A/N: YAY! I got it up a few days early! And it's longer!
Chapter Nine
As they approached the shore, the mariner directing the ship spoke. "I'll drop you off at that spot near the shore," he said as he pointed to a small soggy patch of land. "I can't take you any further than that."
Sasuke tried valiantly not to seem happy that they could get off the accursed boat. They stopped, and he carefully disembarked, keeping a strong mask of indifference. Sakura stepped behind him, nearly falling over in her attempt to avoid the mud.
They moved into the woods. Naruto scanned the forest in a paranoid manner, determined to avoid the disaster of their last fight. As annoying as Naruto could be, Sasuke appreciated the effort. A little late though. And who knows what will happen if we actually run into anyone. His devotion and adherence to the mission was rather admirable. Of course, that's all worthless if it doesn't translate into results.
A soft rustling echoed across the forest. Not already, Sasuke thought. For once, Naruto reacted faster than his teammate. Whipping out a kunai, Naruto threw it in the direction of the sound. Sasuke pulled back slightly, standing between Naruto and a nearby tree, ready to back up his teammate. A thud told them that Naruto had hit something.
Perhaps he isn't as foolish and inept as I had assumed."Naruto!" Sakura yelled as a petrified white rabbit dropped to the ground, entire body paralyzed from fright. "Why are you attacking defenseless animals?"
Never mind. He is as foolish and inept as I assumed. Naruto stammered out apologies as he sank into the dark earth beside the rabbit. After all, his first impressions were usually right, although even he wouldn't have anticipatedNaruto's next move. Without shame, he picked up the rabbit and started sobbing loudly.
Oh, Kami, it's just a rabbit! I'd hate to see what would happen if he injured a person accidentally. His mind would probably fracture into a million pieces. Actually, that might be fun to watch. Sasuke bit back an evil smirk as the rabbit "miraculously" recovered and ran off.
"Get down, everyone!" Kakashi yelled suddenly. Sasuke and Sakura hit the forest floor immediately, pulling Naruto down with them as Kakashi covered Tazuna. A huge cleaver-like blade whizzed over their heads, planting itself in a nearby moss covered tree. Eyes wide, Sasuke began frantically searching for the source of the sword.
He didn't have to search long. A tanned muscular man, roughly their sensei's size, jumped through the air and landed on the sword. His legs were encased in gray, striped pants, his arms in forearm covers with a camouflage pattern, and his chest decorated by leather straps. A Kirigakure headband, identical to the earlier nin's headbands, was wrapped around his forehead crookedly.
"Well, if it isn't Hatake Kakashi, the copy ninja of Konohagakure." His deep, scratchy voice cut through the air like the sword he was perched on. He's a threat. He's a big threat. The air around them felt heavier than before. He's got to be a jonin, and a powerful one at that.
\"Moimichi Zabuza."Kakashi gave a small nod of acquiesce. He knows him. This Zabuza has to be powerful. "Well, since this is a serious fight, I suppose I have no choice." Dramatically Kakashi revealed his left eye. A bright red sharingan eye appeared.
Sasuke had already known Kakashi had the eye; every Uchiha did. If Sasuke recalled correctly, it was a dying gift from his teammate Uchiha Obito. Weird gift. Useful and powerful, but weird. Many in his clan resented the eye; Kakashi had no bloodline right to the powers of the Sharingan eye, and word was it was Kakashi's fault that Obito had been killed. Sasuke had sympathized with this belief; it didn't seem quite fair that an already formidable ninja received a gift reserved for his family. It didn't help that Sasuke had yet to develop his sharingan.
However, Sasuke appreciated it now. With his eye, we'll have an edge. Itachi and Shisui say he knows how to use it.
Zabuza cackled almost gleefully. Scum."Your sharingan. I'm honored. It will be a great achievement to kill you!" Zabuza's hands shaped signs so quickly that Sasuke could not tell what sign he was forming. "Hidden Mist Jutsu: Obscuring Mist!" Zabuza growled.
