Posted: 11-04-10

Updated: 24-06-11

CH8: The Battle for Ritoru Haaku

''Alright, keep on moving!'' Naruto shouted, standing on top of a roof as his clones helped the sick and injured out of their houses. The sun was going down and there was a soft, pleasant breeze in the air. ''We got to get going!'' They had just started moving the villagers. Groups of clones were gathering herbs and food and water. They had to make haste, this was but the calm before the storm.

The villagers had been scared at first, when Naruto and Hari broken the news to them. They were terrified with the thought of the Akumu Shokō returning to finish the job. Luckily, however, with the help of the village's militia leader, Kenji, they managed to pull themselves together and prepare for their evacuation. Hari helped Kenji organize the villagers in a long row, whilst another thirty clones were helping the sick in carriages. Fortunately enough, those weren't destroyed during the raid. The merchant village Ritoru Haaku had plenty of carriages they could make use of. The only problem was that the majority of the cattle were already dead, having been either slain in the attack or used as sustenance afterwards. There were six bulls left and there were twelve large carriages filled with the sick and the hold. They were draped by heavy blankets and laid on hay. It was truly fortunate Naruto was to able to create a great many clones.

''Naruto,'' Hari shouted, demanding the blonds' attention, ''These guys are ready to go!''

''Got ya,'' Naruto shouted back. ''Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!'' with collective poofs clones burst into existence and immediately approached the carriages. ''Don't slack of, ya hear?'' Naruto shouted at his doppelganger, shaking a fist at them.

Children giggled at the sight of clones sticking their tongue out at the original, whilst saying, ''Yeah, yeah, whatever tough guy!'' and ''We'll do the job better than you could anyway!'' Naruto jumped of the house and approached an old woman sitting on the grass, already tired. ''Here, old lady, let me help you out there,'' with ease, the blond picked up the fragile, elderly woman and helped her into a carriage. Naruto went red with the praise and gratitude of the villagers and got back to work, helping the remnants of the village militia with loading the cargo carriages with supplies.

Hari channeled katon chakra to his throat and spat out a small burst of fire, using the principles behind his Endan no Jutsu on a smaller scale and setting two torches aflame with fairly large fireballs. Hari placed them on the grips attached to the front of the carries.

''That is so cool!'' a little girl said, holding on to Hari's leg, making the genin smiled embarrassedly.

''Yeah!'' the rest of the village children shouted, jumping up in down enthusiastically. ''Do it again, Nii-chan!'' they chanted.

Naruto pouted, slightly envious of Hari, who spat a few more balls of fire, making the children giggle and scream in delight. The blond returned his focus back to the task at hand and heaved a heavy box with the use of chakra in his arms and carried it to one of the heavy-duty looking carriages, designed for a big shipment. ''This is gonna brake my back,'' Naruto grumbled, massaging his neck before getting back to work. ''Alright, guys, this one can go to the front, it's all loaded!'' the blond told the villagers that helped him load the carriages as he closed the door on it.

As the blond turned around, he was met with the sight of a group of clones carrying bags with all kinds of leafs and herbs in them. ''Good job, guys!'' Naruto shouted at his clones with thumbs up. ''Separate them in equal quantities with the carriages and then help out Hari, alright?''

''Sure thing, boss!'' his clones replied simultaneously and doing as they were told.

''Uzumaki-san,'' Kenji said, approaching Naruto with the village leader, Hattori. ''Uzumaki-san,'' Kenji repeated, motioning to Hattori, ''Hattori-sama wishes to express his gratitude, but as he cannot speak, he has asked me to do it for him.'' Hattori nodded curtly, his scared face filled with respect, and got on his knees and bowed deeply to the genin.

Naruto gulped and knelt down next to the old man and grasped his shoulder. ''Hey, gramps,'' he said as comforting as he could, ''There's no need to thank me. I would have done this whether you wanted me to or not.'' Naruto chuckled, holding out his hand to the old man, who stood up and looked at it and then shook his head and pulled the boy in for a crushing hug. Naruto, despite feeling red in the face, embraced the man back, letting him cry in his shoulder. ''Any time, gramps.''

-ooo-

Yugito took a deep, shaky breath and exhaled, glaring at the man-sized boulder as though it had offended her. ''Raiton! Raikyū no Jutsu!'' Yugito shouted, setting off at an impressive speed, a perpetual screech from the lightning ball in her hand.

A thundering boom followed the pierce of Yugito's hand into the firm rock as it broke down in thousands of shards that passed her figure as she gracefully jumped back with a back flip and landed in a crouch. Yugito breathed heavily, finding satisfaction in the results of her newest technique. The prodigy had taken her original technique a level higher. As her satisfaction wavered, the genin was reminded of her sensei's words that still haunted her mind, an unwanted mantra she could not rid herself of.

