Chapter 15: Silence Before the Storm
Orochimaru was angry. This much was a fact. There he was, finally managing to fall asleep after the brat refused His Power, and he already had a nightmare. It started with him in his white-snake form trying to eat Anko. While he didn't feel as strong as he did for her, he still wanted her. Then a fox, a bloody nine-tailed fox came up from behind and ate him. It bloody ate him. Orochimaru then woke up with a start and insane pain, as if he really got eaten up. Same feeling he got when Naruto-k... - no the brat, the damnable brat, refused him. Orochimaru screamed in pain as his entire body felt like being burned alive. When it stopped, as if by instinct, Orochimaru reached up to his fangs to find the storage of his poison for the cursed seal. Nothing. Empty, no not even empty, it was there just burned away. Orochimaru roared in anger, half a dozen years of hard work gone, just like that. Damn that brat! Damn that blue-eyed, blonde brat! Damn it! Damn it to the seventh layer of hell for not accepting Him!
Anko was in pain, that was just about everything she knew at the moment. Time, scent, touch, taste, position, nothing meant anything any more. Just the pain she was in. Slowly, the pain receded, after what could have been an eternity for the Snake Charmer. Anko opened her eyes slowly, the pain and stiffness still present. She began taking in her surroundings. Soft bed, check. Blanket, check. Complete darkness, check. She was in her room, the smell confirmed it. Smell? She thought in a daze. Yeah, she could smell it, smell herself, the scent permeating the room, giving her a much needed sense of safety. Slowly she raised her hand at the indentation she knew was on the wall and pulsed her chakra. A huge amount came, much more than she was used to. Not just that, but it came... easily she supposed. It flowed much easier than before, when she had to actively push it. She had no time to think about it as the lights came on and...
Anko cried out in pain. Searing, white pain shot through her eyes. Damn what did she do? Play 'glare' with the sun or something? As her eyes adapted to her surroundings, Anko realized a lot of different things about her. She felt calmer, the urge for blood now almost completely gone. Her chakra flowed easily, obeying her every command without hesitation. Her muscles felt like a perfectly calibrated machine, like she could just jump up to the Hokage monument and down again easily. Her senses fanned out sharper than ever before and she could make out every detail in the room. Even the slight, nigh unfelt pains she had due to her job as a shinobi, the pains that marked her dangerous life had disappeared. Anko breathed in and almost gasped in surprise. She could smell what food she had eaten two whole days ago. Of course most of it was Dango but she could tell the kind by scent alone. Yummm dango...
Shaking her head Anko got back on track and tried getting up. She got up easily enough, no surprise at that. What surprised her though was when she tried to make way for her trenchcoat. Anko blinked in surprise. When did she get over there? One moment she was sitting on her bed, the next she was 20 feet away next to her trenchcoat. She was even more surprised when she realized she could see perfectly during her near instantaneous transision. No blurry vision, no lost time, no tunnel vision, no nothing. Everything was as sharp as when she wasn't moving at all. Donning her trenchcoat, Anko made her way to the door, hoping to get some answers from the blonde blob of energy she called otouto, even if she never said it out loud.
Anko opened the door to nearly collide with Hinata that was at the time carrying a huge tray with food. Seems like poor girl wanted to bring her food. Anko damn near made a river out of her drool. She hadn't felt that hungry in a long, long time. Quickly gulping the saliva down, Anko looked at Hinata the same way a starving tiger would see a person keeping food away from it. Hinata wisely handed her the tray and backed off. Immidiately the grand battle of Anko vs. Food Tray began, with Anko completely demolishing the mighty Food Tray. After the grand fight was over and Anko had cleaned herself enough to be at least somewhat presentable, she picked up the tray and went to the dining room, where she could smell even more food coming from. Once again, Anko began salivating.
When Anko entered the dining room, all discussions stopped as they eyed her carefully. Hinata had already prepared a second serving of breakfast for her. Naruto smiled at her before swallowing his food and speaking to her.
"Heya there nee-chan. How do you feel? Hope the furball didn't annoy ya too much. Have a seat and some more food. You're gonna need it."
Anko didn't need to be told twice and dug in. Where she capable of logical thoughts above 'food now', she would have been astounded by how much she ate. She devoured food quickly, without even feeling full. And damn did food feel great! It was the best she had tasted since forever, her tongue tingling with the various tastes. When after more than an hour of crazed feeding, Anko calmed her rumbling stomach enough, she turned a questioning eye to Naruto.
"Oi gaki, what's going on? I don't feel like myself no more. How did the unsealing go?"
Naruto smiled warmly to her, before answering.
"Well I'm proud to say it went great Anko. I broke your seal and managed to link Kyubi with you. He should have upgraded your body quite a bit, considering you now share my kekkei-genkai. Even if you probably have a different aspect of it. Thanks to Kyubi, I got an affinity for foxes, while you got one for snakes. You will probably develop different abilities, but other than that its the same. You're my sister now. My little sister." Naruto grinned mischievously at Anko with that last statement. Ignoring the daggers Anko glared at him, Naruto continued. "Point is that Kyubi got rid of all nasty side-effects of the stupid seal and fixed your body up to what it should have been. Of course that caused some discomfort, but it should pass."
"Well yah that explains some things, but damn how long have I been asleep? I ate near my own weight in pancakes, dango, eggs and onigiri. Seriously brat. What else is going on?"
