NARUTO
Nox Noctis Ingredior
Rendition of Memories
One week later…
"Why is it that every single student of the Legendary Sannin Jiraiya, has written and published a novel series that is in some way perverted and erotic?" Tenten questioned in amusement, browsing through the small stack of books Naruto and Kin had deposited in the middle of their room and were currently skimming through each individual copy.
After learning of what was going to occur later today, the team had set aside all of their free time in preparation for the meeting, which would most definitely lead into a violent confrontation, to mentally and physically prepare themselves. Since the night about a week ago when they received the full details of Orochimaru's demands, proposals, and henchmen involved in the trade-off, Naruto, Kin and Tenten underwent vigorous training in order to face whoever it was they were going to be fighting. Jiraiya was also intent on bringing down his former teammate, and as a result, spent most of his time with Tsunade organizing a plan to capture the slippery slime ball.
Several days later and hours of grounding, Team 7 and the Sannin were set and ready.
The next hour before the meeting that was to take place, was spent as leisure time at the hotel, where the youngest members of the group were pouring over some surprising reading material.
Tenten raised an eyebrow as she looked from one book to another, laid out before her. Not only were Jiraiya's six limited edition issues of Icha Icha present, but also, both editions of Stuck in the Middle by Naruto Uzumaki, the three uncut versions of Hot Spot by Yukari Uchiha, the aspiring trilogy of Sweet Relief by Jin, and shockingly enough, a collection of escapades entitled Four's a Party by Minato Namikaze.
"I still can't believe your dad, the Fourth Hokage, wrote a book of his own," Kin murmured as she read the back of it.
"Not to mention it's based on his triumphs of love over the course of his Jonin and ANBU careers…" Tenten exclaimed, flipping open to the end of the last book and raising an eyebrow. "Hmm… and describes in detail a lot of what he and his wife did in their spare time…"
Naruto sighed and looked up at them with a rather nauseated expression. "I did not want to see that book again, I am still horrified…"
"It may be weird to you, but it's interesting to us," Kin giggled, turning the book she held over and flashing the blonde a picture in the pages. "Your mum did illustrate these after all!"
"OH GOD!" The blonde Jonin wanted nothing more then to gouge his eyes out right then and there.
"I had no idea she was that flexible," Tenten laughed, tilting her head at the pictures.
"Please put those away…"
"The Fourth Hokage also explains how he and Kushina invented some of their own positions," Kin blinked, moving her nose in closer to the words on the pages. "What is a number twelve?"
"Apparently it's when your partner is twentying your eleven, after she's done a two on your sixteen," Tenten murmured.
"Give me those!" Naruto shouted, attempting to grab the books out of their hands, only to be effectively stopped by both girls shoving either their hand or their foot into his face. "Hey! Argh… seriously! Come on!"
"Wow… a number seven looks good," Tenten licked her lips, with Kin nodding in agreement. "I could go for one of those, right now…"
"You said it…"
"What is wrong with you two?" Naruto cried out, falling flat over when the girls managed to shove him off.
The moment he hit the floor, they suddenly heard the sound of hurried footsteps echoing down the hallway outside their room. A split second later, the door to their apartment flew open. Panting, the intruder revealed herself to be Shizune, and the moment the three kids in the room turned to look at her, they immediately saw that something was wrong.
"Shizune?" Tenten blinked.
"Where is Tsunade-sama?" the woman asked, her voice desperate and worried.
"Wait… what… did something happen?" Kin asked.
"She knocked me out and ran off earlier this morning! I… I don't know… what she…"
"What the hell does she think she's doing," Naruto rose to his feet, venturing a guess as to what Jiraiya's teammate was attempting to do.
"She's going to see Orochimaru… by herself?" Tenten also stood up, catching on to what Naruto was thinking and looking a might bit concerned. "Is she crazy? She knows we planned for this!"
"I should have seen this coming," Naruto muttered as he marched over to his bed and grabbed his trench coat and assorted weapons. "I did inherit that lone wolf aspect from Ero-Sennin and Baa-chan after all…"
"She intends to defeat him on her own. Why?" Kin asked.
"It's because she doesn't want us to interfere and get hurt…"
Just as Naruto, Tenten and Kin were getting ready, the window next to them flew open, and Jiraiya stepped in, panting as well, and looking way worse then ever before. The Sannin shook his head to clear it of the butterflies he could see fluttering around, before furrowing his brow in Shizune's direction.
"Where is she?"
"Gone off to fight Orochimaru," Naruto replied, slipping his hat on after his sandals. As soon as his face became overshadowed by the brim of his straw hat, he glared up towards the window where his teacher was perched. "We have to go help her… now!" Tenten and Kin were as ready as every by the time Jiraiya showed up, the old man nodding his head.
"Alright…" The old hermit crawled in through his makeshift entrance, but stumbled on his landing.
"Hey, you okay?" Kin asked, walking up to him and placing her hand close to his forehead, sliding it under his headband. "You don't look so good. Geez… that's a high temp…"
"My teammate drugged my drink last night… it's inhibiting my hand-eye coordination and chakra control," the Sannin replied in a bit of a slurred voice, groaning and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Shit… this ain't good…"
"Here… take these," Shizune replied, pulling out some round pills from her dress pocket and crushing them. Tenten hurried into the kitchen area and grabbed a glass of water, which she handed to Jiraiya to help gulp down the meds. "It should clear up your head, but the circulation of your chakra will still be botched up. Give it until tomorrow, and you should be back up to full strength…"
"That's fine. Unfortunately, I'll only be able to fight at fifty percent strength. Ugh… this is a low moment for the Toad Mountain Sage…" Jiraiya murmured, downing the rest of the water and slapping both his cheeks. "Okay… let's go find my teammates!"
On the outskirts of the village…
Already, the damages from a fierce fight could be seen patterned all across the open valley outside of town. All signs pointed to a colossal battle that had taken place, and still was when a wall of smoke and fire suddenly erupted over one of the hills, followed by several mores. These explosions tailed after a certain blonde woman, as she back-flipped away to avoid them, before landing some distance away from the last explosion to rip into the ground and throw debris into the air.
Dropping to her knees, Tsunade gasped for breath as she stared through the smoke, trying to find her target. The smoke and dust eventually parted, revealing four figures standing right through the thick of it, causing the blonde woman to furrow her brow and curse her bad luck.
When she went off on her own to face Orochimaru to kill him, she didn't expect him to be accompanied by more then one of his lackeys. Not only was his personal surgeon and right hand man Yoroi with him, but hiding in the shadows, there was also the crystal user Guren and the bounty hunter Kisarabi. Trying to focus on the Snake Sannin alone resulted in Guren and Kisarabi persistently warding off her every attack, and retaliating with deadly force.
Gripping her right arm which was dripping blood from a gash made by the crystal user, Tsunade rose to her feet as she met the smirks and glares from her four opponents.
"You should just throw in the towel, my dear," Orochimaru hissed, his face dripping with sweat from the pain coursing through his body as a result of his injuries inflicted upon him from the failed invasion of Konohagakure. "You are outnumbered and out of your league. After all, the years of running and hiding have not been good for your fighting skills at all, have they?"
"Speak for yourself, slime ball!" Tsunade snapped back. "After all these years we've been apart and look at you; a pale, washed up, hunk of disgusting flesh and hatred, desperately clinging onto life."
"My… at least that wicked tongue of yours hasn't lost its vigor," the Snake Sannin replied with a grin. He glanced round at Guren, seeing the purple haired woman was eager to go again. "That is something we don't need on her. Take her down, and rip it out of her mouth…"
With an affirmative nod, Guren whipped through four hand seals, before throwing both her arms out. "Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Blade!" The result, liquid crystal began creeping out and over her skin, and transformed into sharp, elongated gauntlet blades. The purple, diamond like substance flashed in the sun as the woman assumed a fighting stance, and launched herself at the older woman.
Baa-chan was quickly up on her feet and responded quickly, sending a jab right at the rogue ninja flying straight at her. Guren quickly spun through the air in her charge and ducked under the blow, sliding right between the Sannin's legs. Being far more nimble then Tsunade in terms of hand to hand combat, the purple haired Kekkei Genkai user managed to throw one over the old woman and struck at her from behind.
Tsunade however, responded quickly, ducking under the hook, and kicking out at the woman's feet, knocking her over. Hitting the ground hard, Guren rolled, avoiding an elbow sent down at her when the blonde attempted a drop blow to end the fight. The result was an explosion of rubble on the strike's impact with the ground, the blast knocking Guren away, and clouding Orochimaru's view of the battle's continuation.
The Snake Sannin furrowed his brow as he watched Guren struggle against his former teammate. His second most promising body candidate leapt out of the cloud of bellowing dust, while being doggedly pursued by Tsunade, dodging and avoiding blow after blow, which would be fatal. The narrow misses and the vivid taijutsu battle had him and his other lackeys watch on in interest, on edge, and in frustration.
However, in spite of the threat the blonde Sannin posed, Guren didn't allow that fact to show on her face, and traded blows one after the other, managed to gash the woman across the shoulder on a bypass.
