I'M BACK ESSE!
Thats right ladies and germs, I'm back and I'm just as bitchin as ever! I have to say that since my last update, I only got one review that wasn't from Shang...That tells me that either my story sucks, or the people who read it are almost as lazy as I am. So I've decided to start using gimmicks to draw you people in, such as: provocative previews of the things I have just written! That's right people, from now on, if you send in your reviews, you get a sneek peek into the crap that's actually hot off the press, or the keyboard so to speak. Hope you like this chapter, and even if you don't, take the time out of your day to tell me so. It costs less than saving a starving child in Africa. REVIEW NOW PEOPLES!
OFFICIAL-LOOKING DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto, Hellsing, Priest, Bloodrayne, or any of the music I listen to when I write this.If I did own any of the things mentioned above...well let's just say I would be a much richer man than I am today.
Gaara was paired with Ayane. They walked silently down the dripping tunnel together, Ayane trying to avoid an uncomfortable situation with the slightly scary sand nin.
"Why do you have feelings for that Junichi boy?" Gaara asked calmly, as if it were a regular topic "You must know he shows no romantic interest in you whatsoever. In fact, he works extra hard to help you not be a burden to him and the entire team."
"W-who said I had feelings for him?" Ayane protested as angrily as she dared "And even if I did, how do you know him so well that you can tell things like that?"
"You are very obvious about it." Gaara said, still looking ahead "You're breathing speeds up when he's around and you fidget unconsciously. And furthermore, I can tell because he treats you no different than he would treat anybody else. To him you are a teammate, that is all. If you think you are getting special training, think again. He takes it upon himself to better those around him for the good of everyone."
"I don't believe you" Ayane said stubbornly "If he didn't like me, he wouldn't have embraced me like he did before we got here! Explain that Mr. Emotion expert!"
"I don't know of the situation fully," Gaara said shortly, getting irritated with her close minded perception "But I would guess that he wanted to make you be quiet or to get you to stop worrying or something of that nature."
"He wouldn't do that!" she protested, "He would never mess with my emotions like that…would he?"
"He would, and so would I" Gaara said, glad that she was seeing his way "Besides, he's dangerous. He claims to have a demon that plagues him. His mind is frail. He could very easily kill you for no reason at all."
"He does?" Ayane gasped. This information was something he should have shared with them "Why didn't he tell us about demons talking to him?"
"He's not sure of their intentions or anything else about them, or even if they're for real." Gaara explained "From what I was told, I believe he has a single demon that somehow knows how to channel it's power through his body from some other plane of existence...or he's just plain crazy."
"I see…" she said quietly "So he simply uses us to keep him alive. He used my emotions to make me be quiet for a moment…"
"What did you expect.?" Gaara said, once again as if it was nothing to him "He loves training. He loves strength. He loves the feeling of the power coursing through his veins when he activates a jutsu. He loves the agonizing pain he experiences as he trains all day and all night. His love is strength, and because of that love, he believes others should love it too, and thus, tries his best to help others to become strong."
"I think I understand" Ayane said with a sad smile "For someone like him, emotions are frivolous and don't aid strength. Do you think the same way Gaara?"
"I believe that I am better suited to live without attachment of another human being." Gaara said simply "I will never be completely sane, as most people claim to know it, and I will never stop being dangerous, no matter how many people teach me of things I never came to learn. Junichi taught me that through certain actions, we are bonded, and these bonds make us more than enemies, more than friends, it reveals something deeper of each of us. But none of that matters, because the Shukaku will outlive me a thousand fold, and his bloodlust will never be sated."
"I don't think so." Ayane said with a smile "One day you will meet somebody who makes the world keep spinning for you. I believe that you are destined for greater things than even you think possible, and, from the stories I've heard, you have paid for every bit of greatness with your own tears."
"You are an interesting person." Gaara said suddenly "You are the weakest link in the chain, yet you are able to look up and believe that everyone and everything will be ok, though you are not able to do anything to urge it in that direction."
"Well Gaara kun," Ayame said with a smile "It may not be much, but sometimes believing is enough to bring forth the greatest forces on earth. Having hope will give us wings that can soar through any darkness. Through our relationships with others, we learn of hope, and we gain things to hope for, and thus, we add to our power."
Suddenly Gaara's sand shield flew up behind them only to be smashed down by a gigantic sword. When the dust settled, there stood Momochi Zabuza. He lifted his sword again and prepared to strike.
"Ayane chan, get behind me" Gaara said with commanding authority "If I should fall, you run as fast as you can until you either meet up with the others, or get out of this hellhole."
"Nice sentiments" Zabuza said with killing intent nearly visible around him "but neither of you will be leaving alive!"
Zabuza stood still as a heavy mist started to roll in. Gaara stood perfectly still, letting his sand flatten against the ground so that if anybody stepped within a certain range, he would have them in his desert coffin. He was only barely able to dodge the sword swing that came down from above him. He stepped to the side just in time and directed his sand to raise up to the ceiling and search for Zabuza, only to find nobody there. He started to notice that his Sand was getting heavier because it was absorbing the mist. He had to think quick and formed a plan in his mind.
