Our Will of Fire
Review Q/A: darkwarp: My friend your support continues to make me very happy!
Kamencolin: I kind of do need SOME OC blades, because not every blade is going to be in the hands of the good guys or else it would be too easy, and I'm not too keen on using common blades except for MAYBE the occasional nameless soldier.
Chris657: I might add Sever as a possible blade for Sasuke but I've already decided his primary blade, and it's a doozy. As for multiple blades for Naruto you did pitch me some ideas and I have one extra in addition that might go to him, though your suggestion is spurring me on a bit more than my original idea for him.
AN- I AM NOW ACCEPTING OC BLADE SUBMISSIONS! PLEASE PM ALL IDEAS WITHIN REASON AND DO NOT MAKE THEM TOO OP, SUBMISSIONS MUST INCLUDE A NAME, WEAPON, APPEARANCE, AND A BRIEF PERSONALITY DESCRIPTION! I WILL NOT ACCEPT SUBMISSIONS FROM THE REVIEW SECTION! I do not own either Naruto or Xenoblade Chronicles 2 in any way shape or form and they are the property of their respective owners Masashi Kishimoto and Monolithsoft respectively. I make no money from this story. Also if I swap between English and Japanese sporadically I am sorry.
Warning: Naruto and others will become quite overpowered compared to most others for most of this story. I am also semi to pretty damn bad at writing fight scenes so for that I'm sorry.
"Biju Speaking"
'Biju Thinking'
"Biju Telepathy"
"Telepathy"
'Person thinking'
Flashback Speech
PLEASE READ AUTHORS NOTE AT THE END
xXxXx Location: Near the Gates of Konoha, 10:25 AM
Naruto, Pyra, and Mythra are walking towards the main gates of Konoha after having grabbed the gear they needed for their very first C-rank mission to Nami no Kuni, as the gates come into their sight a familiar voice calls out to them, "Naruto, Pyra, Mythra!", the group turns around to see Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Kurenai, and surprisingly Brighid with Hinata waving at them. The Uzumaki family wave back and starts walking towards team eight. Once they get close Hinata sees a number of extra scrolls and pouches that the family doesn't normally wear, "So what are you guys up to, going on a mission?" Hinata asks her friends and receiving nods in return.
Naruto rubs the back of his head, "Yeah, we managed to convince Kakashi-sensei to ask Hoakge-Jiji for a C-rank mission, we're heading out soon." Naruto says with a smile on his face which Pyra and Mythra mimic.
The revelation startles Kurenai and Kiba as they figured that team seven wouldn't be taking C-rank missions so soon, though it angers Kiba slightly more, "Hey dobe, why exactly are you guys going on a C-rank already, you trying to get killed?" Kiba asks angrily causing Kurenai, Brighid, and Hinata to glare at him while Naruto just shrugs.
"Kiba, it's because our team has shown good skill and exceptional teamwork that we're being given a C-rank already. Now I'd love to keep talking but we need to meet up with our client and Kakashi-sensei." Mythra says in a bored tone, her face remaining neutral after Kibas' question. Naruto and Mythra nod in agreement and wave goodbye.
As the Uzumaki family begins to turn and leave Hinata walks forward, "Ummm Naruto?" Hinata says causing Naruto to stop for a moment, and surprising everyone Hinata pulls Naruto into a quick hug, "Good luck and be safe." Hinata says and ends the embrace, leaving a blushing Naruto in front of her.
Narutos' face is close to the shade of red those present have only seen on Hinata years ago, Naruto rubs the back of his head and gives Hinata a sheepish smile and a thumbs up, "D-don't worry Hinata, we'll be fine, after all I have my teammates to watch my back and my sisters to protect, none of us will go down easily." Naruto says in a confident voice that is somewhat set off by his blushing face. "We'll see you guys later!" Naruto says before leaving quickly, leaving a stunned Pyra and Mythra behind.
The group hears chuckling and look to see it's Brighid, "It seems that this is your first step in the world of Shinobi my friends, I hope you two come back safe so we can share some tea." Brighid says while opening her violet eyes, "And make sure you protect that little brother of yours, there's a lot he still needs to learn." Brighid says earning the attention of Kurenai and Kiba who don't say anything at the moment.
"Don't worry; we plan on making it home in one piece, all of us. And we're up for that tea Brighid when we get back." Pyra says with a small smile on her face before she walks up to Hinata and whispers into her ear, "Bold Hinata, I approve and I'm sure Mythra does too." Before walking back to Mythra and leaving a now nuclear red Hinata behind.
