I'm back! And after only 6 months!
I know you all are probably like, 'The hell with this guy, he is unreliable!' Honestly, it's true. After coming back from vacation I was hit with the worst case of writer's block I've ever had! Anyways, I hope I'm passed it.
Now then, I hope this chapter is up to par, I read through it like a dozen times to make sure I didn't make any stupid mistakes but I'm sure they're there, I am rusty after all.
I just realized, I have not given credit where it is due. Most of the non-cannon Jutsu I have used have been from VynosNeptune's list of elemental Jutsu. It is pretty damn good. If you're having trouble with your own, I suggest you check it out. Just an FYI he's also got a list of non-cannon Genjutsu as well. Although it seems to be gone now…
Orochimaru's bases were a pain to figure out which was which. I realized I was using two different bases for the same thing. Just assume Suigetsu was kept in the same base as Jugo, but they did pull him out, since he is too valuable.
Chapter 15
The Power of Gold Dust and To Convince a Fellow Swordsman
Naruto glared at the man in front of him.
"Kiri goes through the trouble of saving your ass and this is the thanks you give? You resist and attack the very ones here to save you?"
If anything, the smirk across Suigetsu's face grew.
"Oh, did I hurt someone's feelings?"
Naruto just continued to glare at the last of the Hozuki clan.
"I will be taking that sword."
Naruto watched with interest as Suigetsu seemed to be getting larger, his arms became more defined.
"Hozuki Secret Jutsu: Great Water Arm Jutsu!"
Naruto's eyes widened and he barely managed to jump back when Suigetsu charged, his fist barreling through the concrete floor.
'Such strength…'
"You're pretty quick on your feet; I can see how you would be able to beat Zabuza-sempai."
Naruto's expression never changed.
"I can't beat Zabuza-sensei."
Half a dozen senbon flew towards Suigetsu and he barely dodged.
"Haku, please stay out of this one. If he wants to fight for Kubikiribocho, then let's allow it. He doesn't stand a chance."
Naruto's grip on his sword tightened as he charged forward.
Try as he might, Suigetsu was unable to dodge Naruto's swing, slashing him from shoulder to hip. Only, instead of blood, water came. The Suigetsu in front of him became a puddle.
'Water Clone!? When did he make the switch!?'
Naruto began focusing on the sounds in the room, easily painting a picture of his surroundings.
The sound of moving water had him turning around, just in time for Suigetsu's fist to fly from the puddle of water and nail him in the chin, the blond swordsman was sent several feet in the air when Suigetsu appeared in front of him, his hand was now giant, like a giant hammer.
"It's over!"
When Suigetsu's hammer fist hit Naruto, the boy merely turned to water as Suigetsu landed, his arm returning to normal.
"Impressive switch, barely made it though."
Naruto stepped out from behind some equipment, he was staring impassively at Suigetsu.
"Damn, I forgot your clan is nearly impervious to physical attacks."
*With Zabuza, Ao and Chojuro
"Gold Dust: Drizzle."
With reactions expected of men of their rank, all three quickly turned, only to be shocked as a man Zabuza and Ao vaguely recognized, even if they had never met him before. However, that was of little importance, as there were over a dozen golden bullets heading right for them.
"Water Release: Water Wall Jutsu!"
"Enmajiten!"
"Hiramekarei: Unleash!"
The three defenses sprung up, right in front of the attack, unfortunately, the weight of the golden bullets gave them the power to plow through Zabuza's wall, forcing the man to carefully evade. The other two were impressively solid, holding up against the attack.
When the attack stopped, Zabuza gave Ao a smirk.
"Heh, the Hyuuga clan wouldn't be very happy…Now you're stealing not only their Doujutsu, but also their ultimate defense."
Ao's eyes never left the enemy.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
Zabuza rolled his eyes in exasperation.
"Heavenly Rotation, Devil's Spin, huge difference there."
A light blush crossed the blue haired man's face and he was about to respond when a shout caught their attention.
"Hiramekarei: Unleash!"
The two looked up, just in time to see the blue haired teen charging for the deceased kage, hammer in full form.
Ao's yell never reached Chojuto's ears.
"Damn it kid! Out of all the times to be brave, you choose when fighting the goddamned Kazekage!?"
