Chapter Six
This is My Nindo! The Uchiha Will of Fire Ignites!
志
"I will protect those precious to me…that is my nindo…my ninja way!"
Ruby-cobalt eyes shone from beneath black bangs as Sasuke faced down Zabuza's water clone. The giant of a man laughed.
"You're a hundred years too early to defeat me, gaki. My Kubikiribocho will butcher you while your teammates watch helplessly!"
Sasuke (under the control of Zian, mind you) smirked confidently.
"To butcher me…you'll need to catch me."
In a flicker of movement, he disappeared, reappearing behind Zabuza.
"And I don't plan on making it easy for you."
Zabuza growled and swung Kubikiribocho. The huge silver blade crashed into the ground a half-second after Sasuke jumped up, lodging in the earth as the Uchiha heir dropped on top of it. Sasuke landed agilely on the spine of the sword, crouched like a cat about to spring. The muscles in his legs tensed, and he leapt up and away from Zabuza as the man hoisted his weapon once more. Performing a backflip (because he felt like it and because he could) as he soared away, Sasuke landed on his hand and handsprung back to his feet. His chest heaved with urgent breaths as he righted himself, watching his opponent warily as he, too, prepared for another attack.
Trust me, gaki. I got this.
Are you sure?
…I am over a thousand years old. If I couldn't beat a youngling such as this, even in this weak form, I would commit seppuku.
…Go to hell.
Already there. Seriously, you should consider growing a couple feet; this body is far too small for all of my magnificence.
I will kick you when we're done.
I love you too, gaki. Now shut up or I'll remove your larynx.
Sasuke closed his eyes, concentrating small amounts of chakra in his feet. Just as he was about to spring forward, a yell sounded from his right.
"Let our sensei go, 'ttebayo~! KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!"
Everyone looked on in shock as over three hundred copies of Naruto burst into being, in poofs of smoke much like Kakashi's infamous Shunshin technique. They screamed various battle cries as they hurtled towards Zabuza, who smirked and swung his huge sword twice.
All of the copies disintegrated, the damage taken being too much for their feeble forms to handle. Sasuke, who had looked away from Zabuza for a mere second while checking on Naruto's bruised, forehead-protector-less form, was suddenly alerted to the man's presence by the whisper of cloth across skin. A huge hand grabbed his neck, hoisting him up so that he could look Zabuza in the eyes. Needless to say, Sasuke (at five feet tall) ended up a full foot above the ground, with a calloused palm at his throat and fingers meeting at his spinal cord.
Yes, it was painful. And no, Sasuke wasn't a masochist.
GAKI!
Zian shouted as threads of invasive chakra leaking from the offending appendage currently suspending the Uchiha broke their connection.
He was alone.
And he was slowly losing access to air.
Sasuke could hold his breath for up to five minutes (ninja had to be prepared for everything, after all), but that was underwater, where the person choking you would have to come up for air sooner or later. This…this was different.
Zabuza's grip on him would asphyxiate him, if it didn't break his neck or crush his windpipe first.
"Urk…"
Sasuke's mouth lolled open as his body tried in vain to inhale, to receive its due supply of oxygen. His vision was already beginning to fade around the edges. He couldn't keep his eyes open. Just as he was about to give in to the reassuring darkness that lurked around him…a huge weight hit the side of Zabuza's face, whipping it to the left and knocking out a tooth. The man swore and dropped Sasuke, who gasped for air and looked over.
Sakura yanked at the chain of her kusarigama, drawing it back through the air towards her. Catching it with a practiced hand, she roared,
"No one hurts my teammates but me, dammit! Now, Naruto!"
Sasuke couldn't help the small smirk that tugged at the side of his mouth as Naruto came forth like a whipped dog, tail utterly between his legs as he beheld the kunoichi.
"H-hai, Sakura-chan!"
Naruto charged again, this time aiming for something at the giant's feet.
Of course. His hitai'ate.
Sasuke used the distraction to jump away, landing beside Sakura as he took a knee. Massaging his sore throat, the Uchiha looked up at his teammate, who grinned.
"You seriously thought we'd let you go without a fight? You're more of a bastard than I thought!"
Some part of Sasuke was offended by the stinging back half of the statement, but the majority was mostly rather touched by the sentiment behind it. The sentiment soon faded into annoyance, however.
They're not going to like it when I leave them behind to kill my brother.
You're an idiot, you know that?
Shut up, Zian. Wait, you're back.
Yeah. Hi. Now get back out there! Don't let blondie show us up, dattebayo~!
Never. Again.
