Author's Note: Ack! I'm so sorry I haven't updated in more than 2 months. I knew how this chapter would start and end, but I didn't know how to get from Point A to Point B; basically, I got writer's block ^^;;. Furthermore, I was extremely busy taking several AP exams and then there was prom, graduation, and an entire month of World Cup matches to watch to deal with. Needless to say, I was very distracted. I know that this isn't a really good excuse, but hopefully, you'll forgive me because I updated? :D I'm still not satisfied with this chapter especially because I'm a noob at writing action, but trying to work on it more will probably do more damage than good and I will just end up bashing my keyboard and throwing my computer screen out the window or something equally as drastic.

I'll just say that even though in my opinion, this chapter isn't that great (I'm so, so sorry), it hopefully will pique your curiosity and well, things will just get more interesting and different from this point on :)!

Anyway, without further ado, here is chapter 4.

Chapter 4

"You are Mikazuki Izumi, aren't you?"

A shiver ran down Izumi's back and without looking, she knew that all eyes were on her. "How do you know my name?" she asked quietly.

Zabuza shook his head in mock disbelief. "And here I was, thinking I'm a hard person to forget."

"I don't know who you are." Her voice was faltering. She felt as though she were uttering a lie; in the back of her mind, she knew that this was not their first encounter. But as to who he was, she remained clueless. "Who…?" Her eyes instinctively met Kakashi's, as though she believed he held the answer.

He felt the stares of all four of his students on him, and he answered their silent question. "Many years ago, in Kirigakure, there was a requirement that needed to be met in order for one to become a shinobi," he began explaining in a roundabout fashion. Kakashi's eyes would not meet those of his students. He did not want to see horror and terror seeping into their eyes as soon as they were enlightened with what he was about to say, and he felt no particular desire to continue with the explanation.

"What do you mean, requirement?" Sakura's voice was high and taut with tension. "Like some sort of graduation exam? What kind of-"

"Oh, nothing special or out of the ordinary," Zabuza cut in, no longer patient enough to wait for Kakashi to continue. His eyes glinted as he shrugged. There was a long, pregnant pause before he continued. "Just…fights to the death between students."

Kakashi saw all four genin and Tazuna flinch in shock. He continued, "As you can imagine, the exam was terrible to endure. Friends who shared meals together and helped each other…friends who shared their dreams with each other had to fight until only one of them remained alive. It was a terrible tradition, but it came to an end ten years ago because of a devil, a boy who wasn't even a shinobi."

"What did he do?" Sakura questioned. "How did he stop it?"

"Without a moment of hesitation, he killed over one hundred students." Kakashi said in a steely voice, finally looking up at their appalled faces.

Zabuza let out a low chuckle. Six pairs of eyes watched him warily as the chuckles began to increase in volume and frequency and his shoulders began to shake. He tossed his head back to let out barks of laughter, his eyes rolling skyward, lunacy grotesquely transforming his face into that of a devil's.

His laughter soon died down, and an uneasy silence suffocated them. His face was still tilted towards the heavens. "That…," he finally commented, his voice dangerously soft, "sure was fun." His dark eyes, the very ones lit by the flames of insanity, snapped downward, meeting the eyes of the genin.

Collectively, Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto flinched and subconsciously stepped back, bringing their arms to their faces. Izumi was the only one of the group to remain rigidly frozen in place.

That voice…that insane laughter…she heard it all before. She screwed her eyes shut tightly as she wracked her brain to place it. Where had she heard him before? Where had she seen his face?

"Should I help you remember?" He sounded as if he were mulling over something. "Oh yeah, now that I think about it, you weren't alone when I met you, were you?"

She impatiently sifted through her memories, furiously grabbing at every blurry face that came to mind. His identity continued to elude her. Who is he? Who is he? Who is he?

"That's right…I remember now."

Who is he? Who is he? Who is-

"…Tell your brothers I send my greetings."

He was saying that her brothers were with her. Her brothers…he knew her brothers. Immediately, a voice floated to the surface, popping instantly like a bubble to reveal words from a distant past.

