Sorry for the months' long wait, everyone. My fall schedule tends to get a bit busy, and this year's been…taxing as I'm sure many of you can guess. This chapter marks the official start of the Kazekage Rescue Arc. I can safely say that there'll be a few little deviations from canon to spice things up a little while still telling the story of our favorite knucklehead ninja rescuing his fellow Jinchūriki! Without further ado, onto the story!
I do not own anything.
Poison Dove & Maelstrom Fox
Chapter 24 - To the Western Desert
Intense personal combat had never been Semiramis' forte, but spending so much time around one such as Naruto Uzumaki had given her a taste for it. She could say that she wasn't regretful. No, she never regretted the chance to show off her power, be it political or mystical power, both of which she wielded with great pride. Well, at the moment her political power was not what it used to be. Accepting such a thing was amongst the first things she had to accept in her existence as a Servant. On a somewhat merciful note, it wasn't like she was born into royalty and couldn't live without it. No, what she felt she couldn't live without was the sense of power that always coursed through her fingertips, no matter how big or small. Semiramis always felt a rush when she was able to exercise that power.
This mock battle was going to be one of those times.
Rather than a fellow sorceress, she would be fighting a ninja, much like the hundreds she'd already encountered in this world. They came in many shapes and varieties, some bearing little resemblance to the ninja of her world. Then again, she'd encountered next to no ninjas, certainly not the 'legendary shinobi' such as Sasuke Sarutobi, Hanzō Hattori, or the infamous Fūma Kotarō. Should a day ever come she'd met any of the three, she was confident she'd be ready. Battling the shinobi of this world was proving to be a truly eye-opening experience in many, many ways.
Semiramis took the time to size up her opponent. The coat-wearing kunoichi was exactly the same as she had been in Naruto's memories right down to her aura. Unlike the soft and gentle auras of Sakura and Tsunade's assistant, Shizune, this woman gave off air just like her own, that of a snake coiled up and ready to pounce. That feeling was furthered when the two women locked eyes with one another. "You said poisons and the likes were your areas of expertise. I assure you, you've never seen venom quite like the kind I can produce. I look forward to seeing if you can withstand it." Spoke the Assyrian woman with glee in her voice.
"And I look forward to seeing if you live up to all the hype that's been going around." Boasted the purple-haired ninja with an audacious grin. The spear she'd previously planted into the ground was raised and pointed directly toward the long-haired woman, giving the audience of Team 7 a good look at it.
To his credit, Naruto at least managed a wave, something that Anko took with a very amused snicker. She was quite happy to see some of the fear she'd implanted in the blond still remained, even if he had learned she wasn't quite as menacing or unhinged as her first introduction or her rumored reputation had made her out to be. Sakura and Kakashi looked at the normally hyperactive boy and each gave a small snicker at his somewhat subdued response; Sakura in particular fondly remembered their first meeting with the snake-using kunoichi during the Chunin Exams.
The memory of those exams had been…quite an interesting look for Semiramis, as well as some interesting tales to hear. What really stood out to her was the fact that her Master had passed the first portion, a written exam…by answering not one single question, which accidentally ended up with him receiving a perfect score on the test. Semiramis had let her composure drop and laughed at the revelation. Her interests were further piqued when she learned of what the second part of the exam would be - a survival test overseen by the woman in front of her. The former student of the Leaf Village's number one traitorous ninja, the man responsible for killing the Third Hokage himself. To face such an opponent, even if it was just a mock battle, well…Semiramis couldn't deny that she was becoming excited. More so once she got a look at the weapon that the coat-wearing woman would be wielding in this battle.
In one glance, she could tell that it wasn't an ordinary ninja weapon, at least not the sort that she could easily melt with a single flick of her acid or break with a hardened grip. No, the weapon gave off the mystical aura of a weapon of mystical origins. It caused her blood to race in her veins behind a calm façade. Her snake-liked slitted eyes examined the fine craftsmanship of the five-foot polearm, seemingly marble at first glance, but metallic in origin. To her, the flow of mana-no, chakra was quite easy to see, like a small river rushing downstream into a great opening - the blade. Containing the power into the thin stream was a set of seals in the form of bandages wrapped around the upper, middle, and bottom half portions of the spear. Almost immediately, Semiramis quietly wondered to herself what would happen if those bandages were to come loose. This energy, wait…I…I believe I might have felt it somewhere before. Could it be-?
"You can do this, Semiramis!" Shouted the oh-so-familiar and as usual bombastic voice of her Master.
Though her train of thought was disrupted, the Assassin felt a small smile tugging at her lips. Naruto always got like this when she was about to do battle herself, especially against an opponent that was worth their salt, or at least he believed them to be. Looking at the woman in front of her, she quietly readied herself. A smile rose on her face just as one did on Semiramis'.
A second later, and the two women lashed out at each other, quite literally in Semiramis' case.
Her poison-coated black-iron chains swung out from both her wrists, slicing through the air just as surely as her opponent's spear did, leaving a bluish-glow in its wake. Darkness and light, the latter ironically wielded by a woman who apparently preferred coming off as dark and unsettling as possible somewhat like Semiramis herself, what irony. The air itself exploded as the two weapons collided, a resounding crack ripping its way through the forest along with a gust of wind powerful enough to shake the branches of several trees. From this, one might have been forgiven in thinking that the clash had been a tie, but it wasn't. Semiramis' eyes widened as her chains were thrown back; the shock was momentary as it quickly morphed into excitement. In that clash, she realized that this battle would indeed be one that would get her blood pumping; it would be one hell of a way to start off the morning.
Reeling her chains back, she brought them around for a counter swing as she saw Anko moving to take advantage of the brief victory she'd scored. Her spear came charging right at her face, the fang-like tip ready to run its way right through her face, but it didn't. Semiramis gently stepped to the side, intent on getting a closer look at the weapon. As she'd guessed, it was of great craftsmanship, so much so that Semiramis doubted that it had been human hands that had made the weapon. Her reflection stared back at her from the side as several strands of her ebony-black hair were cut loose. As quickly as it was there, it was gone as the spear was pulled back by its owner; all of it had taken place in the span of no more than a few seconds. Using her superior speed, Semiramis counter-attacked on sheer reflex, striking out with her right leg; it sent Anko skidding back, but it wasn't anywhere near enough to put her down.
That was made clear as she began to twirl the spear about in swift arcs. Knowing what was coming, Semiramis jumped to the side, avoiding the blast of pressurized air that came from the weapon. Several more came, each one carrying more than enough power to slice through the average human being they were unfortunate enough to be caught in its way. Semiramis never was, but she knew better than to test out her endurance against such feeble attacks, especially this early in the battle.
Copper-colored eyes widened and blood raced as the Servant jumped to the side, cutting through the space where she'd been was the spear, not extending itself several feet eliminating the small distance that Semiramis had put between herself and Anko. That distance no longer mattered, or at least it no longer served to give her the advantage as it originally should have. Next, she ducked as the extended spear was swung in a sweeping horizontal arc that split several trees trunks in half. Acting quickly, Semiramis threw out her right hand and caught the weapon's shaft in a tight chain embrace. Semiramis readied herself to pull, but much to her surprise she found herself being pulled instead, her feet leaving the ground and her body sailing through the air. Acting quickly, she struck out with her free left hand, sending a trio of pointy-tipped chains charging straight for her opponent. Anko smirked from her position on the ground and did the same with her right hand, except instead of inorganic weapons, a trio of brown and black-spotted snakes came surging from her sleeves. The trio of serpents flew open their mouths and hungrily surged forth at the approaching weapons.
