Chapter 13
The Battle is to the Strong
Tohsaka Rin stepped out into a clear and calm sunny day.
The black haired girl breathed in the new morning air deeply. A look of determination was clearly set on her face. The Tohsaka heiress was a woman on a mission. Failure was not an option and she would get her gallivanting, moronic, idiot of a hero back. Even if it meant she had to drag him whilst he was kicking and screaming.
It had been a little over six months since Emiya Naruto had upped and disappeared from her life after their disastrous attempt at dismantling the grail and saving her sister.
Six months of fruitlessly searching every nook and cranny for his whereabouts. She investigated high and low for any clues, and called in every favor possible.
Months of restless sleep.
Weeks of tireless work.
Now, it was all about to be over. Her search would finally end.
Today, she would be reunited with her thickheaded blonde haired idiot.
Her hands reach up to her family's treasured ruby pendant and gave it once over. There were two in existence. One that Archer had held with him throughout his life and another that had been used to save Emiya Naruto's life.
The one she wore was from Archer while the other had went missing.
It meant that Naruto had taken it with him. That thought alone had filled her with hope.
That he hadn't just left her to go off to die in some meaningless battle. To throw himself away to save a bunch of people who would take advantage of his good graces. To save people who would later betray him.
Rin had promised Archer, his future-self that she would look after him. That she wouldn't allow him to end up a twisted jerk like himself and to make sure that he'll learn to like himself. That no matter what, she would do her best.
Heroic Spirit EMIYA gave her a smile that new dawn.
A true smile.
Not one that was cynical or nihilistic.
But a smile from his heart that reminded why she fell in love with Emiya Naruto in the first place.
The strong will, conviction, and never say die attitude was endearing to her.
And she wanted to protect that.
"Don't worry Tohsaka. I'll try my best from now on, too."
Her eyes closes. Her chest heaves and an audible sigh is emitted.
It was a lot easier said than done. But nothing in life that was easy, was ever worthwhile.
"Rin. Are you ready?"
A voice behind her.
Her head turns. It was the true body of Merem Solomon that greets her teal eyes.
"Ready as I'll ever be," she answers.
The child's head nods. "Good. We'll be a little late, but we should make it in time for the final match to take place. We'll set off from the outskirts of the Land of Spring's capital and travel on the King of Sky. Have everything you need?"
She bends down and slings her backpack over her shoulders.
"Let's go. The faster, the better."
He smiles. "Yes indeed!"
Her hands tighten the straps and looks down at her ruby pendant.
A lovely smile graces her features.
"Soon…"
The thought of seeing him again filled her with energy along with a wicked smile.
"…and I'm going to tear Emiya-kun a new one when I see him."
It wasn't long before Merem and I made it up to the balcony where the village leaders spectated the matches from. Along the way there were multiple security checks and clearances that we had to go through from various bodyguards and retinue that traveled with their respective Kage.
Merem's ANBU turned and faced me before we ascended the final flight of stairs.
"Keep them busy Emiya-kun. I'll be doing a deep probe scan of their minds. The more they talk, the easier it'll be for me to remain undetected. I'll meet you at the stairwell after this is all done."
"Mhm - gotcha."
He heads up first and I shadow him several steps behind.
Five sets of eyes locked onto my form the moment I stepped up. Their heads turned to afford a better look at me. My escort presents me to the five most powerful individuals on this continent.
"Emiya Naruto as requested Hokage-sama."
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiles with a nod and takes his pipe out of his mouth. "So glad you can join us Naruto-kun! You seem to have taken your sweet time to get up here. The next match is about to begin soon."
I gave them all a closely guarded look.
The Sandaime Hokage was seated in the middle with the Kazekage to his right. From there, I can see the Mizukage at the end and the Tsuchikage and Raikage on the left respectively.
I recognize all five of the Kage before me.
The old man was garbed in his usual white and red robes, so nothing out place. There was a benign, old smile on his face that would put most people at ease. So same old, same old there.
Glancing over to his right, I see a familiar red head with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. It's been several years since I last saw him, but he had grown considerably since then. No longer was there a crazed and manic look on his face, but a stoic yet gentle expression on it. There was a certain amount of confidence and pride he carried as well.
Gaara.
I shoot him a grin and he chuckles.
Moving on to his right. I notice the Mizukage had a coy smile plastered on her face.
I blink.
Did I say coy? I mean predatory.
The woman was a most certainly beautiful that would undoubtedly catch the attention of both sexes easily. This was the woman who led the rebellion against her village for justice against their systematic genocide of bloodline users and ended the needless bloodshed brought forth by the previous Mizukage.
Terumi Mei.
I move on to the last two.
The Tsuchikage was a rather incredibly short old man. Hell I think he was older than the old man Hokage himself if I had to take a guess. He had more wrinkles and liver spots on his face then the stars above from what I can see. There was a grumpy disposition to him with his arms crossed in front of his chest that went with a small scowl.
I chalk it up to him missing his scheduled naps. Old people tend to like those things right?
This must be Onoki.
There was a rather known epithet that went along with his name. Old-man Onoki, the Fence-Sitter. The Ryotenbin, known for his tendency to sit on the fence on a subject or matter for a great deal of time before coming to a final decision. A ruthless and cunning man. It must've been why he has been the Tsuchikage for almost fifty years now.
And lastly my gaze falls upon the Raikage. He was the complete opposite of the Tsuchikage, being incredibly tall and had overtly large, bulging muscles. It was akin to that of some bodybuilder that had a knack for wrestling. I thought I was fairly tall, but the Raikage made me feel short. In fact, I think the chair that was seated underneath him was groaning in protest from supporting all that mass and muscle.
A.
The man that was once in contention for being the fastest living individual on this side of the world. At one point in time in his life he had fought my biological father and had lived to tell the tale. A man with renowned strength that was said to have the ability to go pound for pound against the Hachibi Jinchūriki on a daily basis and come out on top.
"Sorry, I took the scenic route and whatnot," I said unapologetically.
"Oh and what did you see?"
"Mmm - you know. Stairs. Concrete. More stairs. Fantastic stuff you know."
