Chapter 14:
Narrowly avoiding another attack, Hiashi quickly got into stance and prepared to fight. "I'll use the seal if this goes on too long, but it'd be best if I did this by hand."
"I'll take care of Hiashi. Don't just watch, break through!" Neji cried, charging forward yet again.
Kankuro sent his puppets flying towards Sasuke, hoping to pull the same maneuver as he had with Sakon.
As one made its way behind him, Sasuke began gathering charka into his hand. Going along with the plan, when Karasu closed in on the front, he leapt back and into the puppet's container. Immediately afterwards, he swung his hand about and shattered the puppet's torso.
"Shit… I'd just bomb the place with poison but then I'd probably kill my team as well… what should I-"
"I am your target, Kankuro-san." Aiyoru hissed, appearing from behind and slamming a fist downwards into his collarbone.
There was a satisfying snap followed by an unfamiliar sound of pouring sand. Blades snapped from 'Kankuro's' chest and ensnared the mercenary in a steel deathtrap.
"I thought you were supposed to know everything about each of us." Kankuro grinned from atop the Hyuuga residence's fence.
"I thought you'd put up a bit more of a fight." Aiyoru replied.
Glaring at his opponent, he pulled the strings to have his puppet's scythes tighten. As they did so, Asagin's body dispersed into a fine cloud of fog.
"What the… where is he? Left? Right? No… he's…"
Looking up, he saw a glowing blue hand falling towards him – an attack that could be none other than Raikiri.
Closing his eyes – it being too late for a body-swap – Kakuro waited for death. Hearing, instead, the sound of steel meeting flesh, he opened his eyes to find his adversary falling to the earth with a kunai, stuck up to the handle, in his windpipe.
Hitting the grass, the weapon was driven in even further so that the tip showed through the back.
"What? Who… Neji is fighting his uncle, Shino is down, and Naruto is fighting Sasuke… at least, I hope that's what Sasuke is doing… who…"
"Are you alright?"
Looking over his shoulder, he couldn't help but feel like crying.
"Oh come on… I was saved by Iruka?" He whined. "You were just supposed to be the shield."
Iruka proceeded to rub his knuckles on Kankuro's skull. "Hey, I am a chuunin, not to mention a distinguished shinobi instructor. Just because I got owned once, doesn't mean I can't do anything."
Hiashi looked over at the corpse staining his lawn red and shrieked in anger. "Damn it! He was supposed to be stronger! I guess I'll have to use the seal already."
Neji lunged head-on yet again; concerned only with keeping Hiashi on the defensive, when he saw him raised a hand in preparation for the seal.
"I'll wait until he's within striking distance. Then I'll stop him in his tracks and land a finished hit."
Grinning, Neji brought his hand back, ready to strike, when his uncle activated the seal.
"Temari, we need to talk." Gaara sighed, stepping into her room.
"About what?" She asked, running a hand along over her rental's stomach.
"This; even I can tell you that you need to spend time with actual people and not just a fake. For the love of Kami-sama, find a real boyfriend."
She peered over her shoulder and gave him a strange look. "Nani? I've got someone back home."
Gaara was stupefied. "Huh? But… this… a strippable bunshin… in your room the entire time…"
"Yeah, that's because of this." She explained, removing her hand from the bunshin's stomach, allowing him to get a good look at the markings around the navel.
"That's… a demon seal, isn't it?"
She nodded. "I've been doing research on it. Apparently it belongs to a demon named Kaiho."
"I've never heard of… wait, if you only recently began renting ones like this, how'd you find out about the seal?"
"Oh, I found that out after peeping on him at the hot springs."
A bead formed on Gaara's forehead and he lowered his head. "We'll need to have a talk after this…"
Seal activated, Hiashi just needed to wait for him to writhe in pain so that he could land his attack.
Neji simply laughed and drove the palm of his hand into his uncle's forehead, sending charka though the body and knocking him out almost immediately.
The last thing he heard before his world went black was Neji saying: "Those days are over."
Naruto wiped a trickle of blood from his mouth and nose as he looked up at Sasuke, who had yet to take a wound.
"Damn it, he must have done more training than I did… I can't go at him like I did like last time… what can I do?"
"Naruto-kun, just give up on this silly little farce and become my flower. I promise I'll make every night fun for you." Sasuke purred, almost directly quoting Sakura.
"Sasuke… ew… no! I'm not interested. I'm here for Hinata-chan; she is the only one I see, and the only one I want."
"Tsk, tsk. Come on, be true to yourself. That kiss must have meant something to you."
"Give it a rest!" Naruto screamed.
"… Plan… I need a plan… flower… wait… flower! That's it!"
Getting to his feet, Naruto brought his hands together and began molding charka form his fan favorite jutsu.
"Naruto-kunn, you know nothing you can do will work on-"
"Oiroke no jutsu!"
Sasuke stared at his new form for several seconds before tears began to flow like a river. He then proceeded to run away with an arm over his face.
Reverting to normal, Naruto looked about to realize that Hiashi was unconscious and Aiyoru had his throat pierced.
At first he was thrilled by the realization that nothing stood between Hinata and himself. Staring at the body for a few moments, however, brought about a wave of nausea and guilt.
Hiashi is down, Sasuke is turned off,Aiyoru is lying in a pool of his own blood. What remains for our hero Naruto? Find out next week (hopefully).
thief-uchia: Yeah, poor Shino. I had to do that because it was such an obvious joke... and I wouldn't have been able to write his fight scene that well.
KunochiDreamer: Is this a satisfying one?Is thiseven theoutcome of the battle? Keep on reading.
