Now that things have calmed down in my senior year of high school I can finally get back to this story that I have abandoned for far too long. I want to apologize if this chapter is bad because I struggle with fight scenes and Akina doesn't have a big role in this chapter but we will get back to her next chapter. So I hope everyone had a great christmas and you all enjoy the brand new year.I am happy now especially since I got an iphone 5 and I basically wrote 1/2 of this chapter on it. ;)
ENJOY!
The air was silent in the misty clearing, the tension climbing again. Naruto, Sasuke, and Akina stood side by side as they waited to put their plan in motion. Sakura watched on from her spot in front of Zabuza slightly trembling from her fear; her fear for her teammates and sensei. Irritated, Kakashi watched from his water prison as his genin were not in fact running away but they stood there with determination on their faces.
"What are you guys doing?! Get out of here, stop trying to be brave! Get the bridge builder away from here that is still your mission!" The genin turned to face the bridge builder silently asking him, should we stay or should we go? The bridge builder looked down; fighting his fear of dying with what is right. Looking up he said, "Well it's my fault that you're in this mess because of my own selfishness to live. Do what you have to do to save your sensei."
"Did you hear that Kakashi-sensei." Akina said with a smirk.
"Yeah you better get ready." Naruto said to Zabuza. He only lowered his head and began to laugh with dark amusement.
"You brats really haven't learned anything have you? You're still pretending to be ninja as you play your little game. When I was your age my hands were already covered in the blood of others." Shock ran through the genin, except for Akina, as they couldn't believe that he was a killer at a young age.
"Zabuza the Demon." stated Kakashi.
"Looks like I was in your book too."
"Long ago the Village Hidden in the Mist was known as the Blood Mist Village. There was one final test a student had to go through before becoming a ninja."
"So you know about the graduation exam?" Zabuza asked looking at Kakashi.
"What graduation exam?" Naruto asked as Zabuza began to laugh again.
"What's so funny? We had graduation tests too." Naruto said which only made Zabuza laugh harder.
"But you didn't have to kill your classmates to become a ninja."Akina said. The genin and Tazuna looked at her in disbelief and disgust on their faces at such a cruel act.
"Imagine having to kill the person who was your friend. Someone who had the same dreams as you, who ate and trained with you. But when the final exam comes it's either them or you." Zabuza added.
"Th-that's so cruel." Sakura said, fear causing her voice to tremble.
"But 10 years ago the graduation exams changed because the year before that a great terror entered the school. A boy who wasn't even a ninja took down over 100 students." Kakashi said.
"It felt so…GOOD." Zabuza said looking down at the terrified genin. A freezing chill crept down their spines as they looked at a true monster before them. A killing machine. Sasuke flew backwards, gasping in shock as he realized that the Zabuza clone had just kneed him in his stomach. He rolled on the ground a little bit before he stopped on his back. Zabuza appeared again elbowing Sasuke in the same spot on his stomach, causing his back to dig deeper in the ground. The pain was overwhelming for Sasuke as he could barely get any air into his lungs and his stomach felt like it was on fire. He gasped in pain as Zabuza replaced his elbow with his foot pressing Sasuke even further into the ground. Reaching for his sword Zabuza said to Sasuke, "You're nothing." As Zabuza was bringing his sword down something hard hit him in his side, pushing him off of his feet and Sasuke. In the air he regained his balance and landed on his feet as he looked to see what hit him. Akina stood there in front of Sasuke, who was regaining his breath, her eyes unreadable as she stared at him. Zabuza's anger rose, since she managed to surprise him again, and he used it to propel him forward to attack her. Before his sword could cut her she disappeared along with Sasuke. Zabuza stood there stunned that she could move that fast and be able to carry the boy at the same time.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Around him clones of Naruto began to appear in little puffs of smoke.
'Hm, so he knows the shadow clone jutsu and there is quite a few of them.' Zabuza thought as he waited. The clones let out a battle yell as they all jumped on top of him making a big, and orange, dog pile. The clones were struggling to hold Zabuza down as Sasuke was still recovering from the attack.
"Are you ok Sasuke?" Akina asked as she helped to support him along with Sakura.
"I'm fine." He answered through gritted teeth. Regardless of the pain he stood up straight and told them they could let go of him. Akina slightly shook her head knowing that his Uchiha pride and ego were hurting. The clones were still holding up but they couldn't hold down the demon forever. With a yell Zabuza swung his sword pushing back the clones and causing them to disappear as they hit the ground. The real Naruto slid backwards as he tried to dig something out of his backpack.
"Sasuke catch!" He yelled as he threw the object to Sasuke. Sasuke looked down at the object in his hands and smirked.
'So Naruto isn't as dumb as he looks.' he thought as he whipped open the weapon.
"Ninja Art: Demon Wind Shuriken!" Sasuke flipped into the air with ease and released the giant shuriken. It whirled through the air heading for the water clone.
"Stupid brats, that won't work on me!" The clone exclaimed but his eyes widened when the shuriken flew right past him.
'What?!'
