Long time no update… sorry! School started, and that just drained away pretty much all of my spare time. Now, I'm making time for this, but it's not the easiest thing. Anyways, next chapter's here!
Mucho thanks to Chapter Eight's reviers: lovingmylive, tenten hyuuga, Trailblazer, 10Join-Fei, and Takky-san
Disclaimer: (back to the old thing) I don't own Naruto, b/c if I did, Sasuke would be MINE!!!
Chapter Nine
As Neji watched the four shinobi approach, he felt his heart skip a beat. The only female of the group, a medic, judging from her chakra flow, bore an uncanny resemblance to Tenten. She had the same bun-bun hairstyle, although a lighter brown, and huge, chocolate colored eyes. But, the extra arms she had assured him there was no relation to his own teammate.
"Let's go!" Shikamaru's order snapped Neji back to the present and he silently chided himself for being so foolish. There was no time to think; he was a shinobi and shinobi had to act.
The two teams stood their ground in a clearing beneath the trees, each squad of four glaring at the other. Kanaye stepped forward, immediately recognizing the white-eyed genius from his records from the academy. "Hyuuga Neji", he stated, clenching his fists.
"Who are you?!" Ino blurted out. Shikamaru quickly shushed her, but it was too late. There was an indignant look in Kanaye's eye, and Neji could sense an aura of hatred radiating from this character.
"What do you want?" Neji asked coolly, his eyes set on Kanaye's.
"I want you dead", the reply was just as cold.
It was obvious from the look on Neji's face that he didn't have a clue why this guy was after him. As far as he could remember, he had never run into this person before. But, at the back of his mind, he was constantly reminded of Kidomaru, and part of him felt that there was a good reason why Kanaye wanted him dead; he just didn't know what it was yet.
"My brother always liked to play games", Kanaye began, "but I never thought he'd lose at any of them".
"You're brother?" Kiba spoke up. From beside him, Shikamaru stole a glance at his teammate while his mind worked. Brother… that had to mean Kidomaru and Kanaye were brothers. Now it made sense!
Apparently, Neji had figured it out at about the same time, because any trace of confusion that had been there before had now left his eyes, and was replaced with a glaring determination to defeat whoever was in front of him.
"My brother, Kidomaru", Kanaye gritted his teeth, "is going to be avenged!" He shot forward without a second thought, aiming to take out Neji in any way he could.
With his byakugan activated, Neji easily dodged the oncoming enemy and jumped back, eyes narrowing as he looked at his opponent while still remembering to keep track of where everyone else was.
He was, to be honest, a bit unsure of how all this would be fought. Were they supposed to charge at each other? Or hide and attack? There was no one to look up to, as he was the leader, and to make things worse, the rest of his team was looking to him for instructions.
Fortunately, it seemed as if Kanaye had taken charge of his own team, as he was now ordering them to back off. "This is my fight", he closed in on Neji, taking no notice of the other shinobi around him. On Neji's side, Shikamaru had decided to do the same.
"It's a fight between the two of them", he mused.
Hinata winced as a sharp pain shot through her stomach, slowly spreading to her arms and legs. She felt a strange pressure against her wrists and ankles, and saw, a moment later, that she was chained to a cold, iron bed in the corner of a dark room. The only source of light filtered through cracks in the wall and the small hole of a door where the doorknob had been broken off.
Her first reaction upon waking up to this scene was that the possibilities of escape were relatively high, as the exit seemed to be unblocked. However, the lack of a lock on the door was only a small amount of optimism compared to the rest of the situation. As a second burst of pain shot up her spine, Hinata numbly remembered that she had been poisoned and groaned in discouragement.
How long would it be until the poison finally killed her? Her kunoichi mind attempted to tell her this was no time to panic or think about death, but Hinata was a emotionally driven girl, and as we all know, emotions have one of the biggest effects on actions. (ahhahah! I learned that in my "theory of knowledge" class … cool, huh?)
Nevertheless, her will for survival was eventually able to overcome her fear, and Hinata began scouting the room for any means of escape. She weakly attempted to use her byakugan, but failed. This time, she'd have to rely solely on shinobi skills; there was no room for a blood-limit to give her an advantage.