''At the moment, you're the strongest of the three.''

''You're scared, more than anything to be like Naruto.''

''He lives in the present time, unlike you who lives in the past -''

A deep, furious growl escaped Yugito's throat, she slammed her fist into the earth beneath her. 'What the hell does he know? Neither of them went through what I- 'Wait. That wasn't true at all. Naruto had a horrible past, much like hers and Kirabi... Kirabi never spoke of his past. Not in the nearly seven years that she had known both jinchūriki, had they spoken of their past. ''Perhaps they do know...''

Yugito shook her head and stood up, brushing of dust of her clothes. With a raised eyebrow, she noticed her black baggy pants and her purple and white short-sleeved shirt where dirty and cut. Yugito sighed and turned on her heels, hoping Kirabi was not at the camp.

The blond teenager made her way through the forest. She had run farther than she had thought; she didn't even recognize her surroundings. Yugito exited a patch of trees and saw, to her horror, the river and further down the river, a huge gathering of men, mounted on horses.

'How far did I run?' Yugito went through a quick array of hand seals and whispered, ''Ninpō! Meisaigakure no Jutsu!'' Instantly, she felt as if someone threw a bucket of ice cold water of her, or if someone splattered an egg over her head. The icy feeling spread over her body, when it abruptly stopped. Yugito leaned over into the river and saw no reflection. The kunoichi nodded and began her silent approach.

(Jutsu: Mesaigakure no Jutsu – Camouflage Concealment!)

Slowly and as surreptitiously as her skills permitted, Yugito approached the group when her breath hitched. The Akumu Shokō, the famed brothers of nightmares, the rogue shinobi internationally seen as A classed criminals and terrorists, were standing a mere seventy yards or so from her line of vision. 'I must contact Kirabi-sensei!'Yugito thought frantically. In the face of imminent threat, one that could kill her within seconds, she found it hard to stay level-headed.

As she was about to turn, she heard raised voices causing her to stop instantly, not moving an inch. Fear griped her. Yugito knew she was skilled, but not that skilled. 'Alright, stay calm. Regulation number four; 'Always remain calm, during any situation'.''

-ooo-

The Akumu Shokō stood on a small platform made out of earth. Seiichi glared at the samurai, whilst Shinji grinned, running a hand through his long, blond hair without a care in the world. Seiichi, allowed himself a split second to look at every warrior for hire in his employment, all, save Saturo and Takezo, dressed in the same garb; black baggy trousers with yellow, traditional styled samurai armour plating. There were about a hundred-fifty samurai present.

The Nightmare Lord's eyes gleamed with perpetual intent to kill and predatory instinct. ''Spread out!'' Seiichi growled at his men, holding up his fists. ''Raise the village; destroy all traces of us ever being here! Take no prisoners, show no mercy, and do not hold back!'' Seiichi turned to Takezo and Saturo, ''You two split up in two groups and oversee the attack. Do not fail me...''

''Of course, Seiichi-sama,'' Saturo said, climbing his pure white steed, ''I never fail a mission.''

Takezo scoffed at Saturo as he climbed his own sword and unsheathed his blade, raising it to the Akumu Shokō. ''You have my word, Akumu Shokō, that I shall cut down your enemies!'' Takezo shouted, ''I swear it upon my Tsuchi Kuma!''

Seiichi nodded in approval, as Saturo and Takezo took off, their squads followed them.

''Maa, Nii-sama,'' Shinji said to his brother as the men mounted up, ''You forgot to tell them not to die or they won't get paid.''

Seiichi glared at his younger brother for his insolence, but let him be, swiftly turning around and mounting his brown steed. ''After today, Shinji, there will be no force in the world that can challenge our power. A few meaningless sacrifices are nothing compared to the power we shall attain.''

''Hmph, you mean the power you will attain, right, Nii-sama?'' Shinji said, a challenging edge to his tone, as he approached his brother's steed. ''One of the blades goes to the Kumo Council, for their 'hard work', no?'' Shinji climbed his own steed and faced his brother, for once, his stupid smile absent from his face.

''What are you implying, Shinji?'' Seiichi growled dangerously, not liking where this was going. ''Are you suggesting I am not competent enough to wield the sword? That I am not the one who should wield it? Spit it out, Shinji?''

''Forgive me, Nii-sama,'' Shinji said abruptly. ''Forget I said anything.''

Seiichi glared at his brother once more before looking in front of him. ''Let us go then,'' Seiichi said, kicking his sides of his steed and setting of towards the West, Shinji close behind him.''

Saturo nodded, a hint of a smile gracing his handsome features. ''As you wish, Seiichi-sama,'' Saturo said, turning on his heels and mounting his horse.