Within seconds, the two attacks met, and blood splattered across the forest floor. Disgusting sounds of flesh tearing reverberated through the woods; it was enough to cause the small audience watching the battle to wince. Hearing it was bad enough, but seeing it was rather…unsettling. Even to Naruto, who admittedly had a bigger bias against snakes than his pink-haired teammate. He took no pleasure in watching two of the three serpents getting shredded by his Servant's chains. His eyes did widen as he watched said chains begin to corrode and break apart, acidic poison eating its way through the divine metal. It was a shock to both him and Semiramis, acid devolving something that was already coated in acid? That was a first for both of them.
As was the case in a fight, Semiramis only had so much time to digest her shock. Just as her left side chains had been broken, her right side set was as well, the links dropping to the forest floor in melted-off hemps. The Servant looked down as Anko twirled her weapon around her waist then thrust it upward, directly at her. Again, the weapon extended, much like a coiled serpent; watching the spear-tip approaching her, Semiramis could have sworn that she saw the vintage of an actual serpent approaching her. Not that it detoured her. With her trademark grace, she twirled out of the way in midair, her black hair fanning out behind her in the late summer sun. As she felt the spear move past her, she grabbed at it with her left hand, corrosive poison consuming her palms.
Instantly, she felt pushback. I was right! This isn't a normal weapon, and most certainly not one crafted by ordinary humans! The sting of pain that shot through her hand and into her arm made her wince in pain. Semiramis thought back to when she interacted with Naruto's Nine-Tails Chakra Cloak, the crimson-liquid energy being too powerful for her regular poisons to overwhelm, whatever power coursed through this weapon was on the same level. And it was just as acidic.
Taking advantage of her momentary confusion, Anko threw off the Servant's hand and retracted her spear. It was only momentary as she aimed the tip of the weapon at the ground; from it came a surge of bright blue water that propelled her toward the airborne Servant. Seeing it, Semiramis responded accordingly, extending her left hand out and firing off a cloud of poisonous vapor directly at the grinning kunoichi - who responded by swinging her spear in a massive arc that had a literal tidal wave trailing behind it. The water clashed with the poison, somehow canceling it out and leaving a white and black-colored cloud hanging in the air. Anko pushed through it and slashed at the Assyrian Servant; she wasn't surprised when she found herself cutting through nothing but air. Looking down, she saw her opponent had pulled herself back down to the ground, using an implanted chain. She raised her right fingertip up at her, purple light gathering around her fingertip.
"Fire Style-Dragon Flame Bomb!" Yelled the purple-haired kunoichi, heaving her head back then throwing it forward. From her lips came a surging burst of fire that briefly shaped itself into a roaring dragon. Such an attack quickly overpowered the magical beam Semiramis had fired, and would have overpowered anything else the Assassin could have put up on short notice, so she did her best to dodge the attack. She had to go far as the attack wasn't a simple fireball that exploded along a few feet, it was a great blaze befitting of its namesake. Running, she could feel the heat licking at her heels, certainly nothing to turn her nose at, but an attack she had no intention of letting hit her. As she ran, Semiramis gave credit where it was due, this Anko woman was rather impressive. Her fire techniques were perhaps around Jiraiya's level.
And then the fire was gone.
Semiramis shielded her eyes as a sudden burst of water slammed into the now raging inferno, a burst of steam immediately being created from the collision of polar opposites. It was a fairly decent smokescreen, but again, not something that was going to stop the Assassin. Manifesting her own kunai, she moved to deflect the several kunai that came flying at her. She looked over each of them for any paper tags, either explosive bombs or flashbangs; there were none. That was because the real attack wasn't going to come from in front of her, it was coming from underground.
The Assassin remained calm as five snakes burst from the ground and struck at her with gaping jaws.
SLISH!
And in one swift move, a blur of dark-gray, all five serpents were decapitated. Semiramis searched for her opponent, having temporarily lost sight of her.
"Ninja Art-Serpent's Blood-Ignite!" Shouted the special jonin's voice from somewhere beyond the steam cloud.
Slightly wide-eyed, Semiramis looked around her and realized that the blood of the severed snakes was seemingly floating in the air, and glowing bright red. Mentally cursing, she threw her arms up, fish-like scales quickly growing across her skin. As with most low-level attacks, she was shielded from the resulting explosion. For a few precious seconds, Semiramis felt herself alone in a blazing inferno, one that completely consumed her senses, much to her chagrin. Unable to sense her adversary, she defaults to manifesting two chains and swinging them out in a wide fanning motion. They connected with something, or rather, something connected with them. Through the embers, she looked to her right and left and found she'd latched onto a clone on either side of her, rushing forward was the real Anko, a murderously happy smile on her face as she ran at her full steam with her spear glowing a faint azure blue. Seeing it caused Semiramis' heart to skip a beat, it was an indicator that if she didn't parry the next blow or parry it, she was going to be feeling the pain. And it excited her.
A vigorous smile mirroring Anko's formed on the ancient queen's face as she seized one of her chains and swung it in a swift arc that put it on a direct collision course with her opponent's weapon.
For the second time, the forest was torn asunder by the horrid sound of metal clashing against metal, both sides bearing some…unnatural qualities to them. For starters, both were bolstered by the elements, elements that rode the shockwaves that were born from the collision of chain and spear. Acid and water sailed across the air, the former causing an immediate dissolving effect wherever it hit. Both female fighters took a single step back, their arms slightly rattling from the impact of the collision between their attacks. Locking eyes with one another, they decided it was time for another clash, this time with even greater force.
Tendrils of dark green and purple slid up the Servant's chain while torrents of swirling blue water wrapped around the kunoichi's spear. The latter let out an impassioned battle cry while the former merely grunted, they stepped forward, swinging both their weapons in the direction of one another.
On one side was a whip-shaped lash of poison that rotted anything it touched, especially organic life such as the tree branches and grass underfoot. Tendrils of smoke rose from whatever the venom splashed down, a result of it eating through whatever was unfortunate enough to be in its path. That didn't extend to the massive wall of swirling blue water which beat against the poison lash. Again and again, it struck at the watery wall generated by the spear, but aside from a few howling bursts of steam, there was no definitive victor. Pure acid had met something just as pure, and something that wasn't going to dissolve away as most materials did. Semiramis took notice of this as the swirling water shaped itself into sharp arcs that were launched at her. Spinning on the tip of her toes, she spun her chains in a circular motion creating a defensive shield around her, one coated in acid. As Anko discovered, this wall was quite sturdy.
The chains rattled as did the spear, yet the eyes of their wielders remained hard and steady as they looked into one another.
In seconds, one half of the forest was assailed by countless globs of mystical poison that eroded and rotted away every piece of greenery it came into contact with. On the other side, dazzling droplets of blue water splashed about. The two sides waged a constant struggle against one another, fueled by the actions of their manipulators. Both women had eager smiles on their faces, smiles that would have terrified the hearts of most men and women who laid eyes on them. They would have been able to tell in a second that there was…something not quite right with either of them. For the spiky-ponytailed kunoichi, that was a no-brainer. Regarding the long ebony-haired magic queen from another world, well…normal people that didn't have pointy ears, snake-like eyes, or the ability to turn the very air itself into a poisoned substance. Understandably, watching the two engage in a superhuman battle would have taken someone of either incredible bravery or incredible stupidity.
A certain knucklehead ninja was either one or the other or both as several, including the two ladies in question, could attest to.
"Semiramis, stop!"
