A week had passed. After the first day Nekomi had been up and helping, but she hadn't had enough energy to fight until today. She stretched. Zabuza was training Haku like usual and Nekomi had let the boys start training with them.
She had talked to Zabuza at length during that week, he had opened up to her. She had learned of his plans to overthrow the Mizukage yesterday. It troubled her. He wasn't strong enough to defeat the Mizukage and his guard by himself. He would get killed or at least run out of Mist. She had been thinking it over since he had told her, but now she stretched. Zabuza was waiting for her this morning after his warm up with Haku. It was going to be their first spar. She walked up to him. He cracked his knuckles when she was in front of him
"'Bout time."
"You ready for this?"
"For the past week."
Nekomi chuckled "You better watch out for that ego of yours, Zabuza." She paused and cracked her neck "Now, for the rules. How should we do this? Hand to hand, with weapons, with jutsus...?" She let the sentence hang.
Zabuza said, with a grin, "Anything goes."
Nekomi grinned back. All the more fun that way. "Whoever's left standing in five minutes wins."
"Haku, you keep time." Zabuza called to his adopted daughter.
"Hai, Zabuza-san." Haku pulled a timer out of her kimono top and set it "Start!" They did.
Nekomi raised her arms in an x-block to Zabuza's strike to her head then twisted to avoid his blow to her side. The sleeves of her kimono top billowed as she struck at the man with quick jabs. He also dodged, alternating with catching her arms and trying to throw her. Afer a few minutes of this they drew their swords simutaneously and started off with those.
On the sidelines..
Naruto said "Kaasan's already got her sword out and it's only a minute and a half."
Haku said "Zabuza is one of the seven swordsmen. Swords are his specialty."
Naruto said "Yeah, well mom's speciality is everything!"
Haku said in a voice half doubtful/half scornful "Is that even possible?"
Naruto cried "You better believe it!"
Haku frowned and looked back at the fight "Well, Zabuza-san's still going to win in swords."
Clangs were heard all over the field as the swords clashed, the blurs matching each other blow for blow.
Minutes left: 2
Nekomi grinned as she watched Zabuza, both of them had paused, analyzing each other's moves. She could tell Zabuza was trying hard not to breath heavy, but he was wearing down. "Change of tactics?" Zabuza dissapeared and a heavy mist rolled in.
"Kirigakure no Justu!" Zabuza attacked, but Nekomi dodged easily.
"Kage Bushin no Justu!"
Zabuza growled "Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" His clones matched her clones. He could see from the way she had dodged that she didn't have any trouble sensing him, as expected of a Wara, but still...it was kind of annoying. Their clones battled each other until they were all gone.
Haku, Naruto and Gaara blinked. Where had they gone?
Zabuza looked out onto the field from his perch in a tree. Where had she gone?
Nekomi stood in the middle of the field, highly amused. She had used her invivibility technique. She waited for Zabuza to walk back to the field, which he did, cautiously, deciding it would be better if he was out in the open where he could see her before she attacked. He was just within her reach and she had reached out to strike when there was a loud ringing. It startled her so much that she fell onto Zabuza who jumped out of his skin seeing her appear out of nowhere and fall on him, so needless to say he fell over too and they toppled.
Nekomi blushed at the position she had found herself in on the ground. They had become tangled. Zabuza coughed embarassed, Nekomi noticed a blush on his face too. He helped her up. "Uh, Good spar."
"Yeah."
Zabuza shook his head, trying to put the incident out of his mind. "What was that jutsu you used?"
The change of topic helped Nekomi to get her mind off it too. She said "An invivibility jutsu."
"Ah."
"Yeah..."
Zabuza said "Let me help you pick up your kunai..."
"Thanks."
They got their weapons back together and went back to the house where Nekomi made lunch. After lunch...
"Zabuza," Her voice had turned serious.
"Hai?" He asked with a mouthful of rice, then swallowed.
Nekomi paused, should she talk about it now? It needed to be brought up before he did something rash. She paused "About your plan...I was curious...are there any other people, nin or otherwise who feel the same way you do?"
Zabuza nodded "They're not the type to do anything about it though, one other swordsman, a couple of nin and a dozen civillians."
Nekomis sweatdropped "That's not a lot."
Zabuza said "People are afraid of the bastard."
There was an uncomfortable pause then Nekomi came out with it "Zabuza, you can't take on a Kage yourself."
"The bastard's not as strong as he looks."
"What about his guard? Will you take them alone too? You'll die!"