-ooo-

Yugito held her breath without notice as the ground shook and the samurai led by Saturo and Takezo went east bound. 'This is bad!' Yugito realised, 'I must contact Kirabi-sensei!'Yugito turned around, taking a short back to the village with by the trees, jumping from branch to branch as fast as her legs infused with chakra permitted.

This was no good, in fact, this was downright terrible! The village was about to attack, the Akumu Shokō were about to obtain the legendary blades and - ''Naruto and Hari!'' Yugito shouted, ignoring the questionable feeling in the pit of her stomach. ''You stupid amateurs!'' Yugito hissed, channeling Nibi's chakra and making a hand sign, ''Shunshin!''

Yugito warped as many times as her chakra reservoirs permitted here, only one thought in her mind, repeating as a mantra, "Warn sensei." The village of Ritoru Haaku was only minutes away, but the distance, even by Shunshin, felt infinitely long. Could she handle this? Would she be able to fight the Akumu Shokō and their servants? Yugito prayed the back up team would arrive.

-ooo-

"Watch out!"

Hari turned to the screams on his right and cursed under his breath as a large wooden pillar tumbled down, making a hand sign. The rope had snapped while men were pulling it up a cart with supplies.

"I'm on it!" Naruto shouted jumping in front of Hari and aiming his palms to the timber coming at them.

Yet, before either could do anything, the wooden pillar was struck by lightning and burned to a crisp before making impact with the earth.

Naruto instantly looked to the right, finding Kirabi perched on his rooftop, grinning and with a smoking index finger. Naruto grinned and held up a hand. "Thanks!"

"I called for backup – again," Kirabi said. "But odds are we're goin' to be in trouble before help arrives."

"See?" Naruto said, "I knew I was right! We need to get these people out of here."

Kirabi waved his concerns off. "Don't worry, I got it all covered. I had a few clones scout the area and secure all paths. As soon as we can get ready to leave -"

A chakra signature diverted the shinobi's attention as he instantly turned his eyes to the west.

"Sensei!" Yugito shouted, fazing into existence. "They're coming!"

"What?" Naruto hissed.

Yugito rested her hands on her knees, exhausted as she repeated, "They're coming."

"The Akumu Shokō?" Kirabi asked calmly, adjusting his shades.

Yugito merely nodded her breath heavy and throat to dry to speak any more.

"Alright," Kirabi said evenly, "Hari, have Kenji help you with evacuating. You are leaving now. Naruto, take Yugito and get her water and then both of you meet me at the gate. We'll hold the defensive line."

"Yes, sir," the genin said simultaneously.

"Hari, be careful while you're out there. Move fast, do not waste any time."

Hari nodded and ran into the direction of the villagers, waving his hands to get their attention.

"Let's go," Naruto said to Yugito, his tone ambiguous. Their previous encounter still in the back of his mind.

Fortunately, Yugito nodded and followed him to a shack with supplies. Naruto passed Yugito a bottle of water and stood quietly as she drunk from it.

"When we're fighting them, do not cower from using the Kyubi's power."

Naruto pretended not hear that, crossing his arms and leaning against the shack's wall.

"I'm serious, Naruto."

Now she had his attention. Yugito never called him by his name unless with was something of great significance. Naruto looked at her. "I don't like using it."

"Neither do I," Yugito admitted, putting the now empty bottle down.

Naruto scoffed, "Yeah, right."

"You don't believe me?" Yugito demanded with a scowl. "And why not, Uzumaki?"

"Because, you love using your Biju. Why else would you be so advanced in using it?" The retort held a stinging accusation to it.

Yugito bit back an angry retort. "This not the time or place. We have preparations to make."

"Whatever," Naruto grunted, following Yugito to the village gate where Kirabi would be waiting for them.

…

"Sensei, there's something I forgot to tell you," Yugito said when Kirabi turned to meet them. "I… overheard the Akumu Shokō say something." Yugito paused. "It's not good."

Both Naruto and Kirabi gave Yugito a curious look.

"What'd they say?"

"I don't know whether it's true or not, but they said Kumo's Council was in on this." Yugito paused again. "Is it possible, sensei?"

"No way!" Naruto instantly shouted, pointing a finger at Yugito. "How could you believe that? They're rogue ninja! Besides, Kumo would never –"

"That's enough, Naruto," Kirabi said, his brows furrowed in concern. "That would explain why we didn't get any reply to our back up calls. But," Kirabi caught the look on Naruto's face, "We can't trust the word of rogue shinobi. For all we know they're lying to each other."

Yugito nodded. "I understand, Kirabi-sensei."

"When are they coming anyway?" Naruto asked when Kirabi held up a hand.

"They're coming," Kirabi announced. "They're large in numbers and coming fast." A pause. "Some of them have chakra signatures that suggest they've received training on chakra manipulation."