"Oh, so this is the infamous Izumi-chan I've heard so much of…"

Cold, cruel, unsympathetic eyes met her wide, innocent, scared ones as he reached out for her, his hand outstretched. He grabbed her shoulder roughly, moving her from one side to another easily like a rag doll while he examined her as if she were a valuable object he would buy.

Her eyes snapped open, and at once, terror gripped her heart with sharp talons. This was Momochi Zabuza, the devilish shinobi she had met as a young child!

A wide grin stretched across his haunting features as he recognized the spark of recognition flicker in her eyes. "I knew I wasn't that easy to forget."

She was unable to speak as her face became stark white.

"Do you remember what I said back then?"

Of course she did. He wanted her to be his tool, to be part of his arsenal of assorted weapons.

"That's exactly why this situation is turning out to be far better than I had ever hoped. That old man's life isn't the only thing I'll be getting here."

"Stop assuming things." Izumi's face hardened, but she knew those eyes pierced through her façade. He knew she was afraid.

"You're rather valuable. It would be a shame if I were unable to obtain such a wonderful tool."

What would the others make of his words? Izumi's eyes nervously flitted to her left, meeting Naruto's confused ones. Zabuza's followed, and his forehead creased as he looked at the hitai-ate of the blonde shinobi, almost as if for the first time. "The Leaf…? What are you doing, traveling with Konoha shinobi?"

"I'm one of them," she spoke through gritted teeth. She knew he would catch the underlying message. That means you're not getting me.

"Tsk," he let out, nonchalantly scratching his neck. He was far from being dismayed. "All that means is that you're not with your village anymore. In my mind, that makes you a free agent and that means you're on the market. Funny, considering I always thought you would never be up for sale. Mm…which is better? Killing you or keeping you?"

He took a quick step forward and disappeared into the thick mist as Izumi's face blanched. She could not move. He was not visible, but his mere presence was suffocating. She felt as if she were being slowly crushed. The mist did not hinder him; rather, it was to his advantage that he was shrouded by opaque fog. He was, after all, renowned as an expert in silent killing. She felt as if she would lose her sanity as she waited for the inevitable, fatal stroke to hit her. He would kill her. He would kill all of them. He-

A dark green and silver flash moved in front of Izumi, interrupting her thoughts. Kakashi stood in front of her, arms outstretched. His strong back faced her like an impenetrable wall, and for no reason at all, she felt comforted as she trained her eyes on it. "Izumi, don't worry," he said calmly. "I'll protect all of you even if it kills me."

He turned his head slightly to face hers, a kind smile gracing his features. "I don't let my comrades die."

"Sensei…" She wanted to thank him, but before she could get another word out or smile in return, she felt a presence behind her.

"Seems like Kakashi's too late. It's over."

The words that were whispered to her right ear were heavy with finality and made her blood run cold. She moved to turn around before a hard shove to her back knocked her headfirst to the ground unceremoniously to put her out of danger.

Izumi wiped stray blades of wet grass off her face as she squinted upwards in time to see Zabuza's form melt and a presence loom behind the silver-haired jounin. "Sensei! He's behind you!" she warned just as realized what was occurring. She quickly stepped to her feet again, ignoring the dull ache she had in her right cheek, the side of her face that had collided with the ground first.

He heeded her warning a moment too late, his head turning to glance at Zabuza as the large blade swung. Sakura screamed as, for the second time that day, Kakashi's body was hacked into pieces in front of her. Her scream faltered before regaining its volume and pitch, this time in excitement. "Yes!"

Kakashi was behind Zabuza, holding him as he kept his kunai aimed at Zabuza's jugular. "Give it up."

Zabuza merely cocked his head to the side, unperturbed by the situation he was in. He spoke to Izumi. "Heh, you really thought I would kill you, didn't you? As if I would squander such an opportunity…it would be such a waste if I didn't get you." He returned his attention to Kakashi. "That was pretty impressive, I have to give you that. Making a clone by the time you were trying to reassure this girl who looked like she was ready to wet her pants." He tilted his head towards Izumi, whose cheeks turned an indignant, violent shade of pink.