The toxins that Naruto's blades contained were a natural counter to hers, or at least her lower and mid-tier ones. Should an…accident ever come about, he'd no doubt be there trying to smooth it over, in other words making sure Semiramis didn't accidentally kill anyone she wasn't supposed to. The Kitsune-ken darted out through the trees and snaked their way toward Semiramis' chains. Naruto felt the vibrations feedback into his arms, thankfully no more than a light rattling. It wasn't the first time he'd done this; his first attempts to parry her chain attacks had been less than successful as he'd reacted on sheer impulse. His toad-themed sensei had laughed and winced as he suffered several painful cuts to the face and arms. Thankfully, he'd gotten better over the months; when his chains ended up intertangled with hers, he knew immediately to jerk his arms back summoning all the strength he could to restraint the Assassin. It worked.
Anko saw the intertangled chains and immediately knew that something was up. Her mind was racing a thousand miles a minute and the adrenaline pumping through her continued to carry her body forward even as her brain signaled for her to stop. Luckily, just as her opponent had someone to stop her, so did she.
"Ahem, while we were definitely enjoying the fight, I'm afraid we're going to have to put it on hold." Came the cool voice of the Leaf's Copy Ninja, his hand gently holding on her shoulder to stop her. If she tried to continue moving, that soft grip would tighten.
Not that there was a need for it. "Seriously? Dammit, and just when things were starting to get good too! I felt like I was just getting all revved up!" Exclaimed the purple-haired ninja, all the fight draining out of her and disappointment taking its place. The same applied to Semiramis. "Hey, looks like we're going to have to put this little match on hold, your highness."
"So it seems." Semiramis affirmed, dismissing her chains. In doing so, she caused Naruto's own to begin to drop to the ground until he dismissed them as well. "I take it Team 7 is going to be receiving its first mission."
"It seems so." Answered the blond with a bit of an excited grin on his face. For someone who was rather eager to get back home, Semiramis found it ironic that he was now eager to leave it in favor of adventures elsewhere. Then again, there were some soldiers who longed to return home from the battlefield, perhaps to drink and cuddle up to their families before feeling their warrior instincts calling them back to the theater of war. Naruto could have somewhat fit into that category, being the easily-excitable person he is.
Letting her eyes wander to her right, Semiramis felt a chill run down her spine as she noticed the presence of an Anbu Black Ops member behind Sakura. That right there was a bad sign as the Anbu were only dispatched if the matter proved quite serious, likely from the Hokage herself. Shifting her eyes to her Master, she saw the brief flicker of worry in his eyes; he wasn't blind to the implications. Still, as Naruto always did, he put up a smile and tried to think of the best. If this was serious, then perhaps it meant they'd really get a chance to test themselves against worthy challenges. The thought was enough to make her smile and even accept the sudden interruption that she and her purple-haired adversary had suffered.
"Until next time then, Anko Mitarashi." She called out.
"Yeah, until next time. Don't go getting yourself killed until we can settle this, and look after that cute little knucklehead. I'd like to test myself against him too since the word is he's done some growing up with Lord Jiraiya!" Called the special jonin, eyeing her Master.
The look caused Naruto to shiver, in partial excitement…and partial fear.
You wouldn't happen to be still scared of her, would you, Naruto? Coyly fired off the Servant.
Naruto looked ready to defend himself, but she felt the slight ebb in his mind. Eh, a little. But she's still not as scary as you.
For various reasons, Semiramis felt overwhelmingly happy hearing that. The only thing that would have made it better was Naruto being able to physically say the words, and right in front of the woman no less. It was enough for her to start walking back with a thin smile on her face. While it didn't go unnoticed, it did leave the rest of the group puzzled, namely Kakashi and Sakura. Even more baffling was how Naruto seemed to have a bit of a small smile on his own face.
Leaf Ninja Academy, Ten minutes later…
"WHAT THE HELL!?"
As anyone who knew him could attest, Naruto Uzumaki tended to get quite loud, especially when one of his emotional hot buttons was pressed. He was quite a sentimental person so interfering with the people he cherished, his friends, was a surefire way to do that.
That button hadn't just been pressed, it'd been smashed to pieces.
"I will repeat myself." Tsunade Senju said, slightly annoyed at the sudden shouting of her surrogate grandson. Granted, she'd been expecting this, and she could understand his anger. The thing was, she doubted Naruto was looking at the potential political implications of this. For that, she looked at Semiramis, who caught her eyes. She knew. "The Fifth Kazekage has been kidnapped."
Hearing the words a second time seemed to hit even harder for the assembled group, especially Naruto. He was trembling with shock…and anger - raw, boiling hot anger. Whatever optimism he'd had about what sort of high-class mission they would receive had evaporated, replaced with cold dread and searing hot rage. "It's them, isn't it?" He seethed, the latter winning out over any sense of fear or unease he might have been feeling.
No one in the room was really surprised: not Sakura, not Kakashi, not Iruka, not Shizune, not Tsunade, and most certainly not Semiramis, who stood beside her Master as the bombshell was delivered. She alone could feel how truly enraged the blond Jinchūriki was. It was like being next to an erupting volcano. The smoke was bellowing and the earth was shaking when they arrived at the academy, then came the bombshell that one of the Five Kage had been kidnapped and up came the torrents of lava that was now racing down the mountainside laying waste to everything in the vicinity. She'd been here before there, standing before the coming waves of wrath, and standing strong at that. It would be her duty to quell the coming waves as best she could, keep the mountain that was her Master from collapsing in and dooming him, and potentially countless others.
"How old is the news?" Kakashi finally spoke up, his voice tight showing he too was taking this seriously.
"We just received the message today." Tsunade started. "Apparently, Gaara's been missing for only a day, two nights ago he was attacked by a member of the Akatsuki." Saying the name of the organization seemed to cause the temperature in the room to drop several levels. Quite ironic for an organization named after the dawn. "That means that they should still in theory be within the Land of Wind, but we have next to no information about its members. What they're capable of or how dangerous they can be, all that we do know is that they travel in pairs."
"So that means one could take the Kazekage and continue running while the other holds off any possible pursuers." Semiramis mused. It was the most immediate picture that popped into her mind. She quietly bit her lip in irritation as they had so little details to go on, something that upset her. These Akatsuki were after the nine Jinchūriki, which included her Master. It was the age-old dilemma she'd first been made to wrestle with - Naruto's fate cast a long shadow over hers. A look on his face and she could see he wanted to do nothing more than run off to the southwest and prevent Gaara from meeting a darker fate than he'd already been handed. She worried that if she took her eyes off of him, that's what he'd do. "When do we leave, Lady Hokage?"
"As soon as you're able to." Responded the pig-tailed blonde, looking over the whole of Team Seven. "Though only a day old, that's already too much time lost. Team Seven," it was her first time commanding the enigmatic ninja team. In place of the village's last Uchiha, there now stood a mysterious woman who was once a queen from another world…who apparently wasn't even "alive" in the normal sense of the world. But she was standing in front of Tsunade, flesh and blood like any other person. Most importantly, she presented herself ready to receive her orders and follow them through as best she could, and keep Naruto alive. "Your mission will be to head to the Hidden Sand Village and gather information. Should the village have suffered any damages during the attack, you are all to assistant them in any way possible." Several individuals caught the way the female Kage's gaze lingered on Naruto. He himself caught the gaze and straightened up. At least he knew better than to speak out and cause a scene, especially while receiving instructions on what to do. "From that point onward, you will coordinate with the Sand to find and rescue the Kazekage. In the meantime, you are also to gather as much information on the Akatsuki as you can, but, your primary objective is the rescuing of the Kazekage of the Hidden Sand. Is that clear?"