"She's stronger then I originally thought," Orochimaru murmured. "How annoying…"
"Apparently, ninja can maintain most of their skills, strength, and battle instinct, even after years of being out of commission," Kisarabi commented, rubbing her chin as she observed the battle on the Snake Sannin's left hand side. "She may be off the chessboard, but the piece can still move as directed…"
"I hired you… to kill, Kisarabi, not for you to give opinions on fights," Orochimaru hissed.
"If you wish for me to kill her Lord Orochimaru then please, give the order," the woman replied, placing her hands back onto her belt and readjusting it a bit.
The man furrowed his brow and looked back, seeing Guren suddenly get kicked across the face and sent tumbling back. On a roll, she flipped back onto her feet and skidded to a stop ten meters away from her opponent as Tsunade charged her down. The woman gritted her teeth, the cheek which her opponent hit encased in a glassy patch of crystal armor, which absorbed the blow, and left her, though a little frazzled, unscathed.
Orochimaru huffed and lowered his head. "Take out her legs. At least I'll have something to take back…"
Kisarabi nodded and reached onto her back, drawing a sawn off lever action rifle and cocking it. Flipping the sight open, she took aim of her target, who was now on top of Guren, slamming punches into her face one after the other. The crystal armor now plastering the rogue ninja's face was holding at present, but for how long against those punches was yet to be specified.
Breathing in deeply, Kisarabi looked down the line of the sights of her sawn off rifle through her eye patch, and in just under a second, fired the first shot. The loud bang didn't reach Tsunade's ears until a second after she felt a sharp sting in her right leg, followed by a second one to her right shoulder, which sent her sprawling to the ground. Blood splattered everywhere as two holes were punched into her, effectively relieving Guren from the savage beating.
Tsunade cried out in pain and crawled to a sitting position, gripping her shoulder and her leg, both were bleeding profusely. At the same time, Guren sat up as well, her crystal face shield shattered from the blows, revealing a broken nose, two bruised cheeks, a bleeding lip and a swollen eye. Even with the shield, she was effectively hurt.
"Dammit… bastards!" Tsunade growled, glaring up towards Kisarabi, Orochimaru and Yoroi as they marched towards her across the field, the bounty hunter reloading her weapon with new rounds.
"Try not to move," Yoroi chuckled, the three of them stopping beside their teammate, as Guren staggered to her feet. Orochimaru chuckled as she looked the woman over.
"You have slacked off, Tsunade," Orochimaru exclaimed. "You were much stronger back in your prime…"
The woman smirked back, ignoring the throbbing pain coursing up her leg and shoulder. "What about you? Focusing all your time in stealing techniques, you've completely discarded physical strength for an enormous chakra tank, and in so doing, compensate for your weaknesses by throwing out jutsu after jutsu. What would happen, I wonder, if your ability to use ninjutsu is completely taken away…?" The Snake Sannin frowned at her.
"Don't test me woman. You're lucky I need you alive…" He then turned to Guren, who held up her right arm and clenched her fist. "Take off both her legs so we can drag her back!"
The rogue shinobi's arm suddenly extended and grew into a crystal blade, encasing her limb. The purple diamond substance flashed in the sun, the woman then taking aim with it. However, before she could make her move, a shadow caught their attention, and Orochimaru and his troop all looked up at once, blinking in surprise when they saw a rain of kunai lacked with explosive tags flying straight towards them. At that moment of distraction, Tsunade suddenly felt a long, wet wad of flesh wrap around her abdomen before she was swiftly pulled backwards at high speed, and away from the attack zone.
The kunai landed on top and around the four enemies like hell fire, and lit up all at once like the fireworks on Chinese New Year. The entire ground within the radius of the explosion was torn up, chunks of rubble flying off and disintegrating as the blasts consumed their intended targets. Tsunade was able to witness this on her unexpected flight, before she was caught by a pair of strong arms.
Blinking in shock, the older woman looked up to see Jiraiya holding her, the old man grinned wildly. When she looked down, she saw the wet flesh that wrapped around her, was in fact a tongue belonging to her companion's summon Gama. The toad released her and withdrew its tongue, before vanishing in a puff of smoke, leaving her, Jiraiya, Shizune, Naruto, Tenten and Kin standing on the sidelines, to watch the display of explosions in front of them.
"Nice one, Tenten," Naruto exclaimed, grinning over at the girl, who winked back.
"I aim to please," she replied.
"What the heck are you guys doing out here? I thought I made it perfectly clear that I wanted to do this alone!" Tsunade snapped, her apprentice immediately getting to work on healing her wounds. The blonde helped along by adding her own chakra to the mix, the one rifle round that was still lodged into her muscle falling out as the wounds began to heal up.
"Ugh, Baa-chan, you're as stubborn as ever," Naruto muttered, watching as the explosions died down, and leaving a crater with a wall of smoke obstructing their view. "We had a plan, and you messed it up. I just knew you would act recklessly…"
"Look who's talking. You take right after me and the goat," Tsunade replied. Jiraiya blinked and looked down at his teammate, pointing towards himself.
"Goat?"
"Yes… you… Goat…" Tsunade growled. The white haired old man allowed a moment of pause, before a lecherous and proud grin crossed his lips and he made a pose.
"How about… Stud?"
The woman responded with an elbow to his crotch, as she was practically being cradled by him on the ground. The Toad Sannin choked out a wince and his face turned blue before he collapsed to the ground, holding his throbbing nuts in his hands in agony… or… better yet… his one nut.
"You want me to hit the left one next?" Tsunade asked in irritation. Jiraiya shook his head in response, crying a river of anguish.
"Goat… is just fine…" he wheezed.
Tenten and Kin chuckled, while Naruto just continued to glare into the wall of smoke. Seconds later, during which time Tsunade was nearly fully healed, the wall parted suddenly, Orochimaru's hand extended, and his henchmen flanking him. Guren had her arm held up, and a crystal shield forming a dome around them, which then collapsed as she relinquished hold of the technique. Once a clear view was had of their adversaries, the Oto Ninja stepped forward into defensive formation.
"My, my… isn't this a surprise… though an unexpected one," Orochimaru exclaimed coldly, licking his lips. "Jiraiya… and Naruto-kun… my, it certainly is a pleasure… to see you two again… so soon…"
Shaking off the pain he was feeling from his throbbing testicle, staggered to his feet and grinned, still holding his crotch. Trying to act serious, all he did was look even more stupid as he placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder for support.
"Orochimaru… man… this is a 'surprise'…"
"Hmm," the snake hissed back snidely.
"So, what has my slimy old friend been up to this past week since we last met eh, Shit-stain?" Jiraiya asked, raising an eyebrow. "Should I take a guess? I've got a whole list just for you: kidnapping, torture, espionage, assassinations, larceny, assault, murder, genocide, human experimentation…"
There was a bit of a pause as the Konoha Ninja traded glares with the smirking Oto Shinobi, as Jiraiya tried to end his list with a satisfactory bang!
"Sodomy?"
Shizune and Tsunade snorted, Tenten and Kin burst out laughing, and after a laugh of his own, Naruto high-fived Jiraiya. This, however, did not sit well with Orochimaru and particular members of his company, Guren and Yoroi stepping forward to their master's defense.
"Don't you dare talk about Lord Orochimaru like that!" Guren shouted, pointing at them. "You have no idea all the good he has done…"
"Absolutely no subject matter on that statement supporting the bastard actually comes to mind," Tenten chuckled, nudging Kin in the arm. The girls snickered in agreement.
"As much as I would like to stand here and watch Oro-teme burst into tears," Naruto joked, readjusting his hat and lowering it over his face, at the same time, sharing a grin with the opposing forces. "I believe we have some unfinished business…"
"I agree," Jiraiya patted his student's shoulder, and straightened up. Adjusting the giant scroll worn around his waist, the old man fixated his best glare on his former teammate and company. "Never mind negotiations at this point in time. We have made it a hundred percent clear that we have no intention of leaving this town without any intelligence on Orochimaru. Therefore, it is prudent that we either leave here with these rogue ninja in our custody or leave them here… dead…"
"You make it sound so easy, Jiraiya," Orochimaru smirked back, eyes flashing. "I knew Konohagakure would come searching for Tsunade sooner or later in order to back up their military forces. Not to mention fix up the damages I made to the village with her support. So, to hinder your village's plans, I opted to take her out of the equation… preferably permanently. However, since you are all here, my plans must now be altered…" He threw his one good arm out and shouted out in defiance. "Do you think I would come out here unprepared? If you think I'm willing to surrender, you're sadly mistaken!"
Yoroi, Guren and Kisarabi moved in front of the Snake Sannin, with Naruto, Tenten and Kin stepping forward as well, assuming stances in preparation for the fight. Jiraiya also moved forward, with Tsunade rising to her feet with the help of her apprentice.
"We won't let you get away, Orochimaru!" Tsunade shouted. "Even if we have to destroy you!"
"Naruto… you take Yoroi… I'll take Kisarabi," Jiraiya whispered, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. However, as soon as he did, Naruto yanked it out of his hand and stepped forward, earning a blink of surprise from his teacher.