Her first order of action was to break free of the table, but Hinata could tell just by tugging her arms that the material that held her wasn't something that could be bought at the nearest store. She suspected there was chakra running in the material that held her against the table, but couldn't be sure.
In fact, the only way she could be sure of anything was to use her eyes. There just had to be a way to get them to work. She gritted her teeth and strained her eyes, forcing a rush of chakra towards her head. It was more than obvious that her usual amount of chakra had been greatly reduced, but there was still enough.
With a great effort, her veins bulged and her white eyes turned on its power, until every bit of chakra in the room was crystal clear. Hinata carefully examined her surroundings, from the thin chakra threads that strapped her to the table, to the amount of chakra she still had in the own body.
She figured there was enough for one attempt to escape, but if it failed, she would be even worse off. Still, seeing her current situation, she was more than determined to try.
Focusing on her chakra control, Hinata sent a rush of energy to her wrists and quickly exerted it out, breaking free of the chakra bonds that had held her arms to the table. She weakly sat up, ignoring a continuous, throbbing pain inside her. She judged that the poison couldn't have been very strong, as she could still move relatively easily, and deduced that this was most likely because whoever had taken her wanted to keep her alive, if barely.
Although her hands were now free, there was still the problem of her legs, and Hinata felt too drained to try anything. She went back to laying down and shuddered at the coldness, hoping to restore a bit of the energy that had left her.
An ominous feeling crept about her and she felt as if someone was coming soon. She felt rushed to try and break free as quickly as possible, but couldn't muster up the energy to do so.
Too late. The door creaked open and a shadowed figure stepped into the room. From her outline, Hinata could tell that it was a female, but knew not to underestimate whoever it was. She quickly laid her hands against the table and closed her eyes, pretending to be unconscious. Maybe the person would go away.
"I know you're awake", a cold, calculating voice spoke up, "You're breathing is uneven and strained, and you've lost quite a bit of chakra".
Hinata sighed and her eyes fluttered open, looking at her kidnapper in defeat.
"Don't worry", the voice continued, "there's no reason for me to kill you. Yet".
"What do you want with me?" Hinata dared to ask.
"Oh, it's not really you that I want", came the reply, "you're just bait". Before Hinata could respond, the figure swirled around and left the room, disappearing outside. Before the door closed, Hinata managed to catch sight of a pair of glaringly sharp eyes and several sets of arms.
Upon Shikamaru's signal, he and Ino retreated to one corner of the clearing while Kiba and Akamaru retreated to the opposite side, all of them remembering to keep their eyes on the two shinobi who faced each other.
On the other end, Kanaye's three backups had retreated in to the tress as well, keeping an eye on their own teammate.
All circumstances were forgotten as Neji and Kanaye circled each other, searching for openings and weaknesses. They simultaneously drew out pairs of Kunai, took aim, and watched as the sharpened pieces of metal bounced off each other with a loud clang.
Neji scrutinized his opponent, observing the way the enemy moved. His byakugan read every movement clearly and he noticed that the chakra circulation of Kanaye was distinctively weaker than that of his brother.
Neji decided his next move would be to test the abilities of this shinobi, and to see whether he was capable of producing the tough, waxy covering that Kidomaru had produced from pores throughout his body.
I've got to get close enough to hit him. Neji caught sight of an opening and rushed forward, jabbing his fingers at the enemy's stomach. His eyes pinpointed a vital point that seemed weaker than usual, as if it had just been healed, and he brought the tip of his chakra filled hand to meet the opponent's skin. There was a satisfying whoosh of chakra that escaped Kanaye's body and Neji smirked triumphantly as he closed his eyes in concentration. Just a few more hits and this guy was going down.
From his spot in the tree, Kiba watched intently as Neji moved into an all too familiar stance. It was the same one he'd seen at the final Chunnin Exams last year, when Neji and Naruto had fought. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Kiba couldn't help but smile evilly. Oh, this guy was gonna get it.
Both Shikamaru and Ino had recognized the stance for Neji's Hakke Rokujuu Yonshou (that 64 palm thingy) as well, but while Ino silently cheered their team leader on, Shikamaru had already begun analyzing the possible outcomes of the situation.
