Disclaimer: I am just a fan. I do not own Naruto.
Chapter 2:The Disappearance: part 2
Kisame looked past Naruto's shadow clone army as if they did not exist "Long time no see, boy. I wouldn't be expecting Jiraiya if I were you." He greeted.
"There is no point in resisting; you will be coming with us one way or another." Itachi managed to spit out in between coughing fits, but his threat was oblivious to Naruto who was gripped by fury at Kisame's innuendo. Naruto screamed "Ike!" (Go) and his first row of clones exploded into action.
"I was hoping you would do that." Kisame exclaimed with a shark like grin on his face.
Kisame drew Samehada from his back waiting for the clones to come in range before he casually swung it as if nothing was there to block its movement dissipating all of the shadow clones without any effort. Poof, they erupted into a huge mushroom cloud of noxious smoke that engulfed him. While Itachi, almost fully recovered from his ordeal stood on the side lines and watched their battle with disinterest.
"Ha! You should have been paying attention to what happened to your friend when he destroyed one of my new clones. I call this technique the Big Stinker, because if you destroy any of my new Kage Bunshin you're left with a very nasty and super smelly surprise. I got the idea from when I fought in the chuunin exams against my friend Kiba. How do you like it fish face?" Naruto taunted angrily.
The satisfaction and excitement on Naruto's face from having proved the usefulness of his new technique in combat was cut short when he noticed the noxious smoke being pushed away by a huge wave of water which rushed towards him and his clones. All of them quickly leapt back and landed on the nearby trees behind them barely avoiding the wave as it came crashing down forming a huge lake that surrounded them. Kisame rose from the lake smiling fiendishly.
"If that's all you have to offer then this isn't going to be much fun at all boy." Kisame mocked.
"We'll see about that fish face!" Naruto shot back. "Second wave go!"
The second group of twenty five shadow clones began their attack by hurling shuriken with explosive tags attached. Kisame dove to avoid them, but as soon as he surfaced all of the clones took aim and hurled themselves into the water with Kunais drawn. Kisame chuckled and called Naruto pathetic before he shot upwards like a bullet towards Naruto's shadow clones. He dispatched them with two slashes from Samehada and fell back into the water. Naruto raised his hand signaling the rest of his clones to prepare themselves as they waited for Kisame to resurface. Meanwhile, Jiraiya sped towards Naruto wondering how long he would last by himself before falling.
"SHOW YOURSELF TUNA BREATHE!!" Naruto shouted in an attempt to draw Kisame out.
When Naruto finished hurling his insult he and his clones noticed the trees behind them had begun to fall. They all leapt as high as they could into the air as the trees they were perched on collapsed; upon reaching the pinnacle of their leap a laughing Kisame surfaced to mock them. Naruto signaled his clones. The clones reached into their pouches, as they descended each grabbed a handful of explosive tags and threw them into the air. Naruto formed hand signs and whispered Senbon Ryoushi (Needle Hunter). All of the explosive tags started twirling and formed senbon which shot pass Naruto and his clones. There were so many it looked like rain fall. Kisame submerged underwater once again to avoid the oncoming explosive tags, but that did not stop the senbon who pierced the water in search of their prey.
"I can't believe that little brat thinks a few explosive tags are going to stop someone like me. I guess it's time he learns who he is dealing with." Kisame thought as the tags gave chase.
Kisame shot forward at an incredible speed gaining some distance from the explosive tags that hunted him forming hand signs as he did so. Once the hand signs were completed Kisame quickly turned and yelled Suiton: Suikodan no jutsu (Water release: Water Shark bullet technique). A shark formed out of the water and shot towards the explosive tags to detonate them, but the tags just drilled through the water shark and continued on their journey to reach Kisame exploding upon contact. The shockwave from the explosion was so massive that it destroyed the rest of Naruto's clones and sent him flying ten feet gaining the acknowledgement of Itachi.
"You have grown since last we met Naruto, but it's not enough." Itachi thought.
Itachi's thought was barely finished when Naruto was attacked by five sharks made out of water. Still disoriented from the blast created by his exploding tags Naruto was only able to avoid three of the five sharks before being hit by the fourth. It clipped him on the shoulder and sent him spinning. The fifth shark caught him straight in the gut and rammed him into the trees knocked down earlier by Kisame. Naruto continued flying until he was stopped by a gigantic and still rooted cedar tree. Kisame dispelled his Suiton: Bakusui Shoha (Water release: Exploding Water Shockwave) and walked over to him.
