Chapter 6: Return of the Yo-Yo Master! Feelings Surfaced.
(Open Field)
Surrounded. That could best explain how the remaining 11 felt when Neji and Raven took off. The 300 mercenaries were smart enough to surround them, and they formed a circle, with Shikamaru in the middle, in his thinking pose.
"Okay Genius. If you have a plan, now would be a great time to enlighten us!" Naruto said, a vein appearing on Shikamaru's head. "Shut up, you troublesome bastard! I've got a plan." Shikamaru said, and cleared his throat.
"If we want to beat them effectively, we're going to split into teams of two. Naruto and Chouji will watch each other's back. Sasuke and Kiba will do the same. Sakura and Hinata, don't fight unless necessary. You're both our only Medic Nins. Shino, you and Lee will guard me while I use my Shadow Possession Jutsu to stop anyone in range, and take them out. Blade, I'm trusting you with Ino." Shikamaru had given his commands. Everyone nodded, but one nin was confused by the choices.
"Why do I guard Ino? You guys have only know me for a couple of hours at best." Blade said, unsheathing his blade, which he was smart enough to keep with him at all times. "Who knows? If your as smart as you are when you played chess against me, then I trust that you will keep her alive." Shikamaru said, giving him a lazy smile. Blade smirked back, and they all charged.
(Cabin Area in the Forest)
Raven put the wooden Katana on his back, and held that stance while Cole created a chakra ball. Cole finished, and kicked the ball like a soccer ball. Raven dodged the attack, and charged. Cole tried a roundhouse kick, but Raven blocked it with his free hand, and used his blade to smash Cole in the head.
Cole flew back, but he caught himself, and created another ball, and juggled it with his feet. Raven charged, and ducked to avoid the kick, which hit Moon, and released his chakra strings, and released Hunter, who grabbed his bow. Moon cursed, and took the time dodging chakra arrows to retrieve his two yo-yos.
"Damn it Raven!" Moon said, getting his weapon ready, and tossing them to make sure they were working. Smirking that they worked perfectly, he called them back, and got ready. "Twin Snake Bites!" Moon said, shooting his yo-yos at Hunter, who dodged both of them and shot a few more arrows, and one at Raven.
Raven knocked it away, and threw 8 shuriken at him. Hunter jumped to dodged them, but Moon caught them easily. He tied them to some extra chakra strings, and now he held a string on each finger. Hunter sweat dropped.
Moon had 8 shuriken and 2 yo-yos and was wielding them like weapons. He was launching them and pulling them back with such skill that he wondered how he wasn't stabbing himself. Raven thought the same thing, but he was too preoccupied to figure it out.
Neji knew how he was doing it, but he was too preoccupied with figuring out how to fight a little girl. Now understand. Neji isn't a punk. He, like all guys with hearts, (no matter how cold and small) couldn't figure out the right way to beat up a girl.
Neji was dodging attacks from her, and beating the hell out of the tigers and other animals she summoned, but has yet to physically strike her. Now Neji, oddly enough, would beat the hell out of Temari or any of his other friends that were girls if he had no choice. But he couldn't find it in his heart to beat down a mere little girl with the power to summon beasts.
Does that make Neji a wimp? No. Does it make him any less of a man? No. He's only human. Any normal man, including this crazy psychotic author right here, would have moral conflicts about hitting a little girl.
If you didn't then you are a heartless bastard who will probably only get laid by raping someone. But that's my opinion, and I've officially jumped off the subject! Back to Neji!
Neji was figuring a way to do this without feeling serious guilt, and he came to one idea. He would swiftly knock her out with a well placed chop to the back of the head. With that idea, he did a clone jutsu, and charged her upfront.
She smirked at his stupidity for thinking he could defeat her that easily, but she then felt like her world was going dark. Karina looked behind her, and there was Neji. He dealt her a chop right to the back of the head, effectively knocking her out. Neji took that time to catch his breath, and prepared to help Raven and Coin.
(With the other 11)
Blade jumped into the air, and released his Sky Dragon, letting it roam and defeat mercenaries, while Ino was hanging onto his back, having used Mind Transfer. "Damn woman! I didn't think your body went limp after you used an attack." Blade said out loud, and cut through another 10 people, not killing them.
