DECLARATION OF WAR – FIGHTING COLONEL ZAHRA
North Aturia
Naruto heads north with his most powerful band of allies yet. He travels with his family, with Himawari, Kushina and Minato as he always has. He travels with Hannah and Claude the Owl, who defend from the ground and watch from the skies. He travels with the princess and her two loyal companions, Yoshida Mana and Michel the Horse. This group is supposed to be secure from all but the most frightening of adversaries. Unfortunately for them, one such adversary is waiting around the corner.
In North Aturia there are enormous jungles, only marginally smaller than the one in Jakku that Shao Chin spent his days roaming. Here there are vicious predators and countless deadly mercenaries. They make life difficult for anyone who wishes to cross the border to the north and enter Queen Petra's country Fayoth. These are not a threat to Naruto and his allies though, the threat to them is far greater.
Suddenly Hannah stops without explanation. Her eyes snap wide open and she begins to look around, as if playing hide and seek with a camouflaged opponent.
As Naruto's group progresses, a lady with sandy blonde hair drops from one of the tall jungle trees, landing in front of them.
"Colonel Zahra!" Mana immediately identifies their enemy and leaps backwards.
The others all leap backward as well with only two exceptions, Naruto and Hinata. Naruto regrets not keeping the One True Sight active as they progressed. If he, Hinata or Himawari had been looking they may well have seen Colonel Zahra coming. He thinks how he should have taken more notice when he saw Hannah react. Nevertheless, it's too late now.
"Mana, who is this?" Naruto asks.
"This is Colonel Zahra, but don't let her rank fool you, she isn't an ordinary colonel. When the general for each nation was decided a shortlist was made. On the shortlist for Aturia there were only two names. Rana and Zahra. Zahra is the second most powerful warrior under King Max's command."
"Actually I am the single most powerful warrior under his command," Zahra proclaims. "That decision was made without any proper consideration. You see, while Rana may have a raw power that exceeds my own, she is severely lacking in other areas."
"Other areas?" Naruto asks.
"Intellect, planning, cunning. Rana does not see the implications of her own actions. Young Uzumaki, she has been in charge of pursuing you all this time, yet I have only started recently. And look at you now, you are right in the palm of my hand. In such a short time look who I have managed to snare in my traps. The student of Sora. The daughter of Akashi. The experiment of the king. I have done more in a short while than she has done in over a year."
"I think you underestimate your generals," Claude says, to everyone's surprise, "They aren't just stronger than you colonels, they are usually more cunning, and they invariably have battle skill that exceeds your own by more than you could possibly imagine."
"Are you hoping to distract me and take my mind off the fight?" Zahra asks. "If so, you should come with more ammunition, because I know so much about you. You are the beast who fell for the deceit of the laboratories. And who else have we here? We have Michel the Horse, the steed without a master. We have Mana, the slave lucky enough to find a kind master. We have Hannah, the experiment pretending to be human. We have Princess Endou herself, the false empress laying claim to an empire that ceased to exist long ago. Lastly, we have Uzumaki Naruto, the much-touted saviour of Homeworld who in reality is simply a shadow of Endou Akashi."
"Your words are so hollow," Hinata answers. "Claude the Owl fell for nothing, identifying immediately that Hannah was special. Michel is a free horse, who needs no master. Mana is not a slave, she is a sister to me. Hannah is every bit as human as you and I. And I am no false empress."
"You didn't say anything about me," Naruto notices.
"This man is not a shadow of my father," she remarks.
"Thank you."
"He's just a stubborn fool who doesn't know when to give up."
Naruto grins, taking this as a great compliment.
"History is written by the winners," Zahra answers. "History will remember my words, not yours. I am taking you in."
Zahra runs towards her large group of enemies knowing their speed to be inferior to her own. She immediately spots a weakness amongst them, one who will hang back and one who will move to protect her. Kushina has a baby in her arms, and Minato's body language suggests that protecting them is his first priority.
Zahra zooms past Naruto and Hinata faster than they can react to. Hannah does manage to react, aiming a kick towards the spot where her instincts tell her Zahra's head will come to be. The colonel is surprised by the attempt counter attack but is not defeated by it. She dodges beneath the kick and slaps her palm violently into Hannah's chest, pushing her backwards.