A thick fog engulfed the area, destroying Sasuke's line of vision. Zabuza's body disappeared, and Sasuke could barely make out the forms of the rest of his team.
"You three form a defensive line around Tazuna!" Kakashi ordered authoritatively. Sasuke dropped back towards their client without question. Although Sakura was mere inches away from him, he could only see the vaguest details of her body. Kakashi was a dark blob, visible only in the barest sense of the word.
Kakashi faced Zabuza and executed a jutsu of some sort. The air around them thinned drastically, enhancing Sasuke's field of vision to a few feet. Sasuke tried to take a deep breath. His pounding heart and pumping adrenaline, combined with the thinned nature of the air around them, made it nearly impossible to get a deep breath. Sakura's loud hyperventilating was not helping his plight. His oxygen starved lungs started screaming for more air. Focus! Breathe! Small spots danced before his eyes, bringing back bad memories. His chest constricted, and he felt like he was drowning for the second time in his life. Damn this stupid jutsu!
"Sasuke, don't worry." Kakashi's absurdly calm voice called to him. "I'll protect you with my life. Trust me."
This isn't about trust or protection! I don't need either of those; I need air! The atmosphere grew a bit thicker, and Sasuke managed to pull more oxygen in. Trying not to gulp in the new air, Sasuke glared angrily at Kakashi's back. I don't need your protection, Hatake! I can make it on my own!
Sasuke felt a presence behind. "I wouldn't be too sure about that," Zabuza sneered from his stance between the three genin and Tazuna.
Kakashi charged at Zabuza. Before the demon nin could even reach for his sword, Kakashi drove a rusted, stained kunai into his chest. Sasuke waited for the rush of blood, the inevitable scream of their opponent.
Water spewed, sloshing against Kakashi and the ground under him. A water clone. Should have known it wasn't going to be that easy, Sasuke chastised himself. He barely had time to react before Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi, slicing at the jonin's midsection with his sword.
"It's over," Zabuza snarled, face screwed into an expression that was half scorn and half pleasure. The blade made contact with Kakashi's abdomen.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto screamed, panicked. Sakura looked sick; her eyes closed against the impending horror. Time twisted for a moment; Zabuza's swing seemed impossibly fast and precise, and yet it was so slow. Sasuke's mind refused to comprehend the situation. No, no, no! He's not going to die! It wasn't a rational argument; it was a denial of the reality. If he dies, we all die. The blade sliced cleanly through the body.
Kakashi dissolved into a puddle of water. Relieved, Sasuke exhaled silently. First a substitution and now a water clone, he thought. How many times is he going to pretend to die in one mission?
The real Kakashi materialized behind Zabuza, his kunai pressed against the thick, tanned neck of his opponent. "Now it's over," Kakashi said, his voice no longer light.
Zabuza chuckled. His laugh reminded Sasuke of all the monsters from stories meant to frighten small children; evil personified in a single sound. "Most impressive, Hatake Kakashi," Zabuza answered. Sasuke watched him carefully, his eyes never straying as Zabuza retold Kakashi's deceitful ploy.
Something in his stance, in his body language, changed suddenly. "I'm not that easily fooled," Zabuza told them. Kakashi cut through the water clone and ducked just in time to avoid Zabuza's sword. Before Kakashi could recover, Zabuza slammed his foot into the copy nin, knocking him into the nearby water.
"I can't believe he caught Kakashi-sensei off guard like that!" Sakura's voice held the same shock her face had shown earlier. To quote Naruto, believe it, Sasuke thought grimly. Zabuza's good. Doesn't bode well for us.
Naturally, he wouldn't dream of airing his unease. "His physical strength is exceptional as well," Sasuke remarked in a detached tone. His face was impassive and stone like. The first rule every Uchiha learned was to never, ever show fear in front of an opponent. That was weakness, and weakness led to dishonor and death.
"Getting caught in the water: big mistake," Zabuza sneered. "Water Prison Jutsu!" His hands formed a multitude of complex hand signs. Water pulled up from the pool around Kakashi and formed an orb around him.
