Chapter 44
The view of smoke could be seen coming from the stadium. If you were closer to the building you could hear the sounds of battle. The shinobi of the Leaf were engaged with shinobi of the Sand and shinobi of the Sound. The Hokage was also in battle against his old student, Orochimaru. Lee watched all this with shock and couldn't believe that it was happening. That's when he saw the dust coming from the competitor's box. He made his way to check on his comrades but had to quickly dodge a wave of sand.
Lee continued to dodge the sand with ease, trying to get to his comrades. That's when he saw something jump out of the dust. He saw that it was his comrades, all of them safe. Naruto was carrying Kiba while Sakura held on to Akamaru. Shikamaru and others landed onto the field, closely followed by the two Sand shinobi. Lee regrouped with his allies as the two older siblings did the same.
"Are you all alright?" Lee asked.
"For now." Naruto answered. He looked around and saw what was happening. "Holy shit, this is bad. We need to find our sensei."
"I don't think the red head is going to let us." Shikamaru commented as Gaara launched his sand at the group. Naruto quickly pulled out two canisters and tossed them.
"Cover your eyes and ears!" he shouted as the two canisters exploded, creating a blinding light and loud screech. Gaara and his siblings were going nuts at the sound. When it died down, the group was gone. The group were making their way to the medical bay. They entered before securing the door. Choji and Tenten saw this and was worried.
"Guys, what's going on?" Choji asked.
"We're being invaded. The Hidden Sand village has betrayed us and the Hidden Sound village are their allies." Shikamaru said.
"I think the leader is that Orochimaru guy. He's trapped in a barrier with the old man." Naruto added. He looked around and saw some adults. "Hey, how many shinobi do we got in this room?"
"We can heal, not fight." answered one of them.
"Okay, Choji, Tenten, are you guys able to fight?" Naruto asked.
"Sorry guys, I'm still very low on chakra." Choji answered.
"I can fight. I was just cleared." Tenten said.
"Okay, I got a plan. Sakura and Tenten, you guys need to get the injured out of here and to a more defensible position. We won't be able to hold this area for long. The rest of us that are able are going to find a jonin. We need to know what's going on and what we can do." Naruto ordered.
"Hinata, you take point while your cousin takes the rear. Shino, send out scouts to tell us of whose coming our way while you, Naruto, create some distraction with your clones." Shikamaru added. Most of them nodded at the instructions and got ready to move. Naruto quickly pulled out his ink set and began to leave some traps for any one coming in. After being shown a back door, the two groups quickly separated to complete their objectives.
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Asuma cut down two more shinobi before throwing his knife into another ninja, saving one of his comrades. He retrieved his weapon and looked at the battle before him. Things seem to be going very well as they were prepared for anything. What the genin discovered during the second part of the exam helped his father and the elders prepare for this scenario. He couldn't help but be proud of the work they did. He was also happy that they manage to escape whatever happened in the competitor's box.
"Asuma sensei!" the man turned to see the genin. He made his way over to them.
"What are you guys doing here?" he asked.
"We couldn't defend the medical bay. Sakura and Tenten are leading the injured and medics to better position while we came to find out what to do." Naruto explained.
"Good plan kid. I don't think that you'll be needed as much. Head back and find," Asuma was suddenly joined by Guy. Asuma could tell that the man was not happy. "Guy, what's wrong?"
"Kakashi sent Sasuke after that Sand genin, the red head." Guy said, shocking everyone. He looked toward the genin. "Lee, Naruto, Shino and Shikamaru, I am giving you an S-rank mission. I need all of you to pursue and help Sasuke defeat the Sand shinobi. Lee, you have my permission to go all-out. Shikamaru, you are in command."
"Yes Guy sensei!" Lee exclaimed.
"Why me?" Shikamaru whined.
"Sasuke pursued the siblings to the forest northwest of here. Get going." Guy ordered. The four boys moved carefully outside the stadium. Once out, Shikamaru quickly made a plan.
"Alright, as annoyed as I am, let's get moving. If this guy Gaara is the key to the whole invasion, they would protect him. Them moving northwest will put them in close to the middle if they continue their path. Sasuke chasing them may change things but I seriously doubt it. We'll move in two teams. Lee and Naruto, you guys head north through the alley ways. You might be able to get ahead of them. Me and Shino will follow Sasuke's path and catch up. If we do this right, we can trap them in a pincer move." he said.
"That's a solid plan." Shino said.
"I'm all for it." Naruto added. Lee just nodded. The four separated to start the mission.
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Gaara was annoyed. He was so annoyed that he could kill something right now. He didn't care if they were friend or foe, something needed to die. The target of his bloodlust was that bowl-cut genin who hurt him. He was the first to ever get pass his sand, the first to ever landed an attack. It wasn't just one attack, it was two. He was excited as he would have proved his existence with his blood. His 'mother' demanded his blood and he would have given it if it was for that blonde's little distraction.
The screeching sound and the blinding light infuriated him and his 'mother'. He was going to correct the failure of his siblings and hunt everyone down but was stopped by his sensei. He would have killed him for interrupting him but he reminded him of the destruction that he need to inflict. It was the only reason he was complying, nothing else.
He didn't care if his siblings stayed away. He would have killed them if they tried to come near him. He just wanted to get this over with and destroy this village. He suddenly felt heat but he was not hit as his 'mother' protected him. The three stopped to face their attacker who revealed himself to be Sasuke.
"I've finally caught up with you." Sasuke said with a grin. His Sharingan bore into the three but mostly focused on Gaara's back. Temari readied herself for a fight.
"Kankuro, you and Gaara get to the staging area. I'll hold off the pretty boy!" Temari said loudly. Kankuro was about to argue when Sasuke spoke again.
