"Demon speaking mentally to their hosts"
'Demon thinking to themselves so their host cannot hear them'
"Normal Speech of a human"
'Thoughts of a human'
--- Demonic Princess: Uprising- Chapter 5: Questions and Information
Five bodies instantly fell to the ground as a giant, head-cleaving broad sword swung through the air slicing and dicing anything that got in its way, before embedded itself deeply in a near by tree.
A man then appeared, standing on the hilt of his sword as he stared down at team. He laughed; his voice deep and gruff, "A team of Genin?" The man laughed again this time louder, "How were the demon brothers defeated by a bunch of weaklings?" His eyes then shifted towards Kakashi, "Oh, I see now. Hatake Kakashi, the copy cat ninja of Konoha, we finally meet."
Kakashi narrowed his eyes, "Momochi Zabuza, missing-nin and Demon of Hidden Mist."
'Demon? This man is one of us?' Kana stared at the man looking him over very carefully. 'Even if he is, it looks like he and Sensei are going to fight. I mustn't do anything to give myself away.'
The man, now known as Momochi Zabuza, was roughly 183cm tall (6ft) wearing white bandages covering his mouth and nose; a scratched out Kiri headband held his dark brown hair up off his face. Long camouflage print arm bands ran his bicep all the way to his palm. He did not wear a shirt, exposing his entire chest and abdomen. His light blue lined pants went down to his knees then a camouflage print covered his shin down to his black ninja sandals.
Kana analyzed every detail about him. His biceps were large and toned like the rest his chest and shoulders; no doubt that was from swinging his sword. He was skinny though in the abdomen area like he had been deprived of regular meals.
"Kana, he is not a Jinchuriki. Humans only give themselves names like that to scare their opponents. He is very strong though so let Kakashi take care of him."
The young girl mentally nodded keeping her full attention on the battle that was about to begin.
"Kana, Gaara, Naruto, Formation T." He ordered, grabbing two kunai.
The three immediately surrounded Tazuna exactly like a T; Kana and Naruto stood out in front of Gaara and Tazuna. Using his sand, Gaara surrounded himself and Tazuna in a large cocoon of chakra enhanced sand from his gourd. (AN: I totally forgot to tell you guys how he got his gourd! Itachi gave it to him during their training. )
Once it was complete an eye formed on the outside of the cocoon letting Gaara see everything that was happening.
The mist around them began to thicken as Zabuza's laughter echoed around them.
"I'm an expert at the art of silent killing. You will be dead before you can even mutter a word." His voice seemed to come from every direction. Suddenly the large broad sword smashed into Gaara's sand cocoon. The sword embedded itself deep into the sand but Gaara held up the defense firmly. Adding more chakra he enhanced the cocoon even more.
Kakashi appeared behind Zabuza stabbing him in the back but only to narrow his eye as the body dispersed into water.
"Water clone." The Jounin muttered then pivoted on his heel to block Zabuza's sword strike with two kunai.
The weapons locked from a moment before the swordsman jumped back then ran forward again. Kakashi leaped into the air and formed hands seals so quickly they became a blur to those that watched him.
"So that's a true ninjutsu specialist…" Kana gasped, gawking at her sensei's seal speed.
A large fire ball flew towards Zabuza to fast for him to doge. It hit him dead on but when the smoke cleared only a puddle of water remained.
Kakashi's eye widened and sidestepped Zabuza's swords strike but ended up becoming caught in a water barrier jutsu by a second Zabuza.
"Sensei!" Kana yelled, her blue eyes wide in surprise.
"Run! Get out of here!" Kakashi ordered, "He is too strong!"
Her eyes hardened as she stared back at him defiantly.
The silver haired Jounin shook his head, 'I know that look. She isn't going to leave me; if she stays, Gaara and Naruto will as well. If their teamwork is flawless they may have a chance.' Kakashi nodded his head slightly, just enough so that Kana would see.
Her lips twitched faintly into a smile as her blue eyes lit up with excitement and her body became electrified with adrenaline.
She rolled her head back to look at Naruto, the anticipation evident on her face now, "Naruto, we are stronger together; don't hesitate to kill because he won't. Follow my lead, and if you let your instincts take over you'll do just fine."
The blonde nodded, 'What did she mean by instincts?' Wondered Naruto as he started to become nervous and uneasy; over thinking everything.
Kyuubi inwardly chucked knowing what Kana was hinting at, "Relax, Naruto. Remember your training and put it to good use. Do as you have been taught by both Itachi and Kakashi. Show everyone that you are strong and can't be taken lightly as an opponent. Don't think, just do."
Naruto closed his eyes and breathed in and out slowly. His muscles relaxed, as he calmed his mind. When he reopened them, they no longer were his bright cerulean eyes; but cold hardened eyes of a ninja.
Kana smirked when she saw his eyes, extremely pleased. Bringing her attention back to Zabuza and his clone, she created a plan.
Within 10 seconds she formed a plan and was ready to execute it. Naruto walked up to her side and stood calmly waiting for her command.