"Heh, well for starters, you only slept one night. With Kyubi jump-starting our bloodline, he wasted a lot of energy, which you just got back via chomping down all that food. Don't ya worry, our metabolism is insane, nothing's wasted nor do you get any fat. You're gonna have to cut down on the dango now, instead eating lots and lots of meat. Like it or not, its necessary to us now. You'll also have to work on your chakra control a bit, mostly to get a better feel for it. Kyubi told me that your seal had messed you up real good. He said you couldn't safely draw more than half your chakra. Now that you're fixed, you'll probably need a day or so to readjust. Next up is your reflexes and senses. We got a knack for sharp senses, much like the Inuzuka, only ours span the entire collection. You're gonna have to work a bit on them, Kyubi's telling me you've subconsciously tuned them down so you don't get sensory overload. Last but not least... its power training. If you thought we'd be the only ones to train, you're dead wrong nee-chan. You just opened one can full of whoop-ass and you gotta learn to use it properly. It's going to be fun though. Well for me, since you'll just be on the receiving end of a beating." A feral grin etched itself on Naruto's face, feral enough to make everyone cringe. "Don't worry nee-chan, I won't kill you. Hopefully. Unfortunately though... you won't be alowed to use chakra while I'll be going all out against you. Welcome to Bootcamp from Hell right? Bwahahaha!"
This time the entire, extended, team 8 laughed at Anko's misfortune. Or well until Naruto stopped them.
"Why the heck are you laughing? We're gonna work twice as hard. Can't let my cute little sister get better than us now can we?" Groans greeted Naruto's statement. It was a little known fact, but Naruto enjoyed training as much as, if not more than, Lee. Couple that with a sadistic sibling that was obviously rubbing off on him and... well he gives a new meaning to the words 'rough love'.
"So what are we going to train in now?" Asked Kiba, drawing shouts from Lee due to his 'youthfullness'.
Zabuza replied this time. "Well we're gonna run you ragged with physical training and chakra control for the first week. At the begining of the second week, you're gonna pick your own weapon and have wonder-brat here improve it." Zabuza gestured towards Naruto. "Then its specialized training. Tenten will probably train with me, Kiba with Haku and Lee with Naruto, since he's pretty much the only one that can handle ya brat."
At that moment Tenten interrupted them all as she had just realized that Zabuza had said something about picking their own weapon and Naruto would be improving it. With stars in her eyes, she jumped at him grabbing his hands, repeatedly asking him what he'd make for her. Of course the event caused everyone to sweat-drop, well everyone except Lee who was screaming about flames of youth.
Zabuza was irked by the interruption a bit but continued on. "Shino will probably train with Anko and Hinata with Kurenai. Of course the other way works too. Now after you're done here, we'll start with a good warmup while Naruto shows his imouto the ropes." Zabuza chuckled at the glare. "So after your stomachs have settled enough let's get going. We got lots of work to do, so make sure you keep up."
An hour passed in relaxation and random discussions, before Naruto got up with Anko following.
"Come on imouto-chan. Let your aniki show you the works." Of course Naruto had to run off as Anko screamed bloody murder.
Naruto led Anko to their normal dojo. Once there he stopped and pretty much halted her with one hand.
"Alright sis, now we gotta work on a few things. We'll start with wall walking and move our way up the chakra control excercises. Remember, you have more than two times your chakra now, so don't push it ok? After that, its reflexes training and I hope you're up to it or your trenchcoat is gonna be dust."
Anko grumbled a bit before starting the chakra control training. Of course, having done them before, it was easy for her. It was just boring to do them all over again. What never ceased to surprise her though, was the ease with which the chakra flowed outwards. She felt raw power at her fingertips and realized just how much Orochimaru had messed her up. She had almost made it to the top of the wall before a voice sounded in her head.
"Well lookie here, chibi-hebi-chan's pretty good with her control. Looks like its not gonna be a waste of time."
Anko yelped in surprise before her control faltered and fell down on her ass. Naruto on the other side of the dojo laughed as a camera flash blinded Anko. Anko falling on her ass during basic chakra control? Priceless.
"What the fuck gaki? What was that noise?"
Naruto laughed harder before trying to speak. "That... hahaha... was probably... hehehe... Kyubi...hahaha... Oh god my ribs..."
"Ky-Kyubi? What the heck? What did you do to me damn you?" Anko was officially freaked out. It isn't everyday you learn a demon lord, correction, the demon lord can speak to your mind.
"In order to remove the seal, I had to infuse you with youkai. Wherever Kyubi's youkai goes, he goes. He can be irritating sometimes, but when he's got something to say, you better listen well, cause there will always be a reason. That or he might decide to pull a prank on ya. You can never know. Damn fox is too good for it. That and he's a perv. If he starts complaining, go into your mindscape and make him some vixens or family-sized rabbits. He'll shut up."
"Oh great I have a perverted, perpetually hungry giant demon fox in my head. Meanwhile I gotta start on chakra control from step one. Whoop-dee-fucking-doo."
Naruto chuckled at his sister's antics before helping her continue her excercises.
Meanwhile, Zabuza was torturing... err, training, yes training the rest of the rookies. Even Lee had started getting tired by the sadistic jounin. The highlight of it all? He forced both Kurenai and himself to go through with the training. The look on her face was unbelievably funny. Still she swallowed her curses and followed suit with the rest. From running circles around a forest clearing, to push ups, sit ups, crunches and what have you, Zabuza worked them to the bone. Heck even he was getting a decent workout and that was saying something. He was pleasantly surprised by the gennin though, they actually managed to keep up. They complained of course, but they didn't give up and stop, they went on and on, no matter how tired they were. Oh this was so much fun!
