Disclaimer: No I do not own Naruto.

Wings of the White Angel

Chapter 11: The Wheel of Body and Soul

Aiko didn't flinch at all as she shot across the rooftops of Konoha. She was on her way to the Watanabe household, with a few questions for Kin's mother. ("She hasn't even been informed yet that her son was injured on his first mission. What's worse is that his body structure is strange to the doctors, and they don't know how to treat him properly. Then there's the fact that no one is sure where all of that chakra he released had come from. The demon's sealing jewel was only damaged by two percent, so such a huge chakra supply had to have come from Kin's body.") Landing right in front of the door to the Watanabe household, she reached out calmly and knocked.

A few seconds later the door opened and Kin's mother, her blond hair done up in a bun, was standing in the doorway. "You're Aiko-san, aren't you?"

Aiko nodded. "Yes. I've come to deliver some news concerning your son…"

"You want to know about the Black Destruction Desert technique he used, don't you?"

The question caught Aiko off guard. "You aren't worried about your son at all?"

"I know he's alive, because I can feel it in my heart. And regardless what I think of it, the Black Destruction Desert can keep him alive. It's powerful, though evil." She stepped away from the doorway and motioned for Aiko to come in.

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"And that's the deal." Kakashi sat back in his chair and sighed. "It's never easy, is it?"

"No, it isn't." Haru rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "So…the jewel that Aiko managed to seal the demon in is now locked inside the chest of the boy?"

"Yeah…" Kakashi sighed again. "And the worst part is that I never had the time to strengthen the seal on the jewel. If Kin pushes himself too much, it will begin to break. When it breaks too much, the demon will take over his body. And that is something we do not want. I don't understand how his body is able to make him so fast, but if the demon gets the ability to control his body it can use that bloodline limit to its advantage."

"Do you advise removing the jewel?" Haru wasn't sure what the Hokage was getting at.

"Of course not. It's attached itself to his heart. If we tried that, we'd kill him. And for now we need Kin to draw out the Seven Sins again." Kakashi didn't like having to do these kinds of subtle tactics, but that group had to be stopped. "Those Seven Sins are a bunch of fools, aren't they?"

Haru smiled coyly. "Are you sure about that? I remember what happened when you fought their leader. It was a close fight up to the point that you both ran out of chakra."

That brought back some memories. Kakashi had to admit that he had enjoyed pushing his skills to the limit to match Death. ("His name is appropriate, because whoever he fights feels like they are fighting death itself. You cannot kill him, and every second is like waiting for the scythe to fall.") "Tell me, were we able to get any information concerning the group from the boy?"

"Other than his name, no. He's apparently Hate, the child of one of the Seven. He'd been assigned to Pride for the mission. Other than that, nothing." Haru rubbed his chin. "I have to admit though, that kid doesn't seem like a ninja at all."

"Don't underestimate him. When he's angry he can kill you with a punch." Kakashi remembered through the memory of his shadow replication. It had nearly dispelled itself just trying to stop the boy's charge.

"So what's our next course of action?" Haru went grim-faced.

"For now…Kin is still unconscious. Apparently some kind of weird chakra is preventing the doctors from doing anything more than checking his outer wounds." Kakashi looked out the window of his office. "Until that point we'll have to give Team Eight a replacement."

"You mean a spy?" Haru laughed.

"Yeah, that too. Ayumi!" He called out into the hall. The sound of running feet could be heard. Without the slightest explanation Kakashi disappeared in a burst of white smoke.

Seconds later the door burst open and a young girl of about fourteen with long black hair and green eyes came charging in. "Yes Kakashi-sama?" She looked around the room in confusion. "Is he in here Haru-san?"

Haru had to stop himself from bursting out into laughter. "Oh, he's here. He apparently is deciding that discretion is the better part of valor though."

Ayumi pouted and started to search the room methodically. "Oh Kakashi-sama…where are you?"

"I think that he just wanted me to give you your assignment, Ayumi." Haru cleared his throat and picked up a folder on the deck, holding it out to her. "You've been assigned to a team."

"I have?" She stopped and took the folder. "I thought I was being trained by Kakashi-sama?"