The old man, Kazekage, and Mizukage share a small laugh. The other two were less than amused with my banter.
"Long time no see Naruto-san," greets the Kazekage.
"Indeed… it's been what? Two? Three? Maybe four years since I last spoke to you Gaara? And look at you being the leader of a nation now. I'm surprised you actually took my words to heart."
Gaara shares an amused look. "Well after you almost beat me into a coma and saved me. I felt a certain obligation to take up on your advice to become a hero for my nation. They saw it fit to give me the hat after that whole debacle."
I rub the back of my neck. I suddenly felt a lot older just thinking back on it.
Long story short. It was a mission given to me by the Hokage to resolve the growing issues and disputes in the Land of Wind. One of three labors I had to complete in order to gain an early retirement. Out of the three, I would say this one was the most difficult and laborious to complete.
To speak of the battle let's just say, there was a lot of shouting, crying, and bleeding that went out. Not to mention a significant renovation of the surrounding environment. Last time I heard, they had to redraw a map or something.
"Huh… well congratulations then. If I had known you were coming down I would've gotten you something as a present."
He shakes his head. "No need. You saving me is a gift all on its own."
I shrug. "If you say so."
"So…" a sultry voice drawls. "This is the vaunted Wrought Iron Hero hmm? I have to say Momochi-kun's description of you pales in comparison to the real and living thing." The woman garbed in blue licks her lips and I gulp nervously. "You certainly blow my expectations out of the water. I didn't expect him to be such a young and incredibly handsome strapping man." Her eyes appraises me up and down like I was some meat hanging off a rack.
I blink a couple of times. "Um… thank… you?" I respond back slowly.
"No, no," she shakes her head. "I should be thank you for bringing Momochi-kun and Kurosaki-kun back to Kirigakure. Please, do stop by my quarters so that I may properly thank you hmm?"
Uh… I look to the old man for help, but he was just grinning benignly. I glare before shifting my eyes to Gaara. He simply shrugs and had deigned it better for his life to stay out of it. I glare at him as well.
"Hmph. This is the Wrought Iron Hero?" Onoki looks me up and down. "Feh – I didn't know he was some lanky flaky blond." His beady eyes glare at me. "You know… you kind of remind me of someone… of a certain… pah – never mind."
I gave him a cursory glance at best. Did he know about my parentage? Probably. It wasn't that important to me either way.
"Aside from the Mizukage shamelessly flirting and the Tsuchikage developing Alzheimer's. Tell me, are you the one who prepared Uchiha Sasuke for the match against Omoi?" the Raikage interjects. Thank goodness.
"And if I was?" I question back.
The dark skinned village leader blows hot air through his nose. "Those were some cowardly tactics you had her use."
Ah – the Raikage felt slighted that one of his candidates was defeated. He had went down in a rather boring fashion without much fanfare and flair. There wasn't a great clash between two opponents nor a drawn out fight. Just a match which Sasuke played with her opponent, tested the waters, and went in for the kill at the right moment. In a way, it was a rather dull fight all summed up.
"I simply afforded her the highest percentage chance to overcome her opponent." I shrug with an air of indifference. The Raikage didn't seem to like my remark, as he scowled.
"Have you no pride as a shinobi?" he shoots.
I snort. "You can feed your pride to the dogs then Raikage if that is so important to you. If you wish to have pride then you chose the wrong profession in life."
His steely eyes glare straight into mine. Neither of us backed down as I didn't really care how he felt about the matter. And then after a few more moments, he starts to grin. That grin turned into a smile. A deep rumble came from his chest before it turned into a full blown laughter.
What?
"You've got balls kid. I haven't had anyone actually speak to me like that in such a long time, I forgot what it felt like to be challenged!"
Uh… what?
After he's done guffawing he explains himself. "You're right on all accounts. In the shinobi world, there are no such things as cowardly tactics. As they say, anything can happen on the battlefield. I'm going to tear B a new one for not preparing Omoi as well as you did with Uchiha Sasuke. Damn stupid wanna-be rapper."
At this point, I wasn't even going to try and comprehend what just happened. The conversation went serious into one direction before it veered off into the complete opposite. This time I found myself scratching the back of my head in wonder.
Man… and I thought Magi were weird. Shinobi people really take the cake with this one.
The look on my face made the other Kage chuckle to themselves in mirth.
"So… besides all that. What did you call me here for old man? A dog and pony show for you and your friends or something?"
He takes the pipe and blows a billow of smoke. "Far from it. I hear that you have an exceptional ability for combat analysis from Kakashi. There were high praises from him and several others. All I ask of you is to merely facilitate a commentary on the next match for us to engage a discussion."
That's a rather odd request to make.
"Why don't you get someone else to do it?" I deflect. "Besides, Kakashi and others were probably just blowing smoke."
"Aww Naruto-kun," the Mizukage coos. "Please? I'm greatly curious as to how in-depth your analysis can go."
I blink. Was that a double entendre or was I just crazy? "Uh…" was my intelligent response.
Sarutobi Hiruzen gives a slightly perverse giggle which he immediately covers with a cough. "You wouldn't want to disappoint the Mizukage now would you?"
I glare at him and huff in annoyance. I begrudgingly acquiesce to his request. "Fine… and will you stop batting your damn eyelashes at me? It's not doing anything!"
The Mizukage acts innocently and smiles.
Damn that smile, damn that old man for calling me up here and just for good measure, damn you too Kakashi.
Shoving my hands into the pockets of my jacket. I turn around and look down to the arena.
I use this moment to take it all in. The balcony where the Kage were seated had a really, really good view of all the action from up here. I guess there were certain caveats to being a leader of your nation and all that.
"For the next match we have Haruno Sakura of Konohagakure! Versus! Hyuga Neji of Konohagakure!"
There was a round of applause and cheers as the next two competitors forayed into the arena. It was more subdued than the first match as it was a matter of pride between two global powers. The second match was an internal matter with no significant consequences as Konoha wins either way, but for me it was just as important as the first match.
For me it wasn't just Konoha versus Konoha.