The next day, Naruto had his sister sharpen her reflexes. Of course, taking a page from her book, he did it by throwing tens of kunai at her at random intervals, from multiple angles. Now add a Kunai Kage Bunshin with Naruto's reserves and you get a training regime that would leave most jounin staggered. At least Anko realized, and subsequently loved, the regeneration she acquired. She could get literally skewered and jump right up the next minute.
It was the third day that things got tough for Anko. It was time for her to train in her kekkei-genkai and that meant one thing; a no-holds barred fight with Naruto. Well mostly no holds barred, as Anko was forbidden from using her chakra, which put her in an insane disadvantage.
Anko charged Naruto with her fists. Naruto simply leaned back at an incredible degree, before his right foot came up from below Anko throwing her back. He then performed a handstand, which he improved with a spinning kick before jumping up and rightening himself. He looked at Anko with sadness.
"Come on Anko, get up. Don't tell me that's all you've got. Are you really the woman I took as my own sister, the woman I sword to protect? Or are you just a lackey of Orochimaru's?"
Anko growled at the insult, struggling to get up, but her body wouldn't listen to her. "I'm trying damn it. I'm trying but you're not making it easy."
"It was never meant to be easy Anko. Don't you always say that? Or are you just a hypocrite? For all your supposed hate, you do take after a snake like Orochimaru after all."
"SHUT UP! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!" Anko raged, her anger almost overriding her conscious mind, something she was doing her darndest to prevent.
"You see Anko... that's your problem. You're fighting it. You're fighting your instincts. We're predators Anko. We're fighters. As long as you refuse your instincts, you are going to be weak. If you want to make me shut up then get off your ass and MAKE ME!"
Chakra flared from within Anko as she slowly got up.
"I told you to shut up DIDN'T I? Fucking brat I'm GONNA KILL YA!"
Anko took her previous position, not even realizing the changes going on inside her body, changes that Kyubi did take note of though. Her eyes changed, becoming slit like a cat's, enabling her to see better, her bones relaxed and shifted. No longer did she possess the large, long bones of a human, now her bones were more like the body of a snake, even her arms and legs. Powerful muscles covered the new sceletal structure, strength skyrocketing. Kyubi chuckled as he spoke to Anko.
"Let's see how the brat handles you now chibi-hebi-chan. Go get'im!"
With a grunt Anko launched herself at Naruto, her new limbs striking out much faster than before, with either whip like clawing motions that drew blood with her newly sharpened nails or precision jabs that could break bones and dislocate arms. Naruto smirked, falling on the defencive, further leading Anko on. It was just what she needed to get better. Blocking, parrying and weaving, Naruto evaded most attacks while getting only a few claw marks on his arms from Anko's lashing nails. Of course, judging by the fact that his skin could stop a kunai with ease, it meant she either channeled fuuton chakra, or more probably, activated a shorted version of his own claw ability. Then with a sudden burst of speed, Naruto lashed out with a kick, taking Anko's breath away from the strike to her sternum.
Anko flew back before righting herself mid-air and using the wall itself as a springboard to lash out to Naruto like a cobra, a strike that, had Naruto not used his own superior eyesight, would have gotten his throat ripped off. Even then, Naruto just barely managed to duck the worst, instead only getting his eye brow literally ripped off. Naruto cursed before bringing out the big guns. Quickly he formed his claws, once again fighting Anko, pushing her to the wall, forcing her to evolve. Slowly yet steadily, Anko's sharpened nails grew bigger and bigger, now only slightly shorter than Naruto's own. However what they lacked in size, they made up for immense speed and sharpness, something Kyubi was very quick to warn his original host about.
Naruto got a slash on his forearm before disengaging and jumping back. Slowly he brought it to his lips and licked the blood off. The taste of his own blood on his lips, Naruto gave Anko a glare that promised one of two things. Either a death so fast you wouldn't know till Shinigami bagged you up, or one so slow and painfull, you'd beg for the Shinigami to come and bag you up. With a feral roar, Naruto's features changed to a more animalistic set-up, eyes becoming bloodshot and slitted, muscles bulging, nose flaring open, ears sharpening, skin becoming more rigid. In mere seconds, Naruto was in combat mode and charged Anko.
Outside the steel and granite reinforced dojo, shouts, screams and yells drew everyone's attention. When Tenten made to open the door, concerned about her team-mate's safety, Jiraiya stopped her.
"Its their fight now. No interfering or they'll gang up on you. Let them work it out. Trust me, if that kid has half Kyubi's tenacity, he ain't gonna die even if you put him through a meat grinder. Let'em sort it out like siblings. I'm guessing this is just a friendly bout, nothing to worry about." Spoke the aged Sennin. Of course, if he were watching the actual fight, he might have sung a different song.
It took hours for Naruto and Anko to finish their little scuffle. By the time they got out, both were covered head to toe with blood and fading scratches, had about 75% of their clothes torn to bits, were dead tired and unbelievably both sported identical huge grins. Hinata sighed upon seeing them before getting them a new change of clothes.
While food was being prepared, Anko made sure to show off a bit and revealed her brand new 'kick-ass' claws. Naruto laughed at her claims that they cut the meat better than any knife she had met till that time.