Brighid walks up to Hinata and places a hand on her left shoulder, "That was very brave of you Hinata, I'm proud." Brighid says and receives a nervous nod from Hinata who is still red.
Kurenai walks over to Brighid, "So Brighid, how exactly do you know Pyra and Mythra?" Kurenai asks the blue haired teacher.
Brighid wears her regal smile, "Hinata and I have trained with the Uzumaki family for quite a while, ever since I met Hinata in fact. Their unique style of fighting makes for interesting bouts with them as their age masks their skill considerably." Brighid says in a fond tone which surprises Kurenai.
"How skilled are we talking here? Exactly how good are those three?" Kurenai asks, genuinely curious causing Hinata to giggle.
Hinata and Brighid put their fingers to their chins to think, after a few moments Hinata breaks the ice with her belief, "I think that Pyra and Mythra individually are high-chunin to low-jonin on their own while Naruto is easily mid-chunin to high-chunin on his own. Together however with their fighting style, they are easily high-jonin." Hinata says causing Kurenai and Kiba to blank slightly while Shino nods in agreement.
Shino pushes up his sunglasses, "I believe you are correct Hinata, from what little I've seen of their practice sessions they hold themselves back a significant amount, so much so that my Kikaicu beetles start swarming slightly whenever they're close. The three of them are very powerful." Shino says furthering the shock of Kurenai and Kiba while Brighid also nods in agreement.
"They're right, I am strong but I'm positive that if Naruto and one of his sisters worked together they could put up a fight on equal ground with me, and if both of his sisters worked with him then I would more than likely fall to them in battle. I'm excited to see how far they go in the future." Brighid says lastly causing Kurenai to sigh while Kiba ponders exactly how strong they are if they're stronger than the one who beat their sensei without much effort. "Anyway, I believe it's time for me to go, as I know you all have a few missions today, do good work everyone." Brighid says before waving goodbye and leaving, causing everyone to wave back and head towards the mission hall at the Hokage tower while Hinata rubs her eyes for a moment after a momentary twinge, as if dirt got into her eye.
xXxXx Location: Gates of Konoha, 10:30 AM
The Uzumaki trio arrive and see Tazuna, Sakura, and Sasuke all ready to go, Sasuke and Sakura both carrying some extra packs that they didn't have earlier meaning that they packed for the trip seriously making the three Uzumaki smile. "Hey guys, you see Kakashi-sensei on the way here?" Sasuke asks earning head shakes from the Uzumaki family. "Damn, I was hoping he wouldn't be late for once." He says and a moment later a poof of smoke appears behind him.
Kakashi puts his hand on Sasukes' head and gives the group his patented eye smile, "Alright my cute little genin, I trust you're all prepared?" Kakashi asks and receives nods from everyone including Sasuke after he removes himself from Kakashis' hand. "Good, now it should take us until about 5:00 pm to reach Nami no Kuni if we're lucky since it's closer than most other nations to the village. Sasuke, you have Tazunas' right, Sakura get his left, Uzumaki trio take the front, and I'll guard the rear." Kakashi says as he signs the paperwork necessary to leave the village. The group gets in formation and starts to head out of the village.
3 hours later
The group is now nearing the border of Hi no Kuni to meet with a contact of Tazunas' who will take them by boat the rest of the way. As the group is walking down the road the Uzumaki family along with Kakashi notice a puddle sitting in the middle of the road, 'Hasn't it been a dry spell country wide for the past week?' Pyra thought to herself and looks over to Mythra who nods in acknowledgement, Pyra then looks back at Kakashi who nods, and finally she puts her hand on Narutos' shoulder and uses their mental connection to speak to him, "Naruto, it hasn't rained in a week, be ready for anything." She says and gets an affirmative 'hn' from Naruto.
The group passes the puddle and a few feet later two forms emerge quickly from it, two men wearing Kirigakure headbands and facemasks with claws on their hands connected by a spiked chain wrap said chain around Kakashi quickly and the next moment he is shredded into oblivion by the two Kiri-nin. "KAKASHI-SENSEI!" Sakura yells but remains in her assigned position.
"Hm, one down, five annoying brats to go." Said the man on the left, "You think we should put them out of their misery Gozu?" he asks and receives a nod in response.