From what Neji had said before, it seemed very likely to Shikamaru that Kanaye could protect himself from Neji's attacks simply by excreting a layer of that "armor". Shikamaru was pretty sure Neji knew that already, and he attributed this to the single hit Neji had landed on the enemy earlier.
"He's doing good, isn't he?" Ino asked, tapping Shikamaru on the shoulder.
"He's doing well", came the reply, "But we don't know what the enemy's capable of".
Neji's attack had an obvious effect on Kanaye, as he doubled over, clutching his sides. However, he wasn't to be underestimated. While any normal person would have fallen over, unable to fight anymore, Kanaye managed to stay on his feet and, even more surprisingly, continue his attacks. His face revealed the pain he felt as he shoved himself towards Neji in a blind attempt to attack bluntly.
Weapons flew out in a flurry as Kanaye threw everything he had into the fight, lunging forward unrestrained. His teammates recognized that unless they interfered, they would have to watch Kanaye tear himself apart. The medic was the first to enter the fight, throwing herself in front of Kanaye and attacking Neji with amazing chakra control, a result of her medic-training.
Neji noticed that her style of fighting was similar to Sakura's, which immediately put him at an advantage, as he not only knew Sakura's strengths and weaknesses, but also that it would be a close range fight – his specialty.
Kanaye was held back by the two other shinobi, who attempted to calm him before letting go. "This is my fight!" he roared, shaking off his two teammates.
Kanaye lunged forward once again and pushed the medic out of the way, but his teammates held him back, this time, with much more force.
"Time to join the fun", Shikamaru commented sarcastically as he left his spot on the tree, landing smoothly beside Neji. Ino and Kiba did the same and each landed on either side of Neji, poised and ready to fight.
The fight evolved into a free-for-all, with a flurry of weapons flying everywhere. Amidst the metallic sounds of kunais hitting each other and the dull noises made by punches and kicks, Neji was able to spot Kanaye with his byakugan. The unique weak spot in his chakra system that, unknown to Neji, had been caused by Tenten earlier in Konoha, was the only sign that set Kanaye apart from the others.
Neji shot forward and pinned the figure to the ground, and only when the smoke cleared did he realize he had the medic in his clutches. She had ingeniously manipulated her chakra to match Kanaye's and Neji was more than surprised to find that she could read him so easily.
His eyes traveled from the medic's daring eyes to her arms, where an unconscious Ino was strangled, breathing heavily and unevenly. All the background sounds, Akamaru's barking, Kiba's attempt to hold off the other enemies, and Shikamaru's shouting was blurred into one indistinct noise as the medic tightened her grasp on Ino and glared at Neji.
Her gaze held him hypnotically, not because she had empowered him, but because he saw an exact reflection of Tenten in those eyes. They felt identical to her and as Neji struggled to free Ino, he felt an overpowering feeling flood through him. His hands had now found their way around the medic's neck, choking her the way she choked Ino.
However, for some strange reason, he refused to kill her, as if some strange force was stopping him. Shikamaru's angry yells were drowned out as Neji's mind flew elsewhere; the medic in front of him had somehow melted into Tenten's form and he let out an audible gasp, suddenly letting go.
Behind him, Shikamaru had finally broken free of Kanaye and tossed the figure to the ground, rushing forward to where Ino was still in the clutches of the medic. Neji was standing dumbly beside them, unmoving, unblinking. Shikamaru shoved him aside and attacked the medic, freeing his teammate and catching her as she fell gracefully into his arms.
"Ino? Ino!" with one arm wrapped around his teammate, keeping her from falling by holding her against his own body, Shikamaru used his free hand to slip out a kunai and aim it at the medic, who had been caught in his "Shadow Clone Jutsu".
The medic fell to the ground with a thud, and Shikamaru felt a scratch on his arm – the result of the kunai the medic had thrown at him (because, like, they have to do the exact same motions, right?)
By now, Neji had snapped out of his dazed state and was angry at himself for blanking out. Other people had never gotten in the way of his concentration before, so what was happening to him?
There was no time to ponder over this detail, as the sounds of Kiba and Akamaru's fight reached Neji. He whirled around to see the pair attack the last two enemies left, and was surprised to see all four badly beat up. Neji wanted to make up for his lack of performance, and rushed forward to help out his team.