"This is part of your training. Inside that folder is the information about the locations of your teammates at the moment, and who they are. You'll be under Aiko, but she's currently on a mission. Go to the hospital and check on your teammate there." Haru couldn't understand why Kakashi wanted to train this girl, considering both how she acted around him and how her talents weren't exactly exceptional. "Dismissed."

Ayumi saluted and walked out. Seconds later Kakashi appeared in his chair again in a burst of white smoke. "I think I actually…"

"Kakashi-sama!" Ayumi burst back into the room and literally vaulted off of Haru's head, nearly tackling the Hokage.

While Ayumi was glomped onto him, Kakashi sighed and looked up at the ceiling. ("There's no way to avoid it, is there? If only she could focus that amazing detection skill of hers into a jutsu.")

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Aiko and Kin's mother were now sitting at the dining table.

Aiko took a sip of her tea. "Thank you for the refreshments, but I don't have a lot of time to idle. What is the Black Destruction Desert?"

Kin's mother sat back in her chair. "Imagine three circles in your mind, each one within another. Place four equal lines through the space between the biggest circle and the medium circle."

Aiko instantly imagined this, getting a picture of something that reminded her of a wheel.

"Now, those are the three wheels of body and soul." Kin's mother took another sip of her tea. "In the second wheel, color the four sections red, blue, white, and grey. Those are the four elements of earth (grey), fire (red), water (blue), and wind (white). As you probably have seen, they also represent the four physical attributes that a Watanabe can send their chakra into. Now make the white section a little bigger and lessen the others."

Aiko did so in her mind, and understood what she was seeing. "This is Kin's wheel, right?"

"Correct. Every member of the Watanabe clan with the bloodline limit has a body meant to use one of the four attributes easily. In Kin's case wind (speed) is his focus. He can easily fuel his speed using his chakra, while strength (fire), dexterity (water), and endurance (earth) are all difficult for him to power."

"What are the other two wheels for?" Aiko understood the process so far, but she didn't understand what the purpose to this was.

"Color the outer wheel black and the inner wheel gold." Kin's mother wasn't listening, her voice calm and droning on. "The inner wheel is the nirvana, the radiant paradise of one's soul."

"If a Watanabe reaches that place their full chakra is increasing every aspect of their body equally?" Aiko thought she was getting the hang of this now.

"Almost. But it's more…" Kin's mother smiled slightly. "The Radiant Paradise turns whoever uses it into a superhuman version of them without burning any chakra. Other than a slight pull, the user can keep the ability going for days without worrying about running out of chakra."

"Have you reached it before?"

"Me?" Kin's mother giggled. "Oh no, I'm not blood-related to the Watanabe clan, except that I married one. I learned this from my husband long ago."

Aiko nodded. "Now the real question is…what's the black wheel?"

Her voice grew grim. "The desert that surrounds the paradise. You see, every member of the Watanabe bloodline possesses an innate reserve of chakra that is so strong even a Genin could be as strong as a Jounin if fully accessed."

"Then what's so…" Aiko suddenly remembered the dark aura Kin had been giving off when she had reached him before.

"No one is truly sure why, but this chakra reserve is dangerous. Hence the name Black Destruction Desert. While powerful, it can kill whoever uses it too much. And the more it is accessed, the farther away from the paradise the user moves on the wheel." Kin's mother smoothed out her skirt and stood up. "Anyway, Kin will be fine. I just thought I should give you a little insight into what had happened before. In a few hours he'll wake up without more than a scratch on him."

Aiko smiled. "Alright…I'll trust your belief of that. Thank you very much for the help and information."

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Pride tried to ignore the droplets of sweat on his face. ("The Sharingan…") "Oh? So you immediately unleash your best ability? I thought that the famous sixth Hokage would start with something else instead."

"You killed my apprentice's fiancé…" Hatake Kakashi met Pride's eyes with both his normal eye and the eye that reflected the power of the Sharingan bloodline limit. "And your future is death. Raikiri!" Cupping his right hand, Kakashi growled out as lightning developed within his palm.