He smirked, delighted at her reaction, before speaking again. "But…don't mistake me for easy prey." He melted, and the tables were turned as he reappeared, holding his kunai to Kakashi's neck from behind.

Izumi watched as Kakashi aimed to strike a blow against his enemy's solar plexus with his elbow. The bare-chested man leapt back away from harm, and while he was still suspended in the air, swung the heavy blade at Kakashi. She could tell just from the sound the swing made just how powerful Zabuza was. To be able to swing with that much force, to maneuver that ridiculously large sword properly let alone move it a fraction of an inch…she knew that he possessed enormous strength. The blade and the range of jutsu he had were not the only things that were dangerous about this man; he could take down a great number of capable shinobi by relying solely on his physical strength.

She felt Sasuke stir restlessly to her left, and she knew that he had snapped out of the terrified state he was in before when Zabuza had dissipated into the mist. As she saw determination etch a scowl on his face, she realized with alarm that he desperately wanted to help Kakashi. "It's no use right now, Sasuke. They're moving too fast. If you time your entrance wrong, you'll be hit by either of them," she muttered under her breath.

"Don't think I'm stupid. I'm not Naruto. I'm just waiting for the right moment," he lashed back through gritted teeth.

She scowled. "Naruto-kun's not dense. If you haven't noticed, he's not running towards them, waving around a kunai like a fool." She quickly prayed that Naruto would not do what she had just said and prove her wrong. The blonde ninja stayed in place, and she let out an inward sigh of relief. "I'd appreciate it if you stop thinking he's a moron." There was a strained silence. "Please," she added very softly, almost as an afterthought.

"Whatever," he acquiesced begrudgingly. His eyebrows furrowed together as Zabuza lunged forward, but stopped in his tracks as a rain of nails hit the ground. "And anyway, it looks like Kakashi is able to…never mind." He stopped speaking as Kakashi was knocked into the water.

"What's he doing?" Naruto breathed. "He's just staying in the water."

"Don't be stupid," Sakura reprimanded without any conviction. "He's probably just thinking of his next move."

"No. He's not an idiot. No shinobi in his right mind would stay there like a sitting duck waiting to be hit to think of the next move. Something's wrong," Sasuke answered as Sakura looked away, dismayed that he refuted her words. Izumi caught her eye and merely shrugged in response. Sasuke was right, after all.

They watched as the water began to swirl and form a sphere, trapping Kakashi inside. "W-What the hell is that?" Naruto jabbed a finger at the sphere.

"My specialty: an inescapable water prison." Zabuza spared a glance at the captured jounin before speaking once more. "I'll deal with you later. I'll kill them first to make things easier, what do you say?" With one hand, he made the signs as a water clone separated itself from Zabuza's torso. Kakashi futilely attempted to escape, moving around vigorously in response to the verbal jab.

"It's laughable to think that little kids like you think they're shinobi. Wearing hitai-ate doesn't mean shit. If you want to prove yourself as a real shinobi in my book, you have to dance with death. Once you do, then I'll consider you a real one." He closed his eyes in concentration, fading into the white fog as the genin tensed up.

They did not have to wait long to discover his whereabouts; Naruto flew back as a leg connected with his torso. The force detached the loosely bound forehead protector from his head, and it landed under Zabuza's foot with a clang. "Naruto-kun!" Izumi shouted in alarm as Sakura shouted his name simultaneously. Sasuke looked visibly shaken.

"Looks like I was right. You're nothing but a brat." Zabuza tilted his head from side to side, cracking his neck. "It'll take less than a second to take down all of you."

Kakashi muttered a curse under his breath as he heard the hint of happiness in Zabuza's voice. "You guys!" His four students snapped their heads in his direction. "Run away with Tazuna-san!" he shouted, bubbles escaping from his mouth. "You guys don't stand a chance!"

"But Kakashi-sensei," Izumi began to say. She knew that if Kakashi struggled in combat with Zabuza, they would be no match for their opponent…but she also knew it would be wrong to leave.

"Izumi, that's an order," he shot back before she could continue.

