The Ichibi shrieked, "No! It's not possible!"

"Of course it is, you stupid Squirrel!" Kiyoko said. "Now, are you going to go back into that seal by yourself, or am I going to have to remind you where you and your ilk stand?"

The Ichibi derisively said, "Hah, there's no way you're real anyway, so why should I care!" and said, "Fūton: Renkūdan!" and slammed its gigantic chest with it's equally large fist.

Kiyoko said, "Kitsunebi: Gōengan!" shooting a massive sphere of flame that absorbed the Ichibi's attack, doubling in size. Shukaku leapt out of the way of the attack, but couldn't get away fast enough, causing its leg to start to become glass. It severed its leg when more of its leg continued to turn into glass. When sand began to pour from the wound, Kiyoko rushed forward and said, "Kitsunebi: Hageshīgyō!" and slashed through, not only the front leg that was healing, but also Shukaku's hind leg, causing it to crash to the ground.

On top of her head, Akiko was marvelling at how easily her new summons was tossing the Ichibi around. But, when the ground shook after the Ichibi fell, she looked down and saw a number trees that had been broken at their base. She said, "Hey, Kiyoko! It's great how easily you're beating that sand freak's ass, but you need to be either more careful, or quicker about it."

"Why's that?"

"Because, if you keep this up, the landscape is going to change."

"Unfortunately, that is a risk that always exists when two of the Tailed Clans engage in battle."

"Even so…"

"Also, I need to be smart, more than careful."

"What do you mean?"

"If I don't shut it down, then it's attacks are liable to start to fly every which way, leading to who knows how much destruction."

"I see. Alright then. Forget what I said, do what you have to. But try not to kill the host."

"The host? It's been sealed? Like my sister?"

"That's right."

"Hmm…do you know what kind of seal was used?"

"No. Sorry, before just recently I'd had next to no experience with fūinjutsu, let alone someone to teach me about them."

"I see. Then do you know if there are there any strange marks or tattoos on him?"

"Hmm…strange? Not so much. But he does have the character for 'love' written on his face."

"That could be it."

"What good does that do us though?"

"Hmm…I do know of a technique that could be used to reinforce a seal, but nee-san was the only one to learn father's memory transfer technique."

"Then does she know it?"

"No. She was sealed before mother could teach it to her."

Akiko exclaimed, "Well that's pretty bloody useless then, isn't it-tebayo?!"

"Yes, for now."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if nee-san could transfer her memory of the memory transfer technique to you, then it could be that you could use it to retrieve the reinforcement seal from mine."

Akiko said, "Did you hear that, Kumiko?" addressing her tenant.

Akiko heard, "It doesn't work like that unfortunately. I could teach the right technique to you, but it would take longer than what we have available to us to get you to the point that you would be ready to use it."

Akiko said, "Looks like it'll take too long."

"I see," Kiyoko said.

"Is there any way that we could just glass the thing and leave Gaara alone?"

"Does that really matter at this point?"

"Yes. While it is true that he may be my enemy right now, and I do need to beat the hell out of him, he and I went through a similar childhood."

"What's your point?"

"I turned out the way I did because I made some very good friends along the way, but the villagers where he grew up wouldn't allow even that much for him. I want to see what happens if we become friends."

Kiyoko sighed and shook her head. she said, "And this is why father hates your kind; No logic whatsoever."

Akiko grunted and said, "Well, sor-rry that I have problems with killing what amounts as a mirror reflection of myself."

Kiyoko sighed and said, "Alright, I suppose that I can understand that, somewhat at least."

"You said that there's a seal that can reinforce Gaara's bijū seal, right? And that it would put an end to that Ichibi."

"That's right. What about it?"

"What if there was a seal that interfered with his chakra, would that work?"

"Hmm…it might. Why? Do you know of such a seal?"

"Yeah, I do, although I might mess up with it since I've never actually trained to use it, let alone use it myself."

"Then exactly how is it that you expect to be able to make use of this seal?"