Zabuza was right behind Gaara and Ayane ready to make the final swing. He swung with all his might, sure he would get them. The sand was too quick though, and caught his sword, then traveled up his sword to his arm and then to his whole body until he was encased from the neck down in rock hard sand.
"Never send in a clone to do the original's job" Gaara said, stepping forward as the mist faded. Then, with killer's eyes, he raised his hand and with one solid motion, snapped it shut. As soon as the pressure got high enough, the body turned into water and the sand fell to the ground from the extra weight.
"phew" she breathed quickly after their near death experience "How were you able to figure out it was a clone?"
"Zabuza is an assassin." Gaara explained calmly "He knows who I am and wouldn't try to take me down first, he would pick off the others to make sure I didn't have any backup and then take me down after sending about a hundred more clones at me. Now we need to keep moving."
Temari and Saotome walked down a dark, dripping tunnel silently. Neither really knew what to say to each other, now that they were kind of like a weird couple of unofficial sorts. After a long moment of silence, Temari decided to break the ice again.
"You were really great back there." She said without looking at him "You were able to see what move he would make based on the fact that he had one free arm and a very heavy sword and analyze his attack style. It was an impressive performance."
"Had it been the real thing, he would have cut me in half." Saotome said, trying to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal and that he was so cool that it just didn't matter to him "I was trying to cut it close, but I wouldn't have been able to get away with it had it been him. I was surprised that you took the initiative to help save Junichi."
"Someone had to step up." Temari said toughly "I'm sure, had we all joined in, we could have taken on the real guy. He's a very powerful jounin, but he's not invincible."
"He was beaten before, which is what bothers me." Saotome said, still not looking at her "According to records, he died and was buried in the wave country. He shouldn't be here. He should be planted six feet under. Somebody brought him back for their purposes and is using him. It would have to be somebody powerful though, to enlist so many runaway shinobi from so many different lands. It can't be Orochimaru, because there would be sound Nin here, and I don't think I saw any when we blasted our way in…the whole setup just kind of makes me nervous. I'm worried about our safety."
"You don't have to worry about me." Temari said with a smile "And because I'm here, you don't need to worry about you either. I've basically got you covered. I do appreciate your concern though. You seem to be pretty stressed because you haven't tried to crack one of your stupid jokes in a long time."
"yeah, well…" Saotome started, trying to think of what to say "It's not stress. It's something else. I just feel relieved all of the sudden. I think that being around you has made me more serious, though I don't understand why."
"Join the club." Temari said shortly "I'm starting to smile when there's nothing to smile about and I get slightly giddy sometimes. It's definitely not like me."
"Well, common logic would tell us that we have an attraction to each other and that it's changing us." Saotome said as he rubbed his chin in thought "Of course we have to ask ourselves if that's what we want. Do we want to change? To we want to take the risk of emotions in a shinobi's world of bloodshed and tears?"
"Well gut instincts would tell us the answer to those questions" Temari said with a quiet smile "And I believe that I would be willing to sacrifice it to see the land where sand and desert exist together."
"You know…" Saotome said warily, trying not to spoil the mood "When I was talking about that, I was serious. There is a place that is like the desert and the forest. At first I wasn't trying to be all philosophical and stuff."
"I've come to assume that of you." Temari said with a shrug "But you did put out an effort to be thoughtful and romantic so I'll let it slide just this once, but from now on I'm going to be a lot stricter on those types of things."
"Rules…ouch" Saotome said with a grin as he scratched the back of his head "I didn't read about any rules when I signed up for this. I was just in it because you're hot and I'm one sexy piece of flesh myself, and I also know how irresistible I am."
"Saotome kun" Temari said as calmly as she could with a vein popping out on her forehead "I swear to god, if you ruin another moment like that I'll beat you to a pulp. And for your information, I'm much sexier than you are."
"You got any way to back that up?" Saotome asked cockily "I mean, I've got ladies all over me man. I've got girls all up and down Kohona. I'm like the king pimp, of the genin. No need to be jealous, it's not like you could help it or anything."
"Saotome kun…you're an idiot" Temari said as she decked him across the face "I have no clue why I'm attracted to a loser like you."
At that point a tidal wave of water started to rush at them from behind. Temari quickly undid the clasp on her fan and with one clean swipe, the wind blew the water all the way back.
"TEMARI CHAN, LOOK OUT!" Saotome yelled as Zabuza ran up and slashed at her diagonally. With all his might, Saotome took out a kunai and stopped the sword from slicing her in half, but was thrown back in the process.
Temari quickly readied her fan again. She looked at Saotome momentarily and raised her hand to move the fan.
Zabuza saw the movement, and he easily sliced the fan in half with one motion and caught Temari in the neck and hung her up on the wall with the dull side of his blade with another motion.