Pulling the chain taunt the other man chuckles slightly, "But of course Meizu, then we'll kill that bridge builder." Gozu says but is cut off by a rather fast blur charging at him wielding a white sword, Gozu and Meizu jump back to dodge the rather fast blow and see the boy who was walking at the front of the group standing before them holding an ornate weapon the likes of which they haven't seen in their lives. "Che, damn brat is fast." He says before Naruto charges once more.
Naruto charges Gozu again with both of his hands on the handle of his sword, the blade somewhat low to the ground, Naruto starts making slashes at Gozu which the man continuously dodges which forces Meizu to dodge as well due to the connected chain. Naruto brings up the blade for an overhead slash with a small smirk on his face and brings down the blade but Gozu dodges, not knowing why the brat is smirking. As he dodges he realizes his error and curses himself for their stupidity, his last dodge put his chain right in front of a tree and the moment his feet landed, four kunai imbedded themselves into the holes of his chain and stuck the chain to the tree, immobilizing Gozu and Meizu. "Nice throw Sasuke, Mythra!", Naruto charges once more at Gozu hoping to either incapacitate or kill the Kiri-nin with much faster speed than he's used so far and aims at the neck of the ninja, only for Gozu to dodge at the last second by him and Meizu disconnecting the chain to their gauntlets, allowing them a better range of movement, though due to the dodge Narutos' sword cuts clean through the tree, toppling it with ease.
The act leaving everyone except Pyra and Mythra stunned though Tazuna looks like he's about to break into pieces with how stunned he is from the now toppled tree, 'Holy shit' was the thought running through all of their minds before Sasuke breaks out of the trance first and joins Naruto in attacking but goes after Meizu, using a flurry of strikes from his Interceptor style of Taijutsu he manages to push Meizu back. Sasuke jumps back and runs through a few handsigns, Sasuke inhales before saying "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu" and releases a rather large ball of fire from his mouth that heads straight for Meizu who has wide eyes at the size of the fireball, a second later the flames engulf him. Sasuke looks at the ground where the flames impacted, but is disappointed to see a burning log in the place of a body. Sasuke immediately jumps backwards, barely dodging a strike from Meizus' claw weapon which Sasuke can see is slightly tinged purple, 'Poison…' he thinks before landing a few feet away. Sasuke charges Meizu while Naruto is fighting off Gozu, who is presently dodging for his life, and while pushing back Meizu Sasuke decides to let the group know an important detail, "Guys, don't get hit by those claws, they're poisoned!" he says catching everyone's attention.
Meizu grunts as he blocks another couple of punches from Sasuke, "Good eye brat, you aren't normal genin." Meizu says but is cut off by having to dodge Pyra as she charged him with her sword and managed to cut his left arm slightly. "Damn bitch!" he says causing Naruto to gain a tick mark on his forehead.
Naruto dodges under a kick from Gozu and manages to cut his leg with a pretty wide gash by hitting him with an upswing. "My sister isn't a bitch you teme! Pyra, Sasuke, KICK HIS ASS!" Naruto yells as he continues fighting the now slowing Kiri-nin and Pyra smirks in response.
Pyra charges Meizu and strikes his claw with her blade, the force of which startles Meizu as the claw is cut clean through, thankfully missing his wrist by a few millimeters; she continues this assault of high speed strikes while he barely dodges until he is caught off guard by Sasuke throwing some shuriken and is forced to block them, unfortunately giving Pyra the opportunity to give a deep slash across the chest, making Meizus' mask fall off of his face and blood to pour out of his mouth, "D-d-damn bitch…." He says before falling unconscious, their work on Meizu done they look over and see Naruto managing to cut a few tendons in the legs of Gozu which makes him fall to the ground, after which Naruto knocks him out with a well-placed chop to the neck.
The group proceeds to tie up the two Kiri-nin after removing all weapons and valuables from their bodies. "Good work team seven, you handled the situation quite well, Sakura and Mythra, good job on making sure Tazuna was safe while your teammates handled the enemy." Kakashi says from behind Tazuna which makes the old man jump in fear, nearly having a heart attack.
"What the hell, I saw you die!" Tazuna says in a shocked tone only for Kakashi to point at where he was cut to pieces, everyone seeing a shredded log on the spot with no blood anywhere. Tazuna stutters slightly while everyone chuckles for a moment.
"But the reason I didn't intervene from the start is because I wanted to ascertain who their target was, either being one of my team…. Or you Tazuna-san." Kakashi says making Tazuna sweat quite a bit as Kakashi puts on a serious face and emits a small amount of KI, "Would you kindly explain as to why there are low B-rank nuke-nin after you?" Kakashi asks simply.
