ok ... people ... i know that last chapter wasn't as long as it should have been ... sorry ... well ... i hope this chapter is ok ... yeah ... so ... enough talk ... lets do the story (I'm gonnna finish two of the fights this chapter ... so .. prepare for some serious action)
p.s. emanuel ... love your idea ... like totally ... I would so write a story on that story line but ...
( TO EVERYONE!) Afterwatching the new intro for the anime (which seriously kicks ass) ... inspiration hit me .. yeah ... so after this ... the next Naruto story ... title in progress ... lol
Face Off: Awakening
Last Time on The Path to Hokage:
"SHUT UP!" Takeshi yelled, his lightning chakra burst out of his body, completely obliterating the surrounding area. Isashi immediately let go, looking at his son. "You have no idea of how hard it was to get here ..."
Isashi just chuckled before responding to his son's outcry. "Then show me how hard ..."
"Your arrogance is going to be your fall ..." a voice weakly said. Kai slowly opened his eyes. He looked at Isashi and said, "I wanted to be the one who killed you ... but I've realized now that ... revenge isn't everything ... it's love ... and family ..." Isashi glared at his son, furious.
He turned to Takeshi, "Beat him, dobe." he murmered, sending a beam of chakra into Takeshi. Kai collapsed, tired from the chakra exhaustion. Rin signaled that he was ok.
Takeshi nodded before attacking his father.
Sakura raised her fist for a final blow when a sudden wave of chakra kicked her off of Kisame. Sakura neatly did a backflip and landed on the ground, slightly fazed but unharmed.
"What the hell is going on?" Gaara asked, as he felt Shukaku awaken. "No ... the Sanbi ... It's being released! Sakura!" he yelled. "RUN!" The two of them immediately burst backwards running as fast as they could when a growl emanated from behind them.
"G:GGAHAHAHAHAH!" it growled. They looked back, still running, to see a giant turtle emerge from his body, physically. Kisame was gone. The Sanbi was back.
Sasuke appeared behind Claire. "Stop this Claire!" He had a kunai at her throat. "If not for me ... do it for all of your friends!" Itachi smiled. He was enjoying this melodrama before him more then he could have expected. His seal formation nwas almost complete. Just thirty more seconds.
Claire remained silent as she twisted in the air, throwing a series of kunai and shuriken at Sasuke. Sasuke easily dodged and began to attack Claire, but stopped. Claire took the advantage and pummeled him straight into the ground.
"It's over, Sasuke," she muttered. Her kunai was at his throat.
Itachi finished the last seal. "Stand aside, Claire. Claire. Now move aside and let me finish him off." Claire couldn't move.
"Sasuke ..." she whispered ...
She gripped her kunai and threw it Itachi. He gasped for the first time in his life. He couldn't dodge so he released his jutsu, "FOUR SEASON DEATH JUTSU!" Immediately a huge beam of multicolored chakra fired from Itachi towards Claire.
"CLAIRE!" Sasuke yelled as the beam engulfed her ... tearing at her body ... dissolving her body in the light ...
Sasuke felt himself stand up and run towards Claire, but he knew what was going to happen. She was just hit by the Ultimate Jutsu. It was a guarenteed One-hit KO jutsu.
Itachi cursed. He had been forced to cast a jutsu capable of being used once in a lifetime. And it had been wasted on a traitor. Itachi dropped to his knees. The chakra he had put into that jutsu had completely drained the rest of his chakra. It was all up to the Rokubi (Six Tails) now.
Even now, he felt the yellow chakra crawling up his body. The Raiju's lightning natured chakra along with the copy cat's original move would be deadly. He glared at his brother ... the fight had been going on for too long, and he had just sensed Kisame's passing.
'Akatsuki really has come to the dogs ... these kids are defeating us one by one ...' He mused to himself, watching his brother run towards a certain kunouchi.
"CLAIRE!" Sasuke yelled, catching her falling body. He couldn't even feel a pulse. "Claire ... Claire!" he continued to yell, shaking her body. "WAKE UP!" His head dropped as tears streamed down his face.
"Tch." he muttered, "It looks like she had real feelings for you." Itachi slowly took of his outer robe, revealing a thin, sleek, mesh clothing. He said, "She was weak."
"SHUT UP!" Sasuke yelled, purple chakra streaming throughout his body. "YOU KILLED HER!" Black marks began to spread throughout his body, but it didn't stop there. The dark chakra continued to leak out little by little ... until ...
