Disclaimer: We do not own Naruto
Co-Author and Beta: Etheral-23
Chapter 31: Chunin final exam act II
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Naruto sighed as he sat on one the benches. Fresh bandages covered parts of his body courtesy of Haku who patched him up as best she could. Currently the ice user and his rose haired teammate sat beside him watching the crowd cheer while ANBU fix the ground to be fight-able again. "Did not think Bushy Brow would go that far to win."
Near them Tenten snorted; "Lee is more stubborn than you are. True, it caught me off guard he did that, but had a feeling he would after those seals you put on him. Dummy always takes the hard route." She heaved a grunt crossing her arms.
"Thankfully he did not use the gates too long," Haku spoke up looking over to the weapon mistress. "Hopefully it won't warrant a surgery, but he won't be walking or moving a lot for a month at least."
Tenten gave the Kiri kunoichi a sideways glance; "You're knowledgeable."
"Zabuza-sama taught me extensively on the autonomy of the human body. Along with anything else I could pick up."
"You know it is still weird you call that maniac Zabuza-sama right?" Naruto drawled out with a squint. Sure he understood that after Haku told him about what happened to her growing up, and he did save her from starving to death. But it was still weird to hear.
Sasuke only partially listened as he was focusing on getting ready for his fight. Absently he looked over to Gaara who only kept his arms crossed with his eyes closed. Save small glances he gave to his fellow Jinchurriki. 'He's focused on Naruto, but I can't make any mistakes against this guy. His defense is arguably his strongest asset' The Uchiha thought, gazing at his right arm, remembering the lessons he received. 'I'll have to use the technique Kakashi-sensei taught me'
That, and the fact he had a multitude of bombs Kushina made for him in case he needed something else to use against him. Hmph, he would win with his skills, those were the only tools he needed.
Naruto gazed at Gaara from the edge of his vision, those teal eyes of him ever filled with killing intent never failed to send a shiver down his spine. The mere thought that he could have turned out like Gaara still disturbed him immensely, to never feel anything other than the thrill of death, to live shunned and hated by the world in a level he hadn't even experienced before.
Gaara had been broken and reshaped by this cruel world. And Naruto's heart went for him.
He couldn't help it; he looked at Gaara and felt his pain as though it were his own. And he wanted to make it better.
He just... didn't know how to.
"Would the participants" His musings were caught off by Genma calling for the next fight. "Sabaku no Gaara-!" His voice momentarily faltered and stopped when Gaara appeared in a cloud of sand, having left the fighter's box in the blink of an eye. "...and Sasuke Uchiha come down to the arena?"
Sasuke rolled his neck, "This is it then"
"Be careful Sasuke" Sakura said with trepidation in her voice.
He rolled his eyes, "As though I would be reckless in a fight without that invaluable advice"
"Just take a teammate's concern for you, you jackass!" The pinkette seethed out, and the Uchiha allowed a nearly unnoticeable grin. He much preferred the side of Sakura that had more bite to her words and attitude.
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Mei leaned a bit forward from her seat; "Well now that the ground has been fixed we can see your son fight Kazekage-dono."
"And the Uchiha," Ao crossed his arms; "Can't say I'm not curious to see how the lad fares. But against a Jinchurriki..."
"I think we can say being a Jinchurriki may or may not be a factor in this. We saw Haku-san defeat Yugito-san." Hiruzen retorted blowing out some smoke as Sasuke appeared in front of Gaara near the proctor.
Rasa gave a glance to the Sandaime; "My son might surprise you Hiruzen-dono."
Kushina stretched beside Jiraiya before letting out an explosive sigh; "Got to focus on the current match. Will wring Gai's neck later."
The Gama Sannin rolled his eyes. As his gaze shifted with that gesture, he caught sight of a small bird flying overhead before nesting on the corner of the roof where the tiles ended. A very common type of avian, but there was only one small detail only those observant enough could pick up, a small black ribbon around its neck. The way the small creature turned its tiny head to meet his gaze told him all he needed to know.
His contacts had news for him.
"Would love to stay and watch the match, but I gotta do something" He said, pushing himself off the wall, walking with his hands behind his neck. "Tell me what I miss"
"Where are you going?" Kushina prompted with a frown.
"To take a dump" He casually replied as he walked away.
"Ewww!" Kushina let out a sound of pure disgust, "Can't you just say going to the bathroom?!"
He waited until he was out of their sight, walking through the corridors that lead into the building, to pick up his pace. A few bursts of smoke to transport himself via shunshin carried him through the structure until he finally was on the other side of the arena. Jumping over the street bellow to settle on a nearby building's roof.
He knew from whom this new info was from, and for them to contact him at a time like this... It was urgent.
He briefly wondered if it was something related to Yuma, a notice from her perhaps. A brief wave of concern flashed in his mind before reminding himself she could take care of herself.
The sage looked up to the sky to see the ribbon wearing bird fly down to his position, the small avian was just about large enough to fit into his palm, and landed on his shoulder, its beady black eyes stared into him with pressing alarm. "Jiraiya-dono!" The bird spoke with a soft man's voice. "Priority report; Code Alpha-six-eight-Beta"
"Gamma-nine-nine" He replied the authorization code with ease, as it was long engraved into his memory, indicating to his contact he wasn't an impostor. "What's going on, what did the Kageken find out?"
"The grandmaster received a troubling report from the scouts on Suna" The messenger quickly explained, "They found a corpse in the sands a mile outside of Sunagakure, hidden in a ravine"
Why was that so important? He wanted to ask, but the bird's next words made his blood turn into ice.
"It was the Kazekage's"
...Fuuuuck.
The Toad sage gave a stern look to the bird; "The body was Rasa? You're certain?"
"Verified and confirmed Jiraiya-dono. Rasa has been dead an unspecified amount of time."
"Then who the hell is posing as him in the Kage box?!"
The bird shook his head; "Unknown."
Jiraiya ran his over his face, well this whole situation just went to hell. But he stayed focused; "Message received, Return to Yuma."
The bird nodded before flying away. He needed to tell the old man and red along with the Mizukage. But without drawing attention to whoever is pretending to Rasa. "So much for a normal boring day." He muttered; "Need to find Inoichi." And vanished via shunshin.
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Hiruzen leaned back on his seat, mentally musing to himself about the oncoming fight; he couldn't help but worry about Sasuke. Young Gaara was a very unstable individual and would not hesitate to kill him. It wasn't his place to judge Suna and their methods based on his own morals, but he could speak from a more pragmatic side and say that turning their own Jinchuuriki into this was far more counterproductive than any-
'Hokage-sama!' A voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
Hiruzen blinked in surprise. He quickly hid all facial reactions that might have alerted the other two Kage's. If Inoichi was speaking to him telepathically it had to be urgent.
'What is it?' He replies.
'Jiraiya-sama needs to speak to you'
'Very well. Connect-'
He never got to finish as Jiraiya's voice was suddenly screaming in his head. 'We've got troubles old man!'
'Calm down Jiraiya' Hiruzen thought in exasperation, holding back the wince from the headache it was causing him to have someone literally shout into his mind. 'What is it?'
'I just received information from my sources, the Kazekage was found dead in the desert!'
He couldn't react. Hiruzen used all of his willpower not to react at the sudden revelation. If he did, then the person wearing the Kazekage's robes at his side would catch on that something was wrong.
'Are you sure?' He asked. They needed to be certain of something so dire.
'Yes, I'm sure. Look, whoever is next to you ISN'T Rasa.'
The Sandaime ponders that for a moment. '...Inoichi!' He commands with utmost authority. 'Inform Shikaku; tell him to put all our forces on alert! Help him with that. Tell him we need to guide the civilians not in the arena to the safe zones immediately!'
'But... what about the people in the arena?'
'All we can do right now is getting our shinobi ready in case we need to defend them. Whatever is going on, it is already in motion...' His gaze briefly shifted to Mei at his side. 'But first inform the Mizukage, share with her what you learnt'
'At once!' And so the connection was cut.
He carefully watched as Mei's expression briefly shifted to surprise before she quickly hid it behind a mask of stoicism as experienced ninja were wont to do, making sure nobody could pick up something was wrong. But for all her years as a shinobi, Hiruzen had even more; he could pick up the subtle widening of her eyes, the way her jaw clenched. No doubt at this moment she was being informed about the 'Kazekage' here in the private stands with them.
She met his gaze out of the corner of her eyes, giving him a small nod to which Hiruzen returned.