Now realizing his mistake the real Zabuza prepared to defend himself from the incoming weapon. Using his free hand he caught the shuriken and laughed at their attempt to hurt him.
"I told you this wouldn't work." Zabuza said but he became confused when he didn't see worry or fear in their eyes. Then he saw why.
'A shuriken hidden within the shadow of the first?' With both hands occupied he needed to act quickly.
"Hmph." Zabuza jumped up as the shuriken swept right under him.
'Oh no he dodged it! How are we going to beat him now?' Sakura thought her hope that her team could win diminished.
"How many times do I have to say that you can't touch me?" Zabuza mocked as he landed back on the water. A small poof could be heard as the second shuriken turned into Naruto, surprising everyone.
"Take this!" Naruto yelled as he threw his kunai towards Zabuza's right arm. Not willing to lose his arm Zabuza removed his right arm from the water prison but the kunai scraped his right cheek and destroyed the Zabuza water clone. With a wild look in his eyes Zabuza turned to face Naruto, who was still in the air, preparing to release the shuriken spinning in his left hand.
"I'm going to kill you." The clang of metal hitting metal could be heard followed by the splash of Naruto going into the water. A drenched Kakashi stood there, his head hanging down, using his hand guard to stop the shuriken but blood was slowly dripping down his hand. When he looked up Zabuza was staring at two eyes instead of one. Kakashi's headband was sitting on his forehead straight revealing an eye the color of blood and had 3 comma markings around his iris. Naruto resurfaced and was happy to see that Kakashi was free.
"Naruto you came up with a brilliant plan. You have really grown." Kakashi's words brought a smile on Naruto's face as he explained his entire plan.
"Hmph stop bragging kid, you just got lucky that I got distracted." Zabuza said.
"Don't flatter yourself Zabuza. You didn't get distracted you were forced to let go. Now you can't use the same technique again because it won't work. So what are you going to do now?" Zabuza just stared at him, silent, as Kakashi stared right back at him.
"Akina. Sakura. You know what to do." Sasuke said and both of the girls nodded as they assumed the Manji Formation around Tazuna; Sasuke in front, Sakura on his left, and Akina on his right. Naruto was still in the water watching the 2 ninja as their thirst for blood filled the air. Nothing was said as Zabuza used all four shuriken blades to press down on Kakashi's hand guard. Kakashi grunted under the force as blood began to seep down his hand. He pushed back against the shuriken causing Zabuza to let go of it and it went flying into the mist. Both
shinobi jumped away from each other and Zabuza began to perform hand signs while muttering their names. Kakashi used his sharingan to analyze Zabuza's hand signs and began to copy them as well. It was as if they were each other's reflections in a mirror as they performed the same hand signs at the same speed.
'This is the power of the sharingan.' Sasuke thought as he watched on. The water surrounding the two shinobi began to ripple as they both cried out at the same time, "Tori!"
Two pillars of water rose from the lake and both took on the shape of a dragon with bright yellow eyes.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Both dragons began to entwine around each other before they both attacked the other. The force of their caused waves of water to soak the genin and bridge builder but poor Naruto was being pushed around by the strong currents.
"Hold on to something Naruto!" Akina yelled hoping Naruto could hear her over the roar of the waves and dragons. Naruto quickly looked around and saw a low branch not too far away that he could swim to. Quickly paddling over he grabbed onto the branch and began to climb on it but it was slightly difficult since his clothes and weapons were weighing him down. As the water dragons clashed above them Kakashi was holding off Zabuza's sword with a kunai, both equal in strength.
'Something isn't right. The sharingan can comprehend and replicate the enemy's technique. But both Jutsu occurred at the same time. Can he...?' Zabuza thought puzzled. He pushed against Kakashi and they both jumped back as they did before to put distance Inbetween them. At the same time both ninja ran in a circle and they both stopped at exactly the same time. A chill began to creep up Zabuza's back as he lifted his left arm above him and his right arm in front of his face and Kakashi did everything he did at the same exact time.
"He's not just following him, he's moving exactly at the same time as him." The bridge builder said amazed as the genin could only watch in fascination and newfound respect for their sensei's power.
"How is he doing that?" Sakura asked aloud to one in particular.
'My movements, he's following them as if he knows what I'm-'
"-Going to do next." Kakashi said out loud.
'Is he reading my mind?' Zabuza thought as he changed into a hand sign while Kakashi did the same thing.
'It's that eye of his.'
"It makes you furious doesn't it?" Kakashi asked with a mocking tone.
"All you're doing is copying me like some little monkey. You can't beat me with cheap tricks, I'll crush you." Zabuza gasped in surprise as Kakashi said the last part at the same time as he did. In anger Zabuza began to perform hand signs as he said, "You'll never open that monkey mouth again when I'm done with you." Suddenly a shadow appeared behind Kakashi and it became Zabuza.
'What is this some kind of illusion jutsu?' Zabuza thought as he lost concentration giving Kakashi the time to finish the hand signs.
"Water Style: Water Vortex Jutsu!" The commas in his sharingan began to spin and it kept spinning faster.
