Sum of our Parts
Pursuit of a Traitor
Thank you for reading!
***I still do not own Naruto if I did the female characters would have been way more important. ***
"Le gasp!" normal talking
'das fuken?' normal thinking
set-you-on-fire-no-jutsu: Jutsu and other techniques
"I will murder you!" Tailed beast/demonic voice
***SooP***
Shikamaru stood before the small grouping of his fellow classmates before explaining the mission he had just been given.
"Sasuke Uchiha is suspected of treason against Konoha, I have been assigned the task of assembling a strike force to go and retrieve him. Our intel suggests that he freed the traitor by the name of 'Kabuto' and that he is now on his way back to Oto with several other enemy Ninja."
The mutterings amongst those gathered quickly died down once the Nara raised his hand.
"I am asking for volunteers to go with me on this mission, I need at least a few trackers and…"
"Count me in, he was my teammate and Sakura has already asked me to retrieve him." Kiba declared, earning several barks of agreement from Akamaru as well.
"Me too Shikamaru, I always have your back!" Choji chimed in between bites of food.
"I will as well. Ino has elected to stay behind and comfort Sakura, which I feel is for the best." The Aburame replied.
"I will come as well. Lee is currently recuperating with Gai-Sensei, but I have been informed that he will join us when possible. I believe that is all of the Ninja that we currently have…" Neji began before being interrupted by a female voice from behind them.
"I have been instructed to come along with you Hizashi-Sama has… requested my presence on this mission in order to ensure your safety Neji-Sama." Hinata called out, her face and voice both lacking emotion.
Neji winced slightly, knowing full well that his father had essentially commanded the girl to die for him if need be.
Seeing the interaction, and obvious discomfort, between the two family members brought Shikamaru's confrontation with his own father to the forefront of his mind.
***Flashback***
"Son… I know you are a little angry with me right now but…"
"A little angry?" The genius seethed out, fire burning through his veins at the thought of what his own father had tried to do with one of his classmates, one of his friends.
Was 'friends' a fair way of describing his relationship with the two sisters? He wasn't sure, Natsuko was friendly with everyone he had ever seen interact with the girl but Akane… she was the protector of the two.
In a way they were like Konoha, Natsuko was the friendly compassionate side that would do anything for a friend. The side that would not hold grudges but rather try to expand relationships with as many people as possible, even those who had wronged her in the past.
Akane however was the side that reminded the other nations that Konoha was not to be trifled with. She was the aspect of the Ninja in every sense of the word. She was cold and calculating, always analyzing the situation and those around her for potential threats. She was lethality itself, and if the rumors that had circulated the village were true… well there was a reason that most of the Genin were secretly intimidated by the girl.
Still Shikamaru considered himself to be at least friendly with the two girls, comrade in arms at worst, which was why his father's actions had such an impact on him.
"I did what I had to do son. As the head of a major clan and a Ninja of Konoha I am required to think of the village first and foremost. 'The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few' as they say." The man continued.
"No what you did was try and condemn two fellow Konoha Ninja to lives as breeding stock. To take away their free will and the rights that they have to their own bodies, what you did was no better than what we have always accused Kumo and Iwa of doing."
"Those villages are monstrous, the atrocities they have committed…"
"Do you really not see the similarities? Trying to force two teenage girls to accept being raped repeatedly until they give birth just to continue a bloodline? How is that any different than what the other villages have done?"
"You are too young to understand Shikamaru, in time you will see what we did was necessary though. I have already made a request that should the CRA ever be implemented with the two Uzumakis that you will be in the group for consider…"
"HOW DARE YOU!" The boy erupted in rage, his calm, collected, and lazy side instantly being shoved aside.
"YOU WOULD TRY AND PUT ME ALONGSIDE OF THOSE MONSTERS WHO WOULD DO THAT TO THEM? YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO MANIPULATE THEM OR ME LIKE THAT!"
After taking a handful of deep calming breaths, while ignoring the shocked look from his father, the Nara heir composed himself enough to finish the conversation.