Zabuza stared at the Genin curiously. They did not run like normal weaklings, nor were they paralyzed in fear. Thinking he could change that, the swordsman then began leaking his chakra out to the Genin to paralyze them in fear.
At first nothing happened then faintly Zabuza could hear giggles. It eventually turned into a full blown out laughter as Kana threw back her head laughing, obviously amused.
"Was that supposed to be intimidating? If it was that was pathetic. I'll show you a real demon." Kana yelled letting her own chakra seep out.
The hints of demonic chakra within the chakra tingled Zabuza's senses making him feel edgy but not afraid. It was something he had only felt once before, but he didn't dare think of the memory of that man again. The water clone of Zabuza lifted his sword and ran forward.
"Let's begin, Naruto."
Remaining where she stood, Kana created a genjutsu while Naruto ran forward to meet the clone head on.
'What is he thinking?' Kakashi asked himself, his nervousness continually increasing.
Using two kunai just like Kakashi had, Naruto blocked the strikes acting purely on instinct just like he had been told. It was as if his body knew what the next strike would be, and he merely had to follow.
Suddenly the clones' strikes became slower and weaker; using this opportunity Naruto changed his grip on the kunai, so that the blade was upright instead of sideways, he plunged it into the clones abdomen. It dispersed into water, and then abruptly reformed into Zabuza. Surprised, the boy didn't have time to react as the clone elbowed him in the cheek.
He flew back and was about to hit a tree when Gaara's sand stopped him. Kana grimaced at the clone; she had not calculated the part about Zabuza being able to reform the water clone.
"I'm surprised you brats defeated my clone so easily. I guess I underestimated you, but your nowhere near being ninja's in my book. My hands were already stained in blood at your age! You're just a bunch of sheltered kids that know nothing of the world." Zabuza laughed.
Naruto frowned, "I know enough about life to know that it's full of pain and suffering; along with worthless people who are greedy, self-centered, and too immature to open their eyes." Clenching his fists tightly he continued, "I may not have stained my hands with blood yet, but there's nothing keeping me from doing so anymore."
Zabuza only shook his head.
"We have to defeat the clone, and then get Zabuza's hand out of the water barrier before he has time to rebuild the water clone. It needs to be done as quickly as possible." She announced to Naruto.
His cheek was red and puffy, but his anger was obvious, "You should take your weights off, you are the fastest. I can take care of the clone while you make Zabuza remove his hand from the barrier. Gaara's sand will protect your back." He said nodding his head towards the sand cocoon, but Naruto failed to notice that Zabuza stood atop the water with Kakashi in the water prison.
Within the cocoon, Tazuna stared at the children in amazement.
"This isn't even their best." Gaara commented, "Keep watching because things are about to get a bit more interesting."
The old man could only stare. Little did they both know that the white haired boy on Tazuna's back was awake, watching the scene right along with them.
"Your right, Naruto." Agreed Kana, she then touched the weights with a chakra enhanced finger disabling the weights, "Now the real fun begins."
Disappearing, Kana appeared in front of Zabuza. She threw a punch towards his face only for him to catch it with his free hand. Clutching her wrist, he kneed her in the stomach, elbowed the back of her head, kicking her in the abdomen again he then threw her onto the shore.
She slowly picked herself up off the ground. Her stomach seared in pain, but she did her best to deal with it.
"Kana!" Naruto yelled worriedly, "Are you okay?"
The girl however ignored him, her full attention on Zabuza. Her eyes no longer blue but a rich golden brown. Wiping the blood away from the corner of her lip, she ran at him again.
Kana let him strike first as she ducked underneath a punch then side stepped his attempt to knee her. Grabbing a kunai, she then threw the kunai at his shins. He jumped just high enough to dodge the weapons but low enough to keep his hand inside the barrier.
Seeing an opening, she then punched him squarely in the jaw; but it was not enough as he grabbed her neck and picked her up off the ground.
Naruto desperately tried to get past the clone to help Kana but it ended with the clone decking him in the face.
"You're weak." He sneered tightening his grip her throat, "Kunoichi have no place in this world if they are only going to be weak. Your fast, and have the basics down, I'll give you that, but that' won't save your life. That obviously has not helped you stop me from squeezing the life out of you." Zabuza laughed.
Kana coughed, as she struggled to breathe. She glared at the man, "I'm…not…" Each word was a hard to get out but something inside of her snapped as she yelled, "I'm not weak!" She then head butted him, kneed him in the groin and swung her right fist upper cutting him in the jaw. Zabuza dropped her immediately, as he bent over in pain.
"You little bitch!" He gasped, enraged with the amount of force she put into the strikes. They had been much stronger than the ones before.
'That a girl.' Kakashi thought to himself, proud of his student.
Glaring at him again, Kana jumped into the sky and yelled, "Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!" (Fire Style: Art of the Dragon's Breath, Phoenix Technique)
Multiple fire balls shot towards Zabuza. He was able to dodge them but Kana appeared behind in and fired more. Zabuza's eyes widened, he had no choice but to let go of the barrier, so he jumped high into the sky avoiding the fire balls.