This is bad. Sasuke had only heard of the jutsu once, from Itachi, and his brother had only mentioned it in passing, but he knew that this particular water jutsu was exceptionally strong. Nearly impenetrable, I think is how he put it.
"So much for the great Kakashi. I think I'll save you for last." Zabuza formed another water clone effortlessly. He's coming for us now. Sasuke tensed, ready for the fight. They had a mission to complete, and he'd be damned if he was going to fail.
"So, you brats think wearing headbands makes you ninja?" Zabuza mocked them, his clone nearing. "Pathetic. When you're hovering between life and death so many times that it doesn't even faze you, then you may be called ninja." Zabuza's voice rose, growing louder and deeper with every sentence of his monologue. "To call brats like you ninja is a joke."
Sasuke gritted his teeth, his suppressed rage fighting for an outlet. He was not some skilled, worthless little brat! He'd trained for years for this! I'm not some little child playing shinobi, scum. I know this isn't a game! Don't you dare think I don't!
Oblivious to Sasuke's silent tantrum, Zabuza's clone kicked Naruto, dislodging the boy's headband, an obvious statement. The band fluttered in the air before landing on the ground as the blonde thudded in the dirt.
"Take the bridge builder and run!" Kakashi yelled. "You can't beat him, but his water clone can't go too far from his real body! While he's occupied with me you have a chance. Now go!"
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Sasuke snorted at Kakashi's inane command. You expect us to leave? Run away like frightened children and abandon the mission and you? Not a chance, Hatake. He was not giving up. Besides, even if we do manage to evade him now, he'll track us down. There's no way we'll be able to save the bridge builder or ourselves. Zabuza was powerful; Sasuke had no doubt that he could easily catch and extirpate the four of them. In the end, our only real chance is to rescue you, Kakashi. The only other option is death, and I'm not ready to die.
Determined, Sasuke pulled out several shuriken and flung them at the water clone. Following his lead, Sakura shakily threw two kunai at the clone from a different angle. The clone effortlessly deflected all five of the projectiles. Running at Zabuza, Sasuke leapt into the air, attempted an aerial kick, only to have the clone catch his leg and throw him aside like a discarded toy.
Sasuke slammed into the ground. That hurt. He looked over at Naruto. His teammate's body was rigid, and Sasuke feared that he would freeze yet again. You cannot fail. To have any chance of making it out of this alive, we need you to be moving. I can't protect your butt and beat him at the same time!
Without preamble, the frantic look in Naruto's eyes changed to one of determination. The boy charged Zabuza. Shocked, Sasuke watched as the Zabuza clone threw Narusto off as easily as he had Sasuke moments earlier.
"Naruto! What were you thinking, attacking him like that! He's stronger than any of-" Sakura cut off abruptly as she noted the hitate in Naruto's hand. "That's what you were after?" She seemed torn between admiration at Naruto's bravery and scorn at his reckless token move.
Naruto ignored her. He reached around behind his head and tied the headband back on. "Hey you!" Naruto yelled to Zabuza. "Put this in your Bingo Book! The ninja who will become the Hokage of Konohagakure never gives up! Believe it!"
"What are you doing? I told you to run!" Kakashi screamed to them. Sasuke repressed the urge to sigh loudly at his sensei. Please, Hatake. I barely follow Hiro and Itachi's orders, and they are the leaders of my clan. Do you really think I'm going to act like a coward just because you said so? You're as much of an idiot as Naruto if you do. "Your mission is to protect the bridge builder, not to prove how brave you are," Kakashi continued. I've always been good at multitasking, Sensei. We'll do both.
Sakura glanced hesitantly at Sasuke. Beside them, Naruto queried the bridge builder, asking for permission to disregard their orders. "Sasuke," Sakura said, biting her lip nervously. She was terrified.
"You want to leave him behind? You want to abandon this mission?" Sasuke answered, quiet yet fiercely authoritative. "Go ahead. No one's coming with you, and no one will be around to protect you."