The emotionless voice of the Kazekage sent a chill down Ao's spine, he would never admit it, but he liked Chojuro.
"Gold Dust: Wall."
Just before Chojuro's hammer hit the auburn haired man, a wall of gold appeared, the boy only succeeded in denting the defense.
"Gold Dust: Impale."
The wall in front of Chojuro began to move slightly. The blue haired boy's eyes widened and he barely managed to jump back, still being stabbed in the shoulder by a single spike.
"Damn. What the hell is this!?"
Zabuza's voice was strangely serious, without any of his earlier bloodlust.
"That, is the Gold Dust Jutsu of the Yondaime Kazekage."
Chojuro's eyes widened.
"What!? But I thought it was the Yondaime Hokage!"
Chojuro had taken the break to bandage his arm while Ao and Zabuza continued to stare at the man across the room.
He was about 5'8" with auburn hair and black rings around his eyes, it was made creepier by the fact that the man's eyes were solid black, the white was completely gone.
Ao stepped forward slightly.
"Just be glad it's not the Hokage. I'm sure we would all be dead otherwise. Now, none of that matters. The question is, how do we fight this guy?"
The others never got to answer when the Kazekage's emotionless voice spoke.
"Gold Dust: Wave."
*With Naruto
Naruto ducked under a wild swing from Suigetsu and landed a hard punch to the man's stomach, he was irritated when it turned to water before reforming.
"Not good enough!"
The wind was knocked out of Naruto when Suigetsu's foot hit his stomach.
"Damn it! Every time I hit him, he turns to water!"
Across from his, Suigetsu smirked.
"Sounds like someone is having a bad day…"
Naruto turned his glare to the boy in front of him.
"Yeah, and someone else's is about to get worse."
Holding his sword with his right hand, Naruto's left hand went through three hand seals.
"Oh, hand seals with only one hand is pretty damn impressive, never actually seen it done myself. Heh, not to mention being able to hold Kubikiribocho with only one hand. That thing weighs a ton. You must have trained a lot to reach that level, too bad all that training won't matter after today."
In an instant, Suigetsu's arm swelled again and he ran forward, preparing a punch. However, his eyes widened as he heard Naruto call out his jutsu.
"Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder Jutsu."
The electricity that surrounded Kubikiribocho had Suigetsu doing everything in his power to jump back and he barely managed, extending one of his arms to grab one of the nearby supports, the lightning infused sword missed him by less than an inch. Suigetsu wasted no time in jumping back, putting plenty of distance between them.
His cocky, amused smirk was no longer present, he was studying Naruto.
*With Zabuza, Ao and Chojuro
The three Kiri nin jumped as high as they could, sticking to the ceiling of the room and avoiding the giant wave of gold.
Zabuza began flashing through several hand seals.
"Let's set the stage. Water Release: Water Colliding Wave Jutsu!"
Hundreds of gallons of water began shooting from Zabuza's mouth, all of it pooling on the ground of the room. Soon, the water was several feet deep and the Kazekage was calmly standing on it.
Chojuro shot from the ceiling, his sword at the ready.
"Hiramekarei: Unleash!"
Chojuro's favorite hammer formed, aimed right at the Yondaime Kazekage's head.
"Gold Dust: Wall."
Meanwhile, Zabuza and Ao shared a nod as they both began flashing through hand seals.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
Suddenly, the Kazekage turned, a giant dragon made of water formed from the new lake.
"Gold Dust: Wall."
The Kazekage barely had enough dust to stop both Chojuro's and Zabuza's attacks.
"Water Release: Water Fang Jutsu!"
A single drill of water shot through the bottom of the water ripping his left leg off, the Kazekage could do nothing as he fell over and into the water, the golden walls falling into dust.
"Ha! We did it!"
When Chojuro looked over to Ao and Zabuza, he was surprised to already see Zabuza flashing through hand seals.
"What are you doing?"
"Water Release: Water Dragons' Hunting Ground Jutsu!"
Chojuro watched as Zabuza slammed his hands on the surface of the water, forming three large dragons and they swam off at high speeds, attacking the 'dead' Kazekage.
Ao's eyes were scanning the water for any sign of an attack as he answered Chojuro.