How could they leave him when he did his best to protect them? Her mind scolded her, telling her to be rational and obey Kakashi's orders, but she did not move. "So you're telling us to run away like cowards?" She knew that would most likely provoke the ire of her teacher, but she asked it in a quietly demanding tone anyway. Her head was bent; he did not need to see her trembling lip or the fear in her eyes. It took most of her effort to keep her voice steady, calm, and unwavering. Let him think she was foolish; it did not matter, as long as he believed she was full of conviction and strength instead of doubt and weakness.

His face was contorted with frustration, but Izumi did not need to see it to know he was exasperated. "This isn't about being brave or being cowardly. This is about you staying alive! Don't be irrational! Go! All of you, take Tazuna-san and go! This is the best way. As long as he has me in here, he's stuck with me. His clone can't move far away from his real body. He's not stupid enough to risk me escaping to go after you with his real body. Go!" It was so rare to hear Kakashi raise his voice, but he was shouting now. He cared more about them than about his own life.

Sakura reached out to place a hand on Izumi's shoulder. "Izumi…" Her voice was barely above a whisper as she pleaded with the raven-haired girl.

She knew that Kakashi was right; it was the best opportunity for them to escape. She knew that she was weak; there was no chance of winning. But Izumi was not aiming to win. She was aiming to make a small difference, the one move that would send the chain of dominoes falling. She did not care about winning against Zabuza; her objective here was to somehow free Kakashi. It was true that this was the best chance for them to remain alive, but it was also true that this was the best chance to help even if it meant that she would be putting herself in extreme danger. After all, as competent as Zabuza was at combat, he was also severely handicapped and at a disadvantage with that jutsu. They merely had to exploit it. It would all be worth it if it meant that Kakashi's death would be prolonged or, if she played her cards right, be prevented. Risking one's life to save a comrade's was worth it, and she would do so to save his. It was, after all, Kakashi who taught her this.

Izumi was still looking at the ground.

"Are you listening to me?" An edge of desperation seeped into Kakashi's words. "Izumi…"

"Kakashi-sensei, I also…don't let my comrades die." A small smile crept on her face, but it was a sad one, weighed down with what she knew she had to do and what would most likely happen to her. She just needed a distraction, and then she would go in. She had only one chance at this.

Naruto had been watching the tense exchange of words between the two while immersing himself in thought. His memories had filled him with conviction, but it was Izumi standing up to face the enemy, rather than running away that boosted him with the final burst of confidence. "I'm not going to run away either," he declared, rushing towards Zabuza before anyone could react. Izumi's head shot upward in surprise.

"No! Don't!" Kakashi shouted, alarmed.

"What are you thinking, Naruto?" Sakura yelled after him.

Before Izumi could even step forward, Naruto was flung back. Blood was steadily dripping from his mouth, marring the ground with scarlet drops, but he was smiling in triumph.

"Baka! What are you smiling for? What were you thinking, rushing in by yourself? We don't stand a chance. What kind of…y-you're such an idiot!" Sakura was shouting, but it was filled with concern.

Naruto stood up, and a flash of metal was seen in his hand. Sakura's eyebrows creased together. "Your hitai-ate?" He wrapped the forehead protector around his head.

"Hey, eyebrowless freak. Put this in your book, the man who will one day become Konoha's Hokage: Uzumaki Naruto!"

Perhaps it was because he spoke with confidence and conviction rather than with a boastful tone that the group brightened up, rejuvenated and determined, rather than slouched down, embarrassed and annoyed. Without turning back to face his group, Naruto spoke again. "Sasuke? Lend me your ear. I have a plan." He was quiet for a second, reflecting on what happened before he dashed forward at Zabuza a moment ago.

An unrecognizable look lit up Sakura's emerald eyes. Before Izumi could decipher whether it was surprised admiration for Naruto taking charge or a new form of anger, Naruto spoke again. "You too, Izumi-chan. Sakura-chan, you protect Tazuna-san, okay?"

"Heh, teamwork from you?" Sasuke smiled in anticipation, much to Izumi's relief. It seemed to be that Sasuke would be willing to listen to Naruto's plan.

Zabuza looked on, amused. "Do you really think I would let you get together to formulate a plan? Or maybe I should since I highly doubt any plan you come up with will even be slightly effective. It's entertaining, the way you still think you'd be able to make a difference."