"What, you're saying some of them can use jutsu?" Naruto asked confused.

But Kirabi had his eyes closed and his hand still raised. "They seem agitated… no, they're being aggressive." Kirabi amended. "Shit, I sense two jōnin level chakra signatures out there."

Yugito glared into the distance. "How long?"

"Five, maybe seven minutes," Kirabi deducted, opening his eyes. "Prepare yourselves, this is going to get ugly."

Yugito scoffed cocky, putting on her black gloves, she only wore when she planned to use some extensive lightning manipulation. The material was made of rubber, to decrease the recoil.

Naruto smashed his fist together, a twisted grin on his boyish face. His chakra was beginning to spike due to his excitement.

"I can see 'em!" Kirabi shouted after a few minutes of silence. The invaders were visible, coming from half a mile or so distance. "Any suggestions?"

"I say we take the fight to them!" Naruto shouted, his chakra still climbing.

"Agreed!" Yugito and Kirabi shouted and they all simultaneously burst of to meet the incoming force.

-ooo-

(Kumogakure no Sato – Raikage Tower)

"Where is the damn report?" Raiden demanded, smashing his giant had on the desk, causing it to crack.

"Here, Raikage-sama."

Raiden grunted, whisking the report from his secretary and opening. "God damn it," Raiden cursed, reading the reports. "It's them again."

"Who, Raikage-sama?" Raiden's secretary asked in her crispy voice. "Do you mean the Akumu Shokō?"

"Yeah," Raiden grunted. "They've been quite lively lately. According to Kirabi's report they're after some old artifacts. He's requesting back up."

"Who will you send?"

"Ugh," Raiden face-palmed. "Where's that kid, Darui? Wasn't he on some recon mission in that area?"

"Yes," the secretary took a look at the clipboard once more and nodded. "He is currently on his way back with Shi. Their mission was successful."

"Send both of them to back up my stupid ass brother," Raiden said with a flick of his hand. "Ugh, I need a drink."

"Raikage-sama!"

(AN: The Raikage is called Raiden in this story and not A or Ē simply because that's just a ridiculous name.)

-ooo-

(Ritoru Haaku)

Naruto roared, jumping and slamming a horseman of his horse, knocking him unconscious. "Bring it!" the blond shouted, going through hand seals and then shouting, "Fūton! Akkai Genshuku!" Gusts of wind blasted from his palms, cutting down at least ten samurai warriors.

Naruto back flipped to avoid a slash to his ribs and jump-kneed the assailant in the face, sending him flying in a twirl and landing unconscious with a broken nose. Naruto pulled out two kunai blades and held them in reverse grip. "Who wants some, eh" Naruto challenged aggressively. The thrill of battle was intoxicating – something primal was rising in him. "Not so though now, huh? When you're opponent isn't a child or a woman or old, is it?" Naruto cackled. "IS IT?" he shouted, jumping one of the surrounding samurai, landing his knees on his victim's shoulders and lodging the kunai to his left in the samurai's ribs.

"Ah!"

Taking out the blade, Naruto back flipped and lodged his blades in the samurai that dared to attack him with a battle cry. Savagely, he ripped out the blades, letting the man crumple to the floor and turned to meet the rest of the samurai that were surrounding him. "You're scum!" Naruto said harshly, "Every single one of you is an insult to the samurai."

"How dare you!" one shouted, going in for an over-head slash, but Naruto wrapped his hands around the samurai and applied enough pressure to shatter the bones in his hands.

"You fuckin' bet!" Naruto shouted in his face, raising knee after knee to break the samurai's ribs and incapacitate him to the point he couldn't move and fell over. Naruto held the katana in his hands. "I challenge every single one of you to fight me. If you call yourselves men… samurai then you will accept!"

With a united cry, the men charged at the blond, but stopped. Dozens of clones popped into existence, all with the same look of barely controlled rage and a katana in their hands.

"Attack," Naruto ordered.

…

Yugito's index finger smoked with heat. Surrounding the kunoichi were the bodies of at least thirty samurai. Their bodies, too, were smoking. Some were slightly charred. "Is this all you can offer?" Yugito asked to the remaining samurai that backed away in fear. "You disgust me," Yugito said, her tone cold as ice. "Be gone! Raikyū!" In an instant she fazed away and then reappeared in front of the samurai, a ball of compressed lightning in her hands.

Their screams never left their throats, for they were dead before they could even blink. Their bodies slumped to the ground, grapefruit sized holes in their chest.

Yugito took a deep breath, extensive usage of lightning-based jutsu already wearing her down. 'I must press on!' Yugito thought, turning her head and spotting a squadron of samurai running in her direction.

Yugito flashed through hand seals and took a deep breath. This wasn't going to be over in a long shot.