Ino, in another mercenaries body, knocking them out, but doing it in such a way as to not look suspicious. Blade landed, and ducked when another one got near him, but Sasuke cut him down, and Kiba flew by with his Twin Piercing Fang, nearly hitting Blade in the process.
"HEY!! Watch it Mutt!" Blade screamed, kicking another merc. Kiba stopped, and glared back with white eyes. "WHAT WAS THAT!?!?" Kiba screamed back. "Hey, knock it off!" Shikamaru screamed, stopping mercs with his Shadow Possession, and letting Lee and Shino take them out after he releases the jutsu.
"RAINING NARUTO!!!" Naruto screamed, and 50 Shadow Clones fell, taking various mercs out. "Stupid dobe, you don't announce your attack!" Sasuke said, cutting down another merc. "Shut it teme!" Naruto said. "You're too loud. Shut up." Sasuke said, and Naruto glared at him with white eyes.
"You want to fight here and now?" Naruto asked, and Sasuke smirked at him. But before anything could happen, Sakura walked up and bopped them both. "NOW'S NOT THE TIME!!!" Sakura screamed, and Naruto whimpered, while Sasuke glared at her.
She glared back, and Sasuke turned to look away, not that it means that he's scared of her. He knows her inhuman strength could kill him at any moment, and he's no idiot. "Sakura's right. Fight after we get Tenten and help Raven and Neji!" Blade said, saving Ino from getting hit. "They figured you out Ino!" Shikamaru screamed.
Ino nodded, and muttered release, and was sent back to her body before they cut her victim down. When she returned, she noticed she was high in the air, riding on Blade's back. "Don't let go. I jumped high enough to keep them from touching me." Blade said, and Ino held on for dear life, ignoring the feeling that her face turned slightly red.
(With Raven)
"Hey Moon, stop blindly throwing the damn yo-yos! You nearly hit me!" Raven said, landing next to Moon, who glanced at him. "Sorry." Moon said, shrugging. "You know Neji! You're free to help us whenever your ready!" Raven said, and Neji smirked at him.
"Nah, you're both doing fine without me." Neji said, leaning on a tree. Raven was about to say something, but a chakra ball nearly took his head off. Raven charged at both nin, but before he got near them, he jumped, and chakra strings shot out and ensnared both Cole and Hunter. R
aven smirked at them, and laughed. "Ha! You think you're so tough, but we beat you without breaking a sweat!" Raven said. "Okay, I got Tenten, let's get out of here." Neji said, and both Raven and Coin had o.O looks. "When did you leave?" Moon asked. "Does it matter? We got her, let's go." Neji said, and then he noticed the gleam in Raven's eye.
"You want to explain why you are holding her butt?" Raven asked, and Neji glared and blushed at the same time. "I am doing no such thing!!" Neji said, and Moon caught on to what Raven was doing. "Wow Neji, I didn't peg you as the kind of person to grope unconscious girls!" Moon said, and they both jumped away when Neji began shooting Empty Palms at them.
They stopped playing around when they all felt a serious amount of chakra, and Hunter, Cole, and Karina were shaking from the sheer amount of chakra. The three nin felt like their bodies were not responding to their brains signals to move. "Ku ku ku ku. It seems like there was something happening here." A voice that would haunt their memories forever said.
Raven and Moon were on guard, but they saw that Neji was looking really scared. This must be serious. Raven knew that Neji's poker face was perfected, and to see him so worried had Raven on guard. What they saw next sent a shiver down their spines. Yellow eyes. Greyish skin, and a tongue that was like a snakes. Raven and Coin found a new person to fear besides Krad.
(With Naruto and the gang)
300 people defeated. The 11 nin had done it, with as few injuries as possible, beside being tired. "That was pretty rough." Blade said, sweat dropping as to how Naruto looked like he could continue fighting for the rest of the day. Lee though, looked like he wasn't even tired. Blade was about to question them about it, but an Ice Mirror appeared out of nowhere, and Neji shot out, holding Tenten.