"No… you can't fight her, not in your condition, Ero-Sennin," Naruto said back, glancing over his shoulder at the white haired man. "Unless you can move over three hundred meters per second, you're useless. She uses Western weapons and unorthodox methods of fighting; you won't be able to anticipate her movements like other ninja, and I doubt even you can defeat her. I have more experience in fighting her, so I will."
"Smart move…" Kisarabi exclaimed, stepping forward. Reaching into her holsters, she pulled out her duel Mauser C96's, twirled them in her grip and pointed them in his direction, cocking back on the sliders. "Let's see what you're made of… kid…"
Naruto responded with a smirk and took a stance, throwing both his arms out and flicking two kunai from his gauntlets into his grip.
Kisarabi wasted no time and opened fire, loud gunshots ringing out as she sent a hail of bullets towards the blonde kid. Jiraiya and everybody else leapt out of the way, while Naruto spun his kunai around him in a blur, blocking the first few shots before ducking low, and charging straight towards the bounty hunter. The woman unloaded on him entire clips, before swiftly reloading, and charging at him as well.
They met at the center, Kisarabi kicking out at the boy who flipped over her and landed behind her, swiping out at her with one of his kunai. The woman however, managed to land a solid kick across his face on a second spin, and sent him tumbling across the ground at the force of the blow. Kisarabi spun around and turned her guns on him, the blonde back-flipping to avoid the first shots which hit the ground. He lowered his head and flipped his hat to shield him as he crouched low behind it, heavy Parabellum rounds striking against the steel shield of his hat and effectively bouncing off.
Wasting no time in her reload, Naruto pulled out a cluster of smoke pellets and threw them into the ground, using it as cover for his escape. Kisarabi, upon seeing the smoke screen, furrowed her brow and pursued him through the smoke.
"There they go…" Jiraiya exclaimed, watching Kisarabi and Naruto disappear, shaking his head. "They've really wanted to go at each other for some time…"
"Aren't you forgetting, Jiraiya… we're still here," Orochimaru called over, capturing the group's attention again, and pulling all eyes back over to the Otogakure shinobi. The pale man smirked at the youngsters and old timers. "You and I have a score to untie. You see… both of us are still alive. I'd prefer it if it was just me…"
Jiraiya snorted when the same idea popped into his head and he adjusted his vest. "You're right, old friend… about the first part anyway. Why don't we settle this? Just the two of us! One-on-one?"
"Sounds fair…" Orochimaru sneered.
"I'll take on the girls," Yoroi stated as he stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. "I've been holding back since the exams. It shouldn't take me too long to kill them…"
"They're all yours, Yoroi," Orochimaru chuckled, before glancing over at Guren again. "Tsunade will be your opponent, my dear. Make it an interesting bout…"
"It'll be my honor, Lord Orochimaru," the woman hissed, furrowing her brow and clenching her fists. "I'll bring her back to you in still breathing pieces."
Shizune leapt forward at that statement and pulled back her sleeve. Quickly clasping the ring and drawing a wire, the kunoichi unleashed a barrage of senbon from a concealed launcher, sending the acupuncture weapons flying towards the crowd. Yoroi leapt in front of them and blocked them all, before charging towards the apprentice, who also launched into attack.
Senbon in hand, she classed with the man's kunai as he plowed straight into her, sparks flying between them as their blades clashed. Gritting her teeth, Shizune cranked her arm back around and aimed another three senbon for the man's vital points in the neck when she hooked around at him. Yoroi, seeing the flash of danger, pulled his head back and dodged the strike just in time, sending a knee straight up into her stomach.
Staggering her, he then kicked her off of him, only to be left open to a barrage of shuriken that came out from behind the woman and at him. He leapt to the side just in time to avoid them, and barrel-rolled across the valley, before coming to a stop to see who had attacked him. To no surprise, Tenten and Kin also threw themselves into the battle, flanking Shizune as they ran the rogue medic ninja down.
Smirking, Yoroi met his attackers with a barrage of senbon to cover his retreat, as he quickly engaged the trio across the grasslands.
Guren immediately started off her assault, thrusting her palm into the ground and sending a wave of crystal spikes at the blonde Sannin standing beside Jiraiya. Both of them leapt out of the way of the gauntlet, as a result, splitting up in their effort to avoid being impaled. The moment Tsunade managed to escape the wave; she was immediately set upon by Guren, the woman flying through the air straight towards her with a purple, crystal spear.
She thrust the weapon straight towards the Sannin, who caught it between both hands. Following through, the crystal user attempted to impale the woman, regardless of having her attack blocked by her opponent's vice grip. However, Tsunade responded by throwing Guren straight past her, sending her ground-wards in their descent. Guren flipped through the air and landed on both feet, with the Sannin not to far behind. Spinning around, Guren lunged at Tsunade as she landed, and thrust a fist in her direction, starting off a new combo of attacks.
Tsunade fell back, dodging and blocking punches thrown her way, before being forced to duck a slash from the woman's arm gauntlet. Guren slashed at her with her arm blade, one after the other, before having it blocked by the Sannin's strong arm.
Grabbing the blade, Tsunade shattered it in her own grip, forcing Guren to leap back in a sound retreat. At the same time, the rogue shinobi used the opportunity presented to throw her crystal shuriken in the woman's direction, the Sannin ducking under them and charging in kind, fist brought back and ready to strike.
Forcing a single hand seal, Guren threw her right arm out, and a crystal shield shaped like a hexagon formed in front of her. When Tsunade's chakra enhanced fist connected with the barrier however, the crystal shield shattered, and the shockwave that followed sent both combatants flying back, the women skidding to a stop.
Jiraiya, having managed to evade getting hit by the last attack, turned his attention to Orochimaru, who was still smirking at him across the way. Biting down on his thumb of his free hand, the Snake Sannin formed a single hand seal before slamming his hand down into the ground.
"I may only have one arm, but that's all I need to defeat you, Jiraiya! Summoning Jutsu!" Orochimaru roared and a cloud of smoke exploded around him. Seconds later, an enclave of gigantic snakes rushed out from the wall of white smoke and charged the Toad Sannin down, towering over him like a series of skyscrapers.
The white haired hermit furrowed his brow at the sight, and quickly flashed through hand signs, before slapping both hands to the ground.
"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!" Jiraiya shouted, the earth literally liquidating underneath the giant snakes. Almost instantaneously, the giant summons began sinking into the mud, unable to get any traction, and effectively drowning as they sunk about halfway. The pressure was enough to trap them, and knock them out of the fight permanently.
"I'm not done yet!" Jiraiya shouted, forming several more hand seals, and breathing in deeply. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" Of course, when he breathed out, he expected a huge column of fire to follow. However, due to him being handicapped by the poison in his system, all that came out was a disk of fire the size of a football. The bolt of fire hooked through the air and straight for Orochimaru, and despite its shockingly small size, forced the Snake Sannin to dodge. When it hit the ground, it detonated like an exploding tag.
Furrowing his brow, Orochimaru charged at Jiraiya, who rushed him at the same time, both combatants taking their battle to the muddy soil encasing the now petrified snake summons. Hopping over one of the gargantuan corpses, Orochimaru landed in front of Jiraiya and kicked at him viciously, the old hermit blocking and ducking the strikes, before ducking under a roundhouse kick and ramming an elbow around his former teammate. The blow sent the Snake Sannin thumping into the snake corpse wall behind him, Jiraiya moving quickly to strike again.
Gritting his teeth, the hebi ducked a kunai strike and head butted Jiraiya, staggering the man and forcing him to drop his kunai. Orochimaru caught it and thrust it at the man, who managed to catch it between both hands just in time. Unfortunately for both of them, the amount of mud at their feet was inhibiting their movements.
"Ugh… I'm already seeing triple, I don't need this on top of that," Jiraiya growled, yanking on the kunai in his grip and pulling his opponent forward, kneeing him as hard as he could into the Sannin's stomach. Orochimaru choked out on saliva, before having a fist slammed across his face, which sent him falling into the muddy ground.
Staggering through the swampy conditions, Jiraiya growled and leapt at his opponent with another punch, only for Orochimaru to roll over in the mud and thrust his arm out at him. "Ninja Art: Shadow Snake Hands!" the Sannin roared, and over a dozen serpents rocketed out of the man's sleeve, striking Jiraiya and sending him straight up into one of the petrified snake's heads about twelve stories up. The old hermit disappeared when he was rammed straight into the snake and disappeared in a cloud of debris, dust and snake skin.
Orochimaru smirked momentarily, but blinked in shock when he suddenly saw a pillar of fire suddenly rocket down the cluster of snakes pinning Jiraiya to the wall, and faster then a jet on takeoff, careen towards him.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Bullet!" Jiraiya roared. The Snake Sannin just had a second to form a single hand sign of his own before the dragon-shaped gauntlet of fire struck him, and exploded with unmatched ferocity. A mushroom cloud was literally formed from the force of the blast and the amount of power was put behind it.
From behind the cloud of black smoke, Jiraiya managed to pull himself free of the man-shaped crater he formed in the side of the dead snake he was pinned to, and clamber up the side. When he reached the top, he shook his head clear of any blurs before staggering to his feet, and glared down towards the muddy ground below, which was still ablaze with fire.
