Guys, I am back, and with me I bring the next installment of Naruto, Version 1!
This chapter will signal the beginning of the Wave Arc! WOOT!
Alright guys, let's give it up for the one…the only… CHAPTER 4!
Chapter 4:
Trip to Wave
"Honorable Son, in position, over," a blonde haired child said.
"Brother of a Prodigy, nice name, over," the second male of the team said. He was hoping that he would be the prodigy one day.
"Heiress to the Clan, good names, over." The female part of the trio radioed.
"Leader of the New Sannin, are you sure that it's what we're looking for?" the jonin sensei asked.
"Yeah, we're sure, over," Naruto said back.
"Alright then, proceed to capture our target." Kakashi said back.
The three genin hopped down and captured Tora, the cat, and her two kittens. They wrestled for a little bit before they gave up, knowing it was useless.
Kakashi appeared.
"Good job, team! Let's report back to the Tower." He said. The team nodded and went on its way.
"Oh Tora, my precious cat, and my kittens, oh how I missed you!" the Fire Lord's wife said, squashing all three cats.
"Um, excuse me, but they keep running away because you're not holding them right." Sasuke said. She turned a glare at the Uchiha.
"Oh? And how would you know?" she asked. Everyone, including Minato, wanted to know the answer to that question as well.
"Itachi and I had a pet cat named Sámi. We used to pet it, play with it, hold it…" Sasuke said.
"What happened to it?" the Fourth Hokage asked.
"Itachi went berserk and used Tsukuyomi on it after it peed on his bed." Sasuke said flatly. Everyone sweat dropped, knowing full well that Itachi was not the type of person to ever get mad unless it was something as trivial as that.
"Anyway…do you guys want a "C" ranked mission?" Minato asked.
"Sensei, we've only done 20 "D" ranked ones." Kakashi said.
"Yes, but Naruto's clones have done an extra 50. Besides, you've already completed one "C" ranked before, so I can send you on one again." Minato said.
"Dad's right." Naruto said. "Besides, I want a real adventure right now."
Kakashi sighed. "Fine."
Minato grinned. "You'll be doing an escort mission…send him in." he said.
A drunken man with a bottle of sake in his hand and a hat on his head entered. He looked around with his glasses.
"What is this? I asked for ninja protection, and I get three runts and a scarecrow?" he asked. Naruto responded.
"First off, I'm sure you know that I'm the Hokage's son. He is Itachi Uchiha's younger brother. She is the heiress to the Hyuga clan. And he is the Copycat Ninja, Master of Over 1000 Jutsus, Kakashi Hatake." He introduced. The man immediately sobered up.
"Forgive me for my rudeness. I am Tazuna, the bridge builder. I need you to protect me while I go finish building my bridge connecting the Wave and Fire Countries." He explained. Kakashi nodded and clapped.
"Okay, team! We'll meet in front of the gates in half an hour. Dismissed." He said. The three genin disappeared.
Naruto appeared in his house where he and his father lived. His mother had died when she was giving birth to him. He packed a backpack and glanced at the picture of his dad and his mom.
'Mom…I'll be back. I promise.' The blond one thought. He closed the door and left.
Sasuke busted through his front door.
"Mom! Dad! Itachi! I'm going on my second "C" ranked mission! I'll be gone to Wave Country for a while." He said while he packed his bag.
"Be safe!" his mother said.
"Oh, and come back stronger!" his father added. He heard Itachi yelling from upstairs.
"Foolish little brother, if you die, I will bring you back to life and kill you again!" he said. Sasuke smiled and shook his head before departing.
Hinata opened the door and saw her sister and father training.
"Dad, Hanabi, I'm going on a mission to Wave Country. I'll be back in a week or so." She stated. Her father simply huffed.
"Do not hold your team back." He said. Hinata looked down.
"Yes, father." She said. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see her father smiling warmly at her. He gave her a hug.
"Be safe, my little princess." He said. Hinata smiled.
"Yes, Dad." She said. He stepped back and allowed Hanabi to jump on Hinata.
"When you come back, bring me some cinnamon buns! Please?" she asked. Hinata giggled.
"Of course, Hanabi." She let go of Hinata and allowed her to pack and leave.
All three genin arrived at the gates at the same time to find that Kakashi was there before any of them.
"OMG! THE WORLD IS ENDING! KAKASHI-SENSEI IS EARLY! LWOJKASJIWDAWODKAAAAAAHHH!" Naruto spazzed out before fainting. Everyone sweat dropped.
'I'm not that late all the time, am I?' he thought. Oh, if he knew better.