"Oh Ao" She called out sweetly to his eyepatch wearing aid. "I'm a bit thirsty at the moment, be a dear and get me some lemonade would you? Just three ice cubes please"
Her shinobi took a moment to reply, the Hokage guessed this was a secret code in Mizu to relay information. "As you wish, I'll get it immediately"
The Mizukage was not alone with their secret messages, out of the Kazekage's sight; he tapped his finger on the left side of his seat over the armrest. Making sure Kushina could see the pattern and rhythm, the code was very familiar to a former ANBU like her.
K-A-Z-E-K-A-G-E-I-M-P-O-S-T-E-R
He briefly felt the redhead stiffen behind him, and knew she had gotten the message.
He didn't know what was happening, but there was no stopping it now. They best they could do was weather the storm.
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Sasuke kept his stoic gaze on his opponent who stared back with hint of apathy thought glanced to Naruto. "If you want Naruto you have to go through me first." He spoke up in a calm tone.
"I care little about facing you Uchiha, but if killing you wakes up Uzumaki from thinking he is a human then so be it. Then I'll kill him too" The chilling cold blood lust in his voice made a chill run up even the proctor's spine along with Sasuke's.
But the Uchiha steeled himself as he got into stance; "Not going to pretend I understand what turned you into this. But if you go after my teams then I couldn't care less, you won't get pass me."
Gaara crossed his arms; "You will only die slowly."
"Sasuke Uchiha vs Sabaku no Gaara, fight!" The proctor shouts as he gets a good distance away.
In the fighter's box Naruto stood alongside the others with Temari and Kankuro watching close by.
As the match was called, Gaara's cork popped off to allow the sand to come out, and a large amount of it was thrown around him instantly. Sasuke narrowed his eyes on the Suna ninja. Quickly, the Uchiha activated his Sharingan and ran at his redheaded opponent. With a single strike, Sasuke started gathering information, and quickly finding out who he was dealing with up close and personal as his fist hit the wall of sand that rose to protect Gaara, and then recoiled. Backing off, Sasuke jumped away from the counter-attack.
Sasuke steeled himself and took a stance. 'Alright. No time to waste'. And then he moved in. Everyone looked in surprise as Sasuke become a blur, kicking off dust on his path.
Gaara's face morphed to mild surprise as the Uchiha's speed was forcing him to increase the speed of his defense. As every swift attack became too close to the redhead's personal space for him to be comfortable. He let out an annoyed grunt as sand immediately moved to capture his limb, but the young Uchiha was faster, he poured his strength on his left arm and stroke directly at Gaara's head
Though the sand stopped the blow, the Jinchuuriki's teal eyes still widened at just how close the Uchiha's fist was to his face.
"Man, look at him go." Naruto said with his eyes wide in surprise.
"He's really gotten faster..." Sakura pointed out what was on everyone's mind as they watch the fight
Haku gazed intently at the fight bellow. "Speed alone won't be enough against an enemy like Gaara." She turned to face her friends. "That can't be all your teacher taught him if he wanted Sasuke to survive this fight"
Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "We don't really know what all Kakashi-sensei taught Sasuke last month."
"We had some group sparing and training Kushina-sensei said we needed, but he really never showed anything." Sakura shrugged.
Chojuro adjusted his glasses; "M... Maybe he wanted show it off here."
Temari snorts. "The Uchiha can be as strong as he wants. He'll never beat Gaara."
Sakura and Naruto glare over to the smirking older blond who stands beside her younger brother. Haku glanced at them and back to the fight. "We shall see."
The sand soon spread and tried to encapsulate the Uchiha. Sasuke backed away, dodging through the several swipes of sand coming at him, each turning into another turning into sand clones of Gaara and kicking at him before surrounding him entirely. Each Gaara clone rushed in to try and land as many heavy blows as they could, only to hit each-other and explode in a huge eruption of sand in order to find the missing enemy.
Sasuke had to run for it, he vanished just in time, but the sand was spreading, so he climbed the wall and runs along it before jumping off with all his strength and launching with enormous speed, taking a cue from Rock Lee to appear behind the Suna monster. With a burst of speed, he started jabbing into the sand barrier around Gaara before jumping back when it erupted to stab him. They only hit air as Sasuke got away, only to fall as the sand under him slips his feet from the ground. The enormous amount of sand in the arena started to converge and encapsulate the Uchiha.
Seeing this, Sasuke quickly vanished again, just in time to swing around the sand and come in on the blind side where Gaara couldn't see, jumping in the air and dropping with a large heel axe kick. Again his attack failed when the sand protected the redhead, even from behind. He grunted as he channeled more chakra through his limbs, he ignored the burn in them as he pushed them further. The Uchiha ran at great speed around Gaara and approached from his back, the Suna-nin's sand launches itself at him, Sasuke quickly dodged, dashing past the attack and Gaara himself.
To the sand ninja, the Uchiha had failed in his latest assault. But the growing smirk on his face sent Gaara on alert. The hissing sound of a paper tag called his attention, and there on his feet he saw a small yet no doubt potent bomb.
Sand quickly formed in front of him, barely in time to shield himself for the blast. He could feel the heat of the hungry flames at this close proximity, his sand blasting away from the sheer force yet leaving him unharmed.
Until the Uchiha came through the smoke and kicked him in the face, taking advantage of the whole in his defense left by the explosive.
Gaara grunted in pain as he staggered back, the thought of someone hitting him making his blood boil.
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"Well." Kiba said, clearly impressed. "Sasuke is a lot faster than he was before."
"He might be nearing Lee's level of speed." Chouji added.
"Indeed." Gai affirmed with a nod before shifting his gaze to Kakashi. "But tell me that's not the only thing you taught him, Kakashi. Against a Jinchuuriki, especially one as unstable as Gaara, that won't be enough."
"Oh don't worry." The masked ninja did his trademark eye-smile. "I taught him a few tricks."
"Hey Kakashi!" The silver haired Jounin along with the other senseis turned to a see a young adult in standard Konoha gear with short hair and almond-shaped eyes, he wore also a happuri-style hite-ate on his head. "Been a while senpai."
Hatake cocked his head with a blank gaze; "Yes, hardly see you around these days." though his voice was causal, internally his mind was on alert. 'Tenzō doesn't just show himself without a mask unless something drastic has happened.'
The man's appearance soon got the kids attention; "You know this guy Kakashi-sensei?" Kiba asked absently sniffing the air along with his white puppy.
At that the man chuckled; "Call me Yamato; I've been on extended missions till today." He took a seat beside Kakashi, Kurenai, and Asuma. "Sorry I couldn't make it to the start of the matches, was busy at the moment"
Shikamaru's eyes lightly narrowed as he noticed something from Kakashi's posture; 'Something going on?'
"Sadly you missed Naruto and Sakura win their matches, luckily you're in time for Sasuke," Kakashi eye-smiled patting Yamato's shoulder. "What's wrong?" He whispered to his former subordinate.
Yamato whispered back, "The Kazekage is an imposter"
The Copy Ninja thanked his long years of experience, he did not react at all, a fact that still impressed Yamato.
His lone visible eye shifted as he processed the information, not at a time like this. The Chunin Exams, so many ninja gathered in the same place along with, even with two Kages here... the only way someone would take such risk was if they actually had taken the necessary steps to carry out whatever it was they were planning.
And it so happened they had a very unstable Jinchuuriki in the middle of their village.
Well, these Exam certainly got interesting this year.
"...Orders?" He asked in a clipped professional tone.
"Inform the others" Yamato replied in a hushed tone. "Hokage-sama has ordered all forces to be on alert; we are coordinating with the Mist ninja"
"Alright" The Hatake nodded, "I'll break it to them... Except Kiba-san there" He nodded to the Inuzuka boy whose posture had suddenly gone very, very rigid. "I think he already heard us"
"Yeah" Yamato shrugged, "Dog hearing after all"
A grunt came from Kakashi before gesturing Gai over; "I need everyone's attention. Somethings happened." Asuma and Kurenai lift a brow along with the kids save for Kiba who just looked pale at what he heard. The masked Jounin glanced to the Uzumaki and lone Namikaze; "Saito." He gains the older man's attention; "You guys need to hear something."
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Sasuke took in a few deep breaths, trying to regain his energy and wear off the fatigue building on his limbs. Gaara groggily stood up, pieces of solid sand peeling off his body, his sand armor damaged by the Uchiha's blows.
"Had enough?" Sasuke cockily taunts.
"...Hardly." The Jinchuuriki replies. The redhead coils his hands in a seal and sand began forming around him, enveloping him in a protective shield.
A savage grin forms on the Suna Genin's lips. "You brought this on yourself Uchiha... I will sacrifice you to mother, a make Uzumaki wake up to the reality of our world!" The sand slowly finishes as a large sphere of sand completely covers Gaara.