He turned his attention away from his teammate and back to the bridge builder. "Well," Tazuna said. "I suppose this is my fault. It's my desire to live that got you into this situation. Don't let that stop you! Do what you have to save your sensei!"
Well, your opinion on the matter didn't matter as much as you think, but it's reassuring to know you're on the same page. Sakura stepped forward and clenched a kunai tightly. He gave her a small nod of approval before turning back to the matter at hand.
"Hear that?" Sasuke asked Naruto and Sakura without facing them.
"Yeah, believe it!"
"Yes." The word was so quiet Sasuke could barely hear it, but it was enough.
"Sasuke, get ready, because I have a plan!" Naruto said. Oh, and I'm sure it's brilliant, Sasuke caustically remarked inside his head. Does it involve ramen or magically becoming the Hokage or, perhaps, hitting innocent rabbits with kunai?
Zabuza chuckled. "Still playing your little game, pretending to be ninja? When I was half you age, this hand had already crushed many opponents." You sound like Hiro when he's glorifying Itachi. I'm sure you two would get along perfectly.
"Zabuza, Demon of Kirigakure," Kakashi said in a monotone voice.
Zabuza paused his diatribe long enough to face his captive. "So, I made your book too, eh?"
"Sensei, what's he talking about?" Sakura asked. Sasuke would never admit it, but he was as curious as Sakura.
"I'll bet you brats never had to face anything like our graduation exams," Zabuza scoffed. "Imagine young ninja, like yourselves, eating together, training together, and living together. Then, one day, the time comes for graduation and the rules change. Kill or be killed! He was your friend, he shared your dreams, but now he's the enemy and it's you or him!"
Sasuke's blood chilled. Naruto was brash, annoying, and loud, but Sasuke could not imagine killing him in a manner so cold and cruel. And Sakura? The naïve, star-struck, pink-haired genin? No. I could never kill her.
A look of revulsion filled Sakura's eyes. "Why?" Sakura asked. "Why?" There's not really a pat answer to that, Sakura.
Zabuza closed his eyes, relishing in her discomfort. Now, Naruto, strike now!
"That's it!" Naruto yelled. "Full Shadow Clone Justu!" Several dozen Narutos surrounded Zabuza.
"Well, Shadow Clones, and quite a few of them too," Zabuza commented. The Shadow clones charged Zabuza, attempted to bury him beneath their combined mass. Zabuza threw them all off, sending the bodies flying in different directions.
Sakura whipped out her shuriken and desperately aimed for Zabuza. The nin deflected them easily.
"You are pathetic," he hissed.
One of the flying Narutos reached into his pack. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan! I've still got this!" He pulled out a giant folding shuriken. What are you planning? "Here, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he hurled the weapon towards his teammate.
The proverbial light bulb came on. So that's your plan! Not bad, Naruto, Sasuke thought. Holding a transformed Naruto was slightly disturbing, but desperate times called for disturbing measures. Glancing over at Sakura, Sasuke recognized that familiar "oh, I got it!" gleam in her eyes. Good, Sakura, he congratulated her silently. Just play along; we've got this.
Swinging around so Zabuza couldn't see him, Sasuke took an actual Fuma shuriken out of his pack. Quickly Sasuke unfolded them together. "Demon Wind Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows!" He released the shuriken, the slightly slower Naruto shuriken hidden by the real shuriken.
"Didn't you learn from the girl?" Zabuza sneered. "Do you really think that a shuriken can touch me?"
Zabuza's sneer widened as the shuriken cleanly cut around the clone. "Aiming past the water clone and for my real body; good, but not good enough!" Zabuza caught the real shuriken with his free hand. "Idiots," he added.
Sasuke nodded at Sakura. Readying a Naruto clone transformed into a Fuma shuriken, she threw the weapons at Zabuza, careful to arc them around the clone and towards the real body. Sasuke mimicked her motions with yet another Naruto clone shuriken. Her throw was a bit shaky, and its curve wasn't nearly so even as Sasuke would have liked, but it was enough.