"Even if that act passes, and they are forced back here. Even if I am 'approved' for such a thing I would outright refuse to do so. The fact that you would even think that I would impregnate someone against their will is disgusting. Now if you will excuse me I need to go speak to some of my friends Shikaku-Sama." With that the boy excused himself, a slight smirk on his face at the pained expression his father had given him after using such honorifics towards him.
'Perhaps Akane is on to something with this way of addressing people.' The boy mused, while beginning his quest to find his best friend, and fellow clan heir, Choji.
***SooP***
Meanwhile the Akimichi was having a similar conversation with his parents.
"I HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE EMBARRASSED THAN DURING THAT MEETING HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO THEM!?"
"Choji sweetheart it isn't what it looks like. Your father was just doing what needed to be…"
"DOING WHAT NEEDED TO BE DONE!? DO YOU REALIZE WHAT THEY HAVE BEEN THROUGH! DO YOU REALIZE WHAT OUR CLAN HAS DONE TO THEM!?"
"Son you are overreacting…"
"NO THIS IS UNDERREACTING TO WHAT I HAVE BEEN TOLD. THEY WERE STARVED! DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT!? STARVED!" Finally the boy began coughing, having shouted so loudly for so long that his voice was beginning to crack under the strain.
"The fact that my classmates were ignored to the point of starvation… I cannot begin to explain how terrible I feel. All of the food we have thrown away or wasted… then there are the bruises that I saw on Akane… do either of you know anything about that?" The boy immediately glared towards his parents, who winced back under their normally loving son's accusations.
"N-no we knew that they were ignored, and we had an idea on their economic state but the attacks…."
"If I find out that either of you had anything to do with that…" The Genin threatened menacingly.
"It is in the past Choji-kun besides we are trying to make up for it! Your father and I have been trying to include you with the other clan heirs in the CRA discus…"
"I would rather cut my stomach open and slowly bleed out onto the floor than be a part of that horrific thing." The boy snarled back, earning further shocked gazes from his parents.
As he turned to leave the boy gave one last glance back at the two clan heads, "Do you know that they saved me? My first match in the preliminaries was against Gaara. It was only their intervention that stopped me from going down there. Without them I would probably have been killed by him, and yet you still want to force them to be sexually assaulted… I feel as though I don't even know either of you anymore."
With that the young boy left, needing to clear his head and figure out exactly what he was going to do next.
***End Flashback***
The two best friends had met up shortly afterwards and had taken the rest of the day to just relax and calm themselves down.
Shikamaru snapped himself back to the present to try and keep the group from falling apart before the mission even began.
"Well I am certainly glad to have you here with us Hinata. Are the rumors true about your training with The Hokage?" Choji called out in curiosity, focusing the rest of the Ninja on the newly arrived girl as well.
"Yes, Hokage Sensei has taken time from her very busy schedule to help train me in medical Jutsu as well as her personal combat techniques. I have learned quite a bit from her since the start."
"Excellent, it will be nice knowing we have a medic on the team in case the worst happens. Alright then since everyone is set let's move out!" The Nara commanded, before taking off towards the last known path of the Uchiha, with Kiba leading due to his tracking skills.
***SooP***
"Choji are you sure about this?"
The Akimichi boy nodded in certainty towards his friend, he knew what the others said about him behind his back. That he was worthless, that he was weak. He intended to prove them wrong and this fight would be the first step to doing so.
Their team had barely managed to escape from the Oto Ninjas Chakra stealing trap and now they were losing ground on Sasuke, who was in some kind of container, along with the other enemies.
There wasn't time to second guess the plan now.
"Okay I trust you, just make sure that you…"
"I will stay behind with him. Since he will be the first in combat it will allow me to put my medical skills to use first, and then when we finish this fight we can catch up and help recovery after the next one." Hinata volunteered, earning a thankful smile from the genius.
"Alright then, everyone else move out!" Shikamaru shouted, causing the remaining Konoha Shinobi to disappear into the woods.
"Are you sure about this Hinata? I mean surely the other fights will be…"
"Don't worry about that now Choji, I am here to help you finish your fight as quickly as possible then we can move on to help the others. The faster we end this guy the faster we can help in the next confrontation." The Hyuga commented.