Sasuke narrowed his gaze before noticing the sand gathering until it became an eyeball. This one looked right at him. 'He's up to something... I can only use it twice; let's hope I only need once.'
The Uchiha jumped back till he was at the far side of the arena. He clenched his fists; "If you can hear me Gaara! This ends now!" He yells, activating his Sharingan.
His hands go through rapid but very familiar hands seals.
In the competitor's stands, the other young ninjas watch in amazement. "Woah!" Tenten exclaims. "The chakra in his hand is turning visible like your Rasengan, Naruto." The blonde could only nod numbly.
Temari tightens her fist whereas Kabuto snarls, both were worried not only for their brother, but for the limits the Uchiha was driving him too. No doubt Gaara was preparing THAT technique while under the protection of his sand cocoon. They saw the chakra in Sasuke's hand was vaguely taking form and... Sparkle?
Yes. The chakra in his hands was flashing with sparks, streams of lightning emanating from his hand rapidly. Accompanied by the sound of what appeared to be chirping birds.
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"WHA-" Ino nearly screamed if not for Shika and Chouji covering her mouth.
"I swear you and Naruto are the loudest people I've ever met," the Nara hissed in a whisper.
"The ANBU are already getting in position" Kakashi informed his fellow jounin.
Kurenai swept a critical look over the crowd. "Too many people, there could be infiltrators here"
"There most definitely must be" Asuma muttered in reply.
Gai's gaze shifted to the Kages in the podium. "Will the ANBU strike the imposter?"
"Hmph, don't think so. Too risky to act yet" Samenosuke threw in his two cents, rubbing his chin. "They could attack the civilians, if we're not careful they could have the whole arena hostage"
Hanabi's gaze darted between the adults as they discussed such a serious matter with a calm she herself did not feel would be able to keep. No spars between her and her relatives could ever prepare her for something like this; she had no idea what to do. Her instinct was to go looking for her father, hoping he would have the answers she desperately needed.
If what they said was true, then the imposter would most likely launch an attack on the whole arena. And she would be caught in the middle of it...
Hinata absently grabbed her sister's hand protectively, Hanabi almost considered the gesture to be her elder sister being afraid and in need of comfort and safety. It wouldn't be out of place for the 'weak link' of the clan as they all called her to seek refuge with her much talented younger sister. Yet the lack of any tremble in her grip, and how she seemed to keep her calm in a moment like this... Hanabi realized her sister wanted to reassure 'her'.
The youngest heiress of the Hyuuga clan would not admit it, but yes, she was scared, and very much welcomed her sister's contact.
"What do we do?" Soujiro asked his voice calm yet carried a tense edge to it.
"We wait" Lyn shrugged with her arms crossed, "Be ready for anything"
Kya just closed her eyes with and remained seated with an unnatural stillness to her. Almost like she had retreated to the corners of her own mind as she often did in meditation.
The Copy Ninja looked at the glasses wearing Uzumaki, "Karin-chan" He called, getting her attention, "Do you know what might be happening?" Whom might be behind this, was what he truly wanted to ask.
The girl stammered, "I-I don't know... I was only sent here to scout, I-if he's here then-!"
"Easy there, calm down" The masked ninja lifted his hand in a placating gesture, "Can you use your sensing jutsu?"
"O-Oh of course!" With that, she quickly closed her eyes and gathered her hands together. Her powerful chakra sense extending to an even greater range. The many, many signatures across the arena became clear to her. She fought to ignore the blinding bloodlust emanating from Gaara and the massive chakra sealed inside him, along with the equally powerful beings trapped inside Naruto and Yugito.
She reached out to the Kages, the feeling of the Hokage's chakra was unmistakable, the paradoxical hot and wet chakra belonged to the Mizukage, and the Kazekage...
Her red eyes snapped open in surprise, "I can barely feel him" She muttered in disbelief, "H-His robes, they must have seals that are heavily cloaking the chakra"
Confusion etched on the faces of the Genin while dread shone in Kakashi's eye. "Orochimaru." The Jounin beside him paled at her words, but the real terror came from Karin as her skin became ghostly white and eyes gleamed in utter horror.
"H-h-he knows," her voice a trembling fearful whisper as she shuddered; "He knows I-I betray him." Panic was beginning to set in as she muttered to herself frantically gazing around her. She knew Orochimaru would know, she knew, and she was going to-
A hand rest upon her shoulder stopping her panic as she saw Samenosuke knelt in front of her; "No one will harm you, certainly not that snake. Your family is here, and we will protect you." His voice soft but steely calming the poor girl.
Kakashi glanced to Yamato; "What will you be doing?"
"For now nothing, waiting with you until whatever is going to happen."
The silver haired Jounin nodded before noticing Kuro who kept her eyes on the bout. The raven haired woman had heard every words as her posture became straighter. Things were about to get more interesting. And this could help prove what she truly needs to see.
Their gazes returned to the arena, just in time to see Sasuke performing a very familiar technique.
Gai's eyes widened in realization, "I see, you taught him your technique"
"Yep" Kakashi eye-smiled, "Turns out he has lightning affinity, and his natural Sharingan makes this perfect for him"
"Sounds like… birds" Kiba noticed.
"A thousand to be exact" Shino, ever the analytical one, supplied.
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Kankuro and Temari looked on from the fighter's box as they not only saw but heard the chirping from the lighting covering the Uchiha's hand. The eldest of the siblings bit her lip; "Gaara..."
"That's what Sasuke's been working on with Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked absently to her teammate who shrugged in response.
"That looks damn dangerous either way," Karui muttered beside them.
The civilians only saw the ground erupt as Sasuke dashed forward with blinding speed. 'With the Sharingan you won't have any tunnel vision like I experienced after making and completing this jutsu,' The Uchiha could still hear Kakashi's lesson from the other day. 'This is on par with Naruto's Rasengan however this is an assassination jutsu so I forbid you to use it in sparing against comrades.'
'A technique made to pierce through any defense' Sasuke let out a valiant battle cry as he sped down to his opponent's sand shield. Spikes suddenly sprouted from its surface to stop the Uchiha, Sasuke deftly evaded the deadly sand spikes, letting him be scratched at a few parts of his body just to get close enough. He ignores the pain of the sharp sand slashing over his skin as he lifts his hand and jabs the lightning shrouded attack forward.
"CHIDORI!"
Both civilian and Shinobi froze as Sasuke's hand passes through the sand sphere like a hot knife. The Uchiha remains where he was as Temari's eyes widen, seeing crimson starting the drip from Sasuke's arm.
"GAARA!"
Said Suna Genin only blinked in confusion. He slowly looked over to his right shoulder; "Why does it feel warm?" Putting his other hand on his shoulder, the retracting it. His sea foam green orbs widen.
There was blood on his hand... his blood.
Sasuke jumps away as the sand shield came down, revealing a stunned Gaara who kept looking at his bloodied hand in shock.
And then let out a blood curdling scream that echoed throughout the arena.
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The crowd paid no mind to the lone hooded ANBU who stood guard behind them as they cheer for the last loyal Uchiha. In his guise Kabuto, narrowed his eyes. 'Seems Gaara got overeager. Well we prepared for this just in case. How will you handle this Naruto, Sasuke?'
A man in the crowd claps for his favorite till he noticed a feather falling beside his face.
"What's this... thing...?" Each word became more and more slurred, tired, a heavy feeling of exhaustion began overwhelming him. It was getting harder for his eyes to remain open.
It wasn't just him; all around the arena people were falling asleep with lightening speed. The feathers carried with them a lullaby that none could escape from.
Indeed, even some of the ninja were beginning to be affected by this strange phenomenon's power.
From the stands, multiple chunin, jounin and ANBU leapt to action, immediately casting countermeasures to keep their comrades awake.
"G-Genjutsu..." Ino muttered, her tone drowsy as the sleep threatened to overtake her. One by one most of the genin next to her began to succumb to the feather's enforced slumber.
Kurenai, red gaze steeled with determination, jumped in front of them. Hands going through a quick series of signs as she deployed a countermeasure for the surrounding area around her. "Kai!" She shouted.
The young ninja felt as though a jolt run through their bodies, suddenly aware and energized, as if their bodies hadn't been on the brink of sleep just a few seconds ago.
Then, there were ninja everywhere in the arena, foreign ninja, wearing the symbol of sound. Killing intent leaking off from every one of them.
"What's happening?!" Kiba asked in alarm, Akamaru growled over his head.
"It started" Shino replied, his voice ever stoic even in the face of such odds.
The pale skinned woman gazed around the mild interest, "Hmm, unexpected" Kuro mused to herself, seemingly not at all perturbed by what was happening.