After Naruto awoke and Apia appeared, they set off at civilian speed so that Tazuna could keep up. Hinata was in front of Tazuna, keeping track of everything with her Byakugan. Sasuke and Naruto stood to Tazuna's left and right sides, ready to defend the bridge builder. Kakashi stood in the back, pretending to read his book but actually watching all that was happening. Apia slept on Sasuke's shoulder.
Naruto looked over to his right after two hours of walking. He noticed a puddle on the ground. He wanted to slap himself.
'Who disguises themselves as a puddle when it hasn't rained in two weeks?' he mentally thought.
"Perhaps people who want to die?" Andorra asked.
'Maybe.' Was his response. He looked at everyone else. It appeared that Hinata and Sasuke knew as well. And though Kakashi was 'reading,' Naruto knew that a genius like him would not be fooled by the puddle. He decided to act like it was nothing.
Suddenly, two ninja hopped from the puddle. Using chains, the two wrapped around Kakashi, who was stunned. Together, they pulled, tearing Kakashi apart. They expected screams from the kids, but all they got were impassive and unfazed looks.
"One down, three to go." One said.
"Don't forget the old man, Gouzu." One said.
"I haven't, Meizu." Gouzu said.
"Oh dear! It's the Demon Brothers! What ever shall we do?" Naruto sarcastically asked.
"Maybe we should just surrender." Sasuke joined in. The two growled.
"How dare you underestimate us? We will-OUCH!" Meizu said. Apia had bitten his leg, and Meizu was in pain because of it.
Gouzu sweat dropped as Naruto and Sasuke charged him. Gouzu dodged Naruto's punched and spun away from Sasuke's kick before swinging the chain at the two.
"Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!" Sasuke said.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough," Naruto said as well. A ball of fire, increased in power dramatically by Naruto's wind attack, burned the metal chain before hitting the man. He screamed in pain as the superheated fireball burned him to death.
"Gouzu!" Meizu screamed as he dodged a palm from Hinata. He growled as he slashed at her with his poisonous gauntlet. She ducked under and quickly closed several tenketsu in Meizu's legs. He managed to jump away before cursing himself and falling over. Kakashi appeared.
"Good work guys, now let's interrogate that one." He said, pointing at Meizu. He snarled.
"How can you still be alive? I and my brother tore you to shreds."
"Have you ever heard of a Substitution Jutsu?" Kakashi asked nonchalantly. Meizu growled.
"Now," Kakashi said, "you will come with me." The man picked up the rouge ninja and disappeared for a while.
The duo returned after 5 minutes. Kakashi was eye- smiling at his team. Meizu, however, looked completely still.
"Um, sensei…he's dead." Hinata pointed out. Kakashi nodded.
"We'll send this body back for the payment of capturing the ninja. Unfortunately, since Gouzu is just ashes that were blown away by the wind, Naruto and Sasuke will not get any. We'll split the payment Hinata; you incapacitated Meizu, and I finished the job." He said. Hinata nodded.
"And now, Tazuna, you will kindly explain why this isn't a "B" or "A" ranked mission." Kakashi politely demanded. The man started to sweat.
"I-I don't know w-what you mean…" he began to say.
"We were just attacked by two chunin. A "C" ranked mission is only to protect you from bandits. "B" ranked ones provides better protection but cost more. We are inadequately equipped for such a mission, and we will be withdrawing-" Kakashi said. Naruto cut him off.
"Kakashi-sensei, I'm not abandoning this mission. I know the financial trouble Gatou has put you through is squeezing your country dry of money. Therefore, we'll continue on the agreement that as soon as Wave gets the money needed to pay us, you all shall. Is that clear?" Naruto asked. Tazuna sighed.
"Fine." He said.
"Of course, we'll only continue if everyone agrees-" Kakashi began again. This time, Sasuke cut his speech off.
'Whatever happened to respecting your elders?' he inwardly sighed.
"I'm continuing." He said. Hinata confidently nodded her head in agreement. This time, Kakashi sighed out loud.
"Alright, then, let's get to your house, Tazuna." He stated. Tazuna sighed in relief before the five continued on their way.
After about two more hours, the group was at a dock. They saw a motorboat waiting for them, though the thick fog prevented their sight tremendously. The five piled in, expecting to get to the shore quickly. However, the man operating the boat started to row it instead. Everyone but Tazuna looked up with a quizzical visage.
"Why aren't you just using the motor?" Hinata asked without stuttering. For some reason she wouldn't stutter with a stranger in their presence.