The week processed slowly, with ever-increasing physical and chakra workouts for most, intense, true all-out fighting for Anko and Naruto. By the time the week was over, Anko had managed to acquire her heat-sight, something she showed amazing talent in, as well as poisonous fangs and her own version of the armor ability of Naruto. Where Naruto's armor was consisted of mostly large plates interlocking with each other, Anko's version was more reminiscent of a snake's scaly skin. Kyubi theorized that the powers adapted themselves to the owner's own thinking. Naruto was a powerhouse, depending on his strength first, his speed second. Therefore, his version was tailored to him being able to withstand immense punishment and tire out the enemy before disengaging and quickly taking out the tired enemy. In Anko's case however, the lack of speed and finesse would be devastating, so Anko's skin adapted to allow as much protection as possible while maintaining maximum maneuvrability.
As the team progressed, Naruto finally gave the three new members entrance to the armory. Tenten squealed in joy before going in, while Kiba smirked. Lee graciously tried to deny, but Naruto dragged him along anyway. Once inside, they saw the walls lined with various types of weapons, from the more standard, like wakizashi and tanto, to the more exotic like polearms and even a tetsubo (a metallic staff with a thick spiky 'business end'). Tenten almost leapt at them before Naruto restrained her.
"Now now, Tenten, I know you love them, but show some restraint. Besides there are the 'basic' weapons. While all are of high quality, they are ordinary in anything else. Follow me to my personal stash."
With these words, Naruto showed them in the next room of the armory, one of the few rooms the new members hadn't entered yet. As a room it was larger than any other. It had a library covering one wall with a desk in the corner next to it. On the desk were a number of scrolls and books with calligraphy supplies. On the walls were placed a few weapons while on an armor stand was a samurai-like armor. Naruto took the chance to explain them some things.
"While I am not as good a seal master as the Yondaime was, I am good enough to be able to improve some weapons. In here I've got some of my experiments, some failed, some successful. A couple of these experiments are dangerous in the wrong hands which is why I forbid you to enter. It could very well turn lethal for you, which I obviously don't want. Now wait one second ok? Haku, could you come over here?"
As Haku walked up to Naruto, he took a certain katana off the wall stand. Its sheath was a gentle light blue color, same with the hilt wrapping. The tsuba (guard) was a silver star shaped like a snowflake. With slow, almost reverent motions he presented it to Haku.
"This is quite possibly the hardest weapon I've ever had the pleasure of making. I've finished my freezing array and used it on this sword in two separate areas. Now here's the specs of this piece of art. Just like all my works, this blade will not rust or blunt. It is made of chakra conductive material so you can use fuuton easily. I have also placed an advanced storage seal on the blade, already filled with water for use with your techniques. The freezing array can make sure you use a hyoton almost immidiately or give frostbites to your enemy. On the butt of the blade lies another seal. This one hides a chain with a crescent blade on the end. While it is sharp, it's best used to wrap an enemy and freeze them through the array on it. Thanks to my advanced storage seal, you can also regulate how long the chain will be. Now all that remains is locking in your chakra so noone will be able to use it apart from you and giving it a name."
Haku and Zabuza were stunned, this weapon was one badass piece of work. Tenten was almost ecstatic at the thought of receiving a weapon like this, I mean if he can do all that with a sword, there will be no limits! Sharp and pointy weapons ahoy! Not to mention he spoke of an advanced storage seal. Tenten almost creamed there and then at the possibilities Naruto was hinting at. Lee was stunned as well, who knew seals could harness that much power. Shino on the other hand was very happy. With such a powerful weapon, Haku's security was all but assured. Kurenai felt a bit jealous at the weapon and wished she could get something as good as this while Hinata was much, much more jealous. She was Naruto's girlfriend after all, she was supposed to be the one Naruto would get her the best weapons. She'd make sure to save him a very good pout in payback. Anko giggled in excitement, Haku always was good speed practice, with this blade at her side, she'd be even better!
Naruto again took the lead again. "Now I want you people to look around and tell me if there's something that interests you. If not, give me an idea and I'll make a weapon tailored for you ok? Oh and under no circumstances are you to touch the black sheathed sword. Understood?"
Lee, Kiba and Tenten nodded before going to check all these weapons. Well Tenten was more like dragging the others with her. Meanwhile Zabuza, Haku, Anko and Team 8 were gathered around Naruto for ideas to improve their weapons even more. Anko came up with the excellent idea of making a weapon thinner while maintaining the same mass. Paper thin weapons with the mass of the original? Instant bloodbath in the case of people like Zabuza.
Meanwhile Tenten split up with the boys, hopping from sword to sword like a kid on sugar overdose. Eventually she got up to a black sheathed sword, lieing apart from the others. It was beautifully made as far as she could see. Slowly, tentatively lifting it, she weighted it, finding it had perfect balance. So why exactly did Naruto ask them to stay away from such an expertly made sword?
'Bah, he's just overreacting, there's nothing wrong with this beauty.' Thought Tenten. Slowly, she unsheathed the blade. It was a beautiful, shining black blade. A small red dragon was engraved on the base of the blade, almost burning with power. Tenten diverted her attention to the black-wrapped hilt and gripped it. She then turned to Naruto.
"Oi, whiskers, what's wrong with this blade? Its pefect!"
Everyone saw Naruto's eyes widen in fear before leaping forth screaming. "Tenten! No!"
