WAR NEVER ENDS – UNEXPECTED ARRIVALS
The Battlefield
Shikadai and Shinki fight together, just as they had used to say they would during their youth. The Kazekage, likely the last Kazekage, a master manipulator of sand that surpasses even his father and grandfather. The administrator of the circle, the one who mastered 'darkness' to save his cousin from the evil that was soon to envelop him.
Working together the duo combine their incredible prowess to fight through captains and even a couple of colonels. Shinki's outstanding abilities as a shinobi combined with his element bring him onto this level and while Shikadai was less powerful using chakra alone, his transcendent element makes up for this difference.
The battle has largely been a losing one for their side, of course they are outgunned significantly. Shinobi don't stand a chance against the captains and Clyde's group alone are not enough to hold back them and the colonels. These two bring about a change in morale though, Shikadai points out strategic spots and Shinki helps him to attack them. Together they manage to prevent many deaths and even change the tide of the battle in some parts.
"Hey, look at the two of them go" Temari smiles as a break arrives in her confrontation.
Shikamaru is awed as well. "Shikadai… Mirai… Shinki, the three of them are far stronger than we ever imagined they would be. Honestly, I'm proud of him, prouder than I ever thought I could be".
Temari spots an incoming cloud of dust, one that appears unnatural. She uses her wind-release prowess to blast the dust away. "Let's save being proud of them for when they win".
"Yeah".
Shikamaru refocuses himself on tying the captains down. Even against opponents far stronger than himself he is useful. His ability to tie people down can provide a second's opening. No matter if it is a battle between generals or captains, that second can make all the difference.
Shikadai and Shinki continue to fight on a higher level though. They are not support, they are the stars of the show for large parts of the army.
They also draw the attention of the one other observer present. Tao Ma.
He watches from nearby. "Those two are good, very good, much better than I thought they would be" he says with a mad smile. "Oh well, I wasn't planning to do this but perhaps it is time for me to put in an appearance".
He leaps down from his vantage point and begins to walk towards the battle.
A grey coloured elemental cloak appears around him as he moves forward, it causes small pauses all over the battlefield.
It's not a power quite like Clyde's nor Lara's. The two generals have very distinct divine energy. The nature of someones divine energy can reveal a lot about a person, some people in Clyde's world disguise it to trick people. Naturally though, Lara's divine energy is frantic, overwhelming, noisy. Clyde's, in contrast, is calm, relaxing and warm. As for Tao Ma, it is hard to describe, it is just there and it is strong. The dry energy gives out nothing about him, spreading an ominous sensation through the two armies.
"Shinki" Shikadai begins. "That guy is headed for us".
"His description matches perfectly. It's the guy who took Boruto".
Blackburn looks interested and disappointed at the same time. "Someone strong is coming".
"What the hell" Peterson spits, "First Lara and now this…".
Minato's gaze moves from Georgia instantly. 'That's the guy who took Boruto. I wanted to fight him before but I realise now that I would have no chance. Just what sort of power is this?'.
Clyde and Lara also notice the newcomer.
'Just like Naruto described his son's captor. Who is this man?'.
Lara smiles. "Here comes an interesting one".
Tao Ma reaches Shikadai and Shinki before stopping in his tracks. What he just did was a deliberate show of strength. There was no tactical reason behind it, nothing of the sort, he just takes a savage pleasure in overwhelming those who may come to oppose him.
The field is full of experienced warriors, they quickly realise they have been absorbed in a trance and their attention refocuses. The fighting starts once again and many people are killed in an instant. The battlefield is survival of the fittest, if you are too slow to react your death is assured.
"Greetings" Tao Ma says with a mock bow, "My name is Tao Ma".
Shikadai raises and lowers his head, telegraphing his visual inspection. He is not impressed. This man clearly pays no head to the terrible appearance he maintains. His facial hair – no, his hair in general seems not to have been cut for a year. His black cape is a stark contrast to the invaders' pristine wardrobe, instead it is torn with several holes in it. Only one thing about his look appears purposeful, the colour, black. Black as the night.
"You're the one who took Boruto right?".
"Boruto…" he repeats, "Uzumaki Boruto…".
He chuckles to himself, a chuckle that raises into a hysterical laugh. He is clearly insane, or at least pretending to be so. "Yes, that was me, I took Uzumaki Boruto".
Shikadai decides to try reasoning with him. "If you return him to us we can forget about everything. We can forget about you killing the 1st Hokage if that's what it costs. However, if you don't return my friend, then you better be prepared for a fight".
Shinki flinches but quickly prepares himself. He notes that Shikadai may not be thinking rationally, they would be outpowered if they took this man on, victory would be unlikely. Still, with his power and talent, as well as Shikadai's brains and transcendent element, there is a chance they could win. He ups his prediction quickly, if Shikadai and he perform at their outmost, they should win, given what they have seen.
Tao Ma smiles for a moment, the smile of a predator, watching his pray hopelessly crawl around.