"The Impure Resurrection Jutsu brings the dead back to life, however, they are immortal. They have no chakra limits and they can't die. We don't even know how to go about getting rid of them. All we were able to figure out during our fight with Orochimaru, is they act dead while they are regenerating from potentially fatal wounds. As long as he is severely injured, he can't attack."
*With Orochimaru
"I see…I'm glad I was able to view this fight for myself. The knowledge gained is well worth the loss of the Hozuki kid."
Kabuto too, was watching the screen with interest, his eyes glancing back and forth between the fight against the Kazekage to Naruto's fight with Suigetsu.
"Perhaps, Orochimaru-sama, if you summoned multiple targets, they couldn't keep them injured in such a way."
Orochimaru nodded.
"Yes, I came to the same conclusion."
Kabuto's eyes wandered from the screen where the Kazekage was being repeatedly torn apart by several underwater dragons to watching Suigetsu do everything he could to evade Naruto's sparking sword.
"I don't think Suigetsu will last much longer. Should I set off the bombs in the Suigetsu's tank?"
Orochimaru continued to watch the two screens with interest.
"No… Not just yet, let them have their fun. For now, I saved 12 Cursed Seal failures for just this instance. Hopefully, that will be enough to free the Kazekage. I would hate for the entertainment to end so soon."
*With Naruto
Kubikiribocho sliced through one of the holding tanks like it was made of paper, Suigetsu barely managed to jump backwards.
"Damnit! That is Kubikiribocho! She was not designed for that! If you want to use lightning, you use Kiba!"
Suigetsu was promptly ignored when Naruto took another swing that was barely avoided.
"You're right, she was designed to taste the blood of her enemies, something you are denying her right to do. She is expressing her disappointment as we speak."
The voice Naruto used, sent a chill down Suigetsu's back.
A growl came from the white haired Hozuki's mouth as he began to flash through hand seals. He never got to finish, as the sparking Kubikiribocho came across and cut his hands off, turning them to a putty-like liquid.
Naruto was quick to follow up with a kick to Suigetsu's stomach, he never expected for the boy's stomach to turn into water.
"It's over now!"
A look of anguish passed over Naruto's face and he let off a yell, and for the first time since the start of the battle, blood was drawn as a dozen spikes grew from Suigetsu.
Haku's cries and the clanking of Kubikiribocho hitting the ground was all that was heard.
*With Zabuza, Ao and Chojuro
Ao watched as the Yondaime Kazekage's left leg regrew from the strange, paper like material. However, before it could finish, one of the dragons swam by, its sharp teeth ripping through the kage's flesh and ripping the leg back off.
"Nicely done, Zabuza. How long do you think you can keep this up?"
The large man just scoffed.
"This? I can do this for days."
Ao nodded.
"Good, I have an idea, but will need to test my theory… What we need to-"
RRRRROOOOOAAAAARRRRR
The sound of feet and claws running down the tunnel had all three of their attention. Ao was focusing particularly hard.
"Damn! There are more of those beast things! These ones are strong! Chojuro, block the tunnel!"
The blue haired teen nodded before he took off.
Chojuro slammed his sword in the ground, right at the entrance and placed both hands on the blade, just as he did, he saw a dozen pairs of evil yellow eyes.
"Hiramekarei: Unleash!"
The pale blue energy wall formed, immediately the creatures began using all possible means to destroy it. Claws, fists, teeth…they didn't care.
"Are you good, Chojuro!?"
Chojuro's strained voice barely made it to them.
"Y-yeah, but not for too long…"
Ao nodded and turned to Zabuza.
"You need to keep the Kazekage from recovering. Let Chojuro prove his worth. He'll take care of the beasts. I have a plan, I'll be back."
With that, Ao took off running down one of the many tunnels.
*With Naruto
The blonde swordsman stumbled backwards as he bled from six different locations on his torso.
He glared across from him at Suigetsu, who was panting rather heavily.
Suigetsu glared at him when he saw the wounds he caused were slowly healing.
"What the hell are you!?"
Naruto did is best to stand tall.
"I'm the last of the Uzumaki clan."
That didn't actually mean anything to Suigetsu as he bent down. Suigetsu smirked when he wrapped his hand around the hilt of Kubikiribocho.
"Now then, this fight starts for real…"
Suigetsu charged, bringing the sword towards Naruto's head, but the blonde was not idle, Haku tossed him two senbon that miraculously stood up to the incredible power of Kubikiribocho.