He didn't make it though to Tenten as she was swallowed up by a black and red colored chakra, so strong that it was easily visible to the naked eye. The burst of energy knocked everyone back as Tenten screamed in pain. The flaring power lasted only for a few seconds before it stopped and Tenten collapsed in a boneless heap. Naruto desperately tried to unwind her fingers from the blade's hilt but it was impossible. Hinata and the others ran to his side, all worrying about Tenten's fate.
"Damn it Tenten, I told you not to touch this... now there's nothing I can do. The sword may kill or worse consume her... Damn it! Hina-hime, could you take her to her room and give her some medical care? I got a demon lord and a pervert to consult. Anko, go with her. If... if it comes to worst... kill Tenten. You'll know if you have to."
Hinata nodded at Naruto's request at first but then looked horrified at his request to kill Tenten. Lee however beat her to the punch as to why she would have to kill Tenten.
"Because Lee... this is no ordinary blade... it... it has been forged with Kyubi's youkai and blood. A blade so dangerous, not even I dare lay a hand on. The blade, while made after my scuffle with Kyubi and therefore not exactly evil, has attained a sort of semi-intelligence. Since its a blade, it will naturally want to cut things. Couple that with Kyubi's natural thirst for blood and it becomes a very dangerous blade. If... if Tenten can't control the blade's urges... it will either overload her body with youkai and kill her or it will consume her mind and soul, turning her into a soulless murderer..."
Lee and the others just realized how much it hurt Naruto to admit that. Anko realized why Naruto asked her to watch over Tenten, since apart from him, she was the only one having a chance to fight a demonically possessed blade overrun by youkai. With Hinata being near her, Anko couldn't even begin to comprehend the weight Naruto put on her shoulders by entrusting Hinata to her. Anko knew Naruto would want nothing more than be there and do it on his own, but needed to consult the only two beings he could about the possibilities and possible remedies to this fucked up situation. Quickly nodding, Anko picked up Tenten and she and Hinata made way to the sleeping quarters.
Naruto turned to Jiraiya, who had somehow managed to copy a few of Naruto's own seals onto a notebook of his and told him to get a seat. After that he simply shoved the rest out of the room, before making a Kage Bunshin who's purpose would be to vocalize Kyubi's suggestions so Naruto wouldn't have to speak twice. Quickly the two seal users and demon lord-imbued clone began discussing possible actions.
A few hours later and they had come up with nothing, not even a definite way to at least subdue the blade or free Tenten from its grasp if she lost. Just then a soft knock drew their attention. A stricken Naruto went to open it, seeing a freaked out Hinata behind. His mind immidiately fearing for the worst, Naruto grabbed her from the shoulders asking her if Tenten went on a killing spree or died. Hinata barely managed to answer negatively to the barrage of questions. On Naruto's subsequent question of what happened, she answered with something that shocked him.
"I took a look at Tenten-san with my Byakugan, to make sure I didn't miss an internal wound. What I saw though... Tenten-san... she's developing a secondary chakra system."
Jiraiya, Naruto and even the Kyubi-possessed clone gasped audibly. Hinata kept up though, reporting what she learned.
"This secondary chakra system is much like yours Naruto-kun, but its much smaller and weaker. Also its... well sort of intertwined with her regular one, like two linked vials, yet at the same time separate. Her regular chakra 'bleeds out' into this new chakra coil, but the other way isn't true. Once there it becomes... well much like Kyubi's own. Not nearly as potent or 'thick' but its red and black in color and much more... well viscous would describe it best I guess... What's more is that most of this new... chakra I guess, is channeled into the blade, where it is somehow absorbed. Naruto-kun, Jiraiya-sama, Kyubi-san... what's going on with Tenten-san?"
It was one of the few times Naruto had been so shocked and one of the even fewer times that neither of his companions could provide with an adequate answer. Naruto couldn't help but wonder... What kind of power did he unleah upon the world? What kind of curse did he unleash upon Tenten? Needless to say the group now counted four people that were trying to solve the mystery of Tenten's sword.
Meanwhile, outside, Zabuza was looking at the two gennin that were under his watch, and almost non-existent mercy. He decided that whatever was wrong with Tenten shouldn't prevent the others from getting better. Instead it should be used as a cause to further their skills.
"Alright ya brats. Since the bun-girl's out, you three gotta work twice as hard to cover her place. Got it? Now wonder-brat told me about what he'd like you three to learn. He said that Fangs over there" He pointed at Kiba." and the little furball" Now he was pointing at Akamaru. "should work on their speed. You two are good combo users and pretty strong to boot. You just need some more speed, a proper weapon and some ninjutsu. Now go to the side, huddle up and choose your specialties. You're an obvious taijutsu and scout specialist, but maybe you can also get good at assassinations. Now git. Alright now on your case Eye-brows, Naruto said that since you can't use chakra, you should work on other things. Meditation, old school shinobi tactics, strategy and of course taijutsu and your chosen weapon. You're pretty good at taijutsu and I can't teach ya more on that subject, but your weapon... I can help with that. Also the gaki said something about you using physical energy and spiritual energy separately but I seriously have no idea how you're gonna do it. So, 'till the wonder-brat gets here, we're gonna work on stuff to help you get by."
Letting Lee take the information in, Zabuza continued. "Now, I may be a specialist with Zanbatou, but that doesn't mean I don't know how to use other weapons. So, we're gonna go back in, find ya a proper weapon to wield and get back out for training. One warning gaki. If you thought my training you the last week was bad, its got nothing on what I'm about to do to you now. I'm gonna make you beg me to stop, I'm gonna work you to unconsciousness and then more. So let's go pick your weapon and get ready 'cause there's no turning back from this point on. Now buckle up and let's get going. We're burning daylight."