The water barrier dropped the instant his hand left the water and Kakashi grabbed Kana and appeared next to Gaara.
Naruto had defeated the water clone, and ran to Kana.
"Are you okay?" He asked, inspecting her body for wounds.
Kana pushed him away, "I'm fine." She lied standing up.
"Thank you," Kakashi smiled, then turned to Zabuza and lifted his head band revealing a matured sharingan.
"I was wondering when you would reveal your trump card, Kakashi." Zabuza announced moving his broad sword back onto his back.
He then ran threw hand seals perfectly in sync with Kakashi. Once the forty seals had been finished they yelled, "Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!"
The two giant water dragons collided each one battling for dominance over the other. It was unclear to those on the side lines of who was winning, but between Kakashi and Zabuza they both knew that it was Kakashi who had put more chakra into the attack, enabling his water dragon to eventually crush the other.
The dragon hit Zabuza head on, smashing him into a tree. Once the dragon dissipated into nothing more than water, the swordsman stood up slowly.
"How? How did you know that I was going to use that jutsu?" He questioned, but was answered by cold metal piercing his skin and pinning him to the tree.
"AH!" Zabuza cried. Two kunai were embedded deep in his abdomen and another two in his shoulders.
The silver haired Jounin walked tiredly towards him, his sharingan still activated.
"Kakashi!" The wounded man yelled struggling to free himself; he gripped the right kunai with his teeth and pulled it out. He then did the same with the left one, and then pulled the two in his abdomen free. Blood followed out of the wounds, as the man struggled to stand.
"I'm going to kill you!" He was then again silenced by cold steel only still time it was not from the Konoha ninjas, but a mysterious ninja that appeared next to him. A Senbon protruded from Zabuza's neck.
"Thank you, but I must take him now. He is a missing-nin from Kiri and his body holds many secrets that we wish to keep." The boy looked no older than 13, and he wore a porcelain mask with a red swirl and the symbol for Kirigakure no Sato. Putting the full grown man on his back, the Kiri-ninja then disappeared in a swirl of mist.
Kakashi sighed in relief, and leaned heavily on a tree next to him completely exhausted. Gaara's sand cocoon fell and he walked over to Kana, who sat down near Kakashi.
"Sensei who was that guy?" Naruto asked, as they all tiredly gathered around their him, Tazuna included.
"He was a hunter-nin from Kirigakure no Sato." He answered, closing his left eye and moving his head band over it.
"Hunter-nin?" Repeated Gaara.
Kana nodded, "Hunter-nins sole job is to track down missing-nin so that their village secrets, such as where forbidden scrolls are kept, Kekki Genkai's, herbs eaten, ninjutsu's, and chakra types, don't reach their enemies. Hunter-nin are supposed to destroy the corpse at the very spot the body is lying; it is not to be moved after it is dead, and only the head is taken back to prove that the missing-nin is in fact dead. But that Hunter-nin did not do that. He took the corpse with him, which means he is working with Zabuza and is in fact not a real Hunter-nin. Am I right sensei?"
Kakashi chuckled, "Yes Kana is right. The fake hunter-nin saved Zabuza which means we will no doubt run into him soon."
"How soon?" Naruto asked, wanting to be prepared for when he does come back.
"Judging by his wounds, it will take him two weeks to be fully healed to attack us again. We should hurry to Tazuna-san's house."
Everyone nodded, and as they prepared to leave when Tazuna cleared his throat, "Um, everyone." He nudged his head towards the boy on his back that seemed to be waking up.
The bridge builder set him on the ground, and everyone gathered around the boy.
He blinked his eyes and looked around suspiciously, "Where am I? Who are you?" He demanded.
Kakashi crouched down next to him, "We are Konoha-nin," He pointed towards Kana, "My student found you wounded in the forest and brought you back so I could heal you. Now it's your turn. Who are you and how did you get stabbed in the stomach?"
The white haired boy stared into Kakashi's eye, his bright green eyes held no fear, "My name is Kaguya Kimimaro, and I was escaping from Kirigakure no Sato."
Kakashi stared at the boy, "You said Kaguya correct?"
Kimimaro nodded his head, "Are you going to try and kill me too?"
The Jounin sighed, stood up and pulled Kana aside away from the group.
"Kana, this boy is from the Kaguya clan. Do you know what that means?"
The young girl shook her head. Again Kakashi sighed, "It means he is highly dangerous. The Kaguya clan is very barbaric clan who possess Shikotsumyaku, the dead bone pulse. It enables the user with the ability to manipulate their own skeletal structure. By infusing their calcium with chakra, they can manipulate the growth and properties of their bones to their likings. If he knows how to use it, he could kill you guys very easily. There are maybe only two people in Konoha that could fight on par with this kid."