Itachi didn't back down until the chakra aura jumped in. His eyes grew open. "No ... the Orochi!" Sasuke charged headfirst into Itachi, eyes fully developed into their four tomoe state in Mangekyou Sharingan. "No ..."
Sasuke threw a chakra enforced punch as dark blue tendrils of chakra began to creep throughout his body. Itachi blocked the blow with his Rokubi charged forearm, but that didn't stop Itachi from being thrown backwards from the sheer strength of the chakra.
"AAAAGGGHHHH!" Itachi yelled, in pain, for the first time in more then eight years. Not even Rokubi's lightning enforced chakra could counter the poisonous chakra of the Snake.
Sasuke clutched his stomach in pain as he yelled. The tendrils of chakra slowly enveloped his body, giving his seven tails of dark blue chakra and giving him a shield, in the shape of a snake, in chakra.
Sasuke stared coldly at Itachi, eyes glaring, sanity lost, "YOU'RE DEAD!"
Itachi's fate was sealed.
Takeshi yelled, chakra flaring from the boost he had just received from Kai. Rin was busy trying to heal him as fast as she could, but he just wouldn't wake up. "Kai! Kai!" she yelled, "Wake up!"
Takeshi jumped, a meter away from Isashi. Isashi turned his head, raising his fists, and parried an attack fromTakeshi. Takeshi countered the parry, reversing his weight, spinning his whole body clockwise.
His right leg, aiming for Isashi's head, flung around in a circle. Isashi dodged, ducking down, and placing his own kick up towards Takeshi. Smirking, Takeshi continued on with his kick, completely knocking aside Isashi's foot with his left leg.
Isashi received the kick to his face sending him flying back into a pillar. He coughed. "How can you be so strong? You're hardly fifteen!"
Takeshi landed on the ground. He looked at Isashi straight in the eye, answering, "I don't need to answer to scum like you, father." He began going through a series of seals. "Katon: Karyu Endan (Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet)!"
Isashi, running backwards, copying the hand seals, countered the attack with his own dragon. "Katon: Karyu Endan!"
The two dragons collided in a series of sparks in explosions sending both Shinobi backwards. Isashi backed up his counter with his eyes. The Omnigan began to glow wildly as Takeshi's eyes began to glow as well.
"What's going on?" Takeshi thought, but his questions were answered as he found himself slipping into the darkness, Isashi falling beside him.
"What did you do!" he yelled, throwing several well placed uppercuts and roundhouses (kicks) to his father.
"The Omnigan has chosen us!" Isashi howled, wildly. He was going insane. "It has seen us as worthy wielders of the eye! But only one of us ... can be the MASTER!"
Takeshi flinched in disgust but continued to attack his father.
He didn't notice that both of their eyes had reverted to their regular blue state.
Gaara and Sakura could only stare at the great behemoth before them. Kisame, leader of the Seven Swordsman of the Village Hidden in the Mist, and Akatsuki member, was no more. All that was left was the biju that had emerged, taking his life force to ensure its own survival.
"Sakura," Gaara said, his gourd slowly turning into sand, "We have to stop this thing before it completely destroys the whole mansion. Everyone could die!" Sakura turned to him and nodded, the added chakra boost from the Shark Seal already gone.
"Let's go," she said. They immediately turned towards the beast going through a series of hand seals. Gaara's sand began to envelop his body, while Sakura's fist slowly began to pulse with green chakra.
"KATOKAGE!" Sakura yelled, as green flames exploded in her palm. She charged at the Sanbi, fist raised, while Gaara appeared behind her.
"SHUKAKU!" Gaara yelled as the sand completely enveloped him, leaving him in a larger version of his fully "transformed" state. (note ... not the big big racoon). They both immediately began to pound away at the giant turtle, and it couldn't do anything, being caught between two amazing forces of brute strength, and limited movement.
The giant turtle attempted to defend itself using its tails but everytime it tried to hit the two shinobi, sand would just knock them aside like they were nothing. The Sanbi was nothing to their teamwork.
A tail swooped down, the sand would knock it aside, leaving Sakura open for a blow to the Sanbi with her fiery fists. Another tail would swoop down, and the cycle would start over again.
Sakura would waste the Three Tailed beast, while Gaara provided all of the defense necessary along with a few hits here and there.
The beast cried one last time before it began to shrink away. When it disappeared, Kisame's dead body was left on the ground. The two shinobi walked up to him. "He died a cowardly death," Gaara stated, "Turning to cowardice and letting the beast take control ..."
"He deserved to die," Sakura finished. She turned to where they had run from. "Let's go, Gaara. Sasuke's back there. He might need our help." Gaara nodded, and they ran as fast as they could.