"Right! Okay then time to show this guy what we can do!" Choji roared, before charging forward and lock arms with his enemy.
"Bah is that all you got kid? Two Genin against one of the Sound elite, this will be easier than…"
Jirobo's taunt was cut short though as the boy in front of him began to push him backwards, slowly overpowering the man with raw strength.
"I-impossible!"
Seconds later this was proven incorrect when Choji threw the man into a nearby tree, before a wave of water impacted him moments later, causing even further damage to the man.
'Damnit, if the fat one can overpower me then all the girl has to do is take pot shots and eventually they will wear me down or worse. It looks like I have to take this fight more seriously than I was intending to.' The large man angrily noted, before activating the first stage of his Cursed Seal.
"Those markings, they are similar to the ones that Sasuke had during the exams! His Chakra has changed massively as well, it is darker and tainted." Hinata whispered to her companion in analysis.
"Well then it looks like we are going to have to stop messing around as well eh Hinata?" Choji commented, before taking out a small glass container and popping a green pill into his mouth.
Instantly Choji's power also increased, afterwards the Akimichi took out several dozen kunai connected by wire and wrapped them around his body.
"Be ready to strike Hinata."
"Right"
"Spiked Human Juggernaut"
Moments later a massive spiked sphere rolled towards the opposing man, who raised a wall of earth to try and protect himself from the blow.
It was not enough to stop the rampaging Genin, however, and Choji was able to break through and begin cutting up the man who pushed back, trying to stop the assault.
Finally he was able to do so and threw the boy backwards only to receive a series of lightning enhanced Juken strikes to his back.
Spinning around the man hit nothing but air as the Kunoichi had leapt backwards, fully aware that she would not be able to match her opponent with strength alone.
***SooP***
"To hell with this…" Jirobo growled out, before activating the second phase of his Cursed Seal "I am going to break every bone in both of your worthless bodies!"
The transformed man then charged forward toward the two stunned Genin.
Hinata was able to snap out of her stupor a second later, and pushed the larger boy out of the way, receiving a powerful blow to her side instead.
"Hinata!" Choji shouted out in concern, instantly popping the yellow pill into his mouth and sprinting forward to tackle their opponent and prevent any further injuries to the girl.
He had been saved yet again by a member of Team eight. Once again he was too weak to truly help in a fight. Once again he had forced another to help him out of a situation.
Never again.
After leaping up from where he had slammed the man into the ground Choji leapt up into the air, expanding enough to cover the man and delivering a violent and super powerful elbow drop onto his adversary.
Luckily Hinata had been knocked far enough back that she was not caught in the crossfire.
Moments later Choji found himself tossed through the air and into a grouping of trees nearby.
He gasped in pain before coughing up a bit of blood. The pills were taking a larger toll on his body than he originally thought they would.
As he picked himself up he noticed another wave of water crash into the man, knocking him off his feet and flooding the crater that the Akimichi had formed from his last attack.
"Is that all you can do? Knock me down a few times? You two truly are the weakest of your team if this is the best you can do! A fat useless brat and a weak Kunoichi bitch who can barely manage to fill a hole with water!"
"Actually that was exactly how much water I was trying to make." Hinata called out, a smirk forming on her lips."
"What are you…"
Lightning Style: Sky's Pilar
A second later a massive bolt of lightning fell from the sky, striking the pool of water than the Oto Nin had yet to leave, and utterly decimating the man.
***SooP***
"Are you okay Choji?" The girl inquired, as she limped up to the recovering boy.
"Yeah, what about you though? I'm so sorry Hinata you were hurt because of me and…"
"No I was hurt aiding a fellow Konoha Ninja and I wouldn't have it any other way. It's just a few broken ribs, nothing serious."
"What about him?"
"He isn't getting back up from that. I had to use the other to aim and concentrate the technique otherwise the damage would have been far wider and could have hit us as well. Now tell me about the technique you used, it seems to be causing you internal damage or poisoning of some kind…"
***SooP***
"I can stay behind and assist you, we both seem adequate in dealing with this opponent." Shino commented in a stoic tone to the remaining Hyuga.