Zahra now stands with no opposition to her original intention. She gathers golden 'gale' energy in her right hand and aims a blow in Kushina's general direction. Naturally to prevent this strike landing, the 4th Hokage teleports himself into her path with the flying thunder god technique. Using all the energy he can muster, both chakra and divine, he manages to save his daughter's life. The power of the blow from a class 8 warrior cannot be stopped by any class 6 though, and the two of them are unquestionably out of the battle. Now Zahra turns with a smug smile, as if reminding her other opponents that two of them are down.
Next is the Hinata's companions. They are the next duo to fall into Zahra's crosshairs. They will not go down so easy though.
Michel charges towards Zahra with Mana stood on his back. These two have had many years to master their tandem attacks. Mana leaps off Michel's back as they get close, using a powerful bolt of golden 'lightning' energy to strike Zahra. After being hit by the lightning bolt, Michel has the chance to get close to Zahra uninterrupted, so he does so and kicks her with both front legs as powerfully as he can.
Michel notices immediately that his attack was like hitting a brick wall. He is taken back to the days he would spar with Akashi and the emperor would let him land a few attacks. He guesses that Zahra didn't even feel either of their attacks.
Zahra smirks at Michel. While his body may be useful for packing a powerful punch, that counts for nothing when there is such a gap in power between them. She sidesteps the horse's subsequent attack and is left with a tremendous area to throws strikes at. Despite the temptation of launching a flurry of blows, Zahra lands only one, a powerful strike to Michel's ribcage that ricochets him into Mana.
Now that is another two down.
Suddenly, a strike hits the rear of Zahra's head, taking her by surprise. It is Himawari. She used her shinobi skills to get behind Zahra and attack without being noticed, generating an opening that will surely not be wasted by either of her assistants in this attack.
Swooping down from above, Claude the Owl bashes into Zahra's arm, pushing her not only off balance for a second time, but out of her comfort zone. Now Zahra has no control over her descent towards the ground. Her arms are motionless as she falls. No doubt the fall itself would be painless and easy to recover from, but the other potential attack will not. Hannah saw this opening and pounced on it immediately.
Hannah puts her leg behind Zahra's, sweeping it backwards and taking both out from under her. Zahra has no contact with the ground as Hannah brings forward energy both 'light' and 'darkness' onto her fist. She Zahra's midsection as hard as she can pushing her down into the ground with a driving blow. Once Zahra is down, Hannah lets her instincts take hold and use an attack she hated to use before. She kneels atop Zahra and throws alternating punches at her, predicting where every counter will go, dummying on every attempt at a dodge.
Hannah stays atop the colonel for longer than she expected. However, while Claude was right to say that generals battle skill eclipses that of the colonels, Zahra is by no means untalented. She grabs Hannah by her shoulders, slamming their heads together at a speed that only the colonel could possibly endure.
As they both get to their feet, Zahra recognises that the numbers are getting the better of her. She uses 'gale' energy to pull Claude from the sky. She grabs hold of him by his neck and slams him into the ground forcefully. Next her attention turns to Himawari. She runs at her, not realising just how valuable she is to the people still left to protect her.
Hannah swings her foot, managing to catch the back of Zahra's, slowing her briefly.
Hinata throws the Sacred Sword towards the back of Zahra's head, but the colonel manages to dodge it.
Zahra reaches for Himawari's neck, but then a hand appears alongside her head. A fist headed towards her cheek, lit up in a blaze of divine energy, as if someone were detonating their core.
Zahra manages to dodge the blow just in time but looks at the owner in shock. She didn't think anybody here would be able to keep up with her in a straight-line dash, even if she were tripped on her first step. She realises now that Naruto has a strange power, a power that greatly increases the force of his movements in crucial moments.
Zahra uses this power against Naruto. She watches his incoming blows, waiting for one that uses that strange power again. When that attack arrives, and Naruto's fist looks like it's on fire, she cleverly pivots to deflect the incoming blow. Naruto's fist strikes his daughter in the ribs, likely causing serious damage to them.