Kana narrowed her eyes not like what he was implying, "So what if he's strong. He said that he was escaping from Kiri right? He must have been trying to escape the Kekki Genkai discrimination and persecution. I saved him, so he's my responsibility; besides even if he strong that doesn't mean he is going to murder us without reason."
Kakashi looked over at the boy, then back at Kana, "Fine, he is under your care. If he does anything suspicious though-
"I'll kill him myself." She said finishing his sentence, then walked back over to the group.
Kimimaro stood up and looked at Kana warily. She held up her hands, showing that she meant no harm, "My name is Kana, and this is Gaara and Naruto. We won't hurt you. Do you have any place to stay or go?"
The white hared boy shook his head, "No, my clan was slaughtered years ago. I've been living on my own ever sense, doing odd jobs so I can eat."
"How old are you?" Naruto asked, seeing the height difference.
"I'm 12. What are you doing out here?" He asked changing the subject so they would stop asking him so many questions.
"We are currently on a mission. You are welcome to come along if you would like." Kana then explained the situation.
Gaara remained quiet during the discussion, eying the boy carefully. 'Why does Kana trust him so easily? Like Sensei said, we don't know much about him. I'm going to have to watch him in case he tries to hurt her.'
But Kimimaro had no such intentions as he was surprised himself at the amount of hospitality and kindness the orange haired girl showed him. He had never been treated so well before. It was nice, and the boy liked it. It was much different from how he had been treated in Kirigakure no Sato, so he decided to tag along and enjoy it while he could.
---
They made it to Tazuna's house later that day, and they were welcomed by his beautiful and loving daughter Tsunami. There, however were not that many spare rooms so Kakashi, Gaara, Naruto, and Kimimaro were forced to share a room giving Kana a room to herself.
Her room was small but it was the perfect size for just one person. It had its own bathroom and Kana was delighted to find that they there was a natural hot springs close their house. She stared at herself in the mirror recalling the events from the fight with Zabuza. She lifted her shirt revealing a large sickly purple blue bruise that covered the whole left side of her stomach, and where Zabuza's fingers had left bruise marks as well on her neck.
"I can heal that for you." Suzaku said.
Kana shook her head, "No, leave it. I want to heal naturally. I want to feel the pain of a shinobi."
Turning the water on, she splashed her face then stared at herself in the mirror; letting the water slowly drip down, Kana continued to stare as many questions formed inside her head
"What happened to me during the battle Suzaku? I became excited by the fact that he was so strong. My body trembled and itched to fight, but I ended up almost loosing."
"Kana there is something that I must tell you. The more tails you achieve, the more you become like me. My personality, my powers, everything about me you will absorb and become the next Ten tailed Phoenix and Mistress of Demonic Beasts."
"Does that mean that my personality will be swallowed up by yours and I will become you? I won't be Kana anymore but Suzaku?"
Suzaku shook her head, "You can choose what you want to be."
"That doesn't make sense." Argued Kana.
"Here I'll give you an example. Say when you gain your fifth tail, you become very bloodthirsty and only want to destroy things. But you aren't like that; you are the type to think things through, to think about the consequences before you act. You can suppress the bloodthirsty urge and only use it when you need it instead of letting it take over. Do you understand?"
"Sort of, so when your personality starts to take over I can either suppress it or embrace it?"
"Exactly, because as you grow stronger so does our bond. It's like that with every Jinchuriki. So some hosts that have gained all their tails can be act exactly like their demons or be completely different. Gaara is very different than Shukaku, he has kept his personality the dominant of the two."
"How can you tell?"
"Because Shukaku is wild, loud, and obnoxious, your friend Gaara is not. But those with stronger demons like Naruto, it will become harder and harder not to become like their demons. Naruto is all ready like Kyuubi." Suzaku sighed dreamily as she remembered her times with Kyuubi.
"Um, Suzaku…did you and Kyuubi ever you know…like each other?"
Suzaku blushed and turned away from the nine year old, "This isn't something that I will discuss with you. Maybe when you are older."
Kana shrugged, confused as to why the phoenix became embarrassed but left it alone and left the bathroom.
"Kana, dinner is ready." Gaara's voice was heard on the other side of the door.
"Okay, I'll be out in a minute." She replied. The young girl was tempted to skip dinner for she had no appetite but it would raise suspicion from the others if she didn't.
The dinner conversation was quiet and everyone seemed too tired to even make an effort to start up a conversation.
At the end of the meal, Kana had asked Tsunami if she could bathe in the hot springs and the young women hurriedly showed her the way.
Ten minutes later, Kana sat alone soaking in the water. She laid her head back and closed her eyes, the hot water soothing her sore muscles and bruised body.
Covered by a towel in the water, she didn't move when she noticed Gaara appear at the water's edge.
He sat down and looking the opposite way as he talked, "Why do you trust that guy so easily?"
"Because, I see the same thing I see in him as I saw in both you and Naruto. Loneliness and pain. Children of this world are punished for things they did not commit, and are left with nothing but an empty hole in their hearts. I want to fill that hole, I want to give them my hand and help them when no one else gives them a second glance. I want to give them something to live for."
