably pick off a bird." Asuma pointed out as he lit a cigarette, glad the fighting was done for now.
"If they've got us surrounded with such strong fighters, I'm guessing those mercenaries were using some weird long distance bunshin jutsu to fight even though they aren't in the area." Shikamaru pointed out, not knowing the significance of the Akatsuki, "However, if they had us completely outclassed they'd hit us with everything, after that I'm guessing those two who got away are Iwa's strongest fighters and they got pushed back by Lee and Gaara." he explained, "The smart thing to do would be to abandon this damaged town and retreat back to Konoha." he pointed out.
Shibuki frowned, "Iwa shouldn't be able to find Takigakure no Sato." he acknowledged.
Aiko scowled, "If they've launched an attack of this caliber and reinforcements haven't shown up, then they're probably sieging or attacking Kusagakure right now!" she snapped, "This is a chance to strike back at them!" she insisted, her Kusa shinobi all nodding in agreement.
Samui shook her head, "I need to get my remaining genin out of here and inform Raikage-sama of what happened." she said plainly, her genin looking upset by this declaration, the kunoichi in particular gritting her teeth in anger.
Kurenai sighed, "Retreat is our best option." she agreed with Shikamaru, wanting to get Shino out of the battlefield.
Sakura spotted Genkei making his way to them with her other armaments, "That Imp is sturdy," she muttered to herself before turning to the current argument, "I think the Kusa shinobi are right, we can probably take them." she piped up quickly.
Naruto's breathing was still heavy but he nodded, "My magnificent self can take on both of those guys y'know!" he insisted before he sat down, "We should rest first though, they're regrouping." he pointed out, "They'll expect us to panic and run or attack desperately, Iwa are good at this whole siege warfare thing from what Maemi-chan read. If we eat, take a breather and recover-" he began to plan.
"We don't have your recovery time." Sasuke interrupted, pointing out a flaw in his teammates strategy.
"So my magnificent self will be the bait." Naruto continued without missing a beat as he gestured for Tenten to return his backpack, Tenten took a moment to remember she even had it before he returned it so the blonde could pull out a portable stove as everyone registered what he said.
"What?" Kakashi asked dryly, convinced he'd misheard that.
"My magnificent self will recover in time to give you all the time to recover, then you can all back me up." Naruto explained as he prepared some cup ramen for himself. Maemi wasn't sure how to respond, she hadn't expected her master to become so confident so quickly.
Aiko's eye twitched, "I know you just fought an S rank, but that doesn't put you in charge." she retorted dryly, a little annoyed as she was the highest ranked technically.
Shikamaru rubbed his chin, "It might be our best option though, a loud and strong distraction like Naruto would allow Shibuki to get back to his village so Taki can properly reinforce us, and you Kusa shinobi could get back to help your home." he pointed out, explaining the merits of Naruto's idea.
Shibuki recalled how Naruto had been in Taki a while back and nodded in agreement, "Probably our best bet." he acknowledged.
Fu frowned, "I don't want to just retreat, I still have stamina, I can help!" she insisted, pouting at the look of pity she received from the chunin in charge of Takigakure.
"Naruto-kun shouldn't fight alone!" Hinata spoke up, not liking the plan one big.
Sasuke scoffed, "I'm still good to fight." he spoke up, "I'll back the blonde moron up and make sure he doesn't get himself killed." he promised.
"I can still fight too." Sakura insisted, much to Kakashi's exasperation. The silver haired jonin supposed he had enough stamina to back up the genin in another skirmish, but an all out battle with an actual force of Iwa shinobi was another matter.
Gaara stepped up, "Naruto, I'll help you protect everyone." he promised with a calm assuredness, Kakashi wasn't sure if that was bravado or arrogance. This declaration surprised most of the Konoha shinobi, although Baki just looked exasperated while Temari seemed amused.
Maemi saw an opportunity forming and leaped on it, "Why not split the teams then?" she suggested with an impish grin.
Aiko sighed, "Fine, I'll take my Kusa forces to rescue our village and return with back up when we succeed." she declared confidently.
Shibuki nodded, "I'll return to Takigakure with-" he began.
Fu stepped up with Naruto and Gaara, "I can fight." she insisted.
"No." Shibuki refused, "This recklessness is why I can't let you have the Eiyu no Mizu." he scolded.
"Naruto-kun drank some!" Fu insisted, her demeanor becoming childish so fast it gave some of the others whiplash.