Not many people knew, but Haruno Sakura was an orphan that had no significant background. To most others, she was just a regular girl that just happened to be on the team with the last Uchiha and the son of a minister. Going into this match, Sakura had more to prove to anyone else in this tournament. And dare I say it, she had more to prove than Sasuke.
She didn't have a special bloodline ability. Neither was she considered a prodigy. Just a hard working person with a dream to save people with medicine and do well for the world. If someone were to ask me who I respected the most in this village, I would give it to Sakura.
"Do the competitors have anything to say before the match begins?" The proctor raises a hand up in the air.
"I must apologize beforehand." Neji's voice rings throughout the arena. "But you will be defeated. No amount of training nor preparation will do you justice. My eyes and the blood that runs through my veins have already assured me of my victory. It is destined for you to fall and for me to rise."
Sakura gives him a smile only a doctor could with their patient. One that promised a lot of pain and humiliation in the next couple of minutes.
Hmph – underneath that stoic and quiet demeanor of his, there was a good amount of pride, ego and was that conceitedness? What hubris. For a Hyuga, let alone a branch member, he sure did like to spout a bunch of nonsense.
It looks like there was going to be a lot more going into this match than I expected.
I'm going to enjoy watching Sakura clock his head in at the right moment.
Sakura's eyes scans her surrounding for a moment and spots me. We share a knowing look between us.
Hyuga Neji was in for a rather rude awakening.
"BEGIN!"
A bit of banter occurred behind me that sparked a discussion among the village leaders. The majority of them concluded that due to both competitors excelling in hand-to-hand combat that the match heavily favored Hyuga Neji. With his bloodline limit and eyes, he would undoubtedly crush Haruno Sakura easily in a fair bout.
Too bad this fight was going to be anything but fair.
"So Naruto-kun, who do you think will win?" the Hokage asks for my prediction.
"Sakura," I answer simply.
I could feel all five of their perplexed gazes on my back. They were waiting for further explanation of my choice. It was a five against one decision after all.
"I spent most of the time preparing Sakura for this match up in particular against Neji. While his skills and abilities are exceptional, they have faults in them just like everything else. Simply put, you can say Neji is a one-trick pony… albeit an exceptional one-trick pony."
I snort from my nose. It was the pot calling the kettle black. It took one to know one.
"Oh? And what makes you say that?" says the Mizukage with mirth in her voice
"All Neji knows and excels at are the Hyuga family techniques. Outside of that, he isn't that versatile. While dangerous up close, if you decide to play the range game you can pick him apart. Same goes for the others. I accounted for most of the known techniques in his clan and assisted Sakura in developing a game plan based off that."
Gaara chuckles, "I didn't know you became such a studious scholar over the years. That's a lot of research you did."
I shrug with indifference. Being with Tohsaka over the years, I had picked up a few of her habits to research a subject thoroughly inside and out. It was a mage's duty to vet out any information as much as possible for the sake of understanding and expanding upon his or her thaumaturgy.
But that's beside the point.
"That still doesn't mean he's a pushover. I've encountered quite a few Hyuga ninja over my life and they have an exceptional ability to kill a shinobi with only but a simple tap," notes the Raikage. He looks over to the Mizukage. "If I remember correctly Mizukage, one of your shinobi bodyguards has his own Byakugan that he pilfered after a duel."
She smiles easily. "Indeed. He had over half of his chakra points sealed off and had to go through rehabilitation for the next year or so. What's even worse is that it they outnumbered the Hyuga shinobi considerably. A ten to one engagement if I recall."
"They haven't moved yet… what are those damn brats doing down there? Having a stare off?" grunts the Tsuchikage. "Back in my old days, we just got it over with and bashed each other's skulls in."
Sakura and Neji were settled into their own respective stances. Neji had already activated his mystic eyes. That confirmed it for both me and Sakura that he heavily favored using the Gentle Fist, or Juken, techniques.
She inhales deeply.
"If I were you. I'd hold onto your seats," I cheekily say to them. There was a smirk plastered onto my face. It was more of a shit eating grin, but who cares.
Sakura raises her fist up above her head. Her chakra gathers up in her fist. It was all pushed up into one single chakra point. The amount was so much that it became visible the naked eye and caused Neji to squint. It must've been blinding for him.
She exhales.
Her gloved fist smashes into the ground beneath her feet.
The stadium erupts as the ground explodes violently. It was akin to Caladbolg going off on a smaller scale without the fire and space distortion. Monolithic slabs of rock are explode out from the epicenter. Dirt and rubble fly everywhere, completely destroying the surrounding environment.
"W-What strength!" someone exclaims behind me.
Just like the previous match up. A great plume of dirt and dust falls back down and settles at the ground floor. It momentarily obscures the vision of every spectator watching the match.
"Not exactly subtle now is it?" Hiruzen points out.
"No, far from it, but absolutely necessary," I answer. "You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs."
"Well it seems like she's a rather messy cook," he replies flatly.
Sakura shoves both of her hands in her utility pouch and produces a significant amount of shuriken and kunai. They're flicked with adequate speed and accuracy to Neji's last known location.
"Kaiten!"
His feet wobbles, but he manages to perform his defensive technique. A bubble of pure chakra extrudes from his hands as he spun on the spot to deflect the projectiles. It also dissipates the dirt and dust in the air. The moment he comes to a stop, his stance shifts slightly as if he were almost unbalanced by the terrain.
Good. He was afraid of the sudden change of environment that he played his trump card early.
Just as we suspected and proves my theory right that he was just like every Hyuga clan member. Exorbitantly reliant on family style techniques only.
There were only a few elemental attributes that were typical of Konoha shinobi. Shinobi hailing from this village normally were attuned with the element of fire. The second most common being the element earth and the element water trailing behind not too far. The other two elements, wind and lightning, were part of an extreme minority to the population. Asuma and Kakashi, respectively, being the only known shinobi who were attuned to those elements.
There was earth all around Neji, yet he didn't use an earth wall to protect himself and instead relied on his special techniques.
Sakura had distanced herself to the far end of the arena wall while Neji had control of the middle ground.
"The girl is at a disadvantage. He has priority in the center of the arena. She's backed herself up against the wall. A pity." The Tsuchikage shakes his head.