"You're going to need more than those little toothpicks!"
A grunt of pain left Naruto's mouth when Suigetsu launched his foot into his stomach; he was barely able to roll away when Kubikiribocho nearly beheaded him.
The two stood, staring across the field at each other. Naruto and Suigetsu were both smirking.
"Did you know that Samehada is not the only of the Seven to be sentient, well, semi-sentiant in this case."
Slowly, Kubikiribocho began to melt, the smell of blood and death making its way throughout the entire room.
"I-I never knew…"
After several seconds, Kubikiribocho was nothing more than a puddle of blood.
"Nobody did. Kubikiribocho: Reform."
Slowly, the puddle of blood made its way over towards Naruto until it was pooled at his feet. Slowly, the blood grew until the handle of Kubikiribocho was even with Naruto's head. The boy merely grasped the handle, effortlessly picking up the giant blade.
"You should see by now, Kubikiribocho will never be yours."
"Enmajiten!"
All three turned just in time to see Ao, a swirl of red chakra around him, demolishing one of the walls.
"Damn, it's about time! We need to hurry! If we don't, we're all dead!"
Naruto and Haku were serious while Suigetsu just stood there, looking at the three like they were idiots, which, in his mind, they were.
"Haku, take care of it!"
"Ice Release: Arctic Air Jutsu!"
A solid white breath of air left Haku's mouth and before the white haired man could do anything, he was frozen solid.
"Come on!"
Naruto grabbed Kubikiribocho while Ao threw Suigetsu over his shoulder and in an instant the three were running back.
"So what's going on?"
"We encountered the Yondaime Kazekage, reborn by Orochimaru's jutsu."
Both, Haku's and Naruto's eyes widened, neither one of them knew anything about the Kazekage but to become the leader of one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, you had to be abnormally strong, even among S-rank ninja.
"I thought you guys said that the Shodaime and Nindaime Hokages were immortal. How do you expect us to beat them?"
Ao turned back to them, a slight smirk on his face.
"Not both of you, just her."
Naruto turned to his wife that seemed slightly surprised.
"Me?"
Ao nodded, never breaking stride.
"Yeah, I know you didn't fight them, but try and keep up. They regenerate nearly instantly, but as long as they are mortally wounded, they can't fight. Right now, Zabuza's water dragons are tearing him apart as fast as he can heal."
Before Ao could speak anymore, the tunnel opened up.
"Ha!"
Chojuro's foot slammed into a reptilian beast's face, sending him skidding back, however he looked relatively unharmed.
Chojuro however, was panting heavily, his left arm hung uselessly by his side with a lot of blood dripping from his torn shoulder.
The blue haired teen didn't even notice the newcomers when his right arm began glowing with a pale blue energy.
"I might die trying, but you won't get any closer!"
Chojuro's glowing fist buried deep into the chest of the same reptilian beast. Unfortunately one of the beast's claws caught his forehead, the gash quickly started bleeding but he paid it no mind. Chojuro knew he needed to work fast and as quick as he could, dashed towards Zabuza, prepared to defend him with his life.
A beast that looked like an ogre charged forward, his fist ready to strike. Chojuro prepared to block, but the blood from his head found its way into his eyes. With the noise in the room he couldn't pinpoint the attack and the boy merely crossed his arms in front of his head, waiting for the strike.
However, it never came.
"Good job kid. I'm proud of you. We'll take it from here."
Chojuro wiped the blood from his eyes and looked up, only to see Ao smiling proudly at him. That was the last sight he saw before darkness claimed him.
*With Orochimaru
"We have no other traps in the training grounds, do we?"
The glass in Orochimaru's hand shattered as he clenched his hand around it.
"No. I knew the Kazekage was weak, but I never thought he would be beaten so easily."
Kabuto turned to the screen, just in time to see Naruto slice through the last three Curse Seal failures.
"Hmm, how do you suppose they will handle this? They need to repeatedly hurt him…"
The two watched with interest as Haku stood right above the Kazekage.
*With Naruto and team
"Ice Release: Arctic Air Jutsu!"
Haku gathered the coldest chakra she could muster before blowing all of it directly over the water. Slowly, a layer of ice covered the water, before the ice began to spread.