"That will not be necessary. Besides there are still at least two combatants and we haven't seen any sign of the traitor Kabuto along with Sasuke's position and the others will need as much help as they can get."
"True, good luck then."
"There is no need for luck, fate has already decided the victory."
The Aburame shook his head slightly before leaping off to join his remaining two comrades.
Meanwhile Kidomaru just eyes the remaining Chunin with a sadistic grin.
***SooP***
Apparently fate was a bitch.
Neji was currently covered in his own blood, mostly from the half dozen projectiles being stuck in his back, and was barely standing at this point.
Sure he had some initial success in dealing with this opponent but after his Kaiten had been 'disabled' his primary means of defense was now gone and he was forced to try and dodge the hail of attacks.
It had been successful up until his opponent found the single blind spot of the Byakugan.
Now he was leaning against a tree, trying desperately to figure out a plan on how to deal with this man, who was 'gifted' the same seal that the Uchiha had, thus enabling him to drastically increase his power.
Thus far the prodigy had only succeeded in closing the distance between them one time, even then though victory had slipped through his grasp due to the Oto Ninja's armor like webbing.
Shikamaru had been correct in assigning their opponents as 'Jonin' class.
Now the Hyuga was running out of tricks, and energy for dodging.
He was starting to regret allowing his fellow teammate to leave, not that he would ever admit it. The Hyuga main house did not ask nor require assistance from others.
But it would have been nice to have a ranged expert in this situation nonetheless.
The sound of another attack brought the Chunin from his thoughts as the area was, once again, blanketed in thick webbing.
This time it seemed as though the intention was to prevent and slow down his movements enough so that he would not be able to dodge the next assault.
Not that he had much energy to do so at this point either way.
From the corner of his vision he glimpsed his opponent readying the next volley, but before he could begin both Shinobi's eyes widened in shock as a faint blue glow enveloped the area, dissolving the web that was on the ground and starting the process on the weapons the Jonin had just created.
"What in the…"
"It is just my luck that I ended up rescuing you…" a feminine voice called out as a Kunoichi slowly strolled towards the barely standing Hyuga.
Neji gasped as the identity of his savior was revealed.
Akane Uzumaki
"Who the hell are you! Wait a second… you're that Genin bitch who thwarted Lord Orochimaru's plans during the attack on Konoha aren't you?"
"And you must be one of the snake's body guards, what is it with you people and animals?"
"Why you…"
"Akane… what are you doing here?" Neji interrupted, while trying to wrap his mind around the situation.
"Simple really…"
***Flashback***
"Remind us again why we haven't left The Fire Country yet Jiraiya-Sensei?" Akane questioned as the three Ninja leapt through the trees.
"That is a very good question Akane."
A few moments passed before it became clear that the Sanin was not going to answer the question.
"Incoming" the redhead whispered out, before taking cover in a nearby tree with her sister.
The sage, on the other hand, just halted on a tree branch and let the ANBU operative catch up to him.
"Yo"
The two sisters sweat dropped at the man's antics, how the hell he managed to become a spy master was beyond either of them.
"Jiraiya-Sama, I have orders from Hokage-Sama, it appears that Oto is mobilizing on the border and the traitor Kabuto has escaped from custody…"
"WHAT!? How the heck did you guys manage to lose him?" The blonde suddenly shouted, earning sweat drops from the two Shinobi at her breaking of stealth.
"Right then, guess I will head over and see what kind of trouble I can stir up. You are assigned there as well I take it?" The white haired man questioned, and earned a nod from the ANBU.
"What about us Ero-Sensei?"
"I told you not to… anyways… I don't think you should get too close to the border. Orochimaru might still be a bit sore after losing his sword to Akane and having you two play a major role in his defeat."
"Actually I was hoping to speak to the two sisters for a moment Jiraiya-Sama." The masked man replied, earning a suspicious glare from the toad summoner.
"Fine but I will be watching from here… remember that."
The man nodded before slowly approaching the two wary girls.
"I need to ask you two for a favor… I know this isn't necessarily the best time and I doubt either of you want anything to do with me or my clan but…" a second later the man removed his mask, identifying himself as Itachi Uchiha.
"You are right we don't want anything to do with your clan." Akane growled out.