When Lee and Zabuza went back in, they entered the armory, looking for a weapon suited for Lee. Lee for his part didn't want to use a weapon, because it would 'dampen his flames of youth' as he repeatedly shouted at Zabuza. Of course its rather hard to say no to Zabuza when he's in 'pissed as hell' mode. Once inside the armory, Zabuza started picking various weapons for Lee to try. He went from the small and fast tanto, to more adaptable wakizashi, to katana, chukuto and even o-katana. Nothing suited the green-clad gennin. After being rather disapointed, he went on to Zanbatou and spears, where he found that the kid had some better instincts at wielding. After much, and I do mean much, trial and error, Zabuza found the best weapon for Lee's instincts. It was a magnificent polearm, the length of the pole being made out of steel, more than 2 meters ( 6'6" feet) long in total. The blade was curved and thick, made for cleaving right through arms and armor alike, the bottom possessing a steel orb with 2inch long spikes. While unadorned, Lee and Zabuza both knew, this weapon was made for use and abuse. Of course Lee asked Zabuza why that weapon suited him best, well not that quite calmly but you get the point.
"Because gaki, you're one of the few people that can actually lift this at your age, which is important 'cause you need to get used to it. Also it suits your fighting style. While it is heavy and so most would believe it is slow, I can easily see it moving very fast in the proper hands. Other than that, well you actually have talent in using this, not to mention it will temper you."
"Temper me? Zabuza-sensei? The flames of youth should not be tempered! YOSH!"
Zabuza sighed in responce before replieing. "And that's why you are not as strong as you could be. While yeah your 'flames of youth' are good for training, you must also learn to control them. Otherwise you'll become a danger not only to yourself, but to you friends as well. This weapon requires a lot of control and focus. Right now you're anything but focused and controlled. You're being controlled by your emotions like nothing more than a common animal. Instincts are good, you need'em. But you also need to control yourself and your actions, think before you act. I'm gonna take you from your 'flames of youth' and show you the 'water of calm'. Pick up your blade and follow me. You've got so much to learn I don't know if I can teach you even the basics. Now MOVE!"
Lee jumped up from the shout and moved, all the while shouting about how powerful the flames of youth burned and how his burning passion would overcome all obstacles. Zabuza for his part wanted to facepalm, but that would take time, time he didn't have to waste.
Meanwhile Kiba and Akamaru were talking about their options. What were they good at? What were their talents? Their potential? In the end what did they want to do for the rest of their lives?
Kiba always wanted to be an oi-nin just like his father, the man who's stories reared Kiba. From early on, Kiba trained himself for outdoor survival, scouting and of course perseverence. It only drew the laughter of his mother and sister. They laughed because they didn't believe in him, in the goof he was sometimes. But it didn't deter him, if anything it made him even more determined to be what he wanted. Now though, he had spent some time near an oi-nin, a person that didn't shy away from words and truth, he learned exactly how hard it was, how dangerous it could be. Did Kiba reall want to be an oi-nin, someone that would spent most of his hours on top of a tree in pursuit of a mark? Never coming home, not having a home like most people did. Would he stand living like that?
Haku had given him a full description of how hard and demanding her job as oi-nin was. How hard she had to work to be able to take down the mark. How demanding it was when training or preparing for a fight. Kiba sighed, it was a hard choice really. On one side, his childhood fantasy of hunting 'bad guys' with his faithful nin-ken... On the other side, the dangers, the risks, the demands of that job. Contrary to common belief, Kiba wasn't an idiot. Sure he wasn't as smart as Shikamaru, but he wasn't a complete retard. He simply had a short attention span to things that didn't interest him, like theory and tactics and stuff. That didn't mean though that he couldn't think when the situation called for it.
So Kiba spent a long time thinking about the possibilities, the gains and the losses. Akamaru helped him decide too...
In the end it was remembering why Naruto had called them there that made up his mind. Everyone else had their own specialties, he'd make his own. He'd be the hunter that would stalk his prey, that prey being any threat to his friends and packmates. He'd hunt them down ruthlessly and efficiently. Give no quarter, nor ask for one. He'd be an assassin, he'd walk the shadows, he'd tame the beast within. All to defend his packmates. No, not his 'packmates'. Those that went above and beyond that. His tomodachi (close friends in japanese, like best buddies). Making up his mind, Kiba took a leaf out of Lee's book. Smirking wildly at his dog partner, he hid up in the trees outside the exit to the HQ. If he could surprise Zabuza, Haku or Shino (who admitedly were extremely alert), he'd be well on his way to being an effective hunter. If not... well practice makes perfect. Lee's shouts of youth and whatnot warned Kiba that his prey was approaching. The hunter tensed as a large shadow emerged from the cave...
Tenten was in pain, few times had she been in so much pain, nearly all of them because of a bout with Neji. Damn bastard may have been her childhood crush, but after him fighting her seriously in a mere spar, she harbored very little feelings for him any more. Especially since every time it was 'fate that declared it'. Tenten's train of thoughts was stopped when she opened her eyes. What the heck was that place she wondered. It wasn't above ground that was certain. She was in a sort of underground dome... No, not dome she realized, it was a huge sphere. She was inside a huge sphere, so big her eyes couldn't see the top, but she somehow knew it was there. Around her were... weapons. Weapons of each and every sort, size and type. Weapons she had never even seen before. From heavy, double-edged, straight monstrocities of a sword (zweihander by the way), to short, elegant curved daggers. There was not a soul around her Tenten realized, worse there was no exit. Naturally, she reacted.