Tazuna knowing that it's a bad idea to lie to the ninja tells them all about Gato and his tyranny over Nami no Kuni, which without the bridge he's building his people will suffer more and die out. "We need that bridge to break Gatos' hold over our country, but a greedy worm like Gato will stop at nothing to stop the bridge from being completed, even ending my life." Tazuna says while Kakashi and the others listen intently.
Kakashi sighs, "And why you lied about the mission details?" Kakashi asks.
Tazuna looks down and clenches his fists, a few small tears gathering on his face, "We're so poor thanks to Gato, even our nobles barely have enough money to feed themselves. For us commoners we've barely had enough to feed one person in our family every day on a good week. We couldn't afford anything BUT a C-rank mission or lower….. WE HAD NO CHOICE!" Tazuna yells.
Everyone looks at the old man with pity in their eyes but also determination, Kakashi looks at Tazuna and sighs as he knows that despite the skill of the genin of his team, the mission has been bumped up to at least a B rank mission or higher. Pandoria knowing what Kakashi is thinking decides to intervene, "Hey Kakashi, why not let the kids continue, with us there and Pyra and Mythra we can handle just about anything thrown at us. You know what will happen if we don't help the poor guy, he'll continue without us and get killed and more people will suffer." Pandoria says making Kakashi nod and sigh in agreement. 'Guilt trip…. Success.' She thinks with a smile on her face.
Kakashi looks over to his genin, "This mission is beyond the boundaries of our contract, we have no obligation to follow through with it due to the misinformation you provided to receive a lower level of mission…." Kakashi says in a somber tone making Tazuna grit his teeth in frustration. "However." He says making Tazuna look up at him, "If my cute little genin wish to continue then we will, but should we do so then after the mission completion there will be discussions on the required payments in the future and a penalty fee among other things, is this acceptable?" Kakashi asks a now crying Tazuna.
Tazuna bows to Kakashi, "Yes, a million times yes. Any fee or payment you wish as long as the bridge is finished, even if the price is my life." Tazuna says with tears falling to the ground.
Kakashi turns back to his team who are smiling at the jonin, "I take it your decision is made then everyone?" Kakashi asks the members of team seven who nod in agreement.
Naruto walks forward and puts his hand on Tazunas' shoulder, "Don't worry Tazuna-Jiji, we'll help you finish that bridge, or we're not team seven." Naruto says with confidence, a bright smile on his face which makes Tazuna look at the boy.
'His face reminds me so much of Kaiza.' Tazuna thinks to himself. Tazuna wipes the tears from his eyes, "You're all sure about this?" he asks and receives smiles and nods from everyone.
Pyra crosses her hands over her chest with a fond smile on her face, "We can't just leave others to suffer, it's just not in our nature to do so." Pyra says with confidence in her voice.
Mythra looks at the man with her hands on her hips, "Not to mention we already accepted the mission, it would be considered a failure if we turned this down, and team seven does not fail." Mythra says with a small smirk growing on her face while Sasuke and Sakura nod in agreement to that statement.
"T-thank you so much. We're about two hours from meeting my contact who will take us to Nami no Kuni." Tazuna says before Kakashi summons a dog who he sends back to Konoha to inform them of the new mission details. The group gets back into their previous positions and begin heading off to the border of Hi no Kuni.
2 and a half hours later, river in Nami no Kuni
The members of team seven and Tazuna are riding a boat belonging to an old friend of Tazuna in order to sneak as close to Nami no Kuni as possible. As they got closer the fog started rolling in and now with them being so close to the mainland the fog is so thick one can barely see in front of themselves, upon reaching the bank of the river they can see the bridge in the distance of the fog due to its rather large size. "Tazuna, this is as far as I can take you, now be safe and save our people." whispers the boat owner.
Tazuna nods, "Don't worry, I have a good feeling about these ninja, be safe my friend." Whispers Tazuna. The boat owner pushes away from the bank and rows out of sight leaving team seven and Tazuna to walk inland.
After about 15 minutes of walking and each member of the team was still in a uniform formation around Tazuna, keeping an eye on their surroundings. As they enter a rather large clearing with a flowing river Naruto hears some rustling coming from a nearby bush, quickly takes out a kunai, and throws it at the bush. A moment later a snow white rabbit comes hopping out of the bush causing Naruto to rub the back of his head nervously, "Sorry everyone, guess I'm a bit on edge." Naruto says sheepishly.