At that moment, when he was beginning to think that his former teammate was toast, a giant snake made of mud suddenly shot out of the raging fire and rocketed towards Jiraiya, who leapt out of the way just as it struck the petrified summon he was standing on. Rolling to a stop, Jiraiya looked up to see the globs of mud take shape and form into Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin grinning sinisterly at his opponent. Jiraiya noted with a smirk that his technique had charred his friend a bit.
"You look as though you've seen better days, Orochimaru," the Toad Sannin chuckled.
"Don't mock me, Jiraiya. You are but a peon compared to me," the hebi replied. "All of your jutsu are useless in my shadow…"
"Says the man who lost his arm in battle against a girl," Jiraiya sighed, cracking his neck and stretching his muscles out. "Give me some credit would you; I'm fighting half-blind and chakra depleted here!"
"We're both on the same level… due to the fact that neither of us can fight at full capacity. Hm… I'll give you that!" Orochimaru sneered. "But I don't need my arms to destroy you! I am more then capable of defeating you and Tsunade, even with both my arms snatched away…"
"Don't underestimate me," Jiraiya took a more solid stance. "Once Naruto and his team are finished up with their opponents, the main event will begin…"
"Ah… Naruto-kun," Orochimaru glanced off over the hills, where he could see explosions and an onslaught of clones battling against Kisarabi. "What a promising candidate for my experiments, I can see him becoming a powerful shinobi some day. You know, I've always had a keen eye for good stock. Genin with great potential, such as Sasuke-kun… and Neji-kun also… ahh… the philosophical implications are tremendous!" The Snake Sannin then glared back over at his former teammate. "You have no idea what I have planned for Konohagakure…"
"Your invasion failed. Your armies didn't even manage to cross the borders far enough to cause any significant damage. There's no way you can take down Konohagakure now, not in your condition. Even against three other shinobi nations and a tailed beast, despite all of the damage the village has suffered in terms of its forces and structure, Konoha is still standing," Jiraiya smirked. "What can you possibly hope to accomplish with over half of your army decimated. It's more then likely that Otogakure will be annihilated before you even get a chance to strike again. If you manage to survive today of course…"
Orochimaru snickered, earning a raised eyebrow from Jiraiya. "You don't get it at all. Otogakure, comrades, subordinates, I foresee none of them in my grand scheme. They are all just expendable assets, an utter sham, a front for my true plans. They are but pawns compared to the pieces I'm creating to take on the roles as my knights," Orochimaru ran his hand through his hair, before resting his fingertips around his eye. "Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, Neji-kun, Sakura-chan, they are just a single part of my vision for the future…"
"What exactly are you planning," Jiraiya growled.
"I doubt you'll live long enough for me to even bother telling you," Orochimaru hissed, eyes widening and flashing. "After all, the pieces I have here and now will destroy you all. Kisarabi alone is a match for me!"
"Heh, well then it's a good thing Naruto is fighting her," the Toad hermit chuckled. "Because, as it turns out, he and Kisarabi are old friends of the same roots…"
Naruto and Kisarabi battle…
Unfortunately for the blonde, the battle's start wasn't going how he had hoped for it to go. At first he was able to go toe to toe with the woman, confident he could defeat her. But as it turns out, the white haired woman was proving to be more then capable of fighting him.
Twirling her pistols between her fingers, the woman opened up with a vicious volley of Mauser fire, the bullets ripping through the air in pursuit of their target. The boy dashed in a zigzag pattern in his efforts to avoid being hit, literally feeling lead rounds zip past his head, and others hitting the ground where he was milliseconds previously. The woman huffed as she reloaded her weapons in the blink of an eye, quickly holstering one pistol and, choosing to go right handed, began firing semi-automatic shots at her swiftly approaching opponent.
Naruto dashed left and right, the rounds from the woman exploding around him like a hail storm, before he ducked right into her defensive range, thrusting his hidden blade out at her. Kisarabi smirked and caught his arm, twisting it, and effortlessly throwing the young Jonin over her shoulder. The blonde slammed into the ground and let out a shout of agony, the bounty hunter immediately slamming her foot down onto his chest and pointing her gun straight for his head.
However, the young Jonin was able to slip right from under her, throwing his legs up and wrapping them around hers, tossing her over with a vicious twist. The woman back-flipped away as soon as she fell, avoiding a spin kick thrown by Naruto as he acrobatically leapt back to his feet. She managed to put distance between herself and the ninja, stopping, and smiling as she watched him stagger back into a fighting stance, throwing his arms out and drawing both his hidden blades into view.
Cocking on the slider, she pointed her gun in his direction.
"You've improved, Nightwalker-kun," Kisarabi exclaimed, tipping her hat at him as he glared back. "However, you've got a long way to go before you can actually go toe-to-toe with me."
"I'd say you're underestimating me a bit, Kisarabi-chan," Naruto smirked. "You're making the same mistake Kabuto did…"
"That reminds me, I still owe you that drink," the woman smiled, readjusting her grip on her handgun a little. "Heh… but that can wait, till after I've beaten you…"
"Give it your best shot," Naruto exclaimed. "I've been training for years to fight you, and out of every single ninja on this continent, I am the only one who is capable of, if not allowed, to beat you."
"Oh yes…" the bounty hunter smiled, looking down a little. "Our promise… how can I forget…?"
Naruto grunted and thrust his left hand forward, throwing a kunai at high velocity in the woman's direction, a string of wire attached to it. Kisarabi fired a shot, only to have her hand knocked upwards, by the colliding weapon, which coiled around her arm and tugged her forward. The blonde charged at her, ducking the next shot before swiftly sliding between her spread legs. Pulling the wire along with him, he literally flipped the woman over, but she regained her footing with ease and spun around, sending a roundhouse kick at him and slamming him across the face, sending him into the ground.
Before he hit the ground, he threw another kunai at her, the next shot she fired hitting the kunai head long and knocking it away. He assumed a crouched position and thrust his right hand outward, an arrow sliding into place in his gauntlet, while the woman pointed her pistol down towards him.
For a moment the two remained the way, glaring at each other.
It was after that moment passed Naruto smiled.
"She never changes…"
Nine Years Ago…
Naruto was wandering the streets of some distant village to the Far East of the Land of Fire, smiling in his ventures while accompanied by a rather unlikely friend. The four year old, since his runaway from the village, had explored the lands surrounding Konohagakure aimlessly for quite a while, eating whatever he could scrounge, and begging whenever possible.
It was hard going for him, being alone and in places that were completely unfamiliar to him. However, after months of being on his own and surviving as best as he could, he unbelievably enough, ran into a young girl from Takigakure, a person who was remarkably…
…'like him'…
The girl was named Fu, and together, the two four year old jinchurikis bonded, and for the better part of both their lives, took it to exploring the surrounding towns and villages, moving like ghosts from place to place, and spending time together. Because of their shared history and experiences, the two of them understood each other well, and as per their agreement, they worked together to survive.
Amidst the bustling crowds of beige and normal, Naruto and Fur sort of stuck out. While the blonde wore a ragged white shirt, tatter shorts and sandals, and was looking like he needed a shower, Fu also wore a white singlet and dark green shorts with a matching pair of sandals. They definitely looked like street urchins, and lived that way to.
Undertaking another of their many risks for the day, the scheming pair running down the streets, decided to try something a bit more subtle in order to acquire some food. In order to do that, they had to pick-pocket.
Choosing their targets at random, the pair made sure to blend in with the crowds before making a move, swiping whatever they could grab from back and side pockets as they moved on. After making their way through the market place, the two of them emerged on the other side with a handful of ryu and some other surprising items.
The two hid in an alley and grinned as they piled together their stash.
"Jackpot!" Naruto exclaimed happily.
"That's even more then what we got yesterday! This is great!" Fu giggled.
Splitting it between them, they stashed it away into their pouches and smiled at each other.
"What should we do now?" Naruto asked.
"I say one more round… then we can go home!"
"Sounds cool… come on…"
That was exactly what they did. The swift little pair plowed through the streets, passing one person at a time, and randomly swiping the pockets of people who were turning a blind eye. Fu even managed to grab an apple from a stand, before disappearing into the crowds, as if she was never there. Eventually, the pair reached the end of the road, but not before Naruto tried his hand at a rather shady looking individual just strolling down the road, cigarette in her mouth and eyes averted elsewhere.
Sneaky as his routine called for it, Naruto attempted to make a grab for her back jacket pocket, only to be startled when the woman suddenly grabbed his hand and turned towards him. The blonde attempted to pull free, only to be petrified with shock when he stared up into the woman's face.
The dark purple trench coat she had wrapped tightly around her with nothing else underneath, dazzling white hair, flawless skin, eye patch worn proudly over her right eye, and wide-brimmed Stetson hat shielding her face with shadow, was a sight he had never seen before. Furthermore, a pink eye glared down at him, flashing dangerously in the light.
After staring into each other for several seconds, the white haired woman smirked at him and looked him over.
"That's called stealing you know," the stranger exclaimed, releasing him and turning to face the boy. Tipping her hat, she knelt down in front of him and began looking over his face more thoroughly. She saw that he was young, and from his outlook, had seen better days. "You should know better then that, kid…"
"S-Sorry, Miss," Naruto replied as he ducked his head, clenched his hands at his sides nervously, and looked down at the ground in shame. Even though she had no intention of causing him any harm, he was still terrified and awe struck by the woman. "I promise I won't do it again."