"Hear me out, Sasuke has been accused of treason and is heading towards the Oto border with several enemy Ninja. Konoha has sent a retrieval party but it is only consisting of your classmates. All higher ranking Ninja are either on assignment or are being sent to the border directly to deal with the potential invasion."
The man paused, as if trying to find the words that would best help his argument.
"I know this is asking a lot considering all you have done for us and what my brother and clan have done to you but… please bring him back to me. He is one of the only two family members I have left…"
Akane stared at the man with suspicion in her eyes before glancing over at her sister, who was staring at the redhead in a sad manner.
Giving out a long sigh Akane nodded her head. "Fine"
***End Flashback***
"And you came to my aid because…"
"Because you were the only one in immediate danger, besides our allies are coming to help the others as we speak."
"Allies?"
"Suna"
The Hyuga blinked owlishly before shrugging the confusion off, who was he to refuse help from an allied nation?
"I managed to observe a small portion of the fight so far, seeing as you are not in critical condition, and prepare a counter strategy of sorts, hence the webbing."
"I was about to ask about that, I thought you could not perform Ninjutsu."
"I cannot, this isn't Ninjutsu, it is Fuinjutsu."
"WHAT!?" the four armed man roared out from the nearby trees.
How the hell had Fuinjutsu managed to stop his attacks?
"For once I agree with my opponent, how is that possible?" The prodigy questioned.
"Simple really, his webbing is a mixture of proteins in his body with his own Chakra to create a near impervious substance, all I did was create a seal that rapidly breaks down proteins that take on that composition, extremely situational but useful nonetheless."
"So you made an area where his webbing degrades rapidly." The boy summed up, amazed at what the girl could accomplish after observing the battle for such a short time.
"Yes, but the projectiles are still dangerous, the area is only so large and the denser webbing will be able to penetrate it to our position. Since you have been fighting the man up until now, and are 'genius' of your class, I feel inclined to see if you have any strategies for ending this battle."
Neji blinked again, a bit confused at first before he realized that the girl was essentially asking him for a tactic.
At least she was kind enough to keep him included after seeing the state he was reduced to.
"Now that you mention it… it might not be Nara quality but I think it will do the trick" the pale eyed Shinobi responded with a smirk.
***SooP***
After seeing his techniques dissolve away into thin air Kidomaru had decided not to take any more chances and, for once, decided to stop playing with his opponents.
He had shifted into his Cursed Seal form two and notched up one of his arrows, preparing to strike down either the injured Hyuga or the redhead.
Luckily they had received information on their potential opponents during the night from Kabuto and Sasuke.
One such piece of information was the fact that the Uzumaki was unable to use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, meaning that she was in the same, if not worse, situation as the Hyuga was. Both were melee oriented combatants.
Meaning that as long as the Jonin could keep his distance both would fall before him.
Unfortunately he had lost his long range detection webs with that brat's seal, which meant he would be forced to rely on his hearing and sight.
Shortly after the girl's arrival she had thrown out a series of smoke bombs, completely covering the area and allowing the two Konoha Ninja to slip away, putting the four armed man on an even higher state of alert.
A slight rustle of leaves from behind him alerted the man immediately, who spun and caught sight of the red haired Kunoichi charging forward, intending on forcing him into close ranged combat.
The Oto Ninja was smarter than that though, leaping backwards he fired his drawn arrow at the girl.
Who immediately smirked and spun around violently, creating a sphere of Chakra around her which repelled the attack away.
"But how!?"
A slight pain from behind alerted the man to a scroll being pinned to his back, then an unfamiliar feeling.
It began as a slight tingle that soon became a pulling sensation as though the hatred and anger which fueled him was being ripped away, drained from his very being.
His vision blurred, his legs wobbled, and the Chakra flow that held him steady faltered.
As he fell he noticed his reversion back to his natural form, before exhaustion overtook him.
***SooP***
The two figures dropped to the ground and carefully approached the unconscious man, before binding him with wire.
The first redhead released the 'Henge' and revealed herself to have been Neji, who immediately braced himself on a tree due to lack of Chakra.
That last Kaiten had drained what was left of his reserves.
