Happy Birthday to...(dramatic pause)...ME! XD And this is the last day of the super-duper-awesome-author-birthday-update SPECTACULAR! Thanks for the reviews everyone! Enjoy the chapter! (Yeah...I just finished my third can of Coke...)
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
"Hey, Kyoko," Nami called from the very back. "Do you think Midori will be okay? Maybe we should've gone back to get her."
"She has Neji with her!" Kyoko piped. "She'll be fine!"
"Well yeah, but that guy looked pretty strong," Nami said uncertainly. "And he's like some kind of mutant spider-guy. Spiders freak her out and she hates them. She can't even stand the little ones."
"They'll be fine," Shikamaru said, looking back.
"And don't forget, Nami," Kyoko said, glancing back. "Midori still has that technique she's been working on."
---
As long as I cover Neji's blind spot, he'll be okay, Midori thought as she deflected a flying golden lance that came out of nowhere. She stood ready, back-to-back with Neji. Large spider corpses surrounded them as well as strings of web as an aftermath of Neji's Kaiten.
"Midori," Neji said quietly. "I might not be able to use Kaiten with these chakra webs around here."
"No worries," Midori answered. "That only means that you'll be able to conserve your chakra." And I'll be able to stay closer to make sure you don't get hurt…
Suddenly, hundreds of the spears created a downpour above them, all aiming toward Neji. The Hyuuga grimaced. "Midori, move!"
The girl had no other choice but to follow his order and dodged out of range of the weapons. She looked back anxiously and watched in amazement as Neji dodged every single lance. An array of more spiders followed the weapons, and Neji quickly switched from dodging to warding off the arachnids with his bare hands. He started to use Kaiten, but the webs instantly started to wrap around his body. I still can't use Kaiten! Neji saw Midori from the corner of his eye appear a few feet behind him again. "Mi—"
Midori swung her hand horizontally in front of her several times and stopped a line of daggers. This caught Kidoumaru's (who was hiding out in the trees) attention.
If that kid can see everything with that dojutsu of his, why would the girl protect his backside? He thought. Interesting… He let loose another barrage of spears, this time from two sides, Neji's left and right.
Neji instantly turned left and Midori followed from behind, turning to guard his back again.
Kidoumaru's eyes widened and grinned. Aha…I see…But just to make sure… After setting up another trap and moving to a different location, he activated it.
Once again, Neji repelled the spiders. However, he didn't see several daggers coming from behind. Luckily, Midori took them out with another stream of light. She let a small, confident smile escape her lips. Yes…as long as we stick to this strategy, we can—
Midori gasped as she found tens of spears hurling towards not Neji, but her. They came in three groups, to her left, right, and front. There was no way she'd be able to ward them all off. Midori bit her lip, narrowed her eyes, and—
THUD! THUD! THU-THUD! THUD!
"Ne…" Midori choked. "Ne…Neji!"
The Hyuuga genius had thrown himself over Midori, shielding her from the daggers, and getting stabbed multiple times in the process. His arms were still wrapped around the girl's shoulders from when he grabbed her and pushed her down. A number of the golden lances were sticking out of his backside agonizingly, and his thick hair fell loosely over his back.
Midori immediately felt the familiar burning feeling in her eyes as she gazed into Neji's pained expression. She gasped when he started to move. "Neji?"
"Are you…all right?" Neji breathed.
"Y-Yeah…" Midori stuttered. "Neji, you're—"
"Stay there," Neji ordered, as he shakily got up. "Let me…handle this."
"Why are you still struggling?!" called a voice. "A scrub in an easy game is meant to be defeated quickly! There's no hope of beating me!"
"Ne—" She stopped when she saw the huge mother spider dropping downwards in their direction. Her eyes instinctively squeezed shut.
"Juuken!"
Midori's eyes opened wide as the gargantuan spider hovered mere feet above her head. Neji's palm was thrust into the belly of the monster, seemingly lifting it with Herculean strength for a split second. Instantly the spider morphed into strands of web and a barrage of daggers headed towards Neji. He was trapped.
THUD! THU-THUD! THUD! THUD!
Neji started to give way.
Midori shot up and ran toward Neji, forgetting his order. She caught him just before he fell and supported him fearfully, forgetting everything and anything around her. That was a mistake.
Neji saw it coming. He turned her at the last second so it would miss her…The deadly golden arrow.
BOOM!
"NEJI!"
Midori felt Neji collapse against her, and she held onto him firmly. She was shaking, her eyes large and terrified. It wasn't because of the extensive number of daggers in Neji's back. No, it was much worse. Anyone could clearly see the gaping hole below his left shoulder, even through blurred eyes.
The tears were flowing freely right now. Midori felt completely useless, standing there with a limp Neji, exhausted from the injuries Kidoumaru had inflicted upon him. It was obvious to her. She knew that Neji would've been able to decrease the damage somehow if she hadn't been there. The reason why he was in so much pain was because she was there.