"The ice is making the water to thick! I can't keep up my jutsu! Hurry Haku!"
Haku's face began to turn red with exertion as she used as much chakra as she could find and after 10 seconds, she fell unconscious, the entire field was frozen solid.
"We should hurry, just in case."
The others nodded and each grabbed someone. Ao grabbed Chojuro, Zabuza grabbed Suigetsu and Naruto grabbed Haku, each running as fast as they could before they were attacked again.
It was one week after the fiasco in Orochimaru's base and he could say, without a shadow of a doubt, it was good to be home.
Haku and Chojuro had recovered quickly, mainly thanks to Ao's limited knowledge of medical chakra. Now, the group of four, with one – frozen – prisoner, were at the main gate of Kiri, there was a large contingent of Kiri-nin there, mostly those who knew Mangetsu, including the Mizukage herself.
"What the hell!? That man is a hero to Kiri, not a prisoner!"
Ao shrugged and gestured to Naruto.
Mei turned to everyone else that was there.
"Ok, this is over! I'm going to figure out exactly what it is that is happening, and then you can speak with Suigetsu."
It was only a matter of moments before the gate was cleared.
"Let's go…"
She turned on her heel and everyone followed without a word.
*Mizukage's office.
"Why don't you start with why the kid-brother of one of Kiri's greatest heroes is a popsicle."
Naruto scratched the back of his head, a habit he thought he had crushed.
"Well, you see…"
Haku took over at that moment.
"Kiri may view him as a hero, but he is not too fond of our land."
Mei's eyes narrowed.
"He expressed a great dislike for us, as Kiri Shinobi. Plus, he was only interested in obtaining Kubikiribocho from Naruto."
Haku continued on, going into great detail of their encounter with the heir to the Hozuki clan.
Mei rested her chin on her laced fingers as she thought over everything.
"I see, you two are dismissed. However, I'm going to need you to stay out of sight. I'm sure you can guess why. We don't need any unrest, Yagura owned a plot of land on the eastern coast of water country, why don't you two go spend the next two weeks relaxing while I deal with the mess here."
Before she was even finished talking, the two were gone.
A small smirk made its way onto her face.
"To be young and in love…"
With a sigh, she stood and made her way to the council chambers. She knew they would be waiting for her to make a report.
Several minutes later, she was proven correct when she saw every member of the Shinobi council along with the civilian representative.
The honorable elder spoke, his voice as regal as ever.
"I do hope they had a good reason for their actions."
Mei nodded to the man.
"Yes, the official report has not yet been written, but I received a verbal report of the occurrences."
Everyone in the room shifted, they wanted to hear this.
"Suigetsu did not wish to be there, but neither did he wish to be rescued by us."
Everyone in the room seemed surprised, but before they could interrupt, Mei continued.
"Upon seeing them, playful banter was exchanged between Suigetsu and Naruto. That was when Suigetsu made his move. His goal was to take Kubikiribocho from Naruto."
The Honorable Elder stroked his beard in thought.
"If I remember correctly, Hiramekarei was Mangetsu's favorite while Kubikiribocho was Suigetsu's. It makes a bit of sense when you think about it. When we all thought Mangetsu died during that botched mission to Ame, Suigetsu blamed Kiri for his death and began to resent this land. Before long, he had no more desire to become one of the seven swordsmen, he wanted to rule them. He wanted to take each and every one of the seven before finding them new wielders under his own banner, instead of Kiri."
Nearly every member on the council could only stare at the honorable elder in shock, all of them sharing an identical thought.
'How does he remember that, that was over 2 years ago…'
A smirk was firmly planted on the old man's face and everyone got the message. 'He may be old, but he is still a Shinobi.'
"Now, under heavy guard, I advise you wake him up in order to speak with him. This could have all been a misunderstanding. What are your thoughts on this Mizukage-sama?"
Mei continued to think, her fingers laced under her chin for nearly a minute.
"I agree."
With that, the council began debating on who would be suitable to guard him.
As this was going on, Mei's mind began to wander to a letter she kept hidden in her desk, one she received only days before Mangetsu's death.
FLASHBACK
Mei could only stare at the battle plans that had been laid out in front of her. Two days… that's how long she had to prepare. They had everything mapped out, the entrance they would take, the location of stationary guards, as well as the roving guard shifts and areas. They also had the ranks and names of the guards scheduled to work that night.