The other shuriken Sasuke had tossed neared Zabuza. A brief look of surprise graced his face, but he recovered quickly and nimbly leapt over the shuriken. "I already told you, shuriken can't touch me no matter how many you toss!"
On cue, three Naruto clones appeared around him. Yanking out kunai the three yelled, "Eat this!" The trio flung their kunai at the target.
Zabuza's right arm was trapped in the water prison, and his right held the shuriken. He doesn't have a choice! Sasuke thought gleefully. He has to release the water prison!
The walls of the water prison disintegrated and the Zabuza clone dissolved into a puddle as Zabuza fended off the three shuriken.
"Excellent thinking, Naruto. You really have grown, haven't you?" Kakashi stated happily.
Naruto grinned widely and took the encouragement as a prompt to explain in great detail how they'd performed their little maneuver. Sasuke ground his teeth as the boy prattled on and on and on. Kami, just shut up already! Sakura seemed dangerously near to pounding some sense into her teammate. Go ahead. I'll even cheer you on.
Finally, Sasuke interrupted. "Oh, quit bragging already. We just got lucky."
"Yeah, the whole thing was just a fluke!" Tazuna said loudly. Sasuke snarled ever so slightly. Only I can say it's luck, you sorry little worm. Sasuke knew very well that he sounded like a spoiled child. He didn't care.
"You distracted me and I let go of the water prison," Zabuza retorted. "That's all." He swung the folded Fuma shuriken at Kakashi.
Kakashi caught it on the metal guard of his glove. He looked up at Zabuza, eyes full of hate for the nin. "Don't flatter yourself," he spat back. "You let go because you had no choice." Is he gloating? Kakashi rose, the water running off his body in little rivulets, drenching the already wet ground. The two jonin split off, circling each other on the water, both men simultaneously crafting their hands into numerous signs. "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Kakashi and Zabuza declared simultaneously.
Two serpentine dragons emerged from the water, twisting around one another and tearing into each other.
"Whoa," Sakura said, stepping back. The two snakes dispersed quickly, becoming part of the body of water once more.
"You've got nothing of your own. You're just copying me, like a monkey!" Zabuza taunted. Sasuke scowled. He wanted to rush in and shut up Zabuza; the nin was almost as annoying as he was dangerous. This is Kakashi's fight, though. I don't have a right to interfere.
A faint outline of Zabuza suddenly appeared behind Kakashi. Zabuza's eyes widened as he stared behind Kakashi. That's got to be a genjutsu. But what is it, exactly?
"Water Style: Giant Vortex Jutsu!" Kakashi's yell startled Sasuke and Zabuza, who had both been concentrating on the phantom Zabuza. A massive wave slammed into Zabuza, pushing his against the tree.
You could have given us a warning! Sasuke thought frantically as he braced himself against a tree. Sakura ran to him, and he obligatorily helped her scale the thick trunk. The water smashed against them, soaking them completely. Closing his eyes, Sasuke hung onto the tree for dear life. I hate water. I hate water. I HATE water.
Stuck between awe and shock, Zabuza recovered enough to rail at Kakashi. "How? How did you know I was going to use that jutsu? Can you see the future as well?"
Already losing your grip on reality? That happened fast, didn't it? From his perch on a tree, Kakashi responded calmly. "Yes, and this is your final battle." Just as placidly he grabbed a pair of kunai from his pouch and prepared to strike.
Zabuza's head jerked to the side. Kakashi drew back slightly, kunai still in his hands. What the- Protruding from Zabuza's neck were four senbon, each delicately placed in a perfect line down his neck.
Sasuke felt a new chakra signature emanating from a tree nearby. Slowly he turned and saw the owner of the senbon.
The owner was small, only a centimeter or two taller than Sasuke. His figure proclaimed his male gender. He's young. He can't be any older than us. The boy had a faceless white mask with red streaks, thin eye slits, and a Kirigakure symbol on the forehead. Long brown hair dangled down the sides of his masked face.