…

Kirabi laughed as he gracefully moved through the troops of samurai. "This is what y'all need to know, my name's Kirabi and I'm the best rapper-slash-ninja you'll eva' see! None of y'all will ever touch me for I am the KILLER BEE!" And with that Kirabi's body shot out lightning in all directions crippling the remaining samurai.

"It's over that soon?" Kirabi looked around him and found only unconscious warriors on the ground. "Oh well!" Kirabi reached into his pouch and withdrew his favourite chocolate sweet. "Brake time!"

…

Hari looked over his shoulder, foolishly hoping to catch a glimpse of the battle, despite knowing how impossible it was from this distance and angle.

Hari turned to one of the clones that was leading a carriage. "What's going on in the village?" the teen asked the clone. T

Suddenly the villagers fell silent. Everyone wanted to hear this.

Naruto's clone pulled a funny face, "The boss, Nii and sensei are keeping them occupied. So far, they've taken out about twenty per cent of enemy forces."

"That's great news!" a villager shouted and he was joined by others who were talking excitedly amongst themselves.

Hari sighed in relief. He hated being out of the loop and having to rely on a clone for information, but he had his own task to finish. He had to lead these people to safety. "Alright, let's cut the chatter and move a bit faster!"

Hari suddenly stopped. He sensed someone coming. Someone he had encountered before. Then it dawned upon him. "No way…," Hari said, "Not now! Not here!"

The chakra signal was getting stronger and was getting closer at a high speed. Hari turned to the rest of the camp. "I'm going to run to the west, you keep going north, understood? I'll catch up to you later!"

"W- what?" The villagers began talking amongst themselves.

"JUST DO AS I SAY, OKAY?" Hari shouted, "There is NO TIME!" With that, he turned around and ran as fast as he could to the West, all the while spiking his chakra and hoping- praying that the person he suspected to be following them would not catch on and continue following Hari's chakra signature.

-ooo-

Hari ran into an open clearing and ducked to the right just in time to avoid a huge ice pillar smashing into the ground. Hari rolled and stopped in a crouch his eyes scanning the clearing. "I know you're here, Saturo!" Hari called out, anxiety creeping over him. Saturo had suppressed his chakra like last time.

Saturo entered the clearing with a carefree stride. His handsome face was etched with an amused smile. "We meet again."

Hari sighed in relief. The villagers wouldn't have to see this and they would be safe from harm. "I don't suppose you can let me go?" Hari asked, a part of him didn't want to face Saturo again. His previous defeat still stung.

Saturo shook his head in a dignified manner. "My apologies, but I cannot let you leave. You know too much and are therefore a liability." Saturo's hand went for his blade. "A liability I must take care of."

"A liability, huh?" Hari repeated, to which Saturo merely nodded. "Well fuck you!" Hari shouted, going through his hand seals. "Katon! Endan no Jutsu!"

Hari spat a large ball of fire at Saturo, who seemed surprised for only a second. But the seasoned warrior evaded the blast with ease and locked eyes with Hari once more.

"I hope that isn't the best you can do," Saturo commented drily, unsheathing his crystal white blade. "Prepare yourself, young one, this will hurt."

"I'm looking forward to it!" Hari shouted in retort, withdrawing kunai blades with exploding tags wrapped around them.

…

Naruto decked another samurai in the face, sending him twirling in the air before landing in a heap. Naruto panted hard while Yugito and Kirabi stood behind him.

"There so many of them!" Naruto complained as he stood up straight. "How the hell are we going to take them all down?"

"Simple, we fight till they can't stand up anymore," Kirabi said with a grin. "It's easy!"

Naruto shook his head and retook his stance. In the distance, there was another battalion making its way to them, lead by a large man in blood red samurai attire.

"Here come the reinforcements," Naruto sighed.

Kirabi nodded absent mindedly, sensing out for the incoming enemies. "Watch yourselves, these guys are different from the others."

"What?"

"How so, sensei?"

"These guys can manipulate chakra, I'm sure of it," Kirabi said. "Their chakra signatures feel similar to that of a shinobi."

Naruto nodded. "I'm sure we can take 'em."

Yugito wrinkled her nose, "Pride before a crash."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto demanded turning to Yugito with an annoyed expression.

"Nothing you would understand, Uzumaki."

Kirabi sighed as his students continued to bicker.

-ooo-

Hari narrowly avoided another huge ice pillar swung his way and rolled into a crouch. He was tired already. The bastard was toying with him! So far, the only thing he could deduct from their battle so far was that Saturo's blade created ice– which was obvious.

Hari closed his eyes, reading the air currents. Snapping his eyes open, Hari threw two handfuls of senbon at Saturo. It was a futile attempt, but he wasn't exactly aiming to hurt Saturo– yet. The senbon curved through the air, coming dangerously close to Saturo from different sides, only to be caught in ice that whipped around as if it was liquid.