She continued to pour over everything. If even one guard was out of place or off schedule, the entire plan would fail and they would be fighting not only the Mizukage and his personal guard, but all of Kiri as well.
Just as she was about to start over, going over the plan for the hundredth time, there was a knock at her door.
"Yes?"
"It's me…"
Her brows furrowed in confusion.
"Mangetsu? What are you doing here?"
She quickly got up and opened the door, a kunai clutched behind her back.
"Waves will crash upon Kiri…"
Without a seconds hesitation, Mangetsu returned the other half key.
"When lightning strikes upon the Three-Tails."
She gave a slight smile and allowed him to enter, she immediately made her way back to her bed, continuing to look over the plans.
"What's wrong Mangetsu?"
The white haired man shrugged.
"I'm just getting a bad feeling… I'm worried I won't make it."
Mei looked up in surprise.
"What would give you that impression, you're the second strongest person on our side, maybe the strongest if you can get one of the swords."
Mangetsu just gave a noncommittal nod.
"Yeah… I already know I'm living on borrowed time. I should have died 3 years ago when the Mizukage set me up. If I hadn't washed up into Misaki's village, I have no doubt I would have died."
By this point, Mei was looking at the swordsman with a serious expression on her face.
"What are you trying to say?"
"I'm just saying that the Shinigami failed to take my soul once, I don't think he's going to let me go twice. You know, I only have one regret."
"Suigetsu…"
Mangetsu gave the woman a short nod.
"I had gotten so comfortable in that small, peaceful village… If only I had done something to find my memories… I could have come straight back, maybe I could have found him before he ran."
A single tear fell from Mangetsu's eye.
"Hey, you and I know you and your brother were a lot alike… We also know he is out there, somewhere causing mayhem somewhere. You will find him."
Mangetsu almost seemed to ignore her as he began speaking again.
"Yeah, maybe. Mei, I want you to promise me… If I'm not around to keep looking, I need you to do it in my place."
A stern look crossed her face.
"You will be there to search yourself."
"PROMISE ME!"
Mei was shocked, she had never seen him so passionate.
"I promise, I will do everything in my power to find your brother…"
Almost instantly he calmed down.
"Here…"
Mangetsu handed Mei a simple scroll addressed to his brother.
"If he's as hard-headed as I am, this should help you get through to him."
With that, Mangetsu left.
END FLASHBACK
Mei shook herself from her thoughts, focusing her attention on the meeting at hand.
*With Naruto and Haku
"This is awesome!"
Haku had a huge smile on her face as she walked next to Naruto. She couldn't help but look around at the sandy beach.
"This is amazing. With all the horrible things I have heard of Yagura, I never thought he would appreciate beauty like this."
The place truly was amazing, it was surprisingly humble, just two small grass huts no bigger than a standard bedroom. The white sand beaches were clearly untouched, coconut trees ripe for the picking, and the sound of the waves painted a picture of serenity.
With a smile on his face, Naruto walked over to one of the many coconuts at the base of the tree and easily cracked it open. He savored the sweet milk from the center. He was almost half-way done when he found the coconut gone.
"You're supposed to share…"
Haku had a smirk on her face as she finished the drink, all the while, Naruto sat and pouted.
That is, until the odd shape caused the raven haired woman to spill some milk down her neck.
Naruto's eyes followed the milk like a magnet held them, just as the drop was about to disappear into her kimono, he attacked. His lips seeking the sweetness of her skin, the milk merely added to the nirvana they both felt.
Instantly, the coconut hit the ground as Haku wrapped her arms around her husband's neck. A pleasured sigh escaped her lips as he nipped at her neck.
*Kiri Holding Cell
Zabuza, Chojuro, and Mei stood in front of two medic nin.
Mei gave the two a nod and they began to run their green hands over the form of Suigetsu.
Slowly but surely, the frozen boy began to thaw. After nearly ten minutes, Suigetsu resembled a puddle in the middle of the room.
"It should only take him a few minutes to reform…"
The three watched carefully as he began to shift, they could sense the pulses of chakra he was using to pull himself together. Before long, he was beginning to resemble the man he was.
Suigetsu was shocked, he was looking around rapidly, he should have been expecting to wake up in some sort of prison… It always happened like that.