I disagree. "True, but pay attention to the elevation between the two."
They all lean in for a better look. Sakura had a few meters above her opponent. She was looking down at him from her spot.
"I see… she has the high ground. Even so that's barely negligible. A few meters means nothing for a Hyuga. Especially one well versed in his clan's techniques. He can negate that difference in height," the short old man counters. He then immediately crosses his arms and snorts. "Look at me, I must be going senile if I'm rooting for a damn Konoha shinobi of all things."
"Look again at Neji's feet. They're shifting constantly." I point out.
The Kazekage quickly follows me up. "I notice that as well. He's imbalanced. He's trying to find a comfortable foothold to engage his opponent, but he himself is unsure if he can properly execute with a rough surface."
"Hmph, I still say it doesn't mean a damn thing. Once she's in range of his technique, he'll shut her down immediately." He stubbornly argues back out of pride for his chosen victor.
I say nothing in return and continue to watch the bout.
The conditions were in Sakura's favor, but from here on it. It was high-risk, high-reward plays.
While the Hakke Rokujuyon Sho was formidable, it didn't mean it was invincible. There were ways to counter the technique to prevent the user from beginning it. The obvious way was to stay out of range which was a measly ten-meters from the user. They can't use it, if they're not in range. Another effective way was to disrupt the user's footing at the time of activation.
Neji makes the first move and blasts forward with a blurring speed. His form was that of a white streak crossing the distance to Sakura.
His right palm extends out. He pushes with all his might. It jettisons out a stream of compressed air.
The pink haired girl dodges at the last moment. In her place, there was a deep indenture of the arena wall. Cracks webbed out all along the wall as a result.
That's something I didn't know a Juken user could do.
Luckily Sakura had built up her reflexes over the months from my arrows. She accounted for it well enough, but barely. One solid hit and that was all it took for the match to be over.
High-risk, high-reward.
Her foot stomps on the ground harshly. It erupts the earth beneath Neji forcing him to jump into the air to avoid it. It gives her ample time to retreat and gain distance between them while he was stuck in the air.
He's fast, but not terribly so.
He pursues her with aggression. Using his palms to thrust a vacuum of air to his target.
Sakura deftly dodges again.
"You're in my range!" he announces.
Ten meters.
He thrusts his right palm forward first. It was an awfully telegraphed move that anyone could see, but it was fast. A lesser person would've been hit.
Not Sakura.
To her, the attack was coming at her a mile away. It misses her right arm by a hair's breadth. Too close of a call for my tastes, but it'll have to do. The two attacks come in the form of a jab with his left palm. They too miss.
I could sense the frustration build up in Neji.
He cocks his right arm back. His torso twists along with the motion, coiling up like a cobra for a strike. He roars as he strikes, but that too is for naught as his palm meets air.
His feet shift. They're unbalanced by the jagged ground and loose gravel. It was a terrible situation for him to have his main form of attack hampered.
Neji huffs. "You… you dodged the opening of my technique." He looked confused. Bewildered that someone had managed to avoid getting hit entirely. His eyes narrows at Sakura's rather limp right arm. "But not entirely so… how annoying. Looks like I have my work cut out for me."
He readies his stance once more. A wider stance than usual to take account of the rough terrain.
By that time, Sakura had healed up her arm and stretched it around.
"You trained her to reopen her chakra points didn't you Naruto-kun?" Sarutobi speaks up.
"She's an Iryo-nin or have you gone senile old man?" I throw him a smirk.
He gives a humored chuckle. "Indeed she is, but that begs the question of how did she dodge the opening of his technique? While it is certainly not impossible, it is… rather extremely difficult especially in such an enclosed area."
"He's a creature of habit." I answer simply. "Too predictable in his opening move. Too sure of himself and his family technique that they will not fail. After all his success rate has been at a hundred percent until now."
"I see," chimes in the Mizukage. "Look again. He's opening his attack with a forward strike with his right palm followed up by two successive strikes from his left palm before going back to a right and finishing off with a double palm thrust."
Sakura dodges all of his attacks again with better success. No glancing blows this time. They dance around the stadium playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse. So far, Sakura had yet to go on the offensive, but she didn't need to. All she had to do was wait for the perfect opportunity to strike and it would be game over.
One solid hit to clock his head in.
Patience is key here.
Careful timing is required.
Gaara follows her up. "While undoubtedly skilled with the Hyuga technique. He fails to gain any substantial results and is starting to taper off. Sloppy movements. Overextending too often compared to the start of the match. Naruto that was your game plan for Sakura isn't it?"
I say nothing in return, but he takes that as my confirmation.
He crosses his fingers in front of his face and stares intently down below. "Haruno Sakura going into this match was heavily outclassed by Hyuga Neji. He has over a year of experience over her. Better hand-to-hand, speed, and dexterity. But you made all of that null and void by having her destroy the stadium ground."
"The scales were tipped greatly in favor of the Hyuga. She balanced it by destroying it." The Raikage rumbles and he begins to laugh. "HAHA! I like your style boy!"
I simply shrug my shoulders. "It allotted her the highest possible chance for winning. Who says a fight has to be fair?"
Looking back down, the fighting had stopped and a lull of peace reigned over for a brief moment.
Neji's chest was heaving heavily as he greedily sucked in air into his lungs. His face was red and sweating all over. His hair was matted against his forehead and his pale white eyes were narrowed in anger and frustration.
To the opposite of him, Sakura fared slightly better than Neji. Aside from that glancing blow to her right arm from their first series of engagements she was fine.
"You fight like a damn coward," he seethes out loud. "You should be ashamed! How can you call yourself a ninja?!"
Her opponent was infuriated.
His pride was damaged. He had been publically embarrassed by failing to hit her with his techniques that were renowned all across the continent. They were regarded as the epitome of Taijutsu. There was nothing greater than the Juken. And yet some no-named girl was practically making a fool out of him.
A proverb rings into my mind of this situation. Pride comes before a fall.
And Neji being a son of the Hyuga Clan, even only a branch member, had plenty of it.