"It was used against me, and I can remember the way that it felt and affected me afterwards. If I can recreate that, and since Kumiko would have been able to see what happened, we should be able to do it, or at least an acceptable variation of it."

Kiyoko said, "Alright. I'll glass the ichibi's forelimbs. That should prevent its movements from interfering with your work." As she leapt to avoid another Renkūdan.

As Kiyoko focused on dodging the ichibi's attacks, Akiko closed her eyes and entered the seal. When she opened her eyes, she was standing before the Kumiko's cage. She said, "Kumiko, you heard what I wanted to do, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"So, can we do it?"

"Hmm…maybe…but it would have to be a very dialled down version of it."

"Why's that?"

"Because, the seal that you were talking about with my sister, utilises five elements in order to achieve its effects. Given the fact that you can only use one at the moment, whatever we create, may end up being completely futile."

"Well it's still better than what we've got now!"

"This is true," Kumiko admitted.

"So, where do we start?"

XXXXX

Rin internally fumed at what had happened. 'How could I have let Aya…damnit! I should have been expecting her to lay a seal somewhere. That said, I have to give credit where it's due, but still, this situation is beyond perilous. I'm stuck, the Uchiha, would be practically useless, even if he was able to move. That pink haired…I don't want to call her a shinobi, that would be an insult to all the kunoichi that came before her, is even more worthless than the Uchiha. The aburame can't control his beetles with that seal on him, and Aya flung that Inuzuka that he was with earlier off, so who knows where he is now. Sure, there's that tokubetsu jōnin, but I can't see him being particularly useful these numbers either. Hmm…maybe…well, it's worth a shot.' With that, she retracted her Gen'ei Musha from her right hand and slowly, but surely, sliced through her index finger with her thumbnail. The blood that was released dropped to the ground far faster than she was expecting, which she idly put down to the gravity seal. But, she ignored it, and tapped her palm with her thumb as she thought, 'Kuchiyose no jutsu!' and, a small cloud of smoke appeared under her palm before something dropped to the ground.

Her eyes looked at the ground as the toad struggled to stay standing under the increased gravity. He looked up with his eyes and asked, "Wha-aa-atttt?"

Rin managed to squeeze out, "Ji-rai-yah!" through gritted teeth."

"Ri-i-t-ah!" the toad said before it disappeared in another small cloud of smoke.

XXXXX

Akiko opened her eyes, focusing on where Gaara was embedded in the Ichibi. She said, "Alright Kiyoko, get me to where Gaara is."

"You and sis' did it then?"

"Yeah, we're good," Akiko said. "Can you do it?"

Kiyoko said, "The Ichibi is made of sand, so even if I do grab onto him with my Hageshīgyō, you'll probably just sink into the sand anywayy."

"Hmm…then could yo-!" Akiko's eyes widened as she saw multiple chains start to rise up around Kiyoko. She said, "Watch out!"

"What is it?" Kiyoko asked as she slid to a stop.

"There're some funky chains surrounding us!" Kiyoko looked to the side and saw the chains that her summoner was talking about and leapt into the air as they tried to close over and wrap around her. Akiko yelled, "What are those things?!"

"They're the sealing chains of the Uzumaki."

"Uzumaki?!" Akiko exclaimed. "Then, wouldn't that mean that I should be able to use them as well?"

"Maybe, maybe not. Even we aren't completely certain about how they work."

"I see. Wait! That means that there's another Uzumaki somewhere around here! And that they're working for that damned snake!"

"Snake?"

"A missing-nin snake-summoner that started this ridiculous battle." As Kiyoko leaped and bounded around, avoiding the sealing chains, Akiko thought, 'What should we do? Do I go and fight the Uzumaki to get rid of the chains? That would leave me free to beat the hell out of Gaara without any distractions. But, that's only if I win. I've never even heard of that sealing chain jutsu before, so who knows what else they could have up their sleeves? That's no good. Wait!' she said, "Alright Kiyoko, want you to grab onto the back of the Ichibi."