"Not a bad trick with those exploding tags boy, you managed to singe my favorite cloak. If I was a lesser ninja I probably would have really suffered from that attack. Now how are you going to repay me for singeing my favorite cloak? I know." Kisame said as he drew Samehada from his back and shredded through Naruto's jacket and the flesh of his right arm allowing Samehada to feast upon his chakra.
"There, that should make us even for singeing my cloak, but now how are you going to repay me for wasting my time? I know! We can remove your legs so I have an easier time of carrying you. It's the least you can do to repay me." Kisame continued, irritating Itachi.
"Kisame, that's enough! You are not removing his legs he would bleed to death before we get what we want. Grab him and let's be on our way before anything troublesome decides to find us."
"What trouble would that be? There is no one around for miles, and the legendary Jiraiya is having a conversation with a Naruto that probably has already sent him on his way to hell." Kisame said arrogantly.
"Even you are not foolish enough to truly believe something like that. Remember what happened with our last little ruse. All we have done is bought ourselves some time, and I don't feel like returning empty handed again. So let's move quickly." Itachi reprimanded. Kisame retorted by telling Itachi he needed to learn how to stop being so uptight. Naruto struggled to maintain consciousness, but his head was throbbing, and his body ached as if he had broken every bone in it. Everything slowly faded to black as Kisame used Samehada to lift him. Kisame placed Samehada over his shoulder as Itachi turned and walked away.
"Boy, BOY, WAKE UP BOY! No one who is my vessel is allowed to fall so easily and certainly not to two weaklings such as these." The Kyuubi's voice echoed in Naruto's head as he begun to stir. At first he did not recognize the surroundings but then realization dawned upon him. He had returned to that deep, dark, and dank place were the cause for most of the suffering in his life resided. He was inside his mindscape at the door of the prison which housed the Kyuubi.
"Come boy, take my strength. Let's show them how strong we truly are, and how foolish they were to cross us." The Kyuubi said enticingly.
Naruto knew he should resist; In the last two years he spent training with Jiraiya he has learned that the power the Kyuubi offered came at a price, but he needed that power, the power to escape his current predicament, the power he knew the Kyuubi held; and that power was what he needed if he was going to bring back Sasuke and keep his promise to Sakura-chan. Naruto walked towards the gates to the jail that imprisoned the Kyuubi and placed his hand on it; a red and ominous chakra begun to leek through the bars and swirled around him. Naruto phased through the gates which held the Kyuubi captive. A devilish smile was sewn upon the Kyuubi's face as he bellowed a dark and sinister laugh.
Jiraiya reached the location of the fallen tree only to see two tiny figures in the distance. One looked as if he was carrying something. Jiraiya realized that the something being carried was a limp body which dangled off an object. His mind reached the conclusion "I am too late." He pursued the three figures while formulating a plan of attack. Naruto's body had begun to leak a red demonic chakra which went unnoticed with Itachi leading the way and Kisame using Samehada to carry him. It's not until Naruto's chakra covered hand grabbed Kisame by the back of the head and slammed it into the ground creating a three foot crater that either member of Akatsuki realized he had regained consciousness, let alone that he was now covered from head to toe in a demonic chakra. Itachi quickly turned and rested his gaze upon Naruto. Through Sharingan active eyes, he forced his way into Naruto's mindscape where he came face to face with a fiendishly smiling Kyuubi.
"You're too late Sharingan user." The Kyuubi guffawed before he released a chakra laced roar banishing the Sharingan user from Naruto's mindscape, but that small distraction was all Kisame needed to recover.
Kisame slammed Samehada into Naruto with such tremendous force that it sent him flying through the forest crashing into tree after tree. If not for the demonic chakra which cloaked Naruto's body absorbing most of the force from the impact he would have been defeated for a second time that day, but as it stood all Kisame had managed to do was to enrage a Kyuubi enhanced Naruto.
The Kyuubi chakra cloaking Naruto begun to sprout what can only be described as tails; the first had formed when Naruto slammed Kisame's head into the ground, but now there was a second and then a third. At the completion of the third chakra tail, the left and right tails lashed out like sentient beings. The tails wrapped themselves around the first trees they encountered and halted Naruto's backward motion before using them to help create a sling shot affect which flung Naruto back in the direction from which he came. He shot forward like a bullet flies towards the promise of blood and carnage; he flew towards Kisame and Itachi eagerly, his ears filled with the pounding of his heart and the whooshing of his blood as demonic chakra laced adrenalin coursed through his veins heightened his senses, strengthened his body, and altered his perceptions.