He was near exhaustion. He had backed himself up into a proverbial corner in the battlefield by wasting all his time and energy fruitlessly chasing her around the field.
Neji knew this.
Sakura most definitely did as well.
"Sorry," Sakura finally replies unapologetically. "But I simply chose the route that afforded me the highest chance of winning against you."
Her hands pulls out several kunai that had explosive tags attached to them. She augments her strength with chakra before throwing them at breakneck speeds at Neji.
"KAITEN!"
He spins on the spot and a dome of chakra appears once more blocking the kunai and explosion that follows in suit.
While he was distracted, Sakura smashes her fist to the ground and causes a trailing eruption to where he stood. As soon as his rotational spin stops, he jumps high into the air to avoid it.
That was check.
For the second time of the fight, he's sent up high into the air courtesy of Sakura. But this time he was prepared and adjusted accordingly. He twists his body and blasts his hands into the sky to propel him downward to Sakura.
Neji cocks his right palm back as he allowed gravity to do the rest of the work.
Sakura bends her knees and responds in kind. She aims carefully and lowers her profile. The sun wasn't to Neji's back. The angle of attack was just right.
Her eye's narrow.
"SHANNARO!"
Sakura side steps the palm thrust and it sails over her shoulder. Her retaliatory punch smashes into his abdomen with such force that his eyes bugout considerably. Blood and spittle fly everywhere as his body folds in on itself. She follows through with the punch and smashes his body into the ground.
The floor beneath my feet shook from the impact and I blink. I whistle softly to myself as the arena floor is destroyed even further than it already is.
I blink again and there stood Haruno Sakura standing triumphantly over Neji's unconscious body.
"WINNER! HARUNO SAKURA!"
Silence reigns upon the crowd of onlookers. They were shocked. The favored clansman had lost to some orphan.
It was beginning to become unbearable as Sakura looked around nervously.
And so… I clapped.
It was slow at first, but it gained moment and suddenly more and more people began to join in. The crowd was delighted with the display put forth by the two contestants. It was soon deafening to my ears at how loud everyone was yelling and screaming.
"A marvelous display of skill and tactics!" applauds the Sandaime Hokage. "And cunning usage of the environment to turn it into her favor."
Onoki begrudgingly agrees, while the other three simply supplied supportive comments and notes about the match. The general agreement was that Haruno Sakura had flipped the tables onto Hyuga Neji by causing widespread damage and playing a lethal game of chase. There were faults such as her being a bit too reckless with her powers and should show restraint, I waved it all away.
That wasn't the point with this match.
The previous round with Sasuke held no significant context with her fight. She played her part and played to what the general public wanted to see. They expected the finesse and speed as expected of an Uchiha and gave it to them.
For Sakura? This was sending a message to everyone watching that she didn't need any special bloodline trait to win.
I throw my head back to Hiruzen. "I didn't really do too much analysis on the fight nor commentate, but it kept you five entertained well enough I suppose seeing how much chatter went on."
The Sandaime Hokage puffs on his pipe. "I assure you we were all fairly entertained. The discussion was lively and informative with another opinion on hand."
I hum in agreement offhandedly. "Then by your leave? I'm fairly certain Kakashi might be thinking I got myself into a trouble or something." I pause. "Who am I kidding? He probably doesn't care too much."
I share a small laugh to myself. The Hokage catches the inside joke about Kakashi being nonchalant and indifferent to many things.
"No. You're free to go. Thank you for giving an old man some company with his friends Naruto-kun."
He dismisses and I bow to everyone out of formality.
The Mizukage winks and makes a playful gesture for me to come visit her later on.
Yeah… no way. Not a snowball's chance in hell was I walking into that trap.
Besides. Rin would absolutely murder me.
Terumi Mei reminded me of a certain Luviagelita Edelfelt. Although I think Luvia was a lot more forward than Mei by a longshot. The brawl between Luvia and Rin in one of the sparring rooms of the Clock Tower was legendary. So much so that even the Queen of the Clock Tower had reigned in on the matter and made sure to keep the two separated as much as possible.
I scratch the back of my head and sigh loudly to myself.
It was time to head back to Kakashi and get an update from Merem. The little soiree with the Kage had momentarily put my mind off the matter, but now that that was over. I needed to get my head back into the game and onto more pressing matters.
"Anything?"
Merem and I were on our way back to where the general audience were seated. The ANBU controlled by the King of Rats was lightly in front, keeping up the guise of being an escort even though we were the only individuals in the tunnel.
"No," he pauses. "And I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing."
I can share those sentiments. It meant we were still playing the guessing game of who's involved in this plot.
"What about the ministers? Have you tried them yet?"
"Absent," he replies.
Absent? What?
"What do you mean?"
He stops.
"Our suspect number one is coincidentally absent in spectating his son's performance today. I've scoured the arena along with my rats and he's not here."
"That's not suspicious in any way shape or form," I mumble out.
"Indeed," the rat's voice was full of amusement. "Worry not though Emiya-kun, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. And Toshiyuki Tsubasa is plenty human."
I resist the urge to roll my eyes. There was so much irony in that statement.
"Anyways, we'll let things develop further and see from there. All of the magical seals have been removed. We've ruined at least step one through three of whatever they are planning."
That was good to know. It meant that both Michael and whoever that he was in league with would be forced to use a more direct means to achieve their objectives thereby exposing them clearly to us and everyone else. The bait had been set, now it was time to wait.
"This is simply exciting Emiya-kun!" His tone was giddy. "Why I haven't had much fun in a game of cat and mouse in ages! The look on Valdamjong's face when he realizes what's wrong will be pure bliss!"
This time, I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Of course Merem's Left Arm would be taking enjoyment of a crisis waiting to happen.
His ANBU turns and walks backwards while he expressed his joy. "The thrill of it is intoxicating! I'll enjoy seeing his face being outsmarted and- GHRRKK!"
His voice suddenly stops as two nails pierces through the ANBU he's controlling.
I flinch slightly as blood splatters all of my face and clothing as the body is simply torn in half. The lower extremity going to the left wall, while the top smacked against the right wall closest to me with a sickening squelch.