Everyone looks at Naruto with a small smirk while Pyra starts walking over to the rabbit, "Don't worry about it Naruto, it's natural after the demon brothers attacked us earlier." Kakashi says to the nervous boy.
Pyra picks up the white rabbit and snuggles it against her chest, bringing it back to the group, "He's a cute little one isn't he?" Pyra says as she hugs the rabbit to her chest.
Everyone smiles at this until something dawns on Kakashi, 'It's early summer, why in the world is there a rabbit with a winter coat out this time of year, unless it was bred domestically…. Or to be used as a substitution!' Kakashi thinks to himself and then hears a heavy spinning coming in their direction, "EVERYONE DOWN!" Kakashi yells and it makes Sasuke and Sakura pull Tazuna to the ground while everyone also drops down low, the rabbit still in Pyras' arms. As they drop a large form flies over their head and embeds itself in a nearby tree, looking closely at the item in question it looks to be a large butcher knife with two cuts along the blade, one near the front which is a perfect circle in the middle of the blade and the other cut being near the handle which is a sharp half circle set into the edge. A moment later a figure appears on top on the blades' handle, this man has a kirigakure headband wrapped around his head with the plate facing to the left side of his head, short spikey black hair with very small eyebrows, bandages wrapped around his mouth, striped pants with straps over his bare chest, and elbow length wrist warmers. "Zabuza Momochi….. The demon of the mist." Kakashi says and Pyra immediately puts the rabbit into her pack.
Zabuza looks over the genin and his eyes land on the silver haired man, "Kakashi of the Sharingan eye, no wonder the demon brothers Meizu and Gozu failed to kill the bridge builder. But your luck has run out." Zabuza says before jumping off of his blade and pulling it out of the tree with one hand easily and puts it over his shoulder.
Kakashi gets into a ready stance, putting a hand on Pandorias' sword and a hand on his headband, "Looks like I'll need to go all out from the start, especially against a ninja like you Zabuza." Kakashi says as he pull up his headband revealing a scarred eyelid with a Sharingan underneath, this surprises everyone except Zabuza but it mostly shocks Sasuke, 'How does he have the Sharingan?' Sasuke thinks to himself as Kakashi pulls out his sword.
Kakashi gets into a ready stance after drawing his sword, the blade even making Zabuza look at it in suspicion, "I never figured you for a swordsman Kakashi, and I don't think I've seen a blade that unique outside of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, where'd you get it?" Zabuza asks playfully.
Kakashi chuckles a bit before igniting the blade, "Oh, nowhere special, just got it from a good friend." Kakashi says while Pandoria chuckles in his head while Pyra and Mythra smile. "Team, get in formation around Tazuna, I'll take care of Zabuza." Kakashi says before Zabuza starts making a handsign.
"Kirigakure no Jutsu" Zabuza says and an even thicker mist envelops the area, making Zabuza disappear from sight which puts everyone on edge except for Kakashi.
"Everyone, be on guard, Zabuza is a master of the Silent Killing technique, a style so quick and silent you'll be in the afterlife before your blood leaves your body." Kakashi says as Zabuza starts laughing, the mist only making the laugh more ominous.
"Eight points." Zabuza says, a slight echo coming from his voice while Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke stiffen, "Larynx, spine, liver, heart, lungs, jugular, kidneys, artery, each of these when struck will result in death in a matter of moments, now which to choose….." he says through the mist and then begins releasing his KI, causing Sakura, Sasuke, and Tazuna to start shivering in fear.
'W-w-what is this….' Sasuke thinks as his arms start shaking, 'Is this the power of a Jonin? J-just…. I can't handle it' he thinks as he brings a kunai up to his throat slowly before Mythra catches his arm and shakes her head. The moment her hand catches his arm Sasuke feels a calming energy around him making him lower the kunai, "T-thanks." He says and Mythra nods in return.
"Everyone, calm down." Kakashi says before turning back to his team with his eyes closed but all of them still able to see a smiling gesture on his face. "I won't let my teammates die." Kakashi says with confidence which causes everyone to calm down.
Zabuza chuckles, "We'll see about that." Zabuza says before he appears right next to Tazuna, blade ready to take his head.
As Zabuza swings his Kubikiribocho at Tazuna a loud clang is heard, "That's not exactly nice there Zabuza." Kakashi says as he blocks Zabuzas' swing with Pandorias' sword, now ignited with sparks lightly arcing off of the weapon.