"What this is impossible." Water surrounded Kakashi like a vortex and headed straight for Zabuza, the strong currents tossed him around like a rag doll since he couldn't do anything to stop it. Even the genin and the bridge builder backed away as to not get sucked in but Naruto was having trouble staying on his branch. Before the waves nearly took him Akina had rushed towards him and used the rope in her back pack to secure the both of them to the branch. She also covered his body with hers to keep him even more secure. The vortex had created a trail of destruction when it had finally calmed down. Zabuza coughed out water as he tried to regain his breathe while leaning against a tree. Kunai flew through the air and hit Zabuza in different places over his body as Kakashi landed on a tree branch above him in a crouch.
"You're finished."
"Yeah Kakashi-sensei you did it!" Naruto yelled right next to Akina.
"Did you really have to yell in my ear Naruto?" Akina said as she rubbed her right ear.
"Wow Kakashi-sensei was amazing! Oh but not as amazing as you Sasuke-kun." Sakura said trying to gain Sasuke's attention but all he did was grunt in response with his signature smirk on his face.
"How? Can you see into the future?" Zabuza asked looking at Kakashi.
"Yes I can. And this is going to be your last battle." Kakashi said preparing to release his final kunai that would end Zabuza's life. Kakashi watched as two senbon needles pierced Zabuza's neck. His body falling to the ground with a loud thud, unmoving. Kakashi whipped his head to his left and spotted what appeared to be a young boy based off of his build. He wore a blue kimono shirt with a light brown turtleneck underneath, light brown shorts, and he wore regular sandals on his feet. His face was covered by a mask with red swirl designs and on the forehead there were four curved lines, the symbol for the Mist Village. Akina felt a chin roll up her spine as she looked at the boy who had just taken down a monster on his own.
'Who is this kid and where did he come from? Is he an ally or a foe.' Akina thought as she fought the urge to ask them out loud.
"You were right it was his last battle." The boy said to Kakashi. Jumping down from his branch Kakashi landed next to Zabuza's body and checked his pulse. The genin and the bridge builder gathered near him to see if the young ninja had actually killed the mist demon that quickly. Kakashi checked his pulse and said to them, "He's dead." Naruto became furious as he clenched his hands into fists and glared at the young boy who had also jumped down from his branch and stood nearby.
"Thank you for taking Zabuza down. I have looking for him for a long time. Waiting for this moment to take him down." The young boy said to Kakashi.
"You are a tracker ninja from the Mist Village judging by your mask." Kakashi said not as a question but a fact.
"That's correct. You are well informed."
"Wait just a minute! What exactly is a tracker ninja?" Naruto shouted and moved in front of the tracker ninja.
" Oh Naruto you are so clueless. Of course you weren't there the day we learned about tracker ninjas. Tracker ninjas are ninjas that specialize in hunting down rouge ninja who have abandoned their home village. Rogue ninja carry special information in them, the secrets of his people. Tracker ninjas are specially trained to hunt down these ninja and eliminate them. That way the secrets of his people will remain a secret." Sakura explained.
"Everything you've said is correct. I am a part of my village's elite tracking unit and it was my duty to bring Zabuza down." The boy explained further.
'Judging by his voice he must be a little bit older than these guys and he's already an assassin. He's no ordinary kid.' Kakashi thought.
"'Who do you think you are! Huh!" Naruto yelled pointing at the boy.
"Naruto calm down." Kakashi said lowering his head band back over his left eye.
"No sensei! How can I accept the fact that this kid, who's not that much older than us, took down someone like Zabuza with just a flick of his wrist. How does that make us look, little kids playing ninja?! I can't except this!" Naruto's speech caused silence to come over the clearing as the genin lowered their heads thinking about what Naruto had said. Kakashi sighed as he understood where Naruto's frustration was coming from. He walked over to Naruto and placed his hand on his head.
"Even if you can't accept it it did happen. Naruto there are kids in this world who are stronger than you but younger than me." The young boy walked over to Zabuza's body and wrapped his right arm over his back to carry him.
"Your fight is over now. I must deal with his remains. There are too many secrets hidden within this body that can't afford to get into the wrong hands. Goodbye." Using one hand to make a hand sign he disappeared, along with Zabuza's body in a small whirlwind of leaves. Kakashi stared at the spot the boy was as questions and doubt swirled through his mind but he had to put them aside for now to complete the mission.
"Alright everyone we still have a mission to complete so let's keep moving."
"Haha sorry for all of the mess that I've caused but don't you worry. When we get to my home you will all be my guests." Tazuna said with a big grin on his face to lighten up the mood. The genin, now in a better mood, got ready to follow their sensei but as soon as Kakashi took a few steps his body froze before his mind fell into darkness.
"Sensei!" The genin yelled as their sensei began to fall forward. Akina was there in a second as she caught his body in her arms.
'Kakashi-sensei is heavy!' She thought as she gently lowered him to the ground.
"What's wrong with Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.
"He must have overused the sharingan too much." Sakura said kneeling next to him.
"Well we still need to get Tazuna home so let's take turns carrying him." Akina suggested. Everyone agreed and Akina and Naruto carried him, one arm over each shoulder, first.