SONIC HEROES: THE SERIES
Disclaimer: I don't own Sonic or Naruto. Tomo belongs to Kiba Sniper.
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Sibling Rivalry, Part 2
Espio was standing on the ceiling, too much in shock to move. Down below him was his sister, whom he believed to be dead. Tomo was seventeen, a little taller, and still had shoulder length purple hair. She wore grey slacks with black tiger stripes, red sleeveless shirt, grey boots with black straps, a grey vest, white goves with compartments, and a katana straped to her back. She wore her leaf headband around her neck, but with a large scratch cutting across it, signifying her defect from the village. Taking advantage of Espio's stunned state; Tomo performed a series seals.
"Wind Style: Pressure Damage Jutsu!" Tomo shouted.
Tomo sucked in her breath and released it in the form of a black wind. Espio dropped down to the floor just in time. If the attack had hit, Espio would be sent lying with most of the roof. Espio tried to perform his own seals, but Tomo pulled back to trip her brother with the hidden wire. Espio sat up; But Tomo already held her katana to his head.
"That technique..." Espio murmured. "Such a jutsu hasn't been seen for over twenty years. Where did you learn it? And how are you even alive? You were found dead."
"Now there's an interesting story all in itself." Tomo said unusually happy. "But I mostly owe it to my teacher, Kakuzu."
"Kakuzu? Of the Akatsuki?" Espio questioned.
"The very one." Tomo said.
"Then the black flames were..."
"Itachi's Amateratsu." Tomo grinned. "I'll tell you, faking my death wasn't easy. The difficult part was finding and killing someone with a similar body structure to mine. But then I remembered our family in the west. Kakuzu took care of the rest."
"That would explain where you got the horn for the gas." Espio confirmed. "But I can't believe you, the pride of the entire chameleon clan, would ally yourself with the likes of the Akatsuki."
"Ally is such a strong word." Tomo said; resting her katana on her shoulder. "I prefer the term temporary friendship."
"But why would you join with them in the first place?" Espio asked; quietly reaching for his cuffs to grab a kunai.
Unfortunately, Tomo saw this. Tomo gripped her katana and rammed it into her brother's skull. But the katana soon found itself in the side of one of the scrolls. Clearly, Espio had performed a substitution to escape. Tomo flipped backwards as Espio dived at her from behind. Espio tired to spin around, but Tomo gripped him by his arm and twisted it behind his back. For extra measures, she held her katana to his neck.
"Now that wasn't very nice." Tomo joked. "Trying to backstab your own sister."
"Why are you doing this?" Espio seethed. "Why would you join the Akatsuki just to steal a scroll from the Hokage?"
"Revenge." Tomo hissed.
"Revenge?" Espio mimicked.
"I did not kill our family, join a group of criminals, and kill nearly everyone here just for a rolled up piece of paper." Tomo said with a harsh sting in her voice. "I came here for one reason: you."
"Me?" Espio asked quizzically.
"I want to pay you back for what you did to me." Tomo sneered.
"And what exactly would that be?" Espio said calmly.
"You ruined everything for me!" Tomo exclaimed. "I was supposed to be Kakashi's student! Not you!" Tomo slowly started to calm. "I'll never forget the humiliation you brought me all those years ago."
---Flashback---
A ten-year old Tomo and nine-year old Espio were standing in a clearing in the forest outside the village. Espio was smiling proudly at the leaf headband around his neck that he had just received hours ago. Finally, he was on his way to becoming a successful ninja. Both siblings were asked by their parents to wait for a friend of their father's. Apparently, this ninja was assigned to act as a private teacher for the chameleons. Tomo didn't see why since she was close to becoming a Chuunin, but she didn't ask questions. Over three hours had passed and the ninja was nowhere in sight. Tomo was meditating on the grass and Espio was half asleep. Finally, the teacher arrived.
"Yo." Kakashi said casually.
"You're late!" Tomo screamed, snapping Espio awake.
"Sorry. I got lost on the road of life." Kakashi lied...badly.
"Liar!" Tomo screamed.
"She's right you know." Espio stated. "You made us wait for three hours."
"I already explained myself." Kakashi said; his nose buried in his book. "I'm only her because your father is my friend. Now, let's begin with the introductions. Just tell me you names, likes, dislikes, hobbies, and dreams for the future."