He smiled, "That does sound familiar. But what are you going to do when this world is destroyed? What is going to become of Naruto and I?"
Kana turned towards Gaara, "That's a question that will be answered years from now. We have to take things one step at a time or else nothing will be achieved."
Gaara nodded, "How does Kimimaro fit into your plans?"
"I'm hoping that he too will join us. With his abilities he can become a great and useful ally. Also, Naruto needs to earn his first tail, and I my second. We are all much too weak and we need to be much stronger." Kana then turned from Gaara as a sign she wanted to be alone, so as Gaara was leaving he did something surprising, he bowed his head then left shut the door behind him.
---
The temperature had dropped dramatically so as Kana sat atop the roof she wore a white hoodie jacket she had recently bought with dark blue long pants and boots. She stared out at the moon lit water; the rhythmical sounds of the waves quietly hitting the sand then slowly moving back out to sea were calming and made her eyes heavy.
Kakashi made his way up onto the roof and sat next to her, "So you and Gaara share the same hobby I see."
Kana nodded and moved her knees into her chest but winced at the pain, having forgotten about her bruised stomach.
"Would you like me to take a look at it?" Kakashi offered, but she shook her head. The Jounin stared at her; usually she had something to say so he was surprised at her lack of words.
"What's on your mind?" He asked this now his third attempt to start up a conversation.
"A lot of things." She replied.
"Do you want to tell me why your eyes change to gold and your chakra isn't normal chakra?"
Kana turned her head to look at him, "You noticed?"
He nodded his head, "Yes, when you were angry your eyes turned golden brown a couple of times and today they did it again."
She sighed, "Do you want the truth?"
He nodded again.
"I have the Ten tailed Phoenix sealed within me." She then lifted her shirt showing the seal around her belly button then turned around showing her fully tattooed back of a the ten tailed Phoenix.
Kakashi stared at her in shock, "I thought there were only Nine Jinchuriki…the Tenth Tailed beast was just a legend."
Kana shook her head, "It's not a legend it's real. No one knows the existence of a Tenth Beast."
"How is that possible? The beast had to be sealed within you; you had to have come from somewhere. So what village has been hiding you?"
She closed her eyes and moved closer to him, when she opened her eyes they no longer were blue but the golden brown eyes of a phoenix, "Kakashi-sensei, I'm not from this world," the girl whispered, "I'm not a human like you."
The Jounin stared into her eyes intently; the unwavering calmness and brusqueness of Kana surprised the man.
The orange haired girl moved back, and sat in her original spot; her eyes still the hard, golden brown.
"If you aren't human then what are you?"
She leaned back, and laid on the roof with her hands behind her head, relaxing as if it the topic of the conversation didn't matter, "Why are you asking so many questions?"
"Because there is a lot I do not know about my own student. Teachers and students don't keep things like this to themselves. I need to know this in order to protect you."
"Protect me?" Kana scowled, "I don't need your protection." She turned away from him, "And the answer your question, I'm a demon."
"Demon?" Kakashi repeated, "So are you from hell then?"
She laughed, finding the man's lack of knowledge entertaining, "Do I need to give you a history lesson, Sensei? All demons, including the tailed beasts and animal summons, reside in the spirit world, not hell. Each one has a leader, like a clan head. Just like when you sign a contract with an animal there is a boss summon; he/she would be the 'Clan head'. But summons are not demons, they are animals. The animal summons live in the same world as demons do. A demons power is much greater than that of the animal summons, even when they are still young. Essentially, demons are chakra enhanced animals, whose power goes far beyond that of a normal animal. To keep the two sides from fighting over land territory and what not, they have a peace treaty that has been kept sense the beginning of time that no one dares break. In the demon side of the Spirit world there is a King of Demons. He rules over all the demon clans in the Spirit world. He has nine loyal pets that protect him: Shukaku the one tailed Tanuki; Aoi the two tailed monster cat; Aranami the three tailed Giant Turtle; Hisaki the four tailed monkey; Shiro the five tailed Dolphin Horse; Namako the six tailed Slug; Keiteki the seven tailed Beetle; Juma the eight tailed Giant Ox; and Kyuubi the nine tailed Fox. They are the most influential demon clans in the spirit world and are the most respected. You see when a demon is born it is born with one tail. As it grows stronger it gains tails. Kyuubi is the only demon to have nine of these tails. But most demon clans, like the Tanuki Clan, cannot achieve more than one tail. To show his gratitude towards his loyal pets, the Demon King gave each one something to control. For example, Kyuubi controls the wind, Aoi controls the dead, and Aranami controls the water."
Kana stopped and took a deep breath, "Are you still with me?"
Kakashi nodded, "How do you know so much? And if you are a demon how come you look human and not like animal?"