Zabuza growled and turned on her "Then fight with me!"
Nekomi cried "I can't! If I do, I run the risk of losing my family all over again and if He finds me out..." Zabuza growled at her. They had unconsciously gotten back into fighting positions again.
Zabuza yelled "You just going to run away again? Or stay here and cry like a coward?!"
Nekomi noticed a growl rising in her own throat. She said "I have more than myself to think about! What about the children! Should I leave them to die?!"
Zabuza yelled "Fear holds you back from this fight! You are afraid to die! You are afraid of the sannin! You are a coward!"
Nekomi began to see red. She said in a low voice "Take that back. I fought with everything I had to save my family. Everything I had, damn it!" Her chakra began to flow around her and lift up her hair and clothes. It began to swirl and became visible.
Zabuza was feeling the killing intent coming from her now and it made him forget his own anger. 'Crap, she's mad. Damn, I remember now, Wara's have tempers that could level a city...I'm in trouble...' She ran at him at a speed at least twice as fast as they had used during their spar. She struck at him with chakra enhanced blows and most of them hit, he could barely block her at all with her speed. He was losing, quickly. He said "I'm sorry, Nekomi. I didn't mean it!" He coughed up some blood.
Nekomi saw only red, all of her senses went dim as she was in berzerker mode. She knew nothing but rage.
Haku saw that this was a serious fight and that something was wrong. Nekomi could kill Zabuza. She ran out onto the field to protect her adopted father. She stood in front of him.
Zabuza cried "No, Haku! Get out of the way!" Nekomi yelled in rage as her hand plunged towards his chest. Then suddenly she was caught by something hard. She yelled once again, but wasn't released. She looked for the source. She stopped struggling as she focused.
Gaara had tears falling as he held her back with his sand "Kassaan! Stop it!" Nekomi shook her head with a now confused look in her eyes.
Naruto cried "Kassan! Snap out of it! Don't be mad anymore!" Nekomi looked at him too, then she collapsed to her knees.
Zabuza looked at the woman who had collapsed in front of him. If the fight had gone on for any longer she would have killed him easily, in less than five minutes. He knew that kage wasn't as strong as her, but still... Maybe she was right, maybe he wasn't strong enough to defeat the Mizukage...He frowned and coughed as he got to his feet. He went over to Nekomi.
Nekomi groaned. What had just happened. She got up. "Why do I feel like my head's going to explode?"
Zabuza asked "How much do you remember?"
Nekomi said "I was talking to you about battle tactics for the invasion..."
Zabuza said "Nothing after that?"
Nekomi narrowed her eyes. "Tell me what happened."
Zabuza looked uncomfortable. He said "Er...I said some things and you got mad and..."
Nekomi said "And I went into berzerker mode..." She paused "Okay, that's odd. That only gets activated in cases when one feels extreme rage against someone...I'll go into playback mode..."
Zabuza cried "Wait!"
Nekomi opened her eyes. "What?"
Zabuza said "Um, you won't go into 'berzerker mode' again when you look, will you?"
"No."
"Good..." She closed her eyes again.
"Wait!"
Nekomi developed a tic above her eye. "What now?"
Zabuza looked down "Uh...just...I'm sorry for what I said ok? I didn't mean it..."
Nekomi thought over his words, wondering what he had to be sorry about, then she closed her eyes and looked into her subconscious. She replayed what had happened.
When she came out of it she had a scowl on her face.
Zabuza saw it and got nervous again. He started babbling "Did I mention I'm sorry? I was mad, you were mad, let's forget that ever happened..." He was holding his hands up and waving them back and forth with a nervous smile as he backed away.
Nekomi lost the scowl in favor of a curious expression. "I don't think that my being angry made you not be angry anymore. Did you change your mind?"
Zabuza said "I realized...maybe you're right..."
Nekomi smiled. "Then I have a plan, but we'll discuss it inside." He went in before her. She looked at Gaara and Naruto, then picked them up and hugged them. She whispered "I'm sorry. Thank you Gaara, Naruto, for snapping me out of it." She put them down and ruffled their hair with a smile. She turned to Haku "I'm proud of you Haku. You stood up for Zabuza when he was down. You'll make a fine Shinobi." They went into the house.
Zabuza said "Now, what's the plan?"
Nekomi said "You need to be healed first." She healed him.
"Now the plan."
Nekomi rolled her eyes and turned toward him "Okay, listen..."
So, read and review as always. Ja ne.