Yeah…that didn't really work, did it? Charge!
Sasuke mentally rolled his eyes at the demon's antics and channeled a little chakra into his throat (to soothe the burning pain that was beginning to set in from having it crushed in the first place) before meeting Naruto's eyes as the blonde was thrown back through the air, the clones he'd made bursting. The blonde dug around in his backpack, shouting,
"Sasuke, CATCH!"
A black object flow through the air, and Sasuke caught it reflexively by the central ring. He didn't stop to admire Naruto's handiwork, though; with a flick of his wrist, Sasuke opened the shuriken like a folding fan, long, curved blades clicking into place as he announced,
"Demon Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows!"
Sasuke crouched (to get more force out of his muscles) and sprung high into the air with a chakra-fueled leap. Twisting, he used his body's kinetic energy to spin the immense shuriken (for Kami's sake, one of its blades was two feet long!) from his hand, giving it another flick just as the weapon left home. With a whistling hiss, the shuriken sliced through the air, aiming for Zabuza's real body but cutting through the clone in the process.
Zabuza jumped, keeping his hand in the water prison, avoiding the deadly blades only for another whoosh. Everyone looked up in shock as a second shuriken whirred towards Zabuza, who leaned to the side. And then one of the two shuriken turned into Naruto.
Sasuke and the copy Naruto shared a smirk as the original threw a handful of kunai at Zabuza, forcing him to break the jutsu holding Kakashi hostage in order to deflect them. Snarling, the man caught the other shuriken and, using it like a set of metal claws, slashed down at the blonde's falling form. A clang of metal and a cascade of sparks later, Naruto hit the water with Kakashi standing over him, the steel backing of his gloves blocking the shuriken's folded blades. He glared out at the other man from beneath soaked bangs, his Sharingan eye glowing menacingly in the shadows striping his face. The Hatake's arm was shaking, and small droplets of blood were beginning to spill out, but his voice remained firm, a wolf's husky growl of rage.
"I'll tell you as many times as it takes to sink in, Momochi."
Kakashi pushed up with his hand, flinging the shuriken back to Sasuke as he stepped back. Naruto, sensing the mood, jumped back to Tazuna, rejoining his teammates.
"I will protect my team…with my life."
Zabuza smirked beneath the bandages, creating an interesting pattern of rippling shadows across the lower half of his face.
"We'll see about that, Hatake Kakashi."
志
Both ninja, seeming to obey an invisible signal, jumped back and away from both each other and the shoreline, settling about twenty feet out and ten feet from each other.
Then, the hand signs began.
The four on the shore watched in awe at the speed with which both Zabuza and Kakashi moved their hands, weaving seals of power and focus. They performed the signs simultaneously, so perfectly that it almost looked like they were reading each other's minds.
"Ushi, Saru, Usagi, Nezumi, Ino, Tori, Ushi, Uma, Tori, Nezumi, Tora, Inu, Tora, Hebi, Ushi, Osuhitsuji, Hebi, Ino, Osuhitsuji, Nezumi, Yang-Sui, Saru, Tori, Tatsu, Tori, Ushi, Uma, Osuhitsuji, Tora, Hebi, Nezumi, Saru, Usagi, Ino, Tatsu, Osuhitsuji, Nezumi, Ushi, Saru, Tori, Yang-Sui, Nezumi, Ino, Tori! Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!"
The water beneath the two S-class ninja writhed as twin dragons, snake-like with glowing golden eyes and dripping horns, burst from the lake, twining in a helix before slamming into one another in an effort to reach the enemy. Zabuza's eyes narrowed, and both dragons roared one final time before dissipating into nothing.
"You're thinking I can read your mind, aren't you?"
"Hatake…you—"
"—couldn't possibly copy a jutsu that fast? I didn't. I saw your intent before you attacked and countered appropriately."
"A thousand—"
"—curses on me? My, my, Zabuza, you're especially vehement today. Shall I tell you what else this eye of mine can do?"
"It can't possibly—"
"—do anything else? Wrong again, Zabuza. This Sharingan…can see the future. And your future is death."
Kakashi used another series of hand signs, which Zabuza began a mere second too late.
"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!"
A huge swirl of liquid formed behind Kakashi, dwarfing him in size. He pushed his hands forward, the water following his movements, and towards Zabuza, who roared in outrage.
"YOU DARE TO USE MY OWN JUTSU AGAINST ME?!"