"What are you apologizing for? You're homeless right? Living rough?" The woman chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. "Okay then, since that's the case; what you really need to promise me is to not let yourself get caught next time, you hear?"
Naruto looked back up at her in shock, earning a sly grin from her. "Kids like you need to survive any way they can, especially in these parts." She shrugged her shoulders. "You're young, and it looks as though you're still adjusting to your new life. So here's a helpful hint for you; don't let life get you down, don't get pushed around, and save every penny. Alright…"
"R-Right…"
"Money, aside from every other aspect in life, is an important piece in this world…" She held up a ryu coin and literally spun it like a basketball on her fingertip. It flashed in the boy's widened eyes for a moment, before the woman picked up his hand and placed the coin in it, and enclosed his fingers around it. "Save everything you have, and don't waste it on meaningless things; they are just trash. Take in what you earn everyday, and that way, you will have something to use in the future when in need."
Rising to her feet, Kisarabi smiled and tipped her hat to him again, the boy watching her stand with awe reflected in his eyes. In spite of being fear struck by her glare, he had to admit she was one of the most angelic creatures he had ever laid eyes on. He blushed at the sight of her smile.
"And if I catch you trying to pickpocket me again, I'll break your arm, understand?"
Naruto nodded dumbly, before watching the woman walk off, whistling away before disappearing into the crowd.
Sighing, the blonde looked down at the ryu in his hand, but was rather perplexed when he saw that it wasn't. In fact, on closer inspection, ihe saw that t was a pure gold coin of extreme value. It was a sight that had him gaze in astonishment.
Blinking, he looked up wildly, trying to find the woman to thank her.
However, she was nowhere to be seen…
Present day…
"She never changes…" Naruto chuckled.
Kisarabi smirked. "Reminiscing?"
"Sort of…"
After a short laugh, Kisarabi shot at the blonde without a moment's notice, only for him to dodge right and lunge at her with his arrow. Kisarabi spun around him when he lunged, and he did to, the two performing a ballet of dodges and spins around each other, with the bounty hunter attempting to hit the blonde with her rounds, firing one shot after the other.
One bullet eventually grazed Naruto across the cheek, before he slammed a back-handed fist across the woman's face, knocking her staggering backwards in surprise. As soon as she did so, the bounty hunter began falling back, firing one shot after another towards the blonde, who managed to pull out a kunai on a quick draw, and began blocking the bullets flying his direction. His kunai laced with wind chakra sliced through every single lead round that flew at him, and within seconds, had managed to cut clean through all thirty-two bullets. As soon as her handgun clicked on empty, he charged at her, kunai held back and ready to strike.
Before he reached her, he fired off the arrow from his sleeve, which shot at her at a high velocity, only to be caught by the woman's swift, firm hand. Twirling it in between her fingers, she loaded it onto her own wrist launcher, cocked it back, and fired at the boy, hitting him in the shoulder.
Unhindered by the arrow as it lodged deep into his shoulder, Naruto leapt at the woman and roundhouse kicked her through the air. Kisarabi ducked under his kick and rolled across the ground, leaping back to her feet and spinning around to watch as the boy landed several meters away, and round back on her a second later.
Throwing his right arm out, he aimed his gauntlet at her, and fired a kunai at her from his launcher, which went off with a loud bang. The knife sliced through the air and smacked her in her own shoulder, causing her to stagger back at the unexpected attack.
Smirking, Kisarabi held her own right hand out in front of her, and twisted a knob on her gauntlet under her coat's sleeve. At that moment, her hands suddenly became cuffed by brass knuckles, or what looked like brass knuckles. The weapons crackled with lightning, and after stretching her fingers a bit, held her hand above her, before slamming it into the ground.
"Lightning Storm!" the woman shouted, the electricity from her gauntlet suddenly exploding with sheer ferocity, and sliced into the ground. A second later, a jet of electricity began traveling through the ground, and charged straight towards Naruto.
The blonde leapt to the side to avoid it, and looked back over his shoulder as the stream of the electricity overshot him. However, it eventually turned around, and began pursuing him. He himself exploded into movement and began sprinting away, keeping a safe distance ahead of the stream of lightning coursing after him through the ground. As it began to gain ground on him, he leapt from side to side, avoiding its every lunge at his feet.
He knew that if it touched him, it would cost him dearly.
Crossing both arms over her face, Kisarabi threw them out, unleashing a wave of lightning from her lightning gauntlets, the wave tearing up the ground as it charged towards the boy. Naruto spotting the new threat fast approaching and easily gaining ground, spun around and leapt backwards through the air, forming a single hand seal.
"Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he shouted, touching down briefly and leaping away, a wall of white smoke exploding in front of him, before disappearing shortly afterwards, and revealing a wall of clones standing in between him and the lightning storm.
The wall of electricity struck his wall of clones, causing them all to dispel at once in a huge explosion of debris, dust, smoke and lightning. Kisarabi watched on from afar with a smirk, impressed by how much the boy had improved. However, just as she was beginning to compliment on his skills, she suddenly saw the clouds part, and her opponent come flying through the air straight for her. Roaring at the top of his lung, he cranked his fist back, and then slammed it across her face in the blink of an eye, sending her careening through the air.
Bouncing off of the ground a couple of times, the woman eventually managed to regain her bearings and land on her feet. Sliding across the ground on all fours, she stopped her backward momentum and rose to her feet, a trickle of blood running down from her lip.
"You call that a punch?" Kisarabi chuckled, wiping the blood from her lip and looking upon the panting form of Naruto. She then looked down at the stain on her hand, rubbing the fluid between her fingers. "Although, I have to admit… you're the first person in over ten years to land a genuine blow on me…"
"I haven't even started yet," Naruto smirked, slapping his hands together into a hand seal. "Come on…"
"Very well then…" Bringing her right gauntlet around, she dialed in another combination of buttons. "Let's see if you can hit me again…" She then threw her arm out, summoning a spiked chain with a kunai at the end from her gauntlet, which fell out from under her sleeve and unraveled itself onto the ground. With a laugh, she swung the weapon around her, with the kunai attached to the end as company. A second later, the weapon whipped through the air towards the blonde Jonin, who barrel-rolled out of the way as the chain literally split the earth where he once stood.
Shaken up a little, Naruto flipped back onto his feet, ducking a swipe from the chained weapon, before back-flipping away when it came back around and struck the ground in front of him. He quickly retreated from the flailing chained weapon, Kisarabi extending it foot by foot to match the distance he was covering to get away from her. The eventual length reached a staggering sixty meters a minute later, and the bounty hunter was still attacking.
Naruto leapt over a large boulder in the middle of the valley and took cover behind it, panting from his sprint to get away from the woman, who even up to this point hadn't even broken a sweat.
"Boy… she's just as bad-ass as ever," Naruto thought in amusement, sucking in air feverishly before looking skywards, smirking. "She was always calm and cool… no matter what the situation…"
Seven and a half years ago…
"… so when you suddenly find yourself trapped inside a genjutsu, make sure you stop your chakra flow completely. Not just halt it, hold on to it, or reduce its ascent pattern in combat: stop it. That way, you won't suddenly find yourself jumping off of a cliff or getting attacked in real life. You'll know when you've broken the illusion, since it feels like you're slapped in the face or waking up from a bad dream," Jiraiya explained to Naruto as they sat side-by-side on the ferry crossing over into the Land of Water. Naruto, legs hanging over the side, was listening intently, since his training had moved off onto a completely new tangent outside of the basics.
He was excelling so far, Jiraiya was trying to find every little thing he could occupy the boy's time with that he didn't complete within the week.
"If that fails, then there's always the good old cut, stab or hurting-yourself tactic," Jiraiya said, pinching his young student in the arm and earning a yelp from him.
"Ow! Ero-Sennin!"
"I'm being serious, Naruto," the man smirked. "I taught you this already; it's the simplest way of getting out of a genjutsu. However, if your arms and legs find themselves bound in the illusion, bite yourself in the lower lip and draw blood. Hurts like hell, but it will definitely do the job…"
The sound of the ferry's horn announced the journey's end, and as it was pulling up to the dock, the passengers began rising to their feet and making their way over to the ramps. Jiraiya sighed and stretched out as he stood, picking up his scroll on his way up.
"Well, we're here. Come on you little trouble-maker," the hermit exclaimed, leading the way off, with Naruto hopping off of his seat. "After I've taught you how to use my transparency technique, I'll stop all of this Ero-Sennin and Pervy Sage crap; it's really starting to get on my nerves…"
"But you are a pervert, Pervy Sage. I call them like I see them!" the boy grinned.
"Ha-ha! Come on, kid…"
Just as Jiraiya was heading up to the forward ramp, Naruto suddenly became distracted when he spotted a sleeping figure several seats down. Since they were all on the outer-deck in broad daylight and occupying the seats, it was relatively quiet out, unlike the cabins inside. Even though the horn should have been sufficient enough to wake any snoozing passengers, it struck Naruto funny that this woman was still dozing.