Naruto flashed a cocky grin in return. "We don't need to have a group talk about strategy," he said, not noticing the alarm and confusion written on Izumi's face. "They'll understand."

"Understand? Naruto, if you're not going to tell them anything, how will they-" Sakura started to say.

"Ne, ne, Sakura-chan," he interrupted with a pout. "They'll get it, don't be such a worrywart."

Sakura's temple throbbed with annoyance. Was Naruto serious? She ran a hand over her face, struggling to keep a moan from issuing out of her mouth. They would all die today thanks to his stupidity. She could see it now; if any of them survived and was asked how the rest died, that person would write on the report that it was because Naruto apparently believed he suddenly got special powers and could communicate telepathically, but in reality, was just being delusional.

"Hey, Sasuke, you go in first…I'll go after," Naruto said.

The raven-haired boy smirked. "Heh, are you being a chicken again? Or are you more confident in my skills than yours?" he teased before getting ready to dash forward.

"W-What?" Naruto screeched. "No! I just…Fine! I'll go first and…" His words trailed off as Sasuke dashed forward with a kunai in hand at the clone.

Zabuza remained still, an amused smile lingering on his lips. What was the point in putting in any effort when his prey was running towards him, running towards death? All the same, he should not stand stoically like a statue. It would not be fun if he just stayed put. He moved, and in a second, he was inches away from Sasuke's face.

"It was a mistake running straight at me like that," he admonished, slamming a kick at Sasuke's chest.

The boy fell to the ground with a thud, his head smacking against the uneven terrain. His face twisted in pain as blood spurted out of his open mouth.

"Sasuke!" Kakashi sharply called out.

"I think I'll toy with you some more. I have all the time in the world, and I haven't had an opportunity to play around with my targets for a very long time," Zabuza sneered at the boy he held under his leg. He pressed his foot down harder against Sasuke's chest once again, resulting in the boy letting out a sharp cry, before removing it. "This will be fun. Get up."

Sasuke obeyed, rubbing at his chest before spitting out the blood that filled his mouth with a coppery taste. "Don't…" he gasped, "underestimate me." With a sweep of his leg, he attempted to knock Zabuza off balance, meeting with failure as the missing-nin jumped back nimbly.

"If you're going to try such babyish tactics, I'm going to get bored," Zabuza warned. "If this keeps up, I'll just kill you."

Sasuke got to his feet again, clenching the kunai in his closed fist. He moved as if to step forward before hesitating and deciding against it. His back was turned to the group, but they could hear him speak through gritted teeth. "Naruto, you said you have a plan. At least give me an inkling of an idea of what you're going to do." The blonde nin looked surprised as Sasuke asked for help.

Zabuza sneered. "Yes, why don't you enlighten me?" Izumi bit her lip. There was no way to communicate to Sasuke what his plan was; it was not as if they had the option of speaking out loud and if Naruto wished to move closer to Sasuke, Zabuza would easily prevent him from doing so.

"Just continue what you're doing and…we'll improvise on the plan we used last mission," Naruto spoke carefully, making sure to be as vague as possible.

"The one we made before we split or the one we made when we got together again and found Izumi?" Sasuke replied just as cryptically.

"Got together again…You'll get it. I trust you." Sasuke nodded distractedly in response, already formulating tactics to hinder Zabuza and distract him. Would a fireball be enough? But in order to accomplish that, he needed a little bit of time. Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu would hardly be effective against Zabuza, who used water ninjutsu, but grimly, he noted that it was flamboyant and would certainly serve as a distraction. He eyed a nearby tree and silently jumped on the branch, using the mist to shroud him from prying eyes. Zabuza would find him, of course, but hopefully, he could run through the hand seals quickly enough before his whereabouts were discovered. He began to make the hand seals. Horse-Tiger-Ram-Monkey-Boar-

A foot connected to his back, driving him headfirst to the ground before he was able to continue. Instinctively, he turned back, blindly stabbing at the air with his kunai before a large hand clamped his wrist. "You weren't listening to me. I said to keep me entertained, and you didn't. Playtime's over, brat." The ground was looming closer as Zabuza let go.