"Everybody stick together!" Asuma shouted as he took out his knives, all around him his peers steeled themselves for action. The three older Uzumaki brandished their weapons, ready to fight for their new home.
"Come on hun!" Lyn grinned wildly at her girlfriend, who chooses to remain seated despite the chaos around them. "Now it's a party!"
The Namikaze gazed at her for a moment before sighing, "I wanted to stay at home and read a book..." She slowly stood up from her seat, brandishing her sword.
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The moment the feathers began descending, the Hokage and Mizukage jumped out of their seats and leapt up to the roof, gaining as much distance from the fake Kazekage as possible.
Only Kushina remained, who in a dash of blurring speed had drawn out her blade and stabbed the back of the Kazekage's chair, the metal cut through the material and into the robes, coming out from the man's chest.
"Got ya" She hissed.
To her shock, the man laughed and spoke... in an all too familiar voice.
"Oh, Kushina-chan, it warms the heart to see you once again my dear"
The body of the imposter dissolved, robes falling at the lack of a body to sustain them, as snakes poured out underneath the fabric, gathering a few feet before the seat and reforming into a human sized cocoon made out of serpents.
They parted ways to reveal the deathly pale face of Konoha's betrayer.
"You were so dearly missed" He smiled with all the sadism of a child who enjoyed removing the wings of a fly.
Her blade pulled out of the seat, violet eyes gazed at the interloper with great intensity, "Orochimaru..."
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
Years from now, Naruto would be asked about the events that transpired during the Chunin Exams. Looking back he'd see that perhaps that day was when it all truly began. A crux in the crossroads of fate.
But he'd sum it up with the words; 'It was a really shitty day'
The feathers that were sending the entire arena into the dreamland, for all their gentle look and nature, heralded a grave storm that was approaching fast. But his mind felt numb, his eyelids heavy, his limbs so very tired...
"Oi" His tenant growled out, "Now is not the time for napping"
A jolt of his chakra, and Naruto was wide awake. He turned to his friends in worry, Sakura was fine, her own skill with genjutsu allowed her to resist, she was in the process of snapping Tenten out of it while Haku helped Karui and Chojuro. He breathed out in relief to see that they were okay.
His gaze then went to the siblings from Suna... who had chosen to stand far on the other side of the room, a fierce look on their eyes as they were seemingly preparing for battle. Kankuro had unfolded his puppet, and Temari opened her war fan.
The killing intent directed at them was easy to pick up.
"Oh crap"
Temari swung her fan.
A pure blast of powerful wind sent the group flying out of the fighter's box before they could react. Falling and landing harshly onto the arena beside a confused and shocked Sasuke. "What the hell!"
Karui groaned being the first to get to her feet; "Why'd she do that?" she hissed before gawking along with the others as Oto and Suna ninja were attacking Konoha and Kiri ninja. "What the hell is going on?!"
Her vocal opinion was shared by the others as they got to their feet. They tensed seeing Temari fly overhead with her brother and landing beside a wounded Gaara. "That clueless Kumo?" The Suna puppet ninja smirked smugly; "We're taking Konoha out."
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
The Sannin chuckled; "I must admit even I was surprised upon hearing you returned to us. How you came back has me most curious, would you care to elaborate for me?" Kushina only glared with fierce defiance as she held her sword at the ready. "Ah, Naruto had the same glare when I met him the in the Forest of Death. I wonder how Minato-kun would feel knowing his ideals destroyed his son's childhood."
Something snapped in Kushina as she dashed forward going for the attack. Orochimaru dodged effortless with his smile still on his face. 'Her skills have not diminished in the slightest.' The redhead slashed with deadly speed and viciousness. 'Hmm, she actually seemed to have improved a touch.'
The two were like a blur in the Hokage's box as the former ANBU captain kept on the attack while Orochimaru to her annoyance kept dodging. As much as she hated to admit it the man was even faster than she remembered. She knew it was beyond dangerous even for her to fight the snake alone, but currently her reason was replaced by rage. "You went after my son! You put that weird seal on Sasuke and wanted to do the same to Naruto! And you had manipulated Karin into joining, doing gods know what kind experiments on her!"
"Ah yes, I was rather disappointed that Karin-chan betrayed me. The experiments I had done before will feel like heaven after I am done her." He moved his head just a few inches from Kushina's blade as she roared.
"You won't go near her, my son or Sasuke while I am breathing!"
Oh the fire that came off the redhead was truly one of a kind when it came to Kushina. Such a wasted potential it was, there was just so much power in her lineage, and potential she had not even began to tap. Squandered and halted by that headstrong attitude of hers.
Even the snake sannin had admit that Kushina quite possibly had more talent than even her husband. A true gem that would likely surpass Minato one day, truly she was the legacy of her father Daisuke and her grandmother the Dragon Sage herself. Still, as much as he wanted to continue this game, he had work to do. Snapping his fingers, Kushina leapt back as the cement floor rose up between to become a wall. Orochimaru chuckled as two hooded figures, one average size while the other towering stood in front of the Sannin.
"As much as I would love to catch up with you Kushina-chan, I have sensei to kill and a village to destroy. Sakon, Ukon, Jirōbō, please tend our lady Uzumaki." The figures took off their cloaked hoods. The short one was a fair-skin older teen with straight, dark blue hair with a long bang cover his right eye. He wore green lipstick with dark markings under his eyes. Kushina swore she saw something behind his head.
The taller one was an imposing older teen with fair-skin and narrowed, slanted orange eyes with a stern look on his face. Three tufts of orange were on his head. Both wore the same kind of outfit similar to their master.
"The Red Death herself. It's an honor," Sakon spoke with mock reverence.
Kushina squinted as she looked closer at the pale haired individual. "Is that a head... behind your head?"
"This is my twin brother, Ukon"
The second head twitched, rising and twisting to the left over his brother's shoulder to give a side look at the redhead along with a chilling smile, "A pleasure"
"...Oh what the fuck have you been up to, you snake freak?"
"Come now Kushina-chan" The snake sannin spoke with an air of politeness, "That is a rather rude thing to say. But then again, your manners seem to be as lacking as I remember them"
"You know what else I still lack? Patience" She said, holding her sword in a stance.
"While a fight with you would be entertaining, I have more" He directed a hungry look at the two Kage on the roof, "pressing matters" He slithered up the wall like a serpent, leaving the Uzumaki to face his henchmen.
Orochimaru stood before his teacher, suddenly flanked by two more loyal followers of Sound. A man with literally three sets of arm, dark skin with black, shaggy hair tied into a ponytail and black eyes. And a young woman with dark pink hair and a black hat with pipe-like stripes and bandaged sides.
"Hello" He smiled, licking his lips, "Sensei"
Hiruzen's gaze was a sharp edge. "So, my sins come back to haunt not just me" He looked at the chaos around him, ninjas fighting against ninjas. The sounds of battle, of ringing steel against steel, of war cries and death. "But my home as well..." He took a deep breath, "I should have killed you so long ago, my student"
"Yes you should have," Orochimaru omitted still smiling. "And that was your one and only chance to have killed me."
The Mizukage narrowed her eyes; "I would not be quick to boast serpent. Your people have attacked Kiri citizens, and you will find our ninja not to tolerate such acts."
"Ironic given your nations bloodied history Mei-dono," Orochimaru chuckled dryly while he kept his gaze on his former teacher. "Tayuya, Kidōmaru, please entertain the Mizukage while I deal with my sensei."
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
Kunais clashed as the proctor was fighting off a Suna and Oto Nin. Keeping him away from helping the others as he glanced towards them. Naruto was stunned along with the rest by Kankuro's words. "You're betraying Konoha," Haku muttered as ice senbon formed between her fingers.
"Slow on the draw too Kiri?" Kankuro spoke with condescending tones. Beside him Temari tried to get close to Gaara but he only seethed as he glared at Naruto.
The young genin soon tensed as Baki appeared in front of his Suna team; "Temari, Kankuro, take Gaara and go. He is needed for this plan to succeed." His voice like steel as he glared at the Uzumaki and Uchiha along with their comrade.
"Uzumaki is mine!" Gaara growled in a hiss as he held his bloodied shoulder.
His older siblings nodded at their sensei's order and took their younger brother who protested before they vanish in a shunshin.
Naruto gazed around them seeing the fighting between the ninja. Oto and Suna showing no mercy to any in their path. The blond seethed as he glared back at Baki; "You won't get away with this you bastards!"
"It's too late to stop it, Uzumaki," the Suna Jounin spoke calmly as he drew a kunai; "I have my orders, which also involve you. I can't let Konoha keep their Jinchuuriki!"