"Well now, not bad Kakashi…. Ugh…" Zabuza says before he looks down and sees a kunai imbedded in his heart before dissolving into water.
"Damn, Mizu Bushin!" Kakashi says before he blocks an overhead cleave from behind. Zabuza jumps back out of the now dispersed group towards the river Kakashi hot on his heels. The two begin exchanging blow after blow creating a veritable storm of sparks coming from the two clashing blades, or maybe they're from Kakashis' sword, no one can tell.
"That's one fancy sword Kakashi, it's like the blades' edge is made out of lightning, though I know that isn't the famous Raijin no Ken as that was stolen years ago." Zabuza says as he dodges a wide sweep from Kakashi.
Kakashi chuckles, "You're right, it isn't the Raijin no Ken, I like to call her Pandoria." Kakashi says as he holds the blade horizontally in front of him, "And now you'll feel her power!" he says as he runs his left hand down the middle of the sword, causing a large amount of lighting to stream down the blade, "DYNAMIC SPARK SWORD!" Kakashi cries out as he swings the now extended blade of lightning at Zabuza who dodges the first two horizontal swings but blocks the last vertical swing, the lightning still arcing through the blade.
"AGH!" Zabuza yells as the current travels through his Kubikiribocho and into Zabuza. A moment later Zabuza falls into the water, the current dissipating from Pandoria. Kakashi examines the water with his Sharingan, 'The water seems to be enriched with chakra, it seems quite saturated with it…. Oh shit.' Kakashi thinks to himself before a hand shoots up out of the water.
"Suiton: Suiro no Jutsu!" Zabuza yells as a perfect ball of water encases Kakashi completely, causing him to let go of his sword. Kakashi struggles to escape but can barely move any of his muscles, "You almost got me there Kakashi, but don't bother, this water is as hard as steel." Zabuza says as another Mizu Bushin appears out of the river.
Kakashi scowls, "Everyone, his Mizu Bushin can only go 10 meters from the original, take Tazuna and get out of here!" Kakashi yells to his team.
Naruto frowns at Kakashi, "Hell no Kakashi-sensei, anyone who abandons their comrades is lower than scum!" Naruto says as he draws Mythras' sword, "Pyra, Sasuke, Sakura, keep an eye on Tazuna-Jiji." He says and tosses Pyra her sword while the other two nod. Naruto and Mythra charge with Mythra following slightly behind Naruto.
Zabuza smirks at the display, "What a cheeky set of brats, thinking they can take me. Too bad they're going to die eh Kakashi?" Zabuza says in a cocky tone as Naruto and Mythra begin to engage his Mizu Bushin. Zabuza eyes the sword that Naruto is holding, 'That sword is also pretty interesting, what in the hell is with these guys, that girl that they left behind has a similar weapon….. Interesting.' Zabuza thinks to himself.
Naruto and the Zabuza Bushin begin their exchange of blows and much to the amazement of Zabuza, and even Kakashi, Naruto is holding his ground and even pushing back the clone. As they exchange blows Naruto on occasion immediately after a strike will in a fluid motion hand off the blade to Mythra who continues the assault before repeating the process with her brother, "Those two are in good form today, don't you think? Pandoria asks Kakashi who gives a mental smile in agreement. "If it looks like things will take a turn for the worse I'll send some current out of our weapon, but in this water that will probably hurt you just as much, or I could hop out of my core state and give a hand that way. What do you want to do?" she asks making Kakashi think as he watches his students handle the now several Mizu Bushin.
"I have faith in my team, but get ready to send that shock just in case." Kakashi says to Pandoria who starts gathering some ether into the sword but is containing it.
Naruto and Mythra just dispatched their third Mizu bushin and have cleared the field until they hear Zabuza laughing, "You brats are good but if you think that you're real ninja then you're sadly mistaken, after all, your village has a weak system for graduating." Zabuza says earning the attention of Kakashi.
As Naruto fights off his fourth Mizu bushin he decides to inquire further, "And how exactly is our graduation system weak?" Naruto asks as he cuts down a Mizu bushin and hands off the sword to Mythra who blocks another bushin as Naruto runs through some handsigns, "Fuuton: Daitoppa" Naruto calls out as he releases a rather sizable wind from his mouth that pushes the Mizu bushin away from Mythra.
Zabuza is impressed with their teamwork so he decides to humor the boy, "All you had to do was learn a few simple jutsu, easy right? Well for us in Kiri you had to exterminate your classmates for your graduation exam." Zabuza says which shocks everyone except Kakashi.