Himawari quickly crawls away from the fight, knowing that no matter how serious her injuries her father will be able to fix them, but only if he can win this fight.
Now it is down to just the final three. Naruto. Hannah. Hinata.
Zahra decides to poetically take down Hannah first, leaving the most important two enemies for last. She attacks Hannah head-on, leaving a quite obvious weakness on her right side. To her surprise Hannah ignores the weakness, her instincts telling her that it is a fake, and attacks Zahra on the left. This matters little though, as Zahra catches the blow on the left, getting hold of Hannah's wrist and lifting her up into the air.
Naruto looks for a way to save Hannah from the upcoming impact, but he can see none. Zahra slams Hannah down into the ground with great ferocity. A powerful attack that would leave the majority of class 7 warriors down for the count. Hannah is no ordinary warrior though; she learnt a lesson about fighting spirit from one of the best.
Hannah struggles to her feet, a feral look in her eye. She lands three successive blows on Zahra, avoiding the counterattacks before finally succumbing. A strong blow to the head from Zahra takes the daughter of Clyde out of the battle.
"So now it is just you two," Zahra says. "I've known of your whereabouts for a long time now Naruto. I even sent Rana after you when I knew she would fail. Frankly, you have been dancing in my hand for such a long time now."
"Why?" Naruto asks.
"Because I want a promotion," Zahra admits, "I want what is rightfully mine. I want to be acknowledged as the best of the Imperial Guard, at least in Aturia. That will be my reward when I bring the two of you to King Max."
Naruto powers-up his leg and launches himself towards Zahra, determined that she will not hurt anybody else. The two subsequent strikes with his fists he also enhances with his divine oddity. The first strike doesn't reach its target but the second lands squarely in Zahra's ribs. Naruto sees an opening and attempts a fourth powered-up strike towards Zahra's head. Sadly, the colonel sees straight through this, dancing around the strike with considerable grace.
Zahra, having gotten past Naruto, heads straight for Hinata, who is now picking up the Sacred Sword that she threw previously. Taking her eyes from the colonel was a huge mistake.
Zahra bears down on Hinata and lands a powerful blow to her leg. Hinata is no slouch though, inheriting her skill from one of the finest warriors to ever grace this land. She swings the Sacred Sword in almighty arch, cutting Zahra's arm.
Zahra takes exception to Hinata landing a strike on her, taking it as a great offence. Unlike the others she doesn't take her out with a single blow. Zahra lands a series of strikes, first breaking Hinata's other leg, then dislocating several of her joints in turn. It is a ruthless and unrelenting series of attacks that leaves Hinata unable to fight on any longer.
Zahra has used her superior class 8 divine energy to run rampant through her opponents, save for one.
Uzumaki Naruto is still standing.
As the fight continues, Naruto fights valiantly. Zahra would never have believed that a class 7 warrior could keep up with her so well, but she concedes that her opponent is different. His momentary bursts of speed are used to compensate for her superior power, combining with his agility, that almost makes the playing field level. Regrettably, there is no bridging this gap in power, not with an opponent as skilled as Zahra.
Perhaps Naruto might be able to keep up with his opponent if there were not a nagging through in the back of his mind. He has to preserve his energy. If he were to put everything into the perfect life-gathering rasengan he would have no energy left. If he were to win this fight with no energy to spare, he would not be able to heal his fallen friends.
"Don't you see that you can't keep up with me?" Zahra asks, as they continue to fight. "You're in such a hopeless situation with no way out, why do you not give up?"
"I'll never give up. I'll find a way. I'll find a way to beat you!"
Suddenly a voice comes to Naruto. A female voice that he recognises from what feels like such a distant past now. He is overwhelmed by a sense of warmth, a nostalgia for days gone past when he fought alongside others. It reminds him of days when he fought with the people he had trained with, with those whom he could fight best alongside.
Naruto suddenly stops holding back. He strikes out with a powered-up arm, hitting Zahra square in the chest. He lands a tremendous strike, the most powerful that has been landed against the colonel yet. With the strike he even manages to push the colonel back along the ground, stopping only as her back comes to rest against one of the giant jungle trees.
Naruto looks around for the source of the voice.