"Every demon has a human form, but there are demons that are not animals." She explained, "It is said that Kami sent both his son and daughter to rule over the spirit world to bring peace by creating the treaty between animals and demons; the son, ruling over the demons, and the daughter ruling over the animal summons. They had two children, a girl and a boy. Then they had children, and so on. Thus the appearance of being human, without actually being human. The current King of Demons was married to the Queen of Animals but she disappeared for unknown reasons and is presumed to be dead."
The Jounin nodded, "Where do you fit into all of this?"
"I'm the daughter of the King of Demons." She sighed, "I thought you were supposed to be a genius? It's not that hard to figure out after all the information I just told you."
Kakashi scratched the back of his head, "It's a lot of foreign information that I'm not familiar with, jeez give me a break. But that only answered half my question. Where does the ten tailed Phoenix come in at?"
The fiery haired girl shifted her position on the roof, still lying down with her heads behind her head, "She was the King of Demons, eyes and ears. She was his most loyal servant and was treated more as an equal than as a pet. She would give him advice, and information. All demons feared, respected, and loved her; including the tailed beasts. She carried out any order without question or hesitation. "
Kakashi nodded ,"There is still something that I just quite don't get."
Kana sighed again, becoming a bit frustrated, "What?"
Kakashi voice was serious as he looked at the girl, "Why are you here?"
The girl didn't answer she only continued looking up at the stars.
"Answer me Kana, why are you here in our world with two other Jinchuriki at your side?" He demanded.
Her eyes widened slightly, 'How did he know Gaara was a Jinchuriki? I didn't tell him…'
"My nin dog told me something interesting about the scents of you, Gaara, and Naruto. He had said that Gaara smelled like a Tanuki. Then earlier you mentioned Shukaku the one tailed Tanuki. It was said that he had attacked Suna around the same time the Kyuubi attacked Konoha, but was later sealed within a boy just like the Fourth had done. You and Gaara both traveled here from Suna, and Gaara and Naruto are the same age. You didn't have to tell me directly, all the information you have given me points to Gaara being the host of Shukaku." Kakashi explained, answering her unspoken question.
'He really is a genius. I can't tell him my plans. He will either tell the Hokage or try and stop me himself. I need to think of something quick.'
"I met Gaara by accident in Suna. He was playing alone at the park, and I decided to join him. I had no idea that he was a Jinchuriki like me. We became friends then later left Suna. When we entered the Academy, I saw Naruto being bullied and decided to help him. There isn't anything wrong with saving them from their loneliness, Kakashi." Kana growled, "I don't like what you're implying. I just shared everything with you, like you asked me to do and this is how you repay me? I'm making an effort here Kakashi and you aren't in the slightest." She stood up, practically yelling at him now.
The Jounin sighed, "Your right. I'm sorry," , "I guess years of fighting have made me cautious to the unknown and things that could possibly pose a threat to the village."
Kana nodded her head, "That's right; you should have more trust in me. I accept your apology." She then jumped off the roof and walked into the house.
---
"That was close," the orange headed girl sighed in relief.
Suzaku stared at Kana incredulity, 'Within such a short time, she was able to hone her deception skills. She pretended to get angry like she normally would have, challenging Kakashi, showing him little respect. In doing so with no hesitation, she came up with the excuse in less than 2 seconds and was able to fool him once again. He had been watching her very carefully, looking for any signs that she was lying. Kana kept her heart rate at a steady pace, her eyes remained focused on Kakashi's, and she did not fidget or shift her weight from one side to the other. Her performance was absolutely flawless. She has natural talent far beyond anyone I have ever seen to the point where you can't tell where the truth begins and where the lies end. It's is only if you know the truth, will you be able to tell if she was lying or not.'
Kana turned the light off then slipped into her bed.
'I was careless today.' Curling up in a ball she buried her face into the pillow, 'I can't afford to screw things up this early on in the mission. Having Kakashi as an enemy right now would be very dangerous.' She clenched her fists tightly, 'I need to get stronger. I'm way to weak to challenge Zabuza again.'
"Kana leave that man to Kakashi. There is no reason for you to take on the strongest opponent unless you're the strongest yourself, which you aren't, and besides I think the fake hunter-nin will prove to be just as challenging." Suzaku smirked, "Oh, and remind Kakashi to keep his end of the deal, about him teaching you some of those Genjutsu from that scroll. That will get you closer to earning your second tail."
The girl grinned excitedly, 'That's right. We did make a deal. He better keep his end of the bargain.' Her smile grew wider, 'He'll pay dearly if he doesn't…'
---
The Konoha shinobi were up early the next morning. With their warm-ups finished, the three students stood waited for Kakashi's instructions.
"Gaara, you are to work on controlling your sand. Naruto, you are to work on your Taijutsu against Kimimaro; no weapons allowed you two. Kana, I'm going to help you on your genjutsu. In two hours you each will work in the area's you are weakest in. Begin!"
Spreading themselves out to different corners of the clearing, they each began their training.
Kana pulled out the red scroll, "I've already completed Chapter 1, and 2: The Basics of Genjutsu. I have yet to move on to the higher level techniques."