"Naruto-kun, hurry!" Izumi hissed, worry knotting her eyebrows together.

Naruto cursed under his breath. Not once did the eyes of the real Zabuza leave the group while the clone was battling with Sasuke. It was as if Sasuke was not worth his time and attention. They needed something better, a bigger distraction that would pull the real Zabuza's eyes away from him. A fraction of a second was all he needed.

Sasuke's back radiated with pain as he hit the ground again. He winced as Zabuza grabbed his neck in a vise-like grip, raising him upwards as his feet dangled in the air. "Ugh…" he rasped out, clawing at Zabuza's fingers as the older man peered at him, not noticing the effort. Without speaking, Zabuza threw him in the air, catching him with another kick to the chest before he fell. He was appearing like a blur now, moving so quickly that the others would not have understood what was going on had it not been for Sasuke's yelling.

Shit…shit! They needed a better way or Sasuke would become seriously injured. Naruto wracked his mind for another plan as he helplessly looked on. Izumi made a motion to go forward, and instinctively, his arm reached out in front of her. "No! Just let me think and…"

She shoved his arm aside, but it came back, hitting her clavicle. He was surprised at the amount of force she put into that shove. He moved his hand to hold part of her collar, bunching the fabric tightly in his fist lest she escape. "Naruto-kun, I'm going in, I-"

"No!" he said, his eyes burning fiercely.

"At this rate, Sasuke's going to get really hurt! I'm going to-"

"I said-"

"Naru-"

"Listen to-"

"Naruto-kun, I'm the best option!" she cut in, speaking in a rush before he could interrupt again. "You stay behind, you need to look for that opening. I'll provide it." He was opening his mouth to speak again and she spoke faster. "And besides, I'll be able to stall him."

"How are you so sure?" He narrowed his sapphire eyes. "Don't you see Sasuke out there? What are you planning to do?"

Izumi grimly smiled. "Fortunately, his interest in me will play to my advantage. I'm sure that he wouldn't want to injure me…at least not grievously. I don't mean to sound arrogant…I'm sorry if I end up doing so, but I'm too important to him; he'd want me to be in perfect condition. I mean, what's a defective tool useful for?" She shrugged, avoiding his gaze. She knew that rhetorical question would not sit well with him. "Keep your eyes open, Naruto-kun." With one last shove, she managed to break free.

"Izumi-chan!"

She ran forward, her eyes narrowed as she scanned the scene for an opening in between Zabuza's attacks. If she could just get in between the two, she could help stop him. There was a pause as he kicked Sasuke further away than he had done in the past few minutes, a large enough space appearing between the two. Her eyes widened as she saw him draw out a kunai, aiming a devastating blow at a vital point. She launched herself in front of Sasuke right as Zabuza dashed forward, leaping into the air. That split second of hesitation as he acknowledged her presence would be all it needed to take; she was sure that the real Zabuza would tear his eyes away from the group to look at her. By that time, Naruto would be able to make a clone and disguise it as a weapon for Sasuke to catch and she would keep Zabuza away from Sasuke, blocking his path as much as possible. She waited for him to momentarily freeze and jerk his hand away.

The moment never came. The kunai pierced Izumi's shoulder, slashing it before she was able to jerk her arm away from danger. "Ah!" she hissed in surprise as they all landed on the ground. Sasuke's body was flung behind a bush and he made no movement to get up.

"What a pleasant surprise. I thought the little runt over there was just pretending to include you so you wouldn't feel bad," Zabuza remarked. "For a moment there, I was disappointed…to think that such a valuable tool would want to avoid combat as much as possible. You proved me wrong. Looks like this will be fun."

She glanced at the blood seeping through her wound, which was thankfully not as deep as she thought, before her eyes flitted back to his face. He caught the shadow of confusion in her eyes before it disappeared and his grin widened. "You're wondering why I didn't stop myself," he guessed. "You're wrong if you think you're safe; I don't care if I hurt you. I can always fix you up later as long as you're not dead or fatally injured. And besides…" He was leaning in now, his mouth near her ear. "You'll learn that it's not a good idea to cross your master so it's a good lesson."