Worried that she would be stuck on board when the boat got moving again, he quickly jogged over to the woman before following after his teacher off of the boat.
He shook the snoozing stranger by the leg, gently at first.
"Excuse me miss. Miss? Uhh… w-we're here," Naruto whispered, trying to look underneath the shadows of her wide-brimmed hat to see if she was awake. "Sleeping lady… sleeping lady!"
"Unless you're here to give me a back-rub, get lost," the woman mumbled, turning over a little, while at the same time trying to shoo off a metaphorical fly. Naruto ignored her and, in spite of the grumpiness in her voice, this time shook her a little bit harder. "I said buzz off…"
"But miss…"
"Look kid… I…" Kisarabi turned over and lifted her hat, glaring at the boy who was shoving her. She blinked in surprise when she realized who it was, with Naruto also blinking when he suddenly recognized who it was he was disturbing. "Oh… it's you…"
"I WASN'T PICK-POCKETING YOU! I SWEAR!" Naruto shouted, hands in the air and showing them to be empty. "See! Nothing!"
"Keep your voice down, geez," Kisarabi groaned, rubbing the inside of her ear. "There's a big difference between somebody trying to wake you, and somebody trying to rob you while you are asleep. I'd know for sure. If you were actually robbing me, I'd do this…" In the blink of an eye, she grabbed the boy's wrist and yanked her towards her, swiftly drawing the lever-action shotgun off of her back, loading it with a quick spin-load action, and shoved it into his forehead. The startled boy stared wide-eyed at her as she smirked at him in kind. "Go on… laugh! I dare yah…"
"Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-heh…" Naruto feigned, while trying not to avert his gaze from the woman in front of him.
"I'm just joking kid, relax," Kisarabi exclaimed, patting him on the shoulder, and holstering the weapon onto her back. "Although, I have to say, you didn't piss your pants like ordinary people, when they're literally face to face with me. What's your angle?"
"I just… wasn't that scared…" the blonde shrugged. The woman smiled and propped her head on her hand and elbow on her leg, looking the boy over.
"Really? Well then, you're one tough nut to crack. That's scary in a different way," Kisarabi commented. "How have you been kid…? I haven't seen you in… what… seven… eight months?"
"Eighteen months, miss," Naruto stated. The woman whistled.
"Wow, and you're still alive. Impressive." Really, she was. The woman knew a lot of people who lived around the ninja villages who didn't last outside of a year. Those old 'friends' were now dead and buried. "So… what's going on now?"
"I'm here with Ero-Sennin for some training! I'm going to become a ninja?"
"Oh. Well then, that's a real shame," Kisarabi said, shaking her head, while earning a surprised look from the blonde. Pulling out a cigarette from her trench coat pocket and lighting a match that she pulled out from behind her ear and lit against her cheek, took a deep, long drag on her death stick, before exhaling in exasperation.
"Why is it a shame, miss?"
"Because… I'm a bounty hunter," Kisarabi replied, smiling up at the boy, while tipping her wide-brimmed hat a little. "That means I hunt down thugs, mercenaries, high-ranked criminals, drug dealers, politicians, soldiers, and… if situations call for it, ninjas. I'm actually a lot like a ninja, except for the fact that I am free reign. I don't discriminate between countries, races, sexes or religion, I play by my own rules and, above all else, I work for the highest bidder. Being a bounty hunter, I only work for money…"
"Uhh… okay…"
For a minute or so, the woman sat where she was, breathing on her cigarette smoke, while staring at the boy, who stared curiously back at her. By this point in time, people on the ferry started to depart, basically leaving the two of them time to catch up on… or better yet… get to know each other little by little.
"You've grown a bit… that's good to see," Kisarabi smiled. "Hmm… you're actually pretty cute when you're not covered in dirt and street crap." Naruto blushed at her comment and rubbed the back of his head bashfully.
"T-Thanks…"
"Heh… you don't have to be a looker to be a ninja, but in case of espionage… I guess it counts for one area," Kisarabi sighed, rising to her feet as well and stretching out. "However, if you're going to be a ninja, I recommend that you wear a mask or something… you know… to conceal your identity so that you won't get into trouble if you screw up…"
She smirked at him and leant over, poking him in the nose, and earning an 'eep' from the boy. "Get a mask. You don't want to ruin that handsome face of yours…" Straightening up, Kisarabi gathered up whatever belongings she did have, and vacated the ship, with Naruto watching her walk off in awe.
"See yah, kid…"
Present day…
"Shit!" Naruto ducked as soon as the chained weapon of Kisarabi's suddenly sliced through the rock, effortlessly cleaving it into two. Ducking behind the bottom slab that was left, he quickly knelt back up and threw a kunai in the woman's direction, laced with a smoke bomb. The woman easily swiped it away with her chained weapon, causing it to detonate into a red cloud of spicy powder.
The smoke cloud literally formed the shape of a dragon head as the Red Dragon engulfed her. However, instead of having a complete effect on her, the woman clenched her eyes shut and held her breath, deciding to base the rest of the fight from within the smoke cloud, on her other remaining senses.
"Not bad…"
Just then, the smoke cloud parted sharply and Naruto came charging through at the Yellow Flash's speed, teeth gritted and fists clenched. In his left hand, he held a tanto blade, which flashed in the sun and was readied to strike.
As soon as he lunged with the blade, Kisarabi caught his wrist in mid-flight and twisted it, so that she had his arm pinned behind him. Grinning, she grabbed his right shoulder with her left hand, and activated her gauntlet, electricity suddenly beginning to course through the blonde's body from the point of contact.
Naruto wailed out in agony as he was electrified with over a hundred thousand volts. The shockwaves bolted over him one after the other, literally bringing him to his knees before the woman eventually released him. His roasted carcass was smoking by the time he fell flat on his face.
Kisarabi didn't even flinch when his body exploded into a puff of white smoke, indicating that it was a copy she had managed to take down.
Withdrawing her chained weapon back into her gauntlet, the woman looked around her to see if the boy was attempting a sneak attack on her. Unable to find him, she became a little bit suspicious, and decided to listen to her feet.
A second too late, hands suddenly shot up from the ground beneath her, and she looked down in surprise. All of a sudden, five Naruto copies burst out of the ground around her, each of them flying in her direction and landing single attacks, punches and kicks. The blows knocked her about.
"U-ZU-MA-KI!" Each clone shouted as each of their attacks landed, Kisarabi being smashed around like a punching bag. A second later, the real Naruto dropped from the sky above, spinning in his descent before throwing a kick straight down, striking the woman in the head and knocking her face first into the earth. "NARUTO BARRAGE!"
The white haired bounty hunter spat up blood when she hit the ground and glared up, spotting the real Naruto land some distance from her. As soon as his feet touched the valley floor, the woman smiled and slapped her left hand into the ground. All of a sudden, a projectile weapon unexpectedly popped up from under her sleeve, and a split second after it clicked into view, a rocket shot out from the barrel and towards the blonde.
Naruto didn't have much time to react when he was hit full on by the projectile and it detonated, second him whipping through the air before hitting a boulder some distance away. Kisarabi stood up when the hands finally relinquished her as they vanished in a puff of white smoke, with the woman also readjusting her hat.
"I have to admit… he's gotten stronger…" The woman then blinked when she heard a footstep behind her, and ducked just in time to avoid a hidden-blade swing, as Naruto suddenly appeared behind her in mid-air.
He faded out as soon as the woman ducked and attempted to knee him when she straightened up, only to hit thin air. Detecting movement, she spun and roundhouse kicked the air, only to hit a faded image of Naruto again when he once again vanished from sight. Taking a stance, the woman smiled as she looked around her, attempting to sought out the young Jonin as he began running rings around her position, while using his Chameleon Technique.
"This old trick? Please…" Kisarabi chuckled. Reaching up, she grabbed the eye-patch covering her mystery, secret weapon. "I should start taking this kid a bit more seriously…" She ripped the black covering of her eye and opened it, revealing an iris with two pupils spinning side by side in the center, and a small tattoo painted underneath the socket. "Kami; Grant my fingers the strength to crush evil!"
The moment her new eye flashed into view, she spun around at a much faster speed when she detected a presence, and hooked a punch out at an invisible target. She got a satisfied grunt when her fist connected with something solid, and Naruto suddenly faded into view, his body bouncing across the ground before stopping about thirty meters away. The blow was enough to knock him out flat.
Stretching her fingers, Kisarabi strolled over towards the boy, stopping just short of his body and nudging him with her foot.
"Hey… kid… up and at em'… I won…"
Unexpectedly, the body burst into a puff of white smoke, revealing a log with a fist imprint in its side. The woman was startled, stepping back.
"How… I swear my Shintaigo…?"
"Leaf Hidden Secret Technique…!" A voice shouted from behind her, and the woman's eyes widened in horror as she sun around. In the second that passed her, the bounty hunter could only turn briefly, as she watched the boy approach her, his hands formed to resemble the Tiger Hand Seal, and a lecherous grin on his face.
It all happened so fast.
"Oh no!" Kisarabi murmured.