"To perform advanced techniques correctly, you have to be able to execute the hand seals flawlessly. Show me the basic 12."
Nodding, she began the chain of seals: "Rooster, Boar, Dog, Dragon, Ox, Tiger, Snake, Rat, Horse, Monkey, Rabbit, and Ram."
"Good, now I'm going to call out a hand seal and you have to make it in less then two seconds. Memorizing the hand seals now will help you later on when you're creating your own Jutsu's."
--- An hour later ---
Naruto stared at Kimimaro intently as he bent over with his hands on his knees panting; he wiped the blood away from the corner of his mouth. At least one of his ribs was fractured and he had multiple bruises on his body. The white haired boy however, looked unfazed by the battle as he stood tall in a defensive position.
"Dammit," The blonde cursed, "This is a spar you know! You aren't supposed to actually hurt the other person!"
Kimimaro shrugged, "If a spar is supposed to get you ready for an actual battle, then how am I preparing you if I baby you? Even though I never agreed with my clan's method of training, I have to admit that it was effective. They would beat me to properly teach me how defend myself and fight back in real situations. I was starved to be taught was it's like to go hungry; and I wasn't given much clothing in the winter to be taught how to deal with the cold. You Konoha-nin have always been babied when it comes to training."
"That may be for those who are rich, and have nice houses. But, that is not the case for me. I too, was beaten, starved, and deprived of basic necessities but not for the same reason. You were being prepared for reality. I was already facing it." Naruto scowled,
"Don't group me with those ninja. They did nothing but walk past my out stretched hand."
"Oh, you despise your fellow shinobi yet you became a ninja swearing an oath to protect them?" Kimimaro asked, finding the topic quite interesting.
Naruto clenched his fists as he stood up, "I did not become a ninja to protect them, but to protect someone else. Unlike those pathetic, arrogant people, she held out her hand when no one else would."
"I see," The white haired boy nodded his head towards Kana, who was training with Kakashi, "So she is the one that saved you."
"I'm not sure why she saved you, Kimimaro. But if Kana trusts you then so will I. Let's continue our spar, shall we?"
Chuckling, the elder boy ran at Naruto.
---- Kana's training ----
She had managed to memorize the seals and was able to make each one the instant Kakashi said to.
"Now for the advanced techniques where you have a chain of seals, there is no other way but to do the jutsu over and over until you memorize it. Remember, only through hard work will you achieve something great. Nothing good comes out of something half-assed."
Kana laughed, "But there are those who do take the easy way out, Sensei. The Sharingan enables the user to copy a jutsu, automatically memorizing the hand seals. Isn't that where you got your nickname, the Copy Cat Ninja?"
His eye twitched in annoyance, "Yes, but that's not the point. The Uchiha have to work to mature their Sharingan, you know. There is no way to gain true strength easily. Everyone has worked hard to get to where they are now."
---
The days seemed to fly by as their training progressed. Each one trained in the area they were weakest in: Naruto training in Genjutsu, Gaara in Taijutsu, and Kana in Ninjutsu.
"Today, we are going to see what kind of element you are each affiliated with." Kakashi announced pulling out three pieces of paper, "If the paper ignites and turns to ash your element is fire, if the paper splits in two then its wind, if it crumbles then its lightning, if it turns into dirt then its earth and finally if it becomes damp then it's water. These are the five elements, they however can be combined into many different other types of elements but that is advanced techniques that is extremely difficult and you won't be learning it for many years."
He then handed them each of the pieces of paper, "Channel a small amount of chakra into it and we will see what happens."
"Concentrate and only channel normal chakra. Do not channel your demonic chakra onto the piece of paper."
Kana inwardly nodded and concentrated. Because of this, her paper was the last to show her affinity. Kakashi eyes her questionable but turned to look at the results.
"Well it looks like Gaara's affinity is earth, Naruto's is wind, and Kana's is fire. Can't say I'm surprised, these elements fit you perfectly. Earth is generally used as a defense, Wind attacks fast and cut's deep into the skin and Fire is the fiercest, leaving the largest impact. This is a great combination to have on a team."
"Why?" Naruto wondered aloud.
"Because, Gaara's the defense of the team while you two act as the offense. If you have a team of all defensive fighting ninja's the mission won't be as easy, but if you have a team of all offense then they can easily be picked off and taken down easier. It's best to have two offensive shinobi to work together while one hangs behind you protecting you."
"I see, that does make sense," Nodded Naruto.
Kana soaked in the information, and stored it for later use. He then showed them each an elemental jutsu to master.
"I have only a few Doton Jutsu's, so I'll give you three choices: Doton: Retsudotenshō, Doton: Doryūheki, or Doton: Doryūsō. The first, Doton: Retsudotenshō causes the ground surrounding the enemy to spiral inwards on itself, burying them alive or crushing them. The second, Doton: Doryūheki creates a protective wall of earth. Then lastly, Doton: Doryūsō, lets the user condense mud or stone from the ground and shape them into spikes that will protrude from the ground to skew the target. So those are your choices."