None of them could react as the sand jounin moved at blinding speeds towards Naruto who could not put a crystal barrier in time. But Baki found himself stopped as his weapon was deflected by Yugao in her ANBU gear and mask.
"Neko-San!" Sakura yelled with relief in her voice.
"Don't stand idle!" Yugao yelled as she stood protectively in front of them; "Go help protect the civilians!"
"But what about Gaara?!" Naruto shouted. As a VERY bloodthirsty Jinchuuriki, Gaara was a high priority. "And there's fucking Orochimaru there!" He pointed at the roof of the great buildings; he was hoping to never see the snake bastard again... "Mom and Jiji are up there!"
Sasuke made a grunt, his hand reaching to his neck where the cursed seal was.
The ANBU growled as she pushed Baki back, "All the more reason for you kids to depart! Reunite with your teams, and then follow their orders!"
Baki threw a blade of coalesced wind at her, to which Yugao's blade shrouded in blue chakra and cut it in half, the attack harmlessly dissipating behind her.
"Just go!" They could almost feel the urgency of her eyes behind her mask.
Feeling a hand over his shoulder, Naruto saw Tenten giving him a placating look. "Your mom can handle herself; we HAVE to regroup with Gai-sensei and the others!"
Frustration shone in the young blond's eyes before sighing. He glanced to Yugao; "Stay safe Neko-Chan!"
"Understood!" The ANBU kept the Suna Jounin busy as the Genin left up to the stands and began to fight through the attacking enemy ninja.
Baki lightly growled; "You won't stop me woman."
Yugao said nothing as she readied for another attack.
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
Her heart would not stop pounding in her chest, it all happened so fast Hanabi had barely registered when Suna and Oto started to attack. The young girl was frantic as she stood beside her older sister who was fending off an Oto ninja while the rest were in their own battles.
She wasn't ready yet, panic coursed through her little being as her breathing was erratic. Hanabi yelped as she saw one of the Uzumaki, the younger boy, slash down an enemy with his katana. Blood sprayed wildly as the man fell to the ground. This was too much for her. Real life and death battle was glaringly different than training with her father at home. With senses being so erratic she did not see the lone Suna Nin dashing towards her.
"Die Hyuuga!" His voice snapped Hanabi's attention as she gasped seeing someone lunge at her.
Hinata's eyes grew wide but unable to rescue her sister as she still fought her own attacker. However a blur went passed her riddling Hinata's attacker with a dozen crystal shuriken killing him, and slammed into the Sand ninja with a crystal kunai plunged deep into the man's chest.
Naruto growled almost like a feral beast; "Go to hell." The man gasped for air before falling dead to the ground. Instantly the blond's mood shifted as he came over to a stunned Hanabi; "You okay kiddo?"
The youngest Hyuuga only stared at the dead Suna. Her attention soon went to Naruto who smiled at her with calm reassurance. "Hanabi!" Hinata yelled with relief as she ran over hugging her baby sister tightly. She looked at Naruto with immense gratitude, "Thank you" She spoke without the usual meekness in her voice.
The younger Hyuuga nodded stiffly between ragged breaths.
"Hanabi-san, stay close to your sister" Kurenai ordered, "We'll protect you"
Another time, young Hanabi would refuse the mere notion of her needing protection. Now she could not be separated from her sister, clinging to her hoodie desperately.
"My, my" The red eyed foreigner mused to herself, silky black hair swaying as she casually dodged a kunai aimed for her heart before delivering chopping strike to his neck. "I must say this is an unfortunate turn of events" She smiled at Naruto and waved at him, "Hello again" He awkwardly waved back.
Gai barely looked at the sound ninja he sent flying with a punch, "You fight with experience, my lady" Though his tone was mostly jovial and polite; she could feel the underlying suspicion.
"I assure you, I have nothing to do with this" Kuroreimei assured with an air of professional one might expect on someone who spent a lot of time in court. "I am neither on Oto nor Suna's side"
"And Konoha?" Naruto asked with raised eyebrow and a tilt of his head.
"My original choice would have been neither once more" She leaned to the side and kicked away a charging Sand ninja. "But given that they choose to attack me, I see no other choice but to side with you in retaliation"
Kakashi shared a look his fellow Jonin. They knew this could go wrong in a multitude of ways, but...
Three Oto Nin were decapitated in a single slash from a great sword that looked akin to a butcher's knife.
Yet two others fell to the ground and lightning coursed through their twitching, soon to be smoking, forms.
Zabuza chuckled darkly as he hefted his bloodied blade upon his shoulder, not far from him; Samui stepped over the burnt shocked bodies with her typical bored expression. Kouhei, Omoi and Yugito trailing behind them. Their teammates sighed in relief and joined them, asking each other if they were okay.
"It's a pain" Samui said, "But our chances of getting out of this alive are bigger if we join forces"
Well, Kakashi decided, today was a day for uneasy allies. He thought as he looked at the Kumo group.
"Beggars can't be chooser" Kurenai wisely spoke. And that was that.
Asuma's knives blocked the strikes from a sound Nin's Bo staff, parrying it away before delivering a powerful roadhouse kick that shattered his jaw. "We got reports of fighting breaking out everywhere in the village, Suna and Sound are launching a coordinated attack!"
"The whole village is turning into a battlefield" Kakashi grimly stated as he put two enemies into a genjutsu, making them fight an invisible enemy, two swiftly thrown kunai put an end to their lives unceremoniously.
"Tch" Lyn grunted as she spun her naginata, hitting an enemy ninja in the head with the shaft. "You guys must have done something to really piss them off"
Samenosuke twisted the arm of a Suna nin, using him as leverage to spin over his form, and then throw him at another group of his fellows, "They sure do like they want you dead"
"Why would Suna do this?!" Ino screeched in disbelief.
Chouji's enlarged fist came down like a hammer on several attacking Nin. "Go ask them!"
"We will figure this out later," Kakashi spoke with steel in his tone as he slashed through the throat of a Suna killing him. "For now we protect the village and citizens!"
Ice encased several Oto and Suna shinobi from Haku before being taken out viciously by Kouhei and Chojuro. Her back was covered by Naruto who shot several dozen crystal kunai into attacking ninja who came for her. It was then the blond took notice of a large commotion coming their way. "What's that?"
Kakashi glanced and paled as he saw Sand and Sound ninja being torn apart by none other than their nation's princess with least a dozen ANBU scrambling to follow her. Maiyuri's gaze was like steel as her katana sliced through her enemies with brutal efficiency.
'I serious wonder if Maiyuri-Hime has less control than Kushina-sama,' Kakashi weakly chuckled.
"Capture her!" One of the Oto Nin ordered with ferocity, "We muUMMGF!" His voice was muffled as his mouth was closed shut by the end of a sword's handle colliding directly with the underside of his jaw. The soft pink haired woman had closed the distance between them in the blink of an eye.
Her blade was sheathed swiftly with a metallic sound. Her fist was reared back and clenched tightly before burying itself in his gut. Blood and spit escaped his mouth, staining his mask.
His body became a blur as he went barreling through his comrades, tumbling them down.
Those who were fortunate enough to move out of them soon found their luck to be temporary, for they soon meet a similar fate before the fists and kicks that carried enough strength to shatter boulders. A Suna Nin slashed at her with a longsword, to which she took out her sheathed blade, parrying the blade with nothing hard covering. Maiyuri jabbed the sheath into his gut, making him double over in pain, leaving his hunched back exposed for her to deliver a devastating elbow strike that burying him on the floor.
Five Oto Nin charged at her, blasting at her with fire and wind, the resulting combination of elements forming a maelstrom of flaming winds. Maiyuri spun the blade in her hand, reattaching it to her sash on her hip, holding it tightly with one hand, her other gripping the handle tightly.
Her jade eyes narrowed in concentration.
One strike, one slash almost too fast to follow, created a counter current of wind that batted away the flames back to the ones that had casted them. They cried out covering their faces, though somewhat doused the flames still licked at the bare parts of their skin and singing their clothes, the hot winds assault them like boiled water.
Her blade on its guard once more, the princess disappeared in a blur of movement, reappearing behind the Oto ninja, sword drawn. Her enemies were frozen in place.
She stood up, swiping her blade in an arc and continued walking, slowly sheathing the blade once more.
'Click'
A metallic ring of the guard and the Oto Nin fell to the floor as blood erupted from their bodies.
"Wow" Naruto breathed out in awe, "Hey, she's that girl, the one Sakura hit!"
Funny enough, the jounin from the Leaf, save for Kakashi who merely sagged with depressing; all had a coughing feat at the exact same time.