"Why don't you go first?" Espio asked.
"All right. My name is Kakashi Hatake..."
"The famous mirror ninja?" Tomo asked in shock.
"That's me." Kakashi grinned under his mask.
"Learning from the famous Kakashi." Tomo grinned deviously. "This might not be a waste after all."
"You next, girl." Kakashi motioned.
"My name is Tomo the Chameleon." Tomo began. "I like learning new jutsu's and my brother." Espio smiled at that. "I dislike failure. My hobbies are training. And my dream is to become head of the ANBU Black Ops."
"That's a very ambitious dream." Kakashi said. "You're next, boy."
"My name is Espio the Chameleon." Espio began. "I like my family, especially my sister. I dislike people who mistreat others. My hobbies are training with my sister. And my dream is to become a ninja equal to the legendary Sannin."
"They both have high hopes. This could be interesting." Kakashi thought. "All right, it's time to get things started. But first, I feel that I must warn you. After this, one of you will be sent beck."
"What do you mean?" Espio asked.
"I mean...I can only train one of you." Kakashi said lazily.
"WHAT?!" The siblings screeched.
"I was assigned to put you both to the test and find if you are worth teaching." Kakashi explained. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver bell. "It's really quiet simple. All you have to do is catch this bell. Whoever does becomes my student."
Kakashi tied the bell to the side of his belt. When he turned back to the chameleon sibling with a somewhat confused expression. Espio appeared to be shaken, while Tomo gave a dark glare towards the white haired man. It was the kind of glare he had only seen in the Uchiha prodigy, Itachi. Kakashi had heard rumors about Tomo's advancement and pocketed his book.
"There's no way I can win." Espio thought.
"There's no way I can lose." Tomo thought.
"Shall we begin." Kakashi said casually.
Tomo swiftly snatched a number of shuriken and kunai from her back and threw them at Kakashi. The Jounin moved to the side and skid to a halt to threw his own kunai. Tomo ducked down to avoid it, only to find that Kakashi hand thrown a second kunai where she couldn't avoid. Seeing this, Espio quickly pushed his sister out of the way.
"You ok?" Espio asked.
"Just fine." Tomo grits her teeth.
"If that's the best you got, then you should just go home, loser." Kakashi taunted.
"Don't talk about my sister like that!" Espio exclaimed.
Espio pulled out his kunai and charged at the jounin. Meanwhile, Tomo retreated and hid under the cover of the trees. Espio swiped at Kakashi, but the jounin flipped him over his shoulder. Espio ran at Kakashi while creating a series of seals. Suddenly, four more Espio's appeared next to the original.
"Clone jutsu." Kakashi said coolly. "At least we know you were paying attention in class."
"That won't work, Espio." Tomo thought. "This is Kakashi we're facing. This isn't the academy anymore."
Two Espio's jumped at the white haired Jounin, but Kakashi did nothing to stop them. They disappeared on contact. Another of the Espio's attacked from behind, but Kakashi reacted to this one. He reached for the chameleon's arm and it was solid. The clones disappeared as Kakashi pulled Espio toward him and kicked the chameleon away. Espio slammed his back into a tree and fell on his hands and knees. Kakashi walked up to Espio; his nose once again buried in his orange book.
"I admit, your strategy was well thought out." Kakashi complimented. "If it were a Genin or a Chuunin, it might have worked. But as you can see, I am neither." Espio jumped to his feet. The next second, Espio found himself being suspended in midair by a rope trap. "What you clearly can't see is the traps set up in the area. Even Tomo noticed. She already avoided six traps."
"How was I supposed to know there were traps?!" Espio cried.
"A ninja must always be observant." Kakashi advised. "Otherwise, you would last long in the..."
Kakashi shortened speech left Espio wondering. What was it he was trying to say. Suddenly, Kakashi dropped his book on the ground. The white haired Jounin toppled forward and fell on his face. It was then Espio noticed an enlarged shuriken embedded in his back. Espio looked to the trees where the shuriken came from and found Tomo grinning madly.
"Sister! What have you down?!" Espio yelled.
But just as quickly as Kakashi went down, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"A shadow clone." Tomo realized. "That means Kakashi is no longer around here."