The last half of his sentence was garbled; the whirlpool had reached him and swept him into the lake as the clearing flooded. Sasuke raised his arms in a cross-block before his face as the waves reached them, threatening to sweep them off their feet. Naruto took the brunt of the blow, driven back into Sasuke by the force of the water. Sakura let out a small scream of shock as her cheongsam was soaked, clinging to her like a second skin. Tazuna yelled as he fell backwards, landing with a splash in a knee-deep puddle.
Zabuza, however, was thrown into a tree, pinned there by the force of the jutsu. Kakashi released the last of his chakra, stepping forward with a kunai in hand to finish the battle and end the missing ninja's life. Suddenly, the branches above the man rustled and a trio of black streaks soared from the brush.
Zabuza fell forward with three expertly-placed senbon embedded in the back of his neck. Kakashi knelt down, checking for a pulse.
"I…he's dead…"
Sasuke's eyes widened.
I…I can't believe it…he puts up such a fight and goes down because of a few needles? Something isn't right here…
"Arigatou gozaimasu, Kakashi-san."
An unfamiliar voice sounded from the tree, and a young figure, probably about the genin's age, leapt down to land with the grace of a heron. Sasuke couldn't tell gender; the voice was rather feminine, but with a husky undertone, the hair was long (but that alone didn't prove anything), and the clothes didn't show anything to help with gender identification. He eventually decided to just go with female.
She had long, black hair in a white bun holder with chin length bangs bound with silver. A white mask with slit eyes and red swirls covered her face, the Kirigakure emblem etched proudly into the pristine porcelain. She wore Kirigakure's standard pinstriped outfit, which stopped at her knees. She also had a green haori with white trim and a fringed brown sash wrapped twice around her thin waist. Brown platoon sandals adorned her feet, and her finger and toenails were painted green-blue in color.
"Who are you?"
"I am one of Kirigakure's hunter-nin. This man was my target. I thank you for your assistance in taking him down. I'll be taking his body back to Kiri for jutsu analysis. Good day."
"Oi, oi, matte, 'ttebayo!"
The girl leapt down, hoisting the fallen man over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Then, she jumped back into the trees, soaring away in a matter of seconds and leaving four dumbfounded people and a Jounin sensei, who said, rather feebly,
"Well…that went well…"
And fainted. Thankfully, Naruto and Sasuke were fast enough to catch the man and save him from breaking his face. Sakura rushed over as Tazuna picked himself up rather gingerly and her teammates laid their sensei down. Her hands glowed with a basic medical ninjutsu, one used for diagnosing injuries and healing minor cuts and bruises. The green light glittered deep in her eyes, turning them into perfectly spherical pearls of jade wisdom. Sasuke looked up from his study of Kakashi's face, or, more accurately, his scarred eye. Sakura sighed.
"Chakra exhaustion. I guess the Sharingan's power comes with a price."
"The price is higher than you'd imagine."
She looked at him rather quizzically, hands still glowing green.
"How do you know so much about the Sharingan? I mean, we never learned about it in the Academy and I'm pretty sure you can't find much information on doujutsu outside of school—"
"The Sharingan, along with the Blaze Release and Scorch Release styles of ninjutsu and Lion style of taijutsu, is the Kekkai Genkai of the Uchiha Clan. It's incredibly rare, and is only activated in the eyes of an Uchiha by extreme emotion. But it always activates in both eyes, and I've never heard of an Uchiha with silver hair…"
"What happened to the Uchiha Clan, anyway?"
Naruto broke into the conversation from the other side of the clearing. Sasuke looked down, struggling with himself.
Should I tell them? They'll pity me, and pity is a hindrance…but I can't hide it…what do I do?
Follow your heart, gaki. They're your teammates; tell them when you're most comfortable.
"I…Tch…"
Way to make it awkward, gaki.
Shut up, you.
Sasuke jerked his head to the side, eyes closed, speaking with a sneer.
"I'd rather not, thanks."
Sakura jerked back from him as if stung, sensing the new hostility in the air. Sasuke didn't know why, but her reaction almost…hurt? He scowled; his emotional walls were back in commission, and he wasn't letting anyone through without a fight, dammit!
Sakura looked down, saying softly,
"Of course. I don't blame you."
"But what—"
"He'll tell us when he feels it's time, Naruto. Don't pester him about it."
He hated this; the pity, the care, the feeling that she was trying to prevent his emotional pain. Sasuke had lived in a cursed reality for five long years; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bring back the illusion of a perfect world, where love was returned and bonds were never broken. The genjutsu of his first eight years was shattered, along with the mirage of a brother he thought he'd known, by katana blade and kunai point. It had started to crack when he was seven—a year before the massacre—and he'd been attacked by a mononoke on his way home from the Academy. How a rogue had been allowed into the village, he didn't know; all he could recall from that day was the immense pain as his throat was ripped open by sharpened teeth of seething pestilence.