"Yes ma'am!" Four voices sounded in unison.
Yet again, all eyes subtly drifted toward the Leaf's own tailed beast container. Any resemblance to the happy teenager enjoying his homecoming the other day ago was gone, replaced by a fierce seriousness that was both heartwarming and slightly unsettling to see. All hope was that seriousness would be channeled on this up incoming mission, and that it wouldn't boil over. The mission object personally lined up with the number one thought in Naruto's mind. That was both a good and a bad thing.
He only just got back, and already we're sending him back out, and into the maws of danger. Tsunade could already see the village elders giving her an earful. They just got Naruto back in village, along with a new but promising asset who was bound to him…and they were about to send them out to face some of the most dangerous criminals in the land. With next to no solid info at the moment. It was far from ideal, but it was the plan she was going to. Besides, it wasn't like she was sending him out there completely unaware and exposed. First, her hazel-colored eyes moved to Kakashi, who met her gaze. He knew what she was thinking, silently, he nodded his head confirming that he would indeed look after Naruto with his life, as he always did. During the practice battle last night, he wasn't able to reveal that to them, so this mission will be their first time seeing it. Next, she looked at Sakura. Much like Kakashi, she had a look of utmost seriousness on her face. The resolve in her eyes spoke volumes about how she would behave on this mission, which would have a bit of a personal stake in it for herself. She'd keep everyone alive, especially Naruto, who no doubt would get himself hurt at some point. Speaking of injuries, her eyes finally fell upon Semiramis, who also returned her stare with appropriate seriousness. There's still so much about you I don't know, and something about you that puts me on edge…but I'm going to trust you with the light of this village. I'm going to have faith in you, Wise Queen of Assyria.
Tsunade looked at her right and left sides, to Shizune and Iruka respectively. Both of them had looks of grim resignation on their faces. Both of them cared for Naruto as a surrogate family, especially Iruka who looked like he was about to watch a puppy trot off into the wild. That viewpoint wasn't too far off, but this puppy had some fangs of his own, something that Iruka's logical mind recognized. Same thing with Shizune, albeit she seemed to have an easier time handling it. Internally sighing, Tsunade couldn't help but bitterly note how Naruto had lived most of his life alone, only to find people who loved and accepted him. Of course, whenever one of those people was in danger, he'd drop everything and go to their aid. It was noble, but damn if it wasn't frustrating to deal with for some, especially those who wanted to keep him safe.
To her quiet surprise, Naruto himself seemed to recognize that as he looked between his two surrogate relatives. His eyes of course lingered on Iruka. The hardness that had once consumed him softened considerably as he did his best to reassure his old teacher.
When she managed the time to, Tsunade was going to have a drink. While having that drink, she'd test her luck. If it was the same as usual then she would be able to relax and take her time, if she actually won something…then she would worry more than she already was.
⊲=≡▷-ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ-◁≡=⊳
Ten minutes later…
"Really feels like it's been forever since I've been here. Heh, especially sitting behind the desk as another little kid still in training." Naruto mused, walking up the steps and stopping at the row of desks that he'd sat.
"Heh, it's amazing how two years can seem so much longer. I'm glad to see that you've grown up a little." Responded the scar-nosed teacher with a laugh.
"Physically or mentally?" Naruto sheepishly asked with a grin.
Iruka looked up and down his former troubled but favorite student. It was often said that the troublesome students were often the most rewarding to teachers. He'd once heard the honorable Third Hokage mutter such a phrase, along with deep longing in his eyes. Iruka had come to recognize that look, and emulate it himself following the faithful day one of his own students chose to abandon the Leaf Village. It was a bitter irony to look back on, Sasuke Uchiha, the golden egg and most talented of his generation, he was the one everyone thought had a bright future ahead of him, including Iruka. Naruto, on the other hand, was seen as an annoyance at best or loathed by his classmates and teachers, in the form of the former, simply because of lies their parents had told them. If anyone spoke of Naruto's future, they spoke of it as a dead-end, of dying a meaningless death or outright flunking out of the ninja system altogether.
Oh, how time had gone on to prove those perceptions wrong.
"Let's see now…you've certainly gotten a little bit taller, something I know that you're grateful for." His words caused the blond to practically bounce on his feet. Naruto had a few insecurities about himself, one of them being his height. That issue was brought into sharp focus on the prelude before the Land of Waves Mission; nothing quite like having your teammates stand next to you and realizing you're literally the shortest of the trio. Mercifully, he'd seemed to hit a growth spurt. "As for mentally…I'd say you've grown, maybe just a little."
"Hey, that's better than saying I haven't grown at all." He settled with a little bit of a relieved smile.
"Naruto, you've been growing bit by bit ever since you stood up to Mizuki. You've grown into a proud and strong shinobi. One that's been assigned one of the most important missions in perhaps the village's history." Iruka responded, his voice at first cheery before dipping into a more serious tone. While praising his student mattered to him, there was no escaping the elephant in the room. The "big mission" that Naruto had been after was the rescue of an old enemy turned friend, a very deep and personal friend. Such a change showed on Naruto's face as he mournfully looked to his old academy seat.
"In our letters, we talked about our childhoods. Reading some of Gaara's…I…realized that one, big difference between us was that he had power while I didn't."
"…Power." Repeated the chunin, his own eyes growing distant. Such a simple word, but with so many definitions behind it, not to mention the ability to drive others to madness. Such a fate had befallen his best friend and one of his own pupils. What of those who already had power? In some cases, that was good, but in others, it made them feared, hated even. That had been the case for the Fifth Kazekage. "You know…I…I worry sometimes that you could have ended up like him, Naruto."
"I probably could have." He admitted rather easily. The realization had crossed his mind in the few nights after the showdown at the hospital, when he and Shikamaru had stopped Gaara from killing the still hospitalized Lee. That was when he learned he wasn't alone, that there was another like him who'd been hated and reviled for something deep within him…but unlike Naruto, the redhead hadn't been powerless, nor had the hatred stopped at mere ridicule and disdain. No, Gaara had his life put in mortal danger, yet he was protected by a layer of sand that could crush and kill any unfortunate being caught in it. One such being had been his maternal uncle, loving until he revealed that he'd always blamed him for the death of his sister, Gaara's mother. After that night, the malicious killer Naruto and his friends had encountered in the Chunin Exams had been born. Then he'd been defeated, by Naruto's hand no less. Defeated and many would say redeemed; not to bad for the academy's class clown, especially in light of the fact that Sasuke fought him on roughly even ground, but failed to significantly defeat him as Naruto did. "If I'd ended up like Gaara…becoming angry and filled with a desire to kill everyone just to affirm my existence I…I don't know. I just have this feeling I'd be even more lonely than I already was."
"That tends to happen. In the pursuit of power, you tend to toss aside the things that matter the most to you, sometimes not even realizing how much you've lost until you're standing there alone. Then again, this is just my perspective."
"You're not wrong. I want power, power to protect the village and everyone in it." When he wrote such words to Gaara, the redheaded Jinchūriki had replied before his defeat at Naruto's hands, he couldn't begin to wrap his mind around such a concept. It just went to show what would have happened to him if he hadn't heard the kind words from the man in front of him that night he stole the Forbidden Scroll. Some nights, it was literally what made him unable to sleep thinking about what might have been. Looking to his left, he could vividly picture the row of students that sat beside him. Of course, a certain dark-haired sole survivor came to his mind, quite vividly. Naruto's face darkened with sorrow as he contemplated how much he'd missed within the class's golden child. Behind that stoic façade had been a wealth of pain similar to his own. All three of us, Sasuke, if you'd gotten to know Gaara, would you be as gung-ho as I am? "Iruka-sensei, do you think I have enough power to rescue Gaara?"