"Hey, Sister, how about a little help?" Espio asked. But Tomo's gaze was fixated elsewhere. Tomo turned away and ran off into the forest. "Hey, what about me?!" Espio got tired of waiting and cut the rope himself. He landed on the ground, only to be thrown back up by another rope trap. "Aw, not again!"
In an open field not far from Espio, Kakashi stood out in the open, reading his book. Kakashi was giggling pervertedly at the books content. Suddenly, a kunai stabbed the book and locked it into the ground. Kakashi turned to his left and, not surprisingly, found Tomo standing guard with a kunai in hand.
"So, you finally figured it out." Kakashi said calmly as he picked up his damaged book.
"It took me a while, but I began to realize that your movements were lacking what my father had told me." Tomo explained. "The only explanation is if your chakra had been cut to a smaller amount."
"What your father said was true." Kakashi said eagerly. "You're a true prodigy. The first in your family I believe. You have a lot to live up to. Think you can handle it?"
"Instead of talking, why don't I just prove it." Tomo smirked.
As Tomo began to perform a series of seals, Kakashi's single eye widened in shock.
"There is no way she could do that at such a young age." Kakashi said in disbelief.
"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu!" Tomo yelled.
A current of fire was unleashed from Tomo's mouth and completely engulfed Kakashi. As the flames died down, Tomo was quick to find that Kakashi had dropped from sight. Tomo drew two kunai to her hands and remained on guard. After several agonizing moments, Kakashi stepped out from behind one of the forest trees.
"It's amazing how quick you learn." Kakashi said, not taking his eyes from his book.
Tomo prepared to attack when another Kakashi stepped out from behind the trees. That one was followed by another Kakashi and another until at least twenty Kakashi had surrounded her.
"Shadow clone again?" Tomo smirked. "You are certainly a one trick pony."
Tomo rushed forward at the first Jounin clone she saw. Tomo cut across the clone, only to phase through it. At first, Tomo figured it was a regular clone. But she then noticed that it was still there. The female chameleon whipped out an enlarged shuriken and threw it backwards at Kakashi. But the shuriken phased through that Kakashi and three more behind it.
"What is going on here?" Tomo panicked.
"Well then, shall we get started." The Kakashi's said as they whipped out their kunai.
Tomo was blocking for her life. Meanwhile, Espio was jumping across the tree branches; the rope still tied to his left leg.
"I can't believe her." Espio grumbled. "She left me handing, literally. I hope she gets her butt kicked." As Espio reached the open field, he found Tomo, but she was swing her kunai like crazy at the air. "What is she doing?"
"I don't know what your little trick is!" Tomo grunted. "But I will not lose to a Jounin cyclopes!"
Espio figured out what was wrong. Tomo was a genius in ninjutsu and a decent fighter with taijutsu. But everyone has weaknesses and Tomo had two. First: Tomo had nyctophobia, which meant she was afraid of the darkness. Second: She had absolutely no skill in genjutsu. Espio figured it was the latter at fault. Thankfully, Espio learned how to break genjutsu in the academy. Careful not to get his head lopped off, Espio moved in behind Tomo and placed his hand on his sister's back.
"Release!" Espio called.
In Tomo's eyes, all the Kakashi's faded and Espio appeared next to her.
"What happened?" Tomo asked.
"Kakashi placed you under a genjutsu." Espio explained.
"Hmm. Dad must have mentioned that to Kakashi." Tomo muttered.
"That and so much more." And siblings turned to face Kakashi, who was casually leaning against a tree. "Be thankful I went easy and didn't use your other weakness."
"Don't worry, sister." Espio grinned and held his kunai forward. "I'll take him down."
Espio rushed on ahead while Tomo stood back. Espio jumped up and dived at his superior. Kakashi never took his eyes off his book. Kakashi raised his hand and blocked with the metal plate on his gloves. Espio dropped his weapon and resorted to basic taijutsu. But even so, Kakashi remained untouched. Peering over his book, he noticed that Tomo was performing a familiar patter of seals.
"She wouldn't." Kakashi thought hopefully. "Not with her brother in the way."
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Tomo yelled.
Tomo summoned up a large fireball headed straight for Kakashi. Unfortunately, Espio was also in the way. At the sight of the ball of flames, Espio froze in fear. Acting fast, Kakashi picked up Espio and jumped out of the way. The fireball crashed into the ground, creating an explosion of earth that sent them flying. Kakashi luckily landed on his feet and sent Espio safely on the ground. Just then, Tomo appeared next to them with a wide grin on her face.