'He relies on his sword for both defense and offense,' Hari thought. 'That means if I can separate him from it, I can take him down.' The genin nodded, having formulated a plan. "You think you're invincible, but you're not!"

Saturo merely flicked his blade and a wave of the same liquid like ice flew at the genin who dodged it. "Oh?" Saturo drawled in a patronizing manor. "Do I really? Well perhaps it's because you are so weak I am invincible in comparison?"

Hari glared at him, "I'll show you who's weak!" the Kumo genin shouted angrily, flashing through hand seals, "Katon! Ryūka no Jutsu!"

(Jutsu: Katon! Ryūka no Jutsu – Dragon Fire!)

Saturo sighed and jumped back a few feet to avoid the fire blast, which knew not to have a long enough range to him. Just as he was about to comment Hari grinned.

"What the-"

As the fire blast suddenly extended, Saturo barely had time to dodge it as he cursed himself. The warrior landed in a crouch that lacked his usual grace.

Hari burst of at breakneck speed and caught Saturo in his blindside and smashed his fist into the older man's face. As Saturo flew through the air, Hari threw his kunai with ninja wire attached to it. The wires bound around Saturo, who had dropped his sword midair, to the tree he crashed in.

The genin did stop his attack, rushing forward with intent to finish the fight.

"This how a Kumo shinobi fights!" Hari shouted charging chakra in his fists. The amount he poured into his hands was more than Hari normally would have done since his control wasn't good enough; but this is was his only chance. "Die!"

Hari's chakra coated fist soared through the air and struck Saturo. The sickening crunch of bones breaking and popping out of place told him he had landed a direct hit.

Having launched himself at a faster speed than he could handle, Hari continued to soar through the air and come to a stop as he skid over the ground. Forcing himself on a knee, Hari panted, sweat rolling down the side of his head.

"You can't possibly believe that would've worked."

In an instant, Hari was on his feet, two blades in his hands. "No way! That was a direct hit!"

Saturo appeared from behind a tree, his sword in his hand and his eyes as cold as ever. "Oh really?"

Hari glanced to his side, seeing Saturo's corpse turn to ice and melt into a puddle. "Fuck."

"Honestly, I would have expected more from Kumo ninjas. But perhaps I give them too much credit." In an instant Saturo was in front of Hari, his pale hand grasping the teenager by his neck.

Hari attempt to resist violently, gripping the cold hand around his neck whilst kicking the swordsman. Despite Saturo's fragile appearance, he had incredible strength. Being able to easily lift the boy in the air with one hand.

'Shit! I'm gonna die!'Hari tried to scream as he desperately attempted to avoid the incoming blade, but to no avail. As the sword pierced his stomach and sank into his body there was only one thought going through his mind. 'Is this is it?'

"Ahh!" Hari screamed till a white light took over-

…

"Ahh!"

"Could you stop screaming? It's giving me a headache."

"Ahh!"

SLAP!

"Ahaha!" Hari's eyes shot open and his hand instantly went to his stinging cheek as he sat up. Hari looked down to his abdomen, but there was no wound. "Is this some kind of dream?"

"Ey, wake up kid, this isn't the time for day dreaming."

That same voice... as Hari looked up he noticed there were two men standing opposite of Saturo, who looked furious.

"What's going on?" Hari's voice was shaky. "Who are you guys?"

The taller of the two, a black man with a shaggy haircut and black droopy eyes, clad in black shinobi combat attire with a grey flak jacket turned to his friend. "You weren't supposed to hit the kid with the Genjutsu, Shi."

"Ma, ma, Darui-san, it was the safest thing to do!" Shi was a tall, light weight man with blond hair and grey eyes. Like his colleague, he was dressed in black attire with the same flak jacket. "Besides, he's fine," Shi turned to Hari with a grin, "We're here to help," the blond said, tapping his headband.

Hari's eyes brightened at the sight of the Kumo engraving on their headbands. "You're the back up?" Hari's voice has a tone of relief to it. "What took you guys so long?"

Darui opted to ignore him and narrow his eyes on Saturo who had stood quietly the whole time. Shi picking up on this grabbed Hari firmly by the shoulder and dragged him with him, ignoring Hari's

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"I'm sorry, but you're going to have to sit this one out, kid," Shi said, throwing Hari to the ground. "Get some cover, this guy's a lot stronger than you think he is and it might take some of Darui's, ah, less subtle techniques to defeat him." With a patronizing smile, Shi turned around and disappeared, only to reappear next to his taller colleague in an instant.

Hari's eyes bulged. Now that he had regained his bearings, Hari sized up the backup shinobi more carefully. Darui was carrying a huge folded sword on his back while Shi was carrying two cutlass sabers on his hips.