They had just defeated the Sanbi. They couldn't have done anything better. But what was their reward ... something that could possibly change their lives forever ...
(watch for a double meaning ... he he ... love the double meaning ..)
Takeshi was beginning to tire, but he could tell that his father was as well. Their breaths were coming with more and more difficulty but that wasn't the only thing. They had landed hard into some strange solid rock, and they were fighting in the dark. They were constantly paying attention to every movement, every heartbeat, and every breath the other was taking.
Paying that much attention to something would usually leave many shinobi unable to move after a few minutes, but by now, these two were too far into their life and death match to give up because of their weary minds and bodies. They had each already opened six of the chakra gates.
"Why do you keep fighting, Takeshi?" Isashi asked, as Takeshi threw a heavy punch to his left. "Your almost at the point where you'll die if you go on, and yet you still fight. Why?"
Isashi smirked, dodging the punch, and handstanding to throw a kick at Isashi, twisting around. The blow connected sending Takeshi backwards.
Even on the ground, Takeshi answered, "I fight because I'm carrying all three of our dreams on my back. Ever since that day, Kai has dreamed of the day where he'd kill you."
Takeshi got up, slowly, wiping the blood of his face. Takeshi continued, "Now ... You killed him! And he's passed his dream onto me!" He closed his fist, "I cant' let them down ..." Tears flew down his face.
Isashi mumbled, "Even now ... your still not strong enough to beat me. We're both at our limits, but I still have the upper hand. Just die!" He charged at his son, kunai bared, prepared for the kill.
Takeshi just stood there, closing his eyes. So this is how it ends ... Images of his siblings flashed through his head ... Everyone ... I'm sorry ... Kai's body falling down to the ground ...NOOO! Takeshi's eyes opened.
I will not go down like this ... Takeshi's chakra began to flare uncontrollably. His eyes narrowed and Isashi faltered, thinking 'He wouldn't dare ... NO!"
Takeshi yelled, red chakra exploding from his body, "THE SEVENTH GATE: INSANITY GATE ... KAI!" Isashi barely registered movement before Takeshi disappeared and he heard a swirling noise behind him.
"RASENGAN!"
Isashi was completely blown away, the shadows disappearing revealing the pillars of the mansion. Isashi landed in the ground, heavily ... eyes white ... dead. Rin yelled out to Takeshi as he smirked, mumbling, "There ... stupid Kai ... I won ..."
As his eyes closed he could have sworn he saw Kai running towards him ...
(note ... flashback to end of chapter fifty two ... yeah ...)
Orochimaru chuckled, "Nice of you to join us ... Naruto - kun ..."
Naruto yelled, "Orochimaru. What did you do! You look ... so ... young!" He shifted to his fighting stance as he noticed demon chakra emanating from Orochimaru.
"No need for fighting that soon, gaki," Orochimaru chuckled, licking his lips. "My story is quite tedioius ... but o well ... to put it simply ... Orochi chose me to be its heir in hell ... I retain this body forever. I'm impervious to all ailments save for those aquired in battle."
"Then let's test that theory right now!!" Naruto yelled, special kunai in both of his hands. Orochimaru's face suddenly changed as if in amazement.
Orochimaru paused, "It appears that your friend, Sasuke, will soon be calling out for Orochi's chakra. What would happen if I denied that request?" Naruto twitched in fury. "And your Yamanichi pupils ... it appears that the rash on is about to meet an imminent death .."
Naruto's fury knew no bounds as Kyubi's chakra engulfed, sending his forhead protector flying, Orochimaru gasped. Here was a legend reborn ... here was the Yellow Flash, woken up from death ...
Here was ... the Yondaime Hokage's Legacy.
"Teme!" Naruto yelled. "Its time that you died!"
"I couldn't agree more ... oh son of a dear friend of mine ..." Ryo stepped out from the shadows.
Naruto's eyes opened, "WHAT!"
Notes: ... ok ok ... i know ... this chapter wasn't even close to how long I was building it up to be .. but sorry ... it was just that ... this made one hell of a cliffy ... plus ... I didn't want to end Sasuke's fight so soon ... and chill out .. we still have one more chapter before we get down to Naruto's real fight ...
there will be mostly dialogue and the aftermath of the two fights next chapter ... and the beginings of Naruto's fight ... but mostly Sasuke vs. Itachi ...
Don't miss it ... ok ... my goal from now on in chapters is two weeks ... so ... yeah ... i WILL get it up by then ...