"Looks like I win." Tomo said. Espio and Kakashi looked confused until Tomo opened her hand to reveal the silver bell. "Sorry, brother. But the better shinobi won."
"You're right. HE did." Kakashi said; emphasizing the word 'he'.
"Huh?" The siblings were confused.
"Tomo, you may have the bell, but you don't show the qualities needed to be my student." Kakashi explained.
"Qualities? What qualities?!" Tomo was outraged.
"A friend once told me that those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." Kakashi said as he dazed into his own little world. "The same applies to siblings. If you and your brother had worked together, you both would have been my students."
"So what does it mean?" Espio asked curiously.
"It means you are my new student, Espio." Kakashi smiled under his mask.
"What?!" Tomo flared. "You're picking this brat over me?!"
"Espio cared for your safety over his own." Kakashi said wisely. "He had someone to fight for. That is why he will be strong."
"Damn you!" Tomo growled at her sibling.
Tomo, fueled by her rage, started to perform a pattern of seals. Tomo was prepared for another fireball, but Kakashi had already summoned up his own and nailed Tomo directly. Tomo was thrown back to the trees and slammed into her back. Tomo tried to stand up, but Kakashi pressed a kunai to her neck.
"I think it would be best if you went home." Kakashi as he released her.
"I'll get you for this." Tomo glared at her brother. "I swear, I'll grow stronger and kill you. Mark my words."
---End Flashback---
"As you know, I left the village shortly after." Tomo finished her story. "Two months later, I met Kakuzu, who proved to be a greater teacher than Kakashi ever could." Tomo twisted Espio's arm farther into his back. "I've been holding that promise for seven years. Now it's time I kept it."
"That sounds good, but theirs one problem." Espio smirked. "The gas should be wearing off soon and the Hokage will find you. even if you kill me now, you'll still get caught."
"Oh, and who said I was gonna kill you now." Tomo chuckled. "My plan is to make you suffer the same humiliation I felt all those years ago."
"How do you plan to do that?" Espio asked curiously.
"All they saw was a purple chameleon." Tomo said in a sinister voice. "And since I'm KIA, I am ruled out."
"Great, just one problem." Espio said. Suddenly, Tomo dropped her katana and Espio disappeared in a puff of smoke. Tomo looked back to see that her brother had used a shadow as a distraction before stabbing her in the back with a large shuriken. "All that's left to do is to present you to Lady Hokage."
"There's just one problem." Tomo slowly limped around; blood seeping out of her back and mouth. She slumped onto Espio's shoulder and moved closer to whisper into his ear. "I also met Orochimaru's subordinate. The truth is...I'm not really here."
Finally, Tomo died and fell on her back. Espio moved closer when her face suddenly cracked. Her face shed away like a broken shell and revealed the contents inside. It was a girl no older then ten. Espio had just killed an innocent girl. To make matters worse, the Hokage had woken up and snapped the room's door off its hinges. Espio was standing over a dead girl, with a weapon, in the secret scroll room. It wasn't a pretty picture.
"I heard about you, but I had never thought you would do something like this." Tsunade said disappointingly.
"Lady Hokage, this is not what it seems." Espio tried to convince.
Unfortunately, he absent-mindedly raised his kunai in the air, giving him a bad impression. Suddenly, an ANBU dropped in sight and clasped his hands together. Two beams of wood pooped out of the ground and wrapped themselves around his arms. Clearly, the ANBU knew the lost art of wood ninjutsu.
"Espio, the Chameleon." Tsunade said with a hint of strictness in her voice. "For mass murder and attempted theft, I hereby sentence you to a lifetime in prison until the council can decided a proper fate for you."
This was just perfect. In just a few short hours, Espio returned home, met his friends and family, discovered his sister was alive when she was pronounced dead, got caught in a bad situation, and was now being hauled off to prison.
"This day couldn't get any better." Espio said sarcastically.
Outside the village gates, the real Tomo was leaning against a tree branch, rejoicing over her victory. But still...
"That was just too easy." Tomo said and disappeared into the night.
The bond between loving siblings had been cut. Will Espio escape from a life of prison? Or will Tomo make a clean getaway? Find out on the next Sonic Heroes.