Shaking her head, she started to run. Neji wasn't exactly light, but she would do anything…Anything to get away from that monster of a shinobi. Midori darted behind a tree and sat down, leaning breathlessly against it. She laid Neji down carefully and tried to think about some way to escape Kidoumaru.
"Midori."
"Neji," Midori whispered, surprised that Neji was still conscious. "Are…are you okay?"
"Not really," Neji said, attempting to prop himself up on his bandaged arm. "But…it doesn't matter." He looked at her, his chest heaving up and down wearily. "Midori. I told you to follow my orders. So now…I want you to follow one last order." He leaned himself against the broad tree, one hand against the trunk. "…Run away."
"What?"
"He's powerful," Neji said. "I'll be able to hold him off…while you run."
"No!" Midori said forcefully. "No, Neji! You've done enough! I want to do something for a change!"
Neji was silent.
"It was my fault that you're hurt!" she continued. "I wanted to protect you, but you ended up protecting me! I've worsened the damage, and you still want to fight? How stubborn are you?!" She turned around so her back was to him and placed her hand on the tree. "Neji, you're hurt. If you try to protect me any longer, you'll die! I don't know what I'd do if—" She felt a hand closing over hers. Her eyes traveled to the Hyuuga who had his back towards her. His bandaged hand was wrapped around hers, and for whatever reason, it felt reassuring.
"Relax. I won't die. I promise."
At that moment, Midori suddenly heard a noise as if something was cutting through the air. A second later, she felt Neji's hand tense a slightly. She automatically turned around and gasped. A thread ran between Neji and herself. It was dripping with blood. Neji's blood. The Hyuuga's hitai-ate had been thrown off by the impact and was now sitting some feet away. Neji's eyes were wide; either from shock or recognition, but Midori didn't stick around to contemplate. She dashed off past the tree.
"Midori!" Neji called, but Midori ignored him.
Where is he? Midori thought as she ran faster and faster. Where is he?! She spotted a figure in the distance high in the air and narrowed her eyes. Her pupils turned from black to white and her irises brown to black. Meikakugan! She zeroed in on the target, making Kidoumaru's image sharpening and everything else around blurry. She blinked and her Meikakugan deactivated. He's going to shoot another arrow! I've got to stop him! She pushed off the ground and into the air, soaring straight towards Kidoumaru. Her fist pulled back for a punch.
Kidoumaru immediately saw her coming and dodged her. He smirked as she landed on a branch yards from where he was standing. He was grotesque, in Curse Seal Level Two form, a thread sticking between his teeth and a golden arrow ready to fire.
"Come back willingly, have you?" Kidoumaru mocked. "Or wait; let me guess...you didn't want to watch your friend's death."
Midori narrowed her eyes. "Neither." She outstretched her right arm and closed her eyes. Please work. The Hikari Suishou brightened its glow immensely around her neck. The same light started to appear in her hand, seemingly growing longer and thinner.
What's she doing? That looks like…a bow? Kidoumaru thought. "Whatever you're doing won't work, little girl!" But I can't use my ultimate attack on her. Orochimaru-sama and his little servant will definitely...
Midori narrowed her eyes and reached into her back pouch, pulling out a handful of shuriken. She tossed the ninja stars at Kidoumaru's feet swiftly then moved her left hand to the 'bow'.
"Ha! Is that all?!" Kidoumaru laughed as he jumped into the air easily.
Midori quickly pulled her hand back as if she was holding an arrow, and surprisingly enough, a bright arrow formed in her hand. A second later she let the transparent arrow loose.
Kidoumaru's eyes widened and he turned in the air ever so slightly. He grunted as the arrow sliced his cheek.
"This time I won't miss," Midori said, drawing her hand back. Another arrow appeared.
How is she doing that? Kidoumaru wondered as he felt the blood drip down his cheek. That arrow…is made of pure chakra…It must have something to do with that necklace of hers… "You wanna play now, huh?" Kidoumaru said. "First I'll get rid of that annoying guy. Then you'll be off to Orochimaru-sama's." He extended his arm, then let go.
Midori quickly let her own arrow follow past Kidoumaru and straight at his arrow.
What? Kidoumaru thought as he witnessed his arrow getting pierced by the luminescent one before it got even past the tree. The two arrows shattered, creating a small explosion.
Kidoumaru stared angrily at Midori. "You little—"He abruptly dodged to the side as another arrow whizzed past him. Those arrows are soundless… he thought. I'm not allowed to kill the girl…This is irritating… "Fine then," he said as an arrow dropped from his mouth. Accuracy: 100, minimum power. He released the projectile, but so did Midori.
The two clashed and disappeared, just like the previousones.
Midori was about to draw another when Kidoumaru suddenly appeared behind her. Her reflexes were no match for his speed and she was thrown back by the force of his punch. The next thing she knew, she was crushed through a tree and onto another branch. One punch and I'm already exhausted… she thought. That curse mark has strengthened him at least tenfold...but… She touched her crystal and started to stand up with difficulty. Hikari Suishou, aid me.
