Chapter XV: Fight on the Bridge Part 1
The Caged bird
How fucking wonderful. I instinctively reached for an arrow before I could stop myself.. No archery. If I ended up with my whole arm numb and shaking, I was toast. The mist came with a slight chill, or perhaps those were my nerves? Tazuna was breathing hard, scared and perhaps angry to see his men involved in this. Buuuut, methinks mostly because he was scared. I am scared. Well, yeah, but in a situation when I'm forced to face a much stronger opponent, I'd rather get over with it, whether I got killed or, by some miracle, survived. I sneaked another glance at Tazuna. That means to be a civilian. And to be involved in some ninja mess. I would lose my mind. Yes, I was glad I was a ninja. Despite the fact I was scared shitless and almost shaking like a rabbit.
"Kakashi-sensei, this is the Mist Concealment technique, right?" Sakura asked still looking around, attentive to every move.
"He's not close by." I answered as Kakashi seemed still taken aback and trying to think of a strategy. I hope. "He's toying with us."
"How can you tell in this mist?" Sakura asked skeptical.
"I can feel his chakra." I smiled while looking ahead.
It was true. I first noticed at the tree climbing exercise. The more I used chakra the more I was aware of all those around me who could use it as well. It was like a spider web. Every each person and creature had a chakra system in their bodies. Or something like that. At first, I thought that I was only imaging it, but the more I molded chakra, trained to control, and manipulate it, the more I understood how it worked, though I lacked the technical terms and definitions. However, if I imagined the world as a chakra web, I could tell if a person, such a ninja was near without problems, due to the greater amount of chakra that person had. How smart that sounds.
In reality, I had no idea what I was doing, but what my gut told me. Those civilian men that were standing unconscious one meter or so away from me, had chakra as well. Civilians or no, people have chakra. What makes the difference between a ninja a civilian is how they channel chakra and the considerable difference of stamina. That explains why Sakura, whose family is a civilian one, with training and learning can be a fantastic ninja. In the future. Ok, in the next years.
"Is that what you've been doing in the woods by yourself?" Kakashi asked not really curious, but at least it made brought me back and reminded me that we were in the middle of a bridge wrapped in thick mist, with a missing-nin trying to kill us.
"Yeah." I lied – well only partially – still not sure what the fuck was I doing with a kunai in my hand. I wasn't incapable of using it, but neither was I fond of it. Wow, such skill, much ninja, so strong. Am I thinking in memes now?
"A sensor? How interesting. Sorry to keep you waiting, Kakashi." Zabuza's voice could be heard all around us, not giving us a clue where he was. I still stared ahead. "And you're still carrying those kids. He's shaking again, how pitiful."
He's talking about Sasuke, isn't he? I didn't have time to check out and see if that was the case as Zabuza appeared right in front of me. Water clones. There were seven of them around us. Oh, look, we're in a circle. I love circles. However, the clones weren't doing anything, so unless Zabuza was trying to needle our nerves and see our reactions, I saw no sense in his actions. I think it's called intimidation tactics. Which I found pointless. In his place I would have killed us in a second or try to, making Kakashi vulnerable. Oh, so serenely thinking of how I would kill a cute genin like myself. I was losing it, wasn't I? I heard Sasuke chuckle. Sasuke. Chuckling. But it wasn't the sweet and childish kind of chuckle. It humorless, dark, and soo out of character. Perhaps I'm not the only one losing their mind?
"I'm shaking with excitement." the duck said with a new found confidence. Either he is too arrogant or he's bullshitting. Hard. Well, at least one of us was optimistic about the battle's outcome. Or eager for our inevitable demise. Inari had been right all along.
"Go for it, Sasuke." Kakashi said allowing one of his stellar students to get into a fight that was jounin level. But, fuck it, right?
As soon as that happened, Zabuza's clones made their move. But so did Sasuke. I didn't watch the duck hoping around and slicing the clones to bits; I looked ahead where I knew the two were standing, still waiting. Are they testing us, or something? Let's recap Zabuza's and Haku's status : missing-nins from the Mist, hired by Gatō to kill Tazuna, in an attempt to put a stop the construction of the bridge. Hm. They were doing a poor job, especially since Zabuza had been an ANBU like Kakahi.
So, they either weren't living up to their reputation and hype or something was stinky about all this thing. Haku doesn't want to kill us. I had to remind myself that when I was going to watch himuse his senbon, because the boy was skilled. I couldn't remember if Zabuza shared his utopic views, but if I were to judge his actions, I would say nah. He wasn't. Yet again, he had the chance to kill us back when Kakashi was in his water prison. He could be one of those who likes to play with his enemy. To the point of letting them go and get himself incapacitated? I doubted. Something is fishy.