"He's right, Zabuza Momochi, the demon of the bloody mist. He graduated top of his class….. By singlehandedly eliminating his entire graduating class." Kakashi says which makes Sakura shiver and look pale.
"So you see what I mean when I said your graduation was weak, we already had our first kill before we even became genin, your village is weak!" Zabuza says in a rather off putting tone.
Mythra charges the Mizu bushin that was pushed away by Narutos' jutsu and manages to duck under a swing before cutting the clone in half at the waist. "Naruto!" Mythra calls out and then ignites the sword creating a beautiful emerald blade which stuns Zabuza, Tazuna, and Sakura while Sasuke smirks. Naruto takes the sword from Mythra and stands in front of her, a golden glow now surrounding Naruto and Mythra. Naruto and Mythra then charge at an increased speed at Zabuza who makes 2 more Mizu bushin who are cut down the moment that Naruto gets within a few feet.
As Naruto and Mythra approach a few thoughts run through Zabuzas' head, 'Shit, at this rate they'll get over here, I've either got to block this strike and that girl will move my arm out of the jutsu or I end the jutsu and block both strikes, either way Kakashi is going to get out, gotta make the smart play here.' Zabuza thinks to himself as he quickly removes his hand from the water prison, dispelling the jutsu, and jumps away just as the emerald blade cuts diagonally across where his chest just was.
Kakashi falls on top of the water gasping for breath as Naruto stands right next to him, "You alright Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto and Mythra ask in unison.
Kakashi looks up at them with grateful eyes, "Yes…. thanks, though that was a bit reckless. Good work though you two." Kakashi says as he huffs for breath, obviously starting to feel the wear of his Sharingan. Kakashi stands up and grips his sword before deactivating it and putting it on his back, "Now get back and let me handle this, go protect Tazuna you two." Kakashi orders and the two Uzumaki siblings nod in acknowledgement before jumping back a few times to get back with their teammates. Kakashi looks at Zabuza who seems to be getting tired, "Seems like Pandoria did a number on you eh Zabuza? Let's finish this." Kakashi says as Zabuza starts running through handsigns that Kakashi is mimicking as well which surprises Zabuza as they both call out, "Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!" and two dragons made of water begin to swirl around the two combatants and crash into each other, neutralizing them both but forcing them back onto land.
Zabuza starts running through more handsigns that Kakashi is mimicking in perfect sync which scares the shit out of the Nuke-nin, "Can you see the future?!" Zabuza asks in a scared tone.
Kakashi and Zabuza finish their handsigns at the same time and Kakashi looks Zabuza dead in the eyes, "Yes, and your future is death!" Kakashi says as he begins to launch his jutsu, only for a trio of Senbon needles to hit Zabuza in the neck, causing him to sway and fall backwards.
"Thank you for your assistance, I've been tracking Zabuza for weeks now and your help greatly sped up my search." Said a female in a mask that bore the mark of Kirigakure.
Everyone looks at the woman, "A Kiri Oinin (hunter ninja), so Zabuza was your mark?" Kakashi asks as the woman approaches the body.
She nods as she kneels down and picks up the Kubikiribocho, "Indeed, once more thank you for your assistance in this matter." She says as she get ready to pick up Zabuza only for Mythra to ask a very good question.
"Why haven't you decapitated him yet, I thought that was a universal standard procedure for Oinin of any village." Mythra asks and the woman immediately dashes for Zabuza before disappearing in a shushin. "DAMN IT!" Mythra says with a deep scowl on her face.
Kakashi scowls before the chakra depletion hits him like a train, "Damn…" Kakashi says before falling to his knees causing everyone to run up to him, noticing that he doesn't have any real wounds Pyra assumes he has chakra exhaustion. Pyra picks up and keep him steady before placing his headband over his Sharingan eye, "Thanks, everyone, get back in formation. Tazuna how far away is your house?" Kakashi asks as everyone gets into position with Pyra now on the right, replacing Sasuke, with Kakashi on the inside of the right supported by Pyra.
Tazuna looks relieved that he's ok and answers, "It's about 2 miles south of here, I'll let you guys know where to go." Tazuna says and they set off in the direction of Tazunas' house.
xXxXx Location: ?