He chuckled. "You are correct; it was his final battle." Through clear attempt his voice was low, but he had not yet started puberty.
Kakashi crouched down beside Zabuza, checking for any sign of life. There's not going to be any. Sasuke was hardly an expert in Kirigakure nin, but he knew that an assassin did not achieve such a high rank by blotching an easy kill.
"He's dead," Kakashi declared. He rose stiffly. Is he injured? "From your mask and outfit, I take it you're a hunter nin from the Kirigakure village."
A hunter nin. A small shiver ran through Sasuke's body. Hunter nin were sent to exterminate defected shinobi. As such, all hunter nin were very skilled. And to become a hunter nin at such a young age, Sasuke thought. He's probably even stronger than Zabuza.
"You are well informed," the boy said in his soft, almost girlish voice. "Thank you for helping me defeat Zabuza. I have been tracking him for quite some time."
"How?" Naruto demanded. "Zabuza was so powerful, like a demon! How can a kid no bigger than me take him out in a single move?"
Sasuke closed his eyes, remembering Itachi standing in the kitchen, his clothes stained and smeared with blood, dripping off his body. Blood stained kunai, blood stained shuriken- nothing wasn't soaked in blood. I was six…no, five. I was five. That night Sasuke couldn't sleep. He'd gone into the hall only to hear his big brother's voice. He'd listened in shell-shocked silence as his brother detailed the mission to Hiro. All he could see was the blood. All he could hear was the number of men his brother had killed listed in a calm voice, like he was describing the groceries he'd bought at the store. Trust me, Naruto. It's not so impossible as you might think.
"Naruto," Kakashi answered sternly. "In this world there are kids younger than you who are more powerful than me." It's the way of the world.
"I must be leaving," the young nin said as picked up the corpse. A hand sign, a swirl of mist, and he had disappeared as seamlessly as he had come.
"If he's so strong, then what does that make us?" Naruto asked. Honestly, that depends on who you ask, Naruto. "How am I supposed to accept that?"
Please. Get over yourself. Did you really think that you were the most powerful? Or that I was the powerful? Or our sensei, for that matter? Sasuke didn't say anything. Naruto fell to the ground and started pounding his frustrations out in the dirt. "Maybe we don't belong here!" Naruto exclaimed loudly. "Maybe we're just bumbling around!"
Kakashi looked like he was about to say something, but the next person to speak was Sasuke, not him. "Oh, shut up!" Sasuke yelled. Naruto paused, taken off guard by the sudden comment. "Shut up," Sasuke hissed. "Whether you want to accept it or not, there are lots of ninja stronger and better than you, and lots of ninja that will always be better than you, no matter how hard you try!" It doesn't mean we don't try. Sasuke decided to leave the inspirational part of the speech to Sakura or Kakashi. "If that's too much for your mind to deal with you should quit. You're good at that, aren't you?" Naruto scowled, and he was on the verge of protest. Sasuke hurried on before he could interrupt. "But we have a mission to finish first, so get over yourself and shut the hell up!"
There was an absolute and abnormal silence. Kakashi sighed and let his hitate fall over his sharingan eye. Sakura was just staring, her mouth sealed shut.
Tazuna coughed. "Um, well," he began, watching both Naruto and Sasuke as if he was afraid a fight was about to break out. "I'm sorry about getting you guys into all this trouble, but, you can stay at my house as compensation," he offered.
"Alright, let's get going," Kakashi said. He turned back towards the group. Without warning, he collapsed on the ground.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screamed.
A/N: Thanks to all my awesome reviewers and readers! And I know I suck at battles; don't worry, next chapter will be more interesting.
Oh, and I've have a few questions about whether this is going to be a SasuSaku. I am going to have sasusaku in it, but it will not be the focus of the story and it will not appear for a while. This is for two reasons: a) I want it to be as natural as possible and b) I am a terrible romance writer, and I don't want it to suck :P