"Alright," Kiyoko grinned. She said, "What then?"

"Then, I jump as hard, and as far, as I can so I can seal Gaara. Then, when I have, you go home."

"Why? It's been so long! I don't want to go back yet!"

"Because, those chains are too big to be of any use against a human, which means that they are likely here for the sole purpose of shutting you down. If you're no longer here, then there's no need for the chains to be."

Kiyoko said, "Alright, but, I've got a better idea," and grinned as she bounded forwards, past the Ichibi, who lumbered to face her. As it did, she rushed to the other side of it and bit into his neck, just behind where Gaara was. As she did, she wrapped her tails around the Ichibi's body and legs, completely immobilising it.

Akiko grinned and said, "Thanks, Kiyoko," and leapt from the gigantic fox's head and flipped in the air and placed her hand on Gaara's head to bring herself down in front of him. thanks to the spin, she was facing him directly when she landed. She gripped her right hand into a fist in front of her face and channelled chakra into her fingers. It coalesced into multiple green flames at the tips seconds before she slammed it into his forehead and twisted her hand, saying, "Kaze Nāgini Fuin no fūinjutsu". When she was done, the seal on Gaara's forehead was surrounded by a circle that had four curved tines, that resembled a manji shuriken. When the seal appeared, the sand of the Ichibi's body began to collapse to the ground. As it did, Akiko saw the chains close around Kiyoko. She shouted, "Kiyoko, go back!"

Kiyoko nodded and said, "Yeah. see you next time," before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

When Kiyoko was gone, Akiko saw all of the chains retracting to a single point. She thought, 'That must be where the Uzumaki is,' and used Gaara's unconscious form as a springboard, launching herself in the direction of the chains. She followed them through the forest to a clearing, where she saw a woman that was clearly older than her, but not more than ten years, that haad chains sprouting from her back, going into some sort of seal array that had multiple chains extending out from it. She said, "So, you're the Uzumaki that wanted to shut down Kiyoko's movements."

Aya said, "Close, but not quite."

"What do you mean?"

Aya said, "These chains…" as they retracted from the seal into her. "…are designed to seal a tailed beast within the user. But I'm curious, how did you put an end to the Ichibi's rampage?"

"I used a seal to disrupt the host's chakra."

"Oh? Our research didn't identify anyone in Konoha's ranks that could use fūinjutsu to that level, other than Jiraiya."

"Pervy Sage can use fūinjutsu?"

"Pervy…" Aya started to laugh. "Well, that does certainly fit him," Aya said, as she wiped a tear from the side of her eye.

"So, you know him too then?"

Aya shrugged and said, "After a fashion. But seriously, who are you, really?"

"Heh," Akiko said with a sad smile. "Who knows."

"What do you mean?" Aya asked, a quizzical look making its way to her face.

"I thought that I knew who I was, but, today I learnt that that was all a lie, told by ol' man Sandaime, for some reason that I haven't been told of. All I know right now, is a name, and a whole bunch of jutsu, some of which I've had to come up with on the fly."

"I see," Aya said. "So, that fūinjutsu that you used, it's based on the Gogyō Fūin, then, isn't it?"

"That's right. How'd you know?"

"I'm somewhat skilled in the art myself, though I've yet to surpass the one that taught me in the art."

"Who was that?"

"Orochimaru-sama."

Akiko exclaimed, "That snake!?"

Aya glared at the girl before her and said, "You know, it's not polite to insult people like that?"

"Why should I care, about something as stupid as sensibilities and titles when it comes to a nemesis of the village?"

"Hm," Aya thoughtfully said as she considered the girl's point. She said, "That's…actually a fair point. But, by that logic, wouldn't you concern yourself with adhering to 'sensibilities and titles', when it comes to your leaders?"

"You mean Ol' man Sandaime?"

"That's right."

"That's…different."

"How so?"

"He's…like family…but not."

"So, did he teach you anything?"