"WHERE THE HELL AM I?"
Tenten heard her voice reverbrate on invisible walls, coming back at her, distorted and louder, making her scream from the pain her eardrums were in. All things considered though, she didn't expect to hear a voice answer her.
"You are here of course."
It was an arrogant, deep, baritone voice, with an even more arrogant way of speech. Turning behind her towards the voice, Tenten beheld a giant of a man. Dressed in an all black with red decorations armor, reminiscent of a samurai, but much, much more decorated, like one that would belong to the Emperor himself. His stance was filled with arrogance, superiority and suppressed bloodlust. A blood red dragon dominated the decorations of the man's armor. Second most prominent figure was a black fox with nine tails, its fearsome visage seemingly battling the dragon, while also made out of the pieces of the armor the dragon wasn't painted on (it is in short an optical illusion, like a drawing of red lines that roughly form the outline of a black fox, only the lines are actually dragons, hope that helps picture it better). On the man's left side was a sheathed sword. Black leather covered the grip, while it was sheathed in a pitch black sheath.
In the same arrogant voice, the person continued.
"You are my owner." While phrased as a question it was just as much a declaration (in japanese it would be like 'kisama ga waga mochinushi').
"What the heck are you talking about? Who are you and where the fuck am I?" Tenten was still freaked out by the presence, as well as her location.
"As I said. You are my master. I am Muramasa and you are here. It seems you are too foolish to be my wielder little girl."
The man was arrogant to the extreme, Tenten could see it, but his answers infuriated her more than his answers.
"Yeah I heard it the first time. You didn't explain anything though. Where the fuck is here and what the fuck do you mean by owner."
"Hmph such crude language, not even aware of the meanings of the words you carelessly spout. Very well I shall... indulge you. You were the first to pick me up, therefore you are my potential master. From what I see however, you are too foolish, too weak to wield me. As for where we are, this is simple. Inside your, rather limited, mind. Now get up little girl. It is time to test you."
With these words, the person now identified as Muramasa slowly drew his sword. That sword left Tenten gaping, it was the same black sword she held before she fainted.
"I see you are begining to understand a few things little girl. Good, there may yet be hope for one as weak as you."
Tenten was getting pissed off by now. One of the few things that sent her off the edge was underestimating her for her gender and age. She was a kunoichi damnit, a serious, dedicated, capable kunoichi! Nobody, EVER underestimated her!
"Shut up damnit! My name isn't 'little girl'! Its Tenten damnit! Learn it!"
"Hmph at least you do not run at first sight of me. Good. Now get up little girl and give me a reason to actually call you by name. Unless you are unworthy of even that basic priviledge.
Tenten did get up then. Immidiately she picked up a sword from near her and rushed Muramasa.
Muramasa looked uninterested as he casually blocked her attacks as if they were nothing more than mosquito bites, moving at the speed of a half-asleep turtle.
"Hmph is that it? For all your fervor you are holding back. You cannot defeat me this way. Is it because, even though I insulted you, you have no reason to fight me? Is that it?"
Muramasa's words forced Tenten to stop her reckless assault, where she realized two things. First, he was right and second... she wasn't tired. No matter how little one fought, swinging a sword wildly causes some fatigue. Yet there was nothing on Tenten's arms. As if she just woke up from restful slumber. It was then that she really thought about Muramasa's words of this place being her mind. Slowly she got up from the tumble Muramasa had sent her into.
"Let me get this straight. Your name is Muramasa and this is inside my mind. You talk as if you are an object, damn arrogant, but an object. The only object I can relate you to is..." Here Tenten's eyes went wide at the repercussions of the new discovery. "The sword! The sword Naruto told us not to touch..."
To Tenten's surprise, Muramasa gave a barely visible nod. "That is correct. I am the black sword and Muramasa is my name."
Tenten filed that away, she was going to think about it when someone wasn't going to chop her to little bits at seemingly no reason. "Ok now that we've settled it. Why do I have to fight you?"
"Simple. Superiority." At Tenten's incoming question, Muramasa continued. "Why does a man ride a horse and not the other way? Its because men are superior to horses. How does it differ from wielding a sword? Do you control the sword or the other way round? Are you superior to your own sword or the other way round? In the end, what matters? The sword or the wielder of the sword. Being who I am, I refuse to be controlled by someone weaker than myself. I refuse to serve a weak master. Therefore, I shall test you. You and I shall fight. If you win, I submit and become your faithful weapon as long as you maintain your superiority over me. If I win, quite simply you will submit to me and become my tool. I shall use your body to fulfil my calling and the reason for which I was made for. Namely killing."
Poor Tenten was terrified as much as creeped out by the sword's declarations. Worse, it had logic. Even worse, she knew it was true. She would have to defeat the sword or she'd be a slave to it. No worse, she thought. It would be worse. The sword would drive her to insanity and murder. The murder of... her friends. Lee, Hinata, Kiba, Naruto, Haku, Shino, Kurenai, even those two sadists Zabuza and Anko. Resolve finally showing in her eyes, Tenten readied herself for another round of fighting. Then the sword's representation stunned her again.