The point-blank question hadn't been entirely unexpected. Iruka had a feeling that it was coming from the moment Naruto and Team Seven was handed the mission to rescue the Kazekage. Quite a few would have argued that handing such a mission to the newly reformed squad was insane, especially since their newest member was a complete unknown as far as everyone was concerned. But Team Seven was unique amongst all the ninja teams that year's crop of students had produced. "Naruto…I believe you will rescue him." Walking up the steps, he placed a hand on his former student's shoulder. Sometimes, it felt like just yesterday he was watching him making faces and struggling with his schoolwork, or laughing as he pulled off another successful prank. "I believe you'll work with your teammates, and together, you all will be able to rescue the Kazekage. Don't forget that you're not the only one who's trying to save him. At best, you'll have a whole village backing you, so don't be afraid to rely on others. And try not to shoot off at the hip at everything."
"Heh, guess you're right. Better I hear this now than later on, huh? Odds are, someone's going to be telling that to me, especially Semi-chan." Laughed the genin.
"She's a wise woman, so when she speaks, try taking her words to heart."
"Always do. She's…kind of the smarter one between us. I'm hoping that when all of this is over with, she can meet Gaara. A king and a queen meeting together, when I think about it it's kind of cool and kind of scary to think about." Added the whisker-faced teen. Admittedly, he'd thought of how a meeting between his fellow Jinchūriki and his Servant. Both of them were emotionally compressed people…though Semiramis tended to emote a little more often, especially when her interests were piqued. It was a gut feeling, but he was hoping that the two might strike up a friendship between one another. "Say, want me to bring you anything back from the Sand Village?"
"Maybe I can give you a list, but for now, I have something I want to give you, Naruto. Hold out your hand." His right arm was held out as he requested. Iruka performed a series of hand signs, a set that he'd quietly been preparing for months. Slamming his palms together, a faint puff of smoke exploded from between them, as he pulled them apart a faint blue light sparked between his palms. Naturally, it caught Naruto's attention. Wearing the same fatherly smile he always wore, he positioned the object over Naruto's hand and let it drop. "It may not be much, it may even be seen as me playing favorites, but…here. I want you to have this."
Naruto's own azure eyes were reflected in the azure texture of the gemstone that stared back at him. Encircling it was a serpentine dragon; if the blond had to guess, it was most likely modeled after the legendary Azure Dragon of the four Celestial Beasts. Upon turning the small medallion over, he found that it was.
"When you feel the darkness has consumed you, let the winds of life flow through you so that you may rise again."
"Iruka-sensei, this is…this…this is incredible." Naruto whispered, completely unsure of what to make of the treasured artifact. Yes, he knew for a fact that what he was holding was without a doubt a piece of treasure. Looking it over, feeling it with his fingers, he knew this wasn't some trinket that could be bought at a store or pawn shop. It was…special, just like the bond between him and the academy teacher in front of him was special. "I…I can't take this. This is way too-"
"It's yours, consider it your welcome home gift." Softly retorted the chunin, taking the younger boy's hand and closing his fingers around it. "It was a reward for one…very unusual mission. I'm passing it onto you since it's said to bring luck and good fortune to its owners. Heh, you can say that I've…had some, and I'd like to send a little your way. A little good luck never hurt any-!?" He stopped, off guard when suddenly he'd been pulled into a hug by Naruto, the warmth of happiness showing on his smiling face was enough for the instructor to recover quickly from surprise and smiled back. It'd been years since he'd been hugged by his former problem student. Iruka could say that he missed it. Rebounding from the sudden hug, he returned it, wrapping his arms around the blond ninja who'd once been seen as a pariah by the Hidden Leaf Village. Slowly but surely, that had been changing, Iruka wanted to believe one day those times would be just a distant memory.
"Thank you, Iruka-sensei." Came the somewhat teary voice of the young ninja. "Thanks for…thanks for a lot of things."
"Thanks for being one of the most problematic students I ever taught." Responded the chunin with a laugh, one that was echoed by his former student.
Great Desert of the Wind…
"Something on your mind, Sasori, my man?"
As per usual, there was a short pause before a response came. "Deidara…do you sense anything out of the ordinary?" The grovel voice was flat as always, though thankfully devoid of the usual annoyance at often peppered it. While the former Stone ninja was a little happy for that, he wasn't blind to what it meant.
For that reason, he turned and looked around him. He saw nothing but desert, something he'd grown a little tired of seeing. Having grown up in the Hidden Stone Village, he'd heard tales of the "neighbor to the south". The Land of Wind had a few things in common with the Land of Earth, namely being a somewhat barren and harsh land that forced the people to adapt, that same adaption becoming a source of pride for its respective people. Deidara, for all his treachery and disdain for his homeland, could say he held some pride in his ancestors for settling down in such harsh terrain. Likewise, he could say he held some respect for the people of the Land of Wind; it took something special to settle the literal sea of sand that he and his partner had traveled into. The journey hadn't been pleasant, but in the end, it'd been met with success as evident by the comatose Kage rolled up in the tail feathers of his clay owl.
Of course, traveling with such luggage was going to attract some attention. They'd already been met with the expected pursuit force from the Hidden Sand Village. They'd fallen as easily as dust in the wind, though the Kazekage's brother had apparently put up more of a struggle than the others. If he had only just barely proved a challenge then Deidara wanted to believe they had nothing to worry about.
In the long run, it was probably for the best since he was running short on clay and missing an arm, something he was still a little peeved about.
"Deidara!" Snapped the hunch-backed rogue ninja.
Ah, now there was the snappy annoyance he'd come to expect from the puppet master. "Look, I'm not picking up anything. Do you really believe that someone could be following us after all that? Then again…we did steal their Kazekage. From what I understand, the village has some real back luck with them, don't they?"
There was a brief chuckle from the former Sand ninja. "They say the position's cursed."
"And I suppose we've just further verified that, haven't we, Sasori, my man?"
"Hmph. Curses, I refuse to believe in such superstitious things, what I will say is that attaining certain positions comes with certain risks. Be those positions of power…or positions of criminal nature like ours." To the right side of the Akatsuki member appeared a large scroll in a poof of smoke. An unseen hand unrolled it, revealing the written up summoning incantations. Several poofs of smoke went up from the unrolled scroll, as they faded away several humanoid figures stood slightly hunched over. All at once, they snapped to attention revealing their wooden faces covered by blackened cloth beneath the summer sun. Dressed in their dark red clothing, they stood out rather well against the bright yellow sands of the Desert of Wind. "If someone is following us, these puppets here will sniff them out and slow them down. We have to keep on moving."
"I figured that'd be your response." Deidara stated, reaching into his right-side pouch. He had so little clay left, but just enough to make a handful of bombs, and fittingly enough, small bug-sized ones to boot. Not his best work, but they were what he could manage. At the very least, he'd regained enough of his chakra so that if they detonated, they'd have a little kick to them. Throwing his right hand out, he threw eight spider-shaped bombs into the wind where they quickly disappeared from the naked eye. "Like you keep saying, we are on a bit of a tight schedule so we best keep things moving, hm."
"For once, you actually said something I agree with." Muttered the hunchback criminal, already making a new trail in the sand. His puppets dashed out in multiple directions, disappearing into the sand, literally. "Come on, the further away we can get from Suna, the better."