Sakura bonked him in the head, "Don't say it like that, it was an accident!"
The Uchiha for his part just stared at the broken forms of her enemies; she had cut an impressive warpath. "She really knows how to fight"
The soft pink haired young woman smiled as she approached, "Good to see you again" She said to the young members of team 7, plus Karin and Soujiro. And nodded at their sensei, "Hatake-san"
Kakashi, Asuma, Kurenai, Gai and Yamato stood straighter and bowed at the waist with utmost reverence. "Hime-sama!"
Every genin blinked while Hanabi leaned out from behind her sister. "Hime-Sama..." They all muttered before all of them paled considerably as they realized who was before them. Samui looked genuinely surprised while the jaws of her comrades dropped.
"I struck the princess..." Sakura was ghostly white before she fainted and was caught by both her teammates.
Kuro glanced at the young noble while keeping watch. Maiyuri scratched the back of her head; "Well the truth is out."
"Maiyuri-Hime, PLEASE take shelter." Iguru asked in an exasperated pleading tone.
"I will not stand by and do nothing!" The princess yelled back with fire in her voice. "Suna dares to betray us with their allies of Otogakure; I won't leave my people!"
"Oh we should have sent her back to the capital when we had the chance..." A bird masked ANBU bemoaned at their hopeless situation.
"And I agree with them" Kakashi spoke, trying to reason with the princess as politely as possible. It's not like his career wasn't already on the line with one of his students having hit her or anything. "This is a very dangerous situation"
"And this is why I was trained" Green eyes narrow in defiance as she crosses her arms, "To defend my nation"
'To defense yourself, per your father's wishes rather' Was what the jounin were thinking, but none of them were brave enough to say it out loud.
"Whatever my father has to say, I'll hear it from him myself" The continued, "But my people are in danger, my subjects fighting for their nation. I just can't stay idle, I need to be here" Her gaze softened just a touch, showing not a regal princess, but a desperate young woman who feared not for her life, but for the lives of others. "Please"
Oh gods damn it all...
"...We will watch over you" The Copy-Nin replied with a long drawn out breath, which his peers shared.
"Is it wise?" Sasuke asked while in the process of waking Sakura up, that is by touching her necks with two fingers laced with electricity; he ignored her pained jolt as she sat up wide awake if twitchy. "If she gets hurt..."
"Maiyuri-sama is one of the best warriors in the nation" Asuma muttered to him in reply, "Easily S-Class"
...Huh. That was something. Sasuke filed away that information, his opinion on the princess raising a few notches.
Tenten on her part couldn't help but nod with approval; THIS was the kind of nobility she liked the most. The type that wasn't afraid to take matters into their own hands and do what was right. Hell, the fact that she was a badass warrior princess was just awesome!
Shikamaru sighed, "Man, this just got even more troublesome"
"We have the princess to watch over now, plus our home being in the middle of an invasion" Kiba laughed a bit nervously, "No pressure then"
"You think you're feeling pressure" Ino dryly said, pointing at her pink haired friend, "Look at that"
Sakura, having recovered from her fainting spell, was currently holding her chest tightly while her other hand was wrapped around a paper bag she had found on the floor. Breathing in and out deeply, they could hear the muffled maddened mantra that went along the lines of; "I'm gonna be executed. I'm gonna be executed. I'm gonna be executed. I'm gonna be executed"
They sweatdropped at the sight, "You're not going to be executed" Maiyuri muttered in a droning voice. "It was just an accident"
"Oh thank Amaterasu!" She discarded the bag and went down on her knees and bowed. "Thank you hime-sama!"
"...Don't lose your head Sakura" Naruto squints.
"I'm not gonna!" She cried in relief, "Isn't that wonderful!"
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
The former ANBU gave a menacing look at to the three young men of Oto; "Normally I give folks one chance to back off. But since you work with the bastard who went after my son." She raised her sword up in an attack stance. "All three of you are going to die today."
Jirōbō gave alight grunt; "Afraid that will not happen Kushina-dono." The large teen spoke rather politely in a calm tone.
"I agree with my friend here," Sakon smirked along with Ukon; "This village is going to burn, Karin will be punished for her betrayal, and your son along with the Uchiha will be joining us." His smirk grew more sinister; "And if you possibly survive us beating you down, Orochimaru-sama will revel in adding you for his research."
Kushina's glare only grew fiercer but said nothing. Though battles raged around them, they tuned out the noise as readied themselves for the fight to come.
Without further ado, Jirōbō slammed his hands upon the floor, the section of the building trembled as brick and stone broke away around her, rising up as they enclosed the area and trapped her inside a dome of pure stone. Kushina looked left to right, trying to find an opening but to no avail, there was no light here, and she suspected it was also sealed shut so not even the air could come in.
They had been warned repeatedly by their master, the Uzumaki woman was one of the deadliest kunoichi the village ever produced. Her friends knew her as a goofy, fun loving airhead. But on the battlefield she pushed that silliness aside as though it was a mere front, a facade, and surfaced a shinobi who struck down her targets without hesitation or mercy.
There could be no mistakes with her here, no second guessing; they had to eliminate her as fast as possible.
"Summoning" He called out as he slammed his hands on the ground, "Earth Prison Golem!"
He invoked a giant construct of earth, so large that its head alone was bigger than Jirōbō's body, nearly sixteen feet tall in height. He commanded the construct to attack, and so it charged with clumsy steps, raising its great club-like arms and smashing the dome with all its might. Sending up a cloud of dust along with rocks flying everywhere.
The three of the Sound Four thought with satisfaction that they had won, as there was no way the woman had the physical endurance to take on such a blow and live.
Their eyes soon widened with shock as the dust dissipated, for the golems' had smashed against a golden barrier, generated by chains coming out of her body.
Kushina did not look impressed, "That all you got? Well then" The chains retreated back into her body and the barrier vanished, the golem stumbling forward as it no longer had nothing to support its hands on. "My turn"
She moved.
One moment she was in the ground, the next she was in the air right in front of the golem's head. Her blade became shrouded in water, which expanded in great torrents as though a river had been unleashed from it. Arching the blade over her head, she directed the water upwards, this one coalesced at took the form of a raging dragon.
The dragon roared as it smashed down upon the golem with such force it teared off its limbs easily, and it did not stop. The water was coming straight for them.
"Shit!"
Sakon and Ukon briefly considered using their Rashomon summoning to stop it, but there wasn't enough time to invoke their great defense, not at this distance, much less in a place where they wouldn't have enough room for it. So instead they jumped up to the roof.
Jirōbō hadn't been fast enough, the water crashed against him; it felt like he had been hit by a boulder. He was carried away by the strong current, gargling as he struggled to keep his head up and breath, only to swallow some of the water.
Kushina ran across the water without issue, its own powerful currents offered no resistance against the person who commanded them. Her blade held tightly in her hands as she zoomed in on her target.
Jirōbō was briefly aware of the patch of red amidst all the blue water; it was only when he was face to face with the Uzumaki woman that he realized it had been her hair. The water seemed to stop in their violent movements, slowly receding as they feel over the edges of the building.
Their bodies slowly lowered to the ground, Kushina's blade buried deep in his chest.
The pain in his body was... numbing, rather than raging. His strength vanishing by the second, "Orochimaru-sama said... you were strong"
Her violet eyes looked at him with disgust.
His own gaze grew dazed as blood dripped from his mouth. "This wasn't... even a fight... Forgive me, my-"
"No" She placed her hand upon his mouth, and pushed his body away from her blade, letting it hit the ground unceremoniously, dead. "No last words, people who follow that snake willingly don't deserve it"
Her violet eyes slowly shift upwards to Sakon and Ukon, their eyes quivered as their shared body trembled. Terror coursing through every fiber of their being at how easily she had dispatched. They quickly ran away, back to their master. As she jumped to the roof to chase them, brow rose as she swore she heard... a flute?
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
Mei stood motionless as Tayuya played masterfully on her flute beside her four-armed comrade who looked rather disappointed; "To think the Godaime Mizukage could be stopped by a mere genjutsu. I was expecting something better." Tayuya only rolled her eyes but kept playing.
Neither not noticing the faint smirk from the female 'kage'. "Hasn't anyone ever told either one of you?" A voice whispered behind the two surprising them and quickly turned to see Mei going through several hand seals before blow out a stream of lava! Both leap out of the way as Tayuya see the person she had trapped dissolve into water. "Always mind your surrounds!"
"When did she make a clone?!" Thought surprised Kidōmaru smiled.
"Did you really expect such a weak level genjutsu could hold a Kage?" The auburn haired woman spoke in a condescending manner.