"Stay out of my way. I'm not here for you. I'm here for him. I'm going to run my jutsu through his heart and end this little invasion." Sasuke said with a sneer. The truth was, Sasuke didn't care if Gaara was their main attack. All he wanted to do was prove that he was strong enough to defeat the Hidden Sand Village's strongest shinobi. If he defeated Gaara, it would prove that he could take on Itachi and win. Gaara was merely a stepping stone in his ambition. The words he said made Gaara turn to face him. The two were staring each other down.
"You have the same eyes as me." Gaara said gravely. "Come then, show me what you can do." Sasuke smirked while the siblings were not happy.
"Gaara, this isn't the time," Temari began but was cut off when she and Kankuro was struck by sand. It slammed them into the tree and kept them there. Temari was knocked out while Kankuro was dazed. Gaara ignored them and faced Sasuke who pulled out his kunai. He launched himself Gaara who waited for him, a sick grin on his face.
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Tenten kept her eye out for any attacks like the other shinobi. So far, the fight had been centralized to certain points of the village. It seem like the village was prepared for this to happen, which was surprising. Lucky for them, they ran into a couple of shinobi who had set up a shelter near the stadium. Apparently they had set up several of them.
"Sakura, we need two packets of O positive!" a medic shouted.
"Yes sir." Sakura shouted back and went to get the blood. Tenten watched the pinkette work as she got the blood and rushed back to the medic. She watched as she set up the blood to be injected into a bleeding ninja. It was a blood transfusion to keep the man alive. That's when she heard her name called again and she ran off the help.
"Man, she's really going." Tenten said.
"Yeah, Sakura has come a long way from what she was." Kiba said. The genin offered his help even if he couldn't use his arms right now. Him and Akamaru kept their noses alert for any unfamiliar smells. "I remembered when she was one of those girls who chased after Sasuke. I don't know when the change happened but it was for the better. I like the new her." Tenten rolled her eyes at the tone Kiba used. They then noticed a tall boy come up to her.
"Sakura, you can take a rest." he said.
"No, I'm okay Haku. I can," She was cut off when Haku took her hand.
"You need to rest and let everything settle Sakura. You were attacked, had to defend your comrades and are now dealing with injured people. It is a lot to take in and if you don't rest now and talk about it, you will crumble. I can handle it. Just rest up and let your mind settle." Haku said. Sakura was blushing up a storm at the contact.
"I guess you're right. I have had a day. Thank you Haku." Sakura said with a smile. Haku smiled back at her. The scene was pretty cute. Tenten then turned to Kiba.
"Looks like she's found someone else to fancy. Sorry Kiba." Tenten said with amusement. This made the others chuckle, including Akamaru. Kiba just pouted and turned his nose up at them.
"She wasn't my type any way." Kiba said. That just made it funnier.
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Sasuke hit the tree trunk hard. It caused him to gasp and spit out some blood. He pushed himself to his feet so that he could face whatever he just woke up in Gaara. He was doing fine in his battle, using the moves that Kakashi taught him. He was able to score hits on him due to him copying Lee's movements. It made him fast and Gaara could barely keep up. The sand was a problem but the Sharingan help him negate it. He was setting himself up for the kill, activating the Chidori. As Kakashi authorized deadly force, he had no problem rushing in and delivering the deadly jutsu. The only problem was that he missed Gaara's heart and hit his shoulder, bypassing his armor.
That's when things started to go wrong. Gaara, who must have never been injured, couldn't comprehend pain. That's when he looked down at his shoulder and saw blood. However, it was not the blood of his victim. It was his blood, his blood. Gaara roared in a panic as Sasuke quickly jumped away as his sand was whipping around the area. Gaara was going crazy at the fact that he got hurt. That's when he began to transform.
Sasuke watched in horror as Gaara formed a large claw, a tail and half of his face looked like a raccoon dog. A yellow eye with a four-point star and four dots stared at him with nothing but hatred. With a roar, Gaara charged at Sasuke with increased speed. He barely dodged the claw swipe and quickly got distance. His Sharingan was now useless as he could barely keep up with him. Sasuke tried the Chidori once more but because he used it in his fight with Naruto and Gaara, it was not as powerful and it sapped the rest of his chakra. This left Sasuke at Gaara's mercy as he proceeded to knock Sasuke around.
Sasuke looked at Gaara with defiance as he looked back with glee.
"You did well up to a point! You are the first to make me bleed, to feel pain! I shall return the favor by crushing you and feeding your blood to my mother! Isn't that great!" Gaara said manically.
"You crazy bastard," Sasuke gasped out.
"Heh, heh, heh, that look of fear, I love it! That's the look that proves my existence! That proves that my way is the strongest! I love myself and only myself! When you care for others, it makes you weak! I thought you had eyes like mine but I was wrong, so wrong! Now, I'll put you out of your pitiful existence! Now die, SASUKE UCHIHA!" Gaara launched himself at Sasuke who could not move or defend himself.
"Leaf Hurricane!" a voice shouted. Two hard kicks hit Gaara and sent him off course. He looked up to see Naruto descend on him. Naruto delivered three punches followed by a palm strike. Naruto summoned a clone and used him as a platform to escape. That's when Gaara noticed the sealing tag. He had only a second before it glowed. A large explosion encased Gaara as he hit the ground. Naruto landed on a branch as Shikamaru and Shino arrived. The watched the smoke for any movement. A loud roar dispelled the smoke and it revealed something.
"W-What is that?" a nervous Shikamaru asked no one. The beast looked at all of them with a crazed look in its eyes.
"I WILL KILL YOU ALL!" He launched itself at them.
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Authors' Notes: Well, it's been a while since I updated. Anyway, I'll be putting out a new re-write of this chapter at the beginning of the week. I'm probably going to do that with every one of my story. Anyway, enjoy this chapter.