Naruto fought desperately to maintain his sanity as his mind became muddled and rational thoughts were replaced by animalistic instincts and murderous intent. Demonic rage demanded the annihilation of anything which dared to cross his path. An agonizing scream escaped his throat reverberating off the forest trees causing all the animals within the forest to flee for safety. Itachi and Kisame prepared themselves to face an enraged Jinchuuriki. Naruto flew out of the path he created reaching out with his chakra covered hand. The demonic chakra stretched itself outward in an attempt to claw Kisame and Itachi in half when a gigantic toad landed in between him and his prey, creating an enormous cloud of dust blocking Naruto's view and dispelling the chakra which sought to destroy the two Akatsuki members.
Itachi and Kisame leapt back to avoid the giant toad only to fall into Jiraiya's Doton: Yomi Numa (Earth release: Swamp of the Underworld). Jiraiya dispelled the toad summon and fell to the ground facing the slowly sinking Akatsuki members. Forming hand signs he cried Katon: Karyu Endan (Fire release: Fire Dragon Flame Missile), but Itachi, already perceiving the situation set Kisame into motion who completing the necessary hand signs cried Suiton: Bakusui Shoha which collided with the stream of fire headed for them creating a big mushroom cloud of steam. Itachi used the concealment provided by the steam to form Kage Bunshin and the two escape Jiraiya's Doton: Yomi Numa before Jiraiya can complete his next jutsu.
Naruto released a mighty blood curdling roar gaining Jiraiya's attention; recognizing the sound of Naruto succumbing to the power of the Kyuubi, Jiraiya reached into his vest and pulled out a special slip of paper containing a unique sealing jutsu. He created the sealing jutsu to dispel the chakra cloak and negate the Kyuubi's hold over Naruto. Trapping Naruto in a Doton: Yomi Numa Jiraiya stood and prepared himself for the dangerous confrontation which was about to take place. The two Akatsuki members seized this opportunity to escape, both seeing the futility of prolonging a losing battle.
When the dust cleared Jiraiya saw the skin on Naruto's body melting away. His muscles tore and the cracking of bones was heard as Naruto took the shape of a miniature blood covered Kyuubi with four tails. Once half of Naruto's body had been engulfed by the swamp Jiraiya rushed forward sealing jutsu at the ready, but Naruto unleashed a blast of intense heat filled demonic chakra. The heat was so great that it dried up Jiraiya's Doton: Yomi Numa leaving a smooth crater were the swamp once stood forcing Jiraiya to back away. Naruto lunged forward clawing at Jiraiya who just barely managed to evade the attack. Missing his prey, Naruto followed through by quickly leaping into the air spinning to face Jiraiya and simultaneously firing a chakra bullet which caught Jiraiya on the calf. The blast caused Jiraiya to lose his footing and the paper containing the sealing slipped from his grasp as he braced himself, but before he could hit the ground Naruto was there; with a swipe of his demonic chakra claw, he tore open a deep and ugly looking gash on Jiraiya's chest and sent the Toad Sage flying into a nearby tree which splintered. Using the blood from the wound on his chest Jiraiya's last conscious act is the completion of his Kuchiyose: Gamaguchi Shibari (Summoning: Toad Mouth Bind) trapping the enraged Jinchuuriki. As the darkness is about to claim him, Jiraiya witnessed a blinding light.
His next conscious moments will take place seven days later with his wounds bound and underneath the tent of kind travelers. Jiraiya will spend two more days resting before he is able to summon a messenger toad to relay the situation, and he will spend another three days with the hunter nin in search of Naruto before being ordered to the infirmary so that they can tend to his wounds properly. Finished with his recollections Jiraiya gets up to leave.
A month will have passed before it is decided to place Naruto in the book of missing Nin, and not a moment will pass by when Jiraiya is not haunted by the events of that day. The day the great Sannin known as the Toad Sage was again unable to protect that which he held precious.
Jiraiya's nights will be spent with bottles of saki and whichever ladies he can find, and his days will be spent wandering from town to town and place to place in search of his hyperactive and determined student, occasionally stopping to do research for his book. Tsunade will focus on the Strengthening of Konoha, and Team Kakashi one of a handful of new teams will be formed. The members include the obvious Hatake Kakashi as team captain, a determined and much improved Haruno, Sakura, and Sai an Anbu Root member planted by Danzou for an unkown reason within the group with the help of the Konoha elders, annoying Tsunade-sama to no end. The fourth and final team member would be chosen at a later date due to a lack of manpower.