"Welcome back to Kirigakure, Suigetsu-san."
*With Naruto and Haku
Naruto's eyes were on the verge of falling from his head as his incredibly tantalizing wife paraded herself down the beach in an incredibly skimpy blue with black lace bikini.
As the black haired girl walked towards the water with a hypnotic sway to her hips, a noise broke him from his own little world.
To most, it would have gone unheard, however, Naruto was no normal ninja.
'Is that… Giggling?'
"hehehehe… Oh yeah, you are looking good, Yuki-hime…"
By now, Naruto's face is red with rage as his hands begin to blur…
"Water Release: Water Dragon Missile Jutsu!"
His words quickly get Haku's attention and she is by his side in an instant, several senbon made from ice, ready to be thrown.
However, the girlish scream that came from the woods threw her off.
"What the hell!?"
By this point, Naruto had resorted to grumbling and pouting.
"Stupid, perverted old men… Jiraiya! Get your ass out here!"
*Konoha: Team 7
Sasuke looked over his shoulder at his teammates; Sakura and Sai. He was incredibly wary of Sai, the boy just rubbed him wrong. The way everything he did seemed… forced. As though he had wasn't even human. Then there was Sakura, while he knew she would do anything to assist him, the list of what she could do was rather limited. She had been improving lately, it wasn't overly impressive.
The watchful eye of his Sharingan noticed a twitch in the woods ahead.
Keeping his voice as low as possible, Sasuke spoke.
"Target sighted…2 o'clock at 280 meters."
Both Sai and Sakura locked onto his general location. Without the aid of a doujutsu, they were unable to make out the ripples of the target but they knew better than to question Sasuke when it came to eyesight.
"Standard Flying V attack formation on my mark."
The other two nodded towards the current team-leader.
"3, 2, 1…Mark!"
Like a bullet the three were off, Sasuke leading the charge with Sai and Sakura on his rear right and left flank respectively.
Sasuke flashed through some of his favorite hand seals.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Fire Jutsu!"
A dozen fireballs short from Sasuke's mouth and converged onto one location.
The target had no choice but to flee. Jumping from the branch it had been perched on caused a distorting effect as it moved, easily allowing Sai and Sakura to get a lock on his position. (Think the Predator camouflage)
Hoping to herd him where they had prepared the trap, Sakura let a handful of shuriken fly. The distortion began moving in the wrong direction, much to Team Seven's ire.
Sai was quick to assist.
"Super Beast Imitation Jutsu!"
Half a dozen black and white lions came to life, springing from a scroll he kept in his possession. With surprising speed, they shot off, cutting the target's escape route.
Sasuke saw his opportunity when the target stumbled slightly. He quickly scooped three shuriken from his pouch, not even taking a second to aim, he flashed through a few hand seals.
"Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!"
Team Seven was rewarded with a grunt of pain and the spraying of blood.
*With Suigetsu
The glare Suigetsu was sending them was almost enough to make them wince.
"Shut your damn mouth! We all know my brother died on that mission almost 4 years ago!"
Mei attempted to give Suigetsu's shoulder a comforting squeeze but it was apparent that it was having the opposite effect. She quickly noticed and removed her hand.
"I'm sorry Suigetsu, but it's true. Yagura wanted to eradicate your clan but knew Mangetsu was strong enough to fight off anyone he sent, short of going himself. He arranged for a well-known gang of missing-nin to attack him on his way back from his mission. He would have died if he didn't wash upon the shores of Lightning Country. He had lost all his memory; he didn't even know his name. It wasn't until almost a year later when the small village he was living in was attacked by some bandits. After he killed them, his life came back to him in flashes. He remembered who he was. He managed to contact some of his old comrades from ANBU, who put him in contact with me. He was quickly made 2nd in command of the rebellion until he lost his life."
By this point Suigetsu was squeezing the chair he was strapped to so hard the metal began to bend slightly.
"Lies… It has to be a lie! He would have told me he was alive!"
Mei sighed sadly.
"He tried…"
Suigetsu's head snapped towards the red haired woman.
"It was the deal we made. He assists us in fighting the war, and in exchange, every available asset or spy we had on the outside was to keep one eye open and both ears to the ground for anything pertaining to you…"
Suigetsu didn't know what to say.