"That was extrenuous circumstances!" Shibuki argued hotly.
Asuma sighed out a lungful of smoke as the bickering continued and no clear leader was present, "How about you join us to Konoha and we get a message to Taki from there?" Shikamaru suggested, "If someone attacks us despite Naruto's team causing a distraction, I don't have the stamina to do much." he added to entice the green haired girl.
Naruto picked up his cup ramen, "Shika's got a point, Fu-chan you should help Asuma and Kurenai protect their genin." he pointed out before he started eating.
A light buzzing sound came from Shino, "I will be able to move properly momentarily." he insisted for the sake of his own pride.
"I can fight too!" Hinata insisted, Akamaru barking in agreement.
"That Itachi guy may have been above my paygrade, but I tore through some enemy genin and I still have some stamina left." Kiba piped up to add his own preference.
Kurenai coughed, "No! There are too many unknown variables!" she pointed out.
"Good point." Naruto acknowledged through a mouthful of food, "Hinata-chan's Byakugan will be really useful." he added after swallowing before continuing to devour his snack, discarding any etiquette he'd been taught in favor of necessity.
"I can handle that for Hinata-sama." Neji spoke up, "I'd suggest she goes with Lee to help protect the others." he added.
Naruto shook his head, "Nah, feels more comfortable with Hinata-chan by my magnificent self." he disagreed, his wording confusing the others, "You go help Tenten-chan protect Lee." he ordered.
Neji nodded at the logic before he could stop himself, surprising Gai as Lee stepped up, "I can fight too!" the bowl cut genin insisted.
"Liar, you tore your muscles up and don't have the same recovery time as Naruto-sama." Maemi interjected, silencing the objecting genin. Sasuke got the implication that the blonde had actually damaged his muscles almost as much as Lee's Hachimon and wondered about what the other horned ninso was capable of.
"So," Shikamaru began, looking deep in thought, "we need to actually organize ourselves here." he pointed out.
"Hinata-chan stays by the side my magnificent self." Naruto said it like a decree as he put down his empty cup ramen, "Cell seven plus Hinata-chan and Gaara will be the distraction for two teams to make an escape!" he declared with a proud grin, "Kusa can take care of themselves with their remaining numbers, so the other team needs to be equally capable of taking care of itself, so the remaining Taki, Kumo, and other Suna shinobi should retreat back to Konoha and let Tsuna-baachan know what happened before being escorted back to their homes." he decided as he stood up, "So we'll see each other later, okay Fu-chan?" he promised cheerfully.
Maemi couldn't contain a wide grin as her master established his leadership capabilities without her even needing to encourage him, she'd subtly implied his right to be in charge and trained his mind diligently for this purpose. The remaining Kusa shinobi nodded as Shibuki made to store the corpses of his other two genin in scrolls, personally he found it a little distasteful the blonde could be so cheerful and carefree in such a situation, but he couldn't argue with the plan Shikamaru had helped Naruto come up with.
The Nara knew he'd helped iron out Naruto's plan and noticed the Muse looking giddy about the situation, but felt it best for himself too, having that many powerful shinobi ensured their group should be fine. Gai still frowned, "If more of those mercenaries' bunshin show up, or the Akatsuki themselves," he spoke up, "I should remain behind to help my eternal rival." he pointed out.
Naruto shook his head, "Nah, we've got six shinobi against their encampment as is." he disagreed with a smirk as he started stretching, warming back up before he pulled out another dose of the combat drugs Maemi made him and the other Slaanesh marked ninso.
Samui sighed, "I suppose that will have to work." she agreed after thinking about it, "Raikage-sama needs to hear about Iwa's attack." she decided, her remaining genin nodding in agreement. Choji was just relieved he'd have extra back up and pulled out a bag of chips, he needed to refill calories even if he didn't need to fight any more enemies.
Gai continued to frown, "Numerology aside, I must insist!" he continued, taking a firm stance on the subject.
Sasuke and Sakura both sighed as Naruto's eye twitched, "Six is a good number!" he insisted childishly.
"You'll have Maemi, isn't that seven?" Shikamaru pointed out and the Imp in question realized the blonde still had some growing to do.
"Alright, super bushy brows can come instead of protecting his team, to make it eight." Naruto grumbled, clearly not happy about it but preferring eight over seven for reasons no one but the Imps could decipher. Gai felt like he was being guilt tripped, but he trusted Asuma, Kurenai, and even Neji's abilities enough to be confident Lee would be fine.