"Neji?" Naruto asked. They noticed right away that Neji looked slightly fearful. "Where's Raven?" Blade asked. "…" Neji didn't answer, and Blade grabbed his shirt. "Where the hell is Raven!?" Blade screamed. "…He's stalling. Orochimaru is alive." Neji said, and they all had scared looks on their faces.
"What the hell possessed you to leave him back there!?" Blade screamed, before Neji glared back. "I had no say! He pushed me through the mirror!" Neji screamed. Blade looked shocked, while Neji pushed Tenten into his arms. "Now, make sure she's safe, so I can get that idiot and knock some sense into him." Neji said, taking off back for where Raven was.
They all looked at each other, before Blade made a Shadow Clone and gave it to Tenten. Giving an unspoken command, the clone nodded, and took off to the Border Village. "I'm going to save them. I know Raven can't handle Orochimaru on his own, and if it really is him, Raven will surely die! If your with me, let's go!" Blade said, taking off. They all nodded to themselves before they followed.
(With Raven)
"You know, I wasn't here for the girl. I'm here to gauge the skills of the American Death Gods. That and I want to kill the Hokage in the Border Village, so you two are in the way." Orochimaru said, smirking. Raven and Coin were quiet, but they were scared to death. "…Moon, it's time for a new Rank S+ Mission. Our job is to distract him until Neji gets to the Border Village to warn the Hokage." Raven said, and Moon glanced at him.
"Well, looks like it we can't even pray that we'll win. So this way, the Hokage is safe, and Blade takes over in the fight against Krad." Raven said cheerfully. He looked over, and saw Moon's somber mood. "Hey, we may die, but we are preventing the Old Bat from dying. Now, if your game, then let's fight!" Raven said, releasing the chakra he had, and his aura became snow white.
He gave Orochimaru a stern look with his Frosty Eye. Then, Moon made a seal, and Sun appeared next to Moon. "So we're game?" Sun asked. "Of course! We're Coin of the Ying-Yang! We're Death Gods! We may die, but we aren't going to run away!" Moon said, and gave Sun the white yo-yo.
"You going to fight Sun?" Raven asked. "Of course! Me and Moon both agree with this choice. We're fighting hard!" Sun said, and Raven reached his full power, his hair had streaks of white. (Hey Fang? If I die, do you die also?) Raven asked. "Yeah, but if we die, we die defending our friends. I have no particular regrets." Fang said, and Raven smiled.
"Okay Orochimaru, let's play!" Raven said, and his chakra soared powerfully, causing Orochimaru to raise an eye. "Hmm. Such power coming from you two. I guess I have to work a little harder than I thought." Orochimaru said, and his eyes turned from those yellow to blood red, and all three nin felt a serious chill.
(His eyes. They turned red? That's bad.) Sun thought to himself. "Raven, Sun, try not to look into his eyes." Moon announced all of a sudden, and they both looked at him confused. "Trust me." They nodded, and charged at them Snake Sannin.
(With Neji)
Neji and Blade were ahead of the other nins when they were going back for Raven. They were near, when they heard a blood chilling scream. "RAVEN!!!" Neji and Blade said, worried about their friend. When they arrived, Blade felt like his heart had stopped.
Raven was on his back, and Sun was trying to wake him up. Moon had his back on a tree, unconscious. "What happened!?" Blade asked. "Blade!? You're here!! I didn't know you survived! Raven, I can't explain it!" Sun said, sounding hysterical. "What?" Blade asked.
"That guy. His eyes turned red, and we couldn't touch him. After he knocked Moon out, he said something like Tsukiyomi, and Raven fell to the ground. I can't wake him, and his pulse is dying." Sun said. Everyone's eyes widened. Sasuke growled, and he activated Sharingan. "His eyes looked like his!" Sun said, pointing at Sasuke.
"Does that mean…" Naruto let the question hang in the air, and Sasuke finished. "He got Itachi, and he stole his eyes." Sasuke said, and everyone had scared looks. Blade got himself together the quickest, and picked Raven up and tossed him to Lee. "Lee! Take your weights off, and run as fast as you can to the Hokage. Tell her Orochimaru is back, and that Raven has been exposed to the Mangekyo Sharingan! NOW!!!" Blade commanded, and Lee saluted, and took off.