"You really hated coming back to your former village, didn't you, Sasori, my man?" Mused the blonde-haired artist.
Sasori kept his gaze forward, both that of his puppet and his own. Since his partner's rather delayed return, he'd done everything he could to keep from looking back in the direction of the Village Hidden in the Sand, only making an exception when battling the Kazekage's brother. "Would you be happy to return to your former village?"
"Yes! Just to show them how much my art has improved and rub it in that old, big-nosed bastard's face!" Deidara proudly proclaimed. He was fully expecting the resulting groan from his senior. "Hey, you asked the question, don't get so grumpy when you get an answer."
Sasori continued to groan. As much as he hated to admit it, Deidara was right. Ask a stupid question, get a stupid answer. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching them. The problem was he didn't know who, nor could he tell where they were doing it from. It was a simple gut instinct…which was funny since he no longer had a gut, or a kidney, or any other internal organs. And yet, Sasori could still feel in his reinforced puppet body, human-like sensations that occasionally gnawed at him like flies. Sasori hated it with a passion, but he knew better than to ignore it. He'd seen too often what happened when those feelings were ignored - they usually ended in death. He'd seen enough of it during the war and much more afterward. His moniker of Sasori of the Red Sand didn't just refer to his fighting ability, but the fact that death seemed a constant in his life.
Another constant was the emptiness, the lack of warmth that had plagued him since that day. That wretched day where the two most important people in his life were taken away.
Not once did he ever think about perhaps sneaking into the village to visit their graves. When he left the Hidden Sand, he vowed he'd never set foot in the village again. Not unless there was someone worth his interests in there; after all, he was always open to growing his puppet collection.
⊲=≡▷-ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ-◁≡=⊳
Less than five minutes after the pair had left their "drones" to cover their tracks, the drones picked up on something and began to move in coordination toward a single target. Though unseen, they'd sensed something and immediately began to move to it, hostility flaring up within the soulless automatons.
Of course, the only reason they had a target was because that target wanted themselves revealed.
Rising from the sand, the two figures watching the coming two-pronged attack. All it would take would be a second to slay the puppets and neutralize the bombs.
A second was all it took for one of them, his right eye flashed, the stylized X-mark in his pupil glowing in a crimson shade of red. From it rung out a crimson-colored pulse that traveled across the desert in front of him. As soon as it slammed into the puppets, their movements came to a complete halt, as did the bombs. All of them were paralyzed, the chakra that had once animated them now frozen, and under the mysterious man's control. Fully emerging from the cloak, he revealed himself to the desert sun overhead. His pale blue hair gently swayed in the sandy wind. It was cut short, just barely extending past his neck. He never much liked long hair, it tended to get in the way during his forging, which was the last thing he wanted. He could never understand how some blacksmiths made do with hair reaching down to the middle of their backs or further.
"You know, I don't think I ever get tired of that little trick of yours. Kind of sad though that this is what it's getting used on after a day of watching them." Chuckled his companion, still hidden beneath the cloak. From a distant, it would have looked like just another sand dune, which was exactly the point. A cloaking blanket that didn't blend into the surroundings might as well have been an oversized tissue.
"All things considered, this might be preferable. After all, we don't want to spoil the game so early in its development." The blue-haired man replied in a casual tone. He was perhaps in his mid-to-late twenties with a good five-foot-ten figure with the bulk of his body hidden underneath a sandy cloak with a high collar. Fashioned to the right side of it was a wolf's head shoulder guard, the polished metal shining in the desert sun.
"You know, you're probably one of the most laidback people I've ever met in regards to revenge."
Turning back, the stranger looked at his companion with a wistful smile. "Remember, this is only one-part revenge, the other part is business. That said, I won't deny that the former may end up winning out over the latter. If that does end up happening, I might end up having to rely on you to pull me back." Looking back at the path the two Akatsuki members were taking, the blue-haired stranger let this mind drift to the image of their cargo, the broken and beaten Kazekage of the Village Hidden in the Sand. Oh, what a sight it had been. The only regret he had was that he hadn't been there to witness the battle in person, though from what he heard, the redheaded Jinchūriki had put up quite a fight. He might have had a better chance of winning had he not wasted his time in trying to save his village, then again, protecting the village was part of the job of Kage.
"True enough, and now he's on his way to having his inner demon ripped out. A damn shame to be honest. From what I understand, the Shukaku was the reason why his childhood was so miserable so arguably he should be happy about having the damn thing ripped out of him. Shame he won't live long enough to enjoy being a normal human being."
A dark chuckle rose from the blue-haired stranger, his eyes, one bloody red and the other leafy green, crackling with sadistic amusement. "If that beast is to be ripped out of him, I'd prefer it if we were the ones doing it. But that would take time and effort, two things that we're running somewhat low on, so we'll leave it to the Akatsuki. That's the plan, and that's what we'll be sticking with…unless some…unforeseen complications come up."
"And by that, I take it you mean the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki. The same brat responsible for supposedly turning the Fifth Kazekage from a psychotic little brat into the man he is now. I'll admit, I'm kind of eager to meet him." The cloak fell away as the second figure rose. He too was mostly obscured by his clothing, albeit it was of a different breed to his companion's. The straw hat he wore had no holes in it, or bells such as those worn by the two departed Akatsuki members. He was without a doubt an oddity in the vast desert expanse, one wouldn't have expected a kimono in the desert, even one with armored plating on the sleeves and shoulders. Still, they stood out to ensure that should one have seen him, they knew exactly what he was. The sheathed katana on his left side hip further drove the point home. Marching through the sand, he stood beside his compatriot, the two-inch height difference between the two of them becoming all the more apparent. "Then again, if that kid were to show up…it wouldn't exactly be such a hindrance, would it, Masuki?"
To the sky he looked, his gaze cold yet filled with longing for the birds who so effortlessly soared across the blue expanse. "No, it wouldn't, but his presence would complicate things. The Akatsuki will no doubt make an attempt to capture him as well. And the Hidden Stone ninja should they spot him, especially if he really is Minato Namikaze's son. Hell, the fact that the kid's survived this long is something of a surprise. I'd like to say it's luck…but he hasn't managed to defeat such powerful opponents, including helping bring down the great Seimei himself, on sheer stupid luck. No one's luck can last that long. We can use him."
From beneath the straw hat, brownish-red eyes crackled with amusement. The samurai's left hand went to the hilt of his sword, it was twitching. Naturally, it'd been about a week since he'd been able to draw it for the express purpose of using it to cut someone. Practice dummies and rocks only went so forth and he longed to see his beloved blade doing what it was meant for. "So, do you want me to break off and intercept him? Odds are he'll be traveling with Kakashi the Copy Ninja and his supposed Assassin bodyguard. It'll be close, but I think I could cut off a pound of flesh or snag some droplets of blood for you."
Masuki looked at his compatriot with calculating eyes. "No, skilled as you are, that'd be too dangerous. Like I said, the game is still young and we can't go wasting our best pieces before we're even at the half-way point. No, we'll leave it to the others. Let them handle them once they get to the Hidden Sand Village. You'll stick with me and keep on trailing those two back to their hideout."