Gaara thought for a moment, "I think that I need some more offensive techniques besides my sand. I choose Doton: Doryūsō."
Kakashi smiled, "That one only has one hand seal, so you should get this jutsu pretty easily. When you master it, I will teach you the other three." He then walked over to Naruto.
"Like Gaara, I only have a few wind techniques. But if you are to specialize in Futon Jutsu's then I suggest getting a weapon such as a fan, knife, sword, or short sword. A jutsu you can use without using an object is, Futon: Reppūshō. It's a simple technique that sends a gust of concentrated wind at the opponent. I suggest using it so that it propels a shuriken to increase its lethality. But wind is the most difficult to master besides lightning. You must cut a blade of grass in half with your chakra before you can perform this jutus."
"Why didn't Gaara have to do something like break a boulder with his fist or something?" Protested Naruto.
"The earth is the easiest to manipulate because it is already there. You have to create wind."
Naruto groaned, as he sat down under a shaded tree and began his long training.
Finally, Kakashi walked over to Kana, who stood waiting patiently.
"You are lucky, I have a variety of fire Jutsu's for you to chose from: Katon: Karyū Endan which enables you to exhale a long stream of incredibly hot fire from your mouth like that of a flamethrower. Katon Ninpo: Hibashiri this jutsu will create jets of fire that can be manipulated into several forms before striking the target. And lastly Katon: Haisekishō, allows you to spew superheated ash from your mouth. The ash is hot enough to cause third-degree burns on the victim. Because it's composed entirely of ash, it stays in the air around the victim like a cloud. If you were to click your teeth, the stagnant ash will ignite, creating a violent explosion."
Kana thought for a moment, thinking of when and how she would use each one, "Katon: Haisekishō."
He nodded and showed her the necessary hand seals.
---
Kana sat on the shore's of the ocean. Her legs crossed, palms lying comfortably on her knees, and eyes closed. Breathing in and out slowly, she concentrated on planning her next move. Like a game of shoji, she carefully chose where to move her pawns, lances, and knights accordingly to her opponent's moves.
"Do not think too far ahead, for your view on who your enemy is, might change. Therefore, to have an absolute plan, the plan must be able to adapt to the situation; it must adapt, and counter your enemy's plans. Or else the plan will fall apart because you will soon learn that not everything goes according to plan."
"You're right. I can only plan our moves based on the information I have now. Things will change in the future. I appreciate your advice."
Suzaku nodded, "I am still a follower of your father, and his plans and orders still remain absolute over all of us demons. I'm here to present my knowledge and insight on the situations. Besides, I'm with you till the very end; remember we are joined; our bodies will remain one forever. That is the same with all of us Jinchuriki."
"I wonder how the others are living. Are they being treated the same as Gaara and Naruto were? Or treated as kings and queens because of their power?"
"What would you do if they are enjoying their lives? Are you going to forcibly take them from their friends and family?"
She grimaced, "If that is the case, I will give them a choice. Because, I know that deep down inside, they know that they can never be truly understood by those people. That the only way for them to truly live as themselves is to be with people who have lived through the same situation; people that share the same pain. My fellow Jinchuriki might not realize it, but I have a feeling deep inside my gut that no one in this world is going to leave us be, to let us live in peace. We will be used as living weapons to destroy for the soul purpose of greed and money of arrogant humans."
Suzaku smiled sadly, "Their eyes will open eventually. It is only human nature to want to fit in, to be apart of something. That is why they all will eventually follow you. They will give their lives for what you are doing. You must treat them as equals, never belittle anyone. That will only sow hatred and turmoil inside their hearts. A good leader must show kindness, respect, and loyalty to his soldiers; because you can't do this on your own. Create tight bonds with them, like you are with Naruto and Gaara. This will ensure your victory."
"I understand what you are saying, but there has to be a limit to kindness."
"There is, you will always get some that do not agree with your plans. You will have to remind them of their place inside the group, where they belong. And as a tailed Jinchuriki, they will have to remember where they stand on the scale of power. You stand at the top, with Naruto at your right hand. No one will be able to command you. This is also where your knowledge comes in, you have to make sure that the plans you make, that the places you send your comrades are correct. The things you order them to do, they must all be right if they are, then there will be no reason for them to question your authority."
She looked down, "I have a lot of responsibilities don't I?"
"Yes, and as a descendent of Kudara-sama you are to one day take the throne. You are a Princess; this mission is only a taste of what you will be commanding, a brief chapter that will prepare you for the rest of your life. Don't ever forget who you are Kana."
Smiling sadly, the almost ten-year old stood up and headed back to Tazuna's house for dinner.
Unbeknownst to the shinobi in Wave country, Konoha was in disarray because its forbidden scroll had disappeared.
-------------
There were a lot of Jutsu's in this chapter. When they are used I will put the English translation in parenthesis so you know which jutsu is it.