"So this is you back up? This is all Kumo could send? Don't get me wrong, I'm impressed you could cast a genjutsu on me, weak as it may have been, but impressive nonetheless." Saturo broke out in hysterical laughter. "But I should really feel insulted. Do you truly believe this is enough to stop me?" Saturo raised his sword, gleaming in the light and slashed it down, "Hatsugoori!"

"Watch out!" Hari screamed when neither Darui nor Shi budged in the slightest. "It will-"

"I thought I told you to shut up!" Shi shouted, still not moving a muscle in the slightest. "Darui!"

"I know," the tall black jōnin said, raising a palm while holding his right arm. "Raiton! Raitoppa no Jutsu!" Within an instant, lightning began to cackle around the jōnin's hand and a split second later he sent of the lightning current of to meet the incoming ice.

The Lightning Breakthrough technique demolished the ice, cutting through it like a hot knife through butter. Saturo was quick on his feet and easily avoided the lightning bolt. Saturo came to a stop and held his blade in a guard in an exceedingly graceful stance.

"Aren't you going to fight me with your sword, Kumo shinobi?" Saturo challenged the air of mockery and arrogance was still with him. "I assume you do know how to handle a blade, do you not?"

Darui yawned, "My sword's a bitch to wake up, I think it's broken," the jōnin drawled, looking up to sky without a care in the world. Darui looked at Saturo, "I don't feel like going through the hassle of starting her up. I'll be fine without her."

Saturo's grip tightened, "You have got quite the confidence, but can you back it up with skill?" Saturo challenged again. 'I'm not confident enough in my skill with soshijutsu to challenge him in a battle of jutsu. His friend seems content watching from the sidelines... If I can change this into a duel, this should not be a problem.' Saturo sighed in relief as Darui reached for his sword. 'The outcome of this battle has already been decided.'

"I guess I should show you what us Kumo shinobi are really capable of," Darui was almost reluctant to hold his sword, "Let's go then..."

Saturo's guard was under heavy pressure in an instant. Darui had closed in on him and raised his cleaver-like blade from its strap on his back and attempted to chop him in half vertically. The blade master gracefully danced as he parried and returned strikes to Darui. The jōnin in question was able to keep up remarkably well, seeing how Saturo had been dedicated to the blade for many years now. Then again, Kumo, like Kirigakure, specialized in kenjutsu. Last time Saturo checked, swordsmanship was even a mandatory subject in the academies of Kumogakure.

"You can give up now and save us both some time," Darui stated, resting the cleaver on his shoulder. "I'm getting sleepy," the jōnin yawned. "So, whadaya say?"

"Your arrogance will not save you from defeat, incompetent fool," Saturo said coldly. "I shall teach you the hard way, by the heavenly blade Nisui!" Saturo raised his blade and his chakra spiked. His sword become coated by light blue chakra and as Saturo brought down his blade swiftly, he called, "Shimobashira!"

Darui's droopy eyes visibly widened as hundreds if not thousands needles were generated by the blade and shot at him, cutting through the air soundlessly. The jōnin ignored Hari's shout of, "WATCH OUT!" and flashed through hand seals. "Raiton! Denkō Tate no Jutsu!"

Lightning generated around Darui's massive form and expanded into a sphere around him. The ice needles were dispersed by the lightning shield as it screeched and cackled. A drop of sweat rolled down Darui's forehead. The lightning shield technique was quite costly on chakra.

Saturo was already one the move and charging at Darui, his blade coated in a vortex of wind. "Perish, Kumo scum!"

Darui's eyes visibly widened. Wind chakra and water chakra made ice chakra, so Saturo must have had some mastery of both elements to create ice so easily. Lightning was strong against water and earth but weak against wind. The ice needles were a mere distraction. 'This guy is something else.'

The blade wrapped in wind easily cut through the lightning barrier and slashed Darui across the chest, however the massive shinobi did not make a sound. Darui jumped back, the barrier dissipated and nursing his wound in a crouch.

"Not bad," Darui complimented casually, examining his blood stained palm. "Not too bad at all." The large shinobi stood up, his dark eyes focused on Saturo. 'This guy... is good,' Darui tightened his grip on his sword and gathered chakra in his legs."You're cunning, I'll give you that," Darui commented, "But that won't be enough!" In an instant, Darui launched himself at the swordsman and began his barrage of attacks.

Metal clanged against metal. Darui did not let up his attack, not even once, but Saturo had picked up his game and was keeping up with Darui's speed just fine. Despite his kata being much slighter and thinner than Darui's giant cleaver, their duel seemed to be evenly matched.

…

All the while, Hari was speechless. His eyes wide in awe and wonder as the two powerhouses dueled gracefully. There were no wasted movements, there were no mistakes. Their battle was as graceful as it was deadly. "This is out of the world..."