It is Haruno Sakura.
Sakura emerges from between two trees. She calmly approaches Himawari and begins to apply her 'healing' energy to her apparent wounds. She begins to mend the damage to Naruto's friends. Her approach to medicine is not the blunt force method that Naruto takes but one of a precision instruments, starting with the most significant problems and making her way through the list to the minor inconveniences.
When her eyes catch Naruto's they share a smile. It has been a long time since they saw each other last. Sakura has not seen Naruto since her daughter brought her forward into the future. Naruto has not seen Sakura since her future counterpart departed to help Sarada in the battle against her out of control father.
Naruto senses something in the air, not through chakra or divine energy, not even using the One True Sense. There is something intangible that hangs around him, it gives him a rising sense of anticipation and an incomparable confidence. Until now he has been in this fight working with the others where he can, but they have not understood him. There is only one man who has ever fought at his side who can truly work in perfect sync with him.
Naruto turns back to Zahra and grins at her.
"You have no idea what's about to hit you," Naruto says.
Zahra is confused. Naruto is right, she doesn't have a clue what is about to happen. Before now she was almost certain that she was getting the better of him in every exchange. Now that this strange pink-haired woman has arrived his perspective of the fight seems to have been turned on its head.
A viridian energy swirls behind Naruto in the shape of the portal. A man with short dark hair emerges from that portal and places a hand on Naruto's shoulder. The two of them seem immediately comfortable with one another, the closest of friends, brothers with a bond forged in the flames of battle.
It is Uchiha Sasuke.
"It doesn't look like you're doing too well on your own," Sasuke remarks.
"You arrived just in time to see me looking pathetic," Naruto replies. "Normally I would be embarrassed, but right now I'm grateful to you."
"This lady seems to be a Colonel of the Imperial Guard if I am reading the uniform correctly. Looks like you struggled when you teamed with these guys."
"They're not my teammates."
"Then is it time for the perfect team to reunite?"
"Yes, it is."
"Alright, listen up Colonel, I don't know what your name is, and I'm quite sure things have been going your way until now. That's about to change. When Naruto and I fight alongside one another.
"We don't lose!"
"We don't lose!"
Battle Classes in this Chapter
Uzumaki Naruto (7) = Life (2) + Transcendent (2) + Shinobi (3)
Hannah (7) = [Light + Darkness] (3) + Transcendent (1) + Combo (1) + Manual (1) + Divine Ability (1)
Namikaze Minato (6) = Wind (3) + Shinobi (3)
Claude (6) = Flight (3) + Manual (3)
Endou Hinata (7) = Fire (3) + Divine Ability (2) + Shinobi (2) - Also has tier 1 water understanding
Yoshida Mana (6) = Lightning (3) + Manual (2) + Divine Ability (1)
Colonel Fadel Zahra (8) = Gale (3) + Transcendent (1) + Manual (3) + Divine Ability (1)
Uchiha Sasuke (7) = Spacetime (2) + Transcendent (2) + Shinobi (3)
Haruno Sakura (6) = [Healing + Strength] (1) + Combo (1) + Transcendent (1) + Shinobi (3)
Himawari (?)
Kushina (?)
In Response to ShadowMonarch's Questions
About various subjects
1) Sakura is a dual element user. She uses both 'healing' and 'strength'.
2) If Obito were to return I couldn't possibly spoil it.
3) I'm afraid I can't really answer this question about Hinata without giving away spoilers.
4) Again, I couldn't comment without giving away spoilers.
- On Konohamaru, I can't comment without giving away spoilers.
- They have no particular unique benefit over any pocket-worlders, or at least I haven't said so yet
- I couldn't comment on Kakashi without giving away spoilers
Sorry if I haven't been very helpful in answering your questions.
Thanks for reading.
In Response to jenuzumaki's Question
About battle classes
Your thoughts on the Sacred Sword are in theory correct, but there is a reason why Hinata is not a class 8 warrior.
This will be addressed in the story's future.
Potential score doesn't relate directly to what battle class you can become instead how much you are likely to achieve.
If my notes serve me correctly Sora scored 8 but he was a class 9 warrior.
Thanks for reading.