"You have the reason now. Good. You have two of the three pieces of the answer you need to defeat me. You have the determination to fight on, you have the reason to fight. But... you still cannot defeat me. Why? Because, even though the fight is not decided yet, I am part of you. I know you. I know your desires, dreams, nightmares and fears. I know your fighting style, your moves, everything. You cannot hide from me, you cannot trick me and you cannot outsmart me. You need one more part of the riddle to fight me. One more answer. Can you find the answer? Or will you give in?"
Tenten stopped. She somehow knew that Muramasa wouldn't attack her until she was ready. Damn he was annoying though. He made sense, sure, but did he have to be so arrogant and annoying about it? Tenten shook her head, clearing her thoughts about the sword with an ego the size of Iwa. Clearing her mind, Tenten took her time. Thinking about everything, about every word, every motion, every hidden meaning of Muramasa's words. What did he say, what did he mean, how did he say it, what meanings could hide, what was the riddle she had to solve.
"Even though the fight is not decided yet, I am part of you. I know you."
"I refuse to be controlled by someone weaker than myself. I refuse to serve a weak master. "
That was the asnwer. It was so easy. Muramasa didn't want a weak wielder. He was proud, a proud sword. Having a weakling as a master would be unacceptable. The thought of a wielder completely dependent on Muramasa's power alone must be unbearable for one so proud. A pride, she realized, that wasn't entirely undeserved. Muramasa was an excellent blade, a powerful partner. Tenten smiled, that was what Muramasa meant. He knew her, so she had to improve. She had to prove to Muramasa that she wasn't weak, that she wasn't dependant, that she wasn't foolish, that she wasn't without pride.
Tenten may have already be standing, but she might as well be sitting. Having found the answer to Muramasa's question, she straightened up, her muscles relaxed but ready, her posture calm, collected and in control. She looked at the sword in her hand and thew it away. Extending her arm to the side, a blade came to her hand, feeling right, as if it always belonged there. It was a long black katana, with a red dragon inscription and black hilt wraps.
Tenten leveled her eyes to her opponent, her blade ready, her eyes confident, her posture strong.
"I know now Muramasa. Sorry for doubting you and your pride. Sorry for not realizing it earlier. In truth, you were looking out for me weren't you? You want me to wield you, but to be proud about it. To be equal and deserving of your power. I understand now and I want you to know that, no matter who wins, I am honored I held you in my hand, honored I could fight you. But most importantly I am proud. I am proud you considered me to possess the potential to wield you. And I wouldn't have it any other way."
Tenten's blade rose slowly in front of her, gripped by both hands. A posture mimicked by Muramasa. Their motions were the same, as if looking at a mirror. Power seemingly flowed out of both warriors, a reflection of their own strength. Tenten readied her blade and charged, Muramasa copying her motion. Both clashed in the middle neither giving an inch.
The fight went on, with both doing the same motions at the same time, with the same force behind the attacks. Both leapt back. Both drew the swords back and to the side. Both charged again, focused on delivering the killing blow. One the swords flared in power, coated in an aura of red and black. A cry reverbrated through the sphere, a flash of light and both warriors were back to back. One of them kneeled and disintegrated away. The other lifted the sword, to the air, a silent salute to the one who lost. The winner's voice came through barely audible, with a hint of pride.
"This attack is the first I made, to honor you. Onigiri (Demon Cut), an attack worthy of you, my partner and ally. And it is just the start, I'll become even more powerful, I will not stop getting stronger. I will prove your pride true... Muramasa. Now let's go show the outside world just what we're made of."
The last figure let the sword fall to the side and disappeared as well. Deep inside the sphere, a tall, giant of a man, in a black and red samurai armor smiled. He had chosen well. She would be a good master.
A/N: Woot another one. This one came fast as I had something to work with since the last chapter. All you authors out there know how hard it is to start a new independent chapter, or worse arc. Anyway, Tenten got her sword, Lee's getting more awesome and Kiba's turn is right around the corner. As always review and let me know your opinion ok?
So sorry for the lack of updates on Kage's Exodus. I know I'm lower than scum for not updating. I'll try focusing on them for a bit. Once again I apologize.
The idea for Tenten's sword has been on my mind for several months now (I first wrote about it on chapter eleven), but only recently it solidified into what I wanted it to be like. I hope you'll enjoy it. Also keep in mind that while Tenten has a very powerful sword, it doesn't mean she can up and start kicking ass left and right. She's simply at everybody else's level since everyone has their own specialties. Tenten's specialty is just like Naruto; wanton destruction :D
Onigiri (Demon Cut): Tenten uses youkai to strengthen Muramasa, improving the edge of the blade. Instead of a single attack, it is more of a way of attacking, a mode Tenten enters. In this state Muramasa is one of the, if not the, sharpest weapons in existence. It is so sharp that Tenten's fighting style is focused on the opponent being unable to block it. Onigiri is sharp enough to cut through Anko's armor with ease, though it can't do the same with Naruto's armor. Due to the youkai running through the blade, it is possible to suffer youkai poisoning even if the target survives the attack itself. Because the youkai is inferior to that of a bijuu, jinchuuriki and those linked to a jinchuuriki are immune to that side effect.
Today, on this 9/6/2012, I, Soulblazer87, do hereby leave this site, possibly forever.
I shall not update this, or any other story.
I shall leave them on, however. Should you desire to follow my stories, do so in my new site of residence: www dot yourfanfiction dot com.