"I'll show you weak, bitch!" Tayuya snapped back as black lines covered her body. Putting her flute to her lips again another tune came out as three massive summoning clouds appeared behind her.
Kidōmaru lifted a brow; 'Really had no choice but to go full force after all.' Soon black lines cover his body looking like swirls. 'This woman took out a Jinchurriki by herself. Taking her lightly was be a rookie mistake.'
The buxom Mizukage looked upwards at the sight of three massive ogre-like demons. One in the middle being shirtless and wearing dark pants. It was bald and had scars on its head, a blindfold wrapped around it. To its right was one that wore a dark green full-body suit with its hair covering its entire head and face. In its hand was a giant metal club. Lastly to the middle one's left, there was another that had its upper body entirely covered in bandages, its head twisted in an awkward position with several large needles pinned in it.
"The Doki," the four-armed teen smirked; "Tayuya's favorite pets."
"Oh my" The auburn haired Kage smiled that charming smile of hers. "Ogres? It's not easy to bind demons to your will. Very impressive, young lady" She had to applaud her talent.
To Tayuya, it pissed her off immensely, feeling she was not being taken seriously. "Shut up, you old hag! Kill her!" She commanded her minions with a tune of her flute.
The mindless creatures rushed with unnatural speed, cracking the tiles of the roof with their heavy footsteps. They cut a terrifying figure that would take the heart of lesser men. Ao himself was already sweating in fear as he stood by and watched... but not because of the demons, but rather because of the sheer killing intent his Kage was emanating.
Her hair showed her visible eye. "Old hag?" She muttered her voice low. "Old hag?" She repeated anger much more noticeable in her words.
The air around her became blurry as the temperature increased exponentially.
The Doki leapt at her, poised to strike down the Kage with savage brutality.
"I'm still..." Her eyes radiated pure hate, "well within marriageable age!"
Pure lava bloomed over her right hand, manifesting out of pure chakra. She held the sphere of highly heated liquid earth in front of her lips.
Then she softly blew.
A blast of pure volcanic power struck the Doki as they were a few feet away from her; the resulting explosion was powerful enough to shake the entire roof.
The Doki fell to the ground in chunky burning pieces.
Mei smiled at the horrified face the young musician was giving her, compared to Yagura, those demons were a child's play.
The moment she took a step forward, Tayuya began playing her flute with desperation.
It was then that the Mizukage realized that some sort of smoke-like substance was emerging from the Doki's remains, forming into worm-like shapes.
With far too many mouths for her liking.
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
"Jirōbō is dead," Ukon muttered as Sakon ran for the roof. "She killed him like he was nothing…"
"Quiet, we will not share his fate"
Ukon's eyes rose as Kushina soon appeared behind them running up the roof. "She's right behind us!" His twin cursed as he applied more chakra to his limbs to increase his speed. His attempt soon meant nothing as golden chains burst through the building forming a wall before him, making Sakon skid to a stop.
"Leaving so soon~"
Ukon saw chains sprouting down her back, borrowing through the roof. A damnable smile graced her lips, as though she saw all this as nothing but a game. Sakon snarled as he turned to face her.
"Look, I'm a busy woman" She said exasperatedly, "There's a lot going on I need to take care of, so do me a favor, turn yourselves in peacefully and quit wasting everybody's time"
Their teeth clenched in frustration, "You think we're beneath you? We're Orochimaru's chosen!"
"You're pawns" She bluntly stated, "A cut about the rest I'll grant you, but pawns all the same. Do you have any idea how many people like you I've killed on my way to real problems? I don't know what your 'master' was thinking bringing you guys here, maybe he truly is desperate if he hopes you will be of use in a battle involving an irregular number of S-class"
"Shut up!" Sakon snarled, "You have no idea the power our lord wields, he has yet to reveal his trumMFH!" Fingers phases over his mouth, stopping him from speaking further.
"She's goading you, you idiot!" His twin admonished. "She WANTS us to talk!"
Sakon's eyes widened momentarily before narrowing at the smarmy smiling Uzumaki.
"...Right" He spoke once his brother released his mouth. "Why don't we instead show her the power Orochimaru-sama has given us, huh Ukon?"
His brother smiled a predatory grin, "Indeed"
Kushina's eyes widened as the two literally split apart, the twins finally separated each in their own bodies. Dark markings spread all over her bodies as sheer twisted chakra began emanating from their forms.
"So he's done it" She recalled seeing something like that before, in Orochimaru's former apprentice, in Sasuke... "He perfected the Cursed Mark"
"Orochimaru-sama has allowed us to transcend humanity" Sakon announced proudly.
"Behold" Ukon seethed.
Their forms shimmered with energy, and right before her eyes their bodies changed. Their skin became red, a single long horn sprouted from their foreheads, half of their bodies hardening, becoming armor-like in appearance. To Kushina, they had taken the form of Oni, demons that hid in mountains and caves, pillaging small towns to feast on human flesh.
From observing Sasuke's mark, Kushina understood the purpose of the seal was to force natural chakra into the body, augmenting them greater heights akin to sage-mode. But... this transformation, it had warped their bodies entirely. Given them the aspects of demons, creatures that while unholy in some regards, were still very much part of nature.
"Transcended humanity?" Kushina saw deeper than that, "He twisted you into monsters"
"Call it whatever you like, in these forms," Sakon raised his claw-like hand.
Ukon finished; "You won't defeat us!" Both dashed forward with explosive speed.
It was like senjutsu! Kushina narrowed her eyes as her chains retracted in a blink. Her sword and the twin's claws clashed as all three moved with blurring speed. Sakon and Ukon while savagely strong with their strikes were also precise and well-skilled. Both moved in a fluid and coordinated pattern trying to overwhelm the Uzumaki.
"I was expecting more Kushina-dono!" Sakon's tone was condescending as he kept on the pressure. "Perhaps your twelve year absence dulled those legendary skills of yours!"
The former ANBU captain said nothing as she kept her defense. One blow from Ukon's armored arm, parried with the edge of her sword as sparks flew, the material apparently sharp enough to withstand her blade. She pushed him away and docked under the sweeping kick from Sakon.
Ukon jumped and delivered a powerful smashing fist that cracked the roof, and that was all it did as Kushina back flipped out of the way. Sakon jumped over his brother and launched a flying dropkick.
His eyes widened when Kushina dodged to side and grabbed his ankle.
They had thought they were keeping her on the ropes, her only choice being to dodge and parry their strikes.
They were just giving her time to get used to their pattern.
She spun him around and sent him barreling straight to his body, she noted with confusion their bodies didn't phase together like she had expected. Guess they needed to be in perfect sync if they wanted to fuse.
"You two have built your entire repertoire in overwhelming your enemy with your combined attacks, haven't you? But I can see that individually, you two lack raw power on your own. I have yet to see you use a single offensive ranged technique against me" The redhead stated.
The twins stood, growling at the redhead.
"Even enhanced like this your abilities only barely allow you to keep up with me. Honestly, high level genin could defeat you guys" She didn't sound condescending nor smug, but rather like she was stating something obvious.
They roared in rage and charged with wanton abandon, for a moment they had forgotten any sense of strategy or coordination, they just wanted this woman to die.
"See? Now you threw away the one thing you guys had going for you" Kushina sighed in exasperation, she spun her blade as she calmly walked towards them.
The twins pushed so much power from the Curse Mark it was nearly setting their limbs aflame, as dark clouds of pure thick energy covered their frames. Identical armored reared back with hellish chakra to strike down the redhead in one single strike.
Kushina's chains weren't really that fast. Oh they had a very long reach alright, and their strength was best suited for entities made up of physical chakra, but she really couldn't miss at this range, with the twins charging together at her from the exact same position.
She thrust her palm forward, and a spread shot of golden chain emerged.
Sakon and Ukon's fists stopped just a few inches beyond the redhead's face.
Their demonic faces twisted effort as their whole bodies were tightly wrapped by those chains coming from her hand, from their arms to their legs, they even felt them constricting tightly around their chests, making breathing difficult.
Kushina merely raised her blade and decapitated the two of them at once. Her chains dissipated into thin air as she turned around, she didn't even wait for their headless bodies to hit the floor
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Mei didn't know how long she'd been in this hellish lake, the needles that pierced her limbs were making her entire body melt, much like how those on the receiving end of her boil element often met their end. The pain had become numbing at one point, now all she could feel was the endless passage of time. The seconds, the hours, and days.
It had been a mistake, in retrospect, to destroy those demons so easily. Their physical forms had been torn asunder, releasing their spirits selves, and they swarmed upon her with great hunger, consuming her chakra. She could not hurt them, but her elements failed to harm that which lacked a body.