Then he begins to walk.
Shikadai doesn't dare hesitate, that wasn't an acceptance of the deal so it must be a denial. He uses 'darkness' to enhance his shadow possession technique and sends a quartet of shadows cascading along the ground towards Tao Ma.
Tao Ma counters this dramatically. He summons the grey element from within his body and destroys the ground beneath the shadows with it. If Shikadai has no surface to work with things become a lot harder. Additionally, there is one more thing he does to give the Circle's administrator a more difficult time. First moving right to avoid the debris and then shifting back left very quickly, he arrives nose-to-nose with the shadowy shinobi.
"Then beat me if you can" he says before extending one hand and flicking the air between the two of them.
Shikadai tumbles backwards, lifting the dust from the ground as he crashes again and again into the floor.
Shinki quickly retreats, yelling after his cousin, "Shikadai!".
Said cousin places his hand on the ground and pushes himself up. 'This guy… he is no pushover'.
Shinki looks his cousin over quickly, assessing the damage. There are bruises, even one or two cuts where the rocks in the ground stuck into his skin. That wasn't Shikadai being unprepared, nor was it him holding back or slowly decelerating from an attack. That one hurt Shikadai.
The Kazekage copies something he has seen many times and forms a spear out of 'sand', still drawing on the contents of his gourd despite his master over the element.
'Sand containing iron, now that's unusual' Tao Ma notes, 'But what makes it strong is that it's his element. It's rare to meet a master of 'sand''.
Shinki launches the spear at Tao, a high-pitched whistle follows at it pierces through the air, pushing it aside with its neatly shaped sharp tip.
Tao Ma finds this to be child's play, like a shinobi practicing his first technique once again. He steps to the side, his eyes fixed on the incoming weapon as it hurtles up to his original position. It looks like it is in slow motion to him, he can see everything, every movement they make, every little change in the environment. Something like this couldn't possibly hurt him, unless there were a trick to it. He reaches out his hand and grabs the spear as it moves past him.
Shinki's hands, previously grasped together, are thrown apart. The spear explodes in a cloud of razor sharp iron sand. The sand quickly changes form, Shinki uses the confusion, the disorientation to form chains, fixing Tao Ma into position.
"Now Shikadai!".
They have him caught, this is a golden chance.
Shikadai coats his kunai in 'darkness' and launches it towards Tao, its velocity akin to the spear his cousin previously.
This time things are different, it won't be so easy for the kidnapper to evade.
He closes his eyes, surprisingly calm and collected compared to usual crazed demeanour. Something rises from his body, resembling a tentacle. It is made from the same ominous grey energy they have been sensing from him since the beginning. He seems to move the tentacle masterfully, like an additional limb. With plain simple precision he slaps all the chains away from his body.
Tao Ma reaches into his deep pocket. He clearly reaches into it with urgent purpose, perhaps he does prepare himself for the day ahead, contrary to Shikadai's expectations. He reaches into it and pulls out a long metallic weapon, something they recognise as a kunai.
The kunai is thrown from his hand, clashing with Shikadai's in mid-air as they both move away from their intended target.
Shikadai notices something, he doesn't look away but queries it with Shinki. "I've never seen one of them with a kunai before, have you?".
"No, I haven't. Perhaps he made it, or took it off one of our dead, after all, he doesn't look like he's with the others".
The Nara clansmen continues his assessment. The only shinobi who has truly attacked Tao Ma except the two of them is Sarada. Had she even used a kunai? Had it influenced Tao Ma that significantly. He quickly decides it doesn't matter.
"Yeah. That must be it".
Shinki claps his hands together. "Let's see if he can stand up to this".
A pyramid of 'sand' rises from the floor and crashes down around Tao Ma, who puts up little resistance. This is like a sealing technique Gaara used to use. He doesn't stop where he normally would though, he packs the space tightly with as much sand as he can, increasing the density so that even the mightiest warrior shouldn't be able to move.
Shikadai sees that Shinki isn't trying to apply any kind of seal atop this structure and takes the hint. He uses a summoning jutsu, a hundred bursts of smoke echo the summoning of a hundred shuriken, each enhanced with 'darkness'. Shikadai has done this advance, believing it may be useful as a final attack against one of the enemy generals. Each of the shuriken fire at the pyramid in turn, piercing into the thing with such tremendous speed that they manage to escape from the other side.
Shinki's pyramid slows the shuriken down greatly though, a testament to the density he has created. He gestures to Shikadai to prepare another a kunai and then when he sees it has been prepared gets ready. As the leaf shinobi throws the kunai (paper bomb attached) into the pyramid, his sand counterpart opens up a tiny opening, just enough to allow the pointed weapon passage. The pocket of air travels through the pyramid alongside the paper bomb, delivering it perfectly to its target upon hitting which it creates an incredibly loud explosion.
Even with the detonation of the paper bomb the pyramid holds firm.
"Did it get him?" Shikadai asks hopefully.