He grabbed her by the neck without warning, slamming her into a nearby tree. She had been biting her lip and with the harsh contact, her teeth broke the thin surface. The taste of copper filled her mouth as blood trickled down her chin. She grabbed at his arm, her breath coming in choking, rattling gasps as he looked on with mild amusement. "Get…off…" She attempted to plunge a kunai into his forearm, but he grabbed her small wrist with his free hand.

"Cheeky, aren't you?" He let go of her neck, allowing her to fall to her knees before kicking her in the ribs to slam her onto her side. She scrambled to get up before he stepped on her back. Repeatedly, she tried to get up before he sent her to the ground again. What was Naruto-kun doing? She had given him more than enough time for him to make a clone and disguise it as a weapon. As she hit the ground yet again, she saw Sasuke getting up to his feet out of the corner of her eye, wincing as he felt the bruises that marked his body. Zabuza had not noticed him standing yet.

She twisted around and with as much strength as she could muster, hit the back of Zabuza's knees with her entire arm, making him lose his balance. Raging pain engulfed her arm as she came into contact with his unyielding muscle. She turned around to face Sasuke, and she saw him hesitate. He was deciding whether to stay and help or to go. She got up to her feet, running towards him, knowing by now that Zabuza had seen him and she therefore did not have to be discreet.

"Sasuke, what are you doing? I'm fine!" she shouted. She could see several Narutos rushing forward to them. "Go!" Zabuza's foot connected with her stomach, and she flew backwards, her head slamming against the trunk of a tree. It felt as if she had split open her skull and she cringed as she felt something unpleasantly wet trickle down the back of her head.

Zabuza wheeled around as Naruto and his Kage Bunshins leapt onto him. They attacked him wildly, but he flung them off with little effort. More jumped onto him and wriggled, blocking his vision of Sasuke. Many hit the ground and disappeared in a cloud of smoke before another Naruto was flung off, this time staying intact long enough to rummage through a backpack. "Oy, Sasuke!" he yelled, throwing a shuriken to Sasuke.

Sasuke nodded, showing he understood as he caught the shuriken. "Evil Wind Shuriken Shadow Windmill!" He flung the weapon at the real Zabuza as the replica wheeled around to face Sasuke, the last few Naruto clones disappearing into a cloud of smoke. Naruto, still on the ground, stabbed the ankle of the Zabuza replica which changed back to water.

Zabuza caught the shuriken with ease before his eyes widened in surprise as another shuriken appeared in its shadow. Cursing, he jumped in the air, his hand still in the water prison he was holding Kakashi in. "A shuriken is not going to stop me," he retorted, not noticing that it had transformed into the real Naruto.

"Yeah, well, take this!" Naruto carefully aimed the kunai at Zabuza's head, and the man twisted to escape it as it grazed his cheek, removing blood.

Izumi looked on blearily as Zabuza swung his sword at Naruto. Her vision was growing increasingly blurry and her head throbbed uncomfortably. She smiled wearily as she saw a figure block the sword. Yes! It had worked; Kakashi was free! Zabuza was clearly alarmed now, but he quickly adjusted to the new situation, fury replacing surprise on his face.

"Naruto, great plan. You waited for both Zabuzas to get distracted and changed into a shuriken that one of your clones passed to Sasuke who threw it with a shuriken he already had…but Izumi didn't need to jump in to provide a distraction; you could've covered it by attacking Zabuza with a large number of clones and converted yourself into a shuriken in the midst of all that chaos."

"Heh…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I thought of that at the very last minute."

"Good job on forcing him to let me escape; I'm relieved you did that instead of trying to take him down."

Zabuza snorted. "I wasn't forced. I just got distracted. I broke my concentration and accidentally let go."

"You're wrong; it wasn't a slip in concentration that led to your jutsu breaking. You were forced to release your jutsu because you had to move in order for you not to get injured…and just to let you know, I don't fall for the same jutsu twice. It'll be more difficult to catch me off guard this time."