"Well, as much as my pride would like to argue that I can hack it…you're probably right. If we were talking just a bunch of snot-nosed genin, their jonin instructor, and a random nobody, I'd be able to manage." A dark chuckle fell from the man's lips as he tipped his hat low, blocking out the light of the sun. As he did so, he could feel the scar stretching from his right cheek almost all the way back to his ear throbbing as if the lack of sunlight was agitating it. In truth, it was actually from the excitement he felt in picturing clashing against the infamous Team Seven. He was curious as to who this replacement for the Leaf's last Uchiha would be and if she really could conjure poisons powerful enough to kill any living creature like the rumors claimed. The temptation to break from his superior was strong, but he contained himself. The way he saw it, their path and those of the no doubt on the way Team Seven were on a collision course, the time would come for them to do battle. All he had to do was be patient. Looking up from his straw hat, he whistled in the direction of the still-frozen puppets and bombs. "Say, what are you going to do about them? Odds are once they're out of range, those two won't be able to sense them, or at least I hope not."
Looking to the side, Masuki chuckled in seeing the automatons were still frozen stiff. His right hand rose over his eye. It seemed that after many months, the transplanted organ was finally functioning as he wanted it to, and just in the nick of time to boot. He'd been looking away for what must have been a few minutes, yet the stasis lock he'd imposed on the puppets and bombs had remained in effect, a far cry from when he first used the use and had to keep his gaze on the target for it to remain frozen. "Give me a few minutes. These things were meant to slow us down, but now they'll be ours to use as we wish."
"Hmph. Just try to make it fast. I'm all for keeping our distance, but at some point, they're going to be too far out of range for us to track." The samurai responded as his associated walked over to the first of the puppet.
"They're heading to the Land of Rivers."
A dark-colored eyebrow rose. "Exactly how much of this do you have figured out?"
"Honestly, I'd say perhaps a quarter of it. We're still lacking so much information, but from what we do have, we can make some guesses." Masuki calmly answered as he pulled away from the clothing on the front of the puppet before him. His left arm crackled with chakra as he began to tinker with the inner workings of the puppet. Very few puppet masters were able to create what amounted to autonomous drones that could operate potentially miles away from the puppet master, making them more robots than puppets. He expected nothing less from Sasori of the Red Sand. "Just be a little patient, Osuke."
"Hmph, I'm patient, I just greatly dislike dealing with artificial creations like puppets and these clay bombs."
"I find them quite fascinating." Chuckled the craftsman. "I'm curious as to how you're going to react to these supposed skeletal soldiers that this Assassin is said to be able to conjure."
"How am I going to react?" The samurai repeated with a raised eyebrow. A second later and he was chuckling, then laughing like his associate had just told a funny joke. "I'm going to cut them down, of course! Soldiers made of skeletal bones? Let them come! I've cut down countless skeletal cannon fodder, many that had flesh on them! And if she brings forth this supposed divine poison then…what better challenge for me, the man who wields the flowers that purify all life?"
Deep laughter rose from the weapons blacksmith. It was in no way mocking as he felt a genuine desire to see the clash of powers between the two, his long-coated associate and partner and this mysterious "Assassin", whose beauty was stated to rival her lethality. Even more fittingly, he heard that she was a long-range fighter, quite like puppeteers and genjutsu users. Such traits made the clash between her and the ronin to be a match akin to fire and water. Which one would overcome the other? How much collateral damage would be wrought when the two finally came to blows? Such thoughts filled him with childish excitement that almost consumed him.
Oh yeah, these next couple of days are going to be fun.
Leaf Village Gates…
Naruto had a gut feeling that when the others saw further displays of Semiramis' ability, they would be left a little speechless. On one hand, her familiars were quite a bit like the summoning jutsu, the Assyrian Servant herself stating that it was more or less the same give or take. That said, unlike ninja, Semiramis didn't need to spill even a little bit of blood or even do any hand signs. All she had to do was call out with her mind, or as she preferred, snap her fingers. That's exactly what she did as they stood just before the opened village gates.
There was some amusement on his face as the space before them lit up with purple light, and from that purple light came five super-sized doves, all flapping their wings in the warm later summer air.
"So, she really can summon animals without much set-up." The Fifth Hokage mused, somewhat taken back by the sudden summoning.
"Yes, though if I were to be honest, my dove familiars somewhat pale in comparison to some of the creatures employed by your Summoning Jutsu." Admitted the Servant, stepping forward and gently caressing the beak of one of her familiars. Within seconds of being summoned, all the birds converged upon her, affectionately nuzzling her. "As I'm sure some of you have been informed, my doves are not a combat-oriented species, they can be used for surveillance and travel by air, but that's it."
"That's all we need them to do." Spoke Temari, a look of firm determination on her face. It was to be expected, after all, it was her little brother that was missing, and one way or another she was going to get him back. Her resolve was just as steely as Naruto's, albeit it was more tempered owing to her cooler temperament. Locking eyes with the Servant, she spoke, "These birds should cut down the journey by about a day, though once we get to the Land of Wind, I'm not sure how long we'll be able to travel atop of them. No offense, but I don't think these things will be able to handle some of the sandstorms that we could end up encountering out there."
"You're probably right." Semiramis somewhat woefully responded. Truth be told, a part of her was reluctant to push her precious birds through something like a sandstorm. They were tough, but against the fierce winds of the desert, they wouldn't be able to stay airborne.
"If it comes to that, then we go on foot." Kakashi spoke up, putting all the focus back on him. "We'll ride Semiramis' birds through the Land of Fire and into the Land of Wind for as long as we can. That'll save us some time, which something tells me we might be running low on. Should a storm come up, we'll disembark and find shelter then wait it out. Once it ends, we pick up where we left off on either foot or by air until we reach the Hidden Sand Village. Any questions?"
There were none, not from the pair of reunited teammates now ready to head out to rescue a former enemy turned ally, not from said ally's older sister who'd finally had her brother back after years of murderous darkness and hostility, and finally none from the black-haired Servant who held no personal stake in the entire conflict. But the missing Kazekage was a friend of her Master, thus the matter was now hers, and she'd do her utmost to ensure the mission's success.
All of it was exactly what Tsunade wanted to see. "Once you arrive at the Hidden Sand Village, you're to send back an immediate report on what's happening. Should I dim it necessary, I'll send reinforcements, but until then, Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, Semiramis, you four are going to be representing the Leaf Village." The sternness in the Hokage's face softened as she looked tat her apprentice and surrogate grandson. It was to be expected since as far as Tsunade was concerned, both of them were the closest thing she had to children, and she was about to send them out into the world. "You two make sure to be careful, alright?"
The blond and pinkette smiled at the busty Hokage. Temari looked away, a light smile tugging on her lips, same as Kakashi. Time had an interesting way of changing people, as they both could attest, but looking at the brawler and medical ninja, it was most definitely evident. While she didn't know all of the personal details of their relationship, Temari could see that a strong bond had formed between the two, and the female Hokage they were sworn to serve. Naruto, she knew had grown up lacking any parental figures whereas Sakura had fortunately had living and well parents, but that hadn't stopped her from growing attached to the Hokage and her dark-haired assistant. Seeing them made her think of the shinobi who'd served under Gaara and had gradually begun to warm up to him; a certain brunette popped into her mind, causing her small smile to fall.
She's probably worried sick about him along with Kankuro. Oh hell, what are the odds they've gotten together and tried to go rescue him themselves? The thought sent a shiver down the blonde's spine. Such a reckless thing sounded exactly like what her puppet-using brother and her youngest brother's not-so-secret admirer would do.
"Hey, come on, it's us! We'll be back before you know it, and another successful mission under our belt!" Naruto boasted before jumping atop one of the doves. "Come on, guys, let's get going! Gaara's counting on us!" Barely a second after he made his boast, the dove flapped its wings and took flight leaving behind the rest of the group. Much to their surprise, there wasn't a startling scream or yell from the blond as the bird began soaring over the forest surrounding the Leaf Village.