("I didn't even see him perform the seals…") Pride stepped back, unable to take his eye off of that single Sharingan-strengthened orb. ("I must retreat…I have to run…this is too much for even me…")

Kakashi bowed his head. "May you find peace in death, coward!" Charging, he extended his hand out and drove the lightning ball right into Pride's chest in the blink of an eye.

Pride roared in anger and slashed his shadow katana through another trio of logs. "Damn you for being born, Hatake Kakashi!" The log halves began to fall. "You made a fool of me in front of Envy and Sloth! I cannot show weakness!" The swords arc changed instantly and turned each of the halves into quarters of their original selves. "I'll get my revenge!"

"Master Pride?"

Pride stopped his rant and dispelled his katana instantly. "A moment, Pain." His hands snapped up and formed a chain of seals. "Second Seal close! First Seal close!" Taking a deep breath, he turned around to look at his key disciple. "Now then, what is it?"

"The Kemukage has called for you." The pale boy kneeled in front of his master. "Master, may I speak freely?"

"You may."

Gulping away his fear, Pain spoke. "You shouldn't let the fact that you were defeated by the Hokage anger you. After all, with your incredible potential you'll reach his level in just a few years, won't you?"

"That's beside the point." Pride growled deeply and reformed a shadow katana with a thought. "My power…I never got a chance to bring it against the Hokage…against Kakashi. I wanted to see if I could beat him or not."

"Could you have? Pardon my ignorance, but I have never fully understand your seals." Pain kept his head down.

Pride looked down at the pieces of log at his feet. "When I was a child my father saw the true power in my skills, and to prepare me for a life as a ninja he placed ten seals over my chakra. They are spirit weights, which will constantly stress my chakra to keep it growing as much as possible through strife."

"I see." Pain bowed once more. "Thank you for enlightening me, master."

"Train…the moment Aiko and the target moves from Konoha we go after them. Inform Blind and Frost of that as well. I want all of you in top form." Pride dispelled the katana once more. "I'm off." He disappeared in a burst of black smoke.

Pain stood up and gasped as the quarters of log split apart into little wooden cubes. ("A delayed strike technique? I didn't know that master Pride knew how to do that…incredible…")

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Kakashi continued to look out his window. ("Maybe I finally have some time for rest and relaxation…")

A knock came at his door.

("Or perhaps I'll never know peace. Why did they even make me Hokage…I'm not driven enough for this job. Then again, they lacked candidates…") Maybe he could retire once someone suitable for the job showed up. "Come in."

The door opened and Aiko walked in. "Kakashi, I need your permission to use the class S training area."

A slight frown shifted the fabric of Kakashi's face-mask. "You want to use that place? Are you that desperate to beat Pride?"

"I want to kill him…because he is a coward." Clenching her fist so tightly it drew blood, Aiko tilted her head towards him. "Do you understand? You remember what had happened…"

"I do." Kakashi sat back in the chair. "Your team was returning from a mission just two weeks ago or so. Then on your way back something impossible happened…the demon showed itself in the light of the full moon. The three of you had no choice but to try and stop it. Luckily Haru's Soul Net technique disabled the demon long enough for you to seal it with the crystal prison technique. In the process, Kane had been injured because he'd needed to forcefully hold the demon in place. If that had been it, then all would have been well…but on your way back to Konoha, Pride attacked your group. Haru and yourself only suffered minor injuries…but Kane was killed to give the both of you an escape. I sensed this and deployed ANBU to intercept, and luckily they arrived in time."

"Please…" Aiko's fingers were stained with her own blood. "I can't let Pride be beaten by anyone else."

"Alright, you have my permission. However, do not die and first make sure that Kin and Kai will be alright. Both of them suffered injuries during the mission." Kakashi stood up out of his chair. "Dismissed."

"Thank you." Aiko slid out.

("I wish I could come along with you, but the title of Hokage is troublesome to no end.") Kakashi narrowed his uncovered eye. ("I hope he got the message in time. Because without him, Kin might not know how to deal with the demon. And now the poor boy is a target. Every member of the Seven Sins will be on the lookout for him.")

As the sun dipped below the mountain lines, a cold chill fell over Konoha.

To be continued…