She could have gotten away at first, if not for the giant spiders that had wrapped a giant silky prison around her, with her chakra fading so quickly she just didn't have the strength to force herself out, neither from the genjutsu nor the webbing.
Sweat fell from Tayuya's forehead as she continued playing her notes, the Doki's illusion was very powerful, and their chakra draining power was the only thing that made it possible to trap the Mizukage. But even then it was an uphill battle, the old hag still had a lot of strength left in her, regardless of what her motionless form indicated, her chakra too vast to drain quickly.
It was only thanks to the efforts of Kidōmaru and his summons, pushing back against the ninja of Konoha and Kiri, that she could keep playing her melody. If her concentration faltered even for a moment, the genjutsu would end, but so long as her Doki were around, draining the Mizukage, they could still win.
However, before there could have been any semblance of victory, golden chains came out of nowhere wrapping around the spirit forms of Tayuya's Doki! The surprise attack caught the pink haired girl off guard enough for the Mizukage to dispel the genjutsu, the webbing was incinerated in a blast of heat that came off from her entire body, and get a good distance away to recover.
Tayuya cursed before seeing a figure land beside Mei. "You know beings like your summons are so much easier to control with my chains." Kushina remarked with a smirk.
"Impossible! How the fuck are you doing that?!" Tayuya swore as she snarled.
The redhead gave a dry glare; "I held the Kyuubi no Kitsune pinky, these three are a cakewalk compared to that ass."
Though panting Mei gave a grateful nod to Kushina; "Thank you, I could not have gotten out of that genjutsu while they kept draining my chakra."
"Of course! Us beautiful badass ladies have to stick together after all." Mei smirked at that as she watched the Uzu woman pull out a scroll; "As for these three."
Tayuya gawked as her three Doki were being sucked into the former ANBU's scroll as she unfurled it and held it up. It was done in a blink as the redhead cheered re-furling the scroll and putting it away. "YOU FUCKING TITLESS CUNT! GIVE ME BACK MY DOKI!"
"My Doki now~" Kushina sing-songed as her chains retracted. "AND WHO YOU CALLING TITLESS YOU FLAT-BOARDED BITCH, 40C AND PROUD OF THEM THANK YOU!" Mei did a double-take looking at the redhead's chest. She knew how to hide those impressively well.
Tayuya growled as she took one step forward towards them, only to be stopped by one of Kidōmaru's multiple arms. "Why do you think she's here? Sakon, Ukon and Jirōbō are likely dead"
"Yep" Kushina casually replied.
"Tch!" The spider summoner clicked his tongue in frustration, "Let's fall back to Orochimaru-sama's position" And begs he'd have mercy on them.
They vanished in a plume of smoke, the Mizukage and the Uzumaki hot on their trail.
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Orochimaru's body slithered across the roof, his lower half transformed into a long elongated tail as he swiftly dodged the barrage of fireballs coming from his old teacher's mouth. The Hokage's robes billowed with the intensity of his attack as he relentlessly continued his assault. Not pausing from the fire barrage coming from his mouth, he quickly went through a series of handsigns and transformed the section of the roof before him into mud.
Orochimaru's eyes widened as his body became stuck in the mud, three great fireballs coming straight for him. Wasting no time, he substituted himself with a small group of his snakes which were roasted alive. He landed various meters further away from his teacher, a pool of flaming mud between them.
"My" The snake sannin grinned, "Your attacks are still impressive, sensei. But I can't help but feel they're slower than before. Is age catching up to you?"
Hiruzen said nothing, merely narrowed his eyes and took of his robes, revealing his battle gear underneath. He posed the very iconic look of a shinobi, a sight which could boost the morale of his troops at seeing their leader ready for to get serious like this.
Orochimaru's grin slowly faded as he saw Kushina and the Mizukage land next to Sarutobi. He did not turn when he felt his followers kneel next to him.
"Forgive us, my lord!" Kidōmaru apologized with shame and a hint of desperation in his voice.
"Hmm, 'tis alright. I should have expected the twins and Jirōbō to not last too long against Kushina-chan"
Kushina rested her katana over her shoulder, "If you wanted to bring me down" She grinned smugly, "You should have brought a thousand of them"
"Overconfidence leads to failure, Kushina-chan" It was something he would often tell her when she was younger.
Her eyes narrowed in anger, "Pfft, you're one to talk. Besides, it ain't overconfidence if you can back it up"
He smiled, "Indeed, on that we agree"
Kushina nearly gagged, feeling disgusted by the thought of her and the snake agreeing on anything...
"But you're quite right. If I am to bring down this miserable little village, I will need something a touch..." He bit his thumb, causing the others to stiffen in alarm, "bigger" And slammed his hand.
A great cloud of smoke burst forth, the shinobi of the leaf and mist remained on guard, preparing themselves to fight against a giant summon. Kushina did not care if he brought one, two, or even dozen giant snakes, she would cut them all down and then make belts out of them.
But this snake... this snake made her blood run cold and her arms go limp.
Massive in size, purple, with a black underbelly and multiple black rings running over his body, with a rather triangular head with that ended on four horn-like protrusions. His yellow reptile eyes gazed with immense hatred at the Uzumaki woman.
"Hmmm, so here you are the grandchild of Tsukiko"
"N-No..." Kushina muttered in disbelief.
Hiruzen's fist shook with rage and indignation, "How much lower will you fall, Orochimaru?! You made a pact with THEM?!"
Though initially confused, realization soon dawned upon the Mizukage. She knew that snake, or at least, she had heard about him. The very infamous leader of a clan of serpents, known for their brutal rivalry with the dragon clan. Their battles had shaped landscapes and left tales and songs since many centuries ago. Their bitter rivalry and hatred for one another was the stuff of legends.
Such was their despise for the dragons, that snake clan had sworn to destroy even those who would stand by their side... a promise that had almost seen through.
"Manda" The Uzumaki seethed in loathing, "of the Kurokiba clan"
The snake clan that had tipped off Iwa and Kumo about the disappearance of the legendary dragon sage Tsukiko Uzumaki, whose presence alone acted as a great deterrence against an attack. They had shared with them every plan, every strategy, every route by which to attack Uzushio and leave nothing but a smoldering ruin, all to plunder their secrets and eradicate the dragon's allies at long last.
Kurokiba, the clan that brought forth the downfall of Uzushio.
"A shame we were not fully able to purge your mongrel clan completely," Manda hissed with disgust as he kept his gaze on Kushina who snarled back.
It was then the ground shook as the Kages saw a massive three headed snake break through the wall of the village. All around the village more snakes appeared as the giant serpents ripped through the ground, destroying many buildings and they began to attack Konoha and Kiri ninja.
Orochimaru only grinned with amusement as he saw the fury burn in his sensei's eyes.
The Uzu woman shook with anger as Manda bellowed; "Bring him out before me, girl! Bring forth Genryu so I can tear into his flesh and kill him!" His voice roared with hatred and malicious shaking the ground.
Mei glanced beside her seeing Kushina clinch her fists before biting into her thumb and going through the handsigns; "DIE YOU BASTARD!" The redhead roared slamming her palm to the ground. As an enormous plume of smoke exploded soon came a thundering roar as the chief of the dragon appears and glared with unquenchable rage.
"MANDA!" The silver dragon's voice boomed.
Tayuya and Kidōmaru covered their ears as Manda's body coiled, letting out a hiss-like roar the massive snake lunged for the silver dragon did the same. The two wrapped around one another as began to fly over the village trying to snap their respective jaws at their foe. The snake sannin chuckled; "Can't recall Manda being this happy. He has waiting a longtime to get the chance to kill Genryu-dono."
Kushina slowly turned her now pure hate filled gaze back to Orochimaru; "I'm going to kill you..." Her voice was like ice and full of murderous malice.
"Kushina-chan, you might very well be this village's most deadly kunoichi. And I do respect your talent and lineage; but you're not close enough to be my equal." Orochimaru bemused as he took notice of ANBU joining beside the two kages and Uzumaki; "My we have gather a crowd."
"You're outnumber," Mei spoke with resolution; "surrender."
At that the snake sannin laughed; "My dear Mizukage I always plan ahead. I have just the thing for this quaint little reunion. Oh that reminds, Kushina-chan I have a present for you." Going through several handsigns he slammed his palms to the ground as three large caskets broke through the roof and stood in front of the snake and his remaining sound four.
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, what evil was coming for them now? He felt a sense of dread creep up his spine. He knew that technique…
The snake sannin grinned. "Now, why don't you give our guests the greeting they deserve?"
XxX ~ xx ~ XxX ~ xx ~ XxX ~ xx ~ XxX
C-ya soon!