The nails retract back into the darkness before they're shot towards their next target.
I trace Kanshou and Bakuya in an instant.
The married blades appearing in my left and right hands respectively. I bring them up and deflect the nails away to the side.
"What in the bloody hell? Who ruined my ride?!" Merem crawls out from under the hood. "I'll turn them into a god damn vegetable for this!"
My face scrunches up as I got a quick look at the nails before they're retracted back into the darkness ahead. They looked awfully familiar. Too familiar. Who uses nails that had chains tied at their ends?
I make a choking noise.
"No…" my voice was feint. Barely a whisper.
Those belonged to-!
Her figure explodes out from the shadow, her weapons coming down like a guillotine blade onto Merem's form.
I step forward and strike out against her attack. Steel on steel clangs rancorously in the dark tunnel. Sparks fly everywhere as our strikes struggle against each other.
My eyes widen at the sheer strength of her blow. My arm was struggling to match it even though it was reinforced. I could feel Kanshou groaning and cracking in my hand at the force of the strike.
"Ghrk!" I grunt as I push back.
The woman hasn't deigned it enough to divide her full attention on me yet.
I spin Bakuya to the point there it's like a table saw blade. A bright blue line glowed at the tip of the sword as I bring it down to her neck to sever it.
She notices me now. Her other nail comes up and smashes into the black blade, completely shattering my projection with ease.
I quickly project Bakuya again and move to sever her arm that was locked with Kanshou.
Her leg snaps out and strikes directly into my abdomen sending me skidding back a dozen meters or so. Blood and spit fly out of my mouth, but I clamp down on the yelp of pain that made its way into the back of my throat.
I sense Merem crawling up my back to rest on my shoulder. I had brought him enough time for him to escape. I'm certain that the actual Merem would be please to know that his Left Arm wasn't skewered into the ground by a Servant. My hand rubs my stomach. That kick would've blown out my organs if I hadn't reinforced them.
I shift my gaze towards my assailant. It was a slender, beautiful woman with long lavish purple, white-ish hair. Her outfit could be considered scandalous and racy for the fact that all she wore was a pair of thigh high boots and a purple top that generously showed a portion of her breasts. But the one thing that drew my sights was the covering of her eyes.
"Rider."
Her head slightly tilts. It was incredibly unnerving. It sent a chill down my spine.
I get a better look at her. In the back of mind, there was something incredibly wrong about her. Something that was so off kilter that it stopped all my thoughts to a screeching halt.
I blink.
Her skin!
It was pale. Paler than what I remembered it being. Like vines growing wildly and uncontrolled, there angry red lines that raced all across her skin.
Alter.
Alter Rider.
What the hell is going on?!
Her knees bend and she blasts forward in a blur.
I throw all caution to the wind and bring out Saber's sword from its scabbard. The two nails clash against the invisible blade. It took both of my hands to stop her thrust. I skid couple of meters back as a result.
Alter Rider puts more pressure into her attack to snap the blade like how she did with Kanshou and Bakuya. But it was a pointless endeavor as Saber's sword was something else entirely. Because of that we're locked into a stalemate momentarily. My mind races for alternatives to the situation I've found myself in.
Her face looks up to mine.
There was a blank expression from what I could tell.
What in the actual hell is going on right now?!
When she looks at me, Alter Rider gives me a teasing and knowing smirk. A sickening giggle could be heard before she leans forward. Her face was inches from mine. I could feel her hot breath on my skin. This was way too damn close for comfort!
My arms were burning in protest. They were shaking. I had already reinforced them to their limits.
I was human. Therefore I adhered to physical limitations.
She was not. She was a heroic spirit. A being that was above and beyond mortal limits.
I grunt and attempt to push back. I needed some space between us. No wonder Archer did his best to avoid direct confrontations.
D-rank strength absolutely sucks ass!
As quickly as the pressure came, it relented.
Alter Rider backed off and dissipated in a burst of purple lights.
"Hmph… she's smart. She knew I was cracking ever so closely into her head." There was a tone of frustration in his voice. "What in the name of Brunestud is a heroic spirit doing all the way out here? Is she the one that drew up the seals? And if so why were they so butchered and bastardized to what they were?"
I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I greedily gulped in air as I sagged down and took a knee. I didn't care about that right now. Too many questions with too little answers. Everyone needed to get out of this place as soon as possible.
"Merem… we need to warn the others!" The invisible sword in my hand sheathes itself back inside me. Everything suddenly took a turn for the worse. Something bad was about to happen momentarily. I could feel it in my bones. It was nauseating. "I need to get to Kakashi! Fast!"
"Then get to it Emiya-kun!"
I bolt out of the tunnels like a bat out of hell and ran towards where Kakashi and everyone else should be sitting. I had a feeling that I didn't have that much time left. I look all around me and note that neither did these people if they weren't evacuated.
"KAKASHI!" I yell at the top of my lungs as I flew down the stairs.
The next match was already ongoing between Daisuke and his opponent. My voice cuts through the crowd and everyone in the vicinity turns their attention towards me. I could hear people gasping at the sight of blood sprayed all over me.
Kakashi rockets out of his seat in alarm. "Naruto! What the hell happened to you! You're covered in blood!"
"Yeah! I realize that!" I stressed out. "It's not my blood! I'm perfectly fine! We need to get everyone out of the arena! NOW!"
All around me, people were gawking and gaping. Fingers pointed at me. Several other shinobi were out of their seats and making their way towards the commotion.
"Naruto! Calm down!" He grabs my shoulders. "You're causing a scene here!"
I didn't care that I was causing a scene. That was the furthest thing on my mind right now.
"Yo! Hatake-san! What's going on here?" a Konoha shinobi comes up behinds me.
"He's covered in blood! What the hell happened?"
"Did someone attack him?"
"He doesn't look hurt to me. Maybe someone attacked him?"
More and more people were getting out of their seats to see what was going on. They were crowding around the area. More shinobi than civilians. I had a funny feeling coursing through my stomach. I didn't like the fact that I was surrounded on all sides.
There were a variety of shinobi wearing different headbands representing their country. A majority being Konoha, but a few other nations sprinkled in here and there from what I can see.