"Hinata, Sakura, make sure that boy on the tree is alive and okay. When he's awake, we head back to the Border Village." Shikamaru said. Sun sighed, and sat next to Moon, their souls fusing back into one. Everyone had 'WHAT!?!?!?' looks, and Moon regained his consciousness.
"Huh? Where's Raven?" Moon asked. (He was taken back to a village. I wonder if he'll live.) Sun replied to him. He rubbed the back of his head, and noticed everyone staring at him. "Who are you people?" Moon asked, and Blade smirked at him. "Don't worry, they're friends." Blade said. Moon sighed, and slowly got up.
"Okay. I guess an introduction is in order. I'm Coin of the Ying-Yang! Death God. In this form, I'm known as Moon. The other boy with white hair is named Sun. We are one in the same, but different. Like two sides of a coin." Moon explained, and yawned.
"Now, I'm hungry, and these woods are not somewhere I'd like to sleep if I can help it!" Moon said, scratching the back of his head, while everyone sweat dropped. "You know, you Death Gods are weird." Shino said, and everyone sweat dropped again. Shino saw their weird looks, and shrugged.
"WOAH!!! Shino spoke!?!?!" Kiba screamed, and Moon sweat dropped. "Is that bad? He's not usually mute is he?" Moon asked, and Neji sighed. "We'll worry about that later! Now we have to make sure Raven lives." Neji said, and everyone nodded their agreement.
(Border Village: Hokage's Quarters)
Tsunade was crashing in her room, sleeping after drinking some of her sake. She was greatly pleased that she was away from her annoying pile of never ending paperwork. "I don't see how the past Hokage's could handle all that. If it wasn't for my special friend, then I may have gone insane." Tsunade said to herself, smiling.
Her door then shot open, and Lee was standing there, Raven hanging onto his back. "Lee!?!? Why the hell are you here!?" Tsunade said, glaring at him. "Orochimaru." That's all it took for Tsunade to give him his full attention. "He's still alive, and he may have taken Itachi Uchiha's eyes. Raven's comrade remembers hearing him say Tsukiyomi before Raven fell unconscious." Lee said, and Tsunade jumped up. "Hand him to me! I'll do what I can!" Tsunade said, taking Raven, and rushing to the hospital. Lee followed her there.
(Hospital)
Everyone arrived before dawn, and were relieved that Tsunade managed to save Raven's mind, and his life. But he was in a coma, and there was a chance he would remain in a vegetative state. Blade's eyes were covered by shadows, and Sun (they switched personalities before they arrived.) sighed.
"No problem. Raven will wake up. Speaking, why is his hair shorter?" Sun asked. "Run in with some Cloud nin." Blade said plainly, and Sun gave a silent 'oh' "So, you got a place to stay at Coin?" Blade asked. "No." Sun replied.
"Good, you can crash with me and Scarecrow then!" Blade said. Sun smiled and nodded. "Okay Coin was it? What happened at the fight between you and Orochimaru." Tsunade asked. Sun held a somber look, before he sighed. "It went down like this…"
Flashback:
Raven, Sun and Moon charged the Snake Sannin, whose Sharingan pretty much made them look like they were walking to him. Raven brought his blade up to strike him, but Orochimaru sidestepped it easily, and kicked him in the gut.
"Summoning Jutsu!" Orochimaru said, and a giant snake appeared. "What do you want?" Manda asked, peeved. "Kill those brats. Oh, and those three over there will be your immediate payment." Orochimaru said, and Manda wasted no time to eat them up.
Raven was sick. Sure he was enemies with them, but the Shadow Members were always so honorable about their battles. "You won't live long, Orochimaru!" Raven said, charging at Orochimaru, but Manda brought himself towards Raven, in an attempt to eat him.
Moon and Sun intercepted him by throwing their yo-yos, and hitting him in the head. Manda growled, and tried to eat them, but Raven jumped in front of him, and brought his sword down, and hit Manda hard. Manda flew back, and his head ran into some trees. Orochimaru raised an eyebrow at this.