Zabuza growled, not answering as he began to make hand seals. The furious expression on his face grew more pronounced as he noticed Kakashi mimicking him. The group watched as two dragons formed out of the water before colliding into each other. Izumi looked on in amazement. There were so many seals to this jutsu, yet Kakashi was able to mimic them all perfectly with his Sharingan.

The two shinobi jumped back, and Izumi watched as Kakashi acted like a mirror image of Zabuza. He was shouting at Kakashi, who was finishing his sentences off for him, and became noticeably more infuriated. With the final seal done, Zabuza was ready to attack, but hesitated as he saw something nobody else did. His hesitation cost him dearly as Kakashi sent a barrage of water at him, pushing him backwards. Izumi fought to keep conscious as she looked at the jutsu used with admiration. The explosion of water sent waves at all of them, and the rest jumped to avoid them, but Izumi's reactions were sluggish. She barely had time to register that a huge wave was coming as it hit her.

Instantly, her world turned black as she was submerged underwater.

Izumi woke up, extremely disoriented. The last thing she remembered was Kakashi and Zabuza fighting, but there were no sounds of combat now. She cracked open an eye, regretting it almost immediately as the bright light nearly scorched her eye. She shut it quickly as she let out a groan. Her body was aching as if a boulder had rolled all over her and there was something around her head. She clumsily tried to take it off before a firm hand stopped her.

"Guys, she's awake! No, Izumi, don't – stop trying to – no, you need to keep it on!" a feminine voice insisted, fighting to keep whatever was on her head on as Izumi struggled in vain to get it off. She opened her eyes again, slightly annoyed, and met the faces of her three teammates.

"Rise and shine, sleepyhead!" Naruto crowed, his face inches away from hers. Izumi winced.

"Where…?" she mumbled as she sat up. She closed her eyes to fight off the onslaught of dizziness.

"We're at Tazuna-san's house," Sakura explained. "And you really need to keep that bandage on, Izumi, so stop touching it. And…hey! Don't think I don't see you surreptitiously trying to remove it!" Izumi put her hand down guiltily. "You knocked your head pretty hard according to Tsunami-san."

"Tsunami-san?" Izumi blinked at her, not comprehending.

"That's Tazuna-san's daughter and there's Inari, Tsunami-san's son, but he's…" Sakura's voice grew cross. "He's a little…" She clamped her mouth shut before she could say any more.

"He's a snotty little brat, that's what he is," Naruto offered generously, a scowl fixated on his face.

"Naruto!"

"What?" he sighed. "You know you were going to say that, Sakura-chan…"

Sakura glared unconvincingly before sighing. "Yeah, okay…he kind of gets on your nerves because he gets all depressing and tries to bring your mood down because we all suck and apparently the world is a dark, gloomy place and he'd like us to know that, but besides that, he's a good kid. I think."

"You make him sound like great company, Sakura-chan," Naruto snickered. His stomach grumbled and the playful smirk slipped off his face. "Oh, I'm so hungry." He grabbed both Sakura and Sasuke's hands, tugging them up from the ground. He began to run towards the door as Sakura attempted to tug her hand out of Naruto's while Sasuke had more success. He watched from the door with disinterest as the two ran out of the room.

"Naruto! Get off! Okay, Izumi, when you're ready, come down and – I'm serious, you baka! Ow! I told you to get off, not hold my hand tighter! – so anyway, Izumi – OW!" Sakura shouted from the hallway. Izumi heard a series of loud slaps as Naruto yelped. Both Sasuke and Izumi looked unsurprised.

Sasuke turned his head slightly to the side, looking back at her as he spoke quietly. "She means when you're ready, you should-" He cut off his words as he froze. "What is that?"

"What do you mean?" Izumi asked, confused.

He was walking towards her rapidly and he sat down beside her, ignoring her question. He stared at the necklace that Izumi usually wore under her vest, but was now in plain sight on top of the vest before grabbing it. "Who gave this to you?" he snapped, his onyx eyes darkening.

"This?" She fingered the chain. "My brother Makoto did. Why?" He did not answer, his face whiter than usual. "Sasuke? What's wrong?"

"That's the clan symbol of the Uchiha."