'Oi – Emiya-kun, I'm getting a strange vibe here.' It was Merem whispering his thoughts to me. 'You feel it to don't you?'
I growl in frustration. As if I didn't already have a strange vibe going on after getting assaulted by an Alter Rider; someone who should be very long gone and up in the Throne of Heroes.
'Nooo, I don't. It's not like we were just ambushed a moment ago by a corrupt heroic spirit Merem!'
I could feel him glaring at me. 'Don't be sarcastic with my Emiya-kun. That feeling is getting stronger! It feels like a compulsion spell! As if… as if-!"
'As if it's to make you sleep!'
I blink.
"H-Hey… I'm feeling… pretty tired all of a sudden…" someone says from the crowd.
"Y-Yeah… I kinda wanna just… take an n-nap…" The person yawns loudly.
Just like that. One by one they all started to slowly collapse. Those who were standing fell to their knees and were knocked out then and there. All around me people slumped forward in their seats. The civilians spectating the match were the first to be out cold. Academy students and recently graduated genin shinobi were also greatly affected.
Individuals who were more experienced shook the compulsion off and dispelled it with a burst of chakra.
A massive explosion rocks the arena. My eyes track to where it came from and a column of smoke could be seen from the balcony where the Kage were seated.
"What's going on!? Are we under attack?!" someone shouts.
I rolled my eyes. Idiot! Of course we are!
A sizeable group of shinobi jumps overhead and lands in front of the railings. They were all garbed in black and gray clothing and wore a ski mask that covered their facial features except for their eyes. All of them wore an Otogakure headband along with a black and grey snake patterned scarf.
Except for one that stood out among them all. It was an ANBU with a black coat and a plain white and red mask.
My eyes narrow in pure disgust. A traitor.
I hated traitors with a burning passion.
Kakashi, Gai, Anko, Asuma, and Kurenai were on their feet, standing a little ways behind me.
"He must be the one that caused the genjutsu," Gai mutters to everyone.
"Who is he? Why's an ANBU personnel betraying us?" Asuma asks.
I didn't care for who he was or what his reasons are.
"You're surrounded Konoha shinobi! Surrender! And we may let you live!" One of the Otogakure shinobi taunts.
I glance around and confirm we were indeed surrounded.
Eleven Otogakure shinobi. Including the ANBU turncoat.
"No…" I breathe in and close my eyes. "All I am surrounded by are fools and dead men… Trace, ON!"
A cocking hammer goes off inside my mind. It fills my body with coldness throughout.
All twenty-seven of my magic circuits thrum to life. I project two swords for every enemy in the vicinity. The moment they're traced and given a physical form, I hone them in on their respective targets and they shoot out with the speed of a bullet.
The projected weapons meet their mark.
All twenty-two swords skewer their targets into the ground.
One for the heart. The other for the head.
Only one set of swords had missed their mark and that was because that traitor had successfully deflected them. He was more skilled than I had anticipated.
"Aren't you a resourceful one?" I give the traitor a cold glare.
"No," his voice is muffled slightly from behind the mask. But I could hear he was laughing at me. Mocking me. "You were simply too slow for me."
"Oh?" I cock an eyebrow. "Forgive me for underestimating you. Allow me to fix that."
I trace Archer's bow in my left hand and a Noble Phantasm on the right.
The Noble Phantasm had a strange appearance for a sword. It was a pitch-black weapon, with a few small edges coiling around the thin core, spiraling around the center curving outward a bit.
A small grin forms on my face as he visibly steps back.
Not so sure of yourself now are you?
I take my time to nocking the blade and pulling back the string. The metallic frame of the bow creaks and groans. I train my sights at the center mass of his body.
"Go into the red plains…"
He hops onto the railing and jumps to the roof across the arena. He's fast… but not fast enough.
I pump enough prana into the weapon and turn into a Broken Phantasm. A useful fire and forget type of projectile. I smirk at the futility of his retreat.
"Hrunting!"
The Noble Phantasm that was once wielded by the hero Beowulf fires out onto my target. It turns into a magic bullet enveloped in a red light that exceeds the speeds of Mach 10. It didn't matter what my foe did. Parry. Repulse. Avoidance. Block. Hrunting would simply adjust accordingly to such possibilities as long as my sights were trained on them.
He jumps over it. Barely. He even had the gall to face towards my direction to taunt me.
My smirk was still plastered on my face.
Hrunting corrects its path midair and comes back around for him once more. He wasn't able to twist his body to dodge it. The angry red projectile slams straight into his torso. Plucking him out of the sky like a pigeon. A roar of pain emits from him as he fell from the sky and crashed into the ground below.
"That'll teach you to be smug with me." I turn around.
To my surprise everyone was just standing there. Mouths gaped open. Gawking at me.
My brow furrows. "What?"
"T-That… so many… swords?!" spoke a stunned Kurenai.
"And so… fast… I didn't even see them," followed up Asuma.
"You know," Kakashi starts off with a deadpan tone. "I can't help, but not be amazed by it every time I see it."
There were similar comments made from the others but I ignored them in favor of surveying the arena. I had only managed to kill off a small portion of the enemy forces. There were still many more Otogakure shinobi fighting against other shinobi and murdering non-combatants in their sleep. Some were taking their time and used their kunai. Others used wide-range elemental techniques to kill people in one big swoop. Like a scythe through a field of grass.
My heart races.
My blood boils.
It was senseless mayhem and murder. The systematic purging and genocide of Konoha's inhabitants and anyone who didn't wore a sound note headband.
Anger was coursing through my veins.
I wanted these people to be dead. These invaders didn't deserve the chance to be saved. I wouldn't even bother to give them a second chance. If they begged for mercy. I'll simply run them through with a sword.
A bright flash and I was in my Red Plain Mystic Code.
"Kakashi." I call to him. "We need to wake these people up and escort them somewhere safe. Are Konoha's standard protocols still the same concerning an invasion from another country after the wall has been breached?"
"By now ANBU and the Emergency Response Teams should be evacuating everyone beneath the Hokage Monument. Once all non-combatants have been evacuated, standard procedures concerning a counteroffensive goes into effect."