"Not really. Something about it being dangerous for him to display the appearance of favouritism. He did like to drone on and on about the need to protect your comrades though."

"Hmmm?" Aya said and smiled. "I see. That's a good ideology to take to foster a sense of unity in the masses. But I wonder, what happens when that unity is broken?"

"What do you mean, 'broken'?"

"Suppose…say-yy… one of your teammates betrayed your village and leaves for their own purposes, or if the Hokage dies? What keeps them together then?"

"Is that why you're doing this?"

"No. that's not why I am taking part. Like you, I'm a soldier of a village, thus sworn to follow my leader into whichever battle he decides. It is however, at the very least part of the reason behind this invasion."

"And the rest?"

"Sorry, but you're going to have to beat me if you want any more than that."

"I see. That's fair," Akiko said as her hair started to flail and her eyes glowed yellow.

"That form!" Aya said. "Did Rin teach you that?"

Akiko said, "I don't know who that even is!" as she punched at Aya.

Aya stepped back to dodge the wild punch. As she dodged a continued onslaught, she frowned as she analysed Akiko's movements. 'The form is completed, but she isn't using the techniques of it. If that's the case, then she was telling the truth and she can't use the completed style, so the advanced moves will be completely beyond her. I don't know how she's come by it, but she's clearly using her regular style with the augmentation aspect of Sōshiken. It's a novel thought, and perfectly acceptable as a strategy against someone unfamiliar with either style being used. As it is…' Aya channelled chakra to her hands and used shape manipulation on it to craft chakra claws, which she used to grab Akiko's arm and spun around once before throwing Akiko into a tree. When she hit it, Akiko was knocked out and Aya walked over to her slumped form. As Aya walked, she drew a three-bladed kunai and held it out as she said, "Suiton: Mizuheijin no jutsu," and water extended down the main blade of her kunai, which hardened into a solid, sharp, blade of water. She levelled it at Akiko's neck and drew it back. When she had, a strange feeling of regret stayed her hand, and she let the water drop from her sword. She sighed and said, "You know what, it would be a pity to have you die here, after giving me such a show." Aya then walked away, heading back to Konoha, leaving whatever fate befell the girl to the one that she'd just fought.

XXXXXXX

A/N

Attacks

Shukaku

Fūton: Renkūdan - Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet

To use this technique, Shukaku will first take a deep breath, and then pound its stomach to apply external pressure, the power of which it uses to shoot a highly compressed air ball from its mouth. The expelled air ball is mighty enough to hollow out the ground, and level an entire forest. Because of the large quantity of chakra kneaded into it, it explodes the moment it reaches its target, dealing an enormous amount of damage, as well as levelling anything in its path. Shukaku is able to fire multiple of these in rapid succession, having a certain level of control regarding the size of the bullets.

Kiyoko

Kitsunebi

A branch of fire release jutsu available only to members of one of the Nine Tailed Beast Clan.

Kitsunebi: Gōengan - Fox Fire: Great Fire Sphere

A ball of fire that the user shoots towards the enemy that is of the same scale as the Fūton: Renkūdan from the One Tailed Beast Clan.

Kitsunebi: Hageshīgyō - Fox Fire: Searing Strike

The user coats their front claws in fire that is hot enough to instantly turn sand into glass.

Uzumaki Akiko

Kaze Nāgini no Fuin – Wind Female Naga Seal

A derivative of the Gogyo Fuin used against Akiko by Orochimaru using only wind chakra. It serves to disrupt the victim's chakra, and any jutsu that they happen to be using. The reason that Akiko chose to name it the way she did, is that the Nāga are generally depicted in the form of a snake and it is first being used against a subordinate of one that Akiko considers to be a snake.

Manji Shuriken

A shuriken that has the general shape of the manji, as used by Darui or Zabuza.

Uzumaki Aya

Suiton: Mizuheijin – Water Release: Water Sword Blade

The user streams their chakra through their kunai and transform it into water. They then lengthen it and condense it, forming an incredibly sharp blade that can easily cut through even earth style jutsu.