(Hmm. He must be pretty strong to knock Manda around like that.) Orochimaru thought to himself. When the giant snake summon disappeared after a well aimed Lightning Gun Beam to the eyes killed it, he decided that he was done toying with them.
One can't rebuild a village with only 10 Sound nin. Yeah, all that was left of Sound was Kabuto, Zaku, Kin, Dosu, Kidoumaru, Sakon & Ukon, Kimimaro, Jiroubou, Tayuya, and he himself made what he dubbed the Sound Final 10. It could have been 11, but Sasuke betrayed him, and almost stole his life. He would get revenge on him, but for now, he had a village to make reborn, like the phoenix.
"Sorry boys, but I have work to do. An Otokage's work is never done. So I'll end it here." Orochimaru said, his smirk replaced with a look of mockery. Raven and Moon glared, and charged at him. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Raven, smirking. "Now, little Death God, you'll die now! TSUKIYOMI!!" Orochimaru said, and Raven was caught in his glance, his eyes glazing over.
Raven appeared in a world that was red and black, and time and space were not normal. "Welcome to my world, little Raven. Now, how will I deal with you. Oh, I know!" Orochimaru said, and Raven could feel the smirk he produced.
"How about this? For the next 72 hours, you will watch as your entire team is killed by your most hated enemy." Raven then opened his eyes, and saw Blade, hanging from a tree, blood all over his face, and gaping holes all around his body. Coin, both Sun and Moon, were laying limp on the ground, not moving, dead. Raven was losing his mind when he saw this.
And then, right before his eyes, they were alive, but Krad appeared, and killed them each brutally, and Raven was horrified. (There's nothing…I can do? no……no…..NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!) Raven screamed in his mind, and had tears welling up in his eyes.
He then brought his hand to his mouth, and lost the small lunch he had while at the party from earlier. He was on his knees, sweating like it was 120 degrees. "Pup! Don't listen! This isn't real!! ANSWER ME DAMNIT!!!" Fang screamed in Raven's mind, but he couldn't reach him. Raven watched as they were sliced open and killed by Krad. "Ku ku ku ku. Now, 71 hours 59 minutes left." Orochimaru said, and Raven screamed even louder.
Moon and Sun felt their blood run cold when they saw Raven scream like he was in extreme pain, and fall down, tears streaming from his eyes. Moon and Sun were scared. "You….you…you….YOU BASTARD!!!!" Moon screamed, and picked up the wooden katana Raven held and charged Orochimaru, only to be kicked into a few trees and knocked out.
"MOON!!" Sun screamed, and Orochimaru looked at him with an amused look. "Your friends are quite strong. But I have no time to mess with them now. I'll see you all in the near future." Orochimaru said, and disappeared into the shadows of the woods. After some time, Blade and the others appeared and found them the way they were.
End.
Tsunade sat in a chair, thinking over the fight that Sun had just explained. (So, My old teammate has somehow gotten his hands on Itachi's eyes. That's just great.) Tsunade thought to herself. "I'm tired, and this is getting pretty serious. So, since Raven's okay, I'm heading to bed." Blade said, walking away.
"You know, that annoying boy is actually really lucky. Anyone who is attacked by the Tsukiyomi and isn't a Uchiha should be dead. I wonder who he is." Tsunade said to herself. She decided that she needed to know of Raven's history. Because though he was from America, he looks like he could have been from this continent.
Blade walked for a few, lost in his thoughts, before he walked into Ino, who wasn't paying much attention either. He stumbled back, while she landed on her butt. "Hey! Watch where you-" Ino started before she realized she was talking to Blade, and looked down.
Blade didn't think much of her sudden silence, being used to it as an American nin. Well, until he saw her face tint with pink, he then actually paid attention. Confusion etched his face, before he reached a hand out.
"You okay?" He asked. He noticed her blush more, and shyly grab his hand. (…) Blade didn't know what to think of this. He lifted her off the ground, and he smiled at her. "Sorry, didn't watch where I was going." Blade said. She smiled back, a little shyly.