Though how she knew of the massacre was beyond him…adult civilians and shinobi alike knew of the event, but Sakura had been eight at the time. Her parents, civilians, wouldn't have told her…right? The only people in their age group (aside from her, of course) who knew were the clan heirs, who had a right to know…Naruto was living proof of that. His best guess was that she'd sensed something was wrong and investigated…
Then again, she'd always been curious.
Sasuke sighed inwardly, biting the inside of his lip to refrain from acting on his sudden urge to apologize. Zian laughed within the confines of his mind, the booms of sound like rapid, irregular gong strikes that rose and fell in pitch and volume.
"Wait…ano, Sasuke? Naruto?"
"Yeah, Sakura-chan?"
"…How're we gonna get Kakashi-sensei to Tazuna's house? 'Cuz he's kinda not gonna wake up anytime soon…"
Tazuna sighed.
"We're not too far away from it anyway. Come on; it's this way."
Sasuke threw his pack at Naruto, who caught it with a curse. The Uchiha silently deactivated his strength inhibitor (the runes had reactivated after Zian's control withdrew when Kakashi was freed), picking the Jounin up and throwing him over his shoulder. He made sure to tense his muscles (so it looked like he was struggling with the weight) and gradually deepen his breathing.
And so, Team Seven followed Tazuna from the clearing and into the woods, on their way to their final destination.
志
"Alright, set him down in here…are you sure you'll be OK? You don't look so good…"
"It's…hah…fine…ugh…"
Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami, frowned worriedly at Sasuke. He'd re-engaged the strength-limiters (as he wasn't acting tired enough) and promptly died of immense stress on his muscles. Lugging a hundred-forty-pound Jounin through the woods and up two flight of stairs was no picnic.
Ugh…I'm gonna feel this in the morning.
Sasuke dumped (quite literally) Kakashi on the futon Tsunami had provided, stopping to half-heartedly pull the blankets over the man's body. The rest, he theorized, they could deal with later. Stumbling slightly down the stairs (the aches were already kicking in, and he couldn't activate his healing runes for fear of revealing himself. They'd heal by midmorning the next day), Sasuke limped into the kitchen, sliding into one of the heavy wooden chairs situated around the rectangular dining table. Naruto snickered.
"Keheheheheh…teme's sooooore!"
"Shut. Up. Naruto."
The blonde's eyes widened. Sasuke never called him by his real name. Like, ever. He looked over to see a full-blown Uchiha glare, nothing like the watered-down versions he'd been subject to over the past several months of antagonizing the teen.
Sasuke's eyes seemed to shift to a dull red, pupils contracting into a wolf-like stare. His eyes widened slightly before narrowing as a soundless snarl curved the Uchiha's mouth, showing sharper-than-normal canine teeth. Gleaming eyes shone sinisterly with killer's intent, and Sasuke stared Naruto down.
The blonde shivered as a powerful wave of KI washed over him, feral and uncontrollable. Then, he grinned. Nervously.
"Heh…nice teme…"
Sasuke snapped and lunged over the table for Naruto, grabbing him by the throat and flipping the table over as they crashed to the floor. Naruto was busy hitting Sasuke with a broken piece of chair, while Sasuke growled and snarled like an angry tiger.
"DOWN, TEME! DOWN! BAD TEME!"
Sakura, Tsunami, and Tazuna sweatdropped at the sight. The pink-haired kunoichi sighed and looked over to the older woman, whose dark brown hair was bound in a ponytail. Tsunami was fiddling with the straps of her white apron, tightening them around her waist.
"Can I help cook dinner? After I break these two apart, of course."
"Sure! I'd be happy for your help!"
The two shared a smile before Tsunami walked back into the kitchen and Sakura looked back to her teammates. Unsealing her kusarigama (which had previously been stored in a sealing paper in her weapons pouch, courtesy of her father), Sakura used the chain weight to wrap around Sasuke, pulling him away from Naruto with a flick of the wrist, while throwing the scythe at Naruto, hitting him in the stomach with the blunt end (where the blade attached to the handle). The blonde grunted and rolled back, colliding with the wall, as the ravenette was chucked across the room bound in heavy chains.