Saotome saw Temari struggling to breath and let out a battle cry as he flew at Zabuza with kunai blazing. Zabuza was able to intercept the attack and kicked him hard in the stomach.
Saotome got up slowly and didn't notice the changes. His hair got a little longer. His muscles bulged slightly. His teeth became sharp. His fingertips suddenly had claws on them. He let out a wolf-like howl and rushed at Zabuza with newfound strength.
Zabuza saw the change and, having some slight experience with chakra changing demons, let Temari go from the wall and slashed him across the chest. Temari fell unconscious to the ground and Saotome stood there with one clawed hand over the gash on his chest.
"I don't know if you know it boy, but you have a demon on your side." Zabuza said with a chuckle "But you're not powerful enough to beat me. The demon hasn't shown enough power to beat me."
Saotome snarled and lunged at Zabuza after jumping up and vaulting off the ceiling. Zabuza took the flat side of his blade and caught him vertically, and using the momentum of the swing, slammed him into a wall, knocking him out and letting his normal appearance take over again.
With an evil grin on his face Zabuza heaved them up on his shoulders and carried him down to the real Zabuza, who laid in wait for his prey. These two would be used as bait, or anything else he could use them for. He hadn't decided yet.
Junichi walked down his tunnel alone. In his rage, he hadn't waited for orders and plunged straight into the tunnels to look for Zabuza. He had lost and now he had to win. As he walked, he heard Eva's voice in his ears.
"You can't win against him boy." She whispered seductively "Even I would be little help against him. He is very powerful and he has years more experience than you."
"I don't care" Junichi replied out loud "Even if I don't win, I want his respect. I don't want to be beaten so easily again."
"You would die for your opponent to acknowledge you" Eva laughed at him "That is the way of the fool boy. He will kill you and it will be easy for him. Even if I do help you, it is very likely he could destroy us both unless we play our cards just right."
"I don't care. I'm fighting him." Junichi said through gritted teeth "I will go after him and I will either live or die. You can either choose to help me or you can refuse. That part isn't my choice. What is my choice is whether to die at the hands of an enemy or to die dishonorably in a bed sixty years from now. I refuse to let my training go out the window. I will fight."
Then Junichi walked into a wide cave with water dripping all around. The stalagmites and stalactites hung and rose in various forms all throughout the visible landscape. On the other side of a large pool stood Momochi Zabuza. With determination not known to many of his age, he stood readily on the opposite side of the pool and stared at Zabuza with hate in his eyes.
"I hope you know what you're doing." Eva said in his mind "I will come when you need me the most. Many of my techniques will be barred from you, but the innate powers will be yours. Use it wisely child."
"It seems you have finally got here" Zabuza said mockingly "I hope you're ready for another embarrassing defeat. This time, your little friends won't be able to see for you. You're all alone and you're eyes are clouded by anger. This should prove easy."
"Do not underestimate me Zabuza." Junichi said "I will defeat you yet."
Alright, here I go with the review responses:
Shang: Yes, Junichi is a loser. He's not totally immune, and I'll get to that much later on. I freakin hated the tunnels part. It was just a transition, think nothing more of it please.
§unburn: Ahh, the first not-Shang reviewerI've had in a long time. Don't praise me that much,I might get a big head. I do hope you keep reading because it's going to be one hell of a trip onceI get to part two.
And nowwhat you've allbeen waiting for! The preview! Not gonna tell you when you'llget to it, just know thatit's in there, and you'll have to keepreading and reviewing to find it.
Junichi sat in a dark hallway with bodies littered all over the place. They had all gone down relatively easy, and now he sat slumped against the dead end wall with his hand feeling the organs inside the closest corpse.
Slowly, he began to take his hand out and stare at it. He looked at the crimson blood that stained the very skin. It flowed over his hands and dripped to the floor drop by single drop. It was in that moment, when Junichi actually stared at the blood itself. Then something went off inside his head, telling him things he had never heard before.
He reached his hand back into the corpse, feeling the heart of the victim and tearing it free from the various arteries and veins holding it in place. He held it in his hand and looked at it for a long time. Though it no longer beat, it was still warm, it's owner only having died a few minutes ago.
With greedy eyes he slowly got closer and closer to the heart, until he could smell the thing very distinctly. The aroma of a human heart flooded into his nostrils and went into his brain, causing his eyes to roll back into his head in ecstasy. He suddenly opened his mouth and took a large bite out of the heart, barely taking time to chew before taking another bite, and another, before the entire thing was devoured.
He hungrily looked at his bloody hands and then back down to the corpse. There were still good organs in it. Of course it couldn't go to waste. He bent down and slowly began eating the rest of the body, taking the organs first and then moving on to the skin. Once that was done, he moved on to the next corpse, and the next one, his hunger never satiating itself. With each bite, he felt a surge of power as his soul slipped farther and farther away from his body.
Alright, that's all. Rock on. I'm out.