"I… I don't believe you."
The Mizukage turned to the others who were present.
"Give us a few minutes…"
All occupants began shouting their objections.
Mei turned to them with a sickly sweet smile.
"I'm the Mizukage for a reason… Now…Out!"
With concerned expressions the left the room.
Meanwhile, Suigetsu was staring at the woman with suspicion in his eyes.
"You know, I think your bother knew he was going to die that day…"
Suigetsu didn't say anything.
"Two days before the day of his death he walked into my room around midnight and asked me to hold this for you."
She pulled a simple looking scroll from her robe.
"I honestly don't even know what it is. Here."
With that, she set the scroll on the table and walked over to one of the walls.
"As I said before. Kiri and I owe your brother, and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if we kept you prisoner. So, here."
She placed one hand on the wall and focused her Earth chakra and slowly a hole began to form until it was nearly a foot wide.
She walked passed his chair and touched the seals that kept him tangible.
"I do hope you will at least read the scroll first."
With her piece said, she left the very confused swordsman alone, staring at what was basically his brothers last words.
With a sigh, he jumped from the hole, landing in the woods before taking off.
Back in the room, the table was empty.
*With Naruto
Naruto and a more dressed Haku were staring at the Toad Sage like he was insane.
"So what you're telling me, is you want me to go with you, on a 3 year journey, alone…"
Jiraiya was wearing one of his rare serious expressions as he gave a quick nod.
"Yeeeeaaaaaaahhhhh….. I don't think so… Galavanting around with a foreign Shinobi for 3 years sounds like a way to get caught up in some political red tape. I don't like it… Not to mention 3 years without Haku would be torture."
Haku nodded a frown on her face.
"It's a good thing you said no… You made a promise to me and I intend to make you keep it. I stay by your side, husband!"
Jiraiya could only turn his head from Naruto to Haku, unsure of what to do.
'Damn, this was only supposed to be me and Naruto… Well, I might be able to make it work…'
"I think I can work around that… How would you, little lady like to be trained by the Great Jiraiya-sama!?"
Haku stared at the man with a deadpan look.
"Yes! Please can I stay with the perverted old man who was just checking me out…You must be joking."
Jiraiya could only sweatdrop…
'I guess I kind of asked for that one…'
Haku continued to speak.
"However, if my other option is to be separated from Naruto again, I will force myself to put up with your presence."
Jiraiya's sweatdrop formed again.
"This is gonna be fun…"
Naruto could only sheepishly scratch the back of his head at his wife's behavior.
*Mei
"You did what!?"
Mei glared at Ao.
"It was the least I could do for him! I refuse to keep him here as a prisoner! His brother fought and died so that Kiri could be reborn into a better nation than it was! Do you want to spit on his grave by forcing his little brother into a cell, just for our own benefit!? We would be no better than that bastard Yagura!"
Ao couldn't say anything to that.
He sighed and leaned against the wall as Zabuza and Chojuro watched, both wearing solemn faces.
Mei muttered a prayer under her breath as she opened the door.
The room was empty…
The red-haired beauty's face fell into a solemn one.
That is it! It only took me 6 months LOL!
POLL! Naruto's summon- This is probably where my motivation to continue the story came from… I was bored and on Netflix when I turned on How to Train Your Dragon The Book of Dragons I saw the Thunder Drum and was like, that would be awesome for Naruto. Fast in water, wings to fly… plus the idea of the concussive sound attack is pretty cool. If I do go with Thunder Drum or even one of the other dragons, it will be the only one of its kind… I figure Orochimaru has to be doing experiments on things other than himself right… I usually get annoyed by dragon summoning contracts so, if you guys don't like the idea, let me know and give me some ideas for a new one.
The fight with the Kazekage was pretty anti-climatic huh…
I chose the Fourth Kazekage, because he is definitely strong, but not so strong that they would never be able to beat him… Plus it made sense, Orochimaru just killed the man a few months earlier, there is no way he didn't get some of the man's DNA for such a reason.
I tried to portray that Orochimaru is still working on perfecting the Impure Resurrection… He is getting closer and closer, but still has a ways to go. I just watched the Sarutobi vs. Orochimaru fight to make sure I was right, at least in the beginning, the Shodaime and Nindaime were dead-like as long as they were mortally injured…