"ONE THOUSAND YEARS OF DEATH!" Naruto roared, thrusting his fingers straight up the middle of her firm behind. There was absolutely nothing to cushion the blow as the woman was launched at a high velocity off of the ground, clutching her buttocks as she soared skyward, tearing at the eyes. She practically wailed out in agony as she was catapulted by the rear-ended attack.
She flew about fifty meters before crashing to the ground face first, butt sticking in the air, and eyes swirling. Naruto grinned victoriously as he observed the results of the attack.
"Bulls-eye…"
Five Years Ago…
"Shall I slice his other leg off, then?" Kisame exclaimed, grinning over at his stoic partner, Itachi Uchiha, as they watched Naruto attempt to crawl away, leaving his severed leg lying lifeless several meters away, and trailing blood in his attempted escape. "He can still move around even without them… that could be a problem for us when moving him. Maybe I should cut off his arms as well?"
The blonde had taken a beating. Despite his young age and feeble skills in comparison to Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki, he had managed to hold his own for a solid two minutes, before the pair decided play time was over. The moment he was locked in a genjutsu, the fish-faced swordsman proceeded to slice off his limbs in his restraint. The pain alone was enough to drive the terrified boy out of the illusion.
Now reduced to groveling in the dirt, the young ninja tried to crawl away from the two Akatsuki members, only to get about ten meters away before Kisame placed his foot on his back, pinning him to the ground.
"Stay still, Kyuubi brat," Kisame sneered.
"Don't treat him so harshly, Kisame," Itachi spoke, his voice cold and void of emotion as he stared down at the flailing boy, who was growling and crying out in agony from the wounds he has sustained thus far. However, being so far out in the middle of the forest outside of the nearest village, his cries reached no ears. "He may be a jinchuriki, but show some restraint against children…"
"Hmph. Then where's the fun in hunting?" Kisame queried, propping his sword onto his shoulder and removing his foot off of Naruto, but not before kicking him onto his back so that the wounded child was facing them. "With that hair and fierce expression, he would make a great piece up on our mantel…"
"F-Fuck you…" Naruto hissed, glaring up at the blue skinned man, blood pouring from his mouth. The pain he was feeling at the moment was unbearable. "F-Fish faced… FREAK!"
"Oh… not so friendly after all," the swordsman laughed, swinging his sword around and pointing it directly over the boy's mouth. "Maybe I should cut out your tongue, so we don't have to hear that potty mouth of yours, brat? How does that sound?"
"I can still spit on you!" Naruto hocked a loogie right into the man's face. Despite lying seven feet below the man's face, yet still sitting at the right angle, the jinchuriki, shockingly enough managed to land a hit right in the swordsman's eye. Kisame, pretty much used to spilling all kinds of bodily innards and getting plenty on him, including blood and guts, still flinched when he was hit by the unexpected attack, and frowned deeply.
Regardless, he casually wiped the mucus away with the back of his hand, before glaring down at the kid once more.
"That's going to cost you a hand," the rogue ninja growled, bringing his sword around, before swiftly slicing off the boy's left arm below the elbow. It was so swift and precise, that Naruto reacted about seven seconds later, and began wailing out in agony, clutching his stump of an arm. The remainder of his limb flopped down on the ground several feet away, twitching, and spurting out blood.
Kisame smirked as he watched the boy roll around at his feet. "There… that's much better…"
Before he could carry on anymore, he felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and glanced back to see Itachi glaring up at him.
"Enough…" the Uchiha whispered, furrowing his brow. "We can take him from here…"
"Tsk… very well then," Kisame replied, sheathing his sword. "This was a relatively boring assignment anyway. Perhaps the next jinchuriki will be a bigger challenge…"
Before the swordsman could pick up the boy however, there was a loud bang, and out of nowhere, Kisame was hit full on in the chest by something hard, fast and small. A jet of blood shot out from his wound, and the man coughed up blood before staggering back at the force of the unexpected attack. Caught off guard, both Akatsuki members suddenly leapt away as more shots rang out, puncturing Itachi in his right shoulder, and the trees surrounding them.
Seconds later, after being forced about ten meters from their jinchuriki target; a shadow dropped down from the treetops and landed at the blonde's defense. Naruto was momentarily dumbfounded that somebody had managed to find him, let alone come to his rescue. However, it wasn't long till he saw who it was that came to his aid, and blinked in astonishment as he watched the familiar, white haired woman rise to her feet in front of him.
She was wielding a rifle, a weapon the boy had rarely seen, but had witnessed the damage it was capable of. He could only blink in awe as he gawked at the angel standing before him and his attackers.
"You'll come no further," Kisarabi shouted, as she glared down the sights of her weapon through her right eye; the two pupils of her Shintaigo spinning around the center and her fingers adjusting around the grip.
"A good Samaritan?" Itachi murmured.
"And not just any," Kisame growled through blood leaking out of his mouth, while he clenched his chest. "It's that bounty hunter… the bitch Kisarabi!"
"Pleased to make your acquaintance Kisame Hoshigaki… Itachi Uchiha…" Kisarabi exclaimed, smirking at them. "If you please… I'll be taking your bodies back with me now. Your heads are worth a lot of ryo…"
The two Akatsuki members glanced at one another, before turning back to the woman.
"I believe that the odds are stacked in our favor here, bounty hunter," Itachi said, stepping forward. "You can't possibly hope to defeat the two of us…"
Kisarabi smirked. "I know that I've probably got a couple of screws loose fighting you two at the same time. If I was to fight you one on one, then I might just stand a chance…" She then glanced briefly behind her, to see Naruto still staring up at her in surprise. "But… to protect this boy… I'd gladly give my life against a hundred of you…"
She winked at him. "Jiraiya and Tsunade are on there way kid… don't worry," she whispered.
All Naruto could do was nod dumbly, before Kisarabi turned back to the two criminals and smirked at them.
"Well?"
Itachi sighed and drew a kunai, holding it out in front of him, while Kisame brought his sword around and slammed it into the ground, cracking the earth. In response to their visual threats and signs of action, Kisarabi cocked her weapon and grinned.
Though she knew she wouldn't be able to win, she was certainly going to give it her best shot.
"This might be entertaining…!"
Present day…
Just as Naruto was believed his opponent to be down and out for the count, he suddenly saw her slowly stagger to her feet. Regaining her sense of balance once again, the woman then glared behind her with a deep blush on her face and a rather disapproving frown. Her eyes more or less reflected her embarrassment.
"I didn't know you were in to that kind of stuff, Nightwalker-kun," Kisarabi exclaimed rather seductively. This threw Naruto off briefly, and he blushed too.
"Pay-back for trashing my house!" Naruto pointed at her accusingly, earning a laugh from her as she readjusted her belt.
"I'll let it slide then." Tilting her hat, she turned to him and grinned. "Even though you managed to lay one over me, I'm still going to win."
"Bring it!" Naruto crouched low and leapt forward, bringing his hands in front of him to form a hand seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Kisarabi could only smirk as an army of copies suddenly began to swarm her on all sides. Reaching for her side arms, she drew them cowboy style and began firing off rounds one after the other at her oncoming attackers. Spinning on her axis point, she took down one Naruto after the other, going so far as to even let them get into close quarters with her. She took her time in inflicting as many stylish attacks as possible, making this fight seem more like a performance then an actual battle.
Laughing at the top of her lungs, she leapt into the air and spun a kick in a 360 degree of motion, knocking out ten clones at once, before landing on the ground. She crouched at the conclusion of her kick, and smirked up towards the real Naruto, who stood some ways away from her.
Spinning her pistols as she rose to her feet, she blew on the ends of the barrels before holstering them.
"Give me your best shot… kid…" She threw both her arms out. "I'm ready…"
Naruto grinned and charged at her, this time breaking out into a full blown sprint. His body carried him towards the woman over the long distance in no time flat, and once he reached her, he punched her full on in the stomach.
The blow barely even fazed the woman, and she effortlessly back-handed him across the face, knocking him staggering. However, in spite of the killer blow, she didn't knock him over.
Shaking his head, and spitting out blood, Naruto turned back to his opponent and grinned. The woman smirked back at him.
"You bruised me, kid," Kisarabi chuckled. "More then once in my life…"
Two Years Ago…
"We have got to stop meeting like this…" the bounty hunter chuckled, sitting on top of a pile of at least thirty dead bodies, with Naruto sitting across from her on his own pile of fifteen. The band of rogue shinobi had proven to be quite troublesome, but in face of two of the most prominent hunters in all the known lands, they stood little chance against them.
Twirling her pistol in her hand, the woman sat where she was casually, not at all bothered by the fact that she was covered in blood.
"You're getting stronger every day, brat. Every time I run into you, you've always got a new trick up your sleeve and a knot you're just itching to untie on your targets.," Kisarabi chuckled, watching as her partner and rival twirled a kunai between his own fingers, before hopping off of the pile of bodies, his pale, soulless mask hiding his face. "I swear, one of these days, you're gonna be stronger then me… that's a pretty scary thought…"
"The old generation always has to make way for the next one," Naruto, under the guise of the Nightwalker, spoke in that cold, emotionless voice of his 'other side'. The tone didn't at all shake up the woman, but only caused her to smile. "It's only natural that my age bracket will destroy yours, Kisarabi-chan…"
"I see growing up is taking its toll," the woman replied. "You're learning the hard way, what the real world is actually like. There are no fairytales, no single loves, no heroes, no compassion, no rewards of God… it's all just a big fucking game. Life will eat you up and spit you out, just like what it did to me, and probably every adult you know."