"You should close yer mouth, kiddo," Shi said offhandedly, his arms crossed and his eyes fixed on the duel.

Hari felt his face get hot in embarrassment. "Are you guys the only back up we're getting?" Hari asked.

Shi shrugged. "Who knows, Raikage-sama is unpredictable. Maybe we are and maybe we aren't."

'This guy... he's completely relaxed!' Hari hung his head down in shame. 'This is how real Kumo shinobi are. I have no right to claim to be one.'

"Pay attention, kid, and you might learn something."

"Yeah..."

…

Darui and Saturo raised their blades and clashed, causing a shockwave and the earth under their feet to form small craters. Darui saw an opening and went for a powerful kick to the ribs and sent Saturo flying. The swordsman quickly regained his bearings and twirled gracefully through the air and landed in a crouch. The Kumo shinobi did not let up and charged at him once more and jumped, going for a vertical chop that would have split Saturo in half.

Having barely had time to get out of the crouch and guard properly, Saturo felt his arms vibrate with the brutal impact. "You've gotten serious, haven't you?"

Darui cracked a smile and said evenly, "Sure looks like it."

-ooo-

"There's just no end to them!" Naruto complained, ducking under a sword and punching his assailant in the throat. Naruto jumped over the man and kicked another in the side of the head, knocking him out too. "Damn it!" Naruto elbowed a samurai that had crept up to him in the face, breaking his nose, and followed up with a vicious kick to the head and send him flying.

"Less complaining, more fighting!" Kirabi retorted, taking out twenty more fighters out with unbelievable ease. "Just hope Hari's done his part," Kirabi reached to the back and picked of the samurai that dared to climb his massive frame and slammed him into the ground.

"He better not fail," Yugito said darkly, shooting lightning from her finger tips as she electrocuted a dozen more warriors. The genin's eyes had already turn light blue and slit, under the effects of the Nibi no Nekomata. Lightning techniques were taxing on chakra.

Naruto delivered a palm strike to swordsman's solar plexus, turned around and shot an Akkai Genshuku at a group of warriors. "He won't let us down!"

"Oh snap," Kirabi said, "The cavalry is here."

Yugito and Naruto snapped their necks into the direction Kirabi was looking at. He was right. On the top of a hill there was one man wearing traditional samurai armour on a humongous, black horse. Behind him was an entire contingent of chakra signatures were enormous, but one stood out of all of them.

"You gotta be kidding me..."

Author's Notes

Thanks for reading! Please leave some feedback and tell me what you like and what you didn't like. Please feel free to make any suggestions while you're at it. Also, please take the time to read my other stories. I'll try my damn hardest to improve them and write the best chapters I could possibly write.

Please review.

Techniques used:

(Jutsu: Katon! Endan - Fire Release! Fire Ball Technique!) – C rank, offensive, mid range. The Endan jutsu is a C leveled jutsu that utilizes the fire element. By channeling and moulding chakra to the lungs, the user can create a spark and blow out a ball of fire. Those like Hari, who have an extremely high affinity with fire can take this jutsu to the level and expand its heat output and enhance its destructive capabilities.-

(Jutsu: Shimobashira - Ice Needles!) – ? rank, offensive, mid range. A refined technique that comes with the Kyousei Ken (Great Blade) Nisui is the ability to expel iron hard and razor sharp needles from the blade, utilizing ice chakra. The technique can be used for killing and incapacitating multiple targets.

(Jutsu: Raiton! Raikyū no Jutsu - Lightning Ball Technique!) – B rank, offensive, short range. Yugito's second original technique, in which she uses the concept of the lightning fist, but expels the chakra out of her hand and forms it into a shell. This technique is based on Hatake Kakashi's famous Raikiri put is derived from the Raiken technique thought to her by Kirabi.

(Jutsu: Raiton! Raitoppa no Jutsu - Lightning Release! Lightning Breakthrough Technique!) – B rank, offensive, mid range. The Lightning Breakthrough is a technique that utilizes the lightning element. The user of this technique entangles his fingers and collects an electro-magnetic field between his or her hands and compresses it. When the pressure has built up to a point where the user cannot move his arms freely, it is best to release the technique. On release, a pocket of electro-magnetic energy will release and burst of at a high speed.

(Jutsu: Raiton! Denkō Tate no Jutsu - Lightning Release! Lightning Shield Technique!) – B rank, defensive, close range. The Lightning Shield technique is one of the very rare defensive lightning based techniques. To use this technique, the user must perform the correct hand seals to mould chakra correctly and expel their lightning element from each pore in their body. This technique highly resembles the Hyūga's famed Kaiten as it also forms a sphere around the body of user that protects him against most low leveled techniques with ease.