That sent a red flag to Blade. From what Shikamaru told him about Ino, she was loud, brash, and headstrong, like Raven. So her acting similar to Hinata sent some kind of warning to his mind. "Umm, you okay Ino?" Blade asked, feeling a little off. Ino shook her head, willing her blush away, and smiled at him.
"Yeah. Just a little out of it." She said, rubbing her arm. Blade didn't know what to do, so he decided that being nice was the best way. "Well, I was heading back to sleep after I got some ramen. You want to come?" He asked. Ino nodded at him, and they began walking.
Somewhere along the way, Ino wrapped her arm around Blade's arm and rested her head on his shoulder, saying that it was cold. Blade's face turned an interesting shade of red and he looked into the opposite direction. Now, sure he felt a little uneasy, but notice that he never once told her to let go, or ask why she did that. He merely went with the flow. Or in his case, what his heart was saying.
(Somewhere in the Village)
Neji sighed. He didn't think that Orochimaru would be back, and he really didn't expect Raven to take him on by himself just to save Tenten. He would have to beat his reckless friend later on. For now, an hour of meditation seemed to fit his plans easily. But there was always one thing that stuck in his mind.
Why did he agree to help Raven save Tenten. She was nothing more than a teammate, right? His mind was saying that he had no other choice, but his heart, that was telling him something else.
(It's saying you have something for her!) Neji looked around, and thought he was losing his mind. He then looked to his shoulder, and there was himself, in what looked like angel robes, with a halo included. (You care more for her than you do for anyone else.) Little Angel Neji said, and Neji's eyes widened, at least, till another little person appeared on his other shoulder.
(I say you go and have your way with her. She is HOT!!! SCREW HER!! SCREW HER!!!) Little Devil Neji chanted. Neji and Angel Neji both had O.O looks, which was hard to believe since it's Neji were talking about.
His explanation: "Holy shit…I'm never eating anymore instant ramen." Neji said to himself, walking off like nothing happened, though he thought his mind was slowly disintegrating. Both mini-Neji's merely looked on, and the angel glared at the devil. (Nice job! You've probably messed up his mind now!) Angel said. (I can't help it! I'm his irrational thoughts, like you are his conscious.) Devil said before they both disappeared.
(Sunconscious of Raven)
Night came, people slept, but one nin was in his subconscious, hearing an little bit of info from a friend. "Pup, right now, there's something inside you. Something that is trying with all it's might to escape. I think it has to do with your parents. Your blood seemed more boiled after Orochimaru appeared. I have a hunch about your past, but in order to resurface it, you need to face it." Fang said, and Raven nodded.
"Good." Fang said pulling out one of his fangs, which then turned into a blade. Raven noticed that he had both of his blades, and he unsheathed them. "Now, come at me with everything you have." Fang said. Raven smirked, and charged with his twin Kodachis.
(Real World)
In the morning, Blade had decided to sleep in. It was a Friday, classes were called off, and he didn't feel like getting up early, and was tired. Sadly, it didn't stop Kakashi from forcing him awake by summoning his nin dogs.
Their barking and yipping woke Blade up, who glared evilly at Kakashi. "Morning. Today we're going to hang out for a while." Kakashi said, and Blade decided that enough was enough. (You had better hope I don't find that hot chick Raven pointed out earlier. I'm going to make sure Kakashi gets to meet her!) Blade thought to himself, smirking evilly.
From the aura that Blade was emitting, Kakashi could tell that something interesting was going to happen today. (Okay Blade, let's see what you do.) Kakashi thought to himself.
ShadowRonin: Yep, that's that. Something big is going to happen, Raven is discovering his past, and Blade and Kakashi are hanging out. Sounds like some things are going down.
Raven: How long am I going to be out?
ShadowRonin: Who knows. You'll wake when you wake.
Blade: What about me? I don't want to be hanging out with that pervert!
ShadowRonin and Raven: Really?
Blade: What's with those looks!?
ShadowRonin: If you want to know, wait till I update! You'll regret questioning my motives!
Raven and Blade: (Sweatdrop) O...kay...
ShadowRonin: Read and Review!