The masked Oinin lays down Zabuza and the Kubikiribocho before examining Zabuzas' neck, "Ok, now I've got to remove these carefully or I'll risk crippling him." The masked nin says as Zabuzas' eyes open and he sits up, ripping the needles out of his neck. "Oh my Zabuza-sama, you really shouldn't be so rough with removing those." She says as Zabuza looks at the fake Oinin.
"Damn it Haku, you couldn't have hit anywhere else?" Zabuza asks, "And take off that damn mask." He says as the now named Haku removes the mask, revealing a black haired beauty.
"Your neck guaranteed the best chances that they would believe that you were dead, otherwise I would've had to hit you with more senbon and you would be out of commission for an even longer period. Though you are going to be unable to fight for about two weeks, one week if you don't move too much and I can find the proper herbs." Haku says in an amused tone while Zabuza sighs, allowing himself to be picked up and set down into a bed. "Now rest up Zabuza-sama, we'll take care of this contract soon." She says as Zabuza sighs again before falling asleep. Haku leaves the room to begin preparing some medicine for Zabuza only to recall the blond boy and girl, 'Those two were strong, far stronger than a normal genin. And their sword was similar to Kakashis' sword but it felt so much more powerful. That team is dangerous.' Haku thinks to herself as she walks into a medical room and begins rummaging through the shelves.
xXxXx Location: Tazunas' house, 4:50 PM
The group approaches the home and Tazuna breaks formation, opening the door to the home, "Tsunami, I'm home!" Tazuna calls out and a blue haired woman wearing a pink shirt walks into the living room with a happy smile on her face.
"Tou-san, you're safe!" Tsunami calls out as she runs to hug Tazuna who returns the embrace with a smile on his face. She breaks the hug and looks over the group behind Tazuna, "You must be the ninja that brought my father home safely, Thank you so much!" she says with a grateful bow, as she looks over the group again she sees the state Kakashi is in and gasps, "What's wrong with him?" she asks worriedly.
Pyra chuckles a bit, "He's not hurt, just tired from chakra exhaustion. Do you mind if we find a place for him to get some rest?" Pyra asks as Kakashi passed out the moment they walked into the house.
Tsunami nods, "Yes, please follow me upstairs." Tsunami says and Pyra follows the woman with Kakashi in tow, everyone else entering the house and grabbing a seat but before Tazuna can sit a little boy walks into the house and sees Tazuna.
"Ojiisan, you're home!" the little boy says as he runs at Tazuna and hugs him.
Tazuna chuckles and pats the boy on the head, "I'm home Inari, but I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for these brave ninja." Tazuna says in a happy tone but Inari ends the embrace and looks at the other people in the room before frowning.
"I'll be outside looking at the sea, I'm glad your home Ojiisan." Inari says as he walks out of the building.
Tazuna sighs, "That boy is still upset…. I hope he can get over this." Tazuna says as Tsunami and Pyra enter the room.
"Kakashi is in bed now, all we have to do now is wait for him to wake up." Pyra says as she sits down at the table along with Tsunami.
Mythra sighs, "You know Zabuza is still alive right?" Mythra asks causing Tsunami and Tazuna to look at her with scared looks. "That Oinin was a fake, she was watching the entire fight and had plenty of opportunities to take out Zabuza, but when it looked like he was about to lose she hit him with Senbon, which are really hard to kill someone with if you don't know where to aim. She probably put him in a near death state and took him to safety to heal." Mythra says.
Tazuna coughs, "Don't you think you're reading too much into it?" Tazuna asks as Tsunami nods in agreement.
Sakura answers this time, "No, she's right. She hit him in the neck, a vital point yes but also a point where one could slow down the heartbeat and pulse of a person to near non detectable levels if done correctly, whoever that Oinin was is an accomplice to Zabuza." Sakura says and earns nods from those present. "Furthermore what Mythra said on the field is also correct, Oinin are supposed to decapitate their target on the spot and destroy the body to reduce the risk of secrets getting out, Zabuza is alive." She says in a solemn tone as everyone starts thinking on how to deal with him when he returns.
End
AN- I am so sorry for the really late chapter as I had a lot of things to do over the last week. I will hopefully have the next chapter out before the 6th or so. I wanted to have Sakura have some medical knowledge near the start of the series so she can be an even more useful medic later on, again I didn't want her to be a useless fangirl. I hope you all enjoyed the fight scene with the demon brothers and Zabuza despite my lack of skill at writing fight scenes, and Kakashi will have all of Zekes' arts as his basic attacks with Pandoria. Next chapter will be longer and will be part 2 of 3 of the wave arc. Review and Ja Ne!