"Gatou has thugs stationed almost everywhere…using the motor will draw unwanted attention. Besides, it's broken anyways." he said. Everyone nodded.
After another thirty minutes or so, the fog became so thick that almost no one could see. Finally, Naruto had had enough.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough," he said. The fog was blown away. Simultaneously, a bush shifted behind them. Sasuke turned and launched a shuriken, only to have a rabbit hop out.
'Wait…that rabbit's white…it's supposed to be brown…that means…crap!" everyone but Tazuna thought. Kakashi was the one to yell.
"GET DOWN!" he screamed. He grabbed the bridge builder and forcibly pushed him to the ground as his genin easily dodged the giant cleaver that had flown at them. It curved before impaling itself in a tree. A man appeared on the handle of said blade.
He was tall and had bandages covering his mouth. He also had no eyebrows, which caused everyone to raise theirs, annoying the man. He wore grey camouflage plants and was shirtless. The male seemed to recognize the silver haired jonin.
"Kakashi of the Sharingan…pleased to meet you." he said in an ever-so-gruff voice.
"Well, if it isn't The Demon of the Bloody Mist, Zabuza Momochi. An "A" ranked missing nin from the Hidden Mist Village, member of the Seven Swordsmen and known for slaughtering his entire graduating class and his teachers." he dead-panned. Zabuza seemed rather pleased.
"Ah, so you know me? Well, anyway, Kakashi, I really don't want to fight you guys, so if you could just-" he began.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu," Sasuke said. Thanks to his Fire Angel, he could perform fire jutsus with ease. He could do about 200 Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsus before he reached a quarter of his reserves. Also, he tended to learn Fire Jutsus faster.
"Water Style: Water Wall," Zabuza said from his position on the water, which he had reached after the fireballs shot at him. He had got it up just in time, as a Wind Style jutsu, Naruto's own creation, came at him.
"Wind Style: Air Wolves," he said, creating a pack of ten wolves made of air. He had this weird fascination with forest animals, such as foxes, wolves, and bears. He also had Fire and Lightning versions of this jutsu, as well as all three for both wolves and bears and two for hawks.
There was, in fact, difference between every animal. The wolves were the all-around type; they were speedy, strong, and vicious; they used teamwork and coordination, and could be set in either offensive or defensive positions. The bears were the defensive type; though they were strong, they were also big and slow, and could provide cover for our hero. The foxes were the renaissance ones of the group; they were nimble, stealthy, and born masters of theft. Finally, the hawks were the offensive version; they swooped down upon their pray from the sky, effectively providing a cover attack for something bigger or for causing chaos. Funnily, the chakra versions acted like true animals.
The elemental affinity also played a part in the jutsu. The lightning style animals were fast and deadly; one slip up and you were meat, but if you did destroy them, you would get shocked. The fire types were also fast, though not as fast as the lightning ones; they were good for causing confusion and burning stuff. The wind animals traveled at a relatively fast pace; an interesting thing was that objects could not destroy them, so Zabuza's blade would not work on them. Understandably, Naruto loved having this mini-repertoire at his advantage.
Three of the wolves attacked the water wall and were destroyed by the torrents. The wall subsided almost immediately after. When the water came down, Zabuza was face to face with Kakashi's Lightning Blade and two air wolves at his heels. The other five were back along with Hinata protecting Tazuna.
"Lightning Blade!" the Copy Nin cried as his hand surged forward and through Zabuza's chest. Instead of blood, however, water poured out of his chest.
"Water Clone!" Kakashi said as he turned. Unfortunately, Zabuza would've cut him in half already. Fortunately, the two wolves had reacted in time and turned to attack Zabuza. He kicked one into the water and slammed the other into a tree with his fist.
"Fire Style: Burning Ash," Kakashi and Sasuke said as two burning ash clouds appeared. Zabuza, they hoped, was encased in their jutsu. With a click of the tongue, the clouds ignited, burning anything inside. When the smoke cleared, nothing but a small puddle remained.
"Water Style: Water Clone Jutsu," Zabuza cried out behind the two Sharingan users and in front of Naruto. Fifty water versions of the ninja appeared, while the real one charged Hinata and her group. Naruto cursed and made a hand seal.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he said. Two hundred clones appeared to take out the army of Zabuza clones. Naruto dashed after Zabuza, with Sasuke behind him. Naruto made six hand symbols.
"Lightning Style: Lightning Hawks," Naruto said as twelve lightning birds appeared. They blurred through the air at a fast pace and quickly caught up to Zabuza.