"But there's a fine line between being utterly consumed and crossing the threshold, isn't there?" Naruto asked, his cloak waving in the wind as he glared at the woman from behind the shadows of his mask.
"Quite right you are," Kisarabi chuckled, patting the head of one of her dead victims she was sitting on. "Hate is a part of life, as is love. When consumed by something… such as hate, you feel great pain, and will do everything humanly possible to get rid of it. However… when you cross the line… and believe me… you'll know when you cross it… all you will ever feel… is nothing." It was this word that had Naruto flinch as he stood in front of the woman, staring at her as she smiled down at him. "It is the most terrible feeling you'll ever experience in your life. You would feel neither joy, nor sadness, nor love... nor sorrow. Heck, you won't even feel hate… that emotion is completely stripped from you."
Naruto paused for a moment, before speaking up again. "Tell me… what keeps you from crossing the line?"
Kisarabi laughed, looking away. "You and I are unique people, Nightwalker-kun. We are so because we aren't consumed by the world, nor do we cross the line defining humanity from abomination. We are unique because we sit on that line… and laugh at the people on either side of it." She smirked at the boy as he raised an eyebrow at her. Shaking her head, she readjusted her sitting position. "You kill for a living. You're not blinded by revenge, or anger, or hatred, or of any ill will towards other people. You do what you justify to be the right thing. While me…"
There was a groan beside her, as one of the 'dead' victims of their slaughter stirred from their slumber. Smirking, Kisarabi pulled out her pistol, pointed it down at the man's head, and fired, blowing his brains out, and ending his suffering.
"I do what I need to do to survive. You see, the secret to living is fighting. You fight every day to make a living, and you fight every day to survive. It's basically strongest of the fittest personified by human beings…"
Present day…
Naruto wasted no time in making his next move, and threw a kunai in Kisarabi's direction. The woman sidestepped it, only for her blonde target standing in front of her to suddenly vanish in a yellow flash before she could counter, and reappear hovering right beside her, sending a hook straight across her face. The woman ducked the hit and punched at him, but he vanished again, his form fading back into view several meters behind her.
Taking advantage of her blind spot, Naruto charged. But the bounty hunter, easily predicting his movements, spun around with both her guns drawn and opened fire, hitting Naruto square in the shoulder and leg, causing the boy to fall forwards. However, he managed to get in close, and tackled her to the ground.
As soon as he landed on her, he flipped off of her when she lashed out at him with a hidden blade from her own gauntlet, and leapt away just as the woman leapt to her feet. Both of them spun around to face each other, with Naruto still running to put distance between him and her. When he turned around, jumping through the air at the same time, he threw a cluster of shuriken in her direction.
Kisarabi responded to the new threat by stepping out of the way of the throwing knives, and throwing her hidden blade in his direction, the blade being revealed to be a silver combat blade. Naruto ducked under it just in time as he landed on the grassy floor, skidding along it as his momentum ceased. During which, Kisarabi reached onto her back, and drew the rifle holstered there.
The lever-action rifle was of custom design, and suited the woman's purpose well, as it was sawn-off for quick access. Cocking the weapon, she took aim and grinned, as the boy remained square in her sights, her right eye spinning as it leveled on him.
Spotting the danger, Naruto turned heal and ran for it, zigzagging in his escape. However, before he could make it over the crest of the next hill, the woman aimed for the hill itself and let loose her attack. The air around her literally slowed as it began to warp around her.
"Rasengan!" she shouted.
She fired, the high velocity bullet striking the ground. A split second later, the valley floor covering a one kilometer radius in the direction the bullet was traveling went up in a blazing inferno. Literally, the friction of the energy powered bullet with the air was enough to ignite it, and an explosion comparable to that of a tactical nuke engulfed Naruto, with the ninety-nine percent capability of putting him out of commission…
Permanently…
Kisarabi watched as the mushroom cloud filled the air above her, and lowered her smoking gun with an analytical expression in play. Just as she was becoming comfortable with the idea that she had won, she unexpectedly saw the cloud part as a shining blue light shot from out of the mass of fire and smoke, before shooting straight towards her.
The bounty hunter blinked in surprise when she saw Naruto, charred from the explosion; descend towards her with a spiraling blue sphere of pure energy warping in his right hand.
Teeth gritted, he lunged down at her, just as she holstered her rifle and brought her left hand around, a metallic knuckle brace suddenly cuffing her fingers. An electric current ran up and down the woman's arm with the activation of her melee device, as she timed her opponent's attack pattern, and readied to counter.
"Wind Release…" Naruto roared, his regular Rasengan suddenly forming into a four-pronged shuriken, which spun like a saw blade in his grip. With a yell of effort, he thrust it forward. "RASENGAN!"
"Lightning Storm!" Kisarabi roared as well, thrusting her hand out and meeting Naruto's attack head on.
"Nightwalker-kun… can I ask you a favor?"
"What could you ever ask me, Kisarabi-chan? You have everything you could possibly want in this world…"
"Don't be so coy. There's no way I can have everything I want… not yet anyway…"
She looked at him, and smiled…
The immediate result of both powerful attacks colliding was the Wind Release technique to erupt like a hurricane, and Kisarabi's sheathed electric palm to start sprouting off random bolts of lightning as the attacks ground into one another. The wind out from the center of the attack and whipped at both combatants, Naruto biting his teeth together to hold his drive, whereas Kisarabi tried to hold her ground as the earth was ripped apart around them.
"You're… really the only person I can relate to, both in mind and soul… that's a rarity in this world…"
"Sounds like something trivial another person would say. But still… it's you… go on…"
"Naruto…kun… do you think you'd ever… come to love me?"
Within seconds, the conclusion arrived as an explosion ripped out between them, sending both warriors flying in opposite directions. The blast from the resulting collision of attacks covered a radius of thirty meters, but their flight from the rebound covered triple that distance, with Naruto bouncing violently across the valley about ten times before rolling to a stop.
"Love… you…?"
"If you do… then… can you promise me… if we ever fight, and by some impossible, long shot… you manage to beat me… do you think… you and I… we… would be able to walk the same path together…?"
She was incredibly hesitant…
By the time the shockwaves subsided, the blonde was already struggling to his feet, bleeding from several different places, bruised, battered, and his right arm was looking as thought it was shoved into a blender. Gasping for breath, he rose to his feet and gripped his limp arm, his body racked with pain, and his head spinning from the trip. He glared straight up towards the wall of smoke and dust where their attacks collided and went off, his thoughts continuing to linger.
"If I had a choice, I'd ask to walk alongside you on your own path Kisarabi, for the rest of my life. But… since you proposed it first, then... it's a promise I can definitely keep…"
Panting where he knelt for several seconds, he grinned.
"I guess I won…"
However, just before he could do anything else, such as confirm his victory, there was a flash of a silhouette in front of him, and Naruto looked up in shock when he unexpectedly spotted Kisarabi appear out of thin air right in front of him, a smirk on her face and looking a little torn up by the attack.
The moment she appeared in front of him, she grabbed him by his face with her right hand and shoved him over, slamming him hard into the ground. Unable to defend himself, even if he tried, the blonde prepared for the worst as he looked up at the woman as she released her grip on him.
"She's complete unfazed," Naruto thought, his expression surprisingly calm. "… She's… going to kill me…"
He smiled inwardly, knowing he was going to get exactly what he deserved.
But, fortunately for him, the universe doesn't work that way.
What he got instead of an ass-kicking or a swift death was something he never expected to receive from the bounty hunter in a million years.
Straddling him, Kisarabi grabbed his jacket collar and pulled him towards her, before leaning over quickly and passionately kissing him on the lips, locking them in an intimate embrace. For what seemed like that eternity they spoke of, with Naruto's shock faltering to acceptance, they remained that way. It all ended though, when the woman relinquished her victim and smirked down at him, her amused glare still in play.
"Hey… Nightwalker-kun…" she exclaimed, a little too weakly from what Naruto was used to. "I… I'm… sorry. Heh… I'm going to have to break my promise…"
Naruto analyzed his taste buds for a moment, picking up the undeniable, tangy taste of copper.
He was more or less stunned when, while he was looking up at Kisarabi's face, he saw blood starting to leak out of the woman's mouth. The woman shared with him one final smile, before her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she passed out, rolling off of him in the process. It was only when she fell to her side the blonde was able to take in the extent of the damage his attack had inflicted upon his opponent.
The sight nearly broke him…
In spite of being far weaker then the woman herself, his attack wasn't. The woman's entire left arm had been torn off, quite literally gone, leaving but a stump, which was her shoulder, and was profusely leaking blood. Kisarabi was out like a light the moment the loss of bodily fluids, pain, and the sum total of damage she had received, hit her full on, leaving Naruto to crawl away from her momentarily in shock, before a strong will and heart forced him over to her aid, to see if he could help her.
However, his heart sunk when he checked her vitals…
…
Nothing…
TO BE CONTINUED…