"I cannot BELIEVE you two! Kakashi-sensei is out of commission, we're on a mission of AT LEAST A-rank, and you're bickering like small children! Sasuke, I expected more out of you. You're the heir to the (random convenient pan-drop from kitchen) Uchiha Clan, for Kami's sake! (Pan-drop) Uchiha! You mother(pan-drop) (another pan-drop)! My Kami! And as for YOU, Naruto, you (pan-drop) son of a (pan-drop)…you should know better than to goad Sasuke! Kami-sama save me from these (pan-drop. Clumsy Tsunami, you should really hold on to your kitchenware!)!"
Sakura panted, out of breath from her rant. Sasuke, Naruto, Tazuna, and Tsunami (who'd poked her head out the kitchen door to watch) stared in amazement. She had some serious lung power! Sasuke, still tangled in the kusarigama's chains, flexed his fingers to return feeling to them; the bindings were steadily tightening, and he really couldn't breathe. Like, at all.
"S-sakura…"
"Hm?"
"Chains."
"Oh. Right. Sorry. Kinda forgot."
Sasuke bristled as he was released and Sakura resealed her weapon to return to the kitchen. Meanwhile, he, Naruto, and Tazuna righted the table, sat down, and began to plot, using Naruto's prank skills, Sasuke's intellect, and Tazuna's experience to draft a plan.
It would be risky, but if Team Seven pulled it off…it would save Wave Country.
志
~Tsuzuku~
A/N: Dear Kami. I hate myself right now; there I was, saying, "Oh, I'll update on the 5th of May!" and here I am, several weeks late, without a double chapter to make things right again. However, life has interfered once more; track meets, soliloquys (curse you Queen Mab speech!), T-shirts, end-of-year projects, grades, a new kitten…seriously. Add to that a huge case of writer's block and you have KBA for the past three or so weeks! But, you all have one person to thank for this chapter: my best friend, fellow writer, and inspiration EmoOtakuTDCT.
TDCT-chan has been there since the planning phases of Blood Moon Saga (literally; she was (and still is!) my idea soundboard for different plot twists/events), and adds her critiques to my ideas for new chapters. Without her, this story would suck a lot more than it does (or doesn't; I really don't know anymore). But anyway; she's an amazing friend, writer, artist, and person, and I really couldn't have done it without her. So, if/when you read this, TDCT-chan…you're freaking Itachilicious. Keep being yourself ('cuz awesome has long since ceased to describe you)!
Itachi: Itachilicious?
KBA: Adjective. 1. Comparable to the level of awesome possessed by one Uchiha Itachi. 2. Sharing qualities or traits with Uchiha Itachi. 3. Being so badass one dies not once but twice in a self-sacrificing manner for one's errant younger brother.
Sasuke: HEY~!
KBA: What? It's true.
Sasuke: But in the newest chapter of the manga—MPH!
Itachi: *covering Sasuke's mouth* Hush, child. No spoilers.
Sasuke: Mmmhmmmphphmmhmhmhmhnn!
KBA:…what?
Itachi: He's asking who's doing the intro to the next chapter.
KBA: Ohhh…well, YOU CAN COME IN NOW~!
Voice from Outside: Oh…o-okay…
*door opens*
Sasuke: Mhmhmhmhnnmphhmhmhmn!
KBA: Translation?
Itachi: He says it's, quote, 'the Hyuuga chick from my Academy class,' unquote.
Hinata:…H-hello…
KBA: *smiles* Alright, take it away, Hinata-chan!
Hinata: Oh…my…*Announcer-Voice-Style: Stuttering-no-Jutsu!* O-our young h-h-hero forms a p-plan…but will K-k-kak-kashi-sensei wake up in t-t-time? J-join us n-n-next time for: H-hope Long L-lost! T-team Seven, M-meet Inari! *turns red and faints; Itachi catches her*
KBA: Oh, dear…at least she made it through the intro…but I have two more surprises in store for you guys.
Itachi: *removes hand from Sasuke's mouth* Oh? And what would they be?
KBA: The first…is the inclusion of short omake after the page break notes at the end of each chapter, starting next time!
Itachi and Sasuke: *look at each other*
KBA: *whispers* Act. Surprised!
Itachi and Sasuke: *overly dramatic gasps of delight*
KBA: The second…is the arrival of EmoOtakuTDCT in our Author's Notes dialogues from next chapter on!
Itachi and Sasuke: *more gasping; Sasuke fake-swoons and falls down, hitting his head*
Sasuke: ITAI~!
Itachi: What was that for?
Sasuke: You were supposed to catch me, you (random birdcall from outside) OH GOD NOT THE (birdcall) BIRDS AGAIN~!
Itachi: Never underestimate the power of Authoress Style: Plot no Jutsu.
KBA: Hear, hear!
This chapter's page break is zhi, or will.