Zabuza stood over Hinata with his sword about to cleave the poor girl in half. Of course, she was going to retaliate, but she heard Zabuza curse and jump away as three lightning birds swooped down and attempted to attack his head. The other birds soon followed, and the air wolves joined them against his legs. She watched with Sasuke standing next to her.
Zabuza cursed as two birds swooped at him. He swung his blade through one, but the metal conducted that electricity straight to his hands. He dropped the blade as two wolves assaulted him. He kicked them away and dodged three more birds. Suddenly, he heard Kakashi's voice from behind.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" the jonin sensei cried out. Zabuza saw, out of the corner of his eye, a large water dragon form from the lake and charge him. He tried to jump above, but found that two of Naruto's clones had his arms in a vice grip, while one of the wolves was holding on to a leg. He cursed and watched as the dragon hit him.
As if that weren't enough, the eleven remaining birds flew straight into the neck of the dragon just before it made impact. He screamed as the electric water hit him at full force. He felt the electricity surge through every atom of his body while the water drilled away at all the cells. Finally, he crashed against a tree that somehow survived the fight. He looked up at Kakashi, who had the kunai knife in hand to kill the ninja.
"Can you see the future?" he asked, knowing that he himself was just getting ready to use the jutsu before Kakashi did. The jonin gave a curt nod to his fallen enemy.
"Yes, I can. And your future…is death." he said. Just as he was about to finish the job, however, two senbon needles impaled Zabuza's neck. Everyone turned to see a human with a mask over their face staring at Zabuza, who was dead.
"Who are you?" Kakashi demanded.
"I? My name is Haku, and I am a hunter ninja from the Hidden Mist Village. Thank you for incapacitating Zabuza…I've been pursuing him for the last three weeks, and you just made my job that much easier." The hunter ninja said as she jumped down to get the body.
"Kid, hunter ninjas destroy the body on the spot and don't use senbon needles. Plus, I can smell Zabuza all over her." Katuru said.
"Yeah, and I didn't sense Zabuza's death. If someone dies, I can feel it. He didn't die."Andorra added.
"That means that she's working with Zabuza." Katuru concluded. Naruto nodded and did some hand seals.
"Wind Style: Vacuum Serial Waves," he said as three waves of air charged the hunter-nin. She cursed and did some hand seals of her own.
"Ice Style: Demonic Ice Mirror," she said as an ice mirror formed in front of her, blocking the attacks. When it dropped, the two were gone.
"So, it looks like…" Naruto began before he fell over, unconscious. Luckily, Kakashi was there to catch him.
"He's just tired. What he was going to say was that the masked ninja is probably Zabuza's accomplice." He said. Each genin had a thought running through their mind, because of their angel speaking to them. Sasuke was first contacted a week ago; Hinata, two days. They were both used to hearing the voices, as was Naruto.
"Naruto…that kid…she has both an ice using bloodline and Seshio within her." Katuru said.
'Who?' Naruto thought.
"The Ice Angel, remember?" Andorra grunted.
'Oh right…' was all Naruto replied.
"Sasuke, that kid has Seshio the Ice Angel. Only with my help will you be able to beat her." Kawasaki said.
'Right.' He replied.
"Hinata…make sure that kid doesn't die…she has Seshio the Ice Angel within her…if you can make her turn to your side, you two would be dangerous together." Pataki said.
'O-okay…' she thought out. Kakashi and the others then set out for Tazuna's house once more.
Cut!
There's yer 4th chapter fer yer, mateys!
Anyways, so you see that I wasn't lying when I said that Sasuke and Naruto got some major power ups. I totally left Zabuza as he was, though, because I was totally lazy. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure I made him weaker…oh well!
You guys saw the boosts. Naruto had his own original jutsus, and Sasuke knows the Fire Style: Burning Ash, so yeah.
The poll is still open for you guys. I'm going to hold it open until the beginning of the Chunin Exam Arc, which shall begin in three chapters.
As it stands:
Samui- 3 votes
Ino- 2 votes
Guren, Konan and Tenten- 1 vote
Anko, Fu and Sakura- no votes
Vote if you have not done so. Please?
Anyway, like I said, I'm being lazy. I really don't feel like stretching out the Wave Arc more than it needs to be… the only reason its three chapters long instead of two is cuz the next one will clearly show the second person in Naruto's harem.
If you haven't figured it out yet, Hinata es numero uno.
Oh, and don't really expect Hinata to get in on the action until the Chunin Exams; she played Sakura's role in this arc, the person guarding Tazuna.
That's pretty much all I've got to say. Review please!
G'day to you all!