I bite my lower lip. That was going to take too long. The amount of people exposed were going to be too great. The numbers in my head were already piling up to the size of a mountain. Konoha was good, but they weren't that good against people that were actively targeting innocent people.
A series of footsteps came barreling down the hallway. It was a four man Konoha Chunin squad. They all quickly saluted to the Jonin and particularly to Kakashi.
"Kakashi-san! What are your orders?"
The man looks around and nods to himself. A plan already formulated in his head. "Send word to all four man cells and able bodied shinobi to clear out all enemy combatants wearing an Otogakure headband. Once we've secured the arena, we'll wake up the civilians and escort them to the evacuation zone. After that we'll-"
"▄▅▄▅▂▂▃▃▄▄▅!"
Kakashi was interrupted as the floor beneath our feet began to rumble violently. It was so great that it knocked almost everyone off their feet. Then a bloodcurdling scream pierced through the air. It made the hair on my skin stand on its end. Goosebumps forming all over. There was a sense of dread filling the bottom of my stomach.
I knew what made that noise.
"What the fuck just happened?!" someone curses loudly.
"No! More like what the fuck was that horrible screaming noise?!"
I tighten my grip on the ebony bow.
'Emiya-kun.'
'What?'
'Keep caution. There's something most foul and repulsive lurking behind the scenes.' Merem sounded awfully unsure of himself. It was entirely uncharacteristic of him to be like this. But I heeded his warning.
'You don't have to tell me twice.'
Off the corner of my eye, I spot an enemy group heading my way. Five in total.
I calmly nock an arrow and fire off ten in rapid succession. The force of the arrows sent them flying backwards dozens of meters back. They were dead before they even hit the ground.
"I'm heading up to the roof." I announce suddenly. "I'll be right back."
"▄▅▄▅▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅▂▄▅!"
It roars again in the distance from beyond the wall.
I needed to get a better look at what was going on.
Great columns of smoke rose hundreds, if not thousands of feet into the air.
Whole districts were set ablaze haphazardly.
The yells and screams of frightened people running away from the fighting echoed all around me.
My chest tightens.
It was all starting to bring back memories of when I was a child. Walking through those harrowing streets alone. Blazing fires all around. Buildings crumbling down. People dying left and right. Asking. Begging. Yelling for help. To save them from this nightmare.
I remember it all so clearly still.
I lost everything of myself there. The hatred. The anger. The hope. The self that was me and the dreams that I had before I saw his smile. Everything.
Whatever I was before Kiritsugu saved me, was burnt away with the fires.
Not again.
I swore to myself. "This day… and never again."
"Well… third time's the charm. Isn't that right…? Emiya-kun?"
I spin around at the sudden voice behind me and the sight that greets my eyes staggers me back several paces.
The thing smiles maliciously.
Blue eyes stare intently into my own blue eyes.
It was like seeing a reflection. A horrible, monstrous and perverted version of myself. My head spins. Inaudible sounds were being emitted from my mouth. I couldn't possibly grasp what was unraveling before me!
My hands shake.
My knees buckle.
"Y-You!" I shakily raise a finger at him. "W-What… who-… no w-what the FUCK ARE YOU?!"
This was too much! This was way too much for me to take in all at once! It's just too much!
"Allow me to properly introduce myself… I am – Avenger…"
Author's Note: I actually thought this chapter was going to be a lot easier to type out, but I proved myself wrong. This chapter and arc for this story was a long time coming as I sort of just wrote this whole story to get to this point. Looking back, I feel like I could've done a lot of things differently and developed the characters and sequences a hell of a lot better than… well what's written currently. More interactions for Naruto and everyone, better dialogue, meaningful actions between the cast, etc. Like damn… I was lying in bed a couple of nights ago just thinking to myself "God you're a fucking shit author". Hopefully I've been improving steadily since then and the writing has shown through a bit.
End of rant, sorry about that.
I recently came into contact with a potential beta, so hopefully I'll be able to develop my writing and skills as an author more with a second set of eyes looking in from the outside to tell me what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong.
Anyways, this chapter marks the beginning of where everything unravels. At this point, I envisioned it as the "tell all, end all" for my horrible pacing and writing to lead up to this point. This is where the tipping point begins for chapters 14 and 15, and to where Rin is finally fully introduced to the characters in the setting. It's also where questions are answered for both the reader and characters inside the story.
Also, before my usual closing statements for this week's update, I want to publically address why I prioritized Magecraft over Ninjutsu. The "too long, didn't read" version is that I wanted to write a story where Naruto was more interested in a foreign power than his ancestral power.
The stories I've read tend to mix the Ninjutsu and Thaumaturgy to get the best of both worlds to provide a wider range of abilities for him, but I felt it degrades the meaning of Shirou, or in this case Naruto's, power. Unlimited Blade Works is the definitive answer given to a person who viewed himself nothing but a weapon for the world to use. It is the culmination of all that he is, was, and ever will be.
A sword given a human form in the sense. That is why the first line in the aria is, "I am the Bone of my Sword"/"My body is made out of swords". From that he is suggesting a change of himself to fit that mindset of being a "sword". It is through that alien perception that gives rise to his reality marble of Unlimited Blade Works. An alien common sense of demons compared to a human common sense.
I wanted to give it a true and through meaning to that. I felt that, in a way, it degraded the point of "Unlimited Blade Works" and the character's obsessive nature with his ideals. In fact, the theme for the route was "struggling with oneself as an ideal" and if he didn't have that then there was no point to Unlimited Blade Works. I think I fudged it up here and there, but I try and stick to the grandness and wonders that the visual novel gave when I read it.
But enough of that, sorry about the super long author's note so I'll end it here.
I hope you, the readers and critics, enjoyed this week's update! I'm entirely grateful to those who take the time out of their day to leave a review for me to read! I greatly appreciate that!
If you can, please leave a review of your thoughts on the chapter and story so far! Feel free to message me any questions you might have or even leave it on your review! I'll get back to you as soon as possible!
Word count before A/N: 9,790.