Her chakra's increased? Kidoumaru thought alertly. No matter. I still have her weakness. Kidoumaru shot another arrow.
Midori swiftly dodged it and heard the sound of its impact against the tree. Her ear twitched when she heard a different sound afterwards. Turning around, she saw nothing. But looking upwards…
The eight-legged animal was dropping right above her. She ducked down and covered herself with her arms. The spider landed, exploding into a mass of webs.
"That was easy," Kidoumaru said. "Hope I didn't kill her, or—" He stopped. Where…?
Zoom.
Kidoumaru grunted loudly as he felt something go through his back. Blood spurted out his stomach and he clutched the wound with his hand. "The hell?!" He turned around to see Midori with her hand held back in a stance. "Bull's-eye."
"It was just a bunshin…huh?" Kidoumaru grimaced. "Right when I hit you through the wall…I guess I underestimated you. But not anymore." He made a hand sign then released another low-powered arrow.
Midori jumped onto another branch to avoid the attack. As she started to move again, she found she could not. Looking down, she discovered webs nailing her to the branch.
"It's all over, girlie," Kidoumaru said, creating another arrow and drawing it back. "You're trapped for sure this time…and now your knight in shining armor is dead. There's no doubt my attacks have caused his blood to drain by now."
"Shut up!" Midori shouted. "Neji's not dead! So just…just shut up!"
"Are you sad now?" Kidoumaru said with mock-sympathy. "Oh, I'm very sorry." He smirked. "Just what makes you believe he's still alive, hm?"
Midori lowered her head. "He…he promised…"
Kidoumaru laughed heartlessly. "He promised? How cliché. Hate to break it to you, but promises don't go very far in the real world." He moved his hand back further. "You know what? I think I will kill you. You're annoying. Sure, master will be mad, but you still have those two teammates, am I correct? And the others will likely capture one of them as well if it was just as easy as capturing you. So, I bid you ado, little girl."
Midori raised her head, blinking away tears. She moved her hands in quick motions and the luminous bow and arrow appeared. She narrowed her eyes, willing her chakra to link with the arrow through her fingertips. "Now!" she shouted as she released the arrow.
What came next shocked Kidoumaru. Instead of hitting his own arrow, she had forced hers to barely skim above, straight towards him at such a frightening speed that as soon as he blinked, he felt the pierce of the chakra rush through his chest. He toppled off of the branch and careened into the ground, curse marks dissipating.
Midori winced as the arrow drilled through her stomach, forcing her backwards. She would've tumbled down like Kidoumaru if it weren't for the strings binding her to the branch. However, she wasn't thinking of that now. Her mind had begun to get cloudy and the pain in her stomach was like none other before.
Then all of a sudden, she felt her feet break free of the web and the touch of someone holding her, bringing her down from the height. She wearily set her eyes on the person, Hyuuga Neji. A fond smile slowly graced her lips. "Neji."
"Midori, you're hurt," Neji said, concerned.
"You're no better off," she said quietly, gesturing towards his shoulder.
"Your stomach…"
"Better me than you," she interrupted. "I'm just happy I was able to protect you for once." She gazed into Neji's face and saw that he was a complete mess. Blood was starting to dry on his chin, and his face was scratched and cut numerous times. The rest of his body was no better. Then she saw the hole in her stomach and grew pale. She covered the wound and said, "Thanks…for saving me."
"Who're you fooling?" came a sickly voice. Kidoumaru was still alive.
Neji started to get up, but Midori stopped him.
Kidoumaru laughed then started coughing. "Look at you two…" he said eerily. "You're gonna die together…just like the star-crossed lovers…"
"You're wrong," Neji said. "I made a promise I will keep."
Midori felt her eyelids getting heavier as she rested in Neji's arms. She had been unconscious enough times before to know what it felt beforehand. This was it. Thank you, Neji...for keeping your promise.
Kinda short...but in my opinion, satisfying.
I'm such a cheeseball. XD I may suck at romance and everything was probably cheesy, but hey, I really liked typing it. I feel like I just wanna pick up a pencil and start drawing scenes from this chapter! Maybe I will. Someday. I hope I didn't de-glorify Neji for giving his big dramatic stab through the stomach to an OC...SORRY NEJI! You know I love ya! (I'm so pathetic)
I had the idea for this battle in my head pretty much the entire time since I started the first few chapters of Narutoverse no Jutsu. Just a few weeks ago I started to read Bleach (AWESOME MANGA) and then I came to the part with the Quincy and I was like, "Oopsie-daisy." I knew that Inuyasha had something similar to it with the whole sacred arrow thing, but I didn't know BLEACH did too. SORRY URYUU! SORRY KAGOME!
Enough with the hyper rambling. R&R please! Until next time!
-HM