Shinki sweats as he struggles to keep his hands together. They appear pushed apart by an invisible force.
He snickers. "No".
A collection of grey-coloured tentacles burst through the edges of the pyramid. A small explosion from the centre sends the sand flying away from its prisoner in all directions.
Tao Ma laughs before stumbling towards his two opponents.
"You know, my leader will be coming to pay you a visit soon".
'His leader is coming here…'.
'He is not the leader? Someone even stronger than him is coming?'.
"If this is all you can do he won't be very impressed".
Shinki is furious. This man, he's mocking them.
"Let's see if I can't whip you into shape before then". With that, the man who they thought a leader begins to attack them, and begins to do just that.
He starts to whip them into shape.
Elsewhere on the Battlefield
A colonel runs at Clyde and attacks him with two swords of 'wind'.
The general dodges the swords comfortably, using his hips to evade the first three strikes before hitting his assailant once in the wrist to avoid the third. He thought that by this point the colonels would be starting to get the point that they are not going to be able to beat him. He understands now, Elliot has drilled it into them well; Lara is someone to be feared, Lara is someone you don't disappoint lightly.
This colonel does disappoint though, a single knock in the back of the neck is enough to put him down.
Clyde looks around dramatically, nobody left between them. It's just Clyde and Lara.
Lara's smile is so wide it's akin to a child. She takes one final swig of blood before throwing the glass she brought to the side. It smashes against the ground, shattering into pieces.
She drops down to the ground herself. "It looks like it is finally time for me to have my fun".
In quick succession, both activate their golden cloaks.
Clyde smiles a wry grin. 'Now that I'm feeling it up close I am impressed. This is your power Lara, a perfect contrast to my own'.
'Your power is 'light'!'.
It is a sensation they have felt multiple times today, Lara's power. For many this is their first taste of what that power actually is, only able to identify it by sight. This close it is clear to see though, 'light', a transcendent element to perfectly match Clyde's own of 'darkness'.
Mirai herself is about to fight a general with a transcendent element in Elliot. She can tell the difference instantly though. Elliot and Lara cannot be compared, there is a difference in quality and in the essence of their divine energy.
'Clyde is really going to fight against that?'.
Peterson is much the same in his reaction. This is his first time feeling it up close. It's not the same as from a distance. He can feel electricity. Not from his 'lightning' though, it's a palpable feeling in the air. The hairs on his skin stand on end. He knows Clyde well, he has full faith in the man but this is something on the next level. The general has never had a battle like this in his life and he's picked a hell of a time for the first one.
Tao Ma's reaction is more casual, a laugh as he toys with his opponents. 'Now that I can feel it, that woman really is impressive, especially for someone in the military. However, the others are probably too nervous to notice, that man is really strong too'.
Lara closes the distance between herself and Clyde, walking right up to him.
They are face-to-face, neither moving.
"This battle has been destined for a long time" she says, her voice now a whisper, "The battle between you and I".
Clyde whispers too, "Are you ready?".
She steps back in reply, "I'm going to kill you Clyde. I want you to know that as your bones break and you draw your final breath, I want you to remember my name in that moment. I want you to remember that it was Lara that killed you".
"I'm not the same man I was when you last saw me. I've met so many people, seen so many desperate struggles and they have changed me. I have seen the rise of a man far greater than you could ever understand".
He steps forward, bringing the face-to-face once again, "And if I'm going to die here, then I'm going to give you hell before I do".
"Then do it".
Golden 'darkness' roars around Clyde's fist and he throws it forwards.
Their fight has begun.
Clyde's Headquarters
Hinata feels it once again, she restarts her struggle, wriggling around hopelessly in the grip of the colonels.
"You have to free Naruto, I can feel it, you can feel it, everyone will die" she shouts, "Unless you let him go, all of your friends and all of my friends are all as good as dead".
"Don't act like I don't know that!" Sheer rebukes.
"Then why won't you free him? Why won't you release the only one who can stop this madness".
"The general is willing to give his life to stop it all" Grace sobs, "He's trying to stop this endless suffering. Every single person who dies will die hero for a million more who will live".
Hinata has heard this speech before, Naruto had recited something similar to her once. This is the same school of thought as Pain once had. The belief that there is a cycle of hatred and vengeance that must be broken. Naruto explained though that it was a mistake the way he tried to do it, the same way the colonels are making a mistake. She knows that the cycle cannot be broken this way, over the dead bodies of the innocent, unknowing people of the Hidden Leaf.
"They don't have to die at all".
"Shut up!" Sheer has snapped, she begins to breath heavily despite not having moved for a good time now. "I won't risk it. Uzumaki Naruto is the hero who will save our world. I won't release him. I definitely won't let him go".
"No, but I will".
Hinata's prayers have been answered.
It comes, along with an enormous flood of chakra.
A ray of hope!
Hinata looks onward with misty eyes. All is not lost for them.
"Thank goodness you've come…"
"…Sarada".