His byakugan was still on, and he quickly aimed two chakra filled fingers at the opponents, destroying them in a flash.
Only silence was left now, as Kiba and Akamaru sank to the floor, clutching their wounds. On the other side, Shikamaru had managed to revive Ino, who was still weakly slumped against him, her eyes only half opened. Neji stood in the middle, his head lowered, eyes boring into the ground.
He couldn't face his teammates; he had let them down. It was true, all four enemies had been defeated, but he had been unable to act in their time of need. And all for what? Because that stupid medic reminded him of Tenten? How could he even think of other things when they were on a mission? He was definitely becoming weak.
"What were you thinking!?" Shikamaru yelled into the silence. A group of birds fluttered out of the trees at the sudden noise and Neji lowered his head even more.
"You- you guys. A-Akamaru is… hurt… badly", Kiba gasped, holding his dog against him.
"Akamaru? Look at yourself", Ino replied. Her tone lightened the mood, but still, a heavy tension hung between Neji and Shikamaru.
"You didn't do anything! You just stood there when Ino was in trouble! What were you thinking?!" Shikamaru repeated angrily. His hold on Ino had unconsciously tightened and she tapped him lightly to remind him that she was ok.
Neji shook his head; he obviously had nothing to reply to that. "You and Akamaru are too injured to continue", he ignored Shikamaru's question and stepped towards Kiba, "You must return to Konoha immediately".
"But- but you guys need help", came the stubborn reply, "How will you follow Hinata's scent?"
"There's no need. I can see her already", Neji replied.
"What are you talking about?" Shikamaru demanded.
"Just now, with my byakugan. I can see her", Neji explained, "she's- she's fine". His voice was slightly uneven, and although Kiba took his word for it, Shikamaru detected a hint of a lie in his wavering voice. He understood, though, that the only way to convince Kiba and Akamaru to return to Konoha was to make them feel reassured that things would be fine.
"Ok, then. We'll be on our way back", Kiba stood up stiffly, carrying Akamaru in his arms, "Be careful".
They turned towards the opposite direction and headed back, slowly trudging through the forest.
Neji scouted the path back to Konoha and nodded to himself, "they'll be fine". This time, Shikamaru heard truth in his voice.
"What?! You're- you guys are…" Tenten was beyond shock as she managed to not stumble and fall off a tree branch.
"That's right! Both Sakura-chan and I have become Chunnin!" Lee smiled proudly, hoping for his teammate to feel proud of him as well. Tenten smiled to show she really was happy for him, but at the same time, she could feel a sinking feeling in her heart. So many people around her had become Chunnin and she really felt she was falling behind. Was there something horribly wrong with her?
"Tenten, don't think about it", Sakura spoke up quietly; she could understand what the older girl was going through, since the medic-in-training had felt the same way on her own team for the longest time.
"I'm falling behind", Tenten reprimanded herself. She realized that for the past couple of weeks, she had been so focused on everything around her, that she'd left no time for training.
"No, no you're not", Sakura attempted to cheer her up, "There's -"
"Oh, Tenten! Do not think so negatively! Have faith in yourself!" Lee cut in. Sakura had to agree with Lee on this one; she didn't want Tenten to feel bad either.
"It's alright you guys, I'm fine. So, what was our mission anyways?"
"Hokage-sama never told you?" Sakura asked.
"No, she just told me to meet you guys", Tenten replied.
"I see. Originally, Lee and I were supposed to go to the rock country and escort one of their feudal lords to Konoha for a business visit. It's actually a bit of a lower rank mission, since he doesn't have any dangerous enemies".
"That's why it was enough to send just you and Lee", Tenten realized, "but Hokage-sama sent me as well just so I could have a mission. And it's only because I requested it".
"No, Tenten, do not think that way. You are a much needed member on this team!" Lee cheered. Sakura cringed slightly at the enthusiasm, becausem, as much as she admired Lee's hard-work and determination, this was a little overdoing it.
"C'mon, let's not slow down", Tenten smiled. Her two teammate nodded in agreement and all three shinobi moved on.
Gahh!! I'm really starting to dislike fighting scenes. I mean, I know that "Naurto" is full of fighting and missions and crap, but, oh geez…. this is getting hard. You know what would make me feel better? Reviews!! So get reviewing!!