"Do you need help?" the real Akane inquired, before ensuring the Seal was securely on their enemy.
"A Hyuga does not ask for help."
The Uzumaki shrugged, before tying another wire around the fallen Ninja and began dragging him towards where she had heard the other battles taking place.
Neji tried to follow but quickly found himself lying face down on the ground.
"Of course if you just so happened to be going in the same direction…"
The girl gave an annoyed sigh before returning to the Chunin and crouching over to help him onto her 'piggy back' style.
The questioning glance he gave her elicited another sigh.
"It's either this or I throw you over my shoulder like a bag of rice."
"This will suffice… if I may be so bold as to ask you a favor though… please do not tell anyone about this."
The Kunoichi nodded before muttering under her breath. "You're lucky that your cousin is cute…"
"Yes I am… wait what?"
***SooP***
"Damnit" The Inuzuka Genin swore again, trying to pick himself up off the ground but failing to do so.
He thought that with the extra training his Sensei had been giving him he would have caught up to the Uchiha heir, or at least pose more of a threat to him.
He had been wrong.
Even with Akamaru and their clan techniques Sasuke was simply too far ahead of them. The Sharingan gave him an advantage that he couldn't yet match and his teammate had a far larger range of Jutsu than Kiba did.
He was hopelessly outclassed, even before the smirking asshole had activated his Cursed Seal.
At least he had drawn blood a few times on the boy.
It was rather amusing to hear him shout in rage at the idea of being injured by a "weaker clan".
Unfortunately with his friends either too far away or still in battles there was nothing left to stop the traitor.
Kiba could only pray that Akamaru would be able to recover from his sustained injuries.
Sasuke had been particularly brutal with his fire Jutsu.
Another cough sent another round of blood spatters onto his clothing as the boy's vision began to blur.
He could just make out his former 'best friend' approaching him slowly, as if plotting the best way to finish him off.
At this point the Inuzuka had no doubt that the Shinobi would do it.
Suddenly his opponent jumped backwards, avoiding a series of Kunai which embedded themselves into the ground.
Kiba became aware of two bodies on either side of him, gently picking him up and carrying him from the battlefield.
"W-wait… Akamaru…"
"Don't worry we've got him too." A feminine voice gently replied.
"N-Natsuko? Wh-why are you here?"
"Shhh we are just 'Bunshin', boss is dealing with the teme. Rest now we will find you some medical help."
Tears began flowing down the boy's face as he saw his companion being gently carried by another blonde replica.
"Natsuko… I'm so sorry for what I did… for what my mother tried to do… I…"
The boy passed out before he could finish.
***SooP***
"Well well well, look who it is. The Uzumaki, Senju, Namikaze, dead last bitch."
"Are you more upset that my sister kicked your ass, or that my last name is longer than yours?"
The boy growled in irritation.
"Of course maybe it's just because you had to use that hickey from the pedophile in order to win a fight against your teammate. I thought the Uchiha were supposed to be the strongest clan? Yet you had to rely on outside help? Itachi-kun must be so proud of you."
"DON'T YOU SAY HIS NAME! I am superior to him and all others! And I will show you just how powerful I am!"
"I do so hope you can do so without your precious bloodline, after all it can't copy me." The girl smirked at the aggravation she was causing the normally controlled and precise boy.
"I DON'T NEED IT TO BEAT YOU INTO THE GROUND BITCH! AND AFTER I AM DONE I WILL SHOW YOU EXACTLY WHERE YOU AND YOUR WHORE OF A SISTER BELONG, ON YOUR BACKS AND BEING USED AS BREEDING SLAVES!"
'End him'
For once Natsuko agreed with the violent suggestion that the Kyuubi had made, just as Sasuke felt a shiver run down his spine for an unknown reason.
***A/N***
Hopefully this chapter went as well as I think it did. I will be addressing the other three fights next chapter but I don't plan on going too much into them. Shikamaru's will end the same, as will Lee's. Obviously the only one that will be changed is Shino versus the twins.
I was planning on putting the Natsuko vs. Sasuke fight here, but I don't want to rush it and I would rather take my time and make it truly something epic.
Read and enjoy!