"Wow, guess he has gotten better." Kakashi muttered.
"Naruto, hey! Wait! Could you at least give us some tips on how to…ride these…birds." With every word, Sakura's voice broke off just a little more. It wasn't like giant animals unnerved her, for crying out loud, her sensei's summoning part was a giant slug! It was just riding a giant bird was a…very new experience for her. That bird being a dove that had apparently been born from magic was also another thing to give her pause. "Um, Semiramis, is there…anything we need to know about this?" She nervously asked.
It was clear there was a slight smirk on the pointy-eared woman's face. "Just hop on and hold on, they'll take care of the rest. I can assure you, the ride will be…mostly pleasant." With those words, she did as her Master had done and mounted her white dove. In seconds, it was following after Naruto's.
"Well, that settles it, come on, Sakura! Temari! We can't go falling behind them, can we!?" As easily as if he were mounting a horse, Kakashi jumped on the dove and held tight as it took ascended to the skies after the other two.
Temari looked at Sakura and shrugged her shoulders. Both women climbed atop the doves and took hold of the leather reins that encircled the creature's necks. Once they sat down on the birds' back, they took to the skies. Tsunade and Shizune watch with slight shock as the flock of five birds gradually disappeared into the blue skies. According to the weather forecast, it was going to be a bright and clear day so the group should have been able to make a good time. If all proved well, they'd get to the Hidden Sand Village in two days instead of the typical three. That single day could end up making all the difference.
Granted, Tsunade wasn't holding her breath on everything going as planned. When it came down to big missions like this, things rarely went as one hoped they would. The Second Great Shinobi World War had taught her that even the best-laid plans could go wrong, and her taking up the Hokage's hat had further reminded her of that.
"Lady Tsunade?" Shizune asked somewhat worryingly. "Do you…think they'll be alright? I don't think it'll just be the Akatsuki that they'll have to worry about."
"No…but I'm going to bet that they'll be able to handle what comes their way, especially Naruto. I don't want to say he's still the same snot-nosed brat he was before…and I'm going to bet that he's going to prove me right." Affirmed the Senju woman with a smile tugging at her lips. She'd seen that while his clothes had changed, he still held onto the First Hokage's necklace. That necklace was both a curse and a gift, a curse in that all who wore it had perished, especially if they dreamed of becoming Hokage as her brother and boyfriend did. Not Naruto, his continued life had given her hope. That said, she couldn't shake the uncomfortable feeling in her gut that something, somewhere wasn't just going to go wrong, it was going to go disastrously wrong.
There was one way to figure out if that gut feeling was really true; it was a method Tsunade was all too familiar with, and hated in spite of it being one of her favorite vices.
⊲=≡▷-ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ ᕳᕲ-◁≡=⊳
"Do you think we'll be able to keep up with them?"
"We've tracked flying targets before, this time won't be any different, but we'll have to watch our step. If they notice us, if she notices us, it won't be pretty."
The truth hung over the heads of the six Root operatives like a noose around their necks, one that could tighten at any second. Such was the nature of their jobs, their lives. Danger was certain on practically every mission, some more so than others. This was going to be one of those missions where their lives would most certainly be at stake, even if they stayed in the shadows. Should they be forced out of the shadows and into the light, none of the six held any illusions about making it out of the ensuing battle unscathed.
No one had any illusions about what would happen if the black-haired woman known as Semiramis caught them. She'd already threatened their leader; such a threat would be followed through on if their paths ever crossed in a negative way. Which, knowing Root's leader, would more than likely be the case. Odds were low she'd show much mercy to the man's subordinates, all of whom she'd no doubt torture for information on Root. None of the six Root operatives planned on talking, not that they could if by some fluke they were subjected to enough pain and duress that they felt inclined to talk. Death would take them all before that happened.
Cat looked back at her five subordinates, "Everyone, stick close together and stay hidden. We are not to be noticed, especially as we cross the border into the Land of Wind. Should we encounter a sandstorm, we will take shelter accordingly; once it is over with, we'll then restart our pursuit of Team Seven. Under no circumstances are we directly engage with any of them. Surveillance is our objective, on all parties that will be involved in this."
"Exactly how many factions are going to be involved in this?" Spoke up one of her subordinates, a broad-shouldered man with a raccoon mask.
"With the Kazekage now kidnapped and in the wind, it's opened up a power vacuum, one that no shortage of parties could attempt to take advantage of. First and foremost, the internal factions within the Sand Village." Cat explained. "Even if the majority of the anti-Kazekage groups have been put down, there's no doubt still a few as the Kazekage is himself a Jinchūriki. That right there is cause for dissent amongst quite a few. On the subject of that, the Kazekage himself is a prize that's now up for grabs. We cannot allow the Akatsuki to retain their hold on him, or worse, extract the Tailed Beast within him."
Another member of the group, a female with a long red-streaked pony-tail spoke next. "But we're still to remain hidden in the shadows?"
"…As much as we're able to. Should the situation become that desperate…we will step to secure the One-Tailed Jinchūriki." The response seemed to invoke some shock of the five Root operatives. It wouldn't have been a stretch to say they weren't expecting it; however, the shock was short-lived. Within seconds, the covert operatives accepted that the mission of rescuing the Kazekage may end up falling upon them instead of the oddball team that the Fifth Hokage had assembled. No one boasted of being able to do the job better than them, Root wasn't the sort of organization that indulged in such behavior. "Hopefully, it will not come to that. But if it does, everyone, be prepared for the fight of your lives. Any more questions?" When silenced greeted Cat, she turned her back to her team. "Then let's get going. We have to stay behind them or else we'll lose the trail."
Taking off in a sprint, the rest of the five Root ninja followed. They moved like shadows across the forest underneath the light of the sun. While glorious, it wasn't shining on them, not like the five-man band that was soaring the skies on magically summoned birds. Each of the five individuals were beings who basked in the light, unlike the Root operatives. They were attuned to the shadows, from the darkness they worked to serve the village. That's how it would be on this mission if all went well. If not…those who lurked in the darkness often carried the sharpest blades, ensuring that one strike was all that was needed.
Alright, that concludes the first chapter of this story's version of the Kazekage Rescue Arc. As I told you all, it's going to deviate from canon as there's going to be some more factors in play that could end up complicating things. When Gaara was kidnapped, much was talked about in the Sand Village regarding how they had to choose what to do, look for him or focus on reinforcing the village. When looked at, the village and even Land of Wind has had a rough hand, which seems to be a trend of desert-based countries in fiction. The fact that apparently something horrible as happened to the past three Kazekages kind of reinforces the point, it's also something I plan on exploring in this arc. I do want to explore more of the ninja world, and in this arc I'll be doing that with the Hidden Sand Village. Rest assured, Team Seven will be making it to the Sand Village…buuut, hey, it's the journey, not the destination!
Let me know what you thought of the opening battle between Semiramis and Anko. Without dipping into her stronger arsenal, I'd like to think Anko might have an edge in sheer firepower, especially if she can close the distance and get close to Semiramis, whom I've characterized as preferring long-range fighting to close-mid range. That's going to crop up in this arc as both Deidara and Sasori are long-range fighters as well, though some of the other players I've introduced like a certain samurai…not so much. I've thought out how Semiramis could play into this arc; before any of you ask, yes, she will have a battle with Sasori, though I won't say if that'll be their only clash or the one where one of them meets their end. Wouldn't want to give away too many spoilers for what's coming up in these next couple of chapters. Also, before I go, RIP Sean Connery and Alex Trebek.
Until next time, stay safe and healthy, everyone!