The water clones were gone with several splashes, which sprayed my sandals. The duck landed almost in front of us. Well, well. If it isn't the two of them. Somewhere ahead on the bridge, two silhouettes appeared and walked towards us, until they materialized into the tall figure of the missing-nin with the butcher-knife massive sword and a boy with the mask, the hunter-nin that others had encountered and were fooled by. Oh my, hello Haku.
"He defeated the water clones." Zabuza concluded. "That kid got stronger."
"They were just water clones…" I said tilting my head on one side not getting Zabuza's point, while the duck sent me an annoyed look. How dare I step on Uchiha Sasuke's moment?!
"A rival has appeared for you, Haku." Zabuza continued as if I haven't said a word.
"Your hair… is surprisingly long for a guy." I commented narrowing my eyes. And beautiful. Thick. Shiny. Healthy. I've always appreciated long hair; girls or boys, it made no difference. And the dedication for it. I personally, had no patience to deal with that kind of length.
"Oh. My prediction was right." Kakashi said in a sarcastic voice.
"Your prediction?" Tazuna asked confused.
"The masked guy."
"The hunter-nin, who isn't a hunter-nin?" I asked. "I really like the hair, though."
"Just as I thought too. Hn." Sasuke agreed, while Sakura was still surprised. Really? Is everybody going to ignore my hair jokes?
"So it was a lie that he was a hunter-nin from the Hidden Village of the Mist." Tazuna stated the obvious at this point.
"Of course, just as I implied." I said proudly. "And he's on Zabuza's side. I would wager so, anyway. "
"They're lined up nicely." Kakashi agreed unimpressed.
"Who does he think he is coming out like that?" Sakura said on a tone that if I didn't know better, I would say that Haku said something to personally offend her. But the fact was he didn't. He didn't say even one word.
"I hate conceit kids like that." Kakashi agreed still in a mocking voice. Oh, I see. This was a tactic as well.
"Aaand by the looks of it, is silky as well." I said talking to myself out loud. "Really dope."
"… you're still going on about the hair, aren't you?"
"Of course!" I smiled at Sakura. "If those are his bangs, imagine the rest of the hair. It must be twice as long as mine. And thrice as thick and silky. I'm envious." And I'm not even joking. Sakura approved of my attempt, but awkwardly.
"I'll fight him." Sasuke announced, putting an end to our barking.
"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked, all amusement gone from her expression. She looks funny. Her hair was straighter, then I've ever seen. The mist. The humidity. I was thankful that I had mine in a braid.
"He pulled that stupid act on us." Sasuke explained.
"You're looking for an excuse just to fight him." I said, translating his words. "You don't need one. He's working for Gato as well, most likely."
"You're so cool, Sasuke-kun."
"FOR THE LOVE OF THE GODS, WOMAN. STOP BEING SOO DESPERATE." Sakura looked at me with a startled expression, but I ignored her. "Duckling. You're an idiot. You don't even think about the fact that you are part of a team, or that you are on a mission to protect someone." I said taking a step forward closer to him. "I'll repeat it: You look for excuses to fight that guy. Guess who's the conceit child, now?"
"I don't care about your disapproval or opinion." The duckling said annoyed.
"Then by all means: Go! I hope you die or something, since you are too ignorant to care about anything but yourself, to the point of being incapable to notice the imbalance of a confrontation one on one." I held my hands up. "I give up. You're too stupid."
"Kaya-chan!"
Sakura's exclamation and Sasuke's reaction to my speech were drowned by the sound of a fucking tornado. Well, not a tornado, just Haku coming closer, stopping somewhere at the middle of the distance between us. He was spiraling so fast that the air around him to spinned, creating a vertigo. I found that fascinating and hard to look away from. Am I always going to be in awe when I see people use chakra? Because, I was using chakra as well. I just had to… remind myself.
"That is awesome." I said unable to keep my mouth shut, which only annoyed the duckling furthermore, and he advanced determined to die young. Despite the fact that he was struggling to walk towards Haku, due to the wind of the whole vertigo move, the duck managed to send me a smirk and a look that said 'You will see'.
I narrowed my eyes at his confidence. He's waaay to arrogant for his own good. But with a fast circular move of his own, he managed to stop Haku from spiraling. Senbon vs. kunai. I watched the mist stop circling around the two.
"So, he's fast." I admitted and I saw Sakura beaming.
"Sakura, Kaya, stick with Tazuna-san and don't get too far from me." Kakashi instructed remembering that he was a jounin with a genin team. "And this time I mean it, Kaya."
I smiled at the grey haired jounin recalling that he told me not to get too far when I was disappearing in the woods. We got closer to the bridge builder. I stepped in front of him, to get a better view to the fight. Sakura sent me a startled look, but again, I ignored her completely. The mist was already thicker than I would have liked, switching to another position would mean to miss the fight completely. I had to force my eyes to see what was happening. Damn Zabuza and his mist.
"We'll let Sasuke deal with him."
"He won't deal with him." I said watching as the two were fighting only with senbon needles and kunai. "He's going to get himself killed."
"Have a little faith, Kaya." Kakashi said as if he knew something I didn't. Hm. Wait a second.
"He's fast." I repeated. "They both are. And they both have the same… hm, fluid and circular moves? Unless Sasuke can actually adapt to his opponent's style."
"A second ago you said he's going to get himself killed." Sakura stated looking at me with a skeptical expression.
"Yeah, well. That really depends." I smiled. Depends whether or not he can activate the Sharingan.
"Sasuke-kun is amazing." the pinkie said her eyes glued on the fight.
"Yes, amazing how stupid and arrogant he can act."
"What?"
"Nothing. Um, Sakura, I think Kakashi said to protect Tazuna. We shouldn't let our guard down." Just shut up and let me watch the fight already, woman.
"Y-yes, of course!"
Ok. This is weird. Why? Because Zabuza's and Haku's objective was to kill Tazuna, not to play around with a team of genins. Admittedly, Kakashi was a jounin, but still they were missing the point of their mission. Was Zabuza just a fucking idiot and Haku just a mindless puppet? Zabuza was watching the fight between the duckling and Haku like an entertaining match of wrestling on the TV. The only thing that was missing were refreshments. Haku said something to Sasuke, because that's what you do in a life or death confrontation. Chit-chat with your opponent telling him how you don't want to kill them. Wait, what? Haku has been dodging Sasuke's attacks with one hand and now he raised his hand to… WHAT?
"Seals… with one hand." I said watching every seal Haku was forming with his left hand. The duckling seemed taken aback just as much as I was. "I can't believe it. Kakashi, is that even possible?"
"I've never seen anyone do that before." Kakashi admitted in consternation.
"That boy… is dangerous." I said narrowing my eyes as mist engulfed the two from the bridge. Wasn't there water from the clones? Oh. OH. It was that jutsu. Well, this was fast.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura shouted again.
"Needles. Ice needles." I looked at the deathly tiny things coming down on the two with great speed. And now we shall see how fast Sasuke really is. At this stage, at least. Surely enough, Sasuke managed to avoid them and actually got behind Haku. That's how I was reminded why Sasuke was the best rookie out of the nine. Ten now, with me. He actually managed to beat Haku when it came to speed.
"Looks like my speed's better." Sasuke smirked smugly at Zabuza as Haku came flying to his feet.
"You can't make fun of our team just because we have children." Kakashi said nonchalantly. "Sasuke is Konoha's top rookie. Sakura is the village's shrewdest student. Kaya is the most promising archer the village has seen in a long time. And sensor, it would seem." he cast me a pointed look. "And the other one is… the show-off, hyperactive number one loudest ninja in the village."
"Creature." I interjected. "Loudest creature in the village." But I did smile at the grey-haired. "Now, how on earth did the duckling suddenly became that fast? He wasn't that fast before."
Kakashi sent me a look but didn't say anything. It's something I should be able to figure out by myself? How? Then I remembered that Haku wasn't the only one forming seals. The training! Molding and focusing chakra to the legs, not only to climb trees but to increase your speed as well. How did I not think about this before? Because I'm very, very, stupid. I only lose control of my chakra and send flaming arrows at pinecones. Zabuza must have thought the same because he started laughing. Wait, no, that has nothing to do with me.
"Haku, what do you think? At this rate we'll be driven back." the missing-nin mocked with a dark tone. Is he telling Haku to cut the crap, or something? This was bad.
"Sasuke, he's using ice. I think you know what that means." I said and the duck looked at me strangely then he turned back to Zabuza and Haku. Oh Sasuke, so fucking expressive.
"Huh?" Sakura inquired. She didn't inquire; she just made a penguin sound.
"Yeah. We can't have that." Haku said getting up. Is he molding chakra in water and air? Well, yeah, ice much? "It's a shame."
"That's… cold air." Sasuke stated like the idiot duckling he was.
"It's not only air, stupid. Have you ever read a book about chakra? That's…"
And a wild ice mirror appeared. I didn't even get to finish my sentence. I just stared at the mirrors that were forming around the startled Uchiha. My blood froze in my veins. This is so… beautiful. But so dangerous. I shook my head. This wasn't supposed to be beautiful; this was a deathly jutsu of which I tried to warn the Uchiha about. The water from Zabuza's clones was rising in icy mirrors, trapping Sasuke inside a sort of prison. This… is like water bending … wait no, I AM NOT IN AVATAR!
"Special Jutsu. Demonic Ice Mirrors." Haku said as we all stared bewildered. He gracefully stepped into one of the mirrors and disappeared in a reflection with no person in front of it . What the… that's wrong. That was so, so wrong.
"Damn it." Kakashi said and started ahead, but Zabuza appeared in front of him.
"I'm your opponent, remember?" Zabuza said amused. "He's a goner now that Haku has used that technique."
"Sakura stay close to Tazuna." I told the pinkie. "This is bad."
There were some… sounds coming from the ice mirror prison and then the unmistakable voice of the duckling. He even had the courtesy of throwing us a kunai letting us know how overwhelmed he was by the situation.
"Sasuke!" Kakashi shouted alarmed by his student's yells of pain.
"Rectification: This is very bad." I said again, trying to see through the thickness of the mist. The only ones I could make out were Kakashi and Zabuza, who surprisingly had yet to directly attack us. Also, I could see the whole iced thing and… oh, is that blood? Yeah, I guessed that was Sasuke's blood on the concrete. Ok. Well, no, this isn't ok, but yeah, whatever.
"If you try to get by me, I'll kill those three." Zabuza threatened with a deadly voice.
"Tazuna-san, sorry I'll leave you here with Kaya-chan for a moment." Sakura said in the most serious voice I've ever heard her.
"You will?" I turned my head at that. What the hell?
"Don't worry, go!" Tazuna agreed to my abyssal dismay.
"What? Are you still mad at me because I told Sasuke to die? That's why you're not addressing me directly?" I asked annoyed. "Also what the hell are you…?"
She just took Sasuke's kunai and threw it somewhere in the space between the mirrors. Of course Haku caught it, but he didn't see the shuriken coming straight at him. It made him fall from the mirror, right on his face. Ah. Finally. I could sort of see Sasuke somewhere on the ground really badly cut on his… everywhere, to be honest. Well, that not exactly a floor… shut the fuck up, Mind. Then an explosion happened and from the smoke appeared a very orange, very short and blonde…
"Uzumaki Naruto has finally arrived!"
"EMPHASIZE ON FINALLY YOU FUCKING IDIOT!"
What the hell is wrong with me? But I had to admit that I was rather relieved to finally see the ridiculous orange outfit of Jesus Naruto. I noticed he was a little worn out. Been in a fight just before arriving here, blondie? Why and more importantly, with whom? Think Mind, think. Who would beat innocent children on the streets in broad daylight? A… lot of people.
"Now that I'm here, everything will be just fine!" the blonde said and I remarked amused that I could see his whiskered face through the mist almost clearly, but not Sasuke's crouched form inside the ice prison.
"Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed for the first time not in annoyance.
"The main character of a story usually appears in situations like these and …kick the enemy's ass!"
"Oh my va-have you ever heard of the element of surprise?!" I say still in an irritated voice. "What took you so long and why do you look like you've been fighting a cow herd and lost? Badly."
"Nothing to worry about, Kaya-chan! I took care of it. Alright, let's do this! Kage Bunshin no – "
"Naruto!"
Thankfully, the shuriken Zabuza threw did not hit the blonde, as Haku's senbon and my kunai collided with them. Obviously, I had to change my position and jump a little, wasting two kunai, but I walked calmly back to Tazuna, confirming my suspicion that neither Zabuza nor Haku had any real intention to kill the old man. I just walked back to Sakura and Tazuna and even stopped to put my hands on my hips and examine the blonde. Yeah, most definitely a fight. Did something happen back at Tazuna's house with Inari and Tsunami? The entire family had a bad history with Gato's men.
For a few seconds, Kakashi was distracted; Tazuna was alone with no one around but Sakura who was an easy obstacle. But, Zabuza made no move to kill him, so different from the approach he had on our first encounter. Something is definitely off. It was like his primary objective was to fight Kakashi, not to kill theold bridge builder.
"How lucky that the enemy's attacks collided one with the other, and that Kaya-chan was very fast to react." Tazuna said oblivious.
"Yeah… lucky." I murmured and narrowed my eyes.
"What are you doing, Naruto?!" Sakura's indignation would one day make my ears bleed.
"Oi! What kind of idiot tries to execute a technique right in front of the enemy? While shouting the name." Kakashi scolded. "A ninja's essence lies within deception. It relies on your ability to deceive and take by surprise your enemy. When you execute a technique, you must do it while the enemy is not looking. The way you appeared back there only makes you practice target."
"WHY?" I started with no patience and very confused. "Why are you giving a ninja lesson on stealth while were in the middle of a fight, in which one of your students it's trapped in a weird unknown jutsu, being cut into very thin and fine pieces, while the other missing-nin is attacking your other student? It makes no sense! And why isn't anyone pointing out that their attacks didn't collide, but that the masked guy with nice hair saved Naruto?" I inhaled deeply. "Seriously, people, sort your priorities! What the fuck is going on?!"
"Haku, what is the meaning of this?" Zabuza finally asked icily.
"Zabuza-san, these kids… let me fight them my way." Haku said on his androgynous voice. Really now, what isn't androgynous at this guy? But niiiice voice. Very melodic.
"So you don't want me to interfere? You're as soft as always…"
"Are you done with your little bonding moment?" I asked taking hold of my bow. To hell with my shoulder. I put an arrow in my string and pulled. "Sorry to step on your moment but I have a clan mate in that jutsu."
I released the arrow in Haku's direction, but he was too fast and although my arrow almost got into one of the mirrors Haku's senbon needles redirected it. How the fuck? How fast was Haku? To redirect an arrow with needles was almost impossible. And he did it with ease.A kunai came from the prison but Haku was able to doge it.
"I haven't forgotten about you." he turned his attention on Sasuke.
"Uh? Sasuke?!"
"Oh my valar… When I said clan mate did he think I was talking about Zabuza or what?" I almost facepalmed and Sakura looked as perplexed as I did at the blonde's exclamation.
"Kaya-chan, back then you warned Sasuke about the ice needles… did you know about this technique?" Sakura asked carefully. I sighed, reaching for another arrow and stretching my shoulder as I already felt it itch. And this mist is pulling at my bones.
"No. But ice involves the combination of ice and water. You can't combine elements… unless…"
"… unless it's a kekkei genkai" Kakashi finished.
"A kekkei genkai?" Tazuna asked not familiar with the term.
"A blood lineage. It's a jutsu passed down by your ancestors." Kakashi explained, but this time he kept it briefly.
"Like the Sharingan." I commented happily. So, that icy thing can be attacked from the outside. Now, if I or Naruto attack from the outside and Sasuke from the inside…
And just as I was thinking this, trying to get the curly strands of black hair from my eyes, Naruto barged into prison with full speed. Oh. I couldn't see what was happening in there, but I could only imagine the duckling's face. Oh. Well, two idiots facing death together. Teamwork. Yay. This is frustrating. Not being able to do anything but to observe. I did see flames swallowing one of the mirrors… but with no effect.
"Well, he tried." I mumbled.
"Was that Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked enthusiastically.
"Do you think Naruto can spew out fire balls?" I asked on a dry voice. "Uchiha have an affinity for fire."
"Really?"
"No, I'm just making up stories to pass the time." I answered sarcastically putting another arrow in the string as the two idiots were assaulted with senbon needles judging by the sound. And the sound being screams of pain.
"Uchiha?" Zabuza asked intrigued. "That kid is an Uchiha? And you too, girl?" he continued on amusement tangible in his words. "This surely is interesting. If you release that arrow, the pink haired girl and the old man die."
"You keep on using the same threat with no action to follow it up." I pointed out, my arrow starting to shiver in the string. You have to pass Kakashi and I wish you luck with that." I said raising my bow.
"Kaya lower your bow."
I looked at Kakashi with a puzzled expression. But his voice was final and the look he sent me was dead serious. So, I gritted my teeth and lowered my bow, sending Zabuza a death glare. Why?
"Good doggie."
"Damn it."
"Sasuke-kun! Naruto-kun! Don't lose to a guy like that!" Sakura shouted to encourage the two, which was retarded from my point of view because they weren't fighting to win anything, but to stay alive. Well, that would be the case if this were a real fight. I wasn't buying the whole 'let's kill the bridge builder' shit anymore. This was different. Personal.
"Sakura, stop. Don't goad them." Kakashi said dangerously calm. "Even if there's a one-in-a-million change to overcome that technique, they can't defeat that boy."
"What do you mean?"
Sakura's question made Zabuza laugh, which in turn sent chills down my spine. Ha, never take your eyes off the archer. I pulled the arrow back and raised my bow in mere seconds, but Zabuza still saw it coming and moved from its direction. It barely grazed his cheek.
"Kaya!" Kakashi shouted and I almost jumped out of my skin. "I told you to lower your bow!" He didn't take well to insubordination.
"My fingers slipped." I said. "And honestly, you are at disadvantage, Zabuza. With Kakashi so close to you and me with a bow and arrows. You need to get close to kill either me or Sakura while I have the advantage of distance and speed."
"That is correct, but only if you are faster than me." He said and I couldn't tell if he was smiling or not, because his mouth just like Kakashi's, was covered. "But you won't kill me, even if that is the case. You don't have the mental strength to kill me. Neither of you, kids, do. That is why those two will die. They can't suppress their emotions and kill someone."
"You don't know who I am, buddy." I said putting another arrow in the string. "We are shinobi. We have no emotions."
"Kaya, guard Tazuna with Sakura." Kakashi said firmly his hand on his head protector. Guard Zabuza with Sakura so I can fight, huh? "And never, ever repeat what you just did. You can get yourself or a team mate killed. This time make sure your fingers don't slip."
"The Sharingan again, eh? How unoriginal."
Well, it seems this time Zabuza was rather fast and got the right idea, because he went for Kakashi's eye only to be stopped by the grey's jounin hand. The blade stopped in his hand. And it seemed that both of them were suffering from the same syndrome of talking about memories and taunting each other. However, this was not my fight. This was Kakashi's. All I had to do was be attentive at my surrounding and shoot down any threats, protecting the client, like a good archer and genin that I was. But if I find an opening… I knew I would repeat exactly what I did the first time we had been attacked. The mist got thicker and thicker, to the point that I couldn't see a meter ahead of me. But I could feel. Chakra.
"What was that?" Sakura asked getting closer as the visibility was getting low.
"Just Sasuke and Naruto getting turned to shreds. Or needle pillows." I said happily. "Kakashi and Zabuza trying to impale each other. You know, the usual."
"You're seem to be in a good mood." commented Tazuna.
"Yeah, murder usually does that to me, ask the Uchiha clan. Oh, wait."
Both Tazuna and Sakura exchanged worried looks. Something bothered me about this mist as well. So thick that the visibility almost dropped to zero. No human being can see through this mist. And Zabuza was a human just as us … was he making guesses as I was? Because that's what I was doing. I was guiding myself after the sounds and the chakra that I could feel. My skill wasn't refined or at least properly trained because, after a certain distance I couldn't feel anything anyone, only if I forced myself, something similar to concentrating to catch a whisper in a huge room from the other side of it. It was exhausting, so I wasn't stupid enough to try that. I needed to focus on my immediate surroundings to protect Tazuna.
And as I was thinking this, I turned myself around only to see the missing-nin running towards us with that thing, determined to have a slice of Tazuna. Kakashi appeared right in front of him, as he prepared to let the sword cut through the air. I had no idea how Kakashi got there so fast, but I wasted no time. And Sakura screamed. And then it was Zabuza's turn. Happened in seconds, before anyone could say 'Uchiha massacre. Zabuza retreated abruptly justa as my shoulder began to burn from the exhaustion, no arrow in the string.
"Kaya…-chan?"
"Girl… you…"
"Fire." I said putting another arrow in the string, smirking. "Is the Uchiha trademark chakra nature."
There was an arrow wrapped in flames in Zabuza's right shoulder. The burn looked rather nasty, but he took the arrow out in time to avoid further damage. So… that happens if I put too much chakra in it and blow air on it. Well, something like that. It was more to it than blowing air on it, but I didn't bother to find a logical explanation. I went with what my gut was telling me. This needs further… experimentation. And training. It was soo draining to mould chakra into materials and arrows didn't make it simple. The missing-nin clutched at his now crispy shoulder giving away a smell of rotten flesh. And pork.
"Nature transformation, eh? And to have this much control over it…" Zabuza said trying to flex his fingers and assess how much of his arm he can still use.
"That's the thing. I can't control it." I said pointing at his hand. "You're my fist lab rat, Zabuza."
"Why you…" he seethed through gritted teeth, his eyes stopping on my shoulder."You sound bold… but you won't last long."
Hehe. That's what she said.
"Kaya-chan…"
I didn't know what either Zabuza or Sakura saw when they looked at my shoulder, but I did feel a hot little stream running down my left side and my hand shivered with the effort of holding the bow. I should never hold an arrow in the string too long. Because the arms will start cramping with the effort of holding the bow and arrow in place. The first lessons of archery echoed in my head. The arms have to be perfectly stretched forming an uninterrupted line and the legs firmly on the ground. If you held the arrow in the string too much, your arms will get tired and when released, the arrow will fly randomly. Elementary things to know about archery. And I was ignoring them completely. Shit. Shit. Shit. That was why I've been working on my speed of shooting. We were ninja, shinobi who moved so fast that the naked eye couldn't register our movement. Even an excellent archer would imminently die if he can't shoot fast enough. And yet again I arrive at the Sharingan problem. I just wasn't fast or strong enough.
"You are seriously underestimating us, aren't you?" I said while my bow arm started violently trembling as if I had Parkinson or something. "Even like this, I can still shoot you, and if I fail then you will burn anyway." Because even if I only grazed him… pinecone. "And the fight over there, won't be taking much longer either."
"Don't be so confident." Zabuza laughed. "You took me by surprise. The same trick won't work on me twice. And you don't have the Sharingan… or you would have used it already. As for those two… Haku will kill those kids soon, so there's no need to worry about them." he lift his sword. "Your deaths are imminent."
His laugh echoed in the air like smoke as he disappeared in mist. I lowered my bow and let my arms rest. He's not around. We were trapped in this mist as much as Naruto and Sasuke were trapped in Haku's jutsu. We have to do something. I needed to get to Haku.
"Sasuke-kun is going to get beaten?" Sakura asked speaking each word at a time. Then she shook her head, much like I did whenever I wanted to get an idea out of my head. "No, that won't happen. Sasuke-kun won't... lose to a guy like that! Naruto too!"
"Exactly." Both of us turned to Kakashi, but we couldn't see his face. "I believe in their strength. Naruto's fiercely determined and Sasuke's the offspring of the Leaf's most outstanding clan."
"He's right in front of us." I pointed Zabuza out. "Right there."
"That goes for Haku as well." Zabuza said as the mist dissipated enough to let us see him. He had the unharmed hand on the hilt of the sword. I snatched an arrow and put it on the string pulling gently, enough to fit it, but not raising my bow. "No one has been able to defeat Haku's master technique. No one. Now then, I guess I'll put an end to this too."
Then he disappeared again. He just… enjoys showing off and being ominous.
"Kaya." Kakashi started talking after Zabuza vanished. "If Zabuza gets close, you shoot. Sakura stay close to Tazuna." he stood in front of us his eyes seizing the mist with great distaste and determination. I smiled. Sasuke was right. This is kinda exciting.
Then Kakashi ran in the mist and soon enough we couldn't see him anymore. What. I looked around with a chilling feeling that something was wrong. I shook my head and came closer to Tazuna and Sakura, weary of the mist that seemed to be just as thick as before. Would I be fast enough to shoot Zabuza again? Perhaps, but he used water jutsu and I could barely control my chakra when it created flames around the arrow. For fuck's sake, all I did was setting flames to the arrow. Not really that impressive. As for fire jutsu… I knew none.
Then pain came like a blow to the stomach. Not from my arms, no. From everywhere. For a second I thought that my attention and apparent sensorial abilities failed me and Zabuza managed to get pass Kakashiand slit me open. But no, it flooded over my bones and swam through my veins. So overwhelming that my legs almost gave in. What is this? All the cells in my body screamed to flee, to run, to get away from there while wanting to collapse at the same time. This is chakra. But this much of it? And it wasn't organized and flowing harmoniously, but wild, chaotic, explosive, demonic almost. Is this…? My head was going to explode.
"What the hell is that?" I couldn't keep my voice down. I tried to hold my head as it felt like it was splitting in two. "That… chakra?"
"That's chakra?" Sakura asked just as mindfucked as I was. "It's… immense."
"No…" I said taking a step forward. "That's very mildly put."
"Kaya, where are you going? Kakashi-sensei s-"
"Sasuke and Naruto are in danger." I cut her off. "I have to get to them. I'll do reconnaissance, see what that is. "
"S-Sasuke-kun is in danger? But you can barely walk and you shoulder is-"
"I'm fine. Stay here. Tazuna needs you here." I looked at the old man apologetically, and stumbled away. Kakashi was right. We couldn't defeat Zabuza and Haku, so the only thing that we you can do when you know you're going to lose in a direct confrontation, is negotiate. And I had a bargaining chip. Or at least I thought I had one. But first… what the hell was that?
I couldn't feel anyone around. Just that overwhelming flare of chakra like a beacon of light in the dead of the night. If I tried really hard, I could feel something ahead or to my rightwith no regard of what or who. I could have walked right in front of Kakashi and Zabuza and I wouldn't be able to tell. I tried to focus. Just like the tree climbing training, but because of that chakra, I seemed to have become ten times as sensitive and everything had been suddenly dialed up. The amount of focus made my head spin with effort. There.
I made the seal and molded chakra in my legs, then stormed pass someone or something in less than a heartbeat. I made my legs feel extremely light. I didn't want to be caught up in Kakashi and Zabuza's fight. That would have been suicide.
Kakashi won't be happy to know that I have disobeyed his orders. Again. Of course not, but it wasn't like he could actually do something about it. Only if I would get there on time. I stopped abruptly, narrowing my eyes. Just as sudden as that chakra erupted into the thick mist, it vanished. Why… why did it stop? Naruto and Haku… Hm. Then everything came back with a crushing force. I could feel Kakashi's chakra wavering and I knew he was doing… something. Just like I could feel Zabuza's chakra all around because of the mist. I started running in the direction I knew Naruto, Haku and Sasuke were. My headand ears were ringing.
"Shinobi are not tools!"
I emerged from the mist into the small space between Naruto and Haku. Ha. So they were talking about Haku's childhood. Yay for me. They both turned to me startled. Haku's mask had fallen to the ground, broken and shattered, much like the splinters of ice that laid everywhere, including on his clothes and hair. He's really pretty. Prettier than half the girls I knew. Naruto looked… surprisingly intact. His clothes were torn and had holes in them, but the blonde seemed to have no wound. That must have been the Nine Tails chakra. Without doubt. I held my hand up in the air.
"Well." I said as I looked at the surprised faces of each of them. "This is awkward."
"Kaya-chan! You are alright!" Naruto said smiling, but it faded and he looked to the ground and his expression became bitter.
"Yeah. So is Sakura. For now." I said still not moving from my spot.
"You…"
I turned to Haku, a brow arched.
"You are from the same clan as that boy…" Haku said. His eyes. They were void of any emotion. Dead. I turned to Naruto's direction, but looked pass him to where Sasuke was. Ok. That looks… bad. There were needles everywhere. And blood, but considering the amount of needles, the little stain of blood should have given it away. Haku was skilled. What the fu – he could have killed him, there is nothing to admire! But he didn't. And yet, to have so many things embedded in your flesh… I flinched at the thought. Naruto avoided my gaze. Not now. Not here. I had the urge to take a step forward and to not stop until I reached the duckling. Haku first. I swallowed the air tainted with the vague taste of blood and metal. The duckling was all right. Just not conscious. But the image of that. He looked like a fresh corpse. Because the duck was already very pale. The blood and needles did nothing to compliment his complexion. But first things first. I turned back to Haku.
"He is… I'll deal with that later." Haku looked at me very confused and I saw Naruto look up as well. "I heard you. You truly think you are a weapon? A tool? Do you really want to die?"
Lies. Lies everywhere. Because I had to make Haku listen.
"I am useless now. I have no purpose." he looked at Naruto. I got the distinct feeling that I missed on a chunk of conversation. "You should kill me. I killed your friend."
"Killing you would be too kind." I spat my mind on Sasuke's needles necklace and Naruto's breakdown into the Nine Tails Chakra. "But that's not why I'm here. Gatō double crossed you."
Naruto made a weird sound behind me. Is that what humans sound like when they are surprised? If I had to guess, no. That was hands down one hell of a seal impression. Haku looked dead into my eyes with an expression I couldn't decipher.
"What do you mean?"
"Naruto," I started without looking away from Haku, because you never switch your attention away from the enemy. "Gatō's men are in village, aren't they? That's what took you so long."
No response and seemingly a spark appeared behind Haku's eyes. Yes, that's it. Listen to what I'm implying.
"Kaya-chan, how did you know –"
"You love your mentor, don't you Haku?" the older boy kept his silence. "Gatō sent you here to die. To get rid on Zabuza. He has no intention of honoring whatever contract or deal he made with you."
"I took care of Gatō's men at Tazuna's house." Naruto interjected.
"Yes. How many of them, two? Three? Four? Maybe more? To me it seems Gatō's patience ran out and wants to both get rid of Zabuza and stop the construction of the bridge in one day. two birds, one stone. All good business."
Haku said nothing. He continued to stare at me like the gates of Valhalla opened before him. He then looked at the ground, but his hands were in tight fists. So tight that his knuckles went white. He really hates Gatō. Good. He stood up abruptly.
"I'm sorry Naruto, I can't die yet."
"No you can't. And we have to hurry because my sensei is about to kill your master."
"Or the other way around."
"You wish, pretty boy."
Part 1 of the Fight on the Bridge is officially done.
Look at my girl using her braaaaain. I love Haku. Sue me. Sue me for wanting Haku alive and (kinda) well. Can you imagine Zabuza and Haku in The War entering the field like the bad bitches that they are? Because I can and do. Often. Anyway, yeah, I made a different call from the Canon. Again,sue me. Does this mean I'm always gonna change ALL things that are canon? No (not all). Will Kaya always get away with and succeed in changing things? No. It means I saw an opportunity to offer a different outcome of the entire situation (that could have been avoided if they'd put two and two together) and took it. Also, did I mentioned that I love Haku?
Thank you to everyone who read, favored, followed and left reviews on my story! You